Act 1, Scene IV - Page 2

Lord

Lord
Where's the lord governor?

CLEON
Here.
Speak out thy sorrows which thou bring'st in haste,
For comfort is too far for us to expect.

Lord
We have descried, upon our neighbouring shore,
A portly sail of ships make hitherward.

CLEON
I thought as much.
One sorrow never comes but brings an heir,
That may succeed as his inheritor;
And so in ours: some neighbouring nation,
Taking advantage of our misery,
Hath stuff'd these hollow vessels with their power,
To beat us down, the which are down already;
And make a conquest of unhappy me,
Whereas no glory's got to overcome.

Lord
That's the least fear; for, by the semblance
Of their white flags display'd, they bring us peace,
And come to us as favourers, not as foes.

CLEON
Thou speak'st like him's untutor'd to repeat:
Who makes the fairest show means most deceit.
But bring they what they will and what they can,
What need we fear?
The ground's the lowest, and we are half way there.
Go tell their general we attend him here,
To know for what he comes, and whence he comes,
And what he craves.

Lord
I go, my lord.

Exit

CLEON
Welcome is peace, if he on peace consist;
If wars, we are unable to resist.

Enter PERICLES with Attendants

PERICLES
Lord governor, for so we hear you are,
Let not our ships and number of our men
Be like a beacon fired to amaze your eyes.
We have heard your miseries as far as Tyre,
And seen the desolation of your streets:
Nor come we to add sorrow to your tears,
But to relieve them of their heavy load;
And these our ships, you happily may think
Are like the Trojan horse was stuff'd within
With bloody veins, expecting overthrow,
Are stored with corn to make your needy bread,
And give them life whom hunger starved half dead.

All
The gods of Greece protect you!
And we'll 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.

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.

PERICLES
Which welcome we'll accept; feast here awhile,
Until our stars that frown lend us a smile.

Exeunt

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