Act 11-3

TIMON OF ATHENS.

Ml

Flav. ^Aside.^ What will this come to ?

He commands us to provide, and give great gifts,And all out of an empty coffer.

Nor will he know his purse; or yield me this,To show him what a beggar his heart is,

Being of no power to make his wishes good;His promises fly so heyond his state,

That what he speaks is all in debt, he owesFor every word ; he is so kind, that he nowPays interest for’t; his lands put to their books.Well, ’would I were gently put out of office,Before I were forc’d out!

Happier is he that has no friend to feed,

Than such as do even enemies exceed.

I bleed inwardly for my lord. \Exit.

Tim,. You do yourselvesMuch wrong, you bate too much of your ownmerits:—

Here, my lord, a trifle of our love.

2 Lord. With 'more than common thanks I

will receive it.

3 Lord. O, he is the very soul of bounty !

, Tim. And now I remember me, my lord, yougave

Good words the other day of a bay courserI rode on : it is yours, because you lik’d it.

2 Lord. I beseech you, pardon me, my lord,in that.

Tim. You may take my word, my lord; Iknow, no man

Can justly praise, but what he does affect:

I weigh my friend’s affection with mine own ;I’ll tell you true. I’ll call on you.

All Lords. None so welcome.

Tun. I take all and your several visitationsSo kind to heart, ’tis not enough to give ;Methinks, I could deal kingdoms to my friends,And ne’er be weary.—Alcibiades ,

Thou art a soldier, therefore seldom rich,

It comes in charity to thee: for all thy living

ACT

SCENE I.— The same. A room, in a Senator’shouse.

Enter a Senator, with papers in his hand.Sen. And late, five thousand to Varro; andto Isidore

He owes nine thousand; besides my former sum,Which makes it five and twenty.—Still in motionOf raging waste ? It cannot hold ; it will not.If I want gold, steal but a beggar’s dog,

And give it Timon, why, the dog coins gold :If I would sell my horse, and buy twenty moreBetter than he, why, give my horse to Timon,Ask nothing, give it him, it foals me, straight,And able horses : No porter at his gate;

But rather one that smiles, and still invites

Is ’mongst the dead; and all the lands thou hastLie in a pitch’d field.

Alcib. Ay, defiled land, my lord.

1 Lord. We are so virtuously bound,—

Tim. And so

Am I to you.

2 Lord. So infinitely endear’d,—

Tim. All to you.—Lights, more lights !

1 Lord. The best of happiness,

Honour, and fortunes, keep with you, lord Timon!Tim. Ready for his friends.

\A5xeunt Alcibiades, Lords, §e.Apem. What a coil’s here !

Serving of becks, and jutting out of bums !

I doubt whether their legs be worth the sumsThat are given for ’em. Friendship’s full ofdregs:

Methinks, false hearts should never have soundlegs.

Thus honest fools lay out their wealth on court -sies.

Tim. Now, Apemantus, if thou wert not sullen,I’d be good to thee.

Apem. No, I’ll nothing : for,

If I should be brib’d too, there would be none leftTo rail upon thee; and then thou would’st sinthe faster.

Thou giv’st so long, Timon, I fear me, thouWilt give away thyself in paper shortly :

What need these feasts, pomps, and vain glories ?Tim. Nay,

An you begin to rail on society once,

I am sworn, not to give regard to you.

Farewell; and come with better music. \^ F.xit.Apem. So;—

Tliou’ltnothearmenow,—thou shalt not then,—I’ll lock

Thy heaven from thee. O, that men’s earsshould be

To counsel deaf, but not to flattery ! \^Exit.

II.

All that pass by. It cannot hold ; no reasonCan found his state in safety.—Caphis, ho !Caphis, I say!

Enter Caphis.

Caph. Here, sir; What is your pleasure ?Sen. Get on your cloak, and haste you to lordTimon ;

Importune him for my monies; be not ceas’dWith slight denial; nor then silenc’d, when—Commend me to your master —and the capPlays in the right hand thus:—but tell him,sirrah,

My uses cry to me, I must serve my turnOut of mine own; his days and times are past,And my reliances on his fracted dates