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Henry V

Act I, Scene 1

London. An ante-chamber in the KING'S palace.
 
[Enter the ARCHBISHOP OF CANTERBURY, and the BISHOP OF ELY]
 
CANTERBURY
           ,           ,                  ,    ,         ,
      My lord,| I'll tell | you, that / self bill | is urged,
        ,     3   3   ,          ,    2        T     T     T
      Which in the e|leventh | year of the | last king's reign
            ,         ,        ,        ,           ,
      Was like,| and had | indeed | against | us passed,
            ,          ,         ,       ,       ,
      But that | the scamb|ling and | unqui|et time
            ,        ,         ,        ,     ,
      Did push | it out | of farth|er ques|tion.
 
ELY
           ,         ,           ,       ,        ,
      But how | my lord | shall we | resist | it now?
 
CANTERBURY
           ,          ,           ,        ,           x
      It must | be thought | on: If | it pass | against us,
           ,          x       ,         ,       ,
      We lose | the better | half of | our pos|session:
           ,          ,   2     ,            ,        ,
      For all | the temp|oral lands,| which men | devout
          ,      ,          ,      ,          ,
      By test|ament | have giv|en to | the church,
        ,            ,              ,      ,        ,
      Would they | strip from |us; be|ing val|ued thus,
           ,         ,           ,      2       ,      ,
      As much | as would | maintain,| to the king's | honor,
             ,         ,          ,        ,          ,
      Full* fif|teen^earls,| and fif|teen^hund|red knights,
       ,    ,              ,   ,                   ,
      Six thous/and and | two hund/red good | esquires:
       ,           ,        ,               ,   ,
      And to | relief | of laz|ars, and / weak age
          ,            ,     ,           ,    2     ,
      Of ind|igent / faint souls,| past^cor|poral toil.
         ,         ,    Tx      T     T         ,
      A hund|red alms|houses, right well | supplied:
       ,            ,        ,         ,        ,
      And to | the cof|fers of | the king | beside,
          ,          ,       2      ,           ,          ,
      A thous|and pounds | by the year.| Thus^runs | the bill.
 
ELY
                     ,     ,
      This would / drink deep.
 
CANTERBURY
                                        ,          ,         ,
                              'Twould drink | the cup | and all.
 
ELY
            ,        ,
      But what | prevent|ion?  \\
 
CANTERBURY
            ,         ,         ,           ,        ,
      The king | is full | of grace,| and fair | regard.
 
ELY
                ,   ,      ,        ,       ,
      And a / true lov|er of | the ho|ly church.
 
CANTERBURY
            ,       ,         ,      ,             ,
      The cours|es of | his youth | promised | it not.
             ,         ,        ,         ,         ,    ->
      The breath | no soon|er left | his fath|er's bo||dy,
       ,        2      ,         ,      ,        ,
      But | that his wild|ness, mort|ified | in him,
         T    .  T   T     ,     2        ,      ,
      Seemed to die too:| yea, at that | very | moment,
          ,    ,        ,        ,       ,
      consid|era|tion like | an ang|el came,
             ,         2   ,       ,      ,        ,
      And whipped | the offend|ing Ad|am out | of him;
       ,             ,     ,      ,     ,
      Leaving | his bo|dy as | a par|adise,
        2   ,      ,         ,        ,   2     x
      To envel|op and | contain | celest|ial spirits.
       ,            ,       ,        ,        ,
      Never | was such | a sud|den schol|ar made:
       ,        ,         ,       ,       ,
      Never | came re|forma|tion in | a flood,
             ,       ,      ,          ,          ,
      With such | a hea|dy cur|rance scour|ing faults:
            ,      ,      ,       ,        ,
      Nor* nev|er Hy|dra-head|ed will|fulness
           ,          ,          ,         ,         ,
      So soon | did lose | his seat;| and all | at once;
          ,          ,
      As in | this king.
 
ELY
                          ,          ,                ,
                         We are | blessed in | the change.
 
CANTERBURY
        ,             ,       ,      ,    ,
      Hear him | but reas|on in | divin|ity;
           ,      ,         ,        ,        ,
      And all-|admir|ing, with | an in|ward wish
       ,       2     ,          ,           ,       ,
      You would de|sire the | king were | made a | prelate:
        ,            ,        ,        ,         ,
      Hear him | debate | of com|monwealth | affairs;
       ,           ,     2         T   T   .  T         ,      ->
      You would | say, it hath | been all in^all | his stu||dy:
        ,       2      ,         ,         ,            ,
      List | his discourse | of war;| and you | shall hear
          ,       ,        ,        ,        ,      ->
      A fear|ful bat|tle rend|ered you | in mus||ic.
        ,       2   ,      ,         ,    ,
      Turn | him to an|y cause | of pol|icy,
            ,   2    ,        ,        ,        ,
      The Gord|ian knot | of it | he will | unloose,
         ,       ,         ,        ,        2      ,
      Famil|iar as | his gart|er: that | when he speaks,
           ,        ,         ,      ,         ,
      The air,| a chart|ered lib|ertine,| is still,
                  ,   ,        ,             ,     ,
      And the / mute wond|er lurk|eth in / men's ears,
           ,           ,          ,        ,      ,
      To steal | his sweet | and hon|eyed sent|ences:
           ,         ,          ,        ,         ,
      So that | the art | and prac|tic part | of life,
             ,        ,         ,         ,    ,
      Must* be | the mist|ress to | this the|oric.
        ,     2     ,        ,          ,              ,
      Which is a | wonder | how his | grace should | glean it,
        ,            ,        ,         ,        ,
      Since his | addic|tion was | to cours|es vain,
           ,    2     ,  ,           ,           ,
      His com|panies^un|lettered,| rude, and | shallow,
            ,             ,         ,       ,            ,
      His hours | filled^up | with ri|ots, ban|quets, sports;
           ,      ,      ,       ,     ,      ->
      And nev|er not|ed in | him an|y stu||dy,
      ,   2    ,        ,     ,      ,       2->
      an|y retire|ment, an|y se|questra||tion,
           ,        ,          ,    ,    ,
      From op|en haunts | and pop|ular|ity.
 
ELY
            ,     2     ,      ,      ,          ,
      The straw|berry grows | under|neath the | nettle,
            ,         ,          ,          ,       ,
      And whole|some ber|ries thrive | and rip|en best,
        ,               ,         ,      ,     ,
      Neighbored | by fruit | of bas|er qual|ity:
           ,          ,          ,          ,      ,       ->
      And so | the prince | obscured | his con|templa||tion
       ,    2      ,         ,          ,          ,
      und|er the veil | of wild|ness, which |(no doubt)
        T    T   .   T        ,       ,            ,
      Grew like the sum|mer grass,| fastest | by night,
          ,          ,        ,        ,     ,
      Unseen,| yet cres|cive in | his fac|ulty.
 
CANTERBURY
           ,        ,        ,     ,           ,
      It must | be so;| for mir|acles | are ceased:
            ,               ,    ,        ,          ,
      And there|fore we / must needs | admit | the means,
       ,     ,              ,
      How things / are per|fected.
 
ELY
                                   ,               ,
                                  But my | good* lord:
           ,         ,    ,       ,          ,
      How now | for mit|iga|tion of | this^bill,
        ,             ,          ,         ,    ,
      Urged by | the com|mons? Doth | his maj|esty
          ,       x          ,
      Incline | to it, or | no?
 
CANTERBURY
                                       ,       ,
                                He | seems in|different,
          ,        ,        ,      ,          ,
      Or rath|er sway|ing more | upon | our part,
            ,      ,        2   ,     ,           x
      Than cher|ishing | the exhib|iters | against us:
          ,          ,         x       2     ,    ,
      For I | have made | an offer | to his maj|esty,
        ,     ,   ,            ,     ,
      Upon | our spir/itual | convo|cation,
           ,       ,         ,      ,         ,
      And in | regard | of caus|es now | in hand,
        ,            ,        ,         ,          ,
      Which I | have op|ened to | his grace | at large,
           ,          ,          ,        ,       ,
      As touch|ing France,| to give | a great|er sum,
           ,           ,    ,          ,      ,
      Than ev|er at / one time | the cler|gy yet
       ,            ,     ,         ,        ,
      Did to | his pred|eces|sors part | withal.
 
ELY
       ,              ,       ,         ,          ,
      How did | this of|fer seem | received,| my lord?
 
CANTERBURY
             ,       ,         ,        ,    ,
      With good | accept|ance of | his maj|esty:
        ,                       ,    ,       ,          ,
      Save that | there* was / not time | enough | to hear,
         ,         ,           ,             ,           ,
      As I | perceived | his grace | would fain | have done,
           ,    2          , ,       ,     ,
      The sev|erals and / unhid|den pas|sages
        2      ,     ,            ,     ,          ,
      Of his true | titles | to some | certain | dukedoms,
            ,      ,     2      ,           ,          ,
      And gene|rally,| to the crown | and seat | of France,
          ,           ,               ,     ,    ,
      Derived | from Ed|ward, his / great-grand|father.
 
ELY
            ,       2   ,     ,           ,           ,
      What was | the imped|iment | that broke | this^off?
 
CANTERBURY
             ,        ,     ,      ,           ,      ->
      The French | ambas|sador | upon | that inst||ant
         ,      ,  2         2      ,        ,          ,
      Craved | audience;| and the hour | I think | is come,
           ,         ,         ,        ,        ,
      To give | him hear|ing: is | it four | o'clock?
 
ELY
          ,
      It is.  \\
 
CANTERBURY
            ,       ,        ,         ,     ,
      Then go | we in,| to know | his em|bassy:
            ,           ,       ,       ,         ,
      Which I | could with | a rea|dy guess | declare,
          ,           ,         ,         ,        ,
      Before | the French|man speak | a word | of it.
 
ELY
             ,      ,          ,        ,           x
      I'll wait | upon | you, and | I long | to hear it.
 
[Exeunt]

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