Titus Andronicus & Timon of Athens (6 page)

TITUS
    Now, madam, are you prisoner to an emperor,

To him that
for
your honour and your
state,
²⁵⁹

Will
use
²⁶⁰
you nobly and your followers.

SATURNINUS
    A goodly lady, trust me, of the
hue
²⁶¹

That I would choose, were I to choose anew.—

Clear up, fair queen, that cloudy countenance:

Though chance of war hath wrought this change of
cheer,
²⁶⁴

Thou com’st not to be made a scorn in Rome:

Princely shall be thy usage every way.

Rest
²⁶⁷
on my word, and let not discontent

Daunt all your hopes: madam,
he comforts
²⁶⁸
you

Can make you greater than the queen of Goths.—

Lavinia, you are not displeased with this?

LAVINIA
    Not I, my lord,
sith
²⁷¹
true nobility

Warrants
²⁷²
these words in princely courtesy.

SATURNINUS
    Thanks, sweet Lavinia.— Romans, let us go.

Ransomless here we set our prisoners free:

Proclaim our honours, lords, with trump and drum.

BASSIANUS
    Lord Titus, by your leave, this maid is mine.

TITUS
    How, sir? Are you in earnest then, my lord?

BASSIANUS
    Ay, noble Titus, and resolved
withal
²⁷⁸

To do myself this
reason
²⁷⁹
and this right.

MARCUS
    
‘Suum cuique’
²⁸⁰
is our Roman justice:

This prince in justice seizeth but his own.

LUCIUS
    And that he will, and shall, if Lucius live.

TITUS
    Traitors,
avaunt!
²⁸³
Where is the emperor’s guard?—

Treason, my lord: Lavinia is
surprised!
²⁸⁴

SATURNINUS
    Surprised? By whom?

BASSIANUS
    By him that justly may

Bear his betrothed from all the world away.

MUTIUS
    Brothers, help to convey her hence away,

And with my sword I’ll keep this door safe.

TITUS
    Follow, my lord, and I’ll soon bring her back.

MUTIUS
    My lord, you pass not here.

TITUS
    What, villain boy, barr’st me my way in Rome?

MUTIUS
    Help,
Lucius, help!
²⁹³

LUCIUS
    My lord, you are unjust, and, more than so:

In wrongful
quarrel
²⁹⁵
you have slain your son.

TITUS
    
Nor
²⁹⁶
thou, nor he, are any sons of mine:

My sons would never so dishonour me.

Traitor, restore Lavinia to the emperor.

LUCIUS
    Dead, if you will, but not to be his wife

That is another’s lawful promised love.

SATURNINUS
    No, Titus, no, the emperor needs her not,

Nor her, nor thee, nor any of thy stock.

I’ll trust
by leisure
³⁰³
him that mocks me once,

Thee never, nor thy traitorous haughty sons,

Confederates all thus to dishonour me.

Was none
in Rome to make a
stale
³⁰⁶

But Saturnine? Full well, Andronicus,

Agree these deeds with that proud brag of thine,

That said’st I begged the empire at thy hands.

TITUS
    O, monstrous! What reproachful words are these?

SATURNINUS
    But go thy ways, go give that
changing piece
³¹¹

To him that
flourished
³¹²
for her with his sword.

A valiant son-in-law thou shalt enjoy,

One fit to
bandy
³¹⁴
with thy lawless sons,

To
ruffle
³¹⁵
in the commonwealth of Rome.

TITUS
    These words are razors to my wounded heart.

SATURNINUS
    And therefore, lovely Tamora, Queen of Goths,

That like the stately
Phoebe
³¹⁸
’mongst her nymphs

Dost
overshine
the
gallant’st
³¹⁹
dames of Rome,

If thou be pleased with this my sudden choice,

Behold, I choose thee, Tamora, for my bride,

And will create thee emperess of Rome,

Speak, queen of Goths, dost thou applaud my choice?

And here I swear by all the Roman gods,

Sith priest and holy water are so near

And
tapers
³²⁶
burn so bright and everything

In readiness for
Hymenaeus
³²⁷
stand,

I will not resalute the streets of Rome,

Or climb my palace, till from forth this place

I lead espoused my bride along with me.

TAMORA
    And here in sight of heaven to Rome I swear,

If Saturnine advance the Queen of Goths,

She will a handmaid be to his desires,

A loving nurse, a mother to his youth.

SATURNINUS
    Ascend, fair queen,
Pantheon
³³⁵
. Lords, accompany

Your noble emperor and his lovely bride,

Sent by the heavens for Prince Saturnine,

Whose wisdom hath her fortune conquerèd:
³³⁸

There shall we consummate our spousal rites.

TITUS
    I am not
bid
³⁴⁰
to wait upon this bride.

Titus, when wert thou
wont
³⁴¹
to walk alone,

Dishonoured thus, and
challengèd
³⁴²
of wrongs?

MARCUS
    O Titus, see! O, see what thou hast done!

In a bad quarrel slain a virtuous son.

TITUS
    No, foolish tribune, no. No son of mine,

Nor thou, nor these, confed’rates in the deed

That hath dishonoured all our family:

Unworthy brother, and unworthy sons.

LUCIUS
    But let us give him burial as
becomes:
³⁴⁹

Give Mutius burial with our brethren.

TITUS
    Traitors, away! He rests not in this tomb.

This monument five hundred years hath stood,

Which I have sumptuously
re-edified:
³⁵³

Here none but soldiers and Rome’s
servitors
³⁵⁴

Repose in fame — none basely slain in brawls.

Bury him where you can, he comes not here.

MARCUS
    My lord, this is impiety in you:

My nephew Mutius’ deeds do plead for him,

He must be buried with his
bretheren.
³⁵⁹

TITUS’ TWO SONS
³⁶⁰
    And shall, or him we will accompany.

TITUS
    ‘And shall’? What villain was it that spake that word?

TITUS’ SON
    He that would
vouch
³⁶²
it in any place but here.

TITUS
    What, would you bury him
in my despite?
³⁶³

MARCUS
    No, noble Titus, but entreat of thee

To pardon Mutius and to bury him.

TITUS
    Marcus, even thou hast struck upon my
crest,
³⁶⁶

And with these boys mine honour thou hast wounded.

My foes I do
repute
³⁶⁸
you every one,

So trouble me no more, but get you gone.

FIRST SON
    He is not himself, let us withdraw.

SECOND SON
    Not I, till Mutius’ bones be buried.

MARCUS
    Brother, for in that name doth nature plead—

SECOND SON
    Father, and in that name doth nature speak—

TITUS
    Speak thou no more, if all the rest will
speed.
³⁷⁴

MARCUS
    Renown
è
d Titus, more than half my soul—

LUCIUS
    Dear father, soul and substance of us all—

MARCUS
    
Suffer
³⁷⁷
thy brother Marcus to inter

His noble nephew here in virtue’s nest,

That died in honour and Lavinia’s cause.

Thou art a Roman, be not barbarous.

The Greeks upon
advice
³⁸¹
did bury Ajax

That slew himself, and wise Laertes’ son

Did graciously plead for his funerals:

Let not young Mutius then, that was thy joy,

Be barred his entrance here.

TITUS
    Rise, Marcus, rise.

The
dismall’st
³⁸⁷
day is this that e’er I saw:

To be dishonoured by my sons in Rome!

Well, bury him, and bury me the next.

LUCIUS
    There lie thy bones, sweet Mutius, with thy friends,

Till we with
trophies
³⁹¹
do adorn thy tomb.

MARCUS
and
TITUS’ SONS
    No man shed tears for noble Mutius:

He lives in fame that died in virtue’s cause.

MARCUS
    My lord, to step out of these sudden
dumps,
³⁹⁴

How comes it that the
subtle
³⁹⁵
Queen of Goths

Is of a sudden thus advanced in Rome?

TITUS
    I know not, Marcus, but I know it
is
³⁹⁷
—

Whether by
device
³⁹⁸
or no — the heavens can tell.

Is she not then
beholding
³⁹⁹
to the man

That brought her for this high good turn so far?

MARCUS
    Yes, and will nobly him remunerate.

SATURNINUS
    So, Bassianus, you have
played your prize:
⁴⁰²

God give you joy, sir, of your gallant bride.

BASSIANUS
    And you of yours, my lord. I say no more,

Nor wish no less, and so I take my leave.

SATURNINUS
    Traitor, if Rome have law or we have power,

Thou and thy faction shall repent this
rape.
⁴⁰⁷

BASSIANUS
    ‘Rape’ call you it, my lord, to seize my own,

My true-betrothèd love and now my wife?

But let the laws of Rome determine all:

Meanwhile I am possessed of
that
⁴¹¹
is mine.

SATURNINUS
    
’Tis good
⁴¹²
, sir: you are very short with us.

But if we live we’ll be as
sharp
⁴¹³
with you.

BASSIANUS
    My lord, what I have done, as best I may,

Answer
⁴¹⁵
I must, and shall do with my life.

Only thus much I give your grace to know:

By all the duties that I owe to Rome,

This noble gentleman, Lord Titus here,

Is in
opinion
⁴¹⁹
and in honour wronged,

That in the rescue of Lavinia

With his own hand did slay his youngest son

In zeal to you, and highly moved to wrath

To be
controlled
in that he
frankly
⁴²³
gave:

Receive him then to favour, Saturnine,

That hath expressed himself in all his deeds

A father and a friend to thee and Rome.

TITUS
    Prince Bassianus,
leave to plead
⁴²⁷
my deeds:

’Tis thou and
those
⁴²⁸
that have dishonoured me.