If ever I thy face by day-light fee.

Now, go thy way: faintnefs constraineth me
To measure out my length on this cold bed.
By day's approach look to be vifited.

SCENE X.

Enter Helena.

Hel. O weary night, o long and tedious night, Abate thy hours; fhine comforts from the eaft, That I may back to Athens by day-light,

From these that my poor company deteft;
And fleep, that fometimes fhuts up forrow's eye,
Steal me a while from mine own company!

Puck. Yet but three here? come one more,
Two of both kinds make up four.
Here she cometh, curft and fad:
Cupid is a knavish lad,

Thus to make poor females mad.

Enter Hermia.

Her. Never fo weary, never fo in wo,

Bedabbled with the dew, and torn with briars,

I can no further crawl, no further

go;

My legs can keep no pace with my defires: Here will I reft me 'till the break of day. Heav'ns fhield Lyfander, if they mean a fray!

Puck. On the ground, fleep thou found; I'll apply to your eye, gentle lover, remedy.

[Lyes down.

[Sleeps.

}

[Lyes down.

[Squeezing the juice on Lyfander's eye.

When thou wakeft next, thou takest
True delight in the fight of thy former lady's eye;

And the country proverb known,

That every man should take his own,

In your waking shall be shown.

Jack

Jack fhall have fill, nought fhall go ill,

The man shall have his mare again, and all be well. [Exit Puck.

[They fleep.

******

**

ACT IV.

SCENE I.

The wood.

Enter queen of fairies, Bottom, fairies attending, and the

king behind them.

QUEEN.

OME, fit thee down upon this flow'ry bed,
While I thy amiable cheeks do coy,

And stick mufk-rofes in thy fleek-fmooth'd head,
And kiss thy fair large ears, my gentle joy.

Bot. Where's Peafebloom?

Peafe. Ready.

Bot. Scratch my head, Peafebloffom. Where's monfieur Cobweb? Cob. Ready.

Bot. Monfieur Cobweb, good monfieur, get your weapons in your hand, and kill me a red-hipt humble-bee on the top of a thistle, and, good monfieur, bring me the honey-bag. Do not fret yourself too much in the action, monficur; and, good monfieur, have a care the honey-bag break not; I would be loath to have you overflown with a honey-bag, fignior. Where's monfieur Mustardfeed?

Muf. Ready.

Bot. Give me thy neaf, monfieur Muftardfeed: pray you, leave your courtesy, good monfieur.

Muf. What's your will?

Bot. Nothing, good monfieur, but to help Cavalero Cobweb to fcratch. I must to the barber's, monfieur, for, methinks, I am marvellous hairy about the face. And I am fuch a tender ass, if my hair doth but tickle me, I muft fcratch.

Queen. What, wilt thou hear fome mufick, my fweet love?

VOL. I.

Bot.

Bot. I have a reasonable good ear in musick; let us have the tongs and the bones.

Mufick. Tongs, rural mufick.

Queen. Or fay, sweet love, what thou defir'ft to eat.

Bot. Truly, a peck of provender; I could munch your good dry oats. Methinks, I have a great desire to a bottle of hay : good hay, fweet hay hath no fellow.

Queen. I have a venturous fairy that shall seek

The squirrel's hoard, and fetch thee thence new nuts.

I

Bot. I had rather have a handful or two of dry'd peafe. But, pray you, let none of your people ftir me; I have an expofition of fleep come upon me.

Queen. Sleep thou, and I will wind thee in my arms; Fairies, be gone, and be a while away:

So doth the woodbine, the sweet honey-fuckle,

Gently entwift, the female ivy fo

Enring, the barky fingers of the elm.

O, how I love thee! how I dote on thee!

Enter Puck.

Ob. Welcome, good Robin; seest thou this sweet sight?
Her dotage now I do begin to pity;

For, meeting her of late behind the wood,
Seeking sweet favours for this hateful fool,
I did upbraid her, and fall out with her;
For fhe his hairy temples then had rounded
With coronet of fresh and fragrant flowers;
And that fame dew which fometime on the buds
Was wont to fwell like round and orient pearls,
Stood now within the pretty flouriets eyes,
Like tears that did their own disgrace bewail.
When I had, at my pleasure, taunted her,
And she in mild terms begg'd my patience,
I then did afk of her her changeling child,
Which straight she gave me, and her fairy sent

Το

To bear him to my bower in fairy land.
And, now I have the boy, I will undo
This hateful imperfection of her eyes:
And, gentle Puck, take this transformed scalp
From off the head of this Athenian fwain;
That he awaking when the others do,
May all to Athens back again repair,
And think no more of this night's accidents,
But as the fierce vexation of a dream.

But first I will release the fairy queen.

Be, as thou waft wont to be;
See, as thou waft wont to fee:
Dian's bud o'er Cupid's flower

Hath fuch force and blessed power.

Now, my Titania, wake you, my fweet queen.
Queen. My Oberon! what vifions have I seen!
Methought, I was enamour'd of an ass.

Ob. There lyes your love.

Queen. How came these things to pass?

O, how mine eyes do loath this vifage now!

Ob. Silence, a while; Robin, take off his head,

Titania, mufick call, and ftrike more dead

Than common fleep of all these five the sense.

Queen. Mufick, ho, mufick; such as charmeth fleep.

Still mufick.

Puck. When thou awak'ft, with thine own fool's eyes peep. Ob. Sound, mufick; come, my queen, take hand with me, And rock the ground whereon these sleepers be.

Now thou and I are new in amity;

And will to-morrow midnight folemnly
Dance in duke Thefeus' houfe triumphantly,
And bless it to all far pofterity:

There fhall these pairs of faithful lovers be
Wedded with Thefeus all in jollity.

Puck.

Enter Thefeus, Egeus, Hippolita, and all his train.

The. Go, one of you, find out the forester;

a

For now our obfervation is perform'd :

And fince we have the vaward of the day,
My love fhall hear the mufick of my hounds.
Uncouple in the western valley, go;
Dispatch, I fay, and find the forefter.

We will, fair queen, up to the mountain's top,
And mark the mufical confufion

Of hounds and echo in conjunction.

Hip. I was with Hercules and Cadmus once,
When in a wood of Crete they bay'd the boar
With hounds of Sparta; never did I hear
Such gallant chiding. For, befides the groves,
The skies, the fountains, ev'ry region near
Seem'd all one mutual cry. I never heard
So mufical a difcord, fuch fweet thunder.

The. My hounds are bred out of the Spartan kind,
So flew'd, fo fanded, and their heads are hung
With ears that sweep away the morning dew;
Crook-knee'd, and dew-lap'd, like Theffalian bulls,

* Meaning the obfervance of the time prefcribed for their nuptials.

Slow