Obe. What thou feeft when thou doft 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: Her. Be it fo, Lyfander; find you out a Bed, Lyf. One Turf fhall ferve as Pillow for us both, Lyf. O take the Senfe fweet of my Innocence, Her. Lyfander riddles very prettily; But But gentle Friend, for Love and Curtefie Her. With half that Wish, the Withers Eyes be prest. [They fleep. Enter Puck. Puck, Through the Foreft have I gone, But Athenian find I none, On whole Eyes I might approve This Flower's Force in ftirring Love: Near this Lack-love, this kill Curtefie. All the Power this Charm doth owe: Sleep his Seat on thy Eyelid : So awake when I am gone, For I muft now to Oberon. Enter Demetrius and Helena running. Hel. Stay, thot hou kill me, fweet Demetrius. [Exit. Dem. I charge thee hence, and do not haunt me thus. Dem. Stay on thy Peril, I alone will go. [Exit Demetrius. The more my Prayer, the leffer is my Grace. For the hath blessed and attractive Eyes. How came her Eyes fo bright? Not with falt Tears; C 3 No, No, no, I am as ugly as a Bear; For Beafts that meet me run away for fear; Lys. And run thro' Fire I will for thy sweet fake. Trafparent Helena, Nature here fhews Art, Hel. Do not fay fo, Lylander, fay not fo; Lyf. Content with Hermia? No: I do repent Hel. Wherefore was I to this keen Mockery born? you do, 1 Oh, Oh, that a Lady of one Man refus'd, Should of another therefore be abus'd. [Exit And never may'ft thou come Lysander near; Lyf. She fees not Hermia, Hermia fleep thou there, For as a Surfeit of the fweeteft Things, And all my Powers addrefs, your Love and might, Her. Help me, Lysander, help me, do thy beft ACT III. SCENE I. [Exit, [Exit. Enter Quince, Snug, Bottom, Flute, Snowt and Starveling. The Queen of Fairies lying afleep. Bot. ·A RE we all met? Quin. Pat, pat, and here's a marvellous convenient Place for our Rehearsal. This green Plat fhall be our Stage, this Hauthorn brake our tyring Houfe, and we will do it in Action, as we will do it before the Duke, Bat. Peter Quince. Quin. What fay'ft thou Bully Bottom? Bat. There are Things in this Comedy of Piramus and Thisby, that will never pleafe. Firft, Piramus muft draw a C 4 Sword Sword to kill himself, which the Ladies cannot abide. How answer 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. Snout. Will not the Ladies be afeard of the Lion? Bot. Mafters, you ought to confider with your felves; to bring in, God shield 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 muft 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- fhine. Quin. Yes, it doth shine that Night. Bot. Why then may you leave a Cafement of the great Chamber |