That thou betray'dft Polixenes, 'twas nothing; (8)
That did but fhew thee of a Soul inconftant,
And damnable ingrateful: nor was't much,
Thou would'st have poison'd good Camillo's honour,
To have him kill a King: poor trefpaffes,
More monftrous standing by; whereof I reckon
The cafting forth to crows thy baby-daughter,
To be, or none, or little; tho' a devil

Would have fhed water out of fire, ere don't:
Nor is't directly laid to thee, the death
Of the young Prince, whofe honourable thoughts
(Thoughts high for one fo tender) cleft the heart,
That could conceive a grofs and foolish Sire
Blemish'd his gracious Dam: this is not, no,
Laid to thy answer; but the laft, O lords,
When I have faid, cry, woe! the Queen, the Queen,-
The sweetest, deareft, creature's dead; and vengeance
for't

Not dropt down yet.

Lord. The higher Powers forbid!

Pau. I fay, fhe's dead: I'll fwear't: if word, nor oath,
Prevail not, go and fee: if you can bring
Tincture or luftre in her lip, her eye,

Heat outwardly, or breath within, I'll ferve you
As I would do the Gods. But, O thou tyrant!
Do not repent these things; for they are heavier
Than all thy woes can stir: therefore betake thee
To nothing but Despair. A thousand knees,
Ten thousand years together, naked, fafting,
Upon a barren mountain, and still winter
In ftorm perpetual, could not move the Gods

(8) That thou betray'dft Polixenes,' twas Nothing;
That did but fhew thee, of a Fool, inconftant,

And damnable ingrateful.] I have ventur'd at a flight Alteration here, against the Authority of all the Copies. It is certainly too grofs and blunt in Paulina, tho' She might impeach the King of Fooleries in fome of his paft Actions and Conduct, to call him downright a Fool. And it is much more pardonable in her to arraign his Morals, and the Qualities of his Mind, than rudely to call him Idiot to his Face.

To

To look that way thou wert.

Leo. Go on, go on:

Thou canst not fpeak too much; I have deserv'd
All tongues to talk their bitterest.

Lord. Say no more;

Howe'er the bufinefs goes, you have made fault
I'th' boldness of your speech.

Pau. I am forry for't.

All faults I make, when I fhall come to know them, I do repent: alas, I've fhew'd too much

The rafhness of a woman; he is touch'd

To th' noble heart. What's gone, and what's past help, Should be past grief. Do not receive affliction

At my petition, I befeech you; rather

Let me be punish'd, that have minded you
Of what you should forget. Now, good my liege,
Sir, royal Sir, forgive a foolish woman;

The love I bore your Queen-lo, fool again!-
I'll speak of her no more, nor of your children:
I'll not remember you of my own lord,

Who is loft too. Take you your patience to you,
And I'll fay nothing.

Leo. Thou didst speak but well,

When most the truth; which I receive much better
Than to be pitied of thee. Pr'ythee, bring me
To the dead bodies of my Queen and fon;
One Grave fhall be for both. Upon them shall
The causes of their death appear unto
Our fhame perpetual; once a day I'll vifit

The Chappel where they lye, and tears, fhed there,
Shall be my recreation. So long as nature
Will bear up with this exercise, fo long

I daily vow to use it.
To thefe forrows.

Come, and lead me

[Exeunt.

SCENE

SCENE changes to Bohemia. A defart Country; the Sea at a little distance.

Enter Antigonus with a Child, and a Mariner.

HOU art perfect then, our fhip hath touch'd

• Ant. Th

upon

The defarts of Bohemia?

Mar. Ay, my lord; and fear,

We've landed in ill time: the skies look grimly,
And threaten prefent blufters. In my conscience,
The heav'ns with that we have in hand are angry,
And frown upon's.

Ant. Their facred wills be done! get thee aboard,
Look to thy bark, I'll not be long before
I call upon thee.

Mar. Make your best hafte, and go not
Too far i'th' land; 'tis like to be loud weather.
Befides, this place is famous for the creatures
Of prey, that keep upon't.

Ant. Go thou away.

I'll follow inftantly.

Mar. I'm glad at heart To be fo rid o' th' bufinefs.

Ant. Come, poor babe;

[Exit.

I have heard, but not believ'd, the fpirits of the dead
May walk again; if fuch thing be, thy mother
Appear'd to me last night; for ne'er was dream
So like a waking. To me comes a creature,
Sometimes her head on one fide, fome another,
I never faw a veffel of like forrow

So fill'd, and fo becoming; in pure white robes,
Like very fanctity, she did approach

My cabin where I lay; thrice bow'd before me,
And, gafping to begin fome fpeech, her eyes
Became two spouts; the fury spent, anon
Did this break from her. "Good Antigonus,
"Since fate, against thy better difpofition,
"Hath made thy perfon for the thrower-out
"Of my poor babe, according to thine oath,

"Places

"Places remote enough are in Bohemia,

"There weep, and leave it crying; and, for the babe "Is counted loft for ever and ever, Perdita,

"I pr'ythee, call't. For this ungentle bufinefs,
"Put on thee by my lord, thou ne'er fhalt fee
"Thy wife Paulina more.” -And fo, with fhrieks,
She melted into air. Affrighted much,

I did in time collect myfelf, and thought
This was fo, and no flumber: Dreams are toys,
Yet for this once, yea, fuperftitiously,
I will be fquar'd by this. I do believe,
Hermione hath fuffer'd death; and that
Apollo would, this being indeed the iffue
Of King Polixenes, it fhould here be laid,
Either for life or death, upon the earth
Of its right father. Bloffom, fpeed thee well!

[Laying down the child. There lye, and there thy character: there thefe, Which may, if fortune please, both breed thee, pretty

one,

And still reft thine. The ftorm begins ;- -Poor wretch,
That for thy mother's fault art thus expos'd

To loss, and what may follow, (weep I cannot,
But my heart bleeds: and most accurft am I
To be by oath enjoin'd to this.) Farewel!

The day frowns more and more; thou art like to have
A lullaby too rough: I never faw

The heav'ns fo dim by day. A favage clamour!
Well may I get aboard! this is the chace;

I am gone for ever.

[Exit, pursued by a bear.

Enter an old Shepherd.

Shep. I would there were no age between ten and three and twenty, or that youth would fleep out the reft: for there is nothing in the between but getting wenches with child, wronging the ancientry, ftealing, fightinghark you now!would any but thefe boil'd brains of nineteen, and two and twenty, hunt this weather? They have fcar'd away two of my beft fheep, which, I fear, the wolf will fooner find than the mafter; if any where

I have them, 'tis by the fea-fide, brouzing of ivy. Good luck, an't be thy will! what have we here? [Taking up the child.] Mercy on's, a bearne! a very pretty bearne! a boy, or a child, I wonder! a pretty one, a very pretty one; fure, fome 'fcape: tho' I am not bookish, yet I can read waiting-gentlewoman in the 'fcape. This has been fome ftair-work, fome trunk. work, fome behind-door-work: they were warmer that got this, than the poor thing is here. I'll take it up for fon come: he hollow'd but

pity, yet I'll tarry till my

even now; Whoa, ho-hoa!

Clo. Hilloa, loa!

Enter Clown.

Shep. What, art fo near? if thou'lt fee a thing to talk on when thou art dead and rotten, come hither. What ail'ft thou, man?

Clo. I have feen two fuch fights, by fea and by land; but I am not to fay, it is a fea; for it is now the sky; betwixt the firmament and it you cannot thrust a bodkin's point.

Shep. Why, boy, how is it?

Clo. I would, you did but fee how it chafes, how it rages, how it takes up the fhore; but that's not to the point; oh, the moft piteous cry of the poor fouls, fome. times to fee 'em, and not to fee 'em: now the ship boring the moon with her main-mast, and anon fwallow'd with yeft and froth, as you'd thrust a cork into a hogfhead. And then for the land fervice,- to fee how the Bear tore out his fhoulder-bone, how he cry'd to me for help, and faid, his name was Antigonus, a nobleman. But to make an end of the fhip, to fee how the fea flap-dragon'd it. But first, how the poor fouls roar'd, and the fea mock'd them. And how the poor gentleman roar'd, and the bear mock'd him; both roaring louder than the fea, or weather.

Shep. 'Name of mercy, when was this, boy?

Clo. Now, now, I have not wink'd fince I saw these fights; the men are not yet cold under water, nor the bear half din'd on the gentleman; he's at it now.

(9) Shep.