814Bot. Are we all met?

815Quin. Pat, pat, and here's a maruailous conuenient

816place for our rehearsall. This greene plot shall be our

817stage, this hauthorne brake our tyring house, and we will

818do it in action, as we will do it before the Duke.

819Bot. Peter quince?

820Peter. What saist thou, bully Bottome?

821Bot. There are things in this Comedy of Piramus and

822Thisby, that will neuer please. First, Piramus must draw a

823sword to kill himselfe; which the Ladies cannot abide.

824How answere you that?

825Snout. Berlaken, a parlous feare.

826Star. I beleeue we must leaue the killing out, when

827all is done.

828Bot. Not a whit, I haue a deuice to make all well.

829Write me a Prologue, and let the Prologue seeme to say,

830we will do no harme with our swords, and that Pyramus

831is not kill'd indeede: and for the more better assurance,

832tell them, that I Piramus am not Piramus, but Bottome the

833Weauer; this will put them out of feare.

834Quin. Well, we will haue such a Prologue, and it shall

835be written in eight and sixe.

836Bot. No, make it two more, let it be written in eight

837and eight.

838Snout. Will not the Ladies be afear'd of the Lyon?

839Star. I feare it, I promise you.

840Bot. Masters, you ought to consider with your selues, to

841bring in (God shield vs) a Lyon among Ladies, is a most

842dreadfull thing. For there is not a more fearefull wilde

843foule then your Lyon liuing: and wee ought to looke

844to it.

845Snout. Therefore another Prologue must tell he is not

846a Lyon.

847Bot. Nay, you must name his name, and halfe his face

848must be seene through the Lyons necke, and he himselfe

849must speake through, saying thus, or to the same defect;

850Ladies, or faire Ladies, I would wish you, or I would

N4 request

851request you, or I would entreat you, not to feare, not to

852tremble: my life for yours. If you thinke I come hither

853as a Lyon, it were pitty of my life. No, I am no such

854thing, I am a man as other men are; and there indeed let

855him name his name, and tell him plainly hee is Snug the

856ioyner.

857Quin. Well, it shall be so; but there is two hard

858things, that is, to bring the Moone-light into a cham-

859ber: for you know Piramus and Thisby meete by Moone-

860light.

861Sn. Doth the Moone shine that night wee play our

862play?

863Bot. A Calender, a Calender, looke in the Almanack,

864finde out Moone-shine, finde out Moone-shine.

866Quin. Yes, it doth shine that night.

867Bot. Why then may you leaue a casement of the great

868chamber window (where we play) open, and the Moone

869may shine in at the casement.

870Quin. I, or else one must come in with a bush of thorns

871and a lanthorne, and say he comes to disfigure, or to pre-

872sent the person of Moone-shine. Then there is another

873thing, we must haue a wall in the great Chamber; for Pi-

874ramus and Thisby (saies the story) did talke through the

875chinke of a wall.

876Sn. You can neuer bring in a wall. What say you

877Bottome?

878Bot. Some man or other must present wall, and let

879him haue some Plaster, or some Lome, or some rough

880cast about him, to signifie wall; or let him hold his fin-

881gers thus; and through that cranny shall Piramus and

882Thisby whisper.

883Quin. If that may be, then all is well. Come, sit

884downe euery mothers sonne, and rehearse your parts.

885Piramus, you begin; when you haue spoken your speech,

886enter into that Brake, and so euery one according to his

887cue.

889Rob. What hempen home-spuns haue we swagge-

890ring here,

891So neere the Cradle of the Faierie Queene?

892What, a Play toward? Ile be an auditor,

893An Actor too perhaps, if I see cause.

894Quin. Speake Piramus: Thisby stand forth.

895Pir. Thisby, the flowers of odious sauors sweete.

896Quin. Odours, odours.

897Pir. Odours sauors sweete,

898So hath thy breath, my dearest Thisby deare.

899But harke, a voyce: stay thou but here a while,

900And by and by I will to thee appeare. Exit. Pir.

901Puck. A stranger Piramus, then ere plaid here.

902This. Must I speake now?

903Pet. I marry must you. For you must vnderstand he

904goes but to see a noyse that he heard, and is to come a-

905gaine.

906Thys. Most radiant Piramus, most Lilly white of hue,

907Of colour like the red rose on triumphant bryer,

908Most brisky Iuuenall, and eke most louely Iew,

909As true as truest horse, that yet would neuer tyre,

910Ile meete thee Piramus, at Ninnies toombe.

911Pet. Ninus toombe man: why, you must not speake

912that yet; that you answere to Piramus: you speake all

913your part at once, cues and all. Piramus enter, your cue is

914past; it is neuer tyre.

915Thys. O, as true as truest horse, that yet would neuer

916tyre:

917Pir. If I were faire, Thisby I were onely thine.

918Pet. O monstrous. O strange. We are hanted; pray

919masters, flye masters, helpe.

921Puk. Ile follow you, Ile leade you about a Round,

922Through bogge, through bush, through brake, through (bryer,

923Sometime a horse Ile be, sometime a hound:

924A hogge, a headlesse beare, sometime a fire,

925And neigh, and barke, and grunt, and rore, and burne,

926Like horse, hound, hog, beare, fire, at euery turne. Exit.

928Bot. Why do they run away? This is a knauery of

929them to make me afeard. Enter Snowt.

930Sn. O Bottom, thou art chang'd; What doe I see on

931thee?

932Bot. What do you see? You see an Asse-head of your

933owne, do you?

935Pet. Blesse thee Bottome, blesse thee; thou art transla-

936ted. Exit.

937Bot. I see their knauery; this is to make an asse of me,

938to fright me if they could; but I will not stirre from

939this place, do what they can. I will walke vp and downe

940here, and I will sing that they shall heare I am not a-

941fraid.

942The Woosell cocke, so blacke of hew,

943With Orenge-tawny bill.

944The Throstle, with his note so true,

945The Wren and little quill.

946Tyta. What Angell wakes me from my flowry bed?

947Bot. The Finch, the Sparrow, and the Larke,

948The plainsong Cuckow gray;

949Whose note full many a man doth marke,

950And dares not answere, nay.

951For indeede, who would set his wit to so foolish a bird?

952Who would giue a bird the lye, though he cry Cuckow,

953neuer so?

954Tyta. I pray thee gentle mortall, sing againe,

955Mine eare is much enamored of thy note;

956On the first view to say, to sweare I loue thee.

957So is mine eye enthralled to thy shape.

958And thy faire vertues force (perforce) doth moue me.

959Bot. Me-thinkes mistresse, you should haue little

960reason for that: and yet to say the truth, reason and

961loue keepe little company together, now-adayes.

962The more the pittie, that some honest neighbours will

963not make them friends. Nay, I can gleeke vpon occa-

964sion.

965Tyta. Thou art as wise, as thou art beautifull.

966Bot. Not so neither: but if I had wit enough to get

967out of this wood, I haue enough to serue mine owne

968turne.

969Tyta. Out of this wood, do not desire to goe,

970Thou shalt remaine here, whether thou wilt or no.

971I am a spirit of no common rate:

972The Summer still doth tend vpon my state,

973And I doe loue thee; therefore goe with me,

974Ile giue thee Fairies to attend on thee;

975And they shall fetch thee Iewels from the deepe,

976And sing, while thou on pressed flowers dost sleepe:

977And I will purge thy mortall grossenesse so,

978That thou shalt like an airie spirit go.

981Fai. Ready; and I, and I, and I, Where shall we go?

982Tita. Be kinde and curteous to this Gentleman,

983Hop in his walkes, and gambole in his eies,

984Feede him with Apricocks, and Dewberries,

985With purple Grapes, greene Figs, and Mulberries,

986The honie-bags steale from the humble Bees,

987And for night-tapers crop their waxen thighes,

988And light them at the fierie-Glow-wormes eyes,

989To haue my loue to bed, and to arise:

990And plucke the wings from painted Butterflies,

991To fan the Moone-beames from his sleeping eies.

992Nod to him Elues, and doe him curtesies.

9931. Fai. Haile mortall, haile.

9942. Fai. Haile.

9953. Fai. Haile.

996Bot. I cry your worships mercy hartily; I beseech

997your worships name.

998Cob. Cobweb.

999Bot. I shall desire you of more acquaintance, good

1000Master Cobweb: if I cut my finger, I shall make bold

1001with you.

1002Your name honest Gentleman?

1003Pease. Pease blossome.

1004Bot. I pray you commend mee to mistresse Squash,

1005your mother, and to master Peascod your father. Good

1006master Pease-blossome, I shal desire of you more acquain-

1007tance to. Your name I beseech you sir?

1008Mus. Mustard-seede.

1009Peas. Pease-blossome.

1010Bot. Good master Mustard seede, I know your pati-

1011ence well: that same cowardly gyant-like Oxe beefe

1012hath deuoured many a gentleman of your house. I pro-

1013mise you, your kindred hath made my eyes water ere

1014now. I desire you more acquaintance, good Master

1015Mustard-seede.

1016Tita. Come waite vpon him, lead him to my bower.

1017The Moone me-thinks, lookes with a watrie eie,

1018And when she weepes, weepe euerie little flower,

1019Lamenting some enforced chastitie.

1020Tye vp my louers tongue, bring him silently. Exit.