Titus Andronicus & Timon of Athens (31 page)

HORTENSIUS
    ’Faith, I perceive our masters may
throw their caps
¹⁰⁷

at their money: these debts may well be called
desperate
¹⁰⁸

ones, for a madman owes ’em.

TIMON
    They have e’en
put my breath from me
¹
, the slaves.

Creditors? Devils!

FLAVIUS
    My dear lord—

TIMON
    
What if it should be so?
⁴

FLAVIUS
    My lord—

TIMON
    I’ll have it so. My steward!

FLAVIUS
    Here, my lord.

TIMON
    So
fitly
? Go,
bid
⁸
all my friends again,

Lucius, Lucullus, and Sempronius — all
luxurs
⁹
, all.

I’ll once more feast the rascals.

FLAVIUS
    O my lord,

You only speak from your
distracted
¹²
soul;

There’s not so much left to furnish out

A moderate table.

TIMON
    
Be it not in thy care
¹⁵
: go,

I charge thee, invite them all. Let in the tide

Of knaves once more: my cook and I’ll provide.

FIRST SENATOR
    My lord, you have my
voice
to it. The
fault’s
¹

Bloody
²
: ’tis necessary he should die.

Nothing
emboldens
³
sin so much as mercy.

SECOND SENATOR
    Most true; the law shall
bruise
⁴
’em.

ALCIBIADES
    Honour, health, and compassion to the senate!

FIRST SENATOR
    Now, captain.

ALCIBIADES
    I am an humble suitor to your
virtues;
⁷

For pity is the virtue of the law,

And none but tyrants use it cruelly.

It pleases time and fortune to lie heavy

Upon a friend of mine, who in
hot blood
¹¹

Hath
stepped into
the law, which is
past depth
¹²

To those that, without
heed
¹³
, do plunge into’t.

He is a man, setting his
fate
¹⁴
aside,

Of
comely
¹⁵
virtues:

Nor did he
soil
the
fact
¹⁶
with cowardice —

And honour in him
which buys out
¹⁷
his fault —

But with a noble fury and
fair
¹⁸
spirit,

Seeing his reputation
touched
to death,
¹⁹

He did oppose his foe,

And with such
sober
and
unnoted
²¹
passion

He did
behave
²²
his anger, ere ’twas spent,

As if he had
but proved an argument.
²³

FIRST SENATOR
    You
undergo
too
strict
²⁴
a paradox,

Striving to make an ugly deed look fair:

Your words have took such pains as if they laboured

To bring manslaughter into
form
²⁷
and set quarrelling

Upon the head
of valour;
which
²⁸
indeed

Is valour
misbegot
²⁹
and came into the world

When sects and factions were newly born.

He’s truly valiant that can wisely
suffer
³¹

The worst that man can
breathe,
³²

And make
his wrongs
his outsides,
³³

To wear them like his
raiment
,
carelessly,
³⁴

And ne’er
prefer
³⁵
his injuries to his heart

To bring it into danger.

If
wrongs
be evils and enforce us
kill,
³⁷

What folly ’tis to hazard life
for ill!
³⁸

ALCIBIADES
    My lord—

FIRST SENATOR
    You cannot make
gross
sins look
clear:
⁴⁰

To revenge is no valour, but to
bear.
⁴¹

ALCIBIADES
    My lords, then,
under favour
⁴²
, pardon me

If I speak like a
captain.
⁴³

Why do
fond
⁴⁴
men expose themselves to battle,

And not endure all threats? Sleep upon’t,

And let the foes quietly cut their throats

Without
repugnancy
⁴⁷
? If there be

Such valour in the bearing,
what make we
⁴⁸

Abroad? Why then, women are more valiant

That stay at home, if
bearing
carry it.
⁵⁰

And the ass more captain than the lion, the fellow

Loaden with
irons
⁵²
wiser than the judge,

If wisdom be in suffering. O my lords,

As you are great, be pitifully good.

Who cannot condemn rashness in cold blood?

To kill, I grant, is sin’s extremest
gust,
⁵⁶

But in defence,
by mercy
⁵⁷
, ’tis most just.

To be in anger is impiety,

But who is man that is not angry?

Weigh
⁶⁰
but the crime with this.

SECOND SENATOR
    You
breathe
⁶¹
in vain.

ALCIBIADES
    In vain? His service done

At
Lacedaemon
and
Byzantium
⁶³

Were a sufficient
briber
⁶⁴
for his life.

FIRST SENATOR
    What’s that?

ALCIBIADES
    Why, I say, my lords, he’s done fair service,

And slain in fight many of your enemies:

How full of valour did he bear himself

In the last conflict, and made plenteous wounds!

SECOND SENATOR
    He has
made too much plenty with ’em.
⁷⁰

He’s a sworn rioter: he has a
sin
⁷¹

That often drowns him, and takes his valour prisoner:

If there were no foes, that were enough

To overcome him.
In that beastly fury
⁷⁴

He has been known to commit outrages

And
cherish factions
: ’tis
inferred
⁷⁶
to us,

His days are foul and his drink dangerous.

FIRST SENATOR
    He dies.

ALCIBIADES
    Hard fate! He might have died in war.

My lords, if not for any
parts
⁸⁰
in him —

Though his
right arm might purchase his own time
⁸¹

And be in debt to none — yet, more to move you,

Take my
deserts
to
⁸³
his and join ’em both.

And
for
⁸⁴
I know

Your reverend ages love
security,
⁸⁵

I’ll
pawn
⁸⁶
my victories, all my honour to you,

Upon his good returns.
⁸⁷

If by this crime he owes the law his life,

Why, let the war receive’t
in valiant gore,
⁸⁹

For law is strict, and war is nothing more.

FIRST SENATOR
    We are for law: he dies: urge it no more

On height of our
⁹²
displeasure. Friend or brother,

He forfeits his own blood that spills another.

ALCIBIADES
    Must it be so? It must not be.

My lords, I do beseech you
know
⁹⁵
me.

SECOND SENATOR
    How?

ALCIBIADES
    Call me to your remembrances.

THIRD SENATOR
    What?

ALCIBIADES
    I cannot think but your age has forgot me:

It could not else be, I should prove so base

To
sue
and be denied such common
grace.
¹⁰¹

My wounds ache at you.

FIRST SENATOR
    Do you dare our anger?

’Tis in few words, but
spacious in effect:
¹⁰⁴

We banish thee for ever.

ALCIBIADES
    Banish me?

Banish your
dotage
¹⁰⁷
, banish usury

That makes the senate ugly.

FIRST SENATOR
    If after two days’
shine
¹⁰⁹
Athens contain thee,

Attend our weightier judgement
. And,
not to swell our spirit,
¹¹⁰

He shall be executed
presently.
¹¹¹

ALCIBIADES
    Now the gods keep you old enough that you may live

Only in bone
¹¹³
, that none may look on you!

I’m worse than mad: I have kept back their foes

While they have
told
their money and
let out
¹¹⁵

Their coin upon large interest, I myself

Rich only in large hurts. All those for this?

Is this the
balsam
that the
usuring
¹¹⁸
senate

Pours into captains’ wounds? Banishment!

It comes not
ill:
¹²⁰
I hate not to be banished.

It is a cause
worthy
my
spleen
¹²¹
and fury,

That I may strike at Athens. I’ll cheer up

My discontented troops, and
lay for
hearts.
¹²³

’Tis honour with most lands to be
at odds.
¹²⁴

Soldiers should
brook
¹²⁵
as little wrongs as gods.

FIRST LORD
    The good time of day to you, sir.

SECOND LORD
    I also wish it to you. I think this honourable lord

did but
try
³
us this other day.

FIRST LORD
    Upon that were my thoughts
tiring
⁴
when we

encountered
. I hope it is not so
low
⁵
with him as he made it

seem in the trial of his
several
⁶
friends.

SECOND LORD
    It should not be, by the
persuasion
⁷
of his new

feasting.

FIRST LORD
    I should think so: he hath sent me an earnest

inviting, which
many my near
¹⁰
occasions did urge me to put

off, but he hath
conjured
¹¹
me beyond them, and I must needs

appear.

SECOND LORD
    In like manner was I
in debt
to my
importunate
¹³

business, but he would not hear my excuse. I am sorry when

he sent to borrow of me that my
provision was out.
¹⁵

FIRST LORD
    I am sick
of
that grief too, as I understand
how all
¹⁶

things go.

SECOND LORD
    Every man here’s
so
¹⁸
. What would he have

borrowed of you?

FIRST LORD
    A thousand
pieces.
²⁰

SECOND LORD
    A thousand pieces?

FIRST LORD
    What of you?

SECOND LORD
    He sent to me, sir — here he comes.

TIMON
    
With all my heart
²⁴
, gentlemen both; and how fare

you?

FIRST LORD
    Ever at the best, hearing well of your lordship.

SECOND LORD
    The swallow follows not summer more willing

than we your lordship.

TIMON
    
Nor more willingly leaves winter, such
²⁹

summer birds are men.— Gentlemen, our dinner will not

recompense this long
stay
³¹
. Feast your ears with the music

awhile,
if they will fare so harshly o’th’trumpet’s sound:
³²
we

shall to’t
presently.
³³

FIRST LORD
    I hope
it remains not unkindly with your lordship
³⁴

that I returned you an empty messenger.

TIMON
    O, sir, let it not trouble you.

SECOND LORD
    My noble lord—

TIMON
    Ah, my good friend,
what cheer?
³⁸