heart, he believed her innocent; and he now thought the words of the
oracle were true, as he knew "if that which was lost was not found,"
which he concluded was his young daughter, he should be without an
heir, the young prince Mamillus being dead; and he would give his
kingdom now to recover his lost daughter: and Leontes gave himself up
to remorse, and passed many years in mournful thoughts and repentant
grief.

The ship in which Antigonus carried the infant princess out to sea
was driven by a storm upon the coast of Bohemia, the very kingdom of
the good king Polixenes. Here Antigonus landed, and here he left the
little baby.

Antigonus never returned to Sicily to tell Leontes where he had left
his daughter, for as he was going back to the ship, a bear came out
of the woods, and tore him to pieces; a just punishment on him for
obeying the wicked order of Leontes.

The child was dressed in rich clothes and jewels; for Hermione had
made it very fine when she sent it to Leontes, and Antigonus had
pinned a paper to its mantle, with the name of _Perdita_ written
thereon, and words obscurely intimating its high birth and untoward
fate.

This poor deserted baby was found by a shepherd. He was a humane man,
and so he carried the little Perdita home to his wife, who nursed it
tenderly: but poverty tempted the shepherd to conceal the rich prize
he had found; therefore he left that part of the country, that no one
might know where he got his riches, and with part of Perdita's jewels
he bought herds of sheep, and became a wealthy shepherd. He brought up