Strike the
intruder
dumb
with scorn !
with scorn !
Krasinski - The Undivine Comedy
Fly !
A Voice {approaching ever nearer). To arms ! To
arms ! To arms !
{Iridion flies forward. )
CHORUS OF THE OLD.
Stop ! stop ! It is the Father of all lies,
Who calls you to destruction !
Iridion. Metella's voice !
Simeon {retaining Iridion). I will not let you go, Hier-
onymus !
Iridion. If I remain, who is to guide them out? {He
moves on, repulsing Simeon. )
I call upon you, O Amphilochus,
Humble these flames of Erebus before me !
376
IRIDION.
Voice of Metella. Near thee, my crown shall be of stars
immortal !
Iridion. O Christ, in whom she trusts, save the un-
fortunate !
{It groivs lighter. Flames break from the earth, Metella
appears in their midst, Iridion rushes forward to save
her. )
CHORUS OF BARBARIANS.
The helmet of our hero flashes lightning !
It disappears in darkness.
Simeon. Hieronymus !
Baj'barian. Sigurd ! our Sigurd, come !
Voice of Iridion. I hasten to you !
(^He returns bearing Metella in his arms. )
Lower the torches ! this way ! follow me !
{Barbarians, Simeon, Christians, etc. , follow Iridion, who,
winding through graves and mounds, bears off Metella
in his arms. The flames fall before him, and the scene
is left in darkness. )
CHORUS OF RETREATING BARBARIANS.
Save us, O Son of man, and Rome shall be
Thrice ruined, burned ! First that she is the foe
Of the gay children of the sunny South,
Of the strong freemen of the frozen North,
And of the human race in every clime !
A Voice in the darkness. Storms, go to rest in these
old pagan graves !
You ashes of the ancients, sleep once more !
{New flames rise from the earth and stand like pillars of
fire. Masinissa appears in their inidst. )
CHORUS OF INFERNALS.
Look ! At thy voice how peaceful we become,
Burning like lamps before a sanctuary !
We, (. lamned, who are to burn eternally,
Immortal victims of immortal woes !
I RID I ON. 377
Masinissa. The hour will come when earth shall be
your prey !
Await it ! . . . Your work to-day must finish here !
You must no farther go.
CHORUS OF INFERNALS.
O victory!
AVe will not live forever in despair,
In night eternal ! We will wreak revenge !
The spirits of the Light will one day ask :
Where is the Earth, our sister? Blotted out !
And He who saved her, cry: Where is my Bride?
For answer we will fling her ashes back.
And they will fly beyond the farthest star !
Masinissa. Peace, O my sons ! The moment of revenge
Still sleeps in the depths of your eternity !
Thousands of human generations stand
Between you and that happy, longed-for hour.
Your power must increase with myriads won ;
Men must have worn out much of present force ;
All creeds must first be deeply dyed in blood,
Then given up as false ; every negation
Be covered o'er with slime, then deified !
Men first must drive their God from his own throne,
Then strive to fill it with their dying forms !
Wait till their pride and nothingness are full,
Till their maturity is only folly,
Till power with them means naught but cruelty !
Jnfernals. And they shall perish !
Masinissa. We must possess their soaring intellect.
Seize on the godlike thought which rests in them,
Make them create worlds farther from the truth,
Extinguish in their souls that spark divine
Which they have ravished from celestial spheres;
Must crown their brows with the meteor gleam of science;
Must put ephemeral sceptres in their hands ;
And make of them the autocrats of earth.
Infernals. And they shall perish !
Masinissa (^going up and down among the flames).
Faith, Hope, and Love, eternal Trinity !
I've broken Thee asunder in the hearts
378 I RID ION.
Of thy most faithful children, even the sons
Of Benediction, — wrung Thy blessing from them !
Thou fillest not with them the vacant thrones
Once filled by us in splendor, light, and bliss !
Thou' It never find such glorious sons again,
Great Enemy, who hast Thyself put out
The blazing stars which were Thy proper glory !
Infenials. Our brilliant Thrones shall ever empty stand !
Our hymns of glory no more fill the sky !
His Psalm-singers shall perish at His feet !
Masinissa. This very night begins your ruin, men !
You, puny souls, shall never fill our thrones !
You will abandon God, as we have Him abandoned !
I/ifernals. And they will come at last to eat our bread,
To dwell in our dark homes, and drink our cups of fire !
Masinissa. How canst Thou love them, deadly Enemy?
They've gone astray from the first spring of earth !
No day has ever passed since they were made
In which, disputing of Thy Nature, Substance,
They have not dimmed Thy Name with sterile questions !
In Thy Great Name they torture, murder, burn !
In Thy Great Name they go forth to oppress !
Through all their knowledge, all their ignorance,
Their reason or their folly, anguish, bliss.
Humility, or pride, their crimes, or virtues.
Their lowly prayers, or blasphemies of pride, —
Thou'rt ever pierced and crucified anew!
Great Foe ! on Heaven's heights Thou yet shalt drain
The cup of gall they held to Thy wrung lips
In Thy last sigh of love for them on earth.
Until, in Thy turn, Thou shalt also curse them,
Until in the midst of all Thy power, glory,
The pangs of baffled love and useless mercy
Shall teach Thee grief . '
Then Thou shalt know what our Hell truly is !
Jnfcrnals. Glory to Him who glitters in the fires
Of reprobation, bright as He once shone
When girded by Heaven's rainbows, fed on Light !
Glory to Him ! and glory unto us !
Masinissa. With His own hand He covereth His
brow,
I RID ION. 379
Furrowed with Heaven's lightning ! In the depths
Of the abyss He nourisheth a Thought
For the war of the last days when ends this world !
Glory to Him !
Our light transmutes to heat, and darkness comes
To overshadow me.
Depart in silence, Brothers !
ACT IV.
SCENE I. A scene in the camp of Alexander, without the
walls of the city. Aristomachus and Lucius Tubero
are in the foreground, while in the background Alexan-
der Severus and Domitian are seefi reclining upon
couches, and conversing in a low tone with each other.
Iridion enters.
Iridiofi. Romans, I seek you in your master's name !
Make your complaints, and I will listen ; answer
To each according to the will of Caesar.
Aristomachus. If you desire to know what we com-
plain of,
You should have come at least a year ago.
We would have told you then ; /'tis now too late ;
For men who take up arms complain no more ;
They threate^i, not obey ; command what they require.
You've seen our soldiers armed, prepared to march : —
You have my answer, Greek.
Iridion. Is this the answer too of Lucius Tubero ?
Tubero. Although my associate is excitable.
More skillful Avith his sword than with his words,
Yet I can add but little to his speech.
From me alone then tell the Emperor :
He made my father open his own veins,
And bleed to death in the bath ! My sister's child
He forced to swallow burning coals ! Remind him, Greek,
How many senators he has deprived
Of life and honor in the last three years !
38o
IRIDION.
Tell him that I, surrounded once by friends,
By ])rosperous relations, am now alone :
The {^\\ he left me, die to-day of famine !
'Tis true we have for them, Eutychian,
Freedmen and concubines wearing the purple !
And, Greek, do not forget to add that he
Has basely shamed a noble Grecian maiden.
(^Iridion draws forth his tablets, and writes tipon them with
his stylus. ^y
What write you there, son of Amphilochus?
Iridion. What you have said, — your name, — your
hour of death !
Proceed, I pray.
Tubero. Danaus, thanks ! Tell him
If he will nail Eutychian to a cross,
Pay from his treasures the sums justly due.
Resign his powers as high-priest, consul, Cassar, —
We may grant him his miserable life,
Let him retain his mistress if she choose,
And send him to that country whence he came
To curse and ruin Rome !
Aristomachus. But bid him haste !
To-morrow's dawn we force the city gates,
One hour later in his palace stand.
Iridion. Is there no more ?
Aristomachus {drawing his sword). Naught but the
flash of steel !
Tubero {also drazuing his sword). Only the sword
can, in a single day,
Wash out in blood the infamy of years !
Aristomachus. With steel we'll hew both crown and
head from Caesar,
And scare the laugh of scorn from the proud lips
Of his confederate !
Iridion. Indeed ? . . . You have
At last divined the scorn which fills my soul
To hear a Roman prate indignantly
Of yokes and chains, symbols of his own shame !
{He laughs. ) Tiberius drove your sires, like beasts, to
pens ;
IRIDION. 381
And Nero, scorned himself, trod them to scorn !
How can you dare complain of any shame ?
You, sons of men who labored to disgrace
And outrage the whole earth ! how dare you speak
Of honor? Mistake not what you really are !
Your race is the most cruel, basest on earth !
Were this not true, would Asia, godlike Greece,
The Hyrcanian Syrtis, the Jazigean wastes,*
And every country which you have subdued,
Lie withered 'neath your desolating breath.
Crumbling in ashes, blighted and destroyed?
You have divined aright, I laugh in scorn ! —
As yet you know not wliat such smiles foretell !
{He stands directly in front of them, and addresses thejfi
in a tone of command. ^
Unless you instantly lay down your arms,
Without delay fall at your Emperor's feet.
Give every tenth man up to meet his vengeance ;
Shame, torture, death await you.
Romans, my mission now with you is over !
Aristomachiis. Away to Caesar ! Tell him to anoint
His hair for festival ! To-morrow eve
He sleeps with Pluto o'er the gloomy Styx!
Iridion {approaching Alexander'). My embassy is now
with Alexander.
Doniitian {to Alexander).
Strike the intruder dumb
with scorn !
Alexander. I cannot !
Iridion. Thy brother greets thee ! He demands to
know
Why at the dead of night thou fled'st his palace?
He orders thy return without delay.
And will commute thy doom of death to banishment !
Alexander {rising suddenly). No ! no ! a thousand
times 1 {To Domitian. )
There's more in this
* Hyrcania was situated on the coast of the Caspian Sea; the Deserts
of the Jaziges between the Don and Dnieper.
^82 I RID ION.
Than meets the ear ! I will hold converse with
Iridion alone. Leave us, my friends !
{^Exeunt all save Alexander and Iridion. ')
The gods of vengeance weave their treacherous mists
Between our souls, son of Amphilochus.
I can no longer read your heart, designs ;
And you no longer seem to know Severus.
Did you not vow a hecatomb to Fortune
That day when justice should have rule in Rome?
Iridion. I vow it still ! Oh, if she would but grant
A single day's, nay, but an hour's, justice,
I might bring Rome itself and immolate
As burning hecatomb upon the shrine
Of this same goddess, Fortune !
Alexander. You wrong me, Greek,
With your ambiguous words. Do you not owe
Me thanks, that I believe not my own eyes,
However clearly they report your perfidy ?
I scarcely know myself why I so long
To love and trust you ; to be loved and trusted !
Iridion. Thanks from my soul, Severus! Ah ! if Fate
Had made me as a man to live with men,
And granted me to soothe my heart with friendship,
I would have chosen you, as honored friend,
From all the world, true Alexander !
It cannot be ! Look ! both our breasts are clad
Li iron, and can but approach in mortal combat !
Alexander. It is not yet too late ! Forsake the tyrant,
Look through the mists gathering between our hearts !
Call me once friend, — and I will never doubt you.
Iridion, where is your P^lsinoe?
Iridion. Where Nemesis and all the Furies chain her !
Alexander. She still is pure as purest vestal virgin ;
Pure as my thoughts of her ! Listen to me . . .
Iridion, stop ! . . . Oh, I conjure you, stay ! . . .
Yes, I have read unutterable pain
In her heroic eyes ! I know she hates him ! . . .
And can her brother fight for one she scorns.
Retain her in a bondage worse than death?
Iridion. Wliy arc your days to be so short and sad,
Young Eagle of the cliff? What will remain
IRIDION. 383
Of all your noble love, your thirst for virtue?
You perish like harmonious sounds, unheard
By men, — known only to the gods !
Alexa7ider. Why gaze upon me with a look so sad?
Yes, I have heard it said your mother bore
A demigod in her prophetic breast !
Iridion. A god of vengeance to the Furies vowed ! . . .
Alas ! The good inherit oft the punishment
Due only to the guilty ! . . .
Son of Mammea, know your hour draws near !
Alexande? -. Would you affright me, Greek?
Iridion. No. I announce
The simple truth. If you should lose, you die
By the hand of the conqueror ; if you should gain,
You perish by the swords of those who used
Your name as standard to advance themselves !
Alexander. Shame upon him who fears that he must die
Before death is upon him ! Shame on him
Who fears to die when the gods call him home !
If danger threatens, stay and share it with me !
From the tiger's jaws I 11 tear the sunny-haired,
Restore to Rome the glories of her spring.
Why do you shudder, brother, wring your hands?
Would Elsinoe's honor, bliss, Rome's fame,
Be bitter to your soul ? Iridion, speak !
Iridion. I recollect that I was sent by Caesar,
To report your answer !
Alexander. Remind me not of him !
And if the gods have given you a heart.
Let the proud memories of Amphilochus,
The agonies of Elsinoe's shame,
Be brands of fire to chase him from his prey !
Sing as your tuneful ancestors once sang :
"Yes, vengeance is the rapture of the gods. "
Iridion. Oh, innocence ! {He presses his hand. ) For
the last time on earth
I press your hand ! for the last time, Severus !
We both stand on the border of the grave.
Before the rosy dawn shall three times tint
The sky, or you or I, it may be both.
Will cross the Styx to Erebus ! {Exit Iridion. )
384 I RID I ON.
SCENE II. A hall in the palace of the Ccesars adorned
with pillars, statues, costly vases, and tripods ; an altar
dedicated to Mithras a? id dazzling tvith gold stands in
the centre ; i? i the backgrotmd, a heavy curtain of purple
hangs to the floor between two pillars of gold, its clasps
are of precious stones. Before it is seated Elsinoe, clad
in purple and glittering i7i jewels. Iridion enters armed
afid helmeted.
Iridio7i {looking around). Where is the Accursed ?
Elsijioe {poi filing to the curtain). There! There!
His body rests
On violets ; his soul in the Furies' lap !
I choked within the curtain, and came forth
To breathe a moment's liberty.
Iridion. Spake he of me before he went to sleep?
Hast thou prepared him, as I counseled thee ?
Elsinoe. He has accepted all, but wept, and beat
His head against the wall. He called Eutychian,
Threw himself on his breast and pressed his hands,
Not daring yet to tell him he had given
Command of the pratorians to thee.
He told him that he hoped by gentle means
And promises thou would'st win back the rebels.
He begged me pray for him to my fierce gods ;
Then weeping sprang upon his perfumed couch,
And tossed and twisted like a wounded serpent !
Iridion. We must awake him !
Elsinoe. Brother, come with me !
{Elsinoe unclasps the curtain, behind which Heliogabalus
is seen asleep upon a couch of roses and violets. Iridion
and Elsinoe stand for a moment gazing upon him. )
Iridion. Hush ! those half-open lips are trembling into
speech.
Elsinoe. Curses upon them, whether they sleep or
wake !
Heliogabalus {in his sleep). Iri . . . my Iri . . . why
dost thou forsake me ?
Elsinoe. He dreams of thee !
Heliogabalus. Elsi . , . my Elsi . . . why dost thou
forsake me ?
IRIDION. 385
Ehino~e. The child of Crimhild never has been thine !
Iridic n {placing his hand upon the Emperor).
Wake, Emperor, wake !
Heliogabalus (rising). Who calls? Where am I ?
Speak !
Is it thou, my Elsi ? Thou, Iridion ?
Here are my roses ! My blue violets !
Here my dear smoking tripods ! Elsinoe !
{Be takes the hands of Elsinoe and Iridion, and comes for-
ward. )
I agonized — thy voice called back to life !
Iridion. What didst thou dream to affright thy spirit
thus?
Heliogabalus. Oh 'twas a fearful dream, Iridion !
When first I went to sleep, I thought I saw
All nations, peoples, shrink into a dwarf.
Who, powerless and in chains, lay on the ground ;
My white and dazzling foot upon his head
Shone like a shell in its transparency !
My throne blazed with the splendor of Olympus,
And Rome was burning, as thou saidst it should ;
From east to west the bright flames swept the sky !
There were no men to kill us anywhere,
For with my foot I kneaded the whole race
Into the Dwarf, who mangled lay before me.
Iridion. The gods themselves have given the wished-
for sign.
Heliogabalus. Alas ! Not so ! Then great confusion
came;
The dead seemed rising from the catacombs,
The circus, mausoleums, unknown graves ;
Victor, and the Apulians, Tubero,
Lucius, and the dead men who set my gems.
And crowds and crowds of ghastly, wormy forms,
Rode on the air, and scowled, and breathed on me !
Then suddenly, on the horizon's verge,
I saw appear my father, Caracalla ;
His head was crowned with coiled and hissing vipers,
And in each hand he held a human skull ;
His purple robes were dabbled o'er with gore;
He tottered in the midst of burning cinders,
33*
386 IRIDION.
And as he fell, he cried : " My son ! My son ! "
Then the dead marched and marched, and rushed upon
me,
The Dwarf began to laugh, and toss my foot
From off his head, and grew to myriad men !
They marched and marched, their togas wrapped around
Their left arms, while drawn swords were in their right !
Thou wert beside me, and she too was there ! .
A Voice {approaching ever nearer). To arms ! To
arms ! To arms !
{Iridion flies forward. )
CHORUS OF THE OLD.
Stop ! stop ! It is the Father of all lies,
Who calls you to destruction !
Iridion. Metella's voice !
Simeon {retaining Iridion). I will not let you go, Hier-
onymus !
Iridion. If I remain, who is to guide them out? {He
moves on, repulsing Simeon. )
I call upon you, O Amphilochus,
Humble these flames of Erebus before me !
376
IRIDION.
Voice of Metella. Near thee, my crown shall be of stars
immortal !
Iridion. O Christ, in whom she trusts, save the un-
fortunate !
{It groivs lighter. Flames break from the earth, Metella
appears in their midst, Iridion rushes forward to save
her. )
CHORUS OF BARBARIANS.
The helmet of our hero flashes lightning !
It disappears in darkness.
Simeon. Hieronymus !
Baj'barian. Sigurd ! our Sigurd, come !
Voice of Iridion. I hasten to you !
(^He returns bearing Metella in his arms. )
Lower the torches ! this way ! follow me !
{Barbarians, Simeon, Christians, etc. , follow Iridion, who,
winding through graves and mounds, bears off Metella
in his arms. The flames fall before him, and the scene
is left in darkness. )
CHORUS OF RETREATING BARBARIANS.
Save us, O Son of man, and Rome shall be
Thrice ruined, burned ! First that she is the foe
Of the gay children of the sunny South,
Of the strong freemen of the frozen North,
And of the human race in every clime !
A Voice in the darkness. Storms, go to rest in these
old pagan graves !
You ashes of the ancients, sleep once more !
{New flames rise from the earth and stand like pillars of
fire. Masinissa appears in their inidst. )
CHORUS OF INFERNALS.
Look ! At thy voice how peaceful we become,
Burning like lamps before a sanctuary !
We, (. lamned, who are to burn eternally,
Immortal victims of immortal woes !
I RID I ON. 377
Masinissa. The hour will come when earth shall be
your prey !
Await it ! . . . Your work to-day must finish here !
You must no farther go.
CHORUS OF INFERNALS.
O victory!
AVe will not live forever in despair,
In night eternal ! We will wreak revenge !
The spirits of the Light will one day ask :
Where is the Earth, our sister? Blotted out !
And He who saved her, cry: Where is my Bride?
For answer we will fling her ashes back.
And they will fly beyond the farthest star !
Masinissa. Peace, O my sons ! The moment of revenge
Still sleeps in the depths of your eternity !
Thousands of human generations stand
Between you and that happy, longed-for hour.
Your power must increase with myriads won ;
Men must have worn out much of present force ;
All creeds must first be deeply dyed in blood,
Then given up as false ; every negation
Be covered o'er with slime, then deified !
Men first must drive their God from his own throne,
Then strive to fill it with their dying forms !
Wait till their pride and nothingness are full,
Till their maturity is only folly,
Till power with them means naught but cruelty !
Jnfernals. And they shall perish !
Masinissa. We must possess their soaring intellect.
Seize on the godlike thought which rests in them,
Make them create worlds farther from the truth,
Extinguish in their souls that spark divine
Which they have ravished from celestial spheres;
Must crown their brows with the meteor gleam of science;
Must put ephemeral sceptres in their hands ;
And make of them the autocrats of earth.
Infernals. And they shall perish !
Masinissa (^going up and down among the flames).
Faith, Hope, and Love, eternal Trinity !
I've broken Thee asunder in the hearts
378 I RID ION.
Of thy most faithful children, even the sons
Of Benediction, — wrung Thy blessing from them !
Thou fillest not with them the vacant thrones
Once filled by us in splendor, light, and bliss !
Thou' It never find such glorious sons again,
Great Enemy, who hast Thyself put out
The blazing stars which were Thy proper glory !
Infenials. Our brilliant Thrones shall ever empty stand !
Our hymns of glory no more fill the sky !
His Psalm-singers shall perish at His feet !
Masinissa. This very night begins your ruin, men !
You, puny souls, shall never fill our thrones !
You will abandon God, as we have Him abandoned !
I/ifernals. And they will come at last to eat our bread,
To dwell in our dark homes, and drink our cups of fire !
Masinissa. How canst Thou love them, deadly Enemy?
They've gone astray from the first spring of earth !
No day has ever passed since they were made
In which, disputing of Thy Nature, Substance,
They have not dimmed Thy Name with sterile questions !
In Thy Great Name they torture, murder, burn !
In Thy Great Name they go forth to oppress !
Through all their knowledge, all their ignorance,
Their reason or their folly, anguish, bliss.
Humility, or pride, their crimes, or virtues.
Their lowly prayers, or blasphemies of pride, —
Thou'rt ever pierced and crucified anew!
Great Foe ! on Heaven's heights Thou yet shalt drain
The cup of gall they held to Thy wrung lips
In Thy last sigh of love for them on earth.
Until, in Thy turn, Thou shalt also curse them,
Until in the midst of all Thy power, glory,
The pangs of baffled love and useless mercy
Shall teach Thee grief . '
Then Thou shalt know what our Hell truly is !
Jnfcrnals. Glory to Him who glitters in the fires
Of reprobation, bright as He once shone
When girded by Heaven's rainbows, fed on Light !
Glory to Him ! and glory unto us !
Masinissa. With His own hand He covereth His
brow,
I RID ION. 379
Furrowed with Heaven's lightning ! In the depths
Of the abyss He nourisheth a Thought
For the war of the last days when ends this world !
Glory to Him !
Our light transmutes to heat, and darkness comes
To overshadow me.
Depart in silence, Brothers !
ACT IV.
SCENE I. A scene in the camp of Alexander, without the
walls of the city. Aristomachus and Lucius Tubero
are in the foreground, while in the background Alexan-
der Severus and Domitian are seefi reclining upon
couches, and conversing in a low tone with each other.
Iridion enters.
Iridiofi. Romans, I seek you in your master's name !
Make your complaints, and I will listen ; answer
To each according to the will of Caesar.
Aristomachus. If you desire to know what we com-
plain of,
You should have come at least a year ago.
We would have told you then ; /'tis now too late ;
For men who take up arms complain no more ;
They threate^i, not obey ; command what they require.
You've seen our soldiers armed, prepared to march : —
You have my answer, Greek.
Iridion. Is this the answer too of Lucius Tubero ?
Tubero. Although my associate is excitable.
More skillful Avith his sword than with his words,
Yet I can add but little to his speech.
From me alone then tell the Emperor :
He made my father open his own veins,
And bleed to death in the bath ! My sister's child
He forced to swallow burning coals ! Remind him, Greek,
How many senators he has deprived
Of life and honor in the last three years !
38o
IRIDION.
Tell him that I, surrounded once by friends,
By ])rosperous relations, am now alone :
The {^\\ he left me, die to-day of famine !
'Tis true we have for them, Eutychian,
Freedmen and concubines wearing the purple !
And, Greek, do not forget to add that he
Has basely shamed a noble Grecian maiden.
(^Iridion draws forth his tablets, and writes tipon them with
his stylus. ^y
What write you there, son of Amphilochus?
Iridion. What you have said, — your name, — your
hour of death !
Proceed, I pray.
Tubero. Danaus, thanks ! Tell him
If he will nail Eutychian to a cross,
Pay from his treasures the sums justly due.
Resign his powers as high-priest, consul, Cassar, —
We may grant him his miserable life,
Let him retain his mistress if she choose,
And send him to that country whence he came
To curse and ruin Rome !
Aristomachus. But bid him haste !
To-morrow's dawn we force the city gates,
One hour later in his palace stand.
Iridion. Is there no more ?
Aristomachus {drawing his sword). Naught but the
flash of steel !
Tubero {also drazuing his sword). Only the sword
can, in a single day,
Wash out in blood the infamy of years !
Aristomachus. With steel we'll hew both crown and
head from Caesar,
And scare the laugh of scorn from the proud lips
Of his confederate !
Iridion. Indeed ? . . . You have
At last divined the scorn which fills my soul
To hear a Roman prate indignantly
Of yokes and chains, symbols of his own shame !
{He laughs. ) Tiberius drove your sires, like beasts, to
pens ;
IRIDION. 381
And Nero, scorned himself, trod them to scorn !
How can you dare complain of any shame ?
You, sons of men who labored to disgrace
And outrage the whole earth ! how dare you speak
Of honor? Mistake not what you really are !
Your race is the most cruel, basest on earth !
Were this not true, would Asia, godlike Greece,
The Hyrcanian Syrtis, the Jazigean wastes,*
And every country which you have subdued,
Lie withered 'neath your desolating breath.
Crumbling in ashes, blighted and destroyed?
You have divined aright, I laugh in scorn ! —
As yet you know not wliat such smiles foretell !
{He stands directly in front of them, and addresses thejfi
in a tone of command. ^
Unless you instantly lay down your arms,
Without delay fall at your Emperor's feet.
Give every tenth man up to meet his vengeance ;
Shame, torture, death await you.
Romans, my mission now with you is over !
Aristomachiis. Away to Caesar ! Tell him to anoint
His hair for festival ! To-morrow eve
He sleeps with Pluto o'er the gloomy Styx!
Iridion {approaching Alexander'). My embassy is now
with Alexander.
Doniitian {to Alexander).
Strike the intruder dumb
with scorn !
Alexander. I cannot !
Iridion. Thy brother greets thee ! He demands to
know
Why at the dead of night thou fled'st his palace?
He orders thy return without delay.
And will commute thy doom of death to banishment !
Alexander {rising suddenly). No ! no ! a thousand
times 1 {To Domitian. )
There's more in this
* Hyrcania was situated on the coast of the Caspian Sea; the Deserts
of the Jaziges between the Don and Dnieper.
^82 I RID ION.
Than meets the ear ! I will hold converse with
Iridion alone. Leave us, my friends !
{^Exeunt all save Alexander and Iridion. ')
The gods of vengeance weave their treacherous mists
Between our souls, son of Amphilochus.
I can no longer read your heart, designs ;
And you no longer seem to know Severus.
Did you not vow a hecatomb to Fortune
That day when justice should have rule in Rome?
Iridion. I vow it still ! Oh, if she would but grant
A single day's, nay, but an hour's, justice,
I might bring Rome itself and immolate
As burning hecatomb upon the shrine
Of this same goddess, Fortune !
Alexander. You wrong me, Greek,
With your ambiguous words. Do you not owe
Me thanks, that I believe not my own eyes,
However clearly they report your perfidy ?
I scarcely know myself why I so long
To love and trust you ; to be loved and trusted !
Iridion. Thanks from my soul, Severus! Ah ! if Fate
Had made me as a man to live with men,
And granted me to soothe my heart with friendship,
I would have chosen you, as honored friend,
From all the world, true Alexander !
It cannot be ! Look ! both our breasts are clad
Li iron, and can but approach in mortal combat !
Alexander. It is not yet too late ! Forsake the tyrant,
Look through the mists gathering between our hearts !
Call me once friend, — and I will never doubt you.
Iridion, where is your P^lsinoe?
Iridion. Where Nemesis and all the Furies chain her !
Alexander. She still is pure as purest vestal virgin ;
Pure as my thoughts of her ! Listen to me . . .
Iridion, stop ! . . . Oh, I conjure you, stay ! . . .
Yes, I have read unutterable pain
In her heroic eyes ! I know she hates him ! . . .
And can her brother fight for one she scorns.
Retain her in a bondage worse than death?
Iridion. Wliy arc your days to be so short and sad,
Young Eagle of the cliff? What will remain
IRIDION. 383
Of all your noble love, your thirst for virtue?
You perish like harmonious sounds, unheard
By men, — known only to the gods !
Alexa7ider. Why gaze upon me with a look so sad?
Yes, I have heard it said your mother bore
A demigod in her prophetic breast !
Iridion. A god of vengeance to the Furies vowed ! . . .
Alas ! The good inherit oft the punishment
Due only to the guilty ! . . .
Son of Mammea, know your hour draws near !
Alexande? -. Would you affright me, Greek?
Iridion. No. I announce
The simple truth. If you should lose, you die
By the hand of the conqueror ; if you should gain,
You perish by the swords of those who used
Your name as standard to advance themselves !
Alexander. Shame upon him who fears that he must die
Before death is upon him ! Shame on him
Who fears to die when the gods call him home !
If danger threatens, stay and share it with me !
From the tiger's jaws I 11 tear the sunny-haired,
Restore to Rome the glories of her spring.
Why do you shudder, brother, wring your hands?
Would Elsinoe's honor, bliss, Rome's fame,
Be bitter to your soul ? Iridion, speak !
Iridion. I recollect that I was sent by Caesar,
To report your answer !
Alexander. Remind me not of him !
And if the gods have given you a heart.
Let the proud memories of Amphilochus,
The agonies of Elsinoe's shame,
Be brands of fire to chase him from his prey !
Sing as your tuneful ancestors once sang :
"Yes, vengeance is the rapture of the gods. "
Iridion. Oh, innocence ! {He presses his hand. ) For
the last time on earth
I press your hand ! for the last time, Severus !
We both stand on the border of the grave.
Before the rosy dawn shall three times tint
The sky, or you or I, it may be both.
Will cross the Styx to Erebus ! {Exit Iridion. )
384 I RID I ON.
SCENE II. A hall in the palace of the Ccesars adorned
with pillars, statues, costly vases, and tripods ; an altar
dedicated to Mithras a? id dazzling tvith gold stands in
the centre ; i? i the backgrotmd, a heavy curtain of purple
hangs to the floor between two pillars of gold, its clasps
are of precious stones. Before it is seated Elsinoe, clad
in purple and glittering i7i jewels. Iridion enters armed
afid helmeted.
Iridio7i {looking around). Where is the Accursed ?
Elsijioe {poi filing to the curtain). There! There!
His body rests
On violets ; his soul in the Furies' lap !
I choked within the curtain, and came forth
To breathe a moment's liberty.
Iridion. Spake he of me before he went to sleep?
Hast thou prepared him, as I counseled thee ?
Elsinoe. He has accepted all, but wept, and beat
His head against the wall. He called Eutychian,
Threw himself on his breast and pressed his hands,
Not daring yet to tell him he had given
Command of the pratorians to thee.
He told him that he hoped by gentle means
And promises thou would'st win back the rebels.
He begged me pray for him to my fierce gods ;
Then weeping sprang upon his perfumed couch,
And tossed and twisted like a wounded serpent !
Iridion. We must awake him !
Elsinoe. Brother, come with me !
{Elsinoe unclasps the curtain, behind which Heliogabalus
is seen asleep upon a couch of roses and violets. Iridion
and Elsinoe stand for a moment gazing upon him. )
Iridion. Hush ! those half-open lips are trembling into
speech.
Elsinoe. Curses upon them, whether they sleep or
wake !
Heliogabalus {in his sleep). Iri . . . my Iri . . . why
dost thou forsake me ?
Elsinoe. He dreams of thee !
Heliogabalus. Elsi . , . my Elsi . . . why dost thou
forsake me ?
IRIDION. 385
Ehino~e. The child of Crimhild never has been thine !
Iridic n {placing his hand upon the Emperor).
Wake, Emperor, wake !
Heliogabalus (rising). Who calls? Where am I ?
Speak !
Is it thou, my Elsi ? Thou, Iridion ?
Here are my roses ! My blue violets !
Here my dear smoking tripods ! Elsinoe !
{Be takes the hands of Elsinoe and Iridion, and comes for-
ward. )
I agonized — thy voice called back to life !
Iridion. What didst thou dream to affright thy spirit
thus?
Heliogabalus. Oh 'twas a fearful dream, Iridion !
When first I went to sleep, I thought I saw
All nations, peoples, shrink into a dwarf.
Who, powerless and in chains, lay on the ground ;
My white and dazzling foot upon his head
Shone like a shell in its transparency !
My throne blazed with the splendor of Olympus,
And Rome was burning, as thou saidst it should ;
From east to west the bright flames swept the sky !
There were no men to kill us anywhere,
For with my foot I kneaded the whole race
Into the Dwarf, who mangled lay before me.
Iridion. The gods themselves have given the wished-
for sign.
Heliogabalus. Alas ! Not so ! Then great confusion
came;
The dead seemed rising from the catacombs,
The circus, mausoleums, unknown graves ;
Victor, and the Apulians, Tubero,
Lucius, and the dead men who set my gems.
And crowds and crowds of ghastly, wormy forms,
Rode on the air, and scowled, and breathed on me !
Then suddenly, on the horizon's verge,
I saw appear my father, Caracalla ;
His head was crowned with coiled and hissing vipers,
And in each hand he held a human skull ;
His purple robes were dabbled o'er with gore;
He tottered in the midst of burning cinders,
33*
386 IRIDION.
And as he fell, he cried : " My son ! My son ! "
Then the dead marched and marched, and rushed upon
me,
The Dwarf began to laugh, and toss my foot
From off his head, and grew to myriad men !
They marched and marched, their togas wrapped around
Their left arms, while drawn swords were in their right !
Thou wert beside me, and she too was there ! .
