The Complete Works of William Shakespeare In Plain and Simple English (Translated) (558 page)

don't let our ships and the number of forces

be like a warning fire to cause you alarm.

We heard of your misery as far away as Tyre,

and have seen the desolation in your streets:

we have not come to add to your sorrows,

but to relieve them;

these ships of ours, which you probably think

are like the Trojan horse, filled with

bloodthirsty men lusting for victory,

are in fact full of corn to make the bread you need,

and to give life to those who are almost starved to death.

All

The gods of Greece protect you!

And we'll pray for you.

May the gods of Greece protect you!

We shall pray for you.

PERICLES

Arise, I pray you, rise:

We do not look for reverence, but to love,

And harbourage for ourself, our ships, and men.

Get up, please, get up:

we are not looking for worship but for love,

and a safe harbour for myself, my ships and my men.

CLEON

The which when any shall not gratify,

Or pay you with unthankfulness in thought,

Be it our wives, our children, or ourselves,

The curse of heaven and men succeed their evils!

Till when,--the which I hope shall ne'er be seen,--

Your grace is welcome to our town and us.

If anyone fails to provide this for you,

or does not feel the proper gratitude they should,

whether it's our wives, our children or ourselves,

may the curses of heaven and men fall upon them!

Until then–and I hope that will never happen–

your grace is welcome to our town, and welcomed by us.

PERICLES

Which welcome we'll accept; feast here awhile,

Until our stars that frown lend us a smile.

Exeunt

We'll accept your welcome; eat with us now,

until sadness turns to happiness.

Enter GOWER

GOWER

Here have you seen a mighty king

His child, I wis, to incest bring;

A better prince and benign lord,

That will prove awful both in deed and word

Be quiet then as men should be,

Till he hath pass'd necessity.

I'll show you those in troubles reign,

Losing a mite, a mountain gain.

The good in conversation,

To whom I give my benison,

Is still at Tarsus, where each man

Thinks all is writ he speken can;

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; gives the Messenger a reward, and knights him. Exit PERICLES at one door, and CLEON at another

Good Helicane, that 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 had intent to murder him;

And that in Tarsus was not best

Longer for him to make his rest.

He, doing so, 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;

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

Here you have seen the mighty King

persuade his child to incest;

and a better prince and kindly lord

who will prove himself awesome in deeds and words,

keep quiet then, as one should be

until he has survived his hardships.

I'll show you those who have troubles,

who lose a pebble and gain a mountain.

The one whose conduct is good,

whom I bless,

is still at Tarsus, where each man

thinks he has the skill to speak holy writ;

and in commemoration of himself,

builds his statue to glorify himself. But news of other things

is brought before your eyes; why do I need to speak?

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; gives the Messenger a reward, and knights him. Exit PERICLES at one door, and CLEON at another

Good Helicanus has stayed home,

not to exploit the work

of others; he works

to kill the bad, to save the good;

following his prince's orders

he sends word of all that happens in Tyre:

how Thaliard came with sinful purpose

and hidden plans to murder him;

he told him that it was no longer

advisable for him to stay in Tarsus.

Hearing this he set out to sea,

which is seldom a restful place for men;

now the wind begins to blow;

thunder above and depths below

causes such disruption that the ship

which should have protected him is wrecked and sunk;

and he, good prince, having lost everything,

is tossed from coast to coast by the waves.

All the men and cargo were lost,

nobody escaped but himself;

until fate, tired with treating him badly,

cast him ashore, to make him happy:

and here he comes. As to what happens next,

excuse old Gower–you'll see from the text.

Enter PERICLES, wet

PERICLES

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

Now stop your anger, you furious stars of heaven!

Remember, wind, rain and thunder, earthly man

is only a substance that must give in to you;

as is appropriate for my nature, I obey you:

alas the sea has thrown me on the rocks,

washed me from shore to shore, and left me so breathless

all I can think of is my oncoming death:

be satisfied that your great powers

have stripped a prince of all his fortunes;

now you've thrown him out of your watery grave,

all he wants is to have a peaceful death here.

First Fisherman

What, ho, Pilch!

Hello there, Pilch!

Second Fisherman

Ha, come and bring away the nets!

Hey, bring the nets over here!

First Fisherman

What, Patch-breech, I say!

Hey there, Patch-breech, hey!

Third Fisherman

What say you, master?

What are you saying, master?

First Fisherman

Look how thou stirrest now! come away, or I'll

fetch thee with a wanion.

Aren't you moving yet! You get a move on, or I'll

give you such a smack!

Third Fisherman

Faith, master, I am thinking of the poor men that

were cast away before us even now.

I swear, master, I am thinking of the poor men who

were shipwrecked in front of us recently.

First Fisherman

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.

Alas, poor souls, it broke my heart to hear their

pitiful cries for help, when, alas,

we could hardly help ourselves.

Third Fisherman

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.

Now, master, didn't I say trouble was coming

when I saw how the porpoises were jumping? They say

they're half fish, half man: damn them,

every time they appear I expect the boat to be swamped.

Master, I am amazed how the fish manage to live in the sea.

First Fisherman

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