not have you oppose the Emperor I will not have you acquire the Senats hatred I will not have you irritate the People against you I will not have you endeavour to make the Legions Rebel I will not have you refuse the fair Arricidea who I know is appointed for you I will not I say have you lose the Empire for love of me On the contrare I counsel and conjure you to obey the Emperor to follow the Senats advice to content the humours of the people to keep your legiones to make new conquests to receive on the Throne the too happy Arricidea and preserve the Empire which Fate promises and birth gives you But when to my prejudice you have satisfied all the World be so just as to remember that Berenicea should by your only passion If I obtain this favour from you I shall depart with some pleasure Maugre all my sorrows so far from making imprecationes against my Enemies I shall make Vowes for their felicity as I shall doe for your preservation May you then O Titus gain so many Victories as you give Battles May you Reign over your people with as much Authority as clemency May you be feared of all the Earth May you have so much Glorie 〈◊〉 you merit May your Reign be as happy as I am unfortunate In fine may you doe so many brave actions both by your excellent Vallour and rare goodness That by consent of all Nations you may one day be called The love and delight of mankind THE EFFECT OF THIS HARRANGUE THese wishes were too passionate no to be èxâ—â—ushed Titus Was as great and as much beloved as Berenicia did wish And if the since of Historie deceive me not she was his last passion according to her desires So that it may be said that she obtained all that she asked though she parted from Râ—me and abandoned Titus PANTHEA TO CYRUS THE NINTH HARRANGUE ARGUMENT PAnthea Queen of Susania being taken prisoner of War by the great Cyrus was favourablie treated in acknowledgement of which courtesie she obliedged Abdradates her Hushand to for sake the Lydeane partie and joyn his Armes with those of this invincible Conqueror But that mightie man of War to signalise his gratitude and courage asked permission from Cyrus to fight in the advance guards in the day of Battle That glorious favour being granted to him he did prodigious things and so little spared himself that he gained the Battle and loft his life His body was brought back all covered with wounds to â—he inconsolable Panthia And Cyrus having gone to comfort her or rather to hear a part of her affliction for a loss equal to them both this sorrowâ—â—ll Princess spoke to him in these words PANTHEA TO CYRUS YOu see O Great aâ—â— Generous Cyrus what the Victorie hath cost you Abdradates hath been the Victime which has made the Gods Propitious to you His Bloud hath dyed the Laurels which are wreathed about your head He is dead in Crowning of you And to speak trulie of the matter Cyrus and Panthea are rather the cause of his death then the Lydeans Valor Yes Cyrus your Generositie his gratitude and mine have put him in the deplorable condition that he is in You see him all covered with his own bloud and with that of your enemies The great manie wounds he hath received over all his bodie are certaine proof of what he gave to them who fought him His mightie Courage changed that of the Aegyptians into despair And that Illustrious hand which they have almost separated from his arm alace what an object to Panthea makes it sufficientlie seen that he quitted not his armes but by quitting his life He was seen Generous Cyrus fight with such Ardencie that it was said that the gaining of that Battle ought to put the Crown of the World upon his head He hath retributed the obligations I had from you with his person his blood and his life And in this manner O invincible Cyrus as I have told you alreadie your Generositie his Gratitude and mine have caused his death and my miserie However I do not accuse you I am too just to do that On the contrate I thank you kindlie for offering your assistance to comfor me I praise in you O Cyrus that Generous sentiment which makes your shed tears the verie day of your Victorie And which makes you greive more for the death of your freind then rejoice for the gaining of the Battle and defaiting all your enemies But after I have done your Vertue this justice suffer me without either accusing you or repenting me to complain of the rig our of my fate which owing the preservation of my honour to you would oblidge me my self to expose my dear Abdradates to a fight where multitudes made him Succumb It was onlie for the love of me that he abandoned Cresus forces For though he had just enough cause not to serve him the memorie of the dead King his Father who loved him dearlie made him not abandone the Son though less Vertuous But I no sooner made my obligations from you known to him then he freelie offered to acquitt me with you for so sensible an obligation Your fame had formerlie disposed his heart to consent to what I asked And having alreadie esteemed you infinitlie it was easie for him to love you In fine Cyrus you know he testified at that time great Gratitude to you and great love to me No said he to me Generous Panthea Abdradates cannot be your Protectors enemie He hath dried up your tears and I must spend my blood in his service he hath been carefull of your glorie and my Valour must increase his He hath lost a man whom he verie much loved by Protecting you I ought to repaire that loss And if it be possible not let it be perceived in the day of Battle that Araspes is not there Yes said he to me a loud I shall loss my life or I shall testifie to Cyrus that they who receive benefits as they ought are some times as generous as they who give them Wo is me Must I tell it I never gain-said this discourse And without apprehending any fatall Event from so Noble an Intention I praised his resolution and designe I thanked him for that which was to become the cause of my supream misfortune contributing to my own unhappiness I excited his courage to do thins which have caused his death to day And yet which will make him live Eternallie O cruell Remembrance O injustice of Fortune of all the Conquerours why should Abdradates onlie been overcome And having so profitably shed his blood for gaining of the Battle why should he almost have been the onlie one who enjoyed not the Fruits of the Victorie But it was not in this encounter alone that I contributed to my own Disaster So great was my blindness that I expected that fatall day like a day of Triumph My spirit was filled with nothing but hope My
of all others And though my eyes had sometimes gained famous Victories and could have counted among their Captives Caesares and Halph gods Yet I trusted not to their Charmes I suspected my beautie at that time I thought it had not force enough to conquer you And as you was the most Magnificent of all men I did not wish that love should take possession of your heart but by Magnificencie And that the day of its Prâ—sall should seem rather to be a day of Triumph then of Battle I desired to dasle your eyes then by the beautie of my Armes for if you remember My dear Anthonie the first day that I say you I shinned in a ship whose Poupe was all of Gold the sails Purpell and the oares Silver which by their Equall Cadence imitated the sound of diverse instruments concording together I was under a Pavilion or wrought Gold and knowing your Birth was divine because you are descended of Hercules you are not ignorant that I had a Vesture like that which is given to Venus All my Women were Splendidlie Cloathed as Nymphes and a hundred Cupidons round about me Were also an effect of the desire I had to overcome you For in fine My dear Anthony that little Armour was only made against you It was not then without design that I overcame you I employed all things to that end And nothing that Beautie Skill or Magnificencie could do was fogot at that time I know verie well it is imprudence to speak to you of all those things in a time so differing from the felicitie of that but that day was so gloâ—ious to me that I can never loss the memorie of it And moreover to speak Rationallie that Remembrance is not unprofitable for my Vindication For to think any way that I my self would loss my conquests such thoughts never entered in the minde of any Conquerour Certainlie Alexander would have rather chosen to loss Macedonia then Persia That Kingdom was his Fathers Estate But this was truelie his own And by the same Reason I would have rather lost my self then lost you You know also if I be not mistaken that I was no severe Conqueress the Chains I gave you were of no weight my Lawes had nothing of Rudness in them and in the manner I used you it had been hard to know who was Victorious Since that what have I done Anthonie to make me be suspected It is true I forgot my own Glorie but it was for love of you Yes I have suffered my self to be opprobriated in Rome and although the pride of your Country that treats all strangers like Barbarians and all Queens like slaves hindered me from being your Wife the affection which I have for your Person is so strong that I have not left off to be yours Yes Anthonie I loved you more then my honor and more then my life I thought it could not be unjust to love a man worthie of being ranked among the gods And that the Passion which I had in my Soul had so noble a cause that it would render me excusable so that without considering what misfortuns were prepared for me I have most constantlie loued you ever since the fâ—â—st day that I gave you my promise Judge from that if I had power to betray you or to speak better if I would betray my self It is true I fled but generous Anthonie if I took the flight it was for love of you I slighted the Victorie to preserve your life And your person was dearer to me then your glorie or my own I Well see that this Discourse Astonishes and surprises you But for your comprehension permit me to tell what condition my Soul was in when in the midest of the Fight I saw you all covered with Darts and Flams The death which I saw in so manie places made me apprehensive of yours all the Enemies Javelines seemed by me to address themselves against you And in the manner that my imagination represented the affair to me I thought all Cesars Armie desired to fight none but Anthonie I manie times fancied that I saw you dragged by force into the enemies vessalls or fall dead at their feet And although those who were round about me assured me that I was deceived by my eyes and that the Victorie was still uncertain What did I not say in those fatal moments And what grief did I not feel Ah! my dear Anthonie did you but know the sorrows of a Soul that sees the Person beloved everie minute in hazard of dying you would find it the most terrible torment thar can ever be indured My heart received all the blows which were aimed at you I was captive everie time I thought you so and death it self hath nothing so rude as what I suffered at that time In that deplorable condition I found no remedie for my grief and my imagination using greater Ingenuitie for my Persecution after having perswaded me that all the enemies desired your death immediatlie perswaded me that they resolved to preserve your life thereby to make themselves Masters of your libertie The first thought did certainlie give me a little ease But the image of Cesars Triumph presenting it self all at once to me I relapsed into my former despaire It was not my dear Anthonie that I believed you capable of following a Conquerours Charriot But I thought that to shune that supream misfortune you would have recourse to death So that whatever way it was I alwayes found my self equallie unhappie I bethought me of what poison I should choice that I might follow you And there is no fatall Resolution which past not in my minde I thought more then twentie times to cast my self into the Sea to free me from the agonie I was in Yet because I could not die with out forsaking you I could not pursue that design But coming of a sudden to consider the strong Passion which you alwaies testified to me I thought if you should see me abandon the armie you would also forsake it by that found I the meanes of preserving your life and libertie together For said I to my self after framing that Resolution Cesar doth not seek Victorie so much as the life or libertie of Anthonie And upon condition that he have neither the one nor the other I shall be glad to loss the Battle In fine my dear Anthonie I did what my affection and despair councelled me to do And you did what I expected from your love I had no sooner seen you quit your Ship and take a Galley to follow me but my heart was seaâ—ed with a Surprisall of Joy Me thought it was I gained the Battle because I preserved you And beginning to think that Cesar would be content to exchange his for forâ—â—â—e for mine I was partlie comforted of all my disgraceâ— But that which yeelded me most satisfaction in that 〈◊〉 day was to see Anthonie capable of preferring Cleopatra to the desire of conquering his enemies that he loved
What object to my eyes And what grief to my soul It is so great that I wonder it hath not alreadie deprived me of all sorrow everie thing I see Torments me and everie thing I think of makes me dispair for Cyrus when the unlawful passion of Araspes gave me cause to complain If I had then had my recourse to Death I had preserved Abdradates his life I had secured my honor And you should not have had cause to accuse a man who was beloved of you I should have altogether satisfied my husband my own glory and the great Cyrus I owed him that respect not to have complained of his favorite and if I had been rationall death should have hindred my complaints then And my tears to day But fate had otherwise resolved it Would t the Gods in so sad as adventure that as Abdradates showed himself a husband worthie of Panthea and worthy of Cyrus his friendship I may also manifest to posterity that Panthea was a wife worthy of Abdradates And that she was not unworthie of Cyrus his protection I well perceive O excellent Prince by the many sacrifices that are prepared and by the magnificent ornaments That are brought to me upon your account That you design to make the obsequies of my dear Abdradates such as are suitable to this Illustrious Conqueror But because his Glorie is the onlie thing that I ought to care most for O great Cyrus let Posteritie know by a Glorious Monument and by true Inscriptions what Abdradates was Eternise altogether your glorie his and my unhappiness The Gold and the Marble which you will make use of in it will not be unprofitable to you And the Tomb which you cause build to Immortalise Abdradates shall make your self immortall There are more People who can do a brave action then give account of it themselves Who can acknowledge and publish it as it ought to be Have not that Jealousie which Glorie gives to the most Illustrious And believe that if You take care of that of Abdradates the Gods will also take care of yours The blood which he has lost for you merits me thinks this gratitude Nor shall I doubt my obtaining what I desire of you I see that you consent to me And that I have no sooner thought of my request but your goodness oblidges me to thank you However I have another yet to ask of you It is O Illustrious Cyrus that without hastening the doolfull Pomp of my dear Abdradates I may be yet suffered a while to wash his wounds with my tears All the Victims that are necessare for appeasing his Ghost are not yet in that order they should be O Cyrus let them not then be pressed I shall not make them wait long my last fare-wells shall be quicklie said And moreover it is verie just that since he died for me I shed so manie tears as he did drops of blood And since I ought to see him no more in this World I may enjoy the sight of him so long as it is possible for me Yes Cyrus that lamentable and most pittifull object is the onlie good I have remaining It is both my despare and comfort I cannot see it without dying and perhaps I shall die how soon I am deprived of seeing it any more Wherefore I 〈◊〉 you that I be not pressed And because you â—â—tyed me to tell you into what place I would go I promise to you that you shall quickly know the place that I shall choose for my retirement THE EFFECT OF THIS HARRANGUE ALace This beautifull and sad Queen was but too true For scarcelie had she deceived Cyrus by making him believe that she was capable to live after the death of Abdradates And that Generous deceipt was the issue of her Harrangue but she choose her retiring place I mean her husbands Tomb. I say Cyrus was not well gone from her but she plunged a Poiniard in her heart and expired upon the dead body of Abdradates This Generous monarch was incredibly greived And to eternise the memorie of these two rare persons and his own gratitude with them He builded for them a Glorious Monument Where manie ages after his the Marble and the Brass declared the Vertues of Panthea and the Valor of Abdradates And the River Pactose which is there represented upon whose banks this Tom was builded seems to tell that she esteems their Reliques more precious then all the Gold that rolles on her sands AMALASONTHA TO THEODATES THE TENTH HARRANGUE ARGUMENT A Malasontha daughter of Theodorick the great Reigned after the death of Eutharick her Husband eight years in Italie with a marvollous Splendor dureing the minority of Athalarick her Son But this young Prince being dead whither it was that she would discharge her self partlie of state affairs Or that she believed the Goths were desirous of a King She placed upon the Throne Theodates Son of Amalfreda Sister to Theodorick her Father Yet with intention to partake of the Soveraign Authoritie with him But this ungrate man had the Scepter no sooner in his hand then he banished this great Princess Who immediatly upon her departure did express her self in these words AMALASONTHA TO THEODATES HAve you forgot Theodates which way you was conducted to the Throne Have you forgot how you received that Crown which you carrie Have you forgot of whom you hold that Scepter which I see in your hands And that absolute power which I so cruellie have triall of to day Did it come to you by your Valor Was it given you by the Laws of this Kingdome Or by the depopulation of all the Goths Have you conquered that great Extent of Earth which acknowledges your Authoritie Are you either Conqueror Usurper or Legittimate King Answer everie thing Theodates Or at least let me answer for you Because if I be not deceived you cannot make it for your advantage And I am more indulgent then to oblidge you to tell anie thing that would be irkesome to you They who desire not to acknowledge a benefit can have no greater punishment then to be forced to publish it Wherefore I will not constrain you to avouch from your own mouth that neither by right of Birth nor of a Conquerour nor by that of our Lawes could you while I am alive have anie pretensions to the Kingdom of the Gothes Because I was in possession of it as Daughter Wife and Mother of them whose in was And who left it to me after them as their lawfull Heiress Nor are you ignorant that you are born my Subject And that you would have still been so If by a verie extraordinare goodness I had not descended from the Throne to conduct you to it However after I had taken the Crown from off my own head to give it you After I had deposited my Scepter in your hands and was resolved to make a King of your Person After all that it was seen that I had much ado to make the Gothes obey you
On the contrare he said he searched to be instructed of his faults that he might amend them Behold Romans what Germanicus was His Soul was whollie Noble and Generous And under whatsoever form death did present it self he looked upon it with a fixed countenance he hath seen tempest disperse his armie and drive his ship against the rocks without having anie other fear then that of seeing the Roman Legions perish He has beenseen after ship-wrack repay to all the Souldiers who escaped what the storme had made them loss He was seen while he livedserve his greatest enemies And that which is morestrange and more mervalous he is dead without having said anie thing against the chief of the conspiracie that was done against his life And he is contented with having prayed his friends to cause punish the complices Me thinks Romans that it is the least thing can be granted to the Ashes of Anthonies Nephew of Augustus his grand-son and of Agrippinaes husband yes Romans if Tiberius were chief of that conspiration which none among you dare say that it be by his order that Germanicus is put to death Being a great Politician as he is he ought alwaies to put the complices of his crime to death Piso and Plancina should be sacrificed to Germanicus though it should be but for to hinder them from speaking and to dry up your tears their blood ought to be shed All they who concern themselves with doing of horrid Villanies have alwaies used to let the executioners of their wicked designs be lost to the end that they be not suspected Piso hath alreadie had the audacity to say to Marsus Vibius by an insolent rallerie that seems to be like a person whom I name not because I have more respect then he that he would come to Rome to justifie the death of Germanicus when the Praetor informed of the poisons had summoned there all the criminals and all the accusers Yes Romans I tell you again that whatsoever way Germanicus was put to death Piso should die And I have so much hope from the prudence of Tiberius that I doubt not but Piso shall die And that in some manner the death of Germanicus will be revenged But to obtain this satisfaction employ your tears and prayers Let the name of Germanicus be heared over all Do not enclose your sorrow in the tomb of Augustus with those pittifull Reliques which we are carieing to it Follow me Romans Let us go to the Senat and demand justice for Germanicus Let us represent that it will be disgracefull to it not to revenge the death of a man for whom Triumphant Arches were erected Who was seen enter Rome in a Triumphant Chariot And who past among all Nations and among the Barbarians themselves for the most accomplished among mortals Let us not use charmes nor enchantments for destroying our enemies as they have done to destroy Germanicus Let us not revenge his death by the same armes which caused it let us trust to the justice of the Gods to the prudence of Tiberius and to the Senats authoritie The justice that we desire cannot be refused to us You Souldiers who have followed him ask the blood of Piso to revenge the death of your Captain Recount to the Senate the perills wherein you did accompanie him show the wounds you received in the fights where he was Tell truelie the things which you was witnesses of And in fine desire that the death of the Father of his Legions and your Generall may be revenged You generous Citizens who hear me desire boldlie that the death of Germanicus may be revenged Remember what he was Remember his vertue his modestie his goodness his courage his liberalitie and his moderation Say that he was the Modell by which you hoped to regulate the lives of your children to hinder them from following the perniciousexamples which they see everie day Tel that you have lost your Supporter and your upholder And desire at least that they may revenge on the person of the treacherous Piso him who is taken from you in fine who ever you be that hears my voice employ yours in asking this equitable vengeance Echo over all the names of Julius Cesar of Anthonie of Marcellus and of Augustus thereby to obtain what you desire Speak of Tombs of Urnes and of Ashes to excit compassion in the most cruel heart Joyn also some menaces with prayers if they be unprositable And forget nothing of all that can cause Piso his death comfort Agrippina and â—â—venge Germanicus THE EFFECT OF THIS HARRANGUE THis Harrangue failed not of an advantageous Effect all the Senate and all the Roma People were sensibly touched with it The one and the other shed tears breathed complaints and abandoned themselves to forrow And it was said that all the glorie of Rome entered the Tomb with the Ashes of Germanicus Everie on called Agrippina the honour of her countrey the blood of Augustus the onlie and last example of the ancient Roman Vertue And everie one prayed the Gods that they would preserve her Race and make her live beyond and after the intire ruine of these wicked men In fine the publick zeal was so arduous for Germanicus and for Agrippina that Tiberius was constrained to abandone â—iso to the rigour of justice But he prevented his judgement by the wound of a sword which he gave himself in the throat and whereof he instantly dyed SAPHO TO ERINNA THE TWENTIETH HARRANGUE ARGUMENT YOw are to hear that Illusticus Woman speak of whom all ages have said so much Whom Plato himself admired whose image was engraven like that of a great Prince of whom we have yet remaining a species of Poesie whose verses are called Saphick because it was she who invented their measure and whom two great men of Antiquity a Grecian and a Roman called the tenth Muse I cause her take occasion to exhort her freind to make verses as she did thereby to make it appear that Ladies are sapable of it And that they wrong themselves by neglecting such an agreealâ— occupation It is the Argument of this Harrangue that I give in particular to the glorie of this fair Sex as in generall I have given all this Volumn SAPHO TO ERINNA I Must Erinnae I must this day overcome in your mynd that disttrust of your self and thatfalse shame that hinders you from employing yourmind with things which it is Capable of But before I speak to you particularlie of your merit I must let you see that of our Sex in general that by the knowledge thereof I may the more easily bring you to what I would They who say that beauty is the portion of women And thatfine arts good learning and all the sublime and eminent sciences are of the domination of men without our having power to pretend to any part of them Are equallie differing from justice and vertue If it were so all women would be born with beautie and â—ll men with a strong disposition
which come 〈…〉 never been It belongs then to you 〈…〉 〈◊〉 to give more sollid foundations to this structure It is you must animat these Marbles by magnificent Inscriptions It is you must revive Mausole it is you must make me live Eternally although I feel my Death verie near approaching I desire not Socrates that you make Elogies of Busire or that you give praises to Helen as you have done at other times I give you a more easie and more Illustrious Subject the vertues of Mausole and the lawfull love of Artemisa are a more Noble subject then the inhumanity of Busire or the slightness of Helen your Eloquence shall have no crime to disguise All the craft that Rhotorick teaches for Imposing of Fables rendering them seemingly true will but serve you to perswade to truth and without Printing any thing of Sophistes it shal suffice that you writ as an Orator as a Philosopher and as a Historian together Eloquence that rare priviledge which the gods have bestowed on men as a raie of their divinity should never be employed but for protecting innocencie or eternising vertue They who have made a godess of perswasion have not designed to render it a slave to the Capricioes of men and doubtless they know as well as I that Eloquence is a gift of Heaven which none ought to prophane the power it has of excitâ—ing or appeasing the 〈◊〉 violent passions of softening the hardest hearts of perswading the most incredulous of forcing the most obstinate of constraining even to our will and of 〈◊〉 us in opposition to our selves by quitting our 〈◊〉 opinions to follow these of others all these advantages I say have not been given him to serve himself with injustice On the contrary it is that which the gods have chosen to make the World see vertue as lovely as it is and to cause it every day make new conquests It is by possessing of it that men acquire Immortality by making others immortall It is it which in â—ight of Time and change of Things preserves the meâ—â—oâ—ie of brave actions It is it which maugre the destruction of Kingdoms and Empires does perpetuate the 〈…〉 of Kings and Emperours and when their â—â—tie 〈◊〉 are no more in their Tombs when their Paâ—ces are destroyed their most famous Towns desolated 〈◊〉 their verie Kingdoms have changed their Names 〈◊〉 the whole Earth see an image of their vertuâ—â— Yea many ages after their death they have lived among men they have still Friends and Subjects they are consulted for the Government of their lives their good qualities are imitated they have new Elogies made them envie finishes not their Glory they get all the Praises the merit there if so great veneration had for them that People go not to the places where they dwelt without some kind of fear and if there yet remain any old Ruines of their Buildings some do's respect that in them which time did not regaird they look upon them with pleasure and prefers them to all the Magnificence of the Modernes and the Limners also adorn their Tablets with their Illustrous Ruines and with eternising their memories After all this wonder not Socrates that I so passionately desire your Eloquence to make a Panegirick for my dear lord I know in what esteem it was through all Greece and I certainly foresee that Ages to come will render it Justice All the writtings that bear the Name of Socrates or of Theopompus shall be reverenced by time by fortune and by all men They shall pass among all Nations and in all Ages without having anie wrong done to them and shall carrie winâ— them the reputation of them whom they speak of Also there may be Famous Persons found who by the esteem they have of your work will make you speak of Languages which have not yet been invented who by the brightness of your Glory will believe they add sorn thing to their own by publishing of them Speak then 〈◊〉 speak then Socrates to the end that all men may speak after you But do not think that there are any thoughts of vanitiâ— mingled with the Prayer that I make to you No Socrates I will not have you search in my Person not Life whereof to me a Magnificent Elogie I will not have you speak of my Noble Birth I will not that you tell I was Born with the Crown of Hallicarnassus I will not have you tell that though a Woman I did know the the Act of Soveraigne Reigning I will not that you acquant Posterity with the Extraordinarie Esteem the great Xerxes had of me I will not have you tell that â— made a Voayage into Greece with him I will not have you make known that I had the first Place in his Coâ—◠〈◊〉 and that mine was ever followed I will not 〈◊〉 you speak of the Exploits I did in that War nor 〈◊〉 exceeding Price which the Athenians promised to any that would deliver me into their hands Only I Will have you tell that Artemisa was Queen of Caria Because she Married Mausole who was King of it That Artemisa above all Vertues did ever love that which is most Necessarie to her Sex That Artemisa never had any other Passion But that of perfectly loving Her Husband that Artemisa after losing him lost all desire of Life and in fine that Artemisa after that Misfortune had no other care but the Celebrating of his Memory But after you have said all those things and praised Mausole as much as he Merited after I say you have painted out my Grief or to speak better my despair as great as it is forget not to declaire to Posterity that after I hade Builded the most Sumptuous Monument that never was seen I could not find one Urne that I belived worthie to enclose his Ashes Cristall Alabaster and all the Precious Stones which Nature produces cannot me thinks abundantly testifie my affection It must needs be Noble and Liberall to give him an Urne of Gold covered with Diamonds but to give him the Heart for an Urne it must be Artemisa There it is Socrates where I shut up the Ashes of my dear lord there it is Theopompus where I lay to rest his dear Reliques waiting impatiently till his Tomb be in condition to receive the Urne a live which I have given him It is truely my Heart should serve for an Urne to the Ashes of my dear Mausole Me thinks I give them a new life by putting them there and again me thinks they Communicat that mortall coldness to me which I feel in them Moreover it is very just that since Mausole was alwayes in my heart while he lived he should also be there after his death May be if I had put his Ashes in this Urue of Gold all coverd with Jewels may be I say some unjust Conquerour should come to open his Tomb and with a Prophane and Sacralegious hand take away the Urne and cast his Ashes with the Wind and separate mine from
those of Mausole But as I use them we shall be inseparable There is no Tyrrant can trouble my rest because none â—an divide me from my dear lord Behold Socrates what I will have you say of me But for my dear lord forget nothing that may be Glorious to him nor any thing that was Effectually in him Tell that he was feared of his Enemies beloved of his Subjects and in Veneration among the Princes his Neighbours Speak of the great qualities of his Soul as well as of the favours he received from Nature Praise his Valior in War his Sweetness in peace and his Equity and Meekto all the World In fine from the Idea of an accomplished Prince and you shall make the true Picture of Mausole Yet after you have said all things of this Noble Husband Speak zealously of the love he had for me and of that which I had alwayes for him â—aint this passion as strong as pure and as faithfull as it is undeceive these who believe that Crym is the nourisher of Love and who thinks that a Lawfull passion can be neither fervent long or agreeable Let them see that Mausole and I give an exemple which destroyes their Experience and all their Reasons Because as our Love had alwayes much Innocency it did not forbear to have great Zeal in lasting even to death and being infinitly agreeable to us Speak then with the Elogie of that holie Tie which forces two Vertuous Persons to Love each Other Eternally And if possible make haste to satisfie me Employ also your Eloquence toperswade them who work at the Tomb of Mausole to make as great dispatch as they possiblie can in advancing their work for mine begins to be finished The few ashes that remain of my dear Mausole will be quickly consumed and that once done I have no more to do in the World all that is on the Earth can no more touch my Spirit I am insensible of all things but grief and the only desires of my Soul are to be Re-united to my dear Mausole and to know certainly that you take care of his Glorie your own should oblidge you to this compassion should carrie you forward in it and if it be permitted to propose other recompences to Philosophers then the sole desire of well doing consider what the expences are that I am at for Building of this Magnificent Tomb and judge from thence that she who spends so much of her Treasures upon dumb Marbles will not be ingrate when you speak to the Glory of her dear Mausole But whatsoever diligence you make to satisfie me nor the Architectures nor you shall so soon make an end of your work as I shall finish mine and if I be not mistaken I shall dyâ— soon enough to permit you to Illustrat the Panegorâ—â— of Mausole with the death of his Arteâ—â—isa THE EFFECT OF THIS HARRANGUE THis Vertuous QUEEN obtained her wish Socrates and Theopompus did speak of her dear Mausole but in so advant ageous terms that some-have acoused them of flatterie for her Money As for her it was not without reason that she pressed the Builders for this Sumptuous Monument was scarce finished before she had her Place in it They who did begin this Mervellous work left it not unfinished It was of a long time one of the wonders of the World and Her Glory which had more sollid foundations then it continuous yet in the Memory of Men with that of Mausole and the Illustruous Artemisa MARIAMNE TO HEROD THE SECOND HARRANGUE ARGUMENT FEw are Ignorant that Herod put his Wife to death but all do not know what She said in her defence the two Historians who writ of her One was not in her time and the other was a Flatterer of Her Husband So that it belongs to us to try the Truth in the Ignorance of the one Malice of the other for me I acknowledge I am ranked in Mariamnes party and whither it be by Pittie or Reason whither I say her beauty hath blinded or her Innocency made me clear sighted I cannot believe that a Princess descended from the Macabees Illustrous Bloud had put a blemish on her Reputation But I will rather love to believe that Herod was still Herod I would say an unjust and bloody man Behold then the Apologie of this unfortunat Beauty who hath more Excellencie in her mouth then is in mine Hear her then speak I Conjure you and remark in her Noble Pride the true Caralter of Maâ—iamnes Humor MARIAMNE TO HEROD IT is neither fear of death nor desire of life that makes me speak to day and were I but assure that posterity would do me justice when I shall be no more I my self would help my Accusers and Enemies I would look upon the last of my dayes as the first of my happinesse and would wait the hour of my Death with so great Constancie that it should render these who Persecute me confused But since they would as much against my vertue as my life it were great Coward liness to indure a Calumny without repelling it Innocencie and Glory are two such precious Jewels that all things should be done to preserve them Suffer then my lord if it be suitable for the Grand-Daughter of Hircane to call you so that to let you see the purity of my Soul I recall to your Memorie what you are and what I am to the end that Comparing my past Actions with the Accusations which are now made against me you may some way prepare your Spirit to believe these truths which I ought to tell it Doubtless you have not forgot that I am come of that famous Race which for many Ages by past hath given Kings to Judea That all my Predecessores did Justly hold that Scepter which you have that by their Birth right they carried the Crown which Fortune hath put upon your Head and that if things had been according to ordinar Order so far from being my Judge I might have reckoned you in the Number of my Subjects and lawfullie taken that power of you which you Usurpe over me However as this high birth oblidged me to a not common Vertue Hircane did no sooner command me to be your Wife knowing thâ—â— obedience I owed him without considering the in-equality that was betwixt us I received you for my husband and although that my inclinations thanks to Heaven were quit contrate to yours you know in what manner I have lived with you and if you had need to expect more Complacency and more Testimony of Affection from me when your very Alliance was as Honourable to me as mine was Glorious to you Since that my lord even to the death of Hircan what have I done what have I said what have I thought against you Nothing but that I could not rejoyce in your Victories because they were fatall to my Relations and again because I had a heart as great as the Nobleness of my Birth I could not step upon the Thâ— one of
behold all the Testimonies of good wil that he has got from me no bodie sales that we have had too private correspondence together No bodie saies he hath come often to my appartments and in fine I have done nothing for him but what his most cruel enemie might have done if they had known the same thing surlie I should have rewarded him ill to treat him thus You say also that hatred and vengeance caused me to favour Joseph after having known your design but know that great Spirits never fail by example The erimes of others gives them so much horrour that they are never more stronglic confirmed in good then when they see evil committed and for me I think I should have been less innocent if you had been less unjust In fine for conclusiones if Mariamne descended from so manie Illusturous Kings had desired to give her affection to any it should not have been to the husband of Salome nor to the favorite of Herod And if for the punishing of others crimes she had been capable she had not caused him be put to death whom she believed would preserve her life You know too well what was my wonder when after the discourse which I made to you I knew by your answer all was true I was so surprised that I almost lost my speech Nevertheless I did not foresee the Accusation which is this day made against me And the onlie knowledge of your crime and of Josephs innocencie whom I exposed to your cruelties caused all my grief Since that Salome improving that misfortune for my Ruine as she designed long agoe hath doubtless perswaded you that I would attempt your life and behold the onlie crime wherein there can be a witness found against me but if I be not deceived she does more justifie then convict me For what liklie-hood is there that in a design of this Importance I should have trusted a man of so low condition And what seeming truth is there if it were true that I had correspondence with Joseph but that it was â—â—ther he then I made this proposition Used I to 〈◊〉 with such Persons Hath this man come to my Appartment Have I set him beside you Is he come of my Familie Is he a Relation to any of My Officers In what place have I spoken to him in what manner have I suborned him Let him show the Jewels that I have given him Make him let the money be seen that he has gotten for so great a design For it is not Rationall to think that upon simple hope he would undertake the hazard of his life It may be he will answer that since he had no design to do the deed but on the contrare to adverise you he did not think of a reward But I can say to that impostore that not to give me reason of suspecting him he alwayes accepted what I offered to him And that also not having spoken and not being able to show is a strong and convincing perswasion of his lie for in fine Gold is the Complice of all Crimes and Hope is the onlie Portion of great Spirits But for the Base and Mercenarie they must be moved by the sight of a certain reward otherwaies that sort of People will not serve you And too manie Examples of your Reign should have taught you what I say Yet though it be true that it cannot be made appear that either I or mine have had anie dealing with that man it is not so of Salome your heart and my enemie It is a long time since my Women foretold me of it that contrarie to the Custome and Decorum of the qualitie she keeps to day he often went to entertain her even in her Closer However because I could never stoop to take notice of such things and by excess of vertue did not easilie suspect others I heard that Discourse without making anie Restection upon it But if you would oblidge them to give account of so manie Conversations as they had together I am assured that you would not find them answer you punctuallie And moreover in what place have I taken poison who prepared it from whence caused I bring it And wherefore if I had such intentiones was it necessar to have emploied that man was is not easie for me when we have eat so manie times together to have poisoned you with my own hand without trusting 〈◊〉 bodie Why should not I have attempted it at your return from Laodicea as well as they pretend I have done after your return from Rhodes since the unhappie Joseph discovered to me then your cruel Intentiones as walk as when the unfortunate Son hath told me since In fine Herod all those things are without likeliehood and there is no Spirit so ignorant who sees not clearlie that if I were not descended from the Kings of Judea If I were not vertuous I should have no enemies and my Death should not be resolved upon I should not have sent my Picture to Anthonie I should not have had Intelligence with Joseph I should not have attempted your life and consequentlie mine should have been secure But because I am of too Illustrious blood and because my Soul is too great to suffer the baseness and unworthiness of my enemies Mariamne must die she must perish she must be sacrificed to the hatred of her Persecutores they desire it so and she is resolved to it Think not unjust and cruel Herod that I speak with intention to incline you to pittie I think of preserving my Reputation and not of moving your heart For as I said in the beginning of my discourse it is neither fear of death nor desire of life that makes me speak to day The first prepares Crowns for me and the other can give me nothing but troubles It is not then hope of escaping from the danger I am in that makes me take care to justifie my self I know my sentenee is signed my Executioners are readie to strik off my head and that my Tomb is alreadie opened to receive me But that which moved me to it was to the end that all who hear me may let Posterity know that my verie enemies could not with all their malice stain the vertue of Mariamne Nor find a plausible pretext for condemning her If I obtain this favour from them who hear me I die almost without grief and I shall absolutlie say without Regrate if the Children I leave you were Banished their paternall house For I doubt not because they are Vertuous but that they will acquire your hatred as well as I. The complaints that they shall make for my death will be crimes against you You will believe they design against your life by lamenting the loss of mine Wo is me I see them alreadie Maltreated by that slave who was your first wife I see them submit to the violent humor of your Son Antipater to the calumnies of Solome to the outrages of 〈◊〉 and to your own crueltie And perhaps
these same Executioners who put me to death will shed their blood or to speak better will make an end of shedding mine I alreadie see you unjust and cruel finishing so many Murders But do not hope to enjoy peaceablie the Fruits of such fatal Victories You seek a repose which you shall not find You shall be your own Accuser your Judge and your Hangman The Ghosts of so manie Kings as I am come of whom you have abused in my Person shall inviron you on all parts Those of Old Hircan and of Young Aristobolus shall disturbe all your Life You shall alwaies see your self covered with the Blood of your Children And the Image of Mariamne pursued by these Executioners who wait on her shall ever follow you foot by foot You shall alwaies see that whither awake or asleep which shall reproach you for her death You shall have Repentance in your heart Shame Confusion and Despare You shall wish for the death you give to others My Vertue shall appear then as pure as it is your Crimes shall seem as great as they are And perhaps you shall have the misfortune to repent without amending And I doubt not but after you have violated all Rights Divine and Humane some will do the same to your self Yes I already see the eldest of your Children for mine will never be capable of it desirous to give you that poison which you accuse me unjustlie of I see I say all the Administratores of your fury become your most cruel Enemies Salome Pherâ—â—â— and Antipater shall be most violentlie obnoxious to you I see you hated of all People detested of all Princes execrable to Posteritie and perhaps you shall become then so odious to your self that after you have shed all the blood of your Race Despair shall put â— Dagger in your hand to deliver the World from so dangerous an Enemie But it may also be that your cause make an end when you would and your shall have the misfortune to indure in this life the punishments that are prepared for you in an other Behold unjust and cruel Herâ—â—â— the Prophesie which the unhappie Mariamne dying unjustlie makes of you who in this 〈◊〉 last day lookes upon you rather as a Subject revolted â—â— as her Tygrant then either as her King or Husband THE EFFECT OF THIS DISCOURSE This afflicted and generous Beauty obtained what she desired from her Husband and from Posterity For the first gave her death and the other hath preserved her glorie I shall think mine great if after so many Ages I could also contribute something to hers and if my Meditations were not thought unworthie of her I would say more if the Author of the holy Court had not said all But as he was too carefull to leave any thing is so Noble a Field I am too Vain to appear unprofitably there after him It suffices that I behold his Triumph without lying me to his chariot and I Love better to quit my Armes then to see him amidst his Trophies CLEOPATRA TO MARK-ANTHONIE THE THIRD HARRANGUE ARGUMENT AFter the losse of the Battle of Actium Occasioned by Cleopatras flight which was followed by that of Anthonie Herhad some opinion that she would Betray him and testisled his Resentments to her But that Lovely and Just Egyptian who desired to take away from him any impression that could be disadvant agious to her Did thus speak to him in behalf of her innocenoie I have surely established these words which I put in the mouth of that Queen upon the Conjectures of Historie And according to my sense see what she could say at that time so that Irritated Lover CLEOPATRA TO MARK-ANTHONIE IS it true then that Anthonie could suspect Cleopatra to have favoured his Enemie that he could think she would with her own hand pluck the Crown from him which Victorie was putting upon his head And to say all in one word that he believed she had betrayed him Ah if it be so and if by my Discourse I cannotremit reason in your Soul by giving it other thoughts of my fidelitie I desire no more life and death is the end of my wishes No Anthonie if I be dead in your heart I will live no longer in the World And perhaps my death will let you see that I have not desired yours But I pray you tell me O Illustrious Emperour what way by what liberalities or by what hopes could Octavius corrupt my fidelitie This surelie cannot be a new Passion that hath surprised my heart in conquering his Since we are equallie unknown to other This could not be so by presents for what could I receive from him which I have not received from you who has given me whole Kingdoms and made me reign over the most part of Asia but if it were true that I could have resolved to leave you and follow his partie what securitie could I have taken from his words where are the pedges he has sent me in assurance of our Treatit What places hath he rendered to me Why Anthonie could I have trusted my self to Cesars word he who is Octaviâ—â— brother He who publicklie deelared War against 〈◊〉 in Rome and who did know me much better 〈◊〉 the name of that Aegyptian more famous said he by her Enchantments then by her beautie then not by that of Cleopatra Why Anthonie could I have been assured of him By that Cleopatra should have loaded her self with Chains she should have with her own hands tied her armes to the Triumphing Chariot of her Enemie and which is also worse Anthonies Enemie And by an imprudence and ungratitude which never had example she should have betrayed a man who betrayed his own glorie for love of her who hath made himself enenmy to his Country for her sake who hath abandoned Cesars sister rather then forsake her Who hath divided his power with her Who hath preferred her interests to those of the Roman Empire and who to say all hath absolutlie given her his heart Ah! My Anthonie all those things are unliklie And it almost suffices to see that I have not forgot my obligations to you to make me be thought innocent But if it be permitted me to add one other Reason I shall say that as none that is generous doth as easilie forget the good deeds of anie other so none loves to loss their own proprietie and seldom would we by injuries deform the good offices which we do to anie Bodie Consider then if it be possible pardon me for speaking so that after I had done all for you that I have done I my self would extinguish the remembrance of it in your Soul And of my own inclination infuse hatred in the heart whose Empire hath cost me so manie Vowes and so much Pains For if you Remember My dear Anthonie you was rather my conquest then I yours fame had given me a Picture of you which possessing me with admiration made me design to overcome in your person the Conqueror
abandon you that all my subjects betray me and join with the stronger partie if I say it come to pass that all those things befal us we shal stil find our Tomb in Alexandria And to merit from our enemies the favour of letting our Ashes remain there together we must Signalise our death by shunning bondage and in that manner we shall Rob them of the Noblest fruits of their Victorie and conquer Cesar himself by death THE EFFECT OF THIS HARRANGUE THey who Love let themselves be easily perswaded by things which can please them And the volâ—â— of this fair Monster of Nilus failed not to Attract Anthonies minde to what she desired He did not follow Cleopatra to forsake her afterward And his Choller being the Effect of his love as well as his flight had been it was as easie to apease it as to flie He then believed all she said to him He repented that he had suspected her fidelity But repenred not the loss of the Empire of the World for preserving Cleopatra He followed her to Alexandria Where though she was more Generous that second then the first time they were not alwayes happy And of all the things which she promised him Cleopatra could give Anthonie but the half of her Tomb. SISIGAMBES TO ALEXANDER THE FOURTH HARRANGUE ARGUMENT AFter Conquering the Indians Alexander the Great Married Statira one of Darius his Daughters Then was it that Sisigambes Mother of that Princess abandoned her Soul to the joyes and Inclinations which she had for that Invincible Conqueror She at that time Remembered all that he had done for her And as her Soul was Noble she immediatlie testified her gratitude to him in this manner SISIGAMBES to ALEXANDER IT is truelie this day O Invincible Alexander that I believe you to be the son of Jupiter an ordinarie man cannot be capable of so much Vertue There have been severall times Victories and Conquerors known But there was never a person found like you who has made the portion of the Conquâ—red equall with the Victorious Nor none who have divided the Empire which they have Conquered with the Children of their enemies In fine Alexander though you were of Humane Blood and not of that of the gods It is most certain that you deserve Incense and Altars I leave to the Famous Testimonies of your Valour the Publication of those Marvellous Exploits you have done in making you Master of the World For I Propose to entertain you onlie with your Clemencie and Goodness You know Generous Alexander if I should for your glorie Erect a Trophie of your Enemies Spoils I should there find Subject of making sorrowfull Tears flow abundantlie in a day wherein I ought to express joy This does not proceed from my not knowing that I shall not there see the Bodie of my Son For I Remember you was so generouslie good as to cover it with your Royall Cloack and bedew it with your Tears When coming to the Place where he expired by the cruelties of Treacherous Bessus you saw that great Prince in so deplorable a condition No. Alexander in this Juncture of affairs I should not look upon you as the old enemie of Darius but as the revenger of his Death as the protector of his Mother and Wife as the Husband of his Daughter and as the lawfull Heir of the great Cyrus his Throne In Effect you know what were my Sons last words He testified his Gratitude of the Obligations that I was indebted to you for He made Vowes for your Glorie He assured you he died your Friend and Servant And without imploying those few Moments he had to live in Deploring his Misfortune He wished you Conqeror of the Universe He hoped you would revenge his Death That you would take care to perpetuate his Memorie and he also left to you the rewarding Polistratus for that little water he gave him that he might the more distinctlie pronounce those things which he had to say for your Glorie O my dear Darius you was truelie my Son in speaking so of Alexander I give thanks to the gods that at last you had Power to acknowledge what we owe to his Clemencie and Goodness It is for those two Vertues O Invincible Heros That I admire you this day The whole Earth is filled with the noise of your Victories you are the Master aâ— Conqueror of all men the meanest of your Exploits are known to all The verie Playes of your infancie shall be Patterns to all Kings that come after you What your Conquests have been is everie where known None are ignorant of what a Glorious War you made in Greece The Splendid Ruines of Thebes which you razed are eternall signs that you was its Conqueror The Battle which you gave at the passage of the Garnick equallie manifests your conduct and courage None can be ignorant of what you did in the day of Issus Nor of what passed at the famous Seidge of Tyre The Battle of Arbella had too remarkable Circumstances not to be known of all the Earth The Conquest of the Indians and the defaite of Porrus on the Banck of Hidaspes are Eternal Monuments of your Glorie For not onlie is it known that you excelled that great King But it is also known that after you had Conquered his Kingdom you Restored it to him greater then it was before And in this manner if it be allowed so to speak You may not onlie be called the overcomer of this Prince but the Conqueror of Porrus Because it seems you did not fight but to make him greater The Cittie of Oxidraxes where you so resolutlie 〈◊〉 your self is seen of all the Earth It is looked upon as the field of Battle Where your great Heart seemed equallie to defie death and fortune and where you Surmounted both In fine Alexander there may be everie where found Testimonies of your Valour and Conquests Wherefore without speaking to you I content my self with praising your Clemencie and Goodness But what do I say Those two Vertues are as Generallie known as your courage for if as I have alreadie said you are Master and conqueror of all men It may be also said that you are all mens Benefactor It will be said that the gods have remitted into your hands all the favours they used to bestow That they have established you to be the distributor of good deeds And that they have given you Commission to make all the World happie You do no sooner Conquer a Kingdom but you give it your enemies are no sooner your Subjects but they become your friends And you not sooner Conquer them but you become their Protector I have so famous an example in my Person of what I say that I cannot doubt it without being Criminall For O Invincible Alexander I shall never forget the favours I have received from you Yes I shall alwaies remember that dismal-day wherein my Daughter and I became your Prisoners Fear of bondage had possest our Spirits with such horrid
Visions that death appeared the greatest happiness that could befall us We had lost the Battle with the Throne we believed Darius alreadie lost And that which was most insupportable to us was we thought that we should be necessitated to die by our own hands to shun the Insolence of the Conquerors But alace I did not then know Alexander For said I to my self I am Mother of the greatest of his Enemies because Darius is the most powerfull of all them who resisted him And judging of you by the rest I feared you as much then as I love you now This unjust fear was of no continuance in my minde the sight of you quicklie dissipated it and I also remember the first time I had the honor of seeing you You pardoned me a fault For because I did no know you and because the trouble I was in gave me not libertie 〈◊〉 Reason well on the matter you know I took the Generous Ephistion for you And that without being angrie you said to me that I was not mistaken because he was the second Alexander That sign of Moderation towards me and of Friendship towards your Favorite began to give me juster thoughts of you And to remitt in my Soul that hope which fear had chased from it And surlie you also to day does well testifie that Ephistion is as dear to you as your self Because having designed to Marrie the Eldest of my Daughters your self you gave the other to this second Alexander Since that what have you not done for me You have not onlie treated me as a Queen though I was Captive But you have treated me as your Mother and you have done me the favour alwaies to call me so Everie time that anie new Subject of grief did befall me you have had the goodness to Solace me I have seen you in consideration of me weep for your Victories I have seen you Regrate Darius his Death I have seen you carefull of his Funeralls and Tomb I have seen you expose your life to Revenge his death I have seen you punish the Traitor Bessus who did assasine him I have seen you reward them who were faithfull to him And I see you also this day restore Darius to the Throne by placing there his Daughter and mine But the most wonderfull of all the Actions that I have seen you do for Darius Is that I have some times seen this Alexander Conqueror of the Universs have so much Vertue as not to trust to his own And not to expose himself to the eyes of Darius his Wife fearing least he should be Conquered by her beautie Ah! After all this it must certainlie be acknowledged that all that can be said of you is far below your merit you have both together the chastitie of my Sex and the Vertues of all the Heroes who have onlie preceeded you in age There can be no good qualities which are not to be found in your Person in the highest degree And it may be said that Vertues are Perfectionated in your Soul and take a new luster That which is Temeritie in anie other is but simple Effect of your courage and excesse of good cannot be vicious in you You give profuselie and yet without prodigalitie Because you do not onlie proportionat the presents you make to them who receives them but to him who gives them So that Townes whole Provinces Millions of Gold Scepters and Crowns are things which Alexander can give without being Prodigall For as he has received more favours from Heaven then anie other it is also he should give more then all others This truth is so well known to you and you practise it so perfectlie That after having Conquered all the World and having given it almost whollie to diverse Persons when you have been sometimes asked what you would Reserve for your self You have answered Hope And truelie I have often wondered to see that you no sooner had anie thing in your power but you did put it in that of an other And nevertheless you desisted not to be alwaies giving This Reflection made me think that Alexander might be said to be like the Sea which no sooner receives in its Vast Breast the Tribute which all the Fountains the Rivers and the Floods carrie to it but it renders it with Usurie to some other part of the World What she takes from the Persians she gives back to the Greecks The Ship wracks which she makes does not enrich her She makes no bodie poor but to augment some others fortune And without keeping anie thing either of what is given her or of what she Usurpes She alwaies rolles her Vawes with an equall Motion Just so is it with things that you receive from the Gratitude of your Subjects of the tributes they pay to you or of the Conquests you make You receive them with one hand and gives them with the other The verie booties which you take from your Enemies does but make Rich your Souldiers 〈◊〉 So that be it in Peace or in war during a Tempest or during a Calme you equallie do good to all without doing anie to your self Yet there is this difference between the Ocean and you that all which goes from the Sea returnes to it but what goes from your hands never comes back to them again Further it shall be glorious for you to see People in your Historie who have refused your gifts because you gave too much And that there shall be none found Complaining that you gave too little Your liberalitie is so much the more Execllent in that it is not blind You do good to all the World but you do it not alwaies without choice All the daies of your life are not those of Donationes to the People where without distinction you throw Treasures among the crowd Where the happie onlie have the advantage Aristotles Disciple knows better how to use Riches and knows better how liberalitie must be practised Yes Alexander You have reconcilled Fortune with Vertue We see Philosophers Poets Musicians Limners and Sculptors in abundance and yet do not work but onlie for your Glorie and their own We see I say Philosophers practise that Policie which they teach in Governing great Kingdoms We see Poëts carrie at once a Harp of Gold and a Quiver of Ibonie To sing your Triumphes and command your Provinces We see Musicians whose Luttes are of Ivorie Who emploie not their voices but to praise you and to speak of your felicitie We see Limners as Rich as the Mightie Princes have been formerlie who emploied them to work We see Sculptors not onlie make use of Marble Alabaster and Porphire in their statues but have Palaces of their own where all those things are seen In fine all good Sciences and all good Arts flourish under your reign Also it shall be said that as the gods have made a Miracle of you Nature was likewaies desirous to make its chiefest works for love of you You have Aristotless Xenophantess Apelless and
Licippess who owing their felicitie and Glorie to you shall also bestow their Labour upon yours All future Ages that shal see the pictures which these Famous men will leave of you either by their writings or by their tablets or by their statues shall doubtless envie that of the great Alexander All the Vertues of that time shall wish to have been in this You shall be the Modell of great Pinces and the foil of perverse And while there shall be men you shall be spoken of as a god I certainlie wonder an more that our great Xerxes with all his power could not perfect what designs he had conceived For since Greece ought to Educate you The gods had reason to preserve the Conquest of the World for you If Xerxes had accomplished his enterprise perhaps he should have been called the Tyrran and whip of the Universe But for you you are the Legitimate Prince of all the People whom you have Conquered You are sent from Heaven for the Worlds felicitie And there was just Subject for Hamnon the Oracle of Jupiter to say That you was his Son and was Invincible No Alexander none can exceed you neither in War nor in Vertue And after the design you have made to day of replacing Darius on the the Throne by dividing it with his Daughter Statira There is nothing more remains for you to do and nothing more for me to wish but the Continuance of your Glorie It is not that I fear it can be taken from you No there is no such thought in my mind But I fear that mens unjustice will render them unworthie of having you long for their Master Or that the gods jealous of our happiness recall you to themselves If which come to pass I do assure you O invincible Alexander not to stay in the World after you I could live after Darius who was my Son But after all the Obligations which I have had from you I shall not survive Alexander I had not told you such sad thoughts in a day of rejoicing if I had not believed that it would be advantageous to you that it should be known there was a Princess that there was I say a Mother and if I dare say a Vertuous Mother who without baseness and without unjustice hath loved you better then her own Son though you was her enemie Pardon me then so dolefull a thought because it is Glorious to you And believe that when my wishes are exhausted not onlie shall your Glorie be immortall but likewaies your Person THE EFFECT OF THIS HARRANGUE ALexander must be known if the Effect of this Discourse be questioned That great and Generous Soul did again redouble his good Offices to that Illustrious Princess And did so gain her Heart That when soon after the death of this invincible Conquerour came to pass in Babylon she failled not to keep her promise for she died of sorrow And certainlie that death was a Glorious sign of Alexanders goodness And when some Excellent Orator shall employ all his Art to make him a Famous Elogie when he has I say Magnificently Exaggerated all his brave Actions I believe I shall say something Greater and more Extraordinarie When I onlie say that Sisigambes endured the death of her Son Darius and could not bear with that of the great Alexander She lived after the one and died after the other And Vertue was of more force with her then Nature O the brave Panegirick But why it was Alexander SOPHONISBA TO MASSINISSA THE FIFTH HARRANGUE ARGUMENT AFter that by the Romans assistance Massinissa had Re-conquered the Kingdom of his Fathers and taken Siphax prisoner who had Vsurped it He Beseidged and took the town of Sirthe where Sophonisba Wife of this Captive King was retired The charms of that fair African made strong impressions in his heart and the Numideans being Naturalie inclined to Love he was no sooner Victorious but he began to feel himself Conquered But coming to make Reflections upon the Austere Humor of Scipio he questioned not his being desirous to have that Beautifull Captive Queen led in Triumph to hinder which he Married her the same day not thinking that after that any hodie would make Triumph of the Wife of a King allied to the Roman People But scarcely was this sudden Marriage celebrated when Scipio being informed of it sent by Lellius to ordaine Massinissa to come to him and give account of his Victorie But Sophonisba who had a Naturall aversion to the Romans and more also to bondage having seen something in the eyes of Lellius that threatned Triumph did in this manner speak to Massinissa at his going to part from her SOPHONISBA TO MASSINISSA MY LORD I Well see by Lellius Procedure that fortune is not yet wearie of Persecuting me That after having in one and the same day lost my Crown my Husband and my Libertie and by a Capricio of that inconstant thing found again my Libertie and Illustrious Husband and a Crown I well see I say that it is yet readie after such strange accidents to make me loss all things Lellius looking upon me hath doubtless judged me sufficientlie prettie to honour Scipios Trumph and to follow his Chariot I have seen in his eies the Idea of what he bears in his minde and the disigne which he has in his heart But perhaps he has not discovered what I have in mine He knows not that desire of Libertie is much stronger in me then that of Life And that for preserving the first I am capable of losing the other with joy Yes I clearlie perceive my dear Massinissa that You are going to fight against strong enemies The Austeritie of Scipios Humor joined to the Roman Austeritie shall doubtless make him give You a sharp Reprimand he will think it strange that in the verie day of your Victorie and in the verie day of your Re-taking the Crown which belonged to You. You should have thought of Marriage And have chosen for you Wife not onlie that of your Enemie but a Captive a Carthaginean the Daughter of Hasdruâ—â—ll and the Enemie of Rome Nevertheless my Lord remember that at this time You should not look upon me nor as the Wife of Siphax nor as a Captive nor as a Carthaginean nor as Hasdruballs Daughter nor as Enemie of Rome though I Glorie in being so But as the Wise of the Illustrious Massinissa Remember also that I consented not to receive that honour till after that you promised me that I should not fall in the Romans power You have engaged your word be sure then not to faill I desire not that You expose your self to the loss of the Senats Friendship for preserving me because your hard Fortune hath made You need it But I onlie desire that in pursuance of what You have sworn to me you will hinder me from falling alive in Scipios power I doubt not but Siphax in the condition he is in will say to his Conqerour that I am the
cause of his Misfortune That I have loaded him with Irones that I made him friend to Carthage and Romes enemie Yes Generous Massinissa I avouch all these things And if I could rob the Romans of You I would esteem my self happie And believe that my death should be trulie worthie the Daughter of Hasdruball Pardon me my dear Massinissa for speakieg so boldlie to You. But since this is the last time perhaps that I shall ever see You I shall joyfullie tell You what have alwaies been my sentiments To the end that by the knowledge I shall give You of that aversion which I ever had to bondage You may be the more easilie induced to think of my Libertie How soon I had opened my eies to the light the first thing I learned was that there Were a People who without anle right but what the strong imposes upon the weak would make themselves Masters of all others And while my infancie lasted I heard no discourse but of the Roman Triumphs Of Kings whom they had chained Of famous Captives which they had made Of the Miseries of these unfortunate men And of all the things that are done in those fatal Spectales where the Romans pride makes up the Noblest fruit of the Victorie Those images were so earlie Imprinted in my mind that nothing could ever banish them thence Since I became more Reasonable by age I have had more Aversion for that Roman Eagle which sees nothing but the rapines it makes And which flies not above the heads of Kings but to take off their Crowns Perhaps it will be said to me that the Romans give so manie Kingdoms as they Usurpe And that they make as manie Kings as they 〈◊〉 to their Chariot But my dear Massinissa if you will rightlie Consider the business You wil find that they give no Scepters but to have the more famous slaves And that if they put Crowns upon their Vassals heads it is but to have the pleasure of seeing them laid at their feet because that by their orders they will have hommage payed to them Vanitie is the Soul of that Nation It is its onlie work It is but for it that it makes Conquests Usurpes Kingdomes Desolates all the World And unsatisfied in being absolutlie Mistris of all that great Part of the Universe which is of its Continent Passes the Seas to come and Disturb our Repose For if onlie a desire of augmenting its Confines and encreassing its riches caused it make War it would be content to overturn Thrones and putting them to death who Lawfullie Possessed them But because pride is their cheif instigator A simple Citizen of Rome must for his Glorie and for the Peoples divertisement Drag Kings chained after his Triumphing Chariot O Gods Is it possible that Conqueros can be so inhumane Is it possible to find Conquered Kings so cowardlie to endure such cruell Usage Yes without doubt and too manie examples of this kind have made it known that all Princes are not Generous Nevertheless it is certain that Irons and Crowns Scepters and Chains are things which should never be seen together A Chaire drawn by Elephants should not be followed by Kings And by Kings tied like Criminall with whom no signs of Royaltie are left but to signalise their shame and the Glorie of their Conqueror But what Glorie can he have who Triumphs in this sort For if these whom he has overcome are baise as there is great appearance because they live It is no just Subject of vanitie to have outbraved them And if these unfortunate men testified courage in their defaite It is great inhumanitie in him who treats thus Princes who have done nothing but defend their Crowns Their Countrie Their Wifes Their Children Their Subjects And their Domestick-Gods But if for the Glorie of their Conquerors and for the Pleasure of the People they would have Triumphs It would be more Glorious for them to cause carrie the Enemies armes whom they have killed with their own hands then to have themselves followed by Kings whom they have not fought Chariots filled with broken armes Bucklers Launces Javelins and Standards taken from the Enemies Would make a show less Lamentable and more agreeable to the eies of the People But Gods Is it possible that Kings are destined for such infamie That these same People who have Combates of Gladiators and of wild Beasts given them for their divertisement Should also be the cause of such fatall Ceremonie And extract their pleasure from the ignominie and misfortune of Kings That it should be that they who delight in seeing four thousand men by a horrid brutalitie kill one another in one day And who find their happiness in seeing Tigers and Lyons devour each other Is it possible I say that Kings opressed with Irons should be draged for these same People For me my dear Massinissa I find something so strange in this sort of Triumph that I doubt if it be more disgracefull to the Conquered then to the Victorious and in my particular I know verie well that I shall neither do the one nor the other Judge then my dear Massinissa if a person who would not enter Rome in a Triumphing Chariot followed by a hunder chained Kings Could resolve to follow with Irons that of the proud Scipio No Sophonisbas Soul is too great for that If I were but a Carthaginean I shall never be capable of it If I were but Hasdrubals daughter I shal never resolve to do it If I were but the Wife of the unfortunate Siphax it is a weakness that shal never come in my mind And If I were but the slave of the Illustrious Massinissa I shall not follow anie other Conquerour But being both together a Carthaginean Hasdruballs daughters Wife to Siphax and Massinissa and Queen of two great Kingdoms Scipio needs not think to make Triumph of Sophonisba No Generous Massinissa if the chains they would give me were of Diamonds And all the Irons Glister with Gold and precious Stones And if they would assure me that I should be immediatlie restored to the Throne how soon I were untied from the Triumphant Chariot I would choose death in prejudice of Royalltie And if my hand should once carrie Irons I should no more think it worthie to carrie a Scepter In fine I have so strong an aversion for slaverie and bondage and my Spirit is so delicate in such matters that if I thought Scipio would cause carrie my Picture in Triumph I would pray you to put all the Limners of Numidea to death But no I condemn my self for that thought For if the insensible Scipio does carrie my Image in his entering into Rome he shall rather publish my Glorie then his own It will be seen that I could die when I could live no longer with honour And that a Feminine courage surpassed the Roman Vanitie I doubt not Generous Massinissa if you do not with all your force oppose Scipios severitie but that you will be compelled to
that are most necessare for Princes Constancie is the more Illustrious as being the most difficile But for that despair which puts the dagger in the hand of them who would evit Bondage it is rather infirmitie then Vertue They cannot look upon Fortune when it is Irritated It would no sooner attack them but they shun fighting it It would no sooner destroy them but they promot its designs By a weakness unworthie of them they yeeld the Victorie to this airy thing And by a Precipitous action without knowing often what they do they quit the Irons in abandoning their lives whose sweetness they only loved without being able to endure the bitter For me my Daughters who am of an other opinion I mantain that they who live with Glorie should die as slowlie as possible And that to speak rationallie a sudden death is rather a sign of Remorse of Repentance and Imbecillitie then of great courage It may be some will say to me that I am of a Race which should never carrie Irons That since Cleopatra would not follow Augustus his Chariot I should never have followed that of Aurelian But there is such a difference between that great Queen and me that all her Glorie consisted in her death And I made mine consist in my life Her reputation had not been advantagious to her if she had not died by her own hand And mine should never have been at the height it is come to if I had deprived my self of the Glorie of knowing to carrie Irons with such Grandure of Courage as if I had Triumphed over Aurelian as he did of me If Cleopatra had followed Augustus his Chariot she would have seen a hundered odious objects in her traversing Rome which would have reproached her of her former Imprudences The People would have certainlie caused her understand by their murmurings a part of her wanting conduct But for me I was verie certain that I could see nothing about the Chariot which I followed but men whom I had formerly conquered and witnesses of my Valor and Vertue I was I say assured to hear no Contumelie and to Understand no Speeches but of my present misfortune and of my former Victories Behold said the People the Valiant Zenobia Behold the Woman who did gain manie Victories Admire her constancy in this encounter Might it not be said that these chains of Diamonds which she carries do rather seen to adorn then bind her And that she leads the Chariot which she follows In fine my Daughters in the time I was all loaded with Irons or to name them better Chains of Gold and Jewels like a Noble Slave In the time of all that Magnificent Triumph which is undoubtedlie the most unpleasant day of Bondage I was at freedom in my heart and had my minde quiet enough to see with pleasure that my constancie drew tears from some of my enemies Yes my Daughters Vertue hath so strong charmes that their Roman austeritie could not resist them And I saw some among them weep for Aurelians Victorie and my misfortune Moreover none should be so cowardlie as to let the minde be troubled with things that do not at all touch it if they be perfectlie wise All the great preparations that are made for these Triumphs should not fright a rationall Soul All these guilded Chariots these chaines of Diamonds these Trophies of Armes and the multitudes of People who flock together to see that fatall Ceremonie should not make a Generous Person timeâ—ous It is true my chains were weightie But when they hurt not the minde they do not much incomode the armes that carrie them And for me in that deplorable state I manie times thought that as fortune had made me follow a Chariot I my self had done it for Triumph By that same Revolution which befalls all things in the World You may perhaps one day have Scepters made to you of these same chains which I carried But in fine if this should not come to pass afflict your selves moderatlie Be more carefull to approve your selves worthie of the Throne Then to remount it For in the humor I am of I have more esteem of a simple slave if he be faithfull then of the most potent King in the World if he be not Generous Think then my Daughters of induring your Bondage with more constancie And believe certainlie that if I have been conquered by Aurelian Mine surpassed fortune it may be seen through all the course of my life that death did not fright me if I could have had Glorie by it I have seen it a hundered times under a more terrifying countenance then the most desperate have ever seen Cato his dagger Brutus his sword Porcias burning coals Mithradates his poison nor Cleopatras aspes are anie way so fearfull I have seen greeles of darts and arrowes fall upon my head I have seen the points of a hundered lances presented to my heart And all this without anie thoughts of fear Think not then if I had believed death could have been Glorious to me but that I could have found it by my own hand It was accustomed to conquer others And it would have broken my Irons if I would But I thought my shaire of Glorie would be greater to carrie them without weeping then to spill my Blood through feebleness or despair They whose satisfaction onlie consists in themselves quits the Throne with less regrate then others They who encounter nothing but contentment in their minds are constrained to seek their happiness in things that they are strangers to It may be then you will ask me what remains for Princesses to do who have lost their Empire and Libertie I shall answer you reasonablie that since the Gods were desirous to give your courage so Noble a Subject you are oblieged to use it well And to make all the World know by your Patience and Vertue that you merit the Scepter which is taken from you And that the Irons which were given you were unworthie of you This my Daughters is what remains for you to do And if you could let your selves be moved by my example and reasons You should find that your life might yet be pleasing and Glorious to you At least you have this advantage that in the condition your Fortune is it cannot become worse then it is So that if you can but once accustome your selves to it nothing can afterwards trouble your repose Remember that of the manie millions of men whom the World contains there are not an hundreth who carrie Crowns And do you believe my Daughters that all these men are unhappie and that there is no pleasure but on the Throne If it be so O how you are deceived There is no condition of life but hath pain and pleasure And it is true Wisdom to know how to use all equallie if Fortune bring you to the triall of it They who kill themselves know not that while People are living they are in a state of acquiring Glorie There is no
Tyrran can hinder me from Immortalising my name everie day if he let me live and if I be Vertuous And if my verie silence do make me suffer anie punishment while I endure it with constancie it shall not forebear to speak of me Let us live then my Daughters because we can do it with honour And because we also have the means left us of testifying our Vertue the Scepter the Throne the Empire which we have lost were they not given us by Fortune But constancy comes directlie from the gods It was from their hands I received it And for that cause you ought to imitate it It is the true sign of Heroes as despare is of the weak or inconsiderat Trouble not your selves then for what posteritie will say of me And do not fear that the day of Aurelians Triumph hath obscured my Victories Since as I said to you it was the most Glorious of my life And moreover I know that Aurelian hath made a picture of me at his speaking to the Senate which shall make me known to Posteritie Preserve it then my Daughters that when I shall be no more the remembrance of what I have been may oblidge you to be alwaies what you ought Behold the culores wherewith Aurelian hath painted his tablet I have learned said he that I be not reproached of doing an action so little worthy of great courage by Triumphing over Zenobia But they who blame me knows not what Praise I Merit if they knew what a Woman she was How well advised Counsells she had How couragious she showed her self and constant in keeping good Order How Imperious and Grave she was among Souldiers How Liberall when her affaire oblidged her And how severe and exact when necessity constrained her I could say it was by her assistance that Odenat conquered the Persians and pursued the King Sapor to Ctesiphont I could affirme that this Woman had so possest all the East and Aegypt with the terrour of her armes That neither the Arabians Sarasians nor Armenianes dared to move Let them who are displeased with these Actions be silent For if there be no honour in having Conquered and Triumphed over a Woman what will they say of Galienus in contempt of whom she mantained her Empire what will they say of Claudius a Holy and Venerable Prince Who being employed in the War with the Gothes by a laudable Prudence suffered her to reign To the end that this Princess employing her armes elsewhere he might with the greater facility accomplish his other enterprises Behold my daughters what my conqueror hath said of me though I followed his Chariot Have the same Equity I conjure you And believe that whosoever liveth thus need not kill himself to Immortalise his Name THE EFFECT OF THIS HARRANGUE THis Discourse lets it be seen that a per suasive Orator may prevaile with others These Princesses lived as their Mother had no desires of death And the Gardens that Aurelian gave them for their dwelling place and which are called to this day Tivoly seems more pleasing to them them the Coffine Historie gives account that this Generous Queen was highlie esteemed by all the Roman Ladies And that her Daughters were Married to the most Illustrious Families It was little for their Birth but much for their misfortune Because these same People thought Anthonie and Titus unworthily Married though they espoused Queens This was a Noble thought But it was that of the Masters of the World And who says that says all PORCIA TO VOLUMNIUS THE SEVENTH HARRANâ—UE ARGUMENT AFter that Brutus and Cassius were defaited and killed Porcia Wife to the first and Daughter to Cato of Utica testified by her discourse and actions that she would follow her Husbands fate and that she would live no longer Her Relations who were willing to hinder her from dying after they had taken all things from her thas could advance such fatall designs sent Volumnius the Philosopher who had been the intimate friend of Brutus to endeavour to perswade her by reason that she ought not to abandon her self to despair But this Generous Wife after she had most impatiently heard him answered him in this manner PORCIA TO VOLUMNIUS IT is in vain O wise Volumnius that my Relations have chosen you to perswade me to live after the loss I have had Seeing it is incredible that the same Philosopher who put the Sword in the hand of the Illustrious Cato my Father and afterward in that of my dear Brutus can make me believe that it is just or possible for me to preserve my life No Volumnius in the state I am Reduced to I neither can nor ought to live You know that contrare to my Sex that Philosophie which you employ against me is not altogether unknown to me And that the Vertuous Cato my Father madh me learn it with greatcare Think not then that the Resolution I take is the Effect of a Spirit blinded with its own grief and of despair without Reason I have meditated upon it a long time And in the Vicissitudes of things I have formed a design which I shall execute to day Any other but I might satisfie their Husbands Ashes with shedding of tears all the rest of their dayes but the Daughter of Cato and Wife of Brutus should do it an other way Also I am verie well assured that Porcia has too great a Soul to lead a Life Unworthie of her Birth And of the honor of having had for her Father and Husband the two most Illustrious of the Ancient Romans But for them who live to day they are the Remains of Julius Cesars slaves or to say better they are enraged Tygers who tear their Mothers bowells by desolating their Countrie Wo is me Who could ever have thought that the Roman People were become enemies of their own Libertie That it could be they themselves who not onlie forged the chains which did captivate them Who not onlie set upon the Throne him who was the cause of so manie mens deaths that he might come to it But who was also capable of weeping for the death of a Tyrran Place him in the rank of the gods And criminallie pursue a man who to give them libertie hazarded his life despised Cesars Friendship For what would not he had obtained from him if he could have submitted to Bondage His Irons should have been certainlie-lighter then others And for a little pains which he might have taken he might have been Master of him who was of all the World But Brutus was too Generous to establish his particular felicitie upon the Ruine of the Reipublick He knew that the first duty took or ought to take away all other That owing all things to his Country he owed nothing to Cesar That being born a Roman Citizen he ought to hate Tyrranie That not to be ungrate to his Country he must be partlie against Cesar And that being of the first Brutus his Race he owed the assistance of his Arms and
Valor to the oppressed Reipublick Nevertheless after he had done all these things these cowardlie and insensible People exiled him for whom they should have erected atues in all their publick places Yet this great ungratitude wearied not the vertue of Brutus you know O wise Volumnius All that he has done for his Countrey Nor do I tell it to make you learn But to employ that little life that remains in me to speak of his Heroick Actions and to conjure you to make them known to Posteritie Remember then Volumnius that though all the Romans were ungrate to him he desisted not to do all things for them And when these Sluggards in place of one Tyrran had suffered three He had more compassion for them then resentment of their ungratitude And without thinking of his own Preservation what did he not to make them happie Maugre what they had been But these enemies of Vertue are so well accustomed to slaverie that they hoard up their chaines as their deâ—â—est Treasures And all along after that Brutus had broken them they themselves renewed them with care And Rome which manie ages by-past commanded all the Earth now voluntarlie submits to Tyrranie O Cato O Brutus Who could ever have thought it And who could believe that the gods would protect crime and oppress innocence Yet I plainlie see what it is that provockes Heaven to pâ—mish us The death of Brutus is Romes chastisement and the greatest unhappiness that can ever besail it And certainlie it is for Romes punishment that the gods permitted him to end his dayes For Brutus his pains are his reward The Romans ungratitude contributes to his Glorie And his verie death doth so Illustrate his life that it is almost a shame for me to weep Moreover I assure you that I have weeped more for his absence then death I then looked upon my 〈◊〉 as being unlimited And my Soul being ballanced between hope and fear I solaced my self with weeping But to day when I have no more to loss and when I see an infallible way of ending my miserie My Soul is more tranquill And though my grief be greater then anie was ever felt I endure it with less impatience Because I know it shall be quicklie finished Do not then tell me that I ought to live for preserving the memorie of Brutus The action he did is so Heroick and Noble that it shall ever be remembered by all men He shall alwaies be regarded as the first and last of the Romans And the Tyrrans who shall reign after this we have now shall likewaies serve to preserve a Glorious remembrance of him So long as there shall be Kings seen in Rome it will be remembered that the Old Brutus chased them and that the last died in saving that libertie which the first had acquired For I doubt not but Rome shall be continuallie in slaverie Being undoubtable that if its freedom could have been recovered Brutus would have restored it But since he could not do it he had at least the Glorie of dying without being a slave Think it not strange then that being Daughter and Wife to two men who were even free to death I would partake of that Glorie with them And yet to speak truelie Brutus shall not be altogether at libertie If I were so base as to live a Captive There will be somewhat wanting to his Glorie if I forget mine The affection that he had alwayes to me makes our interests unseparable I was of the conspiracie because I knew it before it was executed It is but just then that I should follow Brutus his destinie And know Volumnius that she whose minde was resoluâ—e enough to stab her self with a Proigniard to endure and suppress the smart thereby to testifie to her husband that she could conceall a secret Will not easilie change her resolution of dying The images of Cato and of my dear Brutus do so fill my spirit that I see no other thing And me thinks their death is so worthie of envie that I took upon it as the cheifest good can ever befall me Remember Volumnius that the true zeall of Vertue consists in the desires of imitating it For they who praise Vertuous People without traceing them so much as they can deserves blame raither then praise because they know the good and do not follow it Cato is dead with this advantage to have had it said by Cesar that he envied his death because it deprived him of the Glorie of his Pardon And I wish that Octavius may envie Brutus for having chosen a Wife abundantlie couragious to follow him to the Tomb. It is there we shall enjoy a libertie which we can nomore loss While the Romans shall groan under the weight of their Irons But a day will come when the name of Brutus shall be in veneration among them When they shall desire that good which they refused And when the blood of Cato and Brutus shall confound and make them blush Yes these Roman Citizens who saw themselves Masters of the Earth Who had Kings for their Subjects whose Glorie was without tashe and whose power had no Authoritie above it but that of the Gods shall become infamous slaves And their Bondage shall be so rigid that they shall not be Masters of their own will They shall take from the Tyrrans all their vices And Rome which was a Seminarie of Vertue shall be a receptacle of vile Adulatores O Heavens That the Inclinatons of such mightie People should be thus altered in an instant All these millions of men who fought on the plains of Pharsalia under Pompeyes coulors were they all killed in that battle Or have they lost their hearts in losing it All these Kings who hold their Crowns of the Senats authoritie are they all ungrate And is there none who could suffer Brutus to unburthen them of their chains The desire of freedom which is so strong among all the creatures who live upon the Earth is it extinguished among men And is the bloud of a dead Tyrran so dear to the Romans that to honor his memorie and to wear mourning they must load themselves with chains all their life Yes all the Roman Legiones have lost their hearts All the Kings own Vassals are readie to lay their Crowns at their Tyrrans feet All the Romans do preferr servitude to libertie Cesars Ashes are in veneration among them And for their last misfortune Brutus hath abandoned them However do not think Volumnius that he desired to forsake me It is true when we parted in the Citie of Elea he would not let me go with him although I did all things possible for it Because said he the journey would be verie troublesome to me And because I might be of more profit to him at Rome Then in this armie But at that time it was not so I know Brutus minded me a dying He expects me in the place where he is And he doubts not but Porcia remembers that the Illustrious
Cato loved better to tear his entrails then to surrvive his contreyes freedom And that she having more valide reasons to perswade her will not faill to follow the way that he hath pathed for her When life can be neither honorable nor happie it is great wisdom to abandone it Being certain that it should be no longer dear to us then when it can serve for our Glorie or that of our Coutrey Since it is so I ought no more to preserve mine Yes Volumnius I owe my death to my own Glorie To that of Cato To that of Brutus And to that of Rome But do not think that this death shall be rude to me I go to a place where Vertue is certainlie known and rewarded That terrifying apparition which Brutus saw without being frighted at the Town of Sardis and afterwards at Philippes appears not to me I see but my husbands ghost calling me And which seems to be impatient till mine be with it I see that of Cato which retaining a fathers authoritie seems to command me to make haste and quite a place unworthie of Porcias Vertue Judge Volumnius if this Vision affrights me And if in the two wayes I have to follow I can have any difficultie in choosing From one side I see my countrey desolated All the Earth covered with the blood of our friends Our persecutors became our Masters All my relations in Bondage And to say all nothing in the World can be more dear to me then the Ashes of Brutus Behold Volumnius what I see from that side But from the other I see nothing but felicitie My Father and Husband wait for me The first requires the fruits of the instructions he gave me And the other the reward of the affection he testified to me Yes Generous Cato yes Illustrious Brutus Porcia shall do what she ought at this time and nothing shall be able to hinder her For think not O wise Volumnius that inclinations can be compelled Because by it we partlie resemble the Gods It is a priviledge which Heaven hath given us Tyrranes cannot force it It is not under their domination And when the Soul is 〈◊〉 and resolute the designs are never changed Believe not then that my Relations care can hinder me to die Or that your reasons can anie way brangle my Spirit Cato would not let himself be moved with his sons tears and Porcia shall not yeeld to those of her Relations nor your discourse Brutus to escape Bondage could resolve to leave me And by what reason should it not be easier and also juster for me then him to end my life My freedom is as dear to me as his was pretious to him But I have this advantage and pleasure in death that whereas he could not be free without aband oning me I need but follow him to preâ—erve my libertie You see then O wise Volumnius â—fter all that I have said to you That death is glorious â—ecessare and pleasing to me Think not then of hindering me because your care will be also to no purpose They who have been made change such resoâ—utions are certainlie subject to perswasion They have â—n the bottom of their heart a secret resentment which opposes their desire And their own Timeritie is a strong enough defence to preserve their life They are of such People that would die to the end that some or other might come and hinder them But with me it shall not go so I conceal not my design I will not deceive my Gaurds I tell them freely that I shall escape from their hands And that death shall free me from the pain I am in Yes Volumnius I do to die O Illustruous and great Cato O Generous Brutus Come and receive my Soul See dear ghosts if I be worthie the name â—ear do not disown me for what I am For if I be not mistaken my death shall not be unworthie of a true Roman See my dear Brutus if I have any faintings in this last hour Or rather if I have not great impatience to be with you O Generous Cato you see that daggers poison and everie thing that could seem to assist my design are taken from me My Chamber is become my prison I have neither precipes nor cordes And I have Gaurds who are carefull of me But by taking all those things from me they cannot take away my desire of death nor the memorie of your Vertue I remember O Illustrious Cato of that Glorious day Wherein you excelled Cesar by â—â—mounting your self You then told your Gaurds that your life was not iâ— their power Because to finish it you needed but stop your breath or dash your head against the Wall It is then in imitation of so Generous a pattern that I go to find my dear Brutus Behold O Illustruous Husband the last action of Porcia Judge of her life by her death And of the passion which I have had for you by these burning coals which I hold readie to choake me THE EFFECT OF THIS HARRANGUE IN saying these last words She did what she said And by a stedfast courage which procures admiration and horror she made it appear that things are not easie and impossible but according to the manner they are looked upon And that when any bodie loves one better then their life they have no prâ—uble in following their death BERINICEA TO TITUS THE EIGHT HARRANGUE ARGUMENT IN the time of the Judean War Titus became passionately in love with Berinicea Queen of Chalsis Daughter of Mariamne And according to the opinion of some he Married her Secretly At his Return to Rome where he brought her the Roman People who treat all strangers like Barbarians and Queens as well as others did not approve of that alliance so that the Emperour Vespasian ordered his Son to send her back It was in that troublesome conjuncture that this afflicted Princess speak thus to the great Titus BERINICEA TO TITUS THink not O Illustrious and generous Titus that I complain of your parting from me Siuce on the contrare knowing you as I doe I rather Pittie then Accuse you And without saying any thing against you I onlie desire your libertie to complain of Fortune Which having favoured you so much in all actions of War doth treate you so cruellie to day in my person For I doubt not but you shall be more sorrowfull to abandone me then you was joyfull in all your Victories I know that though ambition be as strong a passion as love It does not surmount it in your Soul And I will also believe to comfort me in my disgrace that if you were in condition to dispose absolutlie of your self you would prefer the possession of Berinicea to the Empire of all the World But this reason of state which Authorises so manie Crimes and so much Violence cannot endure that after the invincible Titus hath so manie times hazarded his life to secure the Romans felicitie should think of his own particular Yet I have never heard it
the Roman Ladies never to survive their glorie I must vindicate the esteem that they alwaies had of my vertue I owe the loss of my life to my own glorie To that of my countrey To that of Spurius Lucretius And to that of Collatin But as I shall do what I ought at this time do you the like after my death Forget nothing to revenge me employ Sword Fire and Poison All violences are lawfull against Vsurpers Policy must be joyned to force when valoris not sufficient to destroy Consider the justness of your cause Remember Lucretias chastitie The love that you ever had for her And that which she had for you Never forget the passion which she alwaies had for glorie And her continuall hatred to vice Believe her to be more unhappie then guiltie And from all those things Generous Collatine frame in your heart an irreconciliable hatred to the Tirran But not to delay anie longer such a Noble revenge Go Collatine go I end this doolefull discourse with ending my life And behold the dagger which I hold whereby to punish my self whereby to revenge you and wherewithall to show you how the Tirrans heart must be perirced THE EFFECT OF THIS HARRANGUE THe Effect of this Harrangue was the flight of Tarquine the banishment of his Father the loss of his Kingdom and the beginning of the Roman Reipublick It cost Lucretias ravisher both life crown And never was crime better punished Never was an outrage better revenged The death of that chaste unfortunate put armes in the hands of a great manie People Her blood produced such effects as she expected And the name of Tarquin was so odious to all the World that being unable to endure it in the Person of one of them who had been assisting to banish the Tyrrans he was oblidged to change it VOLUMNIA TO VIRGILIA THE TWELTH HARRANGUE ARGUMENT AFter that Coriolanus by his Mothers intreatie had made peace with Rome he caused the armie of the Volsques return to their countrey And would have that People experiment the Generositie of his action But Tullus who loved him not because he had been formerlie overcome by him while they were of acontrare partie Suscitated some seditious People whowhen he was desirous to vindicate himself in the publick Assemblie did hinder him to speak and at last killed him amidst the tumult This newes being brought to Rome all the Ladies of the Cittie suddenlie repaired to the Mother and Wife of that generous enemie And the first taking in hand the diseourse did immediatlie speak to them in this manner if the conjectures of Historie deceive 〈◊〉 a not VOLUMNIUA TO VIRGILIA LOok upon me no more Virgilia as the Mother of Corilanus your husband I am unworthie of that name You should in Reason â—ate me as much as formerlie that unfortunate Herods Loved me Remember that famous day wherein I employed my tears to dis-arme him I weeped I cried I commanded And I forgot nothing that could make a Generous Son flexible I begged favour for the ungrate I took part with Coriolanus his enemies and though the Victorie was so certain to him that he was readie to be revenged of his banishers And held in chains almost all them who did abuse him That great heart which nothing could have moved was at last by his mother I did overcome in him the conquerour of Rome And to my misfortune I obtained all that I asked of him You know it Virgilia as well as I Nor do I remember all those things but for redoubling my griefe Alace Me thinks I still hear the voice of Coriolanus When he had thrown down his armes to come and embrace me he cried out with sight O Mother what have you done to me You have gained a Victorie verie Glorious for your self and verie happie for your countrey But most â—isfortunate for your Son Wo is me Virgilia this discourse was but too true For these same armes which he threw down to come to me were emploied against him Then did the Volsques take the Daggers in their hands which they plunged in his heart It was I made them undertake that design I was of that conspiracy against him For after I had surmounted my Son I delivered him all unarmed as he was into the hands of his enemies Ah insensible that I was could I think that it would be other waies Was I mother of all the Volsques to believe that for love to me they would yeeld the Victorie which they were readie to obtain What right had I to ask from them the libertie of their enemie Rome Should not I have thought that they would revenge upon my Son that loss which I caused to them Ah yes Virgilia I ought to have considered all those things And if Coriolanus could not return to Rome I ought at least to have been companion with him in his dishonour And as he did overcome his resentments in consideration of me I should have quit my countrey for love of him However we did not use him so I did let Coriolanus depart environed with them who caused him loss his life And I returned to Rome as in Triumph to enjoy the fruits of that fatall Victorie When at our return the Senate asked of us what recompence we would have for our action we ought Virgilia to have desired the return of Coriolanus And not as we did permission to build a Temple to Feminine Fortune It well appears that that Divinitie hath not approved of our zeal Because it is so much against us The gods would have certainlie been the more agreeable that we had been thankfull to Coriolanus The Temple which is builded for us is the effect of our vanitie and not of our gratitude We sought our own glorie and not that of our liberator Though to speak truelie he merited it better then we It was to the vertues of my Son and not to our own that we should have erected Altars And he who could surpass his resentments Deliever his countrey And yeeld the Victorie to his Mothers tears without doubt meritted better then we the honor which is done to us Me thinks his pietie should have had a more Favourable treatment from Heaven For though there be some Romans so unjust as to say that Coriolanus should not have quitted his armes but onlie for his countreys sake and not for mine And consequentlie bewrayed more feebleness then generositie in that action I am not of their opinion And I hope posterity will be of mine That strong passion which birth inspires in them who have a compleat Soul is not caused by the Situation of the places where they were born The same Sun gives light to all the Universe We enjoy the Elements everie where And if they have no stronger reason then that certainlie it will be verie weak But that which makes us love our countrey is because the Citizens are all our Relations or Allyes The interest of blood or that of civill Societie links us to them
The Religion Lawes Customes which we have common makes our interests be common But the first sentiment that nature gives to them who love their countrey Is to love it cheiflie because their Fathers their Mothers their Brothers their Sisters and their Relations are in it Yes I am verie certain that the most zealous of all the Romans returning to Rom after along journey will not so soon look to the Capitoll as to that place of the Town where his Mother or Wife dwelleth Wherefore then let neâ—e wonder anie more that Coriolanus would yeeld to none but to my tears For to whom among the Romans should he have been rendered All who were sent to him did abuse him He did not see in anie of them the mark of a true Roman They were all ungrate to him He could not in them acknowledge his countrey He onlie saw the walls of Rome but did not see his friends which he formerlie had there Fear made all them speak who were sent to him And it was onlie by me that he did know he had yet in Rome something that ought to be venerated by him We is me Is it possible That such extraordinar Pietie hath been so evillie rewarded that so couragious a man hath so lamentable ended his daies That he should be assasinated by them who had chosen him for their Captain and that the Place of his refuge should be that of his execution Alace I say that from my intentions which were so pure and innocent there should result so fatal an accident However Virgilia the Gods have permitted all these things And yet I see no other reason if not that Coriolanus and I have too much oblidged the Romans who have rendered themselves unworthie But in fine Coriolanus is dead And onlie dead for love of volumnia Yet his death hath this advantage that it hath made them shed tears who caused it For the Volsques after the overthrow of their Captain did honoâ—ble take him up They no sooner did see his blood but they saw their crime and elevated a Trophie to his glorie of these same armes which they employed against his life They gave him a Conquerours funerall His memorie is dear to them They hung above his Tomb numbers of Ensignes And all the glorious spoills which do usuallis signalise the valor of these Illustrious dead over whom they put them And Rome which owes her libertie to Coriolanus knows of his death without making publick mourning She remembers no more that she had been lost and in slaverie but for him All the Romans were ungrate to him while he lived they continue so after his death They look upon him rather as their enemie then their liberator They remember more the chains which he prepared for them then these he took away from them And that fear which formerlie possest them of seeing him enter Rome in a Triumphing Chariot makes them verie glad to know that he is to day in his coffin For me I avouch that though none should ever repent of â—aving doue well I have no great trouble to hinder me from wishing that Rome were in Captivitie and that Goriolanus were alive The vertue of Brutus who without greif saw his Children die is not of my knowledge That hard heartedness hath more ferocitie then Grandure of courage in it There are some tears just And compassion is not contrare to generositie When I told Coriolanus that I would love better to die then to see him Conqueror of Rome I said nothing against truth And when I also say that I wish to be dead and that my Son were alive I say nothing against naturall equitie nor against Rome I give to reason and nature what I cannot refuse them And I take nothing from the Reipublick I have sacrificed my Son for it and it may also suffer me to weep a little over the Victime which I have immolated for its preservation And that after I have done all that a true Roman could do I may likewaies do all that sorrow can exact from the tenderness of a Mother All they who loss their Children have constantly just subject of weeping yet they have for their comfort the libertie of making imprecations against them who take away their lives But for me I not onelie weep for the death of my Son but I also weep for being the cause of his death And to increase my sorrow there is ane austere vertue that will not let me repent for what I have done O my Son O my dear Coriolanus Can I pursue such a â—arbarous resolution No it is too contrare to nature and reason I must greive I must weep till death for the death that I was the cause of It is not Romes enemie I regrate It is he who was so manytimes prodigall of his blood in pursuit of glorie whohath served in the wars seventeen years with incomparable zeal And had no reward but the wounds which covered his bodie Further Illustrious Roman Ladies this mans birth doth not render him unworthie of your tears he came of one of your Kings and Ancus Martius his Predecessour having carried a Crown it might seem that he should have had more right to the honors of the Reipublick then anie other Because he was incapable of useing it ill But perhaps it was for that reason some may say to me that the Romans refused him the Consulship through fear that he would use it as a step to remount the Throne of his Fathers No this reason cannot be good And there needs no more but the remembrance of Coriolanus his whole life to make his intentions know In that Battle which was given against the proud Tarquin he made it verie well appear that his ambition aimed no further then to merit the Crown of Bayes which the Dictator did put upon his head without thinking of that of his Predecessors For having seen one of out Citizens fall to the ground he set himself before him to serve him for a Buckler And covering his bodie with his own he secured him from danger And so well congregated his forces and valor that he gave death to him who would have caused his If the Romans had dealt rationallie with Coriolanus â— at singlee action would have sufficed to hinder them from being desirous to have him pass for a Tirran Because it is not credible that he would have so much exposed himself to save so small a part of so great a bodie if he could have been capable of framing designs to destroy it intirelie on day But it is not in that encounter alone that he hath made his zeal for the Reipuslick appear Is it not to be seen in all occasions that offered Is it not signalised ill all the battles that have been given Hath he ever returned to Rome without bringing with him some of his enemies spoilles or without being all covered with theirs or his own blood Behold Virgilia what a husband yours was See Illustrious Romans what my dear
Rome That the sweetest fruits he receved of the Victorie was that every day He saved the life of some of their Citizens O Lepidus Tirrants have no such words Further to demonâ—â— rate the equitie of his intentions and to show that his victorie was not a change of Fortune but an effect of the will of the Gods he continued happie in other things that he enterprised The War of Egypt and that of Armenia from whence he writ to Rome that he was come that he had seen and that he had overcome makes what I say abundantlie seen After that in one single day he made himself Master of three Camps killed fiftie thousand men And lost but fiftie Souldiers In your opinion Lepidus was it Cesars arm that fought so or rather was it not that of the Gods That Illustrious victorie made him no more inexorable then the rest For when he was told that Cato was killed by his own hand O Cato said he how I envie thy death because thou hast envied my glorie of saving thy life Perhaps some will say that if Cato had lived Cesar would not have done what he said But it is easie to imagine that he who pardoned Brutus and Cicero who carried armes against him would have also pardoned Cato But Lepidus I will have none judge of Cesar by the knowledge I have of him I will have none judge of Cesar by what his friends will say of him But I will onlie have them judge of him by the honors that the Romans have done to him dureing his life and after his death And truelie it was not without reason that there was a Temple of Clemencie builded in acknowledgement of his Because there was never a conqueror who did so perfectlie know the practise of that vertue But pray you tell me Lepidus how is it possible that these same Romans who since the ending of the Wars could not reprocah Cesar of anie act of Soveraignitie how is it I say possible that these verie men who builded this Temple of clemencie by the knowledge they had of his goodness could call him Tirran It might be found in Historie that Triumphant Arches have been erected for Tirrans That by their orders and by their violence their statues have been placed upon the Altars But that by a voluntary gratitude Temples have been builded to their glorie and Temples of Clemencie Is that which will not be found in all Ages and wich wil be found of Cesar For in fine he was no Tirran and doubtless merited more then was given him Do you not remember Lepidus of the day wherein he caused redress Pompeyes statues and wherein Cicero said that by re-elevating the he seeured his own That action was then found as brave as it was All the Romans spake of no other thing and all did agree that Cesar was the most Illustrious of all the Heroes And trulie at that time Cesar seemed as just as generous For whereas these statues were erected for Pompey in the time that he served the Republick He would have no mark of honour taken from him which he did effectuallie merit Further Tirrans are never in safitie They fear everie thing and trust themselves to no bodie They judge themselves worthie of a violent death And by the pains they take to shun it they make it appear that they know they merit it But for Cesar because he trusted to his innocence he also trusted to all People For he put Brutus and Cassâ—us in authoritie by making them Pretors and would take no care of his safitie Ah would to Heaven That he had followed his friends counsell at that time But he was too Generous to be capable of such prudence as does so stranglie resemble fear that it does verie often produce the same effects And moreover he thought that having made known to the Romans the sinceritie of his intentions he should have no need of anie other provision for his safitie He lost not one single occasion of testifying to them that he preferred the qualitie of a Roman Citizen to all other As you know when he returned one day from Alba when some did salute him they called him King But he answered them that he was named Cesar and not King Yes Cesar you had reason to prefer that name to this of King You have rendered it so famous that you cannot quit it without losing by the change You must having lived Cesar die Cesar Do you also remember Lepidus that when the Senate decered new honors for him he said with an extream moderation that his honors had rather need of being retrinched then augmented Nor are you ignorant that when Anthonie by an inconsiderate zeal caused present the Royall Bandeau to him he twice refused it And commanded it to be carried to Jupiters statue As if he would have said that the Romans should onlie be commanded by the Gods What could he do more at that time to testifie to the Romans that he aspired not at Tirranie then Publicklie to refuse the badge of Royaltie Would anie have had him cause put Anthony to death for that cryme No that would not have been just and he who had pardoned his enemies of a hundered crymes ought also to pardone a rash zeal in on of his friends I well know that Pompeys partisans have said that Cesar contributed to some excessive honors that were done to him thereby to essay the peoples good will But know Lepidus if he had contributed to them his refuseing of them would have been with designe to justifie his intentions Ah Lepidus to speak truelie of the matter the friends flatterers and enemies of Cesar are they who equally oppressed him with the Crowns of flowres that they did throw upon him The first by excesse of affection others by the desyre of pleasing and making themselves great and others by design of giving pretexts to the people to murmure against Cesar And of having some coulor for the villanies which they under hand devised against him But tell me Lepidus what other thing could Cesar doe then refuse the honors that were offered to him Moreover if Cesar had a desyred to be King it would not have been impossible to him That same arm that made him conquer so many countreyes and gain so many victories would have secured the Empire to him He was too well instructed in worldlie affairs to belive that by meeknesse and the suffrage of all the Romans he could arrive at the throne Doubtless he knew that crowns are taken by violence and are never given And if he had intended to make himself King He would have used force and not meekness France would have furnished him with ane armie strong enough for that And if with five thousand foot and three hundred horse he put Pompey to the flight and made himself master of all Italie It would not have been more difficult for him after the battle of Pharsalia to have usurped the soveraign authority The Gaules would have followed him with
joy and would have come unto Rome to retake the bootie which the Roman Legins had for merlie taken from them In fine Lepidu He would have acted like a tyrran and usurper and not like a citizen I do avouch that Cesar desired to reign but it was in the Romans hearts and not in Rome He did them everie day new favours He considered onlie their felicity and their glory And in the verie time wherein they were meditating his death he employed all his pains to make them live happily Lepidus was there ever a more Ilustrious Heroe then Cesar Repass all his life with himself you shal not find on single blemish but you shall their find all vertues in the highest degree the victorys which he gained were not of those which fortune gives blindlie to them who confide in it absolutlie He gained them both by valour and reason and when he gave any thing to chance it was because reason would have it so The stadefastness of mind that he alwayes testified in all the dangers wherein he exposed himself for the republick is ane incomprehensible thing He ever beheld good and evil fortune with the same countenance Love Choller Hatred Revenge and Ambition did never make him guilty of anie imbecillitie He was alwaies Master of his passions and did never let himself be surmounted but by Clemencie Nevertheless there are men there are Romans who have been so wicked as to look upon Cesar as a Tirran But no Lepidus the business was not altogether so The particular haâ—red which Cassius did bear to Cesar because he preferred Brutus to him in designing to make him Consull to his prejudice was that which made the conspiracie It was not for having violated the Roman Laws it was not for having male-treated the Senators It was not for causing put citizens to death It was onlie for revenging Cassius But if Cesar was to die for preferring Brutus to Cassius it should not have been Brutus who was to stabb Cesar for revenging Cassius whom Cesar did not abuse but by oblidgeing Brutus No Lepidus if Cesar had been what he was not I would say the cruellest Tirran that ever was the sword of Brutus ought not to have been tainted with his blood And he should have been the last of all the Romans in abandoning him after what he had done for him Ah let none say to me that the more ungrate he appeared to Cesar the more thankfull did he seem to his countrey No Lepidus Generositie is not compatible with ungratitude Vice and Vertue cannot be together And none can be ungrate and thankfull equallie Whosoever receives an obligation engadges themselves to the person oblidging Therefore they who have a high spirit do never receive benefits but from their friends and in the choice of the two they love better to oblidge their adversaries then not to be oblidging If Brutus could not have lived happie while Cesar was alive he should have alwaies appeared under his enemies coulors He should have refused all the honors which Cesar gave him He should not have rendered himself to him And rather then to have received that life which Cesar gave him he should with his own hand have killed himself as the generous Cato did But having received his life from Cesar Having accepted the first offices of the Republick After that by a kindlie resentment Cesar had preferred him to Cassius That he should have let him self been perswaded by Cassius to stab Cesar Is that which cannot comprehend Is that which cannot be approved off by anie rationall person And is that which could not have been glorious to Brutus although Cesar had been a Tirran Nevertheless Lepidus that was the ungrate this is that Traitor who was chief of the conspiration who gave him his deaths wound Why Brutus Why cruell Could thou strick him who saved thy life Why Barbarian why did not the sword drop from thy hands when the Illustrious and Great Cesar seeing you come to him like the rest did forebear to defend himself and also said to you with more affection then splen And thou also my Son Why Tyger these words touched not thy heart and thou could strick Cesar Ah no Brutus It thou hadest had anie reason thou shouldest have changed such a wicked design Thou shouldest have fought for Cesar rendered to him that life which he gave thee or if thou could not thou should have deleated thy ungratitude with thy blood and killed thy self upon the dead bodie of Cesar But what do I Lepidus My grief transports me That dolefull image of Cesars death irritates my displeasure and anger everie time that it comes in my mind And without having any dessign to it I change both discourse and subject Let us return then to my first intention And say that if Cesars innocence could be questioned by the actions he did dureing his life it hall be fullie justified by what is come to pass at his death and after his death The extraordinare care that the Gods took to advertise him of the misfortune that was to befall him le ts the puritie of his Soul be sufficentlie seen All those signs which appeared in Heaven Those defective Victimes those dreams which frighted me The hands of these Souldiers which appeared in fire He who Prognosticated to him that the ides of March would be fatall to him And all these other things which thought to impede the effects of the conspiration makes it abundantlie known that Cesar was not an ordinaric man If Cesars death could have been for the good of the Republick the Gods would not have given so manic presages of it They foretell misfortunes thereby to make men shun them But of the felicitie that they send them they never give so manic signs Perhaps it may be said to me that Brutus was sufficientlie forewarned of his death But that horrid Phantasmc which a pâ—eared twice to him was rather sent for his chastisement then to give him means of escaping the misfortune that was prepared for him Further who did ever see dead Tirrans venerated When they are alive they are feared but when they are dead their bodies are dragged through the publick places they are torn in pieces The laws which they have made are changed Their statues are demolished Their memories are in execration And they who killed them live insastie and with honour But for Cesar all dead as he was he hath been respected The places which were marked with his blood were worshiped by the Romans and seemed to be sacred Nis bloodie Gown all peirced with the wounds he received excitted sorrowin the Souls of all the Citizens His Testament which enriched them all was given carto as that of the Father of the countrey The People made him a pile more Glorious for his memorie then if they had given him the noblest funerall that Kings are honored with Because this was an effect of his affection And that because the same fire that did consume my dear Cesar desired
to embrace the houses of his murtherers The Senate changed none of the ordinances which he made They gave him new honours All his assasinates took the flight and by an universall consent he was ranked among the Gods Who ever faw a Tirran deified after his death Alexander himself who was the greatest Prince of all Antiquitie did not pass for Jupiters son but dureing his life But Cesar hath that advantage above this Illustrious Here 's that what Alexander freinds did while he was alive the witnesses of Cesars merit have done to him after he ceased to live The Gods also after they had given sinister presages of his death desired likewaies to testifie That it had infinitlie offended them That terrifying Comet which appeared seven whole days after his death was alreadie a sign of the vengeance they would take The Sun also that was a whole year without giving his accustomed hear and brightness has made it known to all the earth that by Cesars death the Republick had lost its greatest ornament and best lustre And also to testifie his innocence better the vengeance of Heaven hath pertinaciouslie pursued even to death all them who onlie by their Counsells had contributted anie thing to that unjust conspiration They all died violent deaths without so much as one escaping They found to Element where they could live quietlie The Sea was fatal to them as well as the land they who escaped the furie of their enemies killed themselves with their own hand Cassius peirced his own heart with that same sword wherewith he struck Cesar And in that manner he is punished with these same armes with which he committed the crime Brutus you know ended his dayes that same way And in fine I know that none of Cesars murtherers remains anie more in the World Judge from that Lepidus if he is not fullie justified If his death be not as Glorious to him as his life because it hath shown to us that all nature was interessed in it And to speak rationallie if Cesar was not 〈◊〉 the 〈◊〉 and Father of his countrey then the Romans Tyrran THE EFFECT OF THIS HARRANGUE IT belongs not to me to tell you the effect of this Hard range it belongs to you to let me know it For its object it has had the design of perswadeing you it belongs to you then to let me understand if you be It is you she hath spoken to under the name of Lepidus it belongs to you to tell me if it hath hits its aime For me I do assure you if I have seduced your reason it is but because my own is seduced And because I do not endeavour to make you believe but what I believe my self I have so great veneration for Cesar that I can have noevil thought of his intentions And Me thinks we owe that respect to all great men not to condemn them upon slight conjectures They are deceitful Great mens designs are fecret Let us then respect them and not onterprise to judge them LIVIA TO MECENAS THE SIXTEENTH HARRANGUE ARGUMENT IT is to the glorie of good learning that this Harrangue is consecrated But though this be its principall object it may be said that it doth not alienate me from the Generall design of my Book because Poesie being one of the most agreeable emploiments of Ladies and one of their dearest divertisments It vindicates their pleasure to make the merit be seen Beheld them what I have proposed to my self by this discourse which if I be not deceived is raâ—ier more reasonable then interessed At least I know if I defend this cause it is because I think it good and also because I do not contravert the oath of Orators which oblidges them not to defend any that they find evill Judge of it Reader and hear Livia speak to Mecenas upon his subject the famous Protector of the Muses But be not astonished to hear her speak to the depth of this matter Augustus loved verse too much 〈…〉 them too often not to haveinspired that same inclination in her who possessed his heart and she was too industriâ—â— not to be complacent So then if I have chosen I had reason and none shall have anie to blame me LIVIA TO MECENAS I Know Illustrious Mecenas that Augustus oweth the Em pire to your Conselles That the Romans owe to you the felicity they enjoy under a reigne so differing from Tyrranie And also that I owe to you that quality I have to day Yes Mecenas it was you who surmounted the powerful reasons of Agrippa in that day wherin Augustus becoming enemie of his own glory and of the Romans repose disputed with himself Whither he should preserve the supreame power or whither he should remit it into the disposition of the people That great Emperous would with his own hand have taken off the crown that was upon his head for saken the reines of the Empires descended from the throne whereon he was seated by so many toylings And by a retreat more shameful then Anthonies flight was from the battel of Actium Altogither lost the fruits of so many victories that he gained It might be said that at that time love caused Anthonies flight But in this encounter can Augustus be accused of any thing but imbecility It might have been said that his hand was not strong enough to carrie the scepter which it held and that he onlie abandoned what he could not keep However Mecanes you had no feeble enimes to fight with at that time Augustus and Agrippâ—â— that is to say the two first men of the world were they who opposed you their opinion seemed to be the juster as appearing the more generous And it hath been said that heshould have had more glory by destroying the Empire then by establishing of it And more advantage in obeying then in commanding Nevertheless you was conquerour in that famous battle And yet by a most extraordinar chance the conquered continued crowned And you contented your self with obeying him for whom you preserved the authority That obligation which the Emperour has to you doubtless is veric great But in my opinion he is more redeuable to you for the care you took to reconcile him to the good will of the Muses then for all the things which you have done for him It is truellie by that mean that you can give him immortality and also give it to your self It is for that that Augustus his age can call it self happy And I mantain it to be more glorious for the Emperour to be beloved of Virgill of Horace of Titus Livius and of the famous Mecenas who is protector of these favorites of Apollo then if he had bein feared of all the earth Fear by rendring him redoubtable to all nations doubtless would have made him obeyed while he was alive But the praises of Virgil and of Horace shal render him venerable to all ages to come Certainlie Mecenas if all Kings were truelie inspired with desire of glorie
in knowing how to fight enemies Do not you then oppose the victorie that I will have of my self And to make it more glorious let me surmount you as well as my self Doe not expose your self to be conquer ed by Anthonies power and let your self be overcome by Octavia But because I doe not see in your eyes that you are yet in condition of yeelding your self to my prayers and teares Suffer me my Lord to goe and wait for your resolution in my husbands house becauseit is the only place wherein I can dwelwith honnor so long as Anthonie permitts me However I do assure you that whereas I doe make no vowes gainst Anthonie while I Im in your palace I shal make none against Cesar when I am in the house of Anthonie THE EFFECT OF THIS HARRANGUE THis fair and Vertuous person obtained from the freindship of Augustus all that she asked And he permitted her to live in her husbands house so long as she could conveniently Yet she was not there long For Anthonie was so unjust to her and so complacent to Cleopatra that he sent her a command to goe out of it She did it with the same modestie that she had alwaies testified And for all the disgraces that burried after this unfortunate both dureing her life and after his death she was ever what till then she was I would say afamous and rare example of conjugal freind ship AGRIPINA TO THE ROMAN PEOPLE THE NINTEENTH HARRANGUE ARGUMENT After the death of Germanicus Agrippina his wife carried his Ashes back to Rome to put them in the to mb of Augustus All the people did goe with her even to Brundusium and testified by their sadness that they complained of the malice of Tiberius That generous wife whose imperious and bold spirit could never disguise its thoughts did nomore conceal them at that time But on the contrare letting her self be transported with greif as with her natural humor she thusspake to the Roman people who were hearing her AGRIPPINA TO THE ROMAN PEOPLE GERM ANICVS the grand-Son of Augustus and the Nephew of Anthonie Germanicus the terror of Germanie and the love of the Romans Germanicus in whom all vertue shined equallie Germanicus whose whole Actions have been glorious Germanicus husband to the unfortunate Agripin grand-Daughter to Augustus In fine Germanicus the bravest the most valiant the most modest the most equitable and the most accomplished that shall ever be Is now no more but a few ashes and this Urne contains O pitifull accident him whose valor might have conquered all the Earth if he had been but suffered to have lived a little longer Yes Romans see your Germanicus in a state of needing you to make him live eternallie See him there equalie uncapable to serve you and to revenge himself of his and your enemies See him now in condition not to excit anie more envie against his vertue He hath conquered this Monster by death For the least circumstances of his life are so glorious that calumnie it self can find nothing in them to repeat Lament then Romans our common misfortune Because if I have lost a husband you have lost your Protector Look I pray you round about this Urne upon Germanicus his six Children all clouded with tears Take pittie of their youth and of their misfortune And fear with me that by their father his abandoning of them he hath not taken from them all their vertue If his life had been so long as rationallie it might have been his example if they had had perverse inclinations would have alwaies led them to good But to day in the condition that things are who shall he be who can instruct them Who shall he be who will correct them Who is he who will lead them into the War Who is he who will make them hate Vice and love Vertue I doubt not but that Tiberius will have for them the same sentiments which he had for their father For his inclinations are not easilie changed But since the Emperour did not hinder him from having enemies envyers persecutors and from dying by poison it may also be that the care he will take for their education will not be profitable And I wish to heaven that all I apprehend of Caligula do not come to pass Let us Romans let us leave what is to come under the providence of the Gods And let us onlie speak of the misfortunes which are befallen us They are great enough to merit all our tears Divide them not I conjure you Let them all be shed for my dear Germanicus and remember that he was of the blood of the Julius Cesareses of the Anthonies of the Marcelluses and of the Augustuses It belongs to you Romans to weep of his death and to Celebrate his memorie And for the stronger testifying the esteem you had for him hate them who hated him Detest his enviers his enemies and his murtherers Fear not to speak of the wickedness of Piso nor of the ambition of Pâ—ancina publish without apprehension that these dead bodies which were found without their Tombes That these imprecations which were made against Germanicus That his name that was engraven upon blades of lead And all those signes of enchantments which have been known are manifest proofes of the designs which were had against his life Publish I say that poison hath finished what charmes could not do And do not fear that you will be punished for this crime The death of Germanicus hath so over joyed them who caused it that for a long time they shall not be in condition to take notice of your sadness nor of your discourse This Victorie that they have gained of the most valiant man that ever was doubtless gives them vanitie enough to slight your resentment And not to trouble themselves for what you will think of that accident I do also believe that they are so much blinded by their ambition as to be verie glad that posteritie should know that they have put Germanicus to death They aspire more to the reputation of great Politicians then of vertuous men And conditionallie that it be said that they did know how to loss him who could oppose their unjust authoritie it is no matter to them to pass for â—ruell for un-naturall for impious for perverse and for bloodie yes treacherous Piso Yes cowardlie enemies of Germanicus it will be said that you did know how to reign it wil be known that you put him to death It will be known that you have violated by his person all sorts of Laws It will be known that you have not respected in him the Noblest blood among the Romans It will be known that you have cut the threed of the most Illustrious life that shall ever be It will be known that the number of his vertues hath shortned that of his dayes It will be known that you did not extinguish that bright light but because it made the blackness of your lives the clearer And in fine it
will be known that the excess of your crimes and that of his Vertues are the true causes of his death I shall make no stope O Generous Romans to repass exactlie to you what all the enemies of Germanicus were It is not that fear doth hinder me from naming of them for Agripina is incapable of it But it is because I know that they are all known to you You know the cause of their hatred nor do I speak to you this day but of the pittifull effects of that dangerous passion But ye Gods How is it possible that Germanicus could be hated What had he done in all his life That could have acquired enemies to him Let us repass it I conjure you Let us be rigid Judges to him And let us see if he could have merited the punishment that he suffered First as to abmition never was anie man so voide of it And all the earth hath seen that the more opportunitie he had to pretend to the Empire The greater affection did he testifie to Tiberius and did deviate himself the more from what would have conducted him to the Throne Ah! would to the Gods That he had rather followed my counsells then his own inclinations It was he who caused present an oath of fidelitie to the Bdlgiks a Neighbouring Nation of Germanie It was he who appeased the revolr of the Legions and who rather then listen to the offers which they made to him of following him everie where would peirce his heart with the blow of a dager Behold Romans what Germanicus did for Tiberius at that time He would die for him And perhaps by another way and by other sentiments hath he had the same destinie But though it be so let us not continue upon such a doleful discourse Let us remember that Germanicus commanded me a dying to lose some of that noble serocity that innocence gives me and the illustrious Blood from which I am descended Let us â—ay then simply that without lying it may be affirmed that Germanicus preserved the Empire for Tiberius because it was he who remitted obedience and military Discipline among the greatest part of the Legions with out whom the Emperours could not have enjoyed the Soveraign power The disorder was so great the complaints which were made against Tiberius so injurious the demands of the Souldiers so insolent their proceedings accompanied with so much violence that Germanicus was conitrained to cause me go out of the Camp searing I might receive an abuse in it However I did what I could that I might not be separated from him at that time For as I have already told you fear had no place in the heart of Agrippina and no humane power could oblidge her either to be silent or to speak until that it pleased her and that Reason required it But generous Romans Germanicus did not only appease the sedition of the Souldiers but he caused the same Souldiers who would no more know a Commander who only followed their own fancies who would hear nothing but their own fury who did not arm themselves but to oppose the Emperours will return under their Colours render themselves capable of Reason hear the commands of Germanicus and take up their armes to follow him with fervency in all the dangers wherein he exposed himself at that time and from which he retired with glory It was with these same Souldiers that he revenged the defate of Varus that he did retake the Eagle of the nineteenth Legion that he past thorow the Brustores that he wholly ransacked all that is betwixt the Rivers Amisa and Luppia and unsatisfied with testifying his valour in the Wars he did let his piety be seen as well as his courage For coming to the same place where Varrus had been defated and where there is yet to be seen an infinite number of blanched bones scattered upon the plain or cumulated together in great heaps according as the Souldiers fled or fought Where I say there is yet to be seen shivered launces and quantities of other broken armes horses heads tied to trees altars whereon the Barbarians had immolated the Tribunes and the Centurians where they who had escaped from the defate shewed the places where the Commanders had received their deaths wounds where the Eagles had been taken where Varrus had received his first wounds and where quickly after he died by his own hand I say Germanicus being come to that horrid place and there seeing such fatal Reliques of a Roman army expelled bloody sighs poured out tears and abandoned his invincible Soul to sorrow and compassion He exhorted the Souldiers to render the last duties to these unfortunate men of whom some had been their Relations and their Freinds he inspires their hearts with sadness thereby to carry them on afterwards with the more zeal to revenge and with his own hand did lay the first turf to the tomb that was builded for these unfortunate worthies However Tiberius did not approve of that laudable action He did not comprehend that a man could be equally valiant and pious give burial to his Freâ—nds and conquer his Enemies and in sine he belived that Piety was a Vertue unworthy of a great Spirit he wished that Germanicus had trode upon these dead mountains without remembering that they had been Romans like himself that they had fought as he was going to fight that the same â—nemies waited for him that to render him victorious over them who had conquered these he must make the Gods propitious to him and infuse desire of vengeance into the souls of his Souldiers thereby to encrease that of fighting and of gaining the victory But the maximes of Tiberius and these of Germanicus were very different they did also lead them to very different wayes Romans Tiberius reignes and Germanicus is dead Render to him at least the same honours which he gave to Varrus his Souldiers and because he had courage enough to revenge their death be you at least so generous as to mourn for his Nevertheless let us not leave him any longer in the shad of this terrifying field all covered with dead bodies let us behold him in hisconquests let us lock how the Valiant Arminius dares not wait for him and let us see with what skill what conduct and with what courage he pursued and excelled so generous an enemy Germanieus at that time joyned prudence with valour And surprising the Cattaneans when they least thought of him he ransacked all their countrey took the town of Martium Capitoll of the Province He set it on fire he had many prisoners in it And after he had carried terrour everie where he retook the way to the Rhine without the enemies dareing to follow him From thence he relived Segesta which they of his countrey hold besidged in favours of Arminius who afterward by a tromperie of war seemed rather to flee then to retire But it was onlie untill Germanicus was arrived at an Ambusca doe that was laid for him and
I wish from heaven that he had so happilie evited all the ambushes which were laid a gainst his life He payed for his valour at that time And seeing the Germans who followed his partie going to cast themselves in a Marrish most advantageous for the enemies he caused all the Legions advance in Battalion which did put terrour among all Arminius this troupes and assurance among â—urs Germanicus his good-fortune went even to Cecina his Lieutenent For he surpassed all difficulties which he encountered Fought with glorie the troupes of Inguiomere and these of Arminius and in fine the Roman armes were but too fortunate at that time Because if Germanicus had acquired less glorie he would have been less suspected I have cheiflie known that I contributed somewhat to his death His valour was thought to be as contagious as vice is in this age And that he had communicate a part of it to me it has been thought I say 〈◊〉 since he had made me couragious he would make Heroes of all the Souldiers who fought for him â—ut they who believe that remember member no more that Agrippina is of the blood of Augustus Aud that Germanicus had more trouble to retain her courage then to excit it And moreover at that time I did nothing that could give anie shadow It is true that when the noise did run that the Roman armie was beaten and that the enemie were coming to pillage the Gaules I hindered that anie who was too fearfull of that false news should break the bridge that crossed the Rhine And by that means I did in some manner serve the Roman Legions It is also true that when they were returning I keeped my self at the end of the bridge to thank the Souldiers To praise some assist others comfort the wounded and in the end â—o do everie thing that compassion and Generositie counselled me to do in favours of them who had fought for the advantage of their countrey for the safitie of Tiberius and for the glorie of Germanieus But if I be not deceived I ought rather to have been thanked for that action then to have been looked upon as an enemie Further the freindship that the Legions had both for Agrippina and for Germanicus hath onlie served for the advantage of his enemies For though he knew as well as I that they had but verie unjust inclinations for him He made use of that freindship or the Legions to engaâ—ge them â—â— his designs And his designs had no other object but the glorie of them who loved him not It is true he was obstinate for the German War But it was onlie because he beleived it convenient to do it for the publick good As in effect the event at last made what I say appear For after the valiant Arminius and the generous Inguiomere had done their last endeavours to raise an armie capable of conquering that of Germanicus And that by all stratagemes of warr which great Captains do use they had considered how to takefull advantages which the scituation of the place could give them Germanicus ceased not to gain so manic Victories as he made fights or as he gave battles Never were enemies seen defend themselves more obstinatly It seemed that they did not sometimes flee but to return with the greater courage to fight The defaiting of their troupes did on lie augment their courage And the nearer they seemed to be conquered the more they to put themselves in condition of being victorious It might have been said that the valor of the Souldiers who were killed past into the hearts of their companions ro revenge their death And therefore Germanicus merits not a little glorie for having conquered such enemies Among the things which were found in the bootie that was taken from them after one of the battles which was lost There were a great manic chains to be seen which they caried with them to fetter the Roman Souldiers whom they should take prisoners For they doubted not that they should gain the victorie However after that Germanicus by his valor and conduct had revenged the death of Varrus The loss of his Legions had again found the lost coulors And caried horror amongst all the Barbarians What did he for his particular interest What did he for his own glorie Shall I rell it generous Romans Yes let us tell it for his honour and for the â—ame of his enemies He erected a Magnificent Trophie with an inscription that simply said That Tiberius Cesars armie had consecrated these monuments to Mars to Jupiter and to Augustus For the victorie that it had obtained against these Nations which inhabitated bet wixt the Rhine and Albis And all that Romans without speaking of himself more then of the meâ—â—st Souldier of the armie that he commanded I shall not tell you exactlie all the actions which Germanicus hath done Fame hath reached you it And the hatred that hath been had to him should also perswade you that he merited your freindship Further when Tiberius judged that it was convenient for the designs which he had that Germanicus should return to Rome to receive the honor of the Triumph That unfortunate Heroe did well know that they desired they should Triumph before the victorie nevertheless he did not forbear to obey them he left that imperfect war which he was going to finish so profitablie and so gloriously for you And without desiring to use all his prudence he listned onlie to his generositie You saw him invincible Romans in the Triumphing Chariot But in the verie instant wherein you was sheding tears of joy perhaps there was some of the Magicians of which Rome is plentifullie furnished who then foretold that you should verie soon shed tears of sorrow upon the Ashes of Germanicus You also know that he was not recalled to his countrey to permit him to live in it On the contrare he was sent to a place verie far off And it was found convenient or to speak better necessar Whither for the publick good or for particular reasons To banish him from Rome upon some honorable pretext Let it be what it would he did what he was desired he was as fortunate in pacifying the interests of the princes allyed to the Roman people as he had been in fighting his ene mies and if the treacherous Piso and the ambitious Planeina had not attempted his death Perhaps they might have had rouble enough to have brought it to pass Germanicus was so unversallie beloved that it would have been a hard matter for them who put him to death to have encreased the number of their complices He knew what was thought of him And the esseem that he had acquired could not make him suspected For everie time that he went into the warr he was accustomed to go alone in the night disguised like a simple Souldier from tent to tent to hear what was said of him yet it was not that he delighted in hearing the praises which were given to his valour