Achillas Septius Saluius with souldiers Ach. Haile to Romes great Commander to whom Aegypt Not long since seated in his kingdome by thee And sent to by thee in thy passage by Sends vs with answer which withdraw and heare Pom I le kisse my children first Sep. Blesse me my Lord Pom. I will and Cyris my poore daughter too Euen that high hand that hurld me downe thus low Keepe you from rising high I heare now tell me I thinke my friend you once seru'd vnder me Septius only nods with his head Pom. Nod onely not a word daigne what are these Cornelia I am now not worth mens words Ach. Please you receiue your ayde Sir Pom. I I come Exit Pom. They draw and follow Cor. Why draw they See my Lords attend them vshers Sen. O they haue slaine great Pompey Cor. O my husband Sept. Cyr. Mother take comfort Enter Pompey bleeding O my Lord and father Pom. See heauens your sufferings is my Countries loue The iustice of an Empire pietie Worth this end in their leader last yet life And bring the gods off fairer after this Who will adore or serue the deities He hides his face with his robe Enter the Murtherers Ach. Helpe hale him off and take his head for Caesar Sep. Mother O saue vs Pompey O my father Enter the two Lentuli and Demetrius bleeding and kneele about Cornelia 1 Len. Yet fals not heauen Madam O make good Your late great spirits all the world will say You know not how to beare aduerse euents If now you languish Omn. Take her to her coach They beare her out Cato with a booke in his hand O Beastly apprehenders of things manly And merely heauenly they with all the reasons I vsde for iust mens liberties to beare Their liues and deaths vp in their owne free hands Feare still my resolution though I seeme To giue it off like them and now am woonne To thinke my life in lawes rule not mine owne When once it comes to death as if the law Made for a sort of outlawes must bound me In their subiection as if I could Be rackt out of my vaines to liue in others As so I must if others rule my life And publique power keepe all the right of death As if men needes must serue the place of iustice The forme and idoll and renounce it selfe Our selues and all our rights in God and goodnesse Our whole contents and freedomes to dispose All in the ioyes and wayes of arrant rogues No stay but their wilde errors to sustaine vs No forges but their throats to vent our breaths To forme our liues in and repose our deaths See they haue got my sword Who 's there Enter Marcillius bare Mar. My Lord Cat. Who tooke my sword hence Dumb I doe not aske For any vse or care of it but hope I may be answered Goe Sir let me haue it Exit Mar. Poore slaues how terrible this death is to them If men would sleepe they would be wroth with all That interrupt them Physick take to take The golden rest it brings both pay and pray For good and soundest naps all friends consenting In those kinde inuocations praying all Good rest the gods vouchsafe you put when death Sleepes naturall brother comes that 's nothing worse But better being more rich and keepes the store Sleepe euer fickle wayward still and poore O how men grudge and shake and deare and fly His sterne approaches all their comforts taken In faith and knowledge of the blisse and beauties That watch their wakings in an endlesse life Dround in the paines and horrors of their sense Sustainde but for an houre be all the earth Rapt with this error lie pursue my reason And hold that as my light and fiery pillar Th' eternall law of heauen and earth no firmer But while I seeke to conquer conquering Caesar My soft-splen'd seruants ouerrule and curb me He knocks and Brutus enters Where 's he I sent to fetch and place my sword Where late I left it Dumb to Come another Enter Cleanthes Where 's my sword hung here Cle. My Lord I know not Ent. Marcilius Cat. The rest come in there Where 's the sword I charg'd you To giue his place againe I le breake your lips ope Spight of my freedome all my seruants friends My sonne and all will needs betray me naked To th' armed malice of a foe so fierce And Beare-like mankinde of the blood of virtue O gods who euer saw me thus contemn'd Goe call my sonne in tell him that the lesse He shewes himselfe my sonne the lesse I le care To liue his father Enter Athenodorus Porcius Porcius kneeling Brutus Cleanthes and Marcilius by him Por. I beseech you Sir Rest patient of my duty and my loue Your other children think on our poore mother Your family your Country Cat. If the gods Giue ouer all I le fly the world with them Athenodorus I admire the changes I note in heauenly prouidence When Pompey Did all things out of course past right past reason He stood inuincible against the world Yet now his cares grew pious and his powers Set all vp for his Countrey he is conquered Ath. The gods wills secret are nor must we measure Their chast-reserued deepes by our dry shallowes Sufficeth vs we are entirely such As twixt them and our consciences we know Their graces in our virtues shall present Vnspotted with the earth to 'th high throne That ouerlookes vs for this gyant world Let 's not contend with it when heauen it selfe Failes to reforme it why should we affect The least hand ouer it in that ambition A heape t is of digested villany Virtue in labor with eternall Chaos Prest to a liuing death and rackt beneath it Her throwes vnpitied euery worthy man Limb by limb sawne out of her virgine wombe To liue here peecemeall tortur'd fly life then Your life and death made presidents for men Exit Cat. Ye heare my masters what a life this is And vse much reason to respect it so But mine shall serue ye Yet restore my sword Lest too much ye presume and I conceiue Ye front me like my fortunes Where 's Statilius Por. I think Sir gone with the three hundred Romans In Lucius Caesars charge to serue the victor Cat. And would not take his leaue of his poore friend Then the Philosophers haue stoop't his spirit Which I admire in one so free and knowing And such a fiery hater of base life Besides being such a vow'd and noted foe To our great Conqueror But I aduisde him To spare his youth and liue Por. My brother Brutus Is gone to Caesar Cat. Brutus Of mine honor Although he be my sonne in law I must say There went as worthy and as learned a President As liues in Romes whole rule for all lifes actions And yet your sister Porcia his wife Would scarce haue done this But for you my sonne Howeuer Caesar deales with me be counsailde By your experienc't father not to touch At any
Demetrius offer to goe by 1 Lent See madam two Thessalian Augurs it seemes By their habits Call and enquire if either by their Skils or trauels they know no newes of your husband Cor. My friends a word Dem. With vs madam Cor. Yes Are you of Thessaly Dem. I madam and all the world besides Cor. Your Country is great Dem. And our portions little Cor. Are you Augures Dem. Augures madam yes a kinde of Augures alias Wizerds that goe vp and downe the world teaching How to turne ill to good Cor. Can you doe that Dem. I madam you haue no worke for vs haue you No ill to turne good I meane Cor. Yes the absence of my husband Dem. What 's he Cor. Pompey the great Dem. Wherein is he great Cor. In his command of the world Dem. Then he 's great in others Take him without his Addition great what is he then Cor. Pompey Dem. Not your husband then Cor. Nothing the lesse for his greatnesse Dem. Not in his right but in your comforts he is Cor. His right is my comfort Dem. What 's his wrong Cor. My sorrow Dem. And that 's ill Cor. Yes Dem. Y' are come to the vse of our Profession madam Would you haue that ill turnd good that Sorrow turnd comfort Cor. Why is my Lord wrong'd Dem. We professe not that knowledge madam Supose he were Cor. Not I Dem. You le suppose him good Cor. He is so Dem. Then must you needs suppose him wrong'd for All goodnesse is wrong'd in this world Cor. What call you wrong Dem. Ill fortune affliction Cor. Thinke you my Lord afflicted Dem. If I thinke him good madam I must Vnlesse he Be worldly good and then either he is ill or has ill Since as no sugar is without poyson so is no worldly Good without ill Euen naturally nourisht in it like a Houshold thiefe which is the worst of all theeues Cor. Then he is not worldly but truly good Dem. He 's too great to be truly good for worldly greatnes Is the chiefe worldly goodnesse and all worldly goodnesse I prou'd before has ill in it which true good has not Cor. If he rule well with his greatnesse wherein is he ill Dem. But great Rulers are like Carpenters that weare their Rules at their backs still and therefore to make good your True good in him y 'ad better suppose him little or meane For in the meane only is the true good Pom. But euery great Lady must haue her husband Great still or her loue will be little Cor. I am none of those great Ladyes 1 Len. She 's a Philosophresse Augure and can turne Ill to good as well as you Pom. I would then not honor but adore her could you Submit your selfe chearefully to your husband Supposing him falne Cor. If he submit himselfe chearfully to his fortune Pom. T is the greatest greatnes in the world you vndertake Cor. I would be so great if he were Pom. In supposition Cor. In fact Pom Be no woman but a Goddesse then make good thy greatnesse I am chearfully falne be chearfull Cor. I am and welcome as the world were closde In these embraces Pom. Is it possible A woman losing greatnesse still as good As at her greatest O gods was I euer Great till this minute Amb. Len. Pompey Pom. View me better Amb. Len. Conquerd by Caesar Pom. Not I but mine army No fault in me in it no conquest of me I tread this low earth as I trod on Caesar Must I not hold my selfe though lose the world Nor lose I lesse a world lost at one clap T is more then Ioue euer thundred with What glory is it to haue my hand hurle So vast a volley through the groning ayre And is 't not great to turne griefes thus to ioyes That breake the hearts of others Amb. Len. O t is Ioue-like Pom It is to imitate Ioue that from the wounds Of softest clouds beats vp the terriblest sounds I now am good for good men still haue least That twixt themselues and God might rise their rest Cor. O Pompey Pompey neuer Great till now Pom. O my Cornelia let vs still be good And we shall still be great and greater farre In euery solid grace then when the tumor And bile of rotten obseruation sweld vs Griefes for wants outward are without our cure Greatnesse not of it selfe is neuer sure Before we went vpon heauen rather treading The virtues of it vnderfoot in making The vicious world our heauen then walking there Euen here as knowing that our home contemning All forg'd heauens here raisde setting hills on hills Vulcan from heauen fell yet on 's feet did light And stood no lesse a god then at his height At lowest things lye fast we now are like The two Poles propping heauen on which heauen moues And they are fixt and quiet being aboue All motion farre we rest aboue the heauens Cor. O I more ioy t' embrace my Lord thus fixt Then he had brought me ten inconstant conquests 1 Len Miraculous standing in a fall so great Would Caesar knew Sir how you conquerd him In your conuiction Pom. T is enough for me That Pompey knows it I will stand no more On others legs nor build one ioy without me If euer I be worth a house againe I le build all inward not a light shall ope The common outway no expence no art No ornament no dore will I vse there But raise all plaine and rudely like a rampier Against the false society of men That still batters All reason peecemeale And for earthy greatnesse All heauenly comforts ratifies to ayre I le therefore liue in darke and all my light Like ancient Temples let in at my top This were to turne ones back to all the world And only looke at heauen Empedocles Recur'd a mortall plague through all his Country With stopping vp the yawning of a hill From whence the hollow and vnwholsome South Exhald his venomd vapor And what else Is any King giuen ouer to his lusts But euen the poyson'd cleft of that crackt mountaine That all his kingdome plagues with his example Which I haue stopt now and so cur'd my Country Of such a sensuall pestilence When therefore our diseas'de affections Harmefull to humane freedome and stormelike Inferring darknesse to th' infected minde Oppresse our comforts t is but letting in The light of reason and a purer spirit Take in another way like roomes that fight With windowe against the winde yet let in sight Amb. Len. My Lord we seru'd before but now adore you Sen. My Lord the arm'd men I discou'rd lately Vnshipt and landed now are trooping neare Pom. What arm'd men are they 1 Len. Some my Lord that lately The Sentinell discouer'd but not knew Sen. Now all the sea my Lords is hid with ships Another Promontory flanking this Some furlong hence is climb'd and full of people That easily may see hither it seemes looking What these so neare intend Take heed they come Enter
all thanks The Romane Genius is alterd now And armes for Caesar Caes. Soothsayer be for euer Reuerenc't of Caesar O Marc Anthony I thought to raise my camp and all my tents Tooke downe for swift remotion to Scotussa Shall now our purpose hold Anth. Against the gods They grace in th' instant and in th' instant we Must adde our parts and be in th' vse as free Crass. See Sir the scouts returne Enter two scouts Caes. What newes my friends 1 Scou. Arme arme my Lord the voward of the foe Is rang'd already 2 Scou. Answer them and arme You cannot set your rest of battell vp In happyer houre for I this night beheld A strange confusion in your enemies campe The souldiers taking armes in all dismay And hurling them againe as fast to earth Euery way routing as th' alarme were then Giuen to their army A most causelesse feare Disperst quite through them Caes. Then t was Ioue himselfe That with his secret finger stirr'd in them Crass. Other presages of successe my Lord Haue strangely hapn'd in th' adiacent Cities To this your army for in Tralleis Within a Temple built to Victory There stands a statue of your forme and name Neare whose firme base euen from the marble pauement There sprang a Palme tree vp in this last night That seemes to crowne your statue with his boughs Spred in wrapt shadowes round about your browes Caes. The signe Crassinius is most strange and gracefull Nor could get issue but by power diuine Yet will not that nor all abodes besides Of neuer such kinde promise of successe Performe it without tough acts of our owne No care no nerue the lesse to be emploid No offering to the gods no vowes no prayers Secure and idle spirits neuer thriue When most the gods for their aduancements striue And therefore tell me what abodes thou buildst on In an spirit to act enflam'd in thee Or in our Souldiers seene resolu'd addresses Crass. Great and firy virtue And this day Be sure great Caesar of effects as great In absolute conquest to which are prepar'd Enforcements resolute from this arm'd hand Which thou shalt praise me for aliue or dead Caes. Aliue ye gods vouchsafe and my true vowes For life in him great heauen for all my foes Being naturall Romans so farre ioyntly heare As may not hurt our Conquest as with feare Which thou already strangely hast diffusde Through all their army which extend to flight Without one bloody stroke of force and fight Anth. T is time my Lord you put in forme your battell Caes. Since we must fight then and no offerd peace Will take with Pompey I reioyce to see This long-time lookt for and most happy day In which we now shall fight with men not hunger With toyles not sweats of blood through yeares extended This one day seruing to decide all iarres Twixt me and Pompey Hang out of my tent My Crimsine coat of armes to giue my souldiers That euer-sure signe of resolu'd-for fight Crass. These hands shall giue that signe to all their longings Exit Crass Caes. My Lord my army I thinke best to order In three full Squadrons of which let me pray Your selfe would take on you the left wings charge My selfe will lead the right wing and my place Of fight elect in my tenth legion My battell by Domitius Calvinus Shall take direction The Cote of Armes is hung out and the Souldiers shoute within An. Heark your souldiers shoute For ioy to see your bloody Cote of Armes Assure their fight this morning Caes. A blest Euen Bring on them worthy comforts And ye gods Performe your good presages in euents Of fit crowne for our discipline and deeds Wrought vp by conquest that my vse of it May wipe the hatefull and vnworthy slaine Of Tyrant from my Temples and exchange it For fautor of my Country ye haue giuen That title to those poore and fearefull sowles That euery sound puts vp in frights and cryes Euen then when all Romes powers were weake and heartles When traiterous fires and fierce Barbarian swords Rapines and soule-expiring slaughters fild Her houses Temples all her ayre and earth To me then whom your bounties haue enform'd With such a spirit as despiseth feare Commands in either fortune knowes and armes Against the worst of fate and therefore can Dispose blest meanes encourag'd to the best Much more vouchsafe that honor chiefely now When Rome wants only this dayes conquest giuen me To make her happy to confirme the brightnesse That yet she shines in ouer all the world In Empire riches strife of all the Arts In gifts of Cities and of kingdomes sent her In Crownes laid at her feet in euery grace That shores and seas floods Islands Continents Groues fields hills mines and metals can produce All which I victor will encrease I vow By all my good acknowledg'd giuen by you Act IIII Scene I. Pompey in haste Brutus Gabinius Vibius following THe poyson steep't in euery vaine of Empire In all the world meet now in onely me Thunder and lighten me to death and make My senses feed the flame my soule the crack Was euer soueraigne Captaine of so many Armies and Nations so opprest as I With one hosts headstrong outrage vrging fight Yet fly about my campe in panick terrors No reason vnder heauen suggesting cause And what is this but euen the gods deterring My iudgement from enforcing fight this morne The new-fled night made day with Meteors Fir'd ouer Caesars campe and falne in mine As pointing out the terrible euents Yet in suspence but where they threat their fall Speake not these prodigies with fiery tongues And eloquence that should not moue but rauish All sound mindes from thus tempting the iust gods And spitting out their faire premonishing flames With brackish rheumes of ruder and brainsick number What 's infinitely more thus wild thus mad For one poore fortune of a beaten few To halfe so many staid and dreadfull souldiers Long train'd long foughten able nimble perfect To turne and winde aduantage euery way Encrease with little and enforce with none Made bold as Lyons gaunt as famisht wolues With still-seru'd slaughters and continuall toyles Bru. You should not Sir forsake your owne wise Counsell Your owne experienc't discipline owne practise Owne god inspired insight to all changes Of Protean fortune and her zany warre For hosts and hels of such What man will thinke The best of them not mad to see them range So vp and downe your campe already suing For offices falne by Caesars built on fall Before one stroke be struck Domitius Spinther Your father Scipio new preparing friends For Caesars place of vniuersall Bishop Are you th' obserued rule and voucht example Who euer would commend Physitians That would not follow the diseas'd desires Of their sick patients yet incurre your selfe The faults that you so much abhorre in others Pom. I cannot Sir abide mens open mouthes Nor be ill spoken of nor haue my counsels And circumspections turnd on me
for feares With mocks and scandals that would make a man Of lead a lightning in the desperat'st onset That euer trampled vnder death his life I beare the touch of feare for all their safeties Or for mine owne enlarge with twice as many Selfe-liues selfe-fortunes they shall sinke beneath Their owne credulities before I crosse them Come haste dispose our battaile Vib. Good my Lord Against your Genius warre not for the world Pom. By all worlds he that moues me next to beare Their scofs and imputations of my feare For any cause shall beare this sword to hell Away to battaile good my Lord lead you The whole six thousand of our yong Patricians Plac't in the left wing to enuiron Caesar My father Scipio shall lead the battaile Domitius the left wing I the right Against Marc Anthony Take now your fils Ye beastly doters on your barbarous wills Exeunt Alarme excursions of al The fiue Kings driuen ouer the Stage Crassinius chiefely pursuing At the dore enter againe the fiue Kings The battell continued within Epir. Fly fly the day was lost before t was fought Thess. The Romans feard their shadowes Cil. Were there euer Such monstrous confidences as last night Their Cups and musique shew'd Before the morning Made such amazes ere one stroke was struck Iber. It made great Pompey mad which who could mend The gods had hand in it Tra. It made the Consuls Run on their swords to see 't The braue Patricians Fled with their spoyled faces arrowes sticking As shot from heauen at them Thess. T was the charge That Caesar gaue against them Epir. Come away Leaue all and wonder at this fatall day Exeunt The fight neerer and enter Crassineus a sword as thrust through his face he fals To him Pompey and Caesar fighting Pompey giues way Caesar follows and enters at another dore Caes. Pursue pursue the gods foreshew'd their powers Which we gaue issue and the day is ours Crassineus O looke vp he does and shewes Death in his broken eyes which Caesars hands Shall doe the honor of eternall closure Too well thou keptst thy word that thou this day Wouldst doe me seruice to our victory Which in thy life or death I should behold And praise thee for I doe and must admire Thy matchles valour euer euer rest Thy manly lineaments which in a tombe Erected to thy noble name and virtues I le curiosly preserue with balmes and spices In eminent place of these Pharsalian fields Inscrib'd with this true soule of funerall Epitaphi Crassineus fought for fame and died for Rome Whose publique weale springs from this priuate tombe Enter some taking him off whom Caesar helps Enter Pompey Demetrius with black robes in their hands broad hats c. Pom. Thus haue the gods their iustice men their wils And I by mens wils rulde my selfe renouncing Am by my Angell and the gods abhorr'd Who drew me like a vapour vp to heauen To dash me like a tempest 'gainst the earth O the deserued terrors that attend On humane confidence had euer men Such outrage of presumption to be victors Before they arm'd To send to Rome before For houses neare the market place their tents Strowd all with flowers and nosegayes tables couer'd With cups and banquets bayes and mirtle garlands As ready to doe sacrifice for conquest Rather then arme them for fit fight t' enforce it Which when I saw I knew as well th' euent As now I feele it and because I rag'd In that presage my Genius shewing me clearely As in a mirror all this cursed issue And therefore vrg'd all meanes to put it off For this day or from these fields to some other Or from this ominous confidence till I saw Their spirits settl'd in some grauer knowledge Of what belong'd to such a deare decision They spotted me with feare with loue of glory To keepe in my command so many Kings So great an army all the hellish blastings That could be breath'd on me to strike me blinde Of honor spirit and soule And should I then Saue them that would in spight of heauen be ruinde And in their safeties ruine me and mine In euerlasting rage of their detraction Dem. Your safety and owne honor did deserue Respect past all their values O my Lord Would you Pom. Vpbraid me not goe to goe on Dem. No I le not rub the wound The misery is The gods for any error in a man Which they might rectify and should because That man maintain'd the right should suffer wrong To be thus insolent thus grac't thus blest Pom. O the strange carriage of their acts by which Men order theirs and their deuotions in them Much rather striuing to entangle men In pathlesse error then with regular right Confirme their reasons and their pieties light For now Sir whatsoeuer was foreshowne By heauen or prodigy ten parts more for vs Forewarning vs deterring vs and all Our blinde and brainlesse frenzies then for Caesar All yet will be ascribde to his regard Giuen by the gods for his good parts preferring Their glosse being starck impostures to the iustice Loue honor piety of our lawes and Countrey Though I thinke these are arguments enow For my acquitall that for all these fought Dem. Y' are cleare my Lord Pom. Gods helpe me as I am What euer my vntoucht command of millions Through all my eight and fifty yeares hath woonne This one day in the worlds esteeme hath lost So vile is praise and dispraise by euent For I am still my selfe in euery worth The world could grace me with had this dayes Euen In one blaze ioyn'd with all my other Conquests And shall my comforts in my well-knowne selfe Faile me for their false fires Demetrius Dem. O no my Lord Pom. Take griefe for them as if The rotten-hearted world could steepe my soule In filthy putrifaction of their owne Since their applauses faile me that are hisses To euery sound acceptance I confesse That till th' affaire was past my passions flam'd But now t is helplesse and no cause in me Rest in these embers my vnmoued soule With any outward change this dystick minding No man should more allow his owne losse woes Being past his fault then any stranger does And for the worlds false loues and ayry honors What soule that euer lou'd them most in life Once seuer'd from this breathing sepulchre Againe came and appearde in any kind Their kinde admirer still or did the state Of any best man here associate And euery true soule should be here so seuer'd From loue of such men as here drowne their soules As all the world does Cato sole accepted To whom I le fly now and my wife in way Poore Lady and poore children worse then fatherlesse Visit and comfort Come Demetrius They disguise themselues We now must sute our habites to our fortunes And since these changes euer chance to greatest Nor desire to be Doe fortune to exceed it what she can A Pompey or a Caesar but a man Exeunt Enter