question is, why no men come in upon hearing the noise of swords in
the governor's hall? Where was the governor himself? Where were
his guards? Where were his servants? Such an attempt as this, so
near the governor of a place of war, was enough to alarm the whole
garrison: and yet, for almost half an hour after Sempronius was
killed, we find none of those appear who were the likeliest in the
world to be alarmed; and the noise of swords is made to draw only
two poor women thither, who were most certain to run away from it.
Upon Lucia and Marcia's coming in, Lucia appears in all the symptoms
of an hysterical gentlewoman:--

"'Luc. Sure 'twas the clash of swords! my troubled heart
Is so cast down, and sunk amidst its sorrows,
It throbs with fear, and aches at every sound!'

And immediately her old whimsy returns upon her:--

"O Marcia, should thy brothers, for my sake--
I die away with horror at the thought.'

"She fancies that there can be no cutting of throats but it must be
for her. If this is tragical, I would fain know what is comical.
Well, upon this they spy the body of Sempronius; and Marcia, deluded
by the habit, it seems, takes him for Juba; for, says she,

"'The face is muffled up within the garment.'

"Now, how a man could fight, and fall, with his face muffled up in
his garment, is, I think, a little hard to conceive! Besides, Juba,
before he killed him, knew him to be Sempronius. It was not by his