The Iola register. [volume] (Iola, Allen County, Kansas) 1875-1902, 1890-06-20

4
"wHo Is THIS MAN WHO COMES TO GAZE on
FALLEN ANToSrP I.ff
then, submit myself to Caesar, and I, Tri-
umvir, twice Consul, and aforetime abso-
| Lutte Monarch of ali the East, endure to
follow in his triumph along those Roman
ways where myself have passed in tri-
umphin
"Nay, Sire,"I answered. IF thou dost
yield, then art thou doomed. AlLlast night
/ questioned Of the Fates concerning thee,
and this saw: When thy star draws near
| to Cesar's it pales and is swallowed up;
but when 1t passes from his radiance, then
bright and big it shines, equal in glory TO
his own All is not lost, and while some
part remains, every thing may be regained.
Egypt can yet be held, armies can still be
raised. Cesar hath withdrawn himself
he is not yet at the gates of Alexandria, and
perchance may be appeased. Thy mind IN
its fever hath fired thy body; thou art sick
aud canst not Judge Alright. See here, l
have potion that shall make thee whole,
for well skilled ami in the art of medicine"
and held out the phial.
ga potion, thou sayest, manr' he cried
''More like it is a poison, aud thou a muir
derer, sent by false Egypt, who would fain
be rid of me now that l may no more be of
service to her. The head of Antony is the
peace Offering she would send to Caesar
she for whom I have lost all! Give me thy
draught. BY Bacchus! I will drink 1t,
though it be the very elixir Of Death"
'.Nay, noble Antony; it is no poison, and
no murderer am L See, will taste it, if
thou wilt, }" and held forth the subtitle po-
ton that has power to fire the veins Of men.
'Give it me, Physician. Desperate men
are brave men. Therel- Why, what is this!
Yours is a magic drsughti My SORROWS
seem to roll away like thunder clouds be-
fore the southern gale, and the spring Of
Hope blooms fresh upon the desert Of my
heart. Once more am Antony, and once
again see my legions' spears a-sparkle in
the sun, and hear the thunderous shouts Of
welcome as Antony-besved Antony
rides in his pomp of war along his deep
formed lines! There's hope! there's hope!
Yet may / see the cold brows of Cesar
that Cesar who never errs except from
policy-robbed of their victor bays, and
crowned with shameful dustr'
"Ay," cried Charmion, there is yet hope,
If thou wilt but play the man! Omy Lord
come back with Us; come back to the loving
arms of Cleopatra! All night she lies upon
her golden bed, and fills the hollow dark
ness with her groans for sAntony = who, en-
amored now Of Grief, forgets his duty and
his lover'
81 comet come! Shame upon me, that
dared to doubt her! Slave, bring water,
and a purple robe; not thus can I be seen
of Cleopatra. Even now come"
In this fashion, then, did we draw Antony
back to Cleopatra, that the ruin Of the
twain might be made sure.
We led him up the Alabaster Hall and
into Cleopatrs's chamber, where sne lay, her
cloudy hair about her face and breast, and
tears flowing from her deep eyes.
20 Egyptr' he cried, "behold me at thy
feetr'
She sprang from the couch. "And art
thou here, my lover she murmured; ''then
once again are all things well. Come near,
and in these arms forget thy sorrows and
turn my grief to joy. Oh. Antony, while
love is left to US, still have we allr'
And she fell upon his breast and wildly
kissed him.
That same day Charmion came to me and
babe me prepare a poison of the most dead
" power. And this at first would not do,
fearing that Cleopatra would Herewith
make an end of Antony before the time.
But Chsrmion showed me that this was not
so, and showed to me also for what pur-
pose was the poison. Therefore 1 sum-
moned Atoua, the skilled in simples, and
all thai afternoon we labored at the deadly
work. And when It was done, Charm:on
came once more. bearing with her chaplet
OF fresh roses that she babe me steep in the
poison
This then did.
That night at the great feast Of Cleo
patra sat nigh to Antony, who was at her
side, and wore the poisoned wreath Now,
as the feast went on, fast flowed the wine,
till Antony and the Queen grew merry.
And she told him of her plans, and of how
even now her gaileys were being drawn by
the canal that leads from Bubastis on the
Pelusiac branch of the Nile, to Clysma at
the head of the Bay of Hieraopolis. For IL
was her design, should Caesar prove stub
born, to ny with Antony and her treasure
down the Arabian Gulf, where Caesar had
no feet, and seek some new home in India,
whittier her foes might not follow. But,
indeed, this plan came to nothing, for the
Arabs of Petra burnt the galleys, melted
thereto by message sent by the Jews OF
Alexandria, who hated Cleopatra and were
hated Of her.
Now, when she had made an end of telling
him, the Queen called on him TO drink cup
with her to the success of this new scheme,
bidding him, as she did so, steep his wreath
of roseo liz The wine, and make the draught
more sweet This, then, he did, and it be-
ing done, she pledged HIM But when he
was about to pledge her back, she caught
his hand, crying ''Hold!'' whereat he paused,
wondering.
Now, among the servants Of Cleopatra was
one Eudosins, q steward; and this Eudosius,
seeing that the fortunes Of Cleopatra were
at an end. had laid plan to iy that very
night to Caesar. as had done many Of his bet
tiers, taking with him all the treasures in
the palace that he could steal But this de-
sign being discovered to Cleopatra, she de-
termined to be avenged upon Eudosius.
ssEudosius," she cried, for the man stood
near, come hither, thou faithful servant!
Seest thou this man, most noble Antony;
through all our troubles he hath chung tous
and been Of comfort TO US. Now, therefore,
he shall be rewarded according to his de-
serts and the measure Of his faithfulness,
and that from thine own hand. Give him