Tam. [To her fons.] What fay you, boys, will you abide with him,

Whiles I go tell my lord, the emperor,

How I have govern'd our determin'd jeft?

Yield to his humour, fmooth, and speak him fair, And tarry with him till I come again.

Tit. I know them all, though they suppose me
mad,

And will o'er-reach them in their own devices,
A pair of curfed hell-hounds, and their dam. [Afide.
Dem. Madam, depart at pleasure, leave us here.
Tam. Farewell, Andronicus; Revenge now goes
To lay a complot to betray thy foes. [Exit Tamora.
Tit. I know, thou doft; and, fweet Revenge, fare-

well.

Chi. Tell us, old man, how fhall 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 emperefs' fons,

I take them, Chiron and Demetrius.

Tit. Fy, Publius, fy! thou art too much deceiv'd, The one is Murder, Rape is the 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 fure.

[Exit Titus. Chi. Villains, forbear; we are the empereis' fons. Pub. And therefore do we what we are commanded. Stop close their mouths; let them not speak a word. Is he fure bound? look, that ye bind them fast.

Enter Titus Andronicus with a knife, and Lavinia with a bafon.

Tit. Come, come, Lavinia; look, thy foes are bound.

-Sirs, ftop their mouths, let them not speak to me, But let them hear what fearful words I utter.

Oh, villains, Chiron and Demetrius !

Here ftands the spring whom you have ftain'd with mud,

This goodly fummer with your winter mix'd,
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 jeft;
Both her sweet hands, her tongue, and that more dear
Than hands or tongue, her fpotlefs chaftity,
Inhuman traitors, you constrain'd and forc'd.
What would ye fay, if I fhould let you speak?
Villains-for fhame, you could not beg for grace,
Hark, wretches, how I mean to martyr you.
This one hand yet is left to cut your throats,
Whilft that Lavinia 'twixt her ftumps doth hold
The bason that receives your guilty blood.
You know, your mother means to feast with me,
And calls herself Revenge, and thinks me mad.
Hark, villains, I will grind your bones to duft,
And with your blood and it I'll make a paste ;
'And of the paste a coffin will I rear,

And make two pafties of your shameful heads;
And bid that ftrumpet, 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 fhe shall furfeit on;
For worse than Philomel you us'd my daughter,
And worse than Progne I will be reveng'd.

1

And of the paste a coffin] A coffin is the term of art for the favity of a railed

pye.

JOHNSON.

And

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 Centaur's feast.

[He cuts their throats. So now bring them in, for I'll play the cook, And see them ready 'gainst the mother comes.

SCENE III.

[Exeunt.

Enter Lucius, Marcus, and Goths, with Aaron prisoner.

Luc. Uncle Marcus, fince it is 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 teftimony of thefe foul proceedings; And fee the ambush of our friends be ftrong; I fear the emperor means no good to us.

Aar. Some devil whisper curfes in my ear, And prompt me, that my tongue may utter forth The venomous malice of my fwelling heart! Luc. Away, inhuman dog! unhallow'd flave. [Exeunt Goths with Aaron. Sirs, help our uncle to convey him in. [Flourish. The trumpets fhew, the emperor is at hand.

Sound trumpets. Enter Emperor and Emperefs, with Tribunes and others.

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

2

Luc. What boots it thee to call thyself a fun?
Mar. Rome's emperor, and nephew, break the
parley;

Thefe quarrels must be quietly debated:
The feaft 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. [Hautboys.

Sat. Marcus, we will.

A table brought in. Enter Titus, like a cook, placing the meat on the table, and Lavinia with a veil over ber 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 ftomachs, 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 highnefs, and your emperefs. Tam. We are beholden to you, good Andronicus. Tit. And if your highnefs knew my heart, you

were.

My lord the emperor, refolve me this;
Was it well done of rafh Virginius,

To lay his daughter with his own right hand,
Because she was enforc'd, ftain'd, and deflowr'd?
Sat. It was, Andronicus.

Tit. Your reason, mighty lord?

Sat. Because the girl fhould not furvive her fhame,

And by her presence still renew his forrows.
Tit. A reafon mighty, ftrong, and effectual,

break the parley;] That is, begin the parley. We yet

fay, he breaks his mind.

JOHNSON.

A

A pattern, precedent, and lively warrant,
For me, moft wretched, to perform the like.
Die, die, Lavinia, and thy fhame with thee,
And with thy fhame thy father's forrow die !

[He kills her.

Sat. What haft thou done, unnatural and unkind? Tit. Kill'd her, for whom my tears have made me blind.

I am as woeful as Virginius was,

And have a thoufand times more caufe than he
To do this outrage. And it is now done.

Sat. What, was fhe ravifh'd? tell, who did the deed.

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

Tam. Why haft thou flain 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 the herself hath bred. 'Tis true, 'tis true; witnefs, my knife's sharp point.

[He ftabs the Emperefs. Sat. Die, frantick wretch, for this accurfed deed. [He ftabs Titus. Luc. Can the fon's eye behold his father bleed? There's meed for meed, death for a deadly deed. [Lucius ftabs the Emperor. Mar. You fad-fac'd men, people and fons of Rome,

By uproar fever'd, like a flight of fowl
Scatter'd by winds, and high tempeftuous gufts,
Oh, let me teach you how to knit again
This fcatter'd corn into one mutual sheaf,
These broken limbs again into one body.
Goth. Let Rome herself be bane unto herself;