joyne your hands while they are innocent You have heat of blood and youth apt to ambition To plead an easy pardon for what 's past But all the ills beyond this houre committed From Gods or men must hope for no excuse Gisb. Can you heare this unmov'd Aub. No Syllable Of this so pious charme but should have power To frustrate all the juggling deceipts With which the Divell blindes you Otto I begin to melt I know not how Rol. Mother I le leave you And Sir be thankfull for the time you live Till wee meet next which shall be soone and suddaine To her perswasion for you Soph. O yet stay And rather then part thus vouchsafe me hearing As enimies how is my soule divided My love to both is equall as my wishes But are return'd by neither my griev'd heart Hold yet a litle longer and then break I kneele to both and will speak so but this Takes the authority of a Mothers power And therefore like my selfe Otto to thee And yet observe sonne how thy Mothers teares Out strip her forward words to make way for 'em Thou art the younger Otto yet be now The first example of obedience to me And grow the elder in my love Otto The meanes to be so happy Soph. This yeeld up thy sword And let thy pietie give thy mother strength To take that from thee which no enimies force Could ere dispoile thee of why dost thou tremble And with a fearefull eye fixt on thy brother Observ'st his ready sword as bent against thee I am thy armour and will be pierc't through Ten thousand times before I will give way To any perill may arrive at thee And therefore feare not Otto T is not for my selfe But for you Mother you are now engag'd In more then lies in your unquestion'd vertue For since you have disarm'd me of defence Should I fall now though by his hand the world May say it was your practise Soph. All worlds perish Before my pietie turnes treasons parent Take it againe and stand upon your guard And while your brother is continue arm'd And yet this feare is needlesse for I knowe My Rollo though he dares as much as man So tender of his yet untainted valour So noble that he dares doe nothing basely You doubt him he feares you I doubt and feare Both for others safety not my owne Know yet my sonnes when of necessity You must deceive or be deceiv'd 't is better To suffer treason then to act the traytor And in a war like this in which the glory Is his that 's overcome consider then What t is for which you strive is it the Dukedome Or the command of these so ready subjects Desire of wealth or whatsoere else Fires your ambition 't is still desperate madnesse To kill the people which you would be Lords of With fire and sword to lay that countrey wast Whose rule you seek for to consume the treasures Which are the sinewes of your government In cherishing the factions that destroy it Far far be this from you make it not question'd Whither you can have interest in that Dukedome Whose ruine both contend for Otto I desire But to enjoy my owne which I will keep Rollo And rather then posteritie shall have cause To say I ruin'd all divide the Dukedome I will accept the moietie Otto I embrace it Soph. Divide me first or teare me limb by limb And let them find as many severall graves As there are Villages in Normandy And 't is lesse sinne then so to weaken it To heare it mention'd doth already make me Envy my dead Lord and almost blaspheme Those powers which heard my prayers for fruitfulnesse And did not with my first birth close my wombe To me alone my second blessing proves my first My first of misery for if heaven That gave me Rollo there had staid his bounty And Otto my deere Otto nere had been Or being had not been so worth my love The streame of my affection had run constant In one faire current all my hopes had been Laid up in one and fruitfull Normandy In this division had not lost her glories For as 't is now 't is a faire dyamond Which being preserv'd intire exceeds all value But cut in peeces though these peeces are Set in fine gold by the best workmans cunning Parts with all estimation so this Dukedome As t is yet whole the neighbouring Kings may covet But cannot compasse which divided will Become the spoile of every barbarous foe That will invade it Gisb. How this workes in both Baldw. Prince Rolloes eyes have lost their fire Gisb. And anger that but ev'n now wholly possessed Good Otto hath given place to pitty Aub. End not thus Madam But perfect what 's so well begun Soph. I see in both faire signes of reconcilement Make them sure proofes they are so the fates offer To your free choice either to live examples Of piety or wickednesse if the latter Blinds so your understanding that you cannot Pierce through her painted outside and discover That she is all deformitie within Boldly transcend all presidents of mischiefe And let the last and the worst act of tyrannies The murther of a Mother but begin The Scene of bloud you after are to heighten But if that vertue and her sure rewards Can win you to accept her for your guide To lead you up to heaven and there fix you The fairest starre in the bright sphere of honour Make me the parent of a hundred sonnes All brought into the world with joy not sorrow And every one a Father to his countrey In being now made mother of your concord Rollo Such and so good loud fame for ever speak you Bald. I now they meet like brothers The brothers throw down their swords and embrace Gisb. My hearts joy Flowes through my eyes Aub. May never womans tongue Hereafter be accus'd for this ones goodnesse Otto If we contend from this houre it shall be How to orecome in brotherly affection Rollo Otto is Rollo now and Rollo Otto Or as they have one minde rather one name From this attonement let our lives begin Be all the rest forgotten Aub. Spoke like Rollo Soph. And to the honour of this reconcilement We all this night will at a publique feast With choice wines drowne our late feares And with Musick welcome our comforts Baldw. Sure and certaine ones Soph. Supported thus I am secure o sonnes This is your Mothers triumph Exeunt omnes praet Granpre Verdon Trevile Duprete Rollo You deserve it Gran. Did ever such a hop'd for businesse end thus Verd. T is fatall to us all and yet you Granpree Have the least cause to feare Gran. Why what 's my hope Verd. The certainty that you have to be hang'd You know the Chancellours promise Gran. Plague upon you Verd. What think you of a bath and a Lords daughter To entertaine you Gran. Those desires are of fraile thoughts All friends no Rollions now nor Ottoes The severall
those Icy chaines by thee Roll. What bright starre taking beauties for me upon her In all the happy lustre of heavens glory Has dropt downe from the skye to comfort mee Wonder of nature let it not prophane thee My rude hand touch thy beauty nor this kisse The gentle sacrifice of love and service Be offer'd to the honour of thy sweetnesse Edith My gratious Lord no diety dwells here Nor nothing of that vertue but obedience The servant to your will affects no flattery Roll. Can it be flattery to sweare those eyes Are loves eternall lamps he fires all hearts with That tongue the smart string to his bow those sighes The deadly shafts he sends into our soules O look upon me with thy spring of beauty Edith Your Grace is full of game Roll. By heaven my Edith Thy mother fed on roses when she got thee Edith And thine on brambles that hath prickt her heart out Roll. The sweetnesse of th' Arabian winde still blowing Vpon the treasures of perfumes and spices In all their pride and pleasures call thee Mistris Edith Wil t please you sit Sir Roll. So you please sit by mee Faire gentle maid there is no speaking to thee The Excellency that appears upon thee Tyes up my tongue pray speak to mee Edith Of what sir Roll. Of any thing and any thing is excellent Will you take my direction speak of love then Speak of thy faire selfe Edith and whilst thou speakst Let me thus languishing give up my selfe wench Edith Has a strange cunning tongue why doe you sigh sir How masterly he turnes himselfe to catch me Rollo The way to Paradise my gentle maid Is hard and crooked scarce repentance finding With all her holy helps the doore to enter Give me thy hand what dost thou feele Edith Your teares sir You weep extreamly strengthen me now Iustice Why are these sorrowes Sir Rollo Thou 'lt never love me If I should tell thee and yet there is no way left Ever to purchase this blest Paradise But swimming thither in these teares Edith I stagger Rollo Are they not drops of bloud Edith No Rollo They are for bloud then For guiltlesse bloud and they must drop my Edith They must thus drop till I have drown'd my mischiefes Edith If this be true I have no strength to touch him Rollo Pree look upon me turne not from me Ahlas I doe confesse I 'me made of mischiefe Begot with all mens miseries upon me But see my sorrowes minde and doe not thou learne Whose only sweetest sacrifice is softnesse Whose true condition tendernesse of nature Edith My anger melts ô I shall loose my justice Rollo Doe not thou learne to kill with cruelty Those blessed eyes as I have done with mallice When thou hast wounded me to death with scorne As I deserve it Lady for my true love When thou hadst loden me with earth for ever Take heed my sorrowes and the stings I suffer Take heed my nightly dreames of death and horrour Pursue thee not no time shall tell thy griefes then Nor shall an houre of joy adde to thy beauties Look not upon me as I kill'd thy father As I was smear'd in bloud doe thou not hate me But thus in whitenesse of my wash'd repentance In my hearts teares and truth of love to Edith In my faire life hereafter Edith He will foole me Rollo O with thine Angell eyes behold and blesse me Of heaven we call for mercy and obtaine it To justice for our right on earth and have it Of thee I beg for love save me and give it Edith Now heaven thy help or I am gone for ever His tongue has turn'd me into melting pitty Enter Hamond and Guard Ham. Keep the doore safe and upon paine of death Let no man enter till I give the word Guard We shall Sir Ham. Here he is in all his pleasure Rollo I have my wish How now why dost thou stare so Edith A help I hope Rollo What dost thou here who sent thee Ham. My brother and the base malitious office Thou mad'st me doe to Aubrey pray Rollo Pray Ham. Pray Pray if thou canst pray I shall kill thy soule else Pray suddenly Rollo Thou canst not be so traiterous Ham. It is a justice stay Lady For I perceive your end a womans hand Must not rob me of vengeance Edith T is my glory Ham. T is mine stay share with me By the Gods Rollo There is no way to save thy life Rol. No Ham. No It is so monstrous no repentance cures it Rollo Why then thou shalt kill her first and what this bloud Will cast upon thy cursed head Ham. Poore guard Sir Ed. Spare not brave Captaine Rol. Feare or the divell ha thee Ham. Such feare Sir as you gave your honour'd mother When your most vertuous brother sheild-like held her Such I le give you put her away Rol. I will not I will not dye so tamely Ham. Murdrous villaine Wilt thou draw seas of bloud upon thee Edith Feare not Kill him good Captaine anyway dispatch him My body 's honour'd with that sword that through me Sends his black soule to hell ô but for one hand Ham Shake him off bravely Edith He 's too strong strike him Ham. O I am with you Sir now keep you from him What has he got a knife Edith Look to him Captaine For now he will be mischievous Ham. Doe you smile Sir Does it so tickle you have at you once more Edith O bravely thrust take heed he comes not in Sir To him againe you give him too much respit Rollo Yet wilt thou save my life and I le forgive thee And give thee all all honours all advancements Call thee my friend Edith Strike strike and heare him not His tongue will tempt a Saint Rollo O for my soules sake Edith Save nothing of him Ham. Now for your farewell Are you so wary take you that Rollo Thou that too O thou hast kil'd me basely basely basely Dyes Edith The just reward of murder falls upon thee How doe you Sir has he not hurt you Ham. No I feele not any thing Sophia Matilda Aubrey and Lords at the doore Aub. I charge yee let us passe Guard Yee cannot yet sir Aub. I le make my way then Guard We are sworne to our Captaine And till he give the word Enter Soph. Matil Aub. Lords and attendants Ham. Now let 'em in there Soph. O there he lies sorrow on sorrow seeks me O in his bloud he lies Aub. Had you spoke sooner this might have beene Prevented Take the Dutches And lead her off this is no sight for her eyes Mat. O bravely done wench Edith There stands the noble doer Mat. May honour ever seek thee for thy justice O 't was a deed of high and brave adventure A justice even for heaven to envy at Farewell my sorrowes and my teares take truce My wishes are come round ô bloudy brother Till this houre never beautious till thy life Like a full
perceive your brothers sweetnesse Otto O mother that your tendernesse had eyes Discerning eyes what would this man appeare then The tale of Synon when he took upon him To ruine Troy with what a cloud of cunning He hid his heart nothing appearing outwards But came like innocence and dropping pitty Sighes that would sinke a Navy and had tales Able to take the eares of Saints beliefe too and what did all these blew the fire to Ilion My brother has put on oh I could tell yee But for the reverence I beare to nature Things that would make your honest bloud move backward Soph. Yee dare tell me Otto Yes in your private closet Where I will presently attend you rise I am a litle troubled but t will off Soph. Is this the joy I lookt for Otto All will mend Be not disturb'd deere mother I le not faile you Exit Sophia Otto Baldw. I doe not like this Aub. That 's still in our powers But how to make it so that we may like it Bald. Beyond us ever Latorch me thought was busie That fellow if not lookt to narrowly will doe a suddain mischiefe Aub. Hell look to him For if there may be a divell above all yet That rogue will make him Keep your selfe up this night And so will I for much I feare a danger Bald. I will and in my watches use my praiers Exeunt ACTUS 3. SCENA 1. A Stoole set out Enter Sophia Otto Matilda Edith Otto You wonder Madam that for all the shewes My brother Rollo makes of hearty love And free possession of the Dukedome twixt us I notwithstanding should stand still suspicious As if beneath those vailes he did convey Intents and practises of hate and treason Soph. It breeds indeed my wonder Otto Which makes mine Since t is so safe and broad a beaten way Beneath the name of friendship to betray Soph. Though in remote and further off affection These falshoods are so common yet in him They cannot so force nature Otto The more neere the bonds of truth binde The more oft they sever Being better cloakes to falshood ever Soph. It cannot be that fruits the tree so blasting Can grow in nature take heed gentle sonne Lest some suborn'd suggester of these treasons Beleev'd in him by you provok'd the rather His tender envies to such fowle attempts Or that your too much love to rule alone Bred not of him this jealous passion There is not any ill we might not beare Were not our good held at a price too deere Otto So apt is treachery to be excus'd That innocence is still aloud abus'd The fate of vertue ev'n her friends perverts To plead for vice oftimes against their hearts Heavens blessing is her curse which she must beare That she may never love Soph. Alas my sonne nor fate nor heaven it selfe Can or would wrest my whole care of your good To any least securenesse in your ill What I urge issues from my curious feare Lest you should make your meanes to scape your snare Doubt of sincerenesse is the only meane Not to incense it but corrupt it cleane Otto I rest as far from wrong of all syncerenesse As he flies from the practise trust me Madam I know by their confessions he suborn'd What I should eat drink touch or only have sented This evening feast was poyson'd but I feare His open violence more than trecherous odds In his insatiate thirst of rule Is like to execute Soph. Beleeve it sonne If still his stomack be so foule to feed On such grosse objects and that thirst to rule The state alone be yet unquencht in him Poysons and such close treasons ask more time Then can suffice his fiery spirits hast And were there in him such desire to hide So false a practise there would likewise rest Conscience and feare in him of open force And therefore close nor open you need feare Mat. Good Madame stand not so inclin'd to trust What proves his tendrest thoughts to doubt it just Who knowes not the unbounded flood and sea In which my brother Rollo's appetites Alter and rage with every puffe of breath His swelling bloud exhales and therefore heare What gives my temperate brother cause To use his circumspection and consult For remedy gainst all his wicked purposes If he arme arme if he strow mines of treason Meet him with countermines 't is justice still For goodnesse sake to encounter ill for ill Soph. Avert from us such justice equall heaven And all such cause of justice Otto Past all doubt For all the sacred priviledge of night This is no time for us to sleep or rest in Who knowes not all things holy are prevented With ends of all impiety all but Lust gaine ambition Enter Rollo arm'd and Latorch Rollo Perish all the world Ere I but loose one foot of possible Empire By sleights and colour us'd by slaves and wretches I am exempt by birth from both those curbes And sit above them in all justice since I sit above in power where power is given Is all the right suppos'd of earth and heaven Lat. Prove both Sir see the Traitour Otto He comes arm'd See mother now your confidence Soph. What rage Affects this monster Rollo Give me way or perish Soph. Make thy way Viper if thou thus affect it Otto This is a Treason like thee Rollo Let her goe Soph. Embrace me weare me as thy sheild my sonne And through my brest let his rude weapon run To thy lives innocence Otto Play not two parts Treacher and coward both but yeeld a sword And let thy arming thee be odds enough Against my naked bosome Rollo Loose his hold Mat. Forbeare base murtherer Rollo Forsake our Mother Soph. Mother do it thou name me And put off nature thus Rollo Forsake her traitour Or by the spoile of nature through hers This leads unto thy heart Otto Hold Soph. Hold me still Otto For twenty hearts and lives I will not hazard One drop of bloud in yours Soph. O thou art lost then Ot. Protect my innocence heaven Soph. Call out murder Mat. Be murdred all but save him Edith Murder murder Rollo Cannot I reach you yet Otto No fiend Rollo Latorch Rescue I am downe Lat. Vp then your sword cooles Sir Ply it i' th flame and work your ends out Rollo Ha Have at you there Sir Ent. Aub. Aub. Author of prodigies What sights are these Otto O give me a weapon Aubrey Soph. O part em part 'em Aub. For heavens sake no more Otto No more resist his fury no rage can Adde to his mischiefe done Dies Soph. Take spirit my Otto Heaven will not see thee dye thus Mat. He is dead And nothing lives but death of every goodnesse Soph. O he hath slain his brother curse him heaven Rollo Curse and be curst it is the fruit of cursing Latorch take off here bring too of that bloud To bloudy ore my shirt then raise the Court And give it out how he attempted us In