Did pufh it out of further queftion.

Ely. But how, my Lord, fhall we refift it now? Cant. It must be thought on. If it pass against us, We lofe the better half of our poffeffion :

For all the temporal lands, which men devout
By teftament have given to the church,

Would they ftrip from us; being valu'd thus:
As much as would maintain, to the King's honour,
Full fifteen earls, and fifteen hundred knights,"
Six thousand and two hundred good efquires;
And to relief of lazars, and weak age

Of indigent faint fouls, palt corporal toil,
A hundred alms-houfes, right well fupply'd;
And to the coffers of the King, befide,

A thousand pounds by th' year. Thus runs the bill.
Ely. This would drink deep..

Cant. 'Twould drink the cup and all..

Ely. But what prevention

Cant. he King is full of grace and fair regard.
Ely. And a true lover of the holy church.
Cant. The courses of his youth promis'd it not;
The breath no fooner left his father's body,
But that his wildnefs, mortify'd in him,

Seem'd to die too; yea, at that very moment,
Confideration, like an angel came,

"And whipp'd th' offending Adam out of him; "Leaving his body as a paradife,

T'invelope and contain celestial spirits.

Never was fuch a fudden fcholar made:

Never came reformation in a flood

With fuch a heady current, fcow'ring faults:
Nor ever Hydra-headed wilfulness

So foon did loie his feat, and all at once,
As in this King.

Ely. We're bleffed in the change.

Cant. Hear him but reafon in divinity,
And, all-admiring, with an inward with

You would defire, the King were made a Prelate,
Hear him debate of commonwealth-affairs,
You'd fay, it hath been all in all his tudy.
Lift his difcourfe of war, and you hill hear
A fearful battle render d you in mufic.

VOL. IV.

Ii

Turn

Turn him to any caufe of policy,

The Gordian knot of it he will unloofe,
Familiar as his garter. When he speaks,
The air, a charter'd libertine, is ftill;
And the mute wonder lurketh in mens' ears,
To fteal his fweet and honeyed fentences:
So that the act, and practic part of life,
Must be the mistress to this theorique.

Which is a wonder how his Grace should glean it,
Since his addiction was to courses vain;
His companies unletter'd, rude, and thallow;
His hours fill'd up with riots, banquets, fports;
And never noted in him any study,

Any retirement, any fequeftration,
From open haunts and popularity.

Ely. The ftrawberry grows underneath the nettle, And wholfome berries thrive, and ripen beft, Neighbour'd by fruit of bafer quality:

And fo the Prince obfcur'd his contemplation
Under the veil of wildness; which, no doubt,
Grew like the fummer-grafs, fastest by night,
Unfeen, yet crefcive in his faculty.

Cant. It must be fo; for miracles are ceas'd:
And therefore we muft needs admit the means,
How things are perfected.

Ely. But, my gook Lord,

How now for mitigation of this bill,
Urge'd by the Commons? doth his Majefty,
Incline to it, or no?

Cant. He feems indifferent;

Or rather fwaying more upon our part,
Than cherishing th' exhibiters against us.
For I have made an offer to his Majesty,
Upon our fpiritual convocation;

And in regard of caufes now in hand,
Which I have open'd to his Grace at large,
As touching France, to give a greater fum,
Than ever at one time the clergy yet
Did to his predeceffors part withal.

Ely. How did this offer feem receiv'd, my Lord? Cant. With good acceptance of his Majesty : Save that there was not time enough to hear

(As

(As I perceiv'd his Grace would fain have done)
The feverals, and unhidden paffages

Of his true titles to fome certain dukedoms,
And, generally, to the crown of France,
Deriv'd from Edward his great grandfather.

Ely. What was the impediment that broke this off? Cant. The French Ambassador upon that inftant Crav'd audience; and the hour, I think, is come、 To give him hearing. Is it four o'clock?

Ely. It is.

Cant. Then go we in to know his embaffy:
Which I could with a ready guefs declare,
Before the Frenchman speaks a word of it.
Ely. I'll wait upon you, and I long to hear it.

SCENE

[Exeunt.

II. Opens to the presence.

Enter King Henry, Gloucester, Bedford, Clarence, Warwick, Weftmorland, and Exeter.

K. Henry. Where is my gracious Lord of Canterbury? Exe. Not here in prefence.

K. Henry. Send for him, good uncle.

Weft. Shall we call in th' ambaffador, my Liege ? K. Henry. Not yet, my coufin; we would be refolv'd, Before we hear him, of fome things of weight, That task our thoughts, concerning us and France. Enter the Archbishop of Canterbury, and Bishop of Ely. Cant. God and his angels guard your facred throne, And make you long become it!

K. Henry. Sure, we thank you.

My learned Lord, we pray you to proceed,

And juftly and religiously unfold,

Why the law Salike, that they have in France,
Or fhould, or fhould not, bar us in our claim.
And God forbid, my dear and faithful Lord,
That you should fashion, wreft, or bow your reading;
Or nicely charge your understanding foul
With opening titles mifcreate, whofe right
Suits not in native colours with the truth.

*Tafk, for employ fimply.

Ii2

For

For God doth know, how many now in health
Shall drop their blood, in approbation
Of what your reverence fhall incite us to.
Therefore take heed how
*
you impawn our perfon;
How you awake our fleeping fword of war:
We charge you in the name of God, take heed.
For never two fuch kingdoms did contend
Without much fall of blood; whofe guiltlefs drops
Are every one a woe, a fore complaint,

'Gainst him whofe wrong gives edge unto the fwords,
That make fuch wafte in brief mortality.
Under this conjuration, fpeak, my Lord;

For we will hear, note, and believe in heart, That what you speak is in your confcience wash'd, As pure as fin with baptifm.

Cant. Then hear me, gracious Sovereign, and you That owe your lives, your faith, and fervices, [Peers, To this imperial throne. There is no bar To make against your Highness' claim to France, But this which they produce from Pharamond: In terram Salicam mulieres ne fuccedant; No woman fhall fucceed in Salike land: Which Salike land the French unjustly gloze To be the realm of France, and Pharamond* The founder of this law and female bar. Yet their own authors faithfully affirm, That the land Salike lies in Germany, Between the floods of Sala and of Elve:

I

Where Charles the Great, having fubdu'd the Saxons,
There left behind and fettled certain French:

Who, holding in difdain the German women,
For some dishonest manners of their life,
Establish'd then this law; to wit, no female
fhould be inheritrix in Salike land:

Which Salike, as I faid, 'twixt Elve and Sala,
Is at this day in Germany call'd Meifen.
Thus doth it well appear, that Salike law
Was not devifed for the realm of France.

* Impawn for enrage fimp y.

Tins whe perch is copied (in a manner verbatim) from Hall' chronicle, Henry V. year the fecund, folio 4. xx. xxx. xl. &c. Mr. Pope,

Nor

Nor did the French poffefs the Salike land,
Until four hundred one and twenty years
After defunction of King Pharamond,
(Idly fuppos'd the founder of this law)
Who died within the year of our redemption
Four hundred twenty-fix; and Charles the Great
Subdu'd the Saxons, and did feat the French
Beyond the river Sala in the year

Eight hundred five. Befides, their writers fay,
King Pepin, which depofed Childerick,

Did as heir-general (being defcended

Of Blithild, which was daughter to King Clothair)
Make claim and title to the crown of France.
Hugh Capet alfo, who ufurp'd the crown

Of Charles the Duke of Lorrain, fole heir-male
Of the true line and stock of Charles the Great,
To fine his title with fome thews of truth,
(Though, in pure truth, it was corrupt and naught),
Convey'd himself as heir to th' Ladyingare,
Daughter to Charlemain, who was the fon
To Lewis th' Emperor, which was the fon
Of Charles the Great Alfo King Lewis the ninch +,
Who was fole heir to the usurper Capet,
Could not keep quiet in his conicience,
Wearing the crown of France, till fatisfy'd
That fair Queen Ifabel, his grandmother,
Was lineal of the Lady Ermengere,

Daughter to Charles the forefaid Duke of Lorrain:
By the which match the line of Charles the Great
Was re-united to the crown of France.

So that, as clear as is the tummer's fun,
King Pepin's title, and Hugh Capet's claim,
King Lewis his poffeffion ‡, all appear
To hold in right and title of the female.
So do the Kings of France until this day.
Howbeit they would hold up this Salike law,
To bar your Highneis claiming from the female;
And rather chute to hide them in a net,
Than amply to imbare their crooked titles,

. e. refine, purify.

+ Tenth. See Hall. be. cit. Mr. Pope.
Satisfaction. See Hall, loc. cit. Mr. Pɔpe.

Ufurp'd