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King Lear

Act III, Scene 2

Another part of the heath. Storm still.
 
[Enter LEAR and Fool]
 
LEAR
        T    T     .    T             ,      __     __
      Blow winds, and crack | your cheeks;| rage,| blow
           ,     ,          ,     ,        ,
      You cat|aracts,| and hur|rican|oes spout,
        ,                 ,            ,           ,            ,
      Till you | have drenched | our steep|les, drowned | the cocks.
            ,     2            ,     ,   ,        ,
      You sulph|urous and / thought-ex|ecu|ting fires,
        ,     ,             ,     ,          ,      ___
      Vaunt-cour/iers | to oak-|cleaving | thunder|bolts,
        T    T   T       T    .    T   T    ,          ,
      Singe my white | head. And thou all-|shaking | thunder, (hex with prev)
        T     T   .    T        ,     ,     2      ,
      Smite flat the thick | rotun|dity | of the world,
        T     Tx       T          ,         ,          ,
      Crack nature's molds,| and ger|mens spill | at once
             ,        ,        ,
      That make | ingrate|ful man.   \\
 
FOOL
O nuncle, court holy-water in a dry house, is better than this rain-water out of door. Good nuncle, in, and ask thy daughters' blessing, here's a night pities neither wise men, nor fools.
 
LEAR
       ,    2       Tx     T     T      T     T     T
      Rumble thy | belly full: spit | fire, spout rain:
            ,      T      Tx      T     ,         ,
      Nor rain,| wind, thunder, fire,| are my | daughters;
         ,       ,        ,    ,           ,
      I tax not you, you elements with unkindness.  ????
          x       ,          ,          ,           ,
      I never | gave you | kingdom,| called you | children;
           ,        ,        ,                 ,    ,
      You owe | me no | subscrip|tion. Then / let fall
            ,    2     ,          ,        ,            ,
      Your hor|rible pleas|ure. Here | I stand | your slave,
          ,        ,      ,      2      T    T   T
      A poor,| infirm,| weak, and de|spised old man:
           ,        ,          ,       ,     ,
      But yet | I call | you serv|ile min|isters,
             ,          ,        ,         ,           ,
      That have | with two | perni|cious daught|ers joined
             ,       ,         ,            ,         ,
      Your high | engen|dered bat|tles, 'gainst | a head
          ,          ,          ,        ,          ,
      So old,| and white | as this.| O, ho!| 'Tis foul.
 
FOOL
He that has a house to put his head in, has a good head-piece:
           ,           ,           ,         ,          ,         x
      The cod-|piece^that | will house,| before | the head | has any;
            ,         ,           ,         ,        ,       x
      The head | and he | shall louse:| So beg|gars mar|ry many.
           ,           ,          ,          ,         ,              ,
      The man | that makes | his toe,| what he | his heart | should make,
        ,     2      T   T   T          ,          ,          ,
      Shall of a | corn cry woe,| and turn | his sleep | to wake.
For there was never yet fair woman, but she made mouths in a glass.
 
LEAR
       ,  ,                  ,      2    ,     ,
      No, I / will be | the pat|tern of all | patience;
                ,    ,
      I will / say noth|ing.  \\
 
[Enter KENT]
 
KENT
Who's there?
 
FOOL
Marry here's grace, and a cod-piece, that's a wise man, and a fool.
 
KENT
        ,   ,            ,      ,          ,    ,
      Alas sir are you here? Things that love night,  ????
            ,            ,          ,           ,         ,
      Love^not | such^nights | as these:| the wrath|ful skies
       ,            ,     ,      ,      2      ,
      Gallow | the ve|ry wand|erers | of the dark
            ,           ,            ,           ,        ,
      And make | them keep | their caves:| since^I | was man,
              ,      .   T     T     T           x       ,
      Such^sheets | of fire, such bursts | of horrid | thunder,
        T     T    .   T        ,          ,        x
      Such groans of roar|ing wind,| and rain,| I never
         ,        2         ,      ,      ,          2    ,     3->
      Remem|ber to have / heard. Man's | nature | cannot car||ry
         3    ,         ,          ,
      The afflic|tion, nor | the fear.
 
LEAR
                                                  ,     ,
                                      Let the / great gods
             ,           ,         ,      ,          ,
      That keep | this dread|ful poth|er ore | our heads,
            ,           ,  2     ,      ,               ,
      Find out | their en|emies now.| Tremble | thou wretch,
             ,        ,          ,    ,         ,
      That hast | within | thee un|divul|ged crimes,
            ,          ,         ,      T     T    T       ,
      Unwhipped | of just|ice. Hide | thee, thou bloo|dy hand;
            ,          ,      ,   ,          ,        ,
      Thou per|jured, and | thou sim/ular | man of | virtue  (hex with prev)
            ,       ,    2     ,          x          ,
      That art | inces|tuous. Cai|tiff, to pie|ces shake
            ,      ,   ,      2     ,         ,
      That und|er cov|ert, and con|venient | seeming
             ,               ,     ,      T      Tx      T
      Hast prac|ticed on / man's life.| Close pent-up guilts,
        ,             ,        ,      ,          ,
      Rive your | concea|ling con|tinents,| and cry
              ,        ,    2      ,        ,      ,
      These dread|ful sum|moners grace.| I am | a man,
              ,         ,           ,
      More sinned | against,| than sin|ning.  \\
 
KENT
      .  T     T    T
      Alack, bare-head|ed?  \\
       ,              ,      ,         ,           x
      Gracious | my lord,| hard by | here is | a hovel,
              ,     ,      2       ,           ,          ,
      Some friend|ship will it | lend you |'gainst the | tempest:
          ,          ,           ,               ,    ,
      Repose | you there,| while I | to this / hard house,
               ,       ,           ,           ,          ,
      (More* hard|er than | the stones | whereof |'tis raised,
              x         ,       ,        ,      ,
      Which even | but now,| deman|ding aft|er you,
          ,              ,   ,       ,          ,
      Denied | me to / come in)| return,| and force
              ,        ,   3  3
      Their scan|ted court|esy.
 
LEAR
                                     ,       ,         ,
                                My wits | begin | to turn.
            ,       ,          ,        ,          ,
      Come on | my boy.| How dost | my boy?| Art cold?
       2     ,        ,      ,     2         ,          ,
      I am cold | myself.| Where is this | straw, my | fellow?
           ,        ,       ,      ,          ,
      The art | of our | neces|sities | is strange,
          2      ,      T     T    T           ,           x
      That can make | vile things pre|cious. Come,| your hovel;
        T    T    .    T      2      ,      ,            ,
      Poor fool, and knave,| I have one | part in | my heart
              ,      ,          ,
      That's sor|ry yet | for thee.  \\
 
FOOL
[Singing]
       ,         ,     2      Tx     T   T
      He that | has and a | little tyne wit,
            ,     ,          ,              ,
      With hey | ho, the | wind and | the rain,
             ,         ,        2     ,         ,
      Must make | content | with his for|tunes fit,
         2      ,         ,       ,      ,
      For the rain | it rain|eth eve|ry day.
 
LEAR
        T   T     T      ,         ,         ,
      True boy: Come | bring us | to this | hovel.
 
[Exeunt LEAR and KENT]
 
FOOL
        ,    2      T     T    .   T        ,     ,
      This is a | brave night to cool | a court|ezan:
             ,        ,     ,     T  T  T
      I'll speak | a pro|phecy | ere I go:
              ,            ,         ,          ,       o
      When priests | are more | in word,| than mat|ter;
             ,       ,            ,          ,      o
      When brew|ers mar | their malt | with wat|er;
            ,       ,            ,        ,       o
      When nob|les are | their tail|ors' tut|ors;
          ,   2       ,           ,         ,       o
      No her|etics burned,| but wench|es' suit|ors;
            ,       ,        ,         ,
      When eve|ry case | in law,| is right;
            ,          ,         ,            ,
      No squire | in debt,| nor no | poor* knight;
             ,        ,         ,          ,
      When sland|ers do | not live | in tongues;
           ,      ,          ,          ,
      Nor cut|purses | come not | to throngs;
            ,  2      ,            ,      2      ,
      When us|urers tell | their gold | in the field;
            ,            ,           ,        ,
      And bawds,| and whores,| do church|es build;
        ,                ,         ,    ,     ,         ,        ,       oo
      Then shall | the realm | of Al|bion,| come to | great con|fusion:|
             ,           ,          ,           x
      Then comes | the time,| who lives | to see it,
            ,       ,          ,           ,
      That go|ing shall | be used | with feet.
This prophecy Merlin shall make, for I live before his time.
 
[Exit]

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