Hip. This is the fillieft ftuff that ever I heard. The. The beft in this kind are but fhadows, and the worst are no worse, if imagination amend them. Hip. It must be your imagination then, and not theirs.

The. If we imagine no worse of them, than they of themselves, they may pafs for excellent men. Here come two noble beasts in, a moon and a lion.

8

· Enter Lion and Moonshine.

Lion. You, ladies, you, whofe gentle hearts do "fear

"The fmalleft monftrous moufe that creeps on floor, "May now, perchance, both quake and tremble here, "When lion rough in wildeft rage doth roar. "Then know that I, as Snug the joiner, am "A lion fell, nor elfe no lion's dam:

without warning.] Shakespeare could never write this nonfenfe: we fhould read- to REAR without warning. i. e. It is no won der that walls fhould be fuddenly down when they were as fuddenly up; rear'd without warning. WARBURTON.

Here come two noblo beafts in a man and a lion.] I don't think the jeft here is either compleat, or right. It is differently pointed in feveral of the old copies, which, I fufpect, may lead us to the true reading, viz.

Here come two noble beafts- in a man and a lion. immediately upon Thefeus faying this, Enter Lion and Moonfhine. It feems very probable therefore, that our author wrote, in a moon and a lion,

the one having a crefcent and a lanthorn before him, and reprefenting the man in the moon; the other in a lion's hide. THEOBALD.

9 Then know, that I one Snug the joiner am;] The folio, 1623, reads, a lion fell, which not agreeing with the remainder of the fpeech, the modern editors have altered it into no lion fell. Had they in this inftance confulted the quarto, 1600, it would have fet thein right:

"Then know that I, as Snug the joyner am
"A lion fell, nor elfe no lyons dam.

STEEVENS.

For

"For if I fhould as lion come in ftrife
"Into this place, 'twere pity of my life."

The. A very gentle beaft, and of a good confcience. Dem. The very best at a beast, my lord, that e'er I faw.

Lyf. This lion is a very fox for his valour.

The. True; and a goofe for his discretion. Dem. Not fo, my lord: for his valour cannot carry his difcretion, and the fox carries the goofe.

The. His difcretion, I am fure, cannot carry his valour; for the goofe carries not the fox. It is well: leave it to his difcretion, and let us liften to the moon. Moon." This lanthorn doth the horned moon "prefent:"

Dem. He fhould have worn the horns on his head. The. He is no crefcent, and his horns are invisible within the circumference.

Moon. "This lanthorn doth the horned moon

"present:

"Myfelf the man i'th'moon doth feem to be."

The. This is the greatest error of all the reft; the man should be put into the lanthorn: how is it elfe the man i'the moon?

Dem. He dares not come there for the candle: for you fee, it is already in snuff. '

Hip. I am aweary of this moon: would he would change!

The. It appears by his fmall light of difcretion, that he is in the wane: but yet, in courtefy, in all reason, we must stay the time.

Lyf. Proceed, Moon.

Moon. All that I have to fay, is to tell you that the lanthorn is the moon; I, the man in the moon; this thorn-bush, my thorn-bush; and this dog, my dog.

-in fnuff.] An equivocation. Snuff fignifies both the cinder of a candle, and hafty anger. JoHNSON.

Dem. Why, all thefe fhould be in the lanthorn ; for they are in the moon. But, filence; here comes Thisby.

Enter Thibe.

Thif. This is old Ninny's tomb; where is my "love ?"

Lion. "Oh.-"

[The Lion roars. Thisbe runs off.

Dem. Well roar'd, Lion.

The. Well run, Thisbe.

Hip. Well fhone, Moon.

Truly, the Moon fhines with a good grace.

The. Well mous'd, Lion.

Dem. And then came Pyramus.

Lyf. And fo the Lion vanish'd.

Enter Pyramus.

Pyr. "Sweet Moon, I thank thee for thy funny

"beams:

"I thank thee, Moon, for fhining now fo bright; "For by thy gracious, golden, glittering ftreams, "I truft to taste of trueft Thisby's fight. "But ftay ;-O fpight!

"But mark ;-Poor knight,

"What dreadful dole is here?

"Eyes, do you fee?

"How can it be?

3

Quail, crush, conclude, and quell !"

-glittering fireams.] The old copies read beams.

STEEVENS.

-cut thread and thrum.] Thrum is the end or extremity of a weaver's warp; it is popularly used for very coarse yarn. The maids now call a mop of yarn a thrum mop. WARNER.

The.

The. This paffion, and the death of a dear friend would go near to make a man look fad.

Hip. Befhrew my heart, but I pity the man.

Pyr. "O wherefore, nature, didst thou lions frame? "Since lion vile hath here deflour'd my dear: "Which is-no, no-which was the fairest dame, "That liv'd, that lov'd, that lik'd, that look'd "with cheer.

"Come tears, confound; "Out fword, and wound

"The pap of Pyramus:

"Ay, that left pap,

"Where heart doth hop:-
"Thus die I, thus, thus, thus.
"Now am I dead,

"Now am I filed;

Dem. No die, but an ace for him; for he is but one. Lyf. Lefs than an ace, man; for he is dead; he is nothing.

The. With the help of a furgeon he might yet recover, and prove an ass. "

Hip. How chance the Moonshine is gone, before Thisby come back and finds her lover?

5 —and prove an afs.] The character of Thefeus in this play is more exalted in his humanity, than his greatnefs. Though fome fenfible obfervations on life, and animated defcriptions fall from him, as it is faid of Jago, you should tafte him move as a foldier than as a wit, which is a diftinction he is here striving to deferve, though with little fuccefs; as in fupport of his pretenfions he never rifes higher than a pun, and frequently finks as low as a quibble. STEEVENS.

Enter Thibe.

The. She will find him by ftar-light.

Here she comes, and her paffion ends the play. Hip. Methinks, she should not use a long one for fuch a Pyramus: I hope, fhe will be brief.

Dem. A moth will turn the ballance,, which Pyramus, which Thifbe, is the better;-s

Lyf. She hath 'fpied him already with thofe fweet

5 The firft folio edition makes this fpeech a little longer, but not better. JOHNSON.

And thus he means-] Thus all the editions have it. It fhould be, thus the moans, i. e. laments over the dead Pyramus. THEOBALD.

Thefe lilly lips, this cherry nofe] All Thisby's lamentation, till now, runs in regular rhyme and metre. But both, by fome accident, are in this fingle inftance interrupted. I fufpect the poet wrote;

Thefe lilly brows,

This cherry nefe.

Now black brows being a beauty, lilly brows are as ridiculous as a cherry nofe, green eyes, or cowflip cheeks. THEOBALD.