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The False One: A Tragedy
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Actus Quintus. Scena Prima
SCENA II
Enter Photinus, Achillas, Septimius, SouldiersPho. There's no retiring now, we are broke in:The deed past hope of pardon: if we prosper'Twill be stil'd lawful!, and we shall give lawsTo those that now command us: stop not atOr loyalty, or duty: bold ambition,To dare and power to do, gave the first differenceBetween the King, and subject, Cæsars Motto,Aut Cæsar aut Nihil, each of us must claim,And use it as our own.Achil. The deed is bloodyIf we conclude in Ptolomies death.Pho. The better,The globe of Empire must be so manur'd.Sep. Rome, that from Romulus first took her name,Had her walls water'd with a Crimson showrDrain'd from a Brothers heart: nor was she rais'dTo this prodigious height, that overlooksThree full parts of the Earth, that pay her tribute,But by enlarging of her narrow boundsBy the Sack of Neighbour Cities, not made hersTill they were Cemented with the Blood of thoseThat did possess 'em: Cæsar, Ptolomy,(Now I am steel'd) to me are empty namesEsteem'd as Pompeys was.Pho. Well said Septimius,Thou now art right again.Achil. But what course take weFor the Princess Cleopatra?Pho. Let her liveAwhile to make us sport: she shall authorizeOur undertakings to the ignorant people,As if what we do were by her command:But our triumvirat Government once confirm'd,She bears her Brother company, that's my Province:Leave me to work her.Achil. I will undertakeFor Ptolomy.Sep. Cæsar shall be my task,And as in Pompey I began a nameI'le perfect it in Cæsar. Enter (above) Cæsar, Ptolomy, Achoreus, Apollodorus, Antony, DolabellaPho. 'Tis resolv'd then,We'll force our passage.Achil. See, they do appearAs they desir'd a Parley.Pho. I am proud yetI have brought 'em to capitulate.Ptol. Now, Photinus?Pho. Now, Ptolomy?Ptol. No addition?Pho. We are equal,Though Cæsars name were put into the scale,In which our worth is weigh'd.Cæs. Presumptuous Villain,Upon what grounds hast thou presum'd to raiseThy servile hand against the King, or me,That have a greater name?Pho. On those, by whichThou didst presume to pass the RubiconAgainst the Laws of Rome; and at the nameOf Traitor smile; as thou didst when Marcellus,The Consul, with the Senates full consentPronounc'd thee for an Enemy to thy Country,Yet thou wentst on, and thy rebellious CauseWas crown'd with fair success: Why should we fear then?Think on that, Cæsar.Cæs. O the gods! be brav'd thus,And be compell'd to bear this from a SlaveThat would not brook Great Pompey his Superiour?Achil. Thy glories now have toucht the highest point,And must descend.Pho. Despair, and think we standThe Champions of Rome, to wreak her wrongs,Upon whose liberty thou hast set thy foot.Sept. And that the Ghosts of all those noble RomansThat by thy Sword fell in this Civil WarExpect revenge.Ant. Dar'st thou speak, and rememberThere was a Pompey?Pho. There is no hope to 'scape us:If that against the odds we have upon youYou dare come forth, and fight, receive the honourTo dye like Romans, if ye faint, resolveTo starve like Wretches; I disdain to changeAnother syllable with you. [Exeunt.Ant. Let us dye nobly;And rather fall upon each others SwordThan come into these Villains hands.Cæs. That Fortune,Which to this hour hath been a Friend to Cæsar,Though for a while she cloath her Brow with frowns,Will smile again upon me: who will pay her,Or sacrifice, or Vows, if she forsakeHer best of works in me? or suffer him,Whom with a strong hand she hath led triumphantThrough the whole western world, and Rome acknowledg'dHer Soveraign Lord, to end in-gloriouslyA life admir'd by all? The threatned dangerMust by a way more horrid be avoided,And I will run the hazard; Fire the Palace,And the rich Magazines that neighbour it,In which the Wealth of Egypt is contain'd:Start not, it shall be so; that while the peopleLabour in quenching the ensuing flames,Like Cæsar, with this handful of my friendsThrough Fire, and Swords I force a passage toMy conquering Legions. King, if thou dar'd followWhere Cæsar leads, or live or dye a Free-man;If not, stay here a Bond-man to thy Slave,And dead, be thought unworthy of a Grave. [Exeunt.SCENE III
Enter SeptimiusSept. I feel my resolution melts againAnd that I am not Knave alone, but fool,In all my purposes. The Devil, Photinus,Employs me as a Property, and grown uselessWill shake me off again; he told me soWhen I kill'd Pompey; nor can I hope better,When Cæsar is dispatch'd; Services doneFor such as only study their own ends,Too great to be rewarded, are return'dWith deadly hate; I learn'd this PrincipleIn his own School, yet still he fools me, well;And yet he trusts me: Since I in my natureWas fashion'd to be false, wherefore should IThat kill'd my General, and a Roman, oneTo whom I ow'd all nourishments of life,Be true to an Egyptian? To save Cæsar,And turn Photinus's plots on his own head,As it is in my power, redeem my credit,And live to lye and swear again in fashion,Oh, 'twere a master-piece! ha!—me Cæsar,How's he got off? Enter Cæsar, Ptolomy, Antony, Dolabella, Achoreus, Apollodorus, SouldiersCæs. The fire has took,And shews the City like a second Troy,The Navy too is scorch'd, the people greedyTo save their Wealth and Houses, whilst their SouldiersMake spoil of all; only Achillas's TroopsMake good their Guard, break through them, we are safe;I'll lead you like a Thunder-bolt.Sept. Stay, Cæsar.Cæs. Who's this? the Dog, Septimius?Ant. Cut his throat.Dol. You bark'd but now, fawn you so soon?Sept. O hear me,What I'll deliver is for Cæsars safety,For all your good.Ant. Good from a mouth like thine,That never belch'd but blasphemy, and treason on Festival days!Sept. I am an altered man, altered indeed,And will give you cause to say I am a Roman.Dol. Rogue, I grant thee.Sept. Trust me, I'll make the passage smooth, and easieFor your escape.Ant. I'll trust the Devil sooner,And make a safer Bargain.Sept. I am trustedWith all Photinus's secrets.Ant. There's no doubt thenThou wilt be false.Sept. Still to be true to you.Dol. And very likely.Cæs. Be brief, the means?Sept. Thus, Cæsar,To me alone, but bound by terrible oathsNot to discover it, he hath reveal'dA dismal Vault, whose dreadful mouth does openA mile beyond the City: in this CaveLye but two hours conceal'd.Ant. If you believe him,He'll bury us alive.Dol. I'll flye in the Air first.Sept. Then in the dead of night I'll bring you backInto a private room, where you shall findPhotinus, and Achillas, and the restOf their Commanders close at Council.Cæs. Good, what follows?Sept. Fall me fairly on their throats,Their heads cut off and shorn, the multitudeWill easily disperse.Cæs. O Devil! away with him;Nor true to Friend nor Enemy? Cæsar scornsTo find his safety, or revenge his wrongsSo base a way; or owe the means of lifeTo such a leprous Traytor, I have towr'dFor Victory like a Faulcon in the Clouds,Nor dig'd for't like a Mole; our Swords and CauseMake way for us, and that it may appearWe took a noble Course, and hate base Treason,Some Souldiers that would merit Cæsar's favour,Hang him on yonder Turret, and then followThe lane this Sword makes for you. [Exit.1 Sold. Here's a Belt,Though I dye for it I'll use it.2 Sold. 'Tis too goodTo truss a Cur in.Sept. Save me, here's Gold.1 Sold. If RomeWere offered for thy ransom, it could not help thee.2 Sold. Hang not an arse.1 Sold. Goad him on with thy Sword;Thou dost deserve a worser end, and mayAll such conclude so, that their friends betray. [Exeunt.SCENE IV
Enter (severally) Arsino, Eros, CleopatraArs. We are lost.Eros. Undone.Ars. Confusion, Fire, and Swords,And fury in the Souldiers face more horridCircle us round.Eros. The Kings Command they laugh at,And jeer at Cæsars threats.Ars. My Brother seiz'd onBy the Roman, as thought guilty of the tumult,And forc'd to bear him company, as mark'd outFor his protection or revenge.Eros. They have brokeInto my Cabinet; my Trunks are ransack'd.Ars. I have lost my jewels too: but that's the least:The barbarous Rascals, against all humanity,Or sense of pity, have kill'd my little Dog,And broke my Monkeys Chain.Eros. They rifled me:But that I could endure, would they proceed no further.Ars. O my Sister!Eros. My Queen, my Mistress!Ars. Can you stand unmov'dWhen the Earth-quake of Rebellion shakes the City,And the Court trembles?Cleo. Yes, Arsino,And with a Masculine Constancy derideFortunes worst malice, as a Servant toMy Vertues, not a Mistress; then we forsakeThe strong Fort of our selves, when we once yield,Or shrink at her assaults; I am still my self,And though disrob'd of Soveraignty, and ravish'dOf ceremonious duty, that attends it,Nay, grant they had slav'd my Body, my free mindLike to the Palm-tree walling fruitful Nile,Shall grow up straighter and enlarge it self'Spight of the envious weight that loads it with:Think of thy Birth (Arsino) common burdensFit common Shoulders; teach the multitudeBy suffering nobly what they fear to touch at;The greatness of thy mind does soar a pitch,Their dim eyes (darkened by their narrow souls)Cannot arrive at.Ars. I am new created,And owe this second being to you (best Sister)For now I feel you have infus'd into mePart of your fortitude.Eros. I still am fearful;I dare not tell a lie; you that were bornDaughters and Sisters unto Kings, may nourishGreat thoughts, which I, that am your humble handmaidMust not presume to rival.Cleo. Yet (my Eros)Though thou hast profited nothing by observingThe whole course of my life, learn in my death,Though not to equal, yet to imitateThy fearless Mistress. Enter PhotinusEros. O, a man in Arms!His Weapon drawn too?Cleo. Though upon the pointDeath sate, I'll meet it, and outdare the danger.Pho. Keep the Watch strong, and guard the passage sureThat leads unto the Sea.Cleo. What Sea of rudenessBreaks in upon us? or what Subjects BreathDare raise a storm, when we command a calm?Are Duty and Obedience fled to Heaven?And in their room ambition and prideSent into Egypt? That Face speaks thee, Photinus,A thing thy Mother brought into the World;My Brother's and my Slave: but thy behaviour,Oppos'd to that, an insolent intruderUpon that Soveraignty thou shouldst bow to.If in the Gulph of base ingratitude,All loyalty to Ptolomy the KingBe swallowed up, remember who I am,Whose Daughter and whose Sister; or supposeThat is forgot too; let the name of CæsarWhich Nations quake at, stop the desperate madnessFrom running headlong on to thy Confusion.Throw from thee quickly those rebellious Arms,And let me read submission in thine Eyes;Thy wrongs to us we will not only pardon,But be a ready advocate to plead for theeTo Cæsar, and my Brother.Pho. Plead my Pardon?To you I bow, but scorn as much to stoop thusTo Ptolomy or Cæsar, Nay, the gods,As to put off the figure of a man,And change my Essence with a sensual Beast;All my designs, my counsels, and dark endsWere aim'd to purchase you.Cleo. How durst thou, beingThe scorn of baseness, nourish such a thought?Pho. They that have power are royal; and those baseThat live at the devotion of another.What birth gave Ptolomy, or fortune Cæsar,By Engines fashion'd in this Protean AnvilI have made mine; and only stoop at you,Whom I would still preserve free to command me;For Cæsar's frowns, they are below my thoughts,And but in these fair Eyes I still have readThe story of a supream Monarchy,To which all hearts with mine gladly pay tribute,Photinus's Name had long since been as greatAs Ptolomies e'r was, or Cæsars is,This made me as a weaker tye to unlooseThe knot of Loyalty, that chain'd my freedom,And slight the fear that Cæsars threats might cause,That I and they might see no Sun appearBut Cleopatra in the Egyptian Sphear.Cleo. O Giant-like Ambition! marryed toCymmerian darkness! inconsiderate Fool,(Though flatter'd with self-love) could'st thou believe,Were all Crowns on the Earth made into one,And that (by Kings) set on thy head; all Scepters,Within thy grasp, and laid down at my feet,I would vouchsafe a kiss to a no-man?A guelded Eunuch?Pho. Fairest, that makes for me,And shews it is no sensual appetite,But true love to the greatness of thy Spirit,That when that you are mine shall yield me pleasures,Hymen, though blessing a new married PairShall blush to think on, and our certain issue,The glorious splendor of dread Majesty,Whose beams shall dazel Rome, and aw the world,My wants in that kind others shall supply,And I give way to it.Cleo. Baser than thy Birth;Can there be gods, and hear this, and no thunderRam thee into the Earth?Pho. They are asleep,And cannot hear thee;Or with open Eyes,Did Jove look on us, I would laugh and swearThat his artillery is cloy'd by me:Or if that they have power to hurt, his BoltsAre in my hand.Cleo. Most impious!Pho. They are dreams,Religious Fools shake at: yet to assure thee,If Nemesis, that scourges pride and scorn,Be any thing but a name, she lives in me;For by my self (an oath to me more dreadfulThan Stix is to your gods) weak Ptolomy dead,And Cæsar (both being in my toil) remov'd,The poorest Rascals that are in my CampShall in my presence quench their lustful heatIn thee, and young Arsino, while I laughTo hear you howl in vain:I deride those gods,That you think can protect you.Cleo. To prevent thee,In that I am the Mistress of my Fate;So hope I of my sister to confirm it.I spit at thee, and scorn thee.Pho. I will tameThat haughty courage, and make thee stoop too.Cleo. Never,I was born to command, and will dye so. Enter Achillas, and Souldiers, with the Body of PtolomyPho. The King dead? this is a fair entrance toOur future happiness.Ars. Oh my dear Brother!Cleo. Weep not, Arsino, common women do so,Nor lose a tear for him, it cannot help him;But study to dye nobly.Pho. Cæsar fled!'Tis deadly aconite to my cold heart,It choaks my vital Spirits: where was your care?Did the Guards sleep?Achil. He rowz'd them with his Sword;We talk of Mars, but I am sure his CourageAdmits of no comparison but it self,And (as inspir'd by him) his following friendsWith such a confidence as young Eagles preyUnder the large wing of their fiercer Dam,Brake through our Troops and scatter'd them, he went onBut still pursu'd by us, when on the sudden,He turn'd his head, and from his Eyes flew terrour;Which strook in us no less fear and amazement,Than if we had encounter'd with the lightningHurl'd from Jove's cloudy Brow.Cleo. 'Twas like my Cæsar.Achil. We faln back, he made on, and as our fearHad parted from us with his dreadful looks,Again we follow'd; but got near the Sea;On which his Navy anchor'd; in one handHolding a Scroll he had above the waves,And in the other grasping fast his Sword,As it had been a Trident forg'd by VulcanTo calm the raging Ocean, he made awayAs if he had been Neptune, his friends likeSo many Tritons follow'd, their bold shoutsYielding a chearful musick; we showr'd dartsUpon them, but in vain, they reach'd their shipsAnd in their safety we are sunk; for CæsarPrepares for War. Pho. How fell the King?Achil. UnableTo follow Cæsar, he was trod to deathBy the Pursuers, and with him the PriestOf Isis, good Achoreus.Ars. May the EarthLye gently on their ashes.Pho. I feel now,That there are powers above us; and that 'tis notWithin the searching policies of manTo alter their decrees.Cleo. I laugh at thee;Where are thy threats now, Fool, thy scoffs and scornsAgainst the gods? I see calamityIs the best Mistress of Religion,And can convert an Atheist. [Shout within.Pho. O they come,Mountains fall on me! O for him to dyeThat plac'd his Heaven on Earth, is an assuranceOf his descent to Hell; where shall I hide me?The greatest daring to a man dishonest,Is but a Bastard Courage, ever fainting. [Exit. Enter Cæsar, Sceva, Antony, DolabellaCæs. Look on your Cæsar; banish fear, my fairest,You now are safe.Sce. By Venus, not a kissTill our work be done; the Traitors once dispatch'dTo it, and we'll cry aim.Cæs. I will be speedy. [Exeunt.Cleo. Farewel again, Arsino; how now, Eros?Ever faint-hearted?Eros. But that I am assur'd,Your Excellency can command the General,I fear the Souldiers, for they look as ifThey would be nibling too.Cleo. He is all honour,Nor do I now repent me of my favours,Nor can I think that Nature e'r made a WomanThat in her prime deserv'd him. Enter Cæsar, Sceva, Antonie, Dolabella, Souldiers, with the HeadsArs. He's come back,Pursue no further; curb the Souldiers fury.Cæs. See (beauteous Mistris) their accursed headsThat did conspire against us.Sce. Furies plague 'em,They had too fair an end to dye like Souldiers,Pompey fell by the Sword, the Cross or HalterShould have dispatch'd them.Cæs. All is but death, good Sceva,Be therefore satisfied: and now my dearest,Look upon Cæsar, as he still appear'dA Conquerour, and this unfortunate KingEntomb'd with honour, we'll to Rome, where CæsarWill shew he can give Kingdoms; for the Senate,(Thy Brother dead) shall willingly decreeThe Crown of Egypt (that was his) to thee. [Exeunt omnes.Prologue
New Titles warrant not a Play for new,The Subject being old; and 'tis as true,Fresh and neat matter may with ease be fram'dOut of their Stories, that have oft been nam'dWith glory on the Stage; what borrows heFrom him that wrote old Priam's Tragedy,That writes his love to Hecuba? Sure to tellOf Cæsars amorous heats, and how he fellIn the Capitol, can never be the sameTo the Judicious; Nor will such blameThose who pen'd this, for Barrenness when they findYoung Cleopatra here, and her great MindExpressed to the height, with us a Maid, and free,And how he rated her Virginitie. We treat not of what boldness she did dye,Nor of her fatal Love to Antony.What we present and offer to your view,Upon their faiths the Stage yet never knew.Let Reason then first to your Wills give laws,And after judge of them and of their cause.Epilogue
I Now should wish another had my place,But that I hope to come off, and with Grace;And but express some sign that you are pleas'd,We of our doubts, they of their fears are eas'd.I would beg further (Gentlemen) and much sayIn favour of our selves, them, and the Play;Did I not rest assured, the most I seeHate Impudence, and cherish Modestie.APPENDIX
p. 300, ll. 5-39. Not in 1st folio.
p. 301, l. 3. 2nd folio] Achil. Love the K. l. 30. frequent in this. l. 31. to safe.
p. 302, l. 13. and give.
p. 303, l. 10. 2nd folio here and frequently prints] Septinius.
p. 304, ll. 3 and 4. o' these … foole us; l. 7. 2nd folio misprints] Aeh.
p. 305. l. 7. Till they. l. 24. 2nd folio misprints] and.
p. 309, l. 30. A missing bracket has been added before Photinus.
p. 310, l. 4. Prerogatives. l. 31. 2nd folio misprints] Potolmy. l. 40. hand of.
p. 313, l. 29. a Prisoner.
p. 316, l. 2. of thy. l. 11. Omits in. l. 14. sought him.
p. 318, l. 16. A comma has been added at the end of the line.
p. 320, l. 20. tell you. l. 24. Adds the following line] I gave you no comission to performe it: l. 31. with ye. l. 32. Hangers.
p. 321, l. 23. told ye. l. 30. ye are.
p. 322, l. 33. my anger.
p. 323, l. 2. 2nd folio] Lordships.
p. 324, l. 32. Adds the following line] The rule of ill, I'le trust before the dore.
p. 325, l. 1. I sat. l. 17. Affrinius. l. 23. past now. l. 29. comes still.
p. 326, l. 9. Omits rich. l. 32. Omits that.
p. 327, l. 3. Pray.
p. 328, l. 1. I know. l. 6. on a.
p. 329, l. 14. first would.
p. 330, l. 34. 2nd folio misprints] Apollodrous.
p. 331, l. 28. loades us.
