Was to be yielded up. Lacy. Of my own child, this Now, by the head Man must die; my hand, Where Souls are self-defended, free to grow ages. 'Tis nobly thought; His death will be a monument for Mar. (to LACY). I thank you for that hint. He shall be brought Before the Camp, and would that best and wisest Of every country might be present. There, His crime shall be proclaimed; and for the rest It shall be done as Wisdom shall decide: Meanwhile, do you two hasten back and see That all is well prepared. Wal. We will obey you. (Aside). But softly! we must look a little nearer. Mar. Tell where you found us, At some [Exeunt. future time I will explain the cause, ACT III, SCENE, the door of the Hostel, a group of Pilgrims as before; IDONEA and the Host among them. Host. Lady, you'll find your Father at the As I have told you! He left us yesterday a letter Of which I heard them speak, but that I fancy Has been forgotten. Idon. (to Host). Farewell! Osw. Carry him to the Camp! Yes, to the Oh, Wisdom! a most wise resolve! and then, We'll not insult thy majesty by time, And all particulars that dull brains require Is in all natures a strange spectacle; In some a hideous one-hem! shall I stop? then Pass but a few And something shall be done which Memory matter Ay, prove that when two peas Lie snugly in a pod, the pod must then Be larger than the peas-prove this-'twere Worthy the hearing. Fool was I to dream It ever could be otherwise! Osw. Last night When I returned with water from the brook, I overheard the Villains-every word Like red-hot iron burnt into my heart. Said one, 66 It is agreed on. The blind Man Shall feign a sudden illness, and the Girl, Who on her journey must proceed alone, Under pretence of violence, be seized. She is," continued the detested Slave, "She is right willing-strange if she were not!They say, Lord Clifford is a savage man ; But, faith, to see him in his silken tunic, Fitting his low voice to the minstrel's harp, There's witchery in't. I never knew a maid That could withstand it. True," continued he, "When we arranged the affair, she wept a little (Not the less welcome to my Lord for that) And said, 'My Father he will have it so.' Mar. I am your hearer. Osw. This I caught, and more That may not be retold to any ear. The obstinate bolt of a small iron door Detained them near the gateway of the Castle. By a dim lantern's light I saw that wreaths Of flowers were in their hands, as if designed For festive decoration; and they said, With brutal laughter and most foul allusion, That they should share the banquet with their Lord And his new Favourite. Mar. Osw. Misery! I knew How you would be disturbed by this dire news, And therefore chose this solitary Moor, Here to impart the tale, of which, last night, I strove to ease my mind, when our two Comrades, Commissioned by the Band, burst in upon us. Mar. Last night, when moved to lift the avenging steel, I did believe all things were shadows-yea, And substance, nothing differing from his own, But have they not a world of common ground Osw. Troth, I begin to think so. I would not give a denier for the man Who, on such provocation as this earth That creeps along the bells of the crisp heather. Of God's parental mercies-with Idonea Mar. (aside-looking at HERBERT). And I have loved this Man! and she hath loved him! And I loved her, and she loves the Lord Clifford! And there it ends;-if this be not enough To make mankind merry for evermore, Then plain it is as day, that eyes were made For a wise purpose-verily to weep with! [Looking round. A pretty prospect this, a masterpiece Of Nature, finished with most curious skill! (To HERBERT). Good Baron, have you ever practised tillage? Pray tell me what this land is worth by the acre? Her. How glad I am to hear your voice! I know not Wherein I have offended you ;-last night About your own; but for these two hours past Yields, could not chuck his babe beneath the Have roused all Nature up against him→→ chin, And send it with a fillip to its grave. And he shall howl and I will laugh, a medley pshaw ! Her. For mercy's sake, is nobody in sight? No traveller, peasant, herdsman? Mar. Not a soul: Here is a tree, ragged, and bent, and bare, That turns its goat's-beard flakes of pea-green moss From the stern breathing of the rough sea-wind; Mar. Her. Lost Man! if thou have any close-pent guilt Pressing upon thy heart, and this the hour A bold word from you Her. Restore him, Heaven! Mar. The desperate Wretch !-A Flower, Fairest of all flowers, was she once, but now They have snapped her from the stem-Poh! let her lie Besoiled with mire, and let the houseless snail Feed on her leaves. You knew her well-ay, there, Old Man! you were a very Lynx, you knew The worm was in her ! C Mar. (aside). I do believe he weeps-I could weep too There is a vein of her voice that runs through his: Even such a Man my fancy bodied forth Of what I have been-yes, I thank thee, One happy thought has passed across my mind. About your Daughter! I am weak! Whom no one comes to meet, I stood alone ;- And clasped her to my heart, my heart that ached More with delight than grief-I heard a voice It said, "I will be with thee." A little boy, harm, From cold, from hunger, penury, and death; To whom I owe the best of all the good With nerves so steady, that the very flies In Story, what men now alive have witnessed, How, when the People's mind was racked with doubt, Appeal was made to the great Judge: the Accused With naked feet walked over burning ploughshares. Here is a Man by Nature's hand prepared here Yea, from the utmost corners of the earth, That Woman will come o'er this Waste to save thee. [He pauses and looks at HERBERT's staff. Ha! what is here? and carved by her own hand! [Reads upon the staff. "I am eyes to the blind, saith the Lord. He that puts his trust in me shall not fail!" Yes, be it so :-repent and be forgivenGod and that staff are now thy only guides. [He leaves HERBERT on the Moor. Len. (to Wal.). His tool, the wandering Beggar, made last night A plain confession, such as leaves no doubt, Knowing what otherwise we know too well, That she revealed the truth. Stand by me now; For rather would I have a nest of vipers Between my breast-plate and my skin, than make Oswald my special enemy, if you Deny me your support. Lacy. But for the motive? Wal. SCENE, the Wood on the edge of the Moor. MARMADUKE (alone). Mar. Deep, deep and vast, vast beyond human thought, Yet calm.-I could believe, that there was here Osw. Ha! my dear Captain. A later meeting, Oswald, We have been fooled- Would have been better timed. Osw. Alone, I see; You have done your duty. I had hopes, which Natures such as his Spin motives out of their own bowels, Lacy! I learn'd this when I was a Confessor. I know him well; there needs no other motive Than that most strange incontinence in crime Which haunts this Oswald. Power is life to him And breath and being; where he cannot govern, He will destroy. Lacy. To have been trapped like moles !Yes, you are right, we need not hunt for motives: There is no crime from which this man would shrink; He recks not human law; and I have noticed That often when the name of God is uttered, A sudden blankness overspreads his face. Len. Yet, reasoner as he is, his pride has built Some uncouth superstition of its own. Once he headed To the oath of fealty, I well remember, 'Twas a strange answer that he made; he said, "I hold of Spirits, and the Sun in heaven.' Lacy. He is no madman. Wal. A most subtle doctor Were that man, who could draw the line that parts Pride and her daughter, Cruelty, from Madness, That should be scourged, not pitied. Restless Minds, Such Minds as find amid their fellow-men Will turn perforce and seek for sympathy One of the Band. What if he mean to offer up our Captain An expiation and a sacrifice Wal. Now, if the event Should be as Lennox has foretold, then swear, My Friends, his heart shall have as many wounds As there are daggers here. What need of swearing! A third. Hark! how the horns Away! Of those Scotch Rovers echo through the vale. You shall be obeyed. [They go out together. You are now in truth my Master; you have taught me What there is not another living man By diving for it into their own bosoms. I know your motives! It may be, That some there are, squeamish half-thinking cowards, Who will turn pale upon you, call you murderer, Mar. Even so, The Sparrow so on the house-top, and I, Very true. Osw. Action is transitory-a step, a blow, The motion of a muscle-this way or that'Tis done, and in the after-vacancy We wonder at ourselves like men betrayed: Suffering is permanent, obscure and dark, And shares the nature of infinity. Mar. Truth-and I feel it. Osw. What if you had bid Eternal farewell to unmingled joy And the light dancing of the thoughtless heart; For such a world as this. The wise abjure -I see I have disturbed you. Mar. By no means. Osw. Compassion! -pity!- pride can do without them; And what if you should never know them more! Mar. It may be so. Remorse Osw. It cannot live with thought; think on, think on, And it will die. What! in this universe, Where the least things control the greatest, where The faintest breath that breathes can move a world; What! feel remorse, where, if a cat had sneezed, So used to suit his language to the time, Osw. Murder!-what's in the word!— I have no cases by me ready made A shallow project;-you of late have seen That make the fields their dwelling. If a snake But to protect themselves from extirpation ?— Mar. My Office is fulfilled- the Man is now Delivered to the Judge of all things. Mar. I have borne my burthen to its destined end. Osw. This instant we'll return to our Companions Oh how I long to see their faces again! Enter IDONEA, with Pilgrims who continue their journey. Idon. (after some time). What, Marmaduke! How thou art mine for ever. And Oswald, too! (To MARMADUKE). On will we to my Father With the glad tidings which this day hath brought: We'll go together, and, such proof received Idon. Mar. Think not so. Idonea, That I should ever live to see this moment! Idon. Forgive me.-Oswald knows it all-he knows, Each word of that unhappy letter fell Osz. 'Twas even so. Mar. I have much to say, but for whose ear?-not thine. Idon. Ill can I bear that look-Plead for me, |