He serves you in a fashion quite his own, And the fool's meat and drink are not of earth. That he is half aware of his own folly, For he demands from Heaven its fairest star, The Lord. Though he now serves me in a cloud of error, I will soon lead him forth to the clear day. When trees look green, full well the gardener knows Meph. What will you bet ?-now I am sure of winningOnly observe you give me full permission To lead him softly on my path. As he shall live upon the earth, so long And that is all I ask; for willingly Thanks. I never make acquaintance with the dead. The full fresh cheeks of youth are food for me, For I am like a cat-I like to play A little with the mouse before I eat it. The Lord. Well, well! it is permitted thee. Draw thou His spirit from its springs; as thou find'st power, Seize him and lead him on thy downward path; And stand ashamed when failure teaches thee That a good man, even in his darkest longings, Is well aware of the right way. Meph. Well and good. Enjoy your triumph then with a full breast. Aye; dust shall he devour, and that with pleasure, The Lord. Pray come here when it suits you; for I never Have given him the Devil for a companion, [Heaven closes; the Archangels exeunt. SCENES FROM THE FAUST OF GOËTHE. MAY-DAY NIGHT. SCENE-The Hartz Mountain, a desolate Country. FAUST, MEPHISTOPHELES. Meph. WOULD you not like a broomstick? As for me I wish I had a good stout ram to ride; For we are still far from th' appointed place. Faust. This knotted staff is help enough for me, Is there in making short a pleasant way? And climb those rocks, where ever-babbling springs Is the true sport that seasons such a path. Meph. Nothing of such an influence do I feel. The flowers upon our path were frost and snow. Dimly uplifting her belated beam, The blank unwelcome round of the red moon, One stumbles 'gainst some crag. With your permission I'll call an Ignis-fatuus to our aid: I see one yonder burning jollily. Halloo, my friend! may I request that you Would favour us with your bright company? Why should you blaze away there to no purpose? Ignis-Fatuus. With reverence be it spoken, I will try To overcome the lightness of my nature; Our course, you know, is generally zig-zag. Meph. Ha, ha! your worship thinks you have to deal With men. Go strait on, in the Devil's name, Or I shall puff your flickering life out. I see you are the master of the house; I will accommodate myself to you. Well, Only consider, that to-uight this mountain Is all enchanted, and if Jack-a-lantern Shows you his way, though you should miss your own, You ought not to be too exact with him. FAUST, MEPHISTOPHELES, and IGNIS-FATUUS, in alternate Chorus. The limits of the sphere of dream, The bounds of true and false, are past. Lead us on, thou wandering Gleam, Lead us onward, far and fast, But see, how swift advance and shift Through the mossy sods and stones, To whoo! to whoo! near, nearer now See, with long legs and belly wide, A salamander in the brake! Every root is like a snake, And along the loose hill side, With strange contortions through the night, Curls, to seize or to affright; To blister with their poison spume The wanderer. Through the dazzling gloom The many-coloured mice, that thread The dewy turf beneath our tread, In troops each other's motions cross, Through the heath and through the moss; |