Moorish Seaman.The boat is on the shore, the vessel waits.Your wives and children are already stow'd;I left them prattling of the Barbary coast,Of Mosks, and minarets, and golden crescents.65Each had her separate dream; but all were gay,Dancing, in thought, to finger-beaten timbrels!
Moorish Seaman.The boat is on the shore, the vessel waits.Your wives and children are already stow'd;I left them prattling of the Barbary coast,Of Mosks, and minarets, and golden crescents.65Each had her separate dream; but all were gay,Dancing, in thought, to finger-beaten timbrels!
[EnterMauriceand the rest of theMorescoesdragging inFrancesco.
Francesco.O spare me, spare me! only spare my life!An Old Man.All hail, Alhadra! O that thou hadst heard himWhen first we dragg'd him forth![Then turning to the band.Here! in her presence——70
Francesco.O spare me, spare me! only spare my life!
An Old Man.All hail, Alhadra! O that thou hadst heard himWhen first we dragg'd him forth![Then turning to the band.Here! in her presence——70
[He advances with his sword as about to kill him.Mauriceleaps in and stands with his drawn sword betweenFrancescoand theMorescoes.
Maurice.Nay, but ye shall not!Old Man.Shall not? Hah? Shall not?Maurice.What, an unarm'd man?A man that never wore a sword? A priest?It is unsoldierly! I say, ye shall not!Old Man (turning to the bands).He bears himself most like an insolent Spaniard!75Maurice.And ye like slaves, that have destroy'd their master,But know not yet what freedom means; how holyAnd just a thing it is! He's a fallen foe!Come, come, forgive him!All.No, by Mahomet!Francesco.O mercy, mercy! talk to them of mercy!80Old Man.Mercy to thee! No, no, by Mahomet!Maurice.Nay, Mahomet taught mercy and forgiveness.I am sure he did!Old Man.Ha! Ha! Forgiveness! Mercy!Maurice.If he did not, he needs it for himself!
Maurice.Nay, but ye shall not!
Old Man.Shall not? Hah? Shall not?
Maurice.What, an unarm'd man?A man that never wore a sword? A priest?It is unsoldierly! I say, ye shall not!
Old Man (turning to the bands).He bears himself most like an insolent Spaniard!75
Maurice.And ye like slaves, that have destroy'd their master,But know not yet what freedom means; how holyAnd just a thing it is! He's a fallen foe!Come, come, forgive him!
All.No, by Mahomet!
Francesco.O mercy, mercy! talk to them of mercy!80
Old Man.Mercy to thee! No, no, by Mahomet!
Maurice.Nay, Mahomet taught mercy and forgiveness.I am sure he did!
Old Man.Ha! Ha! Forgiveness! Mercy!
Maurice.If he did not, he needs it for himself!
Alhadra.Blaspheming fool! the law of Mahomet85Was given by him, who framed the soul of man.This the best proof—it fits the soul of man!Ambition, glory, thirst of enterprize,The deep and stubborn purpose of revenge,With all the boiling revelries of pleasure—90These grow in the heart, yea, intertwine their rootsWith its minutest fibres! And that BeingWho made us, laughs to scorn the lying faith,Whose puny precepts, like a wall of sand,Would stem the full tide of predestined Nature!95Naomi (who turns toward Francesco with his sword).Speak!All (to Alhadra).Speak!Alhadra.Is the murderer of your chieftain dead?Now as God liveth, who hath suffer'd himTo make my children orphans, none shall dieTill I have seen his blood!Off with him to the vessel![A part of theMorescoeshurry him off.Alhadra.The Tyger, that with unquench'd cruelty,100Still thirsts for blood, leaps on the hunter's spearWith prodigal courage. 'Tis not so with man.Maurice.It is not so, remember that, my friends!Cowards are cruel, and the cruel cowards.Alhadra.Scatter yourselves, take each a separate way,105And move in silence to the house of Velez.[Exeunt.
Alhadra.Blaspheming fool! the law of Mahomet85Was given by him, who framed the soul of man.This the best proof—it fits the soul of man!Ambition, glory, thirst of enterprize,The deep and stubborn purpose of revenge,With all the boiling revelries of pleasure—90These grow in the heart, yea, intertwine their rootsWith its minutest fibres! And that BeingWho made us, laughs to scorn the lying faith,Whose puny precepts, like a wall of sand,Would stem the full tide of predestined Nature!95
Naomi (who turns toward Francesco with his sword).Speak!
All (to Alhadra).Speak!
Alhadra.Is the murderer of your chieftain dead?Now as God liveth, who hath suffer'd himTo make my children orphans, none shall dieTill I have seen his blood!Off with him to the vessel![A part of theMorescoeshurry him off.
Alhadra.The Tyger, that with unquench'd cruelty,100Still thirsts for blood, leaps on the hunter's spearWith prodigal courage. 'Tis not so with man.
Maurice.It is not so, remember that, my friends!Cowards are cruel, and the cruel cowards.
Alhadra.Scatter yourselves, take each a separate way,105And move in silence to the house of Velez.[Exeunt.
Albert(alone) rises slowly from a bed of reeds.
Albert.And this place my forefathers made for men!This is the process of our love and wisdomTo each poor brother who offends against us—Most innocent, perhaps—and what if guilty?110Is this the only cure? Merciful God!Each pore and natural outlet shrivell'd upBy ignorance and parching poverty,His energies roll back upon his heart,And stagnate and corrupt till changed to poison,115[587]They break out on him like a loathsome plague-spot!Then we call in our pamper'd mountebanks—And this is their best cure! uncomfortedAnd friendless solitude, groaning and tears,And savage faces at the clanking hour120Seen thro' the steaming vapours of his dungeonBy the lamp's dismal twilight! So he liesCircled with evil, till his very soulUnmoulds its essence, hopelessly deform'dBy sights of ever more deformity!125With other ministrations thou, O Nature!Healest thy wandering and distemper'd child:Thou pourest on him thy soft influences,Thy sunny hues, fair forms, and breathing sweets,Thy melodies of woods, and winds, and waters,130Till he relent, and can no more endureTo be a jarring and a dissonant thingAmid this general dance and minstrelsy;But bursting into tears wins back his way,His angry spirit heal'd and harmoniz'd135By the benignant touch of love and beauty.
Albert.And this place my forefathers made for men!This is the process of our love and wisdomTo each poor brother who offends against us—Most innocent, perhaps—and what if guilty?110Is this the only cure? Merciful God!Each pore and natural outlet shrivell'd upBy ignorance and parching poverty,His energies roll back upon his heart,And stagnate and corrupt till changed to poison,115[587]They break out on him like a loathsome plague-spot!Then we call in our pamper'd mountebanks—And this is their best cure! uncomfortedAnd friendless solitude, groaning and tears,And savage faces at the clanking hour120Seen thro' the steaming vapours of his dungeonBy the lamp's dismal twilight! So he liesCircled with evil, till his very soulUnmoulds its essence, hopelessly deform'dBy sights of ever more deformity!125With other ministrations thou, O Nature!Healest thy wandering and distemper'd child:Thou pourest on him thy soft influences,Thy sunny hues, fair forms, and breathing sweets,Thy melodies of woods, and winds, and waters,130Till he relent, and can no more endureTo be a jarring and a dissonant thingAmid this general dance and minstrelsy;But bursting into tears wins back his way,His angry spirit heal'd and harmoniz'd135By the benignant touch of love and beauty.
[A noise at the dungeon-door. It opens, andOsorioenters with a goblet in his hand.
Osorio.Hail, potent wizard! In my gayer moodI pour'd forth a libation to old Pluto;[589]And as I brimm'd the bowl, I thought of thee!Albert (in a low voice).I have not summon'd up my heart to give140That pang, which I must give thee, son of Velez!Osorio (with affected levity).Thou hast conspired against my life and honour,Hast trick'd me foully; yet I hate thee not!Why should I hate thee? This same world of ours—It is a puddle in a storm of rain,145And we the air-bladders, that course up and down,And joust and tilt in merry tournament,And when one bubble runs foul of another,[Waving his hand atAlbert.The lesser must needs break!Albert.I see thy heart!There is a frightful glitter in thine eye,150[590]Which doth betray thee. Crazy-conscienc'd man,This is the gaiety of drunken anguish,Which fain would scoff away the pang of guilt,And quell each human feeling!Osorio.Feeling! feeling!The death of a man—the breaking of a bubble.155'Tis true, I cannot sob for such misfortunes!But faintness, cold, and hunger—curses on meIf willingly I e'er inflicted them!Come, share the beverage—this chill place demands it.Friendship and wine![Osorioproffers him the goblet.Albert.Yon insect on the wall,160Which moves this way and that its hundred legs,Were it a toy of mere mechanic craft,It were an infinitely curious thing!But it has life, Osorio! life and thought;And by the power of its miraculous will165Wields all the complex movements of its frameUnerringly, to pleasurable ends!Saw I that insect on this goblet's brink,I would remove it with an eager terror.Osorio.What meanest thou?Albert.There's poison in the wine.170Osorio.Thou hast guess'd well. There's poison in the wine.Shall we throw dice, which of us two shall drink it?For one of us must die!Albert.Whom dost thou think me?Osorio.The accomplice and sworn friend of Ferdinand.Albert.Ferdinand! Ferdinand! 'tis a name I know not.175Osorio.Good! good! that lie! by Heaven! it has restor'd me.[591]Now I am thy master! Villain, thou shalt drink it,Or die a bitterer death.Albert.What strange solutionHast thou found out to satisfy thy fears,And drug them to unnatural sleep?[Alberttakes the goblet, and with a sigh throws it on the ground.Mymaster!180Osorio.Thou mountebank!Albert.Mountebank and villain!What then art thou? For shame, put up thy sword!What boots a weapon in a wither'd arm?I fix mine eye upon thee, and thou tremblest!I speak—and fear and wonder crush thy rage,185And turn it to a motionless distraction!Thou blind self-worshipper! thy pride, thy cunning,Thy faith in universal villainy,Thy shallow sophisms, thy pretended scornFor all thy human brethren—out upon them!190What have they done for thee? Have they given thee peace?Cured thee of starting in thy sleep? or madeThe darkness pleasant, when thou wakest at midnight?Art happy when alone? can'st walk by thyselfWith even step, and quiet cheerfulness?195Yet, yet thou mayst be saved.Osorio (stupidly reiterating the word).Saved? saved?Albert.One pang—Could I call up one pang of true remorse!Osorio.He told me of the babe, that prattled to him,His fatherless little ones! Remorse! remorse!Where gott'st thou that fool's word? Curse on remorse!200Can it give up the dead, or recompactA mangled body—mangled, dash'd to atoms!Not all the blessings of an host of angelsCan blow away a desolate widow's curse;And tho' thou spill thy heart's blood for atonement,205It will not weigh against an orphan's tear.Albert (almost overcome by his feelings).But Albert——Osorio.Ha! it chokes thee in the throat,[592]Even thee! and yet, I pray thee, speak it out.Still Albert! Albert! Howl it in mine ear!Heap it, like coals of fire, upon my heart!210And shoot it hissing through my brain!Albert.Alas—That day, when thou didst leap from off the rockInto the waves, and grasp'd thy sinking brother,And bore him to the strand, then, son of Velez!How sweet and musical the name of Albert!215Then, then, Osorio! he was dear to thee,And thou wert dear to him. Heaven only knowsHow very dear thou wert! Why didst thou hate him?O Heaven! how he would fall upon thy neck,And weep forgiveness!Osorio.Spirit of the dead!220Methinks I know thee! Ha!—my brain turns wildAt its own dreams—off—off, fantastic shadow!Albert (seizing his hand).I fain would tell thee what I am, but dare not!Osorio (retiring from him).Cheat, villain, traitor! whatsoe'er thou beI fear thee, man![He starts, and stands in the attitude of listening.And isthistoo my madness?225Albert.It is the step of one that treads in fearSeeking to cheat the echo.Osorio.It approaches—This nook shall hide me.
Osorio.Hail, potent wizard! In my gayer moodI pour'd forth a libation to old Pluto;[589]And as I brimm'd the bowl, I thought of thee!
Albert (in a low voice).I have not summon'd up my heart to give140That pang, which I must give thee, son of Velez!
Osorio (with affected levity).Thou hast conspired against my life and honour,Hast trick'd me foully; yet I hate thee not!Why should I hate thee? This same world of ours—It is a puddle in a storm of rain,145And we the air-bladders, that course up and down,And joust and tilt in merry tournament,And when one bubble runs foul of another,[Waving his hand atAlbert.The lesser must needs break!
Albert.I see thy heart!There is a frightful glitter in thine eye,150[590]Which doth betray thee. Crazy-conscienc'd man,This is the gaiety of drunken anguish,Which fain would scoff away the pang of guilt,And quell each human feeling!
Osorio.Feeling! feeling!The death of a man—the breaking of a bubble.155'Tis true, I cannot sob for such misfortunes!But faintness, cold, and hunger—curses on meIf willingly I e'er inflicted them!Come, share the beverage—this chill place demands it.Friendship and wine![Osorioproffers him the goblet.
Albert.Yon insect on the wall,160Which moves this way and that its hundred legs,Were it a toy of mere mechanic craft,It were an infinitely curious thing!But it has life, Osorio! life and thought;And by the power of its miraculous will165Wields all the complex movements of its frameUnerringly, to pleasurable ends!Saw I that insect on this goblet's brink,I would remove it with an eager terror.
Osorio.What meanest thou?
Albert.There's poison in the wine.170
Osorio.Thou hast guess'd well. There's poison in the wine.Shall we throw dice, which of us two shall drink it?For one of us must die!
Albert.Whom dost thou think me?
Osorio.The accomplice and sworn friend of Ferdinand.
Albert.Ferdinand! Ferdinand! 'tis a name I know not.175
Osorio.Good! good! that lie! by Heaven! it has restor'd me.[591]Now I am thy master! Villain, thou shalt drink it,Or die a bitterer death.
Albert.What strange solutionHast thou found out to satisfy thy fears,And drug them to unnatural sleep?[Alberttakes the goblet, and with a sigh throws it on the ground.Mymaster!180
Osorio.Thou mountebank!
Albert.Mountebank and villain!What then art thou? For shame, put up thy sword!What boots a weapon in a wither'd arm?I fix mine eye upon thee, and thou tremblest!I speak—and fear and wonder crush thy rage,185And turn it to a motionless distraction!Thou blind self-worshipper! thy pride, thy cunning,Thy faith in universal villainy,Thy shallow sophisms, thy pretended scornFor all thy human brethren—out upon them!190What have they done for thee? Have they given thee peace?Cured thee of starting in thy sleep? or madeThe darkness pleasant, when thou wakest at midnight?Art happy when alone? can'st walk by thyselfWith even step, and quiet cheerfulness?195Yet, yet thou mayst be saved.
Osorio (stupidly reiterating the word).Saved? saved?
Albert.One pang—Could I call up one pang of true remorse!
Osorio.He told me of the babe, that prattled to him,His fatherless little ones! Remorse! remorse!Where gott'st thou that fool's word? Curse on remorse!200Can it give up the dead, or recompactA mangled body—mangled, dash'd to atoms!Not all the blessings of an host of angelsCan blow away a desolate widow's curse;And tho' thou spill thy heart's blood for atonement,205It will not weigh against an orphan's tear.
Albert (almost overcome by his feelings).But Albert——
Osorio.Ha! it chokes thee in the throat,[592]Even thee! and yet, I pray thee, speak it out.Still Albert! Albert! Howl it in mine ear!Heap it, like coals of fire, upon my heart!210And shoot it hissing through my brain!
Albert.Alas—That day, when thou didst leap from off the rockInto the waves, and grasp'd thy sinking brother,And bore him to the strand, then, son of Velez!How sweet and musical the name of Albert!215Then, then, Osorio! he was dear to thee,And thou wert dear to him. Heaven only knowsHow very dear thou wert! Why didst thou hate him?O Heaven! how he would fall upon thy neck,And weep forgiveness!
Osorio.Spirit of the dead!220Methinks I know thee! Ha!—my brain turns wildAt its own dreams—off—off, fantastic shadow!
Albert (seizing his hand).I fain would tell thee what I am, but dare not!
Osorio (retiring from him).Cheat, villain, traitor! whatsoe'er thou beI fear thee, man![He starts, and stands in the attitude of listening.And isthistoo my madness?225
Albert.It is the step of one that treads in fearSeeking to cheat the echo.
Osorio.It approaches—This nook shall hide me.
[Mariaenters from a plank which slips to and fro.
Maria.I have put asideThe customs and the terrors of a woman,To work out thy escape. Stranger! begone,230And only tell me what thou know'st of Albert.
Maria.I have put asideThe customs and the terrors of a woman,To work out thy escape. Stranger! begone,230And only tell me what thou know'st of Albert.
[Alberttakes her portrait from his neck, and gives it her with unutterable tenderness.
Albert.Maria!myMaria!Maria.Do not mock me.This is my face—and thou—ha! who art thou?Nay, I will call thee Albert!
Albert.Maria!myMaria!
Maria.Do not mock me.This is my face—and thou—ha! who art thou?Nay, I will call thee Albert!
[She falls upon his neck.Osorioleaps out from the nook with frantic wildness, and rushes towardsAlbertwith his sword.Mariagapes at him, as one helpless with terror, then leavesAlbert, and flings herself uponOsorio, arresting his arm.
Maria.Madman, stop!Albert (with majesty and tenderness).Does then this thin disguise impenetrably235Hide Albert from thee? Toil and painful wounds,And long imprisonment in unwholesome dungeons,Have marr'd perhaps all trace and lineamentOf what I was! But chiefly, chiefly, brother!My anguish for thy guilt. Spotless Maria,240I thought thee guilty too! Osorio, brother!Nay, nay, thoushaltembrace me!Osorio (drawing back and gazing at Albert with a countenance expressive at once of awe and terror).Touch me not!Touch not pollution, Albert!—I will die!
Maria.Madman, stop!
Albert (with majesty and tenderness).Does then this thin disguise impenetrably235Hide Albert from thee? Toil and painful wounds,And long imprisonment in unwholesome dungeons,Have marr'd perhaps all trace and lineamentOf what I was! But chiefly, chiefly, brother!My anguish for thy guilt. Spotless Maria,240I thought thee guilty too! Osorio, brother!Nay, nay, thoushaltembrace me!
Osorio (drawing back and gazing at Albert with a countenance expressive at once of awe and terror).Touch me not!Touch not pollution, Albert!—I will die!
[He attempts to fall on his sword.AlbertandMariastruggle with him.
Albert.We will invent some tale to save your honour.Live, live, Osorio!Maria.You may yet be happy.245Osorio (looking at Maria).O horror! Not a thousand years in heavenCould recompose this miserable heart,Or make it capable of one brief joy.Live! live!—why yes! 'Twere well to live with you—[594]For is it fit a villain should be proud?250My brother! I will kneel to you, my brother![Throws himself atAlbert'sfeet.Forgive me, Albert!—Curseme with forgiveness!Albert.Call back thy soul, my brother! and look round thee.Now is the time for greatness. Think that Heaven——Maria.O mark his eye! he hears not what you say.255Osorio (pointing at vacancy).Yes, mark his eye! there's fascination in it.Thou said'st thou didst not know him. That is he!He comes upon me!Albert (lifting his eye to heaven).Heal, O heal him, Heaven!Osorio.Nearer and nearer! And I cannot stir!Will no one hear these stifled groans, and wake me?260He would have died to save me, and I kill'd him—A husband and a father!Maria.Some secret poisonDrinks up his spirit!Osorio (fiercely recollecting himself).Let the eternal JusticePrepare my punishment in the obscure world.I will not bear to live—to live! O agony!265And be myself alone, my own sore torment!
Albert.We will invent some tale to save your honour.Live, live, Osorio!
Maria.You may yet be happy.245
Osorio (looking at Maria).O horror! Not a thousand years in heavenCould recompose this miserable heart,Or make it capable of one brief joy.Live! live!—why yes! 'Twere well to live with you—[594]For is it fit a villain should be proud?250My brother! I will kneel to you, my brother![Throws himself atAlbert'sfeet.Forgive me, Albert!—Curseme with forgiveness!
Albert.Call back thy soul, my brother! and look round thee.Now is the time for greatness. Think that Heaven——
Maria.O mark his eye! he hears not what you say.255
Osorio (pointing at vacancy).Yes, mark his eye! there's fascination in it.Thou said'st thou didst not know him. That is he!He comes upon me!
Albert (lifting his eye to heaven).Heal, O heal him, Heaven!
Osorio.Nearer and nearer! And I cannot stir!Will no one hear these stifled groans, and wake me?260He would have died to save me, and I kill'd him—A husband and a father!
Maria.Some secret poisonDrinks up his spirit!
Osorio (fiercely recollecting himself).Let the eternal JusticePrepare my punishment in the obscure world.I will not bear to live—to live! O agony!265And be myself alone, my own sore torment!
[The doors of the dungeon are burst open with a crash.Alhadra, Maurice, and the band ofMorescoesenter.
Alhadra (pointing at Osorio).Seize first that man!
Alhadra (pointing at Osorio).Seize first that man!
[TheMoorspress round.
Albert (rushing in among them).Draw thy sword, Maurice, and defend my brother.
Albert (rushing in among them).Draw thy sword, Maurice, and defend my brother.
[A scuffle, during which they disarmMaurice.
Osorio.Off, ruffians! I have flung away my sword.Woman, my life is thine! to thee I give it.270Off! he that touches me with his hand of flesh,I'll rend his limbs asunder! I have strengthWith this bare arm to scatter you like ashes!
Osorio.Off, ruffians! I have flung away my sword.Woman, my life is thine! to thee I give it.270Off! he that touches me with his hand of flesh,I'll rend his limbs asunder! I have strengthWith this bare arm to scatter you like ashes!
Alhadra.My husband——Osorio.Yes! I murder'd him most foully.Albert (throws himself on the earth).O horrible!Alhadra.Why didst thou leave his children?275Demon! thou shouldst have sent thy dogs of hellTo laptheirblood. Then, then, I might have harden'dMy soul in misery, and have had comfort.I would have stood far off, quiet tho' dark,And bade the race of men raise up a mourning280For the deep horror of a desolationToo great to be one soul's particular lot!Brother of Zagri! let me lean upon thee.[Struggling to suppress her anguish.The time is not yet come for woman's anguish—I have not seen his blood. Within an hour285Those little ones will crowd around and ask me,Where is our father?[Looks atOsorio.I shall curse thee then!Wert thou in heaven, my curse would pluck thee thence!Maria.See—see! he doth repent. I kneel to thee.Be merciful![Mariakneels to her.Alhadraregards her face wistfully.Alhadra.Thou art young and innocent;290'Twere merciful to kill thee! Yet I will not.And for thy sake none of this house shall perish,[596]Save only he.Maria.That aged man, his father!Alhadra (sternly).Why had he such a son?
Alhadra.My husband——
Osorio.Yes! I murder'd him most foully.
Albert (throws himself on the earth).O horrible!
Alhadra.Why didst thou leave his children?275Demon! thou shouldst have sent thy dogs of hellTo laptheirblood. Then, then, I might have harden'dMy soul in misery, and have had comfort.I would have stood far off, quiet tho' dark,And bade the race of men raise up a mourning280For the deep horror of a desolationToo great to be one soul's particular lot!Brother of Zagri! let me lean upon thee.[Struggling to suppress her anguish.The time is not yet come for woman's anguish—I have not seen his blood. Within an hour285Those little ones will crowd around and ask me,Where is our father?[Looks atOsorio.I shall curse thee then!Wert thou in heaven, my curse would pluck thee thence!
Maria.See—see! he doth repent. I kneel to thee.Be merciful![Mariakneels to her.Alhadraregards her face wistfully.
Alhadra.Thou art young and innocent;290'Twere merciful to kill thee! Yet I will not.And for thy sake none of this house shall perish,[596]Save only he.
Maria.That aged man, his father!
Alhadra (sternly).Why had he such a son?
[TheMoorspress on.
Maria (still kneeling, and wild with affright).Yet spare his life!They must not murder him!Alhadra.And is it then295An enviable lot to waste awayWith inward wounds, and like the spirit of chaosTo wander on disquietly thro' the earth,Cursing all lovely things? to let him live—It were a deep revenge!All the band cry out—No mercy! no mercy!300
Maria (still kneeling, and wild with affright).Yet spare his life!They must not murder him!
Alhadra.And is it then295An enviable lot to waste awayWith inward wounds, and like the spirit of chaosTo wander on disquietly thro' the earth,Cursing all lovely things? to let him live—It were a deep revenge!
All the band cry out—No mercy! no mercy!300
[Naomiadvances with the sword towardsOsorio.
Alhadra.Nay, bear him forth! Why should this innocent maidBehold the ugliness of death?Osorio (with great majesty).O woman!I have stood silent like a slave[596:1]before thee,That I might taste the wormwood and the gall,And satiate this self-accusing spirit305With bitterer agonies than death can give.
Alhadra.Nay, bear him forth! Why should this innocent maidBehold the ugliness of death?
Osorio (with great majesty).O woman!I have stood silent like a slave[596:1]before thee,That I might taste the wormwood and the gall,And satiate this self-accusing spirit305With bitterer agonies than death can give.
[TheMoorsgather round him in a crowd, and pass off the stage.
Alhadra.I thank thee, Heaven! thou hast ordain'd it wisely,That still extremes bring their own cure. That pointIn misery which makes the oppressed manRegardless of his own life, makes him too310Lord of the oppressor's! Knew I an hundred menDespairing, but not palsied by despair,This arm should shake the kingdoms of this world;[597]The deep foundations of iniquityShould sink away, earth groaning from beneath them;315The strong holds of the cruel men should fall,Their temples and their mountainous towers should fall;Till desolation seem'd a beautiful thing,And all that were and had the spirit of lifeSang a new song to him who had gone forth320Conquering and still to conquer!
Alhadra.I thank thee, Heaven! thou hast ordain'd it wisely,That still extremes bring their own cure. That pointIn misery which makes the oppressed manRegardless of his own life, makes him too310Lord of the oppressor's! Knew I an hundred menDespairing, but not palsied by despair,This arm should shake the kingdoms of this world;[597]The deep foundations of iniquityShould sink away, earth groaning from beneath them;315The strong holds of the cruel men should fall,Their temples and their mountainous towers should fall;Till desolation seem'd a beautiful thing,And all that were and had the spirit of lifeSang a new song to him who had gone forth320Conquering and still to conquer!
THE END[597:1]
[596:1]InMS. II'worm' has the place of 'slave', which is the word inMS. I.
[596:1]InMS. II'worm' has the place of 'slave', which is the word inMS. I.
[597:1]On a blank page ofMS. IIIsome one, probably Bowles, has written:—'Upon the whole a very masterly production, and with judicious contractments might be rendered an interesting Drama on the stage.'
[597:1]On a blank page ofMS. IIIsome one, probably Bowles, has written:—'Upon the whole a very masterly production, and with judicious contractments might be rendered an interesting Drama on the stage.'
[1-106]om. Remorse.
om. Remorse.
[39]The hanging] Yon pendentCorr. in MS. III.
The hanging] Yon pendentCorr. in MS. III.
[41]hanging]pendentflowerlikeCorr. in MS. III.
[45]that] thisCorr. in MS. III.
that] thisCorr. in MS. III.
Affixed to57]Naomi, the second in command to Isidore, enters in haste.MS. III erased.
Affixed to57]Naomi, the second in command to Isidore, enters in haste.MS. III erased.
After61stage-direction erased MS. III.
After61stage-direction erased MS. III.
[62]Moorish Seaman]NaomiCorr. in MS. III.
Moorish Seaman]NaomiCorr. in MS. III.
[100-106]Erased MS. III.
Erased MS. III.
[107]foll.]vide ante, 'The Dungeon,' p. 185.
foll.]vide ante, 'The Dungeon,' p. 185.
[121]steaming] steam andCorr. in MS. III, Remorse.
steaming] steam andCorr. in MS. III, Remorse.
[125]ever more]evermoreRemorse.
ever more]evermoreRemorse.
After136I am chill and weary! Yon rude bench of stone,In that dark angle, the sole resting-place!But the self-approving mind is its own light,And Life's best warmth still radiates from the heartWhere love sits brooding, and an honest purpose.EnterTeresa.[Retires out of sight.Corr. in MS. III, Remorse.
After136
I am chill and weary! Yon rude bench of stone,In that dark angle, the sole resting-place!But the self-approving mind is its own light,And Life's best warmth still radiates from the heartWhere love sits brooding, and an honest purpose.
I am chill and weary! Yon rude bench of stone,In that dark angle, the sole resting-place!But the self-approving mind is its own light,And Life's best warmth still radiates from the heartWhere love sits brooding, and an honest purpose.
EnterTeresa.[Retires out of sight.
Corr. in MS. III, Remorse.
Stage-direction affixed to136and136-9erased in MS. III:om. Remorse.
Stage-direction affixed to136and136-9erased in MS. III:om. Remorse.
Between136and137:I am chill and weary, &c. . . . honest purpose.EnterTeresawith a taper.Teresa.It has chilled my very life—my own voice scares me;Yet when I hear it not I seem to loseThe substance of my being—my strongest graspSends inwards but weak witness that I am.I seek to cheat the echo.—How the half soundsBlend with this strangled light! Is he not here—[Looking round.O for one human face here—but to seeOne human face here to sustain me.—Courage!It is but my own fear! The life within me,It sinks and wavers like this cone of flame,Beyond which I scarce dare look onward! Oh!If I faint? If this inhuman den should beAt once my death-bed and my burial vault?[Faintly screams asAlvaremerges from the recess.Alvar (rushes towards her, and catches her as she is falling).O gracious heaven! it is, it is Teresa!Shall I reveal myself? The sudden shockOf rapture will blow out this spark of life,And joy complete what terror has begun.O ye impetuous beatings here, be still!Teresa, best beloved! pale, pale, and cold!Her pulse doth flutter! Teresa! my Teresa!Teresa (recovering).I heard a voice; but often in my dreamsI hear that voice! and wake and try—and try—To hear it waking! but I never could—And 'tis so now—even so! Well! he is dead—Murdered perhaps! And I am faint, and feelAs if it were no painful thing to die!Alvar.Believe it not, sweet maid! Believe it not,Beloved woman! 'Twas a low impostureFramed by a guilty wretch.Teresa.Ha! Who art thou?Alvar.Suborned by his brother—Teresa.Didst thou murder him?And dost thou now repent? Poor troubled man,I do forgive thee, and may Heaven forgive thee!Alvar.Ordonio—he——Teresa.If thou didst murder him—His spirit ever at the throne of GodAsks mercy for thee: prays for mercy for thee,With tears in Heaven!Alvar.Alvar was not murdered.Be calm! be calm, sweet maid!Teresa.Nay, nay, but tell me![A pause.O 'tis lost again!This dull confused pain—[A pause.Mysterious man!Methinks I can not fear thee: for thine eyeDoth swim with love and pity—Well! Ordonio—Oh my foreboding heart! And he suborned thee,And thou didst spare his life? Blessings shower on thee,As many as the drops twice counted o'erIn the fond faithful heart of his Teresa!Alvar.I can endure no more. The Moorish sorcererExists but in the stain upon his face.That picture——Teresa.Ha! speak on!Alvar.Beloved Teresa!It told but half the truth. O let this portraitTell all—that Alvar lives—that he is here!Thy much deceived but ever faithful Alvar.[Takes her portrait from his neck, and gives it her.Teresa (receiving the portrait).The same—it is the same. Ah! Who art thou?Nay, I will call thee, Alvar![She falls on his neck.Alvar.O joy unutterable!But hark! a sound as of removing barsAt the dungeon's outer door. A brief, brief whileConceal thyself, my love! It is Ordonio.For the honour of our race, for our dear father;O for himself too (he is still my brother)Let me recall him to his nobler nature,That he may wake as from a dream of murder!O let me reconcile him to himself,Open the sacred source of penitent tears,And be once more his own beloved Alvar.Teresa.O my all virtuous love! I fear to leave theeWith that obdurate man.Alvar.Thou dost not leave me!But a brief while retire into the darkness:O that my joy could spread its sunshine round thee!Teresa.The sound of thy voice shall be my music!Alvar! my Alvar! am I sure I hold thee?Is it no dream? thee in my arms, my Alvar![Exit.[A noise at the dungeon door. It opens, andOrdonioenters, with a goblet in his hand.Remorse.
Between136and137:
I am chill and weary, &c. . . . honest purpose.EnterTeresawith a taper.Teresa.It has chilled my very life—my own voice scares me;Yet when I hear it not I seem to loseThe substance of my being—my strongest graspSends inwards but weak witness that I am.I seek to cheat the echo.—How the half soundsBlend with this strangled light! Is he not here—[Looking round.O for one human face here—but to seeOne human face here to sustain me.—Courage!It is but my own fear! The life within me,It sinks and wavers like this cone of flame,Beyond which I scarce dare look onward! Oh!If I faint? If this inhuman den should beAt once my death-bed and my burial vault?[Faintly screams asAlvaremerges from the recess.Alvar (rushes towards her, and catches her as she is falling).O gracious heaven! it is, it is Teresa!Shall I reveal myself? The sudden shockOf rapture will blow out this spark of life,And joy complete what terror has begun.O ye impetuous beatings here, be still!Teresa, best beloved! pale, pale, and cold!Her pulse doth flutter! Teresa! my Teresa!Teresa (recovering).I heard a voice; but often in my dreamsI hear that voice! and wake and try—and try—To hear it waking! but I never could—And 'tis so now—even so! Well! he is dead—Murdered perhaps! And I am faint, and feelAs if it were no painful thing to die!Alvar.Believe it not, sweet maid! Believe it not,Beloved woman! 'Twas a low impostureFramed by a guilty wretch.Teresa.Ha! Who art thou?Alvar.Suborned by his brother—Teresa.Didst thou murder him?And dost thou now repent? Poor troubled man,I do forgive thee, and may Heaven forgive thee!Alvar.Ordonio—he——Teresa.If thou didst murder him—His spirit ever at the throne of GodAsks mercy for thee: prays for mercy for thee,With tears in Heaven!Alvar.Alvar was not murdered.Be calm! be calm, sweet maid!Teresa.Nay, nay, but tell me![A pause.O 'tis lost again!This dull confused pain—[A pause.Mysterious man!Methinks I can not fear thee: for thine eyeDoth swim with love and pity—Well! Ordonio—Oh my foreboding heart! And he suborned thee,And thou didst spare his life? Blessings shower on thee,As many as the drops twice counted o'erIn the fond faithful heart of his Teresa!Alvar.I can endure no more. The Moorish sorcererExists but in the stain upon his face.That picture——Teresa.Ha! speak on!Alvar.Beloved Teresa!It told but half the truth. O let this portraitTell all—that Alvar lives—that he is here!Thy much deceived but ever faithful Alvar.[Takes her portrait from his neck, and gives it her.Teresa (receiving the portrait).The same—it is the same. Ah! Who art thou?Nay, I will call thee, Alvar![She falls on his neck.Alvar.O joy unutterable!But hark! a sound as of removing barsAt the dungeon's outer door. A brief, brief whileConceal thyself, my love! It is Ordonio.For the honour of our race, for our dear father;O for himself too (he is still my brother)Let me recall him to his nobler nature,That he may wake as from a dream of murder!O let me reconcile him to himself,Open the sacred source of penitent tears,And be once more his own beloved Alvar.Teresa.O my all virtuous love! I fear to leave theeWith that obdurate man.Alvar.Thou dost not leave me!But a brief while retire into the darkness:O that my joy could spread its sunshine round thee!Teresa.The sound of thy voice shall be my music!Alvar! my Alvar! am I sure I hold thee?Is it no dream? thee in my arms, my Alvar![Exit.
I am chill and weary, &c. . . . honest purpose.
EnterTeresawith a taper.
Teresa.It has chilled my very life—my own voice scares me;Yet when I hear it not I seem to loseThe substance of my being—my strongest graspSends inwards but weak witness that I am.I seek to cheat the echo.—How the half soundsBlend with this strangled light! Is he not here—[Looking round.O for one human face here—but to seeOne human face here to sustain me.—Courage!It is but my own fear! The life within me,It sinks and wavers like this cone of flame,Beyond which I scarce dare look onward! Oh!If I faint? If this inhuman den should beAt once my death-bed and my burial vault?[Faintly screams asAlvaremerges from the recess.
Alvar (rushes towards her, and catches her as she is falling).O gracious heaven! it is, it is Teresa!Shall I reveal myself? The sudden shockOf rapture will blow out this spark of life,And joy complete what terror has begun.O ye impetuous beatings here, be still!Teresa, best beloved! pale, pale, and cold!Her pulse doth flutter! Teresa! my Teresa!
Teresa (recovering).I heard a voice; but often in my dreamsI hear that voice! and wake and try—and try—To hear it waking! but I never could—And 'tis so now—even so! Well! he is dead—Murdered perhaps! And I am faint, and feelAs if it were no painful thing to die!
Alvar.Believe it not, sweet maid! Believe it not,Beloved woman! 'Twas a low impostureFramed by a guilty wretch.
Teresa.Ha! Who art thou?
Alvar.Suborned by his brother—
Teresa.Didst thou murder him?And dost thou now repent? Poor troubled man,I do forgive thee, and may Heaven forgive thee!
Alvar.Ordonio—he——
Teresa.If thou didst murder him—His spirit ever at the throne of GodAsks mercy for thee: prays for mercy for thee,With tears in Heaven!
Alvar.Alvar was not murdered.Be calm! be calm, sweet maid!
Teresa.Nay, nay, but tell me![A pause.O 'tis lost again!This dull confused pain—[A pause.Mysterious man!Methinks I can not fear thee: for thine eyeDoth swim with love and pity—Well! Ordonio—Oh my foreboding heart! And he suborned thee,And thou didst spare his life? Blessings shower on thee,As many as the drops twice counted o'erIn the fond faithful heart of his Teresa!
Alvar.I can endure no more. The Moorish sorcererExists but in the stain upon his face.That picture——
Teresa.Ha! speak on!
Alvar.Beloved Teresa!It told but half the truth. O let this portraitTell all—that Alvar lives—that he is here!Thy much deceived but ever faithful Alvar.[Takes her portrait from his neck, and gives it her.
Teresa (receiving the portrait).The same—it is the same. Ah! Who art thou?Nay, I will call thee, Alvar![She falls on his neck.
Alvar.O joy unutterable!But hark! a sound as of removing barsAt the dungeon's outer door. A brief, brief whileConceal thyself, my love! It is Ordonio.For the honour of our race, for our dear father;O for himself too (he is still my brother)Let me recall him to his nobler nature,That he may wake as from a dream of murder!O let me reconcile him to himself,Open the sacred source of penitent tears,And be once more his own beloved Alvar.
Teresa.O my all virtuous love! I fear to leave theeWith that obdurate man.
Alvar.Thou dost not leave me!But a brief while retire into the darkness:O that my joy could spread its sunshine round thee!
Teresa.The sound of thy voice shall be my music!Alvar! my Alvar! am I sure I hold thee?Is it no dream? thee in my arms, my Alvar![Exit.
[A noise at the dungeon door. It opens, andOrdonioenters, with a goblet in his hand.
Remorse.