With league, whose date till death shall never end.
Whiles I in this affair do thee employ,
I'll to my queen, and beg her Indian boy;
And then I will her charmed eve release

From monster's view, and all things shall be peace. Puck. My fairy lord, this must be done with haste;

For night's swift dragons cut the clouds full fast, And yonder shines Aurora's harbinger;

At whose approach, ghosts, wandering here and there,

Troop home to church-yards: damned spirits all,
That in cross-ways and floods have burial,
Already to their wormy beds are gone;

For fear lest day should look their shames upon,
They wilfully themselves exíle from light,
And must for aye consort with black-brow'd night
Obe. But we are spirits of another sort:

I with the Morning's Lovel have oft made sport;
And, like a forester, the groves may tread,
Even to the eastern gate, all fiery red,
Opening on Neptune with fair blessed beams,
Turns into yellow gold his salt-green streams.
But, notwithstanding, haste; make no delay:
We may effect this business yet ere day.
[Exit Oberon.
Puck. Up and down, up and down;

I will lead them up and down:
I am fear'd in field and town;

Goblin, lead them up and down.

Here comes one.

Enter Lysander.

Lys. Where art thou, proud Demetrius? speak

thou now.

Puck. Here villain; drawn and ready. Where art thou?

Lys. I will be with thee straight.

(1) Cephalus, the paramour of Aurora

Puck.

To plainer ground.

Dem.

Follow me then

[Exit Lys. as following the voice.

Enter Demetrius.

Lysander! speak again.

Thou runaway, thou coward, art thou fled? Speak. In some bush? Where dost thou hide thy head?

Puck. Thou coward, art thou bragging to the stars, Telling the bushes that thou look'st for wars, And wilt not come? Come, recreant; come, thou

child;

I'll whip thee with a rod: He is defil'd
That draws a sword on thee.

Dem.

Yea; art thou there?

Puck. Follow my voice; we'll try no manhood

here.

Re-enter Lysander.

[Exeunt.

gone.

Lys. He goes before me, and still dares me on: When I come where he calls, then he is The villain is much lighter heel'd than I: I follow'd fast, but faster he did fly; That fallen am I in dark uneven way, And here will rest me. Come, thou gentle day! [Lies down. For if but once thou show me thy gray light, I'll find Demetrius, and revenge this spite. [Sleeps

Re-enter Puck and Demetrius.

Puck. Ho, ho! ho, ho! Coward, why com'st thou not?

Dem. Abide me, if thou dar'st; for well I wot, Thou runn'st before me, shifting every place; And dar'st not stand, nor look me in the face. Where art thou?

Puck.

Thou shalt

Come hither; I am here. Dem. Nay, then thou mock'st me. buy this dear

If ever I thy face by day-light see:

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

[Lies down and sleeps.

Enter Helena.

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

eye,

From these that my poor company detest :And, sleep, that sometimes shuts up sorrow's Steal me a while from mine own company. [Sleeps. Puck. Yet but three? Come one more; Two of both kinds makes up four. Here she comes, curst and sad :

Cupid is a knavish lad,

Thus to make poor females mad.

Enter Hermia.

Her. Never so weary, never so in wo,

Bedabbled with the dew, and torn with briers;

I can no further crawl, no further go;

My legs can keep no pace with my desires. Here will I rest me, till the break of day. Heavens shield Lysander, if they mean a fray!

Puck. On the ground

Sleep sound:
I'll apply

To your eye,

Gentle lover, remedy.

[Lies down.

[Squeezing the juice on Lysander's eye

When thou wak'st,

Thou tak'st

True delight

In the sight

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 shall have Jill;

Nought shall go ill;

The man shall have his mare again, and all shall be well. [Ex. Puck.--Dem. Hel. &c. sleep.

ACT IV.

SCENE I.-The same. Enter Titania and Bottom, Fairies attending; Oberon behind unseen. Tita. Come, sit thee down upon this flowery bed, While I thy amiable cheeks do coy,1

And stick musk-roses in thy sleek smooth head, And kiss thy fair large ears, my gentle joy. Bot. Where's Peas-blossom?

Peas. Ready.

Bot. Scratch my head, Peas-blossom.—Where's monsieur Cobweb?

Cob. Ready.

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

Must. Ready.

Bot. Give me your neif,2 monsieur Mustard-seed. Pray you, leave your courtesy, good monsieur. Must. What's your will?

Bot. Nothing, good monsieur, but to help cavalero Cobweb to scratch. I must to the barber's, monsieur; for, methinks, I am marvellous hairy about the face and I am such a tender ass, if my

hair do but tickle me, I must scratch.

Tita. What, wilt thou hear some music, my sweet love?

Bot. I have a reasonable good ear in music: let us have the tongs and the bones.

Tita. Or, say, sweet love, what thou desir'st 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, sweet hay, hath no fellow.

Tita. I have a venturous fairy that shall seek The squirrel's hoard, and fetch thee new nuts. Bot. I had rather have a handful, or two, of dried peas. But, I pray you, let none of your people stir me; I have an exposition of sleep come upon me.

Tita. Sleep thou, and I will wind thee in my arms. Fairies, be gone, and be all ways away.

So doth the woodbine, the sweet honeysuckle,
Gently entwist,-the female ivy so

Enrings the barky fingers of the elm.

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

[They sleep.

Oberon advances. Enter Puck.

Obe. Welcome, good Robin. See'st thou this sweet sight?

Her dotage now I do begin to pity.

For meeting her of late, behind the wood,
Seeking sweet savours for this hateful fool,
I did upbraid her, and fall out with her:
For she his hairy temples then had rounded
With coronet of fresh and fragrant flowers;
And that same dew which sometime on the buds
Was wont to swell, like round and orient pearls,
Stood now within the pretty flowrets' 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 ask of her her changeling child;