Ili. Wretches of Troy, envied of the winds,
That crave such favour at your honour's feet
As poor distressed misery may plead:
Save, save, O, save our ships from cruel fire,
That do complain the wounds of thousand waves,
And spare our lives, whom every spite pursues!
We come not, we, to wrong your Libyan gods,
Or steal your household Lares from their shrines ;
Our hands are not prepared to lawless spoil,
Nor armed to offend in any kind;
Such force is far from our unweapon'd thoughts
Whose fading weal, of victory forsook,
Forbids all hope to harbour near our hearts.

Iar. But tell me, Trojans, Trojans if you be,
Unto what fruitful quarters were ye bound,
Before that Boreas buckled with 2 your sails?
Clo. There is a place, Hesperia termed by us,
An ancient empire, famousèd for arms,
And fertile in fair Ceres' furrowed wealth,
Which now we call Italia, of his name

That in such peace long time did rule the same.
Thither made we;

When, suddenly, gloomy Orion rose,

And led our ships into the shallow sands,
Whereas the southern wind with brackish breath
Dispersed them all amongst the wreckful rocks :

1 For what follows cf. Virg. Æn. i. 524-78.

2 The expression "buckle with" occurs twice in 1 Henry VI., and once in 3 Henry VI.: nowhere in Shakespeare's undoubted plays.

Γ

From thence a few of us escaped to land;
The rest, we fear, are folded in the floods.

Iar. Brave men-at-arms, abandon fruitless fears,

Since Carthage knows to entertain distress.

Serg. I, but the barbarous sort do threat our ships,
And will not let us lodge upon the sands;
In multitudes they swarm unto the shore,
And from the first earth interdict our feet.

Iar. Myself will see they shall not trouble ye :
Your men and you shall banquet in our court,
And every Trojan be as welcome here

As Jupiter to silly Baucis'1 house.

Come in with me; I'll bring ye to my queen,
Who shall confirm my words with further deeds.

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Serg. Thanks, gentle lord, for such unlook'd-for grace:

Might we but once more see Æneas' face,

Then would we hope to quite such friendly turns,

As shall 2 surpass the wonder of our speech.

[Exeunt.

1 Old ed. "Vausis."

2 Dyce proposes "all" for "shall." Retaining "shall" the sense is we would hope to reunite your kindness in such a way as shall," &c.

ACT II.

SCENE I.

Enter1 ENEAS, ACHATES, ASCANIUS, and others.

En. Where am I now? these should be Carthage-walls. Ach. Why stands my sweet Æneas thus amaz'd?

En. O my Achates, Theban Niobe,

Who for her sons' death wept out life and breath,

And, dry with grief, was turned into a stone,
Had not such passions in her head as I!
Methinks,

That town there should be Troy, yon Ida's hill,
There Xanthus' stream, because here's Priamus;
And when I know it is not, then I die.

Ach. And in this humour is Achates too;
I cannot choose but fall upon my knees,
And kiss his hand. O, where is Hecuba?
Here she was wont to sit; but, saving air,
Is nothing here; and what is this but stone??
En. O, yet this stone doth make Æneas weep!
And would my prayers (as Pygmalion's did)
Could give it life, that under his conduct

1 Scene: Juno's temple at Carthage.

2 Virgil represents the tale of Troy depicted on a fresco in Juno's temple.

We might sail back to Troy, and be revenged
On these hard-hearted Grecians which rejoice
That nothing now is left of Priamus !

O, Priamus is left, and this is he !

Come, come aboard; pursue the hateful Greeks.
Ach. What means Æneas?

En. Achates, though mine eyes say this is stone,
Yet thinks my mind that this is Priamus;
And when my grieved heart sighs and says no,
Then would it leap out to give Priam life.—
O, were I not at all, so thou mightst be ;-
Achates, see, King Priam wags his hand!
He is alive; Troy is not overcome!

Ach. Thy mind, Æneas, that would have it so,
Deludes thy eye-sight; Priamus is dead.

En. Ah, Troy is sack'd, and Priamus is dead!

And why should poor Æneas be alive?

Asc. Sweet father, leave to weep; this is not he, For, were it Priam, he would smile on me.

Ach. Eneas, see, here come the citizens:

Leave to lament, lest they laugh at our fears.1

Enter CLOANTHUS, SERGESTUS, ILIONEUS, and others. Æn. Lords of this town, or whatsoever style Belongs unto your name, vouchsafe of ruth To tell us who inhabits this fair town, What kind of people, and who governs them; For we are strangers driven on this shore, And scarcely know within what clime we are.

1 Perhaps a misprint for "tears."

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40

Ili. I hear Æneas' voice, but see him not,1 For none of these can be our general.

Ach. Like Ilioneus speaks this nobleman,
But Ilioneus goes not in such robes.

Serg. You are Achates, or I [am] deceiv'd.
Ach. Æneas, see, Sergestus, or his ghost!
Ili. He names 2 Æneas; let us kiss his feet.
Clo. It is our captain; see, Ascanius!
Serg. Live long Æneas and Ascanius!
En. Achates, speak, for I am overjoyed.
Ach. O Ilioneus, art thou yet alive?

Ili. Blest be the time I see Achates' face!

Clo. Why turns Æneas from his trusty friends?
En. Sergestus, Ilioneus, and the rest,
Your sight amazed me. O, what destinies
Have brought my sweet companions in
plight?

O, tell me, for I long to be resolved!

Ili. Lovely Æneas, these are Carthage-walls;
And here Queen Dido wears th' imperial crown,
Who for Troy's sake hath entertained us all,
And clad us in these wealthy robes we wear.
Oft hath she asked us under whom we served;
And, when we told her, she would weep for grief,
Thinking the sea had swallowed up thy ships;
And, now she sees thee, how will she rejoice!

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such

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1 Æneas is not shrouded in a cloud, as the reader (remembering Virgil) might at first suppose. Ilioneus fails to recognise Æneas in his mean apparel.

* Old ed. "meanes."