And to remember what he does,

Build his statue to make him glorious:

But tidings to the contrary

Are 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; then gives the Messenger a reward, and knights him. Exeunt PERICLES, CLEON, &c. severally.

9

Gow. Good Helicane hath stay'd at home",
Not to eat honey like a drone,

From others' labours; for though he strive
To 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 sin,
And hid intent', to murder him;

And that in Tharsus was not best
Longer for him to make his rest.
He, knowing so2, put forth to seas,

Where when men been, there's seldom ease,
For now the wind begins to blow;
Thunder above, and deeps below,
Make such unquiet, that the ship,

Should house him safe, is wreck'd and split;

HATH stay'd at home,] In the old copies, that is misprinted for "hath," as on p. 287. "Sends word," lower down, is a correction by Steevens of Sar'd one in the old copies.

1 And hid intent,] i. e. concealed purpose. Malone informs us that his quarto, 1609, reads " and hid in Tent ;" adding, "this is only mentioned to show how inaccurately this play was originally printed." The fact is, that the quarto, 1609, in the library of the Duke of Devonshire, has " And hid intent," exactly as in our text, and the correction, like some others, must have been introduced while the sheet was in the press. The quarto, 1619, alters it to "And had intent," which is followed in all the later impressions.

2 He KNOWING So,] Misprinted doing so in all the old copies, but corrected by Steevens.

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.

[Exit.

SCENE I.

Pentapolis. An open Place by the Sea Side.

Enter PERICLES, wet.

Per. Yet cease your ire, you angry stars of heaven! Wind, rain, and thunder, remember, earthly man Is 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 breath*
Nothing to think on, but ensuing death:

Let it suffice the greatness of your powers,
To 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 Fishermen.

1 Fish. What, ho, Pilch"!

2 Fish. Ho! come, and bring away the nets.

3 this 'longs the text.] i. e. as Douce properly explains it," this belongs

to the text," and not "this lengthens the text," as Steevens thought.

4- and left ME breath] The old copies, “and left my breath."

5 What, ho, PILCH !] "Pilch" seems to be applied as a nick-name to one of the fishermen. The old copies read, "What, to pelch?" A "pilch" is a leathern coat or covering. See Vol. vi. p. 433.

1 Fish. What, Patch-breech, I say!

3 Fish. What say you, master?

1 Fish. Look how thou stirrest now! come away, or I'll fetch thee with a wannion.

3 Fish. 'Faith, master, I am thinking of the poor men, that were cast away before us even now.

1 Fish. Alas, poor souls! it grieved my heart to hear what pitiful cries they made to us to help them, when, well-a-day, we could scarce help ourselves.

3 Fish. Nay, master, said not I as much, when I saw the porpus, how he bounced and tumbled? they say, they are half fish, half flesh: a plague on them! they ne'er come, but I look to be washed. Master, I marvel how the fishes live in the sea.

1 Fish. Why as men do a-land: the great ones eat up the little ones. I can compare our rich misers to nothing so fitly as to a whale; 'a plays and tumbles, driving the poor fry before him, and at last devours them all at a mouthful. Such whales have I heard on the land, who never leave gaping, till they've swallowed the whole parish, church, steeple, bells and all.

Per. A pretty moral.

3 Fish. But, master, if I had been the sexton, I would have been that day in the belfry.

2 Fish. Why, man?

3 Fish. Because he should have swallowed me too; and when I had been in his belly, I would have kept such a jangling of the bells, that he should never have left, till he cast bells, steeple, church, and parish, up again. But if the good king Simonides were of my mind

Per. Simonides?

3 Fish. We would purge the land of these drones, that rob the bee of her honey.

Per. How from the finny subject of the sea

6 How from the FINNY subject of the sea] Steevens corrected the old copies,

These fishers tell the infirmities of men;
And from their watery empire recollect
All that may men approve, or men detect!—
Peace be at your labour, honest fishermen.

2 Fish. Honest! good fellow, what's that? if it be a day fits you, search out of the calendar, and no body look after it".

Per. Y' may see, the sea hath cast me upon your coast 8

2 Fish. What a drunken knave was the sea, to cast

thee in our way.

Per. A man whom both the waters and the wind, In that vast tennis-court, hath made the ball For them to play upon, entreats you pity him;

He asks of you, that never us'd to beg.

1 Fish. No. friend, cannot you beg? here's them in our country of Greece, gets more with begging, than we can do with working.

2 Fish. Canst thou catch any fishes, then?

Per. I never practis'd it.

2 Fish. Nay, then thou wilt starve, sure; for here's nothing to be got now a-days, unless thou canst fish

for't.

Per. What 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,

which read fenny, to "finny," and rightly, as is shown by the words of the novel founded upon the play :-"Prince Pericles wondering that from the finny subjects of the sea, these poor country-people learned the infirmities of men."

7- and no body look after it.] We follow all the old copies, the reading of which is quite as intelligible as any proposed emendation. It has been suggested that something has been lost, and it seems probable.

Y' may see, the sea hath cast me upon your coast-] So the folio, 1664, correcting the quartos, which read " May see the sea hath cast upon your coast." This speech seems unconnected with anything that has gone before, and it is to be regretted that the novel founded upon the play here affords us no assistance. Some modern editors tell us that the folio reads, "You may see the sea hath cast me on your coast." This is a slight misrepresentation of the fact, of course unintentional, and we mention it merely because it gives a wrong notion of the accuracy of the old copies.

And have no more of life, than may suffice

To 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.

1 Fish. Die quoth-a? Now, gods forbid it! I have a gown here; come, put it on; keep thee warm. Now, afore me, a handsome fellow! Come, thou shalt go home, and we'll have flesh for holidays, fish for fastingdays, and moreo'er puddings and flap-jacks; and thou shalt be welcome.

Per. I thank you, sir.

friend, you said you could not

2 Fish. Hark you, my friend,

beg.

Per. I did but crave.

2 Fish. But crave? Then I'll turn craver too, and so I shall 'scape whipping.

Per. Why, are all your beggars whipped, then?

2 Fish. O! not all, my friend, not all; for if all your beggars were whipped, I would wish no better office than to be beadle. But, master, I'll go draw up the [Exeunt Two of the Fishermen. Per. How well this honest mirth becomes their labour !

net.

1 Fish. Hark you, sir; do you know where you are? Per. Not well.

1 Fish. Why, I'll tell you: this is called Pentapolis, and our king, the good Simonides.

Per. The good king Simonides, do you call him?

1 Fish. Ay, sir; and he deserves to be so called, for

his peaceable reign, and good government.

Per. He is a happy king, since he gains from his subjects the name of good by his government. How far is his court distant from this shore?

9 - puddings and FLAP-JACKS ;] A "flap-jack" was a pancake or fritter, and it seems to have been made of batter and apple. In some parts of the country it is also still called an apple-jack. See Holloway's " General Provincial Dictionary," 8vo, 1838. In the old editions, "moreo'er" is printed more; or.