MOTH,. MUSTARDSEED,-) Other fairies attending their King and Queen. Attendants on Theseus and Hippolyta.] Hippolyta, I woo'd thee with my sword, And won thy love, doing thee injuries; But I will wed thee in another key, With pomp, with triumph, and with revelling. Enter Egeus and his daughter Hermia, Lysander, and Demetrius. Ege. Happy be Theseus, our renowned Duke! 20 The. Thanks, good Egeus; what's the news with thee? Ege. Full of vexation come I, with complaint 25 This man hath bewitch'd the bosom of my child. Thou, thou, Lysander, thou hast given her rhymes, And interchang'd love-tokens with my child. Thou hast by moonlight at her window sung With feigning voice verses of feigning love, 31 And stolen the impression of her fantasy With bracelets of thy hair, rings, gawds, conceits, Knacks, trifles, nosegays, sweetmeats,-messengers Of strong prevailment in unharden'd youth. 35 With cunning hast thou filch'd my daughter's heart, Turn'd her obedience, which is due to me, I beg the ancient privilege of Athens. 40 45 The. What say you, Hermia? Be advis'd, fair Dem. Relent, sweet Hermia; and, Lysander, maid. To you your father should be as a god, yield Thy crazed title to my certain right. One that compos'd your beauties, yea, and one Lys. You have her father's love, Demetrius, Let me have Hermia's; do you marry him. 50 Ege. Scornful Lysander! true, he hath my love, Lys. I am, my lord, as well deriv'd as he, As well possess'd; y love is more than his; ΙΟΙ 65 The. I must confess that I have heard so much, And with Demetrius thought to have spoke thereof; Therefore, fair Hermia, question your desires, Know of your yout., examine well your blood, Whether, if you yield not to your father's choice, But, being over-full of self-affairs, My mind did lose it. But, Demetrius, come; 120 125 I must employ you in some business Against our nuptial and confer with you Of something nearly that concerns yourselves. Ege. With duty and desire we follow you. Exeunt all but Lysander and Hermia. Lys. How now, my love! why is your cheek so pale? How chance the roses there do fade so fast? Her. Belike for want of rain, which I could well 130 135 Beteem them from the tempest of my eyes. Her. O hell! to choose love by another's eyes. And ere a man hath power to say 'Behold!' Then let us teach our trial patience, 151 As due to love as thoughts and dreams and sighs, Wishes and tears, poor fancy's followers. Lys. A good persuasion; therefore, hear Hermia. I have a widow aunt, a dowager Of great revenue, and she hath no child. From Athens is her house remov'd leagues; 155 me, seven Sickness is catching; O, were favour so, My tongue should catch your tongue's sweet melody. Were the world mine, Demetrius being bated, The rest I'll give to be to you translated. 191 O, teach me how you look, and with what art You sway the motion of Demetrius' heart. Her. I frown upon him, yet he loves me still. Hel. O that your frowns would teach my smiles such skill! 195 Her. I give him curses, yet he gives me love. Hel. O that my prayers could such affection move! Her. The more I hate, the more he follows me. 160 Hel. The more I love, the more he hateth me. Her. His folly, Helena, is no fault of mine. Hel. None but your beauty. Would that fault And she respects me as her only son. And in the wood, a league without the town, 166 were mine! 200 Her. Take comfort. He no more shall see my face; Lysander and myself will fly this place. As you on him, Demetrius dote on you! 225 Exit Lysander. Hel. How happy some o'er other some can be! Through Athens I am thought as fair as she. But what of that? Demetrius thinks not so; He will not know what all but he do know; And as he errs, doting on Hermia's eyes, 230 So I, admiring of his qualities. Things base and vile, holding no quantity, Love can transpose to form and dignity. Love looks not with the eyes but with the mind, And therefore is wing'd Cupid painted blind. Nor hath Love's mind of any judgement taste; Wings and no eyes figure unheedy haste; 237 And therefore is Love said to be a child, Because in choice he is so oft beguil'd. As waggish boys in game themselves forswear, So the boy Love is perjur'd every where: For ere Demetrius look'd on Hermia's eyne, He hail'd down oaths that he was only mine; And when this hail some heat from Hermia felt, 241 So he dissolv'd, and showers of oaths did melt. I will go tell him of fair Hermia's flight; 246 Then to the wood will he to-morrow night Pursue her; and for this intelligence If I have thanks, it is a dear expense. Enter Quince the Carpenter, Snug the Joiner, Bottom the Weaver, Flute the Bellows-mender, Snout the Tinker, and Starveling the Tailor. 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 on to a point. 7 10 1 1 This was lofty! Now name the rest of the Bot. Well, I will undertake it. What beard players. This is Ercles' vein, a tyrant's vein; a lover is more condoling. Quin. Francis Flute the bellows-mender. Flu. Here, Peter Quince. 45 50 Quin. You must take Thisby on you. 56 Quin. No, no, you must play Pyramus; and, Flute, you Thisby. Bot. Well, proceed. Quin. Robin Starveling the tailor. Star. Here, Peter Quince. 60 were I best to play it in? Quin. Why, what you will. 98 Bot. I will discharge it in either your straw- Quin. Robin Starveling, you must play Thisby's Quin. At the Duke's oak we meet. Quin. You, Pyramus' father; myself, Thisby's Snug. Have you the lion's part written? 67 Pray 71 109 [SCENE I.-The Palace wood a mile without the town.] at another. Robin. How now, spirit! whither wander you? you, if it be, give it me, for I am slow of study. Quin. You may do it extempore, for it is nothing Enter a Fairy at one door, and Robin Goodfellow 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. If 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. Thorough bush, thorough brier, 10 Thorough flood, thorough fire, |