Enter CHORUS.

Chorus	Now all the youth of England are on fire,
	And silken dalliance in the wardrobe lies;
	Now thrive the armourers, and honour's thought
	Reigns solely in the breast of every man.
	They sell the pasture now to buy the horse,
	Following the mirror of all Christian kings
	With wingd heels, as English Mercuries.
	For now sits expectation in the air,
	And hides a sword from hilts unto the point
	With crowns imperial, crowns and coronets,
	Promised to Harry and his followers.
	The French, advised by good intelligence
	Of this most dreadful prepararion,
	Shake in their fear, and with pale policy
	Seek to divert the English purposes.
	O England! model to thy inward greatness,
	Like little body with a mighty heart,
	What mightst thou do, that honour would thee do,
	Were all thy children kind and natural!
	But see, thy fault France hath in thee found out:
	A nest of hollow bosoms, which he fills
	With treacherous crowns; and three corrupted men,
	One, Richard Earl of Cambridge, and the second,
	Henry Lord Scroop of Masham, and the third,
	Sir Thomas Grey, knight, of Northumberland,
	Have, for the gilt of France - O guilt indeed!-
	Confirmed conspiracy with fearful France;
	And by their hands this grace of kings must die,
	If hell and treason hold their promises,
	Ere he take ship for France, and in Southampton.
	Linger your patience on, and we'll digest
	Th' abuse of distance; force a play.
	The sum is paid; the traitors are agreed;
	The king is set from London; and the scene
	Is now transported, gentles, to Southampton:
	There is the playhouse now, there must you sit,
	And thence to France shall we convey you safe,
	And bring you back, charming the narrow seas
	To give you gentle pass; for, if we may,
	We'll not offend one stomach with our play.
	But, till the king come forth, and not till then,
	Unto Southampton do we shift our scene.
													[Exit.

London. A Street in Eastcheap.
 Enter Corporal NYM and Lieutenant BARDOLPH.

Bardolph	Well met, Corporal Nym.

Nym	Good morrow, Lieutenant Bardolph.

Bardolph	What, are Ensign Pistol and you friends yet?

Nym	For my part, I care not. I say little; but when time shall 
	serve, there shall be smiles - but that shall be as it 
	may. I dare not fight; but I will wink and hold out mine 
	iron. It is a simple one, but what though? It will toast 
	cheese, and it will endure cold, as another man's sword 
	will; and there's an end.

Bardolph	I will bestow a breakfast to make you friends, and we'll 
	be all three sworn brothers to France. Let't be so, good 
	Corporal Nym.

Nym	Faith, I will live so long as I may, that's the certain of 
	it; and when I cannot live any longer, I will do as I may: 
	that is my rest, that is the rendezvous of it.

Bardolph	It is certain, corporal, that he is married to Nell 
	Quickly; and certainly she did you wrong, for you were 
	troth-plight to her.

Nym	I cannot tell; things must be as they may. Men may sleep, 
	and they may have their throats about them at that time, 
	and some say knives have edges. It must be as it may: 
	though patience be a tired mare, yet she will plod. There 
	must be conclusions. Well, I cannot tell.

                        Enter PISTOL and QUICKLY.

Bardolph	Here comes Ensign Pistol and his wife. Good corporal, be 
	patient here.
													[NYM stands apart.
	How now, mine host Pistol?

Pistol	Base tike, call'st thou me host?
	Now, by this hand, I swear I scorn the term;
	Nor shall my Nell keep lodgers.

Hostess	No, by my troth, not long; for we cannot lodge and board a 
	dozen or fourteen gentlewomen that live honestly by the 
	prick of their needles, but it will be thought we keep a 
	bawdy-house straight.
													[NYM advances.
	O welladay, Lady! - if he be not here now. We shall see 
	wilful adultery and murder committed.
									  [NYM and PISTOL make to draw.

Bardolph	Good lieutenant, good corporal, offer nothing here.

Nym	[Drawing.] Pish!

Pistol	[Drawing.] Pish for thee, Iceland dog! Thou prick-eared 
	cur of Iceland!

Hostess	Good Corporal Nym, show thy valour, and put up your sword.

Nym	Will you shog off? I would have you solus.

Pistol	"Solus", egregious dog? O viper vile!
	The "solus" in thy most mervailous face;
	The "solus" in thy teeth, and in thy throat,
	And in thy hateful lungs, yea, in thy maw, perdy;
	And, which is worse, within thy nasty mouth.
	I do retort the "solus" in thy bowels;
	For I can take, and Pistol's cock is up,
	And flashing fire will follow.

Nym	I am not Barbason; you cannot conjure me. I have an humour 
	to knock you indifferently well. If you grow foul with me, 
	Pistol, I will scour you with my rapier, as I may, in fair 
	terms. If you would walk off, I would prick your guts a 
	little, in good terms, as I may; and that's the humour of 
	it.

Pistol	O braggart vile and damnd furious wight!
	The grave doth gape, and doting death is near;
	Therefore exhale.
													[NYM and PISTOL draw.

Bardolph	[Drawing.] Hear me, hear me what I say. He that strikes 
	the first stroke, I'll run him up to the hilts, as I am a 
	soldier.

Pistol	An oath of mickle might; and fury shall abate.
							 [NYM and PISTOL sheathe their swords.
	Give me thy fist, thy forefoot to me give.
	Thy spirits are most tall.

Nym	I will cut thy throat one time or other, in fair terms; 
	that is the humour of it.

Pistol	"Couple a gorge",
	That is the word. I thee defy again.
	O hound of Crete, think'st thou my spouse to get?
	No, to the spital go,
	And from the powd'ring-tub of infamy
	Fetch forth the lazar kite of Cressid's kind,
	Doll Tearsheet she by name, and her espouse.
	I have, and I will hold, the quondam Quickly
	For the only she; and - pauca, there's enough to go to.

                              Enter the BOY.

Boy	Mine host Pistol, you must come to my master, and you, 
	hostess: he is very sick, and would to bed. Good Bardolph, 
	put thy face between his sheets and do the office of a 
	warming-pan. Faith, he's very ill.

Bardolph	Away, you rogue!

Hostess	By my troth, he'll yield the crow a pudding one of these 
	days. The king has killed his heart. Good husband, come 
	home presently.
												[Exeunt QUICKLY and BOY.

Bardolph	Come, shall I make you two friends? We must to France 
	together - why the devil should we keep knives to cut one 
	another's throats?

Pistol	Let floods o'erswell, and fiends for food howl on!

Nym	You'll pay me the eight shillings I won of you at betting?

Pistol	Base is the slave that pays.

Nym	That now I will have; that's the humour of it.

Pistol	As manhood shall compound: push home.
													[They draw.

Bardolph	By this sword, he that makes the first thrust, I'll kill 
	him; by this sword, I will.

Pistol	Sword is an oath, and oaths must have their course.
													[He sheathes his sword.

Bardolph	Corporal Nym, and thou wilt be friends, be friends; and 
	thou wilt not, why, then be enemies with me too. Prithee, 
	put up.

Nym	I shall have my eight shillings I won of you at betting?

Pistol	A noble shalt thou have, and present pay,
	And liquor likewise will I give to thee;
	And friendship shall combine, and brotherhood.
	I'll live by Nym, and Nym shall live by me.
	Is not this just? For I shall sutler be
	Unto the camp, and profits will accrue.
	Give me thy hand.
												[NYM sheathes his sword.

Nym	I shall have my noble?

Pistol	In cash most justly paid.

Nym	Well then, that's the humour of't.

                            Re-enter HOSTESS.

Hostess	As ever you come of women, come in quickly to Sir John. 
	Ah, poor heart, he is so shaked of a burning quotidian 
	tertian, that it is most lamentable to behold. Sweet men, 
	come to him.

Nym	The king hath run bad humours on the knight; that's the 
	even of it.

Pistol	Nym, thou hast spoke the right;
	His heart is fracted and corroborate.

Nym	The king is a good king, but it must be as it may - he 
	passes some humours and careers.

Pistol	Let us condole the knight; for, lambkins, we will live.
													[Exeunt.
