Lucius our emperor; for well I know The common voice do cry it shall be so. All Lucius, all hail, Rome's royal emperor! [To Attendants. And hither hale that misbelieving Moor, [Exeunt Attendants. LUCIUS, MARCUS, and the others descend. All. Lucius, all hail, Rome's gracious governor! For nature puts me to a heavy task; Stand all aloof; but, uncle, draw you near, To shed obsequious tears upon this trunk. O, take this warm kiss on thy pale cold lips, [Kissing Titus. These sorrowful drops upon thy blood-stain'd face, The last true duties of thy noble son! Marc. Tear for tear and loving kiss for kiss 140 145 150 135 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 160 To melt in showers: thy grandsire loved thee well: Many a time he danced thee on his knee, Sung thee asleep, his loving breast thy pillow; In that respect then, like a loving child, Shed yet some small drops from thy tender spring, Friends should associate friends in grief and woe: Bid him farewell; commit him to the grave; Do him that kindness, and take leave of him. Boy. O grandsire, grandsire! even with all my heart ope my mouth. Re-enter Attendants with AARON. A Roman. You sad Andronici, have done with woes : Give sentence on this execrable wretch 165 170 175 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: 130 For the offence he dies. This is our doom: If any one relieves or pities him, Some stay to see him fasten'd in the earth. Aar. O, why should wrath be mute, and fury dumb? I am no baby, I, that with base prayers 165. thine] thy Rowe. 171. him...him] Ff. them...them Qq. and take leave of him] all that he can have Collier MS. heart] hart. Qr hart, Q2. 175. Re-enter Attendants ..] Dyce. Enter Romans with Aaron. Rowe. A Roman.] Romaine. Qq. 184. dumb?] dumb, Qr 185 I should repent the evils 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. 190 Luc. Some loving friends convey the emperor hence, And give him burial in his father's grave: My father and Lavinia shall forthwith Be closed in our household's monument. As for that heinous tiger, Tamora, 195 No funeral rite, nor man in mourning weeds, No mournful bell shall ring her burial; But throw her forth to beasts and birds of prey: [Exeunt. of prey] Ff. to pray Q. to 199. beastly] Qq. beast-like Ff. 201. Byl Qq. From Ff. (1793). 200 NOTES. NOTE I. II. I. The Quartos have no distinction of act or scene here or elsewhere. After Exeunt comes immediately a stage direction Sound Trumpets, manet Moore. The first Folio, after Aus Secunda, has Flourish. Enter Aaron alone. The Editor of the second Folio seeing the impropriety of introducing Aaron alone with a flourish of trumpets, omitted the word Flourish. Capell was doubtless right in supposing that it had been displaced from the end of the last scene. act. Johnson is of opinion that this scene ought to continue the first NOTE II. II. 1. 134. Mr Collier, reading 'these,' says, 'The Quartos give the text correctly.' The Quarto of 1611 has 'their.' NOTE III. III. 1. 170. In the copy of Theobald's edition before us, which belonged to Warburton, the latter has written 'Mr Warburton' opposite Theobald's note in defence of his emendation, thereby claiming for himself the merit of the conjecture. But in his own edition he retains the old reading 'castle,' while in a note he assigns the emendation to Theobald, and ridicules him for adopting it. Theobald first proposed it in a letter to Concanen (Nichols' Illustrations, II. 220). |