rs have stabb'd Caesar"
should not peril their cause by moral squeamishness. "He
reproved Brutus, for that he should show himself so straight
and severe, in such a time as was meeter to bear a little than
to take things at the worst."--Plutarch, _Marcus Brutus_.]

[Page 125]

CASSIUS. Chastisement!

BRUTUS. Remember March, the Ides of March remember:
Did not great Julius bleed for justice' sake?
What villain touch'd his body, that did stab, 20
And not for justice? What! shall one of us,
That struck the foremost man of all this world
But for supporting robbers, shall we now
Contaminate our fingers with base bribes,
And sell the mighty space of our large honours 25
For so much trash as may be grasped thus?
I had rather be a dog, and bay the moon,
Than such a Roman.

CASSIUS. Brutus, bait not me;
I'll not endure it. You forget yourself,
To hedge me in; I am a soldier, I, 30
Older in practice, abler than yourself
To make conditions.

[Note 27: /bay/ F1 | baite F2 | bait F3 F4.]

[Note 28: /bait/ F3 F4 | baite F1 F2 | bay Theobald Delius
Staunton.]

[Note 30: /I/, Ff | ay, Steevens.]

[Note 18: "Brutus in contrary manner answered that he should
remember the Ides of March, at which time they slew Julius
Caesar, who neither pilled[A] nor polled[B] the country, but
only was a favourer and suborner of all them that did rob and
spoil, by his countenance and authority. And if there were any
occasion whereby they might honestly set aside justice and
equity, they should have had more reason to have suffered
Caesar's friends to have robbed and done what wrong and injury
they had would[C] than to bear with their own men."--Plutarch,
_Marcus Brutus_.]

[Note A: i.e. robbed, pillaged.]

[Note B: i.e. taxed, spoiled.]

[Note C: i.e. wished (to do).]

[Note 20-21: "Who was such a villain of those who touched his
body that he stabbed from any other motive than
justice?"--Clar.]

[Note 28-32: "Now Cassius would have done Brutus much honour,
as Brutus did unto him, but Brutus most commonly prevented
him, and went first unto him, both because he was the elder
man as also for that he was sickly of body. And men reputed
him commonly to be very skilful in wars, but otherwise
marvellous choleric and cruel, who sought to rule men by fear
rather than with lenity: and on the other side, he was too
familiar with his fri