A KNIGHT, entering hastily.CHARLES.What tidings? Speak!KNIGHT.The foe has crossed the Marne,And marshalleth his army for the fight.JOHANNA (inspired).Battle and tumult! Now my soul is free.Arm, warriors, arm! while I prepare the troops.[She goes out.CHARLES.Follow, La Hire! E'en at the gates of RheimsThey will compel us to dispute the crown!DUNOIS.No genuine courage prompts them. This essayIs the last effort of enraged despair.CHARLES.I do not urge you, duke. To-day's the timeTo compensate the errors of the past.BURGUNDY.You shall be satisfied with me.CHARLES.MyselfWill march before you on the path of fame;Here, with my royal town of Rheims in view,I'll fight, and gallantry achieve the crown.Thy knight, my Agnes, bids thee now farewell!AGNES (embracing him).I do not weep, I do not tremble for thee;My faith, unshaken, cleaveth unto God!Heaven, were we doomed to failure, had not givenSo many gracious pledges of success!My heart doth whisper me that, victory-crowned,In conquered Rheims, I shall embrace my king.[Trumpets sound with a spirited tone, and while the sceneis changing pass into a wild martial strain. When thescene opens, the orchestra joins in, accompanied by warlikeinstruments behind the scene.
3pb198 (132K)
The scene changes to an open country skirted with trees. During themusic soldiers are seen retreating hastily across the background.TALBOT, leaning on FASTOLFE, and accompanied by soldiers. Soonafter, LIONEL.TALBOT.Here lay me down beneath the trees, and thenBetake you back, with speed, unto the fight;I need no aid to die.FASTOLFE.Oh, woful day![LIONEL enters.Behold what sign awaits you, Lionel!Here lies our general wounded unto death.LIONEL.Now, God forbid! My noble lord, arise!No moment this to falter and to sink.Yield not to death. By your all-powerful willCommand your ebbing spirit still to live.TALBOT.In vain! The day of destiny is come,Which will o'erthrow the English power in France.In desperate combat I have vainly riskedThe remnant of our force to ward it off.Struck by the thunderbolt I prostrate lie,Never to rise again. Rheims now is lost,Hasten to succor Paris!LIONEL.Paris is with the Dauphin reconciled;A courier even now has brought the news.TALBOT (tearing off his bandages).Then freely flow, ye currents of my blood,For Talbot now is weary of the sun!LIONEL.I may no longer tarry: Fastolfe, haste!Convey our leader to a place of safety.No longer now can we maintain this post;Our flying troops disperse on every side,On, with resistless might, the maiden comes.TALBOT.Folly, thou conquerest, and I must yield!Against stupidity the very gods.Themselves contend in vain. Exalted reason,Resplendent daughter of the head divine,Wise foundress of the system of the world,Guide of the stars, who art thou then if thou,Bound to the tail of folly's uncurbed steed,Must, vainly shrieking with the drunken crowd,Eyes open, plunge down headlong in the abyss.Accursed, who striveth after noble ends,And with deliberate wisdom forms his plans!To the fool-king belongs the world.LIONEL.My lord,But for a few brief moments can you live—Think of your Maker!TALBOT.Had we, like brave men,Been vanquished by the brave, we might, indeed,Console ourselves that 'twas the common lot;For fickle fortune aye revolves her wheel.But to be baffled by such juggling arts!Deserved our earnest and laborious lifeNot a more earnest issue?LIONEL (extends his hand to him).Fare you well!The debt of honest tears I will dischargeAfter the battle—if I then survive.Now Fate doth call me hence, where on the fieldHer web she waveth, and dispenseth doom.We in another world shall meet again;For our long friendship, this a brief farewell.[Exit.TALBOT.Soon is the struggle past, and to the earth,To the eternal sun, I render backThese atoms, joined in me for pain and pleasure.And of the mighty Talbot, who the worldFilled with his martial glory, there remainsNaught save a modicum of senseless dust.Such is the end of man—the only spoilWe carry with us from life's battle-field,Is but an insight into nothingness,And utter scorn of all which once appearedTo us exalted and desirable.
CHARLES, BURGUNDY, DUNOIS, DUCHATEL, and Soldiers.BURGUNDY.The trench is stormed!DUNOIS.The victory is ours!CHARLES (perceiving TALBOT.)Look! Who is he, who yonder of the sunTaketh reluctant, sorrowful farewell?His armor indicates no common man;Go, succor him, if aid may yet avail.[Soldiers of the KING'S retinue step forward.FASTOLFE.Back! Stand apart! Respect the mighty dead,Whom ye in life ne'er ventured to approach!BURGUNDY.What do I see? Lord Talbot in his blood![He approaches him. TALBOT gazes fixedly at him, and dies.FASTOLFE.Traitor, avaunt! Let not the sight of theePoison the dying hero's parting glance.DUNOIS.Resistless hero! Dread-inspiring Talbot!Does such a narrow space suffice thee now,And this vast kingdom could not satisfyThe large ambition of thy giant soul!Now first I can salute you, sire, as king:The diadem but tottered on your brow,While yet a spirit tenanted this clay.CHARLES (after contemplating the body in silence).A higher power hath vanquished him, not we!He lies upon the soil of France, as liesThe hero on the shield he would not quit.Well, peace be with his ashes! Bear him hence![Soldiers take up the body and carry it away.Here in the heart of France, where his careerOf conquest ended, let his relics lie!So far no hostile sword attained before.A fitting tomb shall memorize his name;His epitaph the spot whereon he fell.FASTOLFE (yielding his sword).I am your prisoner, sir.CHARLES (returning his sword).Not so! Rude warRespects each pious office; you are freeTo render the last honors to the dead,Go now, Duchatel—still my Agnes trembles—Hasten to snatch her from anxiety—Bring her the tidings of our victory,And usher her in triumph into Rheims![Exit DUCHATEL.
The same. LA HIRE.DUNOIS.La Hire, where is the maiden?LA HIRE.That I askOf you; I left her fighting by your side.DUNOIS.I thought she was protected by your arm,When I departed to assist the king.BURGUNDY.Not long ago I saw her banner waveAmidst the thickest of the hostile ranks.DUNOIS.Alas! where is she? Evil I forebode?Come, let us haste to rescue her. I fearHer daring soul hath led her on too far;Alone she combats in the midst of foes,And without succor yieldeth to the crowd.CHARLES.Haste to her rescue!LA HIRE.Come!BURGUNDY.We follow all![Exit.[They retire in haste. A deserted part of thebattle-field. In the distance are seen the towersof Rheims illumined by the sun.
A KNIGHT in black armor, with closed visor. JOHANNA followshim to the front of the stage, where he stops and awaits her.JOHANNA.Deluder! now I see thy stratagem!Thou hast deceitfully, through seeming flight,Allured me from the battle, doom and deathAverting thus from many a British head.Destruction now doth overtake thyself.BLACK KNIGHT.Why dost thou follow after me and trackMy steps with quenchless rage? I am not doomedTo perish by thy hand.JOHANNA.Deep in my soulI hate thee as the night, which is thy color;To blot thee out from the fair light of dayAn irresistible desire impels me.Who art thou? Raise thy visor. I had saidThat thou wert Talbot had I not myselfSeen warlike Talbot in the battle fall.BLACK KNIGHT.Is the divining-spirit mute in thee?JOHANNA.His voice speaks loudly in my spirit's depthThe near approach of woe.BLACK KNIGHT.Johanna D'Arc!Borne on the wings of conquest, thou hast reachedThe gates of Rheims. Let thy achieved renownContent thee. Fortune, like thy slave, till nowHath followed thee; dismiss her, ere in wrathShe free herself; fidelity she hates;She serveth none with constancy till death.JOHANNA.Why check me in the midst of my career?Why bid me falter and forsake my work?I will complete it and fulfil my vow!BLACK KNIGHT.Nothing can thee, thou mighty one, withstand,In battle thou art aye invincible.But henceforth shun the fight; attend my warning.JOHANNA.Not from my hand will I resign this swordTill haughty England's prostrate in the dust.BLACK KNIGHT.Behold! there Rheims ariseth with its towers,The goal and end of thy career. Thou seestThe lofty minster's sun-illumined dome;Thou in triumphal pomp wouldst enter there,Thy monarch crown, and ratify thy vow.Enter not there! Return! Attend my warning!JOHANNA.What art thou, double-tongued, deceitful being,Who wouldst bewilder and appal me? Speak!By what authority dost thou presumeTo greet me with fallacious oracles?[The BLACK KNIGHT is about to depart, she steps in his way.No, thou shalt speak, or perish by my hand![She endeavors to strike him.BLACK KNIGHT (touches her with his hand, she remains motionless).Slay what is mortal![Darkness, thunder and lightning. The KNIGHT sinks into the earth.JOHANNA (stands at first in amazement, but soon recovers herself).'Twas nothing living. 'Twas a base delusion,An instrument of hell, a juggling fiend,Uprisen hither from the fiery poolTo shake and terrify my steadfast heart.Wielding the sword of God, whom should I fear!I will triumphantly achieve my work.My courage should not waver, should not failWere hell itself to champion me to fight![She is about to depart.
LIONEL, JOHANNA.LIONEL.Accursed one, prepare thee for the fight!Not both of us shall quit this field alive.Thou hast destroyed the bravest of our hostThe noble Talbot hath his mighty soulBreathed forth upon my bosom. I'll avengeThe hero, or participate his doom.And wouldst thou know who brings thee glory now,Whether he live or die,—I'm Lionel,The sole survivor of the English chiefs,And still unconquered is this valiant arm.[He rushes upon her; after a short combat she strikesthe sword out of his hand.Perfidious fortune![He wrestles with her. JOHANNA seizes him by the crestand tears open his helmet; his face is thus exposed;at the same time she draws her sword with her right hand.JOHANNA.Suffer, what thou soughtest!The Virgin sacrifices thee through me![At this moment she gazes in his face. His aspectsoftens her, she remains motionless and slowly letsher arm sink.LIONEL.Why linger, why withhold the stroke of death?My glory thou hast taken—take my life!I want no mercy, I am in thy power.[She makes him a sign with her hand to fly.How! shall I fly and owe my life to thee?No, I would rather die.JOHANNA (with averted face).I will not knowThat ever thou didst owe thy life to me.LIONEL.I hate alike thee and thy proffered gift.I want no mercy—kill thine enemyWho loathes and would have slain thee.JOHANNA.Slay me, then,And fly!LIONEL.Ha! What is this?JOHANNA (hiding her face).Woe's me!LIONEL (approaching her).'Tis saidThou killest all the English whom thy swordSubdues in battle—why spare me alone?JOHANNA (raises her sword with a rapid movement as if to strike him,but lets it fall quickly when she gazes on his face).Oh, Holy Virgin!LIONEL.Wherefore namest thouThe Holy Virgin? she knows naught of thee;Heaven hath no part in thee.JOHANNA (in the greatest anxiety).What have I done?Alas! I've broke my vow![She wrings her hands in despair.LIONEL (looks at her with sympathy and approaches her).Unhappy maid!I pity thee! Thy sorrow touches me;Thou hast shown mercy unto me alone,My hatred yielded unto sympathy!Who art thou, and whence comest thou?JOHANNA.Away!LIONEL.Thy youth, thy beauty, move my soul to pity!Thy look sinks in my heart. I fain would save thee!How may I do so? tell me. Come! oh, come!Renounce this fearful league—throw down these arms!JOHANNA.I am unworthy now to carry them!LIONEL.Then throw them from thee—quick! come, follow me!JOHANNA (with horror).How! follow thee!LIONEL.Thou may'st be saved. Oh, come!I will deliver thee, but linger not.Strange sorrow for thy sake doth seize my heart,Unspeakable desire to rescue thee——[He seizes her arm.JOHANNA.The Bastard comes! 'Tis they! They seek for me!If they should find thee——LIONEL.I'll defend thee, maid.JOHANNA.I die if thou shouldst perish by their hands!LIONEL.Am I then dear to thee?JOHANNA.Ye heavenly powers!LIONEL.Shall I again behold thee—hear from thee?JOHANNA.No! never!LIONEL.Thus this sword I seize in pledgeThat I again behold thee![He snatches her sword.JOHANNA.Madman, hold!Thou darest?LIONEL.Now I yield to force—againI'll see thee![He retires.
JOHANNA, DUNOIS, LA HIRE.LA HIRE.It is she! The maiden lives!DUNOIS.Fear not, Johanna! friends are at thy side.LA HIRE.Is not that Lionel who yonder flies?DUNOIS.Let him escape! Maiden, the righteous causeHath triumphed now. Rheims opens wide its gates;The joyous crowds pour forth to meet their king.LA HIRE.What ails thee, maiden? She grows pale—she sinks![JOHANNA grows dizzy, and is about to fall.DUNOIS.She's wounded—rend her breastplate—'tis her arm!The wound is not severe.LA HIRE.Her blood doth flow.JOHANNA.Oh, that my life would stream forth with my blood![She lies senseless in LA HIRE'S arms.
A hall adorned as for a festival; the columns are hungwith garlands; behind the scene flutes and hautboys.
JOHANNA.Hushed is the din of arms, war's storms subside,Glad songs and dance succeed the bloody fray,Through all the streets joy echoes far and wide,Altar and church are decked in rich array,Triumphal arches rise in vernal pride,Wreathes round the columns wind their flowery way,Wide Rheims cannot contain the mighty throng,Which to joyous pageant rolls along.One thought alone doth every heart possess,One rapt'rous feeling o'er each breast preside.And those to-day are linked in happinessWhom bloody hatred did erewhile divide.All who themselves of Gallic race confessThe name of Frenchman own with conscious pride,France sees the splendor of her ancient crown,And to her monarch's son bows humbly down.Yet I, the author of this wide delight,The joy, myself created, cannot share;My heart is changed, in sad and dreary plightIt flies the festive pageant in despair;Still to the British camp it taketh flight,Against my will my gaze still wanders there,And from the throng I steal, with grief oppressed,To hide the guilt which weighs upon my breast!What! I permit a human formTo haunt my bosom's sacred cell?And there, where heavenly radiance shone,Doth earthly love presume to dwell?The savior of my country, I,The warrior of God most high,Burn for my country's foeman? Dare I nameHeaven's holy light, nor feel o'erwhelmed with shame?[The music behind the scene passes into a soft and moving melody.Woe is me! Those melting tones!They distract my 'wildered brain!Every note, his voice recalling,Conjures up his form againWould that spears were whizzing round!Would that battle's thunder roared!'Midst the wild tumultuous soundMy former strength were then restored.These sweet tones, these melting voices,With seductive power are fraught!They dissolve, in gentle longing,Every feeling, every thought,Waking tears of plaintive sadness.[After a pause, with more energy.Should I have killed him? Could I, when I gazedUpon his face? Killed him? Oh, rather farWould I have turned my weapon 'gainst myself!And am I culpable because humane?Is pity sinful? Pity! Didst then hearThe voice of pity and humanityWhen others fell the victims of thy sword?Why was she silent when the gentle youthFrom Wales entreated thee to spare his life?Oh, cunning heart! Thou liest before high heaven!It is not pity's voice impels thee now!Why was I doomed to look into his eyes!To mark his noble features! With that glance,Thy crime, thy woe commenced. Unhappy one!A sightless instrument thy God demands,Blindly thou must accomplish his behest!When thou didst see, God's shield abandoned thee,And the dire snares of hell around thee pressed![Flutes are again heard, and she subsides into a quiet melancholy.Harmless staff! Oh, that I ne'erHad for the sword abandoned thee!Had voices never reached mine ear,From thy branches, sacred tree!High queen of heaven! Oh, would that thouHadst ne'er revealed thyself to me!Take back—I dare not claim it now—Take back thy crown, 'tis not for me!I saw the heavens open wide,I gazed upon that face of love!Yet here on earth my hopes abide,They do not dwell in heaven above!Why, Holy One, on me imposeThis dread vocation? Could I steel,And to each soft emotion closeThis heart, by nature formed to feel?Wouldst thou proclaim thy high command,Make choice of those who, free from sin,In thy eternal mansions stand;Send forth thy flaming cherubim!Immortal ones, thy law they keep,They do not feel, they do not weep!Choose not a tender woman's aid,Not the frail soul of shepherd maid!Was I concerned with warlike things,With battles or the strife of kings?In innocence I led my sheepAdown the mountain's silent steep,But thou didst send me into life,Midst princely halls and scenes of strife,To lose my spirit's tender bloomAlas, I did not seek my doom!
AGNES SOREL, JOHANNA.SOREL (advances joyfully. When she perceives JOHANNA she hastens toher and falls upon her neck; then suddenly recollecting herself; sherelinquishes her hold, and falls down before her).No! no! not so! Before thee in the dust——JOHANNA (trying to raise her).Arise! Thou dost forget thyself and me.SOREL.Forbid me not! 'tis the excess of joyWhich throws me at thy feet—I must pour forthMy o'ercharged heart in gratitude to God;I worship the Invisible in thee.Thou art the angel who has led my lordTo Rheims, to crown him with the royal crown.What I ne'er dreamed to see is realized!The coronation march will soon set forth;Arrayed in festal pomp the monarch stands;Assembled are the nobles of the realm,The mighty peers to bear the insignia;To the cathedral rolls the billowy crowd;Glad songs resound, the bells unite their peal:Oh, this excess of joy I cannot bear![JOHANNA gently raises her. AGNES SOREL pauses a moment,and surveys the MAIDEN more narrowly.Yet thou remainest ever grave and stern;Thou canst create delight, yet share it not.Thy heart is cold, thou feelest not our joy,Thou hast beheld the glories of the skies;No earthly interest moveth thy pure breast.[JOHANNA seizes her hand passionately, but soon lets it fall again.Oh, couldst thou own a woman's feeling heart!Put off this armor, war is over now,Confess thy union with the softer sex!My loving heart shrinks timidly from thee,While thus thou wearest Pallas' brow severe.JOHANNA.What wouldst thou have me do?SOREL.Unarm thyself!Put off this coat of mail! The God of LoveFears to approach a bosom clad in steel.Oh, be a woman, thou wilt feel his power!JOHANNA.What, now unarm myself? Midst battle's roarI'll bare my bosom to the stroke of death!Not now! Would that a sevenfold wall of brassCould hide me from your revels, from myself!SOREL.Thou'rt loved by Count Dunois. His noble heart,Which virtue and renown alone inspire,With pure and holy passion glows for thee.Oh, it is sweet to know oneself belovedBy such a hero—sweeter still to love him![JOHANNA turns away with aversion.Thou hatest him?—No, no, thou only canstNot love him:—how could hatred stir thy breast!Those who would tear us from the one we love,We hate alone; but none can claim thy love.Thy heart is tranquil—if it could but feel——JOHANNA.Oh, pity me! Lament my hapless fate!SOREL.What can be wanting to complete thy joy?Thou hast fulfilled thy promise, France is free,To Rheims, in triumph, thou hast led the king,Thy mighty deeds have gained thee high renown,A happy people praise and worship thee;Thy name, the honored theme of every tongue;Thou art the goddess of this festival;The monarch, with his crown and regal state,Shines not with greater majesty than thou!JOHANNA.Oh, could I hide me in the depths of earth!SOREL.Why this emotion? Whence this strange distress?Who may to-day look up without a fearIf thou dost cast thine eyes upon the ground!It is for me to blush, me, who near theeFeel all my littleness; I cannot reachThe lofty virtue, thy heroic strength!For—all my weakness shall I own to thee?Not the renown of France, my Fatherland,Not the new splendor of the monarch's crow,Not the triumphant gladness of the crowds,Engage this woman's heart. One only formIs in its depths enshrined; it hath no roomFor any feeling save for one alone:He is the idol, him the people bless,Him they extol, for him they strew these flowers,And he is mine, he is my own true love!JOHANNA.Oh, thou art happy! thou art blessed indeed!Thou lovest, where all love. Thou may'st, unblamedPour forth thy rapture, and thine inmost heart,Fearless discover to the gaze of man!Thy country's triumph is thy lover's too.The vast, innumerable multitudes,Who, rolling onward, crowd within these walls,Participate thy joy, they hallow it;Thee they salute, for thee they twine the wreath,Thou art a portion of the general joy;Thou lovest the all-inspiring soul, the sun,And what thou seest is thy lover's glory!SOREL (falling on her neck).Thou dost delight me, thou canst read my heart!I did thee wrong, thou knowest what love is,Thou tell'st my feelings with a voice of power.My heart forgets its fear and its reserve,And seeks confidingly to blend with thine——JOHANNA (tearing herself from her with violence).Forsake me! Turn away! Do not polluteThyself by longer intercourse with me!Be happy! go—and in the deepest nightLeave me to hide my infamy, my woe!SOREL.Thou frighten'st me, I understand thee not,I ne'er have understood thee—for from meThy dark mysterious being still was veiled.Who may divine what thus disturbs thy heart,Thus terrifies thy pure and sacred soul!JOHANNA.Thou art the pure, the holy one! Couldst thouBehold mine inmost heart, thou, shuddering,Wouldst fly the traitoress, the enemy!
DUNOIS, DUCHATEL, and LA HIRE, with the banner of JOHANNA.DUNOIS.Johanna, thee we seek. All is prepared;The king hath sent us, 'tis his royal willThat thou before him shouldst thy banner bear,The company of princes thou shalt join;And march immediately before the king:For he doth not deny it, and the worldShall witness, maiden, that to thee aloneHe doth ascribe the honor of this day.LA HIRE.Here is the banner. Take it, noble maidenThou'rt stayed for by the princes and the people.JOHANNA.I march before him? I the banner bear?DUNOIS.Whom else would it become? What other handIs pure enough to bear the sacred ensign!Amid the battle thou hast waved it oft;To grace our glad procession bear it now.[LA HIRE presents the banner to her, she draws back, shuddering.JOHANNA.Away! away!LA HIRE.Art thou terrifiedAt thine own banner, maiden? Look at it![He displays the banner.It is the same thou didst in conquest wave.Imaged upon it is the queen of heaven,Floating in glory o'er this earthly ball;For so the Holy Mother showed it thee.[JOHANNA gazing upon it with horror.'Tis she herself! so she appeared to me.See, how she looks at me and knits her brow,And anger flashes from her threatening eye!SOREL.Alas, she raveth! Maiden, be composed!Collect thyself! Thou seest nothing real!That is her pictured image; she herselfWanders above, amid the angelic choir!JOHANNA.Thou comest, fearful one, to punish me?Destroy, o'erwhelm, thy lightnings hurl,And let them fall upon my guilty head.Alas, my vow I've broken. I've profanedAnd desecrated thy most holy name!DUNOIS.Woe's us! What may this mean? What unblest words?LA HIRE (in astonishment, to DUCHATEL).This strange emotion canst thou comprehend?DUCHATEL.That which I see, I see—I long have feared it.DUNOIS.What sayest thou?DUCHATEL.I dare not speak my thoughts.I would to heaven that the king were crowned!LA HIRE.How! hath the awe this banner doth inspireTurned back upon thyself? before this signLet Britons tremble; to the foes of France'Tis fearful, but to all true citizensIt is auspicious.JOHANNA.Yes, thou sayest truly!To friends 'tis gracious! but to enemiesIt causeth horror![The Coronation march is heard.DUNOIS.Take thy banner, then!The march begins—no time is to be lost![They press the banner upon her; she seizes it withevident emotion, and retires; the others follow.[The scene changes to an open place before the Cathedral.
Spectators occupy the background; BERTRAND, CLAUDE MARIE, andETIENNE come forward; then MARGOT and LOUISON. The Coronationmarch is heard in the distance.BERTRAND.Hark to the music! They approach already!What had we better do? Shall we mount upUpon the platform, or press through the crowd,That we may nothing lose of the procession?ETIENNE.It is not to be thought of. All the streetsAre thronged with horsemen and with carriages.Beside these houses let us take our stand,Here we without annoyance may beholdThe train as it goes by.CLAUDE MARIE.Almost it seemsAs were the half of France assembled here,So mighty is the flood that it hath reachedEven our distant Lotharingian landAnd borne us thither!BERTRAND.Who would sit at homeWhen great events are stirring in the land!It hath cost plenty, both of sweat and blood,Ere the crown rested on its rightful head!Nor shall our lawful king, to whom we giveThe crown, be worse accompanied than heWhom the Parisians in St. Denis crowned!He is no loyal, honest-minded manWho doth absent him from this festival,And joins not in the cry: "God save the King!"
MARGOT and LOUISON join them.LOUISON.We shall again behold our sister, Margot!How my heart beats!MARGOT.In majesty and pompWe shall behold her, saying to ourselves:It is our sister, it is our Johanna!LOUISON.Till I have seen her, I can scarce believeThat she, whom men the Maid of Orleans name,The mighty warrior, is indeed Johanna,Our sister whom we lost![The music draws nearer.MARGOT.Thou doubtest still!Thou wilt thyself behold her!BERTRAND.See, they come!
Musicians, with flutes and hautboys, open the procession. Childrenfollow, dressed in white, with branches in their hands; behind themtwo heralds. Then a procession of halberdiers, followed bymagistrates in their robes. Then two marshals with their staves;the DUKE of BURGUNDY, bearing the sword; DUNOIS with the sceptre,other nobles with the regalia; others with sacrificial offerings.Behind these, KNIGHTS with the ornaments of their order; choristerswith incense; two BISHOPS with the ampulla; the ARCHBISHOP with thecrucifix. JOHANNA follows, with her banner, she walks with downcasthead and wavering steps; her sisters, on beholding her, expresstheir astonishment and joy. Behind her comes the KING under acanopy, supported by four barons; courtiers follow, soldiersconclude the procession; as soon as it has entered the church themusic ceases.
LOUISON, MARGOT, CLAUDE MARIE, ETIENNE, BERTRAND.MARGOT.Saw you our sister?CLAUDE MARIE.She in golden armor,Who with the banner walked before the king?MARGOT.It was Johanna. It was she, our sister!LOUISON.She recognized us not! She did not feelThat we, her sisters, were so near to her.She looked upon the ground, and seemed so pale,And trembled so beneath her banner's weightWhen I beheld her, I could not rejoice.MARGOT.So now, arrayed in splendor and in pomp,I have beheld our sister—who in dreamsWould ever have imagined or conceived,When on our native hills she drove the flock,That we should see her in such majesty?LOUISON.Our father's dream is realized, that weIn Rheims before our sister should bow down.That is the church, which in his dream he sawAnd each particular is now fulfilled.But images of woe he also saw!Alas! I'm grieved to see her raised so high!BERTRAND.Why stand we idly here? Let's to the churchTo view the coronation!MARGOT.Yes! perchanceWe there may meet our sister; let us go!LOUISON.We have beheld her. Let us now returnBack to our village.MARGOT.How? Ere we with herHave interchanged a word?LOUISON.She doth belongTo us no longer; she with princes standsAnd monarchs. Who are we, that we should seekWith foolish vanity to near her state?She was a stranger while she dwelt with us!MARGOT.Will she despise, and treat us with contempt?BERTRAND.The king himself is not ashamed of us,He kindly greets the meanest of the crowd.How high soever she may be exalted,The king is raised still higher![Trumpets and kettle-drums are heard from the church.CLAUDE MARIE.Let's to the church![They hasten to the background, where they are lost among the crowd.
3pb216 (145K)
THIBAUT enters, clad in black. RAIMOND follows him, and triesto hold him back.RAIMOND.Stay, father Thibaut! Do not join the crowds!Here, at this joyous festival you meetNone but the happy, whom your grief offends.Come! Let us quit the town with hasty steps.THIBAUT.Hast thou beheld my child? My wretched child?Didst thou observe her?RAIMMOND.I entreat you, fly!THIBAUT.Didst mark her tottering and uncertain steps,Her countenance, so pallid and disturbed?She feels her dreadful state; the hour is comeTo save my child, and I will not neglect it.[He is about to retire.RAIMOND.What would you do?THIBAUT.Surprise her, hurl her downFrom her vain happiness, and forciblyRestore her to the God whom she denies.RAIMOND.Oh, do not work the ruin of your child!THIBAUT.If her soul lives, her mortal part may die.[JOHANNA rushes out of the church, without her banner.The people press around her, worship her, and kiss hergarments. She is detained in the background by the crowd.She comes! 'tis she! She rushes from the church.Her troubled conscience drives her from the fane!'Tis visibly the judgment of her God!RAIMOND.Farewell! Require not my attendance further!Hopeful I came, and sorrowful depart.Your daughter once again I have beheld,And feel again that she is lost to me![He goes out. THIBAUT retires on the opposite side.
JOHANNA, People. Afterwards her Sisters.JOHANNA (she has freed herself from the crowd and comes forward).Remain I cannot—spirits chase me forth!The organ's pealing tones like thunder sound,The dome's arched roof threatens to overwhelm me!I must escape and seek heaven's wide expanse!I left my banner in the sanctuary,Never, oh, never, will I touch it more!It seemed to me as if I had beheldMy sisters pass before me like a dream.'Twas only a delusion!—they, alas!Are far, far distant—inaccessible—E'en as my childhood, as mine innocence!MARGOT (stepping forward).'Tis she! It is Johanna!LOUISON (hastening toward her).Oh, my sister!JOHANNA.Then it was no delusion—you are here—Thee I embrace, Louison! Thee, my Margot?Here in this strange and crowded solitude,I clasp once more my sisters' faithful breasts!MARGOT.She knows us still, she is our own kind sister.JOHANNA.Your love hath led you to me here so far!So very far! You are not wroth with herWho left her home without one parting word!LOUISON.God's unseen providence conducted thee.MARGOT.Thy great renown, which agitates the world,Which makes thy name the theme of every tongue,Hath in our quiet village wakened us,And led us hither to this festival.To witness all thy glory we are come;And we are not alone!JOHANNA (quickly).Our father's here!Where is he? Why doth he conceal himself?MARGOT.Our father is not with us.JOHANNA.Not with you?He will not see me, then! You do not bringHis blessing for his child?LOUISON.He knoweth notThat we are here.JOHANNA.Not know it! Wherefore not?You are embarrassed, and you do not speak;You look upon the ground! Where is our father?MARGOT.Since thou hast left——LOUISON (making a sign to MARGOT).Margot!MARGOT.Our father hathBecome dejected.JOHANNA.Ah!LOUISON.Console thyself!Our sire's foreboding spirit well thou knowest!He will collect himself, and be composed,When he shall learn from us that thou art happy.MARGOT.And thou art happy? Yes, it must be so,For thou art great and honored!JOHANNA.I am so,Now I again behold you, once againYour voices hear, whose fond, familiar tonesBring to my mind my dear paternal fields.When on my native hills I drove my herd,Then I was happy as in paradise—I ne'er can be so more, no, never more![She hides her face on LOUISON'S bosom. CLAUDE MARIE,ETIENNE, and BERTRAND appear, and remain timidly standingin the distance.MARGOT.Come, Bertrand! Claude Marie! come, Etienne!Our sister is not proud: she is so gentle,And speaks so kindly,—more so than of yore,When in our village she abode with us.[They draw near, and hold out their hands; JOHANNAgazes on them fixedly, and appears amazed.JOHANNA.Where am I? Tell me! Was it all a dream,A long, long dream? And am I now awake?Am I away from Dom Remi? Is't so?I fell asleep beneath the Druid tree,And I am now awake; and round me standThe kind, familiar forms? I only dreamedOf all these battles, kings, and deeds of war,—They were but shadows which before me passed;For dreams are always vivid 'neath that tree.How did you come to Rheims? How came I here?No, I have never quitted Dom Remi!Confess it to me, and rejoice my heart.LOUISON.We are at Rheims. Thou hast not merely dreamedOf these great deeds—thou hast achieved them all.Come to thyself, Johanna! Look around—Thy splendid armor feel, of burnished gold![JOHANNA lays her hand upon her breast, recollects herself,and shrinks back.BERTRAND.Out of my hand thou didst receive this helm.CLAUDE MARIE.No wonder thou shouldst think it all a dream;For nothing in a dream could come to passMore wonderful than what thou hast achieved.JOHANNA (quickly).Come, let us fly! I will return with youBack to our village, to our father's bosom.LOUISON.Oh, come! Return with us!JOHANNA.The people hereExalt me far above what I deserve.You have beheld me weak and like a child;You love me, but you do not worship me.MARGOT.Thou wilt abandon this magnificence.JOHANNA.I will throw off the hated ornamentsWhich were a barrier 'twixt my heart and yours,And I will be a shepherdess again,And like a humble maiden I will serve you,And will with bitter penitence atone,That I above you vainly raised myself.[Trumpets sound.