We'll reft us, Hermia, if thou think it good,
And tarry for the comfort of the day.

Her. Be't fo, Lyfander: find you out a bed,
For I upon this bank will reft my head.

Lyf. One turf shall serve as pillow for us both; One heart, one bed, two bofoms, and one troth.

Her. Nay, good Lyfander; for my fake, my dear, Lie further off yet, do not lie fo no near.

Lyf. O, take the fenfe, fweet, of my innocence;
Love takes the meaning, in love's conference.
I mean that my heart unto yours is knit ;
So that but one heart we can make of it:
Two bofoms interchained with an oath ;
So then, two bofoms, and a fingle troth.
Then, by your fide no bed-room me deny ;
For, lying fo, Hermia, I do not lie.

Her. Lyfander riddles very prettily :-
Now much befhrew my manners, and my pride,
If Hermia meant to say, Lyfander ly'd.
But, gentle friend, for love and courtesy,
Lie further off, in human modefty.
Such feparation, as, may well be said,
Becomes a virtuous bachelor and a maid:

So far be diftant; and good night, sweet friend!
Thy love ne'er alter, till thy fweet life end!
Lyf. Amen, amen, to that fair prayer, say I;
And then end life, when I end loyalty!

Here is my bed: Sleep give thee all his reft!

Her. With half that wish the wisher's eyes be prefs'd!

Puck. Through the foreft have I gone,
But Athenian found I none,
On whofe eyes I might approve
This flower's force in ftirring love.
Night and filence! who is here?
Weeds of Athens he doth wear;
This is he, my master said,
Despised the Athenian maid:
And here the maiden fleeping found
On the dank and dirty ground.

Pretty foul! fhe durft not lie

Near to this lack-love, this kill-courtefy.

Churl, upon thy eyes I throw

All the power this charm doth owe:
When thou wak'ft, let love forbid
Sleep his feat on thy eye-lid.

So awake, when I am gone;
For I muft now to Oberon.

[Exit.

Enter DEMETRIUS and HELENA running.

Hel. Stay, though thou kill me, fweet Demetrius !
Dem. I charge thee, hence, and do not haunt me thus.
Hel. O, wilt thou darkling leave me ? do not fo.
Dem. Stay, on thy peril; I alone will go. [Exit DEM.
Hel. O, I am out of breath, in this fond chace !
The more my prayer, the leffer is my grace.
Happy is Hermia, wherefoe'er the lies;
For the hath bleffed and attractive eyes.

How came her eyes fo bright? not with falt tears:
If fo, my eyes are oft'ner wafh'd than her's.
No, no, I am as ugly as a bear;

For beafts, that meet me, run away for fear:
Therefore, no marvel, though Demetrius
Do, as a monster, fly my prefence thus.
What wicked and diffembling glass of mine
Made me compare with Hermia's fphery eyne?
-But who is here? Lyfander! on the ground!
Dead or asleep? I fee no blood, no wound !-
Lyfander, if you live, good fir, awake.

Lyf. And run through fire I will, for thy fweet fake.
[Waking.

Tranfparent Helena! Nature shews art,

That through thy bofom makes me fee thy heart.
Where is Demetrius? Oh, how fit a word
Is that vile name, to perish on my sword!

Hel. Do not fay fo, Lyfander; fay not fo:

What though he love your Hermia? Lord, what though?
Yet Hermia ftill loves you: then be content.
Lyf. Content with Hermia? No: I do repent
The tedious minutes I with her have spent.
Not Hermia, but Helena now I love :
Who will not change a raven for a dove?
The will of man is by his reason sway'd;
And reafon fays, you are the worthier maid.
Things, growing, are not ripe until their feafon ;
So I, being young, till now ripe not to reafon;

And, touching now the point of human skill,
Reafon becomes the marshal to my will.
And leads me to your eyes; where I o'erlook
Love's ftories, written in love's richeft book.

Hel. Wherefore was I to this keen mockery born?
When, at your hands, did I deferve this fcorn?
Is't not enough, is't not enough, young man,
That I did never, no, nor never can,

Deferve a fweet look from Demetrius' eye,
But you muft flout my infufficiency?

Good troth, you do me wrong, good footh, you do,
In fuch difdainful manner, me to woo.

But fare you well perforce I must confefs,
I thought you lord of more true gentleness.
Oh, that a lady, of one man refus'd,

Should, of another, therefore be abus'd!

[Exit.

Lyf. She fees not Hermia :-Hermia fleep thou there ;

And never may'ft thou come Lyfander near!

For, as a furfeit of the sweetest things

The deepest loathing to the ftomach brings;
Or,, as the herefies, that men do leave,
Are hated moft of those they did deceive;
So thou, my furfeit, and my herefy,
Of all be hated, but the most of me!

And all my powers addrefs your love and might
To honour Helen, and to be her knight !

[Exit. Her. Starting from fleep.] Help me, Lyfander, help me do thy beft,

To pluck this crawling ferpent from my breast!
Ay me, for pity!what a dream was here ?
Lyfander, look, how I do quake with fear:
Methought, a ferpent eat my heart away;
And you fat fmiling at his cruel prey.-
Lyfander! what, remov'd? Lyfander ! lord!
What, out of hearing? gone? no found, no word ?
Alack, where are you? fpeak, an if you hear;
Speak, of all loves; I fwoon almost with fear.
No?-then I well perceive you are not nigh:
Or death, or you, I'll find immediately.

[Exit.

ACT III. SCENE I.

The Wood. Enter QUINCE, SNUG, BOTTOM, FLUTE, SNOUT, and STARVELING.[7] The Queen of Fairies lying afleep.

ARE we all met?

Bottom.

Quin. Pat, pat; and here's a marvellous convenient place for our rehearsal This green plot fhall be our ftage, this hawthorn brake our tiring-house; and we will do it in action, as we will do it before the duke.

Bot. Peter Quince,

Quin. What fay'ft thou, bully Bottom?

Bot. There are things in this comedy of Pyramus and Thisby, that will never please. Firft, Pyramus muft draw a fword to kill himself; which the ladies cannot abide. How anfwer you that?

Snout. By'rlakin, a parlous fear.[8]

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 say, we will do no harm with our swords; and that Pyramus is not kill'd, indeed and for the more better afsurance, 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 shall be written in eight and fix.

Bot. No, make it two more; let it be written in eight and eight.

Snout. Will not the ladies be afraid of the lion?
Star. I fear it, I promise you.

Bot. Mafters, you ought to confider with yourselves; to bring in, God fhield us! a lion among ladies, is a most

[7] In the time of Shakespeare, there were many companies of players, fometimes five at the fame time, contending for the favour of the public. Of these fome were undoubtedly very unfkilful and very poor, and it is probable that the defign of this fcene was to ridicule their ignorance, and the odd expedients to which they might be driven by the want of proper decorations. Bottom was perhaps the head of a rival house, and is therefore honoured with an afs's head. JOHNS.

[8] By our 'ladykin,' or 'little lady,' as 'ifakins' is a corruption of 'by my faith. Parlous,' a word corrupted from 'perilous,' i. e. dangerous. STE

dreadful thing: for there is not a more fearful wild-fowl, than your lion, living; and we ought to look to it.

Snout. 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 muft speak 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 moonlight 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 calendar, a calendar! look in the almanack; find out moon-fhine, find out moon-shine.

Quin. Yes, it doth fhine that night.

Bot. Why, then you may leave a cafement of the great chamber window, where we play, open; and the moon may fhine in at the cafement.

Quin. Ay: or elfe one muft come in with a bufh of thorns and a lantern, and fay, he comes to disfigure, or to prefent, the perfon of moon-fhine. Then, there is another thing: we must have a wall in the great chamber; for Pyramus and Thifby, fays the ftory, did talk through the chink of a wall.

Snug. You never can bring in a wall:Bottom ?

-What fay you,

Bot. Some man or other muft prefent wall: and let him have fome plafter, or fome lome, or fome rough-caft, about him, to fignify wall; or let him hold his fingers thus, and through that cranny fhall Pyramus and Thisby whisper.

Quin. If that may be, then all is well. Come, fit down, every mother's fon, and rehearse your parts,-Pyramus, you begin: when you have spoken your speech, enter into that brake; and fo every one according to his cue.