Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare [top ten books of all time txt] 📗

Speak the word along. First Soldier Stand! Second Soldier Stand! Third 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;
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;
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
Come to our tent till we have done our conference.
Let Lucius and Titinius guard our door. Exeunt.

Scene III

Brutus’s tent.

Enter Brutus and Cassius. Cassius

That you have wrong’d me doth appear in this:
You have condemn’d and noted Lucius Pella
For taking bribes here of the Sardians;
Wherein my letters, praying on his side,
Because I knew the man, were slighted off.

Brutus You wrong’d 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 condemn’d to have an itching palm;
To sell and mart your offices for gold
To undeservers.

Cassius

I an itching palm!
You know that you are Brutus that speak this,
Or, by the gods, this speech were else your last.

Brutus

The name of Cassius honours this corruption,
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 touch’d his body, that did stab,
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
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, bay not me;
I’ll not endure it: you forget yourself,
To hedge me in; I am a soldier, I,
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;
Have mind upon your health, tempt me no further.

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?

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
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? 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;
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! 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.
There is no terror, Cassius, in your threats,
For I am arm’d 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:
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
To you for gold to pay my legions,
Which you denied me: was that done like Cassius?
Should I have answer’d Caius Cassius so?
When Marcus Brutus grows so covetous,
To lock such rascal counters from his friends,
Be ready, gods, with all your thunderbolts;
Dash him to pieces!

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,
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
As huge as high Olympus.

Cassius

Come, Antony, and young Octavius, come,
Revenge yourselves alone on Cassius,
For Cassius is aweary of the world;
Hated by one he loves; braved by his brother;
Check’d like a bondman; all his faults observed,
Set in a note-book, learn’d, and conn’d 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
Dearer than Plutus’ mine, richer than gold:
If that thou be’st 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 lovedst him better
Than ever thou lovedst 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;
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-temper’d, vexeth him?

Brutus When I spoke that, I was ill-temper’d too. Cassius Do you