456467Romeo. What shall this speech be spoke for our excuse?

457468Or shall we on without appologie?

458469Ben. The date is out of such prolixitie,

459470Weele haue no Cupid, hudwinckt with a skarfe,

460471Bearing a Tartars painted bow of lath,

461472Skaring the Ladies like a Crowkeeper.

462473But let them measure vs by what they will,

463474Weele measure them a measure and be gone.

464475Rom. Giue me a torch, I am not for this ambling,

C Being

465476Being but heauie I will beare the light.

466477 Mercu. Nay gētle Romeo,we must haue you dance.

467478Ro. Not I beleeue me, you haue dancing shooes

468479With nimble soles, I haue a soule of Leade

469480So stakes me to the ground I cannot moue.

470481Mer. You are a Louer, borrow Cupids wings,

471482And sore with them aboue a common bound.

472483Rom. I am too sore enpearced with his shaft,

473484To sore with his light feathers, and so bound,

474485I cannot bound a pitch aboue dull woe,

475486Vnder loues heauie birthen do I sincke.

476487 Horatio. And to sink in it should you burthen loue,

477488Too great oppression for a tender thing.

478489Rom. Is loue a tender thing? it is too rough,

479490Too rude, too boystrous, and it pricks like thorne.

480491 Mer. If loue be rough with you, be rough with loue

481492Prick loue for pricking, and you beate loue downe,

482493Giue me a case to put my visage in,

483494 A visor for a visor, what care I

484495What curious eye doth cote deformities:

485496Here are the beetle browes shall blush for me.

486497Benu. Come knock and enter, and no sooner in,

487498But euery man betake him to his legs.

488499Ro. A torch for me, let wantons light of heart

489500Tickle the sencelesse rushes with their heeles:

490501For I am prouerbd with a graunsire phrase,

491502Ile be a candle-holder and looke on,

492503The game was nere so faire, and I am dum.

493504 Mer. Tut, duns the mouse, the Constables own word:

494505If thou art dun, weele draw thee from the mire

495506Or saue you reuerence loue, wherein thou stickest

496507Vp to the eares, come we burne daylight ho.

497508Ro. Nay thats not so.

498509Mer. I meane sir in delay

499510We waste our lights in vaine, lights lights by day:

500511Take our good meaning, for our indgement sits,

501512Fiue times in that, ere once in our fine wits.

502513Ro. And we meane well in going to this Mask,

503514But tis no wit to go.

504515Mer. Why, may one aske?

505516Rom. I dreampt a dreame to night.

506517Mer. And so did I.

507518Ro. Well what was yours?

508519Mer. That dreamers often lie.

509520Ro. In bed asleep while they do dream things true.

510521Mer. O then I see Queene Mab hath bin with you:

511522She is the Fairies midwife, and she comes in shape no bigger thē

512523an Agot stone, on the forefinger of an Alderman, drawne with

513524a teeme of little ottamie, ouer mens noses as they lie asleep: her

514525waggōspokes made of lōg spinners legs: the couer, of the wings

515526of Grashoppers, her traces of the smallest spider web, her collors

516527of the moonshines watry beams, her whip of Crickets bone, the

518528lash of Philome, her waggoner, a small grey coated Gnat, not

519529half so big as a round litle worme, prickt from the lazie finger of

520530a man. Her Charriot is an emptie Hasel nut, Made by the Ioyner

521531squirrel or old Grub, time out amind, the Fairie Coatchmakers:

522532and in this state she gallops night by night, throgh louers brains,

524533and then they dreame of loue. On Courtiers knees, that dreame

525534on Cursies strait ore Lawyers fingers who strait dreame on fees,

526535ore Ladies lips who strait one kisses dream, which oft the angrie

527536Mab with blisters plagues, because their breath with sweete

528537meates tainted are. Sometime she gallops ore a Courtiers nose,

529538and then dreames he of smelling out a sute: and sometime comes

530539she with a tithpigs tale, tickling a Persons nose as a lies asleepe,

531540then he dreams of an other Benefice. Sometime she driueth ore

532541a souldiers neck, and then dreames he of cutting forrain throates,

533542of breaches, ambuscados, spanish blades: Of healths fiue fadome

535543deepe, and then anon drums in his eare, at which he starts and

536544wakes, and being thus frighted, sweares a praier or two, & sleeps

537545againe: this is that very Mab that plats the manes of horses in the

538546night: and bakes the Elklocks in foule sluttish haires, which

539547once vntangled, much misfortune bodes.

C 2 This

541548This is the hag, when maides lie on their backs,

542549That presses them and learnes them first to beare,

543550Making them women of good carriage:

544551This is she.

545552Romeo. Peace, peace, Mercutio peace,

546553Thou talkst of nothing.

547554Mer. True, I talke of dreames:

548555Which are the children of an idle braine,

549556Begot of nothing but vaine phantasie:

550557Which is as thin of substance as the ayre,

551558And more inconstant then the wind who wooes,

552559Euen now the frozen bosome of the North:

553560And being angerd puffes away from thence,

554561Turning his side to the dewe dropping South.

555562 Ben. This wind you talk of, blows vs from our selues,

556563Supper is done, and we shall come too late.

557564Ro. I feare too earlie, for my mind misgiues,

558565Some consequence yet hanging in the starres,

559566Shall bitterly begin his fearfull date,

560567With this nights reuels, and expire the terme

561568Of a despised life closde in my brest:

562569By some vile fofreit of vntimely death.

563570But he that hath the stirrage of my course,

564571Direct my sute, on lustie Gentlemen.

565572Ben. Strike drum.