There fleeps Titania, fome time of the Night, And with the Juice of this I'll ftreak her Eyes, Take thou fome of it, and feek through this Grove; With a disdainful Youth; anoint his Eyes, Puck. Fear not my Lord, your Servant fhall do fo. [Exit. Queen. Come, now a Roundel, and a Fairy Song: Fairies Sing. Yon Spotted Snakes with double Tongue, Newts and blind Worms do no wrong, Come not near our Fairy Queen. Sing in your feet Lullaby, Lulla, lulla, lullaby, lulla, lulla, lullaby : Never harm, nor fpell, nor charm, Come our lovely Lady nigh, So good night with Lullaby. 2. Fairy. Weaving Spiders come not here; Hence away; now all is well: Enter Oberon. [Exeunt Fairies. Obe. What thou feeft when thou dost wake, Do it for thy true Love take, Enter Lyfander and Hermia. [Exit Oberon. Lyf. Fair Love, you faint with wandring in the Woods; And to speak troth, I have forgot our Way: We'll reft us, Hermia, if you think it good, And tarry for the Comfort of the Day. Her. Be it fo, Lyfander; find you out a Bed, For I upon this Bank will reft my Head. Lyf. One Turf fhall ferve as Pillow for us both, One Heart, one Bed, two Bofoms, and one Troth. Her. Nay good Lyfander, for my Sake, my Dear, Lye further off yet, do not lye fo near. Lyf. O take the Senfe fweet of my Innocence, Her. Lyfander riddles very prettily; Now much befhrew my Manners, and my Pride, But But gentle Friend, for Love and Curtefie Becomes a virtuous Batchelor, and a Maid; Her. With half that Wish, the Wishers Eyes be preft. Enter Puck. Puck. Through the Foreft have I gone, But Athenian find I none, On whofe Eyes I might approve This Flower's Force in ftirring Love: And here the Maiden fleeping found Near this Lack-love, this kill Curtefie. All the Power this Charm doth owe: Sleep his Seat on thy Eye-lid: So awake when I am gone, For I must now to Oberon, Enter Demetrius and Helena running. Hel. Stay, tho' thou kill me, fweet Demetrius. [They fleep. [Exit. Dem. I charge thee hence, and do not haunt me thus. Hel. O wilt thou Darling leave me? Do not fo. Dem. Stay on thy Peril, I alone will go. [Exit Demetrius. Hel. O I am out of Breath in this fond Chace, The more my Prayer, the leffer is my Grace. Happy is Hermia, wherefoe'er fhe lyes; For the hath bleffed and attractive Eyes. How came her Eyes fo bright? Not with falt Tears; C 3 No, Sword to kill himself, which the Ladies cannot abide. How anfwer you that? Snout, Berlaken, a parlous Fear. Star. I believe we must leave the Killing out, when all is done. Bot. Not a whit, I have a Device to make all well; write me a Prologue, and let the Prologue feem to fay, We will do no harm with our Swords, and that Piramus is not kill'd indeed; and for the more better Affurance, tell them, that I Pyramus am not Pyramus, but Bottom the Weaver; this will put them out of fear. Quin. Well, we will have fuch a Prologue, and it fhall be written in Eight and Six. Bot. No, make it two more; let it be written in Eight and Eight. Snowt. Will not the Ladies be afeard of the Lion? Bot. Mafters, you ought to confider with your felves; to bring in, God fhield us, a Lion among Ladies, is a moft dreadful Thing; for there is not a more fearful wild Fowl than your Lion living; and we ought to look to it. Snowt. Therefore another Prologue must tell he is not a Lion. Bot. Nay, you must name his Name, and half his Face must be seen through the Lion's Neck, and he himself must fpeak through, faying thus, or to the fame defect; Ladies, or fair Ladies, I would with you, or I would requeft you, or I would intreat you, not to fear, not to tremble; my Life for yours; if you think I come hither as a Lion, it were pity of my Life; no, I am no fuch thing, I am a Man as other Men are; and there indeed let him name his Name, and tell them plainly he is Snug the Joiner. Quin. Well, it fhall be fo; but there is two hard Things, that is, to bring the Moon-light into a Chamber; for you know Pyramus and Thisby meet by Moon-light. Snug. Doth the Moon fhine that Night we play our Play? Bot. A Calender, a Calender, look in the Almanack; find out Moon-fhine, find out Moon-shine. Quin. Yes, it doth fhine that Night. Bot. Why then may you leave a Cafement of the great 1 Chamber Window, where we play, open, and the Moon may fhine in at the Cafement. Quin. Ay, or elfe one must come in with a Bush of Thorns and a Lanthorn, and fay he comes to disfigure, or to present the Perfon of Moonshine; then there is another thing, we must have a Wall in the great Chamber, for Pyramus and Thisby, fays the Story, did talk through the Chink of a Wall. Snug. You can never bring in a Wall. What fay you Bottom? Bot. Some Man or other muft prefent Wall, and let him have fome Plafter, or fome Lome, or fome Rough-caft about him, to fignify Wall, or let him hold his Fingers thus; and through the Cranny fhall Pyramus and Thisby whisper. Quin. If that may be, then all is well. Come, fit down every Mother's Son, and rehearse your Parts. Pyramus you begin; when you have spoken your Speech enter into that Brake, and fo every one according to his Cue. Enter Puck. Puck. What hempen Home-fpuns have we fwaggering here An Actor too perhaps, if I fee Cause. Quin. Speak Pyramus; Thisby ftand forth. Pyr. Thisby, the Flowers of odious Savour's fweet. Pyr. Odours favors sweet, So that thy Breath, my deareft Thisby dear. But hark, a Voice; ftay thou but here a while, Puck. A Stranger Pyramus than e'er plaid here. [Exit Pyr. Quin. Ay marry muft you; for you must understand he Quin. Ninus Tomb, Man; why you must not speak that yet; that you answer to Pyramus; you speak all your Part at once, |