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• The Works of Voltaire: the Dramatic Works of Voltaire Vol. Ix— Part I
• Alzire
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• Orestes
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• SÉmiramis
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• Catiline
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• Pandora
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• The Dramatic Works of Voltaire Vol. Ix—part Ii
• The Scotch Woman
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• Nanine
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• The Prude
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.
• Act II.
• Act III.
• Act IV.
• Act V.
• The Tatler
• Dramatis PersonÆ.
• Act I.

ACT II.

SCENE I.

catiline, cethegus.

cethegus.

• At length the torch is lit to set on fire
• Rome and the subject world; our army’s nigh,
• And all is ready for the great event.
• Knowest thou meantime, my friend, what passes here?

catiline.

• I know the consul’s prudence, so he calls
• His cowardice, which deeply ruminates
• On future ills: like an unskilful pilot
• He sets up every sail for every wind,
• But knows not or which way the tempest comes,
• Or whither it may drive him—for the senate,
• I fear it not; that many-headed monster,
• So proud of conquest and nobility,
• Looks with an evil eye on Cicero;
• I know it hates him, so does Cæsar; Crassus
• Would gladly yield him up a sacrifice
• To our resentment; on their jealousy
• Depend my hopes—he’s like a dying man,
• With feeble arm he struggles for a while,
• But soon shall sink beneath us and expire.

cethegus.

• Envy I know attacks him, but his tongue
• Can soften all; he leads the captive senate.

catiline.

• I brave him everywhere; despise his clamors,
• And smile at his resentment: let him rail
• To his last hour, and triumph in the shouts
• Of his admirers, I have other cares
• That sit more heavy on me.

cethegus.

• What should stop
• Thy rapid progress in the paths of glory
• And happiness? Canst thou have aught to fear?

catiline.

• My numerous foes I heed not, ’tis my friends
• I have most cause to dread; the jealousy
• Of Lentulus, the aspiring soul of Cæsar,
• And, above all, my wife.

cethegus.

• Shall Catiline
• Be frightened at a woman’s tears?—for shame,
• Leave her to indulge her visionary fears:
• I thought thou lovest her as a master should,
• And madest her but the servile instrument
• Of thy ambition.

catiline.

• ’Tis a dangerous one:
• Rome and her child divide with me her love.
• Curse on the name of Rome, that even beneath
• The roof of Catiline those should dwell who love
• Their country! But before the important hour
• That must decide our fate, she shall be moved,
• She and her son—be that thy care, Cethegus:
• Our wives and children must not trouble us
• In those distressful moments—but for Cæsar—

cethegus.

• What’s to be done? if he refuse to join
• Our cause, shall we proscribe him; shall the names
• Of Cicero and of Cæsar be united?

catiline.

• Let me consider—to cut Cæsar off—
• That were a dreadful sacrifice; methinks
• I cannot but admire him, and revere
• In him the honor of the Roman name:
• But where is Lentulus?

cethegus.

• O fear not him;
• His pride we know will prompt him to believe
• That thou with him wilt share the sovereign power.

catiline.

• Let him believe it still! the credulous fool!
• Thou seest, Cethegus, with what sublety
• I’m forced to manage these imperious spirits;
• Their rage, resentment, pride and jealousy:
• Knowest thou he dares even to be Cæsar’s rival?
• To keep my friends within the pale of prudence
• Will cost me much more trouble than the ruin
• Of Cicero and Rome—to guide a party
• Is of all tasks the hardest.—

cethegus.

• Lentulus
• Is here, my lord.

SCENE II.

catiline, cethegus, lentulus-sura.

sura.

• In spite of my remonstrance
• You will rely on Cæsar, and confide
• In him alone; Præneste’s in his power.
• And I must yield to him; but know I scorn it,
• The blood of Scipio was not made to yield.

catiline.

• I’ve joined with Cæsar, but depend not on him;
• He may support our cause, or he may hurt it;
• I use his name, but ’tis for your advantage.

sura.

• And what is there in Cæsar’s name superior
• To yours or mine? why must we meanly court
• His favor? but because he’s Pompey’s rival
• Rome makes a God of him.—I am thy friend;
• Sura and Catiline may defy them all,
• And without Cæsar make the world their own.

catiline.

• We may—thy conduct and approved valor
• Have ever been my best and surest hope;
• But Cæsar is beloved, respected, feared;
• The senate and the people all admire
• And court him; statesman, general, magistrate;
• In peace revered, and terrible in war;
• A thousand ways he charms the multitude;
• In short he will be necessary.—

sura.

• Say
• Destructive rather—if to-day he shines
• Our equal, by to-morrow he will prove
• Our rival, and ere long perhaps our master;
• Trust me, I know him well, and therefore think
• Our party has not a more dangerous foe:
• Perhaps his haughty soul may yield to thee,
• But play the tyrant o’er the rest; for me,
• I cannot, will not, brook it—I’ve devoted
• My honor and my fortunes to thy service;
• But I renounce my plighted faith, renounce
• Thee and thy cause, if Cæsar is preferred.

catiline.

• And so thou shalt—I’d sacrifice my life
• Rather than e’er permit a haughty rival
• To soar above us—Cæsar is our tool,
• Our instrument; to-day I flatter him,
• To-morrow can bring down his pride, perhaps
• Do more—thou knowest our mutual happiness
• And interest are my first and dearest care.
• [To Cethegus.
• Away, and let Aurelia be prepared:
• Go; or her fond intruding love may ruin
• Our deep laid schemes, and mar the great design:
• Return some private way and meet me here,
• I wait for Cæsar.

sura.

• Nothing’s to be done.
• I find, without him—but I’ll wait the event.

catiline.

• Farewell: remember I rely on thee
• More than on Cæsar.—

cethegus.

• I shall execute
• Your high command, and gather all our friends
• Before the standard of great Catiline.

SCENE III.

catiline, cæsar.

catiline.

• Hail, godlike Cæsar, thou whom from the days
• Of Sulla I have ranked amongst my best
• And dearest friends, whose fortunes I foretold:
• Born as thou art to be the first of Romans,
• How suits it with thy pride to be the slave
• Of a plebeian, who forever thwarts
• And braves thee to thy face? I know thou hatest him;
• Thy piercing eye observes impatient Rome
• Contending for her freedom, will not Cæsar
• Assist his country to shake off her chains?
• The cause is noble, and the fate of millions
• Depends on this important crisis; thou
• Wilt join us—lookest thou not with jealous eye
• On Pompey still? dost thou not still abhor
• The surly Cato? canst thou serve the gods
• With half thy wonted zeal when the proud consul
• Presides at the altar? will thy noble spirit
• Bear these imperious rulers; soft Lucullus,
• Sunk in the arms of luxury and sloth;
• The greedy Crassus, grasping his large heaps
• Of ill-got wealth, enough to purchase Rome
• And all her venal sons? on every side
• Or faction or corruption reigns; the world
• Calls out on Cæsar; wilt thou hear her voice?
• Wilt thou redress and save thy falling country?
• Will Cæsar listen to his friend?

cæsar.

• He will;
• And if the senate do thee wrong, step forth
• To plead thy cause; I never will betray thee;
• But ask no more.

catiline.

• Are these the utmost bounds
• Of Cæsar’s friendship, but to talk for him?

cæsar.

• I’ve weighed the projects, and shall not oppose them;
• I may approve, but would not execute.

catiline.

• I understand you, you are on that side
• Which fortune favors, and would stand aloof
• To mark the progress of our civil wars,
• And raise your fortunes on the common ruin.

cæsar.

• No—I have nobler views; my hate of Cato,
• My jealousy of Pompey, the renown
• Of Cicero, conspire to make me wish
• I might surpass them all; fair glory calls,
• The banks of Seine, the Tagus, and the Rhine;
• I pant for honor, and for victory.

catiline.

• If conquest is thy aim, begin with Rome;
• To-morrow we may reign the masters of her.

cæsar.

• The enterprise is great, perhaps too bold;
• But, to be open with thee, though ’tis worthy
• Of Catiline, it suits not Cæsar.

catiline.

• How!

cæsar.

• I do not choose to serve.

catiline.

• To share with Cæsar
• Were no dishonor to the most ambitious.

cæsar.

• But power supreme is not to be divided:
• I’ll not be dragged at Catiline’s chariot wheels
• To grace his triumph: as a friend I love thee;
• But know that friend shall never be—my master:
• Even Pompey shall not—Sulla, whom thy valor
• Hath nobly followed in the race of glory,
• Whose courage I admire, whose lawless rage
• I ever shall abhor, enslaved proud Rome:
• But he deserved the glorious prize, subdued
• The Hellespont, and made Euphrates tremble:
• Asia was conquered: Mithridates owned
• His martial genius—but what noble deeds
• Hast thou to boast? what kings hast thou subdued?
• What seas has Catiline passed, what lands explored?
• Thou hast the seeds of greatness in thy nature;
• But to enslave thy country is above
• Thy present powers, above the powers of Cæsar:
• We have not strength, authority or name
• For such an enterprise. Rome soon must fall:
• But ere I will attempt to be her master,
• I will extend her empire and her glory;
• And if I forge my country’s chains, at least
• Will cover them with laurels.

catiline.

• Mine, perhaps,
• Is, after all, the shortest path to glory:
• How did your boasted Sulla rise to empire?
• He had an army, so has Catiline;
• Raised by myself alone, and not, like his,
• The gift of fortune; he observed with care
• The favorable hour, and well improved it:
• I have done more; have made the times and seasons
• Subservient to me. Sulla was a king.
• Wouldst thou be one? wilt thou be Cicero’s slave,
• Or rule with Catiline?

cæsar.

• Neither. To be free,
• For I no longer will dissemble with you,
• I esteem Cicero; but love him not,
• Nor fear him: though I love, I dread not thee.
• Divide the senate if thou canst, pull down
• The proud oppressors; thou hast my consent;
• But hope no more, nor dare to think that Cæsar
• Will ever be thy slave: I’ll keep thy secret,
• And be thy friend or foe, as thou deservest it.

SCENE IV.

catiline.

• If he supports us not, even let him fall
• The victim of his folly: Sulla knew
• And would have cut him off, but Sulla dared not:
• I know he is my secret enemy,
• As such I shall beware of him.

SCENE V.

catiline, cethegus, lentulus-sura.

sura.

• What says
• The mighty Cæsar? is he friend or foe?

catiline.

• His barren friendship only offers me
• A feeble aid; but we can do without him:
• Perhaps he may repent it; and meantime
• We’ve better pillars to support the fabric.
• Behold, the heroes come.

SCENE VI.

catiline, the conspirators.

catiline.

• Hail, bold Statilius,
• Valiant Autronius, noble Piso, hail,
• Vargontes, and the rest of my brave friends,
• The first of men, the conquerors of kings,
• The great avengers of a world oppressed,
• This seat of empire soon shall be your own:
• The vanquished nations, which your valor gained,
• Were ravished from you by usurping tyrants;
• For the proud senate still your blood hath flowed;
• For them Tigranes, Mithridates fell;
• For them alone; and all your poor reward
• Was but to stand at distance, and adore
• Your haughty masters; but at length the hour
• Of vengeance is approaching: be prepared
• For no inglorious enterprise: I know
• Your souls would scorn a victory cheaply bought;
• But I will bring you noble conquests, full
• Of danger and of glory: seize, my friends,
• The golden opportunity: already
• I see your foes expiring at your feet.
• Rush on your prey, burn, plunder, and destroy;
• But, above all, let union guide your counsels:
• Even now Præneste falls: the brave remains
• Of Sulla’s scattered forces march towards us:
• I shall command them, and Rome must be yours
• Petreius vanquished, I shall clear my way
• Even to the capitol: then you, my friends,
• Shall rise to empire, to a throne disgraced
• By worthless Romans, and by you restored
• To its true lustre: Curius and his band
• Will open me the gates; but tell me, friend,
• The gladiatorian cohorts, where are they?
• Will those brave veterans join our cause?

lentulus-sura.

• They will:
• Myself shall lead them in the dead of night,
• And arm them in this secret place.

catiline.

• Mount Cælius—
• Is that secured?

statilius.

• I’ve bribed the sentinels,
• And all is safe.

catiline.

• You to mount Aventine
• Repair, and soon as Mallius shall display
• His colors, light your torches, spread destruction
• On every side; let the proscribed perish.
• Let Cicero—ye have sworn it—be my first
• My darling victim: Cæsar too must die,
• And Cato; these removed, the senate soon
• Will tremble and obey: already fortune
• Declares for us, and blinds them to their ruin:
• Within their walls, and almost in their sight
• We lay the snares of death, and mark them out
• For sacrifice: remember not to take up arms
• Before the appointed time: we must surprise
• Ere we destroy: let Cicero and Rome
• Perish together, and the lightning blast
• Before the thunder’s threatening voice alarms them.
• Call not this deed a foul conspiracy;
• ’Tis a just war declared against the foes
• Of Rome and all mankind; reclaim your rights,
• The empire of the world, which base usurpers
• Had ravished from you.
• [To Cethegus and Lentulus-Sura.
• Haste, ye gallant leaders,
• Haste to the senate; see your victims there:
• Hear your proud consul roar; ’tis the last time
• That he shall triumph there—now, worthy Romans,
• Swear by this sword, that with the blood of tyrants
• Shall soon be stained, to perish, or to conquer,
• With Catiline.

martian.

• By thee and by this sword
• We swear with thee to perish or to conquer.

another conspirator.

• Perish the senate! perish all who serve,
• All who defend them! if there be amongst us
• A traitor, let him die.

catiline.

• Away, this night
• Will finish all, and Rome shall be our own.

End of the Second Act.