Flav. What will this come to? [Aside. He commands us to provide, and give great gifts, And all out of an empty coffer. Nor will he know his purse; or yield me this, Happier is he that has no friend to feed, I bleed inwardly for my lord. Tim. You do yourselves [Exit. Much wrong, you bate too much of your own 2nd Lord. I beseech you, pardon me, my lord, in that. Tim. You may take my word, my lord; I know, no man Can justly praise, but what he does affect: All Lords. O, none so welcome. Tim. I take all and your several visitations So kind to heart, 't is not enough to give; Methinks I could deal kingdoms to my friends, And ne'er be weary.-Alcibiades, Thou art a soldier, therefore seldom rich; It comes in charity to thee: for all thy living Thus honest fools lay out their wealth on court'sies. Tim. Now, Apemantus, if thou wert not sullen, I would be good to thee. Apem. No, I'll nothing: for, If I should be bribed too, there would be none left To rail upon thee; and then thou wouldst sin the faster. Thou giv❜st so long, Timon, I fear me, thou Wilt give away thyself in paper shortly: What need these feasts, pomps, and vain glories? Tim. Nay, an you begin to rail on society once, I am sworn not to give regard to you. Farewell: and come with better music. Apem. So; thou 'lt not hear me now;-thou shalt not, then; I'll lock [Exit. Thy heaven from thee. O, that men's ears should be To counsel deaf, but not to flattery! [Exit. SCENE I.-Athens. A Room in a Senator's House. Enter a Senator, with papers in his hand. Sen. And late, five thousand (to Varro and to Isidore He owes nine thousand), besides my former sum, Caph. Enter CAPHIS. Here, sir: what is your pleasure? Sen. Get on your cloak, and haste you to lord Timon; Impórtune him for my monies; be not ceased Have smit my credit: I love and honour him; SCENE II.-The same. A Hall in TIMON's House. Enter FLAVIUS, with many bills in his hand. What shall be done? he will not hear, till feel: Enter CAPHIS, and the Servants of ISIDORE and Isid. Serv. A plague upon him, dog! Var. Serv. How dost, fool? Apem. Dost dialogue with thy shadow? Isid. Serv. [To VARRO's Servant]. There's the fool hangs on your back already. Apem. No, thou stand'st single; thou art not on him yet. Caph. Where's the fool now? Apem. He last asked the question. - Poor rogues, and usurers' men! bawds between gold and want! All Servants. What are we, Apemantus? Apem. If Timon stay at home.-You three serve three usurers? All Serv. Ay; 'would they served us! Apem. So would I,—as good a trick as ever hangman served thief. Fool. Are you three usurers' men? Fool. I think, no usurer but has a fool to his servant: my mistress is one, and I am her fool. When men come to borrow of your masters, they approach sadly, and go away merry; but they enter my mistress' house merrily, and go away sadly. The reason of this? Var. Serv. I could render one. Apem. Do it, then, that we may account thee a whoremaster and a knave; which, notwithstanding, thou shalt be no less esteemed. Var. Serv. What is a whoremaster, fool? Fool. A fool in good clothes, and something like thee. 'Tis a spirit: sometime it appears like a lord; sometime like a lawyer; sometime like a philosopher, with two stones more than his artificial one he is very often like a knight; and, gene At many times I brought in my accounts, That I account them blessings; for by these Shall I try friends: you shall perceive how you Mistake my fortunes; I am wealthy in my friends. Within there, ho!-Flaminius! Servilius ! Enter FLAMINIUS, SERVILIUS, and other Servants. Serv. My lord, my lord,— Tim. I will despatch you severally.-You to lord Lucius, To lord Lucullus you; I hunted with his Flam. As you have said, my lord. Tim. Go you, sir [To another Servant], to the senators (Of whom, even to the state's best health, I have Deserved this hearing); bid 'em send o' the instant A thousand talents to me. (For that I knew it the most general way) To them to use your signet and your name; Flav. They answer, in a joint and corporate voice, That now they are at fall, want treasure, cannot Do what they would; are sorry-you are honourable,― But yet they could have wished-they know notSomething hath been amiss-a noble nature May catch a wrench-would all were well-'t is pity And so, intending other serious matters, After distasteful looks, and these hard fractions, With certain half-caps, and cold-moving nods, They froze me into silence. And nature, as it grows again towards earth, Is fashioned for the journey, dull and heavy.Go to Ventidius [To a Servant]:-Pr'y thee, be not sad; [TO FLAVIUS. Thou art true and honest; ingenuously I speak, No blame belongs to thee :-[To Servant] Ventidius lately Buried his father; by whose death, he's stepped Into a great estate: when he was poor, Imprisoned, and in scarcity of friends, I cleared him with five talents: greet him from me; Bid him suppose some good necessity To whom 't is instant due. Ne'er speak, or think, Flav. I would I could not think: that thought is bounty's foe; Being free itself, it thinks all others so. [Exeunt. |