I heard a child cry underneath a wall. For I must bear thee to a trusty Goth, Who, when he knows thou art the empress' babe, Luc. O, worthy Goth, this is the incarnate devil That robb'd Andronicus of his good hand; This is the pearl-] An allusion to the old proverb,-"A black man is a pearl in a fir woman's eye." That granted, how canst thou believe an oath? By that same god, what god soe'er it be, Luc. Even by my god I swear to thee I will. empress. Luc. O, most insatiate, luxurious woman! AARON. Tut, Lucius, this was but a deed of charity To that which thou shalt hear of me anon. 'T was her two sons that murder'd Bassianus ; They cut thy sister's tongue, and ravish'd her. And cut her hands, and trimm'd her as thou saw'st. Luc. O, détestable villain! call'st thou that trimming? AARON. Why, she was wash'd, and cut, and trimm'd; And 't was trim sport for them that had the doing of it. Luc. O, barbarous, beastly villains, like thyself! AARON. Indeed, I was their tutor to instruct them : That codding spirit had they from their mother, That bloody mind, I think, they learn'd of me, 1 GOTH. What, canst thou say all this, and never blush? AARON. Ay, like a black dog, as the saying is. Luc. Art thou not sorry for these heinous deeds? AARON. Ay, that I had not done a thousand more. Even now I curse the day,—and yet I think Few come within the* compass of my curse, a Wherein I did not some notorious ill: TAM. Thus, in this strange and sad habiliment, I will encounter with Andronicus, And say I am Revenge, sent from below To join with him and right his heinous wrongs. Knock at his study, where, they say, he keeps, To ruminate strange plots of dire revenge; Tell him Revenge is come to join with him, And work confusion on his enemies. [They knock. Enter TITUS above. TIT. Who doth molest my contemplation? Is it your trick to make me ope the door, That so my sad decrees may fly away, by reading,-"stray and break their necks;" and Mr. Collier's annotator by,-"ofttimes break their necks." b Enter TITUS above.] The old copies have, "They knocke and Titus opens his studie dore." And all my study be to no effect? You are deceiv'd; for what I mean to do TAM. Titus, I am come to talk with thee." Thou hast the odds of me; therefore no more. TAM. If thou didst know me, thou wouldst talk with me. TIT. I am not mad; I know thee well enough: Witness this wretched stump, witness these crimson lines; Witness these trenches made by grief and care; TAM. Know, thou sad man, I am not Tamora; She is thy enemy, and I thy friend. I am Revenge; sent from the infernal kingdom, me To be a torment to mine enemies? Trr. Do me some service, ere I come to thee. Lo, by thy side where Rape and Murder stands! Now give some surance that thou art Revenge,— Stab them, or tear them on thy chariot-wheels; And then I'll come and be thy waggoner, And whirl along with thee about the globes; Provide thee two proper palfreys,+ black as jet, To hale thy vengeful waggon swift away, And find out murderers in their guilty caves: § And when thy car is loaden with their heads, I will dismount, and by the waggon-wheel Trot, like a servile footman, all day long, Even from Hyperion's rising in the east Until his very downfall in the sea: And day by day I'll do this heavy task, So thou destroy Rapine and Murder there. TAM. These are my ministers, and come with And you, the empress! but we worldly men O, sweet Revenge, now do I come to thee; Enter TITUS. TIT. Long have I been forlorn, and all for thee: Welcome, dread Fury, to my woeful house :Rapine and Murder, you are welcome too :How like the empress and her sons you are! Well are you fitted, had you but a Moor:Could not all hell afford you such a devil ?— For well I wot the empress never wags But in her company there is a Moor; And, would you represent our queen aright, It were convenient you had such a devil: But welcome, as you are. What shall we do? TAM. What wouldst thou have us do, Andronicus? DEMET. Show me a murderer, I'll deal with him. CHI. Show me a villain that hath done a rape, And I am sent to be reveng'd on him. TAM. Show me a thousand, that have done thee wrong, And I will be revenged on them all. TIT. Look round about the wicked streets of Rome, And when thou find'st a man that's like thyself, b Hyperion's-] So the second folio; the quartos read, "Eptons, " and the first folio has, "Epeons." Are they thy ministers?] A correction of the second folio; the previous copies having, "Are them," &c. There is a queen attended by a Moor; I pray thee, do on them some violent death: They have been violent to me and mine. TAM. Well hast thou lesson'd us; this shall we do. But would it please thee, good Andronicus, TIT. Marcus! my brother! 'tis sad Titus calls. Enter MARCUS. Go, gentle Marcus, to thy nephew Lucius, MARC. This will I do, and soon return again. [Exit. TAM. Now will I hence about thy business, And take my ministers along with me. TIT. Nay, nay, let Rape and Murder stay with me, Or else I'll call my brother back again, And cleave to no revenge but Lucius. The one is Murder, Rape is the other's name ; And therefore bind them, gentle Publius :Caius and Valentine, lay hands on them.— Oft have you heard me wish for such an hour, And now I find it; therefore bind them sure, And stop their mouths, if they begin to cry." [Exit. [PUBLIUS, &c., lay hold on CHIRON and DEMETRIUS. CHI. Villains, forbear! we are the empress' sons. PUB. And therefore do we what we are commanded. Stop close their mouths; let them not speak a word. Is he sure bound? look that you bind them fast. Re-enter TITUS, with LAVINIA, he bearing a knife and she a basin. TIT. Come, come, Lavinia; look, thy foes are Sirs, stop their mouths, let them not speak to me; TAM. [Aside to them.] What say you, boys? O, villains, Chiron and Demetrius ! Whiles I will you abide with him, go tell my lord the emperor, How I have govern'd our determin'd jest? Yield to his humour, smooth and speak him fair, And tarry with him till I turn again. TIT. [Aside.] I know them all, though they suppose me mad; And will o'erreach them in their own devices,- TAM. Farewell, Andronicus; Revenge now goes To lay a complot to betray thy foes. aup and down-] That is, thoroughly, exactly, altogether; see note (b), p. 13, Vol. I. b What say you, boys? will you abide with him,-] The early copies have, will you bide with him," but the self-evident correction, "abide," though attributed by Mr. Collier to his annotator Here stands the spring whom you have stain'd with mud; This goodly summer with your winter mix'd. You kill'd her husband; and for that vile fault Two of her brothers were condemn'd to death, My hand cut off, and made a merry jest, Both her sweet hands, her tongue; and that more dear Than hands or tongue, her spotless chastity, Inhuman traitors, you constrain'd and forc'd. What would you say, if I should let you speak? Villains, for shame you could not beg for grace. Hark, wretches! how I mean to martyr you. as a novelty, is found in most editions of the last century. I take them, Chiron and Demetrius.] The conjunction, omitted in the old copies, was first restored by Theobald. d And stop their mouths, if they begin to cry.] A line not printed in the folio, 1623. |