William Shakespeare - KING RICHARD III

SECOND MURDERER

Spoke like a tall man that respects thy reputation. Come, shall we fall to work?

FIRST MURDERER

Take him on the costard with the hilts of thy sword, and then throw him in the malmsey-butt in the next room.

SECOND MURDERER

O excellent device! and make a sop of him.

FIRST MURDERER

Soft! he wakes.

SECOND MURDERER

Strike!

FIRST MURDERER

No, we’ll reason with him.

CLARENCE

Where art thou, keeper? give me a cup of wine.

SECOND MURDERER

You shall have wine enough, my lord, anon.

CLARENCE

In God’s name, what art thou?

FIRST MURDERER

A man, as you are.

CLARENCE

But not as I am, royal.

SECOND MURDERER

Nor you as we are, loyal.

CLARENCE

Thy voice is thunder, but thy looks are humble.

FIRST MURDERER

My voice is now the king’s, my looks mine own.

CLARENCE

How darkly and how deadly dost thou speak!

Your eyes do menace me; why look you pale?

Who sent you hither? Wherefore do you come?

SECOND MURDERER

To, to, to—

CLARENCE

To murder me?

BOTH MURDERERS

Ay, ay.

CLARENCE

You scarcely have the hearts to tell me so,

And therefore cannot have the hearts to do it.

Wherein, my friends, have I offended you?

FIRST MURDERER

Offended us you have not, but the king.

CLARENCE

I shall be reconcil’d to him again.

SECOND MURDERER

Never, my lord; therefore prepare to die.

CLARENCE

Are you drawn forth among a world of men

To slay the innocent? What is my offence?

Where is the evidence that doth accuse me?

What lawful quest have given their verdict up

Unto the frowning judge? or who pronounc’d

The bitter sentence of poor Clarence’ death?

Before I be convíct by course of law,

To threaten me with death is most unlawful.

I charge you, as you hope to have redemption

By Christ’s dear blood shed for our grievous sins,

That you depart, and lay no hands on me:

The deed you undertake is damnable.

FIRST MURDERER

What we will do, we do upon command.

SECOND MURDERER

And he that hath commanded is our king.

CLARENCE

Erroneous vassals! the great King of kings

Hath in the table of his law commanded

That thou shalt do no murder: will you then

Spurn at His edict and fulfil a man’s?

Take heed; for He holds vengeance in His hand

To hurl upon their heads that break His law.

SECOND MURDERER

And that same vengeance doth He hurl on thee

For false forswearing, and for murder too:

Thou didst receive the sacrament to fight

In quarrel of the house of Lancaster.

FIRST MURDERER

And like a traitor to the name of God

Didst break that vow; and with thy treacherous blade

Unripp’dst the bowels of thy sovereign’s son.

SECOND MURDERER

Whom thou wast sworn to cherish and defend.

FIRST MURDERER

How canst thou urge God’s dreadful law to us,

When thou hast broke it in such dear degree?

CLARENCE

Alas! for whose sake did I that ill deed?

For Edward, for my brother, for his sake:

He sends you not to murder me for this;

For in that sin he is as deep as I.

If God will be avengèd for the deed,

O, know you yet He doth it publicly.

Take not the quarrel from His powerful arm;

He needs no indirect or lawless course

To cut off those that have offended Him.

FIRST MURDERER

Who made thee, then, a bloody minister

When gallant-springing brave Plantagenet,

That princely novice, was struck dead by thee?

CLARENCE

My brother’s love, the devil, and my rage.

FIRST MURDERER

Thy brother’s love, our duty, and thy faults,

Provoke us hither now to slaughter thee.

CLARENCE

If you do love my brother, hate not me;

I am his brother, and I love him well.

If you are hir’d for meed, go back again,

And I will send you to my brother Gloster,

Who shall reward you better for my life

Than Edward will for tidings of my death.

SECOND MURDERER

You are deceiv’d, your brother Gloster hates you.

CLARENCE

O, no, he loves me, and he holds me dear:

Go you to him from me.

FIRST MURDERER

Ay, so we will.

CLARENCE

Tell him when that our princely father York

Bless’d his three sons with his victorious arm

And charg’d us from his soul to love each other,

He little thought of this divided friendship:

Bid Gloster think of this, and he will weep.

FIRST MURDERER

Ay, millstones; as he lesson’d us to weep.

CLARENCE

O, do not slander him, for he is kind.

FIRST MURDERER

Right, as snow in harvest.—Come, you deceive yourself:

‘Tis he that sends us to destroy you here.

CLARENCE

It cannot be; for he bewept my fortune,

And hugg’d me in his arms, and swore, with sobs,

That he would labour my delivery.

FIRST MURDERER

Why, so he doth, when he delivers you

From this earth’s thraldom to the joys of heaven.

SECOND MURDERER

Make peace with God, for you must die, my lord.

CLARENCE

Have you that holy feeling in your souls,

To counsel me to make my peace with God,

And are you yet to your own souls so blind

That you will war with God by murdering me?—

O, sirs, consider, they that set you on

To do this deed will hate you for the deed.

SECOND MURDERER

What shall we do?

CLARENCE

Relent, and save your souls.

FIRST MURDERER

Relent! ‘tis cowardly and womanish.

CLARENCE

Not to relent is beastly, savage, devilish.

Which of you, if you were a prince’s son,

Being pent from liberty, as I am now,—

If two such murderers as yourselves came to you,—

Would not entreat for life?—

My friend, I spy some pity in thy looks;

O, if thine eye be not a flatterer,

Come thou on my side, and entreat for me,

As you would beg, were you in my distress:

A begging prince what beggar pities not?

SECOND MURDERER

Look behind you, my lord.

FIRST MURDERER.

[Stabs him.]

Take that, and that: if all this will not do,

I’ll drown you in the malmsey-butt within.

[Exit with the body.]

SECOND MURDERER

A bloody deed, and desperately dispatch’d!

How fain, like Pilate, would I wash my hands

Of this most grievous murder!

[Re-enter FIRST MURDERER.]

FIRST MURDERER

How now, what mean’st thou that thou help’st me not?

By heavens, the duke shall know how slack you have been!

SECOND MURDERER

I would he knew that I had sav’d his brother!

Take thou the fee, and tell him what I say;

For I repent me that the duke is slain.

[Exit.]

FIRST MURDERER

So do not I: go, coward as thou art.—

Well, I’ll go hide the body in some hole,

Till that the duke give order for his burial:

And when I have my meed, I will away;

For this will out, and then I must not stay.

[Exit.]

Table of Contents

[Enter KING EDWARD, led in sick, QUEEN ELIZABETH, DORSET, RIVERS, HASTINGS, BUCKINGHAM, GREY, and others.]

KING EDWARD

Why, so. Now have I done a good day’s work:—

You peers, continue this united league:

I every day expect an embassage

From my Redeemer, to redeem me hence;

And more at peace my soul shall part to heaven,

Since I have made my friends at peace on earth.

Rivers and Hastings, take each other’s hand;