Lucrece (Quarto, 1594)
Author: William ShakespeareEditor: Hardy M. CookNot Peer Reviewed


¶Yet
sometime
TARQVIN was pronounced plaine,
¶But through his teeth, as if the name he tore,
¶This windie tempe
st, till it blow vp raine,
¶Held backe his
sorrowes tide, to make it more.
1790At la
st it raines, and bu
sie windes giue ore,
¶_Then
sonne and father weep with equall
strife,
¶_VVho
shuld weep mo
st for daughter or for wife.
¶The one doth call her his, the other his,
¶Yet neither may po
sse
sse the claime they lay.
1795The father
saies,
shee's mine, ô mine
shee is
¶Replies her husband, do not take away
¶My
sorrowes intere
st, let no mourner
say
¶_He weepes for her, for
shee was onely mine,
¶_And onelie mu
st be wayl'd by
COLATINE.
1800O, quoth
LVCRETIVS, I did giue that life
¶VVhich
shee to earely and too late hath
spil'd.
¶VVoe woe, quoth
COLATINE,
shee was my wife,
¶I owed her, and tis mine that
shee hath kil'd.
¶My daughter and my wife with clamors fild
1805_The di
sper
st aire, who holding
LVCRECE life,
¶_An
swer'd their cries, my daughter and my wife.
¶BRVTVS who pluck't the knife from LVCRECE
side,
¶Seeing
such emulation in their woe,
¶Began to cloath his wit in
state and pride,
1810Burying in
LVCRECE wound his follies
show,
¶He with the Romains was e
steemed
so
¶_As
seelie ieering idiots are with Kings,
¶_For
sportiue words, and vttring fooli
sh things.
¶But now he throwes that
shallow habit by,
1815VVherein deepe pollicie did him di
sgui
se,
¶And arm'd his long hid wits adui
sedlie,
¶To checke the teares in
COLATINVS eies.
¶Thou wronged Lord of Rome, quoth he, ari
se,
¶_Let my vn
sounded
selfe
suppo
s'd a foole,
1820_Now
set thy long experienc't wit to
schoole.

