The Complete Works of William Shakespeare by William Shakespeare (moboreader .TXT) 📕

FIRST CITIZEN. Ourselves, our wives, and children, on our knees Are bound to pray for you both.

SICINIUS. Live and thrive!

BRUTUS. Farewell, kind neighbours; we wish’d Coriolanus Had lov’d you as we did.

CITIZENS. Now the gods keep you!

BOTH TRIBUNES. Farewell, farewell. Exeunt citizens SICINIUS. This is a happier and more comely time Than when these fellows ran about the streets Crying confusion.

BRUTUS. Caius Marcius was

A worthy officer i’ the war, but insolent, O’ercome with pride, ambitious past all thinking, Self-loving-SICINIUS. And affecting one sole throne, Without assistance.

MENENIUS. I think not so.

SICINIUS. We should by this, to all our lamentation, If he had gone forth consul, found it so.

BRUTUS. The gods have well prevented it, and Rome Sits safe and still without him.

Enter an AEDILE

AEDILE. Worthy tribunes,

There is a slave, whom we have put in prison, Reports the Volsces with several powers Are ent’red in the Roman territories, And with the deepest malice of the war Destroy what lies before ‘em.

MENENIUS. ‘Tis Aufidius,

Who, hearing of our Marcius’ banishment, Thrusts forth his horns again into the world, Which were inshell’d when Marcius stood for Rome, And durst not once peep out.

SICINIUS. Come, what talk you of Marcius?

BRUTUS. Go see this rumourer whipp’d. It cannot be The Volsces dare break with us.

MENENIUS. Cannot be!

We have record that very well it can; And three examples of the like hath been Within my age. But reason with the fellow Before you punish him, where he heard this, Lest you shall chance to whip your information And beat the messenger who bids beware Of what is to be dreaded.

SICINIUS. Tell not me.

I know this cannot be.

BRUTUS. Not Possible.

Enter A MESSENGER

MESSENGER. The nobles in great earnestness are going All to the Senate House; some news is come That turns their countenances.

SICINIUS. ‘Tis this slave—

Go whip him fore the people’s eyes-his raising, Nothing but his report.

MESSENGER. Yes, worthy sir,

The slave’s report is seconded, and more, More fearful, is deliver’d.

SICINIUS. What more fearful?

MESSENGER. It is spoke freely out of many mouths-How probable I do not know-that Marcius, Join’d with Aufidius, leads a power ‘gainst Rome, And vows revenge as spacious as between The young’st and oldest thing.

SICINIUS. This is most likely!

BRUTUS. Rais’d only that the weaker sort may wish Good Marcius home again.

SICINIUS. The very trick on ‘t.

MENENIUS. This is unlikely.

He and Aufidius can no more atone

Than violent’st contrariety.

Enter a second MESSENGER

SECOND MESSENGER. You are sent for to the Senate.

A fearful army, led by Caius Marcius

Associated with Aufidius, rages

Upon our territories, and have already O’erborne their way, consum’d with fire and took What lay before them.

Enter COMINIUS

COMINIUS. O, you have made good work!

MENENIUS. What news? what news?

COMINIUS. You have holp to ravish your own daughters and To melt the city leads upon your pates, To see your wives dishonour’d to your noses-MENENIUS. What’s the news? What’s the news?

COMINIUS. Your temples burned in their cement, and Your franchises, whereon you stood, confin’d Into an auger’s bore.

MENENIUS. Pray now, your news?

You have made fair work, I fear me. Pray, your news.

If Marcius should be join’d wi’ th’ Volscians-COMINIUS. If!

He is their god; he leads them like a thing Made by some other deity than Nature, That shapes man better; and they follow him Against us brats with no less confidence Than boys pursuing summer butterflies, Or butchers killing flies.

MENENIUS. You have made good work,

You and your apron men; you that stood so much Upon the voice of occupation and

The breath of garlic-eaters!

COMINIUS. He’ll shake

Your Rome about your ears.

MENENIUS. As Hercules

Did shake down mellow fruit. You have made fair work!

BRUTUS. But is this true, sir?

COMINIUS. Ay; and you’ll look pale

Before you find it other. All the regions Do smilingly revolt, and who resists

Are mock’d for valiant ignorance,

And perish constant fools. Who is’t can blame him?

Your enemies and his find something in him.

MENENIUS. We are all undone unless

The noble man have mercy.

COMINIUS. Who shall ask it?

The tribunes cannot do’t for shame; the people Deserve such pity of him as the wolf

Does of the shepherds; for his best friends, if they Should say ‘Be good to Rome’- they charg’d him even As those should do that had deserv’d his hate, And therein show’d fike enemies.

MENENIUS. ‘Tis true;

If he were putting to my house the brand That should consume it, I have not the face To say ‘Beseech you, cease.’ You have made fair hands, You and your crafts! You have crafted fair!

COMINIUS. You have brought

A trembling upon Rome, such as was never S’ incapable of help.

BOTH TRIBUNES. Say not we brought it.

MENENIUS. How! Was’t we? We lov’d him, but, like beasts And cowardly nobles, gave way unto your clusters, Who did hoot him out o’ th’ city.

COMINIUS. But I fear

They’ll roar him in again. Tullus Aufidius, The second name of men, obeys his points As if he were his officer. Desperation Is all the policy, strength, and defence, That Rome can make against them.

Enter a troop of citizens MENENIUS. Here comes the clusters.

And is Aufidius with him? You are they That made the air unwholesome when you cast Your stinking greasy caps in hooting at Coriolanus’ exile. Now he’s coming,

And not a hair upon a soldier’s head

Which will not prove a whip; as many coxcombs As you threw caps up will he tumble down, And pay you for your voices. ‘Tis no matter; If he could burn us all into one coal We have deserv’d it.

PLEBEIANS. Faith, we hear fearful news.

FIRST CITIZEN. For mine own part,

When I said banish him, I said ‘twas pity.

SECOND CITIZEN. And so did I.

THIRD CITIZEN. And so did I; and, to say the truth, so did very many of us. That we did, we did for the best; and though we willingly consented to his banishment, yet it was against our will.

COMINIUS. Y’are goodly things, you voices!

MENENIUS. You have made

Good work, you and your cry! Shall’s to the Capitol?

COMINIUS. O, ay, what else?

Exeunt COMINIUS and MENENIUS

SICINIUS. Go, masters, get you be not dismay’d; These are a side that would be glad to have This true which they so seem to fear. Go home, And show no sign of fear.

FIRST CITIZEN. The gods be good to us! Come, masters, let’s home. I ever said we were i’ th’ wrong when we banish’d him.

SECOND CITIZEN. So did we all. But come, let’s home.

Exeunt citizens BRUTUS. I do not like this news.

SICINIUS. Nor I.

BRUTUS. Let’s to the Capitol. Would half my wealth Would buy this for a lie!

SICINIUS. Pray let’s go. Exeunt

SCENE VII.

A camp at a short distance from Rome

Enter AUFIDIUS with his LIEUTENANT

AUFIDIUS. Do they still fly to th’ Roman?

LIEUTENANT. I do not know what witchcraft’s in him, but Your soldiers use him as the grace fore meat, Their talk at table, and their thanks at end; And you are dark’ned in this action, sir, Even by your own.

AUFIDIUS. I cannot help it now,

Unless by using means I lame the foot Of our design. He bears himself more proudlier, Even to my person, than I thought he would When first I did embrace him; yet his nature In that’s no changeling, and I must excuse What cannot be amended.

LIEUTENANT. Yet I wish, sirI mean, for your particular-you had not Join’d in commission with him, but either Had borne the action of yourself, or else To him had left it solely.

AUFIDIUS. I understand thee well; and be thou sure, When he shall come to his account, he knows not What I can urge against him. Although it seems, And so he thinks, and is no less apparent To th’ vulgar eye, that he bears all things fairly And shows good husbandry for the Volscian state, Fights dragon-like, and does achieve as soon As draw his sword; yet he hath left undone That which shall break his neck or hazard mine Whene’er we come to our account.

LIEUTENANT. Sir, I beseech you, think you he’ll carry Rome?

AUFIDIUS. All places yield to him ere he sits down, And the nobility of Rome are his;

The senators and patricians love him too.

The tribunes are no soldiers, and their people Will be as rash in the repeal as hasty To expel him thence. I think he’ll be to Rome As is the osprey to the fish, who takes it By sovereignty of nature. First he was A noble servant to them, but he could not Carry his honours even. Whether ‘twas pride, Which out of daily fortune ever taints The happy man; whether defect of judgment, To fail in the disposing of those chances Which he was lord of; or whether nature, Not to be other than one thing, not moving From th’ casque to th’ cushion, but commanding peace Even with the same austerity and garb As he controll’d the war; but one of these-As he hath spices of them all-not all, For I dare so far free him-made him fear’d, So hated, and so banish’d. But he has a merit To choke it in the utt’rance. So our virtues Lie in th’ interpretation of the time; And power, unto itself most commendable, Hath not a tomb so evident as a chair T’ extol what it hath done.

One fire drives out one fire; one nail, one nail; Rights by rights falter, strengths by strengths do fail.

Come, let’s away. When, Caius, Rome is thine, Thou art poor’st of all; then shortly art thou mine.

Exeunt

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ACT V. SCENE I.

Rome. A public place

Enter MENENIUS, COMINIUS, SICINIUS and BRUTUS, the two Tribunes, with others MENENIUS. No, I’ll not go. You hear what he hath said Which was sometime his general, who lov’d him In a most dear particular. He call’d me father; But what o’ that? Go, you that banish’d him: A mile before his tent fall down, and knee The way into his mercy. Nay, if he coy’d To hear Cominius speak, I’ll keep at home.

COMINIUS. He would not seem to know me.

MENENIUS. Do you hear?

COMINIUS. Yet one time he did call me by my name.

I urg’d our old acquaintance, and the drops That we have bled together. ‘Coriolanus’

He would not answer to; forbid all names; He was a kind of nothing, titleless,

Till he had forg’d himself a name i’ th’ fire Of burning Rome.

MENENIUS. Why, so! You have made good work.

A pair of tribunes that have wrack’d for Rome To make coals cheap-a noble memory!

COMINIUS. I minded him how royal ‘twas to pardon When it was less expected; he replied, It was a bare petition of a state

To one whom they had punish’d.

MENENIUS. Very well.

Could he say less?

COMINIUS. I offer’d to awaken his regard For’s private friends; his answer to me was, He could not stay to pick them in a pile Of noisome musty chaff. He said ‘twas folly, For one poor grain or