Titus Andronicus & Timon of Athens (27 page)

APEMANTUS
    
Hoyday
, what a
sweep
¹²⁶
of vanity comes this way!

They dance? They are madwomen.

Like
madness is the
glory
¹²⁸
of this life

As this
pomp
¹²⁹
shows to a little oil and root.

We make ourselves fools to
disport
¹³⁰
ourselves,

And
spend
our flatteries, to
drink
¹³¹
those men

Upon whose age
we
void
¹³²
it up again

With poisonous spite and
envy.
¹³³

Who lives that’s not
depravèd
¹³⁴
or depraves?

Who dies that bears not one
spurn
¹³⁵
to their graves

Of their friends’ gift?
¹³⁶

I should fear those that dance before me now

Would one day stamp upon me. ’T’as been done:

Men shut their doors against a setting sun.

TIMON
    You have
done our pleasures much grace
¹⁴⁰
, fair ladies,

Set a fair fashion on
¹⁴¹
our entertainment,

Which was not half so beautiful and
kind:
¹⁴²

You have added worth unto’t and lustre,

And entertained me with
mine own device.
¹⁴⁴

I am to thank you for’t.

FIRST LADY
    My lord, you
take us even at the best.
¹⁴⁶

APEMANTUS
    Faith,
for
the
worst
is
filthy
, and would not
hold
¹⁴⁷

taking, I
doubt me.
¹⁴⁸

TIMON
    Ladies, there is an
idle
banquet
attends
¹⁴⁹
you:

Please you to
dispose yourselves.
¹⁵⁰

ALL LADIES
    Most thankfully, my lord.

TIMON
    Flavius.

FLAVIUS
    My lord.

TIMON
    The little casket bring me hither.

FLAVIUS
    Yes, my lord.— More jewels yet!

There is no
crossing
him in’s
humour,
¹⁵⁶

Else I should tell him
well
¹⁵⁷
— i’ faith I should —

When all’s spent, he’d be
crossed
then,
an
¹⁵⁸
he could.

’Tis pity bounty
had not eyes behind,
¹⁵⁹

That man might ne’er be wretched
for his mind.
¹⁶⁰

FIRST LORD
    Where be our men?

SERVANT
    Here, my lord, in readiness.

SECOND LORD
    Our horses.

TIMON
    O, my friends,

I have one word to say to you: look you, my good lord,

I must entreat you honour me so much

As to
advance
¹⁶⁷
this jewel. Accept it and wear it,

Kind my lord.

FIRST LORD
    I am
so far already in your gifts
¹⁶⁹
—

ALL
    So are we all.

SERVANT
    My lord, there are certain nobles of the senate

Newly alighted and come to visit you.

TIMON
    They are
fairly
¹⁷³
welcome.

FLAVIUS
    I beseech your honour,

Vouchsafe
me a word: it does concern you
near.
¹⁷⁵

TIMON
    Near? Why then, another time I’ll hear thee.

I prithee, let’s be
provided
¹⁷⁷
to show them entertainment.

FLAVIUS
    I scarce know how.

SECOND SERVANT
    May it please your honour, Lord Lucius —

Out of his
free
¹⁸⁰
love — hath presented to you

Four milk-white horses
trapped
¹⁸¹
in silver.

TIMON
    I shall accept them fairly. Let the presents

Be
worthily entertained.
¹⁸³

How now? What news?

THIRD SERVANT
    Please you, my lord, that honourable gentleman,

Lord Lucullus, entreats your company tomorrow to hunt with

him, and has sent your honour two
brace
¹⁸⁷
of greyhounds.

TIMON
    I’ll hunt with him, and let them be received

Not without
fair
¹⁸⁹
reward.

FLAVIUS
    What will this come to?

He commands us to provide, and give great gifts,

And all out of an empty
coffer:
¹⁹²

Nor will he
know his purse
, or
yield me this,
¹⁹³

To show him what a beggar his heart is,

Being of no power to
make his wishes good.
¹⁹⁵

His promises fly so beyond his
state
¹⁹⁶

That what he speaks is all in debt, he owes

For ev’ry word: he is so kind that he now

Pays interest for’t; his land’s
put to their books.
¹⁹⁹

Well,
would
²⁰⁰
I were gently put out of office

Before I were forced out.

Happier is he that has no friend to feed

Than such that do e’en enemies exceed.
²⁰³

I bleed inwardly for my lord.

TIMON
    You do yourselves

Much wrong, you
bate
²⁰⁶
too much of your own merits.

Here, my lord, a trifle of our love.

SECOND LORD
    With more than common thanks I will receive it.

THIRD LORD
    O, he’s the very soul of bounty!

TIMON
    And now I remember, my lord, you
gave
²¹⁰

Good words the other day of a
bay courser
²¹¹

I rode on. ’Tis yours, because you liked it.

FIRST LORD
    O, I beseech you pardon me, my lord,
in that.
²¹³

TIMON
    You may take my word, my lord: I know, no man

Can justly praise but what he does
affect.
²¹⁵

I
weigh my friend’s affection with mine own,
²¹⁶

I’ll tell you true. I’ll
call to
²¹⁷
you.

ALL LORDS
    O, none so welcome.

TIMON
    I take all and your
several visitations
²¹⁹

So kind to heart, ’tis not enough to give:

Methinks I could
deal
²²¹
kingdoms to my friends,

And ne’er be weary.— Alcibiades,

Thou art a soldier, therefore seldom rich.

It comes in charity to thee, for all thy
living
²²⁴

Is ’mongst the dead, and all the lands thou hast

Lie in a
pitched field.
²²⁶

ALCIBIADES
    Ay,
defiled
²²⁷
land, my lord.

FIRST LORD
    We are so
virtuously bound
²²⁸
—

TIMON
    And so am I to you.

SECOND LORD
    So infinitely
endeared
²³⁰
—

TIMON
    
All to you
²³¹
.— Lights, more lights!

FIRST LORD
    The best of happiness,

Honour and fortunes keep with you, Lord Timon!

TIMON
    
Ready for
²³⁴
his friends.

APEMANTUS
    What a
coil’s
²³⁵
here,

Serving
of
becks
²³⁶
and jutting-out of bums!

I doubt whether their
legs
²³⁷
be worth the sums

That are given for ’em. Friendship’s full of
dregs:
²³⁸

Methinks
false
²³⁹
hearts should never have sound legs,

Thus honest fools lay out their wealth on curtsies.

TIMON
    Now, Apemantus, if thou wert not sullen I would be

good to thee.

APEMANTUS
    No,
I’ll
²⁴³
nothing; for if I should be bribed too, there

would be none left to
rail upon
²⁴⁴
thee, and then thou wouldst

sin the faster. Thou giv’st so long, Timon, I
fear me
²⁴⁵
thou wilt

give away thyself in
paper
²⁴⁶
shortly. What needs these feasts,

pomps and
vainglories?
²⁴⁷

TIMON
    Nay,
an you begin to rail on society once,
²⁴⁸
I am sworn

not to give regard to you. Farewell, and
come with better
²⁴⁹

music.

APEMANTUS
    
So:
²⁵¹

Thou wilt not hear me now, thou shalt not then.
²⁵²

I’ll lock thy
heaven
²⁵³
from thee.

O, that men’s ears should be

To
counsel
²⁵⁵
deaf, but not to flattery!

SENATOR
    And
late
¹
, five thousand: to Varro and to Isidore

He owes nine thousand, besides my former sum,

Which makes it five-and-twenty. Still in
motion
³

Of raging waste? It cannot
hold
⁴
, it will not.

If I want gold, steal but a beggar’s dog

And give it Timon, why, the dog coins gold.

If I would sell my horse, and buy twenty more

Better than he, why, give my horse to Timon,

Ask nothing, give it him, it
foals
me
straight
⁹

And able horses. No
porter
¹⁰
at his gate,

But rather one that smiles and
still
¹¹
invites

All that pass by. It cannot hold: no reason

Can
sound his state in safety
. Caphis,
ho!
¹³

Caphis, I say!

CAPHIS
    Here, sir. What is your pleasure?

SENATOR
    Get on your cloak, and haste you to Lord Timon.

Importune
him for my moneys. Be not
ceased
¹⁷

With
slight
denial, nor then silenced
when
¹⁸

‘Commend me to your master’, and the cap

Plays in the right hand, thus: but tell him

My
uses
cry to me, I must
serve my turn
²¹

Out of mine
own
, his
days and times
²²
are past

And my reliances on his
fracted
²³
dates

Have
smit
²⁴
my credit. I love and honour him,

But must not break my back to heal his finger.

Immediate are my needs, and my
relief
²⁶

Must not be
tossed and turned
²⁷
to me in words,

But find
supply
²⁸
immediate. Get you gone.

Put on a most
importunate
aspect,
²⁹

A visage of demand, for I do fear

When every
feather sticks in his own wing,
³¹

Lord Timon will be left a naked
gull,
³²

Which
flashes
now a
phoenix
³³
. Get you gone.

CAPHIS
    I go, sir.

SENATOR
    ‘I go, sir’? Take the bonds along with you,