Let us not wrangle: Bid them move away;
Then in my tent, Cassius, enlarge your griefs,
And I will give you audience.

Cas.

Pindarus,

Bid our commanders lead their charges off

A little from this ground.

Bru. 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.

SCENE III.

Within the Tent of Brutus.

[Exeunt.

Lucius and Titinius at some distance from it.
Enter BRUTUS and CASSIUS.

Cas. 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.

Bru. You wrong'd yourself, to write in such a case.
Cas. In such a time as this, it is not meet
That every nice offence should bear his comment.
Bru. 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.

Cas.

I an itching palm?

You know, that you are Brutus that speak this,
Or, by the gods, this speech were else your last.
Bru. The name of Cassius honours this corruption,
And chastisement doth therefore hide his head.

Cas. Chastisement!

Bru. 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,

every nice offence-] i. e. Small trifling offence.

What villain touch'd his body, that did stub,

And not for justice?] This question is far from implying that any of those

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.

Cas.
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."

Bru.

Cas. I am.

Go to; you're not, Cassius.

Bru. I say you are not.

Cas. Urge me no more, I shall forget myself;

Have mind upon your health, tempt me no further.
Bru. Away, slight man!

Cas. Is't possible?

Bru.
Must I give way and room to your rash choler?

Hear me, for I will speak.

Shall I be frighted, when a madman stares?

Cas. O ye gods! ye gods! Must I endure all this? Bru. All this? ay, more: Fret, till your proud heart Go, show your slaves how cholerick you are, [break; 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.

Cas.

Is it come to this?

Bru. You say, you are a better soldier:

who touch'd Cæsar's body, were villains. On the contrary, it is an indirect way of asserting that there was not one man among them, who was base enough to stab him for any cause but that of justice.--MALONE.

e To hedge me in ;] That is, to limit my authority by your direction or censure. JOHNSON.

d To make conditions.] That is, to know on what terms it is fit to confer the offices which are at my disposal.-JOHNSON.

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.

Cas. You wrong me every way; you wrong me, I said an elder soldier, not a better:

Did I say, better?

Bru.

If you did, I care not.

Cas. When Cæsar liv'd, he durst not thus have mov'd Bru. Peace, peace; you durst not so have tempted him. Cas. I durst not?

Bru. No.

Cas. What? durst not tempt him?

Bru.

For your life you durst not.

Cas. Do not presume too much upon my love,

I may do that I shall be sorry for.

Bru. 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 deny'd 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!

Cas.

Bru. You did.

Cas.

I denied you not.

I did not: he was but a fool,

That brought my answer back.- Brutus hath riv'd my

heart:

A friend should bear his friend's infirmities,

But Brutus makes mine greater than they are.

Bru. I do not, till you practise them on me."
Cas. You love me not.

Bru.

I do not like your faults.

Cas. A friendly eye could never see such faults. Bru. A flatterer's would not, though they do appear As huge as high Olympus.

Cas. Come, Antony, and young Octavius, come, Revenge yourselves alone on Cassius,

For Cassius is aweary of the world:

Hated by one he loves; brav'd by his brother;
Check'd like a bondman; all his faults observ'd,
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 Cæsar; for, I know,

When thou didst hate him worst, thou lov'dst him better
Than ever thou lov'dst Cassius.

Bru. Sheath 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.

Cas. Hath Cassius liv'd To be but mirth and laughter to his Brutus, When grief, and blood ill-temper'd, vexeth him? Bru. When I spoke that, I was ill-temper'd too. Cas. Do you confess so much? Give me your hand. Bru. And my heart too.

Cas.

O Brutus!

e Bru. I do not, till you practise them on me.] The meaning is this: I do not look for your faults, I only see them, and mention them with vehemence, when you force them into my notice, by practising them on me.-JOHNSON,

If that thou be'st a Roman,] This seems only a form of adjuration, like that of Brutus in a subsequent page;

"Now, as you are a Roman, tell me true."-BLACKSTONE.

Bru.

What's the matter? Cas. Have you not love enough to bear with me, When that rash humour, which my mother gave me, Makes me forgetful?

Bru. Yes, Cassius; and, henceforth, When you are over-earnest with your Brutus, He'll think your mother chides, and leave you so. [Noise within.

Poet. [within.] Let me go in to see the generals; There is some grudge between them, 'tis not meet They be alone.

Luc. [within.] You shall not come to them.

Poet. [within.] Nothing but death shall stay me.

Enter Poet.

Cas. How now? What's the matter?

Poet. For shame, you generals; What do you mean? Love, and be friends, as two such men should be; For I have seen more years, I am sure, than ye. Cas. Ha, ha; how vilely doth this cynick rhyme! Bru. Get you hence, sirrah; saucy fellow, hence. Cas. Bear with him, Brutus, 'tis his fashion.

Bru. I'll know his humour, when he knows his time: What should the wars do with these jigging fools?' Companion, hence.

Cas.

Away, away, be gone. [Erit Poet.

Enter LUCILIUS and TITINIUS.

Bru. Lucilius and Titinius, bid the commanders Prepare to lodge their companies to-night.

Cus. And come yourselves, and bring Messala with you Immediately to us. [Exeunt LUCILIUS and TITINIUS.

g chides,] i. e. Is clamorous.

Enter Poet.] Shakspeare found the present incident in Plutarch. The intruder, however, was Marcus Phaonius, who had been a friend and follower of Cato; not a poet, but one who assumed the character of a cynick philosopher. -STEEVENS.

jigging fools?] i. e. Silly poets. A jig signified, in our author's time, a metrical composition, as well as a dance.-MALONE.

Companion,-is used as a term of reproach in many of the old plays; as we at present say-fellow.-STEEVENS.