Hor. Only, grave praetor, here, in open court, I crave the oath for good behaviour May be administer'd unto them both.
Virg. Horace, it shall: Tibullus, give it them.
Tib. Rufus Laberius Crispinus, and Demetrius Fannius, lay your hands on your hearts. You shall here solemnly attest and swear, that never, after this instant, either at booksellers' stalls, in taverns, two-penny rooms, tyring-houses, noblemen's butteries, puisents chambers, (the best and farthest places where you are admitted to come,) you shall once offer or dare (thereby to endear yourself the more to any player, enghle, or guilty gull in your company) to malign, traduce, or detract the person or writings of Quintus Horatius Flaccus, or any other eminent men, transcending you in merit, whom your envy shall find cause to work upon, either for that, or for keeping himself in better acquaintance, or enjoying better friends, or if, transported by any sudden and desperate resolution, you do, that then you shall not under the batoon, or in the next presence, being an honourable assembly of his favourers, be brought as voluntary gentlemen to undertake the for-swearing of it. Neither shall you, at any time, ambitiously affecting the title of the Untrussers or Whippers of the age, suffer the itch of writing to over-run your performance in libel, upon pain of being taken up for lepers in wit, and, losing both your time and your papers, be irrecoverably forfeited to the hospital of fools. So help you our Roman gods and the Genius of great Caesar.
Bor. Tib. Gal. Mec. And thanks to Caesar, That thus hath exercised his patience.
Caes. We have, indeed, you worthiest friends of Caesar. It is the bane and torment of our ears, To hear the discords of those jangling rhymers, That with their bad and scandalous practices Bring all true arts and learning in contempt. But let not your high thoughts descend so low As these despised objects; let them fall, With their flat grovelling souls: be you yourselves; And as with our best favours you stand crown'd, So let your mutual loves be still renown'd. Envy will dwell where there is want of merit, Though the deserving man should crack his spirit.
Blush, folly, blush; here's none that fears The wagging of an ass's ears, Although a wolfish case he wears. Detraction is but baseness' varlet; And apes are apes, though clothed in scarlet. [Exeunt.