ORESTES

To caull to mind the crabyd rage of mother's ill attempt Entrith. Provokes me now all pyttie quite, from me to be exempt. Yet lo dame nature teles me that, I must with willing mind For give the fault and to pity, some what to be inclynd. But lo be hold thad vlltres dame, on hourdome morder will Hath heaped up not contented, her sponsaule bed to fill: With foreign love but sought also, my fatal thread to share As erst before my father's fill, in sunder she did pare. Oh pattern love why douste thou so, of pytey me request, Sith thou to me wast quite denied, my mother being pressed: When tender years this corpse of mine, did hold alas for woe When ̄ friend my mother should have been the ̄ was she chief myfo O gods therefore sith you be joust, unto whose pour & will, All thing in heaven, and earth also? obey and serve until. Declare to me your gracious mind, shall I revenged be, Of good King Agamemnones death, you gods declare to me Or shall I let the, adulltres dame, Still wallow in her sin, O gods of war, gide me a right, when I shall war Begin. Ar you good sir, the messenger of gods as you do say Will they in revenging this wrong, I make not long delay. And sith it is there gracious will, welcome thou art to me, Oh holy wight for this there gift, I thank them hartelley. My thinks I feel all fear to fley, all sorrow grief & pain, My thinks I feel courage provokes, my will for ward again For to revenge my father's death, and infamey so great, O how my heart does boil in deed, w to firy perching heat. Courage now welcome by the gods, I find thou art in deed, A messenger of heavenly ghosts, come let us now proceed. And take in hand to bring to pass, revenged for to be, Of those which have my father slain, but soft now let mese Idumeus that worthy King, does come into this place, What say you courage: shall I now? declare to him my case? Kenll do wne. At hand Oh King thy faruant is, which wisheth to thy grace All hail with happey fate certain, w to pleasures many fouled, But yet my liege a suit I have, if I might be so bold. To crave the same my soferayn lord, whereby I might aspyer Unto the thing with very much, Oh king I do require. Sith that your grace hath willed me, this my defiar to show, O gracious king this thing it is, I let your grace to know That long I have request to view, my father's kingley place, And eke for to revenge the wrong done to my father's grace, Is mine intent wherefore oh king, grant that w to out delay, My earytage and honour eke, atchyue again I may. I thank your grace I shall sequest your gratius mind herin. O gods be prosperous I pray, & eke preserve my band, Show now y to you be gods in dead, stretch out your mighty hand And give us hearts & wills also, where by we may preuayll And suffer not you gods I pray, our courragis to fayll. But let our hearts addytyd be, for aye as we pretend, And of that one adulltres dame, o gods now make and end. My would ̄ ds do thryst her blood to have, nought can my mi ̄ worser continued ̄ tent Till y to on her I have performed, o gods your joust iudgme ̄ to No nought at all o nature can, my purpose now withstand, Shall I for give my father's death, my heart can not agree My father slain in such a sort, and vnreuengyd to be. And of my father's death again, oh Nature do thou louke. Who offendith y e love of God, & eke men love w to willing heart Must by y e love have punishment, as dutey endue for his desert For me therefore to pu ̄ nish hear as law of gods & ma ̄ does will Is not a crime though y to I do, as thou dost say my mother kill Pythagoras does think it lo, no tyraney to be, When that iustyse is mynest ed, as law and gods decree. If that the law does her condemn, as worthy death to have, O nature wouldst thou will y to I, her life should seem to save? To save her life whom law does slay, is not iustise to do, Therefore I say I will not yield, they hests to come unto. what fame does blow I force not I, ne yet what fame I have For this is true y to blood for blood, my father's death does crave And law of gods, & law of man, does eke request y e same. Therefore o nature seize to pray, I force not of my name. Farewell dame Nature to my men. I straight will take my way Go out. And now at hand my men and I, all ready armed be. Lo mighty king this champions here, agree with me to wend O gracious king that they shall so, Wilt please you continued ̄ dissend I thank your grace and now of you, my leave I here do take The sacred gods presarue and save, thy state o king I pray, And send the health and after death, to rain with him for aye. Come on my men, let us depart, Come on my sodyers for at home, arrived their we be, Where as we must have our desyare, or else die manfulley. The walls be hie yet I intend, upon them first to go, And as I hope you sodierrs will, your captain eke follow If I forsake to go before then fley you eke be hind, And as I am so eke I trust, my sodyers for to find. Come hither harauld go proclaim this mine inte ̄ to straightway To yonder citite say that I, am come to their decay. Unless they yield I will destroy, boch man woman & child, And eke their towers that for the war, so strongly they do build Bid them in hast to yield to me, for nough I do a bide. But for their aunswear or else fourth w to for the ̄ & theres provide High the apase and let me have, again and answer soon, And then a non thou shalt well see, what quickly shall be done. Sith that my grace and eke good will, they on such sort despise, For to destroy both man and child, I surely do devise, Come on my men, bend now your force, this City for to win, Save no men life, y to once should make, rysistaunce there w to in, And when you shall poss the town, & have all things at will, Look out my mother but to her, do you no kind of ill. Let her not die, though that she would, desiar the death to have For other wise my father's death, revengement does crave. With lively hearts my troumpeters, exalt your tubal found. And now my sodyers in your hearts, let courage eke be found. Come let us go the gods for us, shall make and easy way, Spare none a live for I am bent, to seek their great decay. For to repent this fact of thine, now that it is to late, Can not be thought a recompense, for killing of thy mate. Go have her hence therefore with speed, & see her sureley kept, And for y e fact a before thou dydest, thou surley shouldst have wept By all the gods my heart did fail, my mother for to see, From hie estate for to be brought, to so great myserey. That all most I had granted life, to her had not this be, My father's death whose death in south, chief causer of was she. And by the gods I purpose eke, my honour to defend, Come on my men keep your array, for now we do pretend. Eather to be the conqerer, or else to die in field, Lift up your hearts and let us see, how you your blose can yield. Thou traitor to my father dear, what makest the here in felled, Repent the of thy wickedness, and to me Straight do yield. O villain trayghtor now y e gods, ne mortal man shall save Thy corpse from ̄ death for blood for blood my father's death does crave O tyrant fyrse couldst thou vouchsafe, my father so to slay? But now no force for thou hast wrought, at last thine one decay Thy life? nay trayghtor vile, that chief I do denay. For as thou hast deserved, so I shall thy fact requited. That once couldst seem to me & mine, for to work such despite Therefore come forth and for thy fact, receive Due punnishme ̄ to Repent I say this former life, for this is my judgement. That for my father's death, the which we find the chief to be, The causer of thou shalt be hanged, where we thy death may see And as thou for my father's death, Due punishment receive, So shall my mother in likewise, for that she gave the leave. Him for to slay, and eke to it, with good will condysende, Therefore come of and soon dyspatch, that we had made and end. Like as a branch once set a fyare, does cause y e tree to bourn As Socrates supposeth so, a wicked wight does turn. Those that be good and cause them eke, his evil to sequest, Wherefore the poet Juvenal, does think it for the best: That those that live lycentiousley, should bridled be w to pain And so others that else would sin, thereby they might restrain For thus he sayeth that Cities are, well governed in deed, Where punishment for wicked ones, by law is so decreed. And not decreed but exersyesd, in punnyshinge of those, Which law ne pain from ̄ waloing still, in vice their mind dispose, And as thou hast been chiefs cause, of yielding up they breath, So call to mind thou wast the cause, of Agamemnon's death. For which as death is recompense, of death so eke with the, For killing of my father thou, now killed eke shault be. This thing to see accomplyshyd, revenge with the shall go, Now have her hence sieth y to you all, my judgement here do know What pyttie thou on father mine, dydest cursedley bestow, The same to the at this present, I purpose for to show. Therefore Revenge have her a way, and as I judgement gave: So see that she in order like, her punishment Due have. Now syeth we have the conquest God, of all our mortal fose, Let us provide that occasion, we do not chance to loose. Strike up your droumes for enter now, we will the city gate For now resestaunce none there is, to let us in thereat. If ought be amys, the same soon shall be, If I have committed amended of me: But so Idumeus the good king of Crete, Is come to this place, us for to meet. And the oh King while life does last, for father I do take. Sith y to the gods have given us grace, this realm for to poss Which flourisheth abundantly, with gold & great riches. Let us now see how much the wilds, & mind of all this land, Is unto us and of their state, likewise to understand. As I do love the laydye bright, so eke I think in deed, That love for love as equally, shall be reward of mede. Come on my Lords & commons eke, let me now understand, Of all your minds for I desiare, to know what case this land Does now consyst voutsate the same, therefore to show to me, And if that ought be now a mouse, amended it shall be. My Nobels all I gyve you thanks, for this now showed to me And as you have so eke will I, the like show unto you. My continued ̄ mons how goose it w to you, your state now let me know, Syeth all things is in so good state, my commons as you say That it may so continue Still, the sacred gods I pray. And as to me your trusteynes, shall any ways be found, So Still to maintain your estate, I sureley shall be bound. And for your faithful hearts, the which you grau ̄ ted have to me Both you my lords, and commons eke, I thank you hartele. Therefore sith time will have and end, & now my mind you know Let us give place to time, and to our pallase let us go. What is they name may I in quear? Oh sacred wight I pray Declare to me & with this fear, do not my heart dismay. Sith that you have accused me, I must my answer make, And here before these kings of Greece, this for my answer take Oh ounckel that I never went, revengement for to do, On father's fose till by the gods, I was command there to. Whose hests no man dare once refuse, but willingly obey That I have slain her wilfully, untruly you do say. I did but that I could not choose, ites hard for me to kycke, Sith gods command as on would say, in faith against y e prick In that you say, I spared none, your grace full well may see, That little mercy they supposed, in south to show to me. When as they bade me do my worst, requesting them to yield, It is no jest when sodyares join, to fight within a field. Thus I suppose sufficiently, I answered have to end, Your great complaint, the which you so, mightily did defend.