And they would go and kifs dead Cafar's wounds,
And dip their napkins in his facred blood;

Yea, beg a hair of him for memory,

And dying, mention it within their wills,
Bequeathing it, as a rich legacy,

Unto their issue.

4 Pleb. We'll hear the will; read it, Mark Antony. All. The will, the will; we will hear Cafar's will,

Ant. Have patience, gentle friends: I must not read it; It is not meet you know how Cafar lov'd you, You are not wood, you are not ftones, but men; And being men, hearing the will of Cafar, It will enflame you, it will make you mad; 'Tis good you know not that you are his heirs; For if you should-O what would come of it?

4 Pleb. Read the will; we 'll hear it, Antony; you shall read us the will, Cafar's will.

Ant. Will you be patient? will you ftay a while?

I have o'erfhot myself to tell you of it.

I fear, I wrong the honourable men,

Whofe daggers have stabb'd Cafar; I do fear it.

4

Pleb. They were traitors Honourable, men? All. The will! the teftament!

Shall I defcend? And will you give me leave?

All. Come down.

2 Pleb. Defcend.

3 Pleb. You fhall have leave.

[ He comes down from the pulpit.

4 Pleb. A ring-Stand round.

1 Pleb. Stand from the hearfe, ftand from the body.
2 Pleb. Room for Antony, moft noble Antony.
'Ant. Nay, prefs not fo upon me; ftand far off.
All. Stand back-room-bear back-

Ant. If you have tears, prepare to shed them now.
You all do know this mantle: I remember

The first time ever Cafar put it on,

'Twas on a fummer's evening, in his tent, That day he overcame the Nervii

Look in this place ran & Caffius' dagger through-
See what a rent the envious Cafca made-
Through this the well-beloved Brutus stabb'd,
And as he pluck'd his curfed fteel away,
Mark how the blood of Cafar follow'd it,
As rufhing out of doors, to be refolv'd
If Brutus fo unkindly knock'd, or no.

For Brutus, as you know, was Cafar's angel:
Judge, O you gods, how dearly Cafar lov'd him!
This was the most unkindeft cut of all:

For when the noble Cafar faw him ftab,
Ingratitude, more ftrong than traitors' arms,

No direction in fo's.

*h P. alters thus, This, this was the

The fourth f, and R. Caffius's for unkindeft, &c. followed by T. H. and

Caffius'

W.

Quite

Quite vanquish'd him: then burft his mighty heart;
And in his mantle muffling up his face,

i Even at the bafe of Pompey's ftatue,

Which all the while ran blood, great Cæfar fell.
O what a fall was there, my countrymen!

Then I, and you, and all of us fell down,

1

Whilft bloody treason flourish'd over us.

O, now you weep, and I perceive, you feel
The dint of pity: these are gracious drops.
Kind fouls! what, weep you, when you but behold
Our Cafar's vefture wounded? Look you here,

k

Here is himself, marr'd, as you fee, with traitors. 1 Pleb. O piteous fpectacle!

2 Pleb. O noble Cæfar!

3 Pleb O woeful day!
4 Pleb. O traitors, villains!

I Pleb. O moft bloody fight!

2 Pleb. We will be reveng'd: Revenge! About-feek -burn-fire-kill-flay-Let not a traitor live!

Ant. Stay, countrymen.

Pleb. Peace there, hear the noble Antony.

2 Pleb. We'll hear him, we'll follow him, we'll dye with him.

Ant. Good friends, fweet friends, let me not ftir you up To fuch a fudden flood of mutiny.

They that have done this deed are honourable;
What private griefs they have, alas, I know not,

That made them do it; they are wife and honourable ;

And will, no doubt, with reasons answer you.

I come not, friends, to fteal away your hearts;
I am no orator, as Brutus is;

But, as you know me all, a plain blunt man,

That love my friend; and that they know full well;

อ

That gave me public leave to fpeak of him,

For I have neither wit, nor words, nor worth,
Action, nor utterance, nor the power of fpeech,
To ftir men's blood: I only fpeak right on.

I tell you that, which you yourselves do know,
Shew you fweet Cafar's wounds, poor, poor, dumb mouths,
And bid them speak for me: But were I Brutus,
And Brutus Antony, there were an Antony
Would ruffle up your fpirits, and put a tongue
In every wound of Cajar, that should move
The ftones of Rome to rise and mutiny.
All. We'll mutiny.

1 Pleb. We'll burn the houfe of Brutus.

3 Pleb. Away then, come, feek the confpirators. Ant. Yet hear me, countrymen, yet hear me fpeak. All. Peace, ho! hear Antony, most noble Anteny.

in W. reads reafon for reasons.

• The two firk fo's and R.'s oftara

n So the firft f. and C; the teft, give dum for dumb. for gave.

Ant. Why, friends, you go to do you know not what: Wherein hath Cafar thus deferv'd your loves? Alas, you know not; I muft tell you then:

You have forgot the will I told you of.

All. Moft true-the will!let's ftay and hear the will. Ant. Here is the will, and under Cafar's feal.

To every Roman citizen he gives,

To every feveral man; seventy five drachmas.

2 Pleb. Moft noble Cafar!-We'll revenge his death. 3 Pleb. O royal Cafar!

Ant. Hear me with patience.

All. Peace, ho!

Ant. Morcover, he hath left you all his walks,
His private arbours, and new-planted orchards,
On that fide Tiber; he hath left them you,
And to your heirs for ever; common pleasures,
To walk abroad, and recrcate yourselves.
Here was a Cæfar! When comes fuch another?
1 Pleb. Never, never - Come, away, away!
We'll burn his body in the holy place,

All the editions before 7. read this lay out wide, on a line with mount for that; so C. T. gives the following note:

The scene is here in the Forum near the capitol, and in the most frequented part of the city; but Cæfar's gardens were very remote from that quarter, Trans Tiberim longè cubat is, prope Cœ

faris hortos;

fays Horace. And both the Naumatkia and gardens of Cafar were feparated from the main city by the river; and

Janiculum. Our author therefore certainly wrote;

On that fide Tiber 3→→→

And Plutarch, whom Shakespeare very diligently fludied, in the life of Marcus Brutus, fpeaking of Cæfar's will, exa prefly says, that he left to the publie his gardens, and walks, beyond the Tis ber. T.

4 C. reads, Come, come, amay; 8cc.