The Online Library of Liberty

A project of Liberty Fund, Inc.

• Preface
• Publisher's Notice
• Introduction
• Tamburlaine the Great. In Two Parts.
• Tamburlaine the Great, Part Tbe First.
• The Prologue.
• Persons Represented. 1
• Tamburlaine the Great. Part the First.: Act the First.
• Scene I.
• Scene II.
• Act the Second.
• Scene I.
• Scene II.
• Scene III.
• Scene IV.
• Scene V.
• Scene VI.
• Scene VII.
• Act the Third.
• Scene I.
• Scene II.
• Scene III.
• Act the Fourth.
• Scene I.
• Scene II.
• Scene III.
• Scene IV.
• Act the Fifth.
• Scene I.
• Tamburlaine the Great. Part the Second
• Prologue.
• Persons Represented.
• Tamburlaine the Great. Part the Second: Act the First.
• Scene I.
• Scene II.
• Scene II.
• Act the Second.
• Scene I.
• Scene II.
• Scene III.
• Scene IV.
• Act the Third.
• Scene I.
• Scene II.
• Scene III.
• Scene IV.
• Scene V.
• Act the Fourth.
• Scene I.
• Scene II.
• Scene III.
• Scene IV.
• Act the Fifth.
• Scene I.
• Scene II.
• Scene III.
• The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus.
• Persons Represented.
• The Tragical History of Doctor Faustus.
• Scene I.
• Scene II.
• Scene III.
• Scene IV.
• Scene V.
• Scene VI. 1
• Scene VII.
• Scene VIII.
• Scene IX.
• Scene X.
• Scene XI.
• Scene XII.
• Scene XIII.
• Scene XIV.
• Scene XV.
• Scene XVI.
• Appendix to Dr. Faustus.
• Ballad of Faustus.

SCENE IV.

The Banquet; and to it comeTamburlaine, all in scarlet,1Theridamas, Techelles, Usumcasane, Bajazeth[in his cage],Zabina, and others.

Tamb.

• Now hang our bloody colours by Damascus,
• Reflexing hues of blood upon their heads,
• While they walk quivering on their city walls,
• Half dead for fear before they feel my wrath,
• Then let us freely banquet and carouse
• Full bowls of wine unto the god of war
• That means to fill your helmets full of gold,
• And make Damascus spoils as rich to you,
• As was to Jason Colchos' golden fleece, —
• And now, Bajazeth, hast thou any stomach?

  10

Baj.

• Ay, such a stomach, cruel Tamburlaine, as I could willingly feed upon thy blood-raw heart.2

Tamb.

• Nay thine own is easier to come by; pluck out that; and 'twill serve thee and thy wife: Well, Zeno-crate, Techelles, and the rest, fall to your victuals.

Baj.

• Fall to, and never may your meat digest!
• Ye furies, that can mask invisible,
• Dive to the bottom of Avernus' pool,
• And in your hands bring hellish poison up
• And squeeze it in the cup of Tamburlaine!

  20

• Or, wingèd snakes of Lerna, cast your stings,
• And leave your venoms in this tyrant's dish!

Zab.

• And may this banquet prove as ominous
• As Progne's to the adulterous Thracian king,
• That fed upon the substance of his child.

Zeno.

• My lord, [my lord] how can you suffer these Outrageous curses by these slaves of yours?

Tamb.

• To let them see, divine Zenocrate,
• I glory in the curses of my foes,
• Having the power from the imperial heaven

  30

• To turn them all upon their proper heads.

Tech.

• I pray you give them leave, madam: this speech is a goodly refreshing to them.

Ther.

• But if his highness would let them be fed, it would do them more good.

Tamb.

• Sirrah, why fall you not to? — are you so daintily brought up, you cannot eat your own flesh?

Baj.

• First, legions of devils shall tear thee in pieces.

Usum.

• Villain, know'st thou to whom thou speakest?

Tamb.

• O, let him alone. Here; eat, sir: take it from [40 my sword's point, or I'll thrust it to thy heart.
• [Bajazethtakes it and stamps upon it.

Ther.

• He stamps it under his feet, my lord.

Tamb.

• Take it up, villain, and eat it; or I will make thee slice the brawns of thy arms into carbonadoes1 and eat them.

Usum.

• Nay, 'twere better he killed his wife, and then he shall be sure not to be starved, and he be provided for a month's victual beforehand.

Tamb.

• Here is my dagger: despatch her while she is fat, for if she live but a while longer, she will fall into [50 a consumption with fretting, and then she will not be worth the eating.

Ther.

• Dost thou think that Mahomet will suffer this?

Tech.

• 'Tis like he will when he cannot let1 it

Tamb.

• Go to; fall to your meat. — What, not a bit! Belike he hath not been watered to-day; give him some drink.
• [They give him water to drink, and he flings it upon the ground.

Tamb.

• Fast, and welcome, sir, while2 hunger make you eat.How now, Zenocrate, do not the Turk and his wife make a goodly show at a banquet?

  60

Zeno.

• Yes, my lord.

Ther.

• Methinks, 'tis a great deal better than a consort of musick.

Tamb.

• Yet musick would do well to cheer up Zenocrate. Pray thee, tell, why thou art so sad? — If thou wilt have a song, the Turk shall strain his voice. But why is it?

Zeno.

• My lord, to see my father's town besieged,
• The country wasted where myself was born,
• How can it but afflict my very soul?
• If any love remain in you, my lord,

  70

• Or if my love unto your majesty
• May merit favour at your highness' hands,
• Then raise your siege from fair Damascus walls,
• And with my father take a friendly truce.

Tamb.

• Zenocrate, were Egypt Jove's own land,
• Yet would I with my sword make Jove to stoop.
• I will confute those blind geographers
• That make a triple region in the world,
• Excluding regions which I mean to trace,
• And with this pen reduce them to a map,

  80 {Pointing to his sword.

• Calling the provinces cities and towns,
• After my name and thine, Zenocrate.
• Here at Damascus will I make the point
• That shall begin the perpendicular;
• And would'st thou have me buy thy father's love
• With such a loss?—Tell me, Zenocrate.

Zeno.

• Honour still wait on happy Tamburlaine;
• Yet give me leave to plead for him my lord.

Tamb.

• Content thyself: his person shall be safe
• And all the friends of fair Zenocrate,

  90

• If with their lives they may be pleased to yield,
• Or may be forced to make me emperor;
• For Egypt and Arabia must be mine.—
• Feed you slave; thou may'st think thyself happy to be
• fed from my trencher.

• Baj. My empty stomach, full of idle heat,
• Draws bloody humours from my feeble parts,
• Preserving life by hasting cruel death.
• My veins are pale; my sinews hard and dry;
• My joints benumbed; unless I eat, I die.

  90

• Zab. Eat, Bajazeth: and let us live
• In spite of them,—looking some happy power
• Will pity and enlarge us.

Tamb.

• Here, Turk; wilt thou- have a clean trencher?

Baj.

• Ay, tyrant, and more meat.

Tamb.

• Soft, sir; you must be dieted;too much eating will make you surfeit.

Ther.

• So it would, my lord, 'specially having so small a walk and so little exercise.
• [A second course is brought in of crowns.

Tamb.

• Theridamas, Techelles, and Casane, here [110 are the cates you desire to finger, are they not?

Ther.

• Ay, my lord: but none save kings must feed with these.

Tech.

• 'Tis enough for us to see them, and for Tam-burlaine only to enjoy them.

Tamb.

• Well; here is now to the Soldan of Egypt, the King of Arabia, and the Governor of Damascus. Nowl take these three crowns, and pledge me, my contributory kings.—I crown you here, Theridamas, King of Argier; Techelles, King of Fez; and Usumcasane, King of [120 Moroccus. How say you to this, Turk? These are not your contributory kings.

Baj.

• Nor shall they long be thine, I warrant them.

Tamb.

• Kings of Argier, Moroccus, and of Fez,
• You that have marched with happy Tamburlaine
• As far as from the frozen plage1 of heaven,
• Unto the watery morning's ruddy bower,
• And thence by land unto the torrid zone,
• Deserve these titles I endow you with,
• By valour2 and by magnanimity.

  130

• Your births shall be no blemish to your fame,
• For virtue is the fount whence honour springs,
• And they are worthy she investeth kings.

Ther.

• And since your highness hath so well vouchsafed;
• If we deserve them not with higher meeds
• Than erst our states and actions have retained
• Take them away again and make us slaves.

Tamb.

• Well said, Theridamas; when holy fates
• Shall 'stablish me in strong Egyptia,
• We mean to travel to the antarctick pole,

  140

• Conquering the people underneath our feet,
• And be renowmed as never emperors were.
• Zenocrate, I will not crown thee yet,
• Until with greater honours I be graced.

ACT THE FIFTH.

[1]In the “Enventorey of all the aparell of the Lord Admeralles men, taken the 13th of March 1598,” we find entered “Tamberlanes breches of crymson velvett.” — Htnsknues Diary, ed. Collier, p. 375.

[2]With the omission of a word the passage runs into verse: —

• “Ay, such a stomach, cruel Tamburlaine,
• As I could feed upon thy blood-raw heart.”

[1]Rashers.

[1]Hinder.

[2]Until.

[l]I am not sure that I am right in printing the whole of this speech as prose. With slight alteration a part of it goes easily into verse.—

• “Now take these three crowns,
• And pledge me, my contributory kings.
• —I crown you here, Theridamas, King of Argier;
• Techelles, King of Fez; Usumcasane,
• King of Moroccus. How say you to this, Turk?
• I These are not your contributory kings.”

[1]Dyce's correction for “place” of the old copies. Cf.Second Part, i, 1. 68.

[2]Old copies value.