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النشر الإلكتروني

Enter ORLANDO with his sword drawn.

Orl. Forbear, and eat no more.

Jaq. Why, I have eat none yet.

Orl. Nor shalt not, till necessity be served.

Jaq. Of what kind should this cock come of?

Duke S. Art thou thus boldened, man, by thy distress; Or else a rude despiser of good manners,

That in civility thou seem'st so empty?

Orl. You touched my vein at first; the thorny point

Of bare distress hath ta'en from me the show

Of smooth civility: yet am I inland bred,

And know some nurture. But, forbear, I say;

He dies, that touches any of this fruit,

Till I and my affairs are answered.

Duke S. What would you have? Your gentleness shall force, More than your force move us to gentleness.

Orl. I almost die for food, and let me have it.

Duke S. Sit down and feed, and welcome to our table.

Orl. Speak you so gently? Pardon me, I pray you;

I thought that all things had been savage here;

And therefore put I on the countenance

Of stern commandment: But whate'er you are,
That in this desert inaccessible,

Under the shade of melancholy boughs,

Lose and neglect the creeping hours of time;
If ever you have looked on better days;

If ever been where bells have knolled to church;
If ever sat at any good man's feast;

If ever from your eyelids wiped a tear,
And know what 't is to pity, and be pitied;
Let gentleness my strong enforcement be:
In the which hope, I blush, and hide my sword.
Duke S. True is it that we have seen better days;
And have with holy bell been knolled to church;
And sat at good men's feasts; and wiped our eyes
Of drops that sacred pity hath engendered:
And therefore sit you down in gentleness,
And take upon command what help we have,
That to your wanting may be ministered.

Orl. Then, but forbear your food a little while,
Whiles, like a doe, I go to find my fawn,

And give it food. There is an old poor man,
Who after me hath many a weary step
Limped in pure love; till he be first sufficed,
Oppressed with two weak evils, age and hunger,
I will not touch a bit.

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And we will nothing waste till you return.

Orl. I thank ye: and be blessed for your good comfort! Duke S. Thou see'st, we are not all alone unhappy:

This wide and universal theatre

Presents more woeful pageants than the scene

Wherein we play in.

Jaq.
All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players:
They have their exits, and their entrances;
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages. At first, the infant,
Mewling and puking in the nurse's arms:
Then the whining schoolboy, with his satchel,
And shining morning face, creeping like snail
Unwillingly to school: and then, the lover;
Sighing like furnace, with a woeful ballad
Made to his mistress' eyebrow: then, a soldier;
Full of strange oaths, and bearded like the pard,
Jealous in honour, sudden and quick in quarrel,
Seeking the bubble reputation

Even in the cannon's mouth: and then, the justice;
In fair round belly, with good capon lined,
With eyes severe, and beard of formal cut,
Full of wise saws and modern instances,
And so he plays his part: The sixth age shifts
Into the lean and slippered pantaloon;
With spectacles on nose, and pouch on side;
His youthful hose well saved, a world too wide
For his shrunk shank; and his big manly voice,
Turning again towards childish treble, pipes
And whistles in his sound: Last scene of all,
That ends this strange eventful history,
Is second childishness, and mere oblivion;
Sans teeth, sans eyes, sans taste, sans every thing.

SHAKSPEARE.

4.-CORIOLANUS AND AUFIDIUS.

Cor. I PLAINLY, Tullus, by your looks perceive
You disapprove my conduct.

Auf. I mean not to assail thee with the clamour
Of loud reproaches and the war of words;
But, pride apart, and all that can pervert
The light of steady reason, here to make
A candid, fair proposal.

Cor. Speak, I hear thee.

Auf. I need not tell thee, that I have performed
My utmost promise. Thou hast been protected;
Hast had thy amplest, most ambitious wish;
Thy wounded pride is healed, thy dear revenge
Completely sated; and to crown thy fortune,
At the same time, thy peace with Rome restored.
Thou art no more a Volscian, but a Roman:
Return, return; thy duty calls upon thee
Still to protect the city thou hast saved;

It still may be in danger from our arms :

Retire: I will take care thou may'st with safety.

Cor. With safety?-Heavens !-and think'st thou Coriolanus Will stoop to thee for safety?—No: my safeguard

Is in myself, a bosom void of fear.

O, 'tis an act of cowardice and baseness,

To seize the very time my hands are fettered
By the strong chain of former obligation,
The safe, sure moment to insult me.-Gods!
Were I now free, as on that day I was
When at Corioli I tamed thy pride,
This had not been.

Auf. Thou speak'st the truth: it had not.
O, for that time again! Propitious gods,

If

you will bless me, grant it! Know, for that, For that dear purpose, I have now proposed

Thou shouid'st return: I pray thee, Marcius, do it;
And we shall meet again on nobler terms.

Cor. Till I have cleared my honour in your council,
And proved before them all, to thy confusion,
The falsehood of thy charge; as soon in battle
I would before thee fly, and howl for mercy,
As quit the station they've assigned me here.

Auf. Thou canst not hope acquittal from the Volscians. Cor. I do :-Nay, more, expect their approbation,

Their thanks. I will obtain them such a peace

As thou durst never ask; a perfect union

Of their whole nation with imperial Rome,

In all her privileges, all her rights;

By the just gods, I will.-What would'st thou more?

Auf. What would I more, proud Roman? This I wouldFire the cursed forest, where these Roman wolves

Haunt and infest their nobler neighbours round them;
Extirpate from the bosom of this land

A false, perfidious people, who, beneath
The mask of freedom, are a combination
Against the liberty of human kind ;-

The genuine seed of outlaws and of robbers.

Cor. The seed of gods.-'Tis not for thee, vain boaster,

"Tis not for such as thou,- -so often spared

By her victorious sword, to speak of Rome,
But with respect, and awful veneration.—
Whate'er her blots, whate'er her giddy factions,
There is more virtue in one single year

Of Roman story, than your Volscian annals

Can boast through all their creeping, dark duration.

Auf. I thank thy rage:-This full displays the traitor
Cor. Traitor!-How now?

Auf. Ay, traitor, Marcius.

Cor. Marcius!

Auf. Ay, Marcius, Caius Marcius: Dost thou think
I'll grace thee with that robbery, thy stolen name,
Coriolanus, in Corioli?

You lords, and heads of the state, perfidiously
He has betrayed your business, and given up,
For certain drops of salt, your city Rome,-
I say, your city,—to his wife and mother;
Breaking his oath and resolution like
A twist of rotten silk; never admitting
Counsel of the war: but at his nurse's tears
He whined and roared away your victory;
That pages blushed at him, and men of heart
Looked wondering at each other.

Cor. Hearest thou, Mars?

Auf. Name not the god, thou boy of tears.

my

Cor. Measureless liar, thou hast made
Too great for what contains it.—Boy!—
Cut me to pieces, Volscians; men and lads,
Stain all your edges on me.-Boy !—
If you have writ your annals true, 'tis there,
That, like an eagle in a dovecot, I
Fluttered your Volscians in Corioli;
Alone I did it :-Boy!-But let us part;
Lest my rash hand should do a hasty deed
My cooler thought forbids.

Auf. I court

heart

The worst thy sword can do; while thou from me

Hast nothing to expect but sore destruction;

Quit then this hostile camp: once more I tell thee,
Thou art not here one single hour in safety.

Cor. O, that I had thee in the field,
With six Aufidiuses, or more, thy tribe,
To use my lawful sword!-

SHAKSPEARE.

5.-MASTER MATTHEW AND BOBADIL.

Mat. SAVE you, sir; save you, captain.

Bob. Gentle, Master Matthew! Is it you, sir? Please you to sit down.

Mat. Thank you, good captain; you may see I am somewhat audacious.

Bob. Not so, sir. I was requested to supper last night by a sort of gallants, where you were wished for, and drank to, I assure you.

Mat. Vouchsafe me, by whom, good captain?

Bob. Marry, by young Wellbred and others. Why, hostess, a stool here for this gentleman.

Mat. No haste, sir; 'tis very well.

Bob. It was so late ere we parted last night, I can scarce open my eyes yet; I was but new risen as you came. How passes the day abroad, sir? you can tell.

Mat. Faith, some half hour to seven. Now, trust me, you have an exceeding fine lodging here, very neat, and private !

Bob. Ay, sir: I pray you, Master Matthew, in any case, possess no gentleman of our acquaintance with notice of my lodging.

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