Page:Stories from Old English Poetry-1899.djvu/166

144 him sweets from the heavy loaded cups of the wild honeysuckle. In truth, he was envious of the caresses Titania lavished on the dimpled, frolicsome little fellow, and wanted to take him from her. And as she steadily refused, they go to so grave a pass, that they had not been on speaking terms for months.

To make it more unfortunate, some splendid wedding festivities were preparing, which needed all the combined good taste of the king and queen of fairy-land, to be celebrated properly.

Hippolyta, Queen of the Amazons,she who wore on her round, supple arm, a shield worthy of the stoutest warrior; who, with bared shoulder, white as dazzling snow, went out to war against the mighty Theseus, Duke of Athens and, being conquered by him, conquered in her turn, so that the warrior yielded, and laid all his arms under her buskined foot,Hippolyta was to be married to this very Theseus.

Already were the nuptial train come to Athens, to the grand palace of the Duke. Among them were Demetrius and Lysander, two Grecian knights, who had borne arms with Duke Theseus. Demetrius, a fickle gallant, who had, before this, wooed the blue-eyed Helena, now had turned his ready flatteries to the unwilling ear of nut-brown Hermia, the only daughter of the old Egeus. But Hermia scorned