Page:Midsummer Night's Dream (1918) Yale.djvu/50

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38
A Midsummer

Some sleeves, some hats, from yielders all things catch.
I led them on in this distracted fear,
And left sweet Pyramus translated there;32
When in that moment, so it came to pass,
Titania wak'd and straightway lov'd an ass.

Obe. This falls out better than I could devise.
But hast thou yet latch'd the Athenian's eyes36
With the love-juice, as I did bid thee do?

Puck. I took him sleeping,—that is finish'd too,—
And the Athenian woman by his side;
That, when he wak'd, of force she must be ey'd.40

Enter Demetrius and Hermia.

Obe. Stand close: this is the same Athenian.

Puck. This is the woman; but not this the man.

Dem. O! why rebuke you him that loves you so?
Lay breath so bitter on your bitter foe.44

Her. Now I but chide; but I should use thee worse,
For thou, I fear, hast given me cause to curse.
If thou hast slain Lysander in his sleep,
Being o'er shoes in blood, plunge in the deep,
And kill me too.49
The sun was not so true unto the day
As he to me. Would he have stol'n away
From sleeping Hermia? I'll believe as soon52
This whole earth may be bor'd, and that the moon
May through the centre creep, and so displease
Her brother's noontide with the Antipodes.
It cannot be but thou hast murder'd him;56
So should a murderer look, so dead, so grim.

Dem. So should the murder'd look, and so should I,
Pierc'd through the heart with your stern cruelty;

36 latch'd: moistened (?)
40 force: necessity
55 with: among