_Nurse_ [_to_ Diana]: O queen of forests, thou who dwell'st alone On mountain tops, and thou who only art Within their desert haunts adored, convert, We pray, to better issue these sad fears. O mighty goddess of the woods and groves, Bright star of heaven, thou glory of the night, 410 Whose torch, alternate with the sun, illumes The sky, thou three-formed Hecate--Oh, smile, We pray, on these our hopes; the unbending soul Of stern Hippolytus subdue for us. Teach him to love; our passion's mutual flame May he endure. May he give ready ear To our request. His hard and stubborn heart 415 Do thou make soft to us. Enthral his mind. Though stern of soul, averse to love, and fierce, May he yet yield himself to Venus' laws. Bend all thy powers to this. So may thy face Be ever clear, and through the rifted clouds Mayst thou sail on with crescent shining bright; So, when thou driv'st thy chariot through the sky, 420 May no Thessalian mummeries prevail To draw thee from thy nightly journey down; And may no shepherd boast himself of thee. Lo, thou art here in answer to our prayer; [Hippolytus _is seen approaching_.] I see Hippolytus himself, alone, Approaching to perform the yearly rites To Dian due. 425 [_To herself._] Why dost thou hesitate? Both time and place are given by fortune's lot. Use all thy arts. Why do I quake with fear? It is no easy task to do the deed Enjoined on me. Yet she, who serves a queen, Must banish from her heart all thought of right; For sense of shame ill serves a royal will. 430 [_Enter_ Hippolytus.] _Hippolytus:_ Why dost thou hither turn thine agéd feet, O faithful nurse? Why is thy face so sad, Thy brow so troubled? Truly is my sire In safety, Phaedra safe, and their two sons.