1 Lord. We can; my royal liege, He is not guilty of her coming hither. Leon. You are liars all. 1 Lord. 'Beseech your highness, give us better credit. We have always truly served you; and beseech So to esteem of us; and on our knees we beg (As recompense of our dear services, Past, and to come) that you do change this purpose; Which, being so horrible, so bloody, must Lead on to some foul issue. We all kneel. Leon. I am a feather for each wind that blows ;— Shall I live on, to see this bastard kneel And call me father? Better burn it now, It shall not neither.-You, sir, come you hither; [TO ANTIGONUS. You, that have been so tenderly officious Ant. And nobleness impose. At least, thus much; adventure Leon. It shall be possible. Swear by this sword, Thou wilt perform my bidding. Ant. Leon. Mark, and perform it; fail I will, my lord. (seest thou?) for the Of any point in't shall not only be Death to thyself, but to thy lewd-tongued wife; 1 Leontes must mean the beard of Antigonus, which he may be supposed to touch. He himself tells us that twenty-three years ago he was unbreeched; of course his age must be under thirty, and his own beard would hardly be gray. To some remote and desert place quite out Ant. I swear to do this, though a present death In more than this deed doth require! and blessing,2 Poor thing, condemned to loss! [Exit, with the Child. No, I'll not rear Leon. Another's issue. 1 Attend. Please your highness, posts, From those you sent to the oracle, are come An hour since. Cleomenes and Dion, Being well arrived from Delphos, are both landed, Hasting to the court. 1 Lord. So please you, sir, their speed Twenty-three days They have been absent. 'Tis good speed; foretells, The truth of this appear. Prepare you, lords; Leave me; [Exeunt. 1 i. e. commit it to some place as a stranger. To commend is to commit, according to the old dictionaries. 2 i. e. the favor of Heaven. 3 i. e. to exposure, or to be lost or dropped. ACT III. SCENE 1. The same. A Street in some Town. Enter CLEOMENES and DION. Cleo. The climate's delicate; the air most sweet; Fertile the isle; the temple much surpassing The common praise it bears. Dion. I shall report For most it caught me-the celestial habits (Methinks I so should term them) and the reverence Of the grave wearers. O, the sacrifice! How ceremonious, solemn, and unearthly It was i' the offering! Cleo. But of all, the burst And ear-deafening voice o' the oracle, Kin to Jove's thunder, so surprised my sense, That I was nothing. Dion. If the event o' the journey Prove as successful to the queen,-O, be't so!- The time is worth the use on't. Cleo. Great Apollo, Turn all to the best! These proclamations, So forcing faults upon Hermione, I little like. Dion. The violent carriage of it Will clear, or end, the business. When the oracle (Thus by Apollo's great divine sealed up) Shall the contents discover, something rare Even then will rush to knowledge.horses! And gracious be the issue! -Go,-fresh [Exeunt. 1 Warburton has remarked that the temple of Apollo was at Delphi, which was not an island. But Shakspeare little regarded geographical accuracy. He followed Green's Dorastus and Fawnia, in which it is called the isle of Delphos. There was a temple of Apollo in the isle of Delos SCENE II. The same. A Court of Justice. LEONTES, Lords, and Officers, appear properly seated. Leon. This sessions (to our great grief, we pro nounce) Even pushes 'gainst our heart. The party tried, Produce the prisoner. Offi. It is his highness' pleasure, that the queen Appear in person here in court.-Silence! HERMIONE is brought in, guarded; PAULINA and Ladies, attending. Leon. Read the indictment. Offi. Hermione, queen to the worthy Leontes, king of Sicilia, thou art here accused and arraigned of high treason, in committing adultery with Polixenes, king of Bohemia; and conspiring with Camillo to take away the life of our sovereign lord and king, thy royal husband; the pretence' whereof being by circumstances partly laid open, thou, Hermione, contrary to the faith and allegiance of a true subject, didst counsel and aid them, for their better safety, to fly away by night. Her. Since what I am to say, must be but that Which contradicts my accusation; and The testimony on my part, no other But what comes from myself; it shall scarce boot me To say, Not guilty: mine integrity, Being counted falsehood, shall, as I express it, Be so received. But thus,-If powers divine 11. e. the design. Shakspeare often uses the word for design or intention. False accusation blush, and tyranny Tremble at patience.-You, my lord, best know A moiety of the throne, a great king's daughter, And only that I stand for. I appeal To your own conscience, sir, before Polixenes Have strained, to appear thus: if one jot beyond Cry, Fie upon my grave! Leon. I ne'er heard yet, That any of these bolder vices wanted Her. Though 'tis a saying, sir, not due to me. That's true enough; More than mistress of, Leon. You will not own it. Her. Which comes to me in name of fault, I must not 1 Own, possess. 2 Encounter so uncurrent is unallowed or unlawful meeting.--Strained means swerved or gone astray from the line of duty. The explanations of this passage are not very satisfactory. It appears to be designed as a question. 3 It is to be observed that originally, in our language, two negatives did not affirm, but only strengthen the negation. In this passage, Johnson observes that, according to the present use more, or wanted should be had. of words, less should be |