| LIVES OF THE NOBLE | | |
| | | |
MARCUS | in hande, but withall, dispatche I reade you, for your | |
BRUTUS | enterprise is bewrayed. When he had sayd, he presentlie | |
| departed from them, and left them both affrayed that their | |
| conspiracie woulde out. Nowe in the meane time, there | |
| came one of Brutus men post hast unto him, and tolde him | |
| his wife was a dying. For Porcia being verie carefull and | |
The weakenes | pensive for that which was to come, and being too weake to | |
of Porcia, not- | away with so great and inward griefe of minde: she coulde | |
withstanding | hardlie keepe within, but was frighted with everie litle | |
her former | noyse and crie she hearde, as those that are taken and | |
corage. | possest with the furie of the Bacchantes, asking every man | |
| that came from the market place, what Brutus did, and still | |
| sent messenger after messenger, to knowe what newes. At | |
| length, Caesars comming being prolonged as you have heard, | |
| Porciaes weakenesse was not able to holde out any lenger, | |
| and thereuppon she sodainlie swounded, that she had no | |
| leasure to goe to her chamber, but was taken in the middest | |
| of her house, where her speache and sences failed her. How- | |
| beit she soone came to her selfe againe, and so was layed in | |
| her bedde, and tended by her women. When Brutus heard | |
| these newes, it grieved him, as it is to be presupposed: yet | |
| he left not of the care of his contrie and common wealth, | |
| neither went home to his house for any newes he heard. | |
| Nowe, it was reported that Caesar was comming in his litter: | |
| for he determined not to stay in the Senate all that day | |
| (bicause be was affrayed of the unluckie signes of the sacri- | |
| fices) but to adjorne matters of importaunce unto the next | |
| session and counsell holded, faining him selfe not to be well | |
| at ease. When Caesar came out of his litter: Popilius Laena, | |
| that had talked before with Brutus and Cassius, and had | |
| prayed the goddes they might bring this enterprise to passe: | |
| went unto Caesar, and kept him a long time with a talke. | |
| Caesar gave good eare unto him. wherefore the conspirators | |
| (if so they shoulde be called) not hearing what he sayd to | |
| Caesar, but conjecturing by that he had tolde them a litle | |
| before, that his talke was none other but the verie discoverie | |
| of their conspiracie: they were affrayed everie man of them, | |
| and one looking in an others face, it was easie to see that | |
| they all were of a minde, that it was no tarying for them till | |
| 196 | |