Holp he to murder mine Horatio? And actors in the accursed tragedy Wast thou, Lorenzo, Balthazar and thou, Of whom my son, my son deserv'd so well? What have I heard? what have mine eyes beheld? O sacred heavens! may it come to pass That such a monstrous and detested deed, So closely smother'd and so long conceal'd, Shall thus by this be venged[185] or reveal'd? Now see I what I durst not then suspect, That Bell'-Imperia's letter was not feign'd; Nor feigned she, though falsely they have wrong'd Both her, myself, Horatio, and themselves. Now may I make compare 'twixt hers and this, Of every accident I ne'er could find Till now, and now I feelingly perceive They did what heaven unpunish'd would[186] not leave. O false Lorenzo! are these thy flattering looks? Is this the honour that thou didst my son? And Balthazar, bane to thy soul and me, Was this the ransom he reserv'd thee for?[187] Woe to the cause of these constrained wars! Woe to thy baseness and captivity! Woe to thy birth, thy body and thy soul, Thy cursed father and thy conquer'd self! And ban'd with bitter execrations be The day and place, where he did pity thee! But wherefore waste I mine unfruitful words, When nought but blood will satisfy my woes? I will go plain me to my lord the king, And cry aloud for justice through the court, Wearing the flints with these my wither'd feet; And either purchase justice by entreats, Or tire them all with my revenging threats. [_Exit._ FOOTNOTES: [135] _The harvest_, 1618, '23, '33. [136] _Growne_, ditto. [137] [The scene again changes to Portugal.] [138] Mr Reed printed the line as follows, without any authority, and to the injury of the metre:-- "Unfortunate condition of great kings." The terminations _tion_ and _sion_ in our old poets were almost invariably pronounced as two distinct syllables.--_Collier._ [139] _Among_, 1623, '33. [140] _Lives_, 1618, '23, '33. [141] _Infected_, 1618, '23, '33. [142] [Old copies, _when?_ and this reading was defended by Gifford and Collier. The present was Dodsley's correction. The old reading is, however, supported to some extent by a passage in the "History of Jacob and Esau," 1568, i. 1-- "But up, Ragan! up, drowsy hogshead, I say: Why, when? will it not be? Up, I come anon. Up, or I shall raise you, in faith, ye drowsy whoreson! Why, when?"] [143] _Of_, 1618, '23, '33. [144] _Know sovereign: I that_, 1618. _Know my soveraigne, that_, 1623, '33. [145] _Commend_, 1618, '23, '33. [146] _Could never once mov'd_, 1633. [147] [Old copies, _Or wherein_.] [148] _Guiltful_, 1618, '23, '33. [149] The word _fear_ is often used by our ancient writers in the sense of _frighten_ or _make afraid_, as in "Every Man in his Humour," iii. 7:--