Act II, Scene vi:
Near Misenum.

[Flourish. Enter POMPEY and MENAS at one side, with drum andtrumpet; at the other, CAESAR, ANTONY, LEPIDUS, ENOBARBUS,MAECENAS, with Soldiers marching.]

POMPEY:

Your hostages I have, so have you mine;

And we shall talk before we fight.

CAESAR:

Most meet

That first we come to words; and therefore have we

Our written purposes before us sent;

Which, if thou hast consider'd, let us know

If 'twill tie up thy discontented sword,

And carry back to Sicily much tall youth

That else must perish here.

POMPEY:

To you all three,

The senators alone of this great world,

Chief factors for the gods,—I do not know

Wherefore my father should revengers want,

Having a son and friends; since Julius Caesar,

Who at Philippi the good Brutus ghosted,

There saw you labouring for him. What was't

That mov'd pale Cassius to conspire; and what

Made the all-honour'd, honest Roman, Brutus,

With the arm'd rest, courtiers of beauteous freedom,

To drench the Capitol, but that they would

Have one man but a man? And that is it

Hath made me rig my navy; at whose burden

The anger'd ocean foams; with which I meant

To scourge the ingratitude that despiteful Rome

Cast on my noble father.

CAESAR:

Take your time.

ANTONY:

Thou canst not fear us, Pompey, with thy sails;

We'll speak with thee at sea: at land thou know'st

How much we do o'er-count thee.

POMPEY:

At land, indeed,

Thou dost o'er-count me of my father's house:

But, since the cuckoo builds not for himself,

Remain in't as thou mayst.

LEPIDUS:

Be pleas'd to tell us,—

For this is from the present,—how you take

The offers we have sent you.

CAESAR:

There's the point.

ANTONY:

Which do not be entreated to, but weigh

What it is worth embrac'd.

CAESAR:

And what may follow,

To try a larger fortune.

POMPEY:

You have made me offer

Of Sicily, Sardinia; and I must

Rid all the sea of pirates; then to send

Measures of wheat to Rome; this 'greed upon,

To part with unhack'd edges and bear back

Our targes undinted.

CAESAR, ANTONY, and LEPIDUS.

That's our offer.

POMPEY:

Know, then,

I came before you here a man prepar'd

To take this offer: but Mark Antony

Put me to some impatience:—though I lose

The praise of it by telling, you must know,

When Caesar and your brother were at blows,

Your mother came to Sicily, and did find

Her welcome friendly.

ANTONY:

I have heard it, Pompey,

And am well studied for a liberal thanks

Which I do owe you.

POMPEY:

Let me have your hand:

I did not think, sir, to have met you here.

ANTONY:

The beds i' the East are soft; and, thanks to you,

That call'd me, timelier than my purpose, hither;

For I have gained by it.

CAESAR:

Since I saw you last

There is a change upon you.

POMPEY:

Well, I know not

What counts harsh fortune casts upon my face;

But in my bosom shall she never come

To make my heart her vassal.

LEPIDUS:

Well met here.

POMPEY:

I hope so, Lepidus.—Thus we are agreed:

I crave our composition may be written,

And seal'd between us.

CAESAR:

That's the next to do.

POMPEY:

We'll feast each other ere we part; and let's

Draw lots who shall begin.

ANTONY:

That will I, Pompey.

POMPEY:

No, Antony, take the lot: but, first

Or last, your fine Egyptian cookery

Shall have the fame. I have heard that Julius Caesar

Grew fat with feasting there.

ANTONY:

You have heard much.

POMPEY:

I have fair meanings, sir.

ANTONY:

And fair words to them.

POMPEY:

Then so much have I heard;

And I have heard Apollodorus carried,—

ENOBARBUS:

No more of that:—he did so.

POMPEY:

What, I pray you?

ENOBARBUS:

A certain queen to Caesar in a mattress.

POMPEY:

I know thee now: how far'st thou, soldier?

ENOBARBUS:

Well;

And well am like to do; for I perceive

Four feasts are toward.

POMPEY:

Let me shake thy hand;

I never hated thee: I have seen thee fight,

When I have envied thy behaviour.

ENOBARBUS:

Sir,

I never lov'd you much; but I ha' prais'd ye

When you have well deserv'd ten times as much

As I have said you did.

POMPEY:

Enjoy thy plainness;

It nothing ill becomes thee.—

Aboard my galley I invite you all:

Will you lead, lords?

CAESAR, ANTONY, and LEPIDUS.

Show's the way, sir.

POMPEY:

Come.

[Exeunt all but ENOBARBUS and MENAS.]

MENAS:

[Aside.] Thy father, Pompey, would ne'er have made this treaty.—

You and I have known, sir.

ENOBARBUS:

At sea, I think.

MENAS:

We have, sir.

ENOBARBUS:

You have done well by water.

MENAS:

And you by land.

ENOBARBUS:

I will praise any man that will praise me; though it cannot be

denied what I have done by land.

MENAS:

Nor what I have done by water.

ENOBARBUS:

Yes, something you can deny for your own safety: you have been a

great thief by sea.

MENAS:

And you by land.

ENOBARBUS:

There I deny my land service. But give me your hand, Menas: if

our eyes had authority, here they might take two thieves kissing.

MENAS:

All men's faces are true, whatsome'er their hands are.

ENOBARBUS:

But there is never a fair woman has a true face.

MENAS:

No slander; they steal hearts.

ENOBARBUS:

We came hither to fight with you.

MENAS:

For my part, I am sorry it is turn'd to a drinking. Pompey doth

this day laugh away his fortune.

ENOBARBUS:

If he do, sure he cannot weep it back again.

MENAS:

You have said, sir. We look'd not for Mark Antony here: pray you,

is he married to Cleopatra?

ENOBARBUS:

Caesar's sister is called Octavia.

MENAS:

True, sir; she was the wife of Caius Marcellus.

ENOBARBUS:

But she is now the wife of Marcus Antonius.

MENAS:

Pray you, sir?

ENOBARBUS:

'Tis true.

MENAS:

Then is Caesar and he for ever knit together.

ENOBARBUS:

If I were bound to divine of this unity, I would not prophesy so.

MENAS:

I think the policy of that purpose made more in the marriage than

the love of the parties.

ENOBARBUS:

I think so too. But you shall find the band that seems to tie

their friendship together will be the very strangler of their

amity: Octavia is of a holy, cold, and still conversation.

MENAS:

Who would not have his wife so?

ENOBARBUS:

Not he that himself is not so; which is Mark Antony. He will to

his Egyptian dish again: then shall the sighs of Octavia blow the

fire up in Caesar; and, as I said before, that which is the

strength of their amity shall prove the immediate author of their

variance. Antony will use his affection where it is: he married

but his occasion here.

MENAS:

And thus it may be. Come, sir, will you aboard? I have a health

for you.

ENOBARBUS:

I shall take it, sir: we have used our throats in Egypt.

MENAS:

Come, let's away.

[Exeunt.]