would that thou hadst
perished
in the flames!
Wordsworth - 1
--
(kneeling) --may vengeance haunt the fiend
For this most cruel murder: let him live
And move in terror of the elements;
The thunder send him on his knees to prayer
In the open streets, and let him think he sees,
If e'er he entereth the house of God,
The roof, self-moved, unsettling o'er his head;
And let him, when he would lie down at night,
Point to his wife the blood-drops on his pillow!
MARMADUKE My voice was silent, but my heart hath joined thee.
IDONEA (leaning on MARMADUKE)
Left to the mercy of that savage Man!
How could he call upon his Child! --O Friend!
[Turns to MARMADUKE. ]
My faithful true and only Comforter.
MARMADUKE Ay, come to me and weep. (He kisses her. )
(To ELDRED. ) Yes, Varlet, look,
The devils at such sights do clap their hands.
[ELDRED retires alarmed. ]
IDONEA Thy vest is torn, thy cheek is deadly pale;
Hast thou pursued the monster?
MARMADUKE I have found him. --
Oh!
would that thou hadst perished in the flames!
IDONEA Here art thou, then can I be desolate? --
MARMADUKE There was a time, when this protecting hand
Availed against the mighty; never more
Shall blessings wait upon a deed of mine.
IDONEA Wild words for me to hear, for me, an orphan,
Committed to thy guardianship by Heaven;
And, if thou hast forgiven me, let me hope,
In this deep sorrow, trust, that I am thine
For closer care;--here, is no malady.
[Taking his arm. ]
MARMADUKE There, _is_ a malady--
(Striking his heart and forehead. ) And here, and here,
A mortal malady. --I am accurst:
All nature curses me, and in my heart
_Thy_ curse is fixed; the truth must be laid bare.
It must be told, and borne. I am the man,
(Abused, betrayed, but how it matters not)
Presumptuous above all that ever breathed,
Who, casting as I thought a guilty Person
Upon Heaven's righteous judgment, did become
An instrument of Fiends. Through me, through me,
Thy Father perished.
IDONEA Perished--by what mischance?
MARMADUKE Beloved! --if I dared, so would I call thee--
Conflict must cease, and, in thy frozen heart,
The extremes of suffering meet in absolute peace.
[He gives her a letter. ]
IDONEA (reads)
"Be not surprised if you hear that some signal judgment
has befallen the man who calls himself your father; he is
now with me, as his signature will shew: abstain from
conjecture till you see me.
(kneeling) --may vengeance haunt the fiend
For this most cruel murder: let him live
And move in terror of the elements;
The thunder send him on his knees to prayer
In the open streets, and let him think he sees,
If e'er he entereth the house of God,
The roof, self-moved, unsettling o'er his head;
And let him, when he would lie down at night,
Point to his wife the blood-drops on his pillow!
MARMADUKE My voice was silent, but my heart hath joined thee.
IDONEA (leaning on MARMADUKE)
Left to the mercy of that savage Man!
How could he call upon his Child! --O Friend!
[Turns to MARMADUKE. ]
My faithful true and only Comforter.
MARMADUKE Ay, come to me and weep. (He kisses her. )
(To ELDRED. ) Yes, Varlet, look,
The devils at such sights do clap their hands.
[ELDRED retires alarmed. ]
IDONEA Thy vest is torn, thy cheek is deadly pale;
Hast thou pursued the monster?
MARMADUKE I have found him. --
Oh!
would that thou hadst perished in the flames!
IDONEA Here art thou, then can I be desolate? --
MARMADUKE There was a time, when this protecting hand
Availed against the mighty; never more
Shall blessings wait upon a deed of mine.
IDONEA Wild words for me to hear, for me, an orphan,
Committed to thy guardianship by Heaven;
And, if thou hast forgiven me, let me hope,
In this deep sorrow, trust, that I am thine
For closer care;--here, is no malady.
[Taking his arm. ]
MARMADUKE There, _is_ a malady--
(Striking his heart and forehead. ) And here, and here,
A mortal malady. --I am accurst:
All nature curses me, and in my heart
_Thy_ curse is fixed; the truth must be laid bare.
It must be told, and borne. I am the man,
(Abused, betrayed, but how it matters not)
Presumptuous above all that ever breathed,
Who, casting as I thought a guilty Person
Upon Heaven's righteous judgment, did become
An instrument of Fiends. Through me, through me,
Thy Father perished.
IDONEA Perished--by what mischance?
MARMADUKE Beloved! --if I dared, so would I call thee--
Conflict must cease, and, in thy frozen heart,
The extremes of suffering meet in absolute peace.
[He gives her a letter. ]
IDONEA (reads)
"Be not surprised if you hear that some signal judgment
has befallen the man who calls himself your father; he is
now with me, as his signature will shew: abstain from
conjecture till you see me.
