Oberon (1826)

Act III


Scene I	Exterior of Ibrahim the gardener's house. Sunrise. Enter Fatima, in a slave dress, from the house, L.	Q (nobody) <- Fatima

FATIMA	Alas! poor Fatima, how changed is thy lot! The sun, which so lately beheld thee, the favourite attendant of a mighty princess, now rises upon the lowly slave of Ibrahim, the gardener of the emir of Tunis. And that beloved mistress, where is she ~ the beautiful, the powerful, the worshipped Reiza? sunk in the merciless ocean, or perishing on some barren rock, with the chosen of her heart, her gallant but ill-fated Huon! Yet surely that powerful spirit who professed himself so strongly their protector, cannot thus barbarously have deserted them. No, ~ I will cherish the hope, that we shall shortly meet again. My own unlooked for preservation makes may well encourage the idea. Besides, I had a dream last night which should prognosticate good fortunes.

[N. 15 - Air]		N
	O Araby! dear Araby! My own, my native land! Methought I cross'd the dark blue sea, and trod again thy strand. And there I saw my father's tent beneath the tall date-trees, and the sound of music and merriment came sweetly on the breeze. And thus to the lightly touch'd guitar, I heard a maiden tell of one who fled from proud Serdar, with the youth she lov'd so well. Al, al al al! though the nightstar be high, 'tis the morning of love for my Yusuf and me; though the flow'rs of the garden have clos'd ev'ry one, the rose of the heart blooms in love's rising sun. Al, al al al! soon will Zeenab be far, from the drear anderûn* of cruel Serdar. Al, al al al! 'tis the neigh of his steed! O, prove, my good barb, thou art worthy thy breed! Now o'er the salt desert we fly like the wind; and our fears fade as fast as the turrets behind. Al, al al al! we the frontier have won, and may laugh at the lord of the drear anderûn.	S
	* The haram, or women's apartment.

Enter Sherasmin, L. in a garden's dress, with a spade in one hand, and a basket of flowers in the other.		<- Sherasmin

SHERASMIN	Ah! Fatima, art there, my girl? Here am I, in the garb of my new occupation, you see, which I have taken to as kindly as possible, considering circumstances. Hast seen our master this morning?
FATIMA	No, but he is up, and gone into the city on some business.
SHERASMIN	He's a kind-hearted old soul, Fatima. I marked his eye twinkle, when he heard the captain of the vessel, who picked us up, say, how narrowly we escaped being food for fish; and I shall never forget the tone in which he said, «Poor devils! the waves didn't separate you, and shall I be more cruel than they? ~ No, there's your price, captain; and now get you two along together; work hard, feed well, and be merry!»
FATIMA	Ay, Sherasmin, it was kind indeed of him not to part us. Our lot would have been truly miserable, if destitute of that last consolation, the opportunity of deploring it together. Heaven grant that our poor lord and lady were ~
SHERASMIN	Ah! that's a bad business, indeed, Fatima; but not so bad, I hope, as it seems. I cannot suppress the strong conviction, that they are safe. The magic horn, I fear, was left in the haram gardens at Bagdad, and the fairy cup is full of salt-water. ~ But, though the gifts be lost, the giver is as powerful as ever. ~ So kiss thy fond husband, my girl, and a fig for misfortune. Let's make up our minds to be happy ~ there's a good deal in that, I can tell you. ~ Gad, what merry days I have seen in my time, and I hope to see some more yet, Fatima.

[N. 16 - Duo]		N

	On the banks of sweet Garonne, I was born one fine spring morning. Soon as I could run alone, kicks, and cuffs, and tumbles, scorning, shirking labour, loving fun, quaffing wine, and hating water, fighting ev'ry neighbor's daughter, and kissing every neighbour's daughter, o how fast the days have flown, on the banks of sweet Garonne!
FATIMA	On the waves of Bund-emir first I saw the day-beams quiver; there I wander'd, year by year, on the banks of that fair river; roaming with my roaming race, wheresoe'er the date-tree lured them; on a greener resting-place, pasture for their flocks ensured them. Never knew I grief or fear on the banks of Bund-emir!
SHERASMIN	Times have alter'd, mistress mine!
FATIMA	Fled is fortune's sunny weather. We are slaves ~
SHERASMIN	Yet why repine while, my dear, we're slaves together! Let's be merry while we're true, love our song, and joy the chorus, dig and delve, and bill and coo, as Eve and Adam did before us.
SHERASMIN, FATIMA	Let's be merry etc.

	(Exeunt Fatima and Sherasmin, L.)	Fatima, Sherasmin ->

Puck descends with sir Huon.		<- Puck, Sir Huon

PUCK	Seven times hath blush'd the morn, since thy love was from thee torn; seven times the sun hath set, since thine eyes his light hath met. Now in port the bark doth ride, which contains thy captive bride. Wake! a faithful friend is nigh! Back to fairy land I fly!

	(Puck disappears, R. sir Huon shows signs of returning animation.)	Puck ->

Re-enter Sherasmin, L.		<- Sherasmin

SHERASMIN	So, that's all right. ~ Now for ~ (seeing sir Huon) Hollo! what have we here? ~ Eh! ~ No! ~ Yes! ~ Is it possible? my master! my dear master! I shall go mad with joy. (Helping him to rise.) Sir, sir! speak to me ~ don't you know me? It's Sherasmin, your faithful Sherasmin.
SIR HUON (gazing about him wildly)	Sherasmin! where am I? How came I here? What new miracle is this? Is it a dream, or did I dream till now?
SHERASMIN	By saint Denis, master, I am as much puzzled as yourself; but this I know, that you are here in Tunis, before the door of old Ibrahim, the emir's gardener, who bought both Fatima and me in the slave-market two days ago.
SIR HUON	Fatima here too!
SHERASMIN	Yes, sir, we were picked up at sea by a corsair of Tunis, just as we were at the last gasp. But where's my lady, sir? Safe and sound, I hope, if not with you.
SIR HUON	O Sherasmin! now you rend open my wound again! Twelve hours have scarcely passed, since a band of pirates tore her from the rude rock on which the waves had cast us, and these weaponless arms, which could no longer defend her. Whither they have borne her, heaven only knows.
SHERASMIN	Twelve hours ago! ~ Why, master, the desert shore on which our vessel struck, is full four days' sail from Tunis with the fairest wind, and ~
SIR HUON	Well! it may be so ~ I was felled to the earth by the ruffian crew, and how long I lay senseless, I know as little as the means by which I was wafted to this spot. But doubtless Oberon hath stood my friend ~ and from that thought I gather new hope and courage to struggle with my fate.
SHERASMIN	I said it! I said but now to Fatima, we shall all meet again, and be merry! See, sir, here she comes. Lord, lord, how glad she will be to see you!

Re-enter Fatima, hastily, L..		<- Fatima

FATIMA	Oh Sherasmin! such news! (seeing sir Huon) Ah! mercy on me! what do I see?
SHERASMIN	See! Why, you see my noble master alive and well, Fatima! ~ Praised be the kind fairy! I knew it, I felt it all along. I couldn't be melancholy, though I tried, and now I somehow, ~ I can't help crying for the life and soul of me: this turning gardener has made my head like an old watering-pot.
FATIMA	And came my noble lord with my lady?
SIR HUON	Your lady! Alas! Fatima, I know not where or in whose power she pines!
FATIMA	Wonder on wonder then! ~ For 'twas of her I came to tell. ~ My lady lives ~ my lady is in Tunis!
SIR HUON, SHERASMIN	Here! in Tunis!
FATIMA	At the palace.
SIR HUON	Hast seen her, Fatima? Speak! speak, for heaven's sake!
FATIMA	No, my dear lord, I have not seen her; but this morning a bark put into Tunis, and the rumour runs, that within this hour the captain has presented to the emir a most beautiful female, found on a desert island. Almanzor was enchanted at the first glance, dismissed the captain with a magnificent present, and has lodged her in a pavilion in the haram gardens, which till now, belonged to his wife Roshana. The crew of the vessel have blazoned her beauty through the city; and from their description I have no doubt of its being the princess.
SIR HUON	'Tis she! ~ my conscious heart assures me 'tis my Reiza! Your counsel, my kind friends: what's to be done?
SHERASMIN	Mortal force will avail us nothing, and we have no magic horn to aid us as at Bagdad. ~ Our first care must be to establish you, unsuspected, in this neighbourhood. I will pray Ibrahim to take you also into his service; and if I succeed, you must e'en be content to dig beside your poor Sherasmin, till time and fate shall favour our enterprise. Come in, sir; ~ the old man is from home at present ~ and ere he return, we must manage to equip you in a less suspicious habit than that. But stay ~ yonder comes a Greek ~ a fellow servant of ours, who is as anxious to get out of the clutches of the infidels as we are. The varlet has all the cunning of his country ~ I'll just let him into as much of your situation as 'tis fit he should know, and he'll help me to patch up a story, I warrant you!

Enter Arcon, L.		<- Arcon

	(Sherasmin takes him aside, and during the commencement of the trio converses with him in dumb show.)

[N. 17 - Trio]		N

SIR HUON	And must I then dissemble?
FATIMA	No other hope I know ~
SIR HUON	But let the tyrant tremble ~ unscathed he shall not go!
FATIMA	Viewless spirit of pow'r and light! Thou who mak'st virtue and love thy care, restore to the best and the bravest knight the fondest and fairest of the fair!

	ALL Spirit adored! Strike on our part! Bless the good sword, and the faithful heart!



Scene II	An apartament in the haram of the emir. Enter Almanzor, followed by a black slave, R.	Q (nobody) <- Almanzor, Slave

ALMANZOR	Has the lovely stranger been refreshed and habited, as we commanded?
SLAVE	The will of my lord has been faithfully executed by his slave.
ALMANZOR	Conduct her hither.

	(Exit slave, L.)	Slave ->

ALMANZOR	Yes ~ I will again behold those eyes, dark and tender as the mountain roe's; again listen to that voice, sweet as the breeze-rung bells of paradise! Thrice blessed be the waves which flung her back upon that desert shore! They cover not so fair a pearl, they never bore a richer treasure. She comes! ~ she comes! ~ Unseen, awhile I'll gaze upon her beauty; then pay a prince's tribute to its power! (Retires.)	Almanzor ->

Enter Reiza, richly habited, L.		<- Reiza

[N. 18 - Air]		N

	REIZA Mourn thou, poor heart, for the joys that are dead; flow, ye sad tears, for the joys that are fled: sorrow is now the sole treasure I prize; as peris on perfume, I feed on its sighs: and bitter to some as its fountain may be, 'tis sweet as the waters of Gelum to me.* Ye that are basking in pleasure's gay beam, ye that are sailing on hope's golden stream, a cloud may come o'er ye, ~ a wave sweep the deck, and picture a future of darkness and wreck; but the scourge of the desert** o'er my heart hath past, and the tree that's blighted fears no second blast.	S (♦) (♦)
	* «The water of Gelum, on account of its purity, is called the water of paradise.» Dow.
	** The kamsin, a devastating wind, so called by the Arabs.
		<- Almanzor
ALMANZOR (advancing)	Beautiful being! wherefore that plaintive lay, sweet and sad as the moan of the dove over the fallen cypress? ~ Tell me thy grief, that I may bring to thee the balm will cure it. ~ Almanzor can do much.
REIZA	Can he awake the dead?
ALMANZOR	No: ~ but he can surround the living with such delights, that they will weep the dead no longer.
REIZA	Indeed! Then waste them not on me ~ for I would still weep on. ~ My hopes have passed from me, like the phantom streams which mock the fainting traveller in the desert; and, like him, would I lay me down and die.
ALMANZOR	Hath Almanzor then no power to bid a spring gush forth for thee in the wilderness? Is there no green oasis, to which his hand may lead thee? Bethink thee, loveliest, ~ all that charmeth woman, ~ gay chambers, ~ costly robes, ~ high feasting, and sweet music, these are mine to offer thee, and ~
REIZA	All these I had, and I left them without a sigh! Without a sigh I can remember that I had them. They increased not my happiness when I was happy, and they can take no jot from my wretchedness! ~ A costly robe but adds to the weight of a sinking spirit; and when the nightingale is dead, and the canker in the heart of the rose, she careth not for the smile of the sun, or the song of the fountain.
ALMANZOR	Hear me, fair creature! I know not whom thou art, or whence thou comest, beyond what they could tell, who brought thee hither! ~ But this I know, thy beauty is above all price. The caliph, my great master, before whom the whole world falls prostrate, should not buy thee from me! ~ Nay, by Allah! if rank and power can move thy heart to love, speak but the word, I will fling off allegiance, defy Haroun, and share with thee the independent throne of Tunis.
REIZA	Dream it not! ~ Almanzor, there is a gulfh between us: its dark shore is strewed with the wreck of happiness: come not thou near it with thy gilded bark, if thou wouldst save thyself.
ALMANZOR	Thou art Almanzor's sovereign; but yet hear me. Thy grief shall be respected: no boisterous mirth shall break its spell, ~ no rude intrusion profane its sanctuary; but gentlest cares shall daily steal away some unmarked portion of thy melancholy, till the light of joy may pierce its last thin shadow. ~ Nay, reply not! ~ For thine own sake, do not wake me from this vision, even though it be delusive. Leave me, while yet I feel myself thy slave. A moment longer, and I may remember I am also thy master.

	(Exit Reiza, L.)	Reiza ->

As Almanzor is rushing out on the opposite side, Enter Roshana, R.		<- Roshana

ALMANZOR	Roshana!
ROSHANA	Light of my eyes! what shakes my lord so strongly? ~ your cheek is flushed, your look is wild, Almanzor! ~ Why do you frown on me? ~ have I offended?
ALMANZOR	Your sight offends me ~ stand from out my path.
ROSHANA	The emir of Tunis was not wont to speak thus to Roshana. The blood of the prophet runs in these veins; let my lord shed it, but not insult his wife.
ALMANZOR	My wife! my slave! By Allah, one word more, and Tunis shall not hold a slave so wretched as I will make the proud Roshana. Out of my path, before I spurn thee! Hence, and vent thy spleen upon thy women; but for thy life, wake not Almanzor's fury! (Exit.) R.	Almanzor ->

ROSHANA C.	O holy prophet! why have I lived to see this day? ~ Why do I live to bear this foul disgrace? ~ Why, but for vengeance! Yes, by Allah! terrible vengeance! Cast off, ~ despised, ~ insulted, ~ for this new toy, ~ this pining stranger. ~ Roshana, awake! Hast thou no power in Tunis? ~ Yes, to-day, ~ But wilt thou have to-morrow? Not if this minion listen to the suit of thy faithless lord. Well then, to-day, while I have power, let me use it. ~ Her vengeance glutted, Roshana knows how to die, and foil that of her enemies. (Exit.) L.	Roshana ->



Scene III	Myrtle grove in the garden of Almanzor. Enter Fatima, R.	Q <- Fatima

FATIMA	Well, that's settled: ~ our master the gardener has consented to employ our master the paladin; and the latter has already commenced operations. Sherasmin told the old man a famous story about his sham kinsman's skill in raising tulips! ~ Heaven send he put it not to the proof, for there'll not be a plant left alive in the whole garden, I'm sure. ~ He doesn't know a tulip from a sun-flower! He handles a hoe as if it were a lance, and slashes about with his pruning knife, as though he were lopping heads instead of branches. ~ Hah! here he comes.

Enter sir Huon, L. dressed as a gardener, hastily: in his hand is a bouquet, which he examines minutely.		<- Sir Huon

SIR HUON	It must be from my Reiza! I've heard that in these climes, each flower hath a meaning, and that lovers often express their passionate thoughts in such sweet letters! O for some clue to read this riddle! (Seeing Fatima.) Hah! Fatima! tell me, my kind girl, what may this mean? Standing but now, gazing upon the cruel walls which bar me from my Reiza, I saw the small fair hand of a female issue from the only lattice which opens on these garderts, ~ and presently this bunch of flowers fell from it at my feet. (Giving them to her.)
FATIMA	Ha! they are token-flowers. (Examining the bouquet, and explaining its meaning to sir Huon.) See, my lord, a jonquil, ~ that means «Have pity on my passion.» These cinnamon blossoms, ~ « My fortune is yours.» ~ Stay, what is this? ~ these flowers puzzle me ~ I have it ~ no ~ I cannot make that out. The gold wire that binds them should mean, «I die for thee ~ come quickly!» ~ And look ~ here are some characters scratched upon this laurel leaf, ~ «At sunset, the gate in the myrtle grove ~ love, and vengeance on a tyrant.» It's from my lady, ~ she has doubtless gained some slave, who will direct your steps to her; but ah! the danger ~
SIR HUON	Talk not of danger in a cause like this! Hasten to Sherasmin: tell him to prepare for instant flight. ~ Day is closing fast, and there is no time for consultation. Do thou and he await me at the well behind the gardener's house. There, if fate smile upon my enterprise, will I bring thy mistress.
FATIMA	And if fate does not smile upon us, to-morrow morning will find Sherasmin and I at the bottom of the well; for never will we outlive the loss of our dear lord and lady. (Exit.) R.	Fatima ->

SIR HUON	At sunset, the gate in the myrtle grove! 'Tis here at hand, and the moment is almost as nigh. My own true Reiza! A few brief seconds, and I shall clasp her again to this devoted bosom.

[N. 19 - Air]		N

	I revel in hope and joy again; a ray shines over my breaking chain, beams like a beacon the gloom above, and lights my path to my lady love! I feel like a mountain stream set free from the stern frost-spirit's mastery, rushing down from its rocky height, leaping and sparkling in wild delight. I revel in hope and joy again! I seek my love as that stream the main: they shall turn the tide with a silken glove, ere they bar my way to my lady love!



Scene IV	Saloon in the kiosk of Roshana: in the flat an arch closed with rich curtains. The stage is quite dark. Enter Nadina, leading Sir Huon, L.	Q (nobody) <- Nadina, Sir Huon

SIR HUON	Where is she? Gentle guide, ~ where is my love?
NADINA	Rest thou here ~ anon thou shalt behold her. (Exit.) M. D.	Nadina ->

SIR HUON	My heart misgives me! ~ why this strange delay? ~ the passage was free for her as for the slave, and by this time we should have joined our friends. She comes not ~ how torturing is this suspense!

The curtains of the arch fly open and discover a recess illuminated, in which Roshana is reclining, covered with a rich veil.		<- Roshana

SIR HUON	Ah! she is there! My love! my life! (Rushing to her, and clasping her in his arms.) Why dost thou loiter here? Let us away! the morn shall see us far from Tunis!
ROSHANA (throwing off her veil)	Nay, christian, not so. The morn shall see thee on the throne of Tunis, if thou wilt share it with Roshana!
SIR HUON	Merciful heaven! I am betrayed!
ROSHANA	Thou hast no cause for fear: ~ listen to me, christian. Thou seest before thee the wife of Almanzor, the proud emir of Tunis. I mark'd thee toiling in the garden beneath the eye of Ibrahim, and could see thy spirit spurned the menial task. Thou art no common slave ~ there is a fire in thine eye, a pride in thy port, which speak thee noble: ~ suffice it to say, I saw and loved thee. ~ Let not thy colder nature start at this plain avowal. ~ The passions of the daughters of Africa burn as fiercely as the sun which blazes over them. Two of the wildest now rage within my bosom ~ vengeance and love. Nerve thine arm, christian, to gratify the first ~ the latter shall reward thee beyond thy most sanguine wishes!
SIR HUON (aside)	Whither hath my rashness led me? How shall I answer this impetuous woman?
ROSHANA	Thou art silent. Canst thou hesitate to accept the good I offer thee? ~ Arouse thee, christian. Is it not thy glory to smite the moslem? Listen ~ I will lead thee this night to the couch of Almanzor. When his brain swims with the forbidden wine, and his lids are heavy with the fumes of the banquet, stab him to the heart! His slaves shall fall like dust at thy feet. The haram yields obedience to my nod. Wealth, rank, and power ~ liberty and love ~ reward thee for one blow!
SIR HUON	Never, mighty princess! If Almanzor has wronged thee, give me a sword, and let me hand to hand strive with the tyrant! I will shed my blood freely to right an injured woman; but I am no assassin to stab a sleeping man!
ROSHANA	Is he not the enemy of thy race and creed? Must the lances glitter in the sun, and the mighty steed paw up the earth, before thy blood can boil, and thy steel spring from its scabbard? Think on thy countrymen who pine in chains around thee, and nourish with the sweat of their brows the soil of the infidel! Thou shalt be their liberator, and I will be thy proselyte! Thou shalt have the glory of giving freedom to five hundred Franks, and of converting a princess of the blood of Mohammed! What care I for a prince who spurns me, or a prophet who denies me the privileges of my fellow clay? Christian! gallant christian! revenge thyself and me ~ strike the tyrant and the unbeliever, and defy the caliph on his distant throne.
SIR HUON	Urge me no more, lady. I love another; and while I freely own thy dazzling beauty, and my unworthiness, I must declare as plainly, that naught can shake my honour or my faith.
ROSHANA (aside)	Destruction to my hopes! Wretched Roshana, where is the boasted power of thine eyes? where are the charms that poets have sung, and princes have sighed for? A slave, whose life hangs on thy breath, calmly rejects thine hand, even with a jewell'd sceptre in its grasp! ~ But shall this be? shall I be baffled thus? Come all ye arts of woman to my aid! the touch that disarms the mighty ~ the look that blinds the wise! He must be more or less than man if he break through the net I cast around him.

She claps her hands. ~ A troop of dancing girls and female slaves, riched attired, enter and surround sir Huon with garlands. One presents him with a cup of wine.		<- Dancin girls, Female slaves

[N. 20 - Chorus and Ballet]		N

CHORUS	For thee hath beauty decked her bower, for thee the cup of joy is filled: o drain the draught and cull the flower, ere the rose be dead, and the wine be spilled!
SIR HUON	Hence! The flow'rs ye proffer fair, poison in their fragrance bear! And the goblet's purple flood seems to me a draught of blood! (He breaks from the garlands, and is met by Roshana, who clings to him and prevents his flight.)
CHORUS	When woman's eye with love is bright, canst thou shun its 'witching light? Bearest thou the heart to flee when her white arms circle thee?
SIR HUON	There is no beauty in woman's eye, when it burns with unholy brilliancy! 'Tis like the glare of the sightless dead, when the soul which should kindle their orbs hath fled! There is no charm that can yield delight in the wanton's hand, be it never so white ~ sooner its fingers should o'er me stray, when the worm hath eaten the flesh away!
	(Disengages himself from Roshana, and rushes to the wing by which he entered. ~ The dancing girls and slaves anticipate his intention, and group themselves so as opposite his exit.)

	CHORUS O turn not away from the banquet of bliss! O lose not a moment so precious as this! Remember the sage* who sung o'er his repast «How pleasant were life if a shadow could last.» Then, mortal, be happy, and laugh at the wise who know life's shadow, yet wait till it flies!
	* Abdolmélik, the fifth caliph of the house of Ommiyah, and the eleventh from the prophet; whilst he was at supper, he said, «How sweetly we live, if a shadow would last!» Vide Ockley, «History of Saracens».

SIR HUON	Off! let me pass! I would not willingly lay an ungentle hand upon a woman, but patience hath its bounds! Give way I say!

As he is about to force his way through them, the slaves disperse, and Almanzor, L. enters, followed by some armed negroes. Sir Huon is instantly seized.		<- Almanzor, Some negroes, Three negroes

ALMANZOR	Eternal curses! A man within these walls!
ROSHANA (aside) C.	Almanzor! flushed with wine too ~ 'tis well, the slave shall die the death his folly merits! (Aloud, and falling at Almanzor's feet.) Allah be praised! I owe thee more than life! This christian dog, for some vile purpose, and by unknown means, gained access to this sacred spot. My slaves discovered him, and he would have fled. Shrieking, they strove with their weak arms to bar his passage; when happily my lord arrived, as sent by heaven to our assistance!
ALMANZOR	Drag him away to death. In the palace court let him be burned alive, within this hour!

	(They force sir Huon from the stage.)	Sir Huon, Some negroes ->

ALMANZOR	(to Roshana) Woman, I doubt this tale, but be it as it may, he dies! For thee ~ (Pauses a while and observes her: then, turning to one of the remaining negroes, he silently motions him towards Roshana.)
ROSHANA (aside)	Hah! is it so? There is no time to lose then.

	(As two of the negroes approach her, she evades their grasp; and, rushing on Almanzor, aims a blow at him with her dagger: her arm is caught, and the weapon wrested from her, by a third slave.)

ALMANZOR (in a calm low tone)	Thou hast been dangerous too long. Farewell, Roshana. Thine is a towering spirit, but the ocean is deep enough to cover it.
ROSHANA (in the same tone)	Were it as deep as gehennem, it should not separate us, Almanzor. In the banquet hall and the haram bower, in the blaze of noon and the darkness of night, Roshana shall be with thee; her blue lip shall meet thine on the brim of the goblet; her glassy eye glare on thee from the midst of the roses. The rushing of waters and the shriek of their victim shall be heard above the song of joy and the trumpet of triumph. Sleeping and waking shall they ring in thine ears; and when the angel of death shall stand at the foot of thy couch, there shall Roshana be also, to smile on the last struggle of her despairing murderer!

	(Almanzor signs to the negroes to remove Roshana.)

The scene closes.




Scene V	Garden behind Ibrahim's house ~ a rose-bush particularly prominent. ~ Moonlight. Enter Sherasmin, R.	Q (nobody) <- Sherasmin

SHERASMIN	No, I can see nobody. Mischief! mischief. I greatly fear thou art afoot! My master must have been here long ago, had he succeeded in his project! If they have discovered him, they'll twist his neck with as little compunction as if it were a pigeon's! Fatima returns not, neither! Has she heard nothing? Or has she heard too much? Sir Oberon! Sir Oberon! I begin to fear that thou wilt turn out a scurvy fairy, after all. ~ O murder! what the devil's that? I've trod on a snake, and it has bitten my leg through! O I'm a dead man!

	(A lily rises through the stage, and the ivory horn is seen swinging upon it.)

	There it is! ~ No ~ it isn't ~ it's a ~ no ~ why. ~ (Approaching cautiously, and looking at it.) The horn! the horn! the fairy horn! (Snatching it from the lily, which sinks again, and dancing about delightedly.) We're all right! we're all safe ~ we are all ~ Lira, lira la! lira, lira la! Ah, Fatima!

Enter Fatima, hastily, R.		<- Fatima

FATIMA	Misery! misery! all's lost! all's ruined! We were deceived! The token came from the wife of the emir! Almanzor surprised sir Huon in the haram, and they are going to burn him alive!
SHERASMIN	Burn him alive! ~ My master ~ ha! ha! ha! that's a good joke!
FATIMA	A good joke! art thou mad? I tell thee even now they are raising stake and pile in the court of the haram.
SHERASMIN	Excellent! 'twill be rare sport ~ follow me, Fatima!
FATIMA	He's frantic! the dreadful tidings have turned his brain.
SHERASMIN	No, they hav'n't. Don't be frighten'd. If I am mad, I'm only horn-mad, and that's nothing very extraordinary for a married man, you know, Fatima.
FATIMA	What! the fairy horn restored to us? But are you sure it's the fairy horn? It may be some trick, perhaps.
SHERASMIN	Sure! why, ~ yes, ~ it must be ~ it ~ at least, it looks very much like it. ~ (Blows a soft note. Fatima bursts into, a loud laugh.) Oh yes. I can swear to the notes ~ come ~ come, don't stand laughing there ~ every moment is precious now.
FATIMA	Oh! oh! oh! ha! ha! ha! I can't help it! ha! ha! ha!
SHERASMIN	What the deuce ails the girl! Fatima! ~ Fatima! ~ Oh murder! it's the horn ~ that's for doubting the fairy, you know ~ what's to be done now? ~ If I blow again, I shall do more mischief. ~ So, you must e'en laugh on, till I get within hearing of the enemy, and then take your chance with the rest. ~ Follow me, you grinning goose, do «Guienne for the noble duke!»
FATIMA	Ha! ha! ha!

	(Exeunt.) L. (Fatima laughing.)	Sherasmin, Fatima ->



Scene VI	The court of the haram. In the centre of the stage is a stake, surrounded by fagots. A band of negroes are discovered, with lighted torches. Enter Almanzor, attended, L.	Q Negroes <- Almanzor

ALMANZOR	Bring forth the guilty slave!

	(Exeunt Negroes.)	Negroes ->

A shriek is heard within: L. Reiza rushes from the haram, and flings herself at the feet of Almanzor.		<- Reiza

ALMANZOR	The lovely stranger!
REIZA	At thy feet, Almanzor, I crave a first and only boon.
ALMANZOR	What canst thou ask, fair creature, that Almanzor can deny? Speak; it is thine.
REIZA	Pardon for him thou hast but now condemned to a most cruel and unmerited death.
ALMANZOR	How! for that vile slave who dared profane the haram! What is that dog to thee?
REIZA	He was deceived, and he is innocent. I have heard all. Ask thine own slaves, the slaves of that wretched princess now struggling with the waters. Spare him! O spare him!
ALMANZOR	It cannot be! He hath transgressed the law. Waste not a thought upon a wretch like that.
REIZA	Almanzor, hear me ~ he is my husband.
ALMANZOR	Hah! thy husband! He whom thy captors left bound upon the beach, and thou didst deem dead? Praised be the prophet! Now, lady, hear Almanzor; you ask me to be merciful ~ do thou set the example. Pity my sufferings, smile upon my love; and I will not only spare his life, but load him with riches, and give him safe and honourable conduct to his native land.
REIZA (rising)	Never!
ALMANZOR	Beware! the bow, o'erstrained, may break.
REIZA	Barbarian, do thy worst; I fear thee not. The man I love would shame to live on terms so base; and I would rather share his dreadful fate, than free him from it by such infamy.
ALMANZOR (furiously)	Then be it so. Thou hast condemned thyself; for yield thou shalt, or mount the pile with him. Bind her to the stake, and bring the christian forth.

	(Slaves seize and bind Reiza.)

Negroes enter with sir Huon, R.		<- Negroes, Sir Huon

SIR HUON	Reiza! O heavy hour!
REIZA L.	O happy hour! Huon, we die together.
ALMANZOR	Enough! To the stake with them, and fire the pile!
REIZA	(As they are dragging him to the stake.) Tyrant, beware! Thou killest the caliph's daughter; Haroun will rend thee piecemeal.
ALMANZOR (laughing scornfully)	Ha! ha! ha! that lie will scarcely serve thy turn. But, were it true, she hath wedded with a vile christian, and deserves to die. Slaves, fire the pile, I say!

	(As the negroes are about to set fire to the pile, the faint sound of a horn is heard. ~ Almanzor becomes motionless. ~ The negroes and other slaves dance to the following chorus.)


[N. 21 - Finale]		N

CHORUS	Hark! what notes are swelling? Whence that wondrous sound, ev'ry foot compelling in merry dance to bound?

Enter Arcon, and Sherasmin with the horn, followed by Fatima, L.		<- Arcon, Sherasmin, Fatima

	SIR HUON, REIZA, SHERASMIN, FATIMA Rejoice, rejoice, 'tis the horn of power! They dance in the court and they dance in the tow'r, they dance in the garden, they dance in the hall, on the ocean's beach, and the city wall. A second and louder blast shall bring the donor himself ~ the elfin king!

	(Sherasmin blows a louder blast; the bonds of sir Huon and Reiza are burst asunder; the fagots and stake sink. ~ The stage fills with clouds, as in the second act. The negroes and Almanzor fly in terror.)	Almanzor, Negroes ->

The clouds open: Oberon and Titania appear, C.		<- Oberon, Titania

OBERON	Hail, faithful pair! your woes are ended! Your friend in turn you have befriended! His pledge redeem'd by you hath been: again in love he clasps his fairy queen!

	Swift as the lightning's glance, brave knight, behold, I bring thee and thine to thy native France, and the palace of thy king. Kneel at his feet with the bride thou has won; Europe shall ring with the deed thou hast done: now for ever I break the spell with the grateful fairy's last farewell.
		Sir Huon, Reiza, Sherasmin, Fatima ->


The clouds envelope Oberon and Titania, then rise and discover the palace of Charlemagne.		Oberon, Titania -> <- Guards, Nobles, Ladies, Charlemagne, Sir Huon, Reiza, Sherasmin, Fatima
Grand march.
Enter guards, nobles, and ladies of the emperor's court, and lastly Charlemagne. Flourish.
Sir Huon, Reiza, Sherasmin, and Fatima, who have left the stage at the change of scene, re-enter; sir Huon armed as in first scene. ~ They kneel.

[N. 22 - March]		N

SIR HUON	Behold! obedient to the oath he swore, Huon is kneeling at thy feet once more; for, by the help of heav'n, his hand hat done the daring deed, and from the caliph won this lovely maid, ~ by ev'ry peril tried, the heiress of his throne, and now thy vassal's bride.

	(Charlemagne rises and welcomes sir Huon and Reiza.)

	CHORUS Hail to the knight, with his own good brand, who hath won a fair bride from the Saracen's hand! Hail to the maiden who o'er the sea hath follow'd her champion so faithfully! By bards yet unborn oft the tale shall be told of Reiza the lovely and Huon the bold!

The end.

The end (Act III)

Act I Act II Act III