But fince he's gone, the king's feas must please 3
He 'fcap'd the land, to perifh at the fea.

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

With meffage unto princely Pericles;

But fince my landing I have understood,

Your lord hath betook himself to unknown travels;
My meffage muft return from whence it came.
Hel. We have no reason to defire it *,
Commended to our mafter, not to us :
Yet ere you fhall depart, this we defire,
As friends to Antioch, we may feaft in Tyre.

3

[Exeunt.

the king's feas muft pleafe:] Thefe words afford no very obvious meaning. Perhaps Thaliard would fay-Since the prince is efcaped, the feas mujt do Antiochus's pleafure. The king muft look for his gratification from the feas which make a part of his dominions. But even this is harsh. We may tranfpofe, however, and read

well, I perceive

I shall not be hang'd now although I would.

Since he's gone, the king's feas must plead for me;
He fcap'd the land to perifh on the fea.

But I'll prefent me,-Peace to the lords of Tyre.

The fenfe is All the king feeks is the deftruction of Pericles. If he dies by fhipwreck, my mafter will lay no blame on the tardinefs which permitted his enemy to efcape on flore. The ocean which accomplished the purpofe of Antiochus, will plead in my defence; having rendered my interpofition in the bufinefs quite unneceffary.

The frequent occurrence of rhimes in this play will apologize for my attempt to introduce them here, where the fenfe of the fpeech is concluded; and the frequent corruptions throughout the whole fhould feem to offer a fair excufe for the prolixity and uncertainty of many of our attempts at emendation.

STEEVENS.

We have no reason to defire it,] Thus all the old copies. Perhaps a word is wanting. We might read,

We have no reafon to defire it told

Your meffage being addreffed to our mafter, and not to us, there is no reason why we should defire you to divulge it. If, however, defire be confidered as a trifyllable, the metre, though, perhaps, not the fenfe, will be fupplied. MALONE.

SCENE

SCENE IV.

Tharfus.

Enter Cleon, Dionyza, and others.

Cl. My Dionyza, fhall we reft 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 afpire,
Throws down one mountain to caft up a higher.
O my diftreffed lord, ev'n fuch our griefs, are;
Here they're but felt, unfeen with mifchief's eyes',
But like to groves, being topp'd, they higher rife.

Cle

Here they're but felt and seen with mischief's eyes,] Thus all the copies.-The words and feen, and that which I have inferted in the text, are fo near in found, that they might easily have been confounded by a hafty pronunciation, or an inattentive transcriber. By mifchief's eyes I understand "the eyes of those who would feel a malignant pleasure in our misfortunes, and add to them by their triumph over us."-The eye has been long defcribed by poets as either propitious, or malignant and unlucky. Thus in a fubfequent scene in this play:

"Now the gods throw their best eyes upon it!" MALONE, Here they're but felt, and feen with mischief's eyes, But like to groves, being top'd, they higher rife.] Mr. Malone, with fufficient probability, reads, unfeen with mifchief's eyes,

i. e. the eyes of malignity, which render forrow or difgrace more bitter. I think the fame kind of reasoning is discoverable in one of the fongs in As You Like it:

"Blow, blow, thou winter wind,

"Thou art not fo unkind

As man's ingratitude;

"Thy tooth is not so keen,

"Because thou art not feen,

Although thy breath be rude.

The lines printed in Italicks are thus elegantly and forcibly ex

plained by Dr. Johnfon.

Then

Cle. O Dionyza,

Who wanteth food, and will not fay he wants it,
Or can conceal his hunger, till he famish?
Our tongues and forrows do found deep our woes
Into the air; our eyes do weep, till lungs
Fetch breath that may proclaim them louder, that
If heaven flumber, while their creatures want,
They may awake their helps to comfort them 7.
I'll then difcourfe our woes felt feveral years,
And wanting breath to fpeak, help me with tears.
Dio. I'll do my best, fir.

Cle. This Tharfus, o'er which I have the government,

A city, on whom plenty held full hand,

For riches ftrew'd herself even in the streets;

Thou winter wind, fays the Duke, thy rudeness gives the lefs pain, as thou art not feen; thou art an enemy that doft not brave us with thy prefence, and whofe unkindness is therefore not aggravated by infult.

But like to groves, being topp'd, they higher rife.

This line is introduced to illuftrate the former, in which our author has observed that folitude affords us the just measure of our misfortunes, without aggravation. But thefe misfortunes (he adds) if topp'd, (i. e. attempted to be reduced) increase, like trees which fhoot the higher in confequence of having felt the pruning-knife. STEEVENS.

till tongues

Fetch breath]

Thus the old copy, but I think corruptedly, and would read -lungs-the organs of refpiration. STEEVENS.

7 They may awake their helpers to comfort them.] Thus the old copies. I read,

They may awake their helps to comfort them. Helps for helpers. So before:

"be my helps

MALONE.

"To compafs fuch a boundless happiness!"

For riches Arcw'd herself even in the fireets;] I fuppofe we

fhould read themfelves. STEEVENS.

Whofe

Whose towers bore heads fo high, they kiss'd the clouds 9,

And strangers ne'er beheld, but wonder'd at;
Whofe men and dames fo jetted and adorn'd',
Like one another's glafs to trim them by :
Their tables were ftor'd full, to glad the fight,
And not fo much to feed on, as delight;
All poverty was fcorn'd, and pride fo great,
The name of help grew odious to repeat.
Dio. Oh, 'tis too true.

Cle. But fee what heaven can do! By this our change,

Thefe mouths, whom but of late, earth, sea, and air,
Were all too little to content and please,

Although they gave their creatures in abundance,
As houses are defil'd for want of use,

They are now ftarv'd for want of exercise;

9 bore heads fo high they kiff'd the clouds,] So in Hamlet: like the herald Mercury

"New-lighted on a heaven-kiffing hill."

Again, in the Rape of Lucrece, 1594:

"Threatning cloud-kiffing Ilion with annoy." MALONE. fo jetted and adorn'd,] To jet is to ftrut, to walk proudly. So in Twelfth Night: "Contemplation makes a rare turkey-cock of him: how he jets under his advanced plumes !" STEEVENS.

Like one another's glafs to trim them by ;] The fame idea is found in Hamlet: Ophelia, fpeaking of the prince, fays, he was "The glafs of fashion, and the mould of form,

"The obferv'd of all obfervers."

Again, in Cymbeline:

"A fample to the youngest; to the more mature
"Aglafs that feated them."

Again, in the Second Part of King Henry IV :

"He was the mark and glass, copy and book,
"That fashion'd others,'

Again, ibid:

66

"Wherein the noble youth did dress themselves."

VOL. II.

He was indeed the glass,

MALONE.

Thofe palates, who, not us'd to hunger's favour',
Must have inventions to delight the tafte,
Would now be glad of bread, and beg for it;
Those mothers who, to nouzle up their babes
Thought nought too curious, are ready now,
To eat thofe little darlings whom they lov'd;
So fharp are hunger's teeth, that man and wife
Draw lots who firft fhall die to lengthen life:
Here stands a lord, and there a lady weeping;
Here many fink, yet thofe which fee them fall,
Have fcarce ftrength left to give them burial.
Is not this true?

3 Thofe pallats, who, not yet too favers younger,] Such is the reading of all the copies. The paffage is fo corrupt that it is difficult even to form a probable conjecture about it. The words which I have inferted in the text, afford fenfe, and are not very remote from the traces of the original letters ;-and favour and bunger might eafily have been tranfpofed. We meet in a fubfequent feene:

"All viands that I eat do feem unfavoury."

I do not, however, propofe this emendation with the smallest confidence; but it may remain till fome lefs exceptionable conjecture fhall be offered. MALONE.

who not yet too favers younger,] Here is a grofs corruption. I would boldly read,

who not yet being flaves to hunger. STEVENS.

to nouzle up their babes,] read-nurfle. A fondling is ftill called a nurfling. To nouzle, or as it is now written nuzzle, is to go with the nose down like a hog. So Pope:

"The bleffed benefit, not there confin'd,
"Drops to a third who nuzzles close behind."

STEEVENS

In an ancient poem entitled The frange Birth, honourable Coronation, and most unhappie Death of famous Arthur, King of Brytaine, 1601, I find the word nuzzle ufed nearly in the fame manner as in the text:

>

"The first faire fportive night that you fhall have,
"Lying fafely nuzled by faire Igrene's fide."

Again, more appofitely, ibid:

Being nuzled in effeminate delights"

I have therefore retained the reading of the old copy.

MALONE.