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Dramatis PersonaeANTIOCHUS, king of Antioch.PERICLES, prince of Tyre.HELICANUSESCANEStwo lords of Tyre.SIMONIDES, king of Pentapolis.CLEON, governor of Tarsus.LYSIMACHUS, governor of Mytilene.CERIMON, a lord of Ephesus.THALIARD, a lord of Antioch.PHILEMON, servant to Cerimon.LEONINE, servant to Dionyza.Marshal. A Pandar. BOULT, his servant.The Daughter of Antiochus. DIONYZA, wife to Cleon.THAISA, daughter to Simonides.MARINA, daughter to Pericles and Thaisa.LYCHORIDA, nurse to Marina.A Bawd. Lords, Knights, Gentlemen, Sailors, Pirates, Fishermen, and Messengers. DIANAGOWER, as Chorus.SCENE Dispersedly in various countries.PERICLES, PRINCE OF TYREACT I[Prologue]Enter GOWERBefore the palace of Antioch[GOWER]To sing a song that old was sung,From ashes ancient Gower is come;Assuming man's infirmities,To glad your ear, and please your eyes.It hath been sung at festivals,On ember-eves and holy-ales;And lords and ladies in their livesHave read it for restoratives:The purchase is to make men glorious;Et bonum quo antiquius, eo melius.If you, born in these latter times,When wit's more ripe, accept my rhymes.And that to hear an old man singMay to your wishes pleasure bringI life would wish, and that I mightWaste it for you, like taper-light.This Antioch, then, Antiochus the GreatBuilt up, this city, for his chiefest seat:The fairest in all Syria,I tell you what mine authors say:This king unto him took a fere,Who died and left a female heir,So buxom, blithe, and full of face,As heaven had lent her all his grace;With whom the father liking took,And her to incest did provoke:Bad child; worse father! to entice his ownTo evil should be done by none:But custom what they did beginWas with long use account no sin.The beauty of this sinful dameMade many princes thither frame,To seek her as a bed-fellow,In marriage-pleasures play-fellow:Which to prevent he made a law,To keep her still, and men in awe,That whoso ask'd her for his wife,His riddle told not, lost his life:So for her many a wight did die,As yon grim looks do testify.What now ensues, to the judgment of your eyeI give, my cause who best can justify.ExitSCENE I. Antioch. A room in the palace.Enter ANTIOCHUS, Prince PERICLES, and followersANTIOCHUSYoung prince of Tyre, you have at large receivedThe danger of the task you undertake.PERICLESI have, Antiochus, and, with a soulEmbolden'd with the glory of her praise,Think death no hazard in this enterprise.ANTIOCHUSBring in our daughter, clothed like a bride,For the embracements even of Jove himself;At whose conception, till Lucina reign'd,Nature this dowry gave, to glad her presence,The senate-house of planets all did sit,To knit in her their best perfections.Music. Enter the Daughter of ANTIOCHUSPERICLESSee where she comes, apparell'd like the spring,Graces her subjects, and her thoughts the kingOf every virtue gives renown to men!Her face the book of praises, where is readNothing but curious pleasures, as from thenceSorrow were ever razed and testy wrathCould never be her mild companion.You gods that made me man, and sway in love,That have inflamed desire in my breastTo taste the fruit of yon celestial tree,Or die in the adventure, be my helps,As I am son and servant to your will,To compass such a boundless happiness!ANTIOCHUSPrince Pericles,--PERICLESThat would be son to great Antiochus.ANTIOCHUSBefore thee stands this fair Hesperides,With golden fruit, but dangerous to be touch'd;For death-like dragons here affright thee hard:Her face, like heaven, enticeth thee to viewHer countless glory, which desert must gain;And which, without desert, because thine eyePresumes to reach, all thy whole heap must die.Yon sometimes famous princes, like thyself,Drawn by report, adventurous by desire,Tell thee, with speechless tongues and semblance pale,That without covering, save yon field of stars,Here they stand martyrs, slain in Cupid's wars;And with dead cheeks advise thee to desistFor going on death's net, whom none resist.PERICLESAntiochus, I thank thee, who hath taughtMy frail mortality to know itself,And by those fearful objects to prepareThis body, like to them, to what I must;For death remember'd should be like a mirror,Who tells us life's but breath, to trust it error.I'll make my will then, and, as sick men doWho know the world, see heaven, but, feeling woe,Gripe not at earthly joys as erst they did;So I bequeath a happy peace to youAnd all good men, as every prince should do;My riches to the earth from whence they came;But my unspotted fire of love to you.To the Daughter of ANTIOCHUSThus ready for the way of life or death,I wait the sharpest blow, Antiochus.ANTIOCHUSScorning advice, read the conclusion then:Which read and not expounded, 'tis decreed,As these before thee thou thyself shalt bleed.DaughterOf all say'd yet, mayst thou prove prosperous!Of all say'd yet, I wish thee happiness!PERICLESLike a bold champion, I assume the lists,Nor ask advice of any other thoughtBut faithfulness and courage.He reads the riddleI am no viper, yet I feedOn mother's flesh which did me breed.I sought a husband, in which labourI found that kindness in a father:He's father, son, and husband mild;I mother, wife, and yet his child.How they may be, and yet in two,As you will live, resolve it you.Sharp physic is the last: but, O you powersThat give heaven countless eyes to view men's acts,Why cloud they not their sights perpetually,If this be true, which makes me pale to read it?Fair glass of light, I loved you, and could still,Takes hold of the hand of the Daughter of ANTIOCHUSWere not this glorious casket stored with ill:But I must tell you, now my thoughts revoltFor he's no man on whom perfections waitThat, knowing sin within, will touch the gate.You are a fair viol, and your sense the strings;Who, finger'd to make man his lawful music,Would draw heaven down, and all the gods, to hearken:But being play'd upon before your time,Hell only danceth at so harsh a chime.Good sooth, I care not for you.ANTIOCHUSPrince Pericles, touch not, upon thy life.For that's an article within our law,As dangerous as the rest. Your time's expired:Either expound now, or receive your sentence.PERICLESGreat king,Few love to hear the sins they love to act;'Twould braid yourself too near for me to tell it.Who has a book of all that monarchs do,He's more secure to keep it shut than shown:For vice repeated is like the wandering wind.Blows dust in other's eyes, to spread itself;And yet the end of all is bought thus dear,The breath is gone, and the sore eyes see clear:To stop the air would hurt them. The blind mole castsCopp'd hills towards heaven, to tell the earth is throng'dBy man's oppression; and the poor worm doth die for't.Kings are earth's gods; in vice their law'stheir will;And if Jove stray, who dares say Jove doth ill?It is enough you know; and it is fit,What being more known grows worse, to smother it.All love the womb that their first being bred,Then give my tongue like leave to love my head.ANTIOCHUSAside Heaven, that I had thy head! he has foundthe meaning:But I will gloze with him.--Young prince of Tyre,Though by the tenor of our strict edict,Your exposition misinterpreting,We might proceed to cancel of your days;Yet hope, succeeding from so fair a treeAs your fair self, doth tune us otherwise:Forty days longer we do respite you;If by which time our secret be undone,This mercy shows we'll joy in such a son:And until then your entertain shall beAs doth befit our honour and your worth.Exeunt all but PERICLESPERICLESHow courtesy would seem to cover sin,When what is done is like an hypocrite,The which is good in nothing but in sight!If it be true that I interpret false,Then were it certain you were not so badAs with foul incest to abuse your soul;Where now you're both a father and a son,By your untimely claspings with your child,Which pleasure fits an husband, not a father;And she an eater of her mother's flesh,By the defiling of her parent's bed;And both like serpents are, who though they feedOn sweetest flowers, yet they poison breed.Antioch, farewell! for wisdom sees, those menBlush not in actions blacker than the night,Will shun no course to keep them from the light.One sin, I know, another doth provoke;Murder's as near to lust as flame to smoke:Poison and treason are the hands of sin,Ay, and the targets, to put off the shame:Then, lest my lie be cropp'd to keep you clear,By flight I'll shun the danger which I fear.ExitRe-enter ANTIOCHUSANTIOCHUSHe hath found the meaning, for which we meanTo have his head.He must not live to trumpet forth my infamy,Nor tell the world Antiochus doth sinIn such a loathed manner;And therefore instantly this prince must die:For by his fall my honour must keep high.Who attends us there?Enter THALIARDTHALIARDDoth your highness call?ANTIOCHUSThaliard,You are of our chamber, and our mind partakesHer private actions to your secrecy;And for your faithfulness we will advance you.Thaliard, behold, here's poison, and here's gold;We hate the prince of Tyre, and thou must kill him:It fits thee not to ask the reason why,Because we bid it. Say, is it done?THALIARDMy lord,'Tis done.ANTIOCHUSEnough.Enter a MessengerLet your breath cool yourself, telling your haste.MessengerMy lord, prince Pericles is fled.ExitANTIOCHUSAs thouWilt live, fly after: and like an arrow shotFrom a well-experienced archer hits the markHis eye doth level at, so thou ne'er returnUnless thou say 'Prince Pericles is dead.'THALIARDMy lord,If I can get him within my pistol's length,I'll make him sure enough: so, farewell to your highness.ANTIOCHUSThaliard, adieu!Exit THALIARDTill Pericles be dead,My heart can lend no succor to my head.ExitSCENE II. Tyre. A room in the palace.Enter PERICLESPERICLESTo Lords without Let none disturb us.--Why shouldthis change of thoughts,The sad companion, dull-eyed melancholy,Be my so used a guest as not an hour,In the day's glorious walk, or peaceful night,The tomb where grief should sleep, can breed me quiet?Here pleasures court mine eyes, and mine eyes shun them,And danger, which I fear'd, is at Antioch,Whose aim seems far too short to hit me here:Yet neither pleasure's art can joy my spirits,Nor yet the other's distance comfort me.Then it is thus: the passions of the mind,That have their first conception by mis-dread,Have after-nourishment and life by care;And what was first but fear what might be done,Grows elder now and cares it be not done.And so with me: the great Antiochus,'Gainst whom I am too little to contend,Since he's so great can make his will his act,Will think me speaking, though I swear to silence;Nor boots it me to say I honour him.If he suspect I may dishonour him:And what may make him blush in being known,He'll stop the course by which it might be known;With hostile forces he'll o'erspread the land,And with the ostent of war will look so huge,Amazement shall drive courage from the state;Our men be vanquish'd ere they do resist,And subjects punish'd that ne'er thought offence:Which care of them, not pity of myself,Who am no more but as the tops of trees,Which fence the roots they grow by and defend them,Makes both my body pine and soul to languish,And punish that before that he would punish.Enter HELICANUS, with other LordsFirst LordJoy and all comfort in your sacred breast!Second LordAnd keep your mind, till you return to us,Peaceful and comfortable!HELICANUSPeace, peace, and give experience tongue.They do abuse the king that flatter him:For flattery is the bellows blows up sin;The thing which is flatter'd, but a spark,To which that blast gives heat and stronger glowing;Whereas reproof, obedient and in order,Fits kings, as they are men, for they may err.When Signior Sooth here does proclaim a peace,He flatters you, makes war upon your life.Prince, pardon me, or strike me, if you please;I cannot be much lower than my knees.PERICLESAll leave us else; but let your cares o'erlookWhat shipping and what lading's in our haven,And then return to us.Exeunt LordsHelicanus, thouHast moved us: what seest thou in our looks?HELICANUSAn angry brow, dread lord.PERICLESIf there be such a dart in princes' frowns,How durst thy tongue move anger to our face?HELICANUSHow dare the plants look up to heaven, from whenceThey have their nourishment?PERICLESThou know'st I have powerTo take thy life from thee.HELICANUSKneelingI have ground the axe myself;Do you but strike the blow.PERICLESRise, prithee, rise.Sit down: thou art no flatterer:I thank thee for it; and heaven forbidThat kings should let their ears hear theirfaults hid!Fit counsellor and servant for a prince,Who by thy wisdom makest a prince thy servant,What wouldst thou have me do?HELICANUSTo bear with patienceSuch griefs as you yourself do lay upon yourself.PERICLESThou speak'st like a physician, Helicanus,That minister'st a potion unto meThat thou wouldst tremble to receive thyself.Attend me, then: I went to Antioch,Where as thou know'st, against the face of death,I sought the purchase of a glorious beauty.From whence an issue I might propagate,Are arms to princes, and bring joys to subjects.Her face was to mine eye beyond all wonder;The rest--hark in thine ear--as black as incest:Which by my knowledge found, the sinful fatherSeem'd not to strike, but smooth: but thouknow'st this,'Tis time to fear when tyrants seem to kiss.Such fear so grew in me, I hither fled,Under the covering of a careful night,Who seem'd my good protector; and, being here,Bethought me what was past, what might succeed.I knew him tyrannous; and tyrants' fearsDecrease not, but grow faster than the years:And should he doubt it, as no doubt he doth,That I should open to the listening airHow many worthy princes' bloods were shed,To keep his bed of blackness unlaid ope,To lop that doubt, he'll fill this land with arms,And make pretence of wrong that I have done him:When all, for mine, if I may call offence,Must feel war's blow, who spares not innocence:Which love to all, of which thyself art one,Who now reprovest me for it,--HELICANUSAlas, sir!PERICLESDrew sleep out of mine eyes, blood from my cheeks,Musings into my mind, with thousand doubtsHow I might stop this tempest ere it came;And finding little comfort to relieve them,I thought it princely charity to grieve them.HELICANUSWell, my lord, since you have given me leave to speak.Freely will I speak. Antiochus you fear,And justly too, I think, you fear the tyrant,Who either by public war or private treasonWill take away your life.Therefore, my lord, go travel for a while,Till that his rage and anger be forgot,Or till the Destinies do cut his thread of life.Your rule direct to any; if to me.Day serves not light more faithful than I'll be.PERICLESI do not doubt thy faith;But should he wrong my liberties in my absence?HELICANUSWe'll mingle our bloods together in the earth,From whence we had our being and our birth.PERICLESTyre, I now look from thee then, and to TarsusIntend my travel, where I'll hear from thee;And by whose letters I'll dispose myself.The care I had and have of subjects' goodOn thee I lay whose wisdom's strength can bear it.I'll take thy word for faith, not ask thine oath:Who shuns not to break one will sure crack both:But in our orbs we'll live so round and safe,That time of both this truth shall ne'er convince,Thou show'dst a subject's shine, I a true prince.ExeuntSCENE III. Tyre. An ante-chamber in the palace.Enter THALIARDTHALIARDSo, this is Tyre, and this the court. Here must Ikill King Pericles; and if I do it not, I am sure tobe hanged at home: 'tis dangerous. Well, I perceivehe was a wise fellow, and had good discretion, that,being bid to ask what he would of the king, desiredhe might know none of his secrets: now do I see hehad some reason for't; for if a king bid a man be avillain, he's bound by the indenture of his oath tobe one! Hush! here come the lords of Tyre.Enter HELICANUS and ESCANES, with other Lords of TyreHELICANUSYou shall not need, my fellow peers of Tyre,Further to question me of your king's departure:His seal'd commission, left in trust with me,Doth speak sufficiently he's gone to travel.THALIARDAside How! the king gone!HELICANUSIf further yet you will be satisfied,Why, as it were unlicensed of your loves,He would depart, I'll give some light unto you.Being at Antioch--THALIARDAside What from Antioch?HELICANUSRoyal Antiochus--on what cause I know not--Took some displeasure at him; at least he judged so:And doubting lest that he had err'd or sinn'd,To show his sorrow, he'ld correct himself;So puts himself unto the shipman's toil,With whom each minute threatens life or death.THALIARDAside Well, I perceiveI shall not be hang'd now, although I would;But since he's gone, the king's seas must please:He 'scaped the land, to perish at the sea.I'll present myself. Peace to the lords of Tyre!HELICANUSLord Thaliard from Antiochus is welcome.THALIARDFrom him I comeWith message unto princely Pericles;But since my landing I have understoodYour lord has betook himself to unknown travels,My message must return from whence it came.HELICANUSWe have no reason to desire it,Commended to our master, not to us:Yet, ere you shall depart, this we desire,As friends to Antioch, we may feast in Tyre.ExeuntSCENE IV. Tarsus. A room in the Governor's house.Enter CLEON, the governor of Tarsus, with DIONYZA,
and othersCLEONMy Dionyza, shall we rest us here,And by relating tales of others' griefs,See if 'twill teach us to forget our own?DIONYZAThat were to blow at fire in hope to quench it;For who digs hills because they do aspireThrows down one mountain to cast up a higher.O my distressed lord, even such our griefs are;Here they're but felt, and seen with mischief's eyes,But like to groves, being topp'd, they higher rise.CLEONO Dionyza,Who wanteth food, and will not say he wants it,Or can conceal his hunger till he famish?Our tongues and sorrows do sound deepOur woes into the air; our eyes do weep,Till tongues fetch breath that may proclaim them louder;That, if heaven slumber while their creatures want,They may awake their helps to comfort them.I'll then discourse our woes, felt several years,And wanting breath to speak help me with tears.DIONYZAI'll do my best, sir.CLEONThis Tarsus, o'er which I have the government,A city on whom plenty held full hand,For riches strew'd herself even in the streets;Whose towers bore heads so high they kiss'd the clouds,And strangers ne'er beheld but wondered at;Whose men and dames so jetted and adorn'd,Like one another's glass to trim them by:Their tables were stored full, to glad the sight,And not so much to feed on as delight;All poverty was scorn'd, and pride so great,The name of help grew odious to repeat.DIONYZAO, 'tis too true.CLEONBut see what heaven can do! By this our change,These mouths, who but of late, earth, sea, and air,Were all too little to content and please,Although they gave their creatures in abundance,As houses are defiled for want of use,They are now starved for want of exercise:Those palates who, not yet two summers younger,Must have inventions to delight the taste,Would now be glad of bread, and beg for it:Those mothers who, to nousle up their babes,Thought nought too curious, are ready nowTo eat those little darlings whom they loved.So sharp are hunger's teeth, that man and wifeDraw lots who first shall die to lengthen life:Here stands a lord, and there a lady weeping;Here many sink, yet those which see them fallHave scarce strength left to give them burial.Is not this true?DIONYZAOur cheeks and hollow eyes do witness it.CLEONO, let those cities that of plenty's cupAnd her prosperities so largely taste,With their superfluous riots, hear these tears!The misery of Tarsus may be theirs.Enter a LordLordWhere's the lord governor?CLEONHere.Speak out thy sorrows which thou bring'st in haste,For comfort is too far for us to expect.LordWe have descried, upon our neighbouring shore,A portly sail of ships make hitherward.CLEONI thought as much.One sorrow never comes but brings an heir,That may succeed as his inheritor;And so in ours: some neighbouring nation,Taking advantage of our misery,Hath stuff'd these hollow vessels with their power,To beat us down, the which are down already;And make a conquest of unhappy me,Whereas no glory's got to overcome.LordThat's the least fear; for, by the semblanceOf their white flags display'd, they bring us peace,And come to us as favourers, not as foes.CLEONThou speak'st like him's untutor'd to repeat:Who makes the fairest show means most deceit.But bring they what they will and what they can,What need we fear?The ground's the lowest, and we are half way there.Go tell their general we attend him here,To know for what he comes, and whence he comes,And what he craves.LordI go, my lord.ExitCLEONWelcome is peace, if he on peace consist;If wars, we are unable to resist.Enter PERICLES with AttendantsPERICLESLord governor, for so we hear you are,Let not our ships and number of our menBe like a beacon fired to amaze your eyes.We have heard your miseries as far as Tyre,And seen the desolation of your streets:Nor come we to add sorrow to your tears,But to relieve them of their heavy load;And these our ships, you happily may thinkAre like the Trojan horse was stuff'd withinWith bloody veins, expecting overthrow,Are stored with corn to make your needy bread,And give them life whom hunger starved half dead.AllThe gods of Greece protect you!And we'll pray for you.PERICLESArise, I pray you, rise:We do not look for reverence, but to love,And harbourage for ourself, our ships, and men.CLEONThe which when any shall not gratify,Or pay you with unthankfulness in thought,Be it our wives, our children, or ourselves,The curse of heaven and men succeed their evils!Till when,--the which I hope shall ne'er be seen,--Your grace is welcome to our town and us.PERICLESWhich welcome we'll accept; feast here awhile,Until our stars that frown lend us a smile.ExeuntACT II[Prologue]Enter GOWERGOWERHere have you seen a mighty kingHis child, I wis, to incest bring;A better prince and benign lord,That will prove awful both in deed and word.Be quiet then as men should be,Till he hath pass'd necessity.I'll show you those in troubles reign,Losing a mite, a mountain gain.The good in conversation,To whom I give my benison,Is still at Tarsus, where each manThinks all is writ he speken can;And, to remember what he does,Build his statue to make him glorious:But tidings to the contraryAre brought your eyes; what need speak I?DUMB SHOW.Enter at one door PERICLES talking with CLEON; all
the train with them. Enter at another door a
Gentleman, with a letter to PERICLES; PERICLES
shows the letter to CLEON; gives the Messenger a
reward, and knights him. Exit PERICLES at one
door, and CLEON at anotherGood Helicane, that stay'd at home,Not to eat honey like a droneFrom others' labours; for though he striveTo killen bad, keep good alive;And to fulfil his prince' desire,Sends word of all that haps in Tyre:How Thaliard came full bent with sinAnd had intent to murder him;And that in Tarsus was not bestLonger for him to make his rest.He, doing so, put forth to seas,Where when men been, there's seldom ease;For now the wind begins to blow;Thunder above and deeps belowMake such unquiet, that the shipShould house him safe is wreck'd and split;And he, good prince, having all lost,By waves from coast to coast is tost:All perishen of man, of pelf,Ne aught escapen but himself;Till fortune, tired with doing bad,Threw him ashore, to give him glad:And here he comes. What shall be next,Pardon old Gower,--this longs the text.ExitSCENE I. Pentapolis. An open place by the sea-side.Enter PERICLES, wetPERICLESYet cease your ire, you angry stars of heaven!Wind, rain, and thunder, remember, earthly manIs but a substance that must yield to you;And I, as fits my nature, do obey you:Alas, the sea hath cast me on the rocks,Wash'd me from shore to shore, and left me breathNothing to think on but ensuing death:Let it suffice the greatness of your powersTo have bereft a prince of all his fortunes;And having thrown him from your watery grave,Here to have death in peace is all he'll crave.Enter three FISHERMENFirst FishermanWhat, ho, Pilch!Second FishermanHa, come and bring away the nets!First FishermanWhat, Patch-breech, I say!Third FishermanWhat say you, master?First FishermanLook how thou stirrest now! come away, or I'llfetch thee with a wanion.Third FishermanFaith, master, I am thinking of the poor men thatwere cast away before us even now.First FishermanAlas, poor souls, it grieved my heart to hear whatpitiful cries they made to us to help them, when,well-a-day, we could scarce help ourselves.Third FishermanNay, master, said not I as much when I saw theporpus how he bounced and tumbled? they saythey're half fish, half flesh: a plague on them,they ne'er come but I look to be washed. Master, Imarvel how the fishes live in the sea.First FishermanWhy, as men do a-land; the great ones eat up thelittle ones: I can compare our rich misers tonothing so fitly as to a whale; a' plays andtumbles, driving the poor fry before him, and atlast devours them all at a mouthful: such whaleshave I heard on o' the land, who never leave gapingtill they've swallowed the whole parish, church,steeple, bells, and all.PERICLESAside A pretty moral.Third FishermanBut, master, if I had been the sexton, I would havebeen that day in the belfry.Second FishermanWhy, man?Third FishermanBecause he should have swallowed me too: and when Ihad been in his belly, I would have kept such ajangling of the bells, that he should never haveleft, till he cast bells, steeple, church, andparish up again. But if the good King Simonideswere of my mind,--PERICLESAside Simonides!Third FishermanWe would purge the land of these drones, that robthe bee of her honey.PERICLESAside How from the finny subject of the seaThese fishers tell the infirmities of men;And from their watery empire recollectAll that may men approve or men detect!Peace be at your labour, honest fishermen.Second FishermanHonest! good fellow, what's that? If it be a dayfits you, search out of the calendar, and nobodylook after it.PERICLESMay see the sea hath cast upon your coast.Second FishermanWhat a drunken knave was the sea to cast thee in ourway!PERICLESA man whom both the waters and the wind,In that vast tennis-court, have made the ballFor them to play upon, entreats you pity him:He asks of you, that never used to beg.First FishermanNo, friend, cannot you beg? Here's them in ourcountry Greece gets more with begging than we can dowith working.Second FishermanCanst thou catch any fishes, then?PERICLESI never practised it.Second FishermanNay, then thou wilt starve, sure; for here's nothingto be got now-a-days, unless thou canst fish for't.PERICLESWhat I have been I have forgot to know;But what I am, want teaches me to think on:A man throng'd up with cold: my veins are chill,And have no more of life than may sufficeTo give my tongue that heat to ask your help;Which if you shall refuse, when I am dead,For that I am a man, pray see me buried.First FishermanDie quoth-a? Now gods forbid! I have a gown here;come, put it on; keep thee warm. Now, afore me, ahandsome fellow! Come, thou shalt go home, andwe'll have flesh for holidays, fish forfasting-days, and moreo'er puddings and flap-jacks,and thou shalt be welcome.PERICLESI thank you, sir.Second FishermanHark you, my friend; you said you could not beg.PERICLESI did but crave.Second FishermanBut crave! Then I'll turn craver too, and so Ishall 'scape whipping.PERICLESWhy, are all your beggars whipped, then?Second FishermanO, not all, my friend, not all; for if all yourbeggars were whipped, I would wish no better officethan to be beadle. But, master, I'll go draw up thenet.Exit with Third FishermanPERICLESAside How well this honest mirth becomes their labour!First FishermanHark you, sir, do you know where ye are?PERICLESNot well.First FishermanWhy, I'll tell you: this is called Pentapolis, andour king the good Simonides.PERICLESThe good King Simonides, do you call him.First FishermanAy, sir; and he deserves so to be called for hispeaceable reign and good government.PERICLESHe is a happy king, since he gains from his subjectsthe name of good by his government. How far is hiscourt distant from this shore?First FishermanMarry, sir, half a day's journey: and I'll tellyou, he hath a fair daughter, and to-morrow is herbirth-day; and there are princes and knights comefrom all parts of the world to just and tourney for her love.PERICLESWere my fortunes equal to my desires, I could wishto make one there.First FishermanO, sir, things must be as they may; and what a mancannot get, he may lawfully deal for--his wife's soul.Re-enter Second and Third Fishermen, drawing up a netSecond FishermanHelp, master, help! here's a fish hangs in the net,like a poor man's right in the law; 'twill hardlycome out. Ha! bots on't, 'tis come at last, and'tis turned to a rusty armour.PERICLESAn armour, friends! I pray you, let me see it.Thanks, fortune, yet, that, after all my crosses,Thou givest me somewhat to repair myself;And though it was mine own, part of my heritage,Which my dead father did bequeath to me.With this strict charge, even as he left his life,'Keep it, my Pericles; it hath been a shieldTwixt me and death;'--and pointed to this brace;--'For that it saved me, keep it; in like necessity--The which the gods protect thee from!--maydefend thee.'It kept where I kept, I so dearly loved it;Till the rough seas, that spare not any man,Took it in rage, though calm'd have given't again:I thank thee for't: my shipwreck now's no ill,Since I have here my father's gift in's will.First FishermanWhat mean you, sir?PERICLESTo beg of you, kind friends, this coat of worth,For it was sometime target to a king;I know it by this mark. He loved me dearly,And for his sake I wish the having of it;And that you'ld guide me to your sovereign's court,Where with it I may appear a gentleman;And if that ever my low fortune's better,I'll pay your bounties; till then rest your debtor.First FishermanWhy, wilt thou tourney for the lady?PERICLESI'll show the virtue I have borne in arms.First FishermanWhy, do 'e take it, and the gods give thee good on't!Second FishermanAy, but hark you, my friend; 'twas we that made upthis garment through the rough seams of the waters:there are certain condolements, certain vails. Ihope, sir, if you thrive, you'll remember fromwhence you had it.PERICLESBelieve 't, I will.By your furtherance I am clothed in steel;And, spite of all the rapture of the sea,This jewel holds his building on my arm:Unto thy value I will mount myselfUpon a courser, whose delightful stepsShall make the gazer joy to see him tread.Only, my friend, I yet am unprovidedOf a pair of bases.Second FishermanWe'll sure provide: thou shalt have my best gown tomake thee a pair; and I'll bring thee to the court myself.PERICLESThen honour be but a goal to my will,This day I'll rise, or else add ill to ill.ExeuntSCENE II. The same. A public way or platform leading to the lists. A pavilion by the side of it for the reception of King, Princess, Lords, &c.Enter SIMONIDES, THAISA, Lords, and AttendantsSIMONIDESAre the knights ready to begin the triumph?First LordThey are, my liege;And stay your coming to present themselves.SIMONIDESReturn them, we are ready; and our daughter,In honour of whose birth these triumphs are,Sits here, like beauty's child, whom nature gatFor men to see, and seeing wonder at.Exit a LordTHAISAIt pleaseth you, my royal father, to expressMy commendations great, whose merit's less.SIMONIDESIt's fit it should be so; for princes areA model which heaven makes like to itself:As jewels lose their glory if neglected,So princes their renowns if not respected.'Tis now your honour, daughter, to explainThe labour of each knight in his device.THAISAWhich, to preserve mine honour, I'll perform.Enter a Knight; he passes over, and his Squire
presents his shield to the PrincessSIMONIDESWho is the first that doth prefer himself?THAISAA knight of Sparta, my renowned father;And the device he bears upon his shieldIs a black Ethiope reaching at the sunThe word, 'Lux tua vita mihi.'SIMONIDESHe loves you well that holds his life of you.The Second Knight passes overWho is the second that presents himself?THAISAA prince of Macedon, my royal father;And the device he bears upon his shieldIs an arm'd knight that's conquer'd by a lady;The motto thus, in Spanish, 'Piu por dulzura que por fuerza.'The Third Knight passes overSIMONIDESAnd what's the third?THAISAThe third of Antioch;And his device, a wreath of chivalry;The word, 'Me pompae provexit apex.'The Fourth Knight passes overSIMONIDESWhat is the fourth?THAISAA burning torch that's turned upside down;The word, 'Quod me alit, me extinguit.'SIMONIDESWhich shows that beauty hath his power and will,Which can as well inflame as it can kill.The Fifth Knight passes overTHAISAThe fifth, an hand environed with clouds,Holding out gold that's by the touchstone tried;The motto thus, 'Sic spectanda fides.'The Sixth Knight, PERICLES, passes overSIMONIDESAnd what'sThe sixth and last, the which the knight himselfWith such a graceful courtesy deliver'd?THAISAHe seems to be a stranger; but his present isA wither'd branch, that's only green at top;The motto, 'In hac spe vivo.'SIMONIDESA pretty moral;From the dejected state wherein he is,He hopes by you his fortunes yet may flourish.First LordHe had need mean better than his outward showCan any way speak in his just commend;For by his rusty outside he appearsTo have practised more the whipstock than the lance.Second LordHe well may be a stranger, for he comesTo an honour'd triumph strangely furnished.Third LordAnd on set purpose let his armour rustUntil this day, to scour it in the dust.SIMONIDESOpinion's but a fool, that makes us scanThe outward habit by the inward man.But stay, the knights are coming: we will withdrawInto the gallery.ExeuntGreat shouts within and all cry 'The mean knight!'SCENE III. The same. A hall of state: a banquet prepared.Enter SIMONIDES, THAISA, Lords, Attendants, and
Knights, from tiltingSIMONIDESKnights,To say you're welcome were superfluous.To place upon the volume of your deeds,As in a title-page, your worth in arms,Were more than you expect, or more than's fit,Since every worth in show commends itself.Prepare for mirth, for mirth becomes a feast:You are princes and my guests.THAISABut you, my knight and guest;To whom this wreath of victory I give,And crown you king of this day's happiness.PERICLES'Tis more by fortune, lady, than by merit.SIMONIDESCall it by what you will, the day is yours;And here, I hope, is none that envies it.In framing an artist, art hath thus decreed,To make some good, but others to exceed;And you are her labour'd scholar. Come, queen o'the feast,--For, daughter, so you are,--here take your place:Marshal the rest, as they deserve their grace.KNIGHTSWe are honour'd much by good Simonides.SIMONIDESYour presence glads our days: honour we love;For who hates honour hates the gods above.MarshalSir, yonder is your place.PERICLESSome other is more fit.First KnightContend not, sir; for we are gentlemenThat neither in our hearts nor outward eyesEnvy the great nor do the low despise.PERICLESYou are right courteous knights.SIMONIDESSit, sir, sit.PERICLESBy Jove, I wonder, that is king of thoughts,These cates resist me, she but thought upon.THAISABy Juno, that is queen of marriage,All viands that I eat do seem unsavoury.Wishing him my meat. Sure, he's a gallant gentleman.SIMONIDESHe's but a country gentleman;Has done no more than other knights have done;Has broken a staff or so; so let it pass.THAISATo me he seems like diamond to glass.PERICLESYon king's to me like to my father's picture,Which tells me in that glory once he was;Had princes sit, like stars, about his throne,And he the sun, for them to reverence;None that beheld him, but, like lesser lights,Did vail their crowns to his supremacy:Where now his son's like a glow-worm in the night,The which hath fire in darkness, none in light:Whereby I see that Time's the king of men,He's both their parent, and he is their grave,And gives them what he will, not what they crave.SIMONIDESWhat, are you merry, knights?KnightsWho can be other in this royal presence?SIMONIDESHere, with a cup that's stored unto the brim,--As you do love, fill to your mistress' lips,--We drink this health to you.KNIGHTSWe thank your grace.SIMONIDESYet pause awhile:Yon knight doth sit too melancholy,As if the entertainment in our courtHad not a show might countervail his worth.Note it not you, Thaisa?THAISAWhat is itTo me, my father?SIMONIDESO, attend, my daughter:Princes in this should live like gods above,Who freely give to every one that comesTo honour them:And princes not doing so are like to gnats,Which make a sound, but kill'd are wonder'd at.Therefore to make his entrance more sweet,Here, say we drink this standing-bowl of wine to him.THAISAAlas, my father, it befits not meUnto a stranger knight to be so bold:He may my proffer take for an offence,Since men take women's gifts for impudence.SIMONIDESHow!Do as I bid you, or you'll move me else.THAISAAside Now, by the gods, he could not please me better.SIMONIDESAnd furthermore tell him, we desire to know of him,Of whence he is, his name and parentage.THAISAThe king my father, sir, has drunk to you.PERICLESI thank him.THAISAWishing it so much blood unto your life.PERICLESI thank both him and you, and pledge him freely.THAISAAnd further he desires to know of you,Of whence you are, your name and parentage.PERICLESA gentleman of Tyre; my name, Pericles;My education been in arts and arms;Who, looking for adventures in the world,Was by the rough seas reft of ships and men,And after shipwreck driven upon this shore.THAISAHe thanks your grace; names himself Pericles,A gentleman of Tyre,Who only by misfortune of the seasBereft of ships and men, cast on this shore.SIMONIDESNow, by the gods, I pity his misfortune,And will awake him from his melancholy.Come, gentlemen, we sit too long on trifles,And waste the time, which looks for other revels.Even in your armours, as you are address'd,Will very well become a soldier's dance.I will not have excuse, with saying thisLoud music is too harsh for ladies' heads,Since they love men in arms as well as beds.The Knights danceSo, this was well ask'd,'twas so well perform'd.Come, sir;Here is a lady that wants breathing too:And I have heard, you knights of TyreAre excellent in making ladies trip;And that their measures are as excellent.PERICLESIn those that practise them they are, my lord.SIMONIDESO, that's as much as you would be deniedOf your fair courtesy.The Knights and Ladies danceUnclasp, unclasp:Thanks, gentlemen, to all; all have done well.To PERICLESBut you the best. Pages and lights, to conductThese knights unto their several lodgings!To PERICLESYours, sir,We have given order to be next our own.PERICLESI am at your grace's pleasure.SIMONIDESPrinces, it is too late to talk of love;And that's the mark I know you level at:Therefore each one betake him to his rest;To-morrow all for speeding do their best.ExeuntSCENE IV. Tyre. A room in the Governor's house.Enter HELICANUS and ESCANESHELICANUSNo, Escanes, know this of me,Antiochus from incest lived not free:For which, the most high gods not minding longerTo withhold the vengeance that they had in store,Due to this heinous capital offence,Even in the height and pride of all his glory,When he was seated in a chariotOf an inestimable value, and his daughter with him,A fire from heaven came and shrivell'd upTheir bodies, even to loathing; for they so stunk,That all those eyes adored them ere their fallScorn now their hand should give them burial.ESCANES'Twas very strange.HELICANUSAnd yet but justice; for thoughThis king were great, his greatness was no guardTo bar heaven's shaft, but sin had his reward.ESCANES'Tis very true.Enter two or three LordsFirst LordSee, not a man in private conferenceOr council has respect with him but he.Second LordIt shall no longer grieve without reproof.Third LordAnd cursed be he that will not second it.First LordFollow me, then. Lord Helicane, a word.HELICANUSWith me? and welcome: happy day, my lords.First LordKnow that our griefs are risen to the top,And now at length they overflow their banks.HELICANUSYour griefs! for what? wrong not your prince you love.First LordWrong not yourself, then, noble Helicane;But if the prince do live, let us salute him,Or know what ground's made happy by his breath.If in the world he live, we'll seek him out;If in his grave he rest, we'll find him there;And be resolved he lives to govern us,Or dead, give's cause to mourn his funeral,And leave us to our free election.Second LordWhose death indeed's the strongest in our censure:And knowing this kingdom is without a head,--Like goodly buildings left without a roofSoon fall to ruin,--your noble self,That best know how to rule and how to reign,We thus submit unto,--our sovereign.AllLive, noble Helicane!HELICANUSFor honour's cause, forbear your suffrages:If that you love Prince Pericles, forbear.Take I your wish, I leap into the seas,Where's hourly trouble for a minute's ease.A twelvemonth longer, let me entreat you toForbear the absence of your king:If in which time expired, he not return,I shall with aged patience bear your yoke.But if I cannot win you to this love,Go search like nobles, like noble subjects,And in your search spend your adventurous worth;Whom if you find, and win unto return,You shall like diamonds sit about his crown.First LordTo wisdom he's a fool that will not yield;And since Lord Helicane enjoineth us,We with our travels will endeavour us.HELICANUSThen you love us, we you, and we'll clasp hands:When peers thus knit, a kingdom ever stands.ExeuntSCENE V. Pentapolis. A room in the palace.Enter SIMONIDES, reading a letter, at one door:
the Knights meet himFirst KnightGood morrow to the good Simonides.SIMONIDESKnights, from my daughter this I let you know,That for this twelvemonth she'll not undertakeA married life.Her reason to herself is only known,Which yet from her by no means can I get.Second KnightMay we not get access to her, my lord?SIMONIDES'Faith, by no means; she has so strictly tiedHer to her chamber, that 'tis impossible.One twelve moons more she'll wear Diana's livery;This by the eye of Cynthia hath she vow'dAnd on her virgin honour will not break it.Third KnightLoath to bid farewell, we take our leaves.Exeunt KnightsSIMONIDESSo,They are well dispatch'd; now to my daughter's letter:She tells me here, she'd wed the stranger knight,Or never more to view nor day nor light.'Tis well, mistress; your choice agrees with mine;I like that well: nay, how absolute she's in't,Not minding whether I dislike or no!Well, I do commend her choice;And will no longer have it be delay'd.Soft! here he comes: I must dissemble it.Enter PERICLESPERICLESAll fortune to the good Simonides!SIMONIDESTo you as much, sir! I am beholding to youFor your sweet music this last night: I doProtest my ears were never better fedWith such delightful pleasing harmony.PERICLESIt is your grace's pleasure to commend;Not my desert.SIMONIDESSir, you are music's master.PERICLESThe worst of all her scholars, my good lord.SIMONIDESLet me ask you one thing:What do you think of my daughter, sir?PERICLESA most virtuous princess.SIMONIDESAnd she is fair too, is she not?PERICLESAs a fair day in summer, wondrous fair.SIMONIDESSir, my daughter thinks very well of you;Ay, so well, that you must be her master,And she will be your scholar: therefore look to it.PERICLESI am unworthy for her schoolmaster.SIMONIDESShe thinks not so; peruse this writing else.PERICLESAside What's here?A letter, that she loves the knight of Tyre!'Tis the king's subtlety to have my life.O, seek not to entrap me, gracious lord,A stranger and distressed gentleman,That never aim'd so high to love your daughter,But bent all offices to honour her.SIMONIDESThou hast bewitch'd my daughter, and thou artA villain.PERICLESBy the gods, I have not:Never did thought of mine levy offence;Nor never did my actions yet commenceA deed might gain her love or your displeasure.SIMONIDESTraitor, thou liest.PERICLESTraitor!SIMONIDESAy, traitor.PERICLESEven in his throat--unless it be the king--That calls me traitor, I return the lie.SIMONIDESAside Now, by the gods, I do applaud his courage.PERICLESMy actions are as noble as my thoughts,That never relish'd of a base descent.I came unto your court for honour's cause,And not to be a rebel to her state;And he that otherwise accounts of me,This sword shall prove he's honour's enemy.SIMONIDESNo?Here comes my daughter, she can witness it.Enter THAISAPERICLESThen, as you are as virtuous as fair,Resolve your angry father, if my tongueDid ere solicit, or my hand subscribeTo any syllable that made love to you.THAISAWhy, sir, say if you had,Who takes offence at that would make me glad?SIMONIDESYea, mistress, are you so peremptory?AsideI am glad on't with all my heart.--I'll tame you; I'll bring you in subjection.Will you, not having my consent,Bestow your love and your affectionsUpon a stranger?Asidewho, for aught I know,May be, nor can I think the contrary,As great in blood as I myself.--Therefore hear you, mistress; either frameYour will to mine,--and you, sir, hear you,Either be ruled by me, or I will make you--Man and wife:Nay, come, your hands and lips must seal it too:And being join'd, I'll thus your hopes destroy;And for a further grief,--God give you joy!--What, are you both pleased?THAISAYes, if you love me, sir.PERICLESEven as my life, or blood that fosters it.SIMONIDESWhat, are you both agreed?BOTHYes, if it please your majesty.SIMONIDESIt pleaseth me so well, that I will see you wed;And then with what haste you can get you to bed.ExeuntACT III[Prologue]Enter GOWERGOWERNow sleep y-slaked hath the rout;No din but snores the house about,Made louder by the o'er-fed breastOf this most pompous marriage-feast.The cat, with eyne of burning coal,Now crouches fore the mouse's hole;And crickets sing at the oven's mouth,E'er the blither for their drouth.Hymen hath brought the bride to bed.Where, by the loss of maidenhead,A babe is moulded. Be attent,And time that is so briefly spentWith your fine fancies quaintly eche:What's dumb in show I'll plain with speech.DUMB SHOW.Enter, PERICLES and SIMONIDES at one door, with
Attendants; a Messenger meets them, kneels, and
gives PERICLES a letter: PERICLES shows it
SIMONIDES; the Lords kneel to him. Then enter
THAISA with child, with LYCHORIDA a nurse. The
KING shows her the letter; she rejoices: she and
PERICLES takes leave of her father, and depart with
LYCHORIDA and their Attendants. Then exeunt
SIMONIDES and the restBy many a dern and painful perchOf Pericles the careful search,By the four opposing coignsWhich the world together joins,Is made with all due diligenceThat horse and sail and high expenseCan stead the quest. At last from Tyre,Fame answering the most strange inquire,To the court of King SimonidesAre letters brought, the tenor these:Antiochus and his daughter dead;The men of Tyrus on the headOf Helicanus would set onThe crown of Tyre, but he will none:The mutiny he there hastes t' oppress;Says to 'em, if King PericlesCome not home in twice six moons,He, obedient to their dooms,Will take the crown. The sum of this,Brought hither to Pentapolis,Y-ravished the regions round,And every one with claps can sound,'Our heir-apparent is a king!Who dream'd, who thought of such a thing?'Brief, he must hence depart to Tyre:His queen with child makes her desire--Which who shall cross?--along to go:Omit we all their dole and woe:Lychorida, her nurse, she takes,And so to sea. Their vessel shakesOn Neptune's billow; half the floodHath their keel cut: but fortune's moodVaries again; the grisly northDisgorges such a tempest forth,That, as a duck for life that dives,So up and down the poor ship drives:The lady shrieks, and well-a-nearDoes fall in travail with her fear:And what ensues in this fell stormShall for itself itself perform.I nill relate, action mayConveniently the rest convey;Which might not what by me is told.In your imagination holdThis stage the ship, upon whose deckThe sea-tost Pericles appears to speak.ExitSCENE IEnter PERICLES, on shipboardPERICLESThou god of this great vast, rebuke these surges,Which wash both heaven and hell; and thou, that hastUpon the winds command, bind them in brass,Having call'd them from the deep! O, stillThy deafening, dreadful thunders; gently quenchThy nimble, sulphurous flashes! O, how, Lychorida,How does my queen? Thou stormest venomously;Wilt thou spit all thyself? The seaman's whistleIs as a whisper in the ears of death,Unheard. Lychorida!--Lucina, ODivinest patroness, and midwife gentleTo those that cry by night, convey thy deityAboard our dancing boat; make swift the pangsOf my queen's travails!Enter LYCHORIDA, with an InfantNow, Lychorida!LYCHORIDAHere is a thing too young for such a place,Who, if it had conceit, would die, as IAm like to do: take in your arms this pieceOf your dead queen.PERICLESHow, how, Lychorida!LYCHORIDAPatience, good sir; do not assist the storm.Here's all that is left living of your queen,A little daughter: for the sake of it,Be manly, and take comfort.PERICLESO you gods!Why do you make us love your goodly gifts,And snatch them straight away? We here belowRecall not what we give, and therein mayUse honour with you.LYCHORIDAPatience, good sir,Even for this charge.PERICLESNow, mild may be thy life!For a more blustrous birth had never babe:Quiet and gentle thy conditions! forThou art the rudeliest welcome to this worldThat ever was prince's child. Happy what follows!Thou hast as chiding a nativityAs fire, air, water, earth, and heaven can make,To herald thee from the womb: even at the firstThy loss is more than can thy portage quit,With all thou canst find here. Now, the good godsThrow their best eyes upon't!Enter two SailorsFirst SailorWhat courage, sir? God save you!PERICLESCourage enough: I do not fear the flaw;It hath done to me the worst. Yet, for the loveOf this poor infant, this fresh-new sea-farer,I would it would be quiet.First SailorSlack the bolins there! Thou wilt not, wilt thou?Blow, and split thyself.Second SailorBut sea-room, an the brine and cloudy billow kissthe moon, I care not.First SailorSir, your queen must overboard: the sea works high,the wind is loud, and will not lie till the ship becleared of the dead.PERICLESThat's your superstition.First SailorPardon us, sir; with us at sea it hath been stillobserved: and we are strong in custom. Thereforebriefly yield her; for she must overboard straight.PERICLESAs you think meet. Most wretched queen!LYCHORIDAHere she lies, sir.PERICLESA terrible childbed hast thou had, my dear;No light, no fire: the unfriendly elementsForgot thee utterly: nor have I timeTo give thee hallow'd to thy grave, but straightMust cast thee, scarcely coffin'd, in the ooze;Where, for a monument upon thy bones,And e'er-remaining lamps, the belching whaleAnd humming water must o'erwhelm thy corpse,Lying with simple shells. O Lychorida,Bid Nestor bring me spices, ink and paper,My casket and my jewels; and bid NicanderBring me the satin coffer: lay the babeUpon the pillow: hie thee, whiles I sayA priestly farewell to her: suddenly, woman.Exit LYCHORIDASecond SailorSir, we have a chest beneath the hatches, caulkedand bitumed ready.PERICLESI thank thee. Mariner, say what coast is this?Second SailorWe are near Tarsus.PERICLESThither, gentle mariner.Alter thy course for Tyre. When canst thou reach it?Second SailorBy break of day, if the wind cease.PERICLESO, make for Tarsus!There will I visit Cleon, for the babeCannot hold out to Tyrus: there I'll leave itAt careful nursing. Go thy ways, good mariner:I'll bring the body presently.ExeuntSCENE II. Ephesus. A room in CERIMON's house.Enter CERIMON, with a Servant, and some Persons who
have been shipwreckedCERIMONPhilemon, ho!Enter PHILEMONPHILEMONDoth my lord call?CERIMONGet fire and meat for these poor men:'T has been a turbulent and stormy night.ServantI have been in many; but such a night as this,Till now, I ne'er endured.CERIMONYour master will be dead ere you return;There's nothing can be minister'd to natureThat can recover him.To PHILEMONGive this to the 'pothecary,And tell me how it works.Exeunt all but CERIMONEnter two GentlemenFirst GentlemanGood morrow.Second GentlemanGood morrow to your lordship.CERIMONGentlemen,Why do you stir so early?First GentlemanSir,Our lodgings, standing bleak upon the sea,Shook as the earth did quake;The very principals did seem to rend,And all-to topple: pure surprise and fearMade me to quit the house.Second GentlemanThat is the cause we trouble you so early;'Tis not our husbandry.CERIMONO, you say well.First GentlemanBut I much marvel that your lordship, havingRich tire about you, should at these early hoursShake off the golden slumber of repose.'Tis most strange,Nature should be so conversant with pain,Being thereto not compell'd.CERIMONI hold it ever,Virtue and cunning were endowments greaterThan nobleness and riches: careless heirsMay the two latter darken and expend;But immortality attends the former.Making a man a god. 'Tis known, I everHave studied physic, through which secret art,By turning o'er authorities, I have,Together with my practise, made familiarTo me and to my aid the blest infusionsThat dwell in vegetives, in metals, stones;And I can speak of the disturbancesThat nature works, and of her cures; which doth give meA more content in course of true delightThan to be thirsty after tottering honour,Or tie my treasure up in silken bags,To please the fool and death.Second GentlemanYour honour has through Ephesus pour'd forthYour charity, and hundreds call themselvesYour creatures, who by you have been restored:And not your knowledge, your personal pain, but evenYour purse, still open, hath built Lord CerimonSuch strong renown as time shall ne'er decay.Enter two or three Servants with a chestFirst ServantSo; lift there.CERIMONWhat is that?First ServantSir, even nowDid the sea toss upon our shore this chest:'Tis of some wreck.CERIMONSet 't down, let's look upon't.Second Gentleman'Tis like a coffin, sir.CERIMONWhate'er it be,'Tis wondrous heavy. Wrench it open straight:If the sea's stomach be o'ercharged with gold,'Tis a good constraint of fortune it belches upon us.Second Gentleman'Tis so, my lord.CERIMONHow close 'tis caulk'd and bitumed!Did the sea cast it up?First ServantI never saw so huge a billow, sir,As toss'd it upon shore.CERIMONWrench it open;Soft! it smells most sweetly in my sense.Second GentlemanA delicate odour.CERIMONAs ever hit my nostril. So, up with it.O you most potent gods! what's here? a corse!First GentlemanMost strange!CERIMONShrouded in cloth of state; balm'd and entreasuredWith full bags of spices! A passport too!Apollo, perfect me in the characters!Reads from a scroll'Here I give to understand,If e'er this coffin drive a-land,I, King Pericles, have lostThis queen, worth all our mundane cost.Who finds her, give her burying;She was the daughter of a king:Besides this treasure for a fee,The gods requite his charity!'If thou livest, Pericles, thou hast a heartThat even cracks for woe! This chanced tonight.Second GentlemanMost likely, sir.CERIMONNay, certainly to-night;For look how fresh she looks! They were too roughThat threw her in the sea. Make a fire within:Fetch hither all my boxes in my closet.Exit a ServantDeath may usurp on nature many hours,And yet the fire of life kindle againThe o'erpress'd spirits. I heard of an EgyptianThat had nine hours lien dead,Who was by good appliance recovered.Re-enter a Servant, with boxes, napkins, and fireWell said, well said; the fire and cloths.The rough and woeful music that we have,Cause it to sound, beseech you.The viol once more: how thou stirr'st, thou block!The music there!--I pray you, give her air.Gentlemen.This queen will live: nature awakes; a warmthBreathes out of her: she hath not been entrancedAbove five hours: see how she gins to blowInto life's flower again!First GentlemanThe heavens,Through you, increase our wonder and set upYour fame forever.CERIMONShe is alive; behold,Her eyelids, cases to those heavenly jewelsWhich Pericles hath lost,Begin to part their fringes of bright gold;The diamonds of a most praised waterDo appear, to make the world twice rich. Live,And make us weep to hear your fate, fair creature,Rare as you seem to be.She movesTHAISAO dear Diana,Where am I? Where's my lord? What world is this?Second GentlemanIs not this strange?First GentlemanMost rare.CERIMONHush, my gentle neighbours!Lend me your hands; to the next chamber bear her.Get linen: now this matter must be look'd to,For her relapse is mortal. Come, come;And AEsculapius guide us!Exeunt, carrying her awaySCENE III. Tarsus. A room in CLEON's house.Enter PERICLES, CLEON, DIONYZA, and LYCHORIDA with
MARINA in her armsPERICLESMost honour'd Cleon, I must needs be gone;My twelve months are expired, and Tyrus standsIn a litigious peace. You, and your lady,Take from my heart all thankfulness! The godsMake up the rest upon you!CLEONYour shafts of fortune, though they hurt you mortally,Yet glance full wanderingly on us.DIONYZAO your sweet queen!That the strict fates had pleased you had brought her hither,To have bless'd mine eyes with her!PERICLESWe cannot but obeyThe powers above us. Could I rage and roarAs doth the sea she lies in, yet the endMust be as 'tis. My gentle babe Marina, whom,For she was born at sea, I have named so, hereI charge your charity withal, leaving herThe infant of your care; beseeching youTo give her princely training, that she may beManner'd as she is born.CLEONFear not, my lord, but thinkYour grace, that fed my country with your corn,For which the people's prayers still fall upon you,Must in your child be thought on. If neglectionShould therein make me vile, the common body,By you relieved, would force me to my duty:But if to that my nature need a spur,The gods revenge it upon me and mine,To the end of generation!PERICLESI believe you;Your honour and your goodness teach me to't,Without your vows. Till she be married, madam,By bright Diana, whom we honour, allUnscissor'd shall this hair of mine remain,Though I show ill in't. So I take my leave.Good madam, make me blessed in your careIn bringing up my child.DIONYZAI have one myself,Who shall not be more dear to my respectThan yours, my lord.PERICLESMadam, my thanks and prayers.CLEONWe'll bring your grace e'en to the edge o' the shore,Then give you up to the mask'd Neptune andThe gentlest winds of heaven.PERICLESI will embraceYour offer. Come, dearest madam. O, no tears,Lychorida, no tears:Look to your little mistress, on whose graceYou may depend hereafter. Come, my lord.ExeuntSCENE IV. Ephesus. A room in CERIMON's house.Enter CERIMON and THAISACERIMONMadam, this letter, and some certain jewels,Lay with you in your coffer: which are nowAt your command. Know you the character?THAISAIt is my lord's.That I was shipp'd at sea, I well remember,Even on my eaning time; but whether thereDeliver'd, by the holy gods,I cannot rightly say. But since King Pericles,My wedded lord, I ne'er shall see again,A vestal livery will I take me to,And never more have joy.CERIMONMadam, if this you purpose as ye speak,Diana's temple is not distant far,Where you may abide till your date expire.Moreover, if you please, a niece of mineShall there attend you.THAISAMy recompense is thanks, that's all;Yet my good will is great, though the gift small.ExeuntACT IV[Prologue]Enter GOWERGOWERImagine Pericles arrived at Tyre,Welcomed and settled to his own desire.His woeful queen we leave at Ephesus,Unto Diana there a votaress.Now to Marina bend your mind,Whom our fast-growing scene must findAt Tarsus, and by Cleon train'dIn music, letters; who hath gain'dOf education all the grace,Which makes her both the heart and placeOf general wonder. But, alack,That monster envy, oft the wrackOf earned praise, Marina's lifeSeeks to take off by treason's knife.And in this kind hath our CleonOne daughter, and a wench full grown,Even ripe for marriage-rite; this maidHight Philoten: and it is saidFor certain in our story, sheWould ever with Marina be:Be't when she weaved the sleided silkWith fingers long, small, white as milk;Or when she would with sharp needle woundThe cambric, which she made more soundBy hurting it; or when to the luteShe sung, and made the night-bird mute,That still records with moan; or whenShe would with rich and constant penVail to her mistress Dian; stillThis Philoten contends in skillWith absolute Marina: soWith the dove of Paphos might the crowVie feathers white. Marina getsAll praises, which are paid as debts,And not as given. This so darksIn Philoten all graceful marks,That Cleon's wife, with envy rare,A present murderer does prepareFor good Marina, that her daughterMight stand peerless by this slaughter.The sooner her vile thoughts to stead,Lychorida, our nurse, is dead:And cursed Dionyza hathThe pregnant instrument of wrathPrest for this blow. The unborn eventI do commend to your content:Only I carry winged timePost on the lame feet of my rhyme;Which never could I so convey,Unless your thoughts went on my way.Dionyza does appear,With Leonine, a murderer.ExitSCENE I. Tarsus. An open place near the sea-shore.Enter DIONYZA and LEONINEDIONYZAThy oath remember; thou hast sworn to do't:'Tis but a blow, which never shall be known.Thou canst not do a thing in the world so soon,To yield thee so much profit. Let not conscience,Which is but cold, inflaming love i' thy bosom,Inflame too nicely; nor let pity, whichEven women have cast off, melt thee, but beA soldier to thy purpose.LEONINEI will do't; but yet she is a goodly creature.DIONYZAThe fitter, then, the gods should have her. Hereshe comes weeping for her only mistress' death.Thou art resolved?LEONINEI am resolved.Enter MARINA, with a basket of flowersMARINANo, I will rob Tellus of her weed,To strew thy green with flowers: the yellows, blues,The purple violets, and marigolds,Shall as a carpet hang upon thy grave,While summer-days do last. Ay me! poor maid,Born in a tempest, when my mother died,This world to me is like a lasting storm,Whirring me from my friends.DIONYZAHow now, Marina! why do you keep alone?How chance my daughter is not with you? Do notConsume your blood with sorrowing: you haveA nurse of me. Lord, how your favour's changedWith this unprofitable woe!Come, give me your flowers, ere the sea mar it.Walk with Leonine; the air is quick there,And it pierces and sharpens the stomach. Come,Leonine, take her by the arm, walk with her.MARINANo, I pray you;I'll not bereave you of your servant.DIONYZACome, come;I love the king your father, and yourself,With more than foreign heart. We every dayExpect him here: when he shall come and findOur paragon to all reports thus blasted,He will repent the breadth of his great voyage;Blame both my lord and me, that we have takenNo care to your best courses. Go, I pray you,Walk, and be cheerful once again; reserveThat excellent complexion, which did stealThe eyes of young and old. Care not for meI can go home alone.MARINAWell, I will go;But yet I have no desire to it.DIONYZACome, come, I know 'tis good for you.Walk half an hour, Leonine, at the least:Remember what I have said.LEONINEI warrant you, madam.DIONYZAI'll leave you, my sweet lady, for a while:Pray, walk softly, do not heat your blood:What! I must have a care of you.MARINAMy thanks, sweet madam.Exit DIONYZAIs this wind westerly that blows?LEONINESouth-west.MARINAWhen I was born, the wind was north.LEONINEWas't so?MARINAMy father, as nurse said, did never fear,But cried 'Good seaman!' to the sailors, gallingHis kingly hands, haling ropes;And, clasping to the mast, endured a seaThat almost burst the deck.LEONINEWhen was this?MARINAWhen I was born:Never was waves nor wind more violent;And from the ladder-tackle washes offA canvas-climber. 'Ha!' says one, 'wilt out?'And with a dropping industry they skipFrom stem to stern: the boatswain whistles, andThe master calls, and trebles their confusion.LEONINECome, say your prayers.MARINAWhat mean you?LEONINEIf you require a little space for prayer,I grant it: pray; but be not tedious,For the gods are quick of ear, and I am swornTo do my work with haste.MARINAWhy will you kill me?LEONINETo satisfy my lady.MARINAWhy would she have me kill'd?Now, as I can remember, by my troth,I never did her hurt in all my life:I never spake bad word, nor did ill turnTo any living creature: believe me, la,I never kill'd a mouse, nor hurt a fly:I trod upon a worm against my will,But I wept for it. How have I offended,Wherein my death might yield her any profit,Or my life imply her any danger?LEONINEMy commissionIs not to reason of the deed, but do it.MARINAYou will not do't for all the world, I hope.You are well favour'd, and your looks foreshowYou have a gentle heart. I saw you lately,When you caught hurt in parting two that fought:Good sooth, it show'd well in you: do so now:Your lady seeks my life; come you between,And save poor me, the weaker.LEONINEI am sworn,And will dispatch.He seizes herEnter PiratesFirst PirateHold, villain!LEONINE runs awaySecond PirateA prize! a prize!Third PirateHalf-part, mates, half-part.Come, let's have her aboard suddenly.Exeunt Pirates with MARINARe-enter LEONINELEONINEThese roguing thieves serve the great pirate Valdes;And they have seized Marina. Let her go:There's no hope she will return. I'll swearshe's dead,And thrown into the sea. But I'll see further:Perhaps they will but please themselves upon her,Not carry her aboard. If she remain,Whom they have ravish'd must by me be slain.ExitSCENE II. Mytilene. A room in a brothel.Enter Pandar, Bawd, and BOULTPandarBoult!BOULTSir?PandarSearch the market narrowly; Mytilene is full ofgallants. We lost too much money this mart by beingtoo wenchless.BawdWe were never so much out of creatures. We have butpoor three, and they can do no more than they cando; and they with continual action are even as good as rotten.PandarTherefore let's have fresh ones, whate'er we pay forthem. If there be not a conscience to be used inevery trade, we shall never prosper.BawdThou sayest true: 'tis not our bringing up of poorbastards,--as, I think, I have brought up some eleven--BOULTAy, to eleven; and brought them down again. Butshall I search the market?BawdWhat else, man? The stuff we have, a strong windwill blow it to pieces, they are so pitifully sodden.PandarThou sayest true; they're too unwholesome, o'conscience. The poor Transylvanian is dead, thatlay with the little baggage.BOULTAy, she quickly pooped him; she made him roast-meatfor worms. But I'll go search the market.ExitPandarThree or four thousand chequins were as pretty aproportion to live quietly, and so give over.BawdWhy to give over, I pray you? is it a shame to getwhen we are old?PandarO, our credit comes not in like the commodity, northe commodity wages not with the danger: therefore,if in our youths we could pick up some prettyestate, 'twere not amiss to keep our door hatched.Besides, the sore terms we stand upon with the godswill be strong with us for giving over.BawdCome, other sorts offend as well as we.PandarAs well as we! ay, and better too; we offend worse.Neither is our profession any trade; it's nocalling. But here comes Boult.Re-enter BOULT, with the Pirates and MARINABOULTTo MARINA Come your ways. My masters, you sayshe's a virgin?First PirateO, sir, we doubt it not.BOULTMaster, I have gone through for this piece, you see:if you like her, so; if not, I have lost my earnest.BawdBoult, has she any qualities?BOULTShe has a good face, speaks well, and has excellentgood clothes: there's no further necessity ofqualities can make her be refused.BawdWhat's her price, Boult?BOULTI cannot be bated one doit of a thousand pieces.PandarWell, follow me, my masters, you shall have yourmoney presently. Wife, take her in; instruct herwhat she has to do, that she may not be raw in herentertainment.Exeunt Pandar and PiratesBawdBoult, take you the marks of her, the colour of herhair, complexion, height, age, with warrant of hervirginity; and cry 'He that will give most shallhave her first.' Such a maidenhead were no cheapthing, if men were as they have been. Get this doneas I command you.BOULTPerformance shall follow.ExitMARINAAlack that Leonine was so slack, so slow!He should have struck, not spoke; or that these pirates,Not enough barbarous, had not o'erboard thrown meFor to seek my mother!BawdWhy lament you, pretty one?MARINAThat I am pretty.BawdCome, the gods have done their part in you.MARINAI accuse them not.BawdYou are light into my hands, where you are like to live.MARINAThe more my faultTo scape his hands where I was like to die.BawdAy, and you shall live in pleasure.MARINANo.BawdYes, indeed shall you, and taste gentlemen of allfashions: you shall fare well; you shall have thedifference of all complexions. What! do you stop your ears?MARINAAre you a woman?BawdWhat would you have me be, an I be not a woman?MARINAAn honest woman, or not a woman.BawdMarry, whip thee, gosling: I think I shall havesomething to do with you. Come, you're a youngfoolish sapling, and must be bowed as I would haveyou.MARINAThe gods defend me!BawdIf it please the gods to defend you by men, then menmust comfort you, men must feed you, men must stiryou up. Boult's returned.Re-enter BOULTNow, sir, hast thou cried her through the market?BOULTI have cried her almost to the number of her hairs;I have drawn her picture with my voice.BawdAnd I prithee tell me, how dost thou find theinclination of the people, especially of the younger sort?BOULT'Faith, they listened to me as they would havehearkened to their father's testament. There was aSpaniard's mouth so watered, that he went to bed toher very description.BawdWe shall have him here to-morrow with his best ruff on.BOULTTo-night, to-night. But, mistress, do you know theFrench knight that cowers i' the hams?BawdWho, Monsieur Veroles?BOULTAy, he: he offered to cut a caper at theproclamation; but he made a groan at it, and sworehe would see her to-morrow.BawdWell, well; as for him, he brought his diseasehither: here he does but repair it. I know he willcome in our shadow, to scatter his crowns in thesun.BOULTWell, if we had of every nation a traveller, weshould lodge them with this sign.BawdTo MARINA Pray you, come hither awhile. Youhave fortunes coming upon you. Mark me: you mustseem to do that fearfully which you commitwillingly, despise profit where you have most gain.To weep that you live as ye do makes pity in yourlovers: seldom but that pity begets you a goodopinion, and that opinion a mere profit.MARINAI understand you not.BOULTO, take her home, mistress, take her home: theseblushes of hers must be quenched with some present practise.BawdThou sayest true, i' faith, so they must; for yourbride goes to that with shame which is her way to gowith warrant.BOULT'Faith, some do, and some do not. But, mistress, ifI have bargained for the joint,--BawdThou mayst cut a morsel off the spit.BOULTI may so.BawdWho should deny it? Come, young one, I like themanner of your garments well.BOULTAy, by my faith, they shall not be changed yet.BawdBoult, spend thou that in the town: report what asojourner we have; you'll lose nothing by custom.When nature flamed this piece, she meant thee a goodturn; therefore say what a paragon she is, and thouhast the harvest out of thine own report.BOULTI warrant you, mistress, thunder shall not so awakethe beds of eels as my giving out her beauty stir upthe lewdly-inclined. I'll bring home some to-night.BawdCome your ways; follow me.MARINAIf fires be hot, knives sharp, or waters deep,Untied I still my virgin knot will keep.Diana, aid my purpose!BawdWhat have we to do with Diana? Pray you, will you go with us?ExeuntSCENE III. Tarsus. A room in CLEON's house.Enter CLEON and DIONYZADIONYZAWhy, are you foolish? Can it be undone?CLEONO Dionyza, such a piece of slaughterThe sun and moon ne'er look'd upon!DIONYZAI thinkYou'll turn a child again.CLEONWere I chief lord of all this spacious world,I'ld give it to undo the deed. O lady,Much less in blood than virtue, yet a princessTo equal any single crown o' the earthI' the justice of compare! O villain Leonine!Whom thou hast poison'd too:If thou hadst drunk to him, 't had been a kindnessBecoming well thy fact: what canst thou sayWhen noble Pericles shall demand his child?DIONYZAThat she is dead. Nurses are not the fates,To foster it, nor ever to preserve.She died at night; I'll say so. Who can cross it?Unless you play the pious innocent,And for an honest attribute cry out'She died by foul play.'CLEONO, go to. Well, well,Of all the faults beneath the heavens, the godsDo like this worst.DIONYZABe one of those that thinkThe petty wrens of Tarsus will fly hence,And open this to Pericles. I do shameTo think of what a noble strain you are,And of how coward a spirit.CLEONTo such proceedingWho ever but his approbation added,Though not his prime consent, he did not flowFrom honourable sources.DIONYZABe it so, then:Yet none does know, but you, how she came dead,Nor none can know, Leonine being gone.She did disdain my child, and stood betweenHer and her fortunes: none would look on her,But cast their gazes on Marina's face;Whilst ours was blurted at and held a malkinNot worth the time of day. It pierced me through;And though you call my course unnatural,You not your child well loving, yet I findIt greets me as an enterprise of kindnessPerform'd to your sole daughter.CLEONHeavens forgive it!DIONYZAAnd as for Pericles,What should he say? We wept after her hearse,And yet we mourn: her monumentIs almost finish'd, and her epitaphsIn glittering golden characters expressA general praise to her, and care in usAt whose expense 'tis done.CLEONThou art like the harpy,Which, to betray, dost, with thine angel's face,Seize with thine eagle's talons.DIONYZAYou are like one that superstitiouslyDoth swear to the gods that winter kills the flies:But yet I know you'll do as I advise.ExeuntSCENE IVEnter GOWER, before the monument of MARINA at TarsusGOWERThus time we waste, and longest leagues make short;Sail seas in cockles, have an wish but for't;Making, to take your imagination,From bourn to bourn, region to region.By you being pardon'd, we commit no crimeTo use one language in each several climeWhere our scenes seem to live. I do beseech youTo learn of me, who stand i' the gaps to teach you,The stages of our story. PericlesIs now again thwarting the wayward seas,Attended on by many a lord and knight.To see his daughter, all his life's delight.Old Escanes, whom Helicanus lateAdvanced in time to great and high estate,Is left to govern. Bear you it in mind,Old Helicanus goes along behind.Well-sailing ships and bounteous winds have broughtThis king to Tarsus,--think his pilot thought;So with his steerage shall your thoughts grow on,--To fetch his daughter home, who first is gone.Like motes and shadows see them move awhile;Your ears unto your eyes I'll reconcile.DUMB SHOW.Enter PERICLES, at one door, with all his train;
CLEON and DIONYZA, at the other. CLEON shows
PERICLES the tomb; whereat PERICLES makes
lamentation, puts on sackcloth, and in a mighty
passion departs. Then exeunt CLEON and DIONYZASee how belief may suffer by foul show!This borrow'd passion stands for true old woe;And Pericles, in sorrow all devour'd,With sighs shot through, and biggest tearso'ershower'd,Leaves Tarsus and again embarks. He swearsNever to wash his face, nor cut his hairs:He puts on sackcloth, and to sea. He bearsA tempest, which his mortal vessel tears,And yet he rides it out. Now please you wit.The epitaph is for Marina writBy wicked Dionyza.Reads the inscription on MARINA's monument'The fairest, sweet'st, and best lies here,Who wither'd in her spring of year.She was of Tyrus the king's daughter,On whom foul death hath made this slaughter;Marina was she call'd; and at her birth,Thetis, being proud, swallow'd some part o' the earth:Therefore the earth, fearing to be o'erflow'd,Hath Thetis' birth-child on the heavens bestow'd:Wherefore she does, and swears she'll never stint,Make raging battery upon shores of flint.'No visor does become black villanySo well as soft and tender flattery.Let Pericles believe his daughter's dead,And bear his courses to be orderedBy Lady Fortune; while our scene must playHis daughter's woe and heavy well-a-dayIn her unholy service. Patience, then,And think you now are all in Mytilene.ExitSCENE V. Mytilene. A street before the brothel.Enter, from the brothel, two GentlemenFirst GentlemanDid you ever hear the like?Second GentlemanNo, nor never shall do in such a place as this, shebeing once gone.First GentlemanBut to have divinity preached there! did you everdream of such a thing?Second GentlemanNo, no. Come, I am for no more bawdy-houses:shall's go hear the vestals sing?First GentlemanI'll do any thing now that is virtuous; but Iam out of the road of rutting for ever.ExeuntSCENE VI. The same. A room in the brothel.Enter Pandar, Bawd, and BOULTPandarWell, I had rather than twice the worth of her shehad ne'er come here.BawdFie, fie upon her! she's able to freeze the godPriapus, and undo a whole generation. We musteither get her ravished, or be rid of her. When sheshould do for clients her fitment, and do me thekindness of our profession, she has me her quirks,her reasons, her master reasons, her prayers, herknees; that she would make a puritan of the devil,if he should cheapen a kiss of her.BOULT'Faith, I must ravish her, or she'll disfurnish usof all our cavaliers, and make our swearers priests.PandarNow, the pox upon her green-sickness for me!Bawd'Faith, there's no way to be rid on't but by theway to the pox. Here comes the Lord Lysimachus disguised.BOULTWe should have both lord and lown, if the peevishbaggage would but give way to customers.Enter LYSIMACHUSLYSIMACHUSHow now! How a dozen of virginities?BawdNow, the gods to-bless your honour!BOULTI am glad to see your honour in good health.LYSIMACHUSYou may so; 'tis the better for you that yourresorters stand upon sound legs. How now!wholesome iniquity have you that a man may dealwithal, and defy the surgeon?BawdWe have here one, sir, if she would--but there nevercame her like in Mytilene.LYSIMACHUSIf she'ld do the deed of darkness, thou wouldst say.BawdYour honour knows what 'tis to say well enough.LYSIMACHUSWell, call forth, call forth.BOULTFor flesh and blood, sir, white and red, you shallsee a rose; and she were a rose indeed, if she had but--LYSIMACHUSWhat, prithee?BOULTO, sir, I can be modest.LYSIMACHUSThat dignifies the renown of a bawd, no less than itgives a good report to a number to be chaste.Exit BOULTBawdHere comes that which grows to the stalk; neverplucked yet, I can assure you.Re-enter BOULT with MARINAIs she not a fair creature?LYSIMACHUS'Faith, she would serve after a long voyage at sea.Well, there's for you: leave us.BawdI beseech your honour, give me leave: a word, andI'll have done presently.LYSIMACHUSI beseech you, do.BawdTo MARINA First, I would have you note, this isan honourable man.MARINAI desire to find him so, that I may worthily note him.BawdNext, he's the governor of this country, and a manwhom I am bound to.MARINAIf he govern the country, you are bound to himindeed; but how honourable he is in that, I know not.BawdPray you, without any more virginal fencing, willyou use him kindly? He will line your apron with gold.MARINAWhat he will do graciously, I will thankfully receive.LYSIMACHUSHa' you done?BawdMy lord, she's not paced yet: you must take somepains to work her to your manage. Come, we willleave his honour and her together. Go thy ways.Exeunt Bawd, Pandar, and BOULTLYSIMACHUSNow, pretty one, how long have you been at this trade?MARINAWhat trade, sir?LYSIMACHUSWhy, I cannot name't but I shall offend.MARINAI cannot be offended with my trade. Please you to name it.LYSIMACHUSHow long have you been of this profession?MARINAE'er since I can remember.LYSIMACHUSDid you go to 't so young? Were you a gamester atfive or at seven?MARINAEarlier too, sir, if now I be one.LYSIMACHUSWhy, the house you dwell in proclaims you to be acreature of sale.MARINADo you know this house to be a place of such resort,and will come into 't? I hear say you are ofhonourable parts, and are the governor of this place.LYSIMACHUSWhy, hath your principal made known unto you who I am?MARINAWho is my principal?LYSIMACHUSWhy, your herb-woman; she that sets seeds and rootsof shame and iniquity. O, you have heard somethingof my power, and so stand aloof for more seriouswooing. But I protest to thee, pretty one, myauthority shall not see thee, or else look friendlyupon thee. Come, bring me to some private place:come, come.MARINAIf you were born to honour, show it now;If put upon you, make the judgment goodThat thought you worthy of it.LYSIMACHUSHow's this? how's this? Some more; be sage.MARINAFor me,That am a maid, though most ungentle fortuneHave placed me in this sty, where, since I came,Diseases have been sold dearer than physic,O, that the godsWould set me free from this unhallow'd place,Though they did change me to the meanest birdThat flies i' the purer air!LYSIMACHUSI did not thinkThou couldst have spoke so well; ne'er dream'd thou couldst.Had I brought hither a corrupted mind,Thy speech had alter'd it. Hold, here's gold for thee:Persever in that clear way thou goest,And the gods strengthen thee!MARINAThe good gods preserve you!LYSIMACHUSFor me, be you thoughtenThat I came with no ill intent; for to meThe very doors and windows savour vilely.Fare thee well. Thou art a piece of virtue, andI doubt not but thy training hath been noble.Hold, here's more gold for thee.A curse upon him, die he like a thief,That robs thee of thy goodness! If thou dostHear from me, it shall be for thy good.Re-enter BOULTBOULTI beseech your honour, one piece for me.LYSIMACHUSAvaunt, thou damned door-keeper!Your house, but for this virgin that doth prop it,Would sink and overwhelm you. Away!ExitBOULTHow's this? We must take another course with you.If your peevish chastity, which is not worth abreakfast in the cheapest country under the cope,shall undo a whole household, let me be gelded likea spaniel. Come your ways.MARINAWhither would you have me?BOULTI must have your maidenhead taken off, or the commonhangman shall execute it. Come your ways. We'llhave no more gentlemen driven away. Come your ways, I say.Re-enter BawdBawdHow now! what's the matter?BOULTWorse and worse, mistress; she has here spoken holywords to the Lord Lysimachus.BawdO abominable!BOULTShe makes our profession as it were to stink aforethe face of the gods.BawdMarry, hang her up for ever!BOULTThe nobleman would have dealt with her like anobleman, and she sent him away as cold as asnowball; saying his prayers too.BawdBoult, take her away; use her at thy pleasure:crack the glass of her virginity, and make the rest malleable.BOULTAn if she were a thornier piece of ground than sheis, she shall be ploughed.MARINAHark, hark, you gods!BawdShe conjures: away with her! Would she had nevercome within my doors! Marry, hang you! She's bornto undo us. Will you not go the way of women-kind?Marry, come up, my dish of chastity with rosemary and bays!ExitBOULTCome, mistress; come your ways with me.MARINAWhither wilt thou have me?BOULTTo take from you the jewel you hold so dear.MARINAPrithee, tell me one thing first.BOULTCome now, your one thing.MARINAWhat canst thou wish thine enemy to be?BOULTWhy, I could wish him to be my master, or rather, my mistress.MARINANeither of these are so bad as thou art,Since they do better thee in their command.Thou hold'st a place, for which the pained'st fiendOf hell would not in reputation change:Thou art the damned doorkeeper to everyCoistrel that comes inquiring for his Tib;To the choleric fisting of every rogueThy ear is liable; thy food is suchAs hath been belch'd on by infected lungs.BOULTWhat would you have me do? go to the wars, wouldyou? where a man may serve seven years for the lossof a leg, and have not money enough in the end tobuy him a wooden one?MARINADo any thing but this thou doest. EmptyOld receptacles, or common shores, of filth;Serve by indenture to the common hangman:Any of these ways are yet better than this;For what thou professest, a baboon, could he speak,Would own a name too dear. O, that the godsWould safely deliver me from this place!Here, here's gold for thee.If that thy master would gain by thee,Proclaim that I can sing, weave, sew, and dance,With other virtues, which I'll keep from boast:And I will undertake all these to teach.I doubt not but this populous city willYield many scholars.BOULTBut can you teach all this you speak of?MARINAProve that I cannot, take me home again,And prostitute me to the basest groomThat doth frequent your house.BOULTWell, I will see what I can do for thee: if I canplace thee, I will.MARINABut amongst honest women.BOULT'Faith, my acquaintance lies little amongst them.But since my master and mistress have bought you,there's no going but by their consent: therefore Iwill make them acquainted with your purpose, and Idoubt not but I shall find them tractable enough.Come, I'll do for thee what I can; come your ways.ExeuntACT V[Prologue]Enter GOWERGOWERMarina thus the brothel 'scapes, and chancesInto an honest house, our story says.She sings like one immortal, and she dancesAs goddess-like to her admired lays;Deep clerks she dumbs; and with her needle composesNature's own shape, of bud, bird, branch, or berry,That even her art sisters the natural roses;Her inkle, silk, twin with the rubied cherry:That pupils lacks she none of noble race,Who pour their bounty on her; and her gainShe gives the cursed bawd. Here we her place;And to her father turn our thoughts again,Where we left him, on the sea. We there him lost;Whence, driven before the winds, he is arrivedHere where his daughter dwells; and on this coastSuppose him now at anchor. The city strivedGod Neptune's annual feast to keep: from whenceLysimachus our Tyrian ship espies,His banners sable, trimm'd with rich expense;And to him in his barge with fervor hies.In your supposing once more put your sightOf heavy Pericles; think this his bark:Where what is done in action, more, if might,Shall be discover'd; please you, sit and hark.ExitSCENE I. On board PERICLES' ship, off Mytilene. A close pavilion on deck, with a curtain before it; PERICLES within it, reclined on a couch. A barge lying beside the Tyrian vessel.Enter two Sailors, one belonging to the Tyrian
vessel, the other to the barge; to them HELICANUSTyrian SailorTo the Sailor of Mytilene Where is lord Helicanus?he can resolve you.O, here he is.Sir, there's a barge put off from Mytilene,And in it is Lysimachus the governor,Who craves to come aboard. What is your will?HELICANUSThat he have his. Call up some gentlemen.Tyrian SailorHo, gentlemen! my lord calls.Enter two or three GentlemenFirst GentlemanDoth your lordship call?HELICANUSGentlemen, there's some of worth would come aboard;I pray ye, greet them fairly.The Gentlemen and the two Sailors descend, and go
on board the bargeEnter, from thence, LYSIMACHUS and Lords; with the
Gentlemen and the two SailorsTyrian SailorSir,This is the man that can, in aught you would,Resolve you.LYSIMACHUSHail, reverend sir! the gods preserve you!HELICANUSAnd you, sir, to outlive the age I am,And die as I would do.LYSIMACHUSYou wish me well.Being on shore, honouring of Neptune's triumphs,Seeing this goodly vessel ride before us,I made to it, to know of whence you are.HELICANUSFirst, what is your place?LYSIMACHUSI am the governor of this place you lie before.HELICANUSSir,Our vessel is of Tyre, in it the king;A man who for this three months hath not spokenTo any one, nor taken sustenanceBut to prorogue his grief.LYSIMACHUSUpon what ground is his distemperature?HELICANUS'Twould be too tedious to repeat;But the main grief springs from the lossOf a beloved daughter and a wife.LYSIMACHUSMay we not see him?HELICANUSYou may;But bootless is your sight: he will not speak To any.LYSIMACHUSYet let me obtain my wish.HELICANUSBehold him.PERICLES discoveredThis was a goodly person,Till the disaster that, one mortal night,Drove him to this.LYSIMACHUSSir king, all hail! the gods preserve you!Hail, royal sir!HELICANUSIt is in vain; he will not speak to you.First LordSir,We have a maid in Mytilene, I durst wager,Would win some words of him.LYSIMACHUS'Tis well bethought.She questionless with her sweet harmonyAnd other chosen attractions, would allure,And make a battery through his deafen'd parts,Which now are midway stopp'd:She is all happy as the fairest of all,And, with her fellow maids is now uponThe leafy shelter that abuts againstThe island's side.Whispers a Lord, who goes off in the barge of
LYSIMACHUSHELICANUSSure, all's effectless; yet nothing we'll omitThat bears recovery's name. But, since your kindnessWe have stretch'd thus far, let us beseech youThat for our gold we may provision have,Wherein we are not destitute for want,But weary for the staleness.LYSIMACHUSO, sir, a courtesyWhich if we should deny, the most just godsFor every graff would send a caterpillar,And so afflict our province. Yet once moreLet me entreat to know at large the causeOf your king's sorrow.HELICANUSSit, sir, I will recount it to you:But, see, I am prevented.Re-enter, from the barge, Lord, with MARINA, and a
young LadyLYSIMACHUSO, here isThe lady that I sent for. Welcome, fair one!Is't not a goodly presence?HELICANUSShe's a gallant lady.LYSIMACHUSShe's such a one, that, were I well assuredCame of a gentle kind and noble stock,I'ld wish no better choice, and think me rarely wed.Fair one, all goodness that consists in bountyExpect even here, where is a kingly patient:If that thy prosperous and artificial featCan draw him but to answer thee in aught,Thy sacred physic shall receive such payAs thy desires can wish.MARINASir, I will useMy utmost skill in his recovery, ProvidedThat none but I and my companion maidBe suffer'd to come near him.LYSIMACHUSCome, let us leave her;And the gods make her prosperous!MARINA singsLYSIMACHUSMark'd he your music?MARINANo, nor look'd on us.LYSIMACHUSSee, she will speak to him.MARINAHail, sir! my lord, lend ear.PERICLESHum, ha!MARINAI am a maid,My lord, that ne'er before invited eyes,But have been gazed on like a comet: she speaks,My lord, that, may be, hath endured a griefMight equal yours, if both were justly weigh'd.Though wayward fortune did malign my state,My derivation was from ancestorsWho stood equivalent with mighty kings:But time hath rooted out my parentage,And to the world and awkward casualtiesBound me in servitude.AsideI will desist;But there is something glows upon my cheek,And whispers in mine ear, 'Go not till he speak.'PERICLESMy fortunes--parentage--good parentage--To equal mine!--was it not thus? what say you?MARINAI said, my lord, if you did know my parentage,You would not do me violence.PERICLESI do think so. Pray you, turn your eyes upon me.You are like something that--What country-woman?Here of these shores?MARINANo, nor of any shores:Yet I was mortally brought forth, and amNo other than I appear.PERICLESI am great with woe, and shall deliver weeping.My dearest wife was like this maid, and such a oneMy daughter might have been: my queen's square brows;Her stature to an inch; as wand-like straight;As silver-voiced; her eyes as jewel-likeAnd cased as richly; in pace another Juno;Who starves the ears she feeds, and makes them hungry,The more she gives them speech. Where do you live?MARINAWhere I am but a stranger: from the deckYou may discern the place.PERICLESWhere were you bred?And how achieved you these endowments, whichYou make more rich to owe?MARINAIf I should tell my history, it would seemLike lies disdain'd in the reporting.PERICLESPrithee, speak:Falseness cannot come from thee; for thou look'stModest as Justice, and thou seem'st a palaceFor the crown'd Truth to dwell in: I willbelieve thee,And make my senses credit thy relationTo points that seem impossible; for thou look'stLike one I loved indeed. What were thy friends?Didst thou not say, when I did push thee back--Which was when I perceived thee--that thou camestFrom good descending?MARINASo indeed I did.PERICLESReport thy parentage. I think thou said'stThou hadst been toss'd from wrong to injury,And that thou thought'st thy griefs might equal mine,If both were open'd.MARINASome such thingI said, and said no more but what my thoughtsDid warrant me was likely.PERICLESTell thy story;If thine consider'd prove the thousandth partOf my endurance, thou art a man, and IHave suffer'd like a girl: yet thou dost lookLike Patience gazing on kings' graves, and smilingExtremity out of act. What were thy friends?How lost thou them? Thy name, my most kind virgin?Recount, I do beseech thee: come, sit by me.MARINAMy name is Marina.PERICLESO, I am mock'd,And thou by some incensed god sent hitherTo make the world to laugh at me.MARINAPatience, good sir,Or here I'll cease.PERICLESNay, I'll be patient.Thou little know'st how thou dost startle me,To call thyself Marina.MARINAThe nameWas given me by one that had some power,My father, and a king.PERICLESHow! a king's daughter?And call'd Marina?MARINAYou said you would believe me;But, not to be a troubler of your peace,I will end here.PERICLESBut are you flesh and blood?Have you a working pulse? and are no fairy?Motion! Well; speak on. Where were you born?And wherefore call'd Marina?MARINACall'd MarinaFor I was born at sea.PERICLESAt sea! what mother?MARINAMy mother was the daughter of a king;Who died the minute I was born,As my good nurse Lychorida hath oftDeliver'd weeping.PERICLESO, stop there a little!AsideThis is the rarest dream that e'er dull sleepDid mock sad fools withal: this cannot be:My daughter's buried. Well: where were you bred?I'll hear you more, to the bottom of your story,And never interrupt you.MARINAYou scorn: believe me, 'twere best I did give o'er.PERICLESI will believe you by the syllableOf what you shall deliver. Yet, give me leave:How came you in these parts? where were you bred?MARINAThe king my father did in Tarsus leave me;Till cruel Cleon, with his wicked wife,Did seek to murder me: and having woo'dA villain to attempt it, who having drawn to do't,A crew of pirates came and rescued me;Brought me to Mytilene. But, good sir,Whither will you have me? Why do you weep?It may be,You think me an impostor: no, good faith;I am the daughter to King Pericles,If good King Pericles be.PERICLESHo, Helicanus!HELICANUSCalls my lord?PERICLESThou art a grave and noble counsellor,Most wise in general: tell me, if thou canst,What this maid is, or what is like to be,That thus hath made me weep?HELICANUSI know not; butHere is the regent, sir, of MytileneSpeaks nobly of her.LYSIMACHUSShe would never tellHer parentage; being demanded that,She would sit still and weep.PERICLESO Helicanus, strike me, honour'd sir;Give me a gash, put me to present pain;Lest this great sea of joys rushing upon meO'erbear the shores of my mortality,And drown me with their sweetness. O, come hither,Thou that beget'st him that did thee beget;Thou that wast born at sea, buried at Tarsus,And found at sea again! O Helicanus,Down on thy knees, thank the holy gods as loudAs thunder threatens us: this is Marina.What was thy mother's name? tell me but that,For truth can never be confirm'd enough,Though doubts did ever sleep.MARINAFirst, sir, I pray,What is your title?PERICLESI am Pericles of Tyre: but tell me nowMy drown'd queen's name, as in the rest you saidThou hast been godlike perfect,The heir of kingdoms and another likeTo Pericles thy father.MARINAIs it no more to be your daughter thanTo say my mother's name was Thaisa?Thaisa was my mother, who did endThe minute I began.PERICLESNow, blessing on thee! rise; thou art my child.Give me fresh garments. Mine own, Helicanus;She is not dead at Tarsus, as she should have been,By savage Cleon: she shall tell thee all;When thou shalt kneel, and justify in knowledgeShe is thy very princess. Who is this?HELICANUSSir, 'tis the governor of Mytilene,Who, hearing of your melancholy state,Did come to see you.PERICLESI embrace you.Give me my robes. I am wild in my beholding.O heavens bless my girl! But, hark, what music?Tell Helicanus, my Marina, tell himO'er, point by point, for yet he seems to doubt,How sure you are my daughter. But, what music?HELICANUSMy lord, I hear none.PERICLESNone!The music of the spheres! List, my Marina.LYSIMACHUSIt is not good to cross him; give him way.PERICLESRarest sounds! Do ye not hear?LYSIMACHUSMy lord, I hear.MusicPERICLESMost heavenly music!It nips me unto listening, and thick slumberHangs upon mine eyes: let me rest.SleepsLYSIMACHUSA pillow for his head:So, leave him all. Well, my companion friends,If this but answer to my just belief,I'll well remember you.Exeunt all but PERICLESDIANA appears to PERICLES as in a visionDIANAMy temple stands in Ephesus: hie thee thither,And do upon mine altar sacrifice.There, when my maiden priests are met together,Before the people all,Reveal how thou at sea didst lose thy wife:To mourn thy crosses, with thy daughter's, callAnd give them repetition to the life.Or perform my bidding, or thou livest in woe;Do it, and happy; by my silver bow!Awake, and tell thy dream.DisappearsPERICLESCelestial Dian, goddess argentine,I will obey thee. Helicanus!Re-enter HELICANUS, LYSIMACHUS, and MARINAHELICANUSSir?PERICLESMy purpose was for Tarsus, there to strikeThe inhospitable Cleon; but I amFor other service first: toward EphesusTurn our blown sails; eftsoons I'll tell thee why.To LYSIMACHUSShall we refresh us, sir, upon your shore,And give you gold for such provisionAs our intents will need?LYSIMACHUSSir,With all my heart; and, when you come ashore,I have another suit.PERICLESYou shall prevail,Were it to woo my daughter; for it seemsYou have been noble towards her.LYSIMACHUSSir, lend me your arm.PERICLESCome, my Marina.ExeuntSCENE IIEnter GOWER, before the temple of DIANA at EphesusGOWERNow our sands are almost run;More a little, and then dumb.This, my last boon, give me,For such kindness must relieve me,That you aptly will supposeWhat pageantry, what feats, what shows,What minstrelsy, and pretty din,The regent made in MytileneTo greet the king. So he thrived,That he is promised to be wivedTo fair Marina; but in no wiseTill he had done his sacrifice,As Dian bade: whereto being bound,The interim, pray you, all confound.In feather'd briefness sails are fill'd,And wishes fall out as they're will'd.At Ephesus, the temple see,Our king and all his company.That he can hither come so soon,Is by your fancy's thankful doom.ExitSCENE III. The temple of Diana at Ephesus; THAISA standing near the altar, as high priestess; a number of Virgins on each side; CERIMON and other Inhabitants of Ephesus attending.Enter PERICLES, with his train; LYSIMACHUS,
HELICANUS, MARINA, and a LadyPERICLESHail, Dian! to perform thy just command,I here confess myself the king of Tyre;Who, frighted from my country, did wedAt Pentapolis the fair Thaisa.At sea in childbed died she, but brought forthA maid-child call'd Marina; who, O goddess,Wears yet thy silver livery. She at TarsusWas nursed with Cleon; who at fourteen yearsHe sought to murder: but her better starsBrought her to Mytilene; 'gainst whose shoreRiding, her fortunes brought the maid aboard us,Where, by her own most clear remembrance, sheMade known herself my daughter.THAISAVoice and favour!You are, you are--O royal Pericles!FaintsPERICLESWhat means the nun? she dies! help, gentlemen!CERIMONNoble sir,If you have told Diana's altar true,This is your wife.PERICLESReverend appearer, no;I threw her overboard with these very arms.CERIMONUpon this coast, I warrant you.PERICLES'Tis most certain.CERIMONLook to the lady; O, she's but o'erjoy'd.Early in blustering morn this lady wasThrown upon this shore. I oped the coffin,Found there rich jewels; recover'd her, and placed herHere in Diana's temple.PERICLESMay we see them?CERIMONGreat sir, they shall be brought you to my house,Whither I invite you. Look, Thaisa is recovered.THAISAO, let me look!If he be none of mine, my sanctityWill to my sense bend no licentious ear,But curb it, spite of seeing. O, my lord,Are you not Pericles? Like him you spake,Like him you are: did you not name a tempest,A birth, and death?PERICLESThe voice of dead Thaisa!THAISAThat Thaisa am I, supposed deadAnd drown'd.PERICLESImmortal Dian!THAISANow I know you better.When we with tears parted Pentapolis,The king my father gave you such a ring.Shows a ringPERICLESThis, this: no more, you gods! your present kindnessMakes my past miseries sports: you shall do well,That on the touching of her lips I mayMelt and no more be seen. O, come, be buriedA second time within these arms.MARINAMy heartLeaps to be gone into my mother's bosom.Kneels to THAISAPERICLESLook, who kneels here! Flesh of thy flesh, Thaisa;Thy burden at the sea, and call'd MarinaFor she was yielded there.THAISABlest, and mine own!HELICANUSHail, madam, and my queen!THAISAI know you not.PERICLESYou have heard me say, when I did fly from Tyre,I left behind an ancient substitute:Can you remember what I call'd the man?I have named him oft.THAISA'Twas Helicanus then.PERICLESStill confirmation:Embrace him, dear Thaisa; this is he.Now do I long to hear how you were found;How possibly preserved; and who to thank,Besides the gods, for this great miracle.THAISALord Cerimon, my lord; this man,Through whom the gods have shown their power; that canFrom first to last resolve you.PERICLESReverend sir,The gods can have no mortal officerMore like a god than you. Will you deliverHow this dead queen re-lives?CERIMONI will, my lord.Beseech you, first go with me to my house,Where shall be shown you all was found with her;How she came placed here in the temple;No needful thing omitted.PERICLESPure Dian, bless thee for thy vision! IWill offer night-oblations to thee. Thaisa,This prince, the fair-betrothed of your daughter,Shall marry her at Pentapolis. And now,This ornamentMakes me look dismal will I clip to form;And what this fourteen years no razor touch'd,To grace thy marriage-day, I'll beautify.THAISALord Cerimon hath letters of good credit, sir,My father's dead.PERICLESHeavens make a star of him! Yet there, my queen,We'll celebrate their nuptials, and ourselvesWill in that kingdom spend our following days:Our son and daughter shall in Tyrus reign.Lord Cerimon, we do our longing stayTo hear the rest untold: sir, lead's the way.ExeuntEnter GOWERGOWERIn Antiochus and his daughter you have heardOf monstrous lust the due and just reward:In Pericles, his queen and daughter, seen,Although assail'd with fortune fierce and keen,Virtue preserved from fell destruction's blast,Led on by heaven, and crown'd with joy at last:In Helicanus may you well descryA figure of truth, of faith, of loyalty:In reverend Cerimon there well appearsThe worth that learned charity aye wears:For wicked Cleon and his wife, when fameHad spread their cursed deed, and honour'd nameOf Pericles, to rage the city turn,That him and his they in his palace burn;The gods for murder seemed so contentTo punish them; although not done, but meant.So, on your patience evermore attending,New joy wait on you! Here our play has ending.Exit