The father having clos'd his lesson,
Proceeded to pronounce his blessing:
Embraced them all, then pray'd and sigh'd,
Look'd up, and dropp'd his head-and died.

H. MORE.

JULIUS CESAR.

ACT III. SCENE 4.-The Forum.

Enter a throng of CITIZENS, bawling "Silence!"BRUTUS, and another crowd of CITIZENS.

goes into the rostrum.

BRUTUS

CITIZENS.

Silence! silence!

2ND CITIZENS.

Silence!

The noble Brutus is ascended :

BRUTUS. Be patient till the last.-Romans, countrymen, and lovers! hear me for my cause and be silent, that you may hear: believe me for mine honour; and have respect to mine honour, that you may believe censure me in your wisdom; and awake your senses, that you may the better judge. If there be any in this assembly, any dear friend of Cæsar's, to him I say, that Brutus' love to Cæsar was no less than his. If then that friend demand, why Brutus rose against Cæsar, this is my answer:-Not that I loved

(For Brutus is an honourable man,
So are they all, all honourable men)—
Come I to speak in Cæsar's funeral.
He was my friend, faithful and just to me:
But Brutus says, he was ambitious;
(And Brutus is an honourable man.)

He hath brought many captives home to Rome,
Whose ransoms did the general coffers fill;
Did this in Cæsar seem ambitious?

When that the poor have cried, Cæsar hath wept:
Ambition should be made of sterner stuff:
Yet Brutus says, he was ambitious;
(And Brutus is an honourable man.)
You all did see, that on the Lupercal,
I thrice presented him a kingly crown,

Which he did thrice refuse; was this ambition ?
Yet Brutus says he was ambitious;

(And, sure, he is an honourable man.)

I speak, not to disprove what Brutus spoke, But here I am to speak what I do know. You all did love him once,-not without cause; What cause withholds, you, then to mourn for him? O judgment, thou art fled to brutish beasts, And men have lost their reason!-Bear with me: My heart is in the coffin there with Cæsar, And I must pause till it come back to me. (weeps) 2ND CITIZEN. Mark'd ye his words? He would not take the crown;

Therefore, 'tis certain, he was not ambitious.

1ST CITIZEN. There's not a nobler man in Rome than

Antony.

2ND CITIZEN. Now mark him, he begins again to speak. ANTONY. But yesterday, the word of Cæsar might

Have stood against the world: now lies he there,
And none so poor to do him reverence.

O masters! if I were disposed to stir
Your hearts and minds to mutiny and rage,
I should do Brutus wrong, and Cassius wrong,
Who, you all know, are honourable men :
I will not do them wrong; I rather choose
To wrong the dead, to wrong myself, and you,
Than I will wrong such honourable men.
But here's a parchment, with the seal of Cæsar,—-
I found it in his closet,-'tis his will:
Let but the commons hear this testament,
(Which, pardon me, I do not mean to read,)
And they would go and kiss dead Cæsar's wounds.
And dip their napkins in his sacred 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. 2ND CITIZEN. We'll hear the will. Read it, Mark

Antony.

CITIZENS. The will! the will! we will hear Cæsar's will. ANTONY. Have patience, gentle friends: I must not

read it;

It is not meet you know how Cæsar lov'd you.
You are not wood, you are not stone, but men ;
And, being men hearing the will of Cæsar,
It will inflame you, it will make you mad:
'Tis good you know not that you are his heirs ;

P

For if you should, O, what would come of it! 1ST CITIZEN. Read the will; we'll hear it, Antony; You shall read us the will!-Cæsar's will. ANTONY. Will you be patient? Will you stay awhile ? I have o'ershot myself, to tell you of it.

I fear I wrong the honourable men

Whose daggers have stabb'd Cæsar; I do fear it. 2ND CITIZEN. They were traitors: Honourable men ! ALL THE CITIZENS. The will the testament! ANTONY. You will compel me then to read the will? Then, make a ring about the corpse of Cæsar, And let me shew you him that made the will. Shall I descend? And will you give me leave? 2ND CITIZEN. Descend: you shall have leave! CITIZENS.

Come down, come down!

(ANTONY quits the rostrum and goes to the head of the body.)

1ST CITIZEN. Room for Mark Antony; most noble

Antony.

CITIZENS. Stand back! room! bear back!

ANTONY. If you have tears, prepare to shed them

now;

You all do know this mantle: I remember

The first time ever Cæsar put it on;

'Twas on a summer's evening, in his tent,

That day he overcame the Nervii

Look, in this place, ran Cassius' dagger through;
See, what a rent the envious Casca made:
Through this, the well-belovéd Brutus stabb'd;

And, as he pluck'd his cursed steel away,
Mark how the blood of Cæsar follow'd it,
As rushing out of doors, to be resolv'd
If Brutus so unkindly knock'd, or no!
For Brutus, as you know, was Cæsar's angel:
Judge, O you gods, how dearly Cæsar loved him!
This was the most unkindest cut of all:

For when the noble Cæsar saw him stab,

Ingratitude, more strong than traitors' arms,
Quite vanquished him: then burst his mighty.
heart;

And, in his mantle muffling up his face,
Even at the base of Pompey's statue,

Which all the while ran blood, great Cæsar fell.
O, what a fall was there, my countrymen!
Then I, and you, and all of us fell down,
Whilst bloody treason flourish'd over us.-
O, now you weep; and, I perceive, you feel
The dint of pity: these are gracious drops,
Kind souls! what! weep you, when you but behold
Our Cæsar's vesture wounded? Look you here,
Here is himself, marr'd, as you see, with traitors!
1ST CITIZEN. O, noble Cæsar!

2ND CITIZEN. We will be revenged! Revenge! Seek-burn-fire-kill--slay!-let not a traitor

live!

ANTONY. Stay, countrymen.

1ST CITIZEN. Peace there!-Hear the noble Antony 2ND CITIZEN. We'll hear him, we'll follow him, we'll

die with him!