O sun, thy uprise shall I see no more: Fortune and Antony part here; even here Do we shake hands.-All come to this?-The hearts That spaniel'd me at heels, to whom I gave Their wishes, do discandy, melt their sweets On blossoming Cæsar; and this pine is bark'd That overtopp'd them all. Betray'd I am : O this false soul of Egypt; this grave charm,2 Whose eye beck'd' forth my wars, and call'd them home;
Whose bosom was my crownet, my chief end,- Like a right gipsy, hath, at fast and loose,' Beguil'd me to the very heart of loss.- What, Eros, Eros!
Ah, thou spell! Avaunt! Cleo. Why is my lord enrag'd against his love? Ant. Vanish; or I shall give thee thy deserving, And blemish Caesar's triumph. Let him take thee, And hoist thee up to the shouting plebeians: Follow his chariot, like the greatest spot Of all thy sex; most monster-like, be shown For poor'st diminutives, to dolts ; and let Patient Octavia plough thy visage up
Ant. Eros, thou yet behold'st me? Eros. Ay, noble lord. Ant. Sometime, we see a cloud that's dragonish; A vapour, sometime, like a bear, or lion, A tower'd citadel, a pendant rock,
A forked mountain or blue promontory With trees upon't, that nod unto the world,
And mock our eyes with air: Thou hast seen these signs; They are black vesper's pageants.
Ay, my lord. Ant. That, which is now a horse, even with a thought,
The rack2 dislimns; and makes it indistinct, As water is in water.
Ant. My good knave, 13 Eros, now thy captain is Even such a body: Here I am Antony; Yet cannot hold this visible shape, my knave. I made these wars for Egypt; and the queen,- Whose heart, I thought, I had, for she had mine; Which, whilst it was mine, had annex'd unto't A million more, now lost,-she, Eros, has Pack'd cards with Cæsar, and false play'd my glory Unto an enemy's triumph.-
Nay, weep not, gentle Eros; there is left us Ourselves to end ourselves. O, thy vile lady! Enter Mardian.
She has robb'd me of my sword. Mar.
No, Antony; My mistress lov'd thee, and her fortunes mingled
With her prepared nails. [Exit Cico.] 'Tis well With thine entirely.
If it be well to live: But better 'twere Thou fell'st into my fury, for one death Might have prevented many.-Eros, ho!- The shirt of Nessus is upon me: Teach me, Alcides, thou mine ancestor, thy rage: Let me lodge Lichas on the horns o'the moon; And with those hands, that grasp'd the heaviest club, Subdue my worthiest self. The witch shall die; To the Roman boy she hath sold me, and I fall Under this plot : she dies for't.-Eros, ho! [Exit.
(1) Cleopatra first belonged to Julius Cæsar, then to Antony, and now, as Antony supposes, to Augustus.
(2) Deadly piece of witchcraft. (3) Was the motion for.
(5) A cheating game, at present named pricking at the belt.
(6) For the smallest piece of money, to clowns.
Hence, saucy eunuch; peace; She hath betray'd me, and shall die the death. Mar. Death of one person can be paid but once; And that she has discharg'd: What thou would'st do, Is done unto thy hand; the last she spake Was, Antony! most noble Antony! Then in the midst a tearing groan did break The name of Antony; it was divided Between her heart and lips: she render'd life, Thy name so buried in her. Dead then?
Eros. What would my lord? Ant. Since Cleopatra died, I have liv'd in such dishonour, that the gods Detest my baseness. I, that with my sword Quarter'd the world, and o'er green Neptune's back With ships made cities, condemn myself, to lack The courage of a woman; less noble mind Than she, which, by her death, our Cæsar tells, I am conqueror of myself. Thou art sworn, Eros, That, when the exigent should come (which now Is come, indeed,) when I should see behind me The inevitable prosecution of
Disgrace and horror, that on my command, Thou then would'st kill me: do't; the time is come: Thou strik'st not me, 'tis Cæsar thou defeat'st. Put colour in thy cheek.
Eros. Shall I do that, which all the Parthian darts, Though enemy, lost aim, and could not?
Ant. Would'st thou be window'd in great Rome, and see, Thy master thus with pleach'd' arms, bending down His corrigible neck, his face subdued
To penetrative' shame; whilst the wheel'd seat Of fortunate Cæsar, drawn before him, branded His baseness that ensued ?"
Eros. I would not see't. Ant. Come then; for with a wound I must be cur'd.
Draw that thy honest sword, which thou hast worn Most useful for thy country.
Ant. When I did make thee free, swor'st thou
To do this when I bade thee? Do it at once; Or thy precedent services are all
But accidents unpurpos'd. Draw, and come. Eros. Turn from me then that noble countenance, Wherein the worship" of the whole world lies. Ant. Lo thee. [Turning from him.
Eros. My sword is drawn. Ant.
Then let it do at once The thing why thou hast drawn it. Eros. My dear master, My captain, and my emperor! let me say, Before I strike this bloody stroke, farewell. Ant. 'Tis said, man ;-and farewell.
(1) i. e. The thing that contains thee. (2) Sealing completes a contract.
Eros. Farewell, great chief. Shall I strike now? Ant. Now, Eros. Eros. Why, there then :-[Falls on his sword. Thus do I escape the sorrow
Thrice nobler than myself! Thou teachest me, O valiant Eros, what
I should, and thou could'st not. My queen and Eros Have, by their brave instruction, got upon me A nobleness in record: But I will be
A bridegroom in my death, and run into't As to a lover's bed. Come then; and, Eros Thy master dies thy scholar; to do thus
[Falling on his sword. I learn'd of thee. How! not yet dead? not dead ?— The guard ?-ho!-O, despatch me.
Enter Dercetas and Guard.
Ant. Art thou there, Diomed? Draw thy sword,
and give me Sufficing strokes for death. Dio.
Most absolute lord, My mistress Cleopatra sent me to thee. Ant. When did she send thee? Dio. Now, my lord.
Where is she? Dio. Lock'd in her monument. She had a prophesying fear
Of what hath come to pass: for when she saw (Which never shall be found,) you did suspect She had dispos'd with Cæsar, and that your rage Would not be purg'd, she sent you word she was dead;
But, fearing since how it might work, hath sent Me to proclaim the truth; and I am come, I dread, too late.
Ant. Too late, good Diomed:-Call my guard, I pr'ythee.
Dio. What, ho! the emperor's guard! The guard, what, ho!
Ant. Nay, my good fellows, do not please sharp Of Cæsar seek your honour, with your safety.-O! fate Cleo. They do not go together. To grace it with your sorrows: bid that welcome Ant. Gentle, hear me i Which comes to punish us, and we punish it None about Cæsar trust, but Proculeius. Seeming to bear it lightly. Take me up: Cleo. My resolution, and my hands, I'll trust; I have led you oft; carry me now, good friends," None about Cæsar. And have my thanks for all.
[Exeunt bearing Antony. SCENE XIII.-The same. A monument. Enter above, Cleopatra, Charmian, and Iras. Cleo. O Charmian, I will never go from hence. Char. Be comforted, dear madam. Cleo. No, I will not: All strange and terrible events are welcome, But comforts we despise; our size of sorrow, Proportion'd to our cause, must be as great
The varying shore o'the world!-0 Antony! Antony, Antony !-Charmian, help; help, Iras; Help, friends below; let's draw him hither. Ant.
Not Cæsar's valour hath o'erthrown Antony, But Antony's hath triumph'd on itself.
Ant. The miserable change now at my end, Lament nor sorrow at: but please your thoughts, Wherein I liv'd, the greatest prince o'the world, In feeding them with those my former fortunes The noblest and do now not basely die, Nor cowardly; put off my helmet to My countryman, a Roman, by a Roman Valiantly vanquish'd. Now, my spirit is going;
In this dull world, which in thy absence is No better than a stye ?-0, see, my women, The crown o'the earth doth melt:-My lord!-- O, wither'd is the garland of the war,
The soldier's pole is fallen; young boys, and girls, Are level now with men: the odds is gone, And there is nothing left remarkable Beneath the visiting moon.
[She faints: O, quietness, lady! Iras. She is dead too, our sovereign.
Cleo. So it should be, that none but Antony Should conquer Antony; but wo 'tis so! Ant. I am dying, Egypt, dying; only I here importune death a while, until Of many thousand kisses the poor last I lay upon thy lips.-
Cleo. I dare not, dear (Dear my lord, pardon,) I dare not, Lest I be taken: not the imperious show
Of the full-fortun'd Cæsar ever shall
Be brooch'd with me; if knife, drugs, serpents,
Edge, sting, or operation, I am safe: Your wife Octavia, with her modest eyes, And still conclusion, shall acquire no honour Demuring upon me.-But come, come, Antony,- Help me, my women,-we must draw thee up ;- Assist good friends. Ant.
O, quick, or I am gone. Cleo. Here's sport, indeed!-How heavy weighs my lord!
Our strength is all gone into heaviness, That makes the weight: Had I great Juno's power, The strong-wing'd Mercury should fetch thee up, And set thee by Jove's side. Yet come a little,- Wishers were ever fools ;-0, come, come, come; [They draw Antony up. And welcome, welcome! die where thou hast liv'd: Quicken with kissing; had my lips that power, Thus would I wear them out.
A heavy sight! Ant. I am dying, Egypt, dying: Give me some wine, and let me speak a little. Cleo. No, let me speak; and let me rail so high, That the false house-wife Fortune break her wheel, Provok'd by my offence. Ant.
Char. Peace, peace, Iras.
Cleo. No more, but e'en a woman; and com
By such poor passion as the maid that milks, And does the meanest chares.-It were for me To throw my sceptre at the injurious gods; To tell them that this world did equal theirs, Till they had stolen our jewel. All's but naught; Patience is sottish; and impatience does Become a dog that's mad: Then is it sin, To rush into the secret house of death,
Ere death dare come to us?-How do you, women? What, what? good cheer! Why, how now, Charmian?
My noble girls!-Ah, women, women! look, Our lamp is spent, it's out :-Good sirs, take heart:- [To the guard below. We'll bury him: and then, what's brave, what's noble,
Let's do it after the high Roman fashion, And make death proud to take us. Come, away: This case of that huge spirit now is cold. Ah, women, women! come; we have no friend But resolution, and the briefest end.
[Exeunt; those above bearing off An- tony's body.
SCENE I-Caesar's camp before Alexandria. Enter Cæsar, Agrippa, Dolabella, Mæcenas, Gallus, Proculeius, and others.
Cæs. Go to him, Dolabella, bid him yield; Being so frustrate, tell him, he mocks us by The pauses that he makes."
I have follow'd thee to this ;-But we do lance Diseases in our bodies: I must perforce Have shown to thee such a declining day, Or look on thine; we could not stall together In the whole world: But yet let me lament, With tears as sovereign as the blood of hearts, That thou, my brother, my competitor In top of all design, my mate in empire, Friend and companion in the front of war, The arm of mine own body, and the heart
To the way she's forc'd to. Cæs. Bid her have good heart; She soon shall know of us, by some of ours, How honourable and how kindly we Determine for her: for Cæsar cannot live To be ungentle.
Mess. So the gods preserve thee! [Erit. Cas. Come hither, Proculeius; Go, and say, We purpose her no shame: give her what comforts The quality of her passion shall require;
Lest, in her greatness, by some mortal stroke She do defeat us: for her life in Rome Would be eternal in our triumph: Go,
And, with your speediest, bring us what she says, And how you find of her. Pro.
Cæsar, I shall. [Exit Pro. Cæs. Gallus, go you along.-Where's Dolabella, To second Proculeius? [Exit Gallus. Agr. Mac. Cas. Let him alone, for I remember now How he's employed; he shall in time be ready. Go with me to my tent; where you shall see How hardly I was drawn into this war; How calm and gentle I proceeded still In all my writings: Go with me, and see What I can show in this.
SCENE II.-Alexandria. A room in the monu- ment. Enter Cleopatra, Charmian, and Iras. Cleo. My desolation does begin to make A better life: 'Tis paltry to be Cæsar; Not being fortune, he's but fortune's knave, A minister of her will; And it is great To do that thing that ends all other deeds; Which shackles accidents, and bolts up change; Which sleeps, and never palates more the dung, The beggar's nurse and Cæsar's.
Enter, to the gates of the monument, Proculeius, Gallus, and Soldiers.
Pro. Cæsar sends greeting to the queen of
Thou mean'st to have him grant thee. And bids thee study on what fair demands
Cleo. [Within.]
Pro. My name is Proculeius.
Cleo. [Within.]
Did tell me of you, bade me trust you; but
I do not greatly care to be deceiv'd, That have no use for trusting. If your master Would have a queen his beggar, you must tell him, That majesty, to keep decorum, must
No less beg than a kingdom: if he please To give me conquer'd Egypt for my son, He gives me so much of mine own, as I Will kneel to him with thanks.
Where mine his thoughts did kindle,-that our You are fallen into a princely hand, fear nothing:
Unreconciliable, should divide
Our equalness to this.-Hear me, good friends,But I will tell you at some meeter season;
Make your full reference freely to my lord, Who is so full of grace, that it flows over On all that need: Let me report to him Your sweet dependency; and you shall find A conqueror, that will pray in aid for kindness, Where he for grace is kneel'd to.
Pray you, tell him I am his fortune's vassal, and I send him The greatness he has got. I hourly learn A doctrine of obedience; and would gladly Look him i'the face.
[Here Proculeius, and two of the guard, ascend the monument by a ladder placed against a window, and having descended, come behind Cleopatra. Some of the guard unbar and open the gates.
Guard her till Cæsar come.
[To Proculeius and the guard. [Exit Gall. Iras. Royal queen!
Char. O Cleopatra ! thou art taken, queen !— Cleo. Quick, quick, good hands. Pro.
[Drawing a dagger. Hold, worthy lady, hold: [Seizes and disarms her.
Do not yourself such wrong, who are in this Reliev'd, but not betray'd.
That rids our dogs of languish? Pro.
Do not abuse my master's bounty, by The undoing of yourself: let the world see His nobleness well acted, which your death Will never let come forth. Cleo. Where art thou, death? Come hither, come! come, come, and take a queen Worth many babes and beggars !
Cleo. Sir, I will eat no meat, I'll not drink, sír; If idle talk will once be necessary, I'll not sleep neither: This mortal house I'll ruin, Do Cæsar what he can. Know, sir, that I Will not wait pinion'd' at your master's court; Nor once be chastis'd with the sober eye Of dull Octavia. Shall they hoist me up, And show me to the shouting varletry
Of censuring Rome? Rather a ditch in Egypt Be gentle grave to me! rather on Nilus' mud Lay me stark naked, and let the water-flies Blow me into abhorring! rather make My country's high pyramides my gibbet, And hang me up in chains!
These thoughts of horror further than you shall Find cause in Cæsar.
Pro. If shall content me best: be gentle to her.- To Cæsar I will speak what you shall please, [To Cleopatra. Say, I would die. [Exeunt Proculeius, and Soldiers. Dol. Most noble empress, you have heard of me? Cleo. I cannot tell.
If you'll employ me to him. Cleo.
Assuredly, you know me. Cleo. No matter, sir, what I have heard, or known. You laugh when boys, or women, tell their dreams; Is't not your trick?
Most sovereign creature,- Cleo. His legs bestrid the ocean: his rear'd arm Crested the world: his voice was propertied As all the turned spheres, and that to friends; But when he meant to quail' and shake the orb, He was as rattling thunder. For his bounty, There was no winter in't; an autumn 'twas, That grew the more by reaping: His delights Were dolphin-like; they show'd his back above The element they liv'd in: In his livery Walk'd crowns, and crownets; realms and islands
You shall not kneel :
I pray you, rise; rise, Egypt. Cleo.
Sir, the gods Will have it thus; my master and my lord I must obey.
Cas. Take to you no hard thoughts: The record of what injuries you did us, Though written in our flesh, we shall remember As things but done by chance. Sole sir o'the world, I cannot project' mine own cause so well To make it clear; but do confess, I have Been laden with like frailties, which before Have often sham'd our sex.
Cæs. Cleopatra, know, We will extenuate rather than enforce: Cleo. I dream'd, there was an emperor Antony ;— If you apply yourself to our intents O, such another sleep, that I might see But such another man!
Dol. If it might please you,- Cleo. His face was as the heavens; and therein stuck
A sun, and moon; which kept their course, and lighted
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