Cur. Willingly.

Jun. Now mark it.

Cur. [reading.] "Health to thy heart, my honoured Junius,

All thy love requited! I am thine,
Thine everlastingly; thy love has won me;
And led it breed no doubt, our new acquaintance
Compels this; 'tis the gods' decree to bless us.
The times are dangerous to meet, yet fail not;
By all the love thou bear'st me I conjure thee,
Without distrust of danger, to come to me!
For I have purposed a delivery

Both of myself and fortune this blessed day
Into thy hands, if thou thinkest good. To shew thee
How infinite my love is, even my mother
Shall be thy prisoner, the day yours without
hazard;

For I beheld your danger like a lover,
A just affecter of thy faith: Thy goodness,
I know, will use us nobly; and our marriage,
If not redeem, yet lessen Rome's ambition:
I'm weary of these miseries. Use my mother
(If you intend to take her) with all honour;
And let this disobedience to my parent
Be laid on love, not me. Bring with thee, Junius,
Spirits resolved to fetch me off, the noblest;
Forty will serve the turn, just at the joining
Of both the battles; we will be weakly guarded,
And for a guide, within this hour, shall reach thee
A faithful friend of mine. The gods, my Junius,
Keep thee, and me to serve thee! Young Bon-
vica."

Cur. This letter carries much belief, and most objections

Answered, we must have doubted.

Dec. Is that fellow

Come to you for a guide yet?

Jun. Yes.

Dec. And examined?

He vows he knows no more than this truth. Dec. Strange!

Cur. If she mean what she writes, as it may be probable,

"Twill be the happiest vantage we can lean to. Jun. I'll pawn my soul she means truth. Dec. Think an hour more;

Then if your confidence grow stronger on you, We'll set in with you.

Jun. Nobly done! I thank ye. Ye know the time.

Cur. We will be either ready

To give you present counsel, or join with you. Enter SUETONIUS, PETILLIUS, DEMETRIUS, and MACER.

Jun. No more, as ye are gentlemen.

neral !

The ge

Suet. Draw out apace; the enemy waits for us. Are ye all ready?

Jun. All our troops attend, sir.

Suet. I am glad to hear you say so, Junius;

I hope you are dispossessed.

Jun. I hope so too, sir.

Suet. Continue so. And, gentlemen, to you
now!

To bid you fight is needless; ye are Romans;
The name will fight itself: To tell ye who
You go to fight against, his power, and nature,
But loss of time; ye know it, know it poor,
And oft have made it so: To tell ye further,
His body shews more dreadful than it has done,
To him that fears, less possible to deal with,
Is but to stick more honour on your actions,
Load ye with virtuous names, and to your me
mories

Tie never-dying time and fortune constant.
Go on in full assurance! draw your swords
As daring and as confident as justice;
The gods of Rome fight for ye; loud Fame calls
ye,

Pitched on the topless Apennine, where the snow dwells,

And blows to all the under-world, all nations,
The seas and unfrequented deserts; wakens
The ruined monuments; and there, where no-

thing

vet

VOL. I.

May he die fameless and forgot! N

Car. Very likely;

He shews no less than general. See how bravely
The body moves, and in the head how proudly
The captains stick like plumes; he come apace on.
Good Nennius, go, and bid my stout lieutenant
Bring on the first square body to oppose them,
And, as he charges, open to enclose them;
The queen move next with her's, and wheel about,
To gain their backs, in which I'll lead the van-
guard.

We shall have bloody crowns this day, I see by it.
Haste thee, good Nennius; I'll follow instantly.
[Exit Nennius.
How close they march, as if they grew together,

[March.

No place but lined alike, sure from oppression! They will not change this figure; we must charge them,

And charge them home at both ends, van and rear; [Drums in another place afur off. They never totter else. I hear our music, And must attend it: Hold, good sword, but this day,

And bite hard, where I hound thee! and hereafter

I'll make a relic of thee, for young soldiers To come like pilgrims to, and kiss for conquests. [Exit.

SCENE IV.

Enter JUNIUS, CURIUS, and DECIUS. Jun. Now is the time; the fellow stays. Dec. What think ye?

What multitudes they are, what infinites!
The Roman power shews like a little star,
Hedged with a double halo.—Now the knell rings:
Loud shouts.

Hark, how they shout to the battle how the air
Totters and reels, and rends apieces, Drusius,
With the huge-vollied clamours!

Drus. Now they charge
(Oh, gods!) of all sides, fearfully.
Pen. Little Rome,

Stand but this growing hydra one short hour,
And thou hast out-done Hercules!

Drus. The dust

Hides them; we cannot see what follows.
Pen. They are gone,

Gone, swallowed, Drusius; this eternal sun
Shall never see them march more.

Drus. Oh, turn this way,

And see a model of the field! some forty,
Against four hundred!

Pen. Well fought, bravely followed!
Oh, nobly charged again, charged home too!
Drusius,

They seem to carry it. Now they charge all;
[Loud shouts.
Close, close, I say! they follow it. Ye gods,
Can there be more in men? more daring spirits?
Still they make good their fortunes. Now they

are gone too,

For ever gone! see, Drusius, at their backs A fearful ambush rises. Farewell, valours,

Enter the two Daughters, with JUNIUS, CURIUS, DECIUS, Soldiers, and Servants.

2 Daugh. Bring them in; Tie them, and then unarm them. 1 Daugh. Valiant Romans, Ye are welcome to your loves! 2 Daugh. Your death, fools! Dec. We deserve them;

And, women, do your worst.

1 Daugh. Ye need not beg it.
2 Daugh. Which is kind Junius?
Serv. This.

2 Daugh. Are you my sweetheart?
It looks ill on it! How long is it, pretty soul,
Since you and I first loved? Had we not reason
To doat extremely upon one another?

How does my love? This is not he; my chicken Could prate finely, sing a love-song.

Jun. Monster

2 Daugh. Oh, now it courts!

Jun. Armed with more inalice

Than he, that got thee, has, the devil.

2 Daugh. Good!

Proceed, sweet chick.

Jun. I hate thee; that is

my last.

2 Daugh. Nay, an you love me, forward!

No? Come, sister,

Let us prick our answers on our arrows' points, And make them laugh a little. Ye damned lechers,

Ye proud improvident fools, have we now caught ve?

Are ye in the noose? Since ye are such loving creatures,

We'll be your Cupids: Do ye see these arrows? We'll send them to your wanton livers, goats.

1 Daugh. Oh, how I'll trample on your hearts, ye villains,

Ambitious salt-itch slaves, Rome's master-sins! 2 Daugh. Dogs,

Thieves, honour's hangmen, do ye grin? Perdition Take me for ever, if, in my fell anger,

I do not out-do all example.

vice.

These used as we intend, we are for the battle.

Car. As you intend? Taken by treachery?

1 Daugh. Is it not allowed?

Car. Those, that should gild our conquest, Make up a battle worthy of our winning, Catched up by craft?

2 Daugh. By any means that's lawful.

Car. A woman's wisdom in our triumphs? Out! Out, out, ye sluts, ye follies! From our swords Filch our revenges basely?-Arm again, gentlemen!

Soldiers, I charge ye help them.
Dispatch there!

1 Daugh. I will not off thus!
Car. He that stirs to execute,

Or she, though it be yourselves, by him that got

[Drums loud again. Jun. Puff! there it flies. Come, let us redeem our follies.

[Exeunt Junius, Curius, and Decius. DRUSIUS and PENIUS come forward. Drus. Awake, sir; yet the Roman body's whole; I see them clear again.

Pen. Whole? it is impossible;

Drusius, they must be lost.

Drus. By heaven, they are whole, sir, And in brave doing; see, they wheel about, To gain more ground.

Pen. But see there, Drusius, see,

See that huge battle moving from the mountains! Their gilt coats shine like dragon's scales, their

march

Like a rough tumbling storm; see them, and view them,

And then see Rome no more. Say they fail, look,

Look where the armed carts stand; a new army! Look how they hang like falling rocks! as murdering

Death rides in triumph, Drusius, fell Destruction
Lashes his fiery horse, and round about him
His many thousand ways to let out souls.

Move me again, when they charge, when the mountain

Melts under their hot wheels, and from their axletrees

Huge claps of thunder plough the ground before

them!

"Till then, I'll dream what Rome was. [They retire.

Enter SUETONIUS, PETILLIUS, DEMETRIUS, and MACER.

Suet. Oh, bravely fought!

Honour till now ne'er shewed her golden face
In the field: Like lions, gentlemen, you have held
Your heads up this day. Where is young Junius,
Curius, and Decius?

Pet. Gone to heaven, I think, sir.
Suet. Their worths go with them! Breathe a
while. How do ye?

Pet. Well; some few scurvy wounds; my
heart's whole yet.

Dem. Would they would give us more ground!
Suet. Give? we'll have it.

Pet. Have it, and hold it too, despite the devil.

Enter JUNIUS, DECIUS, and CURIUS.

Jun. Lead up to the head, and line sure! The queen's battle

Begins to charge like wildfire. Where's the general?

Suet. Oh, they are living yet. Come, my brave soldiers,

Come, let me pour Rome's blessing on ye: Live, Live, and lead armies all! Ye bleed hard.

Jun. Best;

[Exeunt Romans.

Enter BONDUCA, CARATACH, Daughters, and

NENNIUS.

In gross before the enemy? We pay for it;
Our own swords cut our throats! Why, pox on it!
Why do you offer to command? The devil,
The devil, and his dam too! who bid you
Meddle in men's affairs?
Bond. I'll help all.
Car. Home,

[Exeunt Queen, &c.

Home and spin, woman, spin, go spin! you trifle. Open before there, or all's ruined !- How?

[Shouts within. Now comes the tempest on ourselves, by heaven! Within. Victoria!

Car. Oh, woman, scurvy woman, beastly woman!

[Exeunt omnes præter Drusius and Penius. Drus. Victoria, victoria!

Pen. How is that, Drusius!

Drus. They win, they win, they win! Oh, look, look, look, sir,

For Heaven's sake, look! The Britons fly, the Britons fly! Victoria !

Enter SUETONIUS, Soldiers, and Captains.
Suet. Soft, soft, pursue it soft, excellent sol-
diers!

Close, my brave fellows, honourable Romans!
Oh, cool thy mettle, Junius; they are ours,
The world cannot redeem them: Stern Petillius,
Govern the conquest nobly. Soft, good soldiers!
[Exeunt.

Enter BONDUCA, Daughters, and Britons.
Bond. Shame! whither fly ye, ye unlucky Bri-
tons?

Will ye creep into your mothers' wombs again? Back, cowards!

Hares, fearful hares, doves in your angers! leave me?

Leave your queen desolate? her hapless children, Enter CARATACH and HENGO.

To Roman rape again, and fury?

Car. Fly, ye buzzards!

played the fool,

The fool extremely, the mad fool!

Bond. Why, cousin?

word

Unto the carts to charge down, and our people,

Pen. Fool, fool, coward!

Pen. His blows fall like huge sledges on an anvil.

Dec. I'm weary.

Pet. So am I.

Car. Send more swords to me.

Jun. Let's sit and rest.

Drus. What think you now?

Pen. Oh, Drusius,

[Sit down.

I've lost mine honour, lost my name, lost all That was my light: These are true Romans, and I

A Briton coward, a base coward! Guide me,
Where nothing is but desolation,

That I may never more behold the face

Of man, or mankind know me! Oh, blind fortune,

Hast thou abused me thus!

Drus. Good sir, be comforted; It was your wisdom ruled you. Pray you go home; Your day is yet to come, when this great fortune Shall be but foil unto it. [Retreat.

[Exeunt Penius and Drusius.

Enter SUETONIUS, DEMETRIUS, Soldiers, drum and colours.

Suet. Draw in, draw in !-Well have you fought, and worthy

Rome's noble recompense. Look to your wounds;
The ground is cold and hurtful.
The proud

queen

SCENE I.

Dec. When thou lovest next, love a good cup of wine,

METRIUS, singing.

Pet. Smooth was his cheek,

Dec. And his chin it was sleek,

Her red and white's her own, she makes good

blood,