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CATO.
Syph.Yes,———but it is to Cato.
I've try'd the force of ev'ry reason on him,
Sooth'd and caress'd; been angry, sooth'd again,
Laid safety, life, and int'rest in his sight:
But all are vain, he scorns them all for Cato.
Semp.Come, 'tis no matter; we shall do without him,
He'll make a pretty figure in a triumph,
And serve to trip before the victor's chariot.
Syphax, I now may hope thou hast forsook
Thy Juba's cause, and wishest Marcia mine.
Syph.May she be thine as fast as thou wouldst have her.
Semp.Syphax, I love that woman; tho' I curse
Her and myself, yet spite of me, I love her.
Syph.Make Cato sure, and give up Utica;
Cesar will ne'er refuse thee such a trifle.
But are thy troops prepar'd for a revolt?
Does the sedition catch from man to man,
And run among the ranks?
Semp.All, all is ready;
The factious leaders are our friends, that spread
Murmurs and discontents among the soldiers.
They count their toilsome marches, long fatigues,
Unusual fastings, and will bear no more
This medley of philosophy and war.
Within an hour they'll storm the senate house.
Syph.Mean while I'll draw up my Numidian troops
Within the square, to exercise their arms,
And as I see occasion favour thee.
I laugh to see how your unshaken Cato
Will look aghast, while unforeseen destruction
Pours in upon him thus from every side.
So, where our wide Numidian wastes extend,
Sudden th'impetuous hurricanes descend,
Wheel through the air, in circling eddies play,
Tear up the sands, and sweep whole plains away.
The helpless traveller, with wild surprise,
Sees the dry desart all around him rise,
And smother'd in the dusty whirlwind dies. [Exeunt.
I've try'd the force of ev'ry reason on him,
Sooth'd and caress'd; been angry, sooth'd again,
Laid safety, life, and int'rest in his sight:
But all are vain, he scorns them all for Cato.
Semp.Come, 'tis no matter; we shall do without him,
He'll make a pretty figure in a triumph,
And serve to trip before the victor's chariot.
Syphax, I now may hope thou hast forsook
Thy Juba's cause, and wishest Marcia mine.
Syph.May she be thine as fast as thou wouldst have her.
Semp.Syphax, I love that woman; tho' I curse
Her and myself, yet spite of me, I love her.
Syph.Make Cato sure, and give up Utica;
Cesar will ne'er refuse thee such a trifle.
But are thy troops prepar'd for a revolt?
Does the sedition catch from man to man,
And run among the ranks?
Semp.All, all is ready;
The factious leaders are our friends, that spread
Murmurs and discontents among the soldiers.
They count their toilsome marches, long fatigues,
Unusual fastings, and will bear no more
This medley of philosophy and war.
Within an hour they'll storm the senate house.
Syph.Mean while I'll draw up my Numidian troops
Within the square, to exercise their arms,
And as I see occasion favour thee.
I laugh to see how your unshaken Cato
Will look aghast, while unforeseen destruction
Pours in upon him thus from every side.
So, where our wide Numidian wastes extend,
Sudden th'impetuous hurricanes descend,
Wheel through the air, in circling eddies play,
Tear up the sands, and sweep whole plains away.
The helpless traveller, with wild surprise,
Sees the dry desart all around him rise,
And smother'd in the dusty whirlwind dies. [Exeunt.
ACT
