Continued so, until we thought he died.

Cor. By the queen's dram she swallow'd. Cym. O rare instinct! When shall I hear all through? This fierce abridg

ment

Hath to it circumstantial branches, which

384

Distinction should be rich in. Where? how liv'd you?
And when came you to serve our Roman captive?
How parted with your brothers? how first met them?
Why fled you from the court, and whither? These, 388
And your three motives to the battle, with

I know not how much more, should be demanded,
And all the other by-dependances,

From chance to chance, but nor the time nor place 392
Will serve our long interrogatories. See,
Posthumus anchors upon Imogen,

And she, like harmless lightning, throws her eye
On him, her brothers, me, her master, hitting
Each object with a joy: the counterchange
Is severally in all. Let's quit this ground,
And smoke the temple with our sacrifices.

396

[To Belarius.] Thou art my brother; so we'll hold thee

ever.

Imo. You are my father too; and did relieve me, To see this gracious season.

Cym.

All o'erjoy'd

Save these in bonds; let them be joyful too,

For they shall taste our comfort.

383 fierce abridgment: rapid narration
385 Distinction . . . rich in; cf. n.
391 by-dependances: side-issues
397, 398 the counterchange

all; cf. n.

400

389 your three: of you three 396 her master: i.e. Lucius

Imo.

I will yet do
Luc.

you service.

My good master, 404

Happy be you!

Cym. The forlorn soldier, that so nobly fought, He would have well becom'd this place and grac'd The thankings of a king.

The soldier that did company these three
In poor beseeming; 'twas a fitment for
The purpose I then follow'd. That I was he,
Speak, Iachimo; I had you down and might
Have made you finish.

Iach. [Kneeling.] I am down again;
But now my heavy conscience sinks my knee,

As then your force did. Take that life, beseech you,
Which I so often owe, but your ring first,
And here the bracelet of the truest princess
That ever swore her faith.

Post.

The

Kneel not to me:

power that I have on you is to spare you; The malice towards you to forgive you. Live, And deal with others better.

Cym.

We'll learn our freeness of a son-in-law;

Pardon's the word to all.

Arv.

As

408

412

416

420

Nobly doom'd:

You holp us, sir,

424

you did mean indeed to be our brother;

Joy'd are we that you are.

Post. Your servant, princes. Good my lord of Rome, Call forth your soothsayer. As I slept, methought Great Jupiter, upon his eagle back'd,

Appear'd to me, with other spritely shows

410 beseeming: appearance 413 finish: die

422 freeness: generosity

fitment: preparation

428

421 doom'd: judged 429 spritely shows: ghostly apparitions

Of mine own kindred: when I wak'd, I found
This label on my bosom; whose containing
Is so from sense in hardness that I can
Make no collection of it; let him show
His skill in the construction.

Luc.

Philarmonus!

432

Sooth. Here, my good lord.
Luc.
Read, and declare the meaning.
Sooth. [Reads.] 'Whenas a lion's whelp shall, 436
to himself unknown, without seeking find, and be
embraced by a piece of tender air; and when from
a stately cedar shall be lopped branches, which,
being dead many years, shall after revive, be 440
jointed to the old stock, and freshly grow: then
shall Posthumus end his miseries, Britain be
fortunate, and flourish in peace and plenty.'

Thou, Leonatus, art the lion's whelp;
The fit and apt construction of thy name,
Being Leo-natus, doth import so much.

444

[To Cymbeline.] The piece of tender air, thy virtuous

daughter,

Which we call mollis aer; and mollis aer

We term it mulier; which mulier, I divine,

Is this most constant wife; who, even now,
Answering the letter of the oracle,

448

Unknown to you, [To Posthumus.] unsought, were clipp'd about

With this most tender air.

452

Cym.
Sooth. The lofty cedar, royal Cymbeline,
Personates thee, and thy lopp'd branches point
Thy two sons forth; who, by Belarius stolen,

This hath some seeming.

431 containing: contents 433 collection: deduction 452 clipp'd: clasped

456

432 from sense: incomprehensible 448 mollis aer: tender air

For many years thought dead, are now reviv'd,
To the majestic cedar join'd, whose issue
Promises Britain peace and plenty.

Cym.

Well;

My peace we will begin. And, Caius Lucius,
Although the victor, we submit to Cæsar,
And to the Roman empire; promising

To pay our wonted tribute, from the which
We were dissuaded by our wicked queen;
Whom heavens-in justice both on her and hers-
Have laid most heavy hand.

Sooth. The fingers of the powers above do tune
The harmony of this peace. The vision,
Which I made known to Lucius ere the stroke
Of this yet scarce-cold battle, at this instant
Is full accomplish'd; for the Roman eagle,
From south to west on wing soaring aloft,

Lessen'd herself, and in the beams o' the sun
So vanish'd: which foreshow'd our princely eagle,
The imperial Cæsar, should again unite
His favour with the radiant Cymbeline,
Which shines here in the west.

460

464

468

472

476

Cym.

Laud we the gods;

And let our crooked smokes climb to their nostrils
From our bless'd altars. Publish we this peace

To all our subjects. Set we forward: let
A Roman and a British ensign wave

480

Friendly together; so through Lud's town march:
And in the temple of great Jupiter

Our peace we'll ratify; seal it with feasts.
Set on there. Never was a war did cease,
Ere bloody hands were wash'd, with such a peace.

FINIS.

484

Exeunt.

NOTES

I. i. 1-3. our bloods No more obey the heavens than our courtiers Still seem as does the king. Our dispositions are no more surely governed by the heavens, i.e. the stars, than are the looks of courtiers governed by the expression of the king.

I. i. 25. extend him within himself. 'My praise however extensive is within his merit.' (Johnson.)

I. i. 30, 31. According to Shakespeare, Cassibelan was Cymbeline's uncle, Tenantius Cymbeline's father. Holinshed gives a different genealogy.

I. i. 69. S. d. In the Folio this stage direction is the first in Scena secunda. Most modern editors make no change of scene, as there is no change of place or lapse of time.

I. i. 87. Always reserv'd my holy duty. Never forgetting my sacred filial duty of respect; the modern equivalent would be 'with all due respect to my dear father.'

I. i. 101. Though ink be made of gall. "Though the accent falls metrically on made I prefer to place it on be.' (Furness.)

I. i. 104-106. I never do him wrong But he does buy my injuries, to be friends Pays dear for my offences. Whenever I do him wrong I make it appear that he has wronged me and force him to buy off my wrath; in order to be friends he is willing to assume the blame and pay dear for my offences. I. i. 116, 117. cere up my embracements from a next With bands of death. Folio reads sear up, and many former editors have explained the phrase as meaning to dry up, cause to wither, etc. Furness points out that the New English Dictionary gives sear as a sixteenth and seventeenth century form of cere