The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated) (1070 page)

Enter TITUS, bearing arrows with letters on the ends of them; with him MARCUS, YOUNG LUCIUS, and other gentlemen, PUBLIUS, SEMPRONIUS, and CAIUS, with bows

TITUS.

Come, Marcus, come; kinsmen, this is the way.

Sir boy, let me see your archery;

Look ye draw home enough, and 'tis there straight.

Terras Astrea reliquit,

Be you rememb'red, Marcus; she's gone, she's fled.

Sirs, take you to your tools. You, cousins, shall

Go sound the ocean and cast your nets;

Happily you may catch her in the sea;

Yet there's as little justice as at land.

No; Publius and Sempronius, you must do it;

'Tis you must dig with mattock and with spade,

And pierce the inmost centre of the earth;

Then, when you come to Pluto's region,

I pray you deliver him this petition.

Tell him it is for justice and for aid,

And that it comes from old Andronicus,

Shaken with sorrows in ungrateful Rome.

Ah, Rome! Well, well, I made thee miserable

What time I threw the people's suffrages

On him that thus doth tyrannize o'er me.

Go get you gone; and pray be careful all,

And leave you not a man-of-war unsearch'd.

This wicked Emperor may have shipp'd her hence;

And, kinsmen, then we may go pipe for justice.

Come on Marcus, come; kinsmen, this is the way.

You boy, let me see your archery;

make sure you draw the bow far enough back and you'll hit the target.

Astrea has left the earth,

Remember that, Marcus; she's gone, she's fled.

Sirs, get your tools ready.You, cousins, will

go and throw your nets into the ocean;

with luck you might catch her in the sea;

but there's just as little justice on land.

No; Publius and Sempronius, you must do it;

you must dig with spade and fork,

and get right into the heart of the earth;

then, when you get to hell,

please give Pluto this petition.

Tell him it's asking for justice and help,

and that it comes from old Andronicus,

shaken with sorrows in ungrateful Rome.

Ah, Rome!Well, well, I made you miserable

the time I bestowed the people's votes

on the one who now tortures me.

Off you go; and please all be careful,

and don't leave a single warship unsearched.

The wicked Emperor may have shipped her out;

if that's happened, kinsmen, we can whistle for justice.

MARCUS.

O Publius, is not this a heavy case,

To see thy noble uncle thus distract?

Oh Publius, isn't this awful,

to see your noble uncle so mad?

PUBLIUS.

Therefore, my lords, it highly us concerns

By day and night t' attend him carefully,

And feed his humour kindly as we may

Till time beget some careful remedy.

So, my lords, we must be very diligent

and be with him night and day,

and look after him as best we can

until time heals him.

MARCUS.

Kinsmen, his sorrows are past remedy.

Join with the Goths, and with revengeful war

Take wreak on Rome for this ingratitude,

And vengeance on the traitor Saturnine.

Kinsmen, his grief is beyond healing.

Join the Goths and start a war of revenge

to punish Rome for this ingratitude

and to punish the traitor Saturnine.

TITUS.

Publius, how now? How now, my masters?

What, have you met with her?

Publius, what's happening?What's the story, my masters?

What, have you met her?

PUBLIUS.

No, my good lord; but Pluto sends you word,

If you will have Revenge from hell, you shall.

Marry, for Justice, she is so employ'd,

He thinks, with Jove in heaven, or somewhere else,

So that perforce you must needs stay a time.

No, my good lord; but Pluto sends word to you

that if you want revenge from hell then you shall have it.

As for Justice, he thinks that she's working

with Jove in heaven, or elsewhere,

So that you'll have to wait a while.

TITUS.

He doth me wrong to feed me with delays.

I'll dive into the burning lake below

And pull her out of Acheron by the heels.

Marcus, we are but shrubs, no cedars we,

No big-bon'd men fram'd of the Cyclops' size;

But metal, Marcus, steel to the very back,

Yet wrung with wrongs more than our backs can bear;

And, sith there's no justice in earth nor hell,

We will solicit heaven, and move the gods

To send down justice for to wreak our wrongs.

Come, to this gear. You are a good archer, Marcus.

[He gives them the arrows]

'Ad Jovem' that's for you; here 'Ad Apollinem.'

'Ad Martem' that's for myself.

Here, boy, 'To Pallas'; here 'To Mercury.'

'To Saturn,' Caius- not to Saturnine:

You were as good to shoot against the wind.

To it, boy. Marcus, loose when I bid.

Of my word, I have written to effect;

There's not a god left unsolicited.

It's not right of him to keep me waiting.

I'll dive into the burning lake below

and pull her out of Acheron by the heels.

Marcus, we're just shrubs, not cedars,

not big boned men shaped like the Cyclops;

but we're strong, Marcus, steel through and through,

though we're loaded down with more wrongs than we can carry;

and, since there's no justice on earth or in hell,

we call on heaven, and ask the gods

to send down justice to avenge our wrongs.

Come, let's look to our weaponry.You're a good archer, Marcus.

[he gives them arrows]

''To Jove' - that's for you; here 'to Apollo' and

'to Mars', that's for myself.

Here, boy, 'to Pallas'; here 'to Mercury.'

'To Saturn', Caius - not to Saturnine:

you might as well shoot into the wind as ask him for anything.

Let's go to it, boy. Marcus, fire when I order.

I have written all I mean;

there's not a god I haven't called on.

MARCUS.

Kinsmen, shoot all your shafts into the court;

We will afflict the Emperor in his pride.

Kinsmen, shoot all your arrows into the court;

we'll hit the Emperor in his own home.

TITUS.

Now, masters, draw. [They shoot] O, well said, Lucius!

Good boy, in Virgo's lap! Give it Pallas.

Now, masters, draw. [they shoot]Oh, well done, Lucius!

Good boy, right into Virgo!Now fire at Athene.

MARCUS.

My lord, I aim a mile beyond the moon;

Your letter is with Jupiter by this.

My lord, I aimed a mile past the moon;

your request will reach Jupiter like this.

TITUS. Ha! ha!

Publius, Publius, hast thou done?

See, see, thou hast shot off one of Taurus' horns.

Ha! Ha!

Publius, Publius, have you finished?

Look, you've shot off one of Taurus' horns.

MARCUS.

This was the sport, my lord: when Publius shot,

The Bull, being gall'd, gave Aries such a knock

That down fell both the Ram's horns in the court;

And who should find them but the Empress' villain?

She laugh'd, and told the Moor he should not choose

But give them to his master for a present.

That was the game, my lord: when Publius shot,

the Bull, being grazed, gave Aries such a knock

that both his Ram's horns fell down into the court;

and who should find them but the Empress' villain?

She laughed, and told the Moor he could do no better

than to put the horns on the Emperor as a gift.

TITUS.

Why, there it goes! God give his lordship joy!

Enter the CLOWN, with a basket and two pigeons in it

News, news from heaven! Marcus, the post is come.

Sirrah, what tidings? Have you any letters?

Shall I have justice? What says Jupiter?

Why, there they go!May God give him happiness!

News, news from heaven!Marcus, the post has come.

Sir, what news?Have you any letters?

Shall I have justice?What does Jupiter say?

CLOWN.

Ho, the gibbet-maker? He says that he hath taken them

down

again, for the man must not be hang'd till the next week.

What, you mean the gibbet maker?He says he's taken the scaffold down,

as the man has a reprieve until next week.

TITUS.

But what says Jupiter, I ask thee?

But I'm asking you what does Jupiter say?

CLOWN.

Alas, sir, I know not Jupiter; I never drank with him in

all my life.

Alas, sir, I don't know Jupiter; I never drank with him in my life.

TITUS.

Why, villain, art not thou the carrier?

Why, you villain, aren't you the porter [of messages]?

CLOWN.

Ay, of my pigeons, sir; nothing else.

Yes, of my pigeons, sir; nothing else.

TITUS.

Why, didst thou not come from heaven?

Well, didn't you come from heaven?

CLOWN.

From heaven! Alas, sir, I never came there. God forbid I

should be so bold to press to heaven in my young days. Why, I

amgoing with my pigeons to the Tribunal Plebs, to take up a

matter

of brawl betwixt my uncle and one of the Emperal's men.

From heaven!Alas, sir, I've never been there.God forbid I

should be making visits to heaven when I'm still so young.

I'm going with my pigeons to the plebeian court, to try and settle

a matter of a brawl between my uncle and one of the emperor's men.

MARCUS.

Why, sir, that is as fit as can be to serve for your

oration; and let him deliver the pigeons to the Emperor from

you.

Why, sir, this is as good as anything for your speech,

let him deliver the pigeons from the Emperor to you.

TITUS.

Tell me, can you deliver an oration to the Emperor with

a grace?

Tell me, can you deliver a speech to the Emperor with grace?

CLOWN.

Nay, truly, sir, I could never say grace in all my life.

No, honestly, sir, I never said grace in my life.

TITUS.

Sirrah, come hither. Make no more ado,

But give your pigeons to the Emperor;

By me thou shalt have justice at his hands.

Hold, hold! Meanwhile here's money for thy charges.

Give me pen and ink. Sirrah, can you with a grace deliver up