Page:Richard II (1921) Yale.djvu/89

King Richard the Second, IV. i

Anointed, crowned, planted many years,

Be judg'd by subject and inferior breath,

And he himself not present? O! forfend it, God,

That in a Christian climate souls refin'd

Should show so heinous, black, obscene a deed.

I speak to subjects, and a subject speaks,

Stirr'd up by God thus boldly for his king.

My Lord of Hereford here, whom you call king,

Is a foul traitor to proud Hereford's king;

And if you crown him, let me prophesy,

The blood of English shall manure the ground

And future ages groan for this foul act;

Peace shall go sleep with Turks and infidels,

And in this seat of peace tumultuous wars

Shall kin with kin and kind with kind confound;

Disorder, horror, fear and mutiny

Shall here inhabit, and this land be call'd

The field of Golgotha and dead men's skulls.

O! if you raise this house against this house,

It will the woefullest division prove

That ever fell upon this cursed earth.

Prevent it, resist it, let it not be so,

Lest child, child's children, cry against you 'woe!'

North. Well have you argu'd, sir; and, for your pains,

Of capital treason we arrest you here.

My Lord of Westminster, be it your charge

To keep him safely till his day of trial.

May it please you, lords, to grant the commons' suit?

Boling. Fetch hither Richard, that in common view

He may surrender; so we shall proceed

Without suspicion.

 127 planted: established

129 forfend: avert

141 kind: family

confound: mingle indistinguishably

149 child, etc.; cf. n.

151 Of: on a charge of

154 suit; cf. n.

