335304Bast. Thou Nature art my Godde
sse,
to thy law
336my
seruices
305are bound, wherefore
should I
337stand in the plague of cu
stome,
306and permit
338the curio
sitie of nations to depriue me,
339for that I am
307some twelue or 14.
moone
shines
340lag of a brother,
why ba
stard?
308wherfore ba
se,
341when my dementions are as well compa
ct,
309mind as generous,
and my
shape as true
343as hone
st madams i
ssue,
310why brand they vs
344with ba
se, ba
se ba
stardie?
345who in the lu
sty
311stealth of nature, take more compo
sition and feirce quality,
347then
312doth within a
stale dull lyed bed,
348goe to the creating of a whole
313tribe of fops
349got tweene a
sleepe and wake; well the
350legitimate
314Edgar, I mu
st haue your land,
351our Fathers loue is to the ba
stard
315Edmund,
352as to the legitimate,
353well my legitimate, if this letter
316speede,
354and my inuention thriue,
Edmund the ba
se
317gitimate: I grow, I pro
sper,
356now Gods
stand vp for Ba
stards.
358319Glost. Kent bani
sht thus, and
France in choller parted,
359and
320the King gone to night,
sub
scribd his power,
360con
fined to exhi
- 321bition, all this donne
361vpon the gadde;
Edmund how now
362323Bast. So plea
se your Lord
ship, none
: 363324Glost. Why
so earne
stly
seeke you to put vp that letter?
364325Bast. I know no newes my Lord.
365326Glost. What paper were you reading?
367328Glost. No, what needes then that terribe di
spatch of
368it into
329your pocket, the qualitie of nothing hath not
369such need to hide
330it
selfe, lets
see, come if it bee no
370thing I
shall not neede
spe
cta
- 371332Ba. I be
seech you Sir pardon me,
it is a letter
372from my brother,
333that I haue not all ore read,
for
so
373much as I haue peru
sed, I
find it
334not
fit for your liking.
375335Glost. Giue me the letter
sir.
376336Bast, I
shall o
ffend either to detaine or giue it,
377the contents
337as in part I vnder
stand them,
378are too blame.
379338Glost. Lets
see, lets
see?
380339Bast. I hope for my brothers iu
sti
fication, he wrot
381this but
340as an e
ssay,
or ta
st of my vertue.
A Letter. 382341Glost. This policie of age makes the
383world bitter to the be
st 342of our times, keepes our fortunes from
384vs till our oldnes cannot
343reli
sh them, I begin to
find an idle
385and fond bondage in the op
- 344pre
ssion of aged tyranny,
who
swaies
386not as it hath power,
but as
345it is
su
ffered,
come to me,
that of
387this I may
speake more, if our
346father would
sleepe till I wakt
388him, you
should inioy halfe his
347reuenew for euer, and liue the
389beloued of your brother
Ed- 390349 Hum, con
spiracie,
slept till I wakt him,
you
should
391enioy halfe
350his reuenew, my
sonne
Edgar, had hee a
392hand to write this, a
351hart,
and braine to breed it in,
393when came this to you, who
394353Bast. It was not brought me my Lord, ther's the
395cunning of
354it, I found it throwne in at the ca
sement of
396my clo
set.
397355Glost. You know the Cara
ctar to be your brothers?
398356Bast. If the matter were good,
my Lord I dur
st sweare
399it were
357his but in re
spe
ct,
of that I would faine thinke it
400were
not,
402359Bast. It is his hand my Lord, but I hope his heart is
403not in
404361Glost. Hath he neuer heretofore
soũded you in this bu
sines
? 405362Bast. Neuer my Lord, but I haue often heard him main
406taine
363it to be
fit, that
sons at per
fit age,
& fathers
407declining,
his father
364should be as ward to the
sonne,
and
408the
sonne mannage the re
- 409366Glost. O villaine,
villaine,
his very opinion in the let
410ter, ab
- 367horred villaine,
vnnaturall dete
sted bruti
sh 411villaine,
wor
se then
368bruti
sh,
go
sir
seeke him,
I
412apprehend him,
abhominable villaine
413370Bast. I doe not well know my Lord, if it
shall plea
se you to
414371su
spend your indignation again
st my brother, til you can
415deriue
372from him better te
stimony of this intent: you
should
416run a cer
- 373taine cour
se, where if you violently proceed
417again
st him, mi
- 374staking his purpo
se, it would make a great
418gap in your owne
375honour,
&
shake in peeces the heart of
419his obediẽce,
I dare pawn
376downe my life for him,
420he hath wrote this to feele my a
ffe
ction
377to your honour,
and
421to no further pretence of danger.
423379Bast. If your honour iudge it meete, I will place you
424where
380you
shall heare vs conferre of this,
and by an auri
425gular a
ssurance
381haue your
sati
sfa
ction, and that without
426any further delay then
427383Glost. He cannot be
such a mon
ster.
427.2385Glost. To his father,
that
so tenderly and intirely loues him,
427.3386heauen and earth
! Edmund seeke
428him out, wind mee into him, I
387pray you frame your bu
429sines after your own wi
sedome, I would
388vn
state my
430selfe to be in a due re
solution.
431389Bast. I
shall
seeke him
sir pre
sently, conuey the bu
432sine
sse as I
390shall
see meanes, and acquaint you withall.
433391Glost. The
se late eclip
ses in the Sunne and Moone por
434tend
392no good to vs, though the wi
sedome of nature can
435rea
son thus
393and thus, yet nature
finds it
selfe
scourg'd
436by the
sequent e
ffe
cts,
394loue cooles, friend
ship fals o
ff,
437brothers diuide,
in Citties mu
- 395tinies, in Countries di
s438cords, Pallaces trea
son, the bond crackt
396betweene
439sonne and father;
444find out this villaine
Edmund, it
shal
397loo
se
445thee nothing, doe it carefully, and the noble and true har
- 446398ted
Kent bani
sht, his o
ffence hone
st,
strange
strange!
447399Bast. This is the excellent foppery of the world, that
448when
400we are
sicke in Fortune,
often the
surfeit of our owne
449behauiour,
401we make guiltie of our di
sa
sters, the Sunne, the
450Moone,
and the
402Starres, as if we were Villaines by nece
ssitie,
451Fooles by heauen
- 403ly compul
sion, Knaues, Theeues, and
452Trecherers by
spirituall
404predominance, Drunkards, Ly
453ars,
and Adulterers by an enfor
st 405obedience of planitary
454in
fluence, and all that wee are euill in,
406by a diuine thru
455sting on, an admirable eua
sion of whorema
ster
407man,
456to lay his goti
sh di
spo
sition to the charge of Starres:
457my
408Father compounded with my Mother vnder the Dra
458gons taile,
409and my natiuitie was vnder
Vrsa maior,
so
459that it followes,
I am
410rough and lecherous,
Fut,
I
should
460haue beene that I am,
had the
411maidenle
st starre of the Fir
461mament twinckled on my ba
stardy
462412 er Edgar
463Edgar; and out hee comes like the Cata
strophe of the old Co
- 414medy,
464mine is villanous melancholy, with a
sith like them of
465415Bedlam; O the
se eclip
ses doe portend the
se diui
466sions.
416Edgar. How now
467brother
Edmund,
what
serious con
468templa
- 469418Bast. I am thinking brother of a predi
ction I read this
470other
419day,
what
should follow the
se Eclip
ses.
471420Edg. Doe you bu
sie your
selfe about that?
472421Bast. I promi
se you the e
ffe
cts he writ of,
succeed
473vnhappily,
422as of vnnaturalne
sse betweene the child and the parent, death,
473.1423dearth, di
ssolutions of ancient amities, diui
sions in
state, mena
- 473.2424ces and maledi
ctions again
st King and nobles, needles di
ffiden
- 473.3425ces,
bani
shment of
friẽds,
di
ssipation of Cohorts,
nuptial breach
- 473.5427Edg. How long haue you beene a
se
ctary A
stronomicall?
428Bast. Come, come,
474when
saw you my father la
st? 429Edg. Why,
475the night gon by.
476430Bast. Spake you with him?
477431Edg. Two houres together.
478432Bast. Parted you in good tearmes
? found you no di
s479plea
sure
433in him by word or countenance?
481435Bast. Bethinke your
selfe wherein you may haue o
ffen
482ded
436him, and at my intreatie,
forbeare his pre
sence,
till
483some little
437time hath quali
fied the heat of his di
splea
sure,
484which at this in
- 438stant
so rageth in him,
that with the mi
s485chiefe,
of your par
son it
486440Edg. Some villaine hath done me wrong.
487441Bast. Thats my feare
493brother, I adui
se you to the be
st, goe
442arm'd, I am no hone
st 494man if there bee any good meaning to
- 443wards you, I haue told
495you what I haue
seene & heard, but faint
- 444ly, nothing
496like the image and horror of it, pray you away
497445Edg. Shall I heare from you anon?
498446Bast. I doe
serue you in this bu
sines:
Exit Fdgar 499447A credulous Father,
and a brother noble,
500448Who
se nature is
so farre from doing harmes,
501449That he
su
spe
cts none,
on who
se fooli
sh hone
sty
502450My pra
cti
ses ride ea
sie, I
see the bu
sines,
503451Let me if not by birth, haue lands by wit,
504452All with me's meete, that I can fa
shion
fit.
Exit.