Within I have a weapon which has drunk

A traitor's blood ere now ;-there will I wait for them.
No power less strong than death shall part us now!

[They go in together.]

QUARREL SCENE FROM JULIUS CÆSAR.-SHAKS.

[In this dialogue, the manner of Brutus should be dignified, and sarcastic; while that of Cassius should be quick, impetuous, and passionate.]

CASSIUS AND BRUTUS.

Cas.-That you have wrong'd me doth appear in this:
You have condemn'd and noted Lucius Pella,
For taking bribes here of the Sardians,—
Wherein, my letters, praying on his side,
(Because I knew the man,) were slighted off.

Bru.-You wrong'd yourself to write in such a case.
Cas.-In such a time as this, it is not meet
That every nice offence should bear his comment.
Bru.-Let me tell you, Cassius, you yourself
Are much condemn'd to have an itching palm;
To sell and mart your offices for gold

To undeservers.

Cas.-I an itching palm !—

You know that you are Brutus that speak this,
Or, by the gods, that speech were else your last.

Bru.-The name of Cassius honors this corruption,
And chastisement doth therefore hide his head.

Cas.-Chastisement!

Bru.-Remember March-the ides of March remember!

Did not great Julius bleed for justice' sake?
What villain touch'd his body, that did stab,
And not for justice? What, shall one of us,
That struck the foremost man of all this world,

But for supporting robbers-shall we now
Contaminate our fingers with base bribes,
And sell the mighty space of our large honors
For so much trash, as may be grasped thus ?
I had rather be a dog, and bay the moon,
Than such a Roman.

Cas.-Brutus, bay not me,

I'll not endure it: I am a soldier, I,

Older in practice, abler than yourself
To make conditions.

Bru.-Go to; you're not, Cassius.

Cas.-I am.

Bru.-I say, you are not.

Cas.-Urge me no more: I shall forget myself: Have mind upon your health, tempt me no further. Bru.-Away, slight man!

Cas.-Is't possible?

Bru.-Hear me, for I will speak.—

Must I give way and room to your rash choler?
Shall I be frighted when a madman stares?

Cas.-Ye gods! ye gods! Must I endure all this?

Bru.-All this? ay, more.-Fret, till your proud heart break.—

Go, show your slaves how choleric you are,
And make your bondmen tremble: Must I budge?
Must I observe you? Must I stand and crouch
Under your testy humor!-By the gods!
You shall digest the venom of your spleen,
Though it do split you: for, from this day forth,

I'll use you for my mirth—yea, for my laughter—

When you are waspish.

Cas. Is it come to this?

Bru.-You say, you are a better soldier:

Let it appear so; make your vaunting true,

And it shall please me well: for mine own part,

I shall be glad to learn of noble men.

Cas.-You wrong me, every way you wrong me, Brutus:

I said, an elder soldier, not a better!

Did I say better?

Bru. If you did I care not.

Cas.-When Cæsar lived, he durst not thus have moved me. Bru.-Peace, peace: you durst not so have tempted him. Cas.-I durst not?

Bru.-No.

Cas.-What? durst not tempt him?

Bru.-For your life, you durst not.

Cas.-Do not presume too much upon my love; I may do that I shall be sorry for.

for.

Bru.-You have done that you should be sorry
There is no terror, Cassius, in your threats;
For I am arm'd so strong in honesty,

That they pass by me as the idle wind
Which I respect not. I did send to you
For certain sums of gold, which you denied me;
For I can raise no money by vile means:

By heaven, I had rather coin my heart,

And drop my blood for drachmas, than to wring
From the hard hands of peasants their vile trash,
By any indirection. I did send

To you for gold to pay my legions,

Which you denied me: Was that done like Cassius?
Should I have answer'd Caius Cassius so?—
When Marcus Brutus grows so covetous,
To lock such rascal counters from his friends,
Be ready, gods, with all your thunderbolts,
Dash him to pieces!

Cas.-I denied you not.

Bru.-You did.

Cas.-I did not :-He was but a fool

That brought my answer back.-Brutus hath rived my heart:

A friend should bear a friend's infirmities,

But Brutus makes mine greater than they are.
Bru.-I do not,-till you practise them on me.

red

I him.

art:

Cas.-You love me not.

Bru.-I do not like your faults.

Cas.-A friendly eye could never see such faults.
Bru.-A flatterer's would not, though they do appear
As huge as high Olympus.

Cas.-Come, Antony, and, young Octavius, come,
Revenge yourselves alone on Cassius,

For Cassius is aweary of the world:

Hated by one he loves; braved by his brother;
Check'd like a bondman: all his faults observed,
Set in a note-book, learn'd, and conn'd by rote,
To cast into my teeth. O, I could weep

My spirit from mine eyes!—There is my dagger,
And here my naked breast: within, a heart
Dearer than Plutus' mine, richer than gold:
If that thou be'st a Roman, take it forth;

I, that denied thee gold, will give my heart:
Strike, as thou didst at Cæsar: for, I know,
When thou didst hate him worst, thou lov'dst him better

Than ever thou lov'dst Cassius.

Bru.-Sheath your dagger:

Be angry when you will, it shall have scope;
Do what you will, dishonor shall be humor.
O, Cassius, you are yoked with a lamb
That carries anger, as the flint bears fire;
Who, much enforced, shows a hasty spark,
And straight is cold again.

Cas.-Hath Cassius lived

To be but mirth and laughter to his Brutus,
When grief, and blood ill-temper'd, vexeth him?

Bru.-When I spoke that, I was ill-temper'd too.
Cas. Do you confess so much? Give me your hand.
Bru.-And my heart too!

Cas.-O, Brutus !

Bru.-What's the matter?

Cas.-Have not you love enough to bear with me,

[They embrace. |

When that rash humor which my mother gave me,
Makes me forgetful?

Bru.-Yes, Cassius; and henceforth,
When you are over-earnest with your Brutus,
He'll think your mother chides, and leave you so.

BOBADIL'S MILITARY TACTICS.-BEN JONSON. [With the bombastic expression of an empty braggart.]

I WILL tell you, Sir, by the way of private and under seal, I am a gentleman, and live here obscure and to myself; but, were I known to his majesty and the lords, observe me, I would undertake, upon this poor head and life, for the public benefit of the state, not only to spare the entire lives of his subjects in general, but to save the one half, nay, three parts of his yearly charge in holding war, and against what enemy soever. And how would I do it, think you? Why thus, sir. I would select nineteen more to myself; gentlemen they should be, of a good spirit, strong and able constitution; I would choose them by an instinct, a character that I have: and I would teach these nineteen the special rules, as your Punto, your Reverso, your Stoccato, your Imbrocato, your Passado, your Montanto ;* till they could all play very near, or altogether as well as myself. This done, say the enemy were forty thousand strong, we twenty would come into the field the tenth of March or thereabouts; and we would challenge twenty of the enemy; they could not in their honor refuse us! Well, we would kill them; challenge twenty more, kill them; twenty more, kill them; twenty more, kill them too: and thus would we kill, every man his twenty a day, that's twenty score; twenty score, that's two hundred; two hundred a day, five days a thousand: forty thousand-forty times five, five times forty-two hundred days kills them all up by computation. And this I will venture my

* Terms of the Fencing-School.