To quit the penalty, and ransom him.
Thy fubftance, valu'd at the highest rate,
Cannot amount unto a hundred marks;
Therefore by law thou art condemn'd to die.

Egeon. Yet 'tis my comfort, when your words are done, My woes end likewife with the evening fun.

Duke. Well, Syracufan, fay in brief the cause, Why thou departed'ft from thy native home; And for what cause thou cam'ft to Ephefus.

Egeon. A heavier task could not have been impos'd,
Than I to speak my grief unfpeakable:

Yet that the world may witness that my end
Was wrought by nature *, not by vile offence,
I'll utter what my forrow gives me leave.
In Syracufa was I born, and wed

Unto a woman, happy but for me,

And by me too, had not our hap been bad:
With her I liv'd in joy, our wealth increas'd
By profperous voyages I often made
To Epidamnum, 'till my factor's death;
And he great store of goods at random leaving,
Drew me from kind embracements of my spouse;
From whom my abfence was not fix months old,
Before her felf (almost at fainting under
The pleafing punishment that women bear)
Had made provifion for her following me,
And foon and fafe arrived where I was.
There she had not been long, but she became
A joyful mother of two goodly fons;

And, which was ftrange, the one fo like the other,
As could not be distinguish'd but by names.
That very hour, and in the self-fame inn,
A poor mean woman was delivered

Of fuch a burthen, male-twins both alike:
Those (for their parents were exceeding poor)
I bought, and brought up to attend my fons.
My wife, not meanly proud of two fuch boys,
Made daily motions for our home return:
Unwilling I agreed; alas, too foon!

That is, by a natural event, by the courfe of providence.

We

We came aboard.

A league from Epidamnum had we fail'd,
Before the always-wind-obeying deep
Gave any tragick inftance of our harm;
But longer did we not retain much hope:
For what obfcured light the heav'ns did grant,
Did but convey unto our fearful minds
A doubtful warrant of immediate death;
Which tho' my felf would gladly have embrac'd,
Yet the inceffant weeping of my wife,
Weeping before for what she saw must come,
And piteous plainings of the pretty babes
That mourn'd for fafhion, ignorant what to fear,
Forc'd me to feek delays for them and me:
And this it was; (for other means were none.)
The failors fought for fafety by our boat,
And left the fhip then finking-ripe to us;
My wife, more careful for the elder born,
Had faften'd him unto a small spare maft,
Such as fea-faring men provide for ftorms;
To him one of the other twins was bound,
Whilft I had been like heedful of the other.
The children thus difpos'd, my wife and I,
Fixing our eyes on whom our care was fixt,
Faften'd our felves at th' end of either mast,
And floating ftraight, obedient to the stream,
Were carry'd towards Corinth, as we thought.
At length the fun gazing upon the earth
Difperft those vapours that offended us;
And by the benefit of his wifh'd light
The feas wax'd calm, and we discovered
Two fhips from far making amain to us,
Of Corinth that, of Epidaurus this;
But ere they came
oh, let me fay no more;
Gather the fequel by that went before.

Duke. Nay, forward, old man, do not break off fo;
For we may pity, tho' not pardon thee.

geon. Oh, had the Gods done fo, I had not now

Werthily team'd them merciless to us;

For ere the fhips could meet by twice five leagues,
VOL. II.

H

We

We were encountred by a mighty rock
Which being violently born upon,
Our helpless fhip was fplitted in the midft:
So that in this unjust divorce of us
Fortune had left to both of us alike
What to delight in, what to forrow for.
Her part, poor foul! feeming as burdened
With leffer weight, but not with leffer wo,
Was carry'd with more fpeed before the wind,
And in our fight they three were taken up
By fishermen of Corinth, as we thought.
At length the other fhip had feiz'd on us;
And knowing whom it was their hap to fave,
Gave helpful welcome to their fhipwreck'd guefts,
And would have 'reft the fifhers of their prey,
Had not their bark been very flow of fail;

And therefore homeward did they bend their course.
Thus have you heard me fever'd from my bliss,
Thus by misfortunes was my life prolong'd,
To tell fad ftories of my own mifhaps.

Duke. And for the fakes of them thou forrow'ft for,
Do me the favour to dilate at full

What hath befall'n of them and thee 'till now.
Egeon. My youngest boy, and yet my eldest care,
At eighteen years became inquifitive

After his brother, and importun'd me,
That his attendant, (for his cafe was like,
'Reft of his brother, but retain'd his name,)
Might bear him company in quest of him:
Whom whilst I labour'd of a love to fee,
hazarded the lofs of whom I lov'd.
Five fummers have I fpent in farthest Greece,
Roaming clean through the bounds of Afia,
And coafting homeward, came to Epbefus:
Hopelefs to find, yet loth to leave unfought
Or that, or any place that harbours men.
But here muft end the ftory of my life;
And happy were I in my timely death,
Could all my travels warrant me they live.

Duke, Haplefs #geon, whom the fates have markt

To

To bear th' extremity of dire mifhap;
Now truft me, were it not against our laws,
Which Princes, would they, may not difannul,
Against my crown, my oath, my dignity,
My foul fhould fue as advocate for thee.
But tho' thou art adjudged to the death,
And paffed fentence may not be recall'd,
But to our honour's great difparagement,
Yet will I favour thee in what i can ;
I therefore, merchant, limit thee this day
To feek thy life by beneficial help:
Try all the friends thou haft in Ephefus,
Beg thou, or borrow to make up the fum,
And live; if not, then thou art doom'd to die:
Jailor, now take him to thy cuftody.

Jail. I will, my lord.

Egeon. Hopeless and helplefs doth Egeon wend, But to procraftinate his livelefs end.

SCENE II. The Street.

[Exeunt.

Enter Antipholis of Syracufe, a Merchant, and Dromio Mer. Therefore give out, you are of Epidamnum, Left that your goods too foon be confifcate.

This very day a Syracufan merchant

Is apprehended for arrival here;

And not being able to buy out his life,
According to the ftatute of the town,
Dies ere the weary fun fet in the weft:
There is your mony that I had to keep.

Ant. Go bear it to the Centaur, where we hoft,
And stay there, Dromio, 'till I come to thee:
Within this hour it will be dinner-time,
"Till that I'll view the manners of the town,
Perufe the traders, gaze upon the buildings,
And then return and fleep within mine inn;
For with long travel I am stiff and weary.
Get thee away.

Dro. Many a man would take you at your word,
And go indeed, having fo good a means.

Ant. A trufty villain, Sir, that very oft, When I am dull with care and melancholy,

H 2

[Exit Dromio.

Lightens

Lightens my humour with his merry jefts.
What, will you walk with me about the town,
And then go to the inn and dine with me?

Mer. I am invited, Sir, to certain merchants,
Of whom I hope to make much benefit:
I crave your pardon. Scon at five a clock,
Pleafe you, I'll meet with you upon the mart,
And afterward confort with you 'till bed-time:
My prefent bufinefs calls me from you now.
Ant. Farewel 'till then; I will go lofe my self,
And wander up and down to view the city.

Mer. Sir, I commend you to your own content. [Ex. Mer.
SCENE III.

Ant. He that commends me to my own content,
Commends me to the thing I cannot get.
I to the world am like a drop of water,
That in the ocean feeks another drop,
Who falling there to find his fellow forth,
Unfeen, inquifitive, confounds himself:
So I, to find a mother and a brother,
In queft of them, unhappy, lofe my felf.

Enter Dromio of Ephefus.

Here comes the almanack of my true date.
What now? how chance thou art return'd fo foon?
E. Dro. Return'd fo foon! rather approach'd too late
The capon burns, the pig falls from the spit,
The clock has ftrucken twelve upon the bell;
My mistress made it one upon my cheek;
She is fo hot because the meat is cold;
The meat is cold because you come not home;
You come not home because you have no ftomach;
You have no ftomach having broke your fast:
But we that know what 'tis to faft and pray,
Are penitent for your default to-day.

Atn. Stop in your wind, Sir; tell me this, I pray,
Where you have left the mony that I gave you?
E. Dr. Oh, fix pence that I had a Wednesday last,
To pay the fadler for my mistress' crupper
The fadler had it, Sir; I kept it not.

?

Ant. I am not in a sportive hunsour now;

Tell