ESS CAt t an oratory eps leading up to it.

    At t a tapestried ing tory, and a great cs back

    against tre are the

    garden. CAt of tar in the

    oratory; ted lamp over tar. ALEEL enters.

    ALEEL. I o bid you leave tle and fly

    Out of these woods.

    CAt evil is there here?

    t is not everyhe sea?

    ALEEL. t me walk invisible.

    CAt is true w I have heard men say,

    t you  ot.

    ALEEL. I was asleep in my bed, and w

    My dream became a fire; and in the fire

    One walked and  his head.

    CAt one of the old gods walked so.

    ALEEL. It may be t he is angelical;

    And, lady, hese woods.

    And you must bring but your old foster?mother,

    And some fehe hills,

    Among t

    Of ers, till the evil days are done.

    For errible deating you,

    Some unimagined evil, some great darkness

    t fable  dreamt of, nor sun nor moon

    Scattered.

    CAt angelical.

    ALEEL. this house

    You are to leave rusty man,

    And bid er all t starve or wander

    here is food and house room.

    CAthLEEN. he bids me go

    al creatures but the swan

    Dabbles, and trees  our door,

    And talk among tling of the reeds,

    ed the foolish sun away

    itillness and pale tapers. No?no?no!

    I cannot. Alt weep

    Because t life  happy, and here

    I find no way, no end. Nor do I weep

    Because I o look upon your face,

    But t a night of prayer has made me weary.

    ALEEL (.prostrating himself before her)

    Let  made mankind, the angels and devils

    And deaty, mend w he has made,

    For will sees

    breaks in vain.

    CAt quiet end?

    ALEEL.  in healing?

    CAtears

    And I can see your he floor.

    ALEEL. (faltering) I t but of healing. he was angelical.

    CAturning away from him)

    No, not angelical, but of the old gods,

    to

    te, proud ??t all the angels,

    Leaving nine y, o sleep.

    (So coing, and ts

    them fall beside him.)

    CAt  to me beseeching hands.

    t sh. I have sworn,

    By  the seven sorrows have pierced,

    to pray before tar until my

    o ree, and there

    Rustled its leaves, till heaven has saved my people.

    ALEEL. (who has risen)

    o one

    So little as I, to deny him love,

    can   beseeching hands,

    t tly

    they have overdared?

    (oESS CAtakes a feeps towards him.)

    CAtales are true,

    Queens have wed shepherds and kings beggar?maids;

    Gods procreant ers flo your mind

    you

    But I am ty pitcher.

    ALEEL. Being silent,

    I  let me stay beside you.

    CAt w is shaken. No,

    But you ser cry,

    And curlews cry, and he peace I longed for.

    ALEEL. Give me your o kiss.

    CAthLEEN. I kiss your forehead.

    And yet I send you from me. Do not speak;

    t bid men to rob

    Crory?under?ave or apples

    Upon a dragon?guarded hill, and all

    t t sift mens s and wills,

    And trembled as t, as I tremble

    t lay a ask on you, t you go,

    And silently, and do not turn your head;

    Goodbye; but do not turn your head and look;

    Above all else, I  have you look.

    (ALEEL goes.)

    I never spoke to him of his wounded hand,

    And now he is gone.

    (S.)

    I cannot see side.

    ould my imagination and my

    ere as little shis holy flame!

    (So the

    cer.)

    FIRSt MERC. Altreasury,

    I find you sitting droionless,

    And yet you understand t ws full

    S us and so bribe the poor

    t our great Masterll lack his merchandise.

    You kno s into this house

    t are pinc

    At sucime and so s cheap.

    Youve seen us sitting in the wood,

    the window?pane

    And t a soul to buy;

    Not even those

    t alk,

    Until ts ear.

    But all ts not drohere

    ith your back hooked, your chin upon your knees.

    SECOND MERC. ? For s cross till her

    lover

    urned s to dream.

    FIRSt MERC, ell, o labour.

    treasury door and time runs on.

    (SECOND MERC goes Out. FIRSt MERC sits cross?legged against a pillar, yawns and

    stretches.)

    FIRSt MERC. And so I must endure t of ter and the revelry,

    ts lasted since??shaped as a worm??he bore

    th

    to t woman.

    (SECOND MERC returns h bags.)

    hose dancers gone?

    to carry it on their backs.

    SECOND MERC. I  a moment since, But nohey are gone, being

    unsteadfast things.

    FIRSt MERC. t seems t to our great

    Masters name

    As to bear burdens on our backs as men do.

    Ill call to disobey?

    Come, all you elemental populace

    From Cruac house.

    Come, break up the hill,

    Or if you lie in the sea,

    Leave lonely the long hoarding surges, leave

    to clash alone,

    And sangles from your hair

    Gat us.

    (tS gathe arches.)

    SECOND MERC. till a while.

    (SPIRItS dance and sing.)

    FIRSt SPIRIt. (singing) Our s are sore, but we come

    Because we have heard you call.

    SECOND SPIRIt. Sorrow has made me dumb.

    FIRSt SPIRIt.  nightfall

    Lay many a plate and cup

    Dorodden brink,

    t whe dance break up

    e may  and drink.

    ts are sore;

    And though we have heard and come

    Our crying filled the shore.

    SECOND SPIRIt. Sorrow has made me dumb.

    FIRSt MERC.  lies in t to good and evil, and yet it seems t

    these,

    Forgetful of tial sea,

    take sides h her.

    SECOND MERC. ill your feet.

    You are not now upon Maeves dancing?floor.

    A SPIRIt. O, look w I ring of pearls!

    (taking je of bag.)

    SECOND MERC. You must not touc take up the bags upon your

    backs

    And carry to Shemus Ruas house

    On the woods border.

    SPIRItS. No, no, no, no!

    FIRSt SPIRIt. No, no, let us away;

    From t come

    Cry out to us who may.

    SECOND SPIRIt. Sorrow has made me dumb.

    (they go.)

    SECOND MERC. ttle do t turn and

    mock,

    But you t disobey.

    FIRSt MERC (rising) these dancers

    Are al troublesome of spirits.

    (age and stands facing ture of command. tS come

    back . taking ub the bags.

    FIRSt SPIRIt. From t well never dance again.

    SECOND SPIRIt. Never again.

    t. Sorrow has made me dumb.

    SECOND MERC (looking into chapel door)

    Shing; she has fallen asleep.

    Our lord would be well pleased if we could win her.

    No th our kind,

    Mig kill

    Before tir?

    FIRSt MERC. If urquoise for our lord It must go dropping dos free will

    But Ive a plan.

    SECOND MERC. to take o?night?

    FIRSt MERC. Because I am of tiest hell here are all kings, I have a plan.

    (Voices.)

    SECOND MERC. too late;

    For somebody is stirring in the noise

    t tures made as ther,

    ttering,

    he chairs pushed back,

    And many s. All the old men and women

    Sher.

    A VOICE. ( was here.

    ANOther away.

    ANOt ern tower.

    ANOtern tower.

    FIRSt MERC. e still ime??tant rooms.

    SECOND MERC. Brot troubles me.

    (Going to tory and peering t.)

    Upon tar steps tess tosses, murmuring in ernoster.

    FIRSt MERC. Do not fear,

    For whe prayer will cease.

    SECOND MERC. , would you wake her?

    FIRSt MERC. I h her,

    And mix s a t to serve.??

    Lady, s crying out for speech.

    (CAto door of the chapel.)

    Cathleen. ho calls?

    FIRSt MERC. e  news.

    CAt are you?

    FIRSt MERC.

    e are mercs, and he world

    Because here

    e matters t much concern you;

    And noticing tle door stand open,

    Came in to find an ear.

    CAtands open,

    t no one who is famished or afraid,

    Despair of .

    But you have news, you say.

    FIRSt MERC. e saw a man,

    he bog of Allen,

    tle. Near Fair head

    e saw your grain ships lying all becalmed

    In t; and not less still they,

    Burned all the sea.

    CAto God, to Mary and the angels,

    t I reasury,

    And can buy grain from tored it up

    to prosper on the poor.

    But youve been far and knohings,

    his yellow vapour no more hang

    And creep about t

    Vaniss green ss?

    FIRSt MERC. ttle too are

    dead

    Or dying??and on all the vapour hangs,

    And fattens .

    In you is all the land.

    CAthe demons who buy souls?

    FIRSt MERC.

    they have wolves heads,

    And say te flame??

    orms; others, again,

    Say ttle; while a few

    ill  tals are,

    But tall and broravelled??like us??lady,

    Yet all agree a poheir looks

    t makes men boing?net

    About t all men would go

    And barter t not

    You bribe ty of your gold.

    CAto God, to Mary, and the angels

    t I am hey sell?

    FIRSt MERC. As  t door we saw

    Your porter sleeping in his niche??a soul

    too little to be h a hundred pence,

    And yet t for a hundred crowns.

    But for a soul like yours, I hem say,

    thousand crowns and more.

    CAthLEEN. how can a heap of crowns pay for a soul?

    Is terrible a thing?

    FIRSt MERC. Some sell because terror of the grave,

    And some because their neighbours sold before,

    And some because there is a kind of joy

    In casting hope away, in losing joy,

    In ceasing all resistance, in at last

    Opening ones arms to ternal flames,

    In casting all sails out upon the wind;

    to ty of t??

    ould all folk hurry if your gold were gone.

    CAt, in your voice

    t makes me fear. elling how

    A man may lose his soul and lose his God

    Your eyes were ligold

    h??

    Mercs forgive me??seemed to smile.

    FIRSt MERC. Mans sins

    Move us to laughter only; we have seen

    So many lands and seen so many men.

    range t all these people should be swung

    As on a ladys sring,??under them

    the glowing leagues of never?ending flame.

    CAt I fear;

    A somet of us; but  born

    In some most distant corner of the world?

    (t,  the door, comes forward, and as he comes a sound of

    voices and feet is heard.)

    SECOND MERC. Ahe passage??hurry,

    For ts

    ith Ave Marys, and burn all our skin

    iter.

    FIRSt MERC. Fare ride

    Many a mile before the morning come;

    Our  tiently.

    (t. A number of PEASANts enter by other door.)

    FIRSt PEASANt. Forgive us, lady, but we heard a noise.

    SECOND PEASANt. e sat by telling vanities.

    FIRSt PEASANt.

    e  the house

    e have found nobody.

    CAtoo timid.

    For noimes.

    t can find you here.

    OONA (entering hurriedly)

    Ocreasure room is broken in,

    tands open, and the gold is gone.

    (PEASANtS raise a lamentable cry.)

    CAt.

    (the cry ceases.)

    have you seen nobody?

    OONA Ochone!

    t my good mistress shis money.

    CAt t too old to ride??

    Get ry round,

    Ill give a farm to hieves.

    (A man  er! the

    porter!quot;)

    PORtER. Demons he door

    In my stone nicwo owls passed me by,

    h human voices.

    OLD PEASANt. God forsakes us.

    CAthLEEN. Old man, old man, he never closed a door

    Unless one opened. I am desolate,

    For a most sad resolve wakes in my

    But I ill my fait

    For surely  forsake the world,

    But stands before it modelling in the clay

    And moulding there his image. Age by age

    th his fingers and pleads hard

    For its old, heavy, dull and shapeless ease;

    But sometimes??t still??

    It moves awry and demon hordes are born.

    (PEASANtS cross themselves.)

    Yet leave me noe,

    I hunder.

    (Sory door.)

    Yet stay an instant.  again

    I may ful. Oona, take

    the dairy keys.

    (to tER.)

    But take you t opens the small room

    Of herbs for medicine, of hellebore,

    Of vervain, monksain, and self?heal.

    the upper shelf.

    PORtER. his, lady; did you see

    Your coffin in a dream?

    CAt t.

    A sad resolve wakes in me. I have heard

    A sound of wailing in unnumbered hovels,

    And I must go do where??

    Pray for all men and women mad from famine;

    Pray, you good neighbours.

    (tS all kneel. COUNtESS CAteps to tory, and

    turning round stands there

    motionless for a little, and then cries in a loud voice :)

    Mary, Queen of angels,

    And all you clouds on clouds of saints, farewell!

    END OF SCENE 3.