313 
E G Y P T. 
friends who had warned him of Cleopatra’s perfidy, and 
opened his eyes to the true extent of his misfortune. 
Frantic with rage and defpair, he challenged OCtavius 
to decide their quarrel by Angle combat ; fyut the young 
Roman, fmiling at the propotal, replied, that if Antony 
was weary of his life, there wery means enough in Alex¬ 
andria to give him relief. Upon the receipt of this con¬ 
temptuous meffage, Antony battened to the palace, in 
order to facrifice Cleopatra to his juft refentment ; but 
the eluded his fury by a timely flight, and, having tliut 
herfelf up in the above-mentioned monument, with three 
attendants, catifed it to be publitlied that (he had killed 
herfelf to avoid the horrors of captivity. This artifice 
battened on the cataftrophe of Antony’s calamities; for 
he no fooner heard that the queen was dead, than all his 
former affeCtions ruthed into his heart; his tranfports of 
rage were converted to thofe of grief; and he formed the 
defperate refolution of following-lier example. He ac¬ 
cordingly retired to his apartment with a faithful (lave, 
who had engaged to kill him when the extremity of his 
affairs lhould require that mournful office, and, remind¬ 
ing him of his promife, commanded him to run him 
through the body ; but the affectionate Eros, unable to 
murder his unfortunate matter, ftabbed himfelf to the 
heart, and funk lifelefs at his feet. Antony immediately 
fell upon his fword, and gave himfelf the wound of which 
he afterwards died. At that moment one of the queen’s 
officers came to contradict the account of her death, and 
found him weltering in his blood. Antony, hearing that 
Cleopatra was alive, buffered his wound to be dretfed,' 
and caufed himfelf to be carried to the monument. The 
queen would not permit the gates to be opened for his 
admitlion, left (lie fhould be furprifed by the enemy ; but, 
having ordered her fervants to fatten him to fome ropes 
which hung from the top of the monument, the drew 
him up, with the affiftance of her two women. Never 
was there a more affeCting fcene! Antony, bathed in 
his blood, ftruggling with death, ftretching out his fee¬ 
ble arms, and turning his dying eyes to Cleopatra, as if 
conjuring her to receive his lateft breath, was dragged 
up in the air; while the objeCt "of his deareft affection 
pulled the cords with trembling hands and diftorted fea¬ 
tures, for the poor fatisfaCtion of feeing him die in her 
arms. When (lie had, with much difficulty, drawn him 
up, the laid him upon a bed ; tore her garments to flop 
the bleeding of his wounds; be'dewed his face with a 
profufion of tears ; called him by the mod endearing epi¬ 
thets ; and cut oft his hair, acccording to the fuperftition 
of the Pagans, who believed this to be a relief to all 
thofe who died a violent death. Antony, feeing the 
queen’s affiiCfion, endeavoured to comfort her by obferv- 
ing that his defeat was honourable, fince it was no dif- 
grace for one Roman to be vanquifhed by another; and 
that his death was rendered felicitous by her kind at¬ 
tentions : he advifed her to fave her life and kingdom, 
provided the could do it with honour, and warned her to 
truft none of the conqueror’s friends, except Proculeius. 
The exertion which attended thefe words was too power¬ 
ful for his ftrength, and he doted his eyes in death at the 
moment that Proculeius arrived from the enemy’s camp, 
B. C.30. 
Oftavius, who had received intelligence of all that 
palfed, and had (lied fome tears at the fight of the fword 
with which Antony had wounded himfelf, commiffioned 
Proculeius to get the queen into his hands: but (lie re- 
fufed to furrender herfelf, unlefs he would promife, in 
his matter’s name, that her children (hould enjoy the 
kingdom. He, being finable to accede to thefe terms, re¬ 
ported the ill fuccels of his conference to Octavius, who 
immediately feat Cornelius Gallus, a man of great learn¬ 
ing and eloquence, to perftiade her to confide in his cle¬ 
mency ; Gallus accordingly went to the gate of the 1110. 
liument, and, fpeaking to her through the crevices, en¬ 
gaged her attention while Proculeius (baled the wall, and 
entered, with two officers, at the place where Antony 
Vol. VI. No. 352. 
had been taken in. When Cleopatra faw him appear, the 
drew a dagger with an inter 1 to (tab herfelf, but Procu- 
leius running fwiftly to her, forced the weapon from her 
hand, and (hook her robes left the fhould have concealed 
any poifon in them ; he the; affured her, in general terms, 
that die might fafely rely or Octavius’s honour; and im¬ 
mediately difpatched a mV Anger to inform him that the 
queen of Egypt was his 1 rifoner. The victorious Ro¬ 
man, overjoyed at this i sportant news, now approached 
the city of Alexandria, and, finding the gates open, went 
with Arius, a native of ,e place, who had been his pre¬ 
ceptor, to the gymnafiu , where lie afcended a tribunal, 
and-made an eloquent harangue to the citizens, in which 
lie told them that he f rely pardoned, and would protect 
them. Cleopatra, having in the mean time obtained per- 
niitlion to bury Antony, canted the body of her unfor¬ 
tunate lover to be embalmed in the mod coftly manner, 
and depot!ted in the burying place of the kings of Egypt. 
Oftavius deemed it improper to intrude upon Cleopa¬ 
tra’s privacy during, the firft days of fur mourning; but, 
when the violence of her grief had tubftded, he was in¬ 
troduced, by her own permidioti, into her chamber. He 
found her extended on a little bed, in a very fimple and 
negligent manner; her hair difhev.elled ; her vifage hag¬ 
gard ; her eyes fwoln by exceifive weeping; and her bo- 
fom covered with wounds and bruifes : yet, though fo 
greatly disfigured, the did not defpair of infpiring her 
youthful conqueror with the fame fentiments as had for¬ 
merly inflamed the hearts of Julius Caefar and Marc An¬ 
tony. With this defign the threw herfelf at his feet, and 
exerted all her powers in depicting the lituation of her 
affairs : but all her arts were employed to no purpofe, 
for Octavius did not appear to be affeCted either with lief 
perfon or converfation, but merely advifed her to take 
courage, and to reft affured that his intentions were equit¬ 
able. She was far from mifeonftruing this inaufpicious 
coldnefs ; yet the diffembled her concern, and put an in¬ 
ventory into his hands of all her moveables, jewels, and 
revenues. Seleucus, one of her treafurers, then prefent, 
accufed her of concealing part of her 1110ft valuable ef¬ 
fects ; in return for which affront (lie flew towards him, 
and, feizing him by the hair, gave him feveral blows on 
the face'. Then, turning towards OCtavius, the demanded 
whether fucli treatment from a fervant was not infupport- 
able ; and acknowledged that the had referved fome jewels 
for a prefent to his wife and fitter, that through their in- 
terceflion (lie might receive fome alleviation of her mil- 
fortunes. OCtavius, fuppofing from this difeourfe that 
his prifoner had relinquithed all forts of filicide, gave her 
free permitfion to difpofe of the jewels in what manner 
the thought proper; and, having promifed to treat her 
with more generofity than the expected, quitted the apart¬ 
ment. ^ 
Cleopatra, being now convinced that the was defigned 
as an ornament to the victor’s triumph, refolved to avoid 
the approaching infamy by a voluntary death, and de¬ 
voted her thoughts entirely to the execution of that de¬ 
fign. In hopes of deceiving the vigilant Epaphroditus, 
wdio never fuffered her to go out of his fight, (lie obtained 
permitfion to pay her laft refpeCts to the memory of An¬ 
tony : (lie bathed the tomb with her tears, covered it 
with flowers, and, with many expretfions of grief, per¬ 
formed fucli ceremonies as were praCtifed among'the 
Egyptians on fimihir occafions. But Epaphroditus kept 
fo clofe to her during the whole time, that (lie had no 
opportunity of attempting any thing on her own life. 
Upon her return (lie commanded a (iimptuous entertain¬ 
ment to be made,, and exhibited an uncommon degree of 
vivacity during the feaft. In the height of her apparent 
mirth the rote from the table, and wrote a letter to Octa¬ 
vius, which (lie requefted Epaphroditus to deliver with his 
own hand. Having, by thisartifi.ee, delivered herfelf from 
the obfervation of Caefar’s freedman, the retired, with 
two female attendants, to her chamber, where the dreffed 
herfelf in her royal robes, lay down on her bed, and allied 
4 L for 
