Ant. I am dying, Egypt, dying.

Give me fome wine, and let me fpeak a little.
Cleo. No, let me fpeak, and let me rail so high,
That the falle hufwife Fortune break her wheel,
Provok'd by my offence.

Ant. One word, fweet Queen.

Of Cæfar feek your honour, with your fafety -- oh-
Cleo. They do not go together.

Ant. Gentle, hear me;

None about Cafar truft, but Proculeius.

Cleo. My refolution, and my hands, I'll truft; None about Cæfar.

Ant. The miferable change, now at my end, Lament, nor forrow at: but please your thoughts In feeding them with thofe my former fortunes, Wherein I liv'd the greatest Prince o'th' world, The nobleft once; and do not now bafely die, Nor cowardly put off my helmet to

I can no more

My Countryman: A Roman, by a Roman
Valiantly vanquish'd. Now, my Spirit is going;
[Antony dies.
Cleo. Nobleft of men!-woo't die ?
Haft thou no care of me? fhall I abide
In this dull world, which in thy absence is
No better than a ftye? O fee, my women!
The Crown o'th' earth doth melt-my Lord!
Oh, wither'd is the garland of the war,

The foldier's pole is fall'n: young boys and girls.
Are level now with men; the odds is gone;
And there is nothing left remarkable,

Beneath the vifiting Moon.

Char. Oh, quietness, Lady.

Iras. She's dead too, our Sovereign.

Char. Lady!

Iras. Madam!

Char. Oh Madam, Madam, Madam

Iras. Royal Egypt! Emprefs!

Char. Peace, peace, Iras.

[She faints.

Cleo. No more but a meer woman, and commanded

By fuch poor paffion as the maid that milks,

And

And does the meaneft chares! It were for Me
To throw my scepter at th' injurious Gods;
To tell them, that this world did equal theirs,
'Till they had ftoll'n our jewel. All's but naught:
Patience is fottish, and impatience does
Become a dog that's mad: Then is it fin,
To rush into the fecret houfe of death,

Ere death dare come to us? how do you, women?
What, what, good cheer! why, how now, Charmian?
My noble girls?ah, women, women! look,
Our lamp is spent, it's out-good Sirs, take heart,
We'll bury him: and then what's brave, what's noble,
Let's do it after the high Roman fashion,
And make Death proud to take us.
Come away,
This Cafe of that huge Spirit now is cold.
Ah, women, women! come, we have no friend
But refolution, and the briefeft end.

[Exeunt, bearing off Antony's body.

SCENE, Cæfar's Camp.

(56) Enter Cæfar, Agrippa, Dolabella, Mecænas, Gallus, and Train.

G

CESAR.

O to him, Dolabella, bid him yield;
Being fo fruftrate, tell him,

He mocks the paufes that he makes.

Dol.

(56) Enter Cæfar, Agrippa, Dolabella, and MENAS.] But Menas and Menecrates, we may remember, were the two famous Pirates link'd with Sextus Pompeius, and who affifted him to infeft the Italian Coaft. We no where learn, exprefly in the Play, that Menas ever attach'd him.felf to Octavius's Party. Notwithstanding the old Folio's concur in

Dol. Cæfar, I fhall. (57)

[Exit Dolabella. Enter Dercetas, with the fword of Antony. Caf. Wherefore is that? and what art thou, that

dar'ft

Appear thus to us?

Der. I am call'd Dercetas ;

Mark Antony I ferv'd, who beft was worthy
Beft to be ferv'd; whilft he stood up, and spoke,
He was my mafter, and I wore my life

To spend upon his haters. If thou please
To take me to thee, as I was to him
I'll be to Cæfar: If thou pleaseft not,
I yield thee up my life.

Caf. What is't thou fay'ft?

Der. I fay, oh, Cafar, Antony is dead.

Caf. The breaking of fo great a thing fhould make A greater crack. The round world fhould have fhook

Lions into civil ftreets, and Citizens

Into their dens. The death of Antony

Is not a fingle doom, in that name lay
A moiety of the world.

Der. He is dead, Cafar,

Not by a publick minifter of juftice,

Nor by a hired knife; but that felf-hand,
Which writ his Honour in the acts it did,

Hath with the courage, which the heart did lend it,
Splitted the heart. This is his fword,

I robb'd his wound of it: behold it ftain'd

With his most noble blood.

marking the Entrance thus, yet in the two places in the Scene, where this Character is made to speak, they have mark'd in the Margin MEC. fo that, as Dr. Thirlby fagaciously conjectur'd, we must cashier Menas, and fubftitute Mecenas in his Room. Menas, indeed, deferted to Cafar no less than twice, and was preferr'd by him. And Horace has left one Ode, a virulent Invective on Menas for his Shifting and Treachery.

(57) Dol. Cæfar, I fhall.] I make no Doubt, but it should be mark'd here, that Dolabella goes out. 'Tis reasonable to imagine, he should presently depart, upon Cafar's Command; fo that the Speeches, placed to him in the fequel of this Scene, muft be transferr'd to Agrippa, or he is introduced as a Mute. Befides, that Dolabella fhould be gone out, appears from This, that when Cafar asks for him, he recollects that he had fent him on Business.

Cal.

Caf. Look you fad, friends:

(58)

The Gods rebuke me, but it is a tiding
To wafh the eyes of Kings!

Agr. And strange it is,

That nature must compel us to lament

Our most perfifted deeds.

Mec. His taints and honours Weigh'd equal in him.

Agr. A rarer fpirit never
Did steer humanity; but you
Some faults to make us men.
Mec. When fuch a spacious
He needs muft fee himself.
Caf. O Antony!

I've follow'd thee to this
Difeafes in our bodies.

Gods will give us
Cæfar is touch'd.
mirror's fet before him,

but we do lance

I must perforce

Have fhewn to thee fuch a declining day,
Or look on thine; we could not ftall together
In the whole world. But yet let me lament
With tears as foveraign as the blood of hearts,
That thou my brother, my competitor
In top of all defign, my mate in Empire,
Friend and companion in the front of war,
The arm of mine own body, and the heart
Where mine its thoughts did kindle; that our ftars,
Unreconcileable, fhould have divided

Our equalness to this. Hear me, good friends,
But I will tell you at fome meeter feafon.
The business of this man looks out of him,

We'll hear him what he fays. Whence are you?

(58) Look you, fad Friends.] I obferv'd in the Appendix to my SHAKESPEARE reftor'd, that it was requifite to tranfpofe this Comma. Octavius's Friends probably would avoid fhewing any Con cern on the News of Antony's Death, left it fhould give Displeasure to Cafar: which Cafar obferving, it fhews a noble Humanity in him to bid them fhare in fuch a Sorrow, and to tell them it is a Calamity, that ought to draw Tears even from the Eyes of Princes. Prince Henry, upon his Father's Death, fpeaks juft in the fame manner to his Brothers; and tho he would not have them mix Fear with their Affliction, he encourages them in their Sorrow.

Yet be fad, good Brothers;

For, to fpeak Truth, it very well becomes you.

Young

2 Henry IV.

Enter

Enter an Egyptian.

Egypt. A poor Ægyptian yet; the Queen my mistress,
Confin'd in all fhe has, (her Monument)
Of thy intents defires inftruction;

That the preparedly may frame her self
To th' way she's forc'd to.

Caf. Bid her have good heart;

She foon fhall know of us, by fome of ours,
How honourably and how kindly we
Determine for her. For Cæfar cannot live,
To be ungentle.

Egypt. May the Gods preserve thee!

Caf. Come hither, Proculeius; go, and fay,

[Exit.

We purpose her no fhame; give her what comforts
The quality of her paffion fhall require;

Left in her Greatness by fome mortal ftroke
She do defeat us: for her life in Rome
Would be eternal in our triumph. Go,

And with your speedieft bring us what the fays,
And how you find of her.

Pro. Cæfar, I fhall.

[Exit Proculeius.

Caf. Gallus, go you along ;-where's Dolabella, To fecond Proculeius?

All. Dolabella!

[Exit Gallus.

Caf. Let him alone; for I remember now,
How he's employ'd: he shall in time be ready.
Go with me to my Tent, where you fhall fee
How hardly I was drawn into this war;
How calm and gentle I proceeded still
In all my writings. Go with me, and fee
What I can fhew in this.

[Exeunt.

SCENE changes to the Monument.

Enter Cleopatra, Charmian, Iras, Mardian, and Se

Cleo.

leucus, above.

Y defolation does begin to make

A better life; 'tis paltry to be Cæfar:

Not