e king would keep revels there that night, and advised that the
queen should not come within his sight; for Oberon was fell and wroth,
because she, as her attendant, had a lovely boy, a sweet changeling,
and that jealous Oberon would have the child to be a knight of his
train to trace the forests.

The fairy asked Puck if he was not the knavish spirit that frightened
the maidens of the villagery, that skimmed milk, and sometimes
laboured in the green, and bootless made the housewife churn, and
sometimes made the drink to bear no barm, and whether Puck did not
mislead night wanderers, and then laugh at their harm, and do the work
of hobgoblins? Puck acknowledged that the fairy spoke aright; said he
was the merry wanderer of the night, playing pranks, and making people
laugh. A smart angry discussion took place between Oberon and Titania
as to which of them was to have the little changeling boy. They parted
in rage, Oberon threatening to torment Titania. Oberon summoned Puck
to attend him, and bring the herb he once showed him, the juice of
which, laid on sleeping eyelids, made man or woman dote upon the next
creature seen. Having this herb's juice, Oberon would watch Titania
when she was asleep, and drop the liquor into her eyes, that when she
wakened she might pursue the first object she cast eyes on with the
soul of love, whether it should be lion, bear, wolf, or bull, or
meddling monkey, or busy ape. The delusion accomplished, he would give
her another herb to remove the charm, but not before she gave up the
boy.

Puck found the charmed flower; and while Oberon was to streak
Titania's eyes with some of the juice thereof, Puck was to anoint the
eyes of the disdainful youth with another quantity of it, that he
might be compelled to adore a sweet Athenian lady in love with him.
Puck was then dismissed with instructions to meet Oberon before the
first cock-crow. Titania, in another part of the wood, distributed her
attendants, some to kill cankers in the musk-rose buds, some to war
with bats for their leathern wings to make small elves' coats, and
some to keep back the clamorous owl that nightly hooted at the quaint
spirits. Having given her instructions, she fell asleep. This was
Oberon's opportunity--and one he did not neglect. He squeezed the
flower on Titania's eyelids, and disappeared.

Titania wakened with eyes fixed on Bottom, who, by Puck's art, had an
ass's head. Nevertheless, she thought him wise and beautifu