Imatges de pàgina
PDF
EPUB

Nor airless dungeon, nor ftrong links of iron,
Can be retentive to the ftrength of spirit:
But life, being weary of thefe worldly bars,
'Never lacks power to difmifs itself.

If I know this, know all the world befides,
That part of tyranny that I do bear,
I can fhake off at pleafure.
Gafca. So can Ï:

So every bondman in his own hand bears
The power to cancel his captivity.

Caf. And why fhould Cæfar be a tyrant then?
Poor man, I know he would not be a wolf,
But that he fees the Romans are but sheep;
He were no lion, were not Romans hinds.
Those that with hafte will make a mighty fire,
Begin it with weak ftraws. What trafh is Rome?
What rubbifh? and what offal? when it ferves
For the base matter to illuminate

So vile a thing as Cæfar? But, oh grief!
Where haft thou led me? I perhaps fpeak this
Before a willing bondman: then I know,
My anfwer must be made. But I am armed,
And dangers are to me indifferent.

Cafca. You fpeak to Casca, and to fuch a man, That is no flearing tell-tale. Hold my hand: (7) Be factious for redress of all these griefs,

And I will fet this foot of mine as far,

As who goes farthest.

Caf. There's a bargain made.

Now know you, Casca, I have moved already
Some certain of the nobleft-minded Romans,
To undergo with me an enterprise

(7)

Hold, my hand:] This comma muft certainly be removed. Cafca bids Caffius take his hand, as it were to bind their league and amity. So afterwards, in this play; Give me thy hand, Meffala.

[ocr errors]

Of honourable dangerous confequence;
And I do know by this they ftay for me
In Pompey's porch. For now this fearful night,
There is no ftir or walking in the streets;
And the complexion of the element

Is feverous, like the work we have in hand; .
Moft bloody, fiery, and moft terrible...

Enter CINNA.

Cafea. Stand clofe a while, for here comes one

in hafte.

Caf. 'Tis Cinna, I do know him by his gait;
He is a friend. Cinna, where haste you fo?
Cin. To find out you: who's that? Metellus
Cimber?

Caf. No, it is Cafca, one incorporate

To our attempts.

Am I not ftaid for, Cinna?

Cin. I'm glad on't. What a fearful night is this? There's two or three of us have feen ftrange fights. Caf. Am I not ftaid for? tell me.

Cin. Yes, you are.

O Caflius! could you win the noble Brutus
To our party----------

Caf. Be you content. Good Cinna, take this
And look you lay it in the Prætor's chair, [paper;
Where Brutus, may but find it; and throw this
In at his window; fet this up with wax
Upon old Brutus' statue: all this done,
Repair to Pompey's porch, where you
thall find us.
Is Decius Brutus and Trebonius there?

in All, but Metellus Cimber, and he's gone
To feek you at your houfe. Well, I will hie,
And fo beftow thefe papers as you
bade me.
Caf. That done, repair to Pompey's theatre.
[Exit Cinna
Come, Cafca, you and I will yet ere day

See Brutus at his houfe; three parts of him
Is ours already, and the man entire
Upon the next encounter yields him ours.

Cafea. O, he fits high in all the people's hearts :
And that which would appear offence in us,
His countenance, like richest alchymy,
Will change to virtue and to worthiness.

[him,

Caf. Him and his worth, and our great need of You have right well conceited; let us go, For it is after midnight; and ere day

We will awake him, and be fure of him. [Exeunt.

ACT II.

SCENE, Brutus's Garden.

Enter BRUTUS.

BRUTU S.

WHAT, Lucius! ho!-

I cannot by the progrefs of the stars

Give guess how near to day

Lucius, I fay!"

I would it were my fault to fleep fo foundly..

When, Lucius, when? awake, I fay! what, Lucius!

Enter DUCIUS.

Luc. Called you, my Lord?"

Bru. Get me a taper in my ftudy, Lucius:: When it is lighted, come and call me here.

Luc. I will, my Lord.

[Exit.

Bru. It must be by his death; and for my part,.

I know no perfonal caufe to fpurn at him;
But for the general. He would be crowned-
How that might change his nature, there's the
question.

It is the bright day that brings forth the adder;

And that craves wary walking: crown him--that--
And then I grant we put a fting in him,
That at his will he may do danger with.
Th' abufe of greatnefs is, when it disjoins
Remorie from power: and, to fpeak truth of Caefar,
I have not known when his affections fwayed
More than his reafon. But 'tis a common proof,
That lowlinefs is young Ambition's ladder,
Whereto the climber upward turns his face; :
But when he once attains the upmost round,
He then unto the ladder turns his back,
Looks in the clouds, fcorning the base degrees
By which he did afcend; fo Cæfar may :
Then left he may, prevent. And fince the quarrel
Will bear no colour, for the thing he is,
Fashion it thus; that what he is augmented,
Would run to thefe and thefe extremities:
And therefore think him as a ferpent's egg,
Which hatched, would as his kind grow mifchievous,
And kill him in the fhell.

Enter LUCIUS.

Luc. The taper burneth in your clofet, Sir;
Searching the window for a flint, I found
This paper thus fealed up: and I am fure
It did not ly there when I went to bed.

[Gives him the Letter. Bru. Get you to bed again, it is not day: Is not to-morrow, boy, the xdes of March? (8)

(8) Ts not to-morrow, boy, the first of March ?] I dare pronounce a palpable blunder here, which none of the editors have ever been aware of. Brutus enquires whether the first of March be come, and the boy brings him word, 'tis wafted fifteen days Allowing Brutus to be a most contemplative man, and his thoughts taken up ith high matters, yet I can never agree that he fo little knew how time went, as

Luc. I know not, Sir.

Bru. Look in the kalendar, and bring me word. Luc. I will, Sir.

[Exit

Bru. The exhalations whizzing in the air, Give fo much light, that I may read by them.

[Opens the Letter and reads.

"Brutus, thou sleepest; awake and fee thyfelf: Shall Rome,------speak, strike, redress.”

Brutus, thou fleepest: awake.

Such inftigations have been often dropped,
Where I have took them up:

Shall Rome-thus muft I piece it out, [Rome?
"Shall Rome ftand under one man's awe? what!"
"My ancestors did from the streets of Rome
"The Tarquin drive when he was called a king."
Speak, ftrike, redress------am I entreated then
To fpeak, and ftrike? O Rome, I make thee pro--
If the redrefs will follow, thou receiveft
Thy full petition at the hand of Brutus ! .

[mife,

to be mistaken a whole fortnight in the reckonings I make no fcruple to affert, the Poet wrote- Ides. But how could Jdes, may it not be objected, be corrupted into firt? Whatfimilitude in the traces of the letters? This difficulty may very easily be folved, by only fuppofing that the word Ides in the manufcript copy happened to be wrote contractedly thus, js the players knew the, word well enough in the contraction; but when the MSS. came to the prefs, the compofitors were not fo well informed in it: they knew,. that jst frequently stood for first ; and blunderingly thought that was meant to do fo too: and theace was derived. the corruption of the text, But that the Post wrote Ides, we have this in coufirmation Brutus makes the enquiry on the dawn of the very day in which Cæfar was killed in the Capitol. Now 'tis very well known, that this was on the 15th day, which is the Ides of March. I ought to acknow ledge, that my friend Mr Warburton likewife started this very enendation, and communicated it to ine by letter.

« AnteriorContinua »