That vulgars give bold'st titles; ay, and privy
To this their late escape.

No, by my life,

Her. Privy to none of this: How will this grieve you, When you shall come to clearer knowledge, that You thus have publish'd me? Gentle my lord, You scarce can right me throughly then, to say You did mistake.

Leon.

No, no; if I mistake

In those foundations which I build upon,
The centre is not big enough to bear

A school-boy's top9.-Away with her to prison:
He, who shall speak for her, is afar off guilty,
But that he speaks 1o.

Her.

There's some ill planet reigns: I must be patient, till the heavens look

With an aspéct more favourable.-Good my lords,
I am not prone to weeping, as our sex
Commonly are; the want of which vain dew,
Perchance, shall dry your pities: but I have
That honourable grief lodg'd here, which burns
Worse than tears drown: 'Beseech you all, my lords,
With thoughts so qualified as your charities
Shall best instruct you, measure me;—and so
The king's will be perform❜d!

Leon.

Her. Who is't that goes highness,

[To the Guards.

Shall I be heard?

with me?-'Beseech your

9 i. e. no foundation can be trusted. Milton has expressed the same thought in more exalted language:

'If this fail,

The pillar'd firmament is rottenness,

And earth's base built on stubble.'

10 He who shall speak for her is afar off guilty,

But that he speaks.'

He who shall speak for her is remotely guilty in merely speaking.

My women may be with me; for, you see,
My plight requires it. Do not weep, good fools;
There is no cause: when you shall know your mistress
Has deserv'd prison, then abound in tears,
As I come out this action, I now go on 11,
Is for my better grace.-Adieu, my lord:
I never wish'd to see you sorry; now,

I trust, I shall.- My women, come; you have

leave.

Leon. Go, do our bidding; hence.

[Exeunt Queen and Ladies. 1 Lord. 'Beseech your highness, call the queen again.

Ant. Be certain what you do, sir; lest your justice Prove violence; in the which three great ones suffer, Yourself, your queen, your son.

1 Lord.

For her, my lord,— I dare my life lay down, and will do't, sir,

Please you to accept it, that the queen is spotless l'the eyes of heaven, and to you; I mean,

In this which you accuse her.

If it prove

Ant.
She's otherwise, I'll keep my stables 12 where

I lodge my wife; I'll go in couples with her;
Then when I feel, and see her, no further trust her;
For every inch of woman in the world,

Ay, every dram of woman's flesh, is false,

11 i. e. what I am now about to do. 12 Much has been said about this passage: one has thought it should be stable-stand; another that it means station. But it may be explained thus: If she prove false, I'll make my stables or kennel of my wife's chamber; I'll go in couples with her like a dog, and never leave her for a moment; trust her no further than I can feel and see her.'

Ant. It is for you we speak, not for ourselves: You are abus'd, and by some putter-on,

That will be damn'd for't; 'would, I knew the villain,
I would land-damn 13 him: Be she honour-flaw'd,-
I have three daughters; the eldest is eleven;
The second, and the third, nine, and some five;
If this prove true, they'll pay for't: by mine honour,
I'll geld them all; fourteen they shall not see,
To bring false generations; they are coheirs;
And I had rather glib 14 myself, than they
Should not produce fair issue.

Leon.

Cease; no more.

You smell this business with a sense as cold

As is a dead man's nose: but I do see't, and feel't,

As

you

feel doing thus; and see withal

The instruments that feel 15.

Ant.

If it be so,

We need no grave to bury honesty;

There's not a grain of it, the face to sweeten
Of the whole dungy earth.

Leon.

What! lack I credit?

1 Lord. I had rather you did lack, than I, my lord, Upon this ground: and more it would content me To have her honour true, than your suspicion; Be blam'd for't how you might.

Leon.

Why, what need we

13 I would land-damn him.' Johnson interprets this: 'I will damn or condemn him to quit the land.' It may have meant to encompass him by land, ensnare him: and then it should be printed land-damm: we have words of the same formation, as land-lockt, &c. Hanmer's interpretation from lant or land urine wants support. Mr. Nares thinks that it suits best with the gross complexion of the whole speech.

14 Glib or lib, i. e. castrate.

15 I see and feel my disgrace, as you, Antigonus, now feel my doing this to you, and as you now see the instruments that feel, i. e. my fingers. Leontes must here be supposed to touch or lay hold of Antigonus.

Commune with you of this? but rather follow
Our forceful instigation? Our prerogative

Calls not your counsels; but our natural goodness
Imparts this: which, if you (or stupified,
Or seeming so in skill) cannot, or will not,
Relish as 16 truth, like us; inform yourselves,
We need no more of your advice: the matter,
The loss, the gain, the ordering on't, is all
Properly ours.

Ant.

And I wish, my liege,

You had only in your silent judgment tried it,
Without more overture.

Leon.

How could that be?

Either thou art most ignorant by age,

Or thou wert born a fool. Camillo's flight,
Added to their familiarity,

(Which was as gross as ever touch'd conjecture, That lack'd sight only, nought for approbation 17, But only seeing, all other circumstances

Made up to the deed) doth push on this proceeding:
Yet, for a greater confirmation,

(For, in an act of this importance, 'twere
Most piteous to be wild) I have despatch'd in post,
To sacred Delphos, to Apollo's temple,
Cleomenes and Dion, whom you know

Of stuff'd sufficiency 18: Now, from the oracle
They will bring all; whose spiritual counsel had
Shall stop, or spur me. Have I done well?
1 Lord. Well done, my lord.

Leon. Though I am satisfied, and need no more Than what I know, yet shall the oracle

Give rest to the minds of others; such as he,
Whose ignorant credulity will not

16 The old copy reads a truth. Rowe made the correction. 17 i. e. proof.

18 i. e. of abilities more than sufficient.

Come up to the truth: So have we thought it good,
From our free person she should be confin'd;
Lest that the treachery of the two fled hence,
Be left her to perform. Come, follow us;
We are to speak in publick: for this business
Will raise us all.

Ant. [Aside.] To laughter, as I take it,
If the good truth were known.

SCENE II.

[Exeunt.

The same. The outer Room of a Prison.

Enter PAULINA and Attendants.

Paul. The keeper of the prison,-call to him;

[Exit an Attendant. Let him have knowledge who I am,-Good lady! No court in Europe is too good for thee, What dost thou then in prison?-Now, good sir,

Re-enter Attendant, with the Keeper.

You know me, do you not?

Keeper.

For a worthy lady,

Pray you, then,

And one whom much I honour.

Paul.

Conduct me to the queen.

Keep. I may not, madam; to the contrary express commandment.

I have

Paul.

Here's ado,

To lock up honesty and honour from

The access of gentle visitors!- Is it lawful,
Pray you, to see her women? any of them?
Emilia?

Keep. So please you, madam, to put
Apart these your attendants, I shall bring
Emilia forth.