'A Comedy of Errors' in Seven Acts by Spokeshave (poetry books to read .TXT) π
_Quezox:_ But, noble Francos, we now wend our wayTo meet the vermin which do suck our blood,And they with tongues which serpent-like can charmMay fool thee with their tales of dire intent.
_Francos: (striking his breast):_
Fear not, they soon shall feel how vain it were
To seek to trick one who, in halls of state,
Hath met the wiles of shrewd, self-seeking men,
But to ward off attack with virtue's shield.
_Captain and Seldonskip approach._
_Captain:_ Most noble potentate, as I my rounds
Of observation make, it pleasures me
Most mightily, to make obeisance to
The one so honored by his native land.
As captain of a vessel may be judged
By those subordinate to his command,
So do I quick conception of thee form.
By the broad mental gifts of Seldonskip
Who were the hose, through which thy mind doth squirt Most sapient thought, for mankind's betterment.
_Seldonskip:_ You bet his
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And pierce the varied joints his armor boasts.
Francos: Sweet Quezox, hold! Methinks I read thy mind,
Revenge is sweeter than the honeycomb.
But let it not take mastery so strong
That Reason totters on her wabbly throne.
I fear me there are lions in the way,
And we must not in open battle wage;
But let our minds deep strategy conceive
And thus achieve what otherwise might fail.
Quezox: Most trenchant Francos, how thy words do prick;
I fear unjust suspicion rears its head,
For it is not the nature of our race
To open deal, when stealth can compass well
The object which our surging souls shall seek;
For practice which necessity hath caused
Hath built a cunning it were hard to meet;
But when, impatient of long smould'ring wrongs,
We open take the bolo in our hands,
With bellies yearning for the blood of those
Who long have winked a proud disdainful eye
Beware! I say, beware! for mercy then is dead.
Francos: But Quezox, hold! Water thy burning thoughts.
'Twere well to bridle firm such wordy steed,
For mayhap there be one with list'ning ear,
Who wide would publish what were worthy thoughts;
But which should covered be by mantle wise,
Until time furnisheth the proper hour,
To tongue them into words with cautious garb
So they shall mellow sound a fiery thought.
Quezox: Thy mind, sweet Francos, pregnant is, with thought,
And well I ween, thou Caesar's words hast weighed.
But patience is a burden hard to bear
And oft it galls the back on which 'tis placed.
Francos: But Quezox, listen. Speed thy mind beyond
The present passing hour, and wise reflect
That like a blanket on the jackass spread,
Patience can guard against the chafing wound.
Quezox: Ah, Francos, well I know that wisdom bears
With weight of mountains on my retching soul.
But I will set my shoulders like the gods,
And bear the load as Atlas doth the skies.
Francos: But, Quezox, I am filled with anxious thoughts
Anent sweet Seldonskip, whose wandering eye
Doth lecherous look upon each passing dame.
The fire of youth that wanders through his veins
May scandal breed, and it were well to look
With watchful eye upon his every act
Affairs of state with mighty import soar
Above the intrigues of a callow youth,
Hence we must owlish vigil constant keep
And in good sooth, it might indeed be well
To speak him fair, and warning subtle give
Lest his distemper lead to grievous ill.
Quezox: Alas I know the temptress doth beguile;
Hence sympathy doth plead for helping hand.
If 'tis thy wish, I in most guarded speech
Will whisper caution in his youthful ear.
Francos: 'Tis well. But still I fear me over much
That he, like highly tempered steel, will bend
Only to swift rebound, and further by
Reaction go from paths of rectitude.
(Seldonskip indolently approaches.)
Seldonskip: Most noble gentlemen, I greet thee sweet:
It tireth mightily, this placid sea.
Methinks a storm, a mighty, raging storm,
To break monotony would lend to life
A phlegm, and hence a tedious day become
More gladsome. Alack-a-day when I did leave
Those gilded halls where beauty did indwell.
On this good ship naught but uncertain age
Measures those forms divine to which we kneel.
(Seldonskip walks slowly on.)
Quezox speaking to Francos. Most noble sire, in wonderment
I pause.
If I may query put, what mental rheum
Did cause selection of such vacuous mind
To fill a post requiring mental grasp?
Francos: Good Quezox, surely I was misinformed.
Full well; his sire, I dreamed, was made of clay
Much finer than is wont within the mold,
And so I eager seized his proffered aid.
But keen regret doth fill my troubled soul
And fears prophetic, to the future point.
But, noble friend, we'll let the matter drop
If it hath weight to fall, which much I doubt.
Quezox: Ha! Ha! I see! he hath so little force,
That gravitation with him worketh not!
Francos: Now, noble Quezox, we must quick devise
Some method to surmount the vicious laws
Of civil service, which with shrewd design
Purpose to keep those vultures in their nests,
While others long denied official posts,
Shall wander in the wilderness, and ne'er
Set wary foot within the promised land.
Quezox: Most worthy sire, when guile hath strong intrenched,
Guile of a firmer mould, should countermatch,
And beat the bulwarks down; 'twere easy done.
In sooth so easy that no glory crowns
The working of a scheme so patent to
An eagle eye, which hath discernment keen.
To unmake offices, were quickly done.
To lower stipends till the hungry mouth
Shall to the belly say: "We must go hence
Or else we perish," were a shrewd device.
'Twere he who holds the money bags, must rule
And we the golden sword hold in our grasp.
Francos: Ah noble Quezox, thou hast clearly solved
The riddle which hath cost me sleepless nights
It shall be done. But who approacheth me?
Quezox: Sire, heed him not! Let's to our state rooms hie.
In truth methinks this man doth seek to spy,
And it were wise indeed to guard each port.
To pass an idle moment, it were well
In converse to enjoin; but this man speaks
Through eyes that warning give that he hath brains.
Hence it were best to pass him idly by,
And only mouth vain words with those who, dull,
Can work no harm by mouthing what were said.
(Quezox takes Francos by the arm and moves off
muttering to himself)
'Tis thus I guard this weakling from the throng.
And hold his foolish ear unto myself.
ACT IV Dramatis PersonaeFrancos . . . . . . Governor General of a Province.
Quezox . . . . . . Resident Delegate from the Province.
Seldonskip: . . . Secretary to the Governor General.
Commissioners
Halstrom: . . . . Aide to the Governor General.
Scene I. Garden of the Palace.
Francos (Soliloquizes): Methinks the poet of the past who scrolled
"Uneasy lies the head that wears a crown"
Indeed were wise and kenned whereof he wrote.
His keen imagination doth amaze
And fill my mind with wonder at his full
Discernment of the most unhappy lot
Which great responsibility doth load
Upon the shoulders of betroubled men
Whom fate relentless hath before ordained
To, like the pack-horse, patiently, each day,
Upbear most galling burden, born of cares
Which do encompass the affairs of state.
When in the Nation's forum I did sit,
Like to a minnow in a mighty pool,
I did disport, and, nourishing no care,
Found naught to mar the pleasures born each day.
But now there looms before me mountain high
Questions of mighty import to the state
Which I must quickly and with wisdom solve
Without the bell mare's chime to charm mine ear.
On whose sound judgment dare I now rely?
Whose honor, on grave issues, can I trust?
Shall I use Quezox blindly as a staff
On which to lean, as on my path I grope?
Or shall I ope' mine ear to those entrenched
Behind official desks, with knowledge armed
And primed for combat, when I shall disclose
The policy profound, by wisdom sired?
Alas, I find that I must war with friends,
Who seem enamored with the tricky foe,
And by long contact they infected be
By doctrines both heretical and vile.
Of those who legal robbery do make
A vehicle to stuff their bellies full
I must beware; for it doth to me seem
That long and double squinting at the law
Impairs their moral sight for all but fees;
Hence deep entanglements might be the goal
To which their slimy tongues would shrewdly guide
That from disturbance, they might profit reap.
Alas, what to me seemed but pigmy state
Now looms up mightily before mine eye,
And like the feathered mother with her brood
Must I my many cares each day enwing
And from the circling hawk with hungry eye
Protect and shelter, till mature, they grow.
But this commission! We must shrewd select
Such pliant men as will our pleasure work;
For we ken not what yeast in working deep
Within the inexperienced minds of those
Foregath'ring soon to fashion laws to meet
The pressing needs of our embarrassed state.
I feel mayhap, that seeds of self were sown
Within the willing hearts of those who long
Have profit made at this poor State's expense;
Which seeds have grown into a mighty tree
That hides behind its fol'age justice sweet
So deep within those shades that e'en the sun
Of righteousness reveals its presence not.
For such compassion's bowels ne'er should yearn,
And yet mine eyes behold a handiwork
Which were the offspring but of earnest zeal;
Yet since example's perfect work is done,
The pattern to oblivion's shades we'll cast.
But I to mine uneasy couch will hie.
The morrow's cares may feed upon their day!
(Slowly retires)
Scene. Governor's office.
Francos: Good Halstrom, to my mind uncertainty
Is but a mental sore, which cancer like,
Doth spread its roots until the surgeon's knife
With sharp incision shall the curse remove.
So must I cross the Rubicon and strike
The foe in parts most vulnerable.
Caesar, from the deep cavern of his mind,
Hath fashioned, with a statesman's ready hand,
A plan which we must now inaugurate,
Amid the cruel jeers of all who long
Have watched the workings of the dark hued mind
Excepting only such as office seek.
Halstrom: My Liege, thy look doth seem to answer woo
And my stern schooling bids me to obey,
But it were act from gross presumption born
To, from my lowly post, advice bestow.
Enters
Seldonskip: Well Gov'nor, standing just outside the door
There are two chaps who loudly make the claim
That they are sure expected at this hour
To hobnob with you on some public stunt.
Francos: Hold, Seldonskip! Thy tongue unruly wags
Like to the shuttle on its weaving way
To fashion fabric of but little worth
'Twere well to throttle it or else belike
A pebble small, in gear of great machine
Disaster grave may work to wheels of state.
(Seldonskip retires.)
Turns to
Halstrom: Good Halstrom, quick I prithee do repair
To outer chamber and with pleasant mien
Escort these high officials with all state
Unto our presence, when I will undo
The mischief, by soft words clothed with a smile.
(Enters Quezox: Speaks):
Most honored Francos, I had closed mine ear
But Seldonskip like to a jackass brayed
And I perforce did catch his words distraught,
Which seemed to fling an insult in thy face.
And cast contempt upon our worthy sons.
If concord sweet shall lend us helping hand
I fear me much this yokel must go hence
For he doth gag us with his silly tongue!
Francos: Patience, good Quezox. Heed no idle word;
(Warningly)
It falls upon thine ear, and then 'tis gone;
'Tis but a breath of air which into naught
Doth vanish. Can'st thou, thy finger on it
Put and say 'tis here? Alas, it like a
Heavenly orb doth shoot its comet way
An then twere gone. It was, but now 'tis not!
Hence it were folly, "Nothing," to pursue.
Quezox: They keen philosophy falls on mine ear
Like music, as it trickles from thy brain;
But still the wound remains which venomed tongue
Hath deeply stung upon my memory.
But thou hast said: an uttered thought is dead.
Perhaps 'tis so, but in the human heart,
There lingers long a mem'ry, blessed indeed,
Of those preceding us to that long home
Where, be it utter darkness which prevails,
Or light supernal with celestial ray,
Yet death hath not erased from mental scroll
The image which th' Eternal painted there.
(Enters Halstrom): The twain are gone, my Liege, but to the page
They for maΓ±ana did bespeak return.
Francos: Tis well!
Good gentlemen, my mind doth backward flit
On wings of happy mem'ry to that hour
When we, amid the plaudits of the hosts,
Did well proclaim to all the happy words
Which Caesar to expectant ears did send.
My heart doth overflow, when I recall
The ecstasy that spoke in thunder tones
And like to period rhetorical
Did ever punctuate each proper pause.
Quick did I note in what well ordered ranks
Our party friends did form before the stand.
Quezox: But, noble Sire, methought I in each eye
Discovered greedy looks which portend ill.
(Enters Seldonskip)
Unless their hungry hopes
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