Shall carry from me to the Emprefs' fons Come, come, thou'lt do my meffage, wilt thou not? Ay, marry, will we, Sir; and we'll be waited on. [Exeunt. Marcus, attend him in his ecftasy, That hath more fears of forrow in his heart, SCENE changes to the Palace. [Exit. Enter Aaron, Chiron, and Demetrius at one door: and at another door young Lucius and another, with a bundle of weapons and verfes writ upon them. Chi. Emetrius, here's the son of Lucius; DE He hath fome meffage to deliver us. Aar. Ay, fome mad meffage from his mad grandfather. Boy. My Lords, with all the humbleness I may, I greet your honours from Andronicus; And pray the Roman gods, confound you both. Dem. Gramercy, lovely Lucius, what's the news? Boy. That you are both decypher'd (that's the news) For villains mark'd with rape. May it please you, My grandfire, well advis'd, hath fent by me The goodlicft weapons of his armoury, To gratify your honourable youth, The hope of Rome; for fo he bade me fay : Your Lordships, that whenever you have need, You may be armed and appointed well. And fo I leave you both, like bloody villains. [Exit. Dem. What's here, a stroll, and written round about? Let's Let's fee. Integer vita, fcelerifque purus, Non eget Mauri jaculis nec arcu. Chi. O, 'tis a verfe in Horace, I know it well: I read it in the Grammar long ago. Aar. Ay, juft;-a verfe in Horace-right, you have itNow, what a thing it is to be an ass ? Here's no fond jeft; th' old man hath found their guilt, (22) She would applaud Andronicus' conceit : And now, young Lords, was't not a happy ftar Aar. Had he not reason, Lord Demetrius? Dem. I would, we had a thoufand Roman dames. At fuch a bay, by turn to ferve our luft. Chi. A charitable wish, and full of love. Aar. Here lacketh but your mother to fay Amen. Aar. Pray to the devils; the gods have given us over. (22) Here's no found jeft;] But, I think, I may venture to say, here's no found fenfe. Doubtlefs, the poet wrote, here's no fond jest, i. e. no idle, forf one; but a farcaím deliberately thrown, and grounded on reafon. Enter Enter Nurfe, with a Black-a-moor child. Nur. Good-morrow, Lords: O, tell me, did you fee Aaron the Moor? Aar. Well, more or lefs, or ne'er a whit at all, Aar. Why, what a caterwauling dost thou keep? What doft thou wrap and fumble in thine arms? Nur. O that which I would hide from heaven's eye, Our Emprefs' fhame, and ftately Rome's difgrace. She is deliver'd, Lords, the is deliver'd. Aar. To whom? Nur. I mean, she is brought to bed. Aar. Well, god give her good reft! What hath he fent her? Nur. A devil. Aar. Why, then fhe is the devil's dam: a joyful iffue. Nur. A joyless, difmal, black, and forrowful iffue. Here is the babe, as loathfome as a toad, Amongst the fairest breeders of our clime. The Emprefs fends it thee, thy ftamp, thy feal, (23) Chi. Thou bhaft undone our mother. Aar. Dem. And therein, bellifh dog, thou haft undone. There is no neceffity for this break, had our editors collated the old quarto, and reftor'd the fupplemental half line which I have added from thence. They did not, I dare fay, fupprefs it out of modefty. It contains a mode of expreffion, which, tho' fomewhat coarse, is wfed by our author in other places. Clown. Yonder man is carried to prison. Clorun. A woman. Had fervants true about me, that bear eyes Meaf. for Meaf. To Aar. Villain, I've done thy mother. Dem. And therein, hellish dog, thou haft undone. Woe to her chance, and damn'd her loathed choice, Accurs'd the off-spring of so foul a fiend! Chi. It fhall not live. Aar. It fhall not die. Nur. Aaron, it muft; the mother wills it fo. Aar. What, muft it, nurfe? then let no man but I Do execution on my flesh and blood. Dem. I'll broach the tadpole on my rapier's point: Nurse, give it me, my fword fhall foon difpatch it. Aar. Sooner this fword fhall plough thy bowels up. Stay, murderous villains, will you kill your brother? Now, by the burning tapers of the sky, That fhone fo brightly when this boy was got, Shall feize this prey out of his father's hands. In that it fcorns to bear another hue: Can never turn the swan's black legs to white, To fee alike mine honour, as their profits, Winter's Tale. Chi. Rome will defpife her for this foul efcape. Aar. Why, there's the privilege your beauty bears: Look, how the black flave smiles upon the father; Nay, he's your brother by the furer fide; Nur. Aaron, what fhall I fay unto the Emprefsè Aar. Then fit we down, and let us all confult. Aar. The Emprefs, the midwife, and yourselfTwo may keep counfel, when the third's away: Go to the Emprefs, tell her, this I faid- [He kills her. Week,-week!-fo cries a pig, prepar'd to th' fpit. Dem. What mean'ft thou, Aaron? wherefore didst thou Aar. O Lord, Sir, 'tis a deed of policy: Shall the live to betray this guilt of ours? A long-tongu'd babling goffip? no, Lords, no. And now be it known to you my full intent: [this? Not |