 | Hannibal |  |
Scene I.
—A gallery in the house of Gisco.Enter Gisco and a Senator.
Sen.
Oh, what a devil we have brought home to us,
With a high hand to overthrow the State!
What's this strange talk of his about reform?
Gis.
Reform, indeed! An idiotic word,
That ne'er was heard amongst us till this man,
That would be wiser than his grandsires, comes
To pull those ancient institutions down
Which had, methinks, worked well enough for them,
Which Aristotle praised, which made us great,
And can alone restore us to our greatness.
Sen.
A mere pretext for keeping up his power,
By winning favour with the common people—
Gis.
He calls it by that fine name, patriotism.
But we will not be governed by the people—
Thank heaven, we still have means to keep them down!
Oh, it enrages me to see that man
Play traitor to his order in this fashion,
To feed the grasping cravings of ambition.
And now, his ruinous defeat still fresh,
Comes this audacious talk about abuses—
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Charges 'gainst this and that man of corruption—
Odium brought down upon the magistrates,
And old-established profits cut away,
Till we, the merchant-princes of the sea,
Whose state and splendour in our way of life,
From Gades to Phœnicia is renowned,
Forsooth, must part with our magnificence,
Our daughters lack their portions, and our sons
No longer hold their State amongst the people,
Like sons of kings, as heretofore hath been;
And all because a conquered general,
After mishaps for which as worthy men
Have suffered, and less justly, crucifixion,
Usurps a station at our council-board,
And helps, forsooth, to govern us! Well, well,
The times are changed, I think, when we reward
Those that have ruined us.
Sen.
Why, by the gods,
Could we not rid us of this pest before?
The last and hatefulest of all his house—
A far worse enemy than Rome herself!
I would Rome had him!
Gis.
Ay, and wherefore not?
Tell me now, have you guessed these Roman envoys
Come with a secret errand, other than
That they have openly professed—th'adjustment
Of this our difference with King Masanissa?
Sen.
I had some faint suspicions, I will own.
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And have you stretched conjecture far enough
To guess what is that errand?
Sen.
Ay, thus far,
As that it touches Hannibal.
Gis.
It does.
Within this very hour I seek the envoys
To treat with them upon this very matter.
We had sent them private hints that Hannibal
Was treating with Antiochus already
For a fresh league 'gainst Rome. That was enough.
Straight come these legates on their secret mission.
Sen.
What, to demand that we expel him?
Gis.
More.
Sen.
That we should give him up to Rome?
Gis.
E'en so.
Sen.
By heaven! How face the fury of the mob?
You had almost been stoned for his dear sake
When you stepped forth so boldly to impeach him!
Gis.
Oh, never fear—they love themselves too well,
Not to prefer his loss, once out of sight,
To what we'll tell them we are threatened with
By Rome's displeasure—siege and massacre,
And what not—hanging o'er our heads through him.
But done it must be—ay, and speedily.
The council is unanimous; already
They've held their secret meeting in the Temple,
This business to decide; and nought remains
But to achieve the seizure.
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Are you sure
That he has no suspicion?
Gis.
None as yet;
He has shown himself in public fearlessly
This very day, and courteously saluted
The Roman legates. Oh, he guesses nothing!
But he must not be left another day
To find it out.
Sen.
Ah! on this very night, then!
Gis.
This very night. By midnight we shall send
A force sufficient to surround his house,
And bear down all resistance so surprised.
The Roman galleys in the inner harbour
Are ready to receive him, and set sail
Ere break of day, with the long wished-for prize.
Sen.
I scarcely shall breathe freely till 'tis done.
He's better out of Carthage—yes, much better.
We never can be friends with Rome, so long
As he is known to sway in our state councils.
They will not trust us.
Gis.
Nay, how should they? Now,
'Tis in our power to give convincing proof
Of our desire to win their confidence.
Therefore it must and shall be done. To-morrow
Will see us rid of our worst enemy,
And able to lie down at night in peace.
Come, it is time I should go seek the legates;—
Will you accompany my going thither?
[Exeunt Gisco and Senator.
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[Entering from behind a curtain.]
My lady shall know this! What will she say?
I think she'll weep, for sure she worships him.
[Exit.
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