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9 
Cleopatra. 
Cleopatra, Queen of Egypt, was one of 
the most brilliant and beautiful women the 
world has ever known, but her husband, 
Ptolemy Dionysius, who was her own 
brother, deprived her of her share of the* 
kingdom and drove her to seek protection 
of the Romans. Caesar was then emperor 
of Rome, and she used all her powers of 
fascination to win his favor, and succeeded. 
When Caesar was assassinated, she was 
accused of having assented in the crime, 
and was brought before Marc Antony for 
trial. Although coming to judgment, she 
came in the pride of beauty and anticipated 
triumph. Her galley was burnished with 
gold, its silken sails were tilled with odors, 
and the silver oars, which were plied Ip* 
the most beautiful maidens of Egypt, mov¬ 
ed to the sweet sounds of musky The love¬ 
ly Cleopatra, arrayed in slight drapery, re¬ 
clined under a canopy on the deck, and 
appeared more like the dream of some 
sculptor or painter than like a human 
being. 
Marc Anton)* was charmed with her per¬ 
son and talents and became her lover, neg¬ 
lecting his wife. Rut this woman of splen¬ 
did attractions, who could make g - eat men 
her slaves, and might have wielded an un¬ 
limited power for good, was ambitious, 
extravagant and unprincipled. After Cae¬ 
sar’s death, Antony aspired to the head of 
the government, but Octavius Augustus, 
grand-nephew of Caesar, opposed him; a 
battle was fought for the sovereignty of 
the world at Actium on the Mediterranean, 
west of Greece, at which Cleopatra, with 
her sixty galleys, deserted him, and he, 
rashly abandoning the conquest, followed 
her off from the field of action. 
She caused herself to be reported dead, 
upon hearing which Antony ‘besought his 
faithful friend and servant, Emus, to kill 
him. Erous pretended to consent, but 
when Antony’s face was turned aw*ay he 
killed himself instead. Antony was so 
touched by this proof of devotion, that he 
took the sword and wounded himself mor¬ 
tally, but lived long enough to be carried 
into the presence of Cleopatra. Here we 
find him in a magnificient apartment, its 
walls of purest alabaster, polished like 
mirrors, and its columns of gold most deli¬ 
cately ornamented. Through the open 
windows are seen the dark, glossy leaves of 
the fig, the broad canopy of palms a hund¬ 
red feet high, pavements of milk-white 
marble, cool as snow, and beautiful fount¬ 
ains of sparkling water. 
On a couch which glows with the pictur¬ 
ed fabrics of Eastern looms lies Marc An¬ 
tony in alm> st superhuman majesty, his 
eyes closed the curls parted from his noble 
brow, but his face so natural that, but for 
the rigidity of the limbs, one might think 
he slept. Evidences of affection are all 
around; perfumes liberally sprinkled upon 
his auburn locks, and garlands of fresh¬ 
est flowers upon his cold limbs. Cle¬ 
opatra sits beside him in speechless woe, 
with fixed yet vacant gaze. Unlike her 
regard for other heroes, she has loved 
him for himself, and not for his fame- 
or power. Near them, on a table of the 
richest porphyry, negligentl) strewn with 
instruments of music, there stands a plain 
and common-looking basket, filled with 
the glossy leaves and purple fruit of the 
fig; they look very tempting, but there is 
a slight, rustling sound, at times, and a 
movement of the leaves, not regular, as if 
shaken by the breeze, but heaving up at in¬ 
tervals, as if some living thing was lurking 
underneath, and on a close examination, 
deadly asps are found crawling among the 
fruit; these serpents Cleopatra has applied 
to her bosom, and a very tiny spot of blood' 
shows where the poison has been injected 
into her veins. Octavius, the successor of 
Caesar, has conquered, and she will not be 
his prisoner; her hero is dead, and she will 
follow him. 
Octavius comes himself, with all the 
nobles of his court, and flatters her with 
honeyed words, but she rejects his clemen¬ 
cy with haughty scorn. He says: “We 
would have the beautiful Cleopatra among- 
our friends: she is queen of Egypt still. ,r 
“By the great gods, I am! Nor is it in, 
the power of all Rome to make me other! 
Free was I born and royal! Caesar, I scorn 
your mercies, as I defy your menaces L 
My father left me a crown, and crowned 
will I go to my father!.” 
