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MANAHEM. THOU hast sent for me, O King, and I am here. | |
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HEROD. Who art thou?
MANAHEM. Manahem, the Essenian. | |
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HEROD. I recognize thy features, but what mean | |
| These torn and faded garments? On thy road | |
| Have demons crowded thee, and rubbed against thee, | 5 |
| And given thee weary knees? A cup of wine! | |
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MANAHEM. The Essenians drink no wine.
HEROD. What wilt thou, then? | |
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MANAHEM. Nothing.
HEROD. Not even a cup of water?
MANAHEM. Nothing. | |
Why hast thou sent for me?
HEROD. Dost thou remember | |
| One day when I, a schoolboy in the streets | 10 |
| Of the great city, met thee on my way | |
| To school, and thou didst say to me: Hereafter | |
Thou shalt be king?
MANAHEM. Yea, I remember it. | |
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HEROD. Thinking thou didst not know me, I replied: | |
| I am of humble birth; whereat thou, smiling, | 15 |
| Didst smite me with thy hand, and saidst again: | |
| Thou shalt be King; and let the friendly blows | |
| That Manahem hath given thee on this day | |
| Remind thee of the fickleness of fortune. | |
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MANAHEM. What more?
HEROD. No more.
MANAHEM. Yea, for I said to thee: | 20 |
| It shall be well with thee if thou love justice | |
| And clemency towards thy fellow-men. | |
Hast thou done this, O King?
HEROD. Go, ask my people. | |
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MANAHEM. And then, foreseeing all thy life, I added: | |
| But these thou wilt forget; and at the end | 25 |
Of life the Lord will punish thee.
HEROD. The end! | |
| When will that come? For this I sent to thee. | |
| How long shall I still reign? Thou dost not answer! | |
Speak! shall I reign ten years?
MANAHEM. Thou shalt reign twenty, | |
| Nay, thirty years. I cannot name the end. | 30 |
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HEROD. Thirty? I thank thee, good Essenian! | |
| This is my birthday, and a happier one | |
| Was never mine. We hold a banquet here. | |
| See, yonder are Herodias and her daughter. | |
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MANAHEM, aside. ’T is said that devils sometimes take the shape | 35 |
| Of ministering angels, clothed with air, | |
| That they may be inhabitants of earth, | |
| And lead man to destruction. Such are these. | |
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HEROD. Knowest thou John the Baptist?
MANAHEM. Yea, I know him; | |
Who knows him not?
HEROD. Know, then, this John the Baptist | 40 |
| Said that it was not lawful I should marry | |
| My brother Philip’s wife, and John the Baptist | |
| Is here in prison. In my father’s time | |
| Matthias Margaloth was put to death | |
| For tearing the golden eagle from its station | 45 |
| Above the Temple Gate,—a slighter crime | |
| That John is guilty of. These things are warnings | |
| To intermeddlers not to play with eagles, | |
| Living or dead. I think the Essenians | |
| Are wiser, or more wary, are they not? | 50 |
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MANAHEM. The Essenians do not marry.
HEROD. Thou hast given | |
| My words a meaning foreign to my thought. | |
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MANAHEM. Let me go hence, O King!
HEROD. Stay yet awhile, | |
| And see the daughter of Herodias dance. | |
| Cleopatra of Jerusalem, my mother, | 55 |
| In her best days, was not more beautiful. Music. THE DAUGHTER OF HERODIAS dances. | |
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HEROD. Oh, what was Miriam dancing with her timbrel, | |
Compared to this one?
MANAHEM, aside. O thou Angel of Death, | |
| Dancing at funerals among the women, | |
| When men bear out the dead! The air is hot | 60 |
| And stifles me! Oh for a breath of air! | |
Bid me depart, O King!
HEROD. Not yet. Come hither. | |
| Salome, thou enchantress! Ask of me | |
| Whate’er thou wilt; and even unto the half | |
| Of all my kingdom, I will give it thee, | 65 |
As the Lord liveth!
DAUGHTER OF HERODIAS, kneeling. Give me here the head | |
| Of John the Baptist on this silver charger! | |
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HEROD. Not that, dear child! I dare not; for the people | |
Regard John as a prophet.
DAUGHTER OF HERODIAS. Thou hast sworn it. | |
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HEROD. For mine oath’s sake, then. Send unto the prison; | 70 |
| Let him die quickly. Oh, accursed oath! | |
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MANAHEM. Bid me depart, O King!
HEROD. Good Manahem, | |
| Give me thy hand. I love the Essenians. | |
| He ’s gone and hears me not! The guests are dumb, | |
| Awaiting the pale face, the silent witness. | 75 |
| The lamps flare; and the curtains of the doorways | |
| Wave to and fro as if a ghost were passing! | |
| Strengthen my heart, red wine of Ascalon! | |
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