first crime but when Petreius spy'd That Caesars fortâ—ne did all actions guide Ilerda he forsakes trusting no more The strength of that knowne world but seeking for Vntamed nations fierce with wars dire loue e To that worlds end the battell to remoâ—ue When Caesar saw the hills and campe forsooke He bids his men take armes and never looke For bridge or ford but with their hardy armes Swim ore the streame the souldiers his alarmes Obey with speed and rushing on to fight Venture those wayes that they would feare in flight Then taking armes cherish their bodies wet And their beâ—ummed joynts with running heat Till noone made shadowes short the horsemen then O retake the hindniost of Petreius men Who doubtfull are whether to fight or flye Two rockâ— hills lift their proud tops on high Making a vale beneath aboue the ground Is ioyn'd below safe passages are found Through windings darke which straights if once the foe Had in possession Caesar well did know He might from thence carry the war as far As Spaines remote and barbarous nations are Runne without ranke quoth he pursue your foes Turne backe the war that by their flight you loose Make them turne face to face though they would fly Giue not the cowards leaue basely to dy But on their breasts let them receiue our blowes This said with swiftnesse they prevent their foes Flight to the hills encamping close beside A narrow trench did both the campes divide And of so little distance was the place They might distinctly know each others face There finding fathers brothers sonnes they see The wickednesse of civill enmity And first for feare standing a little mute With nods and swords lift vp frends frends salute But when deare loue conquer'd the law of warres Over the trenches leape the souldiers T' embrace each other some their old hosts meete Some their schoolefellowes some their kinsemen greete He was no Roman that no enemy knew Sighs breake their kisses teares their armes bedew And though no act of blood were yet begun They feare the mischiefe that they might haue done VVhy mourn'st thou foole why doe it thou beat thy breast And weepe in vaine why hast thou now confest Thou ' gainst thy will to wicked war doest goe Stand'st thou in such great feare of him whom thou Thy selfe mak'st dreadfull let this trumpets sound Neglect the cruell noise let none be found To beare his Eagles and the war there ends Caesar and Pompey private men are frends Now concord come that all things doest enfold In thy white armes and the worlds safety hold The earths blest loue future impietyes Our age may feare the ignorance heere dyes Of their misdeeds and from excuse does bar Their guilt they know their foes their kinsemen are Sinister fates that will by this short peace Their future woes and wickednesse encrease T' was peace and in both campes mixt souldiers stray'd And on the grasse their friendly banquets made By the same fire together Bacchus rites They celebrate and spend the watchfull nights In storyes of the war as lovingly Together they in ioyning lodginges lye Where first they did encampe from what hand fled Each Pile and boast of every valiant deede Denying much they graunt the wish of Fate And loue the wretched Souldiers renovate This loue their future wickednesse encreast For when Petreius saw their friendly feast Thinking himselfe and campe to sale betray'd He armes his houshold servants to invade Dire war and guarded with a troope of those Out of his campe th'vnâ—rm'd Caesarians throwes The sword as in embraces joyn'd they stood Divides them and disturbes the peace with blood Then wrath these war provoking speeches gaue Souldiers vnmindefull of the cause you haue Though Caesars conquest you cannot bestow Vpon the Senates cause this you can do Fight till you are orecome whilest you haue hands And blood and whilest the war yet doubtfull stands Will you go serue and traitrous Eagles take And beg of Caesar he no odds would make Betweene his slaues and at his hands dâ—sire Your Captaines liues our safetyes treasons hire Shall never be nor make we civill war To liue by name of peace betray'd we are People for veines of brasse which deepe-hid lye Would never seeke nor townes would fortify No stately horses to the war should pace No tower-like shipps ore spread the Oceans face If liberty for peace were ere well sold Shall Caesar's Souldiers damn'd obedience hold Bound by a wicked oath and you make light Your faith because in a good cause you fight But pardon 's hop'd oh shames dire funerall Not knowing this great Pompey thou ore all The world art mustring and each farthest King Bringing to fight whilest we are articling Basely about thy safety This feirce speech Turn'd backe their mindes stirr'd warrs wicked itch As when wild beasts wean'd from the woods and shutt Vp close to â—ame haue off their wildenesse put And learn'd t' endure a man if blood once staine Their iawes their wildenesse straight returnes againe Their iawes grow hot and their new boyling rage The trembling keeper hardly can aswage They run on wickednesse and what might seeme In a blinde war the gods or fortunes crime Deceived trust makes ours at bord and bed The late embraced breasts are murthered And though vnwillingly at first they draw Yet when their wicked swords drawne out they saw And striking were their friends they truely hate And with the stroke themselues they animate Petreius campe is with strange tumult fill'd And horrid murther sonnes their fathers kill'd And as if hidden mischiefe lost should be They boast their guilt and let their Captaines see Caesar though robbed of thy men yet see The gods high favour not so much for thee On Aegypt or Massilias seas is done Nor so much honour in Pharsalia won f For this sole crime of civill war does make That thou at length the better cause shalt take The Generalls now their blood-stain'd Souldier No more dare trust within the campe so neere But by swift flight toward Ilerda make From whom all passage Caesars horsmen take And there in those dry hills shut vp their foes Whom Caesar striues with a deepe trench t' enclose Cutting all water off he lets them take No springes nor tents neere to the river make They seeing the way of death convert their feare To rage their horses that vnusefull were To men beseidg'd they kill and since in flight T were vaine to hope addresse themselues to fight Caesar perceiues them comming and well knowes That death is sought by his devoted foes Containe your Piles and swords Souldiers quoth he I le loose no blood to get this victory That foe that meetes the sword nere gratis dyes Hating their liues and cheape in their owne eyes They come to mixe our losses with their death They 'll feele no wounds but ioy in losse of breath But let this heate forsake vm this mad fit They 'll loose their wish of death Caesar the fight Forbids
their oares did wound A miracle of silent slight it show'd She boâ—e no sailes or sea discover'd row'd Now they obserue the tides till th' ebbing seas Leaue the sands bare and make the shore encrease Then from aboue into the Ocean prone The ship falls by two galleyes waited on Ore which a lofty threatning tower was rear'd Where spires and trembling pinnacles appear'd Octavius keeper of th'Illyrian sea Would not assault this ship too suddainly But his swift vessells thought it good to stay Till th' easy passage might encrease his prey And farther on to sea by peace invites His rashly enter'd foes such are the slights Of huntsmen when their toiles they haue dispos'd And fearefull deere in plumed nets enclos'd Their dogs of Crete and Sparta they containe And their wide mouth'd Molossians restraine No dog is trusted in the wood but he That can vpon a full sent silent be And never open when he findes the game Content alone to signifie the same By wagging of the string then presently The Souldiers leaue the I le and eagerly They come a boord the ship when day 's last light Gaue place to the approach of dusky night But the Cilicians of great Pompey's side According to their old sea-craft had ty'd Chaines through the midst o'th'sea of which no show Appear'd aboue but loosely let them flow The chaine was fasten'd to th' Illyrian shore The first and second ships not staid got ore The third was caught of burden much more vast And to the rocke by a drawne rope was cast The rocke hangs ore the sea a wonder tis Hollow and still though falling stands with trees Making a shade hither the sea by tides Oft driues and in those darkesome cavernes hides Ships broke by Aquilon and drowned men Which hidden store the rocke restores againe And when the cavernes belch it vp in heate Sicilian Charybdis cannot get Preheminence Heere did the great ship stand That was with valiant Opitergians mann'd Her from all havens did all ships enclose Some from the rocke some from the shore oppose Vulteius found this vnder-water traine The Captaine of the ship who all in vaine Striving to cut the chaines did then desire Without all hope to fight where to retire Or how to conquer is not seene but here As much as snared valour could appeare It did against so many thousand wights That did enclose scarse one full cohort fights Not long endeed for night in her blacke shade Shut vp the day and peace the darkenesse made Then stouâ— Vulteius thus gan animate The cohort fearing sad ensuing fate Yong men that but for one short night are free Provide in time for sates extremity There 's no man's life is short that does allow Him time to seeke his death nor thinke it now Lesse glorious that we meete a fate at hand The times of future life none vnderstand T is aequall praise of minde to giue away Our liues last moment and the hoped stay Of many yeres so we the actors be No man can be compell'd to wish to dye No way for flight is left at every hand Bent ' gainst our throates the sterne Cilicians stand Let feare be banisht then resolue to dye And let your wishes meete necessity Nor shall we fall in a blinde cloud of war As when two battels joyn'd in darkenesse are VVhen heapes of carcasses bestrow the field Valour lies buried all are aequall held But in a ship the gods haue placed vs Both to our friends and foes conspicuous The I le the continent the seas allow VVitnesses to vs and two parties now From divers shores behold vs in our ends VVhat great and rare example Fate entends I know not VVhat ere Chronicles afford Of trust of Souldiers faith maintain'd by sword VVe shall excell t is a small thing to die Vpon our swords Caesar we know for thee But greater pledges in this sad distresse VVe want our great affections to expresse And envious Fates vs of much praises barre That not our parents nor our children are Heere with vs. Let our foes our valour finde And feare our force and death contemning minde Let them be glad that no more ships were caught Perchance they 'll try by leagues what can be wrought Proffering base life would they would promise vs Pardon to make our deaths more glorious Lest when we fall our killing swords vpon Our foes should call it desperation Much valour must deserue that Caesar may Account the lesse of vs a fatall day Among so many thousand Should fate giue Egresse from hence I would not wish to liue I haue already cast away my breath Drawen by the sweetnesse of approaching death A fury t is which none but they can know To whom nere Fates such knowledge doe allow The Gods deaths sweetnesse doe conceale to make Men liue A noble courage straight did take The young mens minds though all with weeping eyes Before the Captaines speech had view'd the skies And fear'd to see the turne of Charles his waine But now their valiant minds wish day againe After this speech nor was day slowt ' appeare Sol leaving Gemini and drawing neare His height in Cancer when the shortest night Vrg'd the Thessalian Archer Day growne light Discover'd warrelike Istrians on the land The fierce Liburnians and Greeke fleete that stand Covering the seas They first suspending fight Striue to orecome by covenants and invite The ship to yeild by granting life but they Devoted scorning life stand in array Secure in sight resolv'd what end to take No stormes their strong resolved mindes could shake And though but few by land and sea they fought Such confidence deaths resolution brought Against innumerable hands but when VVarre had drawne blood enough their fury then Turn'd from their foes The Captaine first of all Vulteius offring his bare throte gan call Seeking for death is there no Souldier here VVorthy to shed my blood let him appeare And killing me shew that himselfe dares bleed VVith that of life his wounded breast was free'd By many swords Vulteius thankes bestow'd On all but dying him to whom he ow'd His first kind wound he thankefully againe Requites with death Thus meeting all were slaine And on one side the warres whole mischiefe hung So the serpentine brood by Cadmus Sprung Fell by each others hand a dire presage Of the ensuing Theban brothers rage So those of th'waking Dragons teeth once fram'd In Colchos fields by Magicke spells enflam'd VVith kindred blood the fields plow'd furrowes dy'd VVhich mischiefe wrought by hearbs before vntry'd Medea fear'd her selfe So fell these men By baâ—gain'd fate and in the death of them To dye was the least valour they both fall And kill at once no right hand mist at all Though at the point of death nor to their blades Ow'd they their wounds a breast the sword invades Their throates invade their hands and if blinde chance A brothers sword ' gainst brother did advance Or sonnes ' gainst father with vndanted hand And all
Antonius to transport the rest of his legions and his horsemen whose slow comming made Caesar defer the fight s This Marcus Antonius after the death of Iulius Caesar had warre with Augustus by whom he was vanquished in a sea fight neere Leucas t When part of the army for want of Ships stay'd at Brundusium vnder Antonius Gabinius and Calenus Caesar impatient of delay resolved to goe himselfe as a messenger to call them in a stormy night and a little vessell some say a boate that would beare twelue oares but vnknowne to all his army he past in a disguised habite through all the courts of guard and went to Sea LVCANS Pharsalia The Sixt Booke The Argument Caesar enclosing Pompey with a fence And trenches of a vast circumference Endures a famine Pompey pestilence Who breaking through escapes a conquerer thence Braue Scaeva's valour and admired fight Into Thessalia Caesar takes his flight Great Pompey followes the description And Poets tales That Thessaly renâ—wne To the dire witch Ericttho Sextus goes This fatall warres sad issue to disclose She quickens a dead carcasse which relates To Sixtus eare his and his fathers fates And craving then deaths freedome to obtaine â—s by a magicke spell dissolv'd againe WHen on neere a hils both Generalls fierce b of fight Had pitch'd their tents and drawne their troâ—pes in sight And the gods saw their match Caesar in Greece â—cornes to take towes or owne the destinyes For any conquest but his sonne in law's The worlds sad howre that to a tryall drawes This wars maine-chance he wishes for alone That cast of fortune that must ruine one Thrice on the hills his battell he array'd And all his threatning Eagles thrice display'd Shewing that he would neuer wanting be T'oreâ—hrow the Roman state But when he see No provocations could his sonne in law Who close entrenched lay to battell draw From thence c he march'd by woody passages And close to take Dyrrachiums fortâ—esses Thither a neerer way great Pompey takes Along the shore and on high Petra makes His campe to guard from thence Dyrrachium towne Safe without men by her owne strength alone No human labour no old structure made Her fence which would though nere so lofty fade By force â—f war or eating time oretaken A strength that by no engine can be shaken Her scite and nature giue the sea profound And steepe waue-breaking rockes enclose it round But for on little hill an Iland 't were Ship-threatning rockes susteine the walls and there Th' Ionian sea rais'd by the Southwindes blasts Her temples shakes and frothy foamings casts Ore houses topps War-thirsty Caesar then Conceiv'd d a cruell hope spreading his men Round on the hills from every side t' enclose With joyned trenches his vnwarâ— foes And all the ground surveying with his eye Is not content alone to fortefie His workes with brittle earth but weighty-stone From quarryes digs vast rockes houses torne downe And Greekish walls brought thither make a fence Able the rams assaulting violence And all wars furious engines to withstand Hills levell'd valleyes rais'd make even lâ—nd In Caesars woâ—kes with trenches wide enclos'd And towâ—â—d castels on the hills dispos'd With a vast circuite he takes in the ground About the pastures woods and shelters round As 't were for deere spreading a wide-stretch'd toile Pompey no roome nor pasture wants for while He thus enclos'd by Caesars trenches is He remooues campes so many rivers rise And their whole course within this circuite run And Caesar tir'd going to looke vpon His workes makes often stayes Let ancient tales To the gods worke adscribe the Trojan wall Let flying Parthians still admire alone The brittle earth-built walls of Babylon As far as Tigris and Orontes run As the Assyrian Kings dominion Stretch'd in the East a suddaine worke of war Encloses heere Lost those great labours are So many hâ—nds would to Abydos put Sestos fill vp the Hellespont and cut Corinth from Pelops land and from the seas Take long Malea for the saâ—lers ease Or mende some part though nature should deny Of the worlds structure Here wars quarters lye Here feedes that blood that in all lands must flow The Libyan and Thessalian overthrow Wars civill fury boiles kept straitly in The woâ—kes first structure Pompey had not seene As who in middest of Sâ—â—ily safe dwell When rough Pelorous barkes can never â—ell As Northren Britâ—ainâ—s câ—nnâ—t heare the rore Of flowing seas agaiâ—st the Kâ—ntâ—sh shore But when himselfe beâ—uâ—t to faâ— he â—new By a vast trench he from safe Petra drew His troopes and ore the hills dispos'd them so To keepe the rankes of his beseidging foe More thin and tooke of the enclosed ground As much in length as in true distance fouâ—d Twixt lofty Rome and th' Aâ—icinian wood VVhere Scythian Dian's ador'd image stood As far as Tyber's streame from Romes walls ends By straight account not as the river bends No trumpets sound piles vncommanded flye Mischeifes oft done as they their javelinstry Both cheifes are kept from fight bâ— greater care Pompey because his pasture feilds are bare The ground he had by hoâ—se orâ—tramâ—led was VVhose horny hoofes trode downe the springing grasse The war-like steed weary'd in those bar'd feilds VVhen the full racke proviâ—der far brought yeilâ—s Tasting his new-brought food falls downe and dyes Treading the ring fail'd by his trembling thighs Their bodyes wast by dire consumption The vnstirr'd aire drâ—wes moist contagion Into a pestilentiall â—loud such breath Nasis exhales from her darke caues beneath Such poison'd aire where bury'd Typhon lyes The ground sends forth apace the army dyes The water from the aire infection taking VVith costiuenesse toâ—ments the bowells aking Dry's their discolour'd skin their blood-swolne eyes Doe breake the fiery plague with botâ—â—es flyes All ore the face their heavy heads fall downe Now more and more suddaine their death was growne Twixt life and death the siâ—kenesse has no roome But death does with the first faint symptomes come By carcasses which all vnburyed lye Among the living growes mortality T was all the souâ—dâ—ers buriall to be cast Out of the tents This plague was staid at last By blasts of strong aire-stirring Northern winde Ships fraught with Corne the shore and sea behinde But Caesar free vpon the spacious hills No pâ—stilence from aire or water feâ—les But as if straight beseig'd a famine strong Is forc'd to suffer corne as yet not sprong To the full height his wretched men he sees Fall to beasts food eate grasse and rob the trees Of leaues and tender twigs and venturing more Death-thrâ—atning herbes from rootes vnknowne they tore What ever they could bite soften with heat Or through their wounded palats downe could get And things that human tables nere did know Content to eate besidg'd c their full fed foe When through the trenches Pompey pleas'd to make His way and freedome of all lands to take He seekes not th' obscure time of duskâ— night Scorning to steale a
wife and son Sextus Pompejus he repeated these two Iambike verses of Sophocles 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 〈◊〉 These were the last words hee spake to his friends and so entred into the boate where Achillas was e When Pompey was now farre from his ship and perceived no courteous entertainement in the boate hee looked vpon Septimius and thus spake Haue not I knowne thee heretofore my fellow souldier Septimius disdaining to answere him at all only nodded his head to him and when Pompey was rising out of the boate Septimius first run him through with his sword LVCANS Pharsalia The Ninth Booke The Argument Pompey's departed spirit to heaven ascends His wife and sons lament Cato commends His worthy life checks the Cilicians And marching are the scorched Libyan sands To Iuba's Kingdome with strong patience Endures the heat the Southwinds violence And killing serpents venome Caesar sees Renowned Troys defac'd antiquities To Aegypt comes and with dissembling breath Complaines and weepes for noble Pompey's death IN Pharian coales his ghost could not remaine Nor those few ashes his great spirit containe Out from the graue he issues and forsakes Th' vnworthy fire and halfe burnt limbs and takes Vp to the convexe of the sky his flight Where with blacke ayre the starry poles doe meete The space betwixt the regions of the moone And earth halfe-deify'd soules possesse alone Whom fiery worth in guiltlesse liues has taught To brooke the lower part of heaven and brought Them to th'aeternall sphaeres which not they hold That are with incense bury'd tomb'd in gold There filled with true light with wondring eyes The wandring planets and first stars he sees He sees our day involv'd in midst of night And laughes at his torne trunkes ridiculous plight Then ore the Aemathian fields his scatter'd fleete And bloody Caesars troopes he tooke his flight And with revenge for these dire facts possest Catoâ—s bold hart and brutus noble breast Cato while chance was a doubtfull and at stake Whom civill war Lord of the world would make Then hated Pompey though with Pompey he Led by the Senate and Romes Auspicy Had fought but when Pharsaliaes field was try'd He altogether favour'd Pompey's side His countrey wanting a protector then He tooke and chear'd the trembling hearts of men And â—utting swords in fearefull hands againe Made civill war neither for hope of reigne Nor feare of bondage nought at all in war For his owne sake did he his forces are Since Pompey's death alone for liberty VVhich lest the speed of Caesars victory Should seaze vpon being dispersed ore The coast he sailes vnto Corcyra's b shore And in a thousand ships carryes away The conquer'd remnant of Pharsalia Who would haue thouâ—ht so great a fleete had held All flying men that conquer'd ships had fill'd The straitned seas from thence they saile away To ghost-fill'd Taenarus and long Males Thence to Cytherus Boreas blowing faire Crete flyes and getting a good sea they cleare The Cretan coast Phycus that durst deny Their men to land they sacke deservedly And thence along the deepe while faire winds blow Vnto thy shore oh Palinurus goe For not alone doth our Italian sea Keepe monuments of thee but Libya Can witnesse well calme harbours once did please Thy Phrygian master when vpon the seas Descrying shâ—pâ— afar they gan to feare Whether the men their foes or partners were Caesars knowne speed gaue them just cause to feare And still suspect his comming every where But those sad ships brought greife and woes and crys Able to draw soft teares from Catoes eyes For after that Cornelia all in vaine â—est Pompey's tâ—unke beat from the shore againe Should floate at sea by prayers had striv'd to draw From flight the sailers and her son in law When from the shore that little fire descry'd His most vâ—worthy funerall she cry'd Seem'd I not worthy then fortune to thee To light my husbands funerall fire and ly Stretch'd out on his cold limbs burne his torne haires And gathering his sea-scatterd limbs with teares To bath each wound with bones and ashes hot To fiâ—l my lap and in the temples put The sad remainder of his funerall That fir's no honour to his hearse at all Besides perhaps some hands of Aegypt now This loathed office to his ashes doe Well did the Crassi's ashes naked ly For by the gods far greater cruelty Is Pompey burnt Still shall my woes appeare In the same shape and shall I nere interre My slaughter'd Lords and at full vâ—nes lament What need'st thou tombe or any instrument Of sorrow wretch doth not thy breast containe Thy Pompey and his image still remaine VVithin thee let those wiues that meane to liue After their Lords vrnes to their ashes giue But yet the fire that lends you envious light From Aegypts shore brings nothing to my sight Of thee deare Pompey now the flame is gone The vanisht smoake beares to the rising Sunne Pompey aloft the windes vnwillingly Beare vs from thence yet is no land to me Though triumph'd by my Lord as Conquerer Nor chariot deck'd with laurell halfe so deare My breast has quite forgot his happinesse And loues that Pompey whom Niles shores possesse Faine would â— stay vnder this guilty clime The land 's enobled by so great a crime I would not leaue beleeue me Aegypts shore Sextus try thou the chance of war and ore The spacious world thy fathers colours beare This his last will was trusted to my care VVhen me of breath deaths fatall hower shall reaue To you my sonnes this civill warre I leaue And let not Caesar's race in quiet â—eigne VVhilest any of our stocke on earth remaine Solicite kingdomes and free powerfull townes By my names fame these are the factions These are the armes I leaue what Pompey ere VVould goe to sea shall finde a navy there My heires may stirre war in what land they will Be but couragious and remember still Your fathers lawfull power Serue vnder none But Cato whilest he fights for Rome alone I haue perform'd thy trust done thy behest Deare Lord thy cunning did prevaile and lest False I those words of trust should nere deliver Deceiu'd I liv'd Now Pompey wheresoever Th' art gone through hell if any hell there be Or empty Chaos I will follow thee How long my life 's decree'd I doe not know If long I le punish it for lasting so For not expiring when it first did see Thy wounds with sorrow broken it shall dy It shall dissolue in teares no halter sword Or praecipâ—ce shall death to me afford It were a shame for me now thou art gone Not to haue power to dye with griefe alone This said and covering with a vaile her head Vnder the hatches she resolv'd to lead A life in darkenesse neerely hugging woe She feedes on teares and for her husband now Embraces greife The noise of stormy winde Nor cryes of fearefull saâ—lers mooue her minde Her hope contrary to the sailers is Compos'd for
dead Hortensius Tombe Againe is married in a funerall dresse Pompey to Capua flyes What Fortrâ—sses By Caesar are surprisde who without fight Puts Sylla Scipio Lentulus to flight And takes Domitius at Corfinium Pompey's Oration From Brundusium He sends his eldest Sonne to bring from farre The Easterne Monarchs to this civill Warre But there besiedg'd by Caesar scarse can he Scape safe away by nights obscurity NOw the gods wrath was seene playne signes of warre The world had given forespeaking nature farre From her true course tumultuous monsters made Proclaiming woe Oh Ioue why dost thou adde This care to wretched men to let them see By direpoâ—tents their following misery Whether the worlds Creator when he did From the darke formlesse Chaos light divide Stablisht eternall Lawes to which he ty'de The creatures and himselfe and did divide The worlds set ages by vnchanged fate Or whither nothing preordain'd the state Of mortall things chance rules yet let that be Secret that thou entendst let no eye see His future Fate but hope as well as feare VVhen the sad City had conceiu'd how deare Heavens truth would cost the world her generall woe Proclaim'de a Fast the mourning Senate goe Like the Plâ—beians clad the Consuls ware No purple Roabes no words their griefe declare Mute is their sorrow such a silent woe A dying man's amazed houshold show Before his funerall conclamation Before the mothers lamentation Call on the seâ—vants weeping but when she Feeles his stiffe limmes dead lookes and standing eye Then t is no feare but griefe downe she doth fall Howling vpon him So Romes Matrons all Leaue off their habits and attires of grace And in sad troopes the Altars doe embrace One weepes before the gods one heâ— torne lockes Throwes in the sacred porch another knocks Her breast against the ground the god whose eares VVere vide to pâ—ayers now onely howling heares Nor to Ioues temple did they all repaire They part the gods no altar wants his share Of envy-making mothers but one there Her plâ—int-brusde armes moystned cheekes did teare Now now quoth she oh mothers teare your haire Now beat your breasts doe not this griefe deferre Till the last ills while the Cheifes doubtfull are We may lament when one is conquerer We must reioyce thus griefe it selfe did mooue Such just complaints against the powers aboue The Souldiers make that to each army turne Oh miserable men that were not borne When Carthage warr'de at Trebia's overthrow Or Cannae's mortall field nor beg we now For peace oh gods stirre each fierce Nation Raise mighty Cities let the world in one Conspire let Median powers from Susae come Nor let cold Ister hold his Scythians from This war the Suevians from the Northren clime Let Albis send and the rude head of Rhine Make vs all peoples foes so not our owne Here let the Daci there the Getes come on Let one his forces against Spaine employ Gainst th'Easterne bowes let tothers Egles fly Let Rome haue war with all or if our names You gods would ruine let the sky to flames Dissolv'd fall downe and quite consume our coasts Or thunder strike both Captaines with their hosts While they be guiltlesse Ioue seeke they to try With so much mischeife who Romes Lord shall be 'T were scarse worth civill war that none should reigne Thus then did bootlesse piety complaine But the old men mov'd with particular griefe Curse their old age and ill prolonged life Their yeares reserv'd againe to civill war a One seeking presidents for their great feare Such woes quoth he the gods intended vs When after b both his triumphs Marius His flying head among the reedes and sedge Once hid the Fennes then cover'd Fortunes pledgeâ— But taken he endur'd a prison's stinch And his old limmes did iron shackles pinch To dye a Consull happy and in Rome Before c hand suffered be for guilt to come Death fled him oft and power to shed his blood In vaine a Cimbrian d had who trembling stood Offring a stroke his faultring hand the sword Let fall his dungeon did strange light afford Th' affrighted Cimbrian furyes seem'd to see And heard what Marius afterward should be Thou canst not touch this life to fate he owes Thousands of liues ere he his owne can loose Cease thy vaine fury if you Cimbrians wou'd Revenge on Rome your slâ—ughtred Nations blood Saue this old man whom their sterne will to serue Not the gods loue but anger did preserue A cruell and fit man when Fate contriu'de Romes ruine he on Libyan coasts arriu'de Wandred through empty cottages vpon Triumphed Iugurth's spoil'd dominion And Punicke ashes troad each others state Carthage e and Marius there commiserate And both cast downe both now the gods excus'd But into Marius minde that ayre infusde A Libian rage when Fortune turn'de againe Slaues from f their Lords prisoners froÌ„ the chaine He free'de and arm'de no man his Ensignes bore But who the badge of some knowne miâ—chiefâ— wore And brought guilt to the campe oh Fates how sad A day was that when conquering Marius had Surpris'de the walls how swift flew cruell death Senators with Plebeians lost their breath The sword rag'd vncontrol'de no breast was free The temples stainde with blood and slippery Were the red stones with slaughter no age then Was free the neere spent time of aged men They hasten'de on nor sham'de with bloody knife To cut the Infants new span thread of life What crime had lnfants done to merit death But 't was enough that they could loose their breath Fury directs them guilty liues to take A lone seem'd too remisse for number sake Some fall one cutt ' off heads he does not know Whilst empty-handed hee 's a sham'd to goe No hope to scape but kisse the bloud-staind g hand Of Marius though a thousand swords did stand Ready base People did you not disdaine At such a price a life though long to gaine Much lesse a time so short so troublesome And breath but respited till Sylla come Who now has time to waile Plebejan fates Scarce can we thine braue Babim h whom the hates Of the fierce multitude in pieces tore Nor thine Antonius i that thy death before Couldst prophesie whose gray-head bleeding yet On Marius table the rude Souldier sett Torne are the headlesse Crassi k impious wood Is stain'd with sacred Tribunitiall l blood Thou Scavola m that didst a kisse disdaine Of Marius hand at Vestaes Altar slaine And never quenched fires but ages drought Left thee not so much blood as would put cut The flame His seventh n Consulship now come Old Marius dies a man that had orecome Fortunes worst hate and her best loue enjoy'de And tasted all that Fates for man provide How many neere the Colline port were kill'd How many Carcasses on heapes were pil'de At Sacriportum o where almost her seate Had the worlds Eâ—pire chang'd and Sâ—mnis yet Hop'd deeper farre to wound the Roman name Then at the Caudine p Forkes then
catches The kindling brand in their sad parents hand The funerall beds blacke smoaking fragments and Their ashy garments and flesh-smelling coales But when she findes a coarse entombed whole Whose moisture is drawne out and marrow growne Hard by corruption greedy havocke on Each limbe she makes and from their orbes doth teare His congeal'd eyes and stickes her knucles there She gnawes his nailes now pale oregrowne and long Bites halters killing knotts where dead men hung Teares from the gibbetts strangled bodies downe And from the gallowes licks corruption Shee gathers dead mens limmes which showres haue wet And marrow harden'd in Sols scorching â—eate She keepes the nailes that pierc'd crucifi'd hands And gathers poysonous filth and slime that stands On the cold joynts and biting with her fanges The harden'd sinewes vp from ground she hangs And where so ere a naked carcasse ly Before the beasts and ravenous fowles sits she But teares or cuts no limbe till it be bit By Wolves from whose dry jawes she snatches it Nor spares she murdering if life blood she need That from a throat new open'd must proceede She murders when her sacrifices dire Life-blood and panting entrailes doe require And births abortiue by vnnaturall wayes From wounded wombes she takes and burning layes Them on her wicked altars when she lacks Stout cruell ghosts such ghosts forthwith she makes All deaths of men serue for her action From young mens chinns she puls the growing downe And dying striplings haire she cuts away Ericttho oft when ore the coarse she lay Of her dead kinseman and did seeme to kisse Off from his maimed head would bite a piece And opening his pale lips gelled and clung In his dry throat she bites his cold stiffe tongue And whispering murmurs dire by him she sends Her banefull secrets to the Stygian feinds By generall fame when Sextus notice had Of her in depth of night when Titan made At the Antipodes their noone of day Over the desart fields he takes his way The servants waiting on his folly then Searching through broken tombes and graues of men Spy'd on a rocke at last where Aemus bends And the Pharsalian lofty hills extends Ericttho sitting she was trying there Spells which nere witch nor magicke god did heare And for new purposes was framing charmes For fearing lest the civill warres alarmes Should to some other land be carryed thence And Thessaly should want that blood's expence Phillippi feilds with incantations stain'd And sprinâ—kled with dire iuice she did command Not to transferre the war meaning t' enioy So many deaths and the worlds blood t' employ The carcasses of slaughter'd Kings to maâ—me And turne the Roman ashes was her aime To search for princes bones and each great ghost But what best pleas'd her and she study'd most Was what from Pompey's coarse to take away Or vpon which of Caesars limmes to prey Whom first thus Pompey's fearefull sonne bespake Wisest of all Thessalians that canst make Foreknowne all thingâ— to come and turne away The course of destiny to me I pray The certaine end of this wars chance relate I am no meane part of the Roman state Great Pompey's sonne now either lord of all Or wofull heir of his great funerall My minde though wounded now with doubtfull feare Is well resolv'd any knowne woe to beare Oh take from chance this power it may not fall Vnseene and suddaine on me the gods call Or spare the gods and force the truth out from The ghosts below open Elysium Call forth grim death himselfe bid him relate Which of the two is given to him by fate T is no meane taske but labour worthy thee To search what end of this great war shall be The impious Witch proud of a fame to spread Replyes young man wouldst thou haue altered Some meaner fate it had beene easily done I could haue forc'd to any action Th' vnwilling gods I can preserue the breath Of him whom all the starres haue doom'd to death And though the planets all conspire to make Him old the midst of his lifes course can breake But fates and th' order of great causes all Worke downeward from the worlds originall When all mankinde depend on one successe If there you would change ought our arts confesse Fortune has greater power but if content You be alone to know this wars event Many and easie wayes for vs there be To finde out truth the earth the sea the sky The dead the Rodopejan rockes and fields Shall speake to vs. But since late slaughter yeilds Such choise of carcasses in Thessaly To raise vpone of those will easyest be That a warme new-slaine carcasse with a cleare Intelligible voice may greete your eare Least by the Sunne the organs parch'd and spill'd The dismall ghost vncertaine hizzings yeild Then double darkenesse ore nights face she spred And wrapping in a foggy cloud her head She searches where th'unbury'd bodyes lye Away the wolues and hungry vultures flye Loosening their tallands when Ericttho comes To choose her prophet griping with her thummes Their now cold marrows seeking where a tongue And lungs with fillets whole vnwounded hung The fates of those slaine men stand doubtfull all Which of their ghosts she from the dead would call Had she desir'd to raise th' whole army slaine And to reviue them for the war againe Hell had obey'd from Styx by her strange might The people all had beene drawne backe to fight When she a carcas sitting had espy'd An hooke she fasten'd in his throate and ty'd To it a fatall rope by which the hag Ore rockes and stones the wretched carcasse drag That must reviue Vnder the hollow side Of an high mountaine which to this blacke deede The witch had destin'd she the carcasse layes A deepe and vast descent of ground there was As low almost at the blinde caues of Diâ— Which a pale wood with thicke and spreading treâ— Barring the sight of heaven and by Sol's light Not penetrable did oreshadow quite Within the caue was bred by dreary night Pale mouldy filth darkensse sad no lighâ— But light by magicke made ere shined there Within the jawes of Tanarâ—â— the aire Is not so dull that balefull bound twixt hell And vs the princes in those shades that dwell Send without feare their spirits hitherto For though this hag can force the fates to doe What ere she please t is doubtfull whether here Or there those ghosts in their true place appeare She puts a various colour'd cloathing on And fury-like her haire loose hanging downe Was bound about with vipers her face hid But when young Sextus and his traine she spy'd Shaking for feare and his astonisht eye Fixt on the ground banish those feares quoth she His life 's true figure you shall see him take That cowards neede not feare to heare him speake But if the furyes to your eyes were showne The Stygian lakes and burning Phlegeton The gyants bound and Cerberus that shakes His dreadfull curled mane of hissing snakes Why
proudly stands Into the sea from ships the Navall bands Assault the house but Caesar every where Is for defence at hand and weapons here There wild-fire vses Though besiedg'd he be Doth the besiedgers worke such strength had he Of constant spirit wild fire balls he threw Among the joyned ships nor slowly flew The flame on pitchy shrowds and bords that drop With melted waxe at once the saileyards top And lowest hatches burne An halfe burnt boate Here drownes in seas their foes and weapons floate Nor ore the ships alone doe flames prevaile But all the houses neere the shore assaile The South windes feed the flame and driue it on Along the houses with such motion As through the VVelkin fiery meteors run That wanting fuell feed on aire alone This fire a while the courts besiedging stay'd And drew the people to the cityes aide Caesar that time would not in sleepe bestow VVho well could vse occasions and knew how In war to take the greatest benefit Of suddaine chances ships his men by night Surprises Pharos Pharos heretofore An Iland was when prophet Proteus wore That crowne but joyn'd to Alexandria now Two helpes on Caesar doth that fort bestow Commands the sea the foes incursions stay'd And made a passage safe for Caesars aide He now intends no longer to differ Protinus c death though not enough severe Not fire nor beasts nor gibbets reaue his breath Slaine with a sword he dyes great Pompey's death Arsinoe d from court escaped goes By Ganymedes helpe to Caesars foes The â—owne as Lagus daughter to obtaine By whose just sword was sterne Achillas slaine Another to thy ghost is sacrific'd Pompey but fortune is not yet suffic'd Far be it â—ods that these two deaths should be His full revenge the fall of Ptolomey And Aegypts ruine not enough is thought Nor ere can his revenge be fully wrought Till Caesar by the Senates swords be slaine But though the author's dead these broiles remaine For Ganymedes now commander moov'd A second war which full of danger proov'd So great the perill was that day alone Might Caesars name to future times renowne While Caesar striues pent vp so closely there To ship his men from thence a suddaine feare Of war did his entended passage meete Before his face the foes well-rigged fleete Behinde their foote from shore against him fight No way of safety 's left valour nor flight Nor scarse doth hope of noble death remaine No heapes of bodyes no whole armyes slaine Are now requir'd to conquer Caesar there A little blood will serue Whether to feare Or wish for death he knowes not In this same Sad straite he thinkes of noble Scaeva's fame VVho at Dyrrachium when his workes were downe Beseidg'd all Pompey's strength himselfe alone Th' example rais'd his thoughts resolv'd to doe What Scaeva did but straight a scorne to owe His valour to examples checks againe That high resolue great thoughts great thoughts restraine Yet thus at last Scaeva was mine 't was I Nurtur'd that spirit if like him I dy I doe not imitate but Caesars â—eate Rather confirmes that Scaevas act was great In this resolue had Caesar charg'd them all Himselfe alone and so a glorious fall Slaine by a thousand hands at once had met Or else enobled by a death so great Those thousand hands but fortune was afraid To venture Caesar further then her aide Could lend a famous rescue and endeare The danger to him she discovers neare Ships of his owne thither when Caesar makes He findes no safety there but straight forsakes Those ships againe and leapes into the maine The trembling billowes fear'd to entertaine So great a pledge of fortune one to whom Fate ow'd so many victoryes to come And Ioue whilest he on Caesars danger lookes Suspects the truth of th'adamantine bookes Who could haue thought but that the gods aboue Had now begun to favour Rome and loue Her liberty againe and that the fate Of Pompey's sons of Cato and the state ' Gainst Caesars fortune had prevailed now Why doe the powers Caelestiall labour so To be vnjust againe againe take care To saue that life they had expos'd so far That now the danger even in Caesars eye Might cleare their doome of partiality But he must liue vntill his fall may prooue Brutus and Cassius were more iust then Ioue Now all alone on seas doth Caesar floate Himselfe the oares the Pylot and the boate Yet could not all these offices employ One mans whole strength for his left hand on high Raised holds vp his papers and preserues The fame of his past deedes his right hand serues To cut the waues and guard his life alone ' Gainst th' Oceans perills and all darts which throwne From every side doe darken all the sky And make a cloud though heaven it selfe deny Two hundred paces thus alone he swam Till to the body of his feete he came His ore-ioy'd souldiers shouting to the skies Take sure presage of future victoryes FINIS Annotations on the tenth Booke a Cambyses the son of Cyrus and king of Persia added to his monarchy the kingdome of Aegypt he intended a farther war against the Aethiopians which are called Macrobij by reason of the extraordinary length of their naturall liues But by reason of the tediousnesse of the march and want of provision there was in his army a great famine that they killed by lot every tenth souldier and fed vpon them b Achillas comming to assault Caesar had an army of twenty thousand they were many of them Roman souldiers which had served before vnder Gabinius but had changed their manner of life and corrupted with the riot of Aegypt had quite forgotten the Roman discipline c Photinus the Kings tutor remaining with Caesar sent secret encouragements to Achillas to goe forward with his siedge which being discovered by interception of his messengers he was slaine by Caesar d Ganymedes an Eunuch and tutor to Arsinoe the yoâ—ger sister of the King of Aegypt assaulted Achillas by treachery and slâ—w him and being himselfe made Generall of the army he continued the siedge against Caesar FJNJS
wars Long vse their houshold gods their minds gan mooue And piety but straight the swords dire loue And feare of Caesar turnde them backe againe Lalius the first Files leading did obtaine For saving of a Roman Soldier Oake-crownd and freed from duties of the war If I may speake Romes greatest Generall Thy Soldiers thoughts quoth he It grieues vs all That such long patience kept thee from so just A war or didst thou not thine army trust While life-bloud keepes this breathing body warme While brandisht Darts fly from this agile arme Wilt thou weake gownes and Senates raigne endure In civill war is Conquest so impure Lead vs through Libyas gulfes cold Seythian land Lead vs ore thirsty Affrickes scorched sand This arme the conquerde world behind to leaue Has plowde the Brittish Oceans curled waue And broke the Rhines swift current thy command To doe my will 's as ready as my hand Hee s not my friend gainst whom thy trumpets sound By these thy colours which ten Camps haue found Ever victorious Caesar here I sweare And by thy triumphs ore what foe so ere If thou command me spill my brothers life Kill my old Father or my pregnant wife I le doo 't though with a most vnwilling hand Fire Temples rob the godds at thy command Great Iunoes Temple in our flames shall sinke If to encampe on Tuscan Tybers brinke I le boldly pitch in Italy thy tent If to dismantle townes be thy entent These armes of mine the battering Ram shall place Although the city thou wouldst quite deface Were Rome it selfe The Souldiers all agree And promise â—im their lifted hands on high To any war Their shout not that can passe Which the loud blast of Thracian Boreas On piny Ossa makes and bowes amaine The ratling wood or lets it rise againe Caesar perceiving that the Fates gaue way To war and his Men prone fearing delay His troopes through France dispers'd straight calling home With flying colours marches on to Rome They leaue their tents pitcht by Lemanus v Lake And those on Vogesus high Rockes forsake Which aw'de the painted Lingones so strong Isara's Fords they leaue that runne so long Alone but in a River of more fame Falling to ' the Ocean beares an other name The yellow Ruthens eas'de of their long feare Milde A tax ioyes no Roman shipps to beare And Varus Italyes encreased bound That haven Alcides consecrated ground With Cliffes orelookes the Sea no Northwest winde Nor West blow there Cirtius their proper winde Reignes there where safe Alcides fort dooes stand And that still doubtfull-coast that Sea and Land Callenge by turnes firme land it is when low The Ocean ebbes but sea at every flow VVhither the winde strong blowing from the Pole And then retiring to and fro doe rowle The Sea or that the Moone his course doe guide Or burning Titan moist foode to provide Attracting lift the Ocean to the sky Seeke you that labour for such skill for me VVhat ere thou be that cause this ebbe and flow Be still conceal'd since heauen will haue it so They march away that Nemasus did hold And Adors bankes where Tarbe does enfold In her crookt shore the sea that gently flowes The Santoni reioyce now free'd from foes Th'Leuci and Rhemi Archers good with these Bituriges and Speare-arm'd Suessones The dwellers neere Sequana skilfull riders The Belgae hooke-arm'd Chariots expert guiders Sprung from the Troian blood the Hedui That durst claime bâ—otherhood of Italy Rebellious Neâ—uiars x stain'd with Cotta's fate And they that in loose Mantles imitate Sarmatia fierce Batauians whom to warre Crookt Trumpets call those that neere Cinga are VVhere Araris with Rhodanus now met Runnes ioyn'd into the Sea the men whose seate Is on Gebenna mount couer'd with snow The Pictones now free their fields can plow The fickle Turones are not restrain'd By garrison the Andian now disdain'd To pine in Medna's thick fogges but goes For pleasure where delightfull Liger flowes Faire Genabos is freed from garrison Treuer is glad the warre from thence is gon The Ligures now shorne once like the rest Long haird of all the vnshorne Gaules the best And where with offerings stayn'd of humane blood Hermes and Mars their cruell Altars stood And Ioue that vilâ— as Scythian Dian's are Then you that valiant soules and slaine in warre Doe celebrate wâ—th praise that neuer dyes You Bards securely sung your Elegyes You Drâ—ides now free'd from warre maintaine Yâ—ur Barbarous rites and Sacrâ—fice againe You what heauen is and gods alone can tell Or else alone are ignorant you dwell In vast and desert woods you teach no spirit Plutoes pale kingdome can by death inherit They in another world informe againe The middst twixt long liues if you truth maintaine Is death But those wilde people happy are In this their errour whom feare greatest farre Of all feares iniures not the feare of death Thence are they prone to warre nor losse of breath Esteeme nor spare a life that comes againe They that the hair'd Cayes did conteine In their obedience marching now to Rome From Rhines rude bankes and new found countrey come VVhen Caesar's novv collected strength had bred More lofty hopes through Italy he spred His troopes and all the neighbouring Cities seiz'd Then idle rumours their true feares encreas'd And peirc'd the peoples hearts swift fame gan show The warres approach and their ensuing woe Then euery tongue a false alarum yeilds Some dare report that on the pasture fields Of faire Meuania is the warre begunne And bloody Caesar's barbarous Cohorts runne VVhere Vmbrian Nar does into Tyber flow That all his Eagles and ioyn'd Standards now With a vast strength make furious approach Nor doe they now suppose him to be such As once they saw him fiercer far then so They thinke and savadge as his conquer'd foe That all th' inhabitants twixt th'Alpes and Rhine Drawne from their countries and cold Northerne clime Follow and Rome a Roman looking on By barbarous hands shall fall thus every one By feare giues strength to Fame no author knowne They feare what they suppose but not alone The People dooes this vaine surmise deceiue The Senate shakes th' affrighted Fathers leaue Their seates and flying to the Consuls giue Directions for the war VVhere safe to liue VVhat place t' avoide they know not whither ere Their suddaine wits directs their steps they beâ—re Th' amazed people forth in troopes whom nought So long had stirr'de a man would then haue thought The city fir'd orth'houses sudaine fall By earthquake threatned the madd people all VVith hasty steppes so vnadvised runne As if no way at all were left to shunne Their imminent and feard destruction But to forsake their habitation As when rough Seaes by stormy Auster blowne From Libia's Sands haue broke the maire mast down Master and Marriners their Ship forsake Not torne as yet leape into th' Sea and make Themselues a Shipwracke so from th' City they Fly into warre no Sire
death that vvas most neare Among a thousand deaths they most did feare Nor did their shipwrackt valouridly liue Darts floating on the waues they take and giue Their fellowes in the ship or on the seas Themselues those darts though feebly exercise When vveapons vvant the seas their vveapons be Foes grasping foes together gladly die But in that fight one Phocian did excell To search the seas he vnder vvater vvell Could keepe his breath diue to the lowest sands And loosen fastned anchors with his hands He grapling vvith a foe downe in the maine Had sunke and drown'd him and himselfe againe Safe and a conquerour rose but rising found Ships in his vvay and so at last was drown'd Some with their armes on their foes oares lay hold To stay their flight deare as they could they sold Their liues some vvounded to keepe off the blowes From their friends ships their bodies enterpose Tyrrhenus standing on the decke aloft â—â—gdamus vvith a Balearicke shaft VVounded the ponderous lead his temples broke His falling eyes their hollow feate forsooke The opticke nerues and ligaments were broke He now starke blind amazed at the stroake Thinks this to be deaths darknesse finding than That all his limmes their perfect strength retaine Fellowes quoth he place me vvhere I may throw A pile and plant me as you vse to doe Engines of vvar this little life that now Remaines Tyrrenus on all hazzards throw This body though in part already dead VVill serue for vvarlike vses and instead Of men aliue take vvounds Thus hauing spoke In his blind aymelesse hand a Pile he shooke And threw it not in vaine vvhich as it light Below his belly noble Argus hit VVhose vveight now falling made it further glide Argus vnhappy Sire on t'other side The beaten ship then stood to none vvould he VVhen he vvas young in feates of souldiery Giue place his strength is now by age decay'de And he no Souldier but a patterne made He seeing his sonne fall vvith trembling step Stumbling along came to that side the ship And finding there the body panting yet No teares fell from his cheekes nor did he beat His vvofull breast His hands now stiffe vvere growne And all his joynts cold numnesse seizes on A suddaine darkenesse closes vp his eyes That he discernes not Argus vvhom he sees Argus his dying head began to reare And feebâ—e necke seeing his Father there Speachlesse yet seem'd in silence to demand A kisse and to invite his Fathers hand To close his dying eyes but the old man Free from amaze vvhen bloody griefe began To recollect his strength I vvill not loose That time quoth he that angry fâ—te bestowes Pardon thy wretched father that from thee Argus and from thy last embrace I flee Thy wounds warme bloud yet signes of life do giue Th' art but halfe dead and yet a whilâ— maist liue I le goe before thee Sonne these words exprest And with a bloudy sword piercing his brest He leapt into the sea hasting to death Before his dearest Sonne his flitting breath Vnto one single kind of destiny He durst not trust Now great commanders dye And now no longer doubtfull is the fight Some of the Greekes are sunke by hasty flight Some get into the haven others beare Changing their loade the Roman Conquerer But now sad Parents mournings fill the towne The shore with mothers lamentation Did ring instead of her deare husbands face A weeping wife mistaken did embrace A Roman Fathers funerall rites to giue About their Sonnes deformed bodies striue But Brutus Conquerer on the Ocean To Caesar's side first navall honour wan FINIS Libri tertii Annotations on the third Booke a The vsuall time of mourning among the Romans for the losse of Husband or wife was ten moneths within which space of time it was accounted infamous to marry and therefore Cornelia daughter to Lucius Scipio and Widow of Pub. Crassus who was married to Pompey the great within that time it here stiled by Iulia strumpet b Caesar although it much concerned him to pursue Pompey and overtake him before his strength were too much encreased by forreine aide yet partly for want of ships and partly fearing lest in his absence there might happen some new commotion in Italy and withall fearing the Pompeian army that was then in Spaine vnder the conduct of Afranius and Peticius he resolved first to goe and settle things at Rome and afterwards to goe fight against those armies in Spaine c Valerius was sent into Sardinia to fetch Corne and Curio into Sicily as Propraetor with three legions those countreys were two the greatest Granaries of the Romane Empire d Caesar assembled the Senators into Apolloes temple and there with curteous language excused himselfe concerning this war as a thing vndertaken only to preserue his owne dignity against the envy and iniury of a few he entreateth them to take care of the common-wealth and ioyne with him in it likewise to send Embassadors to Pompey and the Consuls concerning peace e The Tribunitiall power was held so sacred that whosoever did offer any violence vnto it they thought the gods would take revenge and conceived the reason of that great and miserable overthrow which Marcus Crassus received in Parthia to be because Atâ—ejus the Tribune had cursed him as he went away f Caesar passing through the further Gallia and vnderstanding that Domitius whom he had lately taken prisoner at Coâ—finium and released againe was come into Massylia a city that favoured Pompey's faction he called out some of the chiefe of the city and admonished them not too much to obey one man and so draw a warre vpon themselues thâ—y shut the gates against Caesar but requested him gently to passe by them hoping by that meanes to haue kept themselues in safety and to haue remained as neuters in the war but that drew this heavy seidge vpon them Vnhappy Massilia saith Florus which desiring too much to preserue her peace for feare of war fell into a war g Caesar had sent Caius Fabius his Lieutenant with three legions into Spaine to dislodge Afranius a Lieutenant of Pompey's in the Pyrenaean straights and now himselfe leaving Caius Trebonius to besiedge Massilia by land and Decius Brutus to besiedge it by Sea goes with nine hundred horsemen into Spayne to Fabius his campe h The story in the place concerning the firing of these workes which Caesars souldiers had raised and the actions of the Massyâ—ians is not rightly related by Lucan but differs much from the relation of true histories LVCANS Pharsasia The Fourth Booke The Argument Caesar in Spaine neere high â—erdaes walls Eâ—campes ' gainst two Pompeyan generalls By suddaine floods his campe endanger'd iâ— Caesar divides the streame of Sicoris Oretakes Petrejus flight who bloodily Breakes off his Souldiers new-made amity But by extremity of thirst compell'd Afranius and himselfe to Caesar yeild Famish'â— Antonius yeilds t' his enemy Vulteius and his valiant cohort dye By their owne swords Curio on Libyaâ— sandâ—
Appius feares warres doubtfull chance alone Solliciting the gods th' events to heare And Phoebus Temple that for many a yeare Had beene shut vp at Delphos opens he Parnassus with two tops reaching the sky Twixt East and West aequally distant lyes To Bacchus and Apollo's deityes Sacred to whom in mixed sacrifice The Theban wiues at Delphos solemnize Their trieterickes this one hill alone Appear'd when all the world was overflowne And stood as middle twixt the sea and sky One top Parnaffus then contented thee For one alone did aboue water shew Young Phoebus there with shafts vnvsed slew The speckled Python that in waite long lay His banisht mother great with childe to slay Themis the kingdome then and Tripos held But when h Apollo the cleft ground beheld T' inspire oraculous truth and further findes The gapâ—ng earth exhale prophetike windes Downe in that sacred caue himselfe he hides And now turn'd Prophet there Apollo bides VVhich of the gods lurkes here what deity Shot downe from heaven vouchsafes to dignify This caue what heavenly god dwells heere below That does the fates aeternall courses know And things to come and telling people sure Vouchsafes the touch of woman to endure VVhether this powerfull god barely relate The fates or his relation make them fate Perchance that spirit that all the world maintaines And the poiz'd earth in empty aire susteines Through these Cirrhaean caues does passage get Striving with his aethereall part to meete This spirit once entered the virgins brest Striking her humane soule sounds forth exprest VVith hideous noise so vrging flames come from Sicilian Aetna's over burden'd wombe Typhaeus so throwes vp his stones abroade Prest with Inarime's aeternall loade This god expos'd to all deny'd to none Is free'd from hearing human crimes alone To him no man whispers vnlawfull prayers For he things fixt vnchangeable declares Forbidding men to wish and gratiously Giues just men dwellings though whole townes they be As once to Tyre he teaches vs wars slight As to th' Athenians in their navall fight At Salamine he cleares the causes showne Earths barrennesse and aire 's infection Our age no gift of heaven wants more then this Of Delphos oracle which silent is Since Kings afraid to haue their fates exprest Forbid the gods to speake nor is the Priest Of Delphos for the god 's long silence sad This Oracle's cessation makes them glad For to that breast where ere he doe inspire Vntimely death is punishment or hire Of his reception the fitt's vehemence Too much orecomes the strength of human sence And their fraile soules the god 's high motion shakes Appius whilest too too neare a search he makes To know Rome's fate to th' vnstirr'd Tripodes And silent cavernes does his steps addresse The Priest commanded t'ope that dreadfull seate And for the god a prophetesse to get Findes young Phemonoe as she carelesse roues ' Mongst the Castalian springs and silent groues And makes her breake the Temple doores The maide To stand in that most horrid place afraide Thought by a vaine deceit Appius to bring From his desire of knowing future things Why hop'st thou Roman truth should here be showne The hill quoth she is mute the god is gone Whether the spirit haue left these cavernes quite And to the worlds far regions tane his flight Or Phytho burnt by barbarous Brennus vp Did with the ashes fill this hole and stop Great Phaebus way or that the gods decree Make Cirrha mute thinking it prophecy Enough that Sibyll's bookes among you liue Or Phoebus wont from out his temple driue All wicked persons now no mouth haue found Worthy enough his Oracles to sound The Maids deceit appear'd her feare imply'd She falsely had the present gods deny'd Then a white fillet ties her lockes behinde With Delphian Bayes and wreathed garlands binde Her haire before The Priest thrusts on the maid VVho fearefull still about the entrance staid And durst no neerer to the god to come Nor to approach the temples inmost roome There counterfeiting that she was possest She vtters from an vndisturbed brest Fain'd words with no confused murmure flowing Nor the least signe of divine fury showing Her words so deepely could not Appius wound As great Apolloes truth no trembling sound That broke her speech there was no voice so shrill As all the caues capacious throat might fill Her Lawrell fell not from her frightd haire The temple and the wood vnshaken were These signes betray'd her fearefull to receiue The god when angry Appius did perceiue That 't was no Oracle Thou wretch quoth he Both I and these abused gods will bee Reveng'd for this vnlesse thou straight descend And truely tell what all these stirres portend To the affrighted world with that the maid Descends downe to the Oracle afraid And standing ore the vault the god possest VVith a full spirit her vnaccustom'd brest The rockes so many yeeres vnwasted spirit He fills her with and comming to inherit A Delphian brest nere fill'd he Prophetesse Fuller her former minde he banishes And bids all woman from her breast begone She raging beares in this distraction Not her owne necke her haire vpright throwes downe The sacred ornaments and Phoebus crowne Her necke turnes wildly round downe she throwes All tripodes she meets with as she goes And with an inward fire she burnes which shewes Thee Phoebus wrath nor doest thou onely vse Thy prickes thy flames and incitations now But bridles too the Prophetesse shall know More then she must reveale all times are heapt Vp in one heape and many ages crept Into her wretched breast things orders too And all contend out into light to goe The Fates desiring vtterance striue within VVhen the world ends and when it shall begin The prophetesse can tell and vnderstands The Oceans depth and number of the sands As the Cumaean Sibyll in a scorne Her prophecies should serue all nations turne From the vast heape of vniversall Fate VVith a proud hand cull'd out the Roman State So now the Phoebus fill'd Phemonâ—â— Striues obscure Appius where to find out thee ' Mongst all the Delphian inspirations Then first from her mad mouth the foaming â—unnes And in the horrid caue were heard at once Broke-winded murmurs howlings and sad grones At last these words fall from the maide orecome Great threates of war thou only freed from Shalt in Eubaea's pleasant valleys rest And there she stopt Phoebus her speech supprest Yee Tripodes keepers of fate that know All the world's secrets and Apollo thou Skill'd in all truth from whom the gods conceale No future times why fear'st thou to reveale That action that our Empire 's ruine brings Great Captaines deaths and funeralls of Kings And all the people that with Rome shall bleede Haue not the gods this mischiefe yet decree'd Or stay those fates whilest planets are at strife And doubt about condemning Pompey's life Or hid'st thou fortune to effect more sure Our liberties revenge and Brutus cure Of monarchy
againe then the maides breast Shou'd ope the temple doores and out she prest Her mad fit holds nor had she all explain'de Part of the god within her still remain'd And round about her wandring eyes he rowl'd Nor does her face one constant posture hold But sometimes threatning sometimes fearefull t is Sometimes a fiery red her countenance dyes Sometimes her pallid cheekes anger exprest Not feare nor can her wearied heart finde rest But as a while after the windes are câ—as'd The Ocean muâ—mur's so oft so bings eas'd The maidens breast But twixt this inspir'd light And her plaine humane vnderstandings sight A darkenesse came Phoebus oblivion sent Then from her breasts the gods high secrets went And divinations to the Tripodes Return'd againe But when her fit gan cease Shee falls Nor didst thou beguil'd i Appius feare From doubtfull Oracles thy death so neare But in that tottering world with hopes most vaine Thought quietly Eubaea to retaine Ah foole what god but death could set thee free Out of the world 's generall calamity And war there shall thy hearse entombed lye And so possesse Eubaea quietly Where th' sea by marble-fam'd Carystos is Straightn'd and pride-revenging Nemesis Rhamnus adores a straighten'd currert strong That channels holds and Eurypus along Beares ships by violence changing oft his tide From Chalcis to ill harbouring Aulis side By this time Caesar come from conquer'd Spaine With his victorious Eagles was againe Marching k another way when rate almost The prosperous course of his whole war had crost For conquer'd in no fight the generall In his owne campe gan feare the losse of all His treason's fruit those hands that faithfull still Had serv'd his warres now glutted with the fill Of blood began to quit their generall Th' alarmes tragicke sounds not heard at all A while and cold sheath'd swords their thirst of war Had cool'd or else the greedy souldier Damning for gaine both cause and generall Would set his blood stain'd sword at higher sale Caesar not more in any danger try'd How tottering and vnfirme a prop his pride Had lean'd vpon and well might stagger reft Of all those souldiers hands and almost left To his owne sword he that so many lands Had drawne to war knowes now the souldiers hands Not his must doe the deede Their plaints now be Not dumbe nor timorous is their mutiny That cause that does suspitious mindes restraine Whilest each one feares where he is fear'd againe And thinkes that he himselfe distasts alone His rulers tyranny in this was gone Their number to secure their feare is able Where all offend the crime 's vnpunishable They poure out threats now Caesar let vs cease From wicked war thou seek'st by land and seas Swords for these throates and vpon any foe Wouldst our too cheape esteemed liues bestow Some of vs slaine in war in Gallia lye In Spaine lye some and some in Italy Ore all the world thy army 's slaughtered While thou orecom'st what bootes our blood that 's shed ' Gainst Gaules and Germans in the North so far For all thou pay'st vs with a civill war When Rome we tooke and made the Senate flye What spoiles from Men or Temples gathered we Guilty in swords and hands all villany We goe vpon vertuous in poverty Alone what end is there of war at all Or what can be enough if Rome too small See our gray haires weake hands and bloodlesse armes Our vse of life is gone in warres alarmes Our age consum'd send vs now old at least To choose our deaths this is our bad request Our dying limmes on hard ground not to lay Nor strike steele helmets till our dying day To seeke some frends to close our eyes in death To get our proper Piles our last to breath In our wiues armes let sicknesse end our dayes Let 's vnder Caesar find some other wayes Of death then sword why hood winkt leadst thou vs With a vaine hope on acts portentuous As if in civill war we were not able To know what treason is most profitable Our wars haue taught him nothing if not this What we can doe nor is this enterprise Forbid by law he was our generall In th'German wars here we are fellowes all Whom treason soiles it makes of aequall state Besides in his vnthankefull aestimate Our valour 's lost and whatsoere we doe Is call'd his fortune but let Caesar know We are his fate Though friended by the gods Caesar is nothing if with vs at odds This said about his tent they mustur all With angry lookes seeking their generall So let it goe ye gods since piety Forsakes vs and our hopes on vice relye Let discord make an end of civill war What generall would not such a tumult scarre But Caesar that the fates still suddaine tryes And loues through greatest dangers t'exercise His fortunes comes nor till their rage abate Stayes he but meetes the fury of their hate Cityes and Temples spoyles to them he nere Deny'd though Ioue's Tarpejan house it were Senators wiues and daughters to deflower All villanyes would Caesar from his power Haue them aske freely and wars guerdon loue And nothing feares but that his men should proue Honest Ah Caesar art thou not asham'd That civill war by thine owne souldiers damn'd Should be allow'd by thee shall they first be Weary of blood and hate impiety Whilest thou runn'st headlong on through wrong and right Giue ore and learne to liue out of a fight Giue thy guilt leaue to end Why to these wars Doest thou enforce vnwilling souldiers The civill war flyes from thee on the top Of a turfe mount stands Caesar fearlesse vp Deserving feare by his vndaunted looke And thus as anger prompted him he spoke Whom you with hands and lookes did absent braue Souldiers vnarm'd and present now you haue Heere sheath your swords if you would end the wars Sedition that no act of valour dares Faint hearted fooles and flying spirits declares Tir'd with their matchlesse Captaines conquering state But goe leaue me to war with mine owne fate These weapons will find hands when I cashiere All you as many men as swords are heere Will fortune send me shall all Italy In such a fleete with vanquisht Pompey flye And shall my conquests not bring men to share The wealthy spoiles of this neere finisht war Reaping the profit of your toile and so Vnwounded with my laurell'd charriot goe You an old worne and bloodlesse company Then Rom's plebeians shall my tryumphs see Can Caesars fortune feele the losse of you If all the streames that into th' Ocean flow Should threaten to withdraw themselues the seas Would by the losse of them no more decrease Then now they fill Thinke you that such as ye Can any moment to my fortunes be The gods care never will so low descend That fates your deaths or safeties should attend The fates attend on great mens actions Mankind liues for a few and you whom once Spaine fear'd and all the North
Aegaean joyn'd With the Tyrrhene so with th' Ieâ—â—an The Adriatike met How oft in vaine That day the sea seem'd mountaines topps to ' ore flow And yeilding earth that deluge t' vndergoe But such high waues on no shore raised be But from the worlds far part and the maine sea They rowle the earth embracing waters bring Their monstrous waues so whâ—n the heavens high king Help'd his tir'd thunder with his â—rotheis mace To mankinds â—uine earth then added was To Neptunes kingdome when the sea confounded All lands and Tethys by no shore was bounded Contented with no limit but the skyes Then also would those â—welling seas arise Vpto the starres had not great Ioue kept downe Their waues with cloudes nor sprung that night alone From naturall causes the thiâ—ke aire was growne Infected with the dampes of Acheron And clogg'd with foggy stormes waues froÌ„ the maine Fly to the cloudes and fall like showres againe The lightnings light is lost it shines not cleare But shootes obscurely through nights stormy aire The heavens then trembled the high pole for feare Resounded when his hindges mooved were Nature then fear'd the old confusion The elementall concord seem'd vndone And night that mixt th' aetheriall deityes With the infernall â—eem'd againe to rise Their hope of safety was that in this great Wraâ—ke of the world they were not perisht yet As farre as you from Leucas top may see The quiet sea so farre could they desery From waues high tops the troubled Ocean But when the swelling billowes fall againe The maine-mast top scarce aboue water stands The topsailes touch the cloudes the keele the sands For ground is seene from whence the sâ—as arise In hills in waues the seas whole water is Feare conquers art the master does not know Which waue to breake which waue to yeeld vnto But the seas discord only aides them now The barke one billow cannot overflow Let by anothers force which still susteines The yeilding side the barke vpright mainteines Her course supported by all windes no more Low Sasons gulfes Thessalia's crooked shore Or the Ambracian dangerous ports they fear'd But ore the high Ceraunia to be rear'd â—y billowes Caesar thinkes it now to be A danger worthy of his destiny Are the gods troubled so to ruine me Whom sitting heere in a small barke quoth he They haue assaulted with a storme so lowd If on the seas not warres they haue bestow'd The glory of my death fearelesse I come Ye gods to any death that ye can doome Though this too hasty fate great actes breake off I haue already done things great enough The Northren nations I haue tam'd and quell'd My foes at home by armes Rome has beheld Great Pompey my inferiour honours stay'd From me in war the people forc'd haue pay'd All Roman honours in my titles be Let it be knowne fortune to none but thee Though full of honour to the shades below I both Romes Consull and Dictator goe I dye a private death ô gods I craue No funerall let the seas inmost waue Keepe my torne carkasse let me want a tombe And funerall pyle whilest lookt for still to come Into all lands I am and ever fear'd Thus having spoke most strange the tenth waue rear'd His barke aloft nor from the billowes top Did she fall downe kept by the water vp Till on the rocky shore she stood at last His fortune and so many kingdomes cast On shore and townes againe he did receiue Caesar's returne next morne could not deceiue His souldiers so as his stolne flight had done About their generall flock they every one Assaulting him with lamentations And not ingratefull accusations VVhither did thy rash valour carry thee Too cruell Caesar to what destiny Didst thou leaue vs poore soules venturing vpon Th' vnwilling seas and stormes thy selfe alone In thee to seeke for death was cruelty VVhen all the world esteemes thy head so high And on thy life so many liues of ours Depend did none of vs deserue t' haue power Not to surviue thee sleepe did vs detaine While thou wert tost vpon the watry maine Was this the cause thou went'st to Italy Alas it shames vs it was cruelty To venture any man on such a sea For the last act of things such hazards be VVhy doest thou tire the gods so much to goe And venture the worlds greatest Captaine so From fortune's worke and favour thus t' haue sent Thee safe a shore to vs be confident Of the warres issue This vse doest thou make Of the gods favour to escape a wracke Rather then gaine the worlds sole soveraignety Thus while they talke night past the Sunne they see And a cleare day his waues the tired maine By the windes leaue compos'd and smooth'd againe The Captaines also on th' Italian side VVhen the tâ—r'd Ocean free from waues they spy'd By the pure Northwinds rising thence convay'd Their ships which their skill'd Marriners had stay'd So long for feare while winds auspicious fail'd Like a land army their joyn'd navy sail'd On the broad Sea but the chang'd windes by night Fill'd not their sailes but broke the order quite So Cranes in VVinter Strymon's cold forsake To drâ—nke warmâ— Nile and in their first flight make As chance directs of letters various formes VVhen their spread wings are by the violent stormes Of strong South-windes assailed by and by â—n a confused globe all mingled fly The letter 's lost in their disranked wings But the next morne when rising Titan brings A stronger winde to driue the navie ore They passe the vaine attempted Lissus shore And to Nymphaeum come Southwinds that blow The haven on them the Northwindes fled bestow VVhen Caesars legions all collected were And Pompey saw the war was drawne so neere To his owne campe he thinkes best to provide For his wiuâ—â— safety and in Lesbos hide Thee faire Cornelia from the noise of warre Alas in just and noble mindes how farre Prevailes true loue true loue alone had power To make great Pompey feare wars doubâ—full houre His wife alone he wisht free from that stroke That all the world and Romes whole fortune shooke But now a ready mâ—nd wants words in him He yeilds to sweete delayes from fare steales time But when th'approching morne had banisht rest And faire Cornelia his care-wounded breast Clasping from her averted husband seekes A loving kisse wondring to feele his cheekes Moistened with teares tâ— hidâ—en cause she feares And daâ—es not finâ— great Pompey shedding teares He then thus mourning spake oh dâ—arest wife Dearer to me then life not now when life I loath but in our best prosperity That sad day's come which too too muâ—h haue we Yet not enough dâ—fferr'd Caesar's addrest For fight thou must not stay Lesbos the best And safest place will be for thee to hide Doe not enâ—treat me sweete I haue deny'd It to my selfe nor absent long shall we Remaine for swift will this wars tryall be Great things fall speedily To heare not see Thy
quivers bring along If you O Parthians vndisquieted I ever left when I pursu'd the fled Vnquiet Alans to the Caspian strait And forc'd you not for safety to retreat To Babylon marching ore Cyrus ground And the Chaldaean kingdomes vtmost bound Appearing nearer then the Persian To the Suns rise where into th' Ocean Nysas Hydaspes and swift Ganges fall Suffer'd you only when I conquer'd all To goe vntriumph'd Parthias King alone Of all th' Easts monarchs scap'd subjection Nor once alone doe you your safety ow To me who after Crassus overthrow Appeas'd the just incensed wrath of Rome For all my merits now let Parthia come Out of her bounds appointed and passe ore Greeke Zeugma's walls and the forbidden shore Conquer for Pompey Rome will loose the day Gladly The King refus'd not to obey Though hard were his command laying aside His kingly robes and in a servants weede Attir'd he goes in a distressed time 'T is safe for Kings like poorest men to seeme Therefore how much liues he that 's truely poore Safer then Kings The King tooke leaue at shore And by the Icarion rockes great Pompey gone Leaues Ephesus and sea-calme Colophon Shaving small Samos foaming rockes he go's A gentle gale blowes from the shore of Cos Gindon and Phebus-honour'd Rhodes he leaues And sailing straight in the mid-Ocean saues Telmessums long and winding circuits First Pamphylia greetes their eyes but Pompey durst Commit his person to no towne but thee Little Phaselis thy small company And few inhabitants could not cause a feare More in the ship then in thy walls there were But sailing thence againe high Tauâ—us showes It selfe and Dipsas that from Taurus flowes Could Pompey thinke when erst he clear'd the seas Of Pirates rage it purchas'd his owne ease He now flyes safe along Cicilian shores In a small ship there many Senators Following oretake their flying generall Within the haven of Celendrae small Where in and out ships on Selinus past In full assembly of the lords at last Thus sadly Pompey spake my Lords whose sight As deare companions botâ— in war and flight I doe esteeme my country though we stand On a bare shore in poore Cicilian land Attended with no force advice to take And new provision for a war to make Yet bring couragious hearts I lost not all In Thessaly nor did my fortune fall So low but that this head againe may rise Could Marius after all his miseryes In Libya rise to a seaventh Consulship And me so lightly fall'n will fortune keepe A thousand Captaines on the Graecian sea A thousand ships I haue Pharsalia Has rather scatter'd then quite overthrowne My strength but me my actions fame alone Which all the earth haue seene my name that now The whole world loues shall guard Consider you Th' Aegyptian Libyan Parthian monarchies Bâ—th in their strength and faith and then advise Which fittest is to ayde Roms labouring state But I my Lords will to your eares relate Freely my secret'st cares and tell the truth How I encline I doe suspect the youth Of Aegypts King for true fidelity Requires strong yeares I feare the subtlety And double heart of Mauritania's King Remembring Carthage whence his race did spring He gapes for Italy and his vaine brest Is much with thought of Hanniball possest Whose blood commixt with th' old Numidiâ—ns Obliquely Iuba's pedegree distaines He swell'd to see Varus a suppliant growne And Roman fates inferiour to his owne Therefore my Lords to th' Easterne world let vs Retire Euphrates with a spacious Channell divides the world the Caspian straits On tother side yeild safe and large retreats Another pole measures th' Assyrian dayes And nights another colour beare the seas Sever'd from ours their ainâ—e is soveraignty Their bowes more strong their steeds more fierce and high Then ours no boy nor aged man wants skill Or strength to shoot deadly their arrows kill Their bowes first brooke Pellaean speares and won Th' Assyrian wall-renowned Babylon And Median Bactra Nor so fearefull are The Parthians of our piles but that they dare Come out to war against vs they haue try'd Their shafts sufficiently when Crassus dy'd Nor are their trusty shafts arm'd at the head With steele alone but deadly venomed Slight wounds are mortall and the least blood drawne Will kill Oh would on the fierce Parthian I were not forced to depend their fate Does too too much Romes fortune aemulate Too many gods ayde them He draw from home Some other nations of the East to come To war But if Barbarians leagues deceiue Our hopes or else our scorn'd alliance leaue Let fortune then our sad and shipwrack'd state Beyond the knowne and traffiqu'd world translate I will not sue to Kings whom I haue made But in my death this comfort shall be had Lying far off this body shall not be Subject to Caesar's rage nor piety But there revolving my whole life's past fate Still honour'd in those parts was Pompey's state How great has Easterne Tanais me seene How great beyond Maeotis haue I bin Into what lands did my victorious name More sound or whence in greater triumph came Favour my purpose Rome what happyer Can the go is grant thee then in civill war To vse the Parthian armes to overthrow That land and mixe their ruine with our woe When the fierce Parthians haue with Caesar fought Crassus revenge or mine must needes be wrought This said he heard their murmur to condemne His plot But Lentulus ' mongst all of them In spirit and noble griefe the forward'st man Thus worthy his late Consulship began Has the Pharsalian losse so broke thy minde Has one dayes fate the world so low declin'd Doth that one battell our whole cause decide And no cure left to helpe our wounded side Is no hope left thee Pompey but to sue At the proud Parthians feete woulâ—st thou eschew All lanâ—s and climes and thither aime thy flight Where crosse poles reigne and vnknowne starres giue light T' adore the Parthians and their deityes Chaldaean fires and Barbarous sacrifice Why in this war pretend'st thou liberty Why is the wretched world deceiv'd by thee If thou canst serue whose name they trembled at As the cheife ruler of the roman fate Whom they haue seene leade captiue Kings before From wilde Hyrcania and the Indian shore Shall they now see cast downe and broke by fate Measuring themselues by Pompey's begging state With Rome and Italy aspire t'enherit Thou canst spake nothing worth thy fate and spirit Their ignorance i th' Roman tongue requires That thou in teares shouldst vtter thy desires Would'st thou so wound our shame that not from Rome But Parthia the revenge of Rome should come She chose thee Generall of her civill war Why doest thou spread her losse and wounds so far As Scythia and teach Parthia to goe Beyond her bound Rome shall in her deepe woe This speciall comfort loose of bringing in No Kings but serving her owne citizen Canst thou delight from farthest parts to come
Leading fierce nations ' gainst the walls of Rome Following those Eagles that slaine Crassus lost That only King that from th' Aemathian a host Was absent fortune did his favour guide Will he provoke the Conquerers strong side And joyne with vanquisht Pompey thinke you no We haue no cause to trust that nation so The people all borne in the Northren cold Are lovers of the war hardy and bold But in the East and Southerne climes the heat Of gentle aire makes them effoeminate Their men soft cloathing and loose garments weare Parthians vpon the Median fields and where Along Sarmaâ—ian plaines swift Tigris flowes By liberty of flight can by no foes Be vanquished but where the earth does swell Ore craggy hills they cannot clime so well Nor in darke places can they vse the bow Nor dare they swim torrents that swiftly flow Nor in the field with blood all over dy'd Dare they the dust and Summer Sunne abide No rams nor engines can the Parthian vse Nor fill the trenches vp when he pursues What ere is arrow-profe serues for a wall Slight are their waâ—s their fights like flyings all They stragling fight apter to fly then stand Their arrowes venom'd are nor close at hand Dare they maintaine a fight far off with bowes They shoot and where it lists the wind bestowes Their wounâ—s but fight of sword does strength requireâ— All manly nations the sword-fight desire At the first on set they'll disarmed be And when their quivers are exhaust must flee Their trust in poyson is not in their hands Think'st thou them men Pompey that dare not stand Without such helpes the hazard of a fight Can such base aide be worth so long a flight For thee so far from thine owne land to dy And vnder barbarous earth entomb'd to ly In a base monument yet such a one As will he envy'd Crassus having none Thy state is not so pitifull for death Nor fear'd by men ends all but losse of breath Vnder that wicked King Cornelia feares not The Venus of those barbarous courts who heares not Which like bruit beasts all wedlocks rites exile And with wiues numberlesse all lawes defile Th' incestuous beds abhorred secrets ly Ope to a thousand concubines rais'd high With wine and banqueting the King refraines No lawlesse lust though nere so full of staines Th' embraces of so many women can Not all the night tire one insatiate man In Kings incestuous beds their sisters ly And mothers which should names vnstained be Oâ—dipus wofull tale condemns alone Thebes of a crime though ignorantly done But there how often does the Parthian King Arsacides from such foule incest spring What can be wickednesse to him that may Defile his mother shall Cornelia Metellus noble progeny be led The thousand'th wife to a Barbarians bed Yet none more often will the tyrant vse Then her her husbands titles will infuse A scornefull lust and which will please him more He 'll know that she was Crassus wife before And comes as fate did her to Parthia ow A captiue for that former overthrow Thinke on that slaughter 't will not only bring Shame to haue begg'd aide from that fatall King But to haue made a civill war before For what will Caesar and thy selfe be more Accus'd by all then that while you two fought There could for Crassus no revenge be wrought ' Gainst Parthia all our armyes should haue gone And that no strength might want from garrison Our Northren lands should haue bin free'd each one Till treacherous â—usa and proud Babylon Had fall'n for tombes vpon our slaughter'd men Of Parthian peace fortune we beg an end And if Thessalia end the civill war Against the Parthian send thy Conquerer Of all the world I should rejoyce alone At Caesar's triumphs ore that nation When thou the cold Araxis streams hast crost Shall not the slaughter'd Crassus mourning ghost Vpbraide thee thou whom our vnbury'd ghosts Long since expected with revenging hosts Com'st thou to sue for peace besides thine eyes Sad monuments of Roman tragoedyes Shall greete the walls on which our Captaines heads Were fixt where bodyes of our souldiers dead Euphrates swallow'd and swift Tigris streame Rowl'd backe againe to earth If thou to them Canst sue why Pompey doest thou scorne to pray To Caesar sitting in Thessalia Looke rather vpon Romes confederates And if thou doe suspect the Southerne states And Iuba's falsehood goe to Ptolomey Aegypt by Lybian quickesands Westerly Is guarded on the East fall Niles seven floods To th' sea a land content with her owne goods A land that needes nor raine nor merchandise So much on only Nilus she relyes Young Ptolemey reignes there that owes his crowne To thee once left to thy tuition Feare not the shadow of a name no hurt Can be in tender yeares in an old court Let not religion faith or trust be sought Men vs'd to scepters are asham'd of nought The mildest governement a kingdome findes Vnder new kings This speech quite turn'd their minds How are despairing states most free and bold Pompey's opinion is by all controll'd They leaue Cilicia and to Cyprus mooue Their course No land does Venus better loue Still mindfull of her birth if we at all Thinke gods were borne or had originall Pompey departing thence his course gan bend Round all the Cyprian rocks that Southward tend And got into the enterposed maine Nor by the nights weake light could he attaine Mount Casius but with strugling sailes and strength A lower port of Aegypt reach'd at length Where parted Nilus greatest channell flowes And to the Ocean at Pelusium goes That time was come wherein just Libra weighes The howers and makes the nights aequall with dayes Then payes the winter nights howers which the spring Had tane away They hearing that the King Was at mount Casius thither make repaire The Sun yet was not downe the winde blew faire The sâ—outs along the shore post to the court And fill their fearefull eares with the report Of Pompey's comming though their time were small For counsell yet the Aegyptian monsters all Were met ' mongst whom Achoreus began Whom age taught modesty a milde old man Him superstitious Memphys that observ'd Th' encrease of Nile brought forth while he had serv'd At the gods altars not one Apis liv'd Fiue changes of the Moone his speech reviv'd The sacred league of Ptolomey's dead father And Pompey's merits but Photinus rather A counseller for tyrants with base breath Durst thus presume to counsell Pompey's death Iustice and truth haue many guilty made Faith suffers Ptolomey when it would aide VVhom fortune hates joyne with the gods and fate And fly the wretched loue the fortunate Profit from honesty differs as far As does the sea from fire earth from a star Crownes loose their power whilest only good they doe Respect of right all strength does overthrow T is mischeifes freedome and th'vncurbed sword That does to hated crownes safety affoord No cruell actions vnlesse throughly done
honour now the fates to thee Through the whole life gaue long prosperity And the world knowes not vnlesse now they see How Pompey's spirit could beaâ—e adversity Blush not that such base hands thy death afford But thinke who ever strike 't is Caesars sword Though they these limbs all torne and scatter'd leaue Yet am I happy god no god can reaue My happinesse my fortunes and my breath Expire at once nor wretched is my death Cornelia and my son this slaughter see So much more patient let my sorrow be The more Cornelia and my son approoue My dying constancy the more they 'll loue So well could he his dying spirits guide Such strength of minde had Pompey when he dy'd But poore Cornelia that had rather dy Then see that sight with shreekings fills the sky T was wicked I deare Lord that murdred thee For whilst at Lesbos thou turnd'st in to me Caesar had enter'd Aegypts shore for who But he had power that horrid act to doe What ere thou art sent from the gods to kill Pleasing thine owne revenge or Caesars will Thou know'st not wretch where Pompey's bowels be Thou strik'st with fury there where conquer'd he Desires thy stroke now let him suffer more Then his owne death and see my head before I am not guiltlesse from the crime of war The only wife following my Lord so far Fearelesse of campes or seas and conquer'd too I tooke him in which Monarchs durst not doe Did I for this husband deserue to be Left safe aboord false Lord why spar'st thou me Or thought'st thou life thou dying fit for me I le finde a death though not from Ptolomey Oh sailors let me leape downe from the decke Or with these twisted shrowdes to breake my necke Or let some worthy friend of Pompey's now Heere sheath his weapon and for Pompey doe An act that hâ—e'll impute to Caesars hate Why doe you hinder my desired fate Husband thou liv'st Cornelia has not power Yet of her selfe they hinder my deaths houre And there she sounds to be the Conquerours pray The fearefull fleete hoist sailes and post away But when great Pompey fell that sacred face And honour'd visage kept his former grace Though angry with the gods deaths vtmost hate Chang'd not his visage and majesticke state As they confesse that his rent necke did see For sterne Seâ—timius in that cruelty Findes out an act more cruell to vncover His face he cuts the cloth that was cast over Invading halfe-dead Pompey's breathing face His dying necke acrosse the bords he layes Then cuâ—s the nerves and I veines the twisted bones He breakes the art to whip off heads at once VVas not yet found But when the head was torne Off â—rom the trunke 't was by Achillas borne Dâ—generate Roman base Septimius Vs'd in an vnder office couldst thou thus Basely cut off great Pompey's sacred head To be oh shame by another carryed Young Ptolomey to know great Pompey's face Those haires that kings haue honour'd whose curl'd grace Adorn'd his noble front stroakes with his hands Fixt on a pole the head of Pompey standes VVhilst yet his lips with throbbing murmurs shooke His eyes vnclos'd and liuely was his looke That head that still determin'd war and peace That rul'd the Senate lawes and suffrages Romes fortune in that face tooke greatest pride Nor was the wicked tyrant satisfy'd With sight but for memoriall of the fact Dire arts the heads corruption must extract The braine is taken out dry'd is the skin The noisome moisture purged from within Medicines make solid and preserue the face Degenerate issue last of Lagus race Whom thy incestuous sister shall depose VVhen sacred vaults the Macedon enclose When dust of Kings in sumptuous buildings lyes And the ignoble race of Ptolomey's In Pyramids and rich Mausolean graues Vnjustly rest must Pompey by the waues And headlesse trunke against the shore be swept VVas it too great a trouble to haue kept The carcasse whole for Caesar this sad date Did fortune giue to Pompey's prosperous state By such a death as this to pull him downe From such an height heaping all plagues in one Sad day which he so many yeares had bin Free from nor yet had Pompey ever seene Ioy mixt with woe no god his prosperous state Did ere disturbe none helpt his wretched fate But once for all with a differring hand Did fortune pay him torne vpon the sand Salt water playing in his wounds the mocke Of seas he lyes and beat ' gainst every rocke No figure left of him t is note enough To know great Pompey that his head is off But fates ere Caesar on that shore arriue A suddaine funerall to Pompey giue Lest he in none or in a better tombe Should ly To th' shore did fearefull Codrus come Out of his lurking hole that was before Great Pompey's quaestors and from Cyprus shore Had follow'd him he by the shades of night Durst goe true loue had vanquisht terrour quite To find his slaughter'd Lord along the sand And through the waues to bring the trunke to land Faint light through dusky clouds sad Cynthia gaue But different colour'd from the foamy waue The trunke appeard which Codrus catching straight When the waues ebb'd but tired with the weight Expects their flow to helpe him and so bore The trunke to land and plac'd it on the shore Then falling downe bathing the wounds in teares Thus to the gods he speakes and clouded stars Fortune no costly pile with odours fill'd Thy Pompey craues nor that his hearse may yeild Precious Arabian fumes to fill the ayre Nor that the pious Roman neekes should beare Their countreys father forth nor to adorne A funerall pompe old tryumphs should be borne No funerall songs nor that his troopes the while March a dead march about their generalls pyle Great Pompey but a base Plebejan Beere That his torne limbs may carry to dry fire Let him not want wood and a burner though But meane and let it be ô gods enough That with loose haire Cornelia does not stand To take her last embrace and then command To fire the pile from this last funerall rite She is away yet hardly out of sight This said far off a little fire he kenn'd Burne a neglected herse watch'd by no friend Thither he goes and taking thence a part Of fire and halfe-burn'd stickes who ere thou art Neglected ghost deare to no friend quoth he But happier then great Pompey pardon me If any knowledge after death remaines That by a strangers hand thy hearse susteines This wrong I know thou yeild'st and castendure For Pompey's sake this losse of sepulture And art asham'd of funerall rites whilest he Lyes an vnburyed ghost Then speedily With his armes full of fire poore Codrus ran To find the trunke which to the shore againe The waues had beat then off the sand he wipes And gathering vp the ribs of broken ships He layes them in a ditch on no hew'n trees Or well built pyle the
death and wishing stormes she lyes They first arriv'd on Cyprus foamy shore From thence a milde Eastwinde commanding bore Their shipps to Catoes Libyan campe as still A doubtfull minde doe sad presages fill Cneius from shore spying his fathers traine And brother running to the sea amaine VVhere is our father brother speake quoth he Liues the worlds head and honour or are we Vndone and Pompey to the shades below Has borne Romes fate he answeres happy thou VVhom fate into another coast disperst Thou brother this dire mischeife only hear'st Mine eyes are guilty of a fathers death Nor did he loose by Caesars armes his breath Nor of his fall a worthy author found By the false tyrant of Niles impious ground Trusting the gods of hospitality And his owne bounty to old Ptolomey In recompence of kingdomes given he dy'd I saw them wound our noble fathers side And thinking Aegypts King durst not haue done So much I thought Caesar had stood vpon The shore of Nile But not our fathers wounds Nor blood so shed so much my heart confounds As that his head which mounted on a speare Aloft we saw they through their cyties beare Which as they say is kept for Caesars eye The tyrant seekes his guilt to testify For whether dogs or fowles devouring maw Consum'd his trunke or that small fire we saw Dissolved it by stealth I doe not know What ere injurious fate to that could doe I did forgiue the gods that crime and wept For that part only which the tyrant kept When Câ—â—ius heard these words his inward woe In passionate sighs and teares he could not show But thus inflam'd with pious rage gan speake Lanch forth the fleete sailers with speed and breake Through the crosse winds a passage with the oare Braue Captaines follow me never before Knew civill war more worthy ends then these T'interre vnbury'd Manes and appease Pompey with slaughter of th'effaeminate boy Why should not I th' Aegyptians towers destroy And from the temples Alexander take To drowne his hearse in Marcotis lake In Nile Amasis and those Kings with him Digg'd vp from their Pyramides shall swimme All tombes shall rue Pompey 's no sepulcher Isis their goddesse now I le disinter Osiris linnen-cover'd shrine disperse And kill god Aâ—is over Pompey's hearse Vpon a pyle of gods I le burne his head Thus shall the land by me be punished I will not leaue a man to till those fields Nor take the profit that Niles flowing yeilds The gods and people banished and gone Thou father shalt possesse Aegypt alone This said to lanch the fleete forth he assayes But Cato stills the young mans wrath with praise Now ore the shore when Pompey's death was knowne The sky was peirc'd with lamentation A greife not seene not pararell'd at all That common people mourne a great mans fall But when Cornelia quite exhaust with teares Was seene to land with torne dishevel'd haires Their troubled lamentations sounded more Cornelia landed on a friendly shore Gathering the garments and triumphall weedes Of haplesse Pompey that exprest his deedes And ancient trophes painted robes and sheild That thrice great Ioue in triumph had beheld Into the funerall fire she threw them all Such was her lords imagin'd funerall Example from her piety all take And funerall fires all ore the shore they make T' appease the ghosts slaine in Pharsalia So when the shepheards of Apulia Make winter fires on their baâ—e-eaten ground To spring their grasse againe a glistering round The Vulturs arms and high Garganus yeilds And hot Matinus bullocke-pasture fields But not more pleasing was 't to Pompey's spirit That all the people raile at heauen and twit The gods with Pompey then what Cato spoke Few words but from a truth-fill'd breast they broke A Roman's dead not like our ancestry To know the rule of right but good quoth he In this truth scorning age one powerfull growne Not wronging liberty the people prone To serue he only private still remain'd He sway'd the Senate but the Senate reign'd Nought claim'd he by the sword but wish'd what he VVish'd most the Senates freedome to deny Great wealth he had but to the publike hoord He brought far more then he retain'd the sword He tooke but knew the time to lay it downe Arm'd he lov'd peace though armes before the gowne He still prefer'd and ever pleas'd was he Entring or leaving his authority A chast vnriotted house and never stain'd VVith her Lords fortune to all lands remain'd His name renown'd which much availed Rome True liberty long since was gone when home Sylla and Marius came but Pompey dead Even freedomes shadow is quite vanished No Senates face no colour will remaine Of power none now will be asham'd to reigne Oh happy man whom death when conquer'd caught And Aegypts guilt swords to be wisht for brought Perchance thou could'st haue liv'd in Câ—sars state To know the way to dy is mans best fate His next to be compel'd and such to me If captiv'd now fortune let Iuba be Not to be kept to shew the enemy I doe not beg so headlesse kept I be More honour from these words the noble ghost Receiv'd then if the Roman barres should boast Hit praise Now mutinous the souldiers are Since Pompey's death growne weary of the war In which broiles Tarcho Catoes side to quit Tooke vp the colours who prepar'd for flight With all his ships was chid by Cato so Never reclaim'd Cilician wouldst thou goe To thy old theft at sea is Pompey slaine And thou return'd to Pyracy againe Then round about he on each man gan looke Mongst whom one boldly thus to Cato spoke Not hiding his intent 't was not the loue Of civill war but Pompey first did mooue Our armes execuse vs Cato we adhaer'd By favour now he whom the world preferr'd Before her peace is dead our cause is gone Now le ts returne to our left mansion Our houshold gods and children deare to see For what can civill wars conclusion be If not Pharsaliaes field nor Pompeys death Our time of life is spent now let vs breath Our last in peace let our old age provide Our funerall pyles which civill war deny'd Two greatest Captaines For no barbarous Or cruell yoke will fortune lav on vs. No Scythian nor Armenian tyranny The subjects of Romes gowned state are we He that was second Pompey being aliue Is first with vs the highest place we giue His sacred name He whom wars fortunes make Shall be our lord no generall wee 'll take Vnto the war we followed thee alone We 'll follow fate Pompey now thou art gone Nor haue we cause to hope for good successe Since Caesars fortune now doth all possesse Th' Aemathian strength is by his victory Dispers'd we loose his mercy only he Has power and will to spare the conquered Our civill war 's a crime now Pompey's dead 'T was duty while he liv'd If Cato thou Wilt serue thy countrey still le ts follow now
hand a shield of shinning brasse Wherein to see the stone transforming face Of sterne Medusa Pallas bad him keepe Then lay'd Medusa in an endlesse sleepe But yet not all part of her snaky haire Defends her head some snakes still waking are Some ore her face and sleeping eylids glide Minerva doth th'averted Perseus guide And with a trembling hand directs the stroake Of his Cyllenian Harpe which quite broke Her large snake-cover'd necke How strange a looke Had Gorgons head cut off by Perseus stroke And towring blade what poyson did arise In her blacke mouth what death shot from her eyes Which not Minerva durst to looke vpon And Perseus sure had bin congeal'd to stone Had not Minerva hid that dismall face With those snake-haires Now Perseus flyes a pace To heaven with Gorgons head but in his mind Considering how the nearest way to find Over the midst of Europe meanes to fly But Pallas straight forbids that injury To Europes fruitfull fields and bids him spare The people there for who can in the ayre Refraine to gaz when such a bird he spyes Perseus converts his course and Westward flyes Ore desert Libya whose vnfruitfull seat Vntill'd lyes ope to nought but Phaebus heat Who runs his burning course straight ore their heads No land then this a larger shadow spreads ' Gainst heaven nor more the moones ecclipse doth cause When straying not in latitude she drawes Neither to North nor South but still is found In signes direct· Yet this vnfruitfull ground Barren in all that 's good a seed could yeild From venome which Medusaes head distill'd From those dire drops mixt with the putrid earth Sols aiding heat did giue new monsters birth First from that dust so mixt with poyson bred Rose the sleep-causing Aspe with swelling head Made of the thickest drop of Gorgons gore Which in no serpent is compacted more She wanting heat seekes not a colder clime Content to liue in her owne Libyaes slime But oh how shamelesse is our thirst of gaine Those Libyan deaths are carryed ore the maine And Aspes at Rome are sold as marchandise In scaly folds the great Haemorrhus lyes Whose bite from all parts drawes the flowing blood Chersidros then that both in land and flood Of doubtfull Syrtes liues Chelydri too That make a reeking slime where ere they goe The Cenchris creeping in a tract direct Whose speckled belly with moe spots is dect Then ere the various Theban marble takes Sand-colour'd Ammodytes the horned snakes That creepe in winding tracks the Scytale No snake in winter casts her skin but she The double-head Dipsas that thirsty makes The water-spoyling Newte the dart-like snakes The Pareas whose way his tale doth guide The Prester too whose sting distendeth wide The wounded's foamy mouth the Seps whose bite Consumes the bones dissolues the body quite The Basiliske whose hisse all snakes doth scarre Hurtfull before the venome touch who far All vulgar serpents from his sight commands Reigning alone vpon the empty'd sands You dragons too glistring in golden pride Who hurtlesse wander through all lands beside Hot Affrik mortall makes aloft you fly Through the ayre on wings and follow speedily The heards your strokes the mightyest buls destroy Great Elephants not escape you all you kill Nor neede you poysons helpe to worke your will This thirsty way among these venom'd snakes Cato amidst his hardy souldiers takes Where many losses of his men he found And deaths vnusuall from a little wound A trodden Dipsas turning backe his head Did bite young Aulus Ensigne bearer bred Of Tyrrhene race no griefe nor paine ensew'd His wound no pity found no danger shew'd But in alas did fiery venome deepe Into his maâ—row and scorch'd entrailes creepe Which quite drunke vp all moisture that should flow Into his vitall parts his palate now And tongue is scorch'd and dry no sweate could goe To his tir'd joynts from 's eyes no teares could flow His place nor his sad generalls command Could stay this thirsty man out of his hand He throwes his Eagle water runs to haue Which the dry venome in his heart did craue Though he in midst of Tanais did ly Padus or Rodanus he would be dry Or drinke the streamer where ever Nilus flowes The soyle ads to his drought the worme doth loose Her venoms fame help'd by so hot a land He digs and seekes each veine in all the sand Now to the Syrts he goes and in his mouth Salt water takes which could not quench his drought Although it pleas'd He did not know what kinde Of death he dy'd nor his disease could finde But thinkes it thirst and now full faine he would Rip open all his veines and drinke his blood Cato commands them loath his men should stay To know what thirst was straight to march away But a more wofull death before his eye Appear'd A Seps no poore Sabellus thigh Hung by the teeth which he straight with his hands Cast off and with his pile nail'd to the sands A little snake but none more full then she Of horrid death the flesh falls off that nigh The wound did grow the bones are bared round Without the body naked shewes the wound His shankes fall off matter each members fills His knees are bar'd his groine blacke filth distills And every muscle of his thighes dissolues The skin that all his naturall parts involues Breaking lets fall his bowels nor doth all That should remaine of a dead body fall The cruell venome eating all the parts Alâ— to a little poisonous filth converts The poison breakes his nerues his ribs doth part Opens his hollow breast there shewes his heart His vitalls all yea all that man composes And his whole nature this foule death discloses His head necke shoulders and strong armes doe flow In venomous filth not sooner melts the snow By hot South windes nor waxe against the Sunne This is but small I speake burnt bodyes run Melted by fire in filth but what fire ere Dissolv'd the bones no bones of his appeare Following their putrid iuice they leaue no signe Of this swift death the palme is only thine Of all the Libyan snakes the soule take they But thou alone the carcasse tak'st away But lo a death quite contrary to it Marsian Nasidius an hot Prester bit Whose face and cheekes a suddaine fire did rost His flesh and skin was stretch'd his shape was lost His swelling body is distended far Past humane growth and vndistinguishd are His limmes all parts the poison doth confound And he lyes hid in his owne body drown'd Nor can his armour keepe his swolne growth in Not more doth boyling water rise within A brazen caldron nor are sailes more swell'd By Westerne windes No limme he now can weild A globe deform'd he is an heape confus'd Which ravening beasts did feare which birds refus'd To which his friends durst doe no obsequy Nor touch but from the growing carcasse fly But yet these snakes present more horrid sights A fierce Hamorrhus noble
now command As Pompey's once and by a faithfull hand To sterne Achillas this dire message send VVho shar'd with him in murder'd Pompey's end Whom the weake King against himselfe and all Trusts with a strength his forces generall Thou on thy downy bed securely snort Whilest Cleopatra hath surpris'd the court Pharos it not betray'd but given away Hast thou though all alone this match to stay Th' incestuous sister shall her brother wed Caesar already has enjoy'd her bed Twixt those two husbands Aegypt is her owne And Rome her hire for prostitution Haue Cleopatra's sorcerves beguild Old Caesars breast and shall we trust a childe Who if one night incestuously embrac'd The beastly pleasures of her bed he tast Cloath'd with the name of marriage twixt each kisse He giues my head and thine the gibbet is Our fortune if he finde his sister sweete Hâ—pe we no aide from any side to meete The King her husband her adulterer Caesar and we I grant both guilty are In Cleopatras sight where t will appeare Crime great enough that we are chast from her Now by that crime which we together did And lost and by the league we ratifi'd In Pompey's blood I pray be speedy here Fill on the suddaine all with war and feare Let blood breake off the marriage night and kill Our cruell Queene whose armes so ere she fill In bed to night Not feare we Caesars sate That which advanc'd him to this height of state The fall of Pompey was our glory too Behold the shore and learne what we can doe Our micheifes hope behold the bloody'd waue And in the dust great Pompey's little graue Scarse covering all his limms Hee whom we feare Was but his peere But we ignoble are In blood all one we stir no forreine state Nor King to aide but our owne prosperous fate To mischeife bring and still into our hands Fortune delivers them see ready stands Another nobler sacrifice then he This second blood appeases Italy The blood of Caesar will those staines remoue Which Pompey's murder stucke and make Rome loue Those hands she once thought guilty Feare not than His fame and strength hee 's but a private man His army absent This one night shall end The civill war and to whole nations send A sacrifice t' appease their ghosts bestow And pay the world that head which fates doe ow. Goe confidently then ' gainst Caesars throat For Ptolomey let Aegypts souldiers doo 't The Romans for themselues But stay not thou He 's high with wine and fit for Venus now Doe but attempt the gods on thee bestow Th' effect of Brutus and graue Catoes vow Achillas prone to follow such advise Drawes out his army straight in secret wise Without loud signalls given or trumpets noise Their armed strength he suddainely imployes The greatest part were Roman souldiers there But so degenerate and b chang'd they were With forreine discipline that voide of shame Vnder a barbarous slaues command they came Who should disdaine to serue proud Aegypts King No faith nor piety those hirelings bring That follow campes where greatest pay is had There 's greatest right for money they invade Not for their owne just quarrell Caesars throat Oh wickednesse within what land has not Our Empires wretched fate found civill war Those troopes remoov'd from Thessaly so far Rage Roman-like heere vpon Nilus shore What durst the house of Lagus venture more Had they receiv'd great Pompey but each hand Performes that office which the gods command Each Roman hand helpe to this war must lend The gods were so dispos'd Romes state to rend Nor now doth Caesars or great Pompey's loue Divide the people or their factions moue This civill war Achillas vndertakes A barbarous slaue a Roman faction makes And had not fates protected Caesars blood This side had won in time both ready stood The court in feasting drown'd did openly To any treason and then easily Might they haue tane at table Caesars head His blood amid'st the feasting gobblets shed But in the night tumultuous war they feare Promiscuous slaughter rul'd by chance lost there Their King might fall so confident they are Of their owne strength they hasten not but spare So great an actions opportunity Slaues thinke differring Caesars death to be A reparable losse Till day breake light His execution is put off One night To Caesars life Protinus power could giue Till Titan shew his rising face to liue Now on mount Casius Lucifer appear'd With hot though infant day had Aegypt chear'd When from the wall they veiw'd those troopes afar March on well ranck'd and marshall'd for a war Not in loose maniples but ready all To stand or giue a charge The city wall Caesar distrusts and shuts the pallace too So poore a seidge enforc'd to vndergoe Nor all the house can his small strength maintaine One little part great Caesar can containe Whilest his great thoughts both feare and anger beare He feares assaults and yet disdaines to feare So in small traps a noble Lyon caught Rages and bites his scorned goale with wrath So would fierce Vulcane rage could any stop Sicilian Aetnas fiery cavernes top He that in dire Pharsalian fields of late In a bad cause presum'd on prosperous fate And feared not the Senates hoast nor all The Roman Lords nor Pompey generall Fear'd a slaues war he heere assaulted tooke A house whom Sythians bold dust neere provoke Th' Alani fierce nor Mauritanians hot Which fast-bound strangers barbarously shoote He whom the Roman world could not suffice Nor all that twixt the Gades and India lyes Like a weake boy seekes lurking holes alone Or woman in a late surprised towne Nor hopes for safety but in keeping close And through each roome with steps vncertaine goes But not without the King him he retaines About his person still his life he meanes Shall the revenge and expiation be Of his owne fate thy head ô Ptolomey He meanes to throw for want of darts or fire Against thy servants as Medea dire VVhen her pursuing Sires revenge she fled Stood arm'd against her little brothers head To stay her Sire But desperate fate so nigh Enforced Caesar tearmes of peace to try A courtier from the absent King is sent To checke his men and know this wars entent But there the law of Nations could obtaine No power their Kings Embassadour is slaine Treating of peace to adde one horrid crime O monstrous Aegypt to thy impious clime Impious Pharnaces Pontus Thessaly Nor Spaine nor Iubaes far-spread monarchy Nor barbarous Syrtis durst attempt to doe VVhat heere â—ffaeminate Aegypt reaches too The war on every side growes dangerous And showres of falling darts even shake the house No battring ram had they to force the wall Nor any engine fit for war at all Nor vs'd they fire the skillesse people run Through the vast pallace scatter'd vp and downe And vse their joyned strength no where at all The fates forbid and fortune's Caesars wall But where the gorgeous pallace