Did He not bless the poor
Because of their humility ?
Because of their humility ?
Krasinski - The Undivine Comedy
Son, I know
The solid earth is changeful in its pride
As are the waves before the breath of winds, —
But that must not disturb peace 'midst these graves !
We'll pray beneath the shade of the martyrs' palms;
Those broken newly by Athanador.
Iridion. Father, our future lies with jiw/ alone !
Your words throw men by thousands in the scales;
Victory is won wliere they preponderate.
Victor. In the invisible kingdom of the Lord,
IRIDION.
349
By prayer and sacrifice I can combat
The princes of the earth ; if you will all
Unite your prayers earnestly with mine
To the Most High — I promise victory !
Iridion. I speak of instant combat, certain triumph !
Father, we are but men ; must suffer, feel,
And hope as men ; and must as men require
A base terrestrial for our daring acts !
Until this hour a cruel power enslaves us ;
We have chosen woe and death rather than crime,
Or to bow low before debauch, corruption !
Insensate pride, senile decrepitude.
Oppressing all the nations of the earth,
Are now the forces ruling this great city :
The Emperor has not sufficient strength
To keep what yet he holds ; nor Alexander
Weight enough to inaugurate a government ;
The power possessed by both will be destroyed
In the approaching conflict. We cry to you !
Will any of you, leaders in the faith,
Strengthen your souls for struggle ; tear the cross
From these dark vaults and bowels of the earth ;
Plant it in glory on the Roman Forum? '
I see the storm-clouds gathering on your brow;
Forgive me that I feel my brothers' shame,
And know the hour is come to hurl down Jove !
Victor. I've heard your words in grief, Hieronyraus.
Baptismal waters have I vainly poured
Upon your head, and vainly taught you of
The blessed world beyond the dreary grave ;
You do not understand the truth, nor cast
The old man, full of sin, from out your heart.
Your fault is deep. You place your hope in steel,
And thirst for temporal success.
{^Funeral chants are heard in the distance. )
Hear you the chants now echoing through these graves,
Like the last sighing of the pitiless storm
In which the Son of God, bowing His head.
Gave up the Ghost in direst agony?
He called not hosts of angels to His aid,
Nor asked for vengeance on His murderers !
30*
35°
IRIDION.
Iridion. Then creeping shame and misery are to be
Our everlasting portion ?
Victor. In your impatient pride,
You err to call a jnoment everlasting.
I tell you it is true *' that only guests
Sleep in this House. "* Not only within Heaven,
But on our fields of Pain, Love will at last
Be conqueror ! All peoples shall bow down
Before Him, and no Cresar shall there be
Who bendeth not the knee before the Lord !
Know you this figure, son?
Iridion. A Grecian lute,
Such as my fathers used, with four chords strung;
It is the Lycaonian Orpheus. ^
Victor. It is a type of Christ. As Orpheus tamed
The wild beasts with his lyre, so our dear Lord
By His harmonious word unites in love
The thronging millions. When we see this lute
We think of the innumerable choirs
Of spirits acting on this earth, we seize
The harmonies that from the Cross's foot
Already penetrate to distant nations.
The Son of God lives by His own great Power,
And has no need of men at arms. i^He makes the sign of
the cross uj^on Iridion'' s brow. ') Believe,
And sin no more. As father truly pained
By a son's fault, I've given you this warning;
Should you renew the error, I must act
As shepherd of my flock, and punish you
As judge and guardian of this Christian people.
( Chorus heard advancing. ^
CHORUS.
We call upon thee from the depths, O Lord !
Receive the martyr's soul into Thy bosom;
Christ Jesus, let him in Thy glory rest!
In dying, ])rayed he for his murderers.
{The funeral train appears, bearing the martyr on a bier ; the
* An inscription graven upon the catacombs : " Coemetcrium est domus
in qua hospites dormire sclent. "
IRIDION.
351
decapitated head rests on his breast; nieti in long black robes
bear torches ; the procession is closed by women clad in
white, wearing close veils. )
Victor. Give me the symbol of his martyrdom,
Sign sacred upon earth as in the Heavens!
(77/(? Pro-Christum is brought to him. *" He takes it with
emotion and places it upon the breast of the corpse. ^
Thine own blood, shed by thee for the Son of man,
I give thee in thy coffin, that thou mayst
Arise with it upon the Judgment Day!
{He kneels at the side of the corpse ; all kneel with him. ^
O Thou who took'st upon Thyself the form
Of the wretched, that the wretched might be saved,
Deliver us from sin ! Wash in Thy Blood,
O Christ, receive into eternal rest.
Thy servant's soul whose pilgrimage is o'er,
Whose wanderings are ended upon earth!
The Voice of a Virgin. Let him behold Thy sacred
face, O Lord !
Another Virgin. And give him such a spring as earth
ne'er knew!
Jridion. From all temptation to avenge him, save us.
Lord!
Chorus. Who speaks of vengeance in this holy hour?
Victor {risi? ig from his knees). Happy are they who
die in the Lord; they rest
From their labors: their works do follow them !
{He lifts up his hands over the kneeling people. )
Rise ! bear the body to Faustinus' tomb !
{All rise. He places himself at the head of the procession,
which moves slowly on, Iridion alone remaining. As the
Virgins pass, Cornelia Metella leaves their ranks and
stands before Iridion. )
Metella. Will you not join us, Hieronymus?
Iridion. I cannot. I must elsewhere pass this night.
Metella. Where? Where?
Iridion. Where you would tremble for your soul.
Although the Christian star were rising there !
Metella. Some plot, I know, is ripening 'midst these
graves !
352
IRIDION.
Simeon of Corinth stumbled against me
But yesterday; he did not even see
Me as he passed; a lion's skin around
His shoulders hung, and his eyes gazed in space,
Glaring with rage and tumult. Ah, wretched me!
Iridion. Why "wretched," sister? The Pastor of the
flock
Declares you purest of the Christian maids,
Nay, one of the Elect: what would you more?
Aletella. Brother, such words seem strange upon your
lips.
Iridion. Metella, seem they so?
Metella. Yes, — you are changed !
Are you the brother whom I taught to pray,
With whom I knelt upon Euphemia's grave?
The very same baptized Hieronymus?
Iridion. The same. Metella, see !
Metella. I've prayed so long;
Fasted so many days and nights, and . . .
Iridion. And you will thus win Heaven, I do not
doubt.
Metella. I prayed not for myself, — no, not myself.
Iridion. For whom? Metella, speak!
Metella. A brother who . . ,
Iridion. A brother ? Speak !
Metella. How terrible you are !
Iridion. Tell me his name ! Ay, whosoe'er he be,
He shall be yours. It were i^x better so !
But hasten, maiden ! There will be no time
Left for betrothals by the Cross you love ;
But I will see you married, richly dowered.
And sent to Thebes, where you may live in peace.
Passion has gained the soul of the Elect !
{^Ile laughs scornfully. ')
Metella. Why, brother, are you mad ?
Iridion. His name ! His name !
Metella. His name was Hieronymus ! such as
I knew him once, devout and calm, not he
Who like a very madman stands by me,
Whose eyes roll wildly in their sockets. Apage !
JRIDION.
353
Iridion. Pure, blessed maiden ! Nay, Metella, look,
I'm calm and tranquil now !
Metella. And gentle as of old ?
Iridion. Humble and calm near thee !
Metella. But humble before God?
Iridion. See, I will kneel here at your feet and call
Upon the name of Christ !
Aletella. Then promise me
You will not join these men ; you will not arm
For worldly strife or aim.
Iridion. You know not what you ask.
Metella. But promise me !
Iridio? i. I am myself to lead them !
Metella. Woe ! Woe is me !
Iridion. Have you not heard it said
By holy men the appointed time draws nearp^
Remember the words spoken by the Lord
To His disciples, when about to leave them.
That He would come again, and rule o'er them.
Revealed He not to His beloved John
On Patmos' lonely shore, that Babylon
Should surely fall ; the Just inherit Earth ?
Metella. Yes, at some future time. Not now ! not
now !
Iridion. Metella, now or never it must be !
Metella. Victor condemned Eugene for teaching thus !
Iridion. The Romans killed Eudore for teaching thus !
Metella. Come to the Bishop and confess your sins,
And, like a" faithful child, be ruled by him.
Iridion. Nay, I can only be a child with you,
And that but for a fleeting moment, like
A flying wave that never can return.
Beyond your gaze, and I must bathe in blood !
No grass must grow where my horse sets his hoof!
Metella. My brother, you blaspheme !
Iridion. Not so. I but
Divine the coming triumphs of your God !
Aletella. His lessons teach not bloodshed nor re-
venge.
He pardons all.
Did He not bless the poor
Because of their humility ? Did He
354
IRIDION.
Not promise Heaven itself to little children,
For their docility and innocence?
L-idion. That was at first ! The weak have now grown
strong;
The children now are men.
Metella. Have mercy, Heaven !
Strike him not dead before my pitying eyes !
What do I say ? Am I not vowed to God ?
For the first time I dread the unseen world !
Who is this standing close beside me here?
The wings spread o'er me like a monstrous pall !
How dark it grows ! How cold ! I shiver ! fear !
Iridion. Let me support you ! Lean on my strong
arm !
Metella. Brother, I see it all ! Grace will be given !
Angels and fiends in combat, — love will win !
I know that I was born to save your soul !
Iridion. Not you nor any other can slake the thirst
That burns, destroys my soul. Even if our God
Called not so audibly upon us now.
And if the saints had promised not their aid, —
I would commence the work unseconded, alone !
Metella, do not start away from me;
Perhaps we'll never meet on earth again !
I have related you my mother's fate,
But the great object of my father's life
I have not yet revealed to you. Be strong,
And drop by drop prepare to drink with me
The secret poison that consumes my soul !
Metella. " Perhaps we'll never meet on earth again" ?
The last time, did you say? Hieronymus!
Iridion {seating himself at the foot of the sarcophagus
against which she leans).
Upon the thirteenth anniversary
Of Crimhild's death, Amphilochus sent for me,
Wishing to speak with me without delay.
For many days before I had remarked
A mortal pallor on his suffering face.
" My son," he said, " let them prepare a feast
Within the Delphian Apollo's Hall ;
1 RID ION. 355
For the last time in life we sit to-day
At the same table. Thy mother's God pursues
Me still in vengeance, and before the sun
Again pours his full radiance over earth,
I shall have gone forever and forever 1"
Great sadness seized me as I left his room
To obey his command. He spent the day shut up
With the old man from Mauritania.
Sometimes their voices swelled upon the ear;
Then died away like a retreating fight,
Till all was lost in long and utter silence.
At last they came together to the hall
Of festival.
Metella. A shiver like a cold snake chills my vems!
Iridion. My father pressed my sister to his heart,
Then gently putting her aside, he said :
"That which thy brother shall command thee, do
For love of me ! "
No other word he spake to the weeping girl,
But pouring a libation to the gods.
He drank from a Greek goblet, myrtle-crowned :
" The memory of great men ! "
A freedman read to him from Plato's Phsedon.
After the reading ceased, he ordered up
A hundred slaves, and gave them all their freedom.
In answer to their thanks, he said : "As I
Now break your chains, remember you must break
The chains of slaves, your brothers ! Ever remain
To my House faithful ! Always obey my son !
What he shall order, you will do for me ! "
His face glowed with a radiance soft as eve
When shadows first begin to dim the sky,
The purple hues still lingering in the west.
{^A moment of silejice. )
Then in the Palace of my Fathers fell
That gloomy night which sealed my fate forever !
Fire flashed from every tripod, while from time to time
Old Masinissa cast fresh incense on them.
My father's manly head at last reposed
Upon the bosom of his friend ; his life
Went slowly out ;— suffering could not destroy
356
IRIDION.
His dignity, although on his cahii face
We read the anguish of resigning plans
Long cherished, — far from their accomplishment !
Vainly the agonies of death increased,
The cold scorn on his lips alone revealed
His suffering as it ever deeper grew :
He died as the gods live ! . . .
Metella. I see ! I see him ! Where is his guardian
angel ? . . .
Iridio7i. 'Twas then he left to me his plans of ven-
geance,
And traced that future which he longed to mould.
Laying his hand upon my head, he said :
" Thou shalt not bow thy head to aught on earth !
Thou shalt not lose thy faith in evil hours !
Thou shalt not pardon ever ! — Thou shalt pursue
Thy vengeance always ! Thou shalt keep back naught
In weak compassion, but trample o'er the forms
Of those already fallen, so to reach
And ruin those who still may stand beyond !
Thy soul shall never know weakness nor pity !
Never despair ! As the young moon in Heaven,
So wax the nations upon earth, again to wane.
The star of Rome stands at this very hour
Upon the horizon's verge, ready to sink
In the abyss of darkness, ruin, death ! "
And thus he spake and taught me all that night,
Revealing to me a new life : — meanwhile,
Ever more heavy grew the vengeful hand
Of a fierce God upon my dying sire.
And when the kindling rays of that sunrise
Which he was not to see lighted the East,
He held his hands above my head : — I swore
To obey him, — never to know a hope ;
Never to yield to pity ! Never to love !
To offer my young bloom on Hellas' shrine !
I've sworn to live but to destroy, Metella !
Metella. Forgive him, Christ ! He knows not what
he says !
Iridion. Then Masinissa ])oured a smoking cup
Of blood upon my head, and on my father's hands.
I RID ION. 357
The first rays of the sun shone on the bed
Of the dying Greek : " Hellas ! Remember Hellas ! "
He cried in tones of quivering passionate love ;
Then looked around him like a conqueror
Through victory transfigured to a god !
******
Metella, vengeance is my heritage,
And with this vengeance I will live — or die !
Metella. But upon whom will you revenge yourself?
Who injures you? injured Amphilochus?
Iridion. Who drives jiw/ down into these catacombs?
Would give you to the lions, were it known
You were a Christian? Who assails your God,
And tramples the divine out in the soul?
Know you naught of the history of the past?
I'll teach it you, Metella, as Christ taught
The hidden meaning of the Holy Scriptures
To the disciples on their way to Emmaus,
The night of the world was near; the innocent flowers
Of morning withered, and the fire of youth
Died into misery on the shores of Egypt ;*
Once more the voices of the Free swelled on
From the wild North ;t then they died out again,
And slavery ruled the world. A single man,
Amphilochus, stood boldly up, and cried :
" I will bring back again your ancient glory :
We will destroy the Destroyer of the world ! "
Daughter of Christ, the Merciful, could you
Condemn this man, whose constant task it was
To strike the fetters from the limbs of slaves.
Restore the wretched, teach the deaf and dumb
The sweet speech spoken in their Father's house.
And bring the oppressed and wandering exiles home ?
Has He not thus announced the coming of
The God of love? John cried out from the depths
Of the wide desert that the Son of man.
The Lord of hope, was coming to the world,
But that He would be crucified, and die
* Allusion to the rcis^n of Lagides.
f Allusion to Mithridates.
31
358 I RID I ON.
In agony ! My father has declared
His second coming, and made straight the way
Before Him who comes conquering and to conquer;
Before Him who will rule in justice, peace;
In whom, Metella, you do not believe !
Mctella. I not believe?
Iridion {seizing hei- by the ami). No. You believe
that He
Will give His world a prey to cruel Rome ;
Nor e'er be satiated with the blood
Of His adoring, faithful, murdered people!
Metella. Lost soul ! eternal fire shines in his eye . . .
The lambent flame of God's own cherubim !
Iridion. Believe ! You know not what a day may
bring ;
Nor what I may effect even on the morrow !
Believe, — I am the Leader of your People !
Believe, and the great Jupiter shall fall
Forever from the Forum — to rise no more !
(^Footsteps are heard approaching. ^ There Victor comes,
the unbeliever ! Stay
And meet him here ! I Avill return ere long.
{He disappears in one of the dark passages. )
Metella {kneeling). Poor heart, no longer mine !
throbbing so like
A stranger in my breast, — whence these wild bounds?
I'll pray to Christ . . . .
O Lord, look down upon and answer thy handmaid !
I've never turned my looks away from the Cross
To gaze into the face of mortals, yet
Two mortal eyes are burned into my soul !
His eyes, O Lord ! He stands before me like
One of Thy prophets, saints, or holy angels, —
He speaks — I hear his words — and long to die !
{She buries her face in her hands. )
Have pity on me, Christ 1 Deliver me !
(Victor enters, folloioed by the procession. It passes on,
lohile he remains. )
Victor. "As oft as in my name ye shall together
meet,
I R IDIOM. 359
I will be in your midst. " {^To Meiella. ) Daughter, you
have
Not been with us to-day, to hearken to His Word.
Simeon and others I have missed from prayer.
Leave solitary ways to wicked men.
And turn away from those who furtively
Lurk through these graves, weaving their plots of guile,
Sowing dissension even 'midst the saints.
Metella. Father!
Victor. Hast thou been praying here ?
Metella. \ P^^y-
Victor. Hast thou been quite alone?
Metella. I ^"^^ z^or^Q.
Victor. Thou flutterest like a flickering, dying lamp!
Metella, what means this?
Metella. I seek the Lord,
My God,— and cannot find Him. Pray for me !
Victor. The greatest saints have moments of despair,
A sign the Fiend is near. Watch then and pray ;
The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Metella. Father !
Victor. What is it, daughter ?
Metella. Is it near dawn ?
Victor. ' Nay, daughter, the long night is just begun.
Metella. But, Father, is the Day of Judgment near ?
Victor. The Son of man may come at any hour.
To call us to His bar. Art thou afraid ?
Metella. No : but I am so weak,— I fain would know. .
The solid earth is changeful in its pride
As are the waves before the breath of winds, —
But that must not disturb peace 'midst these graves !
We'll pray beneath the shade of the martyrs' palms;
Those broken newly by Athanador.
Iridion. Father, our future lies with jiw/ alone !
Your words throw men by thousands in the scales;
Victory is won wliere they preponderate.
Victor. In the invisible kingdom of the Lord,
IRIDION.
349
By prayer and sacrifice I can combat
The princes of the earth ; if you will all
Unite your prayers earnestly with mine
To the Most High — I promise victory !
Iridion. I speak of instant combat, certain triumph !
Father, we are but men ; must suffer, feel,
And hope as men ; and must as men require
A base terrestrial for our daring acts !
Until this hour a cruel power enslaves us ;
We have chosen woe and death rather than crime,
Or to bow low before debauch, corruption !
Insensate pride, senile decrepitude.
Oppressing all the nations of the earth,
Are now the forces ruling this great city :
The Emperor has not sufficient strength
To keep what yet he holds ; nor Alexander
Weight enough to inaugurate a government ;
The power possessed by both will be destroyed
In the approaching conflict. We cry to you !
Will any of you, leaders in the faith,
Strengthen your souls for struggle ; tear the cross
From these dark vaults and bowels of the earth ;
Plant it in glory on the Roman Forum? '
I see the storm-clouds gathering on your brow;
Forgive me that I feel my brothers' shame,
And know the hour is come to hurl down Jove !
Victor. I've heard your words in grief, Hieronyraus.
Baptismal waters have I vainly poured
Upon your head, and vainly taught you of
The blessed world beyond the dreary grave ;
You do not understand the truth, nor cast
The old man, full of sin, from out your heart.
Your fault is deep. You place your hope in steel,
And thirst for temporal success.
{^Funeral chants are heard in the distance. )
Hear you the chants now echoing through these graves,
Like the last sighing of the pitiless storm
In which the Son of God, bowing His head.
Gave up the Ghost in direst agony?
He called not hosts of angels to His aid,
Nor asked for vengeance on His murderers !
30*
35°
IRIDION.
Iridion. Then creeping shame and misery are to be
Our everlasting portion ?
Victor. In your impatient pride,
You err to call a jnoment everlasting.
I tell you it is true *' that only guests
Sleep in this House. "* Not only within Heaven,
But on our fields of Pain, Love will at last
Be conqueror ! All peoples shall bow down
Before Him, and no Cresar shall there be
Who bendeth not the knee before the Lord !
Know you this figure, son?
Iridion. A Grecian lute,
Such as my fathers used, with four chords strung;
It is the Lycaonian Orpheus. ^
Victor. It is a type of Christ. As Orpheus tamed
The wild beasts with his lyre, so our dear Lord
By His harmonious word unites in love
The thronging millions. When we see this lute
We think of the innumerable choirs
Of spirits acting on this earth, we seize
The harmonies that from the Cross's foot
Already penetrate to distant nations.
The Son of God lives by His own great Power,
And has no need of men at arms. i^He makes the sign of
the cross uj^on Iridion'' s brow. ') Believe,
And sin no more. As father truly pained
By a son's fault, I've given you this warning;
Should you renew the error, I must act
As shepherd of my flock, and punish you
As judge and guardian of this Christian people.
( Chorus heard advancing. ^
CHORUS.
We call upon thee from the depths, O Lord !
Receive the martyr's soul into Thy bosom;
Christ Jesus, let him in Thy glory rest!
In dying, ])rayed he for his murderers.
{The funeral train appears, bearing the martyr on a bier ; the
* An inscription graven upon the catacombs : " Coemetcrium est domus
in qua hospites dormire sclent. "
IRIDION.
351
decapitated head rests on his breast; nieti in long black robes
bear torches ; the procession is closed by women clad in
white, wearing close veils. )
Victor. Give me the symbol of his martyrdom,
Sign sacred upon earth as in the Heavens!
(77/(? Pro-Christum is brought to him. *" He takes it with
emotion and places it upon the breast of the corpse. ^
Thine own blood, shed by thee for the Son of man,
I give thee in thy coffin, that thou mayst
Arise with it upon the Judgment Day!
{He kneels at the side of the corpse ; all kneel with him. ^
O Thou who took'st upon Thyself the form
Of the wretched, that the wretched might be saved,
Deliver us from sin ! Wash in Thy Blood,
O Christ, receive into eternal rest.
Thy servant's soul whose pilgrimage is o'er,
Whose wanderings are ended upon earth!
The Voice of a Virgin. Let him behold Thy sacred
face, O Lord !
Another Virgin. And give him such a spring as earth
ne'er knew!
Jridion. From all temptation to avenge him, save us.
Lord!
Chorus. Who speaks of vengeance in this holy hour?
Victor {risi? ig from his knees). Happy are they who
die in the Lord; they rest
From their labors: their works do follow them !
{He lifts up his hands over the kneeling people. )
Rise ! bear the body to Faustinus' tomb !
{All rise. He places himself at the head of the procession,
which moves slowly on, Iridion alone remaining. As the
Virgins pass, Cornelia Metella leaves their ranks and
stands before Iridion. )
Metella. Will you not join us, Hieronymus?
Iridion. I cannot. I must elsewhere pass this night.
Metella. Where? Where?
Iridion. Where you would tremble for your soul.
Although the Christian star were rising there !
Metella. Some plot, I know, is ripening 'midst these
graves !
352
IRIDION.
Simeon of Corinth stumbled against me
But yesterday; he did not even see
Me as he passed; a lion's skin around
His shoulders hung, and his eyes gazed in space,
Glaring with rage and tumult. Ah, wretched me!
Iridion. Why "wretched," sister? The Pastor of the
flock
Declares you purest of the Christian maids,
Nay, one of the Elect: what would you more?
Aletella. Brother, such words seem strange upon your
lips.
Iridion. Metella, seem they so?
Metella. Yes, — you are changed !
Are you the brother whom I taught to pray,
With whom I knelt upon Euphemia's grave?
The very same baptized Hieronymus?
Iridion. The same. Metella, see !
Metella. I've prayed so long;
Fasted so many days and nights, and . . .
Iridion. And you will thus win Heaven, I do not
doubt.
Metella. I prayed not for myself, — no, not myself.
Iridion. For whom? Metella, speak!
Metella. A brother who . . ,
Iridion. A brother ? Speak !
Metella. How terrible you are !
Iridion. Tell me his name ! Ay, whosoe'er he be,
He shall be yours. It were i^x better so !
But hasten, maiden ! There will be no time
Left for betrothals by the Cross you love ;
But I will see you married, richly dowered.
And sent to Thebes, where you may live in peace.
Passion has gained the soul of the Elect !
{^Ile laughs scornfully. ')
Metella. Why, brother, are you mad ?
Iridion. His name ! His name !
Metella. His name was Hieronymus ! such as
I knew him once, devout and calm, not he
Who like a very madman stands by me,
Whose eyes roll wildly in their sockets. Apage !
JRIDION.
353
Iridion. Pure, blessed maiden ! Nay, Metella, look,
I'm calm and tranquil now !
Metella. And gentle as of old ?
Iridion. Humble and calm near thee !
Metella. But humble before God?
Iridion. See, I will kneel here at your feet and call
Upon the name of Christ !
Aletella. Then promise me
You will not join these men ; you will not arm
For worldly strife or aim.
Iridion. You know not what you ask.
Metella. But promise me !
Iridio? i. I am myself to lead them !
Metella. Woe ! Woe is me !
Iridion. Have you not heard it said
By holy men the appointed time draws nearp^
Remember the words spoken by the Lord
To His disciples, when about to leave them.
That He would come again, and rule o'er them.
Revealed He not to His beloved John
On Patmos' lonely shore, that Babylon
Should surely fall ; the Just inherit Earth ?
Metella. Yes, at some future time. Not now ! not
now !
Iridion. Metella, now or never it must be !
Metella. Victor condemned Eugene for teaching thus !
Iridion. The Romans killed Eudore for teaching thus !
Metella. Come to the Bishop and confess your sins,
And, like a" faithful child, be ruled by him.
Iridion. Nay, I can only be a child with you,
And that but for a fleeting moment, like
A flying wave that never can return.
Beyond your gaze, and I must bathe in blood !
No grass must grow where my horse sets his hoof!
Metella. My brother, you blaspheme !
Iridion. Not so. I but
Divine the coming triumphs of your God !
Aletella. His lessons teach not bloodshed nor re-
venge.
He pardons all.
Did He not bless the poor
Because of their humility ? Did He
354
IRIDION.
Not promise Heaven itself to little children,
For their docility and innocence?
L-idion. That was at first ! The weak have now grown
strong;
The children now are men.
Metella. Have mercy, Heaven !
Strike him not dead before my pitying eyes !
What do I say ? Am I not vowed to God ?
For the first time I dread the unseen world !
Who is this standing close beside me here?
The wings spread o'er me like a monstrous pall !
How dark it grows ! How cold ! I shiver ! fear !
Iridion. Let me support you ! Lean on my strong
arm !
Metella. Brother, I see it all ! Grace will be given !
Angels and fiends in combat, — love will win !
I know that I was born to save your soul !
Iridion. Not you nor any other can slake the thirst
That burns, destroys my soul. Even if our God
Called not so audibly upon us now.
And if the saints had promised not their aid, —
I would commence the work unseconded, alone !
Metella, do not start away from me;
Perhaps we'll never meet on earth again !
I have related you my mother's fate,
But the great object of my father's life
I have not yet revealed to you. Be strong,
And drop by drop prepare to drink with me
The secret poison that consumes my soul !
Metella. " Perhaps we'll never meet on earth again" ?
The last time, did you say? Hieronymus!
Iridion {seating himself at the foot of the sarcophagus
against which she leans).
Upon the thirteenth anniversary
Of Crimhild's death, Amphilochus sent for me,
Wishing to speak with me without delay.
For many days before I had remarked
A mortal pallor on his suffering face.
" My son," he said, " let them prepare a feast
Within the Delphian Apollo's Hall ;
1 RID ION. 355
For the last time in life we sit to-day
At the same table. Thy mother's God pursues
Me still in vengeance, and before the sun
Again pours his full radiance over earth,
I shall have gone forever and forever 1"
Great sadness seized me as I left his room
To obey his command. He spent the day shut up
With the old man from Mauritania.
Sometimes their voices swelled upon the ear;
Then died away like a retreating fight,
Till all was lost in long and utter silence.
At last they came together to the hall
Of festival.
Metella. A shiver like a cold snake chills my vems!
Iridion. My father pressed my sister to his heart,
Then gently putting her aside, he said :
"That which thy brother shall command thee, do
For love of me ! "
No other word he spake to the weeping girl,
But pouring a libation to the gods.
He drank from a Greek goblet, myrtle-crowned :
" The memory of great men ! "
A freedman read to him from Plato's Phsedon.
After the reading ceased, he ordered up
A hundred slaves, and gave them all their freedom.
In answer to their thanks, he said : "As I
Now break your chains, remember you must break
The chains of slaves, your brothers ! Ever remain
To my House faithful ! Always obey my son !
What he shall order, you will do for me ! "
His face glowed with a radiance soft as eve
When shadows first begin to dim the sky,
The purple hues still lingering in the west.
{^A moment of silejice. )
Then in the Palace of my Fathers fell
That gloomy night which sealed my fate forever !
Fire flashed from every tripod, while from time to time
Old Masinissa cast fresh incense on them.
My father's manly head at last reposed
Upon the bosom of his friend ; his life
Went slowly out ;— suffering could not destroy
356
IRIDION.
His dignity, although on his cahii face
We read the anguish of resigning plans
Long cherished, — far from their accomplishment !
Vainly the agonies of death increased,
The cold scorn on his lips alone revealed
His suffering as it ever deeper grew :
He died as the gods live ! . . .
Metella. I see ! I see him ! Where is his guardian
angel ? . . .
Iridio7i. 'Twas then he left to me his plans of ven-
geance,
And traced that future which he longed to mould.
Laying his hand upon my head, he said :
" Thou shalt not bow thy head to aught on earth !
Thou shalt not lose thy faith in evil hours !
Thou shalt not pardon ever ! — Thou shalt pursue
Thy vengeance always ! Thou shalt keep back naught
In weak compassion, but trample o'er the forms
Of those already fallen, so to reach
And ruin those who still may stand beyond !
Thy soul shall never know weakness nor pity !
Never despair ! As the young moon in Heaven,
So wax the nations upon earth, again to wane.
The star of Rome stands at this very hour
Upon the horizon's verge, ready to sink
In the abyss of darkness, ruin, death ! "
And thus he spake and taught me all that night,
Revealing to me a new life : — meanwhile,
Ever more heavy grew the vengeful hand
Of a fierce God upon my dying sire.
And when the kindling rays of that sunrise
Which he was not to see lighted the East,
He held his hands above my head : — I swore
To obey him, — never to know a hope ;
Never to yield to pity ! Never to love !
To offer my young bloom on Hellas' shrine !
I've sworn to live but to destroy, Metella !
Metella. Forgive him, Christ ! He knows not what
he says !
Iridion. Then Masinissa ])oured a smoking cup
Of blood upon my head, and on my father's hands.
I RID ION. 357
The first rays of the sun shone on the bed
Of the dying Greek : " Hellas ! Remember Hellas ! "
He cried in tones of quivering passionate love ;
Then looked around him like a conqueror
Through victory transfigured to a god !
******
Metella, vengeance is my heritage,
And with this vengeance I will live — or die !
Metella. But upon whom will you revenge yourself?
Who injures you? injured Amphilochus?
Iridion. Who drives jiw/ down into these catacombs?
Would give you to the lions, were it known
You were a Christian? Who assails your God,
And tramples the divine out in the soul?
Know you naught of the history of the past?
I'll teach it you, Metella, as Christ taught
The hidden meaning of the Holy Scriptures
To the disciples on their way to Emmaus,
The night of the world was near; the innocent flowers
Of morning withered, and the fire of youth
Died into misery on the shores of Egypt ;*
Once more the voices of the Free swelled on
From the wild North ;t then they died out again,
And slavery ruled the world. A single man,
Amphilochus, stood boldly up, and cried :
" I will bring back again your ancient glory :
We will destroy the Destroyer of the world ! "
Daughter of Christ, the Merciful, could you
Condemn this man, whose constant task it was
To strike the fetters from the limbs of slaves.
Restore the wretched, teach the deaf and dumb
The sweet speech spoken in their Father's house.
And bring the oppressed and wandering exiles home ?
Has He not thus announced the coming of
The God of love? John cried out from the depths
Of the wide desert that the Son of man.
The Lord of hope, was coming to the world,
But that He would be crucified, and die
* Allusion to the rcis^n of Lagides.
f Allusion to Mithridates.
31
358 I RID I ON.
In agony ! My father has declared
His second coming, and made straight the way
Before Him who comes conquering and to conquer;
Before Him who will rule in justice, peace;
In whom, Metella, you do not believe !
Mctella. I not believe?
Iridion {seizing hei- by the ami). No. You believe
that He
Will give His world a prey to cruel Rome ;
Nor e'er be satiated with the blood
Of His adoring, faithful, murdered people!
Metella. Lost soul ! eternal fire shines in his eye . . .
The lambent flame of God's own cherubim !
Iridion. Believe ! You know not what a day may
bring ;
Nor what I may effect even on the morrow !
Believe, — I am the Leader of your People !
Believe, and the great Jupiter shall fall
Forever from the Forum — to rise no more !
(^Footsteps are heard approaching. ^ There Victor comes,
the unbeliever ! Stay
And meet him here ! I Avill return ere long.
{He disappears in one of the dark passages. )
Metella {kneeling). Poor heart, no longer mine !
throbbing so like
A stranger in my breast, — whence these wild bounds?
I'll pray to Christ . . . .
O Lord, look down upon and answer thy handmaid !
I've never turned my looks away from the Cross
To gaze into the face of mortals, yet
Two mortal eyes are burned into my soul !
His eyes, O Lord ! He stands before me like
One of Thy prophets, saints, or holy angels, —
He speaks — I hear his words — and long to die !
{She buries her face in her hands. )
Have pity on me, Christ 1 Deliver me !
(Victor enters, folloioed by the procession. It passes on,
lohile he remains. )
Victor. "As oft as in my name ye shall together
meet,
I R IDIOM. 359
I will be in your midst. " {^To Meiella. ) Daughter, you
have
Not been with us to-day, to hearken to His Word.
Simeon and others I have missed from prayer.
Leave solitary ways to wicked men.
And turn away from those who furtively
Lurk through these graves, weaving their plots of guile,
Sowing dissension even 'midst the saints.
Metella. Father!
Victor. Hast thou been praying here ?
Metella. \ P^^y-
Victor. Hast thou been quite alone?
Metella. I ^"^^ z^or^Q.
Victor. Thou flutterest like a flickering, dying lamp!
Metella, what means this?
Metella. I seek the Lord,
My God,— and cannot find Him. Pray for me !
Victor. The greatest saints have moments of despair,
A sign the Fiend is near. Watch then and pray ;
The spirit is willing, but the flesh is weak.
Metella. Father !
Victor. What is it, daughter ?
Metella. Is it near dawn ?
Victor. ' Nay, daughter, the long night is just begun.
Metella. But, Father, is the Day of Judgment near ?
Victor. The Son of man may come at any hour.
To call us to His bar. Art thou afraid ?
Metella. No : but I am so weak,— I fain would know. .
