SEXTON. But which are the offenders that are to be examined? let them come before Master constable. DOGB. Yea, marry, let them come before me. What is your name, friend? BORA. Borachio. DOGB. Pray write down Borachio. Yours, sirrah? CON. I am a gentleman, sir, and my name is Conrade. DOGB. Write down Master gentleman Conrade. Masters, do you serve God? CON. BORA.} Yea, sir, we hope. DOGB. Write down that they hope they serve God; and write God first; for God defend but God should go before such villains! Masters, it is proved already that you are little better than false knaves, and it will go near to be thought so shortly. How answer you for yourselves? CON. Marry, sir, we say we are none. DOGB. A marvellous witty fellow, I assure you; but I will go about with him. Come you hither, sirrah; a word in your ear sir, I say to you, it is thought you are false knaves. BORA. Sir, I say to you we are none. DOGB. Well, stand aside. 'Fore God, they are both in a tale. Have you writ down, that they are none ? SEXTON. Master constable, you go not the way to examine : you must call forth the watch that are their accusers. DOGB. Yea, marry, that's the eftest way. Let the watch come forth. Masters, I charge you, in the prince's name, accuse these men. FIRST WATCH. This man said, sir, that Don John, the prince's brother, was a villain. DOGB. Write down Prince John a villain. Why, this is flat perjury, to call a prince's brother a villain. BORA. Master constable, DOGB. Pray thee, fellow, peace. I do not like thy look, I promise thee. SEXTON. What heard you him say else ? SEC. WATCH. Marry, that he had received a thousand ducats of Don John for accusing the Lady Hero wrongfully. DOGB. Flat burglary as ever was committed. VERG. Yea, by the mass, that it is. SEXTON. What else, fellow? FIRST WATCH. And that Count Claudio did mean, upon his words, to disgrace Hero before the whole assembly, and not marry her. DOGB. O villain! thou wilt be condemned into everlasting redemption for this. SEXTON. What else? SEC. WATCH. That is all. SEXTON. And this is more, masters, than you can deny. Prince John is this morning secretly stolen away: Hero was in this manner accused, in this very manner refused, and, upon the grief of this, suddenly died. Master constable, let these men be bound, and brought to Leonato's: I will go before and show him their examination. DOGB. Come, let them be opinioned. VERG. Let them be in the handsCON. Off, coxcomb ! [Exit. DOGB. God's my life! where's the sexton ? let him write down the prince's officer coxcomb. Come, bind them. Thou naughty varlet. CON. Away! you are an ass; you are an ass. DOGB. Dost thou not suspect my place? Dost thou not suspect my years? O that he were here to write me down an ass! but, masters, remember that I am an ass ! though it be not written down, yet forget not that I am an ass. No, thou villain, thou art full of piety, as shall be proved upon thee by good witness. I am a wise fellow; and, which is more, an officer; and, which is more, a householder; and, which is more, as pretty a piece of flesh as any in Messina ; and one that knows the law, go to ; and a rich fellow enough, go to; and a fellow that hath had losses; and one that hath two gowns, and everything handsome about him. Bring him away. O that I had been writ down an ass! [Exeunt. A MIDSUMMER-NIGHT'S DREAM ACT I. Scene II. A Room in QUINCE's House. Enter QUINCE, SNUG, BOTTOM, FLUTE, SNOUT, and STARVELING. 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 the duchess on his wedding-day at night. BOT. First, good Peter Quince, say what the play treats on; then read the names of the actors, and so grow to a point. QUIN. Marry, our play is, The most lamentable 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. Answer as I call you. Nick Bottom, the weaver. 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 my chief humour is for a tyrant. I could play Ercles rarely, or a part to tear a cat in, to make all split. This was lofty! The raging rocks Of prison gates: And Phibbus' car: And make and mar The foolish Fates. 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. FLU. Here, Peter Quince. QUIN. You must take Thisby on you. FLU. What is Thisby? a wandering knight? QUIN. It is the lady that Pyramus must love. FLU. Nay, faith, let not me play a woman; I have a beard coming. QUIN. That's all one : you shall play it in a mask, and you may speak as small as you will. Ah, BOT. An I may hide my face, let me play Thisby too, I'll speak in a monstrous little voice, "Thisne, Thisne! Pyramus, my lover dear; thy Thisby dear, and lady dear!" QUIN. No, no; you must play Pyramus; and Flute, you Thisby. Bor. Well, proceed. QUIN. Robin Starveling, the tailor. STAR. Here, Peter Quince. QUIN. Robin Starveling, you must play Thisby's mother. Tom Snout, the tinker. SNOUT. Here, Peter Quince. QUIN. You, Pyramus's father; myself, Thisby's father; Snug, the joiner, you the lion's part; and, I hope, here is a play fitted. 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 roar 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 hang us all. ALL. That would hang us, every mother's son. BOT. I grant you, friends, if that you should fright the ladies out of their wits, they would have no more discretion but to hang us; but I will aggravate my voice so that I will roar you as gently as any sucking dove; I will roar you as '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. 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 straw-colour beard, your orange-tawny beard, your purple-in-grain beard, or your French-crown 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 moonlight; there will we rehearse ; for if we meet in the city, we shall be dogged with company, and our devices known. In the meantime I will draw a bill of properties, 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. [Exeunt. ACT II. Scene I.-A Wood near Athens. Enter a Fairy on one side, and PUCK on the other. PUCK. How now, spirit! whither wander you? FAI. Over hill, over dale, Thorough bush, thorough brier, Thorough flood, thorough fire, To dew her orbs upon the green: I must go seek some dew-drops here, Farewell, thou lob of spirits: I'll be gone; Our queen and all her elves come here anon. PUCK. The king doth keep his revels here to-night. Take heed the queen come not within his sight; For Oberon is passing fell and wrath. Crowns him with flowers, and makes him all her joy. |