THE TEMPEST. ACT I. On a Ship at Sea. SCENE Ι. A tempestuous noise of thunder and lightning heard a Enter a Ship-master, and a Boatswain'. MASTER. B Oatfwain, Boats. Here, Master: what cheer? Maft. Good, fpeak to th' mariners.-Fall to't yarely, or we run ourselves aground; beftir, beftir. • The Tempest.] These two firft Plays, the Tempest and the Midsummer-night's Dream, are the nobleit Efforts of that fublime and amazing Imagination, peculiar to Shakespear, which foars above the Bounds of Naturewithout forfaking Sense: or, more properly, carries Nature along with him beyond her established Limits. Fletcher seems particularly to have admired these two Plays, and have wrotetwoin Imitation of them, the Sea-Voyage and the Faithful Shepherdess. But when he prefumes to break a Lance with Shakespear, and write in emulation of him, as he does B2 [Exit. in the False one, which is the Rival of Anthony and Cleopatra he is not fo fuccefsful. After him, Sir John Suckling and Milton catched the brightest Fire of their Imagination from these two Plays, which shines fantastically indeed, in the Gollins, but much more nobly and ferenely in The Mask at Ludlow Caffic. WARBURION, 'In this Naval Dialogue, perhaps the first Example of Sailor's Language exhibited on the Stage, there are, as I have been told by a skilful Navigator, fome Inaccuracies and contradictory Orders. Enter Enter Mariners. Boats. Hey, my hearts; cheerly, my hearts; yare, yare; take in the top-fail; tend to th' master's whistle; blow, 'till thou burst thy wind, if room enough. 2 Enter Alonso, Sebastian, Anthonio, Ferdinand, Gonzalo, and others. Alon. Good Boatswain, have care: where's the mafter! play the men. Boats. I pray now, keep below. Ant. Where is the master, Boatswain? Boats. Do you not hear him? you mar our labour; keep your cabins: you do assist the storm. Gon. Nay, good, be patient. Boats. When the fea is. Hence! what care these Roarers for the name of King? to cabin; filence, trouble us not. Gon. Good, yet remember whom thou hast aboard. Boats. None, that I more love than myself. You are a counsellor, if you can command these elements to filence, and work the peace o'the present, we will not handle a rope more; use your authority. If you cannot, give thanks you have lived so long, and make yourself ready in your cabin for the mischance of the hour, if it so hap. - Cheerly, good hearts.-Out of our way, I say. [Exit. 3 Gon. I have great comfort from this fellow; methinks he has no drowning mark upon him; his complexion is perfect gallows. Stand fast, good fate, to his hanging; make the rope of his destiny our cable, for our own doth little advantage; if he be not * Perhaps it might be read, Blow till thou burst, wind, if room enough. 3 It may be observed of Gonzalo, that, being the only good Man that appears with the King, he is the only Man that preferves his Cheerfulness in the Wreck, and his Hope on the Island. ble, born to be hanged, our cafe is miferable. Re-enter Boatswain. [Excunt. Boats. Down with the top-mast: yare, lower, lower; bring her to try with main-course. A cry within. A plague upon this howling! Re-enter Sebastian, Anthonio, and Gonzalo. they are louder than the weather, or our office. Yet again? what do you here? shall we give o'er, and drown? have you a mind to fink? Sebaf. A pox o' your throat, you bawling, blafphemous, uncharitable dog. Boats. Work you then. Ant. Hang, cur, hang; you whoreson, infolent, noisemaker; we are less afraid to be drown'd, than thou art. Gon. I'll warrant him from drowning, tho' the ship were no fstronger than a nut-shell, and as leaky as an unftaunched wench. Boats. Lay her a-hold, a hold; set her two courses off to fea again, lay her off. Enter Mariners wet. Mar. All lost! to prayers, to prayers! all loft! Boats. What, must our mouths be cold? [Exeunt. Gon. The King and Prince at prayers! let us assist 'em. For our cafe is as theirs. Seb. I'm out of patience. [kards. Ant. We're merely cheated of our lives by drunThis wide chopt rafcal-'Would, thou might'st lye drowning, 4 The Courses are the Main- used by Raleigh in his Difcourse fail and Fore-fail. This Term is on Shipping. The The washing of ten tides! Gon. He'll be hang'd yet, Though every drop of water swear against it, And gap at wid'st to 5 glut him. [A confused noise within.) Mercy on us! We fplit, we split! Farewel, my Wife and Children! • Brother, farewel! we split, we split, we split! Ant. Let's all fink with the King. Seb. Let's take leave of him. [Exit. [Exit. Gon. Now would I give a thousand furlongs of fea for an acre of barren ground, long heath, brown furze, any thing. The wills above be done, but I would fain die a dry death! SCENE II. [Exit. Changes to a Part of the Inchanted Island, near the Cell of Profpero. Mira. T Enter Profpero and Miranda. F by your art, my dearest father, you have Put the wild waters in this roar, allay them; The sky, it feems, would pour down flinking pitch, But that the fea, mounting to th' welkin's cheek, Pro. Be collected; No more amazement; tell your piteous heart, Mira. O wo the day! * Pro. No harm. 1 have done nothing but in care of thee, Of thee my dear one, thee my daughter, who Mira. More to know Did never meddle with my thoughts. I should inform thee further. Lend thy hand, : [Lays down his mantle. Lye there my Art. Wipe thou thine eyes, have comfort. & Profp. No harm.] I know not whether Shakespear did not make Miranda ípeak thus, O wo the Day! no harm? I have done nothing but in care of thee. Miranda when she speaks the W oras, O quo the Day, supposes, not that the Crew had escaped, but that her Father thought dif To which Profpero properly an. ferently from her, and counted fwers, their Deftruction no harm. |