PERSONS REPRESENTED ALONZO, King of Naples. SEBASTIAN, his Brother. PROSPERO, the rightful Duke of Milan. ANTONIO, his Brother, the usurping Duke of Milan. FERDINAND, Son to the King of Naples. GONZALO, an honest old Counsellor of Naples. ADRIAN FRANCISCO Lords. CALIBAN, a savage and deformed Slave. STEPHANO, a drunken Butler. Master of a Ship, Boatswain, and Mariners. MIRANDA, Daughter to Prospero. ARIEL, an airy Spirit. SCENE, the Sea, with a Ship; afterwards an uninhabited Island. The Tempest ACT I SCENE I.-A tempestuous noise of thunder and lightning heard. Enter a Ship-master and a Boatswain. ASTER. Boatswain. M Boats. Here, master; what cheer? Mast. Good; speak to the mariners. Fall to't yarely, or we run ourselves aground. Bestir! bestir! Enter Mariners. [Exit. Boats. Heigh, my hearts; cheerly, cheerly, my hearts; yare, yare. Take in the top-sail. Tend to the master's whistle. Blow till thou burst thy wind, if room enough! Enter ALONZO, SEBASTIAN, ANTONIO, FERDINANDO, GONZALO, and others. Alon. Good Boatswain, have care. Where's the master? Play the men. Boats. I pray now, keep below. Ant. Where is the master, boatswain? Boats. Do you not hear him? You mar our labour! Keep your cabins; you do assist the storm. Gonz. Nay, good, be patient. Boats. When the sea is. Hence! What care these roarers for the name of king? To cabin; silence; trouble us not. Gonz. Good; yet remember whom thou hast aboard. Boats. None that I more love than myself. You are a counsellor. If you can command these elements to silence, and work the peace of the present, we will not hand a rope more; use your authority. If you cannot, give thanks you have lived so long, and make yourself ready in your cabin for the mischance of the hour, if it so hap.—Cheerly, good hearts.—Out of our way, I say. [Exit. Gonz. I have great comfort from this fellow; methinks he hath no drowning mark upon him; his complexion is perfect gallows. Stand fast, good fate, to his hanging! Make the rope of his destiny our cable, for our own doth little advantage! If he be not born to be hanged, our case is miserable. [Exit. Enter Boatswain. Boats. Down with the top-mast; yare; lower, lower; bring her to try with main course. A plague upon this howling! they are louder than the weather, or our office. A cry within. Enter SEBASTIAN, ANTONIO, and GONZALO. Yet again! what do you here? Shall we give o'er and drown? Have you a mind to sink? Seb. A pox o' your uncharitable dog! throat, you bawling, blasphemous, Boats. Work you, then. Ant. Hang, cur, hang! you whoreson, insolent noisemaker; we are less afraid to be drowned than thou art. Gonz. I'll warrant him from drowning, though the ship were no stronger than a nut-shell, and as leaky as an unstanched wench. Boats. Lay her a-hold, a-hold; set her two courses; off to sea again, lay her off! Enter Mariners, wet. Mar. All lost! to prayers, to prayers! all lost! |