In his own change, or by ill officers,
Hath given me some worthy cause to wish
Things done, undone: but if he be at hand
I shall be satisfied.
PINDARUS I do not doubt
10
But that my noble master will appear
Such as he is, full of regard and honour.
BRUTUS He is not doubted. A word, Lucilius,
How he received you: let me be resolved.
LUCILIUS With courtesy and with respect enough,
15
But not with such familiar instances
Nor with such free and friendly conference
As he hath used of old.
BRUTUS Thou hast described
A hot friend, cooling. Ever note, Lucilius,
When love begins to sicken and decay
20
It useth an enforced ceremony.
There are no tricks in plain and simple faith:
But hollow men, like horses hot at hand,
Make gallant show and promise of their mettle:
[Low march within.]
But when they should endure the bloody spur,
25
They fall their crests, and like deceitful jades
Sink in the trial. Comes his army on?
LUCILIUS
They mean this night in Sardis to be quartered.
The greater part, the horse in general,
Are come with Cassius.
Enter CASSIUS and his powers.
BRUTUS Hark, he is arrived.
30
March gently on to meet him.
CASSIUS Stand ho.
BRUTUS Stand ho. Speak the word along.
1 SOLDIER Stand.
2 SOLDIER Stand.
35
3 SOLDIER Stand.
CASSIUS Most noble brother, you have done me wrong.
BRUTUS Judge me, you gods; wrong I mine enemies?
And if not so, how should I wrong a brother?
CASSIUS
Brutus, this sober form of yours hides wrongs,
40
And when you do them –
BRUTUS Cassius, be content.
Speak your griefs softly. I do know you well.
Before the eyes of both our armies here,
Which should perceive nothing but love from us,
Let us not wrangle. Bid them move away:
45
Then in my tent, Cassius, enlarge your griefs
And I will give you audience.
CASSIUS Pindarus,
Bid our commanders lead their charges off
A little from this ground.
BRUTUS Lucilius, do you the like, and let no man
50
Come to our tent till we have done our conference.
Let Lucius and Titinius guard our door.
Exeunt all but Brutus and Cassius.
4.3
CASSIUS
That you have wronged me doth appear in this:
You have condemned and noted Lucius Pella
For taking bribes here of the Sardians;
Wherein my letters, praying on his side
Because I knew the man, was slighted off.
5
BRUTUS You wronged yourself to write in such a case.
CASSIUS In such a time as this it is not meet
That every nice offence should bear his comment.
BRUTUS Let me tell you, Cassius, you yourself
Are much condemned to have an itching palm,
10
To sell and mart your offices for gold
To undeservers.
CASSIUS I, an itching palm?
You know that you are Brutus that speaks this,
Or, by the gods, this speech were else your last.
BRUTUS The name of Cassius honours this corruption,
15
And chastisement doth therefore hide his head.
CASSIUS Chastisement?
BRUTUS
Remember March, the Ides of March remember:
Did not great Julius bleed for justice’ sake?
What villain touched his body, that did stab
20
And not for justice? What, shall one of us,
That struck the foremost man of all this world
But for supporting robbers: shall we now
Contaminate our fingers with base bribes,
And sell the mighty space of our large honours
25
For so much trash as may be grasped thus?
I had rather be a dog and bay the moon
Than such a Roman.
CASSIUS Brutus, bait not me.
I’ll not endure it. You forget yourself
To hedge me in. I am a soldier, I,
30
Older in practice, abler than yourself
To make conditions.
BRUTUS Go to, you are not, Cassius.
CASSIUS I am.
BRUTUS I say you are not.
CASSIUS Urge me no more. I shall forget myself.
35
Have mind upon your health. Tempt me no farther.
BRUTUS Away, slight man!
CASSIUS Is’t possible?
BRUTUS Hear me, for I will speak.
Must I give way and room to your rash choler?
Shall I be frighted when a madman stares?
40
CASSIUS O ye gods, ye gods, must I endure all this?
BRUTUS
All this? Ay, more: fret till your proud heart break.
Go show your slaves how choleric you are,
And make your bondmen tremble. Must I budge?
Must I observe you? Must I stand and crouch
45
Under your testy humour? By the gods,
You shall digest the venom of your spleen
Though it do split you; for, from this day forth,
I’ll use you for my mirth, yea for my laughter,
When you are waspish.
CASSIUS Is it come to this?
50
BRUTUS You say you are a better soldier:
Let it appear so. Make your vaunting true
And it shall please me well. For mine own part,
I shall be glad to learn of noble men.
CASSIUS
You wrong me every way: you wrong me, Brutus.
55
I said an elder soldier, not a better.
Did I say better?
BRUTUS If you did, I care not.
CASSIUS
When Caesar lived he durst not thus have moved me.
BRUTUS
Peace, peace, you durst not so have tempted him.
CASSIUS I durst not?
60
BRUTUS No.
CASSIUS What, durst not tempt him?
BRUTUS For your life you durst not.
CASSIUS Do not presume too much upon my love:
I may do that I shall be sorry for.
BRUTUS You have done that you should be sorry for.
65
There is no terror, Cassius, in your threats:
For I am armed so strong in honesty
That they pass by me as the idle wind,
Which I respect not. I did send to you
For certain sums of gold, which you denied me,
70
For I can raise no money by vile means:
By heaven, I had rather coin my heart
And drop my blood for drachmas, than to wring
From the hard hands of peasants their vile trash
By any indirection. I did send
75
To you for gold to pay my legions,
Which you denied me: was that done like Cassius?
Should I have answered Caius Cassius so?
When Marcus Brutus grows so covetous,
To lock such rascal counters from his friends,
80
Be ready gods with all your thunderbolts,
Dash him to pieces!
&nb
sp; CASSIUS I denied you not.
BRUTUS You did.
CASSIUS I did not. He was but a fool
That brought my answer back. Brutus hath rived my heart.
A friend should bear his friend’s infirmities,
85
But Brutus makes mine greater than they are.
BRUTUS I do not, till you practise them on me.
CASSIUS You love me not.
BRUTUS I do not like your faults.
CASSIUS A friendly eye could never see such faults.
BRUTUS
A flatterer’s would not, though they do appear
90
As huge as high Olympus.
CASSIUS Come, Antony, and young Octavius, come,
Revenge yourselves alone on Cassius,
For Cassius is a-weary of the world:
Hated by one he loves, braved by his brother,
95
Checked like a bondman; all his faults observed,
Set in a notebook, learned and conned by rote
To cast into my teeth. O I could weep
My spirit from mine eyes! There is my dagger,
And here my naked breast: within, a heart
100
Dearer than Pluto’s mine, richer than gold.
If that thou beest a Roman, take it forth.
I that denied thee gold will give my heart.
Strike as thou didst at Caesar: for I know,
When thou didst hate him worst, thou lov’dst him better
105
Than ever thou lov’dst Cassius.
BRUTUS Sheathe your dagger:
Be angry when you will, it shall have scope:
Do what you will, dishonour shall be humour.
O Cassius, you are yoked with a lamb
That carries anger as the flint bears fire,
110
Who, much enforced, shows a hasty spark
And straight is cold again.
CASSIUS Hath Cassius lived
To be but mirth and laughter to his Brutus,
When grief and blood ill-tempered vexeth him?
BRUTUS When I spoke that, I was ill-tempered too.
115
CASSIUS Do you confess so much? Give me your hand.
BRUTUS And my heart too.
CASSIUS O Brutus!
BRUTUS What’s the matter?
CASSIUS Have you not love enough to bear with me,
When that rash humour which my mother gave me
Makes me forgetful?
BRUTUS Yes, Cassius, and from henceforth
120
When you are over-earnest with your Brutus,
He’ll think your mother chides, and leave you so.
Enter a Poet, LUCILIUS and TITINIUS.
POET Let me go in to see the generals.
There is some grudge between ‘em; ’tis not meet
They be alone.
LUCILIUS You shall not come to them.
125
POET Nothing but death shall stay me.
CASSIUS How now? What’s the matter?
POET For shame, you generals, what do you mean?
Love and be friends, as two such men should be,
For I have seen more years, I’m sure, than ye.
130
CASSIUS Ha, ha, how vildly doth this cynic rhyme.
BRUTUS Get you hence, sirrah; saucy fellow, hence.
CASSIUS Bear with him, Brutus, ’tis his fashion.
BRUTUS I’ll know his humour when he knows his time.
What should the wars do with these jigging fools?
135
Companion, hence.
CASSIUS Away, away, be gone. Exit Poet.
BRUTUS Lucilius and Titinius, bid the commanders
Prepare to lodge their companies tonight.
CASSIUS
And come yourselves, and bring Messala with you
Immediately to us. Exeunt Lucilius and Titinius.
BRUTUS [Calls.] Lucius! A bowl of wine.
140
CASSIUS I did not think you could have been so angry.
BRUTUS O Cassius, I am sick of many griefs.
CASSIUS Of your philosophy you make no use
If you give place to accidental evils.
BRUTUS No man bears sorrow better. Portia is dead.
145
CASSIUS Ha? Portia?
BRUTUS She is dead.
CASSIUS How scaped I killing when I crossed you so?
O insupportable and touching loss!
Upon what sickness?
BRUTUS Impatient of my absence,
The Arden Shakespeare Complete Works Page 149
