Tam.
Thus, in these strange and sad habiliments,
I will encounter with Andronicus:

And say, I am Revenge sent from below,
To join with him, and right his heinous wrongs:
Knock at the Study, where, they say, he keeps,
To ruminate strange plots of dire revenge;
Tell him, Revenge is come to join with him,
And work confusion on his enemies. [They knock, and Titus appears above.

Tit.
Who doth molest my contemplation?
Is it your trick to make me ope the door,
That so my sad decrees may fly away,
And all my study be to no effect?
You are deceiv'd; for what I mean to do,
See, here in bloody lines I have set down;
And what is written, shall be executed.

Tam.
Titus, I am come to talk with thee.

Tit.
No, not a word: how can I grace my Talk,
Wanting a hand to give it that accord?
Thou hast the odds of me, therefore no more.

Tam.
If thou did'st know me, thou wouldst talk with me.

Tit.
I am not mad; I know thee well enough;
Witness this wretched stump, these crimson lines,
Witness these trenches, made by grief and care,
Witness the tiring day and heavy night;
Witness all sorrow, that I know thee well
For our proud Empress, mighty Tamora:
Is not thy Coming for my other hand?

Tam.
Know thou, sad man, I am not Tamora;
She is thy enemy, and I thy friend;
I am Revenge, sent from th' infernal Kingdom,
To ease the gnawing Vulture of thy mind,
By working wreakful vengeance on thy foes.
Come down, and welcome me to this world's light;
Confer with me of murder and of death;
There's not a hollow cave, nor lurking place,
No vast obscurity, or misty vale,
Where bloody Murther or detested Rape
Can couch for fear, but I will find them out;
And in their ears tell them my dreadful name,
Revenge, which makes the foul offenders quake.

Tit.
Art thou Revenge? and art thou sent to me,

To be a torment to mine enemies?

Tam.
I am; therefore come down, and welcome me.

Tit.
Do me some service, ere I come to thee:
Lo, by thy side where Rape and Murder stands;
Now give some surance that thou art Revenge,
Stab them, or tear them on thy chariot-wheels;
And then I'll come and be thy waggoner,
And whirl along with thee about the globes:
Provide two proper palfries black as jet,
To hale thy vengeful waggon swift away,
And find out murders in their guilty caves.
And when thy car is loaden with their heads,
I will dismount, and by thy waggon-wheel
Trot like a servile foot-man all day long;
Even from Hyperion's rising in the east,
Until his very downfal in the sea.
And day by day I'll do this heavy task,
So thou destroy Rapine and Murder there.

Tam.
These are my ministers, and come with me.

Tit.
Are they thy ministers? what are they call'd?

Tam.
Rapine and Murder; therefore called so,
'Cause they take vengeance on such kind of men.

Tit.
Good lord, how like the Empress' sons they are,
And you the Empress! but we worldly men
Have miserable mad mistaking eyes:
O sweet Revenge, now do I come to thee,
And if one arm's embracement will content thee,
I will embrace thee in it by and by. [Exit Titus from above.

Tam.
This closing with him fits his lunacy.
Whate'er I forge to feed his brain-sick fits,
Do you uphold, and maintain in your speech,
For now he firmly takes me for Revenge;
And, being credulous in this mad thought,
I'll make him send for Lucius, his son:
And whilst I at a banquet hold him sure,
I'll find some cunning practice out of hand,
To scatter and disperse the giddy Goths,
Or at the least make them his enemies:

See, here he comes, and I must ply my theme.(26) ^note Enter Titus.

Tit.
Long have I been forlorn, and all for thee:
Welcome, dread fury, to my woful house;
Rapine and Murder, you are welcome too:
How like the Empress and her sons you are!
Well are you fitted, had you but a Moor;
Could not all hell afford you such a devil?
For, well I wot, the Empress never wags,
But in her company there is a Moor;
And would you represent our Queen aright,
It were convenient you had such a devil:
But welcome, as you are: what shall we do?

Tam.
What wouldst thou have us do, Andronicus?

Dem.
Shew me a murderer, I'll deal with him.

Chi.
Shew me a villain, that has done a rape,
And I am sent to be reveng'd on him.

Tam.
Shew me a thousand, that have done thee wrong;
And I will be revenged on them all.

Tit.
Look round about the wicked streets of Rome,
And when thou find'st a man that's like thy self,
Good Murder, stab him; he's a murderer.
Go thou with him, and when it is thy hap
To find another that is like to thee,
Good Rapine, stab him; he is a ravisher.
Go thou with them, and in the Emperor's Court
There is a Queen attended by a Moor;
Well may'st thou know her by thy own proportion,
For up and down she doth resemble thee;
I pray thee, do on them some violent death;
They have been violent to me and mine.

Tam.
Well hast thou lesson'd us; this shall we do.
But would it please thee, good Andronicus,
To send for Lucius thy thrice-valiant son,

Who leads tow'rds Rome a band of warlike Goths,
And bid him come and banquet at thy house,
When he is here, even at thy solemn feast,
I will bring in the Empress and her Sons,
The Emperor himself, and all thy foes;
And at thy mercy shall they stoop and kneel,
And on them shalt thou ease thy angry heart:
What says Andronicus to this device?

Tit.
Marcus, my brother!—'tis sad Titus calls: Enter Marcus.
Go, gentle Marcus, to thy nephew Lucius;
Thou shalt enquire him out among the Goths:
Bid him repair to me: and bring with him
Some of the chiefest Princes of the Goths;
Bid him encamp his Soldiers where they are;
Tell him, the Emperor and the Empress too
Feast at my house, and he shall feast with them;
This do thou for my love, and so let him,
As he regards his aged father's life.

Mar.
This will I do, and soon return again. [Exit.

Tam.
Now will I hence about thy business,
And take my ministers along with me.

Tit.
Nay, nay, let Rape and Murder stay with me;
Or else I'll call my brother back again,
And cleave to no revenge but Lucius.

Tam.
What say you, boys, will you abide with him,
Whiles I go tell my lord, the Emperor,
How I have govern'd our determin'd jest?
Yield to his humour, smooth and speak him fair,
And tarry with him 'till I come again.

Tit.
I know them all, tho' they suppose me mad;
And will o'er-reach them in their own devices:
A pair of cursed hell-hounds and their dam. [Aside.

Dem.
Madam, depart at pleasure, leave us here.

Tam.
Farewel, Andronicus; Revenge now goes
To lay a complot to betray thy foes. [Exit Tamora.

Tit.
I know, thou dost; and, sweet Revenge, farewel.

Chi.
Tell us, old man, how shall we be employ'd?

Tit.
Tut, I have work enough for you to do.

Publius, come hither, Caius, and Valentine! Enter Publius and Servants.

Pub.
What is your will?

Tit.
Know ye these two?

Pub.
The Empress' sons,
I take them, Chiron, and Demetrius.

Tit.
Fie, Publius, fie! thou art too much deceiv'd,
The one is Murder, Rape is th' other's name;
And therefore bind them, gentle Publius;
Caius and Valentine, lay hands on them;
Oft have you heard me wish for such an hour,
And now I find it, therefore bind them sure. [Exit Titus.

Chi.
Villains, forbear; we are the Empress' Sons.

Pub.
And therefore do we what we are commanded.
Stop close their mouths; let them not speak a word.
Is he sure bound? look, that ye bind them fast. Enter Titus Andronicus with a Knife, and Lavinia with a Bason.

Tit.
Come, come, Lavinia; look, thy foes are bound;
Sirs, stop their mouths, let them not speak to me,
But let them hear what fearful words I utter.
Oh, villains Chiron and Demetrius!
Here stands the spring whom you have stain'd with mud,
This goodly summer with your winter mixt:
You kill'd her husband, and for that vile fault
Two of her brothers were condemn'd to death;
My hand cut off, and made a merry jest;
Both her sweet hands, her tongue, and That more dear
Than hands or tongue, her spotless Chastity,
Inhuman traitors, you constrain'd and forc'd.
What would ye say, if I should let you speak?
Villains!—for shame you could not beg for grace.
Hark, wretches, how I mean to martyr you.
This one hand yet is left to cut your throats,
Whilst that Lavinia 'twixt her stumps doth hold
The bason, that receives your guilty blood.
You, know, your mother means to feast with me,

And calls her self Revenge, and thinks me mad—
Hark, villains, I will grind your bones to dust,
And with your blood and it I'll make a paste;
And of the paste a coffin will I rear,
And make two pasties of your shameful heads;
And bid that strumpet, your unhallow'd dam,
Like to the earth, swallow her own increase.
This is the feast that I have bid her to,
And this the banquet she shall surfeit on;
For worse than Philomel you us'd my daughter,
And worse than Procne I will be reveng'd.
And now prepare your throats: Lavinia, come,
Receive the blood; and, when that they are dead,
Let me go grind their bones to powder small,
And with this hateful liquor temper it;
And in that paste let their vile heads be bak'd.
Come, come, be every one officious
To make this banquet, which I wish might prove
More stern and bloody than the Centaurs feast. [He cuts their throats.
So, now bring them in, for I'll play the cook,
And see them ready 'gainst the Mother comes. [Exeunt. Enter Lucius, Marcus, and Goths with Aaron Prisoner.

Luc.
Uncle Marcus, since 'tis my father's mind
That I repair to Rome, I am content.

Goth.
And ours with thine, befall what fortune will.

Luc.
Good uncle, take you in this barbarous Moor,
This ravenous tiger, this accursed devil;
Let him receive no sustenance, fetter him,
'Till he be brought unto the Emp'ror's face,
For testimony of these foul proceedings;
And see, the ambush of our friends be strong;
I fear, the Emperor means no good to us.

Aar.
Some devil whisper curses in my ear,
And prompt me, that my tongue may utter forth
The venomous malice of my swelling heart!

Luc.
Away, inhuman dog, unhallow'd slave, [Exeunt Goths with Aaron.
Sirs, help our uncle to convey him in. [Flourish.

The trumpets shew the Emperor is at hand. Sound trumpets. Enter Emperor and Empress, with Tribunes and others.

Sat.
What, hath the firmament more Suns than one?

Luc.
What boots it thee to call thy self a Sun?

Mar.
Rome's Emperor, and Nephew, break the parley;
These quarrels must be quietly debated:
The feast is ready, which the careful Titus
Hath ordain'd to an honourable end,
For peace, for love, for league, and good to Rome:
Please you therefore draw nigh and take your places.

Sat.
Marcus, we will. [Hautboys. A Table brought in. Enter Titus like a Cook, placing the meat on the Table, and Lavinia with a veil over her face.

Tit.
Welcome, my gracious lord; welcome dread Queen,
Welcome, ye warlike Goths, welcome Lucius,
And welcome all; although the cheer be poor,
'Twill fill your stomachs, please you eat of it.

Sat.
Why art thou thus attir'd, Andronicus?

Tit.
Because I would be sure to have all well,
To entertain your Highness, and your Empress.

Tam.
We are beholden to you, good Andronicus.

Tit.
And if your Highness knew my heart, you were.
My lord the Emperor, resolve me this;
Was it well done of rash Virginius,
To slay his daughter with his own right-hand,
Because she was enforc'd, stain'd, and deflour'd?

Sat.
It was, Andronicus.

Tit.
Your reason, mighty lord?

Sat.
Because the girl should not survive her shame,
And by her presence still renew his sorrows.

Tit.
A reason mighty, strong, and effectual,
A pattern, precedent, and lively warrant,
For me, most wretched, to perform the like:
Die, die, Lavinia, and thy shame with thee,
And with thy shame thy father's sorrow die! [He kills her.

Sat.
What hast thou done, unnatural and unkind?

Tit.
Kill'd her, for whom my tears have made me blind.
I am as woful as Virginius was,
And have a thousand times more cause than he
To do this outrage. And it is now done.

Sat.
What, was she ravish'd? tell, who did the deed?

Tit.
Will't please you eat, will't please your Highness feed?

Tam.
Why hast thou slain thine only daughter thus?

Tit.
Not I, 'twas Chiron and Demetrius.
They ravish'd her, and cut away her tongue,
And they, 'twas they, that did her all this wrong.

Sat.
Go, fetch them hither to us presently.

Tit.
Why, there they are both, baked in that pye,
Whereof their mother daintily hath fed;
Eating the flesh, that she her self hath bred.
'Tis true, 'tis true; witness, my knife's sharp point. [He stabs the Empress.

Sat.
Die, frantick wretch, for this accursed deed. [He stabs Titus.

Luc.
Can the son's eye behold his father bleed?
There's meed for meed, death for a deadly deed. [Lucius stabs the Emperor.

Mar.
You sad-fac'd men, people and sons of Rome,
By uprore sever'd, like a flight of fowl
Scatter'd by winds and high tempestuous gusts,
Oh, let me teach you how to knit again
This scatter'd corn into one mutual sheaf,
These broken limbs again into one body.

Goth.
Let Rome her self be Bane unto her self;
And she, whom mighty Kingdoms curtsie to,
Like a forlorn and desperate cast-away,
Do shameful execution on her self.

Mar.
But if my frosty signs and chaps of age,
Grave witnesses of true experience,
Cannot induce you to attend my words,
Speak, Rome's dear friend; as erst our Ancestor, [To Lucius.
When with his solemn tongue he did discourse
To love-sick Dido's sad attending ear,

The story of that baleful burning Night,
When subtile Greeks surpriz'd King Priam's Troy:
Tell us, what Sinon hath bewitch'd our ears,
Or who hath brought the fatal engine in,
That gives our Troy, our Rome, the civil wound.
My heart is not compact of flint, nor steel;
Nor can I utter all our bitter grief,
But floods of tears will drown my oratory,
And break my very utt'rance; even in the time
When it should move you to attend me most,
Lending your kind commiseration.
Here is a Captain, let him tell the Tale,
Your hearts will throb and weep to hear him speak.

Luc.
Then, noble Auditory, be it known to you,
That cursed Chiron and Demetrius
Were they, that murdered our Emperor's brother;
And they it were, that ravished our sister:
For their fell faults our brothers were beheaded,
Our father's tears despis'd, and basely cozen'd
Of that true hand, that fought Rome's quarrel out,
And sent her enemies into the grave.
Lastly, my self unkindly banished,
The gates shut on me, and turn'd weeping out,
To beg relief among Rome's enemies;
Who drown'd their enmity in my true tears,
And op'd their arms t'embrace me as a friend:
And I am turn'd forth, be it known to you,
That have preserv'd her welfare in my blood,
And from her bosom took the enemy's point,
Sheathing the steel in my advent'rous body.
Alas!—you know, I am no vaunter, I;
My scars can witness, dumb although they are,
That my report is just, and full of truth.
But, soft, methinks, I do digress too much,
Citing my worthless praise: oh, pardon me,
For when no friends are by, men praise themselves.

Mar.
Now is my tongue to speak: behold this child,
Of this was Tamora delivered;
The issue of an irreligious Moor,
Chief architect and plotter of these woes;

The villain is alive in Titus' house,(27) ^note

Æm.
Come, come, thou reverend man of Rome,
And bring our Emperor gently in thy hand,
Lucius our Emperor: for, well I know,
The common voice do cry, it shall be so.

Mar.
Lucius, all hail, Rome's royal Emperor!
Go, go, into old Titus' sorrowful house,
And hither hale that misbelieving Moor,
To be adjudg'd some direful slaughtering death;
As punishment for his most wicked life.
Lucius, all hail, Rome's gracious governour!

Luc.
Thanks, gentle Romans: may I govern so,

To heal Rome's harm, and drive away her woe!
But, gentle people, give me aim a while,
For nature puts me to a heavy task:
Stand all aloof; but, Uncle, draw you near,
To shed obsequious tears upon this Trunk:
Oh, take this warm kiss on thy pale cold lips,
These sorrowful drops upon thy blood-stain'd face;
The last true duties of thy noble Son.

Mar.
Ay, tear for tear, and loving kiss for kiss,
Thy brother Marcus tenders on thy lips:
O, were the sum of these that I should pay
Countless and infinite, yet would I pay them.

Luc.
Come hither, boy; come, come, and learn of us
To melt in showers; thy grandsire lov'd thee well;
Many a time he danc'd thee on his knee;
Sung thee asleep, his loving breast thy pillow:
Many a matter hath he told to thee,
Meet and agreeing with thy infancy;
In that respect then, like a loving child,
Shed yet some small drops from thy tender spring,
Because kind nature doth require it so;
Friends should associate friends, in grief and woe:
Bid him farewel, commit him to the grave;
Do him that kindness, and take leave of him.

Boy.
O grandsire, grandsire! ev'n with all my heart,
Would I were dead, so you did live again—
O lord, I cannot speak to him for weeping—
My tears will choak me, if I ope my mouth. Enter Romans with Aaron.

Rom.
You sad Andronici, have done with woes:
Give sentence on this execrable wretch,
That hath been breeder of these dire events.

Luc.
Set him breast-deep in earth, and famish him:
There let him stand, and rave and cry for food:
If any one relieves or pities him,
For the offence he dies: this is our doom.
Some stay to see him fastned in the earth.

Aar.
O, why should wrath be mute, and fury dumb!—
I am no baby, I, that with base prayers

I should repent the evil I have done:
Ten thousand worse, than ever yet I did,
Would I perform, if I might have my will:
If one good deed in all my life I did,
I do repent it from my very soul.

Luc.
Some loving friends convey the Emp'ror hence,
And give him burial in his father's grave.
My father and Lavinia shall forthwith
Be closed in our Houshold's Monument:
As for that heinous tygress Tamora,
No funeral rites, nor man in mournful weeds,
No mournful bell shall ring her burial;
But throw her forth to beasts and birds of prey:
Her life was beast-like, and devoid of pity,
And, being so, shall have like want of pity.
See justice done on Aaron that damn'd Moor,
From whom our heavy haps had their beginning;
Then afterwards, we'll order well the State;
That like events may ne'er it ruinate. [Exeunt omnes.

THE TRAGEDY OF

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