_Pau._ Not thee! ah, ah, my lord, not thee! _Sen._ Take comfort, Be brave, Paullina; check thy tears: there is hope; There is yet a hope. I shall renounce my wealth, Place my possessions all in Cæsar’s hands, And stripped to naked, harmless poverty Fly Rome and power for ever: such a life 665 I have praised and well may lead—philosophy Graced by the rich graceth the poor, and I, Who have sought to crown her, may be crown’d by her. I’ll save my life’s last remnant with applause. Weep not, there’s hope: yes, there is yet a hope. ACT ·• II _A room in the palace, with large windows at back, and doors right and left. The scene remains unchanged throughout the act._ _SENECIO, SCEVINUS and QUINTIAN._ _SCEVINUS._ ’Tis abominable, sir. What’s your net loss? _SENECIO._ I ask you, Quintian, as a man of culture and erudition, what do you make of it? _QUINTIAN._ You admit that Cæsar was not drunk? _Se^{o.}_ Had he been drunk, he had had some excuse. ’Twas past midnight when he burst in, turned us all out of bed, and ordered the house to be pulled down; and I a married man. I have a wife and daughters. _Sce._ Married! well, I never knew that. So your house is pulled down. 681 _Se^{o.}_ And half the street, for that matter. _Qu._ ’Twas done to stay the fire: ’twas well done. _Se^{o.}_ But we were reckoning our danger past: and ’twas so situated, that if he wished to protect his palace he had choice of some four streets: and he chooses mine, and begins with me, my house, Senecio’s house; Senecio his sworn comrade. I have played housebreaker and looker on to him these eight years, and helped to save his life a score of times from injured husbands and common fellows.... _Sce._ You do not stand with him as you did. _Se^{o.}_ Nay, nor you. _Qu._ And he hath made verses on me, which he will recite in all company when I am present. _Se^{o.}_ ’Tis that long-nosed cad Vatinius who hath undermined me. _Sce._ And all of us. We are put down by a coarse pig. _Qu._ He hath no true wit, no true humour. 701 _Sce._ The commoner a man is now, the better will he like him. _Se^{o.}_ It used not to be so: he was once thick with me. _Sce._ He hath sunk to depths. _Qu._ With his acting and singing. _Se^{o.}_ I believe ’twas he set fire to the city. I would the earthquake had swallowed him! _Qu._ Well, I’ll not be civil to his buffoon any longer. _Se^{o.}_ A gentleman must draw the line somewhere. _Sce._ Hark, then! Shall we unite in some plan of lordly revenge? _Se^{o.}_ I care not; I’d as lief run him through and have done with it. _Sce._ Are you in earnest? Mean you what you say? Would you join the patriots? _Se^{o.}_ I care not. _Qu._ Could we not raise a quarrel between Tigellinus and Vatinius? _Sce._ Poison the brutes both. _Se^{o.}_ All three of ’em, damn ’em! _Qu._ Hush thou! here they come. _Enter Nero, Tigellinus and Vatinius._ _NERO._