Pericles by William Shakespeare
Act 1 - Scene 4
Tarsus. A room in the Governor’s house.
Cleon : My Dionyza, shall we rest us here,
[p]And by relating tales of others'
griefs,
[p]See if 'twill teach us to forget our own?
Dionyza : That were to blow at fire in hope to quench it;
[p]For who digs hills
because they do aspire
[p]Throws down one mountain to cast up a
higher.
[p]O my distressed lord, even such our griefs are;
[p]Here
they're but felt, and seen with mischief's eyes,
[p]But like to
groves, being topp'd, they higher rise.
Cleon : O Dionyza,
[p]Who wanteth food, and will not say he wants it,
[p]Or
can conceal his hunger till he famish?
[p]Our tongues and sorrows do
sound deep
[p]Our woes into the air; our eyes do weep,
[p]Till tongues
fetch breath that may proclaim them louder;
[p]That, if heaven slumber
while their creatures want,
[p]They may awake their helps to comfort
them.
[p]I'll then discourse our woes, felt several years,
[p]And
wanting breath to speak help me with tears.
Dionyza : I'll do my best, sir.
Cleon : This Tarsus, o'er which I have the government,
[p]A city on whom
plenty held full hand,
[p]For riches strew'd herself even in the
streets;
[p]Whose towers bore heads so high they kiss'd the
clouds,
[p]And strangers ne'er beheld but wondered at;
[p]Whose men
and dames so jetted and adorn'd,
[p]Like one another's glass to trim
them by:
[p]Their tables were stored full, to glad the sight,
[p]And
not so much to feed on as delight;
[p]All poverty was scorn'd, and
pride so great,
[p]The name of help grew odious to repeat.
Dionyza : O, 'tis too true.
Cleon : But see what heaven can do! By this our change,
[p]These mouths, who
but of late, earth, sea, and air,
[p]Were all too little to content
and please,
[p]Although they gave their creatures in abundance,
[p]As
houses are defiled for want of use,
[p]They are now starved for want
of exercise:
[p]Those palates who, not yet two summers
younger,
[p]Must have inventions to delight the taste,
[p]Would now be
glad of bread, and beg for it:
[p]Those mothers who, to nousle up
their babes,
[p]Thought nought too curious, are ready now
[p]To eat
those little darlings whom they loved.
[p]So sharp are hunger's teeth,
that man and wife
[p]Draw lots who first shall die to lengthen
life:
[p]Here stands a lord, and there a lady weeping;
[p]Here many
sink, yet those which see them fall
[p]Have scarce strength left to
give them burial.
[p]Is not this true?
Dionyza : Our cheeks and hollow eyes do witness it.
Cleon : O, let those cities that of plenty's cup
[p]And her prosperities so
largely taste,
[p]With their superfluous riots, hear these
tears!
[p]The misery of Tarsus may be theirs.
Lord : Where's the lord governor?
Cleon : Here.
[p]Speak out thy sorrows which thou bring'st in haste,
[p]For
comfort is too far for us to expect.
Lord : We have descried, upon our neighbouring shore,
[p]A portly sail of
ships make hitherward.
Cleon : I thought as much.
[p]One sorrow never comes but brings an
heir,
[p]That may succeed as his inheritor;
[p]And so in ours: some
neighbouring nation,
[p]Taking advantage of our misery,
[p]Hath
stuff'd these hollow vessels with their power,
[p]To beat us down, the
which are down already;
[p]And make a conquest of unhappy
me,
[p]Whereas no glory's got to overcome.
Lord : That's the least fear; for, by the semblance
[p]Of their white flags
display'd, they bring us peace,
[p]And come to us as favourers, not as
foes.
Cleon : Thou speak'st like him's untutor'd to repeat:
[p]Who makes the fairest
show means most deceit.
[p]But bring they what they will and what they
can,
[p]What need we fear?
[p]The ground's the lowest, and we are half
way there.
[p]Go tell their general we attend him here,
[p]To know for
what he comes, and whence he comes,
[p]And what he craves.
Lord : I go, my lord.
Cleon : Welcome is peace, if he on peace consist;
[p]If wars, we are unable to
resist.
Pericles : Lord governor, for so we hear you are,
[p]Let not our ships and number
of our men
[p]Be like a beacon fired to amaze your eyes.
[p]We have
heard your miseries as far as Tyre,
[p]And seen the desolation of your
streets:
[p]Nor come we to add sorrow to your tears,
[p]But to relieve
them of their heavy load;
[p]And these our ships, you happily may
think
[p]Are like the Trojan horse was stuff'd within
[p]With bloody
veins, expecting overthrow,
[p]Are stored with corn to make your needy
bread,
[p]And give them life whom hunger starved half dead.
All : The gods of Greece protect you!
[p]And we'll pray for you.
Pericles : Arise, I pray you, rise:
[p]We do not look for reverence, but to
love,
[p]And harbourage for ourself, our ships, and men.
Cleon : The which when any shall not gratify,
[p]Or pay you with
unthankfulness in thought,
[p]Be it our wives, our children, or
ourselves,
[p]The curse of heaven and men succeed their evils!
[p]Till
when,--the which I hope shall ne'er be seen,--
[p]Your grace is
welcome to our town and us.
Pericles : Which welcome we'll accept; feast here awhile,
[p]Until our stars that
frown lend us a smile.
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Next: Act 2 - Scene 1
