Mec. When fuch a fpacious mirror's fet before him, He needs muft fee himself. Caf. O Antony! I've follow'd thee to this but we do lance Our equalness to this. Hear me, good friends, Egypt. A poor Ægyptian yet; the Queen my mistress, Confin'd in all fhe has, (her monument) Of thy intents defires instruction; That the preparedly may frame herself Caf. Bid her have good heart; She foon fhall know of us, by fome of ours, Determine for her. For Cafar cannot live, Egypt. May the Gods preferve thee! Caf. Come hither, Proculeius; go, and fay, [Exit We purpose her no fhame; give her what comforts The quality of her paffion fhall require; Left in her greatnefs by fome mortal stroke And with your fpeedieft bring us what the fays, Pro. Cæfar, I fhall. [Exit Proculeius. Caf. Gallus, go you along; where's Dolabella, To fecond Proculeius? All. Dolabella! [Exit Gallus. Caf. Let him alone; for I remember now, SCENE changes to the Monument. [Exeunt. Enter Cleopatra, Charmian, Iras, Mardian, and Seleucus, Cleo. MY above. Y defolation does begin to make To do that thing, that ends all other deeds; Enter Proculeius. Pro. Cafar fends Greeting to the Queen of Egypt, And bids thee ftudy on what fair demands Thou mean'ff to have him grant thee. Cleo. What's thy name? Pro. My name is Proculeius. Cleo. Antony Did tell me of you, bade me truft you, but I do not greatly care to be deceiv'd, That have no ufe for trufting. If your master Would have a Queen his beggar, you must tell him, No lefs beg than a Kingdom; if he please. Will kneel to him with thanks. Pro. Be of good cheer: You're fall'n into a princely hand, fear nothing; Cleo. Pray you, tell him, I am his fortune's vaffal, and I send him Pro. This I'll report, dear lady. Have comfort, for, I know, your plight is pity'd [Here Gallus, and Guard, afcend the Monument by Gall. You fee, how easily she may be surpriz'd. (34) Pro. Guard her, 'till Cæfar come. Iras. O Royal Queen! Char. Oh Cleopatra ! thou art taken, Queen. Cleo. Quick, quick, good hands. [Drawing a Dagger. [The Monument is open'd; Proculeius rushes in, and difarms the Queen. (34) Char. You see, how easily she may be furpriz'd,] Here Charmian, who is fo faithful as to die with her Mistress, by the ftupidity of the Editors is made to countenance and give Directions for her being furpriz'd by Cæfar's Meffengers. But this Blunder is for want of knowing, or obferving, the hiftorical Fact. When Cæfar fent Proculeius to the Queen, he fent Gallus after him with new Inftructions: and while one amufed Cleopatra with Propofitions from Cæfar, thro' Crannies of the Monument; the other fcaled it by a Ladder, entred at a Window backward, and made Cleopatra, and those with her Prifoners. I have reform'd the Paffage therefore, (as, I am perfuaded, the Author defign'd it ;) from the Authority of Plutarch. Pra. Pro. Hold, worthy fady, hold: Do not yourself fuch wrong, who are in this Cleo. What, of death too, that rids our dogs of languish? Pro. Do not abufe my mafter's bounty, by Th' undoing of yourself: let the world fee His Nobleness well acted, which your death Will never let come forth. Cleo. Where art thou, Death? Come hither, come: oh come, and take a Queen Cleo. Sir, I will eat no meat, I'll not drink, Sir: I'll not fleep neither. This mortal house I'll ruin, Pro. You do extend These thoughts of horror further than you shall Dol. Proculeius, Enter Dolabella. What thou haft done thy mafter Cafar knows, Pro. So, Dolabella, It fhall content me beft; be gentle to her; Cleo. Cleo. Say, I would die. [Exit Proculeius Dol. Moft noble Emprefs, you have heard of me. Dol. Affuredly, you know me. Cleo. No matter, Sir, what I have heard or known: You laugh, when boys or women tell their dreams; Is't not your trick? Dol. I understand not, Madam. Cleo. I dreamt, there was an Emp❜ror Antony; Oh fuch another fleep, that I might fee But fuch another man! Dol. If it might pleafe ye Cleo. His face was as the heav'ns; and therein stuck A Sun and Moon, which kept their courfe, and lighted (35) The little O o'th' Earth. Dol. Moft fovereign creature! Cleo. His legs beftrid the ocean, his rear'd arm (35) A Sun and Moon which kept their Course, and lighted The little o' th' Earth. Dol. -Moft fovereign Creature!] There What a bleffed limping Verse these two Hemiflichs give us! Had none of the Editors an Ear to find the Hitch in its Pace? 'Tis true, there is but a Syllable wanting, and that, I believe verily, was but of a fingle Letter; which the firft Editors not understanding, learnedly threw it out as a Redundance. I restore, The little Oo'th' Earth. i. e. the little Orb or Circle. And 'tis plain, our Poet in other Paffages chufes to exprefs himself thus. There was no Winter in't: an Antonie it was, That grew the more by reaping.] There was certainly a Contrast, both in the Thought and Terms, defign'd here, which is loft in an accidental Corruption. How could an Antony grow the more by reaping? I'll venture, by a very easy Change, |