The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated) (69 page)

How darkly and how terribly you speak!

Your eyes terrify me. Why are you looking pale?

Who sent you here? Why have you come?

SECOND MURDERER.

To, to, to-

To, to, to-

CLARENCE.

To murder me?

To murder me?

BOTH MURDERERS.

Ay, ay.

Yes, yes.

CLARENCE.

You scarcely have the hearts to tell me so,

And therefore cannot have the hearts to do it.

Wherein, my friends, have I offended you?

You hardly have the heart to tell me so,

and so you cannot have the heart to do it.

How have I offended you, my friends?

FIRST MURDERER.

Offended us you have not, but the King.

It's the king you have offended, not us.

CLARENCE.

I shall be reconcil'd to him again.

I shall be reconciled with him.

SECOND MURDERER.

Never, my lord; therefore prepare to die.

Never, my lord; and so prepare to die.

CLARENCE.

Are you drawn forth among a world of men

To slay the innocent? What is my offence?

Where is the evidence that doth accuse me?

What lawful quest have given their verdict up

Unto the frowning judge, or who pronounc'd

The bitter sentence of poor Clarence' death?

Before I be convict by course of law,

To threaten me with death is most unlawful.

I charge you, as you hope to have redemption

By Christ's dear blood shed for our grievous sins,

That you depart and lay no hands on me.

The deed you undertake is damnable.

Have you been chosen from the world of men

to slay the innocent? What have I done wrong?

Where is the evidence against me?

What jury has handed its evidence up

to the frowning judge, and who pronounced

the bitter sentence of death on poor Clarence?

Unless I am convicted by the courts of law

then it is most unlawful to threaten me with death.

I order you, if you hope to be saved

by the dear blood of Christ shed for our grievous sins,

that you leave and do not lay your hands on me.

The thing you are doing is damnable.

FIRST MURDERER.

What we will do, we do upon command.

What we are doing is obeying orders.

SECOND MURDERER.

And he that hath commanded is our

King.

And the orders were given by our king.

CLARENCE.

Erroneous vassals! the great King of kings

Hath in the tables of his law commanded

That thou shalt do no murder. Will you then

Spurn at his edict and fulfil a man's?

Take heed; for he holds vengeance in his hand

To hurl upon their heads that break his law.

Wrongheaded peasants! The great King of Kings

ordered in the commandments that

you shall not murder. Are you then going to

ignore his instructions and follow those of a man?

Be careful; for he has vengeance prepared

to throw down upon those who break his laws.

SECOND MURDERER.

And that same vengeance doth he hurl

on thee

For false forswearing, and for murder too;

Thou didst receive the sacrament to fight

In quarrel of the house of Lancaster.

The same vengeance he throws down on you

for perjuring yourself, and for murder too;

you took an oath to fight

against the house of Lancaster.

FIRST MURDERER.

And like a traitor to the name of God

Didst break that vow; and with thy treacherous blade

Unripp'dst the bowels of thy sov'reign's son.

And like a traitor to the name of God

you broke your promise; and with your treacherous sword

you tore open the stomach of your king's son.

SECOND MURDERER.

Whom thou wast sworn to cherish and

defend.

Whom you had sworn to love and defend.

FIRST MURDERER.

How canst thou urge God's dreadful law

to us,

When thou hast broke it in such dear degree?

How can you tell us to obey the great laws of God,

when you have broken them so badly?

CLARENCE.

Alas! for whose sake did I that ill deed?

For Edward, for my brother, for his sake.

He sends you not to murder me for this,

For in that sin he is as deep as I.

If God will be avenged for the deed,

O, know you yet He doth it publicly.

Take not the quarrel from His pow'rful arm;

He needs no indirect or lawless course

To cut off those that have offended Him.

Alas! For whom did I commit that foul deed?

For Edward, my brother, for his sake.

He has not sent you to murder me for this,

for he is as guilty of that sin as I am.

If God wants to be avenged for the deed,

you know that he will do it in public.

Do not steal his revenge from him;

he does not need secret or illegal assistance

to punish those who have offended him.

FIRST MURDERER.

Who made thee then a bloody minister

When gallant-springing brave Plantagenet,

That princely novice, was struck dead by thee?

So who made you a bloody Minister of his

when the bravely charging Plantagenet,

that novice Prince, was struck dead by you?

CLARENCE.

My brother's love, the devil, and my rage.

My brother's love, the devil, and my anger.

FIRST MURDERER.

Thy brother's love, our duty, and thy

faults,

Provoke us hither now to slaughter thee.

Your brother's love, our duty, and your sins,

have driven us to come here now to kill you.

CLARENCE.

If you do love my brother, hate not me;

I am his brother, and I love him well.

If you are hir'd for meed, go back again,

And I will send you to my brother Gloucester,

Who shall reward you better for my life

Than Edward will for tidings of my death.

If you love my brother, do not take me;

I am his brother, and I love him very much.

If you are hired for reward, go back,

and I will send you to my brother Gloucester,

who will give you a better reward for leaving me alive

than Edward will for news of my death.

SECOND MURDERER.

You are deceiv'd: your brother Gloucester

hates you.

You are wrong: your brother Gloucester hates you.

CLARENCE.

O, no, he loves me, and he holds me dear.

Go you to him from me.

Oh no, he loves me, I am special to him.

Go to him from me.

FIRST MURDERER.

Ay, so we will.

Yes, we shall.

CLARENCE.

Tell him when that our princely father York

Bless'd his three sons with his victorious arm

And charg'd us from his soul to love each other,

He little thought of this divided friendship.

Bid Gloucester think of this, and he will weep.

Tell him that when our royal father York

blessed his three sons with his victorious arm

and ordered us from the heart to love one another,

he had not considered how we might be parted.

Ask Gloucester to consider this, and he will weep.

FIRST MURDERER.

Ay, millstones; as he lesson'd us to weep.

Yes, millstones; that's what he taught us to weep.

CLARENCE.

O, do not slander him, for he is kind.

Do not tell lies about him, he is kind.

FIRST MURDERER.

Right, as snow in harvest. Come, you

deceive yourself:

'Tis he that sends us to destroy you here.

As kind as snow at harvest time. Come, you

are deceiving yourself: it's he who sends us here to destroy you.

CLARENCE.

It cannot be; for he bewept my fortune

And hugg'd me in his arms, and swore with sobs

That he would labour my delivery.

That cannot be; he wept at my fate

and embraced me, and he swore, sobbing,

that he would work for my freedom.

FIRST MURDERER.

Why, so he doth, when he delivers you

From this earth's thraldom to the joys of heaven.

Why, he does, he plans to send you

from the troubles of earth to the joys of heaven.

SECOND MURDERER.

Make peace with God, for you must die,

my lord.

Make your peace with God, for you must die, my lord.

CLARENCE.

Have you that holy feeling in your souls

To counsel me to make my peace with God,

And are you yet to your own souls so blind

That you will war with God by murd'ring me?

O, sirs, consider: they that set you on

To do this deed will hate you for the deed.

Are you holy enough in your souls

to advise me to make my peace with God,

and yet so unconcerned about your own souls

that you will go to war with God by murdering me?

Think about it, sirs: those who asked you to commit

this deed will hate you for it.

SECOND MURDERER.

What shall we do?

What shall we do?

CLARENCE.

Relent, and save your souls.

Refuse, and save your souls.

FIRST MURDERER.

Relent! No, 'tis cowardly and womanish.

Refuse! No, that is cowardly and effeminate.

CLARENCE.

Not to relent is beastly, savage, devilish.

Which of you, if you were a prince's son,

Being pent from liberty as I am now,

If two such murderers as yourselves came to you,

Would not entreat for life?

My friend, I spy some pity in thy looks;

O, if thine eye be not a flatterer,

Come thou on my side and entreat for me-

As you would beg were you in my distress.

A begging prince what beggar pities not?

If you don't refuse you are beastly, savage, devilish.

If you were the son of a prince, which of you,

being penned up here as I am now,

would not beg for life,

if two murderers like yourselves came to you?

My friend, I see some pity in your face;