TALBOT, BURGUNDY, LIONEL.TALBOT.Heavens! What a woman!LIONEL.Now, brave generals,Your counsel! Shall we prosecute our flight,Or turn, and with a bold and sudden strokeWipe out the foul dishonor of to-day?BURGUNDY.We are too weak, our soldiers are dispersed,The recent terror still unnerves the host.TALBOT.Blind terror, sudden impulse of a moment,Alone occasioned our disastrous rout.This phantom of the terror-stricken brain,More closely viewed will vanish into air.My counsel, therefore, is, at break of day,To lead the army back, across the stream,To meet the enemy.BURGUNDY.Consider well——LIONEL.Your pardon! Here is nothing to considerWhat we have lost we must at once retrieve,Or look to be eternally disgraced.TALBOT.It is resolved. To-morrow morn we fight,This dread-inspiring phantom to destroy,Which thus doth blind and terrify the hostLet us in fight encounter this she-devil.If she oppose her person to our sword,Trust me, she never will molest us more;If she avoid our stroke—and be assuredShe will not stand the hazard of a battle—Then is the dire enchantment at an end?LIONEL.So be it! And to me, my general, leaveThis easy, bloodless combat, for I hopeAlive to take this ghost, and in my arms,Before the Bastard's eyes—her paramour—To bear her over to the English camp,To be the sport and mockery of the host.BURGUNDY.Make not too sure.TALBOT.If she encounter me,I shall not give her such a soft embrace.Come now, exhausted nature to restoreThrough gentle sleep. At daybreak we set forth.[They go out.
JOHANNA with her banner, in a helmet and breastplate,otherwise attired as a woman. DUNOIS, LA HIRE, knightsand soldiers appear above upon the rocky path, passsilently over, and appear immediately after on the scene.JOHANNA (to the knights who surround her while theprocession continues above).The wall is scaled and we are in the camp!Now fling aside the mantle of still night,Which hitherto hath veiled your silent march,And your dread presence to the foe proclaim.By your loud battle-cry—God and the maiden!ALL (exclaim aloud, amidst the loud clang of arms).God and the maiden![Drums and trumpets.SENTINELS (behind the scene).The foe! The foe! The foe!JOHANNA.Ho! torches here. Hurl fire into the tents!Let the devouring flames augment the horror,While threatening death doth compass them around![Soldiers hasten on, she is about to follow.DUNOIS (holding her back).Thy part thou hast accomplished now, Johanna!Into the camp thou hast conducted us,The foe thou hast delivered in our hands,Now from the rush of war remain apart!The bloody consummation leave to us.LA HIRE.Point out the path of conquest to the host;Before us, in pure hand, the banner bear.But wield the fatal weapon not thyself;Tempt not the treacherous god of battle, forHe rageth blindly, and he spareth not.JOHANNA.Who dares impede my progress? Who presumeThe spirit to control which guideth me?Still must the arrow wing its destined flight!Where danger is, there must Johanna be;Nor now, nor here, am I foredoomed to fall;Our monarch's royal brow I first must seeInvested with the round of sovereignty.No hostile power can rob me of my life,Till I've accomplished the commands of God.[She goes out.LA HIRE.Come, let us follow after her, Dunois,And let our valiant bosoms be her shield![Exit.
ENGLISH SOLDIERS hurry over the stage.Afterwards TALBOT.1 SOLDIER.The maiden in the camp!2 SOLDIER.Impossible!It cannot be! How came she in the camp?3 SOLDIER.Why, through the air! The devil aided her!4 AND 5 SOLDIERS.Fly! fly! We are dead men!TALBOT (enters).They heed me not! They stay not at my call!The sacred bands of discipline are loosed!As hell had poured her damned legions forth,A wild, distracting impulse whirls along,In one mad throng, the cowardly and brave.I cannot rally e'en the smallest troopTo form a bulwark gainst the hostile flood,Whose raging billows press into our camp!Do I alone retain my sober senses,While all around in wild delirium rave?To fly before these weak, degenerate FrenchmenWhom we in twenty battles have overthrown?Who is she then—the irresistible—The dread-inspiring goddess, who doth turnAt once the tide of battle, and transformThe lions bold a herd of timid deer?A juggling minx, who plays the well-learned partOf heroine, thus to appal the brave?A woman snatch from me all martial fame?SOLDIER (rushing in).The maiden comes! Fly, general, fly! fly!TALBOT (strikes him down).Fly thou, thyself, to hell! This sword shall pierceWho talks to me of fear, or coward flight![He goes out.
The prospect opens. The English camp is seen in flames.Drums, flight, and pursuit. After a while MONTGOMERY enters.MONTGOMERY (alone).Where shall I flee? Foes all around and death! Lo! hereThe furious general, who with threatening sword, preventsEscape, and drives us back into the jaws of death.The dreadful maiden there—the terrible—who likeDevouring flame, destruction spreads; while all aroundAppears no bush wherein to hide—no sheltering cave!Oh, would that o'er the sea I never had come here!Me miserable—empty dreams deluded me—Cheap glory to achieve on Gallia's martial fields.And I am guided by malignant destinyInto this murderous flight. Oh, were I far, far hence.Still in my peaceful home, on Severn's flowery banks,Where in my father's house, in sorrow and in tears,I left my mother and my fair young bride.[JOHANNA appears in the distance.Wo's me! What do I see! The dreadful form appears!Arrayed in lurid light, she from the raging fireIssues, as from the jaws of hell, a midnight ghost.Where shall I go? where flee? Already from afarShe seizes on me with her eye of fire, and flingsHer fatal and unerring coil, whose magic foldsWith ever-tightening pressure, bind my feet and makeEscape impossible! Howe'er my heart rebels,I am compelled to follow with my gaze that formOf dread![JOHANNA advances towards him some steps;and again remains standing.She comes! I will not passively awaitHer furious onset! Imploringly I'll claspHer knees! I'll sue to her for life. She is a woman.I may perchance to pity move her by my tears![While he is on the point of approaching her she draws near.
JOHANNA, MONTGOMERY.JOHANNA.Prepare to die! A British mother bore thee!MONTGOMERY (falls at her feet).Fall back, terrific one! Forbear to strikeAn unprotected foe! My sword and shieldI've flung aside, and supplicating fallDefenceless at thy feet. A ransom take!Extinguish not the precious light of life!With fair possessions crowned, my father dwellsIn Wales' fair land, where among verdant meadsThe winding Severn rolls his silver tide,And fifty villages confess his sway.With heavy gold he will redeem his son,When he shall hear I'm in the camp of France.JHANNA.Deluded mortal! to destruction doomed!Thou'rt fallen in the maiden's hand, from whichRedemption or deliverance there is none.Had adverse fortune given thee a preyTo the fierce tiger or the crocodile—Hadst robbed the lion mother of her brood—Compassion thou might'st hope to find and pity;But to encounter me is certain death.For my dread compact with the spirit realm—The stern inviolable—bindeth me,To slay each living thing whom battle's God,Full charged with doom, delivers to my sword.MONTGOMERY.Thy speech is fearful, but thy look is mild;Not dreadful art thou to contemplate near;My heart is drawn towards thy lovely form.Oh! by the mildness of thy gentle sex,Attend my prayer. Compassionate my youth.JOHANNA.Name me not woman! Speak not of my sex!Like to the bodiless spirits, who know naughtOf earth's humanities, I own no sex;Beneath this vest of steel there beats no heart.MONTGOMERY.Oh! by love's sacred, all-pervading power,To whom all hearts yield homage, I conjure thee.At home I left behind a gentle bride,Beauteous as thou, and rich in blooming grace:Weeping she waiteth her betrothed's return.Oh! if thyself dost ever hope to love,If in thy love thou hopest to be happy,Then ruthless sever not two gentle hearts,Together linked in love's most holy bond!JOHANNA.Thou dost appeal to earthly, unknown gods,To whom I yield no homage. Of love's bond,By which thou dost conjure me, I know naughtNor ever will I know his empty service.Defend thy life, for death doth summon thee.MONTGOMERY.Take pity on my sorrowing parents, whomI left at home. Doubtless thou, too, hast leftParents, who feel disquietude for thee.JOHANNA.Unhappy man! thou dost remember meHow many mothers of this land your armsHave rendered childless and disconsolate;How many gentle children fatherless;How many fair young brides dejected widows!Let England's mothers now be taught despair,And learn to weep the bitter tear oft shedBy the bereaved and sorrowing wives of France.MONTGOMERY.'Tis hard in foreign lands to die unwept.JOHANNA.Who called you over to this foreign land,To waste the blooming culture of our fields,To chase the peasant from his household hearth,And in our cities' peaceful sanctuaryTo hurl the direful thunderbolt of war?In the delusion of your hearts ye thoughtTo plunge in servitude the freeborn French,And to attach their fair and goodly realm,Like a small boat, to your proud English bark!Ye fools! The royal arms of France are hungFast by the throne of God; and ye as soonFrom the bright wain of heaven might snatch a starAs rend a single village from this realm,Which shall remain inviolate forever!The day of vengeance is at length arrived;Not living shall ye measure back the sea,The sacred sea—the boundary set by GodBetwixt our hostile nations—and the whichYe ventured impiously to overpass.MONTGOMERY (lets go her hands).Oh, I must die! I feel the grasp of death!JOHANNA.Die, friend! Why tremble at the approach of death?Of mortals the irrevocable doom?Look upon me! I'm born a shepherd maid;This hand, accustomed to the peaceful crook,Is all unused to wield the sword of death.Yet, snatched away from childhood's peaceful haunts,From the fond love of father and of sisters,Urged by no idle dream of earthly glory,But heaven-appointed to achieve your ruin,Like a destroying angel I must roam,Spreading dire havoc around me, and at lengthMyself must fall a sacrifice to death!Never again shall I behold my home!Still, many of your people I must slay,Still, many widows make, but I at lengthMyself shall perish, and fulfil my doom.Now thine fulfil. Arise! resume thy sword,And let us fight for the sweet prize of life.MONTGOMERY (stands up).Now, if thou art a mortal like myself,Can weapons wound thee, it may be assignedTo this good arm to end my country's woe,Thee sending, sorceress, to the depths of hell.In God's most gracious hands I leave my fate.Accursed one! to thine assistance callThe fiends of hell! Now combat for thy life![He seizes his sword and shield, and rushes upon her;martial music is heard in the distance. After a shortconflict MONTGOMERY falls.
JOHANNA (alone).To death thy foot did bear thee—fare thee well![She steps away from him and remains absorbed in thought.Virgin, thou workest mightily in me!My feeble arm thou dost endue with strength,And steep'st my woman's heart in cruelty.In pity melts the soul and the hand trembles,As it did violate some sacred fane,To mar the goodly person of the foe.Once I did shudder at the polished sheath,But when 'tis needed, I'm possessed with strength,And as it were itself a thing of life,The fatal weapon, in my trembling grasp,Self-swayed, inflicteth the unerring stroke.
A KNIGHT with closed visor, JOHANNA.KNIGHT.Accursed one! thy hour of death has come!Long have I sought thee on the battle-field,Fatal delusion! get thee back to hell,Whence thou didst issue forth.JOHANNA.Say, who art thou,Whom his bad genius sendeth in my way?Princely thy port, no Briton dost thou seem,For the Burgundian colors stripe thy shield,Before the which my sword inclines its point.KNIGHT.Vile castaway! Thou all unworthy artTo fall beneath a prince's noble hand.The hangman's axe should thy accursed headCleave from thy trunk, unfit for such vile useThe royal Duke of Burgundy's brave sword.JOHANNA.Art thou indeed that noble duke himself?KNIGHT (raises his visor).I'm he, vile creature, tremble and despair!The arts of hell shall not protect thee more.Thou hast till now weak dastards overcome;Now thou dost meet a man.
DUNOIS and LA HIRE. The same.DUNOIS.Hold, Burgundy!Turn! combat now with men, and not with maids.LA HIRE.We will defend the holy prophetess;First must thy weapon penetrate this breast.BURGUNDY.I fear not this seducing Circe; no,Nor you, whom she hath changed so shamefully!Oh, blush, Dunois! and do thou blush, La HireTo stoop thy valor to these hellish arts—To be shield-bearer to a sorceress!Come one—come all! He only who despairsOf heaven's protection seeks the aid of hell.[They prepare for combat, JOHANNA steps between.JOHANNA.Forbear!BURGUNDY.Dost tremble for thy lover? ThusBefore thine eyes he shall——[He makes a thrust at DUNOIS.JOHANNA.Dunois, forbear!Part them, La Hire! no blood of France must flow:Not hostile weapons must this strife decide,Above the stars 'tis otherwise decreed.Fall back! I say. Attend and venerateThe Spirit which hath seized, which speaks through me!DUNOIS.Why, maiden, now hold back my upraised arm?Why check the just decision of the sword?My weapon pants to deal the fatal blowWhich shall avenge and heal the woes of France.[She places herself in the midst and separates the parties.JOHANNA.Fall back, Dunois! Stand where thou art, La Hire!Somewhat I have to say to Burgundy.[When all is quiet.What wouldst thou, Burgundy? Who is the foeWhom eagerly thy murderous glances seek?This prince is, like thyself, a son of France,—This hero is thy countryman, thy friend;I am a daughter of thy fatherland.We all, whom thou art eager to destroy,Are of thy friends;—our longing arms prepareTo clasp, our bending knees to honor thee.Our sword 'gainst thee is pointless, and that faceE'en in a hostile helm is dear to us,For there we trace the features of our king.BURGUNDY.What, syren! wilt thou with seducing wordsAllure thy victim? Cunning sorceress,Me thou deludest not. Mine ears are closedAgainst thy treacherous words; and vainly dartThy fiery glances 'gainst this mail of proof.To arms, Dunois!With weapons let us fight, and not with words.DUNOIS.First words, then weapons, Burgundy! Do wordsWith dread inspire thee? 'Tis a coward's fear,And the betrayer of an evil cause.JOHANNA.'Tis not imperious necessityWhich throws us at thy feet! We do not comeAs suppliants before thee. Look around!The English tents are level with the ground,And all the field is covered with your slain.Hark! the war-trumpets of the French resound;God hath decided—ours the victory!Our new-culled laurel garland with our friendWe fain would share. Come, noble fugitive!Oh, come where justice and where victory dwell!Even I, the messenger of heaven, extendA sister's hand to thee. I fain would saveAnd draw thee over to our righteous cause!Heaven hath declared for France! Angelic powers,Unseen by thee, do battle for our king;With lilies are the holy ones adorned,Pure as this radiant banner is our cause;Its blessed symbol is the queen of heaven.BURGUNDY.Falsehood's fallacious words are full of guile,But hers are pure and simple as a child's.If evil spirits borrow this disguise,They copy innocence triumphantly.I'll hear no more. To arms, Dunois! to arms!Mine ear, I feel, is weaker than mine arm.JOHANNA.You call me an enchantress, and accuseOf hellish arts. Is it the work of hellTo heal dissension and to foster peace?Comes holy concord from the depths below?Say, what is holy, innocent, and good,If not to combat for our fatherland?Since when hath nature been so self-opposedThat heaven forsakes the just and righteous cause,While hell protects it? If my words are true,Whence could I draw them but from heaven above?Who ever sought me in my shepherd-walks,To teach the humble maid affairs of state?I ne'er have stood with princes, to these lipsUnknown the arts of eloquence. Yet now,When I have need of it to touch thy heart,Insight and varied knowledge I possess;The fate of empires and the doom of kingsLie clearly spread before my childish mind,And words of thunder issue from my mouth.BURGUNDY (greatly moved, looks at her with emotion and astonishment).How is it with me? Doth some heavenly powerThus strangely stir my spirit's inmost depths?This pure, this gentle creature cannot lie!No, if enchantment blinds me, 'tis from heaven.My spirit tells me she is sent from God.JOHANNA.Oh, he is moved! I have not prayed in vain,Wrath's thunder-cloud dissolves in gentle tears,And leaves his brow, while mercy's golden beamsBreak from his eyes and gently promise peace.Away with arms, now clasp him to your hearts,He weeps—he's conquered, he is ours once more![Her sword and banner fall; she hastens to him withoutstretched arms, and embraces him in great agitation.LA HIRE and DUNOIS throw down their swords, and hastenalso to embrace him.
Residence of the KING at Chalons on the Marne.
DUNOIS, LA HIRE.DUNOIS.We have been true heart-friends, brothers in arms,Still have we battled in a common cause,And held together amid toil and death.Let not the love of woman rend the bondWhich hath resisted every stroke of fate.LA HIRE.Hear me, my prince!DUNOIS.You love the wondrous maid,And well I know the purpose of your heart.You think without delay to seek the king,And to entreat him to bestow on youHer hand in marriage. Of your braveryThe well-earned guerdon he cannot refuseBut know,—ere I behold her in the armsOf any other——LA HIRE.Listen to me, prince!DUNOIS.'Tis not the fleeting passion of the eyeAttracts me to her. My unconquered senseHad set at naught the fiery shafts of loveTill I beheld this wondrous maiden, sentBy a divine appointment to becomeThe savior of this kingdom, and my wife;And on the instant in my heart I vowedA sacred oath, to bear her home, my bride.For she alone who is endowed with strengthCan be the strong man's friend. This glowing heartLongs to repose upon a kindred breast,Which can sustain and comprehend its strength.LA HIRE.How dare I venture, prince, my poor desertsTo measure with your name's heroic fame!When Count Dunois appeareth in the lists,Each humbler suitor must forsake the field;Still it doth ill become a shepherd maidTo stand as consort by your princely side.The royal current in your veins would scornTo mix with blood of baser quality.DUNOIS.She, like myself, is holy Nature's child,A child divine—hence we by birth are equal.She bring dishonor on a prince's hand,Who is the holy angel's bride, whose headIs by a heavenly glory circled round,Whose radiance far outshineth earthly crowns,Who seeth lying far beneath her feetAll that is greatest, highest of this earth!For thrones on thrones, ascending to the stars,Would fail to reach the height where she abidesIn angel majesty!LA HIRE.Our monarch must decide.DUNOIS.Not so! she mustDecide! Free hath she made this realm of France,And she herself must freely give her heart.LA HIRE.Here comes the king!
CHARLES, AGNES, SOREL, DUCHATEL, and CHATILLON.The same.CHARLES (to CHATILLON).He comes! My title he will recognize,And do me homage as his sovereign liege?CHATILLON.Here, in his royal town of Chalons, sire,The duke, my master, will fall down before thee.He did command me, as my lord and king,To give thee greeting. He'll be here anon.SOREL.He comes! Hail beauteous and auspicious day,Which bringeth joy, and peace, and reconcilement!CHATILLON.The duke, attended by two hundred knights,Will hither come; he at thy feet will kneel;But he expecteth not that thou to himShould yield the cordial greeting of a kinsman.CHARLES.I long to clasp him to my throbbing heart.CHATILLON.The duke entreats that at this interview,No word be spoken of the ancient strife!CHARLES.In Lethe be the past forever sunk!The smiling future now invites our gaze.CHATILLON.All who have combated for BurgundyShall be included in the amnesty.CHARLES.So shall my realm be doubled in extent!CHATILLON.Queen Isabel, if she consent thereto,Shall also be included in the peace.CHARLES.She maketh war on me, not I on her.With her alone it rests to end our quarrel.CHATILLON.Twelve knights shall answer for thy royal word.CHARLES.My word is sacred.CHATILLON.The archbishop shallBetween you break the consecrated host,As pledge and seal of cordial reconcilement.CHARLES.Let my eternal weal be forfeited,If my hand's friendly grasp belie my heart.What other surety doth the duke require?CHATILLON (glancing at DUCHATEL).I see one standing here, whose presence, sire,Perchance might poison the first interview.[DUCHATEL retires in silence.CHARLES.Depart, Duchatel, and remain concealedUntil the duke can bear thee in his sight.[He follows him with his eye, then hastens afterand embraces him.True-hearted friend! Thou wouldst far more than thisHave done for my repose![Exit DUCHATEL.CHATILLON.This instrument doth name the other points.CHARLES (to the ARCHBISHOP).Let it be settled. We agree to all.We count no price too high to gain a friend.Go now, Dunois, and with a hundred knights,Give courteous conduct to the noble duke.Let the troops, garlanded with verdant boughs,Receive their comrades with a joyous welcome.Be the whole town arrayed in festive pomp,And let the bells with joyous peal, proclaimThat France and Burgundy are reconciled.[A PAGE enters. Trumpets sound.Hark! What importeth that loud trumpet's call?PAGE.The Duke of Burgundy hath stayed his march.[Exit.DUNOIS.Up! forth to meet him![Exit with LA HIRE and CHATILLON.CHARLES (to SOREL).My Agnes! thou dost weep! Even my strengthDoth almost fail me at this interview.How many victims have been doomed to fallEre we could meet in peace and reconcilement!But every storm at length suspends its rage,Day follows on the murkiest night; and stillWhen comes the hour, the latest fruits mature!ARCHBISHOP (at the window).The thronging crowds impede the duke's advance;He scarce can free himself. They lift him nowFrom off his horse; they kiss his spurs, his mantle.CHARLES.They're a good people, in whom love flames forthAs suddenly as wrath. In how brief spaceThey do forget that 'tis this very dukeWho slew, in fight, their fathers and their sons;The moment swallows up the whole of life!Be tranquil, Sorel. E'en thy passionate joyPerchance might to his conscience prove a thorn.Nothing should either shame or grieve him here.
The DUKE OF BURGUNDY, DUNOIS, LA HIRE, CHATILLON, and two otherknights of the DUKE'S train. The DUKE remains standing at thedoor; the KING inclines towards him; BURGUNDY immediately advances,and in the moment when he is about to throw himself upon his knees,the KING receives him in his arms.CHARLES.You have surprised us; it was our intentTo fetch you hither, but your steeds are fleet.BURGUNDY.They bore me to my duty.[He embraces SOREL, and kisses her brow.With your leave!At Arras, niece, it is our privilege,And no fair damsel may exemption claim.CHARLES.Rumor doth speak your court the seat of love,The mart where all that's beautiful must tarry.BURGUNDY.We are a traffic-loving people, sire;Whate'er of costly earth's wide realms produce,For show and for enjoyment, is displayedUpon our mart at Bruges; but above allThere woman's beauty is pre-eminent.SOREL.More precious far is woman's truth; but itAppeareth not upon the public mart.CHARLES.Kinsman, 'tis rumored to your prejudiceThat woman's fairest virtue you despise.BURGUNDY.The heresy inflicteth on itselfThe heaviest penalty. 'Tis well for you,From your own heart, my king, you learned betimesWhat a wild life hath late revealed to me.[He perceives the ARCHBISHOP, and extends his hand.Most reverend minister of God! your blessing!You still are to be found on duty's path,Where those must walk who would encounter you.ARCHBISHOP.Now let my Master call me when he will;My heart is full, I can with joy depart,Since that mine eyes have seen this day!BURGUNDY (to SOREL).'Tis saidThat of your precious stones you robbed yourself,Therefrom to forge 'gainst me the tools of war!Bear you a soul so martial? Were you thenSo resolute to work my overthrow?Well, now our strife is over; what was lostWill in due season all be found again.Even your jewels have returned to you.Against me to make war they were designed;Receive them from me as a pledge of peace.[He receives a casket from one of the attendants,and presents it to her to open. SOREL, embarrassed,looks at the KING.CHARLES.Receive this present; 'tis a twofold pledgeOf reconcilement and of fairest love.BURGUNDY (placing a diamond rose in her hair).Why, is it not the diadem of France?With full as glad a spirit I would placeThe golden circle on this lovely brow.[Taking her hand significantly.And count on me if, at some future timeYou should require a friend.[AGNES SOREL bursts into tears, and steps aside.THE KING struggles with his feelings. The bystanderscontemplate the two princes with emotion.BURGUNDY (after gazing round the circle, throws himself intothe KING'S arms).Oh, my king![At the same moment the three Burgundian knights hasten to DUNOIS,LA HIRE, and the ARCHBISHOP. They embrace each other. The twoPRINCES remain for a time speechless in each other's arms.I could renounce you! I could bear your hate!CHARLES.Hush! hush! No further!BURGUNDY.I this English kingCould crown! Swear fealty to this foreigner!And you, my sovereign, into ruin plunge!CHARLES.Forget it! Everything's forgiven now!This single moment doth obliterate all.'Twas a malignant star! A destiny!BURGUNDY (grasps his hand).Believe me, sire, I'll make amends for all.Your bitter sorrow I will compensate;You shall receive your kingdom back entire,A solitary village shall not fail!CHARLES.We are united. Now I fear no foe.BURGUNDY.Trust me, it was not with a joyous spiritThat I bore arms against you. Did you know?Oh, wherefore sent you not this messenger?[Pointing to SOREL.I must have yielded to her gentle tears.Henceforth, since breast to breast we have embraced,No power of hell again shall sever us!My erring course ends here. His sovereign's heartIs the true resting-place for Burgundy.ARCHBISHOP (steps between them).Ye are united, princes! France doth riseA renovated phoenix from its ashes.The auspicious future greets us with a smile.The country's bleeding wounds will heal again,The villages, the desolated towns,Rise in new splendor from their ruined heaps,The fields array themselves in beauteous green;But those who, victims of your quarrel, fell,The dead, rise not again; the bitter tears,Caused by your strife, remain forever wept!One generation hath been doomed to woe;On their descendants dawns a brighter day;The gladness of the son wakes not the sire.This the dire fruitage of your brother-strife!Oh, princes, learn from hence to pause with dread,Ere from its scabbard ye unsheath the sword.The man of power lets loose the god of war,But not, obedient, as from fields of airReturns the falcon to the sportsman's hand,Doth the wild deity obey the callOf mortal voice; nor will the Saviour's handA second time forth issue from the clouds.BURGUNDY.Oh, sire! an angel walketh by your side.Where is she? Why do I behold her not?CHARLES.Where is Johanna? Wherefore faileth sheTo grace the festival we owe to her?ARCHBISHOP.She loves not, sire, the idleness of the court,And when the heavenly mandate calls her notForth to the world's observance, she retires,And doth avoid the notice of the crowd.Doubtless, unless the welfare of the realmClaims her regard, she communes with her God,For still a blessing on her steps attends.
The same.JOHANNA enters. She is clad in armor, and wearsa garland in her hair.CHARLES.Thou comest as a priestess decked, Johanna,To consecrate the union formed by thee!BURGUNDY.How dreadful was the maiden in the fight!How lovely circled by the beams of peace!My word, Johanna, have I now fulfilled?Art thou contented? Have I thine applause?JOHANNA.The greatest favor thou hast shown thyself.Arrayed in blessed light thou shinest now,Who didst erewhile with bloody, ominous ray,Hang like a moon of terror in the heavens.[Looking round.Many brave knights I find assembled here,And joy's glad radiance beams in every eye;One mourner, one alone I have encountered;He must conceal himself, where all rejoice.BURGUNDY.And who is conscious of such heavy guilt,That of our favor he must needs despair?JOHANNA.May he approach? Oh, tell me that he may;Complete thy merit. Void the reconcilementThat frees not the whole heart. A drop of hateRemaining in the cup of joy convertsThe blessed draught to poison. Let there beNo deed so stained with blood that BurgundyCannot forgive it on this day of joy.BURGUNDY.Ha! now I understand!JOHANNA.And thou'lt forgive?Thou wilt indeed forgive? Come in, Duchatel![She opens the door and leads in DUCHATEL,who remains standing at a distance.The duke is reconciled to all his foes,And he is so to thee.[DUCHATEL approaches a few steps nearer,and tries to read the countenance of the DUKE.BURGUNDY.What makest thouOf me, Johanna? Know'st thou what thou askest?JOHANNA.A gracious sovereign throws his portals wide,Admitting every guest, excluding none;As freely as the firmament the world,So mercy must encircle friend and foe.Impartially the sun pours forth his beamsThrough all the regions of infinity;The heaven's reviving dew falls everywhere,And brings refreshment to each thirsty plant;Whate'er is good, and cometh from on high,Is universal, and without reserve;But in the heart's recesses darkness dwells!BURGUNDY.Oh, she can mould me to her wish; my heartIs in her forming hand like melted wax.—Duchatel, I forgive thee—come, embrace me!Shade of my sire! oh, not with wrathful eyeBehold me clasp the hand that shed thy blood.Ye death-gods, reckon not to my account,That my dread oath of vengeance I abjure.With you, in yon drear realm of endless night,There beats no human heart, and all remainsEternal, steadfast, and immovable.Here in the light of day 'tis otherwise.Man, living, feeling man, is aye the sportOf the o'ermastering present.CHARLES (to JOHANNA).Lofty maid!What owe I not to thee! How truly nowHast thou fulfilled thy word,—how rapidlyReversed my destiny! Thou hast appeasedMy friends, and in the dust o'erwhelmed my foes;From foreign yoke redeemed my cities. ThouHast all achieved. Speak, how can I reward thee?JOHANNA.Sire, in prosperity be still humane,As in misfortune thou hast ever been;And on the height of greatness ne'er forgetThe value of a friend in times of need;Thou hast approved it in adversity.Refuse not to the lowest of thy peopleThe claims of justice and humanity,For thy deliverer from the fold was called.Beneath thy royal sceptre thou shalt gatherThe realm entire of France. Thou shalt becomeThe root and ancestor of mighty kings;Succeeding monarchs, in their regal state,Shall those outshine, who filled the throne before.Thy stock, in majesty shall bloom so longAs it stands rooted in the people's love.Pride only can achieve its overthrow,And from the lowly station, whence to-dayGod summoned thy deliverer, ruin direObscurely threats thy crime-polluted sons!BURGUNDY.Exalted maid! Possessed with sacred fire!If thou canst look into the gulf of time,Speak also of my race! Shall coming yearsWith ampler honors crown my princely line!JOHANNA.High as the throne, thou, Burgundy, hast builtThy seat of power, and thy aspiring heartWould raise still higher, even to the clouds,The lofty edifice. But from on highA hand omnipotent shall check its rise.Fear thou not hence the downfall of thy house!Its glory in a maiden shall survive;Upon her breast shall sceptre-bearing kings,The people's shepherds, bloom. Their ample swayShall o'er two realms extend, they shall ordainLaws to control the known world, and the new,Which God still veils behind the pathless waves.CHARLES.Oh, if the Spirit doth reveal it, speak;Shall this alliance which we now renewIn distant ages still unite our sons?JOHANNA (after a pause).Sovereigns and kings! disunion shun with dread!Wake not contention from the murky caveWhere he doth lie asleep, for once arousedHe cannot soon be quelled? He doth begetAn iron brood, a ruthless progeny;Wildly the sweeping conflagration spreads.—Be satisfied! Seek not to question furtherIn the glad present let your hearts rejoice,The future let me shroud!SOREL.Exalted maid!Thou canst explore my heart, thou readest thereIf after worldly greatness it aspires,To me to give a joyous oracle.JOHANNA.Of empires only I discern the doom;In thine own bosom lies thy destiny!DUNOIS.What, holy maid, will be thy destiny?Doubtless, for thee, who art beloved of heaven,The fairest earthly happiness shall bloom,For thou art pure and holy.JOHANNA.HappinessAbideth yonder, with our God, in heaven.CHARLES.Thy fortune be henceforth thy monarch's care!For I will glorify thy name in France,And the remotest age shall call thee blest.Thus I fulfil my word. Kneel down![He draws his sword and touches her with it.And rise!A noble! I, thy monarch, from the dustOf thy mean birth exalt thee. In the graveThy fathers I ennoble—thou shalt bearUpon thy shield the fleur-de-lis, and beOf equal lineage with the best in France.Only the royal blood of Valois shallBe nobler than thine own! The highest peerShall feel himself exalted by thy hand;To wed thee nobly, maid, shall be my care!DUNOIS (advancing).My heart made choice of her when she was lowly.The recent honor which encircles her,Neither exalts her merit nor my love.Here in my sovereign's presence, and beforeThis holy bishop, maid, I tender theeMy hand, and take thee as my princely wife,If thou esteem me worthy to be thine.CHARLES.Resistless maiden! wonder thou dost addTo wonder! Yes, I now believe that naught'sImpossible to thee! Thou hast subduedThis haughty heart, which still hath scoffed till nowAt love's omnipotence.LA HIRE (advancing).If I have readAright Johanna's soul, her modest heart'sHer fairest jewel. She deserveth wellThe homage of the great, but her desiresSoar not so high. She striveth not to reachA giddy eminence; an honest heart'sTrue love content's her, and the quiet lotWhich with this hand I humbly proffer her.CHARLES.Thou, too, La Hire! two brave competitors,—Peers in heroic virtue and renown!—Wilt thou, who hast appeased mine enemies,My realms united, part my dearest friends?One only can possess her; I esteemEach to be justly worthy such a prize.Speak, maid! thy heart alone must here decide.SOREL.The noble maiden is surprised, her cheekIs crimsoned over with a modest blush.Let her have leisure to consult her heart,And in confiding friendship to unsealHer long-closed bosom. Now the hour is comeWhen, with a sister's love, I also mayApproach the maid severe, and offer herThis silent, faithful breast. Permit us womenAlone to weigh this womanly affair;Do you await the issue.CHARLES (about to retire).Be it so!JOHANNA.No, sire, not so! the crimson on my cheekIs not the blush of bashful modesty.Naught have I for this noble lady's earWhich in this presence I may not proclaim.The choice of these brave knights much honors me,But I did not forsake my shepherd-walks,To chase vain worldly splendor, nor arrayMy tender frame in panoply of war,To twine the bridal garland in my hair.Far other labor is assigned to me,Which a pure maiden can alone achieve.I am the soldier of the Lord of Hosts,And to no mortal man can I be wife.ARCHBISHOP.To be a fond companion unto manIs woman born—when nature she obeys,Most wisely she fulfils high heaven's decree!When His behest who called thee to the fieldShall be accomplished, thou'lt resign thy arms,And once again rejoin the softer sex,Whose gentle nature thou dost now forego,And which from war's stern duties is exempt.JOHANNA.Most reverend sir! as yet I cannot sayWhat work the Spirit will enjoin on me.But when the time comes round, his guiding voiceWill not be mute, and it I will obey.Now he commands me to complete my task;My royal master's brow is still uncrowned,'Twere better for me I had ne'er been born!Henceforth no more of this, unless ye wouldProvoke the Spirit's wrath who in me dwells!The eye of man, regarding me with love,To me is horror and profanity.CHARLES.Forbear! It is in vain to urge her further.JOHANNA.Command the trumpets of the war to sound!This stillness doth perplex and harass me;An inward impulse drives me from repose,It still impels me to achieve my work,And sternly beckons me to meet my doom.