Coriolanus
ACT IV SCENE VI. Rome. A public place. | ||
[Enter SICINIUS and BRUTUS] | ||
SICINIUS | We hear not of him, neither need we fear him; | |
His remedies are tame i’ the present peace | ||
And quietness of the people, which before | ||
Were in wild hurry. Here do we make his friends | ||
Blush that the world goes well, who rather had, | 5 | |
Though they themselves did suffer by’t, behold | ||
Dissentious numbers pestering streets than see | ||
Our tradesmen with in their shops and going | ||
About their functions friendly. | ||
BRUTUS | We stood to’t in good time. | 10 |
[Enter MENENIUS] | ||
Is this Menenius? | ||
SICINIUS | ‘Tis he,’tis he: O, he is grown most kind of late. | |
Both Tribunes | Hail sir! | |
MENENIUS | Hail to you both! | |
SICINIUS | Your Coriolanus | 15 |
Is not much miss’d, but with his friends: | ||
The commonwealth doth stand, and so would do, | ||
Were he more angry at it. | ||
MENENIUS | All’s well; and might have been much better, if | |
He could have temporized. | 20 | |
SICINIUS | Where is he, hear you? | |
MENENIUS | Nay, I hear nothing: his mother and his wife | |
Hear nothing from him. | ||
[Enter three or four Citizens] | ||
Citizens | The gods preserve you both! | |
SICINIUS | God-den, our neighbours. | 25 |
BRUTUS | God-den to you all, god-den to you all. | |
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 | 30 |
Had loved 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, | 35 | |
Crying confusion. | ||
BRUTUS | Caius Marcius was | |
A worthy officer i’ the war; but insolent, | ||
O’ercome with pride, ambitious past all thinking, | ||
Self-loving,– | 40 | |
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. | 45 | |
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 two several powers | 50 | |
Are enter’d 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, | 55 | |
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? | 60 | |
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 have been | 65 | |
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. | 70 | |
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 | 75 | |
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, | 80 |
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, | 85 | |
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 | Raised only, that the weaker sort may wish | 90 |
Good Marcius home again. | ||
SICINIUS | The very trick on’t. | |
MENENIUS | This is unlikely: | |
He and Aufidius can no more atone | ||
Than violentest contrariety. | 95 | |
[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, consumed with fire, and took | 100 | |
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, | 105 | |
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, confined | ||
Into an auger’s bore. | 110 | |
MENENIUS | Pray now, your news? | |
You have made fair work, I fear me.–Pray, your news?– | ||
If Marcius should be join’d with Volscians,– | ||
COMINIUS | If! | |
He is their god: he leads them like a thing | 115 | |
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. | 120 | |
MENENIUS | You have made good work, | |
You and your apron-men; you that stood so up much | ||
on the voice of occupation and | ||
The breath of garlic-eaters! | ||
COMINIUS | He will shake | 125 |
Your Rome about your ears. | ||
MENENIUS | As Hercules | |
Did shake down mellow fruit. | ||
You have made fair work! | ||
BRUTUS | But is this true, sir? | 130 |
COMINIUS | Ay; and you’ll look pale | |
Before you find it other. All the regions | ||
Do smilingly revolt; and who resist | ||
Are mock’d for valiant ignorance, | ||
And perish constant fools. Who is’t can blame him? | 135 | |
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 | 140 | |
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 charged him even | ||
As those should do that had deserved his hate, | ||
And therein show’d like enemies. | 145 | |
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! | 150 | |
COMINIUS | You have brought | |
A trembling upon Rome, such as was never | ||
So incapable of help. | ||
Both Tribunes | Say not we brought it. | |
MENENIUS | How! Was it we? we loved him but, like beasts | 155 |
And cowardly nobles, gave way unto your clusters, | ||
Who did hoot him out o’ the city. | ||
COMINIUS | But I fear | |
They’ll roar him in again. Tullus Aufidius, | ||
The second name of men, obeys his points | 160 | |
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 come the clusters. | |
And is Aufidius with him? You are they | 165 | |
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 | 170 | |
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 deserved it. | ||
Citizens | Faith, we hear fearful news. | 175 |
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 | 180 | |
though we willingly consented to his banishment, yet | ||
it was against our will. | ||
COMINIUS | Ye re goodly things, you voices! | |
MENENIUS | You have made | |
Good work, you and your cry! Shall’s to the Capitol? | 185 | |
COMINIUS | O, ay, what else? | |
[Exeunt COMINIUS and MENENIUS] | ||
SICINIUS | Go, masters, get you home; 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. | 190 | |
First Citizen | The gods be good to us! Come, masters, let’s home. | |
I ever said we were i’ the wrong when we banished | ||
him. | ||
Second Citizen | So did we all. But, come, let’s home. | |
[Exeunt Citizens] | ||
BRUTUS | I do not like this news. | 195 |
SICINIUS | Nor I. | |
BRUTUS | Let’s to the Capitol. Would half my wealth | |
Would buy this for a lie! | ||
SICINIUS | Pray, let us go. | |
[Exeunt] |
Next: Coriolanus, Act 4, Scene 7