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 | 4 |
| 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 | 8 |
| 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, | 12 |
| Here to have death in peace is all he’ll crave. | |
| |
Enter three Fishermen. | |
| First Fish. What, ho, Pilch! | |
| Sec. Fish. Ha! come and bring away the nets. | 16 |
| First Fish. What, Patch-breech, I say! | |
| Third Fish. What say you, master? | |
| First Fish. Look how thou stirrest now! come away, or I’ll fetch thee with a wannion. | |
| Third Fish. Faith, master, I am thinking of the poor men that were cast away before us even now. | 20 |
| First 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. | |
| Third Fish. Nay, master, said not I as much when I saw the porpus how he bounced and tumbled? they say they’re 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. | |
| First 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 o’ the land, who never leave gaping till they’ve swallowed the whole parish, church, steeple, bells, and all. | |
| Per. [Aside.] A pretty moral. | 24 |
| Third Fish. But master, if I had been the sexton, I would have been that day in the belfry. | |
| Sec. Fish Why, man? | |
| Third 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. [Aside.] Simonides! | 28 |
| Third Fish. We would purge the land of these drones, that rob the bee of her honey. | |
| Per. [Aside.] How from the finny subject of the sea | |
| These fishers tell the infirmities of men; | |
| And from their watery empire recollect | 32 |
| All that may men approve or men detect! | |
| [Aloud.] Peace be at your labour, honest fishermen. | |
| Sec. Fish. Honest! good fellow, what’s that? if it be a day fits you, search out of the calendar, and nobody look after it. | |
| Per. Y’ may see the sea hath cast me on your coast. | 36 |
| Sec. 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, have made the ball | |
| For them to play upon, entreats you pity him; | 40 |
| He asks of you, that never us’d to beg. | |
| First Fish. No, friend, cannot you beg? here’s them in our country of Greece gets more with begging than we can do with working. | |
| Sec. Fish. Canst thou catch any fishes then? | |
| Per. I never practised it. | 44 |
| Sec. 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, | 48 |
| 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. | 52 |
| First Fish. Die, quoth-a? Now, gods forbid! 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 fasting-days, and moreo’er puddings and flap-jacks; and thou shalt be welcome. | |
| Per. I thank you, sir. | |
| First Fish. Hark you, my friend; you said you could not beg. | |
| Per. I did but crave. | 56 |
| Sec. Fish. But crave! Then I’ll turn craver too, and so I shall ’scape whipping. | |
| Per. Why, are all your beggars whipped, then? | |
| Sec. 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 net. [Exit with Third Fisherman. | |
| Per. How well this honest mirth becomes their labour! | 60 |
| First Fish. Hark you, sir; do you know where ye are? | |
| Per. Not well. | |
| First 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? | 64 |
| First 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? | |
| First Fish. Marry, sir, half a day’s journey; and I’ll tell you, he hath a fair daughter, and to-morrow is her birthday; and there are princes and knights come from all parts of the world to just and tourney for her love. | |
| Per. Were my fortunes equal to my desires, I could wish to make one there. | 68 |
| First Fish. O! sir, things must be as they may; and what a man cannot get, he may lawfully deal for his wife’s soul,— | |
| |
Re-enter Second and Third Fishermen, drawing up a net. | |
| Sec. Fish. Help, master, help! here’s a fish hangs in the net, like a poor man’s right in the law; ’twill hardly come out. Ha! bots on’t, ’tis come at last, and ’tis turned to a rusty armour. | |
| Per. An armour, friends! I pray you, let me see it. | 72 |
| Thanks, Fortune, yet, that after all my crosses | |
| Thou giv’st me somewhat to repair myself; | |
| And though it was mine own, part of mine heritage, | |
| Which my dead father did bequeath to me, | 76 |
| With this strict charge, even as he left his life, | |
| ‘Keep it, my Pericles, it hath been a shield | |
| ’Twixt me and death;’—and pointed to this brace; | |
| ‘For that it sav’d me, keep it; in like necessity— | 80 |
| The which the gods protect thee from!—’t may defend thee.’ | |
| It kept where I kept, I so dearly lov’d it; | |
| Till the rough seas, that spare not any man, | |
| Took it in rage, though calm’d they have given ’t again. | 84 |
| I thank thee for ’t; my shipwrack now’s no ill, | |
| Since I have here my father’s gift in ’s will. | |
| First Fish. What mean you, sir? | |
| Per. To beg of you, kind friends, this coat of worth, | 88 |
| For it was sometime target to a king; | |
| I know it by this mark. He lov’d me dearly, | |
| And for his sake I wish the having of it; | |
| And that you’d guide me to your sovereign’s court, | 92 |
| Where with it I may appear a gentleman; | |
| And if that ever my low fortunes better, | |
| I’ll pay your bounties; till then rest your debtor. | |
| First Fish. Why, wilt thou tourney for the lady? | 96 |
| Per. I’ll show the virtue I have borne in arms. | |
| First Fish. Why, do’e take it; and the gods give thee good on ’t! | |
| Sec. Fish. Ay, but hark you, my friend; ’twas we that made up this garment through the rough seams of the water; there are certain condolements, certain vails. I hope, sir, if you thrive, you’ll remember from whence you had it. | |
| Per. Believe it, I will. | 100 |
| By your furtherance I am cloth’d in steel; | |
| And spite of all the rapture of the sea, | |
| This jewel holds his biding on my arm: | |
| Unto thy value will I mount myself | 104 |
| Upon a courser, whose delightful steps | |
| Shall make the gazer joy to see him tread. | |
| Only, my friend, I yet am unprovided | |
| Of a pair of bases. | 108 |
| Sec. Fish. We’ll sure provide; thou shalt have my best gown to make thee a pair, and I’ll bring thee to the court myself. | |
| Per. Then honour be but a goal to my will! This day I’ll rise, or else add ill to ill. [Exeunt. | |
