A very capacious flagon of beer, And a very portentous loaf of bread. him. One would say his grief did not much oppress [He drinks.] Ha! it buzzes and stings like a hornet! [Goes out blowing his horn.] The Castle of Vautsberg on the Rhine. PRINCE HENRY and ELSIE standing on the terrace at evening. The sound of bells heard from a distance. Prince Henry. We are alone. The wedding guests And the descending dark invests The Niederwald, and all the nests Among its hoar and haunted oaks. Elsie. What bells are those, that ring so slow, Prince Henry. They are the bells of Geisenheim, Ring out the curfew of the sun. Elsie. Listen, beloved. Prince Henry. They are done! Dear Elsie! many years ago Those same soft bells at eventide Rang in the ears of Charlemagne, As, seated by Fastrada's side At Ingelheim, in all his pride, He heard their sound with secret pain. Elsie. Their voices only speak to me Of peace and deep tranquillity, And endless confidence in thee! Prince Henry. Thou knowest the story of her ring, How, when the court went back to Aix, Fastrada died; and how the king Sat watching by her night and day, Till into one of the blue lakes, Which water that delicious land, They cast the ring, drawn from her hand; And the great monarch sat serene And sad beside the fated shore, Nor left the land for evermore. Elsie. That was true love. Prince Henry. For him the queen Ne'er did what thou hast done for me. Elsie. Wilt thou as fond and faithful be? Wilt thou so love me after death? Prince Henry. In life's delight, in death's dismay In storm and sunshine, night and day, In health, in sickness, in decay, Here and hereafter, I am thine! Thou hast Fastrada's ring. Beneath The calm, blue waters of thine eyes, And, undisturbed by this world's breath, The evening air grows damp and chill; Ah, not so soon. Elsie. It glimmers on the forest tips, And through the dewy foliage drips In little rivulets of light, And makes the heart in love with night. Prince Henry. Oft on this terrace, when the day Was closing, have I stood and gazed, And seen the landscape fade away, And the white vapours rise and drown That now is in the Holy Land, EPILOGUE. THE TWO RECORDING ANGELS ASCENDING. The Angel of Good Deeds (with closed book). God sent his messenger of faith, And whispered in the maiden's heart, "Rise up, and look from where thou art, O beauty of holiness, Of self-forgetfulness, of lowliness! O power of meekness, Whose very gentleness and weakness Are like the yielding, but irresistible air! Upon the pages Of the sealed volume that I bear, |