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Tannhauser.

by Emma Lazarus

To my mother. May, 1870.

The Landgrave Hermann held a gathering

Of minstrels, minnesingers, troubadours,

At Wartburg in his palace, and the knight,

Sir Tannhauser of France, the greatest bard,

Inspired with heavenly visions, and endowed

With apprehension and rare utterance

Of noble music, fared in thoughtful wise

Across the Horsel meadows. Full of light,

And large repose, the peaceful valley lay,

In the late splendor of the afternoon,

And level sunbeams lit the serious face

Of the young knight, who journeyed to the west,

Towards the precipitous and rugged cliffs,

Scarred, grim, and torn with savage rifts and chasms,

That in the distance loomed as soft and fair

And purple as their shadows on the grass.

The tinkling chimes ran out athwart the air,

Proclaiming sunset, ushering evening in,

Although the sky yet glowed with yellow light.

The ploughboy, ere he led his cattle home,

In the near meadow, reverently knelt,

And doffed his cap, and duly crossed his breast,

Whispering his "Ave Mary," as he heard

The pealing vesper-bell. But still the knight,

Unmindful of the sacred hour announced,

Disdainful or unconscious, held his course.

"Would that I also, like yon stupid wight,

Could kneel and hail the Virgin and believe!"

He murmured bitterly beneath his breath.

"Were I a pagan, riding to contend

For the Olympic wreath, O with what zeal,

What fire of inspiration, would I sing

The praises of the gods! How may my lyre

Glorify these whose very life I doubt?

The world is governed by one cruel God,

Who brings a sword, not peace. A pallid Christ,

Unnatural, perfect, and a virgin cold,

They give us for a heaven of living gods,

Beautiful, loving, whose mere names were song;

A creed of suffering and despair, walled in

On every side by brazen boundaries,

That limit the soul's vision and her hope

To a red hell or and unpeopled heaven.

Yea, I am lost already, - even now

Am doomed to flaming torture for my thoughts.

O gods! O gods! where shall my soul find peace?"

He raised his wan face to the faded skies,

Now shadowing into twilight; no response

Came from their sunless heights; no miracle,

As in the ancient days of answering gods.

With a long, shuddering sigh he glanced to earth,

Finding himself among the Horsel cliffs.

Gray, sullen, gaunt, they towered on either side;

Scant shrubs sucked meagre life between the rifts

Of their huge crags, and made small darker spots

Upon their wrinkled sides; the jaded horse

Stumbled upon loose, rattling, fallen stones,

Amidst the gathering dusk, and blindly fared

Through the weird, perilous pass. As darkness waxed,

And an oppressive mystery enwrapped

The roadstead and the rocks, Sir Tannhauser

Fancied he saw upon the mountain-side

The fluttering of white raiment. With a sense

Of wild joy and horror, he gave pause,

For his sagacious horse that reeked of sweat,

Trembling in every limb, confirmed his thought,

That nothing human scaled that haunted cliff.

The white thing seemed descending, - now a cloud

It looked, and now a rag of drifted mist,

Torn in the jagged gorge precipitous,

And now an apparition clad in white,

Shapely and real, - then he lost it quite,

Gazing on nothing with blank, foolish face.

As with wide eyes he stood, he was aware

Of a strange splendor at his very side,

A presence and a majesty so great,

That ere he saw, he felt it was divine.

He turned, and, leaping from his horse, fell prone,

In speechless adoration, on the earth,

Before the matchless goddess, who appeared

With no less freshness of immortal youth

Than when first risen from foam of Paphian seas.

He heard delicious strains of melody,

Such as his highest muse had ne'er attained,

Float in the air, while in the distance rang,

Harsh and discordant, jarring with those tones,

The gallop of his frightened horse's hoofs,

Clattering in sudden freedom down the pass.

A voice that made all music dissonance

Then thrilled through heart and flesh of that prone knight,

Triumphantly: "The gods need but appear,

And their usurped thrones are theirs again!"

Then tenderly: "Sweet knight, I pray thee, rise;

Worship me not, for I desire thy love.

Look on me, follow me, for I am fain

Of thy fair, human face." He rose and looked,

Stirred by that heavenly flattery to the soul.

Her hair, unbraided and unfilleted,

Rained in a glittering shower to the ground,

And cast forth lustre. Round her zone was clasped

The scintillant cestus, stiff with flaming gold,

Thicker with restless gems than heaven with stars.

She might have flung the enchanted wonder forth;

Her eyes, her slightest gesture would suffice

To bind all men in blissful slavery.

She sprang upon the mountain's dangerous side,

With feet that left their print in flowers divine, -

Flushed amaryllis and blue hyacinth,

Impurpled amaranth and asphodel,

Dewy with nectar, and exhaling scents

Richer than all the roses of mid-June.

The knight sped after her, with wild eyes fixed

Upon her brightness, as she lightly leapt

From crag to crag, with flying auburn hair,

Like a gold cloud, that lured him ever on,

Higher and higher up the haunted cliff.

At last amidst a grove of pines she paused,

Until he reached her, breathing hard with haste,

Delight, and wonder. Then upon his hand

She placed her own, and all his blood at once

Tingled and hotly rushed to brow and cheek,

At the supreme caress; but the mere touch

Infused fresh life, and when she looked at him

With gracious tenderness, he felt himself

Strong suddenly to bear the blinding light

Of those great eyes. "Dear knight," she murmured low,

"For love of me, wilt thou accord this boon, -

To grace my weary home in banishment?"

His hungry eyes gave answer ere he spoke,

In tones abrupt that startled his own ears

With their strange harshness; but with thanks profuse

She guided him, still holding his cold hand

In her warm, dainty palm, unto a cave,

Whence a rare glory issued, and a smell

Of spice and roses, frankincense and balm.

They entering stood within a marble hall,

With straight, slim pillars, at whose farther end

The goddess led him to a spiral flight

Of stairs, descending always 'midst black gloom

Into the very bowels of the earth.

Down these, with fearful swiftness, they made way,

The knight's feet touching not the solid stair,

But sliding down as in a vexing dream,

Blind, feeling but that hand divine that still

Empowered him to walk on empty air.

Then he was dazzled by a sudden blaze,

In vast palace filled with reveling folk.

Cunningly pictured on the ivory walls

Were rolling hills, cool lakes, and boscage green,

And all the summer landscape's various pomp.

The precious canopy aloft was carved

In semblance of the pleached forest trees,

Enameled with the liveliest green, wherethrough

A light pierced, more resplendent than the day.

O'er the pale, polished jasper of the floor

Of burnished metal, fretted and embossed

With all the marvelous story of her birth

Painted in prodigal splendor of rich tincts,

And carved by heavenly artists, - crystal seas,

And long-haired Nereids in their pearly shells,

And all the wonder of her lucent limbs

Sphered in a vermeil mist. Upon the throne

She took her seat, the knight beside her still,

Singing on couches of fresh asphodel,

And the dance ceased, and the flushed revelers came

In glittering phalanx to adore their queen.

Beautiful girls, with shining delicate heads,

Crested with living jewels, fanned the air

With flickering wings from naked shoulders soft.

Then with preluding low, a thousand harps,

And citherns, and strange nameless instruments,

Sent through the fragrant air sweet symphonies,

And the winged dancers waved in mazy rounds,

With changing lustres like a summer sea.

Fair boys, with charming yellow hair crisp-curled,

And frail, effeminate beauty, the knight saw,

But of strong, stalwart men like him were none.

He gazed thereon bewitched, until the hand

Of Venus, erst withdrawn, now fell again

Upon his own, and roused him from his trance.

He looked on her, and as he looked, a cloud

Auroral, flaming as at sunrising,

Arose from nothing, floating over them

In luminous folds, like that vermilion mist

Penciled upon the throne, and as it waxed

In density and brightness, all the throng

Of festal dancers, less and less distinct,

Grew like pale spirits in a vague, dim dream,

And vanished altogether; and these twain,

Shut from the world in that ambrosial cloud,

Now with a glory inconceivable,

Vivid and conflagrant, looked each on each.

All hours came laden with their own delights

In that enchanted place, wherein Time

Knew no divisions harsh of night and day,

But light was always, and desire of sleep

Was satisfied at once with slumber soft,

Desire of food with magical repast,

By unseen hands on golden tables spread.

But these the knight accepted like a god,

All less was lost in that excess of joy,

The crowning marvel of her love for him,

Assuring him of his divinity.

Meanwhile remembrance of the earth appeared

Like the vague trouble of a transient dream, -

The doubt, the scruples, the remorse for thoughts

Beyond his own control, the constant thirst

For something fairer than his life, more real

Than airy revelations of his Muse.

Here was his soul's desire satisfied.

All nobler passions died; his lyre he flung

Recklessly forth, with vows to dedicate

His being to herself. She knew and seized

The moment of her mastery, and conveyed

The lyre beyond his sight and memory.

With blandishment divine she changed for him,

Each hour, her mood; a very woman now,

Fantastic, voluble, affectionate,

And jealous of the vague, unbodied air,

Exacting, penitent, and pacified,

All in a breath. And often she appeared

Majestic with celestial wrath, with eyes

That shot forth fire, and a heavy brow,

Portentous as the lowering front of heaven,

When the reverberant, sullen thunder rolls

Among the echoing clouds. Thus she denounced

Her ancient, fickle worshippers, who left

Her altars desecrate, her fires unfed,

Her name forgotten. "But I reign, I reign!"

She would shrill forth, triumphant; "yea, I reign.

Men name me not, but worship me unnamed,

Beauty and Love within their heart of hearts;

Not with bent knees and empty breath of words,

But with devoted sacrifice of lives."

Then melting in a moment, she would weep

Ambrosial tears, pathetic, full of guile,

Accusing her own base ingratitude,

In craving worship, when she had his heart,

Her priceless knight, her peerless paladin,

Her Tannhauser; then, with an artful glance

Of lovely helplessness, entreated him

Not to desert her, like the faithless world,

For these unbeautiful and barbarous gods,

Or she would never cease her prayers to Jove,

Until he took from her the heavy curse

Of immortality. With closer vows,

The knight then sealed his worship and forswore

All other aims and deeds to serve her cause.

Thus passed unnoted seven barren years

Of reckless passion and voluptuous sloth,

Undignified by any lofty thought

In his degraded mind, that sometime was

Endowed with noble capability.

From revelry to revelry he passed,

Craving more pungent pleasure momently,

And new intoxications, and each hour

The siren goddess answered his desires.

Once when she left him with a weary sense

Of utter lassitude, he sat alone,

And, raising listless eyes, he saw himself

In a great burnished mirror, wrought about

With cunning imagery of twisted vines.

He scarcely knew those sunken, red-rimmed eyes,

For his who in the flush of manhood rode

Among the cliffs, and followed up the crags

The flying temptress; and there fell on him

A horror of her beauty, a disgust

For his degenerate and corrupted life,

With irresistible, intense desire,

To feel the breath of heaven on his face.

Then as Fate willed, who rules above the gods,

He saw, within the glass, behind him glide

The form of Venus. Certain of her power,

She had laid by, in fond security,

The enchanted cestus, and Sir Tannhauser,

With surfeited regard, beheld her now,

No fairer than the women of the earth,

Whom with serenity and health he left,

Duped by a lovely witch. Before he moved,

She knew her destiny; and when he turned,

He seemed to drop a mask, disclosing thus

An alien face, and eyes with vision true,

That for long time with glamour had been blind.

Hiding the hideous rage within her breast,

With girlish simpleness of folded hands,

Auroral blushes, and sweet, shamefast mien,

She spoke: "Behold, my love, I have cast forth

All magic, blandishments and sorcery,

For I have dreamed a dream so terrible,

That I awoke to find my pillow stained

With tears as of real woe. I thought my belt,

By Vulcan wrought with matchless skill and power,

Was the sole bond between us; this being doffed,

I seemed to thee an old, unlovely crone,

Wrinkled by every year that I have seen.

Thou turnedst from me with a brutal sneer,

So that I woke with weeping. Then I rose,

And drew the glittering girdle from my zone,

Jealous thereof, yet full of fears, and said,

'If it be this he loves, then let him go!

I have no solace as a mortal hath,

No hope of change or death to comfort me

Through all eternity; yet he is free,

Though I could hold him fast with heavy chains,

Bound in perpetual imprisonment.'

Tell me my vision was a baseless dream;

See, I am kneeling, and kiss thy hands, -

In pity, look on me, before thy word

Condemns me to immortal misery!"

As she looked down, the infernal influence

Worked on his soul again; for she was fair

Beyond imagination, and her brow

Seemed luminous with high self-sacrifice.

He bent and kissed her head, warm, shining, soft,

With its close-curling gold, and love revived.

But ere he spoke, he heard the distant sound

Of one sweet, smitten lyre, and a gleam

Of violent anger flashed across the face

Upraised to his in feigned simplicity

And singleness of purpose. Then he sprang,

Well-nigh a god himself, with sudden strength

to vanquish and resist, beyond her reach,

Crying, "My old Muse calls me, and I hear!

Thy fateful vision is no baseless dream;

I will be gone from this accursed hall!"

Then she, too, rose, dilating over him,

And sullen clouds veiled all her rosy limbs,

Unto her girdle, and her head appeared

Refulgent, and her voice rang wrathfully:

"Have I cajoled and flattered thee till now,

To lose thee thus! How wilt thou make escape?

ONCE BEING MINE THOU ART FOREVER MINE:

Yea, not my love, but my poor slave and fool."

But he, with both hands pressed upon his eyes,

Against that blinding lustre, heeded not

Her thundered words, and cried in sharp despair,

"Help me, O Virgin Mary! and thereat,

The very bases of the hall gave way,

The roof was rived, the goddess disappeared,

And Tannhauser stood free upon the cliff,

Amidst the morning sunshine and fresh air.

Around him were the tumbled blocks and crags,

Huge ridges and sharp juts of flinty peaks,

Black caves, and masses of the grim, bald rock.

The ethereal, unfathomable sky,

Hung over him, the valley lay beneath,

Dotted with yellow hayricks, that exhaled

Sweet, healthy odors to the mountain-top.

He breathed intoxicate the infinite air,

And plucked the heather blossoms where they blew,

Reckless with light and dew, in crannies green,

And scarcely saw their darling bells for tears.

No sounds of labor reached him from the farms

And hamlets trim, nor from the furrowed glebe;

But a serene and sabbath stillness reigned,

Till broken by the faint, melodious chimes

Of the small village church that called to prayer.

He hurried down the rugged, scarped cliff,

And swung himself from shelving granite slopes

To narrow foot-holds, near wide-throated chasms,

Tearing against the sharp stones his bleeding hands,

With long hair flying from his dripping brow,

Uncovered head, and white, exalted face.

No memory had he of his smooth ascent,

No thought of fear upon those dreadful hills;

He only heard the bell, inviting him

To satisfy the craving of his heart,

For worship 'midst his fellow men. He reached

The beaten, dusty road, and passed thereon

The pious peasants faring towards the church,

And scarce refrained from greeting them like friends

Dearly beloved, after long absence met.

How more than fair the sunburnt wenches looked,

In their rough, homespun gowns and coifs demure,

After the beauty of bare, rosy limbs,

And odorous, loose hair! He noted not

Suspicious glances on his garb uncouth,

His air extravagant and face distraught,

With bursts of laughter from the red-cheeked boys,

And prudent crossings of the women's breasts.

He passed the flowering close about the church,

And trod the well worn-path, with throbbing heart,

The little heather-bell between his lips,

And his eyes fastened on the good green grass.

Thus entered he the sanctuary, lit

With frequent tapers, and with sunbeams stained

Through painted glass. How pure and innocent

The waiting congregation seemed to him,

Kneeling, or seated with calm brows upraised!

With faltering strength, he cowered down alone,

And held sincere communion with the Lord,

For one brief moment, in a sudden gush

Of blessed tears. The minister of God

Rose to invoke a blessing on his flock,

And then began the service, - not in words

To raise the lowly, and to heal the sick,

But an alien tongue, with phrases formed,

And meaningless observances. The knight,

Unmoved, yet thirsting for the simple word

That might have moved him, held his bitter thoughts,

But when in his own speech a new priest spake,

Looked up with hope revived, and heard the text:

"Go, preach the Gospel unto all the world.

He that believes and is baptized, is saved.

He that believeth not, is damned in hell!"

He sat with neck thrust forth and staring eyes;

The crowded congregation disappeared;

He felt alone in some black sea of hell,

While a great light smote one exalted face,

Vivid already with prophetic fire,

Whose fatal mouth now thundered forth his doom.

He longed in that void circle to cry out,

With one clear shriek, but sense and voice seemed bound,

And his parched tongue clave useless to his mouth.

As the last words resounded through the church,

And once again the pastor blessed his flock,

Who, serious and subdued, passed slowly down

The arrow aisle, none noted, near the wall,

A fallen man with face upon his knees,

A heap of huddled garments and loose hair,

Unconscious 'mid the rustling, murmurous stir,

'Midst light and rural smell of grass and flowers,

Let in athwart the doorway. One lone priest,

Darkening the altar lights, moved noiselessly,

Now with the yellow glow upon his face,

Now a black shadow gliding farther on,

Amidst the smooth, slim pillars of hewn ash.

But from the vacant aisles he heard at once

A hollow sigh, heaved from a depth profound.

Upholding his last light above his head,

And peering eagerly amidst the stalls,

He cried, "Be blest who cometh in God's name."

Then the gaunt form of Tannhauser arose.

"Father, I am a sinner, and I seek

Forgiveness and help, by whatso means

I can regain the joy of peace with God."

"The Lord hath mercy on the penitent.

'Although thy sins be scarlet,' He hath said,

'Will I not make them white as wool?' Confess,

And I will shrive you." Thus the good priest moved

Towards the remorseful knight and pressed his hand.

But shrinking down, he drew his fingers back

From the kind palm, and kissed the friar's feet.

"Thy pure hand is anointed, and can heal.

The cool, calm pressure brings back sanity,

And what serene, past joys! yet touch me not,

My contact is pollution, - hear, O hear,

While I disburden my charged soul." He lay,

Casting about for words and strength to speak.

"O father, is there help for such a one,"

In tones of deep abasement he began,

"Who hath rebelled against the laws of God,

With pride no less presumptuous than his

Who lost thereby his rank in heaven?" "My son,

There is atonement for all sins, - or slight

Or difficult, proportioned to the crime.

Though this may be the staining of thy hands

With blood of kinsmen or of fellow-men."

"My hands are white, - my crime hath found no name,

This side of hell; yet though my heart-strings snap

To live it over, let me make the attempt.

I was a knight and bard, with such a gift

Of revelation that no hour of life

Lacked beauty and adornment, in myself

The seat and centre of all happiness.

What inspiration could my lofty Muse

Draw from those common and familiar themes,

Painted upon the windows and the walls

Of every church, - the mother and her child,

The miracle and mystery of the birth,

The death, the resurrection? Fool and blind!

That saw not symbols of eternal truth

In that grand tragedy and victory,

Significant and infinite as life.

What tortures did my skeptic soul endure,

At war against herself and all mankind!

The restless nights of feverish sleeplessness,

With balancing of reasons nicely weighed;

The dawn that brought no hope nor energy,

The blasphemous arraignment of the Lord,

Taxing His glorious divinity

With all the grief and folly of the world.

Then came relapses into abject fear,

And hollow prayer and praise from craven heart.

Before a sculptured Venus I would kneel,

Crown her with flowers, worship her, and cry,

'O large and noble type of our ideal,

At least my heart and prayer return to thee,

Amidst a faithless world of proselytes.

Madonna Mary, with her virgin lips,

And eyes that look perpetual reproach,

Insults and is a blasphemy on youth.

Is she to claim the worship of a man

Hot with the first rich flush of ripened life?'

Realities, like phantoms, glided by,

Unnoted 'midst the torment and delights

Of my conflicting spirit, and I doffed

the modest Christian weeds of charity

And fit humility, and steeled myself

In pagan panoply of stoicism

And self-sufficing pride. Yet constantly

I gained men's charmed attention and applause,

With the wild strains I smote from out my lyre,

To me the native language of my soul,

To them attractive and miraculous,

As all things whose solution and whose source

Remain a mystery. Then came suddenly

The summons to attend the gathering

Of minstrels at the Landgrave Hermann's court.

Resolved to publish there my pagan creed

In harmonies so high and beautiful

That all the world would share my zeal and faith,

I journeyed towards the haunted Horsel cliffs.

O God! how may I tell you how SHE came,

The temptress of a hundred centuries,

Yet fresh as April? She bewitched my sense,

Poisoned my judgment with sweet flatteries,

And for I may not guess how many years

Held me a captive in degrading bonds.

There is no sin of lust so lewd and foul,

Which I learned not in that alluring hell,

Until this morn, I snapped the ignoble tie,

By calling on the Mother of our Lord.

O for the power to stand again erect,

And look men in the eyes! What penitence,

What scourging of the flesh, what rigid fasts,

What terrible privations may suffice

To cleanse me in the sight of God and man?"

Ill-omened silence followed his appeal.

Patient and motionless he lay awhile,

Then sprang unto his feet with sudden force,

Confronting in his breathless vehemence,

With palpitating heart, the timid priest.

"Answer me, as you hope for a response,

One day, at the great judgment seat yourself."

"I cannot answer," said the timid priest,

"I have not understood." "Just God! is this

The curse Thou layest upon me? I outstrip

The sympathy and brotherhood of men,

So far removed is my experience

From their clean innocence. Inspire me,

Prompt me to words that bring me near to them!

Father," in gentler accents he resumed,

"Thank Heaven at your every orison

That sin like mine you cannot apprehend.

More than the truth perchance I have confessed,

But I have sinned, and darkly, - this is true;

And I have suffered, and am suffering now.

Is there no help in your great Christian creed

Of liberal charity, for such a one?"

"My son," the priest replied, "your speech distraught

Hath quite bewildered me. I fain would hope

That Christ's large charity can reach your sin,

But I know naught. I cannot but believe

That the enchantress who first tempted you

Must be the Evil one, - your early doubt

Was the possession of your soul by him.

Travel across the mountain to the town,

The first cathedral town upon the road

That leads to Rome, - a sage and reverend priest,

The Bishop Adrian, bides there. Say you have come

From his leal servant, Friar Lodovick;

He hath vast lore and great authority,

And may absolve you freely of your sin."

Over the rolling hills, through summer fields,

By noisy villages and lonely lanes,

Through glowing days, when all the landscape stretched

Shimmering in the heat, a pilgrim fared

Towards the cathedral town. Sir Tannhauser

Had donned the mournful sackcloth, girt his loins

With a coarse rope that ate into his flesh,

Muffled a cowl about his shaven head,

Hung a great leaden cross around his neck;

And bearing in his hands a knotty staff,

With swollen, sandaled feet he held his course.

He snatched scant rest at twilight or at dawn,

When his forced travel was least difficult.

But most he journeyed when the sky, o'ercast,

Uprolled its threatening clouds of dusky blue,

And angry thunder grumbled through the hills,

And earth grew dark at noonday, till the flash

Of the thin lightning through the wide sky leapt.

And tumbling showers scoured along the plain.

Then folk who saw the pilgrim penitent,

Drenched, weird, and hastening as as to some strange doom,

Swore that the wandering Jew had crossed their land,

And the Lord Christ had sent the deadly bolt

Harmless upon his cursed, immortal head.

At length the hill-side city's spires and roofs,

With all its western windows smitten red

By a rich sunset, and with massive towers

Of its cathedral overtopping all,

greeted his sight. Some weary paces more,

And as the twilight deepened in the streets,

He stood within the minster. How serene,

In sculptured calm of centuries, it seemed!

How cool and spacious all the dim-lit aisles,

Still hazy with fumes of frankincense!

The vesper had been said, yet here and there

A wrinkled beldam, or mourner veiled,

Or burly burgher on the cold floor knelt,

And still the organist, with wandering hands,

Drew from the keys mysterious melodies,

And filled the church with flying waifs of song,

That with ethereal beauty moved the soul

To a more tender prayer and gentler faith

Than choral anthems and the solemn mass.

A thousand memories, sweet to bitterness,

Rushed on the knight and filled his eyes with tears;

Youth's blamelessness and faith forever lost,

The love of his neglected lyre, his art,

Revived by these aerial harmonies.

He was unworthy now to touch the strings,

Too base to stir men's soul to ecstasy

And high resolves, as in the days agone;

And yet, with all his spirit's earnestness,

He yearned to feel the lyre between his hands,

To utter all the trouble of his life

Unto the Muse who understands and helps.

Outworn with travel, soothed to drowsiness

By dying music and sweet-scented air,

His limbs relaxed, and sleep possessed his frame.

Auroral light the eastern oriels touched,

When with delicious sense of rest he woke,

Amidst the cast and silent empty aisles.

"God's peace hath fallen upon me in this place;

This is my Bethel; here I feel again

A holy calm, if not of innocence,

Yet purest after that, the calm serene

Of expiation and forgiveness."

He spake, and passed with staff and wallet forth

Through the tall portal to the open square,

And turning, paused to look upon the pile.

The northern front against the crystal sky

Loomed dark and heavy, full of sombre shade,

With each projecting buttress, carven cross,

Gable and mullion, tipped with laughing light

By the slant sunbeams of the risen morn.

The noisy swallows wheeled above their nests,

Builded in hidden nooks about the porch.

No human life was stirring in the square,

Save now and then a rumbling market-team,

Fresh from the fields and farms without the town.

He knelt upon the broad cathedral steps,

And kissed the moistened stone, while overhead

The circling swallows sang, and all around

The mighty city lay asleep and still.

To stranger's ears must yet again be made

The terrible confession; yet again

A deathly chill, with something worse than fear,

Seized the knight's heart, who knew his every word

Widened the gulf between his kind and him.

The Bishop sat with pomp of mitred head,

In pride of proven virtue, hearkening to all

With cold, official apathy, nor made

A sign of pity nor encouragement.

The friar understood the pilgrim's grief,

The language of his eyes; his speech alone

Was alien to these kind, untutored ears.

But this was truly to be misconstrued,

To tear each palpitating word alive

From out the depths of his remorseful soul,

And have it weighed with the precision cool

And the nice logic of a reasoning mind.

This spiritual Father judged his crime

As the mad mischief of a reckless boy,

That call for strict, immediate punishment.

But Tannhauser, who felt himself a man,

Though base, yet fallen through passions and rare gifts

Of an exuberant nature rankly rich,

And knew his weary head was growing gray

With a life's terrible experience,

Found his old sense of proper worth revive;

But modestly he ended: "Yet I felt,

O holy Father, in the church, this morn,

A strange security, a peace serene,

As though e'en yet the Lord regarded me

With merciful compassion; yea, as though

Even so vile a worm as I might work

Mine own salvation, through repentant prayers."

"Presumptuous man, it is no easy task

To expiate such sin; a space of prayer

That deprecates the anger of the Lord,

A pilgrimage through pleasant summer lands,

May not atone for years of impious lust;

Thy heart hath lied to thee in offering hope."

"Is there no hope on earth?" the pilgrim sighed.

"None through thy penance," said the saintly man.

"Yet there may be through mediation, help.

There is a man who by a blameless life

Hath won the right to intercede with God.

No sins of his own flesh hath he to purge, -

The Cardinal Filippo, - he abides,

Within the Holy City. Seek him out;

This is my only counsel, - through thyself

Can be no help and no forgiveness."

How different from the buoyant joy of morn

Was this discouraged sense of lassitude,

The Bishop's words were ringing in his ears,

Measured and pitiless, and blent with these,

The memory of the goddess' last wild cry, -

"ONCE BEING MINE, THOU ART FOREVER MINE."

Was it the truth, despite his penitence,

And the dedication of his thought to God,

That still some portion of himself was hers,

Some lust survived, some criminal regret,

For her corrupted love? He searched his heart:

All was remorse, religious and sincere,

And yet her dreadful curse still haunted him;

For all men shunned him, and denied him help,

Knowing at once in looking on his face,

Ploughed with deep lines and prematurely old,

That he had struggled with some deadly fiend,

And that he was no longer kin to them.

Just past the outskirts of the town, he stopped,

To strengthen will and courage to proceed.

The storm had broken o'er the sultry streets,

But now the lessening clouds were flying east,

And though the gentle shower still wet his face,

The west was cloudless while the sun went down,

And the bright seven-colored arch stood forth,

Against the opposite dull gray. There was

A beauty in the mingled storm and peace,

Beyond clear sunshine, as the vast, green fields

Basked in soft light, though glistening yet with rain.

The roar of all the town was now a buzz

Less than the insects' drowsy murmuring

That whirred their gauzy wings around his head.

The breeze that follows on the sunsetting

Was blowing whiffs of bruised and dripping grass

Into the heated city. But he stood,

Disconsolate with thoughts of fate and sin,

Still wrestling with his soul to win it back

From her who claimed it to eternity.

Then on the delicate air there came to him

The intonation of the minster bells,

Chiming the vespers, musical and faint.

He knew not what of dear and beautiful

There was in those familiar peals, that spake

Of his first boyhood and his innocence,

Leading him back, with gracious influence,

To pleasant thoughts and tender memories,

And last, recalling the fair hour of hope

He passed that morning in the church. Again,

The glad assurance of God's boundless love

Filled all his being, and he rose serene,

And journeyed forward with a calm content.

Southward he wended, and the landscape took

A warmer tone, the sky a richer light.

The gardens of the graceful, festooned with hops,

With their slight tendrils binding pole to pole,

Gave place to orchards and the trellised grape,

The hedges were enwreathed with trailing vines,

With clustering, shapely bunches, 'midst the growth

Of tangled greenery. The elm and ash

Less frequent grew than cactus, cypresses,

And golden-fruited or large-blossomed trees.

The far hills took the hue of the dove's breast,

Veiled in gray mist of olive groves. No more

He passed dark, moated strongholds of grim knights,

But terraces with marble-paven steps,

With fountains leaping in the sunny air,

And hanging gardens full of sumptuous bloom.

Then cloisters guarded by their dead gray walls,

Where now and then a golden globe of fruit

Or full-flushed flower peered out upon the road,

Nodding against the stone, and where he heard

Sometimes the voices of the chanting monks,

Sometimes the laugh of children at their play,

Amidst the quaint, old gardens. But these sights

Were in the suburbs of the wealthy towns.

For many a day through wildernesses rank,

Or marshy, feverous meadow-lands he fared,

The fierce sun smiting his close-muffled head;

Or 'midst the Alpine gorges faced the storm,

That drave adown the gullies melted snow

And clattering boulders from the mountain-tops.

At times, between the mountains and the sea

Fair prospects opened, with the boundless stretch

Of restless, tideless water by his side,

And their long wash upon the yellow sand.

Beneath this generous sky the country-folk

Could lead a freer life, - the fat, green fields

Offered rich pasturage, athwart the air

Rang tinkling cow-bells and the shepherds' pipes.

The knight met many a strolling troubadour,

Bearing his cithern, flute, or dulcimer;

And oft beneath some castle's balcony,

At night, he heard their mellow voices rise,

Blent with stringed instruments or tambourines,

Chanting some lay as natural as a bird's.

Then Nature stole with healthy influence

Into his thoughts; his love of beauty woke,

His Muse inspired dreams as in the past.

But after this came crueler remorse,

And he would tighten round his loins the rope,

And lie for hours beside some wayside cross,

And feel himself unworthy to enjoy

The splendid gift and privilege of life.

Then forth he hurried, spurred by his desire

To reach the City of the Seven Hills,

And gain his absolution. Some leagues more

Would bring him to the vast Campagna land,

When by a roadside well he paused to rest.

'T was noon, and reapers in the field hard by

Lay neath the trees upon the sun-scorched grass.

But from their midst one came towards the well,

Not trudging like a man forespent with toil,

But frisking like a child at holiday,

With light steps. The pilgrim watched him come,

And found him scarcely older than a child,

A large-mouthed earthen pitcher in his hand,

And a guitar upon his shoulder slung.

A wide straw hat threw all his face in shade,

But doffing this, to catch whatever breeze

Might stir among the branches, he disclosed

A charming head of rippled, auburn hair,

A frank, fair face, as lovely as a girls,

With great, soft eyes, as mild and grave as kine's.

Above his head he slipped the instrument,

And laid it with his hat upon the turf,

Lowered his pitcher down the well-head cool,

And drew it dripping upward, ere he saw

The watchful pilgrim, craving (as he thought)

The precious draught. "Your pardon, holy sir,

Drink first," he cried, "before I take the jar

Unto my father in the reaping-field."

Touched by the cordial kindness of the lad,

The pilgrim answered, - "Thanks, my thirst is quenched

From mine own palm." The stranger deftly poised

The brimming pitcher on his head, and turned

Back to the reaping-folk, while Tannhauser

Looked after him across the sunny fields,

Clasping each hand about his waist to bear

The balanced pitcher; then, down glancing, found

The lad's guitar near by, and fell at once

To striking its tuned string with wandering hands,

And pensive eyes filled full of tender dreams.

"Yea, holy sir, it is a worthless thing,

And yet I love it, for I make it speak."

The boy again stood by him and dispelled

His train of fantasies half sweet, half sad.

"That was not in my thought," the knight replied.

"Its worth is more than rubies; whoso hath

The art to make this speak is raised thereby

Above all loneliness or grief or fear."

More to himself than to the lad he spake,

Who, understanding not, stood doubtfully

At a loss for answer; but the knight went on:

"How came it in your hands, and who hath tuned

your voice to follow it." "I am unskilled,

Good father, but my mother smote its strings

To music rare." Diverted from one theme,

Pleased with the winsome candor of the boy,

The knight encouraged him to confidence;

Then his own gift of minstrelsy revealed,

And told bright tales of his first wanderings,

When in lords' castles and kings' palaces

Men still made place for him, for in his land

The gift was rare and valued at its worth,

And brought great victory and sounding fame.

Thus, in retracing all his pleasant youth,

His suffering passed as though it had not been.

Wide-eyed and open-mouthed the boy gave ear,

His fair face flushing with the sudden thoughts

That went and came, - then, as the pilgrim ceased,

Drew breath and spake: "And where now is your lyre?"

The knight with both hands hid his changed, white face,

Crying aloud, "Lost! lost! forever lost!"

Then, gathering strength, he bared his face again

Unto the frightened, wondering boy, and rose

With hasty fear. "Ah, child, you bring me back

Unwitting to remembrance of my grief,

For which I donned eternal garb of woe;

And yet I owe you thanks for one sweet hour

Of healthy human intercourse and peace.

'T is not for me to tarry by the way.

Farewell!" The impetuous, remorseful boy,

Seeing sharp pain on that kind countenance,

Fell at his feet and cried, "Forgive my words,

Witless but innocent, and leave me not

Without a blessing." Moved unutterably,

The pilgrim kissed with trembling lips his head,

And muttered, "At this moment would to God

That I were worthy!" Then waved wasted hands

Over the youth in act of blessing him,

But faltered, "Cleanse me through his innocence,

O heavenly Father!" and with quickening steps

Hastened away upon the road to Rome.

The noon was past, the reapers drew broad swaths

With scythes sun-smitten 'midst the ripened crop.

Thin shadows of the afternoon slept soft

On the green meadows as the knight passed forth.

He trudged amidst the sea of poisonous flowers

On the Campagna's undulating plain,

With Rome, the many-steepled, many-towered,

Before him regnant on her throne of hills.

A thick blue cloud of haze o'erhung the town,

But the fast-sinking sun struck fiery light

From shining crosses, roofs, and flashing domes.

Across his path an arching bridge of stone

Was raised above a shrunken yellow stream,

Hurrying with the light on every wave

Towards the great town and outward to the sea.

Upon the bridge's crest he paused, and leaned

Against the barrier, throwing back his cowl,

And gazed upon the dull, unlovely flood

That was the Tiber. Quaggy banks lay bare,

Muddy and miry, glittering in the sun,

And myriad insects hovered o'er the reeds,

Whose lithe, moist tips by listless airs were stirred.

When the low sun had dropped behind the hills,

He found himself within the streets of Rome,

Walking as in a sleep, where naught seemed real.

The chattering hubbub of the market-place

Was over now; but voices smote his ear

Of garrulous citizens who jostled past.

Loud cries, gay laughter, snatches of sweet song,

The tinkling fountains set in gardens cool

About the pillared palaces, and blent

With trickling of the conduits in the squares,

The noisy teams within the narrow streets, -

All these the stranger heard and did not hear,

While ringing bells pealed out above the town,

And calm gray twilight skies stretched over it.

Wide open stood the doors of every church,

And through the porches pressed a streaming throng.

Vague wonderment perplexed him, at the sight

Of broken columns raised to Jupiter

Beside the cross, immense cathedrals reared

Upon a dead faith's ruins; all the whirl

And eager bustle of the living town

Filling the storied streets, whose very stones

Were solemn monuments, and spake of death.

Although he wrestled with himself, the thought

Of that poor, past religion smote his heart

With a huge pity and deep sympathy,

Beyond the fervor which the Church inspired.

Where was the noble race who ruled the world,

Moulded of purest elements, and stuffed

With sternest virtues, every man a king,

Wearing the purple native in his heart?

These lounging beggars, stealthy monks and priests,

And womanish patricians filled their place.

Thus Tannhauser, still half an infidel,

Pagan through mind and Christian through the heart,

Fared thoughtfully with wandering, aimless steps,

Till in the dying glimmer of the day

He raised his eyes and found himself alone

Amid the ruined arches, broken shafts,

And huge arena of the Coliseum.

He did not see it as it was, dim-lit

By something less than day and more than night,

With wan reflections of the rising moon

Rather divined than seen on ivied walls,

And crumbled battlements, and topless columns -

But by the light of all the ancient days,

Ringed with keen eager faces, living eyes,

Fixed on the circus with a savage joy,

Where brandished swords flashed white, and human blood

Streamed o'er the thirsty dust, and Death was king.

He started, shuddering, and drew breath to see

The foul pit choked with weeds and tumbled stones,

The cross raised midmost, and the peaceful moon

Shining o'er all; and fell upon his knees,

Restored to faith in one wise, loving God.

Day followed day, and still he bode in Rome,

Waiting his audience with the Cardinal,

And from the gates, on pretext frivolous,

Passed daily forth, - his Eminency slept, -

Again, his Eminency was fatigued

By tedious sessions of the Papal court,

And thus the patient pilgrim was referred

Unto a later hour. At last the page

Bore him a missive with Filippo's seal,

That in his name commended Tannhauser

Unto the Pope. The worn, discouraged knight

Read the brief scroll, then sadly forth again,

Along the bosky alleys of the park,

Passed to the glare and noise of summer streets.

"Good God!" he muttered, "Thou hast ears for all,

And sendest help and comfort; yet these men,

Thy saintly ministers, must deck themselves

With arrogance, and from their large delight

In all the beauty of the beauteous earth,

And peace of indolent, untempted souls,

Deny the hungry outcast a bare word."

Yet even as he nourished bitter thoughts,

He felt a depth of clear serenity,

Unruffled in his heart beneath it all.

No outward object now had farther power

To wound him there, for the brooding o'er those deeps

Of vast contrition was boundless hope.

Yet not to leave a human chance untried,

He sought the absolution of the Pope.

In a great hall with airy galleries,

Thronged with high dignitaries of the Church,

He took his seat amidst the humblest friars.

Through open windows came sweet garden smells,

Bright morning light, and twittered song of birds.

Around the hall flashed gold and sunlit gems,

And splendid wealth of color, - white-stoled priests,

And scarlet cardinals, and bishops clad

In violet vestments, - while beneath the shade

Of the high gallery huddled dusky shapes,

With faded, travel-tattered, sombre smocks,

And shaven heads, and girdles of coarse hemp;

Some, pilgrims penitent like Tannhauser;

Some, devotees to kiss the sacred feet.

The brassy blare of trumpets smote the air,

Shrill pipes and horns with swelling clamor came,

And through the doorway's wide-stretched tapestries

Passed the Pope's trumpeters and mace-bearers,

His vergers bearing slender silver wands,

Then mitred bishops, red-clad cardinals,

The stalwart Papal Guard with halberds raised,

And then, with white head crowned with gold ingemmed,

The vicar of the lowly Galilean,

Holding his pastoral rod of smooth-hewn wood,

With censer swung before and peacock fans

Waved constantly by pages, either side.

Attended thus, they bore him to his throne,

And priests and laymen fell upon their knees.

Then, after pause of brief and silent prayer,

The pilgrims singly through the hall defiled,

To kiss the borders of the papal skirts,

Smiting their foreheads on the paven stone;

Some silent, abject, some accusing them

Of venial sins in accents of remorse,

Craving his grace, and passing pardoned forth.

Sir Tannhauser came last, no need for him

To cry "Peccavi," and crook suppliant knees.

His gray head rather crushed than bowed, his face

Livid and wasted, his deep thoughtful eyes,

His tall gaunt form in those unseemly weeds,

Spake more than eloquence. His hollow voice

Brake silence, saying, "I am Tannhauser.

For seven years I lived apart from men,

Within the Venusberg." A horror seized

The assembled folk; some turbulently rose;

Some clamored, "From the presence cast him forth!"

But the knight never ceased his steady gaze

Upon the Pope. At last, - "I have not spoken

To be condemned," he said, "by such as these.

Thou, spiritual Father, answer me.

Look thou upon me with the eyes of Christ.

Can I through expiation gain my shrift,

And work mine own redemption?" "Insolent man!"

Thundered the outraged Pope, "is this the tone

Wherewith thou dost parade thy loathsome sin?

Down on thy knees, and wallow on the earth!

Nay, rather go! there is no ray of hope,

No gleam, through cycles of eternity,

For the redemption of a soul like thine.

Yea, sooner shall my pastoral rod branch forth

In leaf and blossom, and green shoots of spring,

Than Christ will pardon thee." And as he spoke,

He struck the rod upon the floor with force

That gave it entrance 'twixt two loosened tiles,

So that it stood, fast-rooted and alone.

The knight saw naught, he only heard his judge

Ring forth his curses, and the court cry out

"Anathema!" and loud, and blent therewith,

Derisive laughter in the very hall,

And a wild voice that thrilled through flesh and heart:

"ONCE BEING MINE, THOU ART FOREVER MINE!"

Half-mad he clasped both hands upon his brow,

Amidst the storm of voices, till they died,

And all was silence, save the reckless song

Of a young bird upon a twig without.

Then a defiant, ghastly face he raised,

And shrieked, "'T is false! I am no longer thine!"

And through the windows open to the park,

Rushed forth, beyond the sight and sound of men.

By church nor palace paused he, till he passed

All squares and streets, and crossed the bridge of stone,

And stood alone amidst the broad expanse

Of the Campagna, twinkling in the heat.

He knelt upon a knoll of turf, and snapped

The cord that held the cross about his neck,

And far from him the leaden burden flung.

"O God! I thank Thee, that my faith in Thee

Subsists at last, through all discouragements.

Between us must no type nor symbol stand,

No mediator, were he more divine

Than the incarnate Christ. All forms, all priests,

I part aside, and hold communion free

Beneath the empty sky of noon, with naught

Between my nothingness and thy high heavens -

Spirit with spirit. O, have mercy, God!

Cleanse me from lust and bitterness and pride,

Have mercy in accordance with my faith."

Long time he lay upon the scorching grass,

With his face buried in the tangled weeds.

Ah! who can tell the struggles of his soul

Against its demons in that sacred hour,

The solitude, the anguish, the remorse?

When shadows long and thin lay on the ground,

Shivering with fever, helpless he arose,

But with a face divine, ineffable,

Such as we dream the face of Israel,

When the Lord's wrestling angel, at gray dawn,

Blessed him, and disappeared.

Upon the marsh,

All night, he wandered, striving to emerge

From the wild, pathless plain, - now limitless

And colorless beneath the risen moon;

Outstretching like a sea, with landmarks none,

Save broken aqueducts and parapets,

And ruined columns glinting 'neath the moon.

His dress was dank and clinging with the dew;

A thousand insects fluttered o'er his head,

With buzz and drone; unseen cicadas chirped

Among the long, rank grass, and far and near

The fire-flies flickered through the summer air.

Vague thoughts and gleams prophetic filled his brain.

"Ah, fool!" he mused, "to look for help from men.

Had they the will to aid, they lack the power.

In mine own flesh and soul the sin had birth,

Through mine own anguish it must be atoned.

Our saviours are not saints and ministers,

But tear-strung women, children soft of heart,

Or fellow-sufferers, who, by some chance word,

Some glance of comfort, save us from despair.

These I have found, thank heaven! to strengthen trust

In mine own kind, when all the world grew dark.

Make me not proud in spirit, O my God!

Yea, in thy sight I am one mass of sin,

One black and foul corruption, yet I know

My frailty is exceeded by thy love.

Neither is this the slender straw of hope,

Whereto I, drowning, cling, but firm belief,

That fills my inmost soul with vast content.

As surely as the hollow faiths of old

Shriveled to dust before one ray of Truth,

So will these modern temples pass away,

Piled upon rotten doctrines, baseless forms,

And man will look in his own breast for help,

Yea, search for comfort his own inward reins,

Revere himself, and find the God within.

Patience and patience!" Through the sleepless night

He held such thoughts; at times before his eyes

Flashed glimpses of the Church that was to be,

Sublimely simple in the light serene

Of future ages; then the vision changed

To the Pope's hall, thronged with high priests, who hurled

Their curses on him. Staggering, he awoke

Unto the truth, and found himself alone,

Beneath the awful stars. When dawn's first chill

Crept though the shivering grass and heavy leaves,

Giddy and overcome, he fell and slept

Upon the dripping weeds, nor dreamed nor stirred,

Until the wide plain basked in noon's broad light.

He dragged his weary frame some paces more,

Unto a solitary herdsman's hut,

Which, in the vagueness of the moonlit night,

Was touched with lines of beauty, till it grew

Fair as the ruined works of ancient art,

Now squat and hideous with its wattled roof,

Decaying timbers, and loose door wide oped,

Half-fallen from the hinge. A drowsy man,

Bearded and burnt, in shepherd habit lay,

Stretched on the floor, slow-munching, half asleep,

His frugal fare; for thus, at blaze of noon,

The shepherds sought a shelter from the sun,

Leaving their vigilant dogs beside their flock.

The knight craved drink and bread, and with respect

For pilgrim weeds, the Roman herdsman stirred

His lazy length, and shared with him his meal.

Refreshed and calm, Sir Tannhauser passed forth,

Yearning with morbid fancy once again

To see the kind face of the minstrel boy

He met beside the well. At set of sun

He reached the place; the reaping-folk were gone,

The day's toil over, yet he took his seat.

A milking-girl with laden buckets full,

Came slowly from the pasture, paused and drank.

From a near cottage ran a ragged boy,

And filled his wooden pail, and to his home

Returned across the fields. A herdsman came,

And drank and gave his dog to drink, and passed,

Greeting the holy man who sat there still,

Awaiting. But his feeble pulse beat high

When he descried at last a youthful form,

Crossing the field, a pitcher on his head,

Advancing towards the well. Yea, this was he,

The same grave eyes, and open, girlish face.

But he saw not, amidst the landscape brown,

The knight's brown figure, who, to win his ear,

Asked the lad's name. "My name is Salvator,

To serve you, sir," he carelessly replied,

With eyes and hands intent upon his jar,

Brimming and bubbling. Then he cast one glance

Upon his questioner, and left the well,

Crying with keen and sudden sympathy,

"Good Father, pardon me, I knew you not.

Ah! you have travelled overmuch: your feet

Are grimed with mud and wet, your face is changed,

Your hands are dry with fever." But the knight:

"Nay, as I look on thee, I think the Lord

Wills not that I should suffer any more."

"Then you have suffered much," sighed Salvator,

With wondering pity. "You must come with me;

My father knows of you, I told him all.

A knight and minstrel who cast by his lyre,

His health and fame, to give himself to God, -

Yours is a life indeed to be desired!

If you will lie with us this night, our home

Will verily be blessed." By kindness crushed,

Wandering in sense and words, the broken knight

Resisted naught, and let himself be led

To the boy's home. The outcast and accursed

Was welcomed now by kindly human hands;

Once more his blighted spirit was revived

By contact with refreshing innocence.

There, when the morning broke upon the world,

The humble hosts no longer knew their guest.

His fleshly weeds of sin forever doffed,

Tannhauser lay and smiled, for in the night

The angel came who brings eternal peace.

Far into Wartburg, through all Italy,

In every town the Pope sent messengers,

Riding in furious haste; among them, one

Who bore a branch of dry wood burst in bloom;

The pastoral rod had borne green shoots of spring,

And leaf and blossom. God is merciful.