ILLO (stamping with his foot).
Damnation!
Was broken open, and is circulated
COUNTESS, DUCHESS, THEKLA.
THEKLA (endeavoring to hold back the DUCHESS). Dear mother, do stay here!
No! Here is yet
Some frightful mystery that is hidden from me.
Why does my sister shun me? Don't I see her
Full of suspense and anguish roam about
From room to room?-Art thou not full of terror?
And what import these silent nods and gestures
You know what it contains? Which stealthwise thou exchangest with her?
[Looks around her. Where are they?
No one is here. They leave me all alone,
Alone in this sore anguish of suspense.
And I must wear the outward show of calmness
Before my sister, and shut in within me
The pangs and agonies of my crowded bosom.
It is not to be borne.-If all should fail;
If if he must go over to the Swedes,
An empty-handed fugitive, and not
As an ally, a covenanted equal,
SCENE-A spacious room in the DUKE OF FRIEDLAND'S
Thou hast gain'd thy point, Octavio! Once more am I
Almost as friendless as at Regensburg.
There I had nothing left me, but myself—
But what one man can do, you have now experience
The twigs have you hew'd off, and here I stand
A leafless trunk. But in the sap within
Lives the creating power, and a new world
May sprout forth from it. Once already have I
Proved myself worth an army to you-I alone!
Before the Swedish strength your troops had melted,
Beside the Lech sunk Tilly, your last hope:
Into Bavaria, like a winter torrent,
Did that Gustavus pour, and at Vienna
In his own palace did the Emperor tremble.
Soldiers were scarce, for still the multitude
Follow the luck all eyes were turn'd on me,
Their helper in distress: the Emperor's pride
Bow'd itself down before the man he had injured.
Twas I must rise, and with creative word
Assemble forces in the desolate camps.
I did it. Like a god of war, my name
Went through the world. The drum was beat-and, lo!
The plow, the work-shop is forsaken, all
Swarm to the old familiar long-loved banners;
And as the wood-choir rich in melody
Assemble quick around the bird of wonder,
When first his throat swells with his magic song,
So did the warlike youth of Germany
Crowd in around the image of my eagle.
I feel myself the being that I was.
It is the soul that builds itself a body,
And Friedland's camp will not remain unfill'd.
Lead then your thousands out to meet me-true!
They are accustom'd under me to conquer,
But not against me. If the head and limbs
Separate from each other, 't will be soon
Made manifest, in which the soul abode.
(ILLO and TERTSKY enter).
Courage, friends! Courage! We are still unvanquish'd;
I feel my footing firm; five regiments, Tertsky,
Are still our own, and Butler's gallant troops;
And a host of sixteen thousand Swedes to-morrow.
I was not stronger, when nine years ago
I march'd forth, with glad heart and high of hope,
To conquer Germany for the Emperor.
![[blocks in formation]](https://books.google.com.hk/books/content?id=LDtDAAAAIAAJ&hl=zh-TW&output=text&pg=PA187&img=1&zoom=3&q=stand&cds=1&sig=ACfU3U2EXedVbCenkz363vWOfYLV93hGYg&edge=0&edge=stretch&ci=20,823,475,703)
Anspessade, in German, Gefreiter, a soldier inferior to a
ANSPESSADE (giving the word of command). Shoulder your arms!
WALLENSTEIN (turning to a third).
Thy name is Risbeck; Cologne is thy birth-place.
It was thou that broughtest in the Swedish colonel Diebald, prisoner, in the camp at Nüremberg.
Perfectly right! It was thy elder brother: thou hadst a younger brother too: where did he stay?
He is stationed at Olmütz with the Imperial army.
WALLENSTEIN (to the ANSPESSADE).
Now then-begin.
There came to hand a letter from the Emperor,
Commanding us-
WALLENSTEIN (interrupting him).
Who chose you?
corporal, but above the sentinels. The German name implies There came to hand a letter from the Emperor, Commanding us collectively, from thee
that he is exempt from mounting guard.
All duties of obedience to withdraw, Because thou wert an enemy and traitor.
And what did you determine?
At Braunnau, Budweiss, Prague and Olmütz, have
Obey'd already; and the regiments here,
Tiefenbach and Toscaño, instantly
Did follow their example. But-but we
Do not believe that thou art an enemy
And traitor to thy country, hold it merely
For lie and trick, and a trump'd-up Spanish story?
[With warmth.
Thyself shalt tell us what thy purpose is,
For we have found thee still sincere and true:
No mouth shall interpose itself betwixt
The gallant General and the gallant troops.
Therein I recognize my Pappenheimers.
And this proposal makes thy regiment to thee:
Is it thy purpose merely to preserve
In thy own hands this military sceptre,
Which so becomes thee, which the Emperor
Made over to thee by a covenant?
Is it thy purpose merely to remain
Supreme commander of the Austrian armies?-
We will stand by thee, General! and guaranty
Thy honest rights against all opposition.
And should it chance, that all the other regiments
Turn from thee, by ourselves will we stand forth
Thy faithful soldiers, and, as is our duty,
Far rather let ourselves be cut to pieces,
Than suffer thee to fail. But if it be
As the Emperor's letter says, if it be true,
That thou in traitorous wise will lead us over
To the enemy, which God in heaven forbid !
Then we too will forsake thee, and obey
That letter-
WALLENSTEIN. Hear me, children!
There needs no other answer.
You're men of sense, examine for yourselves;
Ye think, and do not follow with the herd:
And therefore have I always shown you honor
Above all others, suffer'd you to reason;
Have treated you as free men, and my orders
Were but the echoes of your prior suffrage.-
Most fair and noble has thy conduct been
To us, my General! With thy confidence
Hath sacrificed me to my enemies,
And I must fall, unless my gallant troops
Will rescue me. See! I confide in you.
And be your hearts my strong-hold! At this breast
The aim is taken, at this hoary head.
This is your Spanish gratitude, this is our
Requital for that murderous fight at Lutzen!
For this we threw the naked breast against
The halbert, made for this the frozen earth
Our bed, and the hard stone our pillow! never stream
Too rapid for us, nor wood too impervious:
With cheerful spirit we pursued that Mansfield
Through all the turns and windings of his flight;
Yea, our whole life was but one restless march;
And homeless as the stirring wind, we travell'd
O'er the war-wasted earth. And now, even now,
That we have well-nigh finish'd the hard toil,
The unthankful, the curse-laden toil of weapons,
With faithful indefatigable arm
![[ocr errors][merged small][merged small][merged small][merged small]](https://books.google.com.hk/books/content?id=LDtDAAAAIAAJ&hl=zh-TW&output=text&pg=PA188&img=1&zoom=3&q=stand&cds=1&sig=ACfU3U3Ksy2ClO29E5ndIKKbM2H2fbLu3Q&edge=0&edge=stretch&ci=548,483,435,362)
What? Think you then at length in late old age
To enjoy the fruits of toil? Believe it not.
Never, no never, will you see the end
Of the contest! you and me, and all of us,
This war will swallow up! War, war, not peace,
Is Austria's wish; and therefore, because I
Endeavor'd after peace, therefore I fall.
For what cares Austria, how long the war
Wears out the armies and lays waste the world?
She will but wax and grow amid the ruin,
And still win new domains.
[The Cuirassiers express agitation by their gestures.
Ye're moved-I see
A noble rage flash from your eyes, ye warriors'
Oh that my spirit might possess you now
Daring as once it led you to the battle!
Ye would stand by me with your veteran arms
Protect me in my rights; and this is noble!
But think not that you can accomplish it,
Your scanty number! to no purpose will you
Have sacrificed
you for
your General.
No! let us tread securely, seek for friends!
Thou hast honor'd us, and shown us grace and favor The Swedes have proffer'd us assistance, let us
The Emperor? Wilt not turn us into Swedes?
This is the only thing which we desire
To learn from thee.
What care I for the Swedes?
I hate them as I hate the pit of hell,
And under Providence I trust right soon
To chase them to their homes across the Baltic.
My cares are only for the whole: I have
A heart-it bleeds within me for the miseries
And piteous groaning of my fellow Germans.
Ye are but common men, but yet ye think
With minds not common; ye appear to me
Worthy before all others, that I whisper ye
A little word or two in confidence!
See now! already for full fifteen years
The war-torch has continued burning, yet
No rest, no pause of conflict. Swede and German,
Papist and Lutheran! neither will give way
To the other, every hand's against the other.
Each one is party, and no one a judge.
Where shall this end? Where's he that will unravel
This tangle, ever tangling more and more.
It is an open proclamation
WALLENSTEIN.
Well, well-but what is it?
To these enter the DUCHESS, who rushes into the Cham ber. THEKLA and the COUNTESS follow her.
And now comes this beside. COUNTESS.
Forgive me, brother! It was not in my power.
They know all.
What hast thou done?
COUNTESS (to TERTSKY).
Is there no hope? Is all lost utterly?
All lost. No hope. Prague in the Emperor's hands
The soldiery have ta'en their oaths anew.
That lurking hypocrite, Octavio!
Count Max. is off too?
Where can he be? He's
Gone over to the Emperor with his father.
· [THEKLA rushes out into the arms of her mother,
hiding her face in her bosom,
DUCHESS (infolding her in her arms).
Unhappy child! and more unhappy mother!
WALLENSTEIN (aside to TERTSKY).
Quick! Let a carriage stand in readiness
In the court behind the palace. Scherfenberg
Be their attendant; he is faithful to us;
To Egra he'll conduct them, and we follow.
[To ILLO, who returns.
Thou hast not brought them back?
Hear'st thou the uproar?
The whole corps of the Pappenheimers is
Drawn out: the younger Piccolomini,
Their colonel, they require: for they affirm,
That he is in the palace here, a prisoner;
And if thou dost not instantly deliver him,
Count Tertsky's regiments tear the Imperial Eagle They will find means to free him with the sword.
From off the banners, and instead of it,
Have rear'd aloft thy arms.
ANSPESSADE (abruptly to the Cuirassiers).
Right about! March!
Cursed be this counsel, and accursed who gave it!
[To the Cuirassiers, who are retiring.
Halt, children, halt! There's some mistake in this;
Hark! I will punish it severely. Stop!
They do not hear. (To ILLO). Go after them, assure
them,
And bring them back to me, cost what it may.
[ILLO hurries out.
This hurls us headlong. Butler! Butler!
You are my evil genius: wherefore must you
Announce it in their presence? It was all
In a fair way. They were half won, those madmen
With their improvident over-readiness-
A cruel game is Fortune playing with me.
The zeal of friends it is that razes me,
And not the hate of enemies
To these enter MAX. PICCOLOMINI.
Yes! here he is! I can endure no longer
To creep on tiptoe round this house, and lurk
In ambush for a favorable moment:
This loitering, this suspense exceeds my powers.
[Advancing to THEKLA, who has thrown herself
Turn not thine eyes away. O look upon me!
Confess it freely before all. Fear no one.
Let who will hear that we both love each other.
Wherefore continue to conceal it? Secrecy
Is for the happy-misery, hopeless misery,
Needeth no evil! Beneath a thousand suns
Like as the blind irreconcilable
Fierce element, incapable of compact,
Thy heart's wild impulse only dost thou follow.*
Thou art describing thy own father's heart.
The adder! O, the charms of hell o'erpower'd me
He dwelt within me, to my inmost soul
Still to and fro he pass'd, suspected never!
On the wide ocean, in the starry heaven
Did mine eyes seek the enemy, whom I
In my heart's heart had folded! Had I been
To Ferdinand what Octavio was to me,
War had I ne'er denounced against him. No,
I never could have done it. The Emperor was
My austere master only, not my friend.
There was already war 'twixt him and me
When he deliver'd the Commander's Staff
Into my hands; for there's a natural
[He observes the COUNTESS looking on THEKLA Unceasing war 'twixt cunning and suspicion ;
with expressions of triumph.
No, Lady! No!
Expect not, hope it not. I am not come
To stay to bid farewell, farewell for ever,
For this I come! "Tis over! I must leave thee!
Thekla, I must-must leave thee! Yet thy hatred
Let me not take with me. I pray thee, grant me
One look of sympathy, only one look.
Say that thou dost not hate me. Say it to me, Thekla!
[Grasps her hand.
O God! I cannot leave this spot-I cannot!
Cannot let go this hand. O tell me, Thekla!
That thou dost suffer with me, art convinced
That I can not act otherwise.
[THEKLA, avoiding his look, points with her hand
to her father. Max. turns round to the DUKE,
whom he had not till then perceived.
Thou here? It was not thou, whom here I sought.
I trusted never more to have beheld thee.
My business is with her alone. Here will I
Receive a full acquittal from this heart-
For any other I am no more concern'd.
Think'st thou, that, fool-like, I shall let thee go,
And act the mock-magnanimous with thee?
Thy father is become a villain to me;
I hold thee for his son, and nothing more:
Nor to no purpose shalt thou have been given
Into my power. Think not, that I will honor
That ancient love, which so remorselessly
He mangled. They are now past by, those hours
Of friendship and forgiveness. Hate and vengeance
Succeed 't is now their turn-I too can throw
All feelings of the man aside-can prove
Myself as much a monster as thy father!
MAX. (calmly).
Thou wilt proceed with me, as thou hast power.
Thou know'st, I neither brave nor fear thy rage.
What has detain'd me here, that too thou know'st.
[Taking THEKLA by the hand.
Sce, Duke! All-all would I have owed to thee,
Would have received from thy paternal hand
The lot of blessed spirits. This hast thou
Laid waste for ever-that concerns not thee.
Indifferent thou tramplest in the dust
Their happiness, who most are thine. The god
Whom thou dost serve, is no benignant deity.
Peace exists only betwixt confidence
And faith. Who poisons confidence, he murders
The future generations.
Defend my father. Woe is me, I cannot!
Hard deeds and luckless have ta'en place; one crime
Drags after it the other in close link.
I have here ventured to omit a considerable number of lines. I fear that I should not have done amiss, had I taken this liberty more frequently. It is, however, incumbent on me to give the original with a literal translation.
Weh denen, die auf Dich vertraun, an Dich
Die sichre Hütte ihres Glückes lehnen,
Gelockt von Deiner geistlichen Gestalt,
Schnell unverhofft, bei næchtlich stiller Weile
Gæhrts in dem tückschen Feuerschlunde, ladet
Sich aus mit tobender Gewalt, und weg
Treibt über alle Pflanzungen der Menschen
Der wilde Strom in grausender Zerstærung.
Du schilderst Deines Vaters Herz. Wie Du's
Beschreibst, so ist's in seinem Eingeweide,
In dieser schwarzen Heuchlers Brust gestaltet.
O, mich hat Hallenkunst getauscht! Mir sandte
Der Abgrund den verflecktesten der Geister,
Den Lügenkundigsten herauf, und stellt ihn
Als Freund an meine Seite. Wer vermag
Der Holle Macht zu widerstehn! Ich zog
Den Basilisken auf an meinem Busen,
Mit meinem Herzblut næhrt ich ihn, er sog.
Sich schwelgend voll an meiner Liebe Brüsten,
Ich hatte nimmer Arges gegen ihn,
Weit offen liess ich des Gedankens Thore,
Und warf die Schlüssel weiser Vorsicht weg,
Am Sternenhimmel, etc.
LITERAL TRANSLATION.
Alas! for those who place their confidence on thee, against thee lean the secure hut of their fortune, allured by thy hospitable form. Suddenly, unexpectedly, in a moment still as night, there is a fermentation in the treacherous gulf of fire; it discharges itself with raging force, and away over all the plantations of men drives the wild stream in frightful devastation. Wallenstein. Thou art portraying thy father's heart; as thou describest, even so is it shaped in his entrails, in this black hypocrite's breast. O, the art of hell has deceived me! The Abyss sent up to me the most spotted of the spirits, the most skilful in lies, and placed him as a friend by my side. Who may with stand the power of hell? I took the basilisk to my bosom, with my heart's blood I nourish'd him; he sucked himself glutful at the breasts of my love. I never harbored evil towards him; wide open did I leave the door of my thoughts; I threw away the key of wise foresight. In the starry heaven, etc.-We find a difficulty in believing this to have been written by Schiller.
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