RUMOUR,
           the Presenter

   KING HENRY THE FOURTH

    HENRY,
           PRINCE OF WALES,
         afterwards HENRY

   PRINCE JOHN OF LANCASTER

   PRINCE HUMPHREY OF GLOUCESTER

    THOMAS,
           DUKE OF CLARENCE Sons
               of Henry IV

   EARL OF NORTHUMBERLAND

   SCROOP, ARCHBISHOP OF YORK

   LORD MOWBRAY

   LORD HASTINGS

   LORD BARDOLPH

   SIR JOHN COLVILLE

    TRAVERS and MORTON,
           retainers of Northumberland Opposites
               against King Henry IV

   EARL OF WARWICK

   EARL OF WESTMORELAND

   EARL OF SURREY

   EARL OF KENT

   GOWER

   HARCOURT

    BLUNT Of the King's party

   LORD CHIEF JUSTICE

    SERVANT,
           to Lord Chief Justice

   SIR JOHN FALSTAFF

   EDWARD POINS

   BARDOLPH

   PISTOL

    PETO Irregular humourists

    PAGE,
           to Falstaff

    ROBERT SHALLOW and SILENCE,
           country Justices

    DAVY,
           servant to Shallow

    FANG and SNARE,
           Sheriff's officers

   RALPH MOULDY

   SIMON SHADOW

   THOMAS WART

   FRANCIS FEEBLE

    PETER BULLCALF Country soldiers

    FRANCIS,
           a drawer

   LADY NORTHUMBERLAND

    LADY PERCY,
           Percy's widow

    HOSTESS QUICKLY,
           of the Boar's Head,
         Eastcheap

   DOLL TEARSHEET

    LORDS,
           Attendants,
         Porter,
           Drawers,
         Beadles,
           Grooms,
         Servants,
           Speaker of the Epilogue

    SCENE:
        England
 
  INDUCTION.

    Warkworth.

    Before NORTHUMBERLAND'S Castle
          Enter RUMOUR,
           painted full of tongues

    RUMOUR.

    Open your ears;
        for which of you
            will stop The vent
                   of hearing
             when loud Rumour speaks?

    I,
           from the orient
               to the drooping west,
         Making the wind my post-horse,
           still unfold The acts
               commenced on
                   this ball of earth.

    Upon my tongues continual
        slanders ride,
           The which
               in every language I pronounce,
         Stuffing the ears of men
               with false reports.

    I speak of peace
         while covert emnity,
           Under the smile of safety,
         wounds the world;
        And who but Rumour,
           who but only I,
         Make fearful
            musters and prepar'd defence,
           Whiles the big year,
         swoln with some other grief,
           Is thought with child
               by the stern tyrant war,
         And no such matter?

    Rumour is a pipe
           Blown by surmises,
         jealousies,
         conjectures,
           And of so easy
               and so plain a stop
             That the blunt monster
                   with uncounted heads,
      The still-discordant wav'ring
                   multitude,
           Can play upon it.

    But what need I thus
           My well-known body
         to anatomize
           Among my household?

    Why is Rumour here?

    I run
         before King Harry's victory,
           Who,
         in a bloody field
               by Shrewsbury,
           Hath beaten
               down young Hotspur
                   and his troops,
         Quenching the flame
               of bold rebellion