Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Adaptations; Shakespeare, William, 1564-1616 -- Stories, plots, etc. -- Juvenile literature
“Courage enough,” said the sorrowing prince. “I do not fear the
storm; it has done to me its worst; yet for the love of this poor
infant, this fresh new seafarer, I wish the storm was over.”
“Sir,” said the sailors, “your queen must overboard. The sea
works high, the wind is loud, and the storm will not abate till
the ship be cleared of the dead.”
Though Pericles knew how weak and unfounded this superstition
was, yet he patiently submitted, saying: “As you think meet. Then
she must overboard, most wretched queen!”
And now this unhappy prince went to take a last view of his dear
wife, and as he looked on his Thaisa he said: “A terrible
childbed hast thou had, my dear; no light, no fire; the
unfriendly elements forget thee utterly, nor have I time to bring
thee hallowed to thy grave, but must cast thee scarcely coffined
into the sea, where for a monument upon thy bones the humming
waters must overwhelm thy corpse, lying with simple shells. O
Lychorida, bid Nestor bring me spices, ink, and paper, my casket
and my jewels, and bid Nicandor bring me the satin coffin. Lay
the babe upon the pillow, and go about this suddenly, Lychorida,
while I say a priestly farewell to my Thaisa.”
They brought Pericles a large chest, in which (wrapped in a satin
shroud) he placed his queen, and sweet-smelling spices he strewed
over her, and beside her he placed rich jewels, and a written
paper telling who she was and praying if haply any one should
find the chest which contained the body of his wife they would
give her burial; and then with his own hands he cast the chest
into the sea. When the storm was over, Pericles ordered the
sailors to make for Tarsus. “For,” said Pericles, “the babe
cannot hold out till we come to Tyre. At Tarsus I will leave it
at careful nursing.”
After that tempestuous night when Thaisa was thrown into the sea,
and while it was yet early morning, as Cerimon, a worthy
gentleman of Ephesus and a most skilful physician, was standing
by the seaside, his servants brought to him a chest, which they
said the sea waves had thrown on the land.
“I never saw,” said one of them, “so huge a billow as cast it on
our shore.”
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account