Ides
of March / Cetera
/ Holidays
Julius Caesar
by William Shakespeare
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[A crowd of people; among them ARTEMIDORUS and the Soothsayer. Flourish. Enter CAESAR, BRUTUS, CASSIUS, CASCA, DECIUS BRUTUS, METELLUS CIMBER, TREBONIUS, CINNA, ANTONY, LEPIDUS, POPILIUS, PUBLIUS, and others]
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| CAESAR | [To the Soothsayer] The ides
of March are come. |
| SOOTHSAYER | Ay, Caesar; but not gone. |
| ARTEMIDORUS | Hail, Caesar! read this
schedule. |
| DECIUS BRUTUS | Trebonius doth desire you to
o'erread, At your best leisure, this his humble suit. |
| ARTEMIDORUS | O Caesar, read mine first;
for mine's a suit That touches Caesar nearer: read it, great Caesar. |
| CAESAR | What touches us ourself
shall be last served. |
| ARTEMIDORUS | Delay not, Caesar; read it
instantly. |
| CAESAR | What, is the fellow mad? |
| PUBLIUS | Sirrah, give place. |
| CASSIUS | What, urge you your
petitions in the street? Come to the Capitol. |
| [CAESAR goes up to the
Senate-House, the rest following] |
|
| POPILIUS | I wish your enterprise
to-day may thrive. |
| CASSIUS | What enterprise, Popilius? |
| POPILIUS | Fare you well. |
| [Advances to CAESAR] |
|
| BRUTUS | What said Popilius Lena? |
| CASSIUS | He wish'd to-day our
enterprise might thrive. I fear our purpose is discovered. |
| BRUTUS | Look, how he makes to
Caesar; mark him. |
| CASSIUS | Casca, be sudden, for we
fear prevention. Brutus, what shall be done? If this be known, Cassius or Caesar never shall turn back, For I will slay myself. |
| BRUTUS | Cassius, be constant: Popilius Lena speaks not of our purposes; For, look, he smiles, and Caesar doth not change. |
| CASSIUS | Trebonius knows his time;
for, look you, Brutus. He draws Mark Antony out of the way. |
| [Exeunt ANTONY and
TREBONIUS] |
|
| DECIUS BRUTUS | Where is Metellus Cimber?
Let him go, And presently prefer his suit to Caesar. |
| BRUTUS | He is address'd: press near
and second him. |
| CINNA | Casca, you are the first
that rears your hand. |
| CAESAR | Are we all ready? What is
now amiss That Caesar and his senate must redress? |
| METELLUS CIMBER | Most high, most mighty, and
most puissant Caesar, Metellus Cimber throws before thy seat An humble heart,-- |
| [Kneeling] |
|
| CAESAR | I must prevent thee, Cimber.
These couchings and these lowly courtesies Might fire the blood of ordinary men, And turn pre-ordinance and first decree Into the law of children. Be not fond, To think that Caesar bears such rebel blood That will be thaw'd from the true quality With that which melteth fools; I mean, sweet words, Low-crooked court'sies and base spaniel-fawning. Thy brother by decree is banished: If thou dost bend and pray and fawn for him, I spurn thee like a cur out of my way. Know, Caesar doth not wrong, nor without cause Will he be satisfied. |
| METELLUS CIMBER | Is there no voice more
worthy than my own To sound more sweetly in great Caesar's ear For the repealing of my banish'd brother? |
| BRUTUS | I kiss thy hand, but not in
flattery, Caesar; Desiring thee that Publius Cimber may Have an immediate freedom of repeal. |
| CAESAR | What, Brutus! |
| CASSIUS | Pardon, Caesar; Caesar,
pardon: As low as to thy foot doth Cassius fall, To beg enfranchisement for Publius Cimber. |
| CASSIUS | I could be well moved, if I
were as you: If I could pray to move, prayers would move me: But I am constant as the northern star, Of whose true-fix'd and resting quality There is no fellow in the firmament. The skies are painted with unnumber'd sparks, They are all fire and every one doth shine, But there's but one in all doth hold his place: So in the world; 'tis furnish'd well with men, And men are flesh and blood, and apprehensive; Yet in the number I do know but one That unassailable holds on his rank, Unshaked of motion: and that I am he, Let me a little show it, even in this; That I was constant Cimber should be banish'd, And constant do remain to keep him so. |
| CINNA | O Caesar,-- |
| CAESAR | Hence! wilt thou lift up
Olympus? |
| DECIUS BRUTUS | Great Caesar,-- |
| CAESAR | Doth not Brutus bootless
kneel? |
| CASCA | Speak, hands for me! |
| [CASCA first, then the other
Conspirators and BRUTUS stab CAESAR] |
|
| CAESAR | Et tu, Brute! Then fall,
Caesar. |
| [Dies] |
|
| CINNA | Liberty! Freedom! Tyranny is
dead! Run hence, proclaim, cry it about the streets. |
| CASSIUS | Some to the common pulpits,
and cry out 'Liberty, freedom, and enfranchisement!' |
| BRUTUS | People and senators, be not
affrighted; Fly not; stand stiff: ambition's debt is paid. |
| CASCA | Go to the pulpit, Brutus. |
| DECIUS BRUTUS | And Cassius too. |
| BRUTUS | Where's Publius? |
| CINNA | Here, quite confounded with
this mutiny. |
| METELLUS CIMBER | Stand fast together, lest
some friend of Caesar's Should chance-- |
| BRUTUS | Talk not of standing.
Publius, good cheer; There is no harm intended to your person, Nor to no Roman else: so tell them, Publius. |
| CASSIUS | And leave us, Publius; lest
that the people, Rushing on us, should do your age some mischief. |
| BRUTUS | Do so: and let no man abide
this deed, But we the doers. |
| [Re-enter TREBONIUS] |
|
| CASSIUS | Where is Antony? |
| TREBONIUS | Fled to his house amazed: Men, wives and children stare, cry out and run As it were doomsday. |
| BRUTUS | Fates, we will know your
pleasures: That we shall die, we know; 'tis but the time And drawing days out, that men stand upon. |
| CASSIUS | Why, he that cuts off twenty
years of life Cuts off so many years of fearing death. |
| BRUTUS | Grant that, and then is
death a benefit: So are we Caesar's friends, that have abridged His time of fearing death. Stoop, Romans, stoop, And let us bathe our hands in Caesar's blood Up to the elbows, and besmear our swords: Then walk we forth, even to the market-place, And, waving our red weapons o'er our heads, Let's all cry 'Peace, freedom and liberty!' |
| CASSIUS | Stoop, then, and wash. How
many ages hence Shall this our lofty scene be acted over In states unborn and accents yet unknown! |
| BRUTUS | How many times shall Caesar
bleed in sport, That now on Pompey's basis lies along No worthier than the dust! |
| CASSIUS | So oft as that shall be, So often shall the knot of us be call'd The men that gave their country liberty. |
| DECIUS BRUTUS | What, shall we forth? |
| CASSIUS | Ay, every man away: Brutus shall lead; and we will grace his heels With the most boldest and best hearts of Rome. |
| [Enter a Servant] |
|
| BRUTUS | Soft! who comes here? A
friend of Antony's. |
| SERVANT | Thus, Brutus, did my master
bid me kneel: Thus did Mark Antony bid me fall down; And, being prostrate, thus he bade me say: Brutus is noble, wise, valiant, and honest; Caesar was mighty, bold, royal, and loving: Say I love Brutus, and I honour him; Say I fear'd Caesar, honour'd him and loved him. If Brutus will vouchsafe that Antony May safely come to him, and be resolved How Caesar hath deserved to lie in death, Mark Antony shall not love Caesar dead So well as Brutus living; but will follow The fortunes and affairs of noble Brutus Thorough the hazards of this untrod state With all true faith. So says my master Antony. |
| BRUTUS | Thy master is a wise and
valiant Roman; I never thought him worse. Tell him, so please him come unto this place, He shall be satisfied; and, by my honour, Depart untouch'd. |
| SERVANT | I'll fetch him presently. |
| [Exit] |
|
| BRUTUS | I know that we shall have
him well to friend. |
| CASSIUS | I wish we may: but yet have
I a mind That fears him much; and my misgiving still Falls shrewdly to the purpose. |
| BRUTUS | But here comes Antony. |
| [Re-enter ANTONY] |
|
| Welcome, Mark Antony. |
|
| ANTONY | O mighty Caesar! dost thou
lie so low? Are all thy conquests, glories, triumphs, spoils, Shrunk to this little measure? Fare thee well. I know not, gentlemen, what you intend, Who else must be let blood, who else is rank: If I myself, there is no hour so fit As Caesar's death hour, nor no instrument Of half that worth as those your swords, made rich With the most noble blood of all this world. I do beseech ye, if you bear me hard, Now, whilst your purpled hands do reek and smoke, Fulfil your pleasure. Live a thousand years, I shall not find myself so apt to die: No place will please me so, no mean of death, As here by Caesar, and by you cut off, The choice and master spirits of this age. |
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