Palicio.

To stand true to a cause because ’tis noble, Tho’ it be thankless; to command a people Against a tyranny, and teach their arms To enforce the reasonable rights of life, Beneath the crushing bond of wealth and power;— To be an outcast, but to leave a name Untarnished and beloved, remembered long;— That was my choice, my hope. Can I now waver? Shall I—having so well begun— Step up into a throne above the throng, And smiling on them from the hated height, Take life at ease? Nay, when ’tis reasoned so, ’Tis hideous.—But, oh! thou treacherous enemy, Thou selfish and unanswerable passion, That bluntest resolution, and criest down The voice of virtue! Margaret, Margaret! Would I had never seen thee, or believed I could not win thee. If I now could fly, I might go free.

Squarcialupu, who has appeared at the window, gradually thrusting his head between the curtains, and peering round, enters.