Their ships are yare; yours, heavy: no disgrace Shall fall you for refusing him at sea, Being prepared for land. MARK ANTONY By sea, by sea. DOMITIUS ENOBARBUS Most worthy sir, you therein throw away The absolute soldiership you have by land;Distract your army, which doth most consist Of war-mark'd footmen; leave unexecuted Your own renowned knowledge; quite forego The way which promises assurance; and Give up yourself merely to chance and hazard, From firm security. MARK ANTONY I'll fight at sea. CLEOPATRA I have sixty sails, Caesar none better. MARK ANTONY Our overplus of shipping will we burn;And, with the rest full-mann'd, from the head of Actium Beat the approaching Caesar. But if we fail, We then can do't at land.
Enter a Messenger Thy business? Messenger The news is true, my lord; he is descried;Caesar has taken Toryne. MARK ANTONY Can he be there in person? 'tis impossible;Strange that power should be. Canidius, Our nineteen legions thou shalt hold by land, And our twelve thousand horse. We'll to our ship:
Away, my Thetis!
Enter a Soldier How now, worthy soldier? Soldier O noble emperor, do not fight by sea;Trust not to rotten planks: do you misdoubt This sword and these my wounds? Let the Egyptians And the Phoenicians go a-ducking; we Have used to conquer, standing on the earth, And fighting foot to foot. MARK ANTONY Well, well: away!
Exeunt MARK ANTONY, QUEEN CLEOPATRA, and DOMITIUS ENOBARBUS Soldier By Hercules, I think I am i' the right. CANIDIUS Soldier, thou art: but his whole action grows Not in the power on't: so our leader's led, And we are women's men. Soldier You keep by land The legions and the horse whole, do you not? CANIDIUS Marcus Octavius, Marcus Justeius, Publicola, and Caelius, are for sea:
But we keep whole by land. This speed of Caesar's Carries beyond belief. Soldier While he was yet in Rome, His power went out in such distractions as Beguiled all spies. CANIDIUS Who's his lieutenant, hear you? Soldier They say, one Taurus. CANIDIUS Well I know the man.
Enter a Messenger Messenger The emperor calls Canidius. CANIDIUS With news the time's with labour, and throes forth, Each minute, some.
Exeunt SCENE VIII. A plain near Actium. Enter OCTAVIUS CAESAR, and TAURUS, with his army, marching OCTAVIUS CAESAR Taurus! TAURUS My lord? OCTAVIUS CAESAR Strike not by land; keep whole: provoke not battle, Till we have done at sea. Do not exceed The prescript of this scroll: our fortune lies Upon this jump.
Exeunt SCENE IX. Another part of the plain. Enter MARK ANTONY and DOMITIUS ENOBARBUS MARK ANTONY Set we our squadrons on yond side o' the hill, In eye of Caesar's battle; from which place We may the number of the ships behold, And so proceed accordingly.
Exeunt SCENE X. Another part of the plain. CANIDIUS marcheth with his land army one way over the stage;and TAURUS, the lieutenant of OCTAVIUS CAESAR, the other way. After their going in, is heard the noise of a sea-fight Alarum. Enter DOMITIUS ENOBARBUS DOMITIUS ENOBARBUS Naught, naught all, naught! I can behold no longer:
The Antoniad, the Egyptian admiral, With all their sixty, fly and turn the rudder:
To see't mine eyes are blasted.
Enter SCARUS SCARUS Gods and goddesses, All the whole synod of them! DOMITIUS ENOBARBUS What's thy passion! SCARUS The greater cantle of the world is lost With very ignorance; we have kiss'd away Kingdoms and provinces. DOMITIUS ENOBARBUS How appears the fight? SCARUS On our side like the token'd pestilence, Where death is sure. Yon ribaudred nag of Egypt,--Whom leprosy o'ertake!--i' the midst o' the fight, When vantage like a pair of twins appear'd, Both as the same, or rather ours the elder, The breese upon her, like a cow in June, Hoists sails and flies. DOMITIUS ENOBARBUS That I beheld:
Mine eyes did sicken at the sight, and could not Endure a further view. SCARUS She once being loof'd, The noble ruin of her magic, Antony, Claps on his sea-wing, and, like a doting mallard, Leaving the fight in height, flies after her:
I never saw an action of such shame;
Experience, manhood, honour, ne'er before Did violate so itself. DOMITIUS ENOBARBUS Alack, alack!
Enter CANIDIUS CANIDIUS Our fortune on the sea is out of breath, And sinks most lamentably. Had our general Been what he knew himself, it had gone well:
O, he has given example for our flight, Most grossly, by his own! DOMITIUS ENOBARBUS Ay, are you thereabouts?
Why, then, good night indeed. CANIDIUS Toward Peloponnesus are they fled. SCARUS 'Tis easy to't; and there I will attend What further comes. CANIDIUS To Caesar will I render My legions and my horse: six kings already Show me the way of yielding. DOMITIUS ENOBARBUS I'll yet follow The wounded chance of Antony, though my reason Sits in the wind against me.
Exeunt SCENE XI. Alexandria. CLEOPATRA's palace. Enter MARK ANTONY with Attendants MARK ANTONY Hark! the land bids me tread no more upon't;It is ashamed to bear me! Friends, come hither:
I am so lated in the world, that I
Have lost my way for ever: I have a ship Laden with gold; take that, divide it; fly, And make your peace with Caesar. All Fly! not we. MARK ANTONY I have fled myself; and have instructed cowards To run and show their shoulders. Friends, be gone;I have myself resolved upon a course Which has no need of you; be gone:
My treasure's in the harbour, take it. O, I follow'd that I blush to look upon:
My very hairs do mutiny; for the white Reprove the brown for rashness, and they them For fear and doting. Friends, be gone: you shall Have letters from me to some friends that will Sweep your way for you. Pray you, look not sad, Nor make replies of loathness: take the hint Which my despair proclaims; let that be left Which leaves itself: to the sea-side straightway:
I will possess you of that ship and treasure.
Leave me, I pray, a little: pray you now:
Nay, do so; for, indeed, I have lost command, Therefore I pray you: I'll see you by and by.
