Now, gentlemen, betake you to your arms,
And see that Malta be well fortified;
And it behoves you to be resolute;
For Calymath, having hovered here so long,
Will win the town, or die before the walls.

And die he shall; for we will never yield.

O, bring us to the governor.

Away with her! she is a courtesan.

Whate’er I am, yet, governor, hear me speak:
I bring thee news by whom thy son was slain:
Mathias did it not; it was the Jew.

Who, besides the slaughter of these gentlemen,
Poisoned his own daughter and the nuns,
Strangled a friar, and I know not what
Mischief beside.

Had we but proof of this⁠—

Strong proof, my lord; his man’s now at my lodging,
That was his agent; he’ll confess it all.

Go fetch him straight.

I always feared that Jew.

I’ll go alone; dogs! do not hale me thus.

Nor me neither, I cannot outrun you, constable:⁠—O, my belly!

One dram of powder more had made all sure;
What a damned slave was I! Aside.

Make fires, heat irons, let the rack be fetched.

Nay, stay, my lord; ’t may be he will confess.

Confess! what mean you, lords? who should confess?

Thou and thy Turk; ’twas you that slew my son.

Guilty, my lord, I confess. Your son and Mathias were both contracted unto Abigail; he forged a counterfeit challenge.

Who carried that challenge?

I carried it, I confess; but who writ it? Marry, even he that strangled Barnardine, poisoned the nuns and his own daughter.

Away with him! his sight is death to me.

For what, you men of Malta? hear me speak:
She is a courtezan, and he a thief,
And he my bondman. Let me have law,
For none of this can prejudice my life.

Once more, away with him; you shall have law.

Devils, do your worst! I’ll live in spite of you. Aside.
As these have spoke, so be it to their souls!⁠—
I hope the poisoned flowers will work anon. Aside.

Was my Mathias murdered by the Jew?
Ferneze, ’twas thy son that murdered him.

Be patient, gentle madam, it was he;
He forged the daring challenge made them fight.

Where is the Jew? where is that murderer?

In prison till the law has passed on him.

My lord, the courtesan and her man are dead;
So is the Turk and Barabas the Jew.

Dead!

Dead, my lord, and here they bring his body.

This sudden death of his is very strange.

Wonder not at it, sir, the Heavens are just;
Their deaths were like their lives; then think not of ’em.
Since they are dead, let them be buried;
For the Jew’s body, throw that o’er the walls,
To be a prey for vultures and wild beasts.⁠—
So now away and fortify the town.

What, all alone? well fare, sleepy drink.
I’ll be revenged on this accursed town;
For by my means Calymath shall enter in.
I’ll help to slay their children and their wives,
To fire the churches, pull their houses down,
Take my goods too, and seize upon my lands.
I hope to see the governor a slave,
And, rowing in a galley, whipt to death.

Whom have we there? a spy?

Yes, my good lord, one that can spy a place
Where you may enter, and surprise the town:
My name is Barabas; I am a Jew.

Art thou that Jew whose goods we heard were sold
For tribute-money?

The very same, my lord:
And since that time they have hired a slave, my man,
To accuse me of a thousand villainies:
I was imprisoned, but ’scaped their hands.

Did’st break prison?

No, no:
I drank of poppy and cold mandrake juice:
And being asleep, belike they thought me dead,
And threw me o’er the walls: so, or how else,
The Jew is here, and rests at your command.

’Twas bravely done: but tell me, Barabas,
Canst thou, as thou report’st, make Malta ours?

Fear not, my lord; for here, against the sluice,94
The rock is hollow, and of purpose digged,
To make a passage for the running streams
And common channels of the city.
Now, whilst you give assault unto the walls,
I’ll lead five hundred soldiers through the vault,
And rise with them i’ the middle of the town,
Open the gates for you to enter in;
And by this means the city is your own.

If this be true, I’ll make thee governor.

And, if it be not true, then let me die.

Thou’st doomed thyself. Assault it presently.

Now vail96 your pride, you captive Christians
And kneel for mercy to your conquering foe:
Now where’s the hope you had of haughty Spain?
Ferneze, speak, had it not been much better
T’have kept thy promise than be thus surprised?

What should I say? We are captives and must yield.

Ay, villains, you must yield, and under Turkish yokes
Shall groaning bear the burden of our ire;
And, Barabas, as erst we promised thee,
For thy desert we make thee governor;
Use them at thy discretion.

Thanks, my lord.

O fatal day, to fall into the hands
Of such a traitor and unhallowed Jew!
What greater misery could Heaven inflict?

’Tis our command: and, Barabas, we give,
To guard thy person, these our Janizaries:
Entreat97 them well, as we have used thee.
And now, brave bassoes, come, we’ll walk about
The ruined town, and see the wreck we made:⁠—
Farewell, brave Jew; farewell, great Barabas!

May all good fortune follow Calymath!

And now, as entrance to our safety,
To prison with the governor and these
Captains, his consorts and confederates.

O villain! Heaven will be revenged on thee.

Away! no more; let him not trouble me.98
Thus hast thou gotten, by thy policy,
No simple place, no small authority,
I now am governor of Malta; true⁠—
But Malta hates me, and, in hating me,
My life’s in danger; and what boots it thee,
Poor Barabas, to be the governor,
Whenas thy life shall be at their command?
No, Barabas, this must be looked into;
And, since by wrong thou got’st authority,
Maintain it bravely by firm policy,
At least unprofitably lose it not:
For he that liveth in authority,
And neither gets him friends, nor fills his bags,
Lives like the ass that Aesop speaketh of,
That labours with a load of bread and wine,
And leaves it off to snap on thistle-tops:
But Barabas will be more circumspect.
Begin betimes; occasion’s bald behind;
Slip not thine opportunity, for fear too late
Thou seek’st for much, but canst not compass it.⁠—
Within here!

My lord?

Ay, “lord;” thus slaves will learn.
Now, governor;⁠—stand by there, wait within.

This is the reason that I sent for thee;
Thou seest thy life and Malta’s happiness
Are at my arbitrement; and Barabas
At his discretion may dispose of both;
Now tell me, governor, and plainly too,
What think’st thou shall become of it and thee?

This, Barabas; since things are in thy power,
I see no reason but of Malta’s wreck,
Nor hope of thee but extreme cruelty:
Nor fear I death, nor will I flatter thee.

Governor, good words; be not so furious.
’Tis not thy life which can avail me aught;
Yet you do live, and live for me you shall:
And as for Malta’s ruin, think you not
’Twere slender policy for Barabas
To dispossess himself of such a place?
For sith, as once you said, ’tis in this isle,
In Malta here, that I have got my goods,
And in this city still have had success,
And now at length am grown your governor,
Yourselves shall see it shall not be forgot:
For, as a friend not known but in distress,
I’ll rear up Malta, now remediless.

Will Barabas recover Malta’s loss?
Will Barabas be good to Christians?

What wilt thou give me, governor, to procure
A dissolution of the slavish bands
Wherein the Turk hath yoked your land and you?
What will you give me if I render you
The life of Calymath, surprise his men
And in an outhouse of the city shut
His soldiers, till I have consumed ’em all with fire?
What will you give him that procureth this?

Do but bring this to pass which thou pretendest,
Deal truly with us as thou intimatest,
And I will send amongst the citizens,
And by my letters privately procure
Great sums of money for thy recompense:
Nay more, do this, and live thou governor still.

Nay, do thou this, Ferneze, and be free;
Governor, I enlarge thee; live with me,
Go walk about the city, see thy friends:
Tush, send not letters to ’em, go thyself,
And let me see what money thou canst make;
Here is my hand that I’ll set Malta free:
And thus we cast it: to a solemn feast
I will invite young Selim Calymath,
Where be thou present only to perform
One stratagem that I’ll impart to thee,
Wherein no danger shall betide thy life,
And I will warrant Malta free for ever.

Here is my hand; believe me, Barabas,
I will be there, and do as thou desirest.
When is the time?

Governor, presently:
For Calymath, when he hath viewed the town,
Will take his leave, and sail toward Ottoman.

Then will I, Barabas, about this coin,
And bring it with me to thee in the evening.

Do so, but fail not; now farewell, Ferneze!⁠—

And thus far roundly goes the business:
Thus, loving neither, will I live with both,
Making a profit of my policy;
And he from whom my most advantage comes
Shall be my friend.
This is the life we Jews are used to lead;
And reason too, for Christians do the like.
Well, now about effecting this device;
First, to surprise great Selim’s soldiers,
And then to make provision for the feast,
That at one instant all things may be done:
My policy detests prevention.
To what event my secret purpose drives,
I know; and they shall witness with their lives.

Thus have we viewed the city, seen the sack,
And caused the ruins to be new-repaired,
Which with our bombards’100 shot and basilisks
We rent in sunder at our entry:
And now I see the situation,
And how secure this conquered island stands
Environed with the Mediterranean sea,
Strong-countermined with other petty isles;
And, toward Calabria, backed by Sicily,
(Where Syracusian Dionysius reigned),
Two lofty turrets that command the town;
I wonder how it could be conquered thus.

From Barabas, Malta’s governor, I bring
A message unto mighty Calymath;
Hearing his sovereign was bound for sea,
To sail to Turkey, to great Ottoman,
He humbly would entreat your majesty
To come and see his homely citadel,
And banquet with him ere thou leav’st the isle.

To banquet with him in his citadel?
I fear me, messenger, to feast my train
Within a town of war so lately pillaged,
Will be too costly and too troublesome:
Yet would I gladly visit Barabas,
For well has Barabas deserved of us.

Selim, for that, thus saith the governor,
That he hath in his store a pearl so big,
So precious, and withal so orient,
As, be it valued but indifferently,
The price thereof will serve to entertain
Selim and all his soldiers for a month;
Therefore he humbly would entreat your highness
Not to depart till he has feasted you.

I cannot feast my men in Malta-walls,
Except he place his tables in the streets.

Know, Selim, that there is a monastery
Which standeth as an outhouse to the town:
There will he banquet them; but thee at home,
With all thy bassoes and brave followers.

Well, tell the governor we grant his suit,
We’ll in this summer evening feast with him.

I shall, my lord.

And now, bold bassoes, let us to our tents,
And meditate how we may grace us best
To solemnize our governor’s great feast.

In this, my countrymen, be ruled by me,
Have special care that no man sally forth
Till you shall hear a culverin discharged
By him that bears the linstock,102 kindled thus;
Then issue out and come to rescue me,
For happily I shall be in distress,
Or you released of this servitude.

Rather than thus to live as Turkish thralls,103
What will we not adventure?

On, then, begone.

Farewell, grave governor!

How stand the cords? how hang these hinges? fast?
Are all the cranes and pulleys sure?

All fast.

Leave nothing loose, all levelled to my mind.
Why now I see that you have art indeed.
There, carpenters, divide that gold amongst you: Give money.
Go swill in bowls of sack and muscadine!
Down to the cellar, taste of all my wines.

We shall, my lord, and thank you.

And, if you like them, drink your fill and die:
For so I live, perish may all the world!
Now Selim Calymath return me word
That thou wilt come, and I am satisfied.

Now, sirrah, what, will he come?

He will; and has commanded all his men
To come ashore, and march through Malta streets,
That thou mayst feast them in thy citadel.

Then now are all things as my wish would have ’em;
There wanteth nothing but the governor’s pelf;
And see, he brings it.

Now, governor, the sum.

With free consent, a hundred thousand pounds.

Pounds say’st thou, governor? well, since it is no more,
I’ll satisfy myself with that; nay, keep it still,
For if I keep not promise, trust not me.
And, governor, now partake my policy:
First, for his army; they are sent before,
Entered the monastery, and underneath
In several places are field-pieces pitched,
Bombards, whole barrels full of gunpowder
That on the sudden shall dissever it,
And batter all the stones about their ears,
Whence none can possibly escape alive.
Now, as for Calymath and his consorts
Here have I made a dainty gallery,
The floor whereof, this cable being cut,
Doth fall asunder; so that it doth sink
Into a deep pit past recovery.
Here, hold that knife, Throws down a knife. and when thou seest he comes,
And with his bassoes shall be blithely set,
A warning-piece shall be shot off from the tower,
To give thee knowledge when to cut the cord,
And fire the house; say, will not this be brave?

O, excellent! here, hold thee, Barabas
I trust thy word, take what I promised thee.

No, governor; I’ll satisfy thee first,
Thou shalt not live in doubt of any thing.
Stand close, for here they come.

Why, is not this
A kingly kind of trade, to purchase towns
By treachery and sell ’em by deceit?
Now tell me, worldlings, underneath the sun
If greater falsehood ever has been done?

Come, my companion bassoes: see, I pray,
How busy Barabas is there above
To entertain us in his gallery;
Let us salute him. Save thee, Barabas!

Welcome, great Calymath!

How the slave jeers at him! Aside.

Will ’t please thee, mighty Selim Calymath,
To ascend our homely stairs?

Ay, Barabas;⁠—
Come, bassoes, ascend.

Coming forward. Stay, Calymath!
For I will show thee greater courtesy
Than Barabas would have afforded thee.

Within. Sound a charge there!

How now! what means this?

Help, help me! Christians, help!

See, Calymath! this was devised for thee!

Treason! treason! bassoes, fly!

No, Selim, do not fly;
See his end first, and fly then if thou canst.

O, help me, Selim! help me, Christians!
Governor, why stand you all so pitiless?

Should I in pity of thy plaints or thee,
Accursed Barabas, base Jew, relent?
No, thus I’ll see thy treachery repaid,
But wish thou hadst behaved thee otherwise.

You will not help me, then?

No, villain, no.

And, villains, know you cannot help me now.⁠—
Then, Barabas, breathe forth thy latest hate,
And in the fury of thy torments strive
To end thy life with resolution.
Know, governor, ’twas I that slew thy son;
I framed the challenge that did make them meet:
Know, Calymath, I aimed thy overthrow,
And had I but escaped this stratagem,
I would have brought confusion on you all,
Damned Christian dogs! and Turkish infidels!
But now begins the extremity of heat
To pinch me with intolerable pangs:
Die, life! fly, soul! tongue, curse thy fill, and die! Dies.

Tell me, you Christians, what doth this portend?

This train he laid to have entrapped thy life;
Now, Selim, note the unhallowed deeds of Jews:
Thus he determined to have handled thee,
But I have rather chose to save thy life.

Was this the banquet he prepared for us?
Let’s hence, lest further mischief be pretended.105

Nay, Selim, stay; for, since we have thee here,
We will not let thee part so suddenly:
Besides, if we should let thee go, all’s one,
For with thy galleys couldst thou not get hence,
Without fresh men to rig and furnish them.

Tush, governor, take thou no care for that,
My men are all aboard,
And do attend my coming there by this.

Why, heard’st thou not the trumpet sound a charge?

Yes, what of that?

Why then the house was fired,
Blown up, and all thy soldiers massacred.

O, monstrous treason!

A Jew’s courtesy:
For he that did by treason work our fall,
By treason hath delivered thee to us:
Know, therefore, till thy father hath made good
The ruins done to Malta and to us,
Thou canst not part; for Malta shall be freed,
Or Selim ne’er return to Ottoman.

Nay, rather, Christians, let me go to Turkey,
In person there to mediate your peace;
To keep me here will naught advantage you.

Content thee, Calymath, here thou must stay,
And live in Malta prisoner; for come all the world
To rescue thee, so will we guard us now,
As sooner shall they drink the ocean dry
Than conquer Malta, or endanger us.
So, march away, and let due praise be given
Neither to Fate nor Fortune, but to Heaven.