Fits kings, as they are men, for they may err.
When fignior Sooth here does proclaim a peace,
He flatters you, makes war upon your life:
Prince, pardon me, or ftrike me, if you please;
I cannot be much lower than my knees.

PER. All leave us elfe; but let your cares o'erlook

What shipping, and what lading's in our haven, And then return to us. [Exeunt Lords.] Helicanus,

thou

Haft moved us: what feeft thou in our looks?

HEL. An angry brow, dread lord.

PER. If there be fuch a dart in princes' frowns, How durft thy tongue move anger to our face? HEL. How dare the plants look up to heaven,

from whence

They have their nourishment ?3

PER.

To take thy life.

Thou know'ft I have power

HEL. [Kneeling.] I have ground the axe myself;

Do you but ftrike the blow.

PER.

Rife, pr'ythee rise; Sit down, fit down; thou art no flatterer :

2 When fignior Sooth-] A near kinfman of this gentleman is mentioned in The Winter's Tale: "-and his pond fish'd by his next neighbour, by fir Smile, his neighbour." MALONE. 3 How dare the plants look up to heaven, from whence

They have their nourishment ?] Thus the quarto 1609. Mr. Rowe &c. read:

How dare the planets look up unto heaven

From whence they have their nourishment?

It would puzzle a philofopher to ascertain the quality of planetary nourishment, or to discover how planets, which are already in heaven, can be said to look up to it. STEEVENS.

I thank thee for it; and high heaven forbid, That kings fhould let their ears hear their faults hid !4

Fit counsellor, and fervant for a prince,

Who by thy wisdom mak'ft a prince thy fervant,
What would'ft thou have me do?

HEL.

With patience bear Such griefs as you do lay upon yourself.

PER. Thou speak'ft like a physician, Helicanus; Who minister'ft a potion unto me,

That thou would'ft tremble to receive thyself.
Attend me then: I went to Antioch,

Where, as thou know'ft,5 against the face of death,
I fought the purchase of a glorious beauty,
From whence an iffue I might propagate,

6

That kings fhould let their ears hear their faults hid!] Heaven forbid, that kings fhould stop their ears, and fo prevent them from hearing their fecret faults!-To let formerly fignified to hinder.

So, in Hamlet:

By heaven I'll make a ghost of him that lets me." Again, in Tancred and Gifmund, 1592:

"Nor base suspect of aught to let his fuit." MALONE.

I am not clear, but that let is here ufed in its ordinary sense : "Forbid it, heaven, (fays Pericles,) that kings should fuffer their ears to hear their failings palliated!" HOLT WHITE.

5. Where, as thou know'ft, &c.] Malone obferves that whereas is frequently ufed by the old dramatick writers, instead of where, and he is certainly right; but the obfervation is not to the purpose on the prefent occafion; for the word whereas does not really occur in this paffage, which fhould be printed and pointed thus: I went to Antioch,

Where, as thou know'ft, against the face of death,
I fought the purchafe of a glorious beauty.

Where is more frequently ufed for whereas, but not in this place. M. MASON.

• From whence an iffuean iffue, that are arms, &c.

From whence I might propagate MALONE.

Bring arms to princes, and to subjects joys."
Her face was to mine eye beyond all wonder;
The reft (hark in thine ear,) as black as inceft;
Which by my knowledge found, the finful father
Seem'd not to strike, but smooth :8 but thou know'st
this,

'Tis time to fear, when tyrants feem to kiss.
Which fear fo grew in me, I hither fled,
Under the covering of a careful night,

Who feem'd my good protector; and being here, Bethought me what was paft, what might fucceed.

7 From whence an issue I might propagate,

Bring arms to princes, and to fubjects joys.] Old copy:
Are arms to princes, and bring joys to fubjects.

I once imagined that a line was wanting to complete the sense of this paffage, and that the deficiency might be supplied as follows; a glorious beauty,

From whence an ifjue I might propagate;
For royal progeny are general bleflings,

Bring arms to princes, and to fubjects joy.
Her face &c.

Influenced, however, by the fubfequent remark of Mr. M. Mafon, I have recovered the fenfe for which he contends, by omitting one word in the corrupted line, and tranfpofing others.

STEEVENS.

The meaning of this paffage is clearly this: "From whence I might propagate fuch iffue, as bring additional strength to princes, and joy to their fubjects." The expreffion is certainly faulty; but it feems to be the fault of the author, not the printer. I believe it was written as it ftands. M. MASON.

66

* Seem'd not to ftrike, but smooth :] To Smooth formerly fignified to flatter. See note on -Smooth every paffion," in King Lear, A&t II. fc. ii. MALONE.

To Smooth in this place means to ftroke. In the same sense we should understand the word in Milton's Comus, v. 251:

66

Smoothing the raven down

"Of darkness, till it smil'd."

They fay in fome counties Smooth-instead of stroke, the cat.

HOLT WHITE.

I knew him tyrannous; and tyrants' fears
Decrease not, but grow fafter than their
years :9
And should he doubt it, (as no doubt he doth,')
That I fhould open to the liftening air,
How many worthy princes' bloods were fhed,
To keep his bed of blacknefs 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't offence,
Muft feel war's blow, who fpares not innocence :*
Which love to all (of which thyself art one,
Who now reprov'ft me for it)-

HEL.

Alas, fir!

PER. Drew fleep out of mine eyes, blood from
my cheeks,

Mufings into my mind, a thousand doubts.
How I might ftop this tempeft, ere it came;

than their years :] Old copy-the years. Their fufpicions outgrow their years; a circumftance fufficiently natural to veteran tyrants. The correction is mine. STEEVENS.

1 And Should he doubt it, (as no doubt he doth,)] The quarto, 1609, reads:

And Should he doo't, as no doubt he doth-. from which the reading of the text has been formed. The repetition is much in our author's manner, and the following words, to lop that doubt, render this emendation almost certain.

MALONE.

Here is an apparent corruption. I fhould not hesitate to read -doubt on't—or,-doubt it. To doubt is to remain in fufpenfe or uncertainty. Should he be in doubt that I fhall keep this fecret, (as there is no doubt but he is,) why, to" lop that doubt," i. e. to get rid of that painful uncertainty, he will ftrive to make me appear the aggreffor, by attacking me firft as the author of fome fuppofed injury to himself. STEEVENS.

2

who fpares not innocence:] Thus the eldeft quarto, All the other copies read corruptly:

who fears not innocence. MALONE.

And finding little comfort to relieve them,
I thought it princely charity to grieve them.3.
HEL. Well, my lord, fince you have given me
leave to speak,

Freely I'll speak. Antiochus

you fear,
And justly too, I think, you fear the tyrant,
Who either by publick 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 Deftinies do cut his thread of life.
Your rule direct to any; if to me,

Day ferves not light more faithful than I'll be.
PER. I do not doubt thy faith;

But fhould he wrong my liberties in abfence

HEL. We'll mingle bloods together in the earth,
From whence we had our being and our birth.
PER. Tyre, I now look from thee then, and to
Tharfus

Intend
my travel, where I'll hear from thee;
And by whofe letters I'll difpofe myself.
The care I had and have of fubjects' good,
On thee I lay, whose wisdom's ftrength can bear it.4
I'll take thy word for faith, not ask thine oath;
Who fhuns not to break one, will fure crack both :5

3 I thought it princely charity to grieve them.] That is to lament their fate. The eldeft quarto reads-to grieve for them.But a rhyme feems to have been intended. The reading of the text was furnished by the third quarto 1630, which, however, is of no authority. MALONE.

4

whofe wisdom's ftrength can bear it.] Pericles transferring his authority to Helicanus during his absence, naturally brings the first scene of Measure for Meafure to our mind.

5

MALONE.

will fare crack both:] Thus the folio. The word fure

is not found in the quarto. MALONE.