Ob. Welcome, good Robin. Seeft thou this sweet?

fight?

Her dotage now I do begin to pity.
For, meeting her of late behind the wood,
Seeking sweet favours 4 for this hateful fool,
I did upbraid her, and fall out with her;
For the his hairy temples then had rounded
With coronet of fresh and fragrant flowers;
And that fame dew, which fometimes on the buds
Was wont to fwell, like round and orient pearl,
Stood now within the pretty flouret's eyes,
Like tears, that did their own difgrace bewail.
When I had, at my pleasure, taunted her,
And fhe, in mild terms, begg'd my patience,
I then did ask of her her changeling child,
Which strait she gave me, and her fairy fent
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 fcalp

1

What Shakespeare feems to mean, is this-So the woodbine, i.e. the fweet honey-fuckle, doth gently entwift the barky fingers of the elm, and fo does the female ivy enring the fame fingers. It is not unfrequent in the Poets, as well as other writers, to explain one word by another which is better known. The reafon why Shakespeare thought woodbine wanted explanation, perhaps is this. In fome countries, by woodbine or woodbind would be generally underftood the Ivy, which he had occafion to mention in the very next line. STEEVENS.

3

the female ivy.] Shakespeare calls it female ivy, be caufe it always requires fome fupport, which is poetically called its hufband.

So Milton:

"To wed her elm : fhe fpous'd, about him twines! "Her marriageable arms

"Ulmo conjuncta marito." Catull.

"Platanufque celebs

"Evincet Ulmos. Hor.

STEEVENS.

fweet favours,] The first edition reads favours. STEEVENS.

From

From off the head of the Athenian swain ;
That he, awaking, when the others 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 waft wont to be;

See, as thou waft wont to fee:
Dian's bud o'er Cupid's flower
Hath fuch force and bleffed power.

Now, my Titania, wake you, my fweet queen.
Queen. My Oberon! what vifions have I seen!
Methought, I was enamour'd of an ass.
Ob. There lies your love.

Queen. How came these things to pass?
Oh, how mine eyes doth loath this vifage now!
Ob. Silence, a while.-Robin, take off this
head.-

Titania, musick call; and flrike more dead
Than common fleep of all these five the fenfe."
Queen. Mufick, ho! mufick: fuch as charmeth
Пеер.

Still mufick.

Puck. When thou awak'ft, with thine own fool's eyes peep.

Dian's bud, or Cupid's flower.] Thus all the editions. The Ingenious Dr. Thirlby gave me the correction, which I have inferted in the text. THEOBALD.

6 Titania, mufick call, and frike more dead
Than common fleep Of all theje fine the fenfe.]

This most certainly is both corrupt in the text and pointing. My emendation needs no juftification. The five, that lay asleep on the ftage were Demetrius, Lyfander, Hermia, Helena, and Bottom.- -Dr. Thirlby likewife communicated this very correc tion. THEOBALD.

Ob. Sound, mufick. Come, my queen, take hand with me,

And rock the ground whereon these fleepers be.
Now thou and I are new in amity;

And will to-morrow midnight folemnly
Dance in duke Thefeus' houfe triumphantly,
And bless it to all fair 7 pofterity;

There fhall these pairs of faithful lovers be
Wedded, with Thefeus, all in jollity.
Puck. Fairy king, attend, and mark;

I do hear the morning lark.

Ob. Then, my queen, in filence fad;
Trip we after the night's fhade:
We the globe can compass-foon,
Swifter than the wand'ring moon.

Queen. Come, my lord, and in our flight
Tell me how it came this night,
That I fleeping here was found,
With thefe mortals, on the ground.

[Exeunt.

[Wind berns within.

Enter Thefeus, Egeus, Hippolita, and all his train.
The. Go, one of you, find out the forefter ;-

7 Dance in Duke Thefeus houfe triumphantly,

And blefs it to all FAIR pofierity;]

We should read,

—to all FAR pofterity.

i. e. to the remoteft pofterity.

WARBURTON.

Then, my queen, in filence fad;

Trip we after the nighi's fhade.]

Mr. Theobald fays, wly fad? Fairies are pleafed to follow night. He will have it fade; and fo, to mend the rhime, fpoils both the fenfe and grammar. But he mistakes the meaning of fad; it fignifies only grave, fober; and is oppofed to their dances and revels, which were now ended at the finging of the morning lark. -So Winter's Tale, act iv. My father and the gentlemen are in SAD talk. For grave or ferious. WARBURTON.

For

For now our observation is perform'd, '
And fince we have the vaward of the day,
My love fhall hear the mufick of my hounds.
Uncouple in the weftern valley; go;—
Difpatch, I fay, and find the forefter.-
We will, fair queen, up to the mountain's top,
And mark the mufical confufion

Of hounds and echo in conjunction.

2

Hip. 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, befides the groves,
The fkies, the fountains, every region near
Seem'd all one mutual cry: I never heard
So mufical a difcord, fuch fweet thunder.

The. My hounds are bred out of the Spartan kind,
So flew'd, fo + fanded, and their heads are hung
With ears that fweep away the morning dew;
Crook-knee'd, and dew-lap'd, like Theffalian bulls;
Slow in pursuit, but match'd in mouth like bells,
Each under each. A cry more tuneable

9 Our obfervation is perform'd.] The honours due to the morning of May. I know not why Shakespear calls this play a MidJummer-Night's Dream, when he fo carefully informs us that it happened on the night preceding May day. JOHNSON.

I

they bay'd the bear.] Thus all the old copies. I suppose we should read, the boar. STEEVENS.

2

fuch gallant chiding.] Chiding in this inftance means only found. So in Hen. VIII.

"As doth a rock against the chiding flood."

So in Humour out of Breath, Com. by John Day, 1608. "I take great pride

"To hear foft mufic, and thy fhrill voice chide."

STEEVENS.

3 So flew'd.] i. e. fo mouthed. Flews are the large chaps of a deep-mouthed hound. HANMER.

+ So fanded.] So marked with fmall fpots. JOHNSON. Sandy'd means of a fandy colour, which is one of the true denotements of a blood-hound.

VOL. III.

STEEVENS.
G

Was

Was never halloo'd to, nor cheer'd with horn,
In Crete, in Sparta, nor in Theffaly :

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

Ege. My lord, this is my daughter here asleep; And this Lyfander, this Demetrius is; This Helena, old Nedar's Helena :

I wonder at their being here together.

The. No doubt, they rofe up early, to obferve
The rite of May; and, hearing our intent,
Came here in grace of our folemnity —
But fpeak, Egeus, is not this the day,

That Hermia fhould give anfwer of her choice?
Ege. It is, my lord.

The. Go bid the huntsmen wake them with their

horns.

Horns, and fhout within; Demetrius, Lyfander, Hermia and Helena, wake and start up.

The. Good-morrow, friends; faint Valentine is paft; s

Begin thefe wood-birds but to couple now?

Lyf. Pardon, my lord.

[They all kneel to Thefeus.

The. I pray you all, ftand up.

I know, you two are rival enemies.

How comes this gentle concord in the world,
That hatred is fo far from jealoufy,

To fleep by hate, and fear no enmity?
Lyf. My lord, I fhall reply amazedly,

Half 'fleep, half waking: but as yet, I fwear,
I cannot truly fay how I came here :
But, as I think, (for truly would I speak,
And now I do bethink me, fo it is)

I came with Hermia hither. Our intent

-faint Valentine is paft;] Alluding to the old faying, That birds begin to couple on St. Valentine's day. STEEVENS.