Enter certain Reapers, properly habited; they join with the
Nymphs in a graceful Dance; towards the End whereof
Profpero starts suddenly, and speaks; after which to a
strange, hollow and confused Noise, they heavily vanish.
Pro. I had forgot that foul Conspiracy
Of the Beast Caliban, and his Confederates,
Against my Life; the Minute of their Plot
Is almost come. Well done, avoid; no more.
Fer. This is strange; your Father's in some Passion
That works him strongly.
Mira. Never 'till this Day
Saw I him touch'd with Anger, so distemper'd.
Pro. You do look, my Son, in a mov'd fort,
As if you were dismay'd; be chearful, Sir,
Our Revels now are ended: These our Actors,
As I foretold you, were all Spirits, and
Are melted into Air, into thin Air;
And like the baseless Fabrick of their Vision,
The Cloud-capt Towers, the gorgeous Palaces,
The folemn Temples, the great Globe it felf,
Yea, all which it inherit, shall dissolve,
And like this insubstantial Pageant faded,
Leave not a Rack behind; we are such Stuff
As Dreams are made on, and our little Life
Is rounded with a Sleep. Sir, I am vext;
Bear with my Weakness, my old Brain is troubled:
Be not disturb'd with my Infirmity;
If you be pleas'd, retire into my Cell,
And there repose; a Turn or two I'll walk
To still my beating Mind.
Fer. Mira. We wish you Peace.
Pro. Come with a Thought; I thank thee, Ariel: Come.
Ari. Thy Thoughts I cleave to; what's thy Pleasure?
Pro. Spirit, we must prepare to meet with Caliban.
Ari. Ay, my Commander, when I presented Ceres
I thought to have told thee of it, but I fear'd
Pro. Say again, where didst thou leave these Varlets?
Ari. I told you, Sir, they were red hot with drinking;
Do full of Valour, that they smote the Air
For breathing in their Faces; beat the Ground
For kiffing of their Feet; yet always bending
Towards their Project: Then I beat my Tabor,
At which, like unbackt Colts, they prickt their Ears,
Advanc'd their Eye-lids, lifted up their Noses,
As they smelt Musick; so I charm'd their Ears,
That, Calf-like, they my Lowing follow'd through
Tooth'd Briars, sharp Furzes, pricking Goss and Thorns,
Which enter'd their frail Shins: At last I left them
I'th' filthy mantled Pool beyond your Cell,
There dancing up to th' Chins, that the foul Lake
O'er-stunk their Feet.
Pro. This was well done, my Bird;
Thy Shape invisible retain thou still;
The Trumpry in my House, go bring it hither,
For ftale to catch these Thieves.
Pro. A Devil, a born Devil, on whose Nature
Nurture can never stick; on whom my Pains,
Humanly taken, all, all loft, quite loft;
And as, with Age, his Body uglier grows,
So his Mind cankers; I will plague them all,
Even to roaring: Come, hang them on this Line.
Enter Ariel loaden with glistering Apparel, &c. Enter
Caliban, Stephano, and Trinculo, all wet.
Cal. Pray you tread softly, that the blind Mole may not
hear a Foot fall; we now are near his Cell.
Ste. Monster, your Fairy, which you say is a harmless Fairy,
Has done little better than plaid the Jack with us.
Trin. Monster, I do smell all Horse-piss, at which
My Nofe is in great Indignation.
Ste. So is mine: Do you hear, Monster? If I should
Take a Displeasure against you; look you-
Trin. Thou wert but a loft Monster.
Cal. Good my Lord, give me thy Favour still:
Be patient, for the Prize I'll bring thee to
Shall hood-wink this Mischance; therefore speak softly;
All's husht as Midnight yet.
Trin. Ay, but to lose our Bottles in the Pool.
Ste. He that dies pays all Debts: I defie thee.
Mercy on us.
Cal. Art thou afraid?
Ste. No, Monster, not I.
Cal. Be not afraid; the Isle is full of Noises,
Sounds, and sweet Airs, that give Delight, and hurt not.
Sometimes a thousand twangling Instruments:
Will hum about mine Ears; and sometimes Voices,
That if I then had wak'd after long Sleep,
Will make me fleep again; and then in dreaming,
The Clouds methought would open, and shew Riches
Ready to drop upon me, that when I wak'd
I cry'd to dream again.
Ste. This will prove a brave Kingdom to me,
Where I shall have my Musick for nothing.
Cal. When Profpero is destroy'd.
Ste. That shall be by and by:
I remember the Story.
Trin. The Sound is going away; Let's follow it, and after do our Work.
Ste. Lead, Monster;
We'll follow. I would I could fee this Taborer:
He lays it on.
Trin. Wilt come?
Enter Alonso, Sebastian, Anthonio, Gonzalo, Adrian,
Gon. By'r lakin, I can go no further, Sir,
My old Bones ake: Here's a Maze trod indeed
Through Forth-rights and Meanders: By your Patience,
I needs must rest me.
Alon. Old Lord, I cannot blame thee,
Who am my felf attach'd with Weariness
To th' dulling of my Spirits; fit down and rest:
Even here I will put off my Hope, and keep it
No longer for my Flatterer: He is drown'd,
Whom thus we stray to find, and the Sea mocks
Our frustrate Search on Land. Well, let him go.
Ant. I am right glad that he's so out of Hope.
Do not, for one Repulse, forego the Purpose
That you refolv'd t' effect.
Seb. The next Advantage will we take throughly.
Ant. Let it be to Night;
For, now they are oppress'd with Travel, they
Will not, nor cannot use such Vigilance
As when they are fresh.
Solemn and strange Musick, and Prospero on the Top invisible. Enter several strange Shapes, bringing in a Banquet; and dance about it with gentle Actions of Salutations, and inviting the King, &c. to eat, they depart.
Seb. I say to Night: No more.
Alon. What Harmony is this? My good Friends, hark! Gon. Marvellous sweet Musick!
Alon. Give us kind Keepers, Heav'ns; what are these? Seb. A living Drollery. Now I will believe
That there are Unicorns; that in Arabia
There is one Tree, the Phoenix Throne, one Phoenix
At this Hour reigning there.
Ant. I'll believe both:
And what does else want Credit, come to me,
And I'll be sworn 'tis true. Travellers ne'er did lie,
Though Fools at home condemn 'em.
I should report this now, would they believe me?
If I should say I saw such Islanders:
(For certes these are People of the Island)
Who tho' they are of monstrous Shape, yet note
Their Manners are more gentle kind, than of
Our human Generation you shall find
Many, nay, almost any.
Pro. Honest Lord,
Thou hast said well; for some of you there present
Are worse than Devils.
Alon. I cannot too much muse,
Such Shapes, such Gesture, and such Sound, expressing, Although they want the use of Tongue, a kind
Of excellent dumb Discourse.
Pro. Praise in departing.
Fra. They vanish'd strangely.
Seb. No matter, fince
They have left their Viands behind; for we have Stomachs.
Wilt please you taste of what is here?
Gon. Faith Sir, you need not fear. When we were Boys,
Who would believe that there were Mountaineers,
Dew-lapt like Bulls, whose Throats had hanging at 'em
Wallets of Flesh? or that there were such Men
Whose Heads stood in their Breasts? which now we find
Each Putter out of five for one will bring us
Good warrant of.
Alon. I will stand to, and feed,
'Although my last; no matter, since I feel
The best is past. Brother, my Lord, the Duke,
Stand to, and do as we.
Thunder and Lightning, Enter Ariel like a Harpy, claps his
Wings upon the Table, and with a queint Device the Bar
quet vanishes.
Ari. You are three Men of Sin, whom Destiny,
That hath to Instruments this lower World,
And what is in't, the never-furfeited Sea
Hath caus'd to belch you up; and on this Island,
Where Man doth not inhabit, you 'mongst Men
Being most unfit to live: I have made you mad;
And even with fuch like Valour Men hang and drown
Their proper felves: You Fools, I and my Fellows
Are Ministers of Fate; the Elements
Of whom your Swords are temper'd, may as well
Wound the loud Winds, or with bemockt-at Stabs
Kill the still closing Waters, as diminish
One Dowle that's in my Plume: My Fellow-ministers
Are like invulnerable. If you could hurt,
Your Swords are now too maffie for your Strength,
And will not be up-lifted. But remember,
For that's my Business to you, that you three
From Millan did fupplant good Prospero;
Expos'd unto the Sea, which hath requit it,
Him and his innocent Child: For which foul Deed
The Powers delaying, not forgetting, have
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