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Richard II

Act III, Scene 4

LANGLEY. The DUKE OF YORK's garden.
 
[Enter the QUEEN and two Ladies]
 
QUEEN
             ,            ,       ,      ,    2        ,
      What sport | shall we | devise | here in this | garden,
           ,       ,         ,        ,           ,
      To drive | away | the hea|vy thought | of care?
 
LADY
       ,              ,         ,
      Madam,| we'll play | at bowls.  \\
 
QUEEN
               ,         ,           ,          ,         ,
      'Twill make | me think | the world | is full | of rubs,
            ,        ,         ,        ,           x
      And that | my for|tune rubs | against | the bias.
 
LADY
        Tx     T     T
      madam, we'll dance.  \\
 
QUEEN
           ,          ,        ,        ,       ,
      My legs | can keep | no meas|ure in | delight,
                  ,    ,         ,         ,          ,
      When my / poor heart | no meas|ure keeps | in grief.
        ,             ,          ,         ,        ,
      Therefore | no dan|cing (girl)| some oth|er sport.
 
LADY
       ,              ,      ,
      Madam,| we'll tell | tales.
 
QUEEN
                                       ,        ,        ,  ->
                                 Of | sorrow,| or of || grief?
 
LADY
            ,        ,
      Of | either,| madam.
 
QUEEN
                               ,          ,
                           Of neith|er, girl.
           ,       ,      x    2     ,        ,
      For if | of joy,| being alto|gether | wanting,
           ,       ,       ,         ,          x
      It doth | remem|ber me | the more | of sorrow:
          ,        ,       2    ,     ,      ,
      Or if | of grief,| being al|togeth|er had,
           ,      ,   ,                ,        ,
      It adds | more sor/row to | my want | of joy:
            ,        ,        ,     ,           ,
      For what | I have,| I need | not to | repeat;
            ,        ,         ,      ,            ,
      And what | I want,| it boots | not to | complain.
 
LADY
       ,             ,
      Madam,| I'll sing.
 
QUEEN
                               ,           ,           ,
                        'Tis well | that thou | hast cause:
            ,                ,         ,          ,             ,
      But thou | shouldst please | me bet|ter, wouldst | thou weep.
 
LADY
          ,       ,    ,                  ,         ,
      I could | weep, mad/am, would | it do | you good.
 
QUEEN
          ,           ,            ,       ,        ,
      And I | could sing,| would weep|ing do | me good,
           ,      ,      ,      ,         ,
      And nev|er bor|row an|y tear | of thee.
            ,           ,          ,      ,    oo
      But stay,| here comes | the gard|eners,|
              ,       ,        ,             ,     ,
      Let's^step | into | the shad|ow of / these trees.
           ,        ,       ,      ,         ,
      My wretch|edness,| unto | a row | of pins,
                ,         ,         ,       ,          ,
      They'll talk | of state:| for ev|ery one | doth^so,
          ,          ,      ,            ,          ,
      Against | a change;| woe is | forerun | with woe.
 
[QUEEN and Ladies retire]
 
GARDENER
           ,          ,         ,        ,     ,
      Go bind | thou up | yon dang|ling ap|ricocks,
              ,       ,      ,          ,            ,
      Which^like | unru|ly child|ren, make | their sire
        ,              ,        ,           ,   2      ,
      Stoop with | oppres|sion of | their prod|igal weight:
        ,             ,         ,        ,         ,
      Give some*| support|ance to | the bend|ing twigs.
           ,          ,        ,   ,     ,
      Go thou,| and like | an ex|ecu|tioner
       ,     2        ,         T    T    T         ,
      Cut off the | heads of | too fast grow|ing sprays,
             ,           ,     ,        ,        ,
      That look | too* loft|y in | our com|monwealth:
       T    T   .  T      ,         ,       ,
      All must be ev|en, in | our* gov|ernment.
       ,             ,     ,             ,      ,
      You thus^|employed,| I will | go root | away
            ,        ,       ,             ,        ,
      The nois|ome weeds,| which with|out^prof|it suck
             ,         ,    ,          ,           x
      The soil's | fertil|ity | from whole|some flowers.
 
SERVANT
             ,      ,            ,        ,       ,
      Why should | we, in | the comp|ass of | a pale,
        T   T   .    T         ,        ,     ,
      Keep law and form,| and due | propor|tion,
        ,        ,   2     ,             ,        ,
      Showing | as in a | model | our* firm | estate?
                  ,     ,      ,             ,       ,
      When our / sea-walled | garden,| the whole | land,
      <-        ,         ,            ,          Tx      T    T
        Is || full of | weeds, her | fairest | flowers choked up,
            ,           ,        ,           ,        x
      Her fruit-|trees^all |upturned,| her hedg|es ruined,
            ,         ,         ,          ,          ,
      Her knots | disord|ered, and | her whole|some herbs
        ,              ,     ,
      Swarming | with cat|erpil|lars.
 
GARDENER
                                       ,          ,
                                     Hold | thy peace.
       ,              ,          ,        ,          ,
      He that | hath suf|fered this | disord|ered spring,
            ,         ,     ,               ,         ,
      Hath now | himself | met with | the fall | of leaf.
            ,          2      ,      ,            ,           ,
      The weeds | which his broad-|spreading | leaves did | shelter,
              ,         ,       ,         ,         ,
      That seemed | in eat|ing him | to hold | him up,
             ,           ,         ,        ,       ,
      Are pulled | up, root | and all,| by Bol|ingbroke:
          ,          ,         ,           ,       ,
      I mean | the Earl | of Wilt|shire, Bush|y, Green.
 
SERVANT
        ,               ,
      What are | they dead?
 
GARDENER
                                  ,
                            They are;  \\
           ,       ,             ,           ,         ,
      And Bol|ingbroke | hath seized | the waste|ful king.
       ,          ,      ,        ,            ,          ,
      Oh, what | pity | is it,| that he | had not | so trimmed
             ,            ,        ,         ,           ,          ,
      And dressed | his land,| as we | this gard|en, at time | of year, (hex with prev)
            ,           ,          ,                ,    ,
      And wound | the bark,| the skin | of our / fruit-trees,
        ,         ,       ,         ,          ,
      Lest be|ing ov|er-proud | in sap | and blood,
            ,      ,    ,               ,         ,
      With too | much rich/es it | confound | itself?
       ,         ,            ,           ,       ,
      Had he | done so,| to great | and grow|ing men,
             ,            ,          ,         ,        ,
      They might | have lived | to bear,| and he | to taste
               ,         ,      ,  ,    2       ,
      Their fruits | of du|ty. su|perfluous | branches
          ,      ,          ,          ,           ,
      We lop | away,| that bear|ing boughs | may live:
       ,         ,            ,          ,           ,
      Had he | done so,| himself | had borne | the crown,
              ,         x       ,             T      T     T
      Which waste | of idle | hours, hath | quite thrown down.
 
SERVANT
             ,           ,          ,           ,       ,
      What think | you then | the king | shall be | deposed?
 
GARDENER
            ,         ,      ,       ,        ,
      Depressed | he is | alrea|dy, and | deposed
             ,          ,         ,         ,           ,
      'Tis doubt | he will | be. Let|ters came | last^night
        2    ,       ,              ,      ,          ,
      To a dear | friend of | the good | Duke of | York's,
      <-          T    T    T
        That || tell black tid|ings.  \\
 
QUEEN
       ,  2        ,           ,               ,         ,
      Oh I am | pressed to | death through | want of | speaking:
        ,        ,          ,         ,         ,           ,
      Thou old | Adam's | likeness,| set to | dress this | garden:
            ,           ,       T     T     T         2    ,         ,
      How dares | thy harsh | rude tongue sound | this unpleas|ing news  (hex with prev)
            ,          ,         ,        ,        ,
      What Eve?| What serp|ent hath | suggest|ed thee,
           ,       ,        ,        ,       ,
      To make | a sec|ond fall | of curs|ed man?
            ,          ,          ,        ,       ,
      Why dost | thou say,| King Rich|ard is | deposed?
        ,                ,       ,        ,            ,
      Darst thou,| thou lit|tle bet|ter thing | than earth,
          ,          ,          ,      T      T    .   T
      Divine | his down|fall*? Say,| where, when, and how,
        ,                     ,   ,          ,             ,
      Camst thou | by this / ill tid|ings? Speak | thou wretch.
 
GARDENER
       ,           ,       ,       ,         ,
      Pardon | me mad|am: lit|tle joy | have I
            ,              ,          ,       ,         ,
      To breathe | these news;| yet what | I say,| is true;
             ,        ,       ,         ,       ,
      King Rich|ard, he | is in | the migh|ty hold
          ,       ,             ,         ,           ,
      Of Bol|ingbroke,| their fort|unes both | are weighed:
                  ,      ,         ,        ,         ,
      In your / lord's scale,| is noth|ing but | himself,
                  ,   ,     ,           ,          ,
      And some / few van|ities,| that make | him light:
           ,        ,              ,    ,       ,
      But in | the bal|ance of / great Bol|ingbroke,
          ,          ,         ,         ,         ,
      Besides | himself,| are all | the Eng|lish peers,
            ,           ,          ,           ,         ,
      And with | that^odds | he weighs | King^Rich|ard down.
        ,     2      ,            ,           ,        ,
      Post you to | London,| and you | will find | it so,
          ,          ,         ,       ,           ,
      I speak | no more,| than ev|ery one | doth know.
 
QUEEN
       ,             ,           ,         ,          ,
      Nimble | mischance,| that art | so light | of foot,
            ,         ,      ,        ,        ,
      Doth not | thy em|bassage | belong | to me?
           ,       ,           ,          ,           ,
      And am | I last | that knows | it? Oh | thou thinkst
           ,          ,         ,         ,        ,
      To serve | me last,| that I | may long|est keep
           ,       ,         ,           ,       ,
      Thy sor|row in | my breast.| Come^lad|ies go,
           ,        ,        ,          ,        ,
      To meet | at Lon|don, Lon|don's king | in woe.
        ,            ,         ,               ,    ,
      What was | I born | to this:| that my / sad look,
               ,          ,              ,    ,       ,
      Should grace | the tri|umph of / great Bol|ingbroke?
       ,              ,        ,          ,        ,
      Gardener,| for tel|ling me | this news | of woe,
          ,            ,             ,           ,       ,
      I would | the plants | thou graftst,| may nev|er grow.
 
[Exeunt QUEEN and Ladies]
 
GARDENER
              ,          ,          ,            ,        ,
      Poor* queen,| so that | thy state | might be | no^worse,
          ,          ,           ,        ,         ,
      I would | my skill | were sub|ject to | thy curse:
        ,              ,        ,          ,          ,
      Here did | she drop | a tear,| here^in | this place
            ,        ,        ,      T    T   .   T
      I'll set | a bank | of rue,| sour herb of grace:  ??
       ,    2           ,            ,        ,          ,
      Rue, even | for ruth,| here* short|ly shall | be seen,
       ,          ,          ,      ,         ,
      In the | remem|brance of | a weep|ing queen.
 
[Exeunt]

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