How comes this gentle concord in the world,
That hatred is so far from jealousy,

To sleep by hate, and fear no enmity?

Lys. My lord, I shall reply amazedly,
Half 'sleep, half waking: But as yet, I swear,
I cannot truly say how I came here:
But, as I think, (for truly would I speak,-
And now I do bethink me, so it is ;)

I came with Hermia hither: our intent
Was, to be gone from Athens, where we might be
Without the peril of the Athenian law.

Ege. Enough, enough, my lord; you have enough:
I beg the law, the law upon his head.
They would have stol'n away, they would, Demetrius,
Thereby to have defeated you and me :
You, of your wife; and me, of my consent;
Of my consent that she should be your wife.
Dem. My lord, fair Helen told me of their stealth,
Of this their purpose hither, to this wood;
And I in fury hither follow'd them;
Fair Helena in fancy following me.
But, my good lord, I wot not by what power,
(But, by some power it is,) my love to Hermia,
Melted as doth the snow, seems to me now
As the remembrance of an idle gawd,
Which in my childhood I did dote upon :
And all the faith, the virtue of my heart,
The object, and the pleasure of mine eye,
Is only Helena. To her, my lord,
Was I betroth'd ere I saw Hermia :
But, like in sickness, did I loath this food:
But, as in health, come to my natural taste,
Now do I wish it, love it, long for it,
And will for evermore be true to it.

The. Fair lovers, you are fortunately met :
Of this discourse we more will hear anon.
Egeus, I will overbear your will;
For in the temple, by and by with us,
These couples shall eternally be knit.
And, for the morning now is something worn,
Our purpos'd hunting shall be set aside.
Away, with us, to Athens: Three and three,
We'll hold a feast in great solemnity. —
Come, Hippolyta.

[Exeunt THESEUS, HIPPOLYTA, EGEUS, and train. Dem. These things seem small and undistinguishable,

Like far-off mountains turned into clouds.

Her. Methinks, I see these things with parted eye, When every thing seems double.

Hel.

So, methinks:

And I have found Demetrius like a jewel,
Mine own, and not mine own.

Dem.
It seems to me,
That yet we sleep, we dream. - Do not you think,
The duke was here, and bid us follow him?
Her. Yea; and my father.

Hel.

And Hippolyta.

Lys. And he did bid us follow to the temple. Dem. Why then, we are awake: let's follow him; And, by the way, let us recount our dreams.

vision. I have had a dream, -past the wit of m to say what dream it was : -- -Man is but an ass, it go about to expound this dream. Methought I v - there is no man can tell what. Methought I w and methought I had. But man is but a patch fool, if he will offer to say what methought I ha The eye of man hath not heard, the ear of m hath not seen; man's hand is not able to taste, tongue to conceive, nor his heart to report, w my dream was. I will get Peter Quince to writ ballad of this dream: it shall be called Botton Dream, because it hath no bottom; and I will si it in the latter end of a play, before the duke: P adventure, to make it the more gracious, I sh sing it at her death.

[E

SCENE IL-Athens. A Room in Quince's Hou Enter QUINCE, FLUTE, SNOUT, and STARVELING Quin. Have you sent to Bottom's house? is come home yet?

Star. He cannot be heard of. Out of doubt, is transported.

Flu. If he come not then, the play is marre It goes not forward, doth it?

Quin. It is not possible: you have not a man all Athens, able to discharge Pyramus, it he. Flu. No; he hath simply the best wit of a handycraft man in Athens.

Quin. Yea, and the best person too: and he is very paramour, for a sweet voice.

Flu. You must say, paragon: a paramour God bless us, a thing of nought.

Enter SNUG.

Snug. Masters, the duke is coming from t temple, and there is two or three lords and ladi more married: if our sport had gone forward, had all been made men.

Flu. O sweet Bully Bottom! Thus hath he lo sixpence a-day during his life; he could not ha 'scaped sixpence a-day: an the duke had not giv him sixpence a-day for playing Pyramus, I'll hanged; he would have deserved it: sixpence a-da in Pyramus, or nothing.

Enter BOTTOM.

Bot. Where are these lads? where are these heart Quin. Bottom! - O most courageous day! most happy hour!

Bot. Masters, I am to discourse wonders: ask me not what; for if I tell you, I am no Athenian. I will tell you every thing, right-as fell out.

Quin. Let us hear, sweet Bottom.

Bot. Not a word of me. All that I will tell is, that the duke hath dined: Get your apparel gether; good strings to your beards, new ribbe to your pumps; meet presently at the palace; eve man look o'er his part; for, the short and the lo is, our play is preferred. In any case, let This have clean linen; and let not him, that plays lion, pare his nails, for they shall hang out for lion's claws. And, most dear actor:, eat no onio nor garlick, for we are to utter sweet breath; and do not doubt, but to hear them say, it is a sw comedy. No more words; away; go, away.

SCENE I.-The same. An Apartment in the
Palace of Theseus.

Enter THESEUS, HIPPOLYTA, PHILOSTRATE,
Lords and Attendants.

Hp. 'Tis strange, my Theseus, that these lovers speak of.

lieve

These antique fables, nor these fairy toys.

Lovers and madmen have such seething brains,
Such shaping fantasies, that apprehend
More than cool reason ever comprehends.
The lunatick, the lover and the poet,
Are of imagination all compact:

One sees more devils than vast hell can hold;
That is, the madman: the lover, all as frantick,
Sees Helen's beauty in a brow of Egypt:
The poet's eye, in a fine frenzy rolling,
Deth glance from heaven to earth, from earth to
heaven,

And, as imagination bodies forth

The forms of things unknown, the poet's pen
Turns them to shapes, and gives to airy nothing
A local habitation, and a name.

Such tricks hath strong imagination;
That, if it would but apprehend some joy,
It comprehends some bringer of that joy;
Or, in the night, imagining some fear,
How easy is a bush suppos'd a bear?

Hip. But all the story of the night told over,
And all their minds transfigured so together,
More witnesseth than fancy's images,
And grows to something of great constancy;
But, howsoever, strange, and admirable.

Enter LYSANDER, DEMETRIUS, HERMIA, and
HELENA.

The. Here come the lovers, full of joy and mirth.

Joy, gentle friends! joy, and fresh days of love,
Accompany your hearts!

More than to us

Lys. Wait on your royal walks, your board, your bed! The. Come now; what masks, what dances shall

A tedious brief scene of young Pyramus,
And his love Thisbe; very tragical mirth.
Merry and tragical? Tedious and brief?
That is, hot ice, and wonderous strange snow.
How shall we find the concord of this discord?
Philost. A play there is my lord, some ten words
long;

Which is as brief as I have known a play;
But by ten words, my lord, it is too long,
Which makes it tedious: for in all the play
There is not one word apt, one player fitted.
And tragical, my noble lord, it is;

For Pyramus therein doth kill himself.
Which when I saw rehears'd, I must confess,
Made mine eyes water; but more merry tears
The passion of loud laughter never shed.
The. What are they that do play it?
Philost. Hard-handed men, that work in Athens

here,

Which never labour'd in their minds till now;
And now have toil'd their unbreath'd memories
With this same play, against your nuptial.
The. And we will hear it.
Philost.

No, my noble lord,
It is not for you: I have heard it over,
And it is nothing, nothing in the world;
Unless you can find sport in their intents,
Extremely stretch'd and conn'd with cruel pain,
To do you service.
The.
I will hear that play;
For never any thing can be amiss,
When simpleness and duty tender it.
Go, bring them in: and take your places, ladies.
[Exeunt PHILOSTRATE.
Hip. I love not to see wretchedness o'ercharged,
And duty in his service perishing.

The. Why, gentle sweet, you shall see no such thing.

Hip. He says, they can do nothing in this kind. The. The kinder we, to give them thanks for

nothing.

Our sport shall be, to take what they mistake:
And what poor duty cannot do,

Noble respect takes it in might, not merit.
Where I have come, great clerks have purposed
To greet me with premeditated welcomes;
Where I have seen them shiver and look pale,
Make periods in the midst of sentences,
Throttle their practis'd accent in their fears,
And, in conclusion, dumbly have broke off,
Not paying me a welcome: Trust me, sweet,
Out of this silence, yet, I pick'd a welcome;
And in the modesty of fearful duty

I read as much, as from the rattling tongue
Of sawcy, and audacious eloquence.
Love, therefore, and tongue-tied simplicity,
In least, speak most, to my capacity.

Enter PHILOSTRATE.

Philost. So please your grace, the prologue is addrest.

The. Let him approach. [Flourish of trumpets.

Enter Prologue.

Prol. If we offend, it is with our good will. That you should think, we come not to offend, But with good will. To show our simple skill, That is the true beginning of our end. Consider then, we come but in despite.

We do not come as minding to content you, Our true intent is. All for your delight,

We are not here. That you should here repent you, The actors are at hand; and, by their show, You shall know all, that you are like to know.

The. This fellow doth not stand upon points. Lys. He hath rid his prologue, like a rough colt; he knows not the stop. A good moral, my lord: It is not enough to speak, but to speak true.

Hip. Indeed he hath played on this prologue, like a child on a recorder; a sound, but not in government.

The. His speech was like a tangled chain; nothing impaired, but all disordered. Who is next?

Enter PYRAMUS and THISBE, Wall, Moonshine, and Lion, as in dumb show.

Prol. "Gentles perchance, you wonder at this show;

"But wonder on, till truth make all things plain. "This man is Pyramus, if you would know;

"This beauteous lady Thisby is, certain. "This man, with lime and rough-cast, doth present "Wall, that vile wall which did these lovers sunder:

"And through wall's chink, poor souls, they are

content

"To whisper, at the which let no man wonder. "This man, with lantern, dog, and bush of thorn, "Presenteth moon-shine: for, if you will know, "By moon-shine did these lovers think no scorn "To meet at Ninus' tomb, there, there to woo. "This grisly beast, which by name lion hight, "The trusty Thisby, coming first by night, "Did scare away, or rather did affright:

And, as she fled, her mantle she did fall; "Which lion vile with bloody mouth did stain: "Anon comes Pyramus, sweet youth, and tall,

"And finds his trusty Thisby's mantle slain : "Whereat with blade, with bloody blameful blade, "He bravely broach'd his boiling bloody breast; And, Thisby tarrying in mulberry shade, "His dagger drew, and died. For all the rest, "Let lion, moon-shine, wall, and lovers twain, 'At large discourse, while here they do remain."

[Exeunt Prol. THISBE, Lion, and Moonshine. The. I wonder, if the lion be to speak.

"And this the cranny is, right and sinister, "Through which the fearful lovers are to whisper." The. Would you desire lime and hair to speak better?

Dem. It is the wittiest partition that ever I heard discourse, my lord.

The. Pyramus draws near the wall: silence!

Enter PYRAMUS.

Pyr. "O grim-look'd night! O night with hue so black!

"O night, which ever art, when day is not! "O night, O night, alack, alack, alack,

"I fear my Thisby's promise is forgot! "And thou, O wall, O sweet, O lovely wall, "That stand'st between her father's ground an mine;

"Thou wall, O wall, O sweet and lovely wall, "Shew me thy chink, to blink through with min [Wall holds up his finger "Thanks, courteous wall: Jove shield thee we for this!

eyne.

"But what see I? No Thisby do I see. "O wicked wall, through whom I see no bliss; "Curst be thy stones for thus deceiving me!"

The. The wall, methinks, being sensible, shoul curse again.

Pyr. No, in truth, sir, he should not. Deceivin me, is Thisby's cue: she is to enter now, and I a to spy her through the wall. You shall see, it wi fall pat as I told you: - Yonder she comes.

Enter THISBE.

This. "O wall, full often hast thou heard n moans,

"For parting my fair Pyramus and me: "My cherry lips have often kiss'd thy stones; "Thy stones with linfe and hair knit up in thee Pyr. "I see a voice: now will I to the chink, "To spy an I can hear my Thisby's face. "Thisby!"

This." My love! thou art my love, I think." Pyr. "Think what thou wilt, I am thy love

grace;

"And like Limander am I trusty still."

This. "And I like Helen, till the fates me kill Pyr. "Not Shafalus to Procrus, was so true.' This. "As Shafalus to Procrus, I to you." Pyr. "O, kiss me through the hole of this v wall."

This. "I kiss the wall's hole, not your lips at all Pyr. "Wilt thou at Ninny's tomb meeti straightway?"

This. "Tide life, tide death, I come withe delay."

Wall. "Thus have I, wall, my part discharged "And, being done, thus wall away doth go." [Exeunt Wall, PYRAMUS and THIS The. Now is the mural down between the t

Dem. No remedy, my lord, when walls are wilful to hear without warning.

Hip. This is the silliest stuff that ever I heard. The. The best in this kind are but shadows; a the worst are no worse, if imagination amend the Hip. It must be your imagination then, and theirs.

The. If we imagine no worse of them, than th of themselves, they may pass for excellent Here come two noble beasts in, a moon and a li