LUCAN

Oh Mummius, Oh Flaminius; You, whom your Virtues have not made more famous Then Neros vices; You went over to Greece, But tother wars, and brought home other conquests. You Corinth, and Mic overthrew; And Perseus self, the Great Achilles raze Over came; having Minervas stained Temples. And your slain Ancestors of Troy revenged But 'twill be hard to do it in his house, And harder to escape being done. Yet still I think it were Safer t'attempt him private, and alone. But to throw down the walls, and Gates of Room, To make and entrance for and Hobbyhorse; To vaunt toth' people his ridiculous spoils; To come with Laurel, and with Olives crowned, For having been the worst of all the Singers, Is beyond Patience; Pity, thought does a kind affection show, (If it end there) our weakness makes us know. Why do we go to fight in Brittany? And end our lives under and other Sun? Seek causeless dangers out? The Germane might Enjoy his Woods, and his own All is drink, Yet we walk safely in the streets of Room: Bodinca hinders not, but we might live, Whom, we do hurt; Them we call enemies, And those our Lords that spoil, and murder us. I see you fear us Servinus. If our long friendship, or the opinion. You are to earnest, I neither can, nor will I speak for him: And, though he sought my learned pains to wrong, I hate him not for that, My verse shall live When Nero;s body shall be thrown in Tiber, And times to come shall bless those wicked arms; I love th'vnnaturall wounds, from whence did flow Another Ciria, a new Hellicon. I hate him that he is Rome's enemy, And enemy to Virtue; fits on high To shame the seat; And in that hate, my life, And blood, le mingle on the earth with yours. Is he trusty? I ask not that we mean to need his trust. Gain hath great soueragintie over servile minds. Piso, his coming to your house at Baiae To bath, and banquet, will fit means afford, amid his cups, to end his hated life, Let him die drunk, that never lived soberly. By this we may, our selves Heavens favour promise, Because all nobleness, and worth on earth We see's on our side; Here the Faby's son, Here the Corvini are, and take that partly; There noble Father's would, if now they lived; There's not a soul that claims Nobility Either by his, or his forefathers merit, But is with us; with us the gallant youth Whom passed dangers, or hight blood makes bold: Stayed men suspect their wisdom, or their faith, To whom our counsels we have not revealed. And while (our party seeking to disgrace) They traitors call us, Each man treason praiseth, And hates faith, when Piso is a traitor. Oh may the earth lie lightly on his Course, Sprinkle his ashes with your flowers and tears, The love and dainties of Mankind is gone. Stay, you're carried too much away Scevinus. What think you of Poppea, Tigellinus, And tho'ther odious Instruments of Court: Were it not best at once to rid them all? Oh Piso, that vouchsafest, To grace our headless party with thy name; Whom, having our conductors, we needs not Have feared to go again the well tried vallor Of Julius, or staidness of Augustus, Much less the shame, and Womanhood of Nero; When we had once, given out, that our pretences Were all for thee, our end, to make thee Prince, They thronging came to give their names, Men, Women, Gentlemen, People, Soldiers, Senators, The Camp, and City, grew ashamed that Nero, And Piso should be offered them together. Weakness, and servile government we hitherto Obeyed have, which, that we may no longer, We have our lives, and Fortune's now set up, And have our cause with Pis es credit strengthened. Oh that this noble courage had been shown, Rather on enemies breasts, then on thy own. It is not now, Augustus gravity, nor Tiberius craft, But Tigellinus, and Crisogorus Eunucke , and women that we go against.