Works of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe
Page 241
Full well I know, what is not known to all,
And ope this narrow space, at duty’s call. —
may a happy Fate attend!
Wonders most strange may happen now;
They know not where unto they tend;
Forward they have not look’d, I trow.
(Wild Song.)
Bedizen’d people, glittering brood!
They’re coming rough, they’re coming rude;
With hasty run, with lofty bound,
Stalwart and strong they press around.
Fauns.
Fauns advance,
Their crisp locks bound
With oak-leaves round, —
In merry dance!
artist franz simm.
FAUST. SECOND PART.
pan and his attendants
A fine and sharply pointed ear,
Forth from their clustering locks doth peer;
A stumpy nose, with breadth of face —
These forfeit not a lady’s grace:
If but his paw the Faun advance,
Not lightly will the fairest shun the dance.
Satyr.
The Satyr now comes hopping in,
With foot of goat, and withered shin;
These sinewy must be and thin.
In chamois-guise, on mountain height,
Around to gaze is his delight;
In freedom’s air, with freshness rife,
Child he despiseth, man and wife,
Who, ‘mid the valley’s smoke and steam,
That they too live, contented dream;
On those pure heights, sequester’d, lone,
The upper world is his alone!
Gnomes.
Tripping, here comes a tiny crew.
They like not keeping two and two;
In mossy dress, with lamplet clear,
Commingling swiftly, they career,
Where for himself his task each plies,
Swarming they glitter, emmet-wise;
And ever busy, move about,
With ceaseless bustle in and out.
We the “Good Folk” as kindred own,
As rock-chirurgists well we’re known;
Cupping the lofty hills, we drain,
With cunning, from each well-fill’d vein,
The metals, which aloft we pile,
Shouting, Good luck! Good luck! the while:
Kindness at bottom we intend;
Good men we evermore befriend.
Yet to the light we gold unseal,
That men therewith may pimp and steal;
Nor to the proud, who murder plann’d
Wholesale, shall fail the iron brand;
These three commands who hath transgress’d,
Will take small reckoning of the rest;
Nathless for that we’re not to blame:
Patient we are, be ye the same!
Giants.
The wild men, such in sooth our name,
Upon the Hartzberg known to fame,
Naked, in ancient vigor strong,
Pell-mell we come, a giant throng;
With pine-stem grasp’d in dexter hand,
And round the loins a padded band,
Apron of leaf and bough, uncouth, —
Such guards the pope owns not, in sooth.
Chorus of Nymphs.
(They surround the great Pan.) He draweth near!
In mighty Pan
The All we scan
Of this world-sphere.
All ye of gayest mood advance,
And him surround, in sportive dance!
For since he earnest is and kind,
Joy everywhere he fain would find;
E’en ‘neath the blue o’erarching sky,
He watcheth still, with wakeful eye;
Purling to him the brooklet flows,
And zephyrs lull him to repose;
And when he slumbers at mid-day,
Stirs not a leaf upon the spray;
Health-breathing plants, with balsams rare,
Pervade the still and silent air;
The nymph no more gay vigil keeps,
And where she standeth, there she sleeps.
But if, at unexpected hour,
His voice resounds with mighty power,
Like thunder, or the roaring sea,
Then knoweth none, where he may flee;
Panic the valiant host assails,
The hero in the tumult quails.
Then honor to whom honor’s due!
And hail to him, who leads us unto you!
Deputation ofGnomes.
(To the great Pan.)
When a treasure, richly shining,
Winds through clefts its thread-like way,
Sole the cunning rod, divining,
Can its labyrinth display.
Troglodytes, in caves abiding,
We our sunless homes vault o’er;
Thou, ‘mid day’s pure airs presiding,
Graciously thy gifts dost pour.
Close at hand, a fount of treasure
We have found, a wondrous vein; —
Promising in fullest measure,
What we scarce might hope to gain.
Perfect thou alone canst make it;
Every treasure in thy hand,
Is a world-wide blessing; take it,
Thine it is, Sire, to command!
Plutus.
(To the Herald.) Our self-possession now must be display’d,
And come what may, we must be undismayed;
Still hast thou shown a strong, courageous soul.
A dreadful incident will soon betide;
‘Twill be by world and after-world denied;
Inscribe it truly in thy protocol!
Herald.
(Grasping the staff which Plutusholds in his hand.) The dwarfs conduct the mighty Pan
Softly the source of fire to scan;
It surges from the gulf profound,
Then downward plunges ‘neath the ground;
While dark the mouth stands, gaping wide,
Once more uprolls the fiery tide.
The mighty Pan stands well-content,
Rejoicing in the wondrous sight,
While pearl-foam drizzles left and right.
How may he trust such element!
Bending, he stoops to look within. —
But now his beard hath fallen in! —
Who may he be, with shaven chin?
His hand conceals it from our eyes. —
Now doth a dire mishap arise;
His beard takes fire and backward flies;
Wreath, head and breast are all ablaze;
Joy is transformed to dire amaze. —
To quench the fire his followers run;
Free from the flames remaineth none;
Still as they strike from side to side,
New flames are kindled far and wide;
Envelop’d in the fiery shroud,
Burns now the masquerading crowd.
But what’s the tale that’s rumor’d here,
From mouth to mouth, from ear to ear!
night, for aye with sorrow fraught,
To us what mischief hast thou brought!
The coming morn will tidings voice,
At which, in sooth, will none rejoice.
From every side they cry amain,
“The Emperor suffers grievous pain!”
were some other tidings true! —
The Emperor burns, his escort too.
Accurs’d be they, for evermore,
Who him seduc’d, with noisy roar,
Abroad, begirt with pitchy bough,
To roam, for general overthrow!
youth, O youth, and wilt thou never
To joy assign its fitting bound?
Majesty, with reason never
Will thy omnipotence be crown’d?
The mimic forest hath caught fire;
Tongue-like the flame mounts high and higher;
Now on t
he wood-bound roof it plays,
And threats one universal blaze!
O’erflows our cup of suffering;
I know not, who may rescue bring;
Imperial pomp, so rich o’er night,
An ash-heap lies in morning’s light.
Plutus.
Long enough hath terror sway’d;
Hither now be help convey’d.
Strike, thou hallow’d staff, the ground,
Till earth tremble and resound!
Cooling vapors everywhere
Fill the wide and spacious air!
Moisture-teeming mist and cloud
Draw anear, and us o’ershroud;
Veil the fiery tumult, veil!
Curling, drizzling, breathing low,
Gracious cloudlets hither sail,
Shedding down the gentle rain!
To extinguish, to allay,
Ye, the assuagers, strive amain;
Into summer-lightning’s glow
Change our empty fiery play! —
Threaten spirits us to hurt,
Magic must its power assert.
Pleasure-Garden.
Morning sun.
[The Emperor,his court, men and women; Faust, Mephistophelesdressed becomingly, in the usual fashion; both kneel.
Faust.
The flaming juggler’s play dost pardon, Sire?
Emperor.
I of such sports full many should desire. —
I saw myself within a glowing sphere;
Almost it seem’d as if I Pluto were;
A rock abyss there lay, with fire aglow,
Gloomy as night; from many a gulf below,
Seething, a thousand savage flames ascend,
And in a fiery vault together blend;
Up to the highest dome their tongues were toss’d,
Which ever was, and evermore was lost.
In the far space, through spiral shafts of flame,
Peoples I saw, in lengthen’d lines who came;
In the wide circle forward press’d the crowd,
And as their wont hath been, in homage bow’d;
I seem’d, surrounded by my courtly train,
O’er thousand Salamanders king to reign.
Mephis.
Such art thou, Sire! For thee each element
To own as absolute is well content.
Obedient thou hast proven fire to be.
Where it is wildest, leap into the sea —
And scarce thy foot the pearl-strewn floor shall tread,
A glorious, billowy dome o’ervaults thy head;
Wavelets of tender green thou seest swelling,
With purple edge, to form thy beauteous dwelling,
Round thee, the central point; where thou dost wend,
At every step, thy palace homes attend;
The very walls, in life rejoicing, flow
With arrowy swiftness, surging to and fro;
Sea-marvels to the new and gentle light repair;
They dart along, to enter none may dare;
There sports, with scales of gold, the bright-hued snake,
Gapes the fell shark, his jaws thy laughter wake:
Howe’er thy court may round thee now delight,
Such throng as this, before ne’er met thy sight.
Nor long shalt sever’d be from the most fair;
The curious Nereids, to thy dwelling rare,
‘Mid the eternal freshness, shall draw nigh;
The youngest, greedy like the fish, and shy;
The elder prudent. Thetis hears the news,
Nor to the second Peleus will refuse
Or hand or lip. — Olympos’ wide domain —
Emperor.
I leave to thee, thou o’er the air mayst reign;
Full early every one must mount that throne.
Mephis.
Earth, noblest Sire! already thou dost own.
Emperor.
Hither what happy Fate, with kindness fraught,
Thee from the thousand nights and one hath brought!
If thou, like Scheherazade, prolific art,
To thee my highest favor I’ll impart;
Be ever near when, as is oft the case,
Most irksome is our world of commonplace!
Marshal.
(Entering in haste.)
Your Highness, never thought I in my life
Tidings to give, with such good fortune rife
As these which, in thy presence, cheer
My raptur’d heart, absolv’d from fear;
All reckonings paid, from debt we’re eased: —
The usurer’s clutches are appeas’d —
From such hell-torment I am free!
In Heaven can none more cheerful be.
Commander-in-Chief.
(Follows hastily.)
Paid in advance the soldiers’ due,
Now the whole army’s pledged anew.
Blood dances in the trooper’s veins;
Vinter and damsel reap their gains.
Emperor.
How freely now your breast doth heave!
The marks of care your visage leave!
How hastily you enter!
Treasurer.
(Entering.) Sire, proceed
These men to question who have done the deed.
Faust.
(To the Chancellor.) To you it doth belong the case to state.
Chancellor.
(Who advances slowly.)
In my old days I am with joy elate!
So hear and see this fortune-weighted scroll,
Which hath to happiness transform’d our dole:
(He reads.)
“To all whom it concerneth, be it known:
Who owns this note a thousand crowns doth own.
To him assur’d, as certain pledge, there lies,
Beneath the Emperor’s land, a boundless prize;
It is decreed, this wealth without delay
To raise, therewith the promis’d sum to pay.”
Emperor.
Crime I suspect, some huge deceit!
The Emperor’s name who here doth counterfeit?
Unpunish’d still remains such breach of right?
Treasurer.
Remember, Sire! Thyself but yesternight
Didst sign the note. — Thou stoodst as mighty Pan;
Then spake the Chancellor, whose words thus ran:
“This festive pleasure for thyself obtain,
Thy people’s weal, with a few pen-strokes gain!”
These mad’st thou clearly; thousand-fold last night
Have artists multiplied what thou didst write;
And that to each alike might fall the aid,
To stamp the series, we have not delay’d,
Ten, thirty, fifty, hundreds at a stroke.
You cannot guess, how it rejoic’d the folk:
Behold your town, mouldering half dead that lay,
How full of life and bounding joy to-day!
Long as thy name hath bless’d the world, till now
So gladly was it ne’er beheld, I trow.
The Alphabet is now redundant grown;
Each in this sign finds happiness alone.
Emperor.
My people take it for true gold, you say?
In camp, at court, it passes for full pay?
Much as I wonder, it I must allow.
Marshal.
To stay the flying leaves were hopeless now;
With speed of lightning all abroad they float:
The changers’ banks stand open; every note
Is honored there with silver and with gold;
Discount deducted, if the truth were told.
To butcher, baker, vintner, thence they fare;
With half the world is feasting their sole care;
The other half, new-vestur’d, bravely shows;
The mercer cuts away, the tailor sews.
In cellars still “The Emperor!” they toast,
While, amid clattering plates, they boil and roast.
Mephis.
Alone who treads the terraced promenade,
Sees there the fair one, splendidly array’d;
One eye the peacock’s fan conceals; the while
This note in view, she lures us with her smile,
And swifter than through eloquence or wit,
Love’s richest favor may be won by it.
One’s self with purse and scrip one need not tease.
Hid in the breast, a note is borne with ease,
And with the billet-doux is coupled there;
The priest conveys it in his book of prayer;
The soldier, that his limbs may be more free,
Quickly his girdle lightens. Pardon me,
Your Majesty, if the high work I seem,
Dwelling on these details, to disesteem.
Faust.
This superfluity of wealth, that deep
Imprison’d in its soil thy land doth keep,
Lies all unus’d; wide-reaching thought profound
Is of such treasure but a sorry bound;
In loftiest flight, fancy still strives amain
To reach its limit, but still strives in vain —
Yet minds who dare behind the veil to press,
In the unbounded, boundless faith possess.
Mephis.
Such paper, in the place of pearls and gold,
Convenient is, we know how much we hold;
No need for change or barter, each at will
Of love and wine may henceforth drink his fill.
If coin is needed, stands the changer nigh,
If there it faileth, straight the shovel ply;
Goblet and chain at auction fetch their price;
The paper, forthwith cancell’d, in a trice
The sceptic shames, who us did erst deride;
The people, used to it, wish naught beside:
So henceforth, through the realm, there’s goodly store,
Of jewels, gold, and paper, evermore.
Emperor.
You this high aid have render’d to our state;
Great is the service, be the meed as great!
Our realm’s subsoil confide we to your care;
Best guardians of the treasure buried there.
Full well ye know the vast, well-guarded hoard,
And when men dig, so be it at your word!
To Faustand the Treasurer.
Ally yourselves, ye masters of our treasure,
The honors of your place fulfil with pleasure,
There where together join’d in blest content,
The upper with the under world is blent!
Treasurer.
Not the most distant strife shall us divide;
As colleague be the conjuror at my side.
[Exit with Faust.
Emperor.
If I at court each man with gifts endow,
Whereto he’ll use them, let each tell me now.
Page.
(Receiving.) Merry I’ll be, and taste life’s pleasant things.