"O night, O night, alack, alack, alack,

"I fear my Thisby's promise is forgot!"And thou, O wall, thou fweet, and lovely wall, "That ftand'ft between her father's ground and mine; "Thou wall, O wall, O fweet and lovely wall,

"Shew me thy chink to blink through with mine eyne. "Thanks, courteous wall: Jove fhield thee well for this! "But what fee I? No Thisby do I fee.

"O wicked wall, through whom I fee no blifs ; "Curst be thy ftones for thus deceiving me!"

The. The wall, methinks, being fenfible, fhould curfe again.

Pyr. No, in truth, fir, he should not. Deceiving me, is Thifby's cue; fhe is to enter now, and I am to fpy her through the wall. You fhall fee, it will fall pat as I told you :-Yonder fhe comes.

Enter Thisby.

Thif. "O wall, full often haft thou heard my moans, "For parting my fair Pyramus and me:

My cherry lips have often kifs'd thy stones;

Thy stones with lime and hair knit up in thee." Pyr. "I fee a voice: now will I to the chink, "To spy an I can hear my Thisby's face. "Thisby !"

This. "My love! thou art my love, I think."

Pyr. "Think what thou wilt, I am thy lover's grace; "And like Limander am I trusty ftill."

This.

"And I like Helen, till the fates me kill." Pyr. "Not Shafalus to Procrus was fo true."

Thif.

"As Shafalus to Procrus, I to you."

Pyr. "O, kifs me through the hole of this vile wall.”

* Limander]—a corruption of Alexander, another name for Paris :or of Leander, as Helen may be of Hero. f Cephalus and Procris.

Thif. "I kifs the wall's hole, not your lips at all." Pyr. "Wilt thou at Ninny's tomb meet me straightway?” Thif. "Tide life, tide death, I come without delay." Wall." Thus have I, wall, my part discharged so; "And, being done, thus wall away doth go."

[Exeunt Wall, Pyramus, and Thibe. The. Now is the mural down between the two neighbours.

Dem. No remedy, my lord, when walls are fo wilful to hear without warning.

g

Hip. This is the filliest stuff that ever I heard.

The. The beft in this kind are but fhadows: and the worst are no worse, if imagination amend them.

Hip. It must be your imagination then, and not theirs. The. If we imagine no worfe of them, than they of themselves, they may pass for excellent men. Here come two noble beasts in, 'a moon, and a lion.

Enter Lion and Moonshine.

Lion. "You, ladies, you, whofe gentle hearts do fear "The smallest monstrous mouse that creeps on floor, "May now, perchance, both quake and tremble here, "When lion rough in wildest rage doth roar. "Then know that I, one Snug the joiner am; << A lion fell, nor elfe no lion's dam: "For if I fhould as lion come in ftrife

"Into this place, 'twere pity on my life."

The. A very gentle beaft, and of a good confcience. Dem. The very best at a beast, my lord, that e'er I faw.

bear without warning.]-to liften to clandeftinely, or over-hear the conversation of the next door neighbour-" Walls have ears." PROV. rear-no wonder if they be down as foon as up, when rear'd without due warning. h in this kind]-of actors.

i

a man-a moon-calf.

A lion fell, nor elfe no lion's dam :]—Neither a lion, nor lionefs.

Lyf.

Ly. This lion is a very fox for his valour.
The. True; and a goose for his discretion.

Dem. Not fo, my lord: for his valour cannot carry his discretion; and the fox carries the goofe.

The. His difcretion, I am fure, cannot carry his valour;

for the goofe carries not the fox. It is well his discretion, and let us liften to the moon.

leave it to

Moon. "This lanthorn doth the horned moon prefent:" Dem. He fhould have worn the horns on his head.

The. He is no crescent, and his horns are invifible within the circumference.

Moon. "This lanthorn doth the horned moon prefent; "Myself the man i'th'moon do seem to be."

The. This is the greatest error of all the reft: the man should be put into the lanthorn; How is it elfe the man i'the moon?

Dem. He dares not come there for the candle: for, you fee, it is already 'in fnuff.

Hip. I am aweary of this moon: Would, he would change!

The. It appears, by his fmall light of difcretion, that he is in the wane: but yet, in courtesy, in all reason, we must stay the time.

Lyf. Proceed, moon.

Moon. All that I have to fay, is, to tell you, that the lanthorn is the moon; I, the man in the moon; this thornbush, my thorn-bush; and this dog, my dog.

Dem. Why, all these should be in the lanthorn; for they are in the moon. But, filence; here comes Thisbe.

1 in fnuff.]—(quibble) a pet, and the cinder of a candle.

"Took it in fnuff."

HENRY IV, Part 1, A&t I, S. 3. Hot.

Enter

Enter Thibe.

Thif. "This is old Ninny's tomb: Where is my love?"

Lion. "Oh-"

Dem. Well roar'd, lion.

The. Well run, Thisbe.

[The Lion roars. Thibe runs off.

Hip. Well fhone, moon.-Truly, the moon fhines with a good grace.

Pyr. "Sweet moon, I thank thee for thy funny beams; "I thank thee, moon, for fhining now fo bright: "For, by thy gracious, golden, glittering ftreams, "I trust to taste of trueft Thisby's fight. "But stay ;-0 spight!

"But mark;-Poor knight,

"What dreadful dole is here?

What, ftain'd with blood?

Approach, ye furies fell!

"O fates! come, come;

"Cut thread and " thrum ;

Quail, crush, conclude, and ' quell !”

The. This paffion, and the death of a dear friend, would

go near to make a man look fad.

Hip. Befhrew my heart, but I pity the man.

Pyr. "O, wherefore, nature, didft thou lions frame? "Since lion vile hath here deflour'd my dear: "Which is—no, no-which was the fairest dame, “That liv'd, that lov'd, that lik'd, that look'd, with "cheer.

"Come tears, confound;

"Out fword, and wound

"The pap of Pyramus:

"Ay, that left pap,

"Where heart doth hop:"Thus die I, thus, thus, thus.

"Now am I dead,

"Now am I fled; My foul is in the fky:

"Tongue, lofe thy light!

"Moon, take thy flight!

"Now die, die, die, die, die." [Dies. Exit Moonfbine. Dem. No die, but an ace, for him; for he is but one. Lyf. Lefs than an ace, man; for he is dead; he is nothing.

The. With the help of a furgeon, he might yet recover, and prove an ass.

Hip. How chance the moonshine is gone, before Thisbe comes back and finds her lover?

The. She will find him by ftar-light.

Enter Thibe.

Here fhe comes, and her paffion ends the play.

Hip. Methinks, fhe should not use a long one, for fuch. a Pyramus: I hope fhe will be brief.

Dem. A'moth will turn the ballance, which Pyramus, which Thisbe, is the better.

Ly. She hath fpied him already, with those sweet eyes.

9 Sunne.

T mote.

Dem.