Star. Here, Peter Quince.

Quin. Robin Starveling, you must play Thisby's mother.

Tom Snowt, the tinker.

Snow. Here, Peter Quince.

Quin. You, Pyramus's father; myself, Thisby's father; Snug, the joiner, you, the lion's part: I hope, there is a play fitted.

Snug. Have you the lion's part written? part pray you, if it be, give it me, for I am flow 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 fay, let him roar again, let him roar again.

Quin. If you should do it too terribly, you would fright the Dutchefs and the ladies, that they would fhriek, and that were enough to hang us all.

All. That would hang us every mother's fon.

Bot. I grant you, friends, if you should fright the ladies out of their wits, they would have no more difcretion but to hang us; but I will aggravate my voice fo, that I will roar you as gently as any fucking dove; I will roar you an 'twere any nightingale.

Quin. You can play no part but Pyramus, for Pyramus is a sweet-fac'd man; a proper man, as one fhall fee in a fummer's day; a moft lovely gentleman-like man: therefore you must needs play Pyramus.

Bot. Well, I will undertake it. What beard were I beft to play it in?

Quin. Why, what you will.

Bot. I will discharge it in either your straw-colour'd beard, your orange-tawny beard, your purple-in-grain beard, or your French crown-colour'd beard; your perfect yellow.

Quin. Some of your French crowns have no hair at all, and then you will play bare-fac'd. But, masters, here are your parts; and I am to intreat you, request you, and defire you, to con them by to-morrow night; and meet me in the palace-wood, a mile without the town, by moon-light, there we will rehearse; for if we meet in the city, we fhall be dog'd with company, and our devices known. In the mean time I will draw a bill of properties, fuch as our play wants. I pray you, fail me not.

Bot. We will meet, and there we may rehearse more obfcenely and courageously. Take pains, be perfect, adieu.

Quin. 4 At the Duke's oak we meet.

Bot. Enough; hold, or cut bow-ftrings.

ACT II.

[Exeunt.

SCENE I. ***

A WOO D.

Enter a Fairy at one Door, and Puck (or Robin-good

How

fellow) at another.

PUCK.

OW now, fpirit, whither wander you?
Fai. Over hill, over dale,

Through bufh, through briar,

4 At the Duke's Oak we meet-hold, or cut bowftrings.] This proverbial phrafe came originally from the Camp. When a Rendezvous was appointed, the militia Soldiers would frequently make excufe for not keeping word that their bowftrings were broke, i. e. their arms unferviceable. Hence when one would give another abfolute affurance of meeting him, he would fay proverbially hold or cut bow frings - i. e. whether the bow

a reuter, like the verb

ftring held or broke. For cut is uted as frets. As when we fay, the firing frets the filk frets, for the

paffive, it is cut or fretted.

Over park, over pale,
Through flood, through fire,
I do wander every where,
Swifter than the moon's sphere;
And I ferve the Fairy Queen,
To dew her orbs upon

the green;
The cowflips tall her penfioners be,
In their gold coats spots you fee,
Those be rubies, Fairy-favours:
In those freckles live their favours:
I must go feek fome dew-drops here,
And hang a pearl in every cowflip's ear.
Farewel, thou lob of fpirits, 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 fight. For Oberon is paffing fell and wrath,

Because that she, as her attendant, hath
A lovely boy, ftoll'n from an Indian King:
She never had fo fweet a changeling;
And jealous Oberon would have the child
Knight of his train, to trace the forefts wild;
But the per-force with-holds the loved boy,
Crowns him with flow'rs, and makes him all her joy.
And now they never meet in grove, or green,
By fountain clear, or fpangled ftar-light fheen,
But they do fquare, that all their elves for fear
Creep into acorn cups, and hide them there.

Fai. Or I miftake your fhape and making quite, Or else you are that fhrewd, and knavish fprite, Call'd Robin-goodfellow. Are you not he, That fright the maidens of the villageree, Skim milk, and fometimes labour in the quern, And bootless make the breathlefs hufwife chern: And fometime make the drink to bear no barm, Mif-lead night-wand'rers, laughing at their harm? Mr. Pope.

ie. quarrel or jar.

Thofe

Those that Hobgoblin call you, and fweet Puck, You do their work, and they fhall have good luck. Are not you he?

Puck. Thou fpeak'st aright;

I am that merry wand'rer of the night;
I jeft to Oberon, and make him smile,
When I a fat and bean-fed horfe beguile,
Neighing in likeness of a filly-foal;
And fometimes lurk I in a goffip's bowl,
In very likeness of a roafted crab,
And when the drinks, against her lips I bob,
And on her wither'd dewlap pour the ale.
The wifeft aunt, telling the faddeft tale,
Sometime for three-foot ftool mistaketh me;
Then flip I from her bum, down topples fhe,
And (a) rails or cries, and falls into a cough;
And then the whole quire hold their hips, and loffe,
And waxen in their mirth, and neeze, and fwear,
A merrier hour was never wafted there.

But make room, Fairy, here comes Oberon.

Fai. And here my miftrefs: would, that he were gone!

SCENE II. ***

Enter Oberon King of Fairies at one door with his train, and the Queen at another with hers.

Ob. Ill met at moon-light, proud Titania.
Queen. What, jealous Oberon? Fairies, skip hence,
I have forfworn his bed and company.

Ob. Tarry, rash Wanton; am not I thy lord?
Queen. Then I must be thy lady; but I know,
When thou haft ftoll'n away from fairy land,
And in the shape of Corin fate all day,
Playing on pipes of corn, and verfing love

[(a)

rails or cries, Oxf. Ed. -Vulg. Taylor cries.]

Το

To am'rous Phillida. Why art thou here,
Come from the fartheft fteep of India?
But that, forfooth, the bouncing Amazon,
Your buskin'd mistress and your warrior love,
To Thefeus must be wedded; and you come
To give their bed joy and profperity.

Ob. How can't thou thus for fhame, Titania,
Glance at my credit with Hippolita ;
Knowing, I know thy love to Thefeus ?

[night

* Didft thou not lead him glimmering, through the

From Periguné, whom he ravifhed;

And make him with fair Egle break his faith,
With Ariadne, and Antiopa?

Queen. These are the forgeries of jealousie :
3 And never fince that middle fummer's fpring
Met we on hill, in dale, foreft, or mead,
By paved fountain, or by rufhy brook,
Or on the beached margent of the fea,

Did thou not lead him through the glimmering night] We fhould read,

Didft thou not lead him glimmering, through the night The meaning is, She conducted him in the appearance of fire through the dark night.

2 Perigenia, Vid. Plut. vit. Thefei.

Mr. Pope.

3 And never fince that middle fummer's fpring, &c.] There are not many paffages in Shakespear of which one can be certain he has borrowed from the Ancients; but this is one of the few that, I think, will admit of no difpute. Our Author's admirable defcription of the miseries of the Country being plainly an imitation of that which Ovid draws, as confequent on the grief of Ceres, for the lofs of her daughter.

Nefcit adhuc ubi fit: terras tamen increpat omnes:
Ingratafque vocat, nec frugum munere dignas.
Ergo illic fava vertentia glebas

Fregit aratra manu parilique irata colonos
Ruricolafque boves letho dedit: arvaque juffit
Fallere depofitum vitiataque femina fecit.
Fertilitas terræ latum vulgata per orbem
Sparfa jacet. Primis fegetes moriuntur in herbis.
Et modo fol nimius, nimius modo corripit imber:
Sideraque ventique nocent.

4 THE middle fummer's Spring.] We fhould read THAT. For it appears to have been fome years fince the quarrel first began.

VOL. I.

Το