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Which, when he has a house, he'll deck withal.
And that most deeply to consider, is

The beauty of his daughter; he himself
Calls her a non-pareil: I ne'er saw woman,
But only Sycorax my dam, and she;
But she as far surpasseth Sycorax,

As greatest does least.

Ste. Is it so brave a lass?

Cal. Ay, lord; she will become thy bed, I warrant, And bring thee forth brave brood.

Ste. Monster, I will kill this man his daughter and I will be king and queen; (save our graces!) and Trinculo and thyself shall be viceroys :-Dost thou like the plot, Trinculo?

Trin. Excellent.

Ste. Give me thy hand; I am sorry I beat thee: but, while thou livest, keep a good tongue in thy head.

Cal. Within this half hour will he be asleep; Wilt thou destroy him then?

Ste.

Ay, on mine honour.

Ari. This will I tell my master.

Cal. Thou mak'st me merry: I am full of plea

sure;

Let us be jocund: Will you troll the catch2
You taught me but while-ere?

Ste. At thy request, monster, I will do reason, any reason: Come on, Trinculo, let us sing. [Sings. Flout 'em, and skout 'em; and skout 'em, and flout 'em;

Thought is free.

Cal. That's not the tune.

[ARIEL plays the tune on a tabor and pipe. Ste. What is this same?

Will you troll the catch-] To troll a catch, is to dismiss it trippingly from the tongue.

VOL. I.

F

Trin. This is the tune of our catch, played by the picture of No-body.3

Ste. If thou beest a man, shew thyself in thy likeness if thou beest a devil, take't as thou list. Trin. O, forgive me my sins!

:

Ste. He that dies, pays all debts: I defy thee:Mercy upon us!

Cal. Art thou afeard?

Ste. No, monster, not I.

Cal. Be not afeard; the isle is full of noises, Sounds, and sweet airs, that give delight, and hurt

not.

Sometimes a thousand twangling instruments Will hum about mine ears; and sometime voices, That, if I then had wak'd after long sleep,

Will make me sleep again: and then, in dreaming, The clouds, methought, would open, and shew riches

Ready to drop upon me; that, when I wak'd,
I cry'd to dream again.

Ste. This will prove a brave kingdom to me, where I shall have my musick for nothing.

Cal. When Prospero is destroyed.

Ste. That shall be by and by: I remember the

story.

Trin. The sound is going away let's follow it, and after, do our work.

3 This is the tune of our catch, played by the picture of No-body.] A ridiculous figure, sometimes represented on signs. Westward for Smelts, a book which our author appears to have read, was printed for John Trundel in Barbican, at the sign of the No-body. MALONE.

The allusion is here to the print of No-body, as prefixed to the anonymous comedy of " No-body and Some-body;" without date, but printed before the year 1600. REED.

4 afeard?] Thus the old copy.-To affear is an obsolete verb, with the same meaning as to affray. Between aferde and afraide in the time of Chaucer, there might have been some nice distinction, which is at present lost. STEEVENS.

Ste. Lead, monster; we'll follow.-I would, I could see this taborer: he lays it on.

Trin. Wilt come? I'll follow, Stephano.5

[Exeunt.

SCENE III.

Another part of the Island.

Enter ALONSO, SEBASTIAN, ANTONIO, GONZALO, ADRIAN, FRANCISCO, and others.

6

Gon. By'r lakin, I can go no further, sir; My old bones ache: here's a maze trod, indeed, Through forth-rights and meanders! by your pa

tience,

I needs must rest me.

Alon.

Old lord, I cannot blame thee, Who am myself attach'd with weariness,

To the dulling of my spirits: sit down, and rest.
Even here I will put off my hope, and keep it
No longer for my flatterer; he is drown'd,
Whom thus we stray to find; and the sea mocks
Our frustrate search on land: Well, let him go.
Ant. I am right glad that he's so out of hope.
[Aside to SEBASTIAN.
Do not, for one repulse, forego the purpose
That you resolv'd to effect.

5 Wilt come? I'll follow, Stephano.] The first words are addressed to Caliban, who, vexed at the folly of his new companions idly running after the musick, while they ought only to have attended to the main point, the dispatching Prospero, seems, for some little time, to have staid behind. HEATH.

The words-Wilt come? should be added to Stephano's speech. I'll follow, is Trinculo's answer. RITSON.

By'r lakin,] i. e. The diminutive only of our lady, i. e. ladykin. STEEVENS.

7 Our frustrate search-] Frustrate for frustrated.

Seb.

The next advantage

Will we take thoroughly.

Let it be to-night;

Ant.

For, now they are oppress'd with travel, they
Will not, nor cannot, use such vigilance,

As when they are fresh.

Seb.

I say, to-night: no more.

Solemn and strange musick; and PROSPERO above, invisible. Enter several strange Shapes, bringing in a banquet; they dance about it with gentle actions of salutation; and, inviting the King, &c. to eat, they depart.

Alon. What harmony is this? my good friends, hark!

Gon. Marvellous sweet musick!

Alon. Give us kind keepers, heavens! What were these?

Seb. A living drollery: Now I will believe, That there are unicorns; that, in Arabia

There is one tree, the phoenix' throne; one phoenix At this hour reigning there.

Ant. I'll believe both; And what does else want credit, come to me, And I'll be sworn 'tis true: Travellers ne'er did lie, Though fools at home condemn them.

s A living drollery:] Shows, called drolleries, were in Shakspeare's time performed by puppets only. From these our modern drolls, exhibited at fairs, &c. took their name. A living drollery, i. e. a drollery not represented by wooden machines, but by personages who are alive.

9 one tree, the phoenix' throne;] Our poet had probably Lyly's Euphues, and his England, particularly in his thoughts: signat. Q 3." As there is but one phoenix in the world, so is there but one tree in Arabia wherein she buildeth." See also, Florio's Italian Dictionary, 1598: "Rasin, a tree in Arabia, whereof there is but one found, and upon it the phoenix_sits."

MALONE.

Gon.

If in Naples

I should report this now, would they believe me?
If I should say, I saw such islanders,

(For, certes,' these are people of the island,)
Who, though they are of monstrous shape, yet, note,
Their manners are more gentle-kind,' than of
Our human generation you shall find

Many, nay, almost any.

Pro.

Honest lord,

Thou hast said well; for some of you there present, Are worse than devils.

Alon.

[Aside.

I cannot too much muse,'

Such shapes, such gesture, and such sound, expres

sing

(Although they want the use of tongue,) a kind Of excellent dumb discourse.

[blocks in formation]

They have left their viands behind; for we have

stomachs.

Will't please you taste of what is here!

Alon.

Not I.

1 For, certes, &c.] Certes is an obsolete word, signifying certainly.

2 Their manners are more gentle-kind,] The old copy has"gentle, kind-." I read (in conformity to a practice of our author, who delights in such compound epithets, of which the first adjective is to be considered as an adverb,) gentle-kind. Thus, in K. Richard III. we have childish-foolish, senselessobstinate, and mortal-staring. STEEVENS.

3 too much muse,] To muse, in ancient language, is to admire, to wonder.

4 Praise in departing.] i. e. Do not praise your entertainment too soon, lest you should have reason to retract your commendation. It is a proverbial saying,

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