Enter COSROE, MENAPHON, ORTYGIUS, and CENEUS, with Soldiers.
Cos. Thus far are we towards Theridamas,
And valiant Tamburlaine, the man of fame,
The man that in the forehead of his fortune
Bears figures of renown and miracle.
But tell me, that hast seen him, Menaphon,
What stature wields he, and what personage?
MEN. Of stature tall, and straightly fashioned,
Like his desire, lift upwards and divine;
So large of limbs, his joints so strongly knit,
Such breadth of shoulders as might mainly bear
Old Atlas' burden; 'twixt his manly pitch, *
A pearl more worth than all the world is plac'd,
Wherein by curious sovereignty of art
Are fix'd his piercing instruments of sight,
Whose fiery circles bear encompassèd
A heaven of heavenly bodies in their spheres,
That guides his steps and actions to the throne,
Where honour sits invested royally;
Pale of complexion, wrought in him with passion,
* pitch] "I would have you tell me what pitch he was of, Velim mihi dicas quâ staturâ fuerit." Coles's Dict. But here 'pitch" seems to mean the highest part of his body,-the pearl" being, of course, his head.
Thirsting with sovereignty and* love of arms;
His lofty brows in folds do figure death,
And in their smoothness amity and life;
About them hangs a knot of amber hair,
Wrapped in curls, as fierce Achilles' was,
On which the breath of heaven delights to play,
Making it dance with wanton majesty;
His arms and fingers long and sinewyt,
Betokening valour and excess of strength ;-
In every part proportion'd like the man
Should make the world subdu'd to Tamburlaine.
Cos. Well hast thou pourtray'd in thy terms of life
The face and personage of a wondrous man :
Nature doth strive with Fortune and his stars
To make him famous in accomplish'd worth;
And well his merits shew him to be made
His fortune's master and the king of men,
That could persuade, at such a sudden pinch,
With reasons of his valour and his life,
A thousand sworn and overmatching foes.
Then, when our powers in points of swords are join'd,
and] So the 4to.-The 8vo " with."
+ His arms and fingers long and sinewy] So the 8vo, except that, by a misprint, it has " snowy " for "sinewy.”—The 4to gives the line thus,
"His armes long, his fingers snowy-white."!!
(and so the line used to stand in Lamb's Spec. of Dram. Poets, till I made the necessary alteration in the recent ed. of that charming selection.)
subdu'd] So the 8vo.-The 4to "subdue."
And clos'd in compass of the killing bullet,
Though strait the passage and the port* be made
That leads to palace of my brother's life,
Proud is his fortune if we pierce it not;
And, when the princely Persian diadem
Shall overweigh his weary witless head,
And fall like mellow'd fruit with shakes of death,
In fair Persia noble Tamburlaine
Shall be my regent, and remain as king.
ORTY. In happy hour we have set the crown Upon your kingly head, that seeks our honour In joining with the man ordain'd by Heaven To further every action to the best.
CEN. He that with shepherds and a little spoil
Durst, in disdain of wrong and tyranny,
Defend his freedom 'gainst a monarchy,
What will he do supported by a king,
Leading a troop of gentlemen and lords,
And stuff'd with treasure for his highest thoughts?
Cos. And such shall wait on worthy Tambur-
Our army will be forty thousand strong,
When Tamburlaine and brave Theridamas
Have met us by the river Araris;
And all conjoin'd to meet the witless king,
That now is marching near to Parthia,
And with unwilling soldiers faintly arm'd,
To seek revenge on me and Tamburlaine,
tis] So the 8vo.-The 4to "in."
To whom, sweet Menaphon, direct me straight.
Enter MYCETES, MEANDER, with other Lords ; and Soldiers.
MYc. Come, my Meander, let us to this gear. I tell you true, my heart is swoln with wrath On this same thievish villain Tamburlaine, And of that false Cosroe, my traitorous brother. Would it not grieve a king to be so abus'd, And have a thousand horsemen ta'en away? And, which is worse †, to have his diadem Sought for by such scald knaves as love him not? I think it would: well, then, by Heavens I swear, Aurora shall not peep out of her doors,
But I will have Cosroe by the head,
And kill proud Tamburlaine with point of sword.
Tell
you the rest, Meander: I have said.
MEAN. Then, having pass'd Armenian deserts now,
And pitch'd our tents under the Georgian hills,
Whose tops are cover'd with Tartarian thieves,
That lie in ambush, waiting for a prey,
What should we do but bid them battle straight,
And rid the world of those detested troops?
Lest, if we let them linger here a while,
They gather strength by power of fresh supplies.
This country swarms with vile outragious men
† worse] So the 8vo.-The 4to "worst."
That live by rapine and by lawless spoil,
Fit soldiers for the* wicked Tamburlaine;
And he that could with gifts and promises
Inveigle him that led a thousand horse,
And make him false his faith unto his king,
Will quickly win such as be like himself.
Therefore cheer up your minds; prepare to fight:
He that can take or slaughter Tamburlaine,
Shall rule the province of Albania;
Who brings that traitor's head, Theridamas,
Shall have a government in Media,
Beside the spoil of him and all his train :
But, if Cosroe (as our spials say,
And as we know) remains with Tamburlaine,
His highness' pleasure is that he should live,
And be reclaim'd with princely lenity.
SPY. An hundred horsemen of my company,
Scouting abroad upon these champion || plains,
Have view'd the army of the Scythians,
Which make ¶ report it far exceeds the king's.
MEAN. Suppose they be in number infinite,
Yet being void of martial discipline,
All running headlong after greedy spoils
* the] So the 8vo.-The 4to " that."
this] So the 8vo.-The 4to "the."
be] So the 8vo.-The 4to" are."
Beside] So the 8vo.-The 4to
|| champion] i. e. champaign.
¶ make] So the 8vo.-The 4to "makes."
** after greedy spoils] May be right: but qy.
|