Turn melancholy forth to funerals, and with revel Ege. Full of vexation come I, with complaint This hath bewitch'd the bosom of my child: And interchang'd love-tokens with my child : ceits, Knacks, trifles, nosegays, sweetmeats; messen gers Of strong prevailment in unharden'd youth: Turn'd her obedience, which is due to me, duke, Be it so she will not here before your grace I beg the ancient privilege of Athens; The. What say you, Hermia? be advis'd, fair To you your father should be as a god; one To whom you are but as a form in wax, The. In himself he is: But earthlier happy is the rose distill'd, Grows, lives, and dies, in single blessed. ness. Her. So will I grow, so live, so die, my Ere I will yield my virgin patent up (The sealing-day betwixt my love and me, Thy crazed title to my certain right. Lys. You have her father's love, Deme- Let me have Hermia's: do you marry him. love; And she is mine; and all my right of her Lys. I am, my lord, as well deriv'd as he, I am belov'd of beauteous Hermia: And won her soul; and she, sweet lady, dotes, Upon this spotted and inconstant man. The. I must confess, that I have heard so much, And with Demetrius thought to have spoke thereof; and But, being over-full of self-affairs, But, in this kind, wanting your father's voice, Her. I would, my father look'd but with my eyes. Her. I do entreat your grace to pardon me. In such a presence here, to plead my thoughts: The. Either to die the death, or to abjure Therefore, fair Hermia, question your desires, choice, You can endure the livery of a nun; moon. Thrice blessed they, that master so their blood, To undergo such maiden pilgrimage: My mind did lose it.-But, Demetrius, come; I have some private schooling for you both.- I must employ you in some business [Exeunt THES. HIP. EGE. DEM. and How chance the roses there do fade so fast? Her. Belike for want of rain; which I could well Beteem them from the tempest of mine eyes. Could ever hear by tale or bistory, Her. O cross! too high to be enthrall'd to Wishes, and tears, poor fancy's + followers. I have a widow aunt, a dowager Of great revenue, and she hath no child :' From Athens is her house remote leagues; seven And she respects me as her only son. Her. My good Lysander! I swear to thee, by Cupid's strongest bow; that which knitteth souls, and prospers And by that fire which burn'd the Carthage When the false Trojan under sail was seen; Enter HELENA. Her. God speed fair Helena ! Whither away? Her. His folly, Helena, is no fault of mine. Hel. None, but your beauty; Would that fault were mine! Her. Take comfort; be no more shall see my Lysander and myself will fly this place.— Lys. Helen, to you our minds we will un- To-morrow night when Phoebe doth behold Decking with liquid pearl the bladed grass, and I Upon faint primrose-beds were wont to lie, From lovers' food, till morrow deep midnight. [Exit LYSANDER. Hel. How happy some, o'er other some can be! Through Athens I am thought as fair as she. Things base and vile, holding no quantity, And therefore is winged Cupid painted blind: So the boy love is perjur'd every where: Hel. Call you me fair? that fair again un- For ere Demetrius look'd on Hermia's eyne, + My tongue should catch your tongue's sweet Were the world mine, Demetrius being bated, Hel. Oh! that your frowns would teach my Her. I give him curses, yet he gives me love. Hel. Oh! that my prayers could such affection move ! Her. The more I hate, the more he follows me. He hail'd down oaths, that he was only mine; SCENE 11.-The same.-A Room in a Enter SNUG, BOTTOM, FLUTE, SNOUT, QUINCE, Quin. Is all our company here? Bot. You were best to call them generally, man by man, according to the scrip. Quin. Here is the scroll of every man's name, which is thought fit, through all Athens, to play in our interlude before the duke and duchess, on his wedding-day at night. Bot. First, good Peter Quince, say what the play treats on; then read the names of the ac Hel. The more I love, the more he hateth me.tors; and so grow to a point. Quin. Marry, our play is-The most lament • Black. Pole stars. + Loves. Countenance. • Sport. + Fyes. able comedy, and most cruel death of Pyramus and Thisby. Bot. A very good piece of work, I assure you, and a merry.-Now, good Peter Quince, call forth your actors by the scroll: Masters, spread yourselves. Quin. Auswer as I call you.-Nick Bottom, the weaver. Bot. Ready : Name what part I am for, and proceed. Quin. You, Nick Bottom are set down for Pyramus. Bot. What is Pyramus? a lover, or a tyrant? Quin. A lover, that kills himself most gallantly for love. Bot. That will ask some tears in the true performing of it : If I do it, let the audience look to their eyes: I will move storms, I will condole in some measure. To the rest :-Yet uy chief humour is for a tyrant: I could play Ercles rarely, or a part to tear a cat in, to make all split. "The raging rocks, "With shivering shocks, "Of prison-gates: "Shall shine from far, "And make and mar "The foolish fates." This was lofty !-Now, name the rest of the players. This is Ercles' vein, a tyrant's vein; a lover is more condoling. Quin. Francis Flute, the bellows-mender. Quin. You must take Thisby on you. Quin. That's all one; you shall play it in a mask, and you may speak as small as you will. Bot. An I may hide my face, let me play Thisby too: I'll speak in a monstrous little voice-Thisne, Thisne,-Ah! Pyramus, my lover dear; thy Thisby dear! and lady dear! Quin. No, no; you must play Pyramus, and, Flute, you Thisby. Bot. Well, proceed. Quin. Robin Starveling, the tailor. Quin. Robin Starveling, you must Quin. You, Pyramus' father; myself, Thisby's father;-Snug, the joiner, you, the lion's part : and, I hope, here is a play fitted. Bot. Well, I will undertake it. What beard were I best to play it in? Quin. Why, what you will. Bot. I will discharge it in either your strawcoloured beard, your orange-tawny beard, your purple-in-grain beard, or your Frenchcrown-colour beard, your perfect yellow. Quin. Some of your French crowns have no hair at all, and then you will play bare-faced. -But, masters, here are your parts: and I am to entreat you, request you, and desire you, to con them by to-morrow night; and meet me in the palace wood, a mile without the town, by moon-light; there will we rehearse : for if we meet in the city, we shall be dog'd with company, and our devices known. In the mean time I will draw a bill of properties, s such as our play wants. I pray you, fail me not. Bot. We will meet; and there we may rehearse more obscenely, and courageously. Take pains; be perfect; adieu. I Quin. At the duke's oak we meet. Puck. How now, spirit! whither wander you! Thorough bush, thorough brier, Thorough flocd, thorough fire, Swifter than the moones sphere; In those freckles live their savours: play Take heed, the queen come not within his sight, Snug. Have you the lion's part written? pray you, if it be, give it me, for I am slow of study. Quin. You may do it extempore, for it is nothing but roaring. Bot. Let me play the lion too: I will roar, that I will do any man's heart good to hear me; I will roar, that I will make the duke say, Let him rour again, Let him roar again. Quin. An you should do it too terribly, you would fright the duchess and the ladies, that they would shriek: and that were enough to bang us all. And now they never meet in grove, or green, fear, Creep into acorn cups, and hide them there. Or else you are that shrewd and knavish sprite, churn; All. That would hang us every mother's son. Bot. I grant you, friends, if that you should | Skim milk; and sometimes labour in the quern, fright the ladies out of their wits, they would And bootless make the breathless housewife have no more discretion but to hang us: but I will aggravate my voice so, that I will roar yon as gently as any sucking dove; I will roar you an 'twere any nightingale. Quin. You can play no part but Pyramus: for Pyramus is a sweet-faced man; a proper man, as one shall see in a summer's day; a most lovely, gentleman-like man; therefore you must needs play Pyramus. • Asif. And sometime make the drink to bear no • Articles required In performing a play. |