ACT IV.

SCENE I.

The Same.

Enter TITANIA and BOTTOM, Fairies attending: OBERON behind, unseen.

TITANIA.

Come, sit thee down upon this flowery bed,
While I thy amiable cheeks do coy,

And stick musk-roses in thy sleek smooth head,
And kiss thy fair large ears, my gentle joy.

BOTTOM. Where 's Peas-blossom?

PEAS-BLOSSOM. Ready.

BOTTOM. Scratch my head, Peas-blossom. Where's Mounsieur Cobweb?

COBWEB. Ready.

BOTTOM. Mounsieur Cobweb; good Mounsieur, get your weapons in your hand, and kill me a red-hipp'd humble-bee on the top of a thistle; and, good Mounsieur, bring me the honey-bag. Do not fret yourself too much in the action, Mounsieur; and, good Mounsieur, have a care the honey-bag break not: I would be loath to have you overflown with a honey-bag, signior. — Where's Mounsieur Mustard-seed?

MUSTARD-SEED. Ready.

BOTTOM. Give me your neif, Mounsieur Mustard-seed. Pray you, leave your courtesy, good Mounsieur.

MUSTARD-SEED. What's your will?

BOTTOM. Nothing, good Mounsieur, but to help Cavalery Cobweb to scratch. I must to the barber's, Mounsieur; 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.

TITANIA.

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

BOTTOM. I have a reasonable good ear in music : let's have the tongs and the bones.

TITANIA.

Or, say, sweet love, what thou desir'st to eat.

[Rustic music.

BOTTOM. 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.

TITANIA.

I have a venturous fairy that shall seek

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

BOTTOM. 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.

TITANIA.

Sleep thou, and I will wind thee in my arms.
Fairies, be gone, and be a while 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 !

Enter PUCK.

OBERON (advancing).

[They sleep.

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 favors 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 flow'rets' 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,
Which straight she gave me; and her fairy sent
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 swain,

That he, awaking when the other 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 wast wont to be;
See as thou wast wont to see:
Dian's bud o'er Cupid's flower

[Touching her eyes with an herb.

Hath such force and blessed power.

Now, my Titania! wake you, my sweet Queen.

TITANIA.

My Oberon! what visions have I seen!

Methought I was enamor'd of an ass.

There lies your love.

OBERON.

TITANIA.

How came these things to pass?

O, how mine eyes do loath this visage now!

OBERON.

Silence awhile. Robin, take off his head.
Titania, music call; and strike more dead
Than common sleep, of all these five, the sense.

TITANIA.

Music, ho! music! such as charmeth sleep.

PUCK.

Now, when thou wak'st, with thine own fool's eyes peep.

OBERON.

Sound, music! Come, my Queen, take hands with me,

And rock the ground whereon these sleepers be.

Now thou and I are new in amity,

And will to-morrow midnight solemnly

Dance in Duke Theseus' house triumphantly,

And bless it to all fair posterity.

There shall the pairs of faithful lovers be

Wedded, with Theseus, all in jollity.

Enter THESEUS, HIPPOLYTA, EGEUS, and Train.

THESEUS.

Go, one of you, find out the Forester ;
For now our observation is perform'd :
And since we have the vaward of the day,

My love shall hear the music of my hounds.
Uncouple in the western valley: let them go!-
Despatch, I say, and find the Forester.

We will, fair Queen, up to the mountain's top
And mark the musical confusion

Of hounds and echo in conjunction.

HIPPOLYTA.

I was with Hercules and Cadmus, once,
When in a wood of Crete they bay'd the bear
With hounds of Sparta : never did I hear
Such gallant chiding; for, besides the groves,
The skies, the fountains, every region near
Seem'd all one mutual cry. I never heard
So musical a discord, such sweet thunder.

THESEUS.

My hounds are bred out of the Spartan kind;
So flew'd, so sanded; and their heads are hung
With ears that sweep away the morning dew;
Crook-kneed, and dew-lap'd like Thessalian bulls ;
Slow in pursuit, but match'd in mouth like bells,
Each under each. A cry more tunable

Was never halloo'd to, nor cheer'd with horn,

In Crete, in Sparta, nor in Thessaly :

Judge, when you hear. But, soft! what nymphs are these?

EGEUS.

My lord, this is my daughter here asleep;

And this, Lysander; this Demetrius is ;

This Helena, old Nedar's Helena :

I wonder of their being here together.

THESEUS.

No doubt they rose up early, to observe
The rite of May: and, hearing our intent,

Came here in grace of our solemnity.

But speak, Egeus; is not this the day

That Hermia should give answer of her choice?