Pro.
Now does my project gather to a head:
My charms crack not; my spirits obey; and time
Goes upright with his carriage.^{1 note} Ariel! say, [Ariel appears.
How fares the king and his?^{2 note}

Ari.
Confin'd together
In the same fashion as you gave in charge;
Just as you left them; all prisoners, sir;
They cannot budge, till your release.^{3 note} The king,
His brother, and yours, abide all three distracted;
And the remainder mourning over them,
Brim-full of sorrow, and dismay;
Your charm so strongly works them,
That if you now beheld them, your affections
Would become tender.

Pro.
Do'st thou think so, spirit?

Ari.
Mine would, sir, were I human.

Pro.
And mine shall.
Hast thou, which art but air, a touch,^{4 note} a feeling
Of their afflictions? and shall not myself,
One of their kind, be kindlier mov'd than thou art?

Though with their high wrongs I am struck to the quick,
Yet, with my nobler reason, 'gainst my fury
Do I take part: the rarer action is
In virtue than in vengeance: they being penitent,
The sole drift of my purpose doth extend
Not a frown further: Go, release them, Ariel;
My charms I'll break, their senses I'll restore,
And they shall be themselves.

Ari.
I'll fetch them, sir. [Disappears.

Pro.
Ye elves^{5 note} of hills(A)8Q0222, brooks, standing lakes and groves;
And ye, that on the sands with printless foot
Do chase the ebbing Neptune; by whose aid
(Weak masters though ye be,) I have be-dimm'd
The noon-tide sun, call'd forth the mutinous winds,
And 'twixt the green sea and the azur'd vault
Set roaring war: to the dread rattling thunder
Have I given fire, and rifted Jove's stout oak
With his own bolt: the strong-bas'd promontory
Have I made shake; and by the spurs pluck'd up
The pine, and cedar: But this rough magic
I here abjure: and, when I have requir'd
Some heavenly music, (which even now I do,)
To work mine end upon their senses, that
This airy charm is for, I'll break my staff,
Bury it certain fathoms in the earth,
And, deeper than did ever plummet sound,
I'll drown my book. [Solemn music. Prospero describes a Circle with his wand.

Pro.
Ariel! [Ariel reappears.
Dainty spirit,
Thou shalt ere long be free. I shall miss thee;
But yet thou shalt have freedom:
To the king's ship, invisible as thou art:
There shalt thou find the mariners asleep
Under the hatches; the master, and the boatswain,

Being awake, enforce them to this place;
And presently I pr'ythee.

Ari.
My lord, it shall be done.

Pro.
Set Caliban and his companions free.
Untie the spell.

Ari.
I drink the air before me, and return
Or e'er your pulse twice beat. [Exit Ariel.

Pro.
I will discase me, and myself present
As I was sometime Milan.^{6 note}
[Exit Prospero into eavern. Enter Alonso with a frantic gesture, attended by Gonzalo; Sebastian and Antonio in like manner, attended by Adrian and Francisco: they all enter the circle which Prospero had made, and there stand charmed.

Gon.
Some heavenly power guide us
Out of this fearful country.

SONG BY INVISIBLE SPIRIT.
Where the bee sucks, there suck I;
In a cowslip's bell I lie:
There I couch when owls do cry.
On the bat's back I do fly,
After sunset merrily:
Merrily, merrily, shall I live now,
Under the blossom that hangs on the bough. Enter Prospero, as the Duke of Milan.

Pro.
There stand, for you are spell-stopp'd.
Not one of them,
That yet looks on me, or would know me.
Noble Gonzalo—honourable man—
Mine eyes e'en sociable to the flow of thine,
Fall fellow drops.—The charm dissolves apace;

And as the morning steals upon the night,
Melting the darkness, so their rising senses
Begin to chase the ignorant fumes^{7 note} that mantle
Their clearer reason. Behold, sir king,
The wronged Duke of Milan, Prospero:
For more assurance that a living prince
Does now speak to thee, I embrace thy body;
And to thee, and thy company, I bid
A hearty welcome.

Alo.
Whe'r^{8 note} thou beest he, or no,
Or some enchanted devil to abuse me,
As late I have been, I know not.
Thy dukedom I resign;^{9 note} and do intreat
Thou pardon me my wrongs:—But how should Prospero
Be living, and be here?

Pro.
First, noble friend,
Let me embrace thine age; whose honour cannot
Be measur'd, or confin'd.

Gon.
Whether this be,
Or be not, I'll not swear.

Pro.
You do yet taste
Some subtilties o' the isle,^{10 note} that will not let you
Believe things certain:—Welcome, my friends all:—
But you, my brace of lords, were I so minded, [Aside to Sebastian and Antonio.
I here could pluck his highness' frown upon you,
And justify you traitors; at this time
I'll tell no tales.

Seb.
The devil speaks in him. [Aside.

Pro.
No:—
For you, most wicked sir, whom to call brother
Would even infect my mouth, I do forgive
Thy rankest fault; all of them; and require
My dukedom of thee, which, perforce, I know
Thou must restore.

Alo.
If thou beest Prospero,
Give us particulars of thy preservation:
How thou hast met us here, who three hours since
Were wreck'd upon this shore; where I have lost,—
How sharp the point of this remembrance is!
My dear son Ferdinand.

Pro.
I am woe for't, sir.^{11 note}
But howsoe'r you have
Been justled from your senses, know for certain,
That I am Prospero, and that very duke
Which was thrust forth of Milan; who most strangely
Upon this shore, where you were wreck'd, was landed,
To be the lord on't. No more yet of this.
Welcome, sir;
This cell's my court: here have I few attendants,
And subjects none abroad: pray you, look in.
My dukedom since you have given me again,
I will requite you with as good a thing;
At least, bring forth a wonder, to content ye,
As much as me my dukedom. The entrance of the cell opens, and discovers Ferdinand and Miranda playing at chess.

Alo.
If this prove
A vision of the island, one dear son
Shall I twice lose.

Seb.
A most high miracle! [Ferdinand and Miranda come from the cell.

Fer.
Though the seas threaten, they are merciful:
I have curs'd them without cause. [Ferdinand kneels to Alonso.

Alo.
Now all the blessings

Of a glad father compass thee about!
Arise, and say how thou cam'st here.

Mir.
O! wonder!
How many goodly creatures are there here!
How beauteous mankind is!

Alo.
What is this maid, with whom thou wast at play?
Is she the goddess that hath sever'd us,
And brought us thus together?

Fer.
Sir, she's mortal;
But, by immortal providence, she's mine;
I chose her, when I could not ask my father
For his advice: nor thought I had one: she
Is daughter to this famous Duke of Milan,
Of whom so often I have heard renown,
But never saw before; of whom I have
Receiv'd a second life, and second father
This lady makes him to me.

Alo.
I am hers:
But O, how oddly will it sound, that I
Must ask my child forgiveness!

Pro.
There, sir, stop;
Let us not burden our remembrances
With a heaviness that's gone.

Alo.
Give me your hands: [To Ferdinand and Miranda.
Let grief and sorrow still embrace his heart,
That doth not wish you joy!

Gon.
Be't so! Amen! Enter the Master and Boatswain amazedly.
O, look, sir, look, sir; here are more of us!

Boa.
The best news is, that we have safely found
Our king, and company: the next, our ship,
Is tight, and yare,^{12 note} and bravely rigg'd, as when
We first put out to sea.

Pro.
How fares my gracious sir?
There are yet missing of your company
Some few odd lads, that you remember not.

Enter Caliban, Stephano, and Trinculo.

Ste.

Every man shift for all the rest, and let no man take care for himself; for all is but fortune:—Coragio, bully-monster, coragio!^{13 note}

Tri.

If these be true spies which I wear in my head, here's a goodly sight.

Cal.
O Setebos, these be brave spirits, indeed!
How fine my master is! I am afraid
He will chastise me.
I shall be pinch'd to death.

Alo.
Is this not Stephano, my drunken butler?

Seb.
He is drunk now: Where had he wine?

Alo.
And Trinculo is reeling ripe:
How cam'st thou in this pickle?

Tri.

I have been in such a pickle, since I saw you last, that, I fear me, will never out of my bones: I shall not fear fly-blowing.^{14 note}

Seb.
Why, how now, Stephano?

Ste.
O, touch me not; I am not Stephano, but a cramp.^{15 note}

Pro.
You'd be king of the isle, sirrah?

Ste.
I should have been a sore one, then.

Alo.
This is as strange a thing as e'er I look'd on. [Pointing to Caliban.

Pro.
He is as disproportion'd in his manners,
As in his shape:—Go, sirrah, to my cell;
Take with you your companions; as you look
To have my pardon, trim it handsomely.

Cal.
Ay, that I will: and I'll be wise hereafter,
And seek for grace: What a thrice-double ass
Was I, to take this drunkard for a god,
And worship this dull fool?

Pro.
Go to; away!

Alo.
Hence, and bestow your luggage where you found it.

Seb.
Or stole it, rather. [Exeunt Caliban, Stephano, and Trinculo.

Pro.
Sir, I invite your highness and your train,
To my poor cell: where you shall take your rest
For this one night; which (part of it) I'll waste
With such discourse, as, I not doubt, shall make it
Go quick away: the story of my life,
And the particular accidents, gone by,
Since I came to this isle: And in the morn,
I'll bring you to your ship, and so to Naples,
Where I have hope to see the nuptial
Of these our dear beloved solemniz'd;
And thence retire me to my Milan, where
Every third thought shall be my grave.

Alo.
I long
To hear the story of your life, which must
Take the ear strangely.

Pro.
I'll deliver all;
And promise you calm seas, auspicious gales,
And sail so expeditious, that shall catch
Your royal fleet far off.
Please you draw near. [Exeunt all but Prospero into cell.
My Ariel; chick! [Ariel appears.
That is thy charge; then to the elements
Be free, and fare thou well! NIGHT DESCENDS. THE SPIRITS, RELEASED BY PROSPERO, TAKE THEIR FLIGHT FROM THE ISLAND, INTO THE AIR. CHORUS OF SPIRITS. Where the bee sucks, &c., &c. MORNING BREAKS, AND SHOWS A SHIP IN A CALM, PREPARED TO CONVEY THE KING AND HIS COMPANIONS BACK TO NAPLES.

[Epilogue] EPILOGUE. SPOKEN BY PROSPERO FROM THE DECK OF THE VESSEL.
Now my charms are all o'erthrown,
And what strength I have's mine own;
Which is most faint: now, 'tis true,
I must be here confin'd by you,
Or sent to Naples: Let me not,
Since I have my dukedom got,
And pardon'd the deceiver, dwell
In this bare island, by your spell;
But release me from my bands,
With the help of your good hands.^{16 note}
Gentle breath of yours my sails
Must fill, or else my project fails,
Which was to please: Now I want
Spirits to enforce, art to enchant;
And my ending is despair,
Unless I be reliev'd by prayer;^{17 note}
Which pierces so, that it assaults
Mercy itself, and frees all faults.
As you from crimes would pardon'd be,
Let your indulgence set me free. THE SHIP GRADUALLY SAILS OFF, THE ISLAND RECEDES FROM SIGHT, AND ARIEL REMAINS ALONE IN MID-AIR, WATCHING THE DEPARTURE OF HIS LATE MASTER. DISTANT CHORUS OF SPIRITS. THE END.

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