FIRST SCENE
_A hill pasture in Dalecarlia. A hut of rough-hewn boards,
painted red, Stands at the left. Beside it grow two birches
with trunks that are white clear down to the ground_.
_On the right-hand side appears a sloping hillside covered
with spruces. The hillside is cut by a large brook forming a
waterfall. At the foot of it is a tarn covered by water-lilies.
The background shows a big lake bordered by blue hills. A
church is visible across the lake_.
_A grindstone set in a wooden frame stands in the foreground by
the corner of the hut_.
_It is Sunday evening, about sunset time_.
KERSTI'S MOTHER _sits on a wooden block outside the hut,
smoking her pipe_.
KERSTI _enters with an alpenhorn in her hand. She stops in
front of her_ MOTHER.
MOTHER. Where have you been all this time, daughter?
KERSTI. In the woods, mother.
MOTHER. Picking strawberries, I suppose. Your lips are so red.
KERSTI. Why did you call me, mother?
MOTHER. The woods were full of noises, child, and of stealthy
footfalls. Could it be the bear?
KERSTI. Can't tell.
MOTHER. I thought I heard the strokes of an axe, but maybe I was
mistaken.
KERSTI. The bear uses no axe, mother.
MOTHER. Why dressed up in your best, daughter?
KERSTI. It's Sunday, mother.
MOTHER. There is milk on your tucker, child. Have you been milking
May-dew or Starbright?
KERSTI. Could I but milk the stars--and the moon, O!
MOTHER. While it's night, O!
KERSTI. Day and night!
MOTHER. Night and day!--Yes, I know! Beware of the bear!
KERSTI. Do you think he would tear my pet cow?
MOTHER. Have you lost her?
KERSTI. Shall I ask Anna?
MOTHER. You had better!
KERSTI. [_Picks up her alpenhorn and sounds a melody; see musical
appendix, Melody No_. 1. _Then she sings; see Melody No_. 2]
"Too-la-loo, Ann at Boorness!
Do you see my cosset cow
Over there at your place?"
MATS. [_Answering from a distance in a dear tenor voice; see musical
appendix, Melody No_. 3]
"Too-la-loo, so I do.
Come at once:
Cosset cow is here now!"
MOTHER. What a deep voice Anna has got!
KERSTI. She has been calling her cows since the sun began to set.
MOTHER. What do you hear down there in the valley, child?
KERSTI. The big bell of the cow, the low bell of the goat....
MOTHER. Oh, no!
KERSTI. I can hear the cock crowing and the dog barking, the gun
banging and the cart clanking, and the oars saying "duck-duck" in the
rowlocks.
MOTHER. Whose cock do you mean, and whose dog?
KERSTI. The miller's.
MOTHER. What's his name? Is it Anna?
KERSTI _looks embarrassed and does not answer_.
MOTHER. What do you see down there in the valley?
KERSTI. The water-wheel in the mill-race, the smoke from the chimney....
MOTHER. Whose chimney? The mill-folk's, I suppose?
KERSTI. It's growing dark, mother.
MOTHER. I _am_ going--before it grows still darker! [_She rises to her
feet_] This has been the longest Sunday in all my life!--What kind of a
smell is that?
KERSTI. I smell the woods; I smell the cattle; I smell the hay.
MOTHER. No, it was tattle-berries you were picking! [_For a while she
stands still, lost in thought; then she sings; see musical appendix,
Melody No_. 4]
"The joy that was mine
Has been turned into woe!"
KERSTI. It is growing dark, mother!
MOTHER. So I see, daughter mine. The darkness is coming down on us
heavy as a pall, and downward goes my path now--ever downward! But you
must stay to watch the curds. And trust me to see if you let the fire
go out.
KERSTI. Trust me to see that the fire won't go out, mother.
MOTHER. Good night, then. And don't forget your evening prayers!
KERSTI. Good night, mother.
MOTHER. "The joy that was mine has been turned into woe!" Don't forget
your evening prayers!
[_She goes out to the left_.
KERSTI _opens the door of the hut. A big pot is seen hanging over the
fire, on which she puts more wood; coming out again, she looks around
to make sure that her mother is gone; then she picks up the alpenhorn
and sounds another wordless melody on it. [See musical appendix, Melody
No_. 5.]
MATS. [_Is heard singing outside, on the right-hand side; see musical
appendix, Melody No_. 6]
"Kersti dearest,
Kersti dearest,
Baby sleeps in the forest."
KERSTI. [_Answers in the same way; see Melody No_. 7]
"Dillery-dell!
Fareth he well,
Fareth he well
Far in the forest?"
MATS. [_Answers as before; see Melody No_. 8]
"Nothing to fear!
Nothing to fear!
Baby sleeps in his cradle here,
Far, far, in the forest!"
KERSTI. [_Singing; see Melody No_. 9]
"Haste to the house and milk the cows,
And see that baby lacks nothing.
I cannot come, must stay at home,
Helping my folks with the baking."
MATS. [_Answers as before; see Melody No_. 10]
"Birches nod in the blowing breeze,
But baby slumbers in perfect peace,
Kersti, Kersti, dearest!"
_A strong wind springs up. The centre of the stage grows dark,
but the sun is still shining on the tops of spruces on the
hillside_.
_Very faintly at first, then more and more clearly, the yells
and cries of a gang of game beaters are heard. These are
followed by the snapping of branches, the baying of hounds, the
trampling of horses in trot and gallop, the cracking of guns,
the snarling of rattles, the crashing of trees that fall, and,
above all, the constantly rising roar of the waterfall_.
_Finally a canon is sounded by ten hunting-horns, the first
horn repeating its theme while the rest join in one by one.
[See musical appendix, Melody No_. 11.]
_Badly frightened_, KERSTI _stands staring in every direction
while the noise lasts. When it has died away in the distance
and the woods are silent again, she brings bunches of spruce
branches and spreads them on the ground, covering them at last
with a brightly coloured rag carpet. Next she fetches two young
spruce-trees that have been stripped of branches and bark, so
that only their tops remain green. These she places beside the
door of the hut, one on either side. Then she goes to the tarn
and picks a number of white water-lilies, which she binds into
a wreath_.
MATS _enters from the left, carrying a baby in a cradle of
leather with straps attached to it_.
KERSTI. Baby, baby darling! Is he still asleep?
MATS. Indeed he is!
KERSTI. Bring him here, and we'll let the trees rock him.
_They hang the cradle between the two birches that are swayed
gently by the wind_.
KERSTI. [_Humming_] "Birches nod in the blowing breeze, but baby
slumbers in perfect peace.".... Did you hear the hunt, Mats?
MATS. No hunt at this time of day, girl!
KERSTI. But I heard it!
MATS. Hardly!--What did your mother have to say?
KERSTI. She bothered me until I thought she would bother the life out
of me.
MATS. Yes, dear, there can be no peace or happiness for us until our
union has been hallowed and our baby baptised.
KERSTI. As long as the old folk resist there can be no wedding. But we
must pray the Lord to bless our union before we give baby a name.
MATS. So we have agreed, and now it may as well be done.
KERSTI. Everything is ready, as you see.
MATS. It's well done, but--we're a sorry couple for all that, and a
sorry wedding we're having.
KERSTI. Let the Lord look into our minds and hearts, and if they hold
no evil--what matters the rest? Have you brought the Book?
MATS. I have. But are you sure, dear, that what we mean to do is not
sinful?
KERSTI. Why should it be? Don't you know that the midwife can baptise
in case of need?
MATS. Well, that's the midwife!
KERSTI. [_Putting the wreath on her head_] Let us begin!
MATS. In the name of the Lord! And may we never come to regret it!
[_They kneel on the carpet, facing each other_; MATS _takes out a
ring, which they hold between them while he is reading out of the
prayer-book_] "I, Mats Anders Larsson, take you, Kersti Margaret
Hansdaughter, to be my wedded wife, whom I will love in good days and
bad, and in token thereof I give you this ring."
KERSTI. "I, Kersti Margaret Hansdaughter, take you, Mats Anders
Larsson, to be my wedded husband, whom I will love in good days and
bad, and in token thereof I give you this ring."
_They pray in silence for a while; then they rise and take hold
of each other's hands, but they do not kiss each other_.
MATS. Now you are mine in the sight of God, dear, and after this we
won't mind what people may say.
KERSTI. That remains to be seen.
MATS. And what have we to eat, dear.
KERSTI. Nothing at all, Mats.
MATS. Then there is nothing left but to smoke.
_They seat themselves on two small, three-legged stools and we
flint and steel to light their pipes_.
MATS. [_When they have smoked a while in silence_] What was that you
said about the hunt just now?
KERSTI. I haven't the heart to tell, Mats. I haven't the heart since I
guessed what folk they were.
MATS. Better not, maybe!... Look at the cradle--going as if it could
rock itself.
KERSTI. That's the wind, Mats; the wind in the birches.
MATS. But there is no wind in the spruces over there.
KERSTI. So I see. Surely the evil ones are abroad to-night.
MATS. Don't talk of them!
KERSTI. Do you see my smoke going northward?
MATS. And mine southward!
KERSTI. The gnats are dancing....
MATS. Which means a wedding....
KERSTI. Do you think we are happier now?
MATS. Hardly!
KERSTI. Do you hear the cry of the blackcock?
MATS. A sure sign of wedding....
KERSTI. But not a single church bell to be heard MATS. It's Sunday, and
the ringing during the day has made them tired What shall we call the
little one?
KERSTI. [_In wild rebellion_] Burden and Ill-luck and Un-asked and
crown-thief....
MATS. Why crown-thief?
KERSTI. Because and because and because Even if we get a real wedding,
I can wear no crown! What should he be called? Bride-spoil, Mother-woe,
Forest-find!
MATS. Badly fares who badly does!
KERSTI. Yes, that's for you to say!
_The_ MOTHER _of_ KERSTI _appears on the hillside among the spruces and
stands looking at_ MATS _and her daughter_.
MATS. There are evil eyes about!
KERSTI. And evil thoughts.... What you brew I have to drink. What you
grind I have to bake.
_The_ MOTHER _disappears_.
MATS. Can you tell what made our families hate each other so fiercely?
KERSTI. It had to do with land--with bought favours, and ill-gotten
gains, and corrupt judges, and--everything that's bad, bad, bad!
MATS. And then the hatred turned into liking, love, lust....
KERSTI. All of it poisoned....
MATS. How dark it turns when the hatred breaks through!
KERSTI. [_Throwing her wreath into the tarn_] Well may you say so! The
devil take the wreath, as I can't have a crown....
MATS. Don't say that!
KERSTI. We hold wedding like beggars, and rascals, and roving folk....
What is it you cannot eat or drink, but that tastes good for all that?
It's tobacco--and that's all you get for a wedding-feast! The fire
under the kettle is going out, Mats. Go and fetch some wood. It's all
the dancing there will be.
MATS. If tokens tell the truth, you were born to be a queen!
KERSTI. Maybe! Surely not to milk the cows!
MATS. And the baby, the baby, the dear little thing!
KERSTI. The poor dear! Oh, what will become of us? What can be in store
for us? Get some wood, Mats! Mother will beat me if the milk doesn't
curdle. Go, Mats!
MATS. There was a time when you served my father, KERSTI, and now it's
my turn to serve you. Because he was harsh to you, I'll be good to you!
KERSTI. Yes, Mats, you are good, but I am not. If I only were!
MATS. Try to be!
KERSTI. Try to be bad, Mats, and we'll see if you can.
MATS. You don't mean it!
KERSTI. Who can tell?--Get away from here, Mats, and hurry up! Somebody
is coming. I know her steps. It's mother!
MATS. Your mother?--And how about the baby?
KERSHI. [_Picks up the carpet and throws it across the cradle; then she
takes her sheepskin coat that has been hanging on the outside wall of
the hut and spreads it on top of the carpet_] Go, go, go!
MATS. Be careful about baby--be careful now!
[_He goes out_.
KERSTI. Of course, of course!
MOTHER. [_Entering from the left_] Was it Anna that was here?
KERSTI. It was.
MOTHER. [_Looking hard at_ KERSTI] And she left when I came?--What a
voice she has!
KERSTI. Yes, has she not?
MOTHER. And she cut the wedding poles, too, and spread the spruce?
KERSTI. What is strange about that?
MOTHER. [_Pulling_ KERSTI _by the hair_] Storyteller, hussy,
strumpet....
KERSTI. [_Raising her hand against her_ MOTHER] Take care!
MOTHER. Will you lay hand on your own mother, you trull? Is that what
Mats has been teaching you? His father drove us from house and home,
and now you take the son in your arms, daughter mine.... O!
KERSTI. That such things can be said.... O!
MOTHER. [_Pointing to the cradle_] What have you there?
KERSTI. Clothes to be aired.
MOTHER. Small ones, I guess.
KERSTI. Not so very.
MOTHER. And inside the cradle?
KERSTI. Small wash--not for small ones.
MOTHER. The child is there!
KERSTI. What child?
MOTHER. Yours!
KERSTI. There is no such thing!
MOTHER. Will you swear?
KERSTI. I swear! May the Neck get me if I lie!
MOTHER. You shouldn't swear by the evil one.
KERSTI. I will swear by no one else!
MOTHER. [_Seating herself_] There is talk in the village.
KERSTI. Indeed?
MOTHER. A queer sort of talk.
KERSTI. No, really?
MOTHER. They say that Mats is to have the mill.
KERSTI [_Rising_] Is it true?
MOTHER. As true as it is that rashness always gets into trouble.
KERSTI. So Mats gets the mill? Then he will marry, I guess?
MOTHER. They talk of that, too.
KERSTI. Whom do you think?
MOTHER. Whoever it be that his fancy will take--the crown she must
surely be able to wear.
KERSTI. Oh!
MOTHER. Oh, indeed!--There is gold on your finger.
KERSTI. There is.
MOTHER. Are you pledged?
KERSTI. I am.
MOTHER. And the crown? [KERSTI _does not reply_] Have you lost it?
KERSTI. [_Walking back and forth restlessly_] You know, it was foretold
that I should wear a crown.
MOTHER. Stuff and nonsense! A virgin's crown is more beautiful than a
queen's. And happy is she who wears it with honour!
KERSTI. Oh!
MOTHER. And oh, indeed!--Little we had. Wrong we suffered. Badly we
fared. Alas the day!
KERSTI. Little we had, but shall have plenty! Luck is near!
MOTHER. Race against race, hating and hated; fire and water: now it's
coming to a boil.
KERSTI. Water may cool what the fire has heated. All will be well!
MOTHER. [_Rising to leave_] "The joy that was mine has been turned into
woe." [_She goes toward the right_] There is a wreath floating on the
water--where's the crown?
[_She goes out_.
KERSTI. It will come, it will come!
NECK. [_Appears at the foot of the falls surrounded by a bright, white
light; he wears a red cap, and a silvery tunic fastened about the
waist with a green sash; he is young and fair, with blond hair that is
falling down his back; he has a fiddle of gold with a bow of silver,
and plays to his own singing; see musical appendix, Melody No_. 12] "I
am hoping, I am hoping that my Redeemer still liveth."
KERSTI. [_Who has been lost in thought, becomes aware of the_ Neck;
_when he has repeated his song twice, she remarks sneeringly_] There is
no redeemer for you, I can tell you!
_The_ NECK _pauses for a while and looks sadly at her; then he
repeats the same song twice again_.
KERSTI. If you'll keep quiet I'll let you play at my wedding.
_The_ NECK _nods assent and vanishes into the rock behind the
falls_.
MIDWIFE. [_Enters from behind the hut wearing a wide Hack cloak and a
close-fitting black hood; she carries a bag under her cloak, and she is
very careful never to let her back be seen_] Good evening, my dear. I
hope my visit is not inconvenient.
KERSTI. You are the midwife--Mrs. Larsson--are you not?
MIDWIFE. Of course, I am. It was I that helped you, my dear....
KERSTI. Oh, yes; but you promised never to speak of it.
MIDWIFE. And we won't! How--is the little one doing?
KERSTI. [_Impatiently_] Oh, well enough!
MIDWIFE. Better not be too impatient, dear....
KERSTI. Who says I am?
MIDWIFE. The snappy voice and the tap of the little foot! But now there
is gold on your finger, I see. Then I shall be asked to a wedding
shortly, I think.
KERSTI. You?
MIDWIFE. I am always at the baptism, but can never get to a
wedding--and I think it would be such fun!
KERSTI. No doubt it would!
MIDWIFE. Of all human virtues, there is one I value above the rest....
KERSTI. I don't suppose it is chastity.
MIDWIFE. What no one has, is beyond value. That which I put value on is
gratitude.
KERSTI. You were paid, were you not?
MIDWIFE. There are services that money can't pay.
KERSTI. And people you cannot get rid of.
MIDWIFE. Exactly, my dear, and of those I am one....
KERSTI. So I find.
MIDWIFE. And there is another,
KERSTI. Who can that be?
MIDWIFE. The Sheriff!
KERSTI. [_Startled_] The Sheriff?
MIDWIFE. Yes, the Sheriff. He is a very remarkable man, and I have
heard of no one who knows the law as he does, from cover to cover....
You and I could never get all that into our heads, but--there is
one chapter I have to know by heart, being a midwife.... And a
most remarkable chapter it is, with a most remarkable number of
paragraphs.... What's the matter?
KERSTI. [_Agitated_] Tell me what you know.
MIDWIFE. Nothing at all I am nothing but a poor old woman who has come
here to get lodging for the night....
KERSTI. Lodging here?
MIDWIFE. Right here.
KERSTI. Begone!
MIDWIFE. I can't be walking the woods in the dark of the night.
KERSTI. [_Threatening her with a stick_] If you won't walk, I'll make
you run.
MIDWIFE. [_Moving back a couple of steps without turning about_] Have
we got that far now? You had better leave the stick alone, or....
KERSTI. Or what?
MIDWIFE. The Sheriff, of course, and that chapter I spoke of....
KERSTI [_With the stick raised for a blow_] Go to the devil, you cursed
witch! [_The stick breaks into small pieces_.
MIDWIFE. Ha-ha! Ha-ha!
KERSTI. [_Picks up the flint and steel, and strikes fire_] In the name
of Christ and His Passion, get thee gone!
MIDWIFE. [_Turns and runs out with the galloping movement of a wild
thing; her back, which then becomes visible, looks like that of a fox
and ends in a sweeping, bushy tail; she hisses rather than speaks_]
We'll meet at the wedding, bid or unbid! And the Sheriff, too! Ad-zee!
Ad-zee! Ad-zee!
KERSTI _takes a few faltering steps in direction of the tarn,
as if she meant to throw herself into the water_.
_Then she begins to walk up and down in front of the cradle.
After a while she takes off the round Dalecarlian jacket she
is wearing and puts it on top of the clothing already covering
the cradle. Finally she sits down on one of the stools by the
corner of the hut and buries her face in her hands_.
_The grindstone begins to whirl with a hissing sound. Little
bells, like those worn by goats, are heard ringing in the
woods. Little white flames appear among the spruces on the
hillside. Cow-bells are heard dose by. The_ NECK _appears as
before and sings the same song_.
KERSTI _rises horror-stricken and stands like a statue_.
_Tones like those produced by a harmonica are heard from the
tarn. Unseen by_ KERSTI, _the_ CHILD IN WHITE _emerges from
among the water-lilies and goes to the cradle. Then all sounds
die out. The grindstone comes to a stop. The_ NECK _disappears.
All the will-o'-the-wisps but one go out_.
_Still unseen by_ KERSTI, _the_ CHILD IN WHITE _rocks the
cradle gently, puts his ear dose to it, and draws back with an
expression of great sadness. At last he bursts into tears and
covers his face with one arm. During this scene the beltlike
tones from the tarn continue_.
_The_ CHILD IN WHITE _picks several water-lilies to pieces and
strews them on the cradle, which he finally kisses before he
descends into the tarn again. Then the last will-o'-the-wisp
disappears and the harmonica can no longer be heard_.
MIDWIFE. [_Enters again, carrying her bag so that it can be seen_]
Perhaps I shall be more welcome this time. Does the fair maiden care to
see the midwife now?
KERSTI. What do you bring?
MIDWIFE. [_Taking a bridal crown from her bag_] This!
KERSTI. What do you take?
MIDWIFE. [_Pointing toward the cradle_] "You see it, I see it, the
whole world sees it, and yet it is not there."[1]
KERSTI. Take it, then!
MIDWIFE. [_Goes to the cradle_] I have it. [_She takes stealthily
something from the cradle and drops it into her bag, which she then
hides under her cloak again_] Can I come to the wedding now?
KERSTI. Yes, come.
MIDWIFE. You must say that I'll be welcome.
KERSTI. That would be a lie.
MIDWIFE. You must practise....
KERSTI. Welcome, then--if you'll only leave me now!
MIDWIFE. [_Withdrawing backwards_]
"Four that whirl and twirl;
Eight that hurl and purl;
Four that flip-flap in a row;
Four that question where to go."[2]
[_She disappears_.
MATS. [_Is heard singing triumphantly outside; see musical appendix,
Melody No_. 13] "Come, cosset, cosset, cosset; come, cosset, cosset!"
_As_ KERSTI _hears him a happy look comes into her face, and
she seems to swell with pride and new courage_. MATS _enters,
with an armful of wood, looking joyful_.
KERSTI. [_Going to meet him_] Did you see anybody?
MATS. I did!--Now for the wedding! [_He dumps the wood into the hut_]
Let the kettle boil over--I am boiling, too.
KERSTI. Was it your father?
MATS. Father and mother. And I get the mill!
KERSTI. [_Showing her crown_] Do you see what I...?
MATS. Where did you get it?
KERSTI. Mother brought it for me.
MATS. Has she been here?
KERSTI. Happy as anything!
MATS. But the baby, the baby!
KERSTI. Sit down, Mats! Sit down! You know I can always find a way!
MATS. [_Seating himself_] But the baby!
KERSTI. There now!--Listen! Now, when trouble is on the wane and life
is smiling, don't you think a little patience might carry us very
far....
MATS. If only the course be straight....
KERSTI. Of course, straight and short.
MATS. What are you after?
KERSTI. If the big fish is to be hooked, the small ones must be
overlooked.
MATS. Can't you talk plainly?
KERSTI. Wait a little!
MATS. I am waiting.
KERSTI. The old folks make conditions.
MATS. Yes, I know.
KERSTI. They want a croton bride. What does that mean if not a bride
that wears a crown?
MATS. And wears it with honour!
KERSTI. With or without! What no one sees and no one knows does not
exist.
MATS. Let me think. [_He sits silent for a few moments_] All right! And
furthermore?
KERSTI. To hook what's big, you must overlook what's less.
MATS. Which does not mean the little one!
KERSTI. Do you mean to prove false?
MATS. I don't! Not to you, Kersti!
KERSTI. Suppose now--the banns have been read, the wedding is under
way, but the little one sleeps in the forest. Who will haste to the
house, and milk the cows, and see that baby lacks nothing? Who, I ask?
MATS. Well may you ask! [_He broods a while_] If we only dared.... What
was that you said?
KERSTI. Not a word.
MATS. It seems to me.... If we only dared....
KERSTI. What? Say it!
MATS. Say it yourself!
KERSTI. No, it's for you!
MATS. Somebody must take care of the little one.
KERSTI. Who?
MATS. There is only one.
KERSTI. Then it's easy to guess who!
MATS. Tell whom you mean.
KERSTI. No, you must tell.
MATS. Beside ourselves, there is only one who knows about the baby.
KERSTI. Who is that?
MATS. If you know, why don't you tell?
KERSTI. Because I want you to tell.
MATS. It's the midwife. Was that what you said?
KERSTI. I said nothing, but you did--and, as you know, I do what you
say.
MATS. I have my doubts.
KERSTI. But what you said I have done already. The baby can't stay
in the woods. It must have shelter when the nights grow cold. And if
anything should happen, then comes--the Sheriff!
MATS. The Sheriff, you say? Yes, so he does!
KERSTI. [_Leaping to her feet_] Is he coming, you say?
MATS. Yes, if something should happen.... Well, where's the midwife to
be found?
KERSTI. Would you like to call her?
MATS. I wish she were here!
KERSTI. And what do you want her to do?
MATS. Give the baby a home.
KERSTI. With whom?
MATS. With herself.
KERSTI. For how long?
MATS. Till the wedding is over.
KERSTI. But if he were taken sick while with her?
MATS. Better than have him freeze in the woods--better than have him
freeze to death! Take a look at the cradle. I think I heard him!
KERSTI. No, he's asleep....
MATS. Hush--I heard him.
KERSTI. No, you didn't!
MATS. Yes, I did. [_He rises_.
KERSTI. [_Placing herself in front of the cradle_] Don't you wake him!
If he should cry, somebody might hear.
MATS. Oh.... Do you think any one has--that your mother may have heard
him? Oh, Kersti, we should never have done what we have!
KERSTI. Undone were better!
MATS. [_Dejectedly_] We must take him to the midwife to-night. I must
go to the village.
KERSTI. I'll take him!
MATS. [_Going to the cradle_] Do!
KERSTI. But don't wake him!
MATS. Can't I bid him good night?
KERSTI. Don't touch him!
MATS. Think if I should never see him again!
KERSTI. Then it would be the will of Him whose will we cannot change.
MATS. His will be done!
KERSTI. Now you have said it!
MATS. What have I said that could please you like that?
KERSTI. That--that--you submit to the will of Him that performeth all
things.
MATS. [_Simply_] Yes, whatever may happen is His will, of course.
KERSTI. Of course!
MATS. Good night, then, Kersti dear, and good night, baby! [_He goes
out_.
KERSTI. Good night, Mats.
KERSTI _loosens the empty cradle from its fastenings and drops
it into the tarn, from the waters of which the_ CHILD IN WHITE
_rises to threaten her with raised forefinger. At the sight of
him_ KERSTI _shrinks back._ NECK. [_Appears in the same spot as
before, but now bareheaded and carrying a golden harp, on which
he accompanies himself; he has a threatening look as he sings;
see musical appendix, Melody No_. 20]
"Stilled are the waters, dark grows the sky:
Dark grows the sky.
Once in the world of the ages I lived,
Blessed by the sun.
Gone is the light,
Conquered by night.
Deep is my sin,
Black as the tarn.
Joy there is none;
Plenty of woe.
Torture and Shame must I name my abode:
O!"
_While the_ NECK _is singing_, KERSTI _hides the bridal crown
in the hid. Then she puts out the fire under the pot. As she
does so, the smoke pours in large quantities from the chimney,
forming a dark background against which appear fantastically
shaped and vividly coloured snakes, dragons, birds, etc_.
_When_ KERSTI _comes out of the hut again, she has on a short
Dalecarlian jacket and is carrying a bag and the alpenhorn. She
locks the door of the hut and walks across the stage with proud
bearing and firm steps just as the_ NECK _is singing the last
line_.
_Curtain_.
[1] Old Swedish folk-riddle, the real solution of which is: the horizon.
[2] An old Swedish folk-riddle, the answer of which is: a carriage. The
four lines describe respectively: (1) the wheels; (2) the hoofs of the
horses; (3) their ears; (4) their eyes.
SECOND SCENE
_The living-room of the mill. Everything is covered by white
dust. In the background, on the right-hand side, is an open
trap-door, showing part of the water-wheel. The end of the
flour chute, with a bag attached to it, is protruding from the
right wall not far from the trap-door. Near it appears a lever
used for starting and stopping the water-wheel._
_Large gates occupy the centre of the real wall. Heavy wooden
shutters dose another opening farther to the left and half-way
from the floor_.
_In the foreground, at the right, is a huge open fireplace, in
which a coal-fire is burning. An iron pot is hanging over the
fire. On the left-hand side appear a bedstead, a hand-loom, a
bobbin, a red, and a spinning-wheel. There is a door in the
right wall_.
_The following members of the family are seated in a circle in
front of the fireplace: the_ GRANDFATHER; _the_ GRANDMOTHER;
_the_ FATHER _and_ MOTHER _of_ MATS; _his sisters_, BRITA, _who
is full-grown_, ANNA, _who is half-grown, and_ LIT-KAREN, _who
is still a child; and his brother_, LIT-MATS, _who is also a
mere boy. All are smoking out of small pipes with iron bowls
and looking very serious_. BRITA _is plaiting a chain out of
human hair_. LIT-KAREN _and_ LIT-MATS _are playing with two
dolls_.
BRITA. [_To_ LIT-KAREN] Where did you get the doll?
LIT-KAREN. Kersti gave it to me.
BRITA. [_Taking the doll from her_] Away with it! [_To_ LIT-MATS] Where
did you get your doll?
LIT-MATS. Kersti gave it to me.
BRITA. [_Taking the doll_] Out with it!
FATHER. Hush! Hush! Grandfather is thinking. [_Silence_.
MOTHER. [_To_ BRITA] What are you doing?
BRITA. A watch-chain, but there is hardly hair enough.
MOTHER. Where can you get any?
BRITA. I know where it ought to be pulled.
MOTHER. Horses pull.
BRITA. Hens are picked, pigs give bristles, and maidens are
combed.--Combed hair is good, but cut is better.
FATHER. Hush, hush, grandfather is thinking. [_Silence_.
ANNA. [_In a low voice to_ BRITA] What is he thinking of?
BRITA. You'll hear by and by. And all will have to swallow.
ANNA. Is it about Mats? [BRITA _makes no answer_] And Kersti? Will
there be a wedding?
FATHER. Hush, hush, grandfather is thinking. [_Silence_.
ANNA. [_To_ BRITA] I'll give you some of my hair.
BRITA. Not the right colour.
ANNA. Who's got it? [BRITA _does not answer_] Is it Kersti you mean?
BRITA. Don't mention her. [_Silence_.
GRANDMOTHER. [_To_ GRANDFATHER] Have you thought it out?
GRANDFATHER. [_Who has been sitting with the Bible and the hymn-book in
his lap, lost in thought, wakes up_] I have! [_He opens the hymn-book
at haphazard and says to the others_] It is No. 278, the fourth verse:
"All at birth and death." Let us have it!
ALL. [_Read in unison like children at school_]
"All at birth and death are equals,
As the graveyard bones proclaim,
Poor and rich and low and mighty
In the end appear the same;
And the naked new-born baby
Brings no evidence to prove
Whether poverty or fortune
Will attend its fated groove."
GRANDFATHER. It is settled! "He that hath an ear, let him hear."--Is it
settled?
GRANDMOTHER. Not yet.
FATHER. Not quite.
MOTHER. The Lord beholdeth!
BRITA. What does the Scripture, say?
ANNA. "Doth God pervert judgment, or doth the Almighty pervert justice?"
LIT-KAREN. What do you want me to say?
GRANDFATHER. You must give us your advice, child, although we may not
take it. Out of the mouth of babes may come the truth.... Shall Kersti
have Mats?
LIT-KAREN. If they want each other.
GRANDFATHER. Well spoken! [_To_ LIT-MATS] And you, Lit-Mats?
LIT-MATS. [_With his fingers in his mouth_] I want my doll!
GRANDFATHER. And Mats wants his. Shall he have her?
LIT-MATS. If it is Kersti, he may, for she gave me the doll.
BRITA. Listen to him!
GRANDFATHER. Let us search the Scripture. [_He opens the Bible and
reads_] Genesis, thirty-fourth chapter and eighth verse. "And Hamor
communed with them, saying, The soul of my son Shechem longeth for your
daughter: I pray you give her him to wife." Is that enough?
GRANDMOTHER. Enough and to spare!
FATHER. There wasn't anything about the mill.
MOTHER. Let His will be done!
BRITA. [_Abruptly_] Amen.
ANNA. Verily, it shall be done!
LIT-KAREN. I like Kersti because she's nice.
LIT-MATS. Me, too!
FATHER. Hush, hush, grandfather is thinking. [_Silence_.
GRANDFATHER. [_To_ FATHER] Ask your brother-in-law to come in.
_The_ FATHER _goes to the door in the background, where he
stops_.
GRANDFATHER. [_Goes to the bed, pulls a box from under it, takes a
bundle of papers from the box, and turns to the_ FATHER _again_] Let
him come!
FATHER. [_Opening the door in the background_] Come in, Stig Matsson.
SHERIFF. [_Enters, dressed in uniform_] The peace of God be with you!
ALL. [_Rising_] And his blessing on you!
GRANDFATHER. It is I who have called you, Stig Matsson, and you know
the reason. Kersti Margaret Hansdaughter--[_He sighs_]--is to become
the wife of Mats Anders Larsson, my grandson. The two families have
fought and fumed at each other for a long time--all too long! At
this late hour I have come to feel that an end should be put to all
strife and ill will before my eyes are closed and I am carried to my
last rest. Take a look at these papers. [_He hands the bundle to the_
SHERIFF, _who opens it and glances at some of the papers_] They are
legal documents, deeds, wills, receipts, authorisations--belonging to
suits that have been settled or are still unsettled. Have you looked
them over?
SHERIFF. I have.
GRANDFATHER. [_Takes back the bundle_] All right! Then I shall throw
them into the fire. There is a time to hate and a time to love. The
time of hatred must come to an end I am longing for peace. Therefore,
I beg you, my next of kin, to regard all that has happened in the
past as if it had not happened at all--and I ask you: Will you forget
everything, and will you meet your new relatives without grudge or
guile, and greet them as friends? Answer me!
ALL. We will!
GRANDFATHER. Then I shall let the fire consume what is left of past
evils. [_He throws the bundle of papers into the fire, pulls the iron
lid in front of the grate, and opens three small ventilators in the
lid_] Let us be seated!
_All seat themselves in front of the fireplace, staring at the
red glare from the three ventilators_.
ANNA. [_To_ BRITA, _in a low voice_] Do you hear it sing?
BRITA. No, it moans. And within me it's aching!
_The_ GRANDFATHER _rises. Then all the rest follow his example_.
GRANDFATHER. [_To the_ FATHER] Bring them in!
_The_ FATHER _goes to the door at the right and brings in_ MATS.
_The_ MOTHER _goes to the door in the rear and opens it_.
KERSTI _enters, accompanied by her_ MOTHER, _her father, the_
SOLDIER, _who is wearing the old full-dress uniform of the
Swedish infantry of the line, and her grandfather, the_ VERGER.
GRANDFATHER. May God bless you! And be seated, please!
_All seat themselves except_ MATS, KERSTI, _and the_ SHERIFF.
MATS _has taken hold of_ KERSTI _by both hands. Long silence_.
GRANDFATHER. When is the wedding to be?
MATS. In a fortnight, as soon as the banns have been read the third
time.
GRANDFATHER. What is the hurry?
KERSTI _shows evidence of being offended_.
MATS. Haven't we waited long enough?
GRANDFATHER. Maybe you have!
MATS. [_To his relatives_] Have you no word to say to Kersti? [_Pause_]
Not one of you?
SHERIFF. [_Goes to_ KERSTI _and takes her by the hands with evident
friendliness_] Let us welcome the new child!
_Panic-stricken_, KERSTI _tries to tear herself loose_.
SHERIFF. You are not afraid of me, are you?--Oh, no!--Look me in the
face, Kersti. I have dandled you on my knees when you were a little
child, and I have held your pretty head in my hands.... Yes, you have a
very pretty head, and a forehead that makes me think of a bull. That's
why you are having your own way now, I suppose.
[_He lets go of her_.
GRANDFATHER. Let us leave the young ones alone!
_Alt rise, walk past_ MATS _and_ KERSTI, _and disappear through
the door in the rear_.
BRITA. [_Who is the last to leave, spits scornfully as she passes_
KERSTI] Fie!
MATS. [_Spitting in the same way_] Fie yourself!
KERSTI _and_ MATS _are left alone_.
MATS. I hope you will feel at home with me, Kersti!
KERSTI. With you, yes!
MATS. What have you to do with the others?
KERSTI. That's the question.
MATS. You are not marrying the family.
KERSTI. But into it.
MATS. Of course, we are not very soft or cuddlesome.
KERSTI. That's plain.... Is this the place where we are to live?
MATS. Yes, what do you think of it?
KERSTI. Everything is white....
MATS. It's the flour, you see. Do you object?
KERSTI. And damp....
MATS. It's the mill-race....
KERSTI. And cold, too....
MATS. It's the water....
KERSTI. Shall we have new furniture?
MATS. There will be nothing new. Everything is handed down from one
generation to another.
KERSTI. But we can sweep, can't we?
MATS. No, we can't! The dust in a mill is like the coating in a pipe.
Mustn't be touched!
KERSTI. Is that the wheel?
MATS. That's the wheel.
_He pulls the lever, whereupon the rushing of the water through
the race is heard, and the wheel begins to turn_.
KERSTI. Ugh! Have we to listen to that noise?
MATS. It's ours! And we should be thankful as long as we hear it,
because that means we have grist for the mill.
KERSTI. And the sun never gets here?
MATS. Never! How could it?
KERSTI. And nothing grows here--except that green stuff on the wheel.
MATS. But we catch eels here and lampreys.
KERSTI. Ugh! I like it better in the pasture, where the wind is
blowing....
MATS. And the birches rock....
KERSTI. [_Covering her face with the apron and weeping_] Must I live in
a place like this, beneath the water, at the bottom of the sea?
MATS. I was born here.
KERSTI. And here we are to die--O!
MATS. Why "O"?
KERSTI. Stop the wheel at least.
MATS. Well, if you can't get along with the wheel, then....
KERSTI. [_Opening a trap-door in the floor_] What's down here?
MATS. The river.
KERSTI. Please stop that wheel!
MATS. [_Labours with the lever, but is unable to stop the wheel]_ Well!
There must be mischief abroad!--It won't stop!
KERSTI. I shall die here!
MATS. I must go outside to stop it! There is mischief abroad, I tell
you!
KERSTI. And at home?
MATS. Oh, dear!
KERSTI. "Meow, said the cat."[1]
MATS. What is the matter?
KERSTI. Merely that I have got what I wanted.
MATS. And it was not worth having? [_The noise made by the wheel has
become, deafening, and the wheel itself has begun to turn in the
opposite direction_] Christ Jesus, help! The wheel is turning backward!
[_He runs out through the rear door_.
KERSTI _remains alone_.
_The handloom starts. The bobbin, the reel, and the
spinning-wheel begin to turn, each one in its own manner. The
stage becomes brightly illumined as if with sunlight. Then
the room turns very dark. The fireplace swings around so that
the glare from the ventilators confronts_ KERSTI _like three
burning eyes. It looks as if the fireplace were chasing her.
Then it drops back into its accustomed place. The roar of the
water-wheel increases again. The_ NECK _appears in the wheel
with the red cap on his head, and the golden fiddle in his
hand. Be sings and plays as before, repeating the brief tune
several times_.
NECK. "I am hoping, I am hoping, that my Redeemer still liveth!"
KERSTI. [_Running out through the rear door_] Mats, Mats!
_The_ NECK _disappears, but his song is still heard for a
while, as it gradually dies away in the distance_.
MIDWIFE. [_Enters, opens the small trap-door in the floor, and drops
her leather bag through it_] "If you come back, it's all off, and if
you don't, it's all on!" Now that's done! And I shall dance at the
wedding!
_She takes some dance steps, but without letting her back be
seen. The hand-loom begins to rap in waltz time, accompanied by
the bobbin, the reel, and the spinning-wheel. Then the_ MIDWIFE
_disappears through the rear door, showing her back with the
fox tail for a brief moment. The handloom, the bobbin, the
reel, and the spinning-wheel keep right on as before_.
KERSTI _enters, and at once everything stops. A moment later
the_ VERGER _enters_.
KERSTI. Is that you, grandfather?
VERGER. Yes, girl, I forgot something.
_He picks up a large leather bag which he dropped on the bed at
his first entrance_.
KERSTI. What have you there?
VERGER. I come from the sacristy, and I am taking home the numbers to
be polished.
KERSTI. What numbers?
VERGER. Those that show the hymns you are to sing, don't you know?
KERSTI. Let me see!
VERGER. [_Takes out of his bag a small black board, such as is found
in every Swedish church; it has a number of nails on which are hung
numbers made of brass_] Here you can see.... What's the matter,
sweetheart?
KERSTI. I don't know, grandfather, but I think I should never have come
here....
VERGER. What talk is that, child?
KERSTI. There is mischief astir in this house....
VERGER. Oh, mercy, no...; No, my dear....
KERSTI. Oh, oh, oh! Everything has grown so strange all of a sudden....
VERGER. But how is this going to end, Kersti?
KERSTI. Yes, tell me, tell me!
VERGER. I must go now, child. I must go back to the church and get the
crown so I can send it to a goldsmith. It has to be cleaned with cream
of tartar....
KERSTI. All right, grandfather....
VERGER. It is for your sake the crown is to be cleaned--for your own
sake, don't you know?...
[_He goes out by the rear door_.
_The_ SOLDIER _enters immediately afterward_.
KERSTI. Is that you, father?
SOLDIER. Yes, it's only me. I want my chaco, which I left in here.
[_He picks up the chaco_.
KERSTI. Oh, father, father, I am so unhappy....
SOLDIER. [_Drily_] What has happened?
KERSTI. Nothing!
SOLDIER. Why should you be unhappy, then?
KERSTI. You don't understand!
SOLDIER. [_Brusquely, as he adjusts the chin-strap of the chaco_] Come
to your senses, child!
KERSTI. Don't go, father!
SOLDIER. The sorrows of love pass quickly--Come to your senses is my
advice. Do come to your senses! [_He goes out._
BRITA _enters_.
KERSTI. And what have _you_ forgotten?
BRITA. I never forget anything.
KERSTI. What are you looking for?
BRITA. You!
KERSTI. How kindly!
BRITA. Yes, is it not?
KERSTI. You hateful thing!
BRITA. You hussy!
KERSTI. You--sister-in-law!
BRITA. Who knows?
KERSTI. Are you telling my fortune, you witch?
BRITA. Yes--a rope!
KERSTI. Should not be mentioned in the house of a hanged man!
BRITA. [_Goes to the bag attached to the end of the flour chute_] Now
I shall tell your fortune! You get the mill, and the grist will be
accordingly. [_She takes from the bag a handful of black mould out of
which she forms a small mound on the floor; then she says_]
"Vagrant women
Grind for their men
Meal out of mould
As only food."[1]
KERSTI. A witch you are, indeed!
BRITA. Yes, and one who can find buried treasures! Perhaps you will let
me find a little treasure for you?
KERSTI. Take care, you witch! Have you no shame? It's mortal sin you
are practising now! You should be burned by fire, for I am sure you
would float if thrown in the water!
BRITA. [_Taking a pinch of mould from the bag and pouring it on_
KERSTI'S _head_] To the dust I wed you, and a crown of dirt shall you
wear, so that your shame may find you out!
KERSTI. Fie on you! Fie!
VOICE. [_Like that of a small child, repeats after her_] Fie!
KERSTI. Who was that?
VOICE. Who was that?
BRITA. Guess!--That was the Mocker!
KERSTI. Who is the Mocker?
VOICE. The Mocker!
BRITA. The Mocker is the Mocker. Don't you know the Mewler?
KERSTI. The Mewler, you say? What have I got to do with that one?
VOICE. With that one!
BRITA. The wages of sin is death!
KERSTI. [_Calling through the door_] Mats!
VOICE. Mats!
KERSTI. [_In despair_] Oh! Oh! [_She unfastens one of her red garters
and ties it about her own neck_] Let me die! Let me die!
BRITA. You shall have your wish!
KERSTI. Hang me to a tree!
VOICE. To a tree!
BRITA. Not I!
MATS. [_Is heard singing outside_] "Kersti dear, is baby asleep?"
BRITA. "Far in the forest!" Fie on you! [_She goes out_.
MATS. [_Enters, looking very happy_] "Far, far, in the forest!" [_He
comes up behind_ KERSTI _and puts his hands over her eyes_] Guess who
it is!
KERSTI. Oh, you hurt me!
MATS. [_Taking hold of the garter which is still about the neck of_
KERSTI] What kind of necklace is this?
KERSTI. Let go!
MATS. [_Pulling playfully at the garter_] Now I have you! Now you are
my prisoner, my dove, my goat that I bought for a groat! [_He leads
her about by the garter_] My little white kid! My little pet cow!
[_Singing_] "Come, cosset, cosset, cosset! Come, cosset, cosset!"
KERSTI. Yes, you can be happy, Mats!
MATS. I am, and guess why?
KERSTI. Can't any longer!
MATS. Because I met the midwife, and she brought word of the little one.
KERSTI. Did she?
MATS. She did! He's sleeping, she said, so quietly, so quietly.
KERSTI. Oh!
MATS. Far in the forest!--What's that in your hair?
KERSTI. Mould.
MATS. Have you been buried?
KERSTI. Yes, already!
MATS. [_Brushing the mould out of her hair_] Ugh! Who did that?
KERSTI. Can't you tell?
MATS. Brita with the evil eye?
KERSTI. Can't you blind it?
MATS. Not I! The only one who can is Jesus Christ!
_A church-bell sounds the call to even-song_.
KERSTI. Fray for me!
MATS. One must do that for oneself.
KERSTI. But suppose you can't?
MATS. You can if your conscience is clear.
KERSTI. But when _is_ it?
MATS. Do you hear the even-song bell?
KERSTI. No!
MATS. But I do; so you must hear it, too.
KERSTI. I don't, I don't! Alas the day!
MATS. Can you hear the rapids?
KERSTI. The roar of the rapids, the beat of the flail, the tinkle of
cowbells--but of holy bells not a sound!
MATS. That's a bad sign! I remember when the bells were rung at the
burial of our former sheriff--we could see them move, but not a sound
was heard. A bad sign!
KERSTI. Brita put a spell on me!
MATS. It will be worst for herself.
KERSTI. Come to the pasture! I must see the sun!
MATS. I will--Kersti dear!
KERSTI. Oh!
MATS. [_Putting his arms about her and pressing her head to his
breast_] Oh!
_Curtain_.
[1] Part of an old saw, the rest of which reads as follows: "when it
was spanked for licking up the cream."
THIRD SCENE
_The eve of the wedding. The house of_ KERSTI'S _parents_.
_Above the door in the rear hangs a smalt tin plate on
which are painted the_ SOLDIER'S _regimental number and the
coat-of-arms of Dalecarlia. There is a window on either side
of the door, both filled with potted plants. The floor is of
pine boards, full of knot-holes and nail-heads, but scrubbed
immaculately dean_.
_Half-way down the left wall is an open fireplace with a hood.
On the same side, nearer the footlights, stands a wooden seat
covered with brightly coloured home-made draperies_.
_Against the opposite wall stands a chest of drawers surmounted
by a mirror, over which a white veil has been draped. A pair of
candlesticks and a few simple ornaments are arranged in front
of the mirror. A table and a wooden seat are placed between the
chest and the footlights. On the wall above this seat hangs
the_ SOLDIER'S _old-fashioned musket, with stock of birch wood,
stained yellow, red leather sling, and percussion-lock. His
chaco, cartridge-case, and white bandoleer with bayonet are
grouped around the musket. Below appears a portrait of King
Charles XV of Sweden in full uniform_.
_A landscape with stacks of sheaves in the fields can be seen
through the windows and the open door in the rear_.
_When the curtain rises, a maid servant is at work by the
fireplace scouring and polishing copper pans, iron pots, and
coffee-kettles_.
_The_ VERGER _is seated at the table on the right-hand side
engaged in polishing the brass numbers of the hymn-board,
which is lying on the table beside him. There lies also the
collection-bag of red velvet with embroideries in silver and
a small bell attached to the bottom of it for the rousing of
sleeping worshippers_.
_The_ SOLDIER, _in undress uniform and forage-cap, is seated at
the same table, looking over some papers on which he is making
notes with a pencil, the point of which he wets from time to
time_.
LIT-KAREN _and_ LIT-MATS _stand beside the table, with their
chins resting on the edge of it, watching the_ VERGER. _Their
eyes are agog, and their fingers in their mouths. The_ VERGER
_smiles at them and strokes their hair from time to time. The_
MOTHER _is standing by the fireplace drying a couple of towels.
As the curtain rises, the merry singing of girls is heard from
the outside, but the atmosphere in the room is oppressive, and
everybody is trying to lose himself in what he has at hand,
forgetful of the rest_.
GIRLS. [_Singing outside; see musical appendix, Melody No_. 14]
"When I was a little lassie, herding on the hill,
One day I lost the bell-cow and Gossamer, too.
I stood upon a rock and called and cried with a will,
Till I heard Gossamer begin to moo
In a pasture far, far away.
'Hush,' said Pine-tree,
'She will surely find thee,'
Hemlock told me not to stumble;
Willow asked me not to grumble;
Birch-tree said I could not hope to miss a spanking."
SOLDIER. [_Looks up from his work and remarks phlegmatically to the_
MOTHER] Say, Mother!
MOTHER. We-ell?
SOLDIER. Was it three quarters we got off the place last year?
MOTHER. Yes, that's right.
VERGER. Haven't the girls come out of the bath yet?
MOTHER. No.... This business of the wedding takes a lot of people....
We should be bringing in the oats.... And it will soon be time to pick
berries....
VERGER. Yes, the dog-days are most over. You can see it on the flies;
they're kind of drowsy.... Will there be a lot of berries this year?
MOTHER. Yes. [_Silence_.
SOLDIER. Will those girls never come back?
MOTHER. I don't know what can be keeping them so long.
SOLDIER. It's hot.
VERGER. It must be bad in camp.
SOLDIER. Well, it isn't so very hard on the infantry....
VERGER. You were lucky to get leave.
SOLDIER. I guess I was!
MOTHER. Now they are coming.
SOLDIER. Did you see that they had something to eat and drink?
MOTHER. Yes, right in the bath, and plenty of it. [_Silence_.
_The girls are heard outside, talking and laughing_. KERSTI
_enters first, white-faced, with her wet hair streaming down
her back. She is followed by_ BRITA, ANNA, _and the four
bridesmaids_, ELSA, RICKA, GRETA, _and_ LISA. _The maids are
carrying jars and wine-glasses which they put down by the
fireplace_. KERSTI, BRITA, _and_ ANNA _carry long bath-towels
with coloured borders, which they hang up by the door_.
_The_ MOTHER _puts a chair in the middle of the floor and
makes_ KERSTI _sit on it_. KERSTI'S _hair having first been
carefully dried with towels, the_ MOTHER _begins to comb
it. The maids duster on the bench at the left_. BRITA _seats
herself so that she can stare at_ KERSTI. _No greetings are
exchanged, and no emotion of any hind is shown_.
MOTHER. Give me the mirror.
KERSTI. Don't! I don't want any mirror.
BRITA. You ought to look at yourself, as you won't let anybody else see
you.
KERSTI. What do you mean?
BRITA. Hard to tell, isn't it?--Nice hair you've got. Can I have it, if
it should come off?
KERSTI. No, you can't!
MOTHER. What would you do with it?
BRITA. Watch-chain for Mats.
MOTHER. [_To her daughter_] Won't you let Mats have it?
KERSTI. No, I won't!
BRITA. [_Taking from her skirt-bag the same piece of work on which she
was employed in the previous scene_] I'll never be able to match the
colour.
KERSTI. You can have it when I am dead.
BRITA. That's a promise, but will you keep it?
KERSTI. I will! [_Silence_.
SOLDIER. Say, Mother.... Please keep quiet a while, children.... Do you
know if the sergeant has been asked?
MOTHER. Vesterlund? Of course!
SOLDIER. It's to be at four o'clock in the church, isn't it?
MOTHER. That's right.
SOLDIER. [_Putting his papers together_] Then I'll go and see the
Pastor now.... And I'll go right on to the sexton.... [_To himself_]
Hm-hm! That was that! Hm-hm!
[_He goes out pensively without greeting anybody. Silence_.
VERGER. Now, my dears, I hope you won't touch anything.
LIT-KAREN. I'll look after Lit-Mats and see that he doesn't.
VERGER. So you're going to look after him, are you?
MOTHER. Where are you going, father?
VERGER. To the store to get the crown, which should be back from the
city by this time.
BRITA. [_Sneeringly_] Oh--the crown!
VERGER. [_Rising_] The goldsmith has had it, you know--to clean it with
cream of tartar. That's what you do with silver: you boil it in cream
of tartar.
BRITA. [_As before_] Ha-ha!
MOTHER. [_To the_ Verger] Wait a moment, and I'll go along to the store.
VERGER. Is it safe to leave the children alone?
BRITA. What do you fear might happen?
MOTHER. Why, they are grown-up people!
BRITA. And Kersti likes to be alone for that matter. She can't stand
having anybody look at her....
MOTHER. Now, now!
BRITA. When she is bathing, she doesn't want any company at all. But,
of course, she's grown-up, so she doesn't have to be afraid....
KERSTI _is turning and twisting to escape the stare of BRITA_.
MOTHER. Keep still, girl!
BRITA. No, she's no longer any child. She's outgrown that, and a lot
more. Perhaps the crown won't fit her even? Have you tried it on?
VERGER. [_Quietly_] That's what we are going to do in a little while.
_He goes out accompanied by the_ MOTHER. _Silence_.
KERSTI _seats herself at the table on the right-hand side and
begins to play with the brass numbers_.
BRITA. [_Pursuing_ KERSTI _with her stare_] A merry wedding eve, isn't
it?
KERSTI. Do you want to play games?
BRITA. We might play "papa and mamma and the children."
KERSTI. Would you like to guess riddles?
BRITA. I have already guessed....
KERSTI. Or sing?
BRITA. "Hush-a-bye, baby," I suppose you mean?... No, let us read the
Bible.
KERSTI. The Bible, you say?
BRITA. Yes--Genesis, thirty-fourth and eight.
KERSTI. About Shechem, you mean?
BRITA. Exactly, and about Dinah, for whom his heart was longing.... Do
you know who Dinah was?
KERSTI. She was the daughter of Jacob and Leah.
BRITA. That's right. And do you know what she was?
KERSTI. Is that a riddle?
BRITA. Not at all. Do you know what she was?
KERSTI. No.
BRITA. She was a little--spoiled!
KERSTI. Is that a play on words?
BRITA. More than that!
KERSTI _lets her head fall forward as if wishing to hide her
face_.
BRITA. Do you understand? [_Pause_] Is Mrs. Larsson the only one _you_
have asked?
KERSTI. Have I asked?... The midwife, you say?
BRITA. Well, so she says.
KERSTI. Then she is lying!
BRITA. As midwife she has been sworn, although I couldn't tell whether
her oath be false or fair. Just now she swears that she doesn't lie.
KERSTI _lets her head droop again_.
BRITA. Hold up your head! Can't you look people in the face?
KERSTI. [_To the other girls_] Say something, girls! [_Silence_.
BRITA. It's hard to say anything when one has seen nothing. But
nevertheless--one knows what one knows!
SHERIFF. [_Appearing in the doorway_] I am making free.... It won't matter
if an old fellow like me gets in to the girls--although the boys have
to keep out!
BRITA. [_Shaking her fist in the face of_ KERSTI] But you'll never wear
the crown!
KERSTI. You don't say!
BRITA _goes out_.
_The_ SHERIFF _pulls up a chair and sits down beside_ KERSTI.
_The girls sneak out of the room one by one_. LIT-MATS _stays
behind, clinging to the skirt of_ KERSTI.
_It is plain that the intentions of the_ SHERIFF _are kindly,
and so are his words, but the more discreet he tries to be,
the more awkward he becomes, and so all his words assume an
ambiguous meaning_.
SHERIFF. [_Taking one of_ KERSTI'S _hands and looking her straight in
the eyes_] What sort of a bride is this, looking so sad when she is
getting her heart's desire? What is the matter?
KERSTI. With what?
SHERIFF. Is that the way to answer an old friend who will be a kinsman
by this hour to-morrow? There is more than one lass who envies you, and
who would like to get to the altar ahead of you to-morrow.
KERSTI. Maybe there is.
SHERIFF. And there is the new life ahead of you, in mill and kitchen.
No more running about in the woods, where "birches nod in the blowing
breeze." No more dancing in the barns on Saturday nights. You'll be
busy 'tending your pots, and watching the cradle, and having the meals
on the table when Mats comes home, and--keeping an even temper when the
dark days arrive--for after sunshine there is sure to be a little rain.
Does it scare you to find life so serious, dear? It isn't as bad as it
looks. It merely helps to make life kind of solemn.
KERSTI. Oh!
SHERIFF. What are you oh-ing about, girl?--There seems to be something
in the air that has no place in the thoughts of a young girl--something
amiss. Now, my dear, let me see if I can't straighten it out.
[_Jestingly_] The guardian of the law knows how to get the truth out of
all sorts of people. What's on your mind, dear? Has Mats been nasty to
you?
KERSTI. Oh, mercy!
SHERIFF. Has the family been playing the high-and-mighty? What have you
to do with the family anyhow?
LIT-MATS _climbs into the lap of_ KERSTI, _puts his arms about
her, nestles up to her as close as he can get, and falls
asleep_.
SHERIFF. Look at that little chap now! He likes his sister-in-law, and
that's a good sign. Children always know their real friends. Are you
fond of children, Kersti?
KERSTI. [_Suspiciously_] Why do you ask?
SHERIFF. That's not the right kind of an answer!... Don't you think
it's nice to have a little thing like that--to hold it on your lap
and feel how it trusts you--just as if there could never be any harm
or deceit in the bosom that shelters it.... I think he's falling
asleep. Helpless as he is, he's not afraid of trusting his sleep to a
stranger--who means nothing but well by him, I am sure.
KERSTI. Have you seen anything of Mats?
SHERIFF. He was busy with the boys making the mill ready for the dance
to-morrow. [_Silence_] It's some time since we saw a crown bride in
this place.
KERSTI. Is that so?
SHERIFF. Yes, indeed. The old ways are gone, and new ones have come
in--from the cities and the camps....
KERSTI. [_Pertly_] They used to blame the fellows who came to buy the
timber.
SHERIFF. Yes, but if it hadn't been for them, there would have been no
mill....
KERSTI. They are always putting the blame on somebody else....
SHERIFF. You are getting a nice husband, Kersti....
KERSTI. Yes, he's fine--too fine for me!
SHERIFF. That's a bitter answer to a kind word!
KERSTI. There was nothing bitter about it--nothing but the truth....
SHERIFF. Why should it be so hard for us to understand each other? It
looks almost as if you didn't want us to be friends?
KERSTI. Why do you think so?
SHERIFF. What is well meant, you take badly, and the other way around.
Well--that happens frequently when there is something amiss.
KERSTI. What's amiss?
SHERIFF. I don't know.
KERSTI. Neither do I, but it isn't customary to say things like that to
a young girl.
SHERIFF. Now, now!--Where there's no sick conscience, you don't have to
walk in your stocking feet--but, but, but....
KERSTI. Has the examination begun already?
SHERIFF. I didn't mean....
KERSTI. The--"guardian of the law" doesn't know how to talk to ladies.
SHERIFF. [_Sharply_] Kersti!
KERSTI. What is it?
SHERIFF. [_Looking hard at her_] What do you mean? KERSTI. What do you
mean yourself?
SHERIFF. Lo and behold! That's just the kind of questions asked by _my_
ladies when they want to find out whether I know anything.
KERSTI. What could there be to know?
SHERIFF. Whew--is the wind in that corner? Well, well! [_Silence_]
Well--I guess I'll be going! Yes, I had better be going!
_He goes out by the rear door, stepping very softly and putting
his forefinger across his lips as if meaning to enforce silence
on himself_.
KERSTI, _left alone, kisses the head of the sleeping_ LIT-MATS.
MATS _appears at the right-hand window_.
_The twilight has come, but it is the lingering, luminous
twilight of the northern summer night_.
MATS. Hey!
KERSTI. Mats! Oh, come here!
MATS. I mustn't come in--I have promised.
KERSTI. Yes, do!
MATS. No, no!--Is the little one asleep?
KERSTI. This one--yes!--Hush! Hush!
_A bugle-call is faintly heard in the distance. It is the
summons to evening service in the camp of the regiment to
which_ KERSTI'S _father belongs. (See the musical appendix,
Melody No_. 15.)
KERSTI. [_Scared_] Are they hunting again?
MATS. No, who would be hunting at this time of day?
KERSTI. What is it?
MATS. A soldier's daughter you are, and don't know!
KERSTI. Tell me!
MATS. That's at the camp, you know. They are calling them to evening
prayers.
KERSTI. Of course--but everything seems strange and confused!
MATS. Come to the window, Kersti.
KERSTI. I think.... I'll just put the little one away.
MATS. The little one, you say?
KERSTI. [_Rises very carefully and carries_ LIT-MATS _to the bench by
the fireplace, where she pulls him down and covers him up_] Hushaby,
hushaby!
_The singing of a hymn in unison is heard from the camp_.
KERSTI _kneels beside the bench and tries to pray, bid merely
wrings her hands in despair. At last she kisses the shoes of
the sleeping child, struggles to her feet, and goes to window_.
MATS. There is something nice about children, isn't there?
KERSTI. Yes--yes!
MATS. Are you alone?
KERSTI. Yes, they left! Hating me--all of them!
MATS. To-morrow is our wedding-day!
KERSTI. Yes--think of it!
MATS. Yes, think of it--to-morrow is our wedding-day!
KERSTI. And I shall be living in the mill!
MATS. In the mill with me!
KERSTI. Till death us do part!
MATS. Which won't be soon!
KERSTI. Oh!
_Curtain_.
FOURTH SCENE
_The wedding. The living-room at the mill has been cleared
for the occasion. The big doors in the rear stand wide open.
Through the doorway is seen a large loft, where a number
of tables have been spread for the impending feast, of
which coffee is to form one of the principal features. The
shutters covering the rectangular opening to the left of the
main doorway are also open, disclosing a table with several
candlesticks on it. On this table the fiddlers subsequently
take up their position_.
_The opening to the water-wheel appears to the right of the
main door. The hand-loom, the bobbin, the reel, and the
spinning-wheel have disappeared_.
_On the floor, beneath the place reserved for the fiddlers,
stands the "old men's table," with a full equipment of jugs,
mugs, pipes, and playing-cards_.
_A number of chairs and benches occupy the middle of the floor,
and on these are spread clean white sheets, pillow-cases, and
towels for drying_.
_As the curtain rises, six servant-girls are busily grinding
coffee on as many hand-mills, while from the outside are heard
the ringing of church-bells and a bridal march played on
violins. When the coffee is ground, the girls begin to gather
up the linen and sing while they are doing so_.
GIRLS. [_Singing; see musical appendix, Melody No_. 16]
"Dillery-deering!
Twelve in the clearing:
Twelve men glare at me,
Twelve swords flare at me.
Kine they are slaughtering;
Sheep they are quartering;
Naught but my life they're leaving:
Dillery-deering!"
_The bridal procession is drawing near. The girls put the
benches and chairs where they belong and go out with their
burdens of linen_.
_The stage is left empty for a few moments, all the sounds
previously heard having died out_.
_Then the song of the_ NECK _is heard from the water-wheel,
while he himself remains unseen_.
NECK. [_Singing outside_] "I am hoping, I am hoping, that my Redeemer
still liveth."
_The trap-door in the floor is raised and the_ MEWLER _ascends
from the hole: a blurred mass of white veils beneath which
the outlines of a small infant in long clothes are barely
discernible. This apparition remains hovering above the opening
in the floor_.
_Then the bridal march is again heard outside. The song of
the_ NECK _ceases, and the_ MEWLER _disappears, the trap-door
falling back into its wonted position_.
_The bridal procession enters the room. First come the
fiddlers, then the bridesmaids and bridesmen. After these come
the bride and the groom, and then follow the_ PASTOR, _the
parents of the couple, the members of both families, friends,
and young people. Everybody seems depressed, and the entrance
is made in gloomy silence_.
_The bride is led to a chair in the middle of the floor, placed
so that she must face the trap-door in the floor. She is very
pale and does not look up at all. The guests pass in front of
her as in review. Now and then one stops and says a few words
to her. Little by little they disappear into the loft in the
rear_.
MATS. [_To_ KERSTI] Now the worst is over, Kersti.
[_He goes out_.
BRITA. [_Heading the bridesmaids, to_ KERSTI] You have got the
crown--see that you keep it! [_She and the maids go out_.
KERSTI'S MOTHER. [_Making sure that the crown is on straight_] Keep
your back straight and your head high, girl!
[_She goes out_.
SOLDIER. [_To_ KERSTI] God bless you! [_Goes out_.
VERGER. [_To_ KERSTI] And protect you! [_Goes out_.
MATS'S GRANDFATHER. [_To_ KERSTI] Comely you are as I am homely! [_Goes
out_.
MATS'S MOTHER. [_To_ KERSTI] Your new family bids you welcome! [_She
goes out_.
MATS'S FATHER. [_To_ KERSTI] _My_ daughter now--the old ties have been
loosed! [_He goes out_.
SHERUT. [_To_ KERSTI] Why so pale? What draws all the blood to your
heart? What is weighing on it?
KERSTI. [_Raising her head at last to give the_ SHERIFF _a furious
look_] Nothing!
SHERIFF. So little is a lot!
KERSTI. Go!
SHERIFF. When you ride, I'll go ahead of you--but we won't be headed
for the same place. When you kneel, I shall be standing, but the cold
steel you'll taste won't be in my hands.
KERSTI. Oh, I wish you'd break your neck!
SHERIFF. [_Putting the palm of his hand on her neck_] Take care of your
own! [_He goes out_.
_The rest of_ MATS'S _relatives file past her, greeting her
coldly_.
_The fiddlers have in the meantime taken their places, and
several old men have sat down at the table reserved for them
and begun to smoke. Now the fiddlers strike up an old Swedish
polka. (See the musical appendix, Melody No_. 17.)
_At the same time the_ NECK _begins to play the melody heard
in the first scene, but so powerfully that it sounds like two
violins. (See musical appendix, Melody No_. 18.)
_As soon as the dance music is heard, cries of_ "Off with
the crown!" _are raised, first in the loft, and then in the
living-room_.
KERSTI _becomes alarmed_.
_The_ PASTOR _goes up to her_.
FIDDLERS. [_Crying, as they become aware of the playing of the_ NECK]
Who is cutting in?
ALL. [_Repeat without looking at the water-wheel or knowing from whence
the strange music is heard_] Who is cutting in?
_Then the_ NECK _ceases playing, while the fiddlers continue.
The_ PASTOR _takes the bride by the hand and begins to lead her
around the room in a stately and solemn manner. Just as he puts
his arm about_ KERSTI'S _waist in order to open the dance with
her the_ NECK _begins to play again_.
KERSTI. [_Dropping the crown, which rolls into the mill-race_] Jesus
Christ!
_All the people in the living-room get on their feet and cry_:
"The crown's in the mill-race!"
_Those in the rear room shout back_: "What's up?"
_Those in the living-room repeat_: "The crown's in the
mill-race!"
_The fiddlers suddenly stop their playing. The whole place is
in wild commotion_.
MATS. [_Appearing in the doorway_] We must look for it!
ALL. We must look for it!
PASTOR. God help us and protect us!
ALL. God help us and protect us!
SHERIFF. Let us look for it!
ALL. Let us look for it!
MATS. Yes, let's look!
_All disappear by the rear door, leaving_ KERSTI _alone on the
stage. She seats herself on the same chair as before. In the
meantime the stage has gradually been darkened._
_The water-wheel begins to turn_.
NECK. [_Appears in the wheel with his harp, and sings_]
"Stilled are the waters, dark grows the sky:
Dark grows the sky.
Once in the world of the ages I lived,
Blessed by the sun.
Gone is the light,
Conquered by night.
Deep is my sin,
Black as the tarn.
Joy there is none;
Plenty of woe.
Torture and Shame must I name my abode:
O!"
_When the_ NECK _begins to sing, the trap-door flies open right
at the feet of_ KERSTI, _and the_ MEWLER _appears as before_.
_At first_ KERSTI _stares at the apparition with horror. Then
she seizes it and presses it to her breast_.
_The_ NECK _stops his song and disappears. Instead the voice of
a child (the_ MOCKER) _is heard from the opening in the floor_.
MOCKER. Cold is the river; warm is my mother's bosom. Nothing you gave
me in life: in death I take what is mine!
KERSTI. [_Who has been rocking the_ MEWLER _on her arm_, _puts a hand
to her breast as if feeling acute pain_] Oh, help! Save me!
MIDWIFE. [_Trips in fussily_] Here I am! Here I am! Mustn't take on
like that! [_She takes the_ MEWLER _from_ KERSTI _and drops it through
the hole in the floor_] I know how to handle little ones! I help them
into the world and out of it.... And I got to the wedding after all!
BRITA _has in the meantime appeared where the fiddlers were
seated before, and she has seen the_ MIDWIFE _hide something
under the floor_.
MIDWIFE. The Neck was also asked, I understand. Did he come?
KERSTI. What will you take to get out of here?
MIDWIFE. What you have lost!
KERSTI. You mean the crown?
MIDWIFE. Not exactly.... Hush!... I think I heard somebody! Then I'll
hide in the fireplace for a while.... I got here after all, as you see!
_She steps into the fireplace and closes the iron shutters
behind her_.
BRITA. [_Enters and goes up to_ KERSTI] Now it's you or me!
KERSTI. You, then!
BRITA. A present is waiting for you.
KERSTI. Let's see!
BRITA. Bracelets--but not from me! [_Silence_] Bracelets of steel!
[_She places herself on the trap-door_] Now my foot is on your head
and on your heart! Now I shall stamp your secret out of the earth, or
the water, or the fire--wherever it may be! [_Silence_] Now I shall
have your hair for my watch-chain, which is not what it seems. Where
is the Midwife? Where is the guest of honour at this virginal wedding?
You stole the crown, and the Neck stole it from you. You have stolen
the mill, but it will be returned. Shechem's Dinah has proved not only
spoiled, but soiled! The little one is asleep, not in the forest, but
in the river! You have put my brother to shame, and our whole family,
and the name that we bear! And now you shall die!
KERSTI. [_Submissively_] I am dead! I have been dying for days.... Are
you satisfied now?
BRITA. No, you shall go on dying for days to come! You shall die for
perjury, falsehood, murder, theft, slander, deceit! You shall die six
times over! And when you really die the seventh time, it will seem so
only! You shall not rest in consecrated ground! You shall have no black
coffin with stars of silver on it! You shall have no spruce strewn and
no bells rung....
KERSTI. I suppose not!
BRITA. Therefore.... [_Heavy steps are heard outside_] Do you hear
those steps? Count them! [_She counts in time with the approaching
steps of the_ SHERIFF] One, two, three, four, five, six....
_The_ SHERIFF _enters from the rear_. BRITA _goes to him and
whispers something in his ear_.
SHERIFF. It's here, you say?
BRITA. Not the crown, I guess!
SHERIFF. Something else, then! [_He raises the trap-door and looks
down_] No, it is not the crown! Poor Kersti! Did you put it there?
KERSTI. I did not!
SHERIFF. No?--Tell the truth!
KERSTI. I did not put it there!
BRITA. [_Striking her on the mouth_] The truth!
KERSTI. I did not put it there!
BRITA. [_Putting her hand in the_ SHERIFF'S _pocket and taking out a
pair of handcuffs_] On with the bracelets!
SHERIFF. [_To_ BRITA] Born executioner--that's what _you_ are! [_He
puts his hands to his face and weeps_] God have mercy on us!
PASTOR. [_Entering from the rear_] Has it been found?
SHERIFF. Not that, but....
PASTOR. Say no more! I know.... [_Putting his hands to his face and
weeping_] God have mercy on us!
SOLDIER. [_Entering from the rear_] Have you found the crown?
SHERIFF. Not that, but....
SOLDIER. Enough! I know....
[_Begins to weep, with his hands to his face_.
KERSTI'S MOTHER. [_Entering from the rear_] Have you found the crown?
SHERIFF. No, no!
MOTHER. Oh!
_She looks hard at_ KERSTI, _who is holding out her hands to
meet the handcuffs, which_ BRITA _puts on her_.
MOTHER. [_Screaming_] Oh!
_Snatching up a pair of shears, she cuts off_ KERSTI'S _hair
and throws it to_ BRITA, _who catches it and sniffs at it as if
enjoying its odour. The_ MOTHER _then strips her daughter of
the veil and other bridal ornaments. At last she throws a shawl
over her head_.
MATS. [_Entering from the rear, stops in front of_ KERSTI _and looks at
her in surprise_] Who is that?
BRITA. Look well!
MATS. [_Looking more closely at_ KERSTI] She reminds me of somebody!
BRITA. Look well!
MATS. I don't know her.
BRITA. Grant God you never had!
MATS. The eyes are different.... But the mouth--that sweet mouth--and
the little chin.... No, it is not she! [_He turns away from_ KERSTI
_and catches sight of the open trap-door_] What's that? You are
standing here as if it were a grave....
BRITA. It is a grave!
MATS. Of what?
BRITA. Of everything--everything that made your life worth while!
MATS. That means the little one!--Who did it?
BRITA. [_Pointing to_ KERSTI] She, and she, and she!
MATS. It is not true!
_All who were in the room at the beginning and who left to look
for the crown, have gradually returned, and are now crowded
together in the background, no one saying a word or making the
least noise_.
BRITA. It is true!
MATS. You liar!
SOLDIER. [_To_ BRITA] You liar born of liars!
MATS'S RELATIVES. [_Gathering on the left side of_ KERSTI] You liar
born of thieves and liars! That's you!
KERSTI'S RELATIVES [_Gathering on her right side_] No, that's you!
PASTOR. Peace! Peace! In the name of the Lord!
ALL. Peace.
SHERIFF. No one must be condemned untried!
ALL. Let us hear!
SHERIFF. Who brings the charge?
ALL. Who brings the charge?
BRITA. I, Brita Lisa Larsson.
ALL. Brita Lisa Larsson brings the charge. Against whom?
BRITA. Against Kersti Margaret Hansdaughter.
ALL. Against Kersti Margaret Hansdaughter!--What is the charge?
BRITA. If bride be spoiled, the crown is forfeit!
KERSTI'S RELATIVES. And your evidence?
BRITA. Two witnesses make valid evidence.
MATS'S RELATIVES. Two witnesses make valid evidence!
KERSTI'S RELATIVES. We challenge them!
SHERIFF. No challenging without good cause!
BRITA. "If unmarried woman puts away child that comes to its death, the
life of the mother shall be forfeit!"
MATS'S RELATIVES. Her life is forfeit!
KERSTI'S RELATIVES. [_Drawing closer with menacing gestures_]
"Empty-headed men and meanly tempered never know that they are far from
faultless."[1]--The fault is Mats's!
MATS'S RELATIVES. The fault is not Mats's!
KERSTI'S RELATIVES. The fault is his who did the deed!
MATS'S RELATIVES. [_With raised fists_] What deed? You had better ask
Kersti!
KERSTI'S RELATIVES. Ask her!
SHERIFF. [_To_ KERSTI] Did you kill the child?
KERSTI. I did!
MATS'S RELATIVES. There you hear!
KERSTI'S RELATIVES. God have mercy!
MATS'S RELATIVES. Now you can hear!
MATS _has been standing at the fireplace lost in thought, with
his back to the rest. Suddenly he tears off everything that
indicates his character of bridegroom. After a brief moment of
hesitation, he leaps like mad on the table in the rear and
disappears through the opening where the fiddlers were seated
before_.
PASTOR. [_Who has been weeping silently, with his hands covering his
face, goes to the open trap-door and says_]
"To the dead
Give peace, O Lord,
And console
The living!"[2]
_All bend their heads, shade their faces with one hand, and
pray in silence, as the custom is when the Lord's Prayer is
read in a Swedish church or at a grave_.
PASTOR. May the Lord bless you and protect you!
ALL. [_With their faces buried in their hands_] Amen!
_Everybody leaves silently and sadly. When_ KERSTI _alone
remains, the_ SHERIFF _locks the doors in the rear. Then he
fastens the shutters covering the opening where the fiddlers
were seated_.
_From the fireplace is heard a loud noise as of thunder_.
NECK. [_Appears in the water-wheel with his fiddle and plays and sings
as before_] "I am hoping, I am hoping that thy Redeemer still liveth."
_This he repeats several times, while_ KERSTI _is kneeling on
the floor with her handcuffed arms raised toward heaven._
_The_ CHILD IN WHITE _enters from behind the fireplace with a
basket full of spruce branches and flowers_.
_The_ NECK _stops singing and disappears_.
_The_ CHILD IN WHITE _strews the spruce branches on the floor
so that a green path is formed to the edge of the trap-door.
When he has reached this, he drops flowers into the hole, from
which the bell-like notes of the harmonica are heard_.
_Unseen by_ KERSTI, _he goes up to her, places his hands on her
head and stands still with upturned face as if in prayer_.
_The face of_ KERSTI, _which until then has shown deep despair,
assumes an expression of quiet happiness_.
_Curtain_.
[1] From the Poetic Edda: "The Song of the High One." See introduction.
[2] From the Poetic Edda: "The Song of the Sun." See introduction.
FIFTH SCENE
_The porch of a country church appears at the right in the
foreground. It is brilliantly white, with a roof of black
shingle_. Near the entrance is a sort of pillory, at the foot
of which KERSTI _lies in penitential garb, with the hood pulled
forward to cover her face_.
_A big lake, surrounded by a typical Dalecarlian landscape,
forms the background. At the foot of the open place before the
church is a boat-landing. A point of land projects into the
lake at the right, and there stands the scaffold, consisting
of a simple wooden platform with a block on it. Two soldiers,
fully armed, stand "at ease" by the entrance to the porch, from
within which an organ prelude is heard when the curtain rises_.
_Two large "church-boats" (of the kind used on Lake Siljan in
Dalecarlia) gliding slowly forward from opposite directions,
arrive at the landing simultaneously. The rowers have raised
their oars and appear to be disputing about the right of
landing_.
MATS'S RELATIVES _are in the boat at the left_; KERSTI'S
RELATIVES _in the boat at the right_.
MATS'S RELATIVES. Look out, Mewlings!
KERSTI'S RELATIVES. Look out, millers!
MATS'S RELATIVES. [_Raising their oars in menace_] Look out!
KERSTI'S RELATIVES. [_In the same way_] Look out!
MATS'S RELATIVES. Can you match us with eight pairs?
KERSTI'S RELATIVES. With sixteen, if needs be! Come on!
MATS'S RELATIVES. At 'em! At 'em!
_They begin to fight with the oars_.
PASTOR. [_Standing bareheaded in prow of the boat at the left_] Peace!
Peace in the name of the Lord Jesus Christ!
KERSTI'S RELATIVES. Peace!
MATS'S RELATIVES. War! War on life and death!
PASTOR. Peace!
MATS'S RELATIVES. War!
_The_ VERGER _comes running from the porch, seizes the
bell-rope and begins to toll the bell_.
_At the first stroke, all oars are lowered, the boats are
brought to the landing and tied up side by side. The_ PASTOR
_is the first one to leave the boat at the left. He is followed
by_ MATS, _who carries a small white coffin trimmed with lace.
Then the relatives and friends of_ MATS _gradually step on
shore_.
_The_ SOLDIER _leaves the other boat ahead of all the rest and
is followed by his wife. Then come the relatives and friends
of_ KERSTI.
_The people on both sides adjust their clothing while throwing
angry glances at their opponents_.
_At last_ MATS _with the coffin leads the way up to the church,
followed by the_ PASTOR.
MATS. [_Whose face shows intense despair, stops in front of_ KERSTI]
Here is the little one now. He's so light--as light as the mind of a
bad woman. He's asleep--and soon you will be sleeping, too.
KERSTI. [_Raising her head so that the hood falls back_] O!
Mats. "O," indeed! It's the end, while A is the beginning. Between
those two lie many letters, but the last one of all is O. Cry "O"
again--the last time of all--so that the little one may hear it. He
will tell the Lord and the Saviour, and ask them to forgive you! No?
Well, kiss his white coffin then--kiss it where his small feet are
resting--the small, small feet that never had a chance to tread this
sinful earth! [KERSTI _kisses the coffin_] That's right! Now we'll take
him into the church and play and sing and toll the bells over him--but
no clergyman can read him into his grave--because of you! I will speak
the words myself when we get to the grave. We'll plant him in the sod
like a seed in order that he may sprout and grow into a winged blossom.
Some day, perhaps, he will spread his wings and fly to heaven--lifted
by the wind when the midsummer sun is shining!
PASTOR. [_Taking_ MATS _by the arm and drawing him toward the church_]
That's enough, Mats! Come now!
MATS. I am coming.
_They disappear into the porch, followed gradually by the rest_.
SOLDIER. [_Stops in front of_ KERSTI, _shakes his head sadly and
tries to find words_] Well.... Well....
[_He goes into the church_.
KERSTI'S MOTHER. [_Speaking drily, with a vain attempt to show
emotion_] Yes, here we are now!--Was it bad in the Castle?
KERSTI _shakes her head_.
MOTHER. Is there anything you want? To eat or drink--you can have
it now, you know.... Did they give you any tobacco while you were in the
Castle?
KERSTI _shakes her head_.
MOTHER. Keep your head high, Kersti, and don't let the mill-folk put us
to shame. Don't weep so much either. Your father is a man of war, you
know, and he can't stand that kind of thing. [_Handing her daughter
a hymn-book_] Take this book--and read where I have put the mark. And
look at the mark--I got it from some one--some one who is thinking of
you in your moment of need. And it is a sure cure against the shakes
Farther than this I won't keep you company, Kersti.... I can't--I
really can't, being as old as I am....
KERSTI. Do what you feel like, mother. I have found my comforter! I
know that my Redeemer still liveth!
MOTHER. It's all right, then, child. That's all I wanted to know....
And you don't want me to go with you?
KERSTI. No, mother, you must spare yourself.... You have had enough
trouble on my account as it is.
MOTHER. Then I'll take your word for it, so that the mill-folk won't
have anything to talk about. I take your word for it, so that I can
tell them: "Kersti didn't want it--it was her own will, and of course
her last will was as good as law to me!" And that's just what it is!
[_She goes into the church._
BRITA. [_Stops in front of_ KERSTI _and points toward the scaffold_]
A queen you were, and a crown you wore: there's your throne now, with
heaven above and hell beneath!--Now you would be glad enough to be
milking cows! Now you wouldn't mind picking wood, and scouring pots,
and cleaning shoes, and rocking the cradle--now, when you have brought
shame on my family and your own, on our parish and our province, so
that the whole country is talking of it! Fie on you!
KERSTI _bends lower and lower over the hymn-book._
BRITA. My brother must carry your brat to the grave-_my_ brother! But
I shall keep you company to the block when you get spanked! I shall
be your bridesmaid when you're wedded to the axe! "There's a corpse
that isn't dead, and a babe that wasn't bred, and a bride without a
wedding!"
LIT-MATS. Hush up, Brita! Kersti is nice!
BRITA. Indeed!
LIT-MATS. Yes, she is! But I don't like her to have on that ugly
cloak.... That would be right for you, Brita! Oh, Kersti, why are
you lying here? Are you waiting for Communion? And why did you run
away from the wedding? Who is lying in the white box? Is all this a
fairy-tale? Do you know that I lost my doll--the one you gave me?...
Oh, Kersti dear, why are you so sorry?
[_He throws his arms about her neck_.
KERSTI. [_Taking him on her lap and kissing his shoes_] Oh, Lit-Mats,
Lit-Mats!
BRITA. [_To the soldiers_] Is that allowed?
_The soldiers stand at attention, but make no reply_.
BRITA. [_Taking_ LIT-MATS _away from_ KERSTI] Come on now!
KERSTI. [_To_ LIT-MATS] Go with your sister, Lit-Mats! And you had
better keep away from me!
[_She begins to read in a low voice out of the hymn-book_.
BRITA. [_To_ KERSTI] Shall I tell him?
KERSTI. For God's sake, don't tell the child!
BRITA. For the child's sake, I won't!
KERSTI. Thank you, Brita--for the child's sake!
BRITA _goes into the church with_ LIT-MATS. _The only ones that
remain outside are_ KERSTI _and the two soldiers_.
_The_ HEADSMAN _enters from the right, carrying a black box. He
keeps in the background and does not look in the direction of_
KERSTI.
KERSTI. [_Catching sight of him_] Christ Jesus, Saviour of the world,
help me for the sake of Thy passion and death!
MIDWIFE. [_Enters from the left and goes up to the_ HEADSMAN] Listen,
my dear man.... If it comes off, would you mind my getting quite close
to it?... I need a little of that red stuff, you know--for a sick
person--one who has the falling sickness....
_The_ HEADSMAN _goes out to the left without answering_.
MIDWIFE. Oh, he is of the kind that won't listen. [_Going to_ KERSTI]
Ah, there you are, my dear....
KERSTI. [_With a deprecatory gesture_] Begone!
MIDWIFE. [_Keeping behind the pillory so that she cannot be seen by the
soldiers_] Wait a little! Wait a little! Listen now, my dear! I can do
what others can't! The hour is near, and the black one is waiting!
KERSTI. In the name of Christ Jesus, begone!
MIDWIFE. Listen! I can do what others can't! I can set you free!
KERSTI. I have found my Saviour! His name is Christ Jesus!
MIDWIFE. I can make the judge as soft as wax....
KERSTI. He who shall judge the quick and the dead; He who is the
resurrection and the life: He has sentenced me to death in the flesh,
and to--life everlasting.
MIDWIFE. Look at the soldiers! They have gone to sleep! Take my cloak
and run!
KERSTI. Are the soldiers asleep?
MIDWIFE. Their eyes are closed!--Run, run, run!
KERSTI _rises and looks at the soldiers, who have closed their
eyes_.
MIDWIFE. Run, run, run!
KERSTI. [_Lying down again_] No, much better is it to fall into the
hands of the living God!--Depart from me!
_She raises the hymn-book so that the golden cross on its front
cover faces the_ MIDWIFE.
MIDWIFE. [_Shrinking back_] Shall we meet a Thursday night at the
crossroads?
KERSTI. On the path to the cross I shall meet with my Redeemer, but not
with you! Depart!
MIDWIFE. [_Drawing away_] There is a boat down at the shore--horse and
carriage are waiting on the other side Mats is there, but the Sheriff
not.... Run, run, run!
KERSTI [_Struggling with herself_] O Lord, lead us not into temptation,
but deliver us from evil!
MIDWIFE. Shash-ash-ash-ash! Horse and carriage!
KERSTI _seizes the bell-rope and pulls it three times. At the
third stroke of the bell, the_ MIDWIFE _takes flight_.
MIDWIFE. Ad-zee! Ad-zee! Ad-zee! [_She disappears_.
_The_ CHILD IN WHITE _comes forward from behind one of the
pillars of the porch. His dress is that worn by girls at
Rättvik, Dalecarlia (the one with liberty cap, white waist and
striped apron, which is probably more familiar to foreigners
than any other Swedish peasant costume), but all its parts are
white, including the shoes_.
KERSTI. [_As if blinded by his appearance_] Who are you, child--you who
come when the evil one departs?
_The_ CHILD IN WHITE _puts a finger across his lips_.
KERSTI. White as snow, and white as linen.... Why are you so white?
CHILD IN WHITE [_In a low voice_] Thy faith has saved thee! Out of
faith has sprung hope! [_He goes toward_ KERSTI.
KERSTI. Please, dear, don't step on the ant!
CHILD IN WHITE. [_Stoops and picks up something on a leaf_] But the
greatest of these be love--love of all living things, great or small!
Now I shall send this ant into the woods to tell the king of all the
ants, so that the little people may come here and gnaw the ropes to
pieces, and you will be set free.
KERSTI. No, no! Don't talk like that!
CHILD IN WHITE. Doubt not--but believe! Believe, Kersti!--Believe!
KERSTI. How can I?
CHILD IN WHITE. Believe!
_He steps behind the pillar again and disappears_.
_The stage grows darker_.
NECK. [_Appears with his harp in the middle of the lake and sings
to the same melody as before_] "I am hoping, I am hoping, that thy
Redeemer still liveth!"
KERSTI. He sings of _my_ Redeemer! He brings hope to me, who denied it
to him!
_The_ NECK _sinks beneath the waters_.
SHERIFF. [_Enters reading a document; he approaches a few steps at a
time, now looking at the ground, and now at the paper in his hand_]
Kersti!
KERSTI _looks up, only to drop her head at once_.
SHERIFF. [_Slowly and with frequent pauses_] Behold the Sheriff!--You
are only scared by him!--Do you think everybody feels like that?
Suppose that the Sheriff has been summoned to help some one in a moment
of dire need. Do you think he will be welcome then? Of course, he
will!... Did you ever see such a lot of ants, Kersti?
KERSTI _raises her head again and becomes attentive_.
SHERIFF. Look at them! Files of them, and whole hosts! Look!--Do you
know what that means? It is a good omen! But, of course, you never
expect anything good to come from me. You wouldn't believe it _that_
time either--and that's what led to your exposure! Look at those ants!
Look at them! They are making straight for you, Kersti. Are you not
afraid of them?
KERSTI. I used to be, but I am not.
SHERIFF. Big wood-ants, and I think the ant-king himself is with them.
Do you know what can be done by the King, and by no other authority?
Do you know that? All other authorities can pass judgment--all of them
can do that--harshly or mercifully; but there is only one that can
grant pardon. That's the King!--Shall we ask the antking if he will
grant pardon? [_He puts his hand to his ear as if to hear better_]
Would your Majesty be willing to pardon her--that is, in regard to the
worst part?... Did you hear what he answered? I thought he said yes.
But I may have been mistaken.... And being the Sheriff, I can't go by
hearsays, but must have everything in writing. Let us ask the ant-king
to write it down. He has plenty of pens--sharp as needles--and he has
ink of his own, that burns. If we could only find a piece of paper!
[_He pretends to search his pockets, and finally he brings out the
paper he was reading when he entered_] Oh, here we are! Look at this!
The King has written it with his own hand. Do you see? C-A-R-L, which
makes Carl. [_He raises his cap for a moment in salute_] You haven't
seen such big letters since you went to school, Kersti. And look at the
red seal--that smelled like resin in the woods when the sealing-wax
still was warm. And look at the silken cords, yellow and blue--and all
these lions and crowns.... That's royal, every bit of it!... Read it
yourself, Kersti, while I give my orders to the soldiers.
KERSTI _takes the paper from his hand and reads_.
_The_ SHERIFF _turns to the soldiers and says something that
cannot be heard by the public_.
_The soldiers leave_.
_When_ KERSTI _has finished reading she hands the document back
to the_ SHERIFF _in a quiet, dignified manner_.
SHERIFF. Are you glad, Kersti?
KERSTI. I am thankful that my family and yours will be spared the
greatest shame of all. I cannot be glad, for eternal life is better
than a life in fetters.
SHERIFF. Regard it as a time of preparation.
KERSTI. I will!
SHERIFF. Are you still afraid of me?
KERSTI. Having looked death in the face, I fear nothing else.
SHERIFF. Come with me, then.
KERSTI. You must set me free first.
_The_ SHERIFF _unties the ropes with which she has been bound_.
_An organ prelude is heard from the church_.
KERSTI _stretches her arms toward heaven_.
_Curtain_.
SIXTH SCENE
_The stage represents the frozen surface of a big lake, the
shores of which form the background. Deep snow covers the ice.
Tall pine branches stuck into the snow serve to mark the tracks
used in crossing the lake_.
_In the centre of the stage, toward the background, a large
rectangular opening has been cut in the ice. A number of small
spruce-trees have been set along the edges of it to warn
against danger_.
_Long-tailed ducks_ (Heralda glacialis _or_ Clangula glacialis)
_are floating on the open water. Now and then one of them
utters its peculiarly melodious cry. (See musical appendix,
Melody No_. 19.)
_A number of short fishing-rods are placed along the edges of
the open water, with their lines out_.
_A gloomy old structure with turrets and battlements appears on
the shore in the background. It is known as the "Castle", but
is in reality a penitentiary_.
_It is about daybreak_.
_The_ FISHERMAN _enters from the right dressed in a sheepskin
coat and hauling a sledge on which lies an ice-hook. All the
ducks dive when he comes in sight. He begins to examine his
fishlines_.
MIDWIFE. [_Entering from the left_] How dare you fish on Easter Sunday?
FISHERMAN. I am not fishing--I'm just looking.
MIDWIFE. Perhaps you, who are so clever, can also tell a poor, strayed
old woman where she is?
FISHERMAN. If you give me a light.
MIDWIFE. If you have flint and steel.
FISHERMAN. [_Handing her two pieces of ice_] Here they are.
MIDWIFE. Ice? Well, water is fire, and fire is water!
_She tears off a piece of her cloak to serve as tinder; then,
she strikes the two pieces of ice against each other; hiving
set the tinder on fire in that way, she hands it to the_
FISHERMAN, _who lights his pipe with it_.
FISHERMAN. Oh, you are that kind? Then I know where I am.
MIDWIFE. But where am I?
FISHERMAN. In the middle of Krummedikke's lake, and over there you see
his castle. He was a king who lived long, long ago, and, like Herod, he
caused all male babes to be slain because he was afraid for his crown.
But now his castle holds all the girls who have not been afraid for
theirs.
MIDWIFE. What are they doing in there?
FISHERMAN. Spinning flax.
MIDWIFE. That's the jail, then?
FISHERMAN. That's what it is.
MIDWIFE. And the lake?
FISHERMAN. Oh, it's a good one! There used to be dry land where the
lake is now, and on that piece of land stood a church, and that church
started a feud. It was a question of pews, you see. The mill-folk, who
thought themselves above the rest, wanted to sit next to the altar, but
the Mewlings were the stronger. One Easter Sunday it broke loose, right
in the nave, and blood was shed. The church was profaned so that it
could never be cleansed again. Instead it was closed up and deserted,
and by and by it sank into the earth, and now there are fifty feet of
water above the weathercock on the spire. By this time the lake has
been washing it and washing it these many hundred years, but as long
as mill-folk and Mewlings keep on fighting, the temple will never be
cleansed.
MIDWIFE. Why are they called Mewlings?
FISHERMAN. Because they are descended from Krummedikke, who slew the
infants.
MIDWIFE. And they are still fighting?
FISHERMAN. Still fighting, and still slaying.... You remember, don't
you, Kersti, the soldier's daughter?
MIDWIFE. Of course, I do.
FISHERMAN. She is in the Castle, but to-day she will be out to do her
yearly public penance at the church.
MIDWIFE. Is that so?
FISHERMAN. The Mewlings are coming to bring her over, and the mill-folk
are coming to look on.
MIDWIFE. Do you hear the ice tuning up?
FISHERMAN. I do.
MIDWIFE. Does it mean thaw?
FISHERMAN. Maybe.
MIDWIFE. Then the ice will begin to break from the shore?
FISHERMAN. Quite likely. But if the water should rise, the rapids down
there will carry it off.
MIDWIFE. Are the rapids far from here?
FISHERMAN. Naw! You can hear the Neck quite plainly. To-day he will be
up betimes, as he is expecting something.
MIDWIFE. What can he be expecting?
FISHERMAN. Oh, you know!
MIDWIFE. No, I don't. Please tell me.
FISHERMAN. This is what they tell: Every Easter Sunday morning, at
the hour when the Saviour ascended from his grave, the church of
Krummedikke rises out of the lake. And he who gets a look at it has
peace in his soul for the rest of the year.
MIDWIFE. [_Gallops out toward the right_] Ad-zee! Ad-zee! Ad-zee!
FISHERMAN. That was a bad meeting.... [_He lands a fish and takes it
from the hook_] I got you!
_The fish slips out of his hand and leaps into the water. The_
FISHERMAN _tries to catch it with his dip-net. Then a whole row
of fish-heads appear above the water_.
FISHERMAN. Dumb, but not deaf! "What roars more loudly than a crane?
What is whiter by far than a swan?"[1]
CHILD IN WHITE. [_Dressed as in the preceding scene, enters on skis,
carrying a torch_;] The thunder of heaven roars more loudly than the
crane, and he who does no evil is whiter than the swan.
_The fish-heads disappear_.
FISHERMAN. Who read my riddle?
CHILD IN WHITE. Who can free the prisoner from his bonds and set the
tongue of the fish talking?
FISHERMAN. No one!
CHILD IN WHITE. No man by man begotten, but one born of the
all-creative God.... He who has built the bridge of glass can break it,
too!... Beware!
[_He goes out to the right_.
_The_ FISHERMAN _begins to gather up his implements_.
_The_ MILL-FOLK (MATS'S _relatives) enter from the left; all
are on skis and carry long staffs_. MATS _carries a torch_.
MATS. Where is the winter road?
FISHERMAN. Do you mean the road of the fish in the water?
MATS. No, the road of the horse on the snow.
FISHERMAN. Does it lead to court or church?
MILL-FOLK. To church.
FISHERMAN. For the man who has lost his way, all roads lead to the
rapids. [_A rumbling noise is made by the ice_] The roof is cracking!
MILL-FOLK. Where is the road to the church?
FISHERMAN. Everywhere!
MILL-FOLK. Where is the church?
FISHERMAN. You are standing on it, and walking over it, and soon it
will be here.
MILL-FOLK. Is this Krummedikke's lake?
FISHERMAN. It's Krummedikke's castle and Krummedikke's lake; it's
Krummedikke's church, and soon it will break.
MILL-FOLK. Lord have mercy! [_They go out to the right_.
_The_ MEWLINGS (KERSTI'S _relatives) enter from the left_, on
_skis and carrying staffs. The_ SOLDIER _carries a torch_.
MEWLINGS. Is this the road to the church?
FISHERMAN. This is the road to the rapids! Turn back!
MEWLINGS. Ridges and open water everywhere! The floe is breaking loose!
FISHERMAN. Go eastward! The sun is tarrying.
MEWLINGS. Let's go eastward! [_They go out to the right_.
_The_ MILL-FOLK _return from the right_.
FISHERMAN. Turn back! The floe has broken loose down that way!
MILL-FOLK. And eastward, too! Let's turn northward!
FISHERMAN. There's the river!
MILL-FOLK. Southward, then!
FISHERMAN. There are the rapids!
MILL-FOLK. [_Leaning dejectedly on their staffs_] God have mercy on us!
MATS. The Mewlings put us on the wrong track.
BRITA. As they have always done!
FATHER. And they'll be first at church!
GRANDFATHER. Never mind! But I can't help regretting the day when I
burned the papers.
MOTHER. Will there ever be peace?
GRANDMOTHER. "Men who are mild and gentle live in peace and know but
little sorrow."[2]
MILL-FOLK. [_Raising their staffs_] The Mewlings!
MEWLINGS. [_Entering from the right, with raised staffs]_ Will you bide
now, mill-folk? You put us on the wrong track!
MILL-FOLK. You liars!
MEWLINGS. The same to you!
MILL-FOLK. Quibblers!
MEWLINGS. And what are you?
_The ice begins to crash and rumble_.
FISHERMAN. Peace in the name of Christ Jesus! The water is rising!
ALL. [_Crying aloud_] The water is rising!
MATS'S GRANDFATHER. The ice is sinking. Stay where you are!
MATS'S GRANDMOTHER. To-day we must die, and then comes the day of
judgment!
_The_ MILL-FOLK _embrace each other. The women pick up the
children into their arms. The_ MEWLINGS _do likewise_.
MATS'S MOTHER. [_To_ Mats] For the sake of your foolish fondness, we
must die!
KERSTI'S MOTHER. "Another's love should by no one be blamed: wise men
are often snared by beauty, but fools never."[2]
SOLDIER. "This fault of his should by no one be blamed: love, in its
might, will often turn the sons of men from wisdom to folly."[3]
MATS. [_Holding out his hand to the_ SOLDIER] Thank you for those
words! You are the man I named father for a brief while!
SOLDIER. "All at birth and death are equals."
MATS'S FATHER. There you took the word away from me! Your hand!
SOLDIER. [_Giving his hand after a little hesitation_] Here it is! We
are all Christians, and this is the great day of atonement. Let not the
sun rise on our wrath!
MEWLINGS. Let us have peace!
MILL-FOLK. Yes, let us have peace!
_The two parties are approaching each other with hands
stretched out, when a terrific crash is heard, and the ice
opens at their feet, separating them from each other_.
MATS'S GRANDFATHER. Parted in life and parted in death!
MATS'S GRANDMOTHER. The bridge has broken under the burden of crime.
MATS'S MOTHER. Where is Kersti?
MILL-FOLK. Where is Kersti?
MEWLINGS. Where is Kersti?
SOLDIER. "And lo, it was expedient that one should die for the people."
MATS'S GRANDFATHER. "Then said they unto him: What shall we do unto
thee, that the sea may be calm unto us?"
KERSTI'S MOTHER. "Take me up, and cast me forth into the sea: for I
know that for my sake this great tempest is upon you."
MATS'S GRANDMOTHER. Is it settled?
ALL. It is settled!
KERSTI'S MOTHER. "Behold the fire and the wood: but where is the lamb
for a burnt offering?"
MEWLINGS. Where is Kersti?
MILL-FOLK. Where is Kersti?
_The_ PASTOR _enters, followed by the_ VERGER.
PASTOR. [_To the_ Soldier] "And the Lord said: Lay not thine hand upon
the child, for now I know that thou fearest God, seeing thou hast not
withheld thine only child from me."
ALL. [_To the_ Minister] Save us!
PASTOR. "There is but one God, the Saviour!" Let us pray!
_All kneel on the ice_.
PASTOR. "Out of the depths I cry unto thee, O Lord!"
ALL. "Lord, hear my voice!"
PASTOR. O Lord, have mercy!
ALL. Christ, have mercy!
_The_ SHERIFF _enters from the rear with a torch in his hand.
He is followed by four soldiers, carrying the dead body of_
KERSTI _between them_.
_All get on their feet_.
PASTOR. Whom are you bringing with you?
SHERIFF. We are bringing the crown bride--Kersti!
PASTOR. Is she alive?
SHERIFF. She is dead. The waters took her!
PASTOR. May the Lord take her soul!
SOLDIER. O Lord, have respect unto our offering, as thou hast given
thyself for us an offering.
PASTOR. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten
Son!"
BRITA. The water is falling!
ALL. The water is falling!
_The gap in the ice is closed up again_.
MATS _and_ BRITA _walk over to the_ MEWLINGS, _break branches
from the spruces set in the snow, and spread these over the
body of_ KERSTI.
PASTOR. Will there be peace after this?
ALL. Peace and reconciliation!
PASTOR. [_Beside the body of_ KERSTI]
"To the dead
Give peace, O Lord,
And console
The living!"
_In the background a church is seen rising out of the lake:
first the gilded weathercock; then the cross resting on a
globe; and finally the spire, the roof covered with black
shingles, and the white walls of the round-arched church_.
NECK. [_Is heard playing and singing in the distance, but now his
melody has been transposed into D minor_] "I am hoping, I am hoping,
that my Redeemer still liveth."
PASTOR. Let us give praise and thanks unto the Lord!
ALL. We thank and praise thee, O Lord!
MATS _and_ BRITA _kneel beside the body of_ KERSTI. _All the rest kneel
around them and sing No_. 6 _from the "Old" _Swedish Hymn-Book_ (which
is a free rendering of Luther's_ "Herr Gott, dich loben wir," _and
practically identical with the Ambrosian_ "Te Deum laudamus").
ALL. [_Singing_]
"O God, we give thee praise! O Lord, we give thee thanks! Eternal
Father, whom the whole world worships!
Thy praise is sung by angels and all the heavenly powers; By Cherubim
and Seraphim thy praise is sung incessantly: Holy, holy, holy, Lord God
of Sabaoth!"
_Curtain_.
[1] Old Swedish folk-riddle, the expected answers to the questions
being respectively: the thunder and an angel.
[2] From the Poetic Edda: "The Song of the High One." See Introduction.
[3] id. note 2.
THE SPOOK SONATA
(SPÖK-SONATEN)
CHAMBER PLAYS: OPUS III
1907
CHARACTERS