And all the priests and friars in my realm
Shall, in proceffion, fing her endless praise.
A ftatelier pyramis to her I'll rear,
Than Rhodope's of Memphis, ever was :
In memory of her, when she is dead,
Her ashes, in an urn more precious
Than the rich-jewel'd coffer of Darius,
Tranfported fhall be at high festivals
Before the kings and queens of France.
No longer on faint Dennis will we cry,
But Joan la Pucelle fhall be France's faint.
Come in; and let us banquet royally,
After this golden day of victory.

ACT II.

SCENE I. The fame.

[Flourish. Exeunt,

Enter to the gates, a French SERGEANT, and two
SENTINELS,

SERG. Sirs, take your places, and be vigilant;

If any noise, or foldier, you perceive,

Near to the walls, by fome apparent fign,

Let us have knowledge at the court of guard.
I SENT. Sergeant, you fhall.

Thus are poor

fervitors

[Exit SERGEANT.]

(When others fleep upon their quiet beds,)

Conftrain'd to watch in darkness, rain, and cold.
Enter TALBOT, BEDFORD, BURGUNDY, and forces, with
fcaling ladders; their drums beating a dead march.
TAL. Lord regent,-and redoubted Burgundy,-
By whofe approach, the regions of Artois,
Walloon, and Picardy, are friends to us,—
This happy night the Frenchmen are fecure,

Having all day carous'd and banqueted:
Embrace we then this opportunity;

As fitting beft to quittance their deceit,
Contriv'd by art, and baleful forcery.

[fame,

BED. Coward of France !-how much he wrongs his Defpairing of his own arm's fortitude,

To join with witches, and the help of hell.

BUR. Traitors have never other company.

But what's that Pucelle, whom they term fo pure?
TAL. A maid, they say.

BED. A maid! and be fo martial!

BUR. Pray God, fhe prove not masculine ere long; If underneath the ftandard of the French,

She carry armour, as she hath begun.

TAL. Well, let them practise and converse with spirits:
God is our fortrefs; in whofe conquering name,
Let us refolve to scale their flinty bulwarks.

BED. Ascend, brave Talbot; we will follow thée,
TAL. Not all together: better far, I guess,
That we do make our entrance feveral ways;
That, if it chance the one of us do fail,
The other yet may rise against their force.
BED. Agreed; I'll to yon corner.

BUR. And I to this.

TAL. And here will Talbot mount, or make his grave.

Now, Salisbury! for thee, and for the right

Of English Henry, fhall this night appear

How much in duty I am bound to both.

[The English fcale the walls, crying St. George! a Talbot! and all enter by the town.

SENT. [Within.] Arm, arm! the enemy doth make affault!

The French leap over the walls in their fhirts. Enter, Se

veral ways, BASTARD, ALENÇON, REIGNIER, half

ready, and half unready.

ALEN. How now, my lords? what, all unready fo?

BAST. Unready?ay, and glad we 'fcap'd fo well. REIG. 'Twas time, I trow, to wake, and leave our beds, Hearing alarums at our chamber doors.

ALEN. Of all exploits, fince first I follow'd arms,

Ne'er heard I of a warlike enterprize

More venturous, or desperate than this.

BAST. I think, this Talbot is a fiend of hell.
REIG. If not of hell, the heavens, fure, favour him.
ALEN. Here cometh Charles; I marvel, how he sped.
Enter CHARLES and LA PUCELLE.

BAST. Tut! holy Joan was his defenfive guard.
CHAR. Is this thy cunning, thou deceitful dame?
Didst thou at first, to flatter us withal,

Make us partakers of a little gain,

That now our lofs might be ten times fo much?

Puc. Wherefore is Charles impatient with his friend?
At all times will you have my power alike?
Sleeping, or waking, muft I ftill prevail,

Or will you blame and lay the fault on me?-
Improvident foldiers! had your watch been good,
This fudden mischief never could have fall'n.
CHAR. Duke of Alençon, this was your default;
That, being captain of the watch to-night,
Did look no better to that weighty charge.
ALEN. Had all your quarters been as fafely kept,
As that whereof I had the government,
We had not been thus fhamefully furpriz'd.

BAST. Mine was fecure.

REIG. And fo was mine, my lord.

CHAR. And, for myself, most part of all this night,

Within her quarter, and mine own precinct,
I was employ'd in paffing to and fro,
About relieving of the fentinels:

Then how, or which way, fhould they first break in?
Puc. Question, my lords, no further of the case,
How, or which way; 'tis fure, they found fome place
But weakly guarded, where the breach was made.
And now there refts no other shift but this,-
To gather our foldiers, scatter'd and difpers'd,
And lay new platforms to endamage them.

Alarum. Enter an English SOLDIER crying a Talbot! a
Talbot! They fly, leaving their clothes behind.

SOLD. I'll be fo bold to take what they have left.

The of Talbot ferves me for a fword;

cry

For I have loaden me with many spoils,

Ufing no other weapon but his name.

SCENE II, Orleans. Within the town.

[Exit,

Enter TALBOT, BEDFORD, BURGUNDY, a CAPTAIN, and Others.

BED. The day begins to break, and night is fled,
Whofe pitchy mantle over-veil'd the earth.
Here found retreat, and cease our hot pursuit.

[Retreat founded.

TAL. Bring forth the body of old Salisbury;
And here advance it in the market-place,
The middle centre of this curfed town.-
Now have I paid my vow unto his foul;
For every drop of blood was drawn from him,
There hath at leaft five Frenchmen dy'd to-night,
And, that hereafter ages may behold

What ruin happen'd in revenge of him,

Within their chiefeft temple I'll erect

A tomb, wherein his corpse shall be interr'd:
Upon the which, that every one may read,
Shall be engrav'd the fack of Orleans;

The treacherous manner of his mournful death,
And what a terror he had been to France.
But, lords, in all our bloody massacre,

I muse, we met not with the Dauphin's grace;
His new-come champion, virtuous Joan of Arc;
of his falfe confederates.

Nor any

BED. 'Tis thought, lord Talbot, when the fight began,
Rous'd on the fudden from their drowsy beds,
They did, amongst the troops of armed men,
Leap o'er the walls for refuge in the field.

BUR. Myfelf (as far as I could well difcern,
For fmoke, and dufky vapours of the night,)
Am fure, I fcar'd the Dauphin, and his trull;
When arm in arm they both came swiftly running,
Like to a pair of loving turtle-doves,

That could not live afunder day or night.

After that things are fet in order here,

We'll follow them with all the power we have.

Enter a MESSENGER.

MESS. All hail, my lords! which of this princely train ye the warlike Talbot, for his acts

Call

So much applauded through the realm of France?

TAL. Here is the Talbot; Who would speak with him?
MESS. The virtuous lady, countess of Auvergne,
With modesty admiring thy renown,

By me entreats, great lord, thou wouldst vouchfafe
To vifit her poor caftle where she lies;

That she may boast, she hath beheld the man
Whofe glory fills the world with loud report.
BUR. Is it even fo? Nay, then, I fee, our wars