Selected quad for the lemma: cause_n
Text snippets containing the quad
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A62347
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Romulus and Hersilia, or, The Sabine war a trage dy acted at the Dukes Theatre.
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Behn, Aphra, 1640-1689.
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1683
(1683)
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Wing S878; ESTC R9970
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42,508
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69
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ROMULUS AND HERSILIA OR THE SABINE WAR A TRAGEDY Acted at the Dukes THEATRE Militat omnis Amans habet sua Castra Cupido Ovid. LONDON Printed for D. Brown at the Black-Swan and Bible without Temple-Bar and T. Benskin in St. Brides Church-yard Fleet-street 1683. PROLOGUE Spoken by Mrs. Butler HOw we shall please ye now I cannot say But Sirs 'Faith here is News from Rome to day Yet know withal we 've no such Packets here As you read once a Week from Monkey Care But ' stead of that Lewd Stuff that clogs the Nation Plain Love and Honour tho quite out of fashion Ours is a Virgin Rome long long before Pious Geneva Rhetorick call'd her Whore For be it known to their Eternal Shames Those Saints were always good at calling Names Of Scarlet Whores let 'em their Wills devise But let 'em raise no other Scarlet lies Lies that advance the Good Old Cause and bring Into Contempt the Prelate with the KING Of what will such vile Brutes be now affraid When Rats and Weazles gnaw the Lyon's Beard And then in Ignoramus Holes they think Like other Vermin to lie close and stink What have ye got ye Conscientious Knaves With all your Fancy'd Power and Bully Braves With all your standing to 't your Zealous Furies Your Lawless Tongues and Arbitrary Juries Your Burlesque Oaths when one Green-Ribbon-Brother In Conscience will be Perjur'd for another Your Plots Cabals Your Threats Association Ye shame Ye very Nusance of the Nation What have ye got but one poor Word Such Tools Were Knaves before to which you 've added Fools Now I dare swear some of you Whigsters say Come on now for a swinging Tory Play But Noble Whigs pray let not those Fears start ye Nor fright hence any of the Sham Sheriffs Party For if you 'l take my censure of the story It is as harmless as e're came before ye And writ before the times of Whig and Tory. The PERSONS Romulus King of Rome Hostilius A Noble Roman his Friend Spurius Tarpeius Commander of a Fort in Rome Tatius General of the Sabines Curtius A Commander of Note in the Sabine Army WOMEN Hersilia Daughter of Tatius and Wife to Romulus Feliciana Her Sister young and Innocent Tarpeia Daughter of Tarpeius Sabine Ladies attending Hersilia Portia Cloe Cornelia Souldiers and Attendants The Scene Rome Romulus Hersilia OR THE Sabine War ACT. I. SCENE I. Romulus Hersilia Hostilius and Attendance Rom. WHY weeps Hersilia What malicious sorrow envies the world the luster of those eyes and draws a Cloud o're beauties richest treasure Has love appear'd injurious Do you repent the blessings you have given your Romulus And do I seem to you too the hated Ravisher your severe Father makes me Hers. Pardon my dearest Lord pardon these tears t is the soft flame of love here at my heart makes these warm drops distillt is for you Had I less value for my Romulus I had not known these sorrows Witness you Heavens I wish I had a voice might reach the ear of every Roman every Sabine nay through all Italy while thus I vindicate my Romulus from any force on me but that of love You Gods was this a Rape no it was all consent and all mutual design But what is love what 's Truth what 's Justice when my Flint-hearted Father calls it a Rape and vows revenge Rom. And is this all my Love are these the fears that cause the precious shower If this be all stay those dear streams whose every drop's a pearl of value to redeem a Captive King I Honour Tatius as Hersilia's Father but if he brings us War and as a Foe approaches Rome swelling with empty threats I 'll tell him in the language of my Father Mars I slight his anger smile at his Revenge Hers. But I must be unhappy whoever wins you must lose sufficiently Whether my Father or my Husband bleeds still I am wounded good Heavens why have you made the sweets of love ever to be allay'd with so much bitterness Rom. You kill me with your tears My love my love wou'd you have me weep too Forbear or I shall lose my Manhood while all that 's Roman in me melts away to see you thus desolved in sorrows what wou'd you have me do Sweetest of all thy Sex at your Command I 'll fall at Tatius feet and bid him cut my head off because I love his Daughter more then ten thousand lives Hers. Forbid it all you Gods no live my Lord live to defend Hersilia your Hersilia from a cruel Father who wou'd not let her live that is not love her Romulus Live to defend that Romulus Hersilia's better self from an unjust invader Methinks I feel inspired a courage truly brave and truly Roman let the malicious world assault me with all its fury while I am thus inthron'd in your dear Armes I am secure of Fortune Rom. Ay! now I 'm blest now now I Reign indeed now at this omen I see my Infant Rome lift her aspiring head above the Nations while all the Ocean and the remotest Isles dance at her smiles and tremble at her frowns O thou brighter Venus thou more Majestick Iuno can you say this to me and not transfer at the same time the whole worlds Empire hither Hostilius Friend why are you silent speak my best Friend am I not truly great can there be greater Host. aside Oh tormenting Question How shall I answer this and not discover a base unfriendly envy Away degenerate Passion I 'll tear thee from my long abused heart or tear that heart out Rom. What means this silence Does ill fate appear in all its various forms of sorrow to me Here drown'd in tears and there in silent groans She cannot sure keep long from me since she has made so near approaches You two divide my Soul The best of Women and the worthiest Friend and do you strive whose grief shall most afflict me Host. Forgive me Sir or rather pitty me t is I am only wretched amidst this common Joy opprest with an ill timed and causeless Melancholly 'T is a disease I know let it not be infectious why should you be concern'd to hear me sigh Are not you blest in your Hersilias love you are an Emperour a God in that and you deserve it which of all the immortal beings woud not change Heavens with Romulus Woud you contemplate the Celestial Glories You have 'em here Wou'd you see brighter Stars than those above behold 'em in these eyes Woud you have Musick far beyond that of the higher Orbs Hersilias voice shall give it Woud you be immortal and taste Ambrosia You have it in these Lips The dyet of the Gods is pall'd and course to that But I 'm a Devil damn'd to dispair and silence Aside Rom. Can I be happy and Hostilius wear a Mourning look My Joys should be all yours or mine your sorrows if I 'm thus highly blest and sure I am pertake of all my