335305Bast. Thou Nature art my Goddesse, to thy law my seruices

336306are bound, wherefore should I stand in the plague of custome,

337307and permit the curiosity of Nations to depriue me, for that I am

339308some 12. or 14. moone-shines lag of a brother: why bastard?

340309wherefore base, when my dementions are as well compact, my

342310minde as generous, & my shape as true as honest madams issue,

343311why brand they vs with base, base bastardy? who in the lusty

345312stealth of nature, take more composition and fierce quality, then

347313doth within a stale dull lie[d] bed, goe to the creating of a whole

348314tribe of fops got tweene sleepe and wake; well the legitimate

350315Edgar, I must haue your land, our Fathers loue is to the bastard

351316Edmund, as to the legitimate: well my legitimate. if this letter

353317speed, and my inuention thriue, Edmund the base shall tooth'le-

355318gitimate: I grow, I prosper, now Gods stand vp for Bastards.

358320Glost. Kent banisht thus, and France in choller parted, and

359321the King gone to night, subscrib'd his power, confined to ex-

360322hibition, all this done vpon the gad; Edmund, how now, what

361323newes?

362324Bast. So please y[ou]r Lordship, none.

363325Glost.. Why so earnestly seeke you to put vp that letter?

364326Bast. I know no newes, my Lord.

365327Glo. What paper were you reading?

366328Bast. Nothing my Lord.

367329Glost. No, what needs then that terrible dispatch of it into

368330your pocket, the quality of nothing hath not such need to hide

369331it selfe, lets see, come if it be nothing I shal not need spectacles.

371332Bast. I beseech you sir pardon me, it is a Letter from my bro-

372333ther that I haue not all ore read, for so much as I haue perused,

373334I finde it not fit for your liking.

375335Glost. Giue me the letter sir.

376336Bast. I shall offend, either to detaine or giue it, the contents

377337as in part I vnderstand them, are too blame.

379338Glo. Lets see, Lets see.

380339Bast. I hope for my brothers iustification, he wrote this but

381340as an essay, or taste of my vertue. A Letter.

382341Glost. This policy of age makes the world bitter to the best

383342of our times, keepes our fortunes from vs till our oldnesse can-

384343not relish them, I begin to finde an idle and fond bondage in

385344the oppression of aged tyranny, who swaies not as it hath pow-

386345er, but as it is suffered, come to mee, that of this I may speake

387346more; if our Father would sleepe till I wakt him, you should

388347enioy halfe his reuenew for euer, and liue the beloued of your

389348brother Edgar.

390349 Hum, conspiracy, slept till I wakt him, you should enioy halfe

391350his reuenew: my sonne Edgar, had he a hand to write this, a hart

392351and braine to breed it in? when came this to you, who brought

393352it?

394353Bast. It was not brought me my Lord, there's the cunning

395354of it, I found it throwne in at the casement of my Closet.

397355Glost. You know the carracter to be your brothers?

398356Bast. If the matter were good, my Lord, I durst sweare it

399357were his, but in respect of that, I would faine think it were not.

401358Glost. Is it his?

402359Bast. It is his hand my Lord, but I hope his heart is not in

403360the contents.

404361Glost. Hath he neuer heeretofore sounded you in this busi-

362nessse?

405363Bast. Neuer my Lord, but I haue often heard him maintaine

406364it to be fit, that sonnes at parfit age, and fathers declining, his

407365father should be as Ward to the sonne, and the sonne mannage

408366the reuenew.

409367Glost. O villaine, villaine, his very opinion in the Letter, ab-

410368horrid villaine, vnnaturall detested bruitish villaine, worse then

411369bruitish go sir seeke him; I, apprehend him, abhominable vil-

412370laine, where is he?

413371Bast. I do not well know my Lord, if it shall please you to

414372suspend your indignation against my brother, till you can de-

415373riue from him better testimony of this intent, you shal runnne a

416374certaine course, where if you violently proceed against him, mi-

417375staking his purpose, it would make a great gap in your owne

418376honour, and shake in peeces the heart of his obedience, I dare

419377pawne downe my life for him, hee hath wrote this to feele my

420378affection to your Honour, and to no further pretence of danger.

422379Glost. Thinke you so?

423380Bast. If your Honour iudge it meete, I will place you where

424381you shall heare vs conferre of this, and by an aurigular assurance

425382haue your satisfaction, and that without any further delay then

426383this very euening.

427384Glost. He cannot be such a monster.

427.1385Bast. Nor is not sure.

427.2386Glost. To his father, that so tenderly and entirely loues him:

427.3387heauen and earth! Edmund seeke him out, winde me into him, I

428388pray you frame your busines after your owne wisedome, I wold

429389vnstate my selfe ro be in a due resolution.

431390Bast. I shall seeke him sir presently, conuey the businesse as I

432391shall see meanes, and acquaint you withall.

433392Glost. These late Eclipses in the Sunne and Moone, portend no

434393good to vs, though the wisedome of nature can reason thus and

435394thus, yet nature findes it selfe scourg'd by the sequent effects,

436395loue cooles, friendship fals off, brothers diuide, in Cities muti-

437396nies, in Countries discords, Pallaces treason, the bond crackt

439397betweene sonne and father; finde out this villaine, Edmund it

444398shall lose thee nothing, do it carefully; and the noble and true

446399hearted Kent banisht, his offence honest; strange, strange!

447400Bast. This is the excellent foppery of the world, that when we

448401are sicke in Fortune, often the surfet of our owne behauiour,

449402we make guilty of our disasters, the Sunne, the Moore, and the

450403stars, as if we were villaines by necessity, fooles by heauenly

451404compulsion, knaues, theeues, and trecherers by spirituall predo-

452405minance, drunkards, liars, and adulterers by an enforc'st obedi-

453406ence of planitary influence, and all that we are euill in, by a di-

454407uine thrusting on, an admirable euasion of whore-master man,

456408to lay his goatish disposition to the charge of stars; my Father

457409compounded with my Mother vnder the Dragons taile, & my

458410natiuity was vnder Vrsa maior, so that it followes I am rough &

459411lecherous; Fut, I should haue beene that I am, had the maiden-

460412lest starre of the Firmament twinckled on my bastardy; Edgar,

463414& out he comes like the Catastrophe of the old Comedy, mine

464415is villanous melancholy, with a sigh like them of Bedlam; O

465416these Ecclipses do portend these diuisions.

467417Edgar. How now brother Edmund, what serious contempla-

468418tion are you in?

469419Bast. I am thinking brother of a prediction I read this other

470420day, what should follow these Ecclipses.

471421Edg. Doe you busie your selfe about that?

472422Bast. I promise you the effects he writ of, succeed vnhappily,

473423as of vnnaturalnesse betweene the childe and the parent, death,

473.1424dearth, dissolutions of ancient armies, diuisions in state, mena-

473.2425ces and maledictions against King and Nobles, needlesse diffi-

473.3426dences, banishment of friends, dissipation of Cohorts, nuptiall

473.4427breaches, and I know not what.

473.5428Edg. How long haue you bin a sectary Astronomicall?

474429Bast. Come, come, when saw you my father last?

475430Edg. Why the night gone by.

476431Bast. Spake you with him?

477432Edg. Two houres together.

478433Bast. Parted you in good tearmes? found you no displeasure

479434in him by word or countenance?

480435Edg. None at all.

481436Bast. Bethinke your selfe wherein you may haue offended

482437him, and at my entreaty, forbeare his presence, till some little

483438time hath qualified the heate of his displeasure, which at this

484439instant so rageth in him, that with the mischiefe of your person

485440it would scarse allay.

486441Edg. Some villaine hath done me wrong.

487442Bast. That's my feare brother, I aduise you to the best, goe

493443arm'd, I am no honest man if there be any good meaning to-

494444wards you, I haue told you what I haue seen & heard, but faint-

495445ly, nothing like the image and horror of it; pray you away.

497446Edg. Shall I heare from you anon? Exit Edgar.

498447Bast. I do serue you in this businesse:

499448A credulous Father, and a brother noble,

500449Whose nature is so farre from doing harmes,

501450That he suspects none, on whose foolish honesty

502451My practises ride easie, I see the businesse,

503452Let me if not by birth, haue lands by wit,

504453All with me's meete, that I can fashion fit. Exit.