ACT III.
SCENE I.—Before the Gate of Nero's Palace: Guards, with their Officers, discovered on Duty.
Enter to them another Officer, speaking, as he enters, to the Soldiers.
FIRST OFFICER.
The Pontiff comes to meet the summon'd council.
Omit not this respect, else he will deem
We are of those who love the Nazarenes.
Sing loud and clearly.
Enter Pontiff, attended.
SACRED HYMN by the Soldiers.
That chief, who bends to Jove the suppliant knee,
Shall firm in power and high in honour be;
And who to Mars a soldier's homage yields,
Shall laurell'd glory reap in bloody fields;
Who vine-crown'd Bacchus, bounteous Lord, adores,
Shall gather still, unscath'd, his vintage stores;
Who to fair Venus lib'ral off'ring gives,
Enrich'd with love and sweet affection lives.
Then, be your praises still our sacred theme,
O Venus, Bacchus, Mars, and Jove supreme!
PONTIFF.
Bless'd in the high protection of her gods,
The sovereign warrior-nation of the world;
And, favour'd by great Jove and mighty Mars,
So may she triumph still, nor meanly stoop
To worship strange and meaner deities,
Adverse to warlike glory.
[Exit, with his train.
FIRST OFFICER.
SECOND OFFICER.
Tho' utter'd graciously.
FIRST OFFICER.
Because of late so many valiant soldiers
Have proselytes become to this new worship;
A worship too, as he insinuates,
Unsuited to the brave.
THIRD OFFICER.
SECOND OFFICER.
FIRST OFFICER.
To change the inner guard.
[Exeunt, with music, into the gate of the palace.
SCENE II.
A Council Chamber in the Palace: Nero with his Counsellors discovered; Nero in the act of speaking.
NERO.
As minor powers, amongst the ancient gods
Of high imperial Rome, the foreign deities
Of friendly nations; but these Nazarenes
Scorn such association, proudly claiming
For that which is the object of their faith,
Sole, undivided homage: and our altars,
Our stately temples, the majestic forms
Of Mars, Apollo, thund'ring Jove himself,
By sculptor's art divine so nobly wrought,
Are held by these mad zealots in contempt.
Examine, sayest thou! shall imperial Cæsar
Deign to examine what withstands his power?
I marvel at thy folly, Servius Sillus.
Enter an Officer.
OFFICER.
And craves admittance.
NERO.
Enter Pontiff.
Says that some weighty matter brings thee here:
Thou hast our leave to speak.
PONTIFF.
That eloquent, but pestilential Nazarene,
The Grecian Ethocles, whose specious words
Wrap in delusion all who listen to him,
Spreading his baleful errors o'er the world?
NERO.
He in the Amphitheatre meets his doom;
Having, I trust, no power of words to charm
The enchafed lion, or the famish'd wolf.
PONTIFF.
That this bold malefactor is enlarged.
NERO.
Is sworn to guard the prisoner; or, failing,
(How could he fail?) to pay with his own life
The forfeit. But behold his fav'rite friend,
The Parthian Prince, who will inform us truly.
Enter Orceres, followed by Sulpicius.
I have commanded him, and at this hour,
To bring his guarded prisoner to the palace,
Here to remain till the appointed time.
ORCERES.
Since yesterday; when, at an early hour,
Sulpicius and myself met him by chance:
But for the prisoner, he is at hand,
Ev'n at the palace gate; for as we enter'd
We saw him there, well circled round with guards,
Tho' in the martial throng we saw not Maro.
NERO.
(To an Officer.) Command them instantly
To bring this wordy Grecian to our presence.
[Exit Officer.
Sulpicius, thou hast known this Ethocles;
Is he a madman, or ambitious knave,
Who sought on human folly to erect
A kind of fancied greatness for himself?
SULPICIUS.
NERO.
To rid the state of such a pestilence?
SULPICIUS.
Is dang'rous above all, who, with their lives,
Have yet paid forfeit for their strange belief.
They come: the prisoner in foreign garb
So closely wrapp'd, I scarcely see his face.
Enter Prisoner, attended.
PONTIFF.
NERO.
(To the Prisoner.) Stand forth, audacious rebel to my will!
Dost thou still brave it, false and subtle spirit?
CORDENIUS (throwing off his Grecian cloak, and advancing to Nero).
Add to my punishment what shall be deem'd
Meet retribution. I have truly sworn,
Or to produce thy thrall, or, therein failing,
To give my life for his; and here I stand.
Ethocles, by a higher power than thine,
Is yet reserved for great and blessed ends.
Take thou the forfeit; I have kept my oath.
NERO.
Grows it to such a pitch that Rome's brave captains
Are by this wizard sorcery so charm'd?
Then it is time, good sooth! that sweeping vengeance
Should rid the earth of every tainted thing
Which that curst sect hath touch'd. Cordenius Maro,
Thou who hast fought our battles, graced our state,
And borne a noble Roman's honour'd name,
What, O what power could tempt thee to this shame?
CORDENIUS.
Who gave to Rome her greatness, to the earth
Form and existence; yea, and to the soul
Of living, active man, sense and perception:
But not to shame, O Cæsar! not to shame!
NERO.
As now I apprehended? Say, thou hast not;
And though thy present act is most audacious,
Yet will I spare thy life.
CORDENIUS.
Add all the wealth of Rome, and all the power
Of Rome's great Lord, I would not for the bribe
Be other than I am, or what I am
Basely deny.
NERO.
CORDENIUS.
Those dauntless Christians suffer, long'd to know
What power could make them brave the fear of death,
Disgrace, and infamy.—And I have learnt
That they adore a God,—one God, supreme,
Who, over all men, his created sons,
Rules as a father; and beholding sin,
Growth of corruption, mar this earthly race,
Sent down to earth his sinless heavenly Son,
Who left, with generous devoted love,
His state of exaltation and of glory,
To win them back to virtue, yea, to virtue
Which shall be crown'd with never-ending bliss.
I've learnt that they with deep adoring gratitude
Pay homage to that Son, the sent of God,
Who here became a willing sacrifice
To save mankind from sin and punishment,
And earn for them a better life hereafter,
When mortal life is closed. The heart's deep homage
Becoming well such creatures, so redeem'd.
NERO.
CORDENIUS.
To be the humble follower of Him,
Who left the bliss of heaven to be for us
A man on earth, in spotless virtue living
As man ne'er lived: such words of comfort speaking,
To rouse, and elevate, and cheer the heart,
As man ne'er spoke; and suff'ring poverty,
Contempt, and wrong, and pain, and death itself,
As man ne'er suffer'd? O, if this be madness,
Which makes each generous impulse of my nature
Warm into ecstasy, each towering hope
Rise to the noblest height of bold conception;
that which is reason call'd, and yet has taught you
To worship different gods in every clime,
As dull and wicked as their worshippers,
Compared to it, is poor, confined, and mean,
As is the Scythian's curtain'd tent, compared
With the wide range of fair, expanded nature.
NERO.
They but bewilder thee.
CORDENIUS.
Perhaps they are appointed for thy good,
And for the good of thousands. When these hands
Which have so oft done Rome a soldier's service,
This tongue which speaks to thee, are turn'd to ashes,
What now appears so wild and fanciful,
May be remember'd with far other feelings.
It is not life that I request of Nero,
Altho' I said these hands have fought for Rome.
No; in the presence of these senators,
First bind thyself by every sacred oath
To give this body to the flames, then hear me;
O could I speak what might convince Rome's chief,
Her senators, her tribes, her meanest slaves,
Of Christ's most blessed truth, the fatal pile
Would be to me a car of joyful triumph,
Mounted more gladly than the laurell'd hero
Vaults to his envied seat, while Rome's thronged streets
Resound his shouted name. Within me stirs
The spirit of truth and power which spoke to me,
And will upon thy mind
NERO.
ORCERES.
CORDENIUS (catching hold of Orceres eagerly).
ORCERES.
(To Nero.) Let me entreat that he may freely speak.
Fear'st thou he should convince thee by his words?
That were a foul affront to thine own reason,
Or to the high divinities of Rome.
NERO.
Upon a noble stranger's privilege.
PONTIFF.
So freely utter'd with impunity?
ORCERES.
But scorn thy paltry words. Not freely speak!
Not with impunity! Is this a threat?
Let Rome's great master, or his angry slaves,
Shed one drop of my blood, and on our plains,
Where heretofore full many a Roman corse,
With Parthian arrows pierced, have vultures fed,
Twice thirty thousand archers in array,
Each with his bow strain'd for the distant mark,
Shall quickly stand, impatient for revenge.
Not with impunity!
SULPICIUS.
Thou'lt injure him thou plead'st for. Noble Cæsar!
Permit an aged man, a faithful servant,
To speak his thoughts. This brave deluded youth
Is now, as I sincerely do believe,
Beneath the power of strong and dire enchantment.
Hear not his raving words, but spare his life;
And when its power (for all delusion holds
Its power but for a season) shall be spent,
He will himself entreat your clemency,
And be again the soldier of the state,
Brave and obedient. Do not hear him now:
Command him to retire.
CORDENIUS.
For which thou plead'st, take no account of that;
I yield it freely up to any death,
Cruel or merciful, which the decree
Of Cæsar shall inflict, for leave to speak
Ev'n but a few short moments. Princely Nero!
The strong enchantment which deludes my soul
Is, that I do believe myself the creature,
Subject and soldier, if I so may speak,
Of an Almighty Father, King, and Lord,
Before whose presence, when my soul shall be
Of flesh and blood disrobed, I shall appear,
There to remain with all the great and good
That e'er have lived on earth, yea, and with spirits,
Higher than earth e'er own'd, in such pure bliss
As human heart conceives not,—if my life,
With its imperfect virtue, find acceptance
From pard'ning love and mercy; but, if otherwise,
That I shall pass into a state of misery
With souls of wicked men and wrathful demons.
That I believe this earth on which we stand
Is but the vestibule to glorious mansions,
Thro' which a moving crowd for ever press;
And do regard the greatest Prince, who now
Inflicts short torment on this flesh, as one
Who but in passing rudely rends my robe.
And thinkest thou that I, believing this,
Will shrink to do His will whom I adore?
Or thinkest thou this is a senseless charm,
That soon will pass away?
NERO.
A maniac's fancies may be grand and noble.
CORDENIUS.
With an inquiring mind. Let me produce
The proofs which have constrain'd me to believe,
From written lore and well attested facts;—
Let me produce my proofs, and it may be
The Spirit of Truth may touch thy yielding heart,
And save thee from destruction.
NERO.
Away, weak fool! and most audacious rebel!
Give proofs of thy obedience, not thy faith,
If thou wouldst earn thy pardon.
CORDENIUS.
I will and must obey thee; if to live,
Disgraced by pardon won thro' treachery
To God, my King supreme, and his bless'd Christ,
I am, indeed, thy disobedient rebel.
NERO.
Out!—take him from my presence till the time
Of public execution.
Cordenius Maro, thou shalt fall this day
By no ignoble foe;—a noble lion
Famish'd and fierce shall be thy adversary.
And dost thou smile and raise thy head at this,
In stately confidence?
CORDENIUS.
And thou too smilest.—Yes; he will deliver
That which I call myself. For this poor form
Which vests me round, I give it to destruction
As gladly as the storm-beat traveller,
Who, having reached his destined place of shelter,
Drops at the door his mantle's cumbrous weight.
NERO (going).
Incorrigible man! Here, in this chamber
Keep him secure till the appointed hour.
(To the Officers, &c.)
Off, good Sulpicius! hang not on me thus!
SULPICIUS.
Delay it but a month, a week, a day.
[Exeunt Nero, Sulpicius, Senators, &c. Sulpicius still keeping close to Nero in the act of supplication.—Orceres, Cordenius, and Guards remain, the Guards standing respectfully at a distance in the back-ground.
ORCERES.
Thus brook to be a public spectacle,
Fighting with savage beasts, the sport of fools,
Till thou shalt fall, deformed and horrible,
Mangled and piece-meal torn? It must not be.
CORDENIUS.
The God I worship, who hath made me humble,
Hath made me dauntless too. And for the shame
Which, as I guess, disturbs thee most, my Master,
The Lord and Leader I have sworn to follow,
Did as a malefactor end his days,
To save a lost, perverted race: shall I
Feel degradation, then, in following him?
ORCERES.
But whither, noble Maro?
CORDENIUS.
ORCERES.
Beyond the ocean, or beneath the earth?
Be there more worlds than this, beyond our ken
In regions vast, above the lofty stars?
Could we thro' the far stretch of space descry
Ev'n but the distant verge, tho' dimly mark'd,
Of any other world, I would believe
That virtuous men deceased have in good truth
A destined place of rest.
CORDENIUS.
ORCERES.
Were it but only to defy this tyrant.
CORDENIUS.
The faith of Jesus Christ. Perhaps thou wilt.
My heart leaps at the thought. When I am dead,
Remain in Rome no longer. In the East
Search thou for Ethocles, whom I have rescued;
And if he shall convert thee, O, how richly
He will repay all I have done for him!
—But, I would now withdraw a little space,
To pour my thoughts in prayer and thankfulness
To Him, the great, the good, the wise, the just,
Who holds man's spirit in his own high keeping,
And now supports my soul, and will support it,
Till my appointed task is done. In secret
The hearts by Jesus taught were bid to pray,
And, if it be permitted, so will I.
(To the Guards, who advance as he speaks to them.)
Let me remain alone a little while,
And fear not my escape. If ye distrust me,
Watch well the door, and bind my hands with chains.
FIRST OFFICER.
Thou may'st retire, and we will watch without.
But be thy person free: we will not bind,
With felon cord or chain, those valiant hands,
Which have so often for thy country fought,
Until we are commanded.
CORDENIUS.
That I shall meet and thank ye too hereafter;
For there is something in you God must love,
(To First Officer.) And, loving, will not give to reprobation.
Codrus, thou once didst put thy life in hazard,
And suffer much to save a helpless Greek
Who sought protection of thee.
(Turning to the Second Officer.) Ay, and thou,
Young Lelius, once a rich and tempting ransom
Didst freely to a captive wretch remit.
Ye are of those whom Jesus came to save:
Yes; we shall meet hereafter.
I will retire; my little term of life
Runs fleetly on; I must not spend it thus.
[Exeunt.
SCENE III.
A crowded Amphitheatre: Nero and the Senators discovered in the back-ground sitting in state; Portia, by the side of Nero, in the act of supplication.
Enter Sulpicius on the front, meeting with another noble Roman.
SULPICIUS (eagerly).
NOBLE ROMAN.
Surrounded by a group of martial friends.
Oft have I seen him on a day of battle
March to the charge with noble portly gait;
But now he treads the ground with buoyant steps
Which from its surface spring, as tho' he press'd
Substance of renovating power. His form
Seems stately and enlarged beyond its wont;
And in his countenance, oft turn'd to heaven,
There is a look as if some god dwelt in him.
SULPICIUS.
NOBLE ROMAN.
Gazing upon him, turns, with transit quick,
Pity to admiration. Warlike veterans
Are shedding tears like infants. As he passed
The Legion he commanded in Armenia,
They raised a shout as if a victor came,
Saluting him with long and loud applause,
None daring to reprove them.
[Noise without of shouting.
Hark! he comes.
Enter Cordenius, followed by Orceres and Sylvius, and attended by other friends, with Guards, &c.
SULPICIUS (advancing eagerly to meet him).
A faithful ancient friend; thy Portia's father!
At Nero's footstool she is pleading for thee,
And will not plead in vain, if thou wilt testify
A yielding mind, a willingness to live.
CORDENIUS.
In dying for the pure and holy truth,
That nature's instinct seems in me extinguish'd.
But if the Emperor freely pardon me,
I shall believe it is the will of God
That I should yet on earth promote his service,
And, so believing, am content to live;
Living or dying to his will resign'd.
Enter Portia on the front, and catching hold of Cordenius with eagerness and great agitation.
PORTIA.
If thou wilt only say thou art a Roman,
In heart and faith, as all thy fathers were,
Or but forbear to say thou art a Christian.
CORDENIUS.
Even to be spent in want and contumely,
Rather than grieve thy kind and tender heart,
My dearest, gentlest friend! I had accepted:
But to deny my God, and put dishonour
Upon the noblest, most exalted faith
That ever was to human thoughts reveal'd,
Is what I will not—yea, and though a Roman,
A noble Roman, and a soldier too,
I dare not do. Let Nero have this answer.
PORTIA.
Cast not life from thee, dear, most dear Cordenius!
Life, too, which I should spend my life in cheering,
Cast it not from thee like a worthless thing.
CORDENIUS.
And now, when dear to thee, more precious far
Than I have e'er esteem'd it, 't is an offering
More meet for God's acceptance;
Withheld from him, not even thyself, sweet maid,
Couldst cheer its course, nor yet couldst thou be happy.
PORTIA.
And by my side, mine own redeemed friend,
Should I not then be happy?
CORDENIUS.
With all thy excellence, couldst have no happiness,
Mated with one, whose living form alone
Could move upon the earth, while far adrift
His mind would dwell by ceaseless meditation,
In other worlds of blessedness or woe;
Lost to the one, and to the other link'd
By horrid sympathy, till his wrench'd nature
Should to a demon's fell and restless spirit
At last be changed.
PORTIA.
That nought remains for thee but death or misery?
CORDENIUS.
That I shall live in endless happiness,
And with the blest hereafter shall behold
Thy blessed self with ecstasy of love,
Exceeding every thought of earth-born passion,
As the fair morning star in lovely brightness
Excels a night-fly, twinkling through the gloom.
Live in this hope, dear Portia! hold it fast;
And may His blessing rest upon thy head,
Who loves the loving and the innocent!
Farewell, in love and hope! farewell, in peace!
Farewell, in quick'ning faith,—in holy joy!
PORTIA (clasping his knees).
Make me not wretched, I who once was happy,
And happiest of all in loving thee.
CORDENIUS.
O, good Sulpicius! bear her to her home.
SULPICIUS (leading her gently away, while she still clings to him).
Enter a Lictor.
LICTOR.
To his imperial sentence. Let Cordenius
Forthwith prepare him for the fatal fight.
This is mine office, and I must perform it.
(Begins to disrobe Cordenius, while Portia shrieks aloud, and is carried off in the arms of her Father.)
CORDENIUS.
Hath braced me with an armour that defies
All hostile things; in which I'll strive more proudly
Than I have ever fought in field or breach
With Rome's or Nero's foes.
LICTOR.
That no ignoble audience, e'en thy Emperor,
And all the states of Rome, behold thy deeds.
CORDENIUS.
Compared to whom the Emperor of Rome,
With all her high estates, are but as insects
Hov'ring at mid-day o'er some tainted marsh.
I know full well that no ignoble audience
Are present, though from mortal eyes conceal'd.
Farewell, my friends! kind, noble friends, farewell!
(Apart to Sylvius, while Orceres goes off, re-appearing in another part of the theatre.)
Sylvius farewell! If thou should'st e'er be call'd
To die a holy Martyr for the truth,
God give thee then the joy which now I feel.
But keep thy faith conceal'd, till useful service
Shall call thee to maintain it. God be with thee!
SYLVIUS.
With eager haste.
CORDENIUS.
Say I inquired for him, and say I bless'd him.
—Now I am ready. Earthly friends are gone.
Angels and blessed spirits! to your fellowship
A few short pangs will bring me.
—O, Thou, who didst upon the Cross for us
A willing suff'rer die! receive my soul!
Almighty God and Sire, supreme o'er all!
Pardon my sins and take me to Thyself!
Accept the last words of my earthly lips:
High hallelujah to thy holy name!
[A Lion now appears, issuing from a low door at the end of the Stage, and Cordenius, advancing to meet it, enters the Arena, when Orceres from a lofty stand amongst the spectators, sends an arrow from his bow, which pierces Cordenius through the heart. He then disappears, and re-entering below, catches hold of his hand as Sylvius supports him from falling to the ground.
ORCERES (to Cordenius).
More worthy of a Roman.
I made a vow in secret to my heart,
That thou shouldst ne'er be made a mangled sight
For gazing crowds and Nero's ruthless eye.
SYLVIUS.
Says that thou hast done well; though words no more
May pass from these closed lips, whose last, bless'd utterance
Was the soul's purest and sublimest impulse.
[The Curtain drops.