Promethian fire Will fright from Creet the proud Saturnian troope And thousand hack't and mangled souldiers bring To intombe the glories of the Cretan King Encel. That must be left to great Enceladus The pride and glory of the Tytans hoast I that haue curb'd the billowes with a frowne And with a smile haue made the Ocean calme Spurn'd downe huge mountains with my armed foot And with my shoulders lift the vallies high Wil in the wrinkles of my stormy brow Bury the glories of the Cretan King And on his slaughtered bulke braine all his sonnes Aegeon And what shall I do then Encel. Do thou stand still Whil'st I the foes of Tytan pash and kill Am I not eldest from great Tytans loynes The Saturnists hereditarie scurdge Leaue all these deeds of horror to my hand I like a Trophy ore their spoyles will stand Lica. Why breath we then Encel Come arme your sinowy limbes With rage and fury fright pale pitty hence And drowne him in the sweate your bodies still With hostile industry tosse flaming brands About your fleecy lockes to threat their Cities With death and desolation let your steele Glistring against the sunne daze their bright eyes That with the dread of our astonishment They may be sunke in Lethe and their graue May be the darke vawlt cal'd obliuious Caue Titan. Are our Embassadors to Saturne gone To let him know whence this our warre proceedes Lica, Your message hath by this startled th' vsurper Encel. Set on them waste their confines as we march And let them tast the rage of sword and fire Th' Alarm 's giuen and hath by this arriú'd Euen at the wals of Creet the cittadell Where the Cathedrall Saturne is enthron'd Tytan Warlicke Aegeon and Enceladus Noble Lycaon lend vs your assistance To forradge as we march plant desolation Through all this fertile soile be this your cry Reuendge on Saturne for his periury Exit Enter Saturne with haire and beard ouergrowne Sibilla Iuno his Lords drum colours and souldiers Sat. None speake let no harsh voyce presume to iarr In our distressed care I am all sad All horrour and afrightment since the slaughter And tragick murder of my first borne Ops Continued in the vnnaturall massacre Of three yong Princes not a day hath left me Without distast no night but double darkned With terrour and confused melancholy No houre but hath had care and discontent Proportion'd to his minutes not an instant Without remorse and anguish Oh you crownes Why are you made and mettald out of cares I am ouergrowne with sorrow circumuailed With multiplicity of distempratures And Saturne is a King of nothing else But woes vexations sorrowes and laments To adde to these the threatnings of red war As if the murther of my Princely babes Were not enough to plague an vsurpation But they must adde the rage of sword and fire To affright my people these are miseries Able to be comprised in no dimension Iuno My father shall not macerate himselfe I le dare to interrupt his passions Although I buy it deerely with his hate My Lord you are a King of a great people Your power sufficient to repulse a foe Greater then Tytan Though my brothers birthes Be crown'd in bloud yet am I still reseru'd To be the hopefull comfort of your age Sat. My dearest Iuno beautifull remainder Of Saturnes royall issue but for thee I had ere this with these my fingers torne A graue out of the rockes to haue entomb'd The wretched carkasse of a caitife King And I will liue be 't but to make thee Queene Of all the triumphes and the spoyles I winne Speake what 's the proiect of their inuasion 1. Lord That the King of Creet Hath not according to his vowes and oathes Slaine his male issue Sat. Haue I not their blouds Already quaft to angry Nemesis Haue not these ruthlesse and remorslesse eyes Vn-father-like beheld their panting hearts Swimming in bowles of bloud Am I not sonne-lesse Nay child-lesse too saue Iuno whom I loue And dare they then Come our continued sorrow Shall into scarlet indignation turne And my sonnes bloud shall crowne their guilty heads With purple vengeance Valiant Lords set on And meet them to their last destruction 1. Lord March forward Sat. Stay because wee 'l ground our warres On iustice Faire Sibilla on thy life I charge thee tell me and dissemble not By all the hopes in Saturne thou hast stor'd Our nuptiall pleasures and affaires of loue As thou esteem'st our grace or vengeance fear'st Resolue me truly Hast thou sonnes aliue Sibilla kneeles These teares and that deiection on thy knee Accompanied with dumbnesse argue guilt Arise and speake Sib. Let Saturne know I am a Woman then And more I am a Mother would you haue me A monster to exceed in cruelty The sauadgest of Sauadges Beares Tygers Wolues All feed their yong would Saturne haue his Queene More fierce then these Thinke you Sibilla dare Murder her yong whom cruell beasts would spare Let me be held a mother not a murdresse For Saturne thou hast liuing three braue sonnes But where rather then to reueale to thee That thou may'st send their guiltlesse bloud to spill Here cease my life for them thou shalt not kill Sat. Amazement warre the threatning Oracle All muster strange perplexions 'bout my braine And robbe me of the true ability Of my direct conceiuements Doubt and warre Tytans inuasion and my ielousie Make me vnfit for answere 1. Lord Royall Saturne 'T was pitty in the Queene so to preserue them Your strictnesse slew them they are dead in you And in the pitty of your Queene suruiue Sat. Diuine assistance plunge me from these troubles Mortality here failes me I am wrapt In millions of confusions Enter a Lord 2. Lord Arme great Saturne Thy Cities burne a generall massacre Threatens thy people The bigge Tytanoys Plow vp thy Land with their inuasiue steele A huge vn-numbred army is at hand To set vpon thy Campe Sat. All my disturbances Conuert to rage and make my spleene as high As is their toplesse fury to incounter With equall force and vengeance Go Sibilla Conuey my beauteous Iuno to the place Of our best strength whil'st we contend in Armes For this rich Cretan wreath the battel done And they confin'd wee 'l treat of these affaires Perhaps our loue may with this breach dispence But first to Armes to beate th' intruders hence Exeūt Alarme Enter Tytan Lycaon Enceladus Egeon Tyt. Saturne giues backe and 'gins to leaue the field Lica. Pursue him then vnto that place of strength Which the proud Cretans hold impregnable Encel. This Gigomantichia be eternis'd For our affright and terror If they flye Tosse rockkes and toppes of Mountaines after them To stumble them or else entombe them quicke Aegeon They haue already got into the towne And barricadoed 'gainst vs their Iron gates What meanes then shall we finde to startle them Ence. What but to spurn down their offenciue mures To shake in two their Adamantine gates
THE GOLDEN AGE OR The liues of Jupiter and Saturne with the defining of the Heathen Gods As it hath beene sundry times acted at the Red Bull by the Queenes Maiesties Seruants Written by THOMAS HEYVVOOD LONDON Printed for William Barrenger and are to be sold at his Shop neare the great North-doore of Pauls 1611 TO THE READER THIS Play comming accidentally to the Presse and at length hauing notice thereof I was loath finding it mine owne to see it thrust naked into the world to abide the fury of all weathers without either Title for acknowledgement or the formality of an Epistle for ornament Therefore rather to keepe custome then any necessity I haue fixt these few lines in the front of my Booke neither to approue it as tastfull to euery palat nor to disgrace it as able to relish none onely to commit it freely to the generall censure of Readers as it hath already past the approbation of Auditors This is the Golden Age the eldest brother of three Ages that haue aduentured the Stage but the onely yet that hath beene iudged to the Presse As this is receiued so you shall find the rest either fearefull further to proceede or encouraged boldly to follow Yours euer T. H. The Names of Persons presented in the Play Homer Saturne two brothers Tytan Two Lords of Creet Vesta mother of Saturne Sybilla wife to Saturne Lycaon Sonne to Tytan Calisto daughter to Lycaon Iupiter Iuno Melliseus King of Epire Archas sonne to Calisto and Iupiter Diana Atlanta Egeon sonnes to Tytan Enceladus Neptune brothers to Iupiter Pluto Acrisius King of Arges Danae daughter to Acrisius King Troos Ganimed A Lord of Arges Two Lords of Pelagia Foure Beldams Clowne Nurse Satyrs Nymphs The Golden Age With the liues of Iupiter and Saturne Actus 1. Scaena 1. Enter old HOMER THE Gods of Greece whose deitles I rais'd Out of the earth gaue them diuinity The attributes of Sacrifice and Prayer Haue giuē old Homer leaue to view the world And make his owne presentment I am he That by my pen gaue heauen to Iupiter Made Neptunes Trident calme the curled waues Gaue Aeolus Lordship ore the warring winds Created blacke hair'd Pluto King of Ghosts And regent ore the Kingdomes fixt below By me Mars warres and fluent Mercury Speakes from my tongue I plac'd diuine Apollo Within the Sunnes bright Chariot I made Venus Goddesse of Loue and to her winged sonne Gaue seuerall arrowes tipt with Gold and lead What hath not Homer done to make his name Liue to eternity I was the man That flourish'd in the worlds first infancy When it was yong and knew not how to speake I taught it speech and vnderstanding both Euen in the Cradle Oh then suffer me You that are in the worlds decrepit Age When it is neere his vniuersall graue To sing an old song and in this Iron Age Shew you the state of the first golden world I was the Muses Patron learnings spring And you shall once more heare blinde Homer sing Enter two Lords 1. Lord The old Vranus sonne of the Aire Day Is dead and left behinde him two braue sonnes Tytan and Saturne 2. Tytan is the eldest And should succeed by the true right of birth 2. Lord But Saturn hath the hearts of al the people The Kingdomes high applause his mothers loue The least of these are steppes vnto a crowne 2. Lor. But how wil Tytan beare him in these troubles Being by nature proud and insolent To see the yonger seated in his throne And he to whom the true right appertaines By birth and law of Nations quite cast off 1. Lord That either power or steele must arbitrate Causes best friended haue the best euent Here Saturne comes Enter Saturne and Vesta with other attendants Saturn Behold what nature skanted me in yeares And time below my brother your applause And general loue fully supplies me with And make me to his crowne inheritable I choose it as my right by gift of heauen The peoples suffrage the dead Kings bequest And your election our faire mother Queene Against all these what can twelue moones of time Preuaile with Tytan to dis-herite vs Vesta The Cretan people with shrill acclamations Pronounce thee soueraigne ore their lands and liues Let Tytan storme and threaten strange reuenge We are resolu'd thy honour to maintaine 1. Lord Tytan thy ruine shall attempt in vaine Our hearts ad-here with Uestaes our late Queene According to our soueraignes late bequest To kneele to Saturne Saturne We accept your loues And we will striue by merite to exceed you In iust requitall of these fauours done Vesta Arme Lords I heare the voyce A noise of tumult within Of Tytan storming at this strange election Enter Tytan Lycaon and others Tytan Descend proud vpstart trickt vp in stoln weeds Deckt in vsurped state and borowed honours Resigne them to their owner that 's to me Sat. Tytan keep off I charge thee neere me not Lest I thy bold presumption seale with bloud Tytan A Crown 's worth tugging for I wil ha 't Though in pursute I dare my ominous Fate Licaon Downe with the vsurper Vesta Saturne here shall stand Immoueable vpheld by Vestaes hand Tytan Am I not eldest Vesta Ey but yong'st in braine Saturne the crowne hath ceas'd and he shall reigne Tytan Am I a bastard that my heritage Is wrested from me by a yonger birth Hath Vesta plaid th' adulteresse with some stranger If I be eldest from Vranus loynes Your maiden Issue why am I debar'd The law of Nations am I Vestaes sonne Why doth not Vesta then appeare a mother Was yonger Saturne bedded in your wombe Neerer your heart then I that hee 's affected And I despis'd If none of these then grant me What Iustice wils my interest in the Crowne Or if you make me out-cast if my Mother For get the loue she owes I shall abandon The duty of a sonne If Saturne prooue Vnnaturall I 'le be no more a brother But maugre all that haue my right withstood Reuenge my wrongs make my way through bloud Sat. Tytan we both acknowledge thee a brother And Vestaes sonne which wee 'le expresse in loue But since for many vertues growing in me That haue no life in you the Queene the Peeres And all the people with lowd suffrages Haue shrild their Auees high aboue the clouds And stil'd me King we should forget their loues Not to maintaine their strange election Aduise you therefore since this bold aduenture Is much aboue your strength to arme your selfe In search of future honours with our loue For what can Tytan do against a people Uesta Saturne aduiseth well list to his consell Tytan If my owne land proue thus vnnaturall I 'le purchase forrraine aid 1. Lord Rather compound Sat. Let Tytan make demand of any thing Sauing our Crowne he shall enioy it freely Uesta Tytan your brother offers royally Accept his loue Tytan To loose a Crowne includes The losse of all things What should I