Met. Is there no voice more worthy than my own, To sound more sweetly in great Cæsar's ear, Bru. I kiss thy hand, but not in flattery, Cæsar; Desiring thee, that Publius Cimber may Have an immediate freedom of repeal. Cas. What, Brutus! Cas. Pardon, Cæsar: Cæsar, pardon: As low as to thy foot doth Cassius fall, To beg enfranchisement for Publius Cimber. Cas. I could be well mov'd, if I were as you; If I could pray to move, prayers would move me : Of whose true-fix'd, and resting quality, The skies are painted with unnumber'd sparks, That I was constant, Cimber should be banish'd, And constant do remain to keep him so. thority, withdrew the words in question, to the injury of the metre and of the sense. We should read, therefore, as was most indisputably written: "Know, Cæsar doth never wrong but with just cause, The criticism objected to the first of these lines was ill founded. Wrong is not always a synonymous term for injury. In poetical language, especially, it may be understood to mean only harm or hurt, what the law calls damnum sine injuria; and in this sense, there is nothing absurd in Cæsar's saying, that he doth not wrong (i. e. doth not inflict any evil or punishment) but with just cause. -GIFFORD and TYRWHITT. W X apprehensive;] i. e. Intelligent, capable of apprehending.-M. MASON. but one-] i. e. One and only one.-JOHNSON. holds on his rank, Unshak'd of motion:] i. e. Maintains the impartiality of his station unshaked by suit or solicitation. Casca. Speak, hands, for me. [CASCA Stabs CÆSAR in the Neck. CÆSAR catches hold of his Arm. He is then stabbed by several other Conspirators, and at last by MARCUS BRUTUS. Cas. Et tu, Brute?-Then fall, Cæsar. [Dies. The Senators and People retire in confusion. Cin. Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is dead!- Bru. People, and senators! be not affrighted; Dec. Bru. Where's Publius? And Cassius too. Cin. Here, quite confounded with this mutiny. Met. Stand fast together, lest some friend of Cæsar's Should chance Bru. Talk not of standing; -Publius, good cheer; Cas. And leave us, Publius; lest that the people, Re-enter TREBONIUS.. Cas. Where's Antony? Fled to his house amaz'd: Men, wives, and children, stare, cry out, and run, As it were doomsday. Bru. Fates! we will know your pleasures : That we shall die, we know; 'tis but the time, Go to the pulpit, Brutus.] We have now taken leave of Casca. Shakspeare for once knew that he had a sufficient number of heroes on his hands, and was glad to lose an individual in the crowd. It may be added, that the singularity of Casca's manners would have appeared to little advantage amidst the succeeding varieties of tumult and war.-STEEVENS. ■ Nor to no Roman else:] This use of two negatives, not to make an affirmative, but to deny more strongly, is common to Chaucer, Spenser, and other of our ancient writers. Dr. Hickes observes, that in the Saxon, even four negatives are sometimes conjoined, and still preserve a negative signification. -STEEVENS. Cas. Why, he that cuts off twenty years of life, Bru. Grant that, and then is death a benefit: Cas. Stoop then, and wash.-How many ages hence, Bru. How many times shall Cæsar bleed in sport, That now on Pompey's basis lies along, No worthier than the dust? Cas. So oft as that shall be, So often shall the knot of us be call'd The men that gave our country liberty. Dec. What, shall we forth? Ay, every man away: Brutus shall lead; and we will grace his heels Enter a Servant. Bru. Soft, who comes here? A friend of Antony's. Thus did Mark Antony bid me fall down; a Stoop then, and wash.] To wash does not mean here to cleanse, but to wash over, as we say, washed with gold; for Cassius means that they should steep their hands in the blood of Cæsar.-M. MASON. b-states unborn,] i. e. Communities which as yet have no existence. -STEEVENS. Mark Antony shall not love Cæsar dead Bru. Thy master is a wise and valiant Roman; Tell him, so please him come unto this place, Serv. I'll fetch him presently. (Exit Servant. Bru. I know, that we shall have him well to friend. Cas. I wish, we may: but yet have I a mind, That fears him much; and my misgiving still Falls shrewdly to the purpose. Re-enter ANTONY. Bru. But here comes Antony. - Welcome, Mark An tony. c Ant. O mighty Cæsar! Dost thou lie so low? Now, whilst your purpled hands do reek and smoke, Bru. O Antony! beg not your death of us. who else is rank:] Who else may be supposed to have overtopped his supposed equals, and grown too high for the publick safety. JOHNSON. You see we do; yet see you but our hands, (As fire drives out fire, so pity, pity,) Hath done this deed on Cæsar. For your part, Bru. Only be patient, till we have appeas'd Have thus proceeded. Ant. I doubt not of your wisdom. Let each man render me his bloody hand : That I did love thee, Cæsar, O, 'tis true : d Our arms, in strength of malice,] i. e. To you (says Brutus) our swords have leaden points: our arms, strong in the deed of malice they have just performed, and our hearts united like those of brothers in the action, are yet open to receive you with all possible regard.-STEEVENS. |