The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated) (1049 page)

Consuming it with speaking!

You sun, that gives comfort, burn! Speak, and

condemn yourselves:

have a blister for every true word! And every false one

should burn you at the root of your tongues,

shrivelling it up as you speak!

First Senator

Worthy Timon,--

Deserving Timon–

TIMON

Of none but such as you, and you of Timon.

I don't deserve anyone but your type, and you deserve Timon.

First Senator

The senators of Athens greet thee, Timon.

The senators of Athens greet you, Timon.

TIMON

I thank them; and would send them back the plague,

Could I but catch it for them.

I thank them; I would send them back the plague,

if I could only catch it for them.

First Senator

O, forget

What we are sorry for ourselves in thee.

The senators with one consent of love

Entreat thee back to Athens; who have thought

On special dignities, which vacant lie

For thy best use and wearing.

Oh, forget

the wrongs we have done you, which we regret.

The senators are unanimous in their love,

asking you to come back to Athens; they have invented

special honours, which are waiting for you

to assume them.

Second Senator

They confess

Toward thee forgetfulness too general gross:

Which now the public body, which doth seldom

Play the recanter, feeling in itself

A lack of Timon's aid, hath sense withal

Of its own fail, restraining aid to Timon;

And send forth us, to make their sorrow'd render,

Together with a recompense more fruitful

Than their offence can weigh down by the dram;

Ay, even such heaps and sums of love and wealth

As shall to thee blot out what wrongs were theirs

And write in thee the figures of their love,

Ever to read them thine.

They admit

that they horribly neglected you:

now the governing body, which doesn't often

take anything back, realises it is missing

Timon's help, and at the same time feeling

its own wrong, in declining to help Timon,

have sent us out to offer their apology,

together with compensation which will

outweigh the wrong they have done to you–

yes, such great amounts of love and wealth

that they will wipe out their offences,

and show you the great love they have for you,

which is yours forever.

TIMON

You witch me in it;

Surprise me to the very brink of tears:

Lend me a fool's heart and a woman's eyes,

And I'll beweep these comforts, worthy senators.

You cast your spell over me;

you've almost made me cry:

give me the heart of a fool and a woman's eyes,

and I will weep for joy, good senators.

First Senator

Therefore, so please thee to return with us

And of our Athens, thine and ours, to take

The captainship, thou shalt be met with thanks,

Allow'd with absolute power and thy good name

Live with authority: so soon we shall drive back

Of Alcibiades the approaches wild,

Who, like a boar too savage, doth root up

His country's peace.

So, please agree to come back with us

and take on the leadership of Athens,

you will be thanked for it, and

given absolute power, and your good name will be

restored: that way we will soon defeat

the vicious attacks of Alcibiades, who,

like a wild boar, is rooting up

the peace of his country.

Second Senator

And shakes his threatening sword

Against the walls of Athens.

And he's threatening the walls of Athens

with his sword.

First Senator

Therefore, Timon,--

So, Timon–

TIMON

Well, sir, I will; therefore, I will, sir; thus:

If Alcibiades kill my countrymen,

Let Alcibiades know this of Timon,

That Timon cares not. But if he sack fair Athens,

And take our goodly aged men by the beards,

Giving our holy virgins to the stain

Of contumelious, beastly, mad-brain'd war,

Then let him know, and tell him Timon speaks it,

In pity of our aged and our youth,

I cannot choose but tell him, that I care not,

And let him take't at worst; for their knives care not,

While you have throats to answer: for myself,

There's not a whittle in the unruly camp

But I do prize it at my love before

The reverend'st throat in Athens. So I leave you

To the protection of the prosperous gods,

As thieves to keepers.

Well, sir, I shall tell you what I want:

if Alcibiades kills my countrymen,

tell Alcibiades this from Timon,

that Timon doesn't care. But if he sacks lovely Athens,

and takes our good old men by the beards,

sacrifices our holy virgins to the stain of

arrogant, beastly, insane war,

then let him know, and tell him Timon says it,

out of pity for our old people and youths,

that's all I can tell him, is that I don't care,

and let him interpret that whichever way he likes; don't worry about their knives

while you still have throats to give them. For myself,

there's not a single soldier in the rebel camp

that I don't value more

than the most exalted person in Athens. So I leave you

in the protection of the favourable gods,

as I would leave thieves with their jailers.

FLAVIUS

Stay not, all's in vain.

Don't stay here, you're wasting your time.

TIMON

Why, I was writing of my epitaph;

it will be seen to-morrow: my long sickness

Of health and living now begins to mend,

And nothing brings me all things. Go, live still;

Be Alcibiades your plague, you his,

And last so long enough!

Why, I was writing my epitaph;

you will see it tomorrow: my long illness

of being healthy and alive is beginning to be cured,

and oblivion is bringing me everything. Go, stay alive;

May Alcibiades torture you, you him,

and both of you live long in suffering.

First Senator

We speak in vain.

Our speech was useless.

TIMON

But yet I love my country, and am not

One that rejoices in the common wreck,

As common bruit doth put it.

But I still love my country, and I'm not

one of those who rejoices at its downfall,

as rumour has it.

First Senator

That's well spoke.

That's well said.

TIMON

Commend me to my loving countrymen,--

Give my loving countrymen my best wishes–

First Senator

These words become your lips as they pass

thorough them.

These words glorify your lips as they

pass through them.

Second Senator

And enter in our ears like great triumphers

In their applauding gates.

And they sound as sweet to us as the applause

the crowd gives to triumphant generals.

TIMON

Commend me to them,

And tell them that, to ease them of their griefs,

Their fears of hostile strokes, their aches, losses,

Their pangs of love, with other incident throes

That nature's fragile vessel doth sustain

In life's uncertain voyage, I will some kindness do them:

I'll teach them to prevent wild Alcibiades' wrath.

Give them my greetings,

and tell them that, to alleviate their worries,

their fear of hostile blows, their aches, losses,

their pangs of love, and the other incidental blows

that nature's fragile ship suffers

in the uncertain voyage of life, I will do them a favour:

I'll tell them how to escape the anger of wild Alcibiades.

First Senator

I like this well; he will return again.

I like this; he will come back.

TIMON

I have a tree, which grows here in my close,

That mine own use invites me to cut down,

And shortly must I fell it: tell my friends,

Tell Athens, in the sequence of degree

From high to low throughout, that whoso please

To stop affliction, let him take his haste,

Come hither, ere my tree hath felt the axe,

And hang himself. I pray you, do my greeting.

I have a tree which grows close by here,

which  I must cut down for my own needs,

I will do it shortly: tell my friends,

Tel Athens, all of them from the

highest to the lowest, that whoever wants

to end the horror, let him hurry here,

before I've cut down the tree,

and hang himself from it. Please pass this on.

FLAVIUS

Trouble him no further; thus you still shall find him.

Don't bother him any more; he'll always be like this.

TIMON

Come not to me again: but say to Athens,

Timon hath made his everlasting mansion

Upon the beached verge of the salt flood;

Who once a day with his embossed froth

The turbulent surge shall cover: thither come,

And let my grave-stone be your oracle.

Lips, let sour words go by and language end:

What is amiss plague and infection mend!

Graves only be men's works and death their gain!

Sun, hide thy beams! Timon hath done his reign.

Don't come back to me: but say to Athens,

Timon has made his eternal home

on the sandy edge of the sea;

once a day he shall be covered

by the foaming tide: come there,

visit my gravestone for advice.

Lips, speak these sour words and then let talking finish:

let plague and infection cure what is wrong!

Let graves be the only works men make, and death their profit!

Sun, hide your beams! Timon has finished.

Retires to his cave

First Senator

His discontents are unremoveably

Coupled to nature.

His anger is irrevocably

ingrained in his nature.

Second Senator

Our hope in him is dead: let us return,

And strain what other means is left unto us