By thee to us; and he shall be interr'd

As soldiers can. Be cheerful; wipe thine eyes:
Some falls are means the happier to arise.

[Exeunt.

SCENE III.- The Same. A Room in CYMBELINE'S Palace.

Enter CYMBELINE, Lords, PISANIO, and Attendants.

[Exit an Attendant.

Cym. Again; and bring me word how 'tis with her.
A fever with the absence of her son;
Madness, of which her life's in danger.

How deeply you at once do touch me!

Heavens,
Imogen,

The great part of my comfort, gone; my Queen
Upon a desperate bed, and in a time

When fearful wars point at me; her son gone,
So needful for this present: it strikes me, past
The hope of comfort. But for thee, thee, fellow,
Who needs must know of her departure, and
Dost seem so ignorant, we'll enforce it from thee
By a sharp torture.

I humbly set it at your will: but, for my mistress,
I nothing know where she remains, why gone,
Nor when she purposes return.
Hold me your loyal servant.

1 Lord.

Beseech your Highness,

Good my liege,

The day that she was missing he was here:
I dare be bound he's true, and shall perform
All parts of his subjection loyally. For Cloten,
There wants no diligence in seeking him,
And he'll, no doubt, be found.

Cym.

The time is troublesome..

1 Shall for will, as we have before had will for shall.

[TO PISANIO.] We'll slip you for a season; but our jealousy Does yet depend.2

1 Lord.

So please your Majesty,

The Roman legions, all from Gallia drawn,

Are landed on your coast; with a supply

Of Roman gentlemen, by the Senate sent.

Cym. Now for the counsel of my son and Queen!

I am amazed with matter.3

1 Lord.

Good my liege,

Your preparation can affront no less

Than what you hear of: come more, for more you're ready : The want is, but to put those powers in motion

That long to move.

Cym.
I thank you.
And meet the time as it seeks us.
What can from Italy annoy us; but
We grieve at chances here. Away!

Let's withdraw;
We fear not

[Exeunt all but PISANIO.

Pis. I've had no letter from my master since

I wrote him Imogen was slain: 'tis strange :
Nor hear I from my mistress, who did promise

To yield me often tidings; neither know I

What is betid to Cloten; but remain

Perplex'd in all. The Heavens still must work.

Wherein I'm false I'm honest; not true, to be true:
These present wars shall find I love my country,

Even to the note o' the King,5 or I'll fall in them.

2 Meaning," My suspicion is still undetermined." In the same manner,

we now say," the cause is depending."

So.

3 Amazed in its literal sense of perplexed or bewildered; in a maze. Often Matter is, here, variety of business.

4 To affront, as the word is here used, is to meet, encounter, or face. See vol. xiv. page 218, note 5.

5 Meaning, "So that even the King shall take notice of my valour."

All other doubts, by time let them be clear'd:
Fortune brings in some boats that are not steer'd.

SCENE IV..

[Exit.

The Same. Wales: before the Cave of BELARIUS.

Enter BELARIUS, GUIDERIUS, and ARVIRAGUS.

Gui. The noise is round about us.

Bel.

Let us from it.

Arv. What pleasure, sir, find we in life, to lock 1 it From action and adventure?

Gui.

Nay, what hope

2

Have we in hiding us? This way, the Romans

Must or for Britons slay us, or receive us

For barbarous and unnatural revolts 3
During their use, and slay us after.

We'll higher to the mountains; there secure us.
To the King's party there's no going: newness

Of Cloten's death

Among the bands

we being not known, not muster'd
may drive us to a render 4

Where we have lived; and so extort from's that

Which we have done, whose answer would be death

Drawn on with torture.

Gui.

This is, sir, a doubt 5

In such a time nothing becoming you,

Nor satisfying us.

1 To lock, for in locking, or by locking. See page 29, note 6.

2 We acting, or if we act, in this way.

So in King John, v. 2:

"And

3 Revolts for revolters, that is, rebels. you degenerate, you ingrate revolts." The Poet has many like forms of language." During their use" may mean,

for us"; or, perhaps, during their present armed occupancy.

A render, as the word is here used, is an account, or confession.
Doubt for fear; as we have before had the verb. See page 35, note 14.

That when they hear the Roman horses neigh,

Behold their quarter'd fires, have both their eyes
And ears so cloy'd importantly as now,

That they will waste their time upon our note,7
To know from whence we are.

Bel.

O, I am known

Of many in the army: many years,

Though Cloten then but young, you see, not wore him
From my remembrance. And, besides, the King
Hath not deserved my service nor your loves;

Who find in my exile the want of breeding,
The certainty of this hard life; aye hopeless
To have the courtesy your cradle promised,
But to be still hot Summer's tanlings, and
The shrinking slaves of Winter.

Than be so,

Gui.
Better to cease to be. Pray, sir, to th' army:
I and my brother are not known; yourself
So out of thought, and thereto so o'ergrown,9
Cannot be question'd.

Arv.

By this Sun that shines,

I'll thither what thing is it that I never

Did see man die ! 10 scarce ever look'd on blood,

But that of coward hares, hot goats, and venison !

6 The fires in the several quarters of the Roman army; their watch-fires. 7 In taking notice of us. Note the same as in the preceding scene.

8 The certain consequence of this hard life.

9 Overgrown with hair and beard. Posthumus afterwards alludes to Belarius as one who "deserved so long a breeding as his white beard came to."- Thereto is in addition thereto. So in The Winter's Tale, i. 2: "AS you are certainly a gentleman; thereto clerk-like, experienced."

10 Shakespeare has many exclamative phrases and sentences without the article, where modern usage requires it. So, here, we should say, "what a thing it is," &c. See vol. xiv. page 29, note 13.

Never bestrid a horse, save one that had
A rider like myself, who ne'er wore rowel
Nor iron on his heel! I am ashamed
To look upon the holy Sun, to have
The benefit of his blest beams, remaining
So long a poor unknown.

Gui.

If

you

By Heavens, I'll go :

will bless me, sir, and give me leave,

I'll take the better care; but, if you will not,

The hazard therefore due fall on me by

The hands of Romans!

Arv.

So say I, - Amen.

Bel. No reason I, since of your lives

So slight a valuation, should reserve

you set

My crack'd one to more care. Have with you, boys!

If in your country wars you chance to die,

That is my bed too, lads, and there I'll lie :

Lead, lead.

- [Aside.] The time seems long; their blood thinks scorn, 11

Till it fly out, and show them princes born.

[Exeunt.

ACT V.

SCENE I. Britain. The Roman Camp.

Enter POSTHUMUS with a bloody handkerchief.

Post. Yea, bloody cloth, I'll keep thee; for I wish'd
Thou shouldst be colour'd thus. — You married ones,
If each of you should take this course,
how many
Must murder wives much better than themselves

.11 To think score is old language, meaning simply to scorn.