In punishing such crimes. The rolling stone This tender heart, which, with an infant fond ness, Lay lulled betwixt your bosoms, and there slept Secure of injured faith? Dol. If she has wronged you, Heaven, hell, and you revenge it! Ant. If she has wronged me! Thou wouldst evade thy part of guilt: but swear Thou lov'st not her.. Dol. Not so as I love you. Ant. Not so? Swear, swear, I say, thou dost Dol. No more than friendship will allow. Friendship allows thee nothing: thou art perjured And yet thou didst not swear thou lov'st her not; But not so much, no more. Oh, trifling hypocrite! Who dar'st not own to her thou dost not love, Nor own to me thou dost! Ventidius heard it, Octavia saw it. Cleo. They are enemies. An t. Alexas is not so; he, he confest it; He, who next hell best knew it, he avowed it. You, whom I sent to bear my last farewell, Dol. What shall I answer? If to have loved be guilt, then I have sinned; Cleo. Ah, what will not a woman do, who What means will. she refuse to keep that heart, Where all her joys are placed! 'Twas I encou raged, 'Twas I blew up the fire, that scorched his soul, To make you jealous, and by that regain you: But all in vain; I could not counterfeit : In spite of all the dams, my love broke o'er, And drowned my heart again: Fate took the oc casion, And thus one minute's feigning has destroyed My whole life's truth. Ant. Thin cobwebs, arts of falsehood, Seen and broke through at first. Dol. Forgive your mistress. Cleo. Forgive your friend. Ant. You have convinced yourselves; You plead each other's cause. What witness have and friendship! You have no longer place in human breasts; Dol. Heaven has but Ant. I can forgive な Banished for love of you, banished from you; me, With strictest justice, for I beg no favour, Ant. I must not hear you; I have a fool within me takes your part, Cleo. For pity hear me ! Would you cast off a slave, who followed you, Who crouched beneath your spurn? He has no pity! See, if he gives one tear to my departure, Ant. No more. Alexas! Dol. A perjured villain! Ant. [To CLEO.] Your Alexas! yours! Cleo. Oh, 'twas his plot; his ruinous design To engage you in my love by jealousy. Hear him; confront him with me; let him speak. Ant. I have, I have. Cleo. And if he clear me not Ant. Your creature! one, who hangs upon your smiles, Watches your eye, to say or to unsay The appearance is against me; and I go, I love you more, even now you are unkind, Ant. Good Heaven! they weep at parting. Live, but live wretched; 'tis but just you should, And each your own sad fate with mine deplore, That you were false, and I could trust no more. [Exeunt severally. SCENE I.-The Temple. ACT V. Enter CLEOPATRA, CHARMION, and IRAS. Char. Be juster, heaven! such virtue, punished thus, Will make us think, that chance rules all above, And shuffles, with a random hand, the lots, Which man is forced to draw. Cleo. I could tear out these eyes, that gained his heart, And had not power to keep it. Oh, the curse [She pulls out her dagger, and they hold her. But I can keep my breath; I can die inward, And choke this love. Enter ALEXAS. Iras. Help, oh, Alexas, help! The ruins of a falling majesty, To place myself beneath the mighty flaw, Which courts its own destruction. Cleo. I would reason More calmly with you. Did you not o'errule Dropping and faint with climbing up the cliff, Pull him to safety, hazarding himself The queen grows desperate, her soul struggles in To draw the other's weight, would he look back her, With all the agonies of love and rage, And strives to force its passage. Cleo. Let me go. Art thou there, traitor!-Oh, Oh for a little breath to vent my rage! Give, give me way, and let me loose upon him. Aler. Yes, I deserve it for my ill-timed truth. Was it for me to prop And curse him for his pains? The case is yours; But one step more, and you have gained the height. Cleo. Sunk, never more to rise. Alex. Octavia's gone, and Dolabella banished. Believe me, madam, Antony is yours; His heart was never lost, but started off To jealousy, love's last retreat and covert, Where it lies hid in shades, watchful in silence, And listening for the sound, that calls it back. Cleo. Look well thou dost, else Alex. Else, what your silence threatens.---An- Is mounted up the Pharos, from whose turret If the first happen, fate acquits my promise; Cleo. Osiris make it so! Good news, kind Enter SERAPION. Ser. Where, where's the queen? Ser. Oh, horror, horror! Egypt has been; our latest hour is come, Cleo. Be more plain! Say whence thou camest! though fate is in thy Which from thy haggard eyes looks wildly out, Ser. I came from Pharos, From viewing (spare me, and imagine it) Ser. No; They fought not. Cleo. Then they fled. Ser. Nor that; I saw, With Antony, your well-appointed fleet Row out, and thrice he waved his hand on high, "Twas then false Fortune, like a fawning strumpet, hind The Roman rear; and now they all come forward, Cleo. Enough, Serapion; I have heard my doom. This needed not, you gods! Ser. His fury cannot be expressed by words: Alex. Shun him, seek your safety, Alex. You must not; haste you to your mo While I make speed to Cæsar. I have no business with him. To spare your life, and let this madman perish. Hence from my sight! I will not hear a traitor : Ser. Retire; you must not see Antony. 'Tis just he tempt the danger: let him clear you; Alex. Oh heavens! I dare not: Cleo. Slave, thou deserv'st it. Alex. Oh! pity me, and let me follow you! Now for thy life, which basely thou wouldst save, Which, like a snow-ball in my coward hand, These two long lovers, soul and body, dread And this court-devil, which I so oft have raised, [Exit. Enter ANTONY and VENTIDIUS. Think not, 'tis thou hast conquered Antony, And their young souls come tainted to the world, Ant. The original villain sure no god created; He was a bastard of the Sun by Nile; Aped into man with all his mother's mud Crusted about his soul. Vent. The nation is One universal traitor, and their queen A possibility of aid from valour? Is there one god unsworn to my destruction, The world's one half is yet in Antony, Vent. There yet remain Three legions in the town; the last assault Ant. They're enough. We'll not divide our stars, but side by side Vent. Now you shall see I love you. Not a Of chiding more. By my few hours of life, Lo! this is he, who died with Antony!' And reach my veterans yet? 'Tis worth the tempting, To o'erleap this gulf of fate, And leave our wandering destinies behind. Enter ALEXAS, trembling. Vent. See, see that villain! See Cleopatra stamped upon that face, How he has set his countenance for deceit, Alex. Oh, spare me, spare me! [Drawing. Ant. Hold; he's not worth your killing. On thy life, (Which thou mayest keep, because I scorn to take it) No syllable to justify thy queen; Alex. Sir, she's gone Where she shall never be molested more, By love or you. Ant. Fled to her Dolabella! Are open to her falsehood. My whole life Alex. Think not so; Her fortunes have in all things mixed with yours: Had she betrayed her naval force to Rome, How easily might she have gone to Cæsar, Secure by such a bribe. Vent. She sent it first, To be more welcome after. Else would she have appeared to clear herself. parting. Some undistinguished words she inly murmured; Ant. My heart forebodes——— Aler. She snatched her poniard, Go, bear my lord,' said she, 'my last farewell, And ask him if he yet suspect my faith.' More she was saying, but death rushed betwixt. She half pronounced your name with her last breath, And buried half within her. Vent. Heaven be praised! Ant. Then art thou innocent, my poor dear love! And art thou dead? Oh, those two words! their sound should be divided. Hadst thou been false and died, or hadst thou lived [Exit. Vent. Would she had died a little sooner though, Before Octavia went; you might have treated: Now 'twill look tame, and would not be received. Come, rouse yourself, and let's die warm together. Ant. I will not fight; there's no more work for war; The business of my angry hours is done. Vent. What lethargy has crept into your soul? Ant. 'Tis but a scorn of life, and just desire To free myself from bondage. Vent. Do it bravely. Ant. I will, but not by fighting. Oh, Ventidius, What should I fight for now? my queen is dead: Let Cæsar take the world-- An empty circle, since the jewel's gone, Which made it worth my strife: my being's nauseous, For all the bribes of life are gone away. Ant. Yes, I would be taken; But as a Roman ought; dead, my Ventidius--- Vent. I could be grieved, But that I'll not outlive you. Chuse your death, We might at least thrust out our paws, and wound Ant. I have thought on it; Ventidius, you must live. Vent. I must not, sir. To stand by my fair fame, and guard the approaches From the ill tongues of men? Ant. Say, I commanded it. Vent. If we die well, our deaths will speak themselves, And need no living witness. Ant. Thou hast loved me, And fain I would reward thee. I must die; Vent. Thank your kindness! You said I loved you, and in recompense You would have used me thus! that I should die With a hard thought of you! Ant. Forgive me, Roman. Since I have heard of Cleopatra's death, Let it not be to outlive you. Ant. Kill me first, And then die thou; for 'tis but just thou serve Thy friend before thyself. Vent. Give me your hand peror ! We soon shall meet again. Now farewell, em[Embrace. Methinks that word's too cold to be my last: Since death sweeps all distinctions, farewell, friend! That's all But think, 'tis the first time I e'er deceived you, If that may plead my pardon. And you, gods! Forgive me, if you will; for I die perjured, Rather than kill my friend. [Dies. Ant. Farewell! ever my leader, even in death! My queen and thou have got the start of me, And I'm the lag of honour.-Gone so soon! Is death no more! He used him carelessly, With a familiar kindness; ere he knocked, Ran to the door, and took him in his arms, As who should say, you're welcome at all hours, A friend need give no warning.--Books had spoiled him, For all the learned are cowards by profession. 'Tis not worth My further thought; for death, for aught I know, Is but to think no more. Here's to be satisfied. [Falls on his sword. |