Jl^OHG oJthejlEJlRT. 
 j^8 cinder p. (joK. 
 
To tKem that have 
 And yet shall have. 
 
THE BETROTHAL 
 
 OF 
 
 RONALD AND THUSNELDA 
 
 A DRAMATIC POEM 
 
 BY 
 
 NEANDER P. COOK 
 
 WITH EIGHT MOTTO-ILLUSTRATIONS. 
 
 THE WEIMAR PRESS 
 
 LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA. 
 
 1908 
 
LIBRARY of CONGRESS 
 Two Copies Received 
 
 NOV 25 1903 
 
 Cepyri^ni Entry ^ 
 
 ouss a^'wc no 
 
 T 
 
 rt> 
 
 
 COPYRIGHT 1908 
 
 THE WEIMAR PRESS 
 
 (p. cook) 
 
 Operatic and Stage Rights Expressly Reserved. 
 
 PRONUNCIATIONS: 
 
 Tristan trist-an, 
 
 Thusnelda tos-n61-da. 
 
 Ragni rdg-nee. 
 
 F^nsalir. 
 
 Nereid n^-re-eed 
 
 Loki.:l^-kee 
 
 Isolde is-61-day. 
 Sigune sig-06-nay. 
 Cunina cu-ni-na. 
 Freya fri-a. 
 Naiad ni-ad 
 
PREFATORY. 
 
 Gentle Reader! This book, 
 Like other tomes, 
 Its pictures hath, 
 
 But not zvith printer-presses painted. 
 In thy own soul's color 
 The images are drawn. 
 Sit and ponder! 
 The motto— text is given thee: 
 The sermon preach thyself. 
 
*Tut off thy shoes 
 From off thy feet : 
 
 For the place whereon thou standest, 
 Is holy ground." 
 
 —Bible. 
 
The Bridal Hour 
 
 ) BRIDAL hour, thou holy hour 
 Hour of wonder and delight ! 
 Thy mystery have angels laid, 
 But tasted not the perfect bliss 
 
 Of youth and maiden. 
 
 With the dew of hope upon their brow, 
 
 To the heart's coy trysting come. 
 
 Entwined in each other's arms. 
 
 In Amor's caldron seething. 
 
 Eye looking into eye, 
 
 Soul into soul outpouring, 
 
 Drinking deep and full 
 
 The Bridal Kiss. 
 
[51 
 
 THE ARGUMENT. 
 
 To the attentive observer of nature it soon becomes man- 
 ifest that she has but one goal, viz., the super-abundance 
 of life: life in innumerable forms, in countless variations 
 and endless ecstasies, a mantle covering completely the habit- 
 able sphere, penetrating every nook and cranny in earth and 
 sea and air, pulsating and throbbing with miraculous in- 
 tensity, the very self-realization of the Infinite God. It is 
 a harp of a thousand chords, of whose music our joys and 
 sorrows form component parts and counterparts, l3ut who 
 He is that sounds it according to His will. Him we know 
 only from afar, for we are but the finite atoms of the 
 Infinite Soul pouring itself forth in eternal strains. 
 
 Life is creative. It finds its fullest expression in a grad- 
 ually advancing evolution through ceaseless self-renewal. 
 All nature dies today in order that more triumphantly she 
 may be reborn to-morrow. It is in her self -renewal that she 
 is most beautiful and interesting. For this purpose is the 
 romance of love and the strength of passion, that the resur- 
 rection be made sure. For this the flower adorns itself in 
 ravishing beauty and carries its enticing nectar. For this 
 is the music of the nightingale and the affections of men. 
 Youth and Love are nature's preparation for a further step 
 in her progress, hence marriage is the most charming event 
 in the divine panorama. 
 
 But what of the seed that falls by the wayside and the 
 terrors of death? They are not meaningless, because it is 
 life revelling in its glory, the whole path to nature's goal 
 is strewn with flowers. True, not all the seeds can live, yet 
 the marriage of stamen and pistil was an hour of the per- 
 fection of enjoying, since the consummation of love is 
 nature 's deepest draught. And even where the flower was 
 broken before it had been betrothed to its waiting mate, 
 it was in its bridal dress a thing of beauty, tremulous witli 
 the anticipation of its destiny. 
 
 Neither is death life's enemy, but rather the door of its 
 opportunity. The old are dying that there may be room for 
 youth with new wooing days and life be not merely endless, 
 but run its course in a ceaseless nuptial kiss. 
 
[6] 
 
 THE BETROTHAL OF RONALD AND 
 THUSNELDA. 
 
 DRAMATIS PERSONAE: 
 
 Mom us, God of Satire. 
 
 Amor, God of Love. 
 
 Knight Ronald of Oi^terdingkn, Bridegroom. 
 
 Thusnklda, Daughter to Lothar, Baron of Alt- 
 
 NACH, Bride. 
 Sigunf, Mother to Thusnelda. 
 Bridesmaids. 
 Young Flower-Girl. 
 Second Flower-Girl. 
 Older Flower-Girl. 
 Berthelind, Ethelried, Rosamund, Sisters to Thus- 
 
 nelda. 
 Ragni, an Outcast. 
 Cupid, God of Love. 
 The Heavenly Choir. 
 Nereid and Naiad, Bridal Nymphs. 
 CuNiNA, THE Disconsolate, a Nymph. 
 The Furies. 
 
 Freya, Goddess of Health. 
 Prayer of the Unborn. 
 Eunice, the Un wooed, a Bridesmaid. 
 
 SCENE : 
 The Castle of Ofterdingen, in the Thuringian Forests, 
 
 in part. 
 The Elysian Regions, in Heaven^ in part. 
 
 TIME: 
 
 The Nuptial Night. 
 
 PERIOD: 
 The Middle A^es. 
 
[7] 
 
 PRELUDE. 
 
 Momus, god of satire. 
 Amor, god of love. 
 
 Momus (satirically) to Amor: — 
 On virgin-tongues, 
 
 Amor, there goes a tale 
 Of two lovers, 
 
 Named Tristan and Isolde, 
 Which tale a riddle holds. 
 
 1 trow thou canst not solve. 
 Isolde was daughter to a king, 
 But Tristan not of royal blood. 
 He wooed not wisely 
 
 When the princess of the land 
 
 The serf would wed. 
 
 To the desert was he banished 
 
 For his folly. 
 
 Yet hadst thou thy mischief wrought. 
 
 Hadst dipped thy arrow in his blood 
 
 And sent it through the maiden's heart. 
 
 Straightway her snow-white doves 
 
 She harnessed. 
 
 Who to her lover carried her 
 
[8] 
 
 And then died of the desert-thirst. 
 
 'Twas more than three days' journey 
 Into the wilderness, 
 — So goes the tale — 
 And no other shelter there 
 Than in the stone 
 The ]\IinnegTotto cleft. 
 Yet three years 
 These lovers lived 
 Content and happy there, 
 And so witchingly each other loved 
 That their love 
 The hope of maidens is. 
 Now tell me, thou gay deceiver, 
 Whence in the desert came 
 Their bread 
 
 And whence their drink? 
 For without sustenance 
 They could not live. 
 And unless they lived 
 They could not love? 
 
 Amor, (seriously) to Momus: — 
 
 O Momus, to skeptics such as thou. 
 Truth opens not her silver-mines. 
 I know the tale, 
 And know it true. 
 Where love is 
 There is no desert. 
 And what they ate and drank ? — 
 The lovers on each other gazed : 
 On that they lived. 
 The harvest of the eye 
 Was food sufficient. 
 Their steadfastness. 
 
19] 
 
 Their love and troth, 
 
 Their vows, 
 
 The open-heartedness, 
 
 Which is the true bread 
 
 Of wedded souls : 
 
 These were the fruits 
 
 They freely plucked. 
 
 A well in the desert 
 
 Became the confidence. 
 
 Each in the other had, 
 
 And love the plowman 
 
 Which turned the rocks 
 
 Into fertile soil. 
 
 Together in their tillage 
 
 Did they walk, 
 
 And with the birds of heaven vied 
 
 With music of the heart 
 
 To fill the air. 
 
 Their love so true. 
 
 Their hearts so pure. 
 
 That sun and moon and stars 
 
 These trusting souls 
 
 Their favor showed. 
 
 'Tis no mystery: 
 
 For stony wastes 
 
 Are not love's limit. 
 
 And plighted hearts 
 
 From obstacles 
 
 Draw the relish of their feast. 
 
ACT I. 
 
 SCENE : —Castle Of terdingen. 
 
 PERSONS:— 
 Ronald. 
 
 Thusnelda. 
 
 Bridesmaids. 
 
 Flower-girls. 
 
 Berthelind, Ethelried, Rosamund. 
 
 INTERLUDE:— 
 
 Ragni, the Outcast. 
 
[ill 
 
 PROLOG. 
 
 'Twas a June day memorable; 
 The birds sang sweeter, 
 And the evening star shone brighter, 
 When Lord Ronald 
 Did Thusnelda wed: 
 For never gallant knight 
 A lovelier maiden 
 To her bridal consecration led. 
 
 Thusnelda, before donning her bridal garments, has 
 absented herself from the festivities, to take fare- 
 zvell of her favorite trysting-place. 
 For just once more, 
 For my last farewell, 
 To thee, my faithful tree, 
 I flee, 
 
 Before the ring forever 
 To another's will commits 
 My happiness. 
 
 Thou hast heard his pleading 
 And witnessed my consenting: 
 His arguments. 
 And my believing. 
 Hast seen how bright and golden 
 And jewel-studded, he showed the chain 
 By which to his authority 
 He is intent to shackle me. 
 Persuading me that bondage to him 
 Is greater freedom than my liberty. 
 If it ever be 
 
 The bondage in his kisses, 
 In his endearing arms. 
 In love's unfailing rapture. 
 
[12] 
 
 O then of iron 
 
 Let my bonds be wrought. 
 
 But now, before the gate forever closes, 
 While yet my soul is mine, 
 Its virgin-conscience writing-free. 
 Before I yield my all, 
 
 And plunge into the ransom-spurning deep, 
 O my guardian tree, 
 Tell me truly now : 
 Will his love endure? 
 His kisses last? 
 Steadfast his heart abide? 
 And his assurance never shadow throw ? 
 For, O, if from that golden chain 
 The jewels drop, 
 And from his eye 
 The love-light die. 
 And from his voice 
 The mellow accent fade, 
 Then tongue can never tell 
 The anguish of my stricken heart. 
 
 Thou wert the sponsor of our troth, 
 Does the rustling of thy leaves 
 Dare to tell me eye to eye 
 That Ronald is a lover true, 
 A lover to the end? 
 
 Farewell, then. 
 As the seal of my fate 
 Boldly I break. 
 But yet a moment more 
 Till the sweetness 1 rehVarse 
 That now ripens 
 Into my wedding-morn. 
 
The Maiden and Her Trousseau 
 
 g^^^^pY heart is hopeful, 
 IVf W ^y heart is heavy, 
 ^ ,j|i My heart is singing, 
 ^^^^& My heart is dumb. 
 The flower once plucked 
 Can never bloom again. 
 Short is the morning-kiss 
 And long the day: 
 A two-fold meaning 
 Hath the bridal dress. 
 
[13] 
 
 So gently thy boughs 
 Bend low, 
 And twine 
 With the vine 
 To graceless jesters 
 Undisclosed to hold 
 This bower mine. 
 
 I came upon this place when a child 
 I gathered blue-berries wild. 
 Here I sobbed my infant griefs, 
 Here I prayed my real prayers : 
 Did my penance, 
 And walked with God. 
 Here I built my castles of hope 
 And hid myself 
 
 For my prince to light upon me. 
 — My lover led I here. 
 And none, never none else. 
 
 The maidens call me now. 
 O, why so eager to prepare me captive ? 
 A twofold meaning 
 Hath the bridal dress. 
 T am willing, but there is time. 
 For anon, then, virgins, call in vain. 
 In my last leave-taking let me linger, 
 'Tis my girlhood's sanctuary 
 I must leave forever. 
 For the last hour mv own 
 Then his — 
 A consort? 
 Or passion's puppet? 
 Which?— 
 Ah me ! Soothsaying never avails 
 
[14] 
 
 When maiden-hopes 
 Their heart-strings anchor. 
 
 This is the place 
 Where Ronald the brave 
 Hath wooed me so gently and fiercely, 
 Wooed me as maiden loves to be wooed 
 By the tyrant-emperor of woman's heart. 
 This is the branch. 
 And this is the root 
 Where so often I made him sit. 
 Thus his arms would round me steal, 
 Thus on his bosom I reclined. 
 Thus would he speak of his love, 
 And thus he kissed my lips. 
 (Nectar such as angels never drank.) 
 
 How strong, how noble he is. 
 So fearless, so daring. 
 He purchased my life. 
 My gratitude is his and my love. 
 'Twas in yonder field, 
 Ethelried and I, daisies we sought, 
 When my father's mad bull he braved. 
 The awful horns I felt 
 Entangled in my dress. 
 Then Ronald's wild cry. 
 His terrible cry of war, I heard, 
 (How sweet to me the sound.) 
 He seized the beast 
 And choked the fuming Inostrils. 
 O terrible the battle. 
 Round and round they circled, 
 His veins and muscles grew big. 
 Great drops of sweat fell from his brow : 
 
[15] 
 
 A groan, a mighty pull 
 And awry was wrenched 
 The stiff neck of the brute. 
 
 But to me. 
 How gentle is he ! 
 Softly, as among downs, 
 I nestle in his strength, 
 And as upon velvet, 
 I lay my cheek in his hands, 
 And gaze into the light of his eyes. 
 — O the happiness that here has been mine ! 
 
 I watched him carve his name 
 Into the bark of the tree; 
 Then over it traced he mine : 
 Said he ever held me above him. 
 And made a circle around both : 
 Said it was love's fortress 
 As valiant knight 
 He would for me defend. 
 Then from near my feet 
 He plucked violets 
 And twined them into my locks. 
 And pelted me with apple-blossoms. 
 And from yonder brook 
 Gathered forget-me-nots. 
 With butter-cups from the ponds 
 And luscious berries 
 Out of the meadow. 
 With kisses between, 
 He gave me to eat. 
 And seized me in his arms 
 And kissed me more. 
 So Ronald hath loved me here 
 As maiden was never loved before. 
 
161 
 
 But, farewell, sweet trysting place among the 
 
 ferns : 
 Farewell, my bower green, farewell. 
 
 AT THE CASTLE. 
 
 Ended is the wedding-banquet, 
 The merry crowd hath danced its last, 
 The boisterous guests departed: 
 The nuptial benediction 
 Ofterdingen's walls overspreads. 
 Bride and bridegroom their holy hour 
 
 approach, 
 And angel-spirits hover near. 
 As the lovers 
 
 To the feast of love draw near. 
 To drink the cup of Paradise 
 The gods to men have given. 
 
 HISTORICAL. 
 
 The ancient Thuringian marriage consisted of several parts. 
 There was a public procpssion to the church with its religious 
 ceremou}'. Then came the feast at the castle or tne T)ride- 
 groom, in which the public and the guests took part. But 
 after the departure of the guests there followed a more 
 sacred ceremony at which only the immediate family and 
 chosen friends of the bride were present. Its chief parts 
 were the strewing of flowers, the lighting of the bridal 
 candles and burning of incense by the girl-friends of the 
 bride. | 
 
 For this occasion she wore a symbolical girdle of flowers 
 and wreath upon her head. The entrance to the bridal bower 
 consisted of an arch of flowers with n symbolical threshold 
 and the marriage-ceremony was not considered complete till 
 the bridegroom took up his bride in his arms, placing her lips 
 
The Woodland Flo^wer 
 
 YOUTH went for adventures forth 
 Far from the city's grime, 
 Far from travel's hardened path, 
 Into the woodland and forest deep. 
 
 There came he upon a rare and precious flower. 
 
 The flower would he pluck, 
 
 And rashly tear the bleeding stem 
 
 From its twining rootlets forth. 
 
 The petals quivered, 
 
 Softly sang the nightingale above: 
 
 Heal what thou hast broken 
 
 With thy kiss; 
 
 Inviolate with thee 
 
 Remain the beauty of her soul. 
 
[17] 
 
 to his, and thus with his kiss carried her across the bridal 
 threshold to her new life. 
 
 Thereupon it became his duty to unloosen her girdle and 
 deposit it upon the altar, when the candles and incense would 
 be lit, the flower-girls and bridesmaids pass in procession 
 through the bridal arch and receive from the bride a flower 
 plucked from her wreath and also taking one from the bridal 
 girdle upon the altar, which were treasured as love-charms 
 by those who took part in the rites. The following are the 
 songs sung on these occasions: — 
 
 SONG OF THE BRIDESMAIDS. 
 
 (Addressed to the bridegroom, zvhile carrying his 
 bride through the bridal arch.) 
 
 Tenderly now take thy bride 
 Into thy arms. 
 In thy heart enshrine her, 
 With thy soul adore her, 
 Thy queen appoint her. 
 As the apple of thine eye 
 Do thou guard her. 
 The beauty of her soul 
 Inviolate with thee remain. 
 To unclouded espousal 
 Do thou lead her 
 Through the portal 
 Of thy lover-kiss. 
 
 SONG OF THE BRIDESMAIDS. 
 
 (Addressed to Thusnelda, zvhile reclining in her lov- 
 er's arms.) 
 
 To-day thou art fair. 
 Yet on the morrow shalt thou fairer be. 
 
18] 
 
 To-day thou art the rosy bud, 
 
 To-morrow the unfolding blossom. 
 
 Thy crown is now preparing 
 
 For the noon-tide sun 
 
 Thy morning to eclipse. 
 
 Then, O, our sister, as thy lips 
 
 The kiss of womanhood receive 
 
 Do thou pray for us, 
 
 For to Life's priestess 
 
 Of Heaven nothing is denied. 
 
 The flowers of thy wreath 
 Now cast to us 
 As sacred token 
 
 That before twelve moons have passed 
 We, too, the golden path shall walk. 
 
 SiGUNE, Mother to Thusnelda, aside: — 
 
 Thus of the jewels of the mother-heart 
 Builds youth its summer-house: 
 And with lavish hands 
 Scatters the gems 
 Of tears and anxious watching 
 As if it were the sea-shore's sand. 
 Her that is more than life to me 
 To him I give: 
 
 Yet must not show the trickling tear 
 And without sign of loss 
 Renounce my bosom-treasure, 
 Because a wooer ^ 
 
 On her his eye hath cast. 
 Joy for them her garlands winds 
 While her twin-sister Sorrow 
 Beckons me the dreary path 
 
[191 
 
 With her to walk. 
 
 O motherhood, thou meaning-laden word, 
 
 Storehouse of the heart's 
 
 Unfathomed treasuries. 
 
 From doll to wedding-bells, 
 
 And thence to children's children. 
 
 Thy tortuous emotions 
 
 Run the gamut of a woman's heart. 
 
 Half joy, half pain : 
 
 Yet neither would I miss 
 
 For of the higher and the lower chords 
 
 This soul-deep harmony is wrought. 
 
 I knew my spring was past. 
 Yet in my fancy proudly wore 
 The summer's bloom upon my brow, 
 — Since Venice's mirrors 
 Have not yet tinged my hair with gray — 
 When Berthelind, my first-born, came, 
 Drew me aside, and stammered : 
 "Mother, O Grandmother dear." 
 Then I heard the toll of autumn leaves. 
 And bade my quivering heart 
 Turn to view the setting sun. 
 I can grow no more, 
 No longer glad surprises 
 Are held for me in store. 
 Hence only can I give: 
 Nevermore receive. 
 My joy must be 
 With others to rejoice. 
 And from younger faces 
 Wipe the tears. 
 Friend, counselor and guide 
 
[20] 
 
 Through Hfe's entangled mazes 
 Perchance I may yet be : 
 But actor on the stage 
 In its enchanted dream? 
 Not once again 
 — Gone are my days of youth. 
 Ah, for love, 
 Life is much too short. 
 'Twas but yesterday 
 Tiny garments I fashioned 
 In hope of promises yet unfulfilled. 
 (With daring I had braved the dawn, 
 And with a song my eager heart, 
 If fate had so ordained, 
 To its execution would have gone.) 
 But to-day with other feelings 
 I watch my daughters do the same. 
 
 One by one 
 Are my blossoms plucked 
 To shine for other eyes. 
 Soon a branchless tree, 
 Of its glory shorn, 
 I stand. 
 
 Deep cuts the knife: 
 But they shall never know. 
 See how he snatches her from mc, 
 And as robber to his lair 
 He carries her. ^ 
 
 And she herself 
 Bids me welcome 
 The spoiler of my heart : 
 For that she has a mother 
 A bride knows not. 
 
[21. 
 
 Ah, woman never gives herself alone 
 Her own, and her mother's soul, 
 Both she strews at her lover's feet. 
 
 Yet do I acknowledge 
 That dear to me is Ronald: 
 Since I of my son. 
 And he of his mother is bereft. 
 When first to me 
 Thusnelda brought him in 
 He grasped my hand and kissed it 
 And faintly lisped the wonder-word 
 "Mother" unto me. 
 Then tears filled his pleading eye. 
 I kissed him on the brow 
 And softly answered, "Son," 
 Then left them to each other, 
 Fled to my room and wept : 
 For in tears alone the woman-heart 
 Can gush its fulness forth. 
 
 But to-night, not yet 
 Is the time of tears, 
 A little longer 
 
 Must I steel myself against the floods 
 That no discord in their joy be heard. 
 With happy mien will I stand 
 Till the breaking of all ties is done : 
 Then will I take my empty heart 
 And we will weep. 
 Alone will we weep. 
 
 Young Flowkr-Girl (passing through the bridal 
 arch) : — 
 
 I know not what I carry. 
 
(22] 
 
 Nor why upon this altar 
 
 These flowers so trembHngly I lay. 
 
 My heart, O my heart, 
 
 With fear and joy 
 
 It flutters strange and full. 
 
 I know a youth so fair, 
 
 He looked on me the other day : 
 
 O what meant his look? 
 
 What meant his look? 
 
 Second Flower-Girl: — 
 
 With reverence this flower 
 From thy bridal girdle 
 To my breast I pin: 
 For I am older, sisters, than you thinls 
 My heart is ready. 
 Pining, ah, for him 
 Who is my sun. 
 
 To my lips this flower I press, 
 Now do I consecrate myself: 
 After this no other kiss. 
 Till he whose right it is 
 Shall come. 
 
 Older Flower-Girl, aside: — 
 O lover mine! 
 Why dost thou tarry? 
 Pluck up thy courage 
 And make bold ^ 
 
 To ask of me the question 
 Which most I dread, 
 Yet almost dying, long to hear. 
 O lisp the pregnant word 
 
[23] 
 
 That shall make me faint and pale 
 And shake me as an aspen-leaf. 
 To thy arrow 
 I my heart lay bare. 
 
 O ask of me, 
 And ask enough 
 That I be no longer free, 
 But be pledged forever unto thee. 
 
 Ethklrikd, Sister to Thusnelda, one of the Brides- 
 maids: — 
 
 I must not, I dare not tell, 
 Yet silence cannot keep. 
 Have ever you seen 
 A face so blushing, 
 And lips so red as mine? 
 A girl as a dove so shy 
 And happy as the lark? 
 
 The reason? — 
 He hath kissed me. 
 Much, O much, against my will. 
 And I kissed him back, 
 (Against my will). 
 He clasped me in his arms. 
 He drew me to his breast, 
 I said "You must not!" 
 He drew me closer, 
 (1 could not breathe), 
 I held him fast. 
 And kissed once more. 
 How many followed, I cannot confess : 
 For you would never believe me 
 They could be so many, 
 So sweet and so long. 
 
[24] 
 
 'Tis our secret, 
 
 For our love is true: 
 
 I am happy, 
 
 His kiss hath made me so. 
 
 A BridE)smaid, to herself: — 
 
 When for the holy war 
 From our village he departed, 
 He took me by the hand : 
 He pressed it warmly, 
 Then caressed it, 
 And looked into my eyes 
 Down into my heart. 
 He went, 
 And never message has he sent me. 
 
 men are fickle, 
 Men are false. 
 
 Perhaps he meant it not, 
 But my heart is heavy. 
 He broke the sacred seal, 
 And kept the key: 
 
 1 cannot be another's, 
 Yet he claims me not. 
 I am forsaken. 
 
 In the silent watches of the night 
 I shed my burning tears, 
 The vision faileth me, 
 My hope is dimmed. 
 My heart is sore. 
 
 Rosamund, Thusnelda's youngest sister: — 
 
 O Thusnelda, the dearest of my sisters. 
 Till Ronald came 
 
[25] 
 
 All thy heart I possessed. 
 (Mayhap for thy sake 
 Do I forgive him). 
 
 the men — 
 From thy lips 
 
 Thy last virgin kiss 
 
 Have I come to snatch, 
 
 And well-guarded 
 
 Will I keep it in my vow 
 
 Never to be bound or wed: 
 
 For youth's holiday 
 
 In the marriage-ring is ended. 
 
 Each wedding leaner makes 
 
 My comradeship. 
 
 Berthelind scarce knows me now 
 
 Since her baby came 
 
 (The sweet little thief) 
 
 — She says 1 do not understand. — 
 
 And in her happiness 
 
 No room for me hath Ethelried, 
 
 In a day 
 
 Is she a woman grown: 
 
 She romps with me no more. 
 
 And, dearest Thusnelda, 
 
 1 know it well. 
 
 As to thy lover thou art closer drawn 
 
 To me wilt thou colder grow. 
 
 I hate the men. 
 
 The cause of this 
 
 And all our other griefs. 
 
 I hate them all — 
 
 All but One. 
 
[261 
 
 Berth ELiND^ Thusnelda's married sister, while the 
 bridal candles and incense are lit, in a whisper: — 
 
 O sister dear, the fairest of us four, 
 Soon at life's altar shalt thou stand 
 And heaven's blessing claim. 
 Let me whisper in thy ear 
 Not to fear 
 
 When the dawn of womanhood 
 Thy being thrills. 
 Thy lover is an honorable man, 
 (I've read it in his eye) 
 Tender and kind, 
 Strong to rule the unruly realm. 
 Unwaveringly cast thyself into his trust 
 And without question 
 Give as woman gives. 
 
 With gladness 
 Thy treasure shalt thou bear, 
 The hallowed secret know, 
 And find thy nature's satisfying, 
 For the tenderest joy 
 In the deepest pain is rooted. 
 
 FINAL CHORUS OF THE BRIDESMAIDS. 
 
 (While leaving the bridal bower.) 
 
 A bridegroom so handsome, 
 So manly, ^ 
 
 To thy safekeeping 
 We commit our sister 
 Spotless as Eve in Paradise 
 Heaven's perfect handiwork. 
 With thy strength overshadow her, 
 
A Bride Adorned for Her 
 Husband 
 
 HY such infinite pains 
 11 For my dress 
 
 And my adorning? 
 'Tis for him. 
 His joy 
 
 Is all my thought and care. 
 No misplaced lock 
 Must show my hair. 
 No unsmoothed ruffle 
 Disclose my dress. 
 Each one a treasured flower 
 One more for him 
 To crush and disarrange. 
 To the brim would I fill his cup 
 And rich his spoiling make 
 For Life's one sweetest hour 
 Is the Bridal Hour. 
 
 27 
 
[27] 
 
 With thy life redeem her: 
 Worthily to thy arms 
 Receive her! Good Night. 
 
 CHORUS OF THE FLOWER-GIRLS. 
 
 Flowers red, flowers white, 
 Flowers young, flowers fresh, 
 Flowers enchanted, flowers prophesying 
 At thy feet we strew: 
 For thy path 
 
 Is the path of roses and of lilies: 
 The mystery that with the rainbow's halo 
 Shall thy face transform : 
 For youth's one sweetest hour 
 Is the bridal hour. — Good Night. 
 
[28] 
 
 INTERLUDE. 
 
 RAGNI, THE OUTCAST. 
 
 Ragni, a former companion of Thusnelda and her 
 friends, but nozv an outcast, has stealthily ap- 
 proached the castle-windozv, and with her young 
 babe secretly watched the nuptials: 
 
 O Thusnelda, never canst thou know 
 How the innocent do suffer. 
 'Tis well thou thinkest not of me this hour, 
 For I would not mar thy joy : 
 Only from afar behold 
 What for myself I hoped. 
 Yet each flower in thy wreath 
 Is to my side a pricking thorn. 
 1 loved so much, so truly, 
 And trusted so confidingly: 
 I believed him honest as myself. 
 But he basely left me : 
 Left me with the pledge 
 Of woman's crowning-glory: 
 The babe that now proclaims\my shame. 
 
 Proud as the proudest 
 By his side would I have walked3 
 
[291 
 
 And with my infant shown myself 
 
 At every pubHc concourse triumphant 
 
 That I am not a woman born in vain. 
 
 But, ah, my darling, 
 
 How heavily thy father's sins 
 
 Do fall upon us ! 
 
 He forsook me. 
 Broke the oath he swore me: 
 Wherefore, O my sisters, ye tread me under 
 
 foot. 
 Ye mock me for my trust, 
 And hold your skirts aloof from me 
 As if I were a viper. 
 With fresh stumbling blocks 
 Ye daily pave my thorny path. 
 I am cast off. 
 
 Therefore ye declare me fallen. 
 O for a friendly tear, 
 A sympathizing heart ! 
 But alas there is no bosom-friend, 
 Nor boon-companion, nor sister 
 For her whom her lover wronged. 
 
 But for my babe, in part 
 Ye would forgive me. 
 — As if the sin were less 
 That is in secret done. — 
 Ye know not what I suffer: 
 Ye know not how I love 
 This orphan-child, ye call a bastard, 
 And a child of sin. 
 Nay, to me 'tis a child of succor, 
 'Twas born of faith and love, 
 'Tis my inmost own 
 Twice am I its mother, 
 Once in the God-appointed pains 
 
[30] 
 
 And now in persecution. 
 
 Why do ye judge so harshly : 
 
 The child sinned not, 
 
 And I, its mother. 
 
 Suffer, as no other mortals suffer. 
 
 His father's love hath failed him 
 
 But never faileth 
 
 Mother-love and woman's constancy. 
 
 Ah, my fatherless darling, 
 On what unfriendly shores art thou cast. 
 The righteous wish thee dead, 
 The scoffers mock thee as the harlot's child, 
 And hypocrites hail thee 
 As the welcome prod 
 To gash my bleeding heart anew. 
 Because thy father left us 
 Must we ever tremble 
 As the sparrow from the hawk, 
 And walk with downcast eyes, 
 And creep about by night, 
 (For in the sunlight scorners sit) 
 And ever eat our bread in tears. 
 O let us heaven's judgment seek, 
 For surely He that knows it all 
 Cannot be so unmerciful 
 As is the world to her 
 Who loved and was forsaken. 
 
 Come, my sleeping darling. 
 Thy mother never was a bride : 
 (Unholy hands robbed us of our crown) 
 Let us end our misery. 
 'Twas at yonder lake 
 On a mild autumn night, 
 
[31] 
 
 The grass was yet green, 
 
 The leaves were gold and yellow, 
 
 I with my lover sat 
 
 (Then still a lover true) 
 
 — When heaven our betrothal witnessed. — 
 
 There, in the cool waves. 
 Of that self-same lake 
 Will we find the soothing of our sorrow. 
 
 She seizes her babe and in a fit of despair runs zvith 
 it to the lake. As she arrives at its shores, the moon 
 stands full above the forest. The babe awakens and 
 opens its eyes. 
 
 One last look now, the very last 
 Into these sweet blue eyes. 
 A kiss, then the grewsome murmur of the 
 
 waves, 
 And all is over. 
 
 Ah my babe, thou wert his covenant of love. 
 In thine eyes I see him once again, 
 His better self is there : 
 How could he do it? 
 Warm upon the bed 
 In another's arms now he lies, 
 And thou and I, how we suffer 
 Homeless in the cold ! 
 O God, we come : 
 In thy mercy this thy child receive. 
 
 (Walks to the brink of the zuater, but hesitates for 
 a moment) 
 
 Nay, but thou art his child. 
 And my heart not wholly closed to him. 
 
[32] 
 
 — But vain is my hope. — 
 
 How have I for thee suffered! 
 
 —Still will I suffer— 
 
 And uncomplainingly woman's lot 
 
 Upon me take: 
 
 For to make atonement of man's sin 
 
 Was woman born. 
 
 Thou art innocent. 
 
 — Sacred was the hour — 
 
 His baseness I'll forgive 
 
 And heaven bless 
 
 I thee possess. 
 
ACT II. 
 
 SCENE:— The Bridal Bower. 
 Cupid, 
 Ronald, 
 Thusnelda. 
 
[35] 
 
 IN THE BRIDAL BOWER. 
 
 Cupid, to the lovers: — 
 
 When once upon a time 
 The Lord of Life 
 A charmed flower would plant, 
 He did not with lightning rend the sky 
 And summoned not the giants of the air 
 With thunder-trumpet forth. 
 Gentleness he laid upon his mighty strength. 
 He sought a shaded, dewy spot. 
 He hushed the storm 
 And hung ^ol's harp 
 Upon the entrance 
 Of the foliage-covered bower 
 Hid from the garish sun. 
 There in the moist earth 
 A little root he buried. 
 And painted green 
 The broad leaves 
 Of the jewel's setting. 
 The flower-bell 
 He made of purest white. 
 Gave it a golden heart. 
 And sent an angel 
 To hide therein 
 A maiden-kiss. 
 
[36] 
 
 So was the lily of the valley made. 
 Modest, yet in beauty unsurpassed, 
 Of faith and love and hope 
 The emblem grows. 
 
 So kiss the kiss of youth 
 As lilies kiss : 
 And kiss again. 
 And deeper yet again, 
 Till ye be no longer twain. 
 
 Thusnelda, to herself: — 
 
 I am nearly faint, 
 
 My bosom heaves. 
 
 My heart beats fast, 
 
 A virgin I am to the altar led 
 
 To be a woman born. 
 
 Ronald, to himself: 
 
 How pure, 
 How beautiful and lovely 
 Is my Thusnelda. 
 How trustful the questioning 
 Of her eyes ! 
 
 What lips for kissing made! 
 Fair art thou as the placid lake. 
 Thy face of heaven's blue 
 The perfect mirror. 
 O may no cloud thy radiance dim 
 As in awe I take thee to myself 
 And in thy kisses bathe. 
 
[37] 
 
 Then to Thusnelda, taking her hand and caressing 
 it:— 
 
 Dearest, dost remember, 
 When first thou gavest me this hand? 
 'Twas at my mother's grave, 
 Thou stood'st beside me there, 
 'Twas God who led thee there. 
 In that^hour of darlcness 
 Thou came'st a shining star 
 Across my path. 
 
 Thy gentle sympathy brought hope 
 In hopeless days. 
 Thou griev'dst with me, 
 And assuaged'st my grief. 
 Thy modest dignity entranced my heart. 
 
 Sweet were our wooing days. 
 Sweet the light 
 Then shining in thine eyes. 
 I knew thou lovedst me truly. 
 Yet kep'st thyself a guarded fortress. 
 But in that hour so holy 
 When the stars their love-beams twinkle. 
 And angels from immortal thrones descend 
 To sigh for mortal bliss. 
 Thou didst of me accept thy bridal kiss. 
 
 O the thrills and rapture of that kiss ! 
 The earnest of our happiness to-be, 
 The budding of our hope. 
 The promise of our life's fruition : 
 O that first kiss of thine. 
 On this day that thou art wholly mine, 
 O kiss it to me again 
 A thousand thousand times. 
 
[38] 
 
 Kisses her with a long kiss, then tenderly: 
 
 Thusnelda, Dear One^ 
 We are bride and bridegroom now ; 
 The words of the holy priest 
 Have made us One. 
 
 Thusnelda zvhispers: — 
 
 1 know it, 
 I am happy in thy arms, 
 Altogether do I trust myself to thee. 
 And thou wilt never fail me, 
 Wilt thou, Ronald, 
 For I am proud of thee? 
 
 Ronald.- — 
 
 My love far stronger is 
 Than the holy oath I vowed. 
 No power in earth or heaven 
 Can break it. 
 Give me thy lips again 
 That I may swear my soul anew to thee. 
 
 Cupid, to Thusnelda, while in her lover's rapturous 
 embrace: — 
 
 'Twas I that smote thy heart with love, 
 'Twas I that bound him fast to thee, 
 His eye shall see none fairer, 
 His heart no other passion know. 
 I told him of thy grace : 
 I must prove it now to him. 
 
[391 
 
 Give me thy veil and bridal garments, 
 
 This night thou needest them no more. 
 
 In all thy virgin-loveliness 
 
 Before him shalt thou stand : 
 
 Thy innocence his virtue's stay, 
 
 His angel-enchantress 
 
 And protecting goddess. 
 
ACT III. 
 SCENE: — Heaven. The Elysian Regions. 
 Ronald and Thusnelda. 
 Nereid and Naiad, the Bridal Nymphs. 
 The Heavenly Choir. 
 Cunina, the Disconsolate. 
 The Furies. 
 
[4 
 
 HISTORICAL. 
 
 According to an old Thuringian legend, each undefiled 
 earthly marriage had a heavenly counterpart. It was said 
 that at the instant of the wedded bridegroom's first kiss, the 
 souls of the lovers were transplanted to Heaven by two bridal 
 nymphs, named Nereid and Naiad, who conducted them to 
 the Elysian regions and acted as their guides through the 
 lieavenly nuptials. 
 
 Antiphonal lightning from the Evening and Morn- 
 ing stars announces to the divcUers in heaven the 
 approach of the Bridal Souls. 
 
 SONG OF THE HEAVENLY CHOIR. 
 
 Hail to the Holy One, 
 Hail to the Chosen One, 
 Hail to the Bride, 
 The morning-star of Life. 
 
 Naiad, to the Betrothed: — 
 
 O happy mortals, 
 Who have vowed the vow 
 Heaven-pleasing, 
 Earth-redeeming, 
 Here in Elysium's bowers 
 Plight your troth anew 
 That everything on earth begun 
 In heaven its completion find. 
 
 The lovers are conducted before Paltar, heaven's testing 
 light, which will hide its face, if they are unworthy. If, on 
 the other hand, they are found pure, the light is not dimmed. 
 (The impure are not allowed any further progress in heaven. 
 They are forever denied entrance to Fensalir and are sent 
 back to earth with a worm gnawing at their vitals.) 
 
[42] 
 
 Ronald and Thusnelda pass before P altar: — the 
 light remains undimmed, they are allozved full access 
 to the Elysian regions. 
 
 Nerfjd, to Ronald: — 
 
 Consider the jewel that to thee is given. 
 For thou knowest not 
 The age-long groaning of the universe, 
 The yearning, silent brooding 
 Of the Spirit 
 Till from chaos 
 Woman's beauty did arise: 
 Nor how in agonies untold 
 And blindly groping, 
 Ever upward striving, 
 Ever thwarted, devious paths 
 Compelled to wander, 
 Seeking light 
 
 And never the veil of darkness 
 Fully piercing, 
 Thirsting after truth 
 And still unquenched remaining: 
 O in what birth-throes 
 Is perfection born ! 
 — There she stands. 
 Heaven's glory, now thy bride. 
 
 . Nymphs now carrj'- Thusnelda to Glitnir, the crystal lake, 
 and assist her in the bridal bath. Nereid leads Ronald around 
 the lake in the opposite direction till he meets his bride again. 
 
 NerKid to Ronald: — 
 
 Glitnir, this crystal sea. 
 Is Life's mysterious fountain, 
 The secret of the lily's white, 
 
[43] 
 
 The fragrance of the rose, 
 
 The tulip's color 
 
 And the verdant green of Spring. 
 
 'Tis the love-note of the nightingale, 
 
 The heart of music, 
 
 And of art the soul 
 
 Perfection's mirror, to show thee 
 
 What else from mortal eyes is veiled, 
 
 What thou hast never seen, 
 
 Hast never known. 
 
 And never dreamed: 
 
 Fairer than myself. 
 
 Though in heaven I am accounted fair. 
 
 Behold, now yonder look, 
 
 What seest thou? 
 
 Ronald, anszvering: — 
 
 I see a goddess 
 By her train attended 
 In the tranquil waters bathing. 
 And fairies in the silver-spray 
 Her roseate image tracing. 
 
 Then, to himself: — 
 
 I dare not look again. 
 My heart, keej) still, 
 And be not reckless : 
 The conquest of the gods 
 Is not for thee. 
 
[44] 
 
 Nereid, to Ronald: — 
 
 Come with me 
 The hidden path 
 On GHtnir's shore 
 And let thy love-sighs urge thee on 
 Till the echo of thy heart 
 Thou find. 
 
 THUSNELDA, reclining upon the shore, is handed a magic 
 mirror by one of her attendants. 
 
 Naiad, to TJiusuelda: — 
 
 Look deep into this mirror 
 And of it thy future question. 
 'Tis he who seeketh thee 
 That walks the crystal path : 
 Thy lover, lord and king. 
 
 Thitsiiclda, absorbed in the mirror: — 
 
 I always knew my Ronald was a man, 
 And altogether a man. 
 Yet far handsomer is he 
 Than ever I divined. 
 How erect he stands, 
 How graceful in his strength. 
 From head to foot 
 No blemish upon him anywhere. 
 No puny, weakling seed 
 From him can issue. 
 O Ronald, gladly and undismayed 
 
[45] 
 
 Is Thiisnelda thy bride. 
 
 O that I had a thousand hearts to give 
 Instead of one, 
 And were a goddess now, 
 Then heaven's Hghts would I pluck 
 To weave my lover's crown : 
 Yet though I gave the day, 
 And all the brightness of the sky, 
 'Twere not half I fain would give to thee. 
 
 Nereid, with Eonald, emerges from the shaded path. They 
 e^me suddenly upon Thusnelda with her nymphs, braiding 
 lilies of the valley into her hair. 
 
 Ronald, upon beholding Thusnelda: — 
 
 O Thusnelda, my bride, 
 How spotlessly thy robe of innocence 
 Thy hidden worth proclaims. 
 Thy eyes, thy lips, thy hair 
 Betray the sapphire-glow within. 
 How marvelous the soul 
 That such an habitation 
 For its dwelling framed ! 
 Thy skin so white ; 
 Thy crimson blush 
 As roses in the morning-dew. 
 Thy arms a Goddess lent thee. 
 Thy hands the Graces kissed. 
 Thy loins in Beauty's curves enclosed, 
 Thy feet with angel sandals shod : 
 Thou art the queen of heaven 
 And fairer than the fair. 
 Never eyes have seen such comeliness 
 As can with thee compare. 
 
[46] 
 
 CUNINA, the disconsolate nymph of heaven, approaches to 
 conduct the lovers to Fensalir, where they are to drink the 
 cup of Immortality. 
 
 HISTORICAL. 
 
 It is said that Cunina always took unusual interest in the 
 affairs of men. Once she witnessed the blush of a maiden at 
 her first kiss and at another time came upon a young mother 
 at play with her babe. She believed that here she saw hap- 
 piness unknown in heaven. Thereafter she ever remained 
 disconsolate. 
 
 Cunina, to the lovers: — 
 
 I have dwelt on earth 
 And seen its sorrows, 
 Beheld its pains 
 And mourned the desolation 
 That from human sin leaps forth : 
 Yet love for all is compensation, 
 The healing balm for deepest wounds. 
 We here are called the Blest : 
 We have no night. 
 
 And hence know not the morning thrill. 
 Here, where we never grow old, 
 We were never young. 
 We, that weep not at the grave. 
 Can never feel the cradle-smile 
 Tugging at the mother-heart 
 And where there is no sorrow 
 Rejoicing hath but half its worth. 
 O, for an hour of youth and love 
 I would exchange my changeless bliss 
 And count not death 
 Too high a price 
 To gain a Lover's Paradise. 
 And if over love that is lost 
 
TKe Cradle Smile 
 
 MILE, baby mine, smile, 
 , 'Tis thy papa's smile. 
 
 Now smile again: 
 
 'Tis mamma's smile this time. 
 And one smile more: 
 'Tis thy baby-smile. 
 O how deeply through my soul 
 Plays the cradle-smile 
 This threefold chord of love 
 On the harp of my heart. 
 
 46 
 
A Youth, a Maiden, 
 And a Riss 
 
 HEY walked to-gether, 
 They talked together, 
 His voice grew soft 
 Her heart beat loud. 
 
 Softer still his voice 
 
 Louder still her heart, 
 
 Then language failed: 
 
 A kiss — a conquered heart. 
 
 'Tis done: 
 
 The binding 
 
 That shall have no unwinding. 
 
 47 
 
147J 
 
 I must mourn 
 
 The bitter-sweetness 
 
 Still is sweet. 
 
 They arrive at Hymen's altar, where the lovers are bound 
 with the silver chord. 
 
 CuxixA, to the lovers: — * 
 
 With unshod feet 
 These steps ascend 
 To the binding that 
 Shall have no unwinding. 
 Arm in arm. 
 And hand clasping hand. 
 That pulse beating upon pulse. 
 Henceforth one life only 
 Pulse through you both : 
 With the silken silver-cord of love 
 I bind you to unchanging faithfulness 
 'Tis in the universe 
 The strongest tie : 
 The fire it abides 
 And endures affliction. 
 Naught but faithlessness can sunder it. 
 And, O the horror of its breaking. 
 
 Before entering Fensalir, they must pass the abode of the 
 Furies, who demand the souls of the betrothed as fee, should 
 they ever prove unfaithful to each other. 
 
 First Fury, to the lovers: — 
 
 Bride and bridegroom 
 Say ye that ye are. 
 And in one short hour would quaff 
 
[481 
 
 The happiness 
 
 Of all eternity's distilling. 
 
 O heedless sons of men. 
 
 Heaven's greatest gift 
 
 Far too lightly do ye judge. 
 
 Never to Fensalir shall ye pass 
 
 Till ye swear 
 
 With your souls forever to pay 
 
 The penalty of faithlessness. 
 
 The Furies, in chorus: — 
 
 And we will claw your flesh, 
 And tear your veins. 
 And rend your heart. 
 And suck your blood. 
 And blind 3^our eyes. 
 And thresh your vitals, 
 And dance on your bones. 
 And sink you into the vortex of hell. 
 We will, we will. 
 
 CuNiNA, sadly: — 
 
 And the innocent 
 Shall suffer more than the guilty. 
 
 Second Fury, to Ronald: — 
 
 And I will scatter thy youth, 
 And shatter thy hopes, 
 And the death-knell 
 In thy marrow rattle. 
 
 CuNiNA.- — 
 
 And the innocent 
 Shall suffer more than the guilty. 
 
[49] 
 Third Fury, to Thusnelda: — 
 
 And with the furrows 
 
 Of sorrow 
 
 Will I mar thy face. 
 
 And for repentance 
 
 There shall be no room 
 
 In thy doom. , 
 
 Cunina; — 
 
 And the innocent 
 Shall suffer more than the guilty. 
 
 Tremblingly Thusnelda seeks shelter in Ronald's arras, 
 who stoops to caress her, whereui3on, since love is stronger 
 than fear, the Furies vanish. 
 
 Cunina, to Thusnelda: — 
 
 O happy daughter of earth, 
 
 Heaven's goldenest path 
 
 Dost thou tread. 
 
 With thee to thy joy 
 
 We may not enter. 
 
 Thy consecration 
 
 Is to us denied: 
 
 For we are vestals only, 
 
 Thou of life 
 
 The sacred shrine itself. 
 
 [The Lovers enter Fensalir.] 
 
 The Heavenly Choir; — 
 
 And God sazv the zuorks 
 Which he had made 
 And behold, they zvere very good. 
 
ACT IV. 
 SCENE: — Fensalir, the Temple of Immortality. 
 
 Freya, Goddess of Health and Fruitfulness. 
 
 Bonald. 
 
 Thusnelda. 
 
[51] 
 
 FENSALIR. 
 
 Ronald, to Thusnelda: — 
 
 O Thusnelda, queen of my heart, 
 How beautiful thou stood'st 
 At Glitnir's waters. 
 Now let me take thy hand and lips 
 Thy Lover's sealing 
 Shall be vouchsafed thee 
 That thou thy completer self attain. 
 To the awe of angels let us go : 
 At thy being's solemn quiver 
 I will near thee stand. 
 
 Thusnelda, to herself: — 
 
 How strange is Love! 
 How deep its mysteries! 
 Who is worthy 
 Life's secret springs to touch 
 And full womanhood to know? 
 
 O my lover kind. 
 My trembling pardon, 
 And swear again to me 
 Eternal constancy 
 For I give my soul to thee 
 White, as it came from God: 
 
[52] 
 
 O SO let thy burning kiss 
 Prove to me thine own 
 Unstained purity, 
 And though I doubt thee not 
 'Tis sweet to hear thy vows. 
 
 FEEYA, the Goddess of Health, enters and presents the 
 Cup of Immortality to the Lovers: — 
 
 This is the Cup of Immortality, 
 Take each your chalice, 
 And drink of it. 
 —Then self with self exchange — 
 And press it to each other's lips, 
 And from the self-same spot 
 The other drank 
 Quafif it to the end 
 Till soul in soul dissolve: 
 For in the bridal blush to glow 
 Is creation's final, perfect end 
 
 The echo of the Heavenly Choir is heard in the 
 portals of FensaUr: — 
 
 What in heaven 
 God hath joined to- get her, 
 Let not man 
 Asunder part. 
 
 [Exit Freya. The lovers remain alone.] 
 
 Ronald, to Thusnelda, zvhile drinking each othei^s 
 cup : — 
 
 O Thusnelda, bride of brides, 
 How could I dream 
 Thy marriage-kiss 
 
TKe Maiden at Her Devotions 
 
 »sK^^:v.^:,w HEN at eventide 
 At my bedside 
 
 
 I bend my knees, 
 
 All evil from me flees. 
 
 In the confessing tear 
 
 My God draws near. 
 
 O blessed hour of prayer, 
 
 How sweet to linger 
 
 In thy fragrant air, 
 
 Where bloom the flowers 
 
 Of the rising sun. 
 
 53 
 
[53J 
 
 Would be this bliss 
 
 With wealth untold 
 
 In thee love's kingdom is endowed. 
 
 Thou art truth transparent, 
 
 Thy tender touch 
 
 The healing 
 
 Of Loki's poisoned darts.* 
 
 O thou fairest jewel of womankind, f 
 
 All the treasures of the soul 
 
 Twice purified 
 
 In thee are found. 
 
 How bountifully thou now repay'st 
 Thy reluctance of our wooing days 
 When ne'er, but through a veil, 
 Thy kisses thou wouldst grant. 
 For thy great day 
 Hast thou kept the manna. 
 And ever presseth 
 Sweeter sweetness to my lips. 
 I gaze into thine eyes, 
 
 rapturous delight! 
 
 In the garden of thy heart, 
 
 1 am received 
 
 To feast with thee 
 
 Where bloom the flowers 
 
 Of the rising sun. 
 
 All thy woman-hopes 
 
 Hast thou plucked 
 
 A poesy to gather me. 
 
 With thyself thou enrichest me. 
 
 I drink thy soul. 
 
 Do thou drink mine — 
 
 'Tis heaven itself — O more than heaven- 
 
 I wed thee 
 
 With the resurrection-kiss, 
 
 'LOKI, the evil god in Thuringian mythology. 
 
[541 
 
 Faith to her joy awakens, 
 
 Our destiny 
 
 With purple clothed, 
 
 I am of thee — O happiness of happiness- 
 
 And thou of me 
 
 Forever and forever 
 
 Each other's love-kissed other self. 
 
 From Adnir, at the foot of the rainbow, out of the 
 abyss of the Unborn, whose bonds only maiden-hands 
 can loosen, prayer ascends to Thnsnelda's ears: — 
 
 From out of the shadowy deep, 
 From the timeless gloom 
 And fetters of night. 
 For our deliverance, 
 O maiden, we plead with thee. 
 Our unformed beings pity : 
 O give us the dawn : 
 With thyself our hunger still. 
 And of the rainbow weave us 
 Childhood's garment 
 Of laughter and frolicsome days. 
 Thy prayers teach our lips. 
 And softly sing thy speech our mother-tongue. 
 Sow freely of thy heart's aspiring 
 Reap in us thy harvest of hope 
 And out of our helplessness 
 Build thee the fairest castle 
 Of thy soul. 
 
 ThusnElda, sings softly: — 
 
 Tiny blossoms 
 Praying for the morning sun, 
 
[55] 
 
 Tiny hands 
 
 By mother-yearning answered, 
 
 Tiny voices 
 
 My heart-throb's music chiming, 
 
 Tiny tears 
 
 By tenderest pity dried: 
 
 Heaven's flowers 
 
 I water with my hands. 
 
INTERLUDE ON EARTH. 
 
 SCENE: — Bedchamber of Eunice, the Unwooed, 
 a Bridesmaid. 
 
[57] 
 
 EUNICE, THE UNWOOED. 
 
 EuNiCK, sitting upon her bed, partly disrobed, toying 
 zvith the Hozvers from the bridal girdle: — 
 
 How becomingly did this girdle 
 Thusnelda's waist encircle ! 
 How proud she looked 
 When so tenderly ♦ 
 
 Ronald did unloosen it ! 
 How beautiful to be a bride, 
 O how I long — 
 'Tis woman's glory, 
 'Tis her all. 
 
 Was I a woman born 
 To be denied my right? 
 And shall my nature 
 Never reach its full intoxication? 
 Nor never know its rightful pangs? 
 And never taste the joy 
 That lies beyond the mortal agony? 
 Shall I never minister my infant's wants 
 No sucklmg carry on my breast? 
 
 who damns me so to fail 
 Of my destiny: 
 
 That childless^ unkissed 
 
 And empty-handed 
 
 My lonely, unmourned grave 
 
 1 must seek? 
 
 Full twenty summers have I seen 
 Under my window 
 The linden-tree 
 
[58] 
 
 Deck herself in bridal green ; 
 
 And heard the robin 
 
 Twitter to its mate : 
 
 "Hey-ho, Springtime is love-time, 
 
 Here will we build our nest, 
 
 And rear our brood. 
 
 And live for love 
 
 And love for life, 
 
 Hey-ho, hey-ho.'' 
 
 O is there no throne 
 In the heart of some brave youth 
 Where I may reign? 
 What sin have I committed 
 That no lover 
 
 In the world is found for me? 
 Am I not worthy as my sisters? 
 Hath another 
 As much as I to give ? 
 Is it in vain. 
 That pure I kept myself 
 For him who does not come? 
 
 In the dance 
 Some have drawn me close, 
 And whispered words unlawful : 
 For I missed the love-lit eyes 
 Of Passion's sacred fire 
 Guarded holy in the heart. 
 Wanton indulgence they sought 
 And would heaven itself defile 
 To gain a victim for their lust. 
 No woman's heart could they unclasp 
 
[59] 
 
 They meant not as they should, 
 
 They wooed not truly, 
 
 But added to my sorrow 
 
 That tempters there are many 
 
 And lovers none. 
 
 O God, remember me! 
 
ACT V. 
 SCENE : — C astle Of terdingen. 
 Ronald and Thusnelda. 
 
TKe Treasure of the Toiler's 
 
 Home, or 
 
 The Husband's Riss 
 
 HEN standing in our door-way, 
 The even twilight 
 Round me gathers, 
 And thy child in my arms 
 
 Down the roadside 
 
 His father's form discovers, 
 
 Returning from thy toil. 
 
 And my heart once more 
 
 Beats calm 
 
 In assurance of my prayer answered 
 
 That spared thee through the day. 
 
 Then, O then, kiss me 
 
 With thy husband-kiss. 
 
 61 
 
[61] 
 THUSNELDA. 
 
 Thusne:lda, to herself: — 
 
 The secret longings of my being 
 Are now fulfilled. 
 The eternal pleading answered. 
 I am a happy bride. r 
 
 I am a 'Woman' satisfied. 
 
 Then to Ronald: — 
 
 My star is risen high, 
 With honor thy ring I wear. 
 Give thy wife thy lips 
 To kiss thee 
 With her new kiss. 
 At the appointed time 
 Thy prayer in my body 
 Shall be granted thee. 
 
 So now shelter me, 
 And watch over me 
 With thy tenderest care. 
 Sweetly in thy arms 
 Will I sleep 
 Till the morning dawn 
 In the East. 
 
 Then do thou waken me 
 With thy husband-kiss. 
 
 THE KND. 
 
I 
 
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