PER. Like a bold champion, I assume the lists, Nor ask advice of any other thought But faithfulness, and courage *. [He reads the Riddle I am no viper, yet I feed On mother's flesh, which did me breed: "Of all said yet, may'st thou prove prosperous! 66 Of all said yet, I wish thee happiness!" 'Said is here apparently contracted for assay'd, i. e. tried, attempted. PERCY. She cannot wish him more prosperous, with respect to the exposition of the riddle, than the other persons who had attempted it before; for as the necessary consequence of his expounding it would be the publication of her own shame, we cannot suppose that she should wish him to succeed in that. The passage is evidently corrupt, and should probably be corrected by reading the lines thus: “In all, save that, may'st thou prove prosperous! Her father had just said to Pericles, that his life depended on his expounding the riddle; and the daughter, who feels a regard for the Prince, expresses it by deprecating his fate, and wishing him success in every thing except that. She wishes that he may not expound the riddle, but that his failing to do so may be attended with prosperous consequences. When we consider how licentious Shakspeare frequently is in the use of his particles, it may not perhaps be thought necessary to change the word of, in the beginning of these lines, for the word in. There is no great difference in the traces of the letters between said and save; and the words that and yet have one common abbreviation, viz. y'. M. MASON. I have inserted Mr. M. Mason's conjecture in the text, as it gives a more reasonable turn to the speech than has hitherto been supplied; and because it is natural to wish that the only words assigned to this lady, might have some apt and determinate meaning. STEEVENS. 4 Nor ask advice of any other thought But faithfulness, and courage.] This is from the third book of Sidney's Arcadia: "Whereupon asking advice of no other thought but faithfulnesse and courage, he presently lighted from his own horse," &c. edit. 1633, p. 253. STEEVENS. 5 He reads the Riddle.] The riddle is thus described in 1 I sought a husband, in which labour, 8 Sharp physick is the last : but O you powers! That give heaven countless eyes to view men's acts, Why cloud they not1 their sights perpetually, Gower: "Questio regis Antiochi.-Scelere vehor, maternâ carne vescor, quero patrem meum, matris meæ virum, uxoris meæ filium.” "With felonie I am upbore, "I ete, and have it not forlore, 66 My moders fleshe whose husbonde "And who that can my tale save, wife, "All quite he shall my doughter have. "Of his answere and if he faile, "He shall be dead withouten faile." MALONE. 6 I sought a husband, in which LABOUR, I FOUND that kindness IN a father,] The defective rhyme which labour affords to father, and the obscurity indeed of the whole couplet, induce me to suppose it might originally have stood thus: "I sought a husband; in which rather "I found the kindness of a father." In which (i. e. in whom, for this pronoun anciently related to persons as well as things) I rather found parental than marital love. STEEVENS. 7 As you will live, resolve it you.] This duplication is common enough to ancient writers. So, in King Henry IV. Part I. "I'll drink no more; for no man's pleasure I." MALONE. 8 SHARP physick is the last :] i. e. the intimation in the last line of the riddle that his life depends on resolving it; which he properly enough calls sharp physick, or a bitter potion. PERCY. 9 That give heaven countless EYES to view men's acts,] So, in A Midsummer-Night's Dream : "Than all yon fiery oes and eyes of light." MAlone. countless eyes Why CLOUD they not-] So, in Macbeth: If this be true, which makes me pale to read it? Fair glass of light, I lov'd you, and could still, [Takes hold of the hand of the Princess. But, being play'd upon before your time, ANT. Prince Pericles, touch not, upon thy life 3, For that's an article within our law, 4 As dangerous as the rest. Your time's expir'd; Either expound now, or receive your sentence. 2 For he's no man on whom perfections wait,] Means no more than-he's no honest man, that knowing, &c. MALONE. to make man] i. e. to produce for man, &c. 4 But, &c. MALONE. Hell only danceth at so HARSH а CHIME:] Somewhat like this occurs in Milton's Ode at a Solemn Musick : disproportion'd sin "Jarr'd against nature's chime, and with harsh din STEEVENS. 5 Prince Pericles, TOUCH NOT, upon thy life.] This is a stroke of nature. The incestuous king cannot bear to see a rival touch the hand of the woman he loves. His jealousy resembles that of Antony: 66 66 to let him be familiar with My play-fellow, your hand; this kingly seal, "And plighter of high hearts." STEEVENS. Malefort, in Massinger's Unnatural Combat, expresses the like impatient jealousy, when Beaufort touches his daughter Theocrine, to whom he was betrothed. M. MASON. Few love to hear the sins they love to act; He's more secure to keep it shut, than shown: casts For vice repeated, is like the wand'ring wind, Blows dust in others' eyes, to spread itself;] That is, which blows dust, &c. The man who knows of the ill practices of princes, is unwise if he reveals what he knows; for the publisher of vicious actions resembles the wind, which, while it passes along, blows dust into men's eyes. When the blast is over, the eye that has been affected by the dust, suffers no farther pain, but can see as clearly as before; so by the relation of criminal acts, the eyes of mankind (though they are affected, and turn away with horror,) are opened, and see clearly what before was not even suspected: but by exposing the crimes of others, the relater suffers himself; as the breeze passes away, so the breath of the informer is gone; he dies for his temerity. Yet, to stop the course or ventilation of the air, would hurt the eyes; and to prevent informers from divulging the crimes of men would be prejudicial to mankind. Such, I think, is the meaning of this obscure passage. MALONE. 7 The breath is gone, and the sore eyes see clear: To stop the air would hurt them.] Malone has mistaken the meaning of this part of the speech is Pericles :-There should be no stop after the word clear, that line being necessarily connected with the following words; and the meaning is this: "The breath is gone, and the eyes, though sore, see clear enough to stop for the future the air that would annoy them." Malone supposes the sentence to end with the first of these lines, and makes the other a general political aphorism, not perceiving that," to stop the air would hurt them; means only to "stop the air that would hurt them; " the pronoun being omitted; an ellipsis frequent not only in poetry, but in prose. Pericles means only, by this similitude, to show the danger of revealing the crimes of princes; for as they feel themselves hurt by 8 Copp'd hills towards heaven, to tell, the earth is throng'd By man's oppression; and the poor worm doth die for't1. Kings are earth's gods; in vice their law's their will; What being more known grows worse, to smother it. All love the womb that their first beings bred, Then give my tongue like leave to love my head. the publication of their shame, they will, of course, prevent a repetition of it, by destroying the person who divulged it: He pursues the same idea in the instance of the mole, and concludes with requesting that the king would "Give his tongue like leave to love his head." That is, that he would not force his tongue to speak what, if spoken, would prove his destruction. In the second scene Pericles says, speaking of the King: "And what may make him blush in being known, 66 He'll stop the course by which it might be known." Which confirms my explanation. M. MASON. 8 COPP'D hills-] i. e. rising to a top or head. So, in P. Holland's translation of the eleventh book of Pliny's Natural History, "And few of them have cops or crested tufts upon their heads." Copped Hall, in Essex, was so named from the lofty pavilion on the roof of the old house, which has been since pulled down. The upper tire of masonry that covers a wall is still called the copping or coping. High-crowned hats were anciently called copatain hats. 9 STEEVENS. the earth is WRONG'D By man's oppression ;] Old copies-throng'd. change I am answerable. STEevens. For this The old reading is more forcible. The earth is oppressed by the injuries which crowd upon her. So, in the Tatler, as quoted by Johnson in his Dictionary in voc.: "His mother could not longer bear the agitation of so many passions as thronged upon her." BOSWELL. suppose he means I and the POOR WORM doth die for't,] I to call the mole, (which suffers in its attempts to complain of man's injustice) a poor worm, as a term of commiseration. Thus, in The Tempest, Prospero speaking to Miranda, says: 66 'Poor worm! thou art infected." The mole remains secure till he has thrown up those hillocks, |