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 and other Lords.

First Lord. Joy and all comfort in your sacred breast! Second Lord. And keep your mind, till you return

to us,

Peaceful and comfortable !

Hel. Peace, peace! and give experience tongue.
They do abuse the king that flatter him;

For flattery is the bellows blows up sin;
The thing the 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.

Per. All leave us else; but let your cares o'erlook
What shipping and what lading 's in our haven,
And then return to us.

Helicanus, thou

Exeunt Lords.

Hast moved us; what seest thou in our looks?

Hel. An angry brow, dread lord.

Per. If there be such a dart in princes' frowns, How durst thy tongue move anger to our face? Hel. How dare the plants look up to heaven, from

whence

They have their nourishment?

Per.

To take thy life from thee.

Thou know'st I have power

Hel. Kneeling. I have ground the axe myself; Do you but strike the blow.

Per.

Rise, prithee, rise;

Sit down; thou art no flatterer :

I thank thee for it; and heaven forbid

That kings should let their ears hear their faults hid!

Fit counsellor and servant for a prince,

Who by thy wisdom mak'st a prince thy servant,

What would'st thou have me do?

Hel.
To bear with patience
Such griefs as you yourself do lay upon yourself.
Per. Thou speak'st like a physician, Helicanus,
That minister'st a potion unto me

That thou would'st 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 father
Seem'd not to strike, but smooth; but thou know'st

this,

'Tis time to fear when tyrants seem to kiss.

Which 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' fears
Decrease not, but grow faster than the years.
And should he doubt it, as no doubt he doth,
That I should open to the listening air
How 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,—

Hel.

Alas! sir.

Per. Drew sleep out of mine eyes, blood from my cheeks,

Musings into my mind, with thousand doubts
How I might stop this tempest ere it came;
And finding little comfort to relieve them,
I thought it princely charity to grieve them.
Hel. Well, 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 treason
Will 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.

Per. I do not doubt thy faith;

But should he wrong my liberties in my absence?

Hel. We'll mingle our bloods together in the earth,

From whence we had our being and our birth.

Per. Tyre, I now look from thee then, and to Tarsus
Intend my travel, where I'll hear from thee,
And by whose letters I'll dispose myself.
The care I had and have of subjects' good

On 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.

Exeunt.

SCENE III.-The Same. An Antechamber in the

Palace.

Enter THALIARD.

Thal. So this is Tyre, and this the court. Here must I kill King Pericles; and if I do it not, I am sure to be hanged at home: 'tis dangerous. Well, I perceive he was a wise fellow, and had good discretion, that, being bid to ask what he would of the king, desired he might know none of his secrets: now do I see he had some reason for 't; for if a king bid a man be a villain, he 's bound by the indenture of his oath to be one. Hush! here come the lords of Tyre.

Enter HELICAnus, EscaneS, and other Lords.
Hel. You 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.
Thal. Aside. How! the king gone!

Hel. If further yet you will be satisfied,
Why, as it were unlicens'd of your loves,
He would depart, I'll give some light unto you.
Being at Antioch-

Thal. Aside. What from Antioch?

Hel. Royal Antiochus, on what cause I know not,
Took some displeasure at him, at least he judg'd so;
And doubting lest that he had err'd or sinn'd,
To show his sorrow he'd correct himself;

So puts himself unto the shipman's toil,
With whom each minute threatens life or death.
Thal. Aside. Well, I perceive

I shall not be hang'd now, although I would;
But since he 's gone, the king it sure must please,
He 'scap'd the land, to perish at the sea.

I'll present myself. Peace to the lords of Tyre! Hel. Lord Thaliard from Antiochus is welcome. Thal. From him I come

With message unto princely Pericles;

But since my landing I have understood

Your lord has betook himself to unknown travels,
My message must return from whence it came.
Hel. We 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.

Exeunt.

SCENE IV.-Tarsus.

A Room in the Governor's House.

Enter CLEON, DIONYZA, and Attendants.

Cle. My Dionyza, shall we rest us here,
And by relating tales of others' griefs,
See if 'twill teach us to forget our own?

Dio. That were to blow at fire in hope to quench it ;
For who digs hills because they do aspire
Throws 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.
Cle. O 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 deep
Our 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,