Fool. This cold night will turn us all to fools, and madmen.

Edg. Take heed o'th' foul fiend; obey thy parents; keep thy word juftly; fwear not; commit not with man's fworn fpoufe; fet not thy fweet heart on proud array Tom's a-cold.

Lear. What haft thou been?

Edg. A ferving man, proud in heart and mind; that curl'd my hair, wore gloves in my cap, ferv'd the luft of my mistress's heart, and did the act of darkness with her: fwore as many oaths as I fpake words, and broke. them in the fweet face of heav'n. One that flept in the contriving luft, and wak'd to do it. Wine lov'd I deeply; dice dearly; and in woman, out-paramour'd the Turk. Falfe of heart, light of ear, bloody of hand; hog in floth, fox in ftealth, wolf in greedinefs, dog in madness, lion in prey. Let not the creaking of fhoes, nor the ruftling of filks, betray thy poor heart to woman. Keep thy foot out of brothels, thy hand out of plackets, thy pen from lenders' books, and defie the foul fiend. Still through the hawthorn blows the cold wind: fays fuum, mun, nonny, dolphin my boy, boy, Seffey let him trot by. [Storm fill.

Lear. Thou wert better in thy grave, than to answer with thy uncover'd body this extremity of the skies. Is man no more than this? Confider him well. Thou ow'. the worm no filk, the beaft no hide, the sheep no wool, the cat no perfume. Ha! here's three of us are fophifti cated. Thou art the thing it felf; unaccommodated man is no more but fuch a poor, bare, forked animal as thou art. Off, off, you lendings; come, unbutton here.

[Tearing off his clothes..

Fool. Pr'ythee, nuncle, be contented; 'tis a naughty night to fwim in. Now a little fire in a wild field were. like an old lecher's heart, a fmall fpark, and all the reft on's body cold; look, here comes a walking fire.

Edg. This is the foul Flibbertigibbet; he begins at curfew, and walks till the firft cock; he gives the web and the pin, fquints the eye, and makes the hair-lip: mildews the white wheat, and hurts the poor creature of the earth.

Saint.

Saint Withold footed thrice the Wold, (15)
He met the night-mare, and her nine-fold,
Bid her alight, and her troth plight,
And aroynt thee, witch, aroynt thee.

Kent. How fares your Grace?

Enter Glo'fter, with a Torch.

Kent. Who's there? what is't you seek?
Glo. What are you there? your names?

Edg. Poor Tom, that eats the swimming frog, the toad, the tod-pole; the wall-newt, and the water-newt; that in the fury of his heart, when the foul fiend rages, eats cow-dung for fallets; fwallows the old rat, and the ditch-dog; drinks the green mantle of the ftanding pool; who is whipt from tything to tything, and stock-punish'd, and imprifon'd: who hath had three fuits to his back, fix fhirts to his body;

Horfe to ride, and weapon to wear

But mice, and rats, and such small deer
Have been Tom's food for ferven long year.

Beware my follower. Peace, Smolkin, peace, thou fiend?
Glo. What, hath your Grace no better company?
Edg. The Prince of Darknefs is a gentleman; Modo
he's call'd, and Mahu.

Glo. Our flesh and blood, my lord, is grown fo vile; That it doth hate what gets it.

Edg: Tom's a-cold.

Glo. Go in with me; my duty cannot fuffer

(15) Swithold footed thrice the old,] What Idea the Editors kad, or whether any, of footing the old, I cannot pretend to determine. My ingenious Friend Mr. Bishop faw it must be Wold, which fignifies a Down, or champion Ground, hilly and void of Wood. And as to St. Witbold, we find him again mention'd'in our Author's Troublesome Reign of King John, in · two Parts::

Sweet St. Withold, of thy Lenity,
Defend us from Extremity,

Tobey

T' obey in all your Daughters' hard commands?
Though their injunction be to bar my doors,
And let this tyrannous night take hold upon you
Yet have I ventur'd to come feek you out,
And bring you, where both fire and food is ready.
Lear. First, let me talk with this Philosopher ;·
What is the cause of thunder?

Kent. My good lord, take his offer,

Go into th' houfe.

Lear. I'll talk a word with this fame learned Theban: What is your ftudy?

Edg. How to prevent the fiend, and to kill vermin.
Lear. Let us ask you one word in private.

Kent. Importune him once more to go, my lord;
His Wits begin t' unfettle.

Glo. Can't thou blame him?

[Storm fill.

His Daughters feek his death: ah, that good Kent!

He faid, it would be thus; poor banish'd man!

Thou fay'ft, the King grows mad; I'll tell thee, friend, I'm almoft mad my felf; I had a fon,

Now out-law'd from my blood; he fought my life,

But lately, very late; I lov'd him, friend,

No father his fon dearer: true to tell thee,

The grief hath craz'd my wits. What a night's this? I do befeech your Grace,

Lear. O cry you mercy, Sir:

Noble Philofopher, your company.
Edg. Tom's a-cold.

Glo. In, fellow, into th' hovel; keep thee warm.
Lear. Come, let's in all.

Kent. This way, my lord.

Lear. With him;

I will keep ftill with my Philofopher.

Kent, Good my lord, footh him; let him take the

fellow.

Glo. Take him you an.

Kent, Sirrah, come on; along with us.

Lear. Come, good Athenian.

Glo. No words, no words, hush.

Edg. Child Rowland to the dark tower came,

His word was ftill, fie, foh, and fum,

I smell the blood of a British man.

Corn.

[Exeunt.

SCENE changes to Glo'fter's Caftle.

Enter Cornwall, and Edmund.

Will have revenge, ere I depart his house.

Edm. How, my lord, I may be cenfur'd, that Nature thus gives way to loyalty, fomething fears me to think of.

Corn. I now perceive, it was not altogether your brother's evil difpofition made him feek his death: but a provoking merit, fet a-work by a reprovable badness in himself.

Edm. How malicious is my fortune, that I must repent to be juft? this is the letter, which he fpoke of; which approves him an intelligent party to the advantages of France. Oh heavens! that this treafon were not; or not I the detector!

Corn. Go with me to the Dutchess.

Edm. If the matter of this paper be certain, you have mighty business in hand.

Corn. True or falfe, it hath made thee Earl of Glofter: feek out where thy father is, that he may be ready for our Apprehenfion.

༣

Edm. If I find him comforting the King, it will ftuff his fufpicion more fully, [fide.] I will perfevere in my courfe of loyalty, though the conflict be fore be tween that and my blood.

Carn. I will lay truft upon thee; and thou shalt find a dearer father in my love.

Gila.

[Exeunt.

SCENE, a Chamber, in a Farm-boufe

Enter Kent and Glo'fter.

ERE is better than the open Air, take it

H thankfully. piece

with what addition I can; I will not be long from you.

[Exit Kent

Kent. All the

power

of his wits has given way to his impatience: the Gods reward your kindness!

Enter Lear, Edgar, and Fool.

Edg. Fraterreto calls me, and tells me, Nero is an angler in the lake of darkness: pray innocent, and beware the foul fiend. (16)

Fool. Pr'ythee, nuncle, tell me, whether a madman be a gentleman, or a yeoman?

Lear. A King, a King.

Fool. No, he's a yeoman that has a gentleman to his fon: for he's a mad yeoman, that fees his fon a gentleman before him.

Lear. To have a thousand with red burning fpits Come hizzing in upon 'em

Edg. The foul fiend bites my back.

Fool. He's mad that trufts in the tameness of a wolf, the health of a horse, the love of a boy, or the oath of a whore.

Lear. It fhall be done, I will arraign 'em ftrait.
Come, fit thou here, moft learned jufticer;

Thou fapient Sir, fit here-now, yef fhe-foxes!
Edg. Look, where the ftands and glares. Wanteft
thou eyes
At tryal, Madam ?

Come o'er the Broom, Beffy, to me.

Fool. Her Boat hath a Leak, and she must not speak,
Why he dares not come over to thee.

Edg. The foul fiend haunts poor Tom in the voice of anightingale. Hopdance cries in Tom's belly for two white Herrings. Croak not, black angel, I have no food for thee.

Kent. How do you, Sir? ftand you not fo amaz'd; Will you lye down, and reft upon the Cushions?

(16) Fraterrito. calls me,] As Mr. Pope had begun to infert feveral Speeches in the mad Way, in this Scene, from the Old Edition; I have ventur'd to replace feveral others, which stand upon the fame Footing, and had an equal right of being mefter'd.

Lear.