MARY, MELVIL.MARY (after the others are all gone).I have arranged all temporal concerns,And hope to leave the world in debt to none;Melvil, one thought alone there is which bindsMy troubled soul, nor suffers it to flyDelighted and at liberty to heaven.MELVIL.Disclose it to me; ease your bosom, trustYour doubts, your sorrows, to your faithful friend.MARY.I see eternity's abyss before me;Soon must I stand before the highest Judge,And have not yet appeased the Holy One.A priest of my religion is denied me,And I disdain to take the sacrament,The holy, heavenly nourishment, from priestsOf a false faith; I die in the beliefOf my own church, for that alone can save.MELVIL.Compose your heart; the fervent, pious wishIs prized in heaven as high as the performance.The might of tyrants can but bind the hands,The heart's devotion rises free to God,The word is dead—'tis faith which brings to life.MARY.The heart is not sufficient of itself;Our faith must have some earthly pledge to groundIts claim to the high bliss of heaven. For thisOur God became incarnate, and enclosedMysteriously his unseen heavenly graceWithin an outward figure of a body.The church it is, the holy one, the high one,Which rears for us the ladder up to heaven:—'Tis called the Catholic Apostolic church,—For 'tis but general faith can strengthen faith;Where thousands worship and adore the heatBreaks out in flame, and, borne on eagle wings,The soul mounts upwards to the heaven of heavens.Ah! happy they, who for the glad communionOf pious prayer meet in the house of God!The altar is adorned, the tapers blaze,The bell invites, the incense soars on high;The bishop stands enrobed, he takes the cup,And blessing it declares the solemn mystery,The transformation of the elements;And the believing people fall delightedTo worship and adore the present Godhead.Alas! I only am debarred from this;The heavenly benediction pierces notMy prison walls: its comfort is denied me.MELVIL.Yes! it can pierce them—put thy trust in HimWho is almighty—in the hand of faith,The withered staff can send forth verdant branchesAnd he who from the rock called living water,He can prepare an altar in this prison,Can change——[Seizing the cup, which stands upon the table.The earthly contents of this cupInto a substance of celestial grace.MARY.Melvil! Oh, yes, I understand you, Melvil!Here is no priest, no church, no sacrament;But the Redeemer says, "When two or threeAre in my name assembled, I am with them,"What consecrates the priest? Say, what ordains himTo be the Lord's interpreter? a heartDevoid of guile, and a reproachless conduct.Well, then, though unordained, be you my priest;To you will I confide my last confession,And take my absolution from your lips.MELVIL.If then thy heart be with such zeal inflamed,I tell thee that for thine especial comfort,The Lord may work a miracle. Thou say'stHere is no priest, no church, no sacrament—Thou err'st—here is a priest—here is a God;A God descends to thee in real presence.[At these words he uncovers his head,and shows a host in a golden vessel.I am a priest—to hear thy last confession,And to announce to thee the peace of GodUpon thy way to death. I have receivedUpon my head the seven consecrations.I bring thee, from his Holiness, this host,Which, for thy use, himself has deigned to bless.MARY.Is then a heavenly happiness preparedTo cheer me on the very verge of death?As an immortal one on golden cloudsDescends, as once the angel from on high,Delivered the apostle from his fetters:—He scorns all bars, he scorns the soldier's sword,He steps undaunted through the bolted portals,And fills the dungeon with his native glory;Thus here the messenger of heaven appearsWhen every earthly champion had deceived me.And you, my servant once, are now the servantOf the Most High, and his immortal Word!As before me your knees were wont to bend,Before you humbled, now I kiss the dust.[She sinks before him on her knees.MELVIL (making over her the sign of the cross).Hear, Mary, Queen of Scotland:—in the nameOf God the Father, Son, and Holy Ghost,Hast thou examined carefully thy heart,Swearest thou, art thou prepared in thy confessionTo speak the truth before the God of truth?MARY.Before my God and thee, my heart lies open.MELVIL.What calls thee to the presence of the Highest?MARY.I humbly do acknowledge to have erredMost grievously, I tremble to approach,Sullied with sin, the God of purity.MELVIL.Declare the sin which weighs so heavilyUpon thy conscience since thy last confession.MARY.My heart was filled with thoughts of envious hate,And vengeance took possession of my bosom.I hope forgiveness of my sins from God,Yet could I not forgive my enemy.MELVIL.Repentest thou of the sin? Art thou, in sooth,Resolved to leave this world at peace with all?MARY.As surely as I wish the joys of heaven.MELVIL.What other sin hath armed thy heart against thee?MARY.Ah! not alone through hate; through lawless loveHave I still more abused the sovereign good.My heart was vainly turned towards the manWho left me in misfortune, who deceived me.MELVIL.Repentest thou of the sin? And hast thou turnedThy heart, from this idolatry, to God?MARY.It was the hardest trial I have passed;This last of earthly bonds is torn asunder.MELVIL.What other sin disturbs thy guilty conscience?MARY.A bloody crime, indeed of ancient date,And long ago confessed; yet with new terrors.It now attacks me, black and grisly stepsAcross my path, and shuts the gates of heaven:By my connivance fell the king, my husband—I gave my hand and heart to a seducer—By rigid penance I have made atonement;Yet in my soul the worm is gnawing still.MELVIL.Has then thy heart no other accusation,Which hath not been confessed and washed away?MARY.All you have heard with which my heart is charged.MELVIL.Think on the presence of Omniscience;Think on the punishments with which the churchThreatens imperfect and reserved confessionsThis is the sin to everlasting death,For this is sinning 'gainst his Holy Spirit.MARY.So may eternal grace with victoryCrown my last contest, as I wittinglyHave nothing hid——MELVIL.How? Wilt thou then concealThe crime from God for which thou art condemned?Thou tell'st me nothing of the share thou hadstIn Babington and Parry's bloody treason:Thou diest for this a temporal death; for thisWilt thou, too, die the everlasting death?MARY.I am prepared to meet eternity;Within the narrow limits of an hourI shall appear before my Judge's throne.But, I repeat it, my confession's ended.MELVIL.Consider well—the heart is a deceiver.Thou hast, perhaps, with sly equivocation,The word avoided, which would make thee guiltyAlthough thy will was party to the crime.Remember, that no juggler's tricks can blindThe eye of fire which darts through every breast.MARY.'Tis true that I have called upon all princesTo free me from unworthy chains; yet 'tisAs true that, neither by intent or deed,Have I attempted my oppressor's life.MELVIL.Your secretaries then have witnessed falsely.MARY.It is as I have said;—what they have witnessedThe Lord will judge.MELVIL.Thou mountest, then, satisfiedOf thy own innocence, the fatal scaffold?MARY.God suffers me in mercy to atone,By undeserved death, my youth's transgressions.MELVIL (making over her the sign of the cross).Go, then, and expiate them all by death;Sink a devoted victim on the altar,Thus shall thy blood atone the blood thou'st spilt.From female frailty were derived thy faults,Free from the weakness of mortality,The spotless spirit seeks the blest abodes.Now, then, by the authority which GodHath unto me committed, I absolve theeFrom all thy sins; be as thy faith thy welfare![He gives her the host.Receive the body which for thee was offered—[He takes the cup which stands upon the table,consecrates it with silent prayer, then presentsit to her; she hesitates to take it, and makessigns to him to withdraw it.Receive the blood which for thy sins was shed,Receive it; 'tis allowed thee by the popeTo exercise in death the highest officeOf kings, the holy office of the priesthood.[She takes the cup.And as thou now, in this his earthly bodyHast held with God mysterious communion,So may'st thou henceforth, in his realm of joy,Where sin no more exists, nor tears of woe,A fair, transfigured spirit, join thyselfForever with the Godhead, and forever.[He sets down the cup; hearing a noise,he covers his head, and goes to the door;MARY remains in silent devotion on her knees.MELVIL (returning).A painful conflict is in store for thee.Feel'st thou within thee strength enough to smotherEach impulse of malignity and hate?MARY.I fear not a relapse. I have to GodDevoted both my hatred and my love.MELVIL.Well, then, prepare thee to receive my LordsOf Leicester and of Burleigh. They are here.
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Enter BURLEIGH, LEICESTER, and PAULET.[LEICESTER remains in the background, without raisinghis eyes; BURLEIGH, who remarks his confusion, stepsbetween him and the QUEEN.BURLEIGH.I come, my Lady Stuart, to receiveYour last commands and wishes.MARY.Thanks, my lord.BURLEIGH.It is the pleasure of my royal mistressThat nothing reasonable be denied you.MARY.My will, my lord, declares my last desires;I've placed it in the hand of Sir Amias,And humbly beg that it may be fulfilled.PAULET.You may rely on this.MARY.I beg that allMy servants unmolested may returnTo France, or Scotland, as their wishes lead.BURLEIGH.It shall be as you wish.MARY.And since my bodyIs not to rest in consecrated ground,I pray you suffer this my faithful servantTo bear my heart to France, to my relations—Alas! 'twas ever there.BURLEIGH.It shall be done.What wishes else?MARY.Unto her majestyOf England bear a sister's salutation;Tell her that from the bottom of my heartI pardon her my death; most humbly, too,I crave her to forgive me for the passionWith which I spoke to her. May God preserve herAnd bless her with a long and prosperous reign.BURLEIGH.Say, do you still adhere to your resolve,And still refuse assistance from the dean?MARY.My lord, I've made my peace with God.[To PAULET.Good sir,I have unwittingly caused you much sorrow,Bereft you of your age's only stay.Oh, let me hope you do not hate my name.PAULET (giving her his hand).The Lord be with you! Go your way in peace.
HANNAH KENNEDY, and the other women of the QUEEN crowdinto the room with marks of horror. The SHERIFF followsthem, a white staff in his hand; behind are seen, throughthe open doors, men under arms.MARY.What ails thee, Hannah? Yes, my hour is come.The sheriff comes to lead me to my fate,And part we must. Farewell!KENNEDY and CURL.We will not leave thee,We will not part from thee.MARY (to MELVIL).You, worthy sir,And my dear, faithful Hannah, shall attend meIn my last moments. I am sure, my lordWill not refuse my heart this consolation.BURLEIGH.For this I have no warrant.MARY.How, my lord;Can you deny me, then, this small petition?Respect my sex; who shall attend me else,And yield me the last service? Sure, it neverCan be my sister's pleasure that in meMy sex should be insulted; that these menWith their rude hands should touch my royal person.BURLEIGH.'Tis ordered that no woman shall ascendThe scaffold steps with you. Their tears and moans——MARY.She shall not weep, my lord; she shall not moan;I answer for my Hannah's resolution;Be merciful; divide me not so soonFrom my true foster-mother, from my friend.She bore me on her arms into this life;Let her then gently lead me to my death.PAULET (to BURLEIGH).Yield to her wishes.BURLEIGH.Be it so.MARY.I nowHave nothing in this world to wish for more.[She takes the crucifix, and kisses it.My God! My Comforter! My blest Redeemer!As once thy arms were stretched upon the cross,Let them be now extended to receive me![She turns round to go; at the same moment hereyes fall upon LEICESTER, who, on her going, startsinvoluntarily, and turns his eyes towards her; atthis sight MARY trembles, her knees fail her, she isabout to fall, when LEICESTER catches at her, andreceives her in his arms; she regards him for sometime earnestly, and in silence; he cannot support herlooks; at length she speaks.You keep your word, my Lord of Leicester: forYou promised me your arm to lead me forthFrom prison, and you lend it to me now.At length the wished-for day is come, and whatWas oft the object of my fondest dreamsIs now accomplished: and the Earl of Leicester,The long-expected, the long-wished-for friend,Appears at length in Fotheringay Castle.I see him standing in my prison; allIs ready for the journey; all the gatesStand open, and at length I cross the threshold,Conducted by his hand; and now I leaveThese dismal walls behind me, and forever.All is fulfilled, and you have saved your honor.[He stands as if annihilated; she continues,with a gentle voice.Yes, Leicester; not for liberty aloneI wished to be indebted to your hands.You should have made me bless that liberty.Led by your hand, and happy in your love,I hoped once more to taste the joys of life.Yes; now that I'm prepared from all the worldTo part, and to become a happy spirit,Whom earthly inclinations tempt no more!Now, Leicester, I may venture to confessWithout a blush the frailty I have conquered;Farewell, my lord; and, if you can, be happy!To woo two queens has been your daring aim;You have disdained a tender, loving heart,Betrayed it in the hope to win a proud one:Kneel at the feet of Queen Elizabeth!May your reward not prove your punishment.Farewell; I now have nothing more on earth.[She goes, preceded by the SHERIFF; at her sideMELVIL and her nurse; BURLEIGH and PAULET follow;the others, wailing, follow her with their eyestill she disappears; they then retire through theother two doors.
LEICESTER (remaining alone).Do I live still? Can I still bear to live?Will not this roof fall down and bury me?Yawns no abyss to swallow in its gulfThe veriest wretch on earth? What have I lost?Oh, what a pearl have I not cast away!What bliss celestial madly dashed aside!She's gone, a spirit purged from earthly stain,And the despair of hell remains for me!Where is the purpose now with which I cameTo stifle my heart's voice in callous scorn?To see her head descend upon the blockWith unaverted and indifferent eyes?How doth her presence wake my slumbering shame?Must she in death surround me with love's toils?Lost, wretched man! No more it suits thee nowTo melt away in womanly compassion:Love's golden bliss lies not upon thy path,Then arm thy breast in panoply of steel,And henceforth be thy brows of adamant!Wouldst thou not lose the guerdon of thy guilt,Thou must uphold, complete it daringly!Pity be dumb; mine eyes be petrified!I'll see—I will be witness of her fall.[He advances with resolute steps towards the doorthrough which MARY passed; but stops suddenly half way.No! No! The terrors of all hell possess me.I cannot look upon the dreadful deed;I cannot see her die! Hark! What was that?They are already there. Beneath my feetThe bloody business is preparing. Hark!I hear their voices. Hence! Away, awayFrom this abode of misery and death![He attempts to escape by another door;finds it locked, and returns.How! Does some demon chain me to this spot?To hear what I would shudder to behold?That voice—it is the dean's, exhorting her;She interrupts him. Hark—she prays aloud;Her voice is firm—now all is still, quite still!And sobs and women's moans are all I hear.Now, they undress her; they remove the stool;She kneels upon the cushion; lays her head——[Having spoken these last words, and paused awhile,he is seen with a convulsive motion suddenly to shrinkand faint away; a confused hum of voices is heard atthe same moment from below, and continues for some time.
The Second Chamber in the Fourth Act.ELIZABETH (entering from a side door; her gait and action expressiveof the most violent uneasiness).No message yet arrived! What! no one here!Will evening never come! Stands the sun stillIn its ethereal course? I can no moreRemain upon the rack of expectation!Is it accomplished? Is it not? I shudderAt both events, and do not dare to ask.My Lord of Leicester comes not,—Burleigh too,Whom I appointed to fulfil the sentence.If they have quitted London then 'tis done,The bolt has left its rest—it cuts the air—It strikes; has struck already: were my realmAt stake I could not now arrest its course.Who's there?
Enter a PAGE.ELIZABETH.Returned alone? Where are the lords?PAGE.My Lord High-Treasurer and the Earl of Leicester?ELIZABETH.Where are they?PAGE.They are not in London.ELIZABETH.No!Where are they then?PAGE.That no one could inform me;Before the dawn, mysteriously, in hasteThey quitted London.ELIZABETH (exultingly).I am Queen of England![Walking up and down in the greatest agitation.Go—call me—no, remain, boy! She is dead;Now have I room upon the earth at last.Why do I shake? Whence comes this aguish dread?My fears are covered by the grave; who daresTo say I did it? I have tears enoughIn store to weep her fall. Are you still here?[To the PAGE.Command my secretary, Davison,To come to me this instant. Let the EarlOf Shrewsbury be summoned. Here he comes.[Exit PAGE.
Enter SHREWSBURY.ELIZABETH.Welcome, my noble lord. What tidings; sayIt cannot be a trifle which hath ledYour footsteps hither at so late an hour.SHREWSBURY.My liege, the doubts that hung upon my heart,And dutiful concern for your fair fame,Directed me this morning to the Tower,Where Mary's secretaries, Nau and Curl,Are now confined as prisoners, for I wishedOnce more to put their evidence to proof.On my arrival the lieutenant seemedEmbarrassed and perplexed; refused to show meHis prisoners; but my threats obtained admittance.God! what a sight was there! With frantic looks,With hair dishevelled, on his pallet layThe Scot like one tormented by a fury.The miserable man no sooner saw meThan at my feet he fell, and there, with screams,Clasping my knees, and writhing like a worm,Implored, conjured me to acquaint him withHis sovereign's destiny, for vague reportsHad somehow reached the dungeons of the TowerThat she had been condemned to suffer death.When I confirmed these tidings, adding, too,That on his evidence she had been doomed,—He started wildly up,—caught by the throatHis fellow-prisoner; with the giant strengthOf madness tore him to the ground and triedTo strangle him. No sooner had we savedThe wretch from his fierce grapple than at onceHe turned his rage against himself and beatHis breast with savage fists; then cursed himselfAnd his companions to the depths of hell!His evidence was false; the fatal lettersTo Babington, which he had sworn were true,He now denounced as forgeries; for heHad set down words the queen had never spoken;The traitor Nau had led him to this treason.Then ran he to the casement, threw it wideWith frantic force, and cried into the streetSo loud that all the people gathered round:I am the man, Queen Mary's secretary,The traitor who accused his mistress falsely;I bore false witness and am cursed forever!ELIZABETH.You said yourself that he had lost his wits;A madman's words prove nothing.SHREWSBURY.Yet this madnessServes in itself to swell the proof. My liege,Let me conjure thee; be not over-hasty;Prithee, give order for a new inquiry!ELIZABETH.I will, my lord, because it is your wish,Not that I can believe my noble peersHave in this case pronounced a hasty judgment.To set your mind at rest the inquiry shallBe straight renewed. Well that 'tis not too late!Upon the honor of our royal name,No, not the shadow of a doubt shall rest.
Enter DAVISON.ELIZABETH.The sentence, sir, which I but late intrustedUnto your keeping; where is it?DAVISON (in the utmost astonishment).The sentence!ELIZABETH (more urgent).Which yesterday I gave into your charge.DAVISON.Into my charge, my liege!ELIZABETH.The people urgedAnd baited me to sign it. I perforceWas driven to yield obedience to their will.I did so; did so on extreme constraint,And in your hands deposited the paper.To gain time was my purpose; you rememberWhat then I told you. Now, the paper, sir!SHREWSBURY.Restore it, sir, affairs have changed since then,The inquiry must be set on foot anew.DAVISON.Anew! Eternal mercy!ELIZABETH.Why this pause,This hesitation? Where, sir, is the paper?DAVISON.I am undone! Undone! My fate is sealed!ELIZABETH (interrupting him violently).Let me not fancy, sir——DAVISON.Oh, I am lost!I have it not.ELIZABETH.How? What?SHREWSBURY.Oh, God in heaven!DAVISON.It is in Burleigh's hands—since yesterday.ELIZABETH.Wretch! Is it thus you have obeyed my orders?Did I not lay my strict injunction on youTo keep it carefully?DAVISON.No such injunctionWas laid on me, my liege.ELIZABETH.Give me the lie?Opprobrious wretch! When did I order youTo give the paper into Burleigh's hands?DAVISON.Never expressly in so many words.ELIZABETH.And, paltering villain I dare you then presumeTo construe, as you list, my words—and layYour bloody meaning on them? Wo betide you,If evil come of this officious deed!Your life shall answer the event to me.Earl Shrewsbury, you see how my good nameHas been abused!SHREWSBURY.I see! Oh, God in heaven!ELIZABETH.What say you?SHREWSBURY.If the knight has dared to actIn this, upon his own authority,Without the knowledge of your majesty,He must be cited to the Court of PeersTo answer there for subjecting thy nameTo the abhorrence of all after time.
Enter BURLEIGH.BURLEIGH (bowing his knee before the QUEEN).Long life and glory to my royal mistress,And may all enemies of her dominionsEnd like this Stuart.[SHREWSBURY hides his face. DAVIDSON wrings his hands in despair.ELIZABETH.Speak, my lord; did youFrom me receive the warrant?BURLEIGH.No, my queen;From Davison.ELIZABETH.And did he in my nameDeliver it?BURLEIGH.No, that I cannot say.ELIZABETH.And dared you then to execute the writThus hastily, nor wait to know my pleasure?Just was the sentence—we are free from blameBefore the world; yet it behooved thee notTo intercept our natural clemency.For this, my lord, I banish you my presence;And as this forward will was yours aloneBear you alone the curse of the misdeed![To DAVISON.For you, sir; who have traitorously o'ersteppedThe bounds of your commission, and betrayedA sacred pledge intrusted to your care,A more severe tribunal is prepared:Let him be straight conducted to the Tower,And capital arraignments filed against him.My honest Talbot, you alone have proved,'Mongst all my counsellors, an upright man:You shall henceforward be my guide—my friend.SHREWSBURY.Oh! banish not the truest of your friends;Nor cast those into prison, who for youHave acted; who for you are silent now.But suffer me, great queen, to give the seal,Which, these twelve years, I've borne unworthily,Back to your royal hands, and take my leave.ELIZABETH (surprised).No, Shrewsbury; you surely would not nowDesert me? No; not now.SHREWSBURY.Pardon, I amToo old, and this right hand is growing too stiffTo set the seal upon your later deeds.ELIZABETH.Will he forsake me, who has saved my life?SHREWSBURY.'Tis little I have done: I could not saveYour nobler part. Live—govern happily!Your rival's dead! Henceforth you've nothing moreTo fear—henceforth to nothing pay regard.[Exit.ELIZABETH (to the EARL of KENT, who enters).Send for the Earl of Leicester.KENT.He desiresTo be excused—he is embarked for France.The Curtain drops.