Their wishes, do difcandy, melt their fweets
On bloffoming Cafar: and this pine is bark'd,
That over-topt them all. Betray'd I am.

Oh, this falfe foul of Egypt! this gay charm,
Whofe eye beck'd forth my wars, and call'd them home,
Whose bosom was my Crownet, my chief end,
Like a right Gipfy, hath at faft and loose
Beguil'd me to the very heart of loss.
What, Eros! Eros !

Enter Cleopatra.

Ah! thou fpell! avant.

Cleo. Why is my Lord enrag'd against his love?
Ant. Vanish, or I fhall give thee thy deferving,
And blemish Cafar's Triumph. Let him take thee,
And hoift thee up to the fhouting Flebeians;
Follow his chariot, like the greatest spot

Of all thy fex. (51) Most monfter like, be fhewn
For poor'ft diminutives, for dolts; and let

Patient

-will these moift trees,

That have out-liv'd the eagle, page thy heels,
And fkip when thou point'ft out?
(51) -Moft monfter-like, be fhewn
For poor f diminutives, for dolts:]

Timon of Athens.

Both Dr. Thirlby and Mr. Warburton have fufpected, that Shakespeare wrote for doits: i. e. for that small piece of money, fo call'de I fhould not be stagger'd at the tranfgreffion againft chronology in this point, the coin being of much more recent date than the time of the Romans; because I find him in another play make a Roman of an earlier period mention it:

See here these movers! that do prize their honours

At a crack'd drachm; cushions, leaden fpoons,

Irons of a doit,

But I have not difturb'd the text for another reafon; becaufe, per haps, the Poet's meaning may be, that Cleopatra fhould become a fhow, a fpectacle to the fcum and rabble of Rome, to blockheads, and people of the loweft rank. Cleopatra speaks twice afterwards to the fame effect, in this play.

Shall they hoift me up,
And fhew me to the fhouting warlotry
Of cenfuring Rome P

And,

Patient Octavia, plough thy vifage up
With her prepared nails. 'Tis well, thou'rt gone;
[Exit Cleopatra,

If it be well to live. But better 'twere,
Thou fell ft into my fury; for one death
Might have prevented many. Eros, hoa!
The fhirt of Neffus is upon me; (52) teach me,.
Alcides, thou mine ancestor, thy rage.

Let me lodge Lichas on the horns o'th' Moon,
And with thofe hands that grafpt the heaviest club,
Subdue my worthieft felf. The witch fhall die;

And, again,

Thou, an Egyptian puppet, fhalt be hern
In Rome as well as I: mechanick flaves
With greafy aprons, rules, and haminers fhall.
Uplift us to the view.

So in Ma.berb

Then yield thee, coward;

And live to be the fhew and gaze o'th" times -
We'll have thee, as our rarer monsters are,

Painted upon a pole, &c.

To

And, befides, our Author ufes both the words dolts and diminutives in other places, speaking in contempt of the rabble.

Cref. Here comes more.

Pard. Affes, fools, dolts, chaff and bran, chaff and bran; porridge after meat.

Troilus and Creffida. Ah! how the poor world is pester'd with such water flies, diminutives of Nature.

(52)

reach me,

Alcides, thou mine ancestor, thy rage;

Let me lodge Lichas on the borns o'tb' moon,"

And with thofe bands that grafp'd the beaviest cluby,

Ibid.

Subdue my worthieft falf] I have long fufpected this paffage. of being faulty; for, fappofe Hercules could make Antony as mad as himself, could he make him lodge Licbas too on the moon? Nay, and could he make him fubdue himself too, with Hercules's hands? Then, why fhould Antony give himself that complimental title of bis worthieft fef? If the text be indeed genuine, as it now ftands, it wants to be help'd out with a comment; and Antony would fay, "Teach me thy, rage, O Hercules, that I may take the fame ven, "geance on Cleopatra for injuring me, as thou didft on Lickas; and

then that I may imitate thee too in deftroying myself with my ❝own hands.". -But the words do not of themselves import this: and my worthieft felf I cannot but think liable to exception. Tho' I have not difturb'd the text, I should chufe to read;

-teach

To the young Roman boy fhe hath fold me, and I fall Under his plot: fhe dies for t. Eros, hoa! [Exit.

Re-enter Cleopatra, Charmian, Iras, and Mardian, Cleo. Help me, my women! oh, he is more mad Than Telamon for his fhield; the boar of Theffaly Was never fo imboft.

Char. To th' Monument,

There lock yourself, and fend him word you're dead:
The foul and body rive not more in parting,
Than greatnefs going off.

Cleo. To the Monument:

Mardian, go tell him I have flain myself;
Say, that the last I spoke was Antony;

And word it, pry'thee, piteously. Hence, Mardian, And bring me how he takes my death. To th'Monument. [Exeunt,

Re-enter Antony, and Eros.

Ant. Eros, thou yet behold'ft me.

Eros. Ay, noble Lord.

Ant. Sometime, we fee a cloud that's dragonifh; A vapour, fometime, like a bear, or lion,

A tower'd citadel, a pendant rock,

A forked mountain, a blue promontory

With trees upon't, that nod unto the world,

And mock our eyes with air. 1 hou'ft feen these figns, They are black Vefper's pageants.

i. e.

Eros. Ay, my Lord.

Ant. That which is now a horse, even with a thought

-teach me,

Alcides, thou mine ancestor, thy rage;

Help'd thee lodge Lichas on the borns o'tb' moon,
And with thofe hands, that grafp'd the beaviest club,

Subdue by wortbieft felf.

Infpire me with that rage, which affifted thee both to deftroy "Licbas, and to fubdue thy moft wor:hy felf with thy own hands.' This fenfe the words carry naturally; and the complimental epithet is with great juftuefs and propriety apply'd to Hercules, whom Antony was fond to eftcem his ancestor.

The rack diflimns, and makes it indistinct
As water is in water.

Eros. It does, my Lord.

Ant. My good knave, Eros, now thy captain is
Ev'n fuch a body; here I'm Antony,

Yet cannot hold this vifible shape, my knave.
I made thefe wars for Egypt; and the Queen,
Whofe heart, I thought, I had, (for fhe had mine;
Which, whilft it was mine, had annex'd unto't
A million more, now loft!) fhe, Eros, has
Pack'd cards with Cæfar, and false play'd my glory
Unto an enemy's triumph-

Nay, weep not, gentle Eros, there is left us
Ourfelves to end ourselves.

Oh, thy vile Lady!

Enter Mardian.

Sh' has robb'd me of my fword,

Mar. No, Antony.

My mistress lov'd thee, and her fortune's mingled
With thine intirely.

[me.

Ant. Hence, faucy Eunuch, peace, fhe hath betray'd And the fhall die the death.

Mar. Death of one person can be paid but once, And that she has difcharg'd. What thou wouldst do, Is done unto thy hand; the laft fhe spake

Was, Autony! mot noble Antony!

Then in the midst a tearing groan did break.

The name of Antony; it was divided

Between her heart and lips; fhe rendred life,

Thy name fo buried in her.

Ant. Dead then?

Mar. Dead.

Ant. Unarm me, Eros, the long day's task is done, And we must fleep; that thou depart'ft hence fafe, Does pay thy labour richly, go. [Exit Mardian. Off, pluck off;

The feven-fold fhield of Ajax cannot keep

The battery from my heart. Oh cleave, my fides!
Heart, once be ftronger than thy continent,

Crack

Crack thy frail cafe! apace, Eras, apace.

No more a foldier

bruifed pieces, go;

[Unarming himself.

[Exit Eros.

You have been nobly borne ;from me awhile

I will o'ertake thee, Cleopatra, and
Weep for my pardon. So't muft be, for now
All length is torture; fince the torch is out,
Lie down and stray no further. Now all labour
Marrs what it does, yea, very force entangles
Itfelf with ftrength; (53) feal then, and all is done.
Eros!I come, my Queen-Eros !-ftay for me,
Where fouls do couch on flowers, we'll hand in hand,
And with our sprightly port make the ghofts gaze;
(54) Dido and her Æneas fhall want troops,

And all the haunt be ours.

Come, Eros, Eros!

(53) Seal then, and all is done.] Antony had offended Cleopatra with his fufpicions; he is here about doing fomething to deferve her par don; and he thinks, stabbing himself will feal that pardon. (54) Dido and ber Æneas fall want troops,

And all the haunt be ours.] Tho' I have not alter'd the text, I must subjoin Mr. Warburton's ingenious conjecture and comment on this paffage." Virgil was the inventor of the amours "of Dido and neas; (who, by the bye, wrote this tale after An

tony's death) but the fame Virgil tells us, her fondnefs did not "reach to the other world. She there defpis'd Æneas, and return's

"to her old affection for Sichæus.

Tandem corripuit fefe, atque inimica refugie

In Nemus umbriferum; Conjunx ubi prißinus illi
Refpondet curis, aquatque Sichæus amorem,

"I fay therefore, Shakespeare wrote }

Dido and ber Sichæus

acid VI

"And the allufion of Antony to Sichæus is perfectly just and fine "Sichæus was murther'd by his brother Pygmalion for his wealth, on "which his wife Dido fled. So Antony was fought and defeated at "Altium by his brother Octavius for his fhare of the mastership of "the world; whereon Cleopatra fied from the victor's rage into. "Egypt." However, on the other hand, perhaps Shakespeare might have no intention of copying Virgil, in making Dido return to her affection for her husband perhaps, he might chufe to make Anteny mention Æneas, as an anceftor; and I obferve befides, that Beaumont and Fletcher, in their Two Noble Kinfmen, (a play, in which, it is faid, our author had a fhare) fuppofe Dido to have retain'd her paflion for Æneas after death,

For in the next world will Dido fee Palamon, and then will ske be out of love with Encas.

Enter