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12
THE FIRST PART OF
Act I.
And lead thy thousand horse with my conduct,
Besides thy share of this Egyptian prize,
Those thousand horse shall sweat with martial spoil
Of conquer'd kingdoms and of cities sack'd:
Both we will walk upon the lofty cliffs[1];
And Christian merchants[2], that with Russian stems[3]
Plough up huge furrows in the Caspian Sea,
Shall vail[4] to us as lords of all the lake;
Both we will reign as consuls of the earth,
And mighty kings shall be our senators.
Jove sometime masked in a shepherd's weed;
And by those steps that he hath scal'd the heavens
May we become immortal like the gods.
Join with me now in this my mean estate,
(I call it mean, because, being yet obscure,
The nations far-remov'd admire me not,)
And when my name and honour shall be spread
As far as Boreas claps his brazen wings,
Or fair Boötes[5] sends his cheerful light,
Then shalt thou be competitor[6] with me,
And sit with Tamburlaine in all his majesty.
Besides thy share of this Egyptian prize,
Those thousand horse shall sweat with martial spoil
Of conquer'd kingdoms and of cities sack'd:
Both we will walk upon the lofty cliffs[1];
And Christian merchants[2], that with Russian stems[3]
Plough up huge furrows in the Caspian Sea,
Shall vail[4] to us as lords of all the lake;
Both we will reign as consuls of the earth,
And mighty kings shall be our senators.
Jove sometime masked in a shepherd's weed;
And by those steps that he hath scal'd the heavens
May we become immortal like the gods.
Join with me now in this my mean estate,
(I call it mean, because, being yet obscure,
The nations far-remov'd admire me not,)
And when my name and honour shall be spread
As far as Boreas claps his brazen wings,
Or fair Boötes[5] sends his cheerful light,
Then shalt thou be competitor[6] with me,
And sit with Tamburlaine in all his majesty.
Ther. Not Hermes, prolocutor to the gods,
Could use persuasions more pathetical.
Could use persuasions more pathetical.
Tamb. Nor are Apollo's oracles more true
Than thou shalt find my vaunts substantial.
Than thou shalt find my vaunts substantial.
Tech. We are his friends; and, if the Persian king
Should offer present dukedoms to our state,
We think it loss to make exchange for that
We are assur'd of by our friend's success.
Should offer present dukedoms to our state,
We think it loss to make exchange for that
We are assur'd of by our friend's success.
Usum. And kingdoms at the least we all expect,
Besides the honour in assur'd conquests,
Where kings shall crouch unto our conquering swords,
And hosts of soldiers stand amaz'd at us,
When with their fearful tongues they shall confess,
These are the men that all the world admires.
Besides the honour in assur'd conquests,
Where kings shall crouch unto our conquering swords,
And hosts of soldiers stand amaz'd at us,
When with their fearful tongues they shall confess,
These are the men that all the world admires.
Ther. What strong enchantments tice my yielding soul
To these[7] resolved, noble Scythians!
But shall I prove a traitor to my king!
To these[7] resolved, noble Scythians!
But shall I prove a traitor to my king!
Tamb. No; but the trusty friend of Tamburlaine.
Ther. Won with thy words, and conquer'd with thy looks,
I yield myself, my men, and horse to thee,
To be partaker of thy good or ill,
As long as life maintains Theridamas.
I yield myself, my men, and horse to thee,
To be partaker of thy good or ill,
As long as life maintains Theridamas.
Tamb. Theridamas, my friend, take here my hand,
Which is as much as if I swore by heaven,
And call'd the gods to witness of my vow.
Thus shall my heart be still combin'd with thine
Until our bodies turn to elements,
And both our souls aspire celestial thrones.
Techelles and Casane, welcome him.
Which is as much as if I swore by heaven,
And call'd the gods to witness of my vow.
Thus shall my heart be still combin'd with thine
Until our bodies turn to elements,
And both our souls aspire celestial thrones.
Techelles and Casane, welcome him.
Tech. Welcome, renowmèd[8] Persian, to us all!
Usum. Long may Theridamas remain with us!
Tamb. These are my friends, in whom I more rejoice
Than doth the king of Persia in his crown;
And, by the love of Pylades and Orestes,
Whose statues[9] we adore in Scythia,
Thyself and them shall never part from me
Before I crown you kings[10] in Asia.
Make much of them, gentle Theridamas,
And they will never leave thee till the death.
Than doth the king of Persia in his crown;
And, by the love of Pylades and Orestes,
Whose statues[9] we adore in Scythia,
Thyself and them shall never part from me
Before I crown you kings[10] in Asia.
Make much of them, gentle Theridamas,
And they will never leave thee till the death.
Ther. Nor thee nor them[11], thrice-noble Tamburlaine,
Shall want my heart to be with gladness pierc'd,
To do you honour and security.
Shall want my heart to be with gladness pierc'd,
To do you honour and security.
Tamb. A thousand thanks, worthy Theridamas.
And now, fair madam, and my noble lords,
If you will[12] willingly remain with me,
You shall have honours as your merits be;
Or else you shall be forc'd with slavery.
And now, fair madam, and my noble lords,
If you will[12] willingly remain with me,
You shall have honours as your merits be;
Or else you shall be forc'd with slavery.
Agyd. We yield unto thee, happy Tamburlaine.
Tamb. For you, then, madam, I am out of doubt.
Zeno. I must be pleas'd perforce, wretched Zenocrate!
Exeunt.
Exeunt.
- ↑ cliffs] So the 8vo. The 4to "cliffes."
- ↑ merchants] i. e. merchant-men, ships of trade.
- ↑ stems] i. e. prows.
- ↑ vail] i. e. lower their flags.
- ↑ Boötes] The 8vo "Botëes." The 4to "Boetes."
- ↑ competitor] i. e. associate, partner (a sense in which the word is used by Shakespeare).
- ↑ To these] Old eds. " Are these."
- ↑ renowmèd] See note ?, p. 11.—So the 8vo. The 4to "renowned."
- ↑ statues] So the 4to. "The first edition reads 'statutes,' but, as the Scythians worshipped Pylades and Orestes in temples, we have adopted the reading of the quarto as being most probably the correct one." Ed. 1826.
- ↑ kings] So the 8vo. The 4to "king."
- ↑ Nor thee nor them] The modern editors silently print "Nor they nor theirs."
- ↑ will] So the 8 vo. Omitted in the4to.
8vo. It is occasionally found in writers posterior to Marlowe's time. e. g. "Of Constantiues great towne renoum'd in vaine."Verses to King James, prefixed to Lord Stirling's Monarchicke Tragedies, ed. 1607.
