It was in my power, doubtless, to have fled from the castle, but in
doing so--in saving myself from new crimes--I must have fled also _from
Aurelia_. I had made the resolution (in which I was determined to
persevere) to venture all things for _her_ sake, and especially for the
chance of renewing that conversation which the sanctity of the
confessional wholly prohibited.
It was on her account, therefore, that I had now involved myself in
enormous guilt; but though conscious of this as the cause, I did not
escape the torments of remorse and the bitterest self-condemnation. A
kind of horror seized on me when I thought of meeting Aurelia again,
which, however, was very soon to happen, namely, at the supper-table. It
seemed as if her pious angelic looks would directly accuse me of mortal
sin, and as if, unmasked and detected, I should sink into utter
disgrace and annihilation. From similar reasons, also, I could not bear
to see the Baroness immediately after that interview, and all this
induced me, under the pretext of having my devotions to perform, to shut
myself up in my room, and remain there, when intimation was sent to me
that supper was ready.
Only a few days, however, were required in order to banish all fear and
embarrassment. The outward behaviour of the Baroness was in the highest
degree guarded and amiable; and the more that, in my character of Count
Victorin, I acquired ascendancy over her, the more she seemed to
redouble her attention and affectionate solicitude for the Baron.
She confessed to me, however, that she many times laboured under the
most fearful perplexity; that my _tonsure_, my long beard, and my
genuine conventual gait, (which last, however, I did not now keep up so
strictly as before,) had caused to her a thousand indefinable
apprehensions; nay, upon my sudden inspired invocation of St Rosalia,
she had become almost persuaded that some extraordinary fatality had
annihilated the plan which, along with Victorin, she had so admirably
laid, and had brought a miserable Capuchin monk into his place.
She admired, however, the extent of my precautions in actually taking
the tonsure, in allowing my beard to grow, and in having studied my part
so exactly, that, even now, she was obliged often to look me sharply in
the face, to avoid falling again into painful doubts.
* * * * *
Meanwhile, Victorin's _chasseur_, disguised as a _bauer_, made his
appearance now and then at the end of the park, and I did not neglect to
speak with him privately, and admonish him to hold himself in readiness
for momentary flight, if any evil chance should render this necessary.
As for the Baron and Reinhold, they seemed, on the whole, perfectly
satisfied, yet frequently troubled me with urgent suggestions that I
should direct the best energies of my mind to acquire an influence over
the deeply pensive and obstinate Hermogen.
On the contrary, however, I had never been able to interchange with him
a single word, so sedulously did he avoid every opportunity of being
alone with me; and if by chance we met in the society of his father and
the steward, he looked upon me with an expression so marked and
extraordinary, that I had considerable difficulty in avoiding obvious
embarrassment. It seemed almost as if he could read my very soul, and
spy out my most secret thoughts; and as often as he was thus forced into
my presence, an unconquerable ill-humour, a malicious irony, and indeed
rage, with difficulty restrained, were visible on his pale features.
It happened that once when I was taking a walk in the park, I perceived
him, quite unexpectedly, coming up to meet me. I held this for the
fittest possible moment to clear up the painful circumstances in which I
was placed with regard to him; and accordingly, when, as usual, he
wished to escape, I ventured to take him by the arm, and my old talent
of eloquence enabled me now to speak so impressively, and with so much
energy, that at last he could not help being attentive, and shewed, as I
thought, some favourable symptoms of emotion.
We had seated ourselves on a stone bench at the end of a walk which led
towards the castle. In discourse, my inspiration, as usual, increased.
I maintained, that it was in the highest degree sinful for a man, thus
devoured by inward grief, to despise the consolation and assistance of
the church, which can raise up the fallen, and might enable him to
fulfil all purposes and duties of this life, which, by the goodness of
the Supreme Power, were yet held invitingly before him.
I insisted, that even the most depraved criminal need not doubt of the
grace and favour of Heaven, and that the indulgence of such doubts might
alone deprive him of the temporal happiness, and salvation hereafter,
which he would otherwise obtain. At last I demanded that he should
directly unload his conscience by confessing to me, promising him, at
the same time, on the usual conditions of contrition, penance, and
amendment, absolution for every sin that he might have committed.
Hereupon he rose up. His frame seemed to heave and dilate with
indignation;--his brows were contracted--his eyes glared--a burning red
flew at once over his before pale countenance.
"Art thou," cried he, with a voice, by the depth and wildness of whose
tones I was involuntarily agitated,--"art thou then thyself free from
sin, that thou venturest, like the most pure--nay, like the Divinity
whom thou blasphemest, to look into the secrets of my bosom?--Thou,
forsooth, would'st promise me forgiveness--thou, who for thyself wilt
vainly strive for pardon, and against whom the regions of the blest are
for ever closed!--Miserable hypocrite! soon will the hour of retribution
be at hand, and trodden into the dust like a poisonous reptile, shalt
thou writhe in misery and death, struggling in vain for aid and release
from thy nameless torment, till thou perishest in madness and despair!"
Hereupon he turned round, and quickly disappeared. I had no power to
detain him--I was, indeed, utterly crushed and annihilated. All my
composure and courage had fled, and I saw no means by which confidence
and safety could again be recovered.
* * * * *
At length I observed the Baroness coming out of the castle, dressed as
if for a walk. With her only, in this difficulty, could I hope to find
assistance or consolation. I hastened, therefore, to meet her.
At first she seemed terrified at my disordered appearance--inquired
after the cause of it; and I described to her the whole scene which I
had just now encountered with the insane Hermogen, expressing also my
terror and apprehension, lest he might, perhaps, by some inexplicable
chance, have got possession of, and might betray, our secret
intercourse.
By all this Euphemia did not appear in the least moved. On the contrary,
she smiled with an expression of irony and malice so extraordinary, that
I was seized with involuntary horror.
"Let us go deeper into the park," said she, "for here we might be
observed, and it might be deemed mysterious if the reverend Father
Medardus were to speak to me with such vehemence."
[A few sentences are here left out by the Editor.]
"Be composed then, Victorin," said Euphemia; "you may make yourself
perfectly tranquil as to all this, which has brought you into such fear
and trouble. Indeed, it is on the whole fortunate, that this adventure
has happened with Hermogen; for I have thus an opportunity of speaking
to you on many things of which I had too long been silent.
"You must confess, that I wield a strange kind of intellectual supremacy
over all those by whom I am in this life surrounded; and to possess and
exercise this privilege, is, I believe, much more easy for a woman than
for a man. Not only, however, must we for this purpose enjoy that
superiority of personal beauty which Nature has granted to us, but also
many peculiar attributes of mind. Above all, the individual, who, in
such undertakings, expects to succeed, must possess the power of
stepping, as it were, out of herself,--of contemplating her _own
individuality_ from an external point, (that is to say, as it is beheld
by others;) for our own identity, when viewed in this manner, serves
like an obedient implement--a passive means of obtaining whatever object
we have proposed to ourselves, as the highest and most desirable in
life.
"Can there be anything more admirable than an existence which rules over
that of others, so that we may exert perfect empire over the insipid
beings--the phantom shapes, by which we are here surrounded, and command
them, as if by magic spells, to minister to our enjoyments?
"You, Victorin, belong to the few who have hitherto understood me. You
had also acquired this power of looking, as if with others' eyes, upon
yourself; and I have therefore judged you not unworthy to be raised as
my partner on the throne of this intellectual kingdom. The mystery which
we were obliged to keep up, heightened the charm of this union; our
apparent separation only gave wider scope for our fantastic humour,
which played with and scorned the conventional laws of ordinary life.
"Do not our present meetings constitute the boldest piece of adventure,
that spirits, mocking at all conventional limitations, ever dared to
encounter? Even in this new character which you have assumed, the
metamorphosis depends not on your dress merely. It seems, also, as if
the mind, accommodating itself to the ruling principle, worked outwardly
in such a manner, that even the bodily form becomes plastic and
obedient, moulding itself in turns, according to that plan and
destination which the higher powers of volition had conceived and laid
down.
"How completely I myself despise all ordinary rules, you, Victorin, are
already aware. The Baron has now become, in my estimation, a disgusting,
worn-out implement, which, having been used for my past purposes, lies
dead, like a run-down piece of clock-work, before me--Reinhold is too
contemptible and narrow-minded to be worthy of a thought--Aurelia is a
good, pious, and simple-hearted child--We have nothing to do but with
Hermogen.
"Already have I confessed to you, that the first time I saw this youth,
he made on me a wonderful and indelible impression; but of what
afterwards passed betwixt us, you have never yet been fully aware. I had
even looked on him as capable of entering into those lofty schemes, into
that higher sphere of enjoyment, which I could have opened for him; but
for once, I was completely deceived. There existed within him some
principle inimical and hostile towards me, which manifested itself in
perpetual contradiction to my plans--nay, the very spells by which I
fettered others, had on him an effect quite opposite and repelling. He
remained always cold, darkly reserved, or, at best, utterly indifferent,
till at last my resentment was roused; I determined on revenge, but,
above all, I resolved that my former power should not be thus meanly
baffled and subdued, and that his indifference should sooner or later be
fearfully overcome.
"On this combat I had already decided, when the Baron happened to say,
that he had proposed for me a marriage with Hermogen, to which the
latter would by no means agree. Like a gleam of inspiration, the thought
at that moment rose within me, that I might myself, by a marriage with
the Baron, at once clear away those conventional limitations which had
hitherto at times disgustingly forced themselves in my way.
"But as to that marriage, Victorin, I have already frequently spoken
with you. To your doubts, as to whether it could ever take place, I soon
opposed actual performance. In short, as you know, in the course of a
few days, I succeeded in transforming the grave old gentleman into a
silly tender lover. Nay, he was forced to look on those plans which
wholly originated from my agency, (and to which he scarcely dared to
give utterance,) as the offspring of his own foolish brain, and the
fulfilment of his own heartfelt wishes. Still, in the back ground,
concealed indeed, but not less deeply traced, lay the thoughts of my
revenge on Hermogen, which would now be more easy, and in execution far
more perfect.
"If I knew less of your character, if I were not aware that you are
fully capable of entering into my views, I would no doubt hesitate to
inform you of what afterwards occurred.
"I took various opportunities of attracting Hermogen's attention. When
in the _residenz_, I appeared gloomy and reserved--and afforded, in this
respect, a powerful contrast with himself, for he was then cheerful and
active in his own pursuits, and, to most people, frank and disengaged in
manner. The interval was long and tedious, however, before my designs
could be brought into execution.
"During my last visit in town, my uncle's illness forbade all brilliant
assemblies, and I was obliged even to decline the visits of my nearest
acquaintance. Hermogen called upon me, perhaps only to fulfil the duty
which he owed to a step-mother. He found me sunk in the most gloomy
reflections; and when, astonished at this sudden revolution, he
anxiously inquired the cause, I confessed to him that the Baron's infirm
state of health, which he only with difficulty concealed, made me afraid
that I should soon lose him, which idea was to me terrible and
insupportable.
"On hearing this, he was obviously affected; and when I went on to paint
to him, in the liveliest colours, the happiness of my domestic
circumstances with the Baron, entering into minute details of our mode
of life in the country--when, moreover, I spoke at greater length of the
Baron's admirable disposition, and represented his whole character in
the most glowing terms, so that it always appeared more and more how
deeply I honoured him, nay, how my very existence depended on
his,--then, obviously, Hermogen's astonishment and perplexity increased
to an even unexpected degree. He visibly struggled and contended with
himself, but I had already triumphed. The principle, whatever it was,
that lived within him, and had hitherto so hostilely acted against me,
was overcome--he had spoken with me alone, and was deeply moved--he had
beheld me in a new light--his indifference was subdued, and his
tranquillity lost. My triumph became the more certain, when, on the
following evening, he came again to visit me.
"He found me alone, still more gloomy and more agitated than on the
preceding night. I spoke as before of the Baron, and of my inexpressible
longing to return to the country, and to see him again. Hermogen soon
lost all self-possession--he hung enraptured on my looks, and their
light fell like consuming fire into his heart.
* * * * *
"In a word, I succeeded. The consequences were more horrible than I had
supposed; yet on this account my victory was the more brilliant. The
dominion which I had now so unequivocally gained over Hermogen had
utterly broken his spirit. He fell, as you know, into madness, though
till now you were not aware of the exact reason of this.
"It is a peculiar attribute of madmen, that they can often look more
deeply than others into the hearts of those by whom they are surrounded.
It seems as if their own minds, being free from rational control, stand
in nearer relationship with the spiritual world, and are more liable to
be excited sympathetically by the emotions of another. Thus oftentimes
they pronounce aloud our own thoughts, like a supernatural echo, whence
we are startled as if we heard the voice even of a second self.
"On these principles, it may indeed have happened that Hermogen,
considering the peculiar footing on which we stand, has actually looked
through your disguise, and on this account is hostilely disposed toward
us; but as to any danger from him on this account, that is by no means
to be apprehended. Suppose even that he were to break out into open
enmity--should proclaim aloud, 'Trust not this cowled priest--he is not
what he seems!' yet who would look upon this as less or more than a
delirious phantasm of his malady, more especially as Reinhold has been
so good as to recognize in you the reverend Father Medardus?
"In the meanwhile, however, it remains certain, that you cannot, as I
had hoped, gain a favourable influence over Hermogen. My revenge,
however, is fulfilled, and I now look upon him, even as I regard the
Baron, like a broken _marionette_--a worn-out plaything; become, at
last, so much the more tiresome, as he probably considers his meeting
with me here as an act of penitence, and, on this account, haunts and
persecutes me, as you must have observed, with his dead-alive, staring,
and spectral eyes.
"In short, he must, in one way or another, be got rid of; and I thought,
by your acquiring an influence over him, he might have been confirmed in
his notions of going into a convent, and to have contrived, that the
Baron and Reinhold should be persuaded of the propriety of this design.
Hermogen, to say the truth, is to me, in the highest degree,
intolerable. His looks often agitate me, so that I can hardly command
myself; and, for certain, he must, by some means or other, be removed.
"The only person before whom he appears quite in a different character,
is Aurelia. By means of that girl only, can you gain any influence over
Hermogen; for which reason, I shall take care that, for the future, you
may to her also obtain nearer access.
"If you find a suitable opportunity, you may communicate to the Baron
and Reinhold, that Hermogen has disclosed to you, in confession, a
heavy crime, which, according to your religious vows, you are obliged to
conceal. But of this, more at another time: act for the best, and only
be stedfast and faithful. Let us reign together over this contemptible
world of puppets, which move around us only according to our sovereign
will and pleasure. This life must bestow on us its best enjoyments,
without forcing on our necks the yoke of its narrow and despicable
laws!"
We now saw the Baron at a distance, and went towards him, as if occupied
in pious and edifying discourse.