And think to rouse us from our dreadful siege
Of the famous Grecian Constantinople.
You know. our army is invincible;
As many circumcised Turks we have,
And warlike bands of Christian's reni'd*,
As hath the ocean or the Tyrrhene sea
Small drops of water when the moon begins
To join in one her semicircled horns.
Yet would we not be brav'd with foreign pow'r,
Nor raise our siege before the Grecians yield,
Or breathless lie before the city walls.
K. OF FEZ. Renowned emperor, and mighty gene
What, if you sent the bassas of your guard
To charge him to remain in Asia,
Or else to threaten death and deadly arms
As from the mouth of mighty Bajazet.
BAJ. Hie thee, my bassa, fast to Persia;
Tell him thy lord, the Turkish emperor,
Dread lord of Afric, Europe, and Asia,
Great king and conqueror of Grecia,
The ocean Tyrrhene, and the coal-black sea,
The high and highest monarch of the world.
Wills and commands, (for say not I entreat)
Not once to set his foot on Africa,
Or spread his colours in Grecia,
Lest he incur the fury of my wrath.
Tell him I am content to take a truce,
Because I hear he bears a valiant mind:
Renied-denied. Christians who had denied their faith.
But if presuming on his silly pow'r,
He be so mad to manage arms with me,
Then stay thou with him; say, I bid thee so:
And if, before the sun have measur'd heaven
With tripple circuit thou regreet us not,
We mean to take his morning's next arise
For messenger he will not be reclaim'd,
And mean to fetch thee in despite of him.
BAS. Most great and puissant monarch of the
Your bassa will accomplish your behest,'
And show your pleasure to the Persian,
As fits the legate of the stately Turk.
ARG. They say he is the king of Persia ;
But, if he dare attempt to stir your siege,
'Twere requisite he should be ten times more,
For all flesh quakes at your magnificence.
BAJ. True, Argier; and trembles at my looks.
K. OF MOR. The spring is hinder'd by your
smoth'ring hosts,
For neither rain can fall upon the earth,
Nor sun reflex his virtuous beams thereon,
The ground is mantled with such multitudes.
BAJ. All this is true as holy Mahomet;
And all the trees are blasted with our breaths.
K. OF FEZ. What thinks your highness best to be
achiev'd
In pursuit of the city's overthrow?
BAJ. I will the captive pioneers of Argier
Cut off the water that by leaden pipes
Runs to the city from the mountain Carnon.
Two thousand horse shall forage up and down,
That no relief or succour come by land:
And all the sea my gallies countermand.
Then shall our footmen lie within the trench,
And with their cannons' mouths, like Orcus' gulf,
Batter the walls, and we will enter in ;
And thus the Grecians shall be conquer'd. [Exeunt.
ZENOCRATE, AGYDAS, ANIPPE, with others.
AGYD. Madam Zenocrate, may I presume
To know the cause of these unquiet fits,
That work such trouble to your wonted rest?
"Tis more than pity such a heavenly face
Should by heart's sorrow wax so wan and pale,
When your offensive rape by Tamburlaine,
(Which of your whole displeasures should be most)
Hath seem'd to be digested long ago.
ZENO. Although it be digested long ago,
As his exceeding favours have deserv'd,
And might content the Queen of Heav'n, as well
As it hath chang'd my first conceiv'd disdain,
Yet since a farther passion feeds my thoughts
With ceaseless and disconsolate conceits,
Which dye my looks so liveless as they are,
And might, if my extremes had full events,
Make me the ghastly counterfeit of death.
AGYD. Eternal Heaven, sooner be dissolv'd,
And all that pierceth Phoebus' silver eye,
Before such hap fall to Zenocrate!
ZENO. Ah, life and soul, still hover in his breast And leave my body senseless as the earth,
Or else unite you to his life and soul,
That I may live and die with Tamburlaine !
Enter TAMBURLAINE, TECHELLES, and others
AGYD. With Tamburlaine! Ah, fair Zenocrate, Let not a man so vile and barbarous, That holds you from your father in despite, And keeps you from the honours of a queen, (Being suppos'd his worthless concubine,) Be honour'd with your love but for necessity. So now the mighty soldan hears of you, Your highness needs not doubt, but in short time, He will with Tamburlaine's destruction
Redeem you from this deadly servitude.
ZENO. Leave to wound me with these words,
And speak of Tamburlaine as he deserves.
The entertainment we have had of him
Is far from villainy or servitude,
And might in noble minds be counted princely.
AGYD. How can you fancy one that looks so fierce.
Only dispos'd to martial stratagems?
Will tell how many thousand men he slew ;
Who, when he shall embrace you in his arms,
And when you look for amorous discourse,
Will rattle forth his facts of war and blood,
Too harsh a subject for your dainty ears.
ZENO. As looks the sun through Nilus' flowing
Or when the morning holds him in her arms,
So looks my lordly love, fair Tamburlaine;
His talk much sweeter than the Muses' song
They sung for honour 'gainst Pierides;
Or when Minerva did with Neptune strive:
And higher would I rear my estimate
Than Juno, sister to the highest god,
If I were match'd with mighty Tamburlaine.
AGYD. Yet be not so inconstant in your love;
But let the young Arabian live in hope
After your rescue to enjoy his choice.
You see though first the king of Persia,
Being a shepherd, seem'd to love you much,
Now in his majesty he leaves those looks,
Those words of favour, and those comfortings,
And gives no more than common courtesies.
ZENO. Thence rise the tears that so distain my
cheeks,
Fearing his loving through my unworthiness.
[Tamburlaine goes to her and takes her away lovingly by the hand, looking wrathfully on Agyd, and says nothing. All follow but Agyd. AGYD. Betray'd by fortune and suspicious love, Threat'ned with frowning wrath and jealousy, Surpris'd with fear and hideous revenge, I stand aghast! but most astonied To see his choler shut in secret thoughts, And wrapt in silence of his angry soul!
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