Page:Stories from Old English Poetry-1899.djvu/193

Rh her or not. But he furnished the young couple with money, and helped them to get on board a vessel bound for Sicily. They set sail, taking with them the foster-father and brother of Perdita, and with favoring winds were soon in the dominions of Leontes.

As soon as they landed, they went straight to the court of that sovereign, who received them with much favor. Florizel represented Perdita to be the daughter of a Libyan king, his new-made princess, and invented some plausible excuse for the scarcity of their attendants. While Leontes was making welcome the prince and his beautiful bride, news was brought to the palace that Polixenes had landed, with the old courtier, Camillo, in search of his lost son. The first persons the king of Bohemia encountered on the shores of Sicily were the old shepherd and his son; these he instantly seized, and took with him to the court.

His appearance turned everything into confusion. Florizel was pale but resolute; the maiden wept; Leontes was divided between pity for the prince and his beautiful bride, and sympathy with the parental woes of his old friend Polixenes, when suddenly the frightened old shepherd found a tongue, and piteously implored them not to punish him for the misdeeds of a girl who was not of his blood, and declaring