Imatges de pàgina
PDF

chorus. Nay, we are silent, and we chew the air. ulysses. Come now, and lend a hand to the great stake Within—it is delightfully red-hot. choats. You then command who first should seize the stake To burn the Cyclops' eye, that all may share In the great enterprise. sexil-chorus r. We are too few, We cannot at this distance from the door Thrust fire into his eye. sixti-chonus it. And we just now Have become lame; cannot move hand or foot. choats. The same thing has occurr'd to us, our ancles Are sprain'd with standing here, I know not how. ul-Ysses. What, sprained with standing still: - cholaus. And there is dust Or ashes in our eyes, I know not whence. ULYsses. Cowardly dogs! ye will not aid me then? chorus. With pitying my own back and my back bone, And with not wishing all my teeth knock'd out, This cowardice comes of itself—but stay, I know a famous Orphic incantation To make the brand stick of its own accord Into the skull of this one-eyed son of Earth. Ulysses. Of old I knew ye thus by nature; now I know ye better.—I will use the aid Of my own comrades—yet, though weak of hand, Speak cheerfully, that so ye may awaken The courage of my friends with your blithe words. ctiont's. This I will do with peril of my life, And blind you with my exhortations, Cyclops. Hasten and thrust, And parch up to dust The eye of the beast Who feeds on his guest. Burn and blind The AEtneau hind! Scoop and draw, But beware lest he claw Your limbs near his maw.

cyclops. Ah me! my eye-sight is parched up to cinders. chonus. What a sweet paean' sing me that again! cyclops.

Ah me! indeed, what woe has fallen upon me!
But, wretched nothings' think ye not to flee
Out of this rock; I, standing at the outlet,
Will bar the way and catch you as you pass.

chorus. What are you roaring out, Cyclops?

CYCLOPs.

I perish!

chor: Us.

For you are wicked.

cyclops. And besides miserable. chorus. What! did vou fall into the fire when drunk? - cycloPs. T was Nobody destroyed me. choals. why then no one Can be to blame. cyclops. I say't was Nobody Who blinded me.

caoats. Why then you are not blind.

cycloPs. I wish you were as blind as I am.

Cho Rus.

Nay,

It cannot be that no one made you blind.

cyclops. You jeer me; where, I ask, is Nobody?

cHonus. No where, O Cyclops! - -

cyclops.

It was that stranger ruin'd me:—the wretch First gave me wine and then burnt out inx eyes, For wine is strong and hard to struggle with. Have they escaped, or are they yet within : chorus. They stand under the darkness of the rock, And cling to it. cyclops. At my right hand or left: cho Rus. Close on your right. cyclops. Where? chonus. Near the rock itself. You have them. cocio-ps. Oh, misfortune on misfortune! I've crack'd my skull. caonus. Now they escape you there. cyclops. Not there, although you say so. choaus. Not on that side. co-clops. Where then? chonus. They creep about you on your left cyclopsThey jeer me in my ills. chonus. Not there! he is a little there beyond you. cyclops. Detested wretch! where are you? ULYsses. Far from you

[ocr errors]

! I keep with care this body of Ulysses.

cyclops. What do you say? You proffer a new name.

ul-Ysses. My father named me so; and I have taken

A full revenge for your unnatural feast;
I should have done ill to have burn'd down Troy,
And not revenged the murder of my comrades.
cyclops.
Ai! ai! the ancient oracle is accomplish'd;
It said that I should have my eye-sight blinded
By you coming from Troy; yet it foretold
That you should pay the penalty for this
By wandering long over the homeless sea.
ulysses.
I bid thee weep—consider what I say,
I go towards the shore to drive my ship
To mine own land, o'er the Sicilian wave.
cyclops.
Not so, if whelming you with this huge stone
I can crush you and all your men together;
I will descend upon the shore, though blind,
Groping my way adown the steep ravine.
- choitus.
And we, the shipmates of Ulysses now,
Will serve our Bacchus all our happy lives.

SCENES FROM THE • MAGICO PRODIGioso m of CALDERON.

Cypal AN as a Student; Clan in and Moscon as poor Scholars, with books.

cyptian. In the sweet solitude of this calm place, This intricate wild wilderness of trees And flowers and undergrowth of odorous plants, Leave me; the books you brought out of the house To me are ever best society. And whilst with glorious festival and song Antioch now celebrates the consecration Of a proud temple to great Jupiter, And bears his image in loud jubilee To its new shrine, I would consume what still Lives of the dying day, in studious thought, Far from the throng and turmoil. You, my friends, Go and enjoy the festival; it will Be worth the labour, and return for me When the sun seeks its grave among the billows, Which among dim grey clouds on the horizon Dance like white plumes upon a hearse;—and here I shall expect you.

Moscon.

I cannot bring my mind,

Great as my haste to see the festival
Certainly is, to leave you, Sir, without
Just saying some three or four hundred words.
How is it possible that on a day
Of such festivity, you can bring your mind
To come forth to a solitary country
With three or four old books, and turn your back
On all this mirth?

Clattin.

My master's in the right;

There is not any thing more tiresome
Than a procession-day, with troops of men,
And dances, and all that.

Moscon.

From first to last,

Clarin, you are a temporizing flatterer;

You praise not what you feel, but what he does;–
Toad-eater!
cLAR in.
You lie—under a mistake—
For this is the most civil sort of lie
That can be given to a man's face. I now
Say what I think.
cy praian.
Enough, you foolish fellows :
Puff'd up with your own doting ignorance,
You always take the two sides of one question.
Now go, and as I said, return for me
When night falls, veiling in its shadows wide
This glorious fabric of the universe.
Moscow.
How happens it, although you can maintain
The folly of enjoying festivals,
That yet you go there?
ci, A Rin.
Nay, the consequence
Is clear:—who ever did what he advises
Others to do —
moscon.
Would that my feet were wings,
So would I fly to Livia. [Exit.
cLA ain.
To speak truth,
Livia is she who has surprised my heart;
But he is more than half way there.—Soho'
Livia, I come; good sport, Livia, soho! [Exit.
crp an An.
Now, since I am alone, let me examine
The question which has long disturb'd my mind
With doubt; since first I read in Plinius
The words of mystic import and deep sense
In which he defines God. My intellect
Can find no God with whom these marks and signs
Fitly agree. It is a hidden truth
Which I must fathom. [Reads.

Enter the Devil, as a fine Gentleman.

darxion. Search even as thou wilt, But thou shalt never find what I can hide.

corpni An. What noise is that among the boughs? Who moves' What art thou?—

proton.

T is a foreign gentleman.

Even from this morning I have lost my way
In this wild place, and my poor horse, at last .
Quite overcome, has stretch'd himself upon
The enamell'd tapestry of this mossy mountain,
And feeds and rests at the same time. I was
Upon my way to Antioch upon business
Of some importance, but wrapt up in cares
(Who is exempt from this inheritance?)
I parted from my company, and lost
My way, and lost my servants and my comrades.

cyprian.
'T is singular, that even within the sight
Of the high towers of Antioch, you could lose
Your way. Of all the avenues and green paths
Of this wild wood there is not one but leads,
As to its centre, to the walls of Antioch;
Take which you will you cannot miss your road.

noeMon. And such is ignorance! Even in the sight Of knowledge it can draw no profit from it. But as it still is early, and as I Have no acquaintances in Antioch, Being a stranger there, I will even wait The few surviving hours of the day, Until the night shall conquer it. I see, Both by your dress and by the books in which You find delight and company, that you Are a great student;-for my part, I feel Much sympathy with such pursuits. cyprian. Have you Studied much 7– demon. No, and yet I know enough Not to be wholly ignorant. cy Pei An. Pray, Sir, What science may you know?— de Mon. Many. cy pitian. Alas! Much pains must we expend on one alone, And even then attain it not;-but you Have the presumption to assert that you Know many without study. Dae Mon. And with truth. For in the country whence I come, sciences Require no learning, they are known. CY PRI An. Oh, would I were of that bright country! for in this, The more we study, we the more discover Our ignorance. D.A.M. on. It is so true, that I Had so much arrogance as to oppose The chair of the most high professorship, And obtained many votes; and though I lost, The attempt was still more glorious than the failure Could be dishonourable: if you believe not, Let us refer it to dispute respecting That which you know best, and although I Know not the opinion you maintain, and though It be the true one, I will take the contrary. CYPiti An. The offer gives me pleasure. I am now Debating with myself upon a passage Of Plinius, and my mind is rack'd with doubt To understand and know who is the God Of whom he speaks. pomoN. It is a passage, if I recollect it right, couch'd in these words: • God is one supreme goodness, one pure essence, One substance, and one sense, all sight, all hands.” cyphia N. 'T is true. demon. What difficulty find you here? cy pH 1AN. I do not recognise among the Gods

The God defined by Plinius; if he must
Be supreme goodness, even Jupiter
Is not supremely tood; because we see
His deeds are evil, and his attributes
Tainted with mortal weakness; in what manner
Can supreme goodness be consistent with
The passions of humanity?
DotMox.
The wisdom
Of the old world mask'd with the names of Gods
The attributes of Nature and of Man;
A sort of popular philosophy.
CYPftian.
This reply will not satisfy me, for
Such awe is due to the high name of God
That ill should never he imputed. Then,
Examining the question with more care,
It follows, that the gods should always will
That which is best, were they supremely good.
How then does one will one thing—one another'
And you may not say that I allege
Poetical or philosophic learning:—
Consider the ambiguous responses
Of their oracular statues; from two shrines
Two armies shall obtain the assurance of
One victory. Is it not indisputable
That two contending wills can never lead
To the same end? And being opposite,
If one be good is not the other evil?
Evil in God is inconceivable;
But supreme goodness fails among the gods
Without their union.
de Mox.
I deny your major.
These responses are means towards some end
Unfathom d by our intellectual beam.
They are the work of providence, and more
The battle's loss may profit those who lose,
Than victory advantage those who win.
cy Prat AN.
That I admit, and yet that God should not
(Falsehood is incompatible with deity)
Assure the victory; it would be enough
To have permitted the defeat; if God
Ile all sight, —God, who beheld the truth,
Would not have given assurance of an end
Never to be accomplish'd; thus, although
The Deity may, according to his attributes
Be well distinguish'd into persons, yet,
Even in the minutest circumstance,
His essence must be one.
d xxion.
To attain the end,
The affections of the actors in the scene
Must have been thus influenced by his voice
cy pan A N.
Tut for a purpose thus subordinate -
Ile might have employed genii, good or cril, -
A sort of spirits called so by the learn'd,
who roam about inspiring good or evil.
And from whose intluence and existence *
May well infer our immortality:- -
Thus God might easily, without lescending
To a gross falsehood in his proper per”.
Ilave moved the affections by this medio"
To the just point.

to he viola.
These tritling contradictions

Do not suffice to impugn the unity
Of the high gods; in things of great importance
They still appear unanimous; consider
That glorious fabric—man,—his workmanship
Is stamp'd with one conception.

cy Potian.

Who made man

Must have, methinks, the advantage of the others.
If they are equal, might they not have risen
In opposition to the work, and being
All hands, according to our author here,
Have still destroyed even as the other made?
If equal in their power, and only unequal
In opportunity, which of the two
Will remain conqueror?

DAF Mon.

On impossible

And false hypothesis there can be built
No argument. Say, what do you infer
From this?

[ocr errors]

cy pal AN. That there must be a mighty God Of supreme goodness and of highest grace, All sit;ht, all hands, all truth, infallible, Without an equal and without a rival; The cause of all things and the effect of nothing, One power, one will, one substance, and one essence. And in whatever persons, one or two, His attributes may be distinguish'd, one Sovereign power, one solitary essence, One cause of all cause. [They rise, DA:Mon. How can I impugn So clear a consequence 2 cy Pitian. Do you regret My victory draion. Who but regrets a check In rivalry of wit? I could reply And urge new difficulties, but will now Depart, for I hear steps of men approaching, And it is time that I should now pursue My journey to the city. cy pri An. Go in peace! now on. Remain in peace! Since thus it profits him To study, I will wrap his senses up In sweet oblivion of all thought, but of A piece of excellent beauty; and as I Ilave power given me to wage enmity Against Justina's soul, I will extract From one effect two vengeances. cy Pfti A.N.

[ocr errors]

I never Met a more learned person. Let me now Revolve this doubt again with careful mind. [He reads.

Enter Lelio and Flobo.

Let, id. Ilere stop. These toppling rocks and tangled boughs, limpenetrable by the noonday beam, Shall be sole witnesses of what we––

flotto. Draw! If there were words, here is the place for deeds. LE Lio.

Thou needest not instruct me; well I know
That in the field the silent tongue of steel
Speaks thus. [They fight.
cy pat An.
Ha! what is this? Lelio, Floro,
Be it enough that Cyprian stands between you,
Although unarm'd.
Lelio.
Whence comest thou, to stand
Between me and my vengeance?
FLORd.
From what rocks
And desert cells?

Enter Moscon and CLARIN.

Mosco N. Run, run! for where we left my master We hear the clash of swords. cLA ann. I never Run to approach things of this sort, but only To avoid them. Sir! Cyprian sir! CYP in 1 AN. Be silent, fellows! What! two friends who are In blood and fame the eyes and hope of Antioch; One of the noble men of the Colatti, The other son of the Governor, adventure And cast away, on some slight cause no doubt, Two lives the honour of their country? LELto. Cyprian! Although my high respect towards your person Holds now my sword suspended, thou canst not Restore it to the slumber of its scabbard. Thou knowest more of science than the duel; For when two men of honour take the field, No [ J or respect can make them friends, But one must die in the pursuit. FLO fad. I pray That you depart hence with your people, and Leave us to finish what we have begun Without advantage. cY pro i An. Though you may imagine That I know little of the laws of duel, which vanity and valour instituted, You are in error. Iy my birth I am Ileld no less than yourselves to know the limits Of honour and of infamy, nor has study Quench'd the free spirit which first order'd them; And thus to me, as one well experienced In the false quicksands of the sea of honour You may refer the merits of the case; And if I should perceive in your relation That either has the right to satisfaction From the other, I give you my word of honour To leave you. I, ELtd. Under this condition then I will relate the cause, and you will cede And must confess th’ impossibility

Of compromise; for the same lady is
Beloved by Floro and myself.
riono.
It seems
Much to me that the light of day should look
Upon that idol of my heart—but he——
Leave us to fight, according to thy word.
crpsiA.N.
Permit one question further: is the lady
Impossible to hope or not?
Lelio.
She is
So excellent, that if the light of day
Should excite Floro's jealousy, it were
Without just cause, for even the light of day
Trembles to gaze on her.
cy paian.
Would you for your
Part marry her
Flo Ro.
Such is my confidence.
cy Patax.
And you?
Le Llo.
O would that I could lift my hope
So high! for though she is extremely poor,
Iler virtue is her dowry.
cy Pan An.
And if you both
Would marry her, is it not weak and vain,
Culpable and unworthy, thus beforehand
To slur her honour. What would the world say
If one should slay the other, and if she
Should afterwards espouse the murderer?
[The rivals agree to refer their quarrel to Cypal AN;
who in consequence visits JustiNA, and be-
comes enamoured of her: she disdains him,
and he retires to a solitary sea-shore.

[ocr errors]

CYPai AN. Oh, memory! permit it not That the tyrant of my thought Be another soul that still Holds dominion o'er the will, That would refuse, but can no more, To bend, to tremble, aud adore. Wain idolatry!—I saw, And gazing, became blind with error; Weak ambition, which the awe Of her presence bound to terror! So beautiful she was—and I, Between my love and jealousy, Am so convulsed with hope and fear, Unworthy as it inay appear;-So bitter is the life I live, That, hear me, Hell! I now would give To thy most detested spirit My soul, for ever to inherit, To suffer punishment and pine, So this woman may be mine. Hearst thou, Ilell' dost thou reject it? My soul is offerd!

Devon (unseen). I accept it. [Tempest, with thunder and fight-ofcy praianWhat is this? ye heavens for ever pure, At once intensely radiant and obscure! Athwart the etherial halls The lightning's arrow and the thunder-balls The day affright. As from the horizon round, Burst with earthquake sound, In mighty torrents the electric fountains— Clouds quench the sun, and thunder smoke Strangles the air, and fire eclipses heavenPhilosophy, thou canst not even Compel their causes underneath thy yoke: From yonder clouds even to the waves below The fragments of a single ruin choke Imagination's flight; For, on flakes of surge, like feathers light, The ashes of the desolation cast Upon the gloomy blast, Tell of the footsteps of the storm. And nearer see the melancholy form Of a great ship, the outcast of the sea, Drives miserably! And it must fly the pity of the port, Or perish, and its last and sole resort Is its own raging enemy. The terror of the thrilling cry Was a fatal prophecy Of coming death, who hovers now Upon that shatter'd prow, That they who die not may be dying still. And not alone the insane elements Are populous with wild portents, But that sad ship is as a miracle Of sudden ruin, for it drives so fast It seems as if it had array'd its form With the headlong storm. It strikes—I almost feel the shock,It stumbles on a jagged rock,Sparkles of blood on the white foam are cast. |

[blocks in formation]
« AnteriorContinua »