43NOw faire Hippolita, our nuptiall hower

54Draws on apase: fower happy daies bring in

65An other Moone: but oh, me thinks, how slow

76This old Moone waues! She lingers my desires,

87Like to a Stepdame, or a dowager,

98Long withering out a yong mans reuenewe.

109Hip. Fower daies will quickly steepe themselues in night:

1110Fower nights will quickly dreame away the time:

1211And then the Moone, like to a siluer bowe,

1312Now bent in heauen, shall beholde the night

1413Of our solemnities.

1514The. Goe Philostrate,

1615Stirre vp the Athenian youth to merriments,

1716Awake the peart and nimble spirit of mirth,

1817Turne melancholy foorth to funerals:

1918The pale companion is not for our pomp.

2019Hyppolita, I woo'd thee with my sword,

2120And wonne thy loue, doing thee iniuries:

2221But I will wed thee in another key,

2322With pompe, with triumph, and with reueling.

2625Ege. Happy be Theseus, our renowned duke.

2726The. Thankes good Egeus. Whats the newes with thee?

2827Ege. Full of vexation, come I, with complaint

2928Against my childe, my daughter Hermia.

3130My noble Lord,

3231This man hath my consent to marry her.

3433And my gratious Duke,

3534This man hath bewitcht the bosome of my childe.

3635Thou, thou Lysander, thou hast giuen her rimes,

3736And interchang'd loue tokens with my childe:

3837Thou hast, by moone-light, at her windowe sung,

3938With faining voice, verses of faining loue,

4039And stolne the impression of her phantasie:

4140With bracelets of thy haire, rings, gawdes, conceites,

4241Knackes, trifles, nosegaies, sweete meates (messengers

4342Of strong preuailement in vnhardened youth)

4443With cunning hast thou filcht my daughters heart,

4544Turnd her obedience (which is due to mee)

4645To stubborne harshnesse. And, my gratious Duke,

4746Be it so, she will not here, before your Grace,

4847Consent to marry with Demetrius,

4948I beg the auncient priuiledge of Athens:

5049As she is mine, I may dispose of her:

5150Which shall be, either to this gentleman,

5251Or to her death; according to our lawe,

5352Immediatly prouided, in that case.

5453The. What say you, Hermia? Be aduis'd, faire maid.

5554To you, your father should be as a God:

5655One that compos'd your beauties: yea and one,

5756To whome you are but as a forme in wax,

5857By him imprinted, and within his power,

5958To leaue the figure, or disfigure it:

6059Demetrius is a worthy gentleman.

6160Her. So is Lisander. The. In himselfe he is:

6361But in this kinde, wanting your fathers voice,

6462The other must be held the worthier.

6563Her. I would my father lookt but with my eyes.

6664The. Rather your eyes must, with his iudgement, looke,

6765Her. I doe intreat your grace, to pardon mee.

6866I know not by what power, I am made bould;

6967Nor how it may concerne my modesty,

7068In such a presence, here to plead my thoughts:

7169But I beseech your Grace, that I may knowe

7270The worst that may befall mee in this case,

7371If I refuse to wed Demetrius.

7472The. Either to dy the death, or to abiure,

7573For euer, the society of men.

7674Therefore, faire Hermia, question your desires,

7775Knowe of your youth, examine well your blood,

7876Whether (if you yeelde not to your fathers choyce)

7977You can endure the liuery of a Nunne,

8078For aye to be in shady cloyster, mew'd

8179To liue a barraine sister all your life,

8280Chaunting faint hymnes, to the colde fruitlesse Moone.

8381Thrise blessed they, that master so there bloode,

8482To vndergoe such maiden pilgrimage:

8583But earthlyer happy is the rose distild,

8684Then that, which, withering on the virgin thorne,

8785Growes, liues, and dies, in single blessednesse.

8886Her. So will I growe, so liue, so die my Lord,

8987Ere I will yield my virgin Patent, vp

9088Vnto his Lordshippe, whose vnwished yoake

9189My soule consents not to giue souerainty.

9290The. Take time to pawse, and by the next newe moone,

9391The sealing day, betwixt my loue and mee,

9492For euerlasting bond of fellowshippe,

9593Vpon that day either prepare to dye,

9694For disobedience to your fathers will,

9795Or else to wed Demetrius, as he would,

9896Or on Dianaes altar to protest,

9997For aye, austeritie and single life.

10098Deme. Relent, sweete Hermia, and, Lysander, yeeld

10199Thy crazed title to my certaine right.

102100Lys. You haue her fathers loue, Demetrius:

103101Let me haue Hermias: doe you marry him.

104102Egeus. Scornefull Lysander, true, he hath my loue:

105103And what is mine, my loue shall render him.

106104And she is mine, and all my right of her

107105I doe estate vnto Demetrius.

108106Lysand. I am my Lord, as well deriu'd as hee,

109107As well possest: my loue is more than his:

110108My fortunes euery way as fairely rankt

111109(If not with vantage) as Demetrius:

112110And (which is more then all these boastes can be)

113111I am belou'd of beautious Hermia.

114112Why should not I then prosecute my right?

115113Demetrius, Ile auouch it to his heade,

116114Made loue to Nedars daughter, Helena,

117115And won her soule: and she (sweete Ladie) dotes,

118116Deuoutly dotes, dotes in Idolatry,

119117Vpon this spotted and inconstant man.

120118The. I must confesse, that I haue heard so much;

121119And, with Demetrius, thought to haue spoke thereof:

122120But, being ouer full of selfe affaires,

123121My minde did loose it. But Demetrius come,

124122And come Egeus, you shall goe with mee:

125123I haue some priuate schooling for you both.

126124For you, faire Hermia, looke you arme your selfe,

127125To fit your fancies, to your fathers will;

128126Or else, the Law of Athens yeelds you vp

129127(Which by no meanes we may extenuate)

130128To death, or to a vowe of single life.

131129Come my Hyppolita: what cheare my loue?

132130Demetrius and Egeus goe along:

133131I must employ you in some businesse,

134132Against our nuptiall, and conferre with you

135133Of some thing, nerely that concernes your selues.

136134Ege. With duety and desire, we follow you. Exeunt.

138135Lysand. How now my loue? Why is your cheeke so pale?

139136How chance the roses there doe fade so fast?

140137Her. Belike, for want of raine: which I could well

141138Beteeme them, from the tempest of my eyes.

142139Lis. Eigh me: for aught that I could euer reade,

143140Could euer here by tale or history,

144141The course of true loue neuer did runne smoothe:

145142But either it was different in bloud;

146143Her. O crosse! too high to be inthrald to loue.

147144Lis. Or else misgraffed, in respect of yeares;

148145Her. O spight! too olde to be ingag'd to young.

149146Lis. Or else, it stoode vpon the choyce of friends;

150147Her. O hell, to choose loue by anothers eyes!

151148Lys. Or, if there were a sympathy in choyce,

152149Warre, death or sicknesse, did lay siege to it;

153150Making it momentany, as a sound;

154151Swift, as a shadowe; short, as any dreame;

155152Briefe, as the lightning in the collied night,

156153That (in a spleene) vnfolds both heauen and earth;

157154And, ere a man hath power to say, beholde,

158155The iawes of darkenesse do deuoure it vp:

159156So quicke bright things come to confusion.

160157Her. If then true louers haue bin euer crost,

161158It stands as an edict, in destiny:

162159Then let vs teach our triall patience:

163160Because it is a customary crosse,

164161As dewe to loue, as thoughts, and dreames, and sighes,

165162Wishes, and teares; poore Fancies followers.

166163Lys. A good perswasion: therefore heare mee, Hermia:

167164I haue a widowe aunt, a dowager,

168165Of great reuenew, and she hath no childe:

169166From Athens is her house remote, seauen leagues:

170167And she respectes mee, as her only sonne:

171168There, gentle Hermia, may I marry thee:

172169And to that place, the sharpe Athenian law

173170Can not pursue vs. If thou louest mee, then

174171Steale forth thy fathers house, to morrow night:

175172And in the wood, a league without the towne

176173(Where I did meete thee once with Helena

177174To do obseruance to a morne of May)

178175There will I stay for thee.

179176Her. My good Lysander,

180177I sweare to thee, by Cupids strongest bowe,

181178By his best arrowe, with the golden heade,

182179By the simplicitie of Venus doues,

183180By that which knitteth soules, and prospers loues,

184181And by that fire, which burnd the Carthage queene,

185182When the false Troian vnder saile was seene,

186183By all the vowes that euer men haue broke,

187184(In number more then euer women spoke)

188185In that same place thou hast appointed mee,

189186To morrow truely will I meete with thee.

190187Lys. Keepe promise loue: looke, here comes Helena.

192189Her. God speede faire Helena: whither away?

193190Hel. Call you mee faire? That faire againe vnsay.

194191Demetrius loues your faire: o happy faire!

195192Your eyes are loadstarres, and your tongues sweete aire

196193More tunable then larke, to sheepeheards eare,

197194When wheat is greene, when hauthorne buddes appeare.

198195Sicknesse is catching: O, were fauour so,

199196Your words I catch, faire Hermia, ere I goe,

200197My eare should catch your voice, my eye, your eye,

201198My tongue should catch your tongues sweete melody.

202199Were the world mine, Demetrius being bated,

203200The rest ile giue to be to you translated.

204201O, teach mee how you looke, and with what Art,

205202You sway the mot

ion of Demetrius heart.

206203Her. I frowne vpon him; yet hee loues mee still.

207204Hel. O that your frowns would teach my smiles such skil.

209205Her. I giue him curses; yet he giues mee loue.

210206Hel. O that my prayers could such affection mooue.

211207Her. The more I hate, the more he followes mee.

212208Hel. The more I loue, the more he hateth mee.

213209Her. His folly, Helena, is no fault of mine.

214210Hel. None but your beauty; would that fault were mine.

215211Her. Take comfort: he no more shall see my face:

216212Lysander and my selfe will fly this place.

217213Before the time I did Lisander see,

218214Seem'd Athens as a Paradise to mee.

219215O then, what graces in my loue dooe dwell,

220216That hee hath turnd a heauen vnto a hell!

221217Lys. Helen, to you our mindes wee will vnfould:

222218To morrow night, when Phoebe doth beholde

223219Her siluer visage, in the watry glasse,

224220Decking, with liquid pearle, the bladed grasse

225221(A time, that louers flights doth still conceale)

226222Through Athens gates, haue wee deuis'd to steale.

227223Her. And in the wood, where often you and I,

228224Vpon faint Primrose beddes, were wont to lye,

229225Emptying our bosomes, of their counsell sweld,

230226There my Lysander, and my selfe shall meete,

231227And thence, from Athens, turne away our eyes,

232228To seeke new friends and strange companions.

233229Farewell, sweete playfellow: pray thou for vs:

234230And good lucke graunt thee thy Demetrius.

235231Keepe word Lysander: we must starue our sight,

236232From louers foode, till morrow deepe midnight.

238234Lys. I will my Hermia. Helena adieu:

239235As you on him, Demetrius dote on you. Exit Lysander.

240236Hele. How happie some, ore othersome, can be!

241237Through Athens, I am thought as faire as shee.

242238But what of that? Demetrius thinkes not so:

243239He will not knowe, what all, but hee doe know.

244240And as hee erres, doting on Hermias eyes:

245241So I, admiring of his qualities.

246242Things base and vile, holding no quantitie,

247243Loue can transpose to forme and dignitie.

248244Loue lookes not with the eyes, but with the minde:

249245And therefore is wingd Cupid painted blinde.

250246Nor hath loues minde of any iudgement taste:

251247Wings, and no eyes, figure, vnheedy haste.

252248And therefore is loue said to bee a childe:

253249Because, in choyce, he is so oft beguil'd.

254250As waggish boyes, in game, themselues forsweare:

255251So, the boy, Loue, is periur'd euery where.

256252For, ere Demetrius lookt on Hermias eyen,

257253Hee hayld downe othes, that he was onely mine.

258254And when this haile some heate, from Hermia, felt,

259255So he dissolued, and showrs of oathes did melt.

260256I will goe tell him of faire Hermias flight:

261257Then, to the wodde, will he, to morrow night,

262258Pursue her: and for this intelligence,

263259If I haue thankes, it is a deare expense:

264260But herein meane I to enrich my paine,

265261To haue his sight thither, and back againe. Exit.