Delia and Rosamond augmented Cleopatra by Samuel Daniel.

ACTVS QVARTVS.

• SELEVCVS.
• RODON.

Sel.

NEuer friend Rodon in a better howre, Could I haue met thee then eu'en now I do Hauing affliction in the greatest powre Vpon my soule, and none to tell it to. For tis some ease our sorrowes to reueale, If they to whom wee shall impart our woes

Seeme but to feele a part of what wee feele, And meete vs with a sigh but at a cloze.

Rod.

And neuer (friend Seleucus) found'st thou one, That better could beare such a part with thee: Who by his owne, knowes others cares to mone, And can in like accord of griefe agree. And therefore tell th'oppression of thy hart, Tell to an eare prepar'd and tun'd to care: And I will likewise vnto thee impart As sad a tale as what thou shalt declare. So shal we both our mournful plaints combine, Ile waile thy state, and thou shalt pitty mine.

Sel.

Well then, thou know'st how I haue liu'd in grace With Cleopatra, and esteem'd in Court As one of Counsell, and of chiefest place, And euer held my credite in that sort. Tyll now in this confusion of our state, When thinking to haue vs'd a meane to climbe, And fled the wretched, slowne vnto the great, (Follow'ing the fortune of the present time,) Am come to be cast downe and ruin'd cleene. And in the course of mine owne plot vndonne. For hauing all the secretes of the Queene Reueal'd to Cesar, to haue sauour wonne:

My trechery is quited with disgrace, My falshood loath'd, and not without great reason Though good for him, yet Princes in this case Doe hate y^e Traytor, though they loue the treason. For how could hee imagine I would be Faithfull to him, being false vnto mine owne? And false to such a bountious Queene as shee, That had me rais'd, and made mine honor known. Hee saw twas not for zeale to him I bare, But for base feare, or mine owne state to settle. Weakenes is false, and faith in Cowards rare, Feare findes out shyfts, timiditie is subtle. And therefore scornd of him, scornd of mine own. Hatefull to all that looke into my state: Despis'd Seleucus now is onely growne The marke of infamy, that's pointed at.

Rod.

Tis much thou saist, and ô too much to feele, And I doe grieue and doe lament thy fall: But yet all this which thou doost heere reueale, Cōpar'd with mine, wil make thine seem but smal. Although my fault be in the selfe-same kind, Yet in degree far greater, far more hatefull; Mine sprong of myschiefe, thine from feeble mind, I staind with blood, thou onely but'vngratefull.

For vnto mee did Cleopatra gyue The best and deerest treasure of her blood. Louely Casario, whom shee would should liue Free from the dangers wherein Egipt stood. And vnto mee with him this charge she gaue, Heere Rodon, take, conuay from out thys Coast, This precious Gem, the chiefest that I haue, The iewell of my soule I value most. Guide hym to INDIA, leade him farre from hence, Safeguard him where secure he may remaine, Till better fortune call him back from thence, And Egipts peace be reconcil'd againe. For this is hee that may our hopes bring back, (The rysing Sunne of our declyning state:) These be the hands that may restore our wrack, And rayse the broken ruines made of late. Hee may gyue limmits to the boundles pryde Of fierce Octauius, and abate his might: Great Iulius of-spring, hee may come to guide The Empire of the world, as his by right. O how hee seemes the modell of his Syre? O how I gaze my Caesar in his face? Such was his gate, so dyd his lookes aspyre; Such was his threatning brow, such was his grace.

High shouldred, and his forehead euen as hie. And ô, (if hee had not beene borne so late,) He might haue rul'd the worlds great Monarchy, And nowe haue beene the Champion of our state. Then vnto him, ô my deere Sonne, (she sayes,) Sonne of my youth, flye hence, ô flye, be gone: Reserue thy selfe, ordain'd for better dayes, For much thou hast to ground thy hopes vppon. Leaue mee (thy wofull Mother) to endure, The fury of thys tempest heere alone: Who cares not for herselfe, so thou be sure, Thou mayst reuenge, when others can but mone. Rodon will see thee safe, Rodon will guide Thee and thy waies, thou shalt not need to feare. Rodon (my faithfull seruaunt) will prouide What shall be best for thee, take thou no care. And ô good Rodon, looke well to his youth, The wayes are long, and daungers eu'ry where. I vrge it not that I doe doubt thy truth, Mothers will cast the worst, and alwaies feare. The absent daunger greater still appeares, Lesse feares he, who is neere the thing he feares. And ô, I know not what presaging thought My sp'rit suggests of luckles bad euent:

But yet it may be tis but loue doth dote, Or idle shadowes which my feares present. But yet the memory of myne owne fate, Makes mee feare his. And yet why should I feare? His fortune may recouer better state, And hee may come in pompe to gouerne heere. But yet I doubt the Genius of our Race By some malignant spirit comes ouer-throwne: Our blood must be extinct, in my disgrace, Egypt must haue no more Kings of theyr owne. Then let him stay, and let vs fall together, Sith it is fore-decreed that we must fal. Yet who knowes what may come? let him go thither, What Merchaunt in one Vessell venters all? Let vs deuide our starrs. Goe, goe my Sonne, Let not the fate of Egypt find thee heere: Try if so be thy destiny can shunne The common wracke of vs, by beeing there. But who is hee found euer yet defence Against the heauens, or hyd him any where? Then what neede I to send thee so far hence To seeke thy death that mayst as well die heere? And heere die with thy mother, die in rest, Not trauayling to what will come to thee.

Why should wee leaue our blood vnto the East, VVhen Egipt may a Tom be sufficient be? O my deuided soule, what shall I doe? VVhereon shall now my resolution rest? What were I best resolue to yeeld vnto When both are bad, how shall I know the best? Stay; I may hap so worke with Caesar now, That hee may yeeld him to restore thy right. Goe; Caesar neuer will consent that thou So neere in blood, shalt bee so great in might. Then take him Roden, goe my sonne fare-well. But stay; ther's something els that I would say: Yet nothing now, but ô God speed thee well, Least saying more, that more may make thee stay. Yet let mee speake: It may be tis the last That euer I shall speake to thee my Sonne. Doe Mothers vse to parte in such post-hast? VVhat, must I ende when I haue scarce begun? Ah no (deere hart,) tis no such slender twine VVhere-with the knot is tyde twixt thee and mee. That blood within thy vaines came out of mine, Parting from thee, I part from part of mee: And therefore I must speake. Yet what? O sonne. Here more she wold, whē more she could not say.

Sorrow rebounding backe whence it begun, Fild vp the passage, and quite stopt the way: VVhen sweet Caesario with a princely sp'rite, (Though comfortlesse himselfe) did comfort giue; VVith mildest words, perswading her to beare it. And as for him, shee should not neede to grieue. And I (with protestations of my part,) Swore by that faith, (which sworne I did deceaue) That I would vse all care, all wit and arte To see hym safe; And so we tooke our leaue. Scarce had wee trauail'd to our iourneyes end, VVhen Caesar hauing knowledge of our way, His Agents after vs with speed doth send To labour mee, Caesario to betray. VVho-with rewards, and promises so large. Assaild mee then, that I grew soone content; And backe to Rhodes dyd reconuay my charge, Pretending that Octauius for him sent, To make hym King of Egipt presently. And thither come, seeing himselfe betrayd, And in the hands of death through trecherie, VVayling his state, thus to himselfe he sayd. Loe heere brought back by subtile traine to death, Betrayde by Tutors fayth, or Traytors rather:

My faulte my blood, and mine offence my birth, For beeing sonne of such a mightie Father. From INDIA, (whither sent by Mothers care, To be reseru'd from Egypts common wracke,) To Rhodes, (so long the armes of Tyrants are,) I am by Caesars subtile reach brought back. Heere to be made th' oblation for his feares, (him: Who doubts the poore reuenge these handes may doe Respecting neyther blood, nor youth, nor yeeres, Or how small safety can my death be to him. And is this all the good of beeing borne great? Then wretched greatnes, proud ritch misery, Pompous distresse, glittering calamity. Is it for this th'ambitious Fathers sweat, To purchase blood and death for them and theirs? Is this the issue that theyr glories get, To leaue a sure destruction to theyr heyres? O how farre better had it beene for mee, From low discent, deriu'd of humble birth, To'haue eate the sweet-sowre bread of pouerty, And drunke of Nilus streame in Nilus earth: Vnder the cou'ring of some quiet Cottage, Free from the wrath of heauen, secure in minde, Vntoucht when sad euents of Princes dotage,

Confounds what euer mighty it dooth find. And not t'haue stoode in theyr way, whose condition, Is to haue all made deere, and all thing plaine, Betweene them and the marke of theyr ambition, That nothing let the full sight of theyr raigne. Where nothing stands, that stands not in submission; Where greatnes must all in it selfe containe. Kings will be alone, Competitors must downe, Neere death he stands, that stands too neer a Crowne. Such is my case, for Caesar will haue all: My blood must seale th'assurance of his state: Yet ah weake state that blood assure him shall, Whose wrongfull shedding, Gods and men do hate. Iniustice neuer scapes vnpunisht still, Though men reuenge not, yet the heauens will. And thou Augustus that with bloody hand, Curt'st off succession from anothers race, Maist find the heauens thy vowes so to withstand. That others may depriue thine in like case. When rhou maist see thy proude contentious bed Yeelding thee none of thine that may inherite: Subuert thy blood, place others in theyr sted, To pay this thy iniustice her due merite. If it be true, (as who can that deny

VVhich sacred Priests of Memphis doe fore-say,) Some of the of-spring yet of Anthony, Shall all the rule of this whole Empire sway. And then Augustus, what is it thou gainest By poore Antillus blood, or this of mine? Nothing but thys thy victory thou stainest, And pull'st the wrath of heauen on thee and thine. In vaine doth man contende against the starrs, For what hee seekes to make, his wisdom marrs. Yet in the mean-time we whom Fates reserue, The bloody sacrifices of ambition, VVe feele the smart what euer they deserue, And wee indure the present times condition. The iustice of the heauens reuenging thus, Doth onely sacrifice it selfe, not vs. Yet tis a pleasing comfort that dooth ease Affliction in so great extreamitie. To thinke theyr like destruction shall appease Our ghostes, who did procure our misery. But dead we are, vncertaine what shall bee, And lyuing, wee are sure to feele the wrong: Our certaine ruine wee our selues doe see. They ioy the while, and wee know not how long. But yet Caesario, thou must die content,

For men will mone, & God reuenge th'innocent. Thus he cōplain'd, & thus thou hear'st my shame.

Sel.

But how hath Caesar now rewarded thee?

Rod.

As hee hath thee. And I expect the same As fell to Theodor to fall to mee: For he (one of my coate) hauing betrayd The young Antillus, sonne of Anthony, And at his death from of his necke conuayd A iewell: which be'ing askt, he did deny: Caesar occasion tooke to hang him straight. Such instruments with Princes liue not long. Although they neede vs, (actors of deceit,) Yet still our sight seemes to vpbrayd their wrong; And therefore we must needes this danger runne, And in the net of our owne guile be caught: Wee must not liue to bray what we haue done, For what is done, must not appeare theyr fault. But heere comes Cleopatra, wofull Queene, And our shame will not that we should be seene.

Exeunt.

CLEOPATRA.

WHat, hath my face yet powre to win a Louer? Can this torne remnant serue to grace me so, That it can Caesars secrete plots discouer What he intends with mee and mine to do? VVhy then poore Beautie thou hast doone thy last, And best good seruice thou could'st doe vnto mee. For now the time of death reueal'd thou hast, Which in my life didst serue but to vndoe mee.

Heere Dolabella far forsooth in loue, Writes, how that Caesar meanes forthwith, to send Both mee and mine, th' ayre of Rome to proue: There his Tryumphant Chariot to attend. I thanke the man, both for his loue and letter; Th'one comes fit to warne mee thus before, But for th'other, I must die his debter, For Cleopatra now can loue no more.

But hauing leaue, I must goe take my leaue And last farewell of my dead Anthony: Whose deerely honour'd Tom be must heere receaue This sacrifice, the last before I dye.

O sacred euer-memorable Stone, That hast without my teares, within my flame, Receiue th'oblation of the wofull'st mone That euer yet from sad affliction came. And you deere reliques of my Lord and Loue, (The sweetest parcells of the faithfull'st liuer,) O let no impious hand dare to remoue You out from hence, but rest you heere for euer. Let Egypt now giue peace vnto you dead, That lyuing, gaue you trouble and turmoyle: Sleepe quiet in this euer-lasting bed, In forraine land preferr'd before your soyle. And ô, if that the sp'rits of men remaine After their bodies, and doe neuer die, Then heare thy Ghost thy captiue Spouse complaine, And be attentiue to her misery. But if that laborsome mortalitie, Found this sweet error, onely to confine The curious search of idle vanity, That would the deapth of darknes vndermine: Or rather, to giue rest vnto the thought Of wretched man, with th'after-comming ioy Of those conceiued fieldes whereon we dote, To pacifie the present worlds anoy.

If it be so, why speake I then to th'ayre? But tis not so, my Anthony doth heare: His euer-liuing ghost attends my prayer, And I doe know his houering sp'rite is neere. And I will speake, and pray, and mourne to thee, O pure immortall loue that daign'st to heare: I feele thou aunswer'st my credulitie VVith touch of comfort, finding none elswhere. Thou know'st these hands entomb'd thee heer of late, Free and vnforst, which now must seruile be, Reseru'd for bands to grace proude Caesars state, Who seekes in mee to tryumph ouer thee. O if in life we could not seuerd be, Shall Death deuide our bodies now a sunder? Must thine in Egypt, mine in Italie, Be kept the Monuments of Fortunes wonder? If any powres be there where as thou art, (Sith our owne Country Gods betray our case,) O worke they may theyr gracious helpe impart, To saue thy wofull wife from such disgrace. Doe not permit shee should in tryumph shew The blush of her reproch, ioyn'd with thy shame: But (rather) let that hatefull Tyrant know, That thou and I had powre t'auoyde the same.

But what doe I spend breath and idle winde, In vaine invoking a conceiued ayde? Why doe I not my selfe occasion find To breake the bounds wherein my selfe am stayd? VVords are for them that can complaine and lyue, VVhose melting harts compos'd of baser frame, Can to theyr sorrowes time and leysure gyue, But Cleopatra may not doe the same. No Anthony, thy loue requireth more. A lingring death, with thee deserues no merit, I must my selfe force open wide a dore To let out life, and so vnhouse my spirit. These hands must breake the prison of my soule To come to thee, there to enioy like state, As doth the long-pent solitary Foule, That hath escapt her cage, and found her mate. This Sacrifice to sacrifize my life, Is that true incense that doth best beseeme: These rites may serue a life-desiring wife, Who dooing them, t'haue done enough doth deeme. My hart blood should the purple flowers haue beene, Which heere vpon thy Tombe to thee are offred, No smoake but dying breath should heere been seene, And this it had beene to, had I beene suffred.

But what haue I saue these bare hands to doe it? And these weake fingers are not yron-poynted: They cannot peirce the flesh be'ing put vnto it, And I of all meanes els am disapoynted. But yet I must a way and meanes seeke, how To come vnto thee, what so ere I doo. O Death, art thou so hard to come by now, That wee must pray, intreate, and seeke thee too? But I will finde thee where so ere thou lye, For who can stay a minde resolu'd to die?

And now I goe to worke th'effect in deede, Ile neuer send more words or sighes to thee: Ile bring my soule my selfe, and that with speed, My selfe will bring my soule to Anthony. Come goe my Maydes, my fortunes sole attenders, That minister to misery and sorrow: Your Mistres you vnto your freedom renders, And quits you from all charge yet ere to morrow.

And now by this, I thinke the man I sent, Is neere return'd that brings mee my dispatch. God graunt his cunning sort to good euent, And that his skill may well beguile my watch. So shall I shun disgrace, leaue to be sorie, Fly to my loue, scape my foe, free my soule;

So shall I act the last act of my glory, Dye like a Queene, and rest without controule. Exit.

CHORVS.

MIsterious Egipt, wonder breeder, strict religions strange obseruer, State-ordrer Zeale, the best rule-keeper, fostring still in temprate feruor: O how cam'st thou to lose so wholy all religion, law and order? And thus become the most vnholy of all Lands that Nylus border? How could confus'd Disorder enter where sterne Law sate so seuerely? How durst weake lust and ryot venter th' eye of Iustice looking neerely? Could not those means that made thee great, Be still the meanes to keepe thy state?

Ah no, the course of things requireth change and alteration euer: That same continuaunce man desireth,

th vnconstant world yeeldeth neuer. Wee in our counsels must be blinded, and not see what dooth import vs: And often-times the thing least minded, is the thing that most must hurt vs. Yet they that haue the stearne in guiding, tis their fault that should preuent it, For oft they seeing their Country slyding, take their ease, as though contented. Wee imitate the greater powres, The Princes manners fashion ours.

Th'example of their light regarding, vulgar loosenes much incences: Vice vncontrould, growes wide inlarging, Kings small faults, be great offences. And this hath set the window open vnto lycence, lust and ryot: This way Confusion first found broken, whereby entred our disquiet. Those lawes that Zoroaster founded, and the Ptolomies obserued, Heereby first came to be confounded, which our state so long preserued.

The wanton luxurie of Court, Dyd forme the people of like sort.

For all (respecting priuate pleasure,) vniuersally consenting To abuse theyr time, theyr treasure, in theyr owne delights contenting: And future dangers nought respecting, whereby, (O howe easie matter Made this so generall neglecting, Confus'd weakenes to diseater?) Caesar found th' effect true tryed, in his easie entrance making: Who at the sight of armes, discryed all our people, all forsaking. For ryot (worse then warre,) so sore Had wasted all our strength before.

And thus is Egipt seruile rendred, to the insolent destroyer: And all their sumptuous treasure tendred, all her wealth that did betray her. Which poyson (O if heauens be rightfull,) may so far infect their sences,

That Egipts pleasures so delightfull, may breed them the like offences. And Romans learne our way of weaknes, be instructed in our vices: That our spoyles may spoyle your greatnes, ouercome with our deuises. Fill full your hands, and carry home Inough from vs to ruine Rome.