University of Virginia Library

ACT THE FIFTH.

SCENE THE FIRST.

Virginius, Icilius, with Followers.
Virginius.
The fatal hour arrives. Icilius, see,
On every side the forum teems with arms.
And all around ...

Ici.
Close by my side I see
A train, though less, of loftier hardihood.

Virginius.
Dost thou confide in them?

Ici.
I in myself
Confide.

Virginius.
In me, as much as in thyself,
Thou ought'st to trust. Before the time I come
A little space; for I was well assured
That I should find thee here. But, in few words,
Permit me, while there is a time for speech,
To question thee concerning thy designs.
Should we unloose the decemviral fetters,
How am I to accost thee? By what name,
So long as thou art within the walls of Rome?

Ici.
A Roman, citizen, and free; the peer
Of every Roman; only than the laws
Less great; greater alone than any king.
But thou suggestest a tremendous doubt
To me, a Roman, Roman as thou art;
But thou dost not offend me: in thy breast
The vile suspicion never had arisen,
No never, had not Appius inspired it.

Virginius.
Infamous times! The powerful condescend,
E'en as the powerless, to practise fraud.
I did not think it ... but so well did Appius
Colour his phrases ... what avails it now?
If yet I trusted him, one look of thine
Fills me with more of settled confidence
Than all the oaths of Appius. Ah, the miscreant,
I swear it is as possible that I
Should e'er to thee be faithless and thy cause,
As it is possible that thou shouldst be
By thine own heart, by thine own sword betray'd.

Ici.
I do trust to thee; and to thee alone,
No, not in these: though they an hour ago
Fiercely to me, and Rome, did pledge their faith.
Fear, calumny, and gold, may take them from me:
The arms of Appius all; unknown to heroes,
But yet too efficacious. Now, let come
What may come, if the tyrant persevere
In his iniquitous designs, he dies.
That he is apprehensive, he has shewn
By his attempt to practise on thy faith:
In the corruption of the affrighted people
Does he confide: too sure a cause for trust.
If Appius die, nine tyrants yet remain,
Less powerful indeed, and all dispersed;
Yet in whose power are placed the nerve of Rome,
Both of our armies. Freedom thus appears,
Which perhaps few wish, and thou alone deservest,
But too too doubtful: vengeance thus alone
Seems to me certain. I see all its danger:
And for this reason wish the more to brave it.

Virginius.
Oh great of heart! In thee this day will Rome
See herself die, or rise again in thee.
Yield only to my unimpair'd old age
Th'honour of giving signal for the combat.
Be it mine to indicate the when and how
We are to draw our swords. Fix on my eye
Thy steady eye, and on thy sword thy hand;
Meanwhile the aspect of the assembled people
We will observe; 'twill be, perchance, expedient,
To make the blow more sure, to affect at first
Conciliatory manners: I beseech thee,
Let all thy movements be controul'd by mine.

Ici.
Thou art a Roman and a father. Give
The signal for attack; and thou shalt see
My strokes more rapid than the lightning's flash.

Virginius.
Go; thou shouldst lead the helpless ladies hither:
Mingle thy followers with the common people;
It would be best that Appius, when he comes,
Should find me here alone. I will address
To him ambiguous words: meanwhile, the place
Most opportune, whence we may fall on Appius,
I will espy. I here await thy coming:
When thou returnest, do not wear a look
Imprudently audacious: check thy fury
For a short time; the hour approaches fast,
When, on this spot, it all may spend itself.

SCENE THE SECOND.

Virginius.
Virginius.
Oh Rome! ... oh daughter! now I fear from nothing,
Save from Icilius' too intemperate valour.

SCENE THE THIRD.

Appius, Virginius.
Ap.
Hast thou at last resolved?

Virginius.
A long time since.

Ap.
As should a father?

Virginius.
As a Roman father.

Ap.
Thou with Icilius every tie hast broken?

Virginius.
Three powerful ties bind me to him.

Ap.
They are?

Virginius.
The ties of blood, of friendship, and of virtue.

Ap.
Perfidious as thou art! these boasted ties
Blood shall perpetuate.

Virginius.
I am most willing
That they with blood should be perpetuated.
I know that 'tis in vain for me to oppose thee,
Yet I prepare myself to suffer death
Sooner than loose my daughter from my grasp;
I cannot more than this: the gods, I hope,
Will one day signally avenge my cause.

Ap.
Seest thou the gods of Appius? The arm'd troops
With which I am surrounded. Well I know,
That by avowed and by clandestine means
Ye do prepare to cope with me by arms:
On my side are the laws; licence on yours:
I should reap glory even from defeat;
To you success would only bring disgrace.
Already the ferocious multitude,
In “numbers without number,” crowd the forum:
Trust to that multitude: whate'er it wills,
It always has the power to execute.
Behold Virginia weeping; in her train
Her shrieking mother comes with hair dishevell'd,
And her clothes rent. What clamorous turbulence?
With what a howling do the heavens resound!
Who knows what number of arm'd partizans
Icilius hath inveigled to the forum!

SCENE THE FOURTH.

Numitoria, Virginia, Appius, Virginius, Marcus, People, Lictors.
Nu.
Oh treachery!

People.
Oh unauspicious day!

Virginia.
At least thou yet art living, oh my father!
Alas, thou know'st not all ... Icilius!

Virginius.
What is become of him? I see him not.

Nu.
Dead is Icilius.

Virginius.
What do I hear?
Oh heavens!

Ap.
Who was so bold, as thus to wreak
Vengeance upon him in defence of Rome;
Without awaiting that he were condemn'd
By the just rigour of the laws?

Nu.
Ah wretch!
And dar'st thou thus dissemble? To the forum
With us he came, depending on his valour;
When, lo! his own adherents came to him
With menacing deportment, face to face,
Aruns, and Faustus, and Cesonius,
And others with them arm'd: first Aruns cried,
“Thou art a traitor, then?” ... Hence, in an instant,
Inflamed with passion, and with frantic howlings,
They drew their swords, and leapt together on him.
Icilius, always ready for defence,
E'en ere a word he utter'd, in a circle
Brandished his flaming sword. Aruns fell first;
All who had courage to attack him fell.
Then to the astonished multitude from far
The most intimidated cried: “Ah Romans,
“Icilius is a traitor: he would be
“In Rome a king.” Scarce had that name been heard,
Ere all around on every side assault him,
And instantaneous was his death.

Virginius.
Alas!
What an unworthy death for such a hero!

Nu.
The swords of others ne'er avail'd to smite him;
He turned his own against himself, and cried,
“I will not be a king; nor be a slave.
“My spouse, learn to die free from my example.”

Virginia.
Alas! I heard thy dying words distinctly ...
Beloved husband; I will follow thee ...
Three times I saw the sword within thy breast
Plunged by thy own right-hand; towards that sword
I stretched my firm hand, but in vain ...

Nu.
The crowd
Has driven us onward from the horrible sight,
And here impell'd us.

Virginius.
Now Icilius falls,
Appius is king in Rome.

Ap.
Oh, Romans, hear ...
Icilius, and his faithless partizans,
Alone were instrumental to his fate.
Conscious of his misdeeds, he would by death
Somewhat atone for his approbrious life.
He died a Roman; though he lived not one.
I ne'er myself should have chastised the traitor;
He was too dear to you: but time at last
Brings every thing to light, and has removed
The fatal bandage from the people's eyes.
The multitude had called it tyranny
If I had sentenced him to punishment;
And yet so worthy did he seem of death,
E'en to his own adherents.

Virginius.
Appius,
No man dost thou deceive: all here behold
The author of this horrible treachery.
Icilius slain, thou more than half hast gain'd
Thy impious cause. Now with impunity
Appius proceed, and let us hear the sentence.
But what do I demand? Who reads it not
In every face of this arm'd multitude?
And in the silence of affrighted Rome?

Ap.
What now, ye traitors? Since ye have in vain
Wished for rebellion, if ye are betrayed
By your own creatures, why do ye blame me?
Where is the wonder, if to one so faithless
They were themselves unfaithful? Sons of Rome,
I now address myself to you alone.
Ye see around you armed troops dispersed
'Tis true, but solely for the good of Rome.
To your unanimous and upright wishes
Who dares oppose himself? Assuredly
Not I: but I have thus willed it to be,
That I might so defend against a few,
A factious few, the majesty of Rome,
Centred in me by universal suffrage.
Perhaps in Icilius the last traitor died?
Lictors, surround Virginius with your axes
Till sentence be pronounced. To evil deeds
He comes with evil thoughts: if he hath reasons
To urge in his defence, let him produce them;
But thwart him if he seeks redress by force.

Nu.
Alas!

Virginia.
Ah wretched me! My father also?

Virginius.
'Tis true I am a traitor, for I am
Virginia's father; as Icilius was,
Being her husband; all are traitors, all
That do refuse to prostitute their wives
And daughters to his lust. Are ye not yet
Fully convinced of his atrocity?
Romans, although ye see me innocent,
Yet with Icilius, and with thousand others,
Let me be dragg'd to death: but ah, defend
That virtuous virgin; to a lot she's destined
Worse, worse, a thousand times than any death.
Not for myself do I thus supplicate;
For her I tremble; and for her I weep.

Nu.
And do not all of you with us shed tears?
Oh fathers, learn, from our example learn,
What ye have to expect ... all, all are silent?
Hard-hearted ... cruel ... Mothers, hear me then:
Oh ye alone who truly love the offspring
Sprung from your blood, and nourished in your womb;
Here to have children is too great a crime.
Mothers, if you their honour, or your own,
Regard, oh plunge, soon as they see the light,
The fatal weapon in their innocent breasts.

Ap.
Listen, ye mothers, to a mother's love?
Who sees not now that she is not the mother?
And that her husband is by her deceived?
Of me ye asked the presence of Virginius,
And 'twas most just, that he should witness be
Of such a trial: see him, here he is:
But can his presence interdict that I
Boldly pronounce an equitable sentence?
The witnesses of Marcus I've examined,
And lastly Marcus; they agree. His right,
I swear it to the people, is established:
The specious imposition of the mother
Is more than proved by evidence like this;
Whence by a subtle counterchange she seeks
To gain by tumults, a cause lost by truth.
I grieve to be obliged to undeceive
The still deluded sire—and yet I ought.
Marcus, Virginia's thine; to thine own slave
Thy just pretension I cannot refuse.

Nu.
Was e'er such sentence given? Will no one hear me?

Virginia.
Mother, thou seest my father, how, alas!
With axes he's encompassed: he cannot
Exert himself for me; scarce can he speak;
And speaks in vain. Give me the sword; thou hast it;
By thee 'twas promised to me: I have lost
Icilius; shall I lose my honour also?

Virginius.
Oh impious herd of despicable slaves!
Are ye by fear thus palsied? Ye forget,
So that ye may prolong a wretched life,
Your honour, and your children, and your country.
I hear a scarce distinguishable murmur;
But no one moves. Ah vile, ah doubly vile!
May each of you have such a lot as mine;
If possible a worse: of property,
Of honour, children, wives, and liberty,
Of arms, and lastly robb'd of intellect,
Ah may the tyrant, amid lengthen'd torments,
Take from you, what is scarcely now your own,
Your infamous and prostituted lives,
Which ye would purchase at so vile a price.

Ap.
'Tis true, Rome murmurs, but at thee alone.
Be silent now. This instant to her master,
Lictors, conduct the slave; and be not baffled
By the seditious grief of the feign'd mother:
Tear from her arms her surreptitious daughter.

Nu.
Ye first shall slay me.

Virginia.
Mother!

People.
Luckless day!

Virginius.
Appius, delay, and hear me for a moment:
Delay, and hear me, I beseech thee. I
Brought up this virgin as my only child;
More than myself I hitherto have loved her:
If my wife utters falsehoods, to the fraud
I am not accessary.

Nu.
What do I hear?
Canst thou consent thus to degrade thy wife?
Is thus Virginius changed?

Virginia.
Canst thou decide
At such a moment to desert me thus?
Dost thou account me then no longer thine?

Virginius.
Whate'er I may account thee, I do love thee,
As should the tenderest father love his daughter.
Ah, Appius, suffer thou, that, yet once more,
Ere I for ever lose her, I may clasp
Her that I always as a child have loved.
My pride is humbled, it is broken, nothing:
In thee do I adore the majesty,
The institutions, and the gods of Rome.
But can I in a day, nay, in an instant,
Of that paternal love divest myself,
Which for so many happy years has been
The best part of my life?

Ap.
May Heaven forbid
That I should e'er to such a pitch be cruel,
As to ascribe to guilt a love so just.
Once more thyself, thou speakest as thou oughtest,
And as I ought I answer thee. For him,
Lictors, at once make way.

Virginius.
Ah come, oh daughter,
To my paternal breast. With such a name,
'Tis sweet to me yet once more to accost thee ...
Once more.—The last pledge of paternal love;
I give thee—death and freedom.

Virginia.
Oh ... true ... father.

Nu.
Oh Heaven! my daughter ...

Ap.
Miscreant, what hast thou done?
Lictors, ah! quickly ...

Virginius.
To the infernal gods
Do I devote thy head with this pure blood.

People.
Oh sight atrocious! Appius is a tyrant.

Virginius.
Romans, are ye now stirr'd to rage? 'tis late:
'Twill not restore life to the innocent.

People.
The tyrant Appius dies.

Ap.
The parricide
And his adherents die.

Virginius.
Before we die,
Heroes, there yet is time for vengeance.

Ap.
Time
To punish thee before I die remains.

Virginius.
The tyrant Appius dies.

People.
The tyrant dies.