A stinging one,

If that's the Parliament: twelve subsidies!

A stinging one! but, brother, where 's your word
For Strafford's other nest-egg, the Scots' war?

The Puritan. His fruit shall be a fiery flying serpent. Fien. Shall be? It chips the shell, man; peeps abroad. Twelve subsidies! Why! how now, Vane?

Rud.

·Peace, Fiennes ! Fien. Ah?. But he was not more a dupe than I, Or you, or any here, the day that Pym

Returned with the good news. Look up, friend Vane!
We all believed that Strafford meant us well

In summoning the Parliament.

Vane.

(HAMPDEN enters.)

Now, Hampden,

Clear me ! I would have leave to sleep again:

I'd look the People in the face again :

Clear me from having, from the first, hoped, dreamed
Better of Strafford !

Hamp.
You may grow one day
A steadfast light to England, Henry Vane!
Rud. Meantime, by flashes I make shift to see
Strafford revived our Parliaments; before,
War was but talked of; there's an army, now :
Still, we've a Parliament! Poor Ireland bears
Another wrench (she dies the hardest death!) -
Why, speak of it in Parliament! and lo,
'Tis spoken, so console yourselves!

Fien.
The jest!
We clamored, I suppose, thus long, to win
The privilege of laying on our backs
A sorer burden than the King dares lay!

Rud. Mark now we meet at length, complaints pour From every county, all the land cries out

On loans and levies, curses ship-money,
Calls vengeance on the Star-chamber; we lend
An ear. 66
Ay, lend them all the ears you have!"
Puts in the King; "my subjects, as you find,
Are fretful, and conceive great things of you.
Just listen to them, friends; you'll sanction me
The measures they most wince at, make them yours,
Instead of mine, I know: and, to begin,

They say my levies pinch them, raise me straight
Twelve subsidies!

Fien.

Twelve subsidies!

All England cannot furnish

in

Hol.

From Ireland

-

But Strafford, just returned - what has he to do with that?

How could he speak his mind? He left before
The Parliament assembled. Pym, who knows
Strafford ..

Rud.
Would I were sure we know ourselves!
What is for good, what, bad — who friend; who foe!
Hol. Do you count Parliaments no gain?
Rud.
A gain?
While the King's creatures overbalance us?
There's going on, beside, among ourselves
A quiet, slow, but most effectual course
Of buying over, sapping, leavening
The lump till all is leaven. Glanville's gone.
I'll put a case; had not the Court declared
That no sum short of just twelve subsidies
Will be accepted by the King our House,
I say, would have consented to that offer
To let us buy off ship-money!

Hol.

Most like,

If, say, six subsidies will buy it off,

The House

Rud.

Will grant them! Hampden, do you hear?

Congratulate with me! the King's the king,

And gains his point at last

To that detested tax !

our own assent

All's over, then!

There's no more taking refuge in this room,
Protesting, "Let the King do what he will,
We, England, are no party to our shame :
Our day will come !

Congratulate with me !

(PYM enters.)

Vane. Pym, Strafford called this Parliament, you say, But we 'll not have our Parliaments like those

In Ireland, Pym!

Rud.

Let him stand forth, your friend!
One doubtful act hides far too many sins;
It can be stretched no more, and, to my mind,
Begins to drop from those it covered.

Other Voices.

Let him avow himself! No fitter time!

We wait thus long for you.

Good!

Rud.
Perhaps, too long!
Since nothing but the madness of the Court,

In thus unmasking its designs at once,

Has saved us from betraying England. Stay -
This Parliament is Strafford's: let us vote
Our list of grievances too black by far
To suffer talk of subsidies: or best,
That ship-money 's disposed of long ago
By England: any vote that's broad enough:
And then let Strafford, for the love of it,
Support his Parliament !

And vote as well

Vane.
No war to be with Scotland! Hear you, Pym?
We'll vote, no war! No part nor lot in it
For England!

Stop the new levies!
When next we meet !

Many Voices. Vote, no war! No Bishops' war! At once! Pym. Much more when next

you

we meet! Friends, which of

Since first the course of Strafford was in doubt,
Has fallen the most away in soul from me?

Vane. I sat apart, even now, under God's eye,
Pondering the words that should denounce you, Pym,
In presence of us all, as one at league

With England's enemy.

Pym.

You are a good

And gallant spirit, Henry. Take my hand

And say you pardon me for all the pain

Till now! Strafford is wholly ours.

Many Voices.

Sure? sure?

Pym. Most sure: for Charles dissolves the Parliament

While I speak here.

And I must speak, friends, now !

Strafford is ours.

The King detects the change,

Casts Strafford off forever, and resumes
His ancient path: no Parliament for us,
No Strafford for the King!

Come, all of you,

To bid the King farewell, predict success

To his Scots' expedition, and receive

Strafford, our comrade now. The next will be

Indeed a Parliament!

Vane.

Forgive me, Pym!

Voices. This looks like truth: Strafford can have, indeed, No choice.

Pym.

Friends, follow me! He's with the King.

Come, Hampden, and come, Rudyard, and come, Vane!
This is no sullen day for England, sirs!

Strafford shall tell you!

Voices.

To Whitehall then! Come !

SCENE II. Whitehall.

CHARLES and STRAFFORD.

Cha. Strafford!

Straf.

Is it a dream? my papers, here

Thus, as I left them, all the plans you found
So happy (look! the track you pressed my hand
For pointing out) and in this very room,

Over these very plans, you tell me, sir,

With the same face, too tell me just one thing
That ruins them! How's this? What this mean?
Sir, who has done this?

Cha.

may

Strafford, who but I?

You bade me put the rest away indeed

You are alone.

No fear, when some unworthy scheme grows ripe,
Of those, who hatched it, leaving me to loose
The mischief on the world! Laud hatches war,
Falls to his prayers, and leaves the rest to me;
And I'm alone.

Cha.

At least, you knew as much
When first you undertook the war.
Straf.
My liege,
Was this the way? I said, since Laud would lap
A little blood, 't were best to hurry over

The loathsome business, not to be whole months

At slaughter

one blow, only one, then, peace, Save for the dreams. I said, to please you both I'd lead an Irish army to the West,

While in the South an English . . . but you look
As though you had not told me fifty times

'T was a brave plan! My army is all raised,
I am prepared to join it

Cha. Straf.

Is set aside
I am to lead

Hear me, Strafford !

. . When, for some little thing, my whole design
(where is the wretched paper?)

(ay, here it is) to lead

The English army: why? Northumberland

That I appointed, chooses to be sick

Is frightened and, meanwhile, who answers for
The Irish Parliament? or army, either?

Is this my plan?

Cha.

So disrespectful, sir?

Straf. My liege, do not believe it! I am yours,
Yours ever: 't is too late to think about:

To the death, yours. Elsewhere, this untoward step
Shall pass for mine; the world shall think it mine.
But, here! But, here! I am so seldom here,
Seldom with you, my King! I, soon to rush
Alone upon a giant in the dark!
Cha. My Strafford!

Straf. [examines papers awhile.]
Tyne!"

But, sir, you see

"Seize the passes of the

see all I say is true?

My plan was sure to prosper, so, no cause

To ask the Parliament for help; whereas

We need them frightfully.

Cha.

Need the Parliament ?

Straf. Now, for God's sake, sir, not one error more!

We can afford no error; we draw, now,

Upon our last resource: the Parliament

Must help us!

I've undone you, Strafford !

Cha.
Straf.
Nay-why despond, sir;
I have not hurt you? Sir,
To hurt you? I unsay it!
Sir, do
you turn from me?

Nay

't is not come to that!
what have I said
Don't despond!

My friend of friends!

Leave me the Parliament !

Cha.
Straf. We'll make a shift.
Help they us ne'er so little and I'll make
Sufficient out of it. We'll speak them fair.