ACT IISCENE 1Ollantay-tampu. Hall of the fortress-palace. Back scene seven immense stone, slabs, resting on them a monolith right across. Above masonry. At sides masonry with recesses; in the R. centre a great doorway. A golden tiana against the central slab.(Enter OLLANTAY and URCO HUARANCA, both fully armed.)URCO HUARANCA.Ollantay, thou hast been proclaimedBy all the Antis as their Lord.The women weep, as you will see—They lose their husbands and their sons,Ordered to the Chayanta war.When will there be a final stopTo distant wars? Year after yearThey send us all to far-off lands,Where blood is made to flow like rain.The King himself is well suppliedWith coca and all kinds of food.What cares he that his people starve?Crossing the wilds our llamas die,Our feet are wounded by the thorns,And if we would not die of thirstWe carry water on our backs.OLLANTAY.Gallant friends! Ye hear those words,Ye listen to the mountain chief.Filled with compassion for my men,I thus, with sore and heavy heart,Have spoken to the cruel king:‘The Anti-suyu must have rest;All her best men shan’t die for thee,By battle, fire, and disease—They die in numbers terrible.How many men have ne’er returned,How many chiefs have met their deathFor enterprises far away?’For this I left the Inca’s court,[37]Saying that we must rest in peace;Lot none of us forsake our hearths,And if the Inca still persists,Proclaim with him a mortal feud.(Enter HANCO HUAYLLU, several chiefs, and a great crowd of soldiers and people.)PEOPLE.Long live our king, OllantayBring forth the standard and the fringe,Invest him with the crimson fringeIn Tampu now the Inca reigns,He rises like the star of day.(The chiefs, soldiers, and people range them selves round. Ollantay is seated on the tiana by Hanco Huayllu, an aged Auqui or Prince.)HANCO HUAYLLU.Receive from me the royal fringe,’Tis given by the people’s will.Uilcanota[38]is a distant land,Yet, even now, her people comeTo range themselves beneath thy law.(Ollantay is invested with the fringe. He rises.)OLLANTAY.Urco Huaranca, thee I nameOf Anti-suyu Chief and Lord;Receive the arrows and the plume,(Gives them.)Henceforth thou art our general.PEOPLE.Long life to the Mountain Chief.OLLANTAY.Hanco Huayllu,[39]of all my lordsThou art most venerable and wise,Being kin to the august High Priest,It is my wish that thou shouldst giveThe ring unto the Mountain Chief.(Urco Huaranca kneels, and Hanco Huayllu addresses him.)HANCO HUAYLLU.This ring around thy finger’s placedThat thou mayst feel, and ne’er forget,That when in fight thou art engaged,Clemency becomes a hero chief.URCO HUARANCA.A thousand times, illustrious king,I bless thee for thy trust in me.HANCO HUAYLLU.Behold the valiant Mountain Chief,Now fully armed from head to foot,And bristling like the quiscahuan,[40]Accoutred as becomes a knight.(Turning to Urco Huaranca.)Ne’er let thine enemies take thee in rearMan of the Puna,[41]it ne’er can be saidYou fled or trembled as a reed.URCO HUARANCA.Hear me, warriors of the Andes!Already we have a valiant king,It might be he will be attacked;’Tis said th’ old Inca sends a force,The men of Cuzco now advance.We have not a single day to lose;Call from the heights our Puna men,Prepare their arms without delay,Make Tampu strong with rampart walls,No outlet leave without a guard;On hill slopes gather pois’nous herbsTo shoot our arrows, carrying death.OLLANTAY.(to Urco Huaranca).Select the chiefs!Fix all the posts for different tribes;Our foes keep marching without sleep—Contrive to check them by surprise.The compi[42]ruse may cause their flight.URCO HUARANCA.Thirty thousand brave Antis are here,Amongst them no weakling is found;Apu Maruti,[43]the mighty in war,From high Uilcapampa[44]will come,On steep Tinquiqueru[45]he’ll standTo march when the signal appears;On the opposite side of the streamPrince Chara[46]has mustered his force;In the gorge Charamuni[47]I postTen thousand armed Antis on watch;Another such force is in waitOn the left, in the vale of Pachar.[48]We are ready to meet our foes,We await them with resolute calm;They will march in their confident prideUntil their retreat is cut off,Then the trumpet of war shall resound,From the mountains the stones shall pour down,Great blocks will be hurled from above.The Huancas[49]are crushed or dispersed,Then the knife shall do its fell work,All will perish by blows from our hands,Our arrows will follow their flight.PEOPLE and SOLDIERS.It is well! It is very well!(Cheers and martial music.)(Exeunt.)SCENE 2A wild place the mountains. Distant view of Ollantay-tampu.(Enter Rumi-ñaui, torn and ragged, and covered with blood, with two attendants.)RUMI-ÑAUI.Ah! Rumi-ñaui—Rumi-ñaui,[50]Thou art a fated rolling stone,[51]Escaped indeed, but quite alone,And this is now thyyarahui.Ollantay posted on the height,Thou couldst not either fight or see,Thy men did quickly fall or flee;No room was there to move or fight.Thou knowest now thy heart did beatAnd flutter like a butterfly;Thy skill thou couldst not then apply,No course was left thee but retreat.They had recourse to a surprise,Our warriors immolated quite.Ah! that alone could turn thee white—From shame like that, canst e’er arise?By thousands did thy warriors fall,I hardly could alone escape,With open mouth fell death did gape,A great disaster did befall.Holding that traitor to be brave,I sought to meet him face to face—Rushing to seek him with my mace,I nearly found a warrior’s grave.My army then was near the hill,When suddenly the massive stonesCame crashing down, with cries and moans,While clarions sounded loud and shrill.A rain of stones both great and smallDown on the crowd of warriors crashed,On every side destruction flashed,Thy heart the slaughter did appal.Like a strong flood the blood did flow,Inundating the ravine;So sad a sight thou ne’er hast seen—No man survived to strike a blow.O thou who art by this disgraced,What figure canst thou ever showBefore the king, who seeks to knowThe truth, which must be faced?’Tis better far myself to kill,Or losing every scrap of hope,To hang my body with this rope.(Takes a sling off his cap—going.)Yet may it not be useful still?(Turns again.)When bold Ollantay’s end has come.[52](Exit.)SCENE 3A garden in the house of the Virgins of the Sun. Chilca shrubs and mulli trees (Schinus Molle) with panicles of red berries. The walls of the house at the back, with a door. A gate (L.) opening on the street.(YMA SUMAC discovered at the gate looking out. To her enters (R.) PITU SALLA. Both dressed in white with golden belts.)PITU SALLA.Yma Sumac, do not approachSo near that gate, and so often;It might arouse the Mother’s wrath.Thy name, which is so dear to me,Will surely pass from mouth to mouth.Honour shall be shown to chosen ones,[53]Who wish to close the outer gate.Amuse thyself within the walls,And no one then can say a word.Think well what you can find within—It gives you all you can desire,Of dresses, gold, and dainty food.Thou art beloved by every one,E’en Virgins of the royal blood.The Mothers love to carry thee,They give thee kisses and caress—You they prefer to all the rest.What more could any one desire,Than always to remain with them,Destined to be servant of the Sun?In contemplating Him there’s peace.YMA SUMAC.Pitu Salla, ever you repeatThe same thing and the same advice;I will open to thee my whole heart,And say exactly what I think.Know that to me this court and houseAre insupportable—no less;The place oppresses—frightens me—Each day I curse my destiny.The faces of all the Mama CunaFill me with hatred and disgust,And from the place they make me sit,Nothing else is visible.Around me there is nothing bright,All are weeping and ne’er ceaseIf I could ever have my way,No person should remain within.I see the people pass outside,Laughing as they walk along.The reason it is plain to see—They are not mewed and cloistered here.Is it because I have no mother,That I am kept a prisoner?Or is it I’m a rich novice?Then from to-day I would be poor.Last night I could not get to sleep,I wandered down a garden walk;In the dead silence of the night,I heard one mourn. A bitter cry,As one who sought and prayed for death.On every side I looked about,My hair almost on end with fright,Trembling, I cried, ‘Who canst thou be?’Then the voice murmured these sad words:‘O Sun, release me from this place!’And this, amidst such sighs and groans!I searched about, but nothing found—The grass was rustling in the wind.I joined my tears to that sad sound,My heart was torn with trembling fear.When now the recollection comes,I’m filled with sorrow and with dread.You know now why I hate this place.Speak no more, my dearest friend,Of reasons for remaining here.PITU SALLA.At least go in. The Mother may appear.YMA SUMAC.But pleasant is the light of day.(Exit, R.)(Enter MAMA CCACCA, L., in grey with black edges and belt.)MAMA CCACCA.Pitu Salla, hast thou spokenAll I told thee to that child?PITU SALLA.I have said all to her.MAMA CCACCA.And she, does she answer freely?PITU SALLA.She has wept and asked for pity,Refusing to comply at all.She will not take the virgin’s oath.MAMA CCACCA.And this in spite of thy advice?PITU SALLA.I showed her the dress she will wear,Telling her misfortune would befallIf she refused to be a chosen one—That she would ever be an outcast,And for us a child accursed.MAMA CCACCA.What can she imagine,Wretched child of an unknown father,A maid without a mother,Just a fluttering butterfly?Tell her plainly, very plainly,That these walls offer her a home,Suited for outcasts such as she,And here no light is seen.(Exit, L.)PITU SALLA.Ay, my Sumac! Yma Sumac!These walls will be cruel indeed,To hide thy surpassing beauty.(Glancing to where Mama Ccacca went out.)What a serpent! What a puma!
Ollantay-tampu. Hall of the fortress-palace. Back scene seven immense stone, slabs, resting on them a monolith right across. Above masonry. At sides masonry with recesses; in the R. centre a great doorway. A golden tiana against the central slab.
(Enter OLLANTAY and URCO HUARANCA, both fully armed.)
URCO HUARANCA.Ollantay, thou hast been proclaimedBy all the Antis as their Lord.The women weep, as you will see—They lose their husbands and their sons,Ordered to the Chayanta war.When will there be a final stopTo distant wars? Year after yearThey send us all to far-off lands,Where blood is made to flow like rain.The King himself is well suppliedWith coca and all kinds of food.What cares he that his people starve?Crossing the wilds our llamas die,Our feet are wounded by the thorns,And if we would not die of thirstWe carry water on our backs.
OLLANTAY.Gallant friends! Ye hear those words,Ye listen to the mountain chief.Filled with compassion for my men,I thus, with sore and heavy heart,Have spoken to the cruel king:‘The Anti-suyu must have rest;All her best men shan’t die for thee,By battle, fire, and disease—They die in numbers terrible.How many men have ne’er returned,How many chiefs have met their deathFor enterprises far away?’For this I left the Inca’s court,[37]Saying that we must rest in peace;Lot none of us forsake our hearths,And if the Inca still persists,Proclaim with him a mortal feud.
(Enter HANCO HUAYLLU, several chiefs, and a great crowd of soldiers and people.)
PEOPLE.Long live our king, OllantayBring forth the standard and the fringe,Invest him with the crimson fringeIn Tampu now the Inca reigns,He rises like the star of day.
(The chiefs, soldiers, and people range them selves round. Ollantay is seated on the tiana by Hanco Huayllu, an aged Auqui or Prince.)
HANCO HUAYLLU.Receive from me the royal fringe,’Tis given by the people’s will.Uilcanota[38]is a distant land,Yet, even now, her people comeTo range themselves beneath thy law.
(Ollantay is invested with the fringe. He rises.)
OLLANTAY.Urco Huaranca, thee I nameOf Anti-suyu Chief and Lord;Receive the arrows and the plume,
(Gives them.)
Henceforth thou art our general.
PEOPLE.Long life to the Mountain Chief.
OLLANTAY.Hanco Huayllu,[39]of all my lordsThou art most venerable and wise,Being kin to the august High Priest,It is my wish that thou shouldst giveThe ring unto the Mountain Chief.
(Urco Huaranca kneels, and Hanco Huayllu addresses him.)
HANCO HUAYLLU.This ring around thy finger’s placedThat thou mayst feel, and ne’er forget,That when in fight thou art engaged,Clemency becomes a hero chief.
URCO HUARANCA.A thousand times, illustrious king,I bless thee for thy trust in me.
HANCO HUAYLLU.Behold the valiant Mountain Chief,Now fully armed from head to foot,And bristling like the quiscahuan,[40]Accoutred as becomes a knight.
(Turning to Urco Huaranca.)
Ne’er let thine enemies take thee in rearMan of the Puna,[41]it ne’er can be saidYou fled or trembled as a reed.
URCO HUARANCA.Hear me, warriors of the Andes!Already we have a valiant king,It might be he will be attacked;’Tis said th’ old Inca sends a force,The men of Cuzco now advance.We have not a single day to lose;Call from the heights our Puna men,Prepare their arms without delay,Make Tampu strong with rampart walls,No outlet leave without a guard;On hill slopes gather pois’nous herbsTo shoot our arrows, carrying death.
OLLANTAY.(to Urco Huaranca).Select the chiefs!Fix all the posts for different tribes;Our foes keep marching without sleep—Contrive to check them by surprise.The compi[42]ruse may cause their flight.
URCO HUARANCA.Thirty thousand brave Antis are here,Amongst them no weakling is found;Apu Maruti,[43]the mighty in war,From high Uilcapampa[44]will come,On steep Tinquiqueru[45]he’ll standTo march when the signal appears;On the opposite side of the streamPrince Chara[46]has mustered his force;In the gorge Charamuni[47]I postTen thousand armed Antis on watch;Another such force is in waitOn the left, in the vale of Pachar.[48]We are ready to meet our foes,We await them with resolute calm;They will march in their confident prideUntil their retreat is cut off,Then the trumpet of war shall resound,From the mountains the stones shall pour down,Great blocks will be hurled from above.The Huancas[49]are crushed or dispersed,Then the knife shall do its fell work,All will perish by blows from our hands,Our arrows will follow their flight.
PEOPLE and SOLDIERS.It is well! It is very well!
(Cheers and martial music.)
(Exeunt.)
A wild place the mountains. Distant view of Ollantay-tampu.
(Enter Rumi-ñaui, torn and ragged, and covered with blood, with two attendants.)
RUMI-ÑAUI.Ah! Rumi-ñaui—Rumi-ñaui,[50]Thou art a fated rolling stone,[51]Escaped indeed, but quite alone,And this is now thyyarahui.Ollantay posted on the height,Thou couldst not either fight or see,Thy men did quickly fall or flee;No room was there to move or fight.Thou knowest now thy heart did beatAnd flutter like a butterfly;Thy skill thou couldst not then apply,No course was left thee but retreat.They had recourse to a surprise,Our warriors immolated quite.Ah! that alone could turn thee white—From shame like that, canst e’er arise?By thousands did thy warriors fall,I hardly could alone escape,With open mouth fell death did gape,A great disaster did befall.Holding that traitor to be brave,I sought to meet him face to face—Rushing to seek him with my mace,I nearly found a warrior’s grave.My army then was near the hill,When suddenly the massive stonesCame crashing down, with cries and moans,While clarions sounded loud and shrill.A rain of stones both great and smallDown on the crowd of warriors crashed,On every side destruction flashed,Thy heart the slaughter did appal.Like a strong flood the blood did flow,Inundating the ravine;So sad a sight thou ne’er hast seen—No man survived to strike a blow.O thou who art by this disgraced,What figure canst thou ever showBefore the king, who seeks to knowThe truth, which must be faced?’Tis better far myself to kill,Or losing every scrap of hope,To hang my body with this rope.
(Takes a sling off his cap—going.)
Yet may it not be useful still?
(Turns again.)
When bold Ollantay’s end has come.[52]
(Exit.)
A garden in the house of the Virgins of the Sun. Chilca shrubs and mulli trees (Schinus Molle) with panicles of red berries. The walls of the house at the back, with a door. A gate (L.) opening on the street.
(YMA SUMAC discovered at the gate looking out. To her enters (R.) PITU SALLA. Both dressed in white with golden belts.)
PITU SALLA.Yma Sumac, do not approachSo near that gate, and so often;It might arouse the Mother’s wrath.Thy name, which is so dear to me,Will surely pass from mouth to mouth.Honour shall be shown to chosen ones,[53]Who wish to close the outer gate.Amuse thyself within the walls,And no one then can say a word.Think well what you can find within—It gives you all you can desire,Of dresses, gold, and dainty food.Thou art beloved by every one,E’en Virgins of the royal blood.The Mothers love to carry thee,They give thee kisses and caress—You they prefer to all the rest.What more could any one desire,Than always to remain with them,Destined to be servant of the Sun?In contemplating Him there’s peace.
YMA SUMAC.Pitu Salla, ever you repeatThe same thing and the same advice;I will open to thee my whole heart,And say exactly what I think.Know that to me this court and houseAre insupportable—no less;The place oppresses—frightens me—Each day I curse my destiny.The faces of all the Mama CunaFill me with hatred and disgust,And from the place they make me sit,Nothing else is visible.Around me there is nothing bright,All are weeping and ne’er ceaseIf I could ever have my way,No person should remain within.I see the people pass outside,Laughing as they walk along.The reason it is plain to see—They are not mewed and cloistered here.Is it because I have no mother,That I am kept a prisoner?Or is it I’m a rich novice?Then from to-day I would be poor.Last night I could not get to sleep,I wandered down a garden walk;In the dead silence of the night,I heard one mourn. A bitter cry,As one who sought and prayed for death.On every side I looked about,My hair almost on end with fright,Trembling, I cried, ‘Who canst thou be?’Then the voice murmured these sad words:‘O Sun, release me from this place!’And this, amidst such sighs and groans!I searched about, but nothing found—The grass was rustling in the wind.I joined my tears to that sad sound,My heart was torn with trembling fear.When now the recollection comes,I’m filled with sorrow and with dread.You know now why I hate this place.Speak no more, my dearest friend,Of reasons for remaining here.
PITU SALLA.At least go in. The Mother may appear.
YMA SUMAC.But pleasant is the light of day.
(Exit, R.)
(Enter MAMA CCACCA, L., in grey with black edges and belt.)
MAMA CCACCA.Pitu Salla, hast thou spokenAll I told thee to that child?
PITU SALLA.I have said all to her.
MAMA CCACCA.And she, does she answer freely?
PITU SALLA.She has wept and asked for pity,Refusing to comply at all.She will not take the virgin’s oath.
MAMA CCACCA.And this in spite of thy advice?
PITU SALLA.I showed her the dress she will wear,Telling her misfortune would befallIf she refused to be a chosen one—That she would ever be an outcast,And for us a child accursed.
MAMA CCACCA.What can she imagine,Wretched child of an unknown father,A maid without a mother,Just a fluttering butterfly?Tell her plainly, very plainly,That these walls offer her a home,Suited for outcasts such as she,And here no light is seen.
(Exit, L.)
PITU SALLA.Ay, my Sumac! Yma Sumac!These walls will be cruel indeed,To hide thy surpassing beauty.
(Glancing to where Mama Ccacca went out.)
What a serpent! What a puma!