Lequel??
And level earth and plumy sea, rise up!
Who sang about the dancers of the woods,
particularly suited to the Abbey stage, where the stage platform can be brought out in front of the prosceniurn
cess`erent de compter et de recompter des sacs de pi`eces dor, dont la vive clart`e sapercevait `a travers les
such passages as a stage experience of some years showed me encumbered the action; the play in its first form
When I was but a child?and therefore happy,
furent les plus forts. Si Ketty avait eu les moyens de faire un signe de croix, ajoute la l`egende Irlandaise, elle
(OONA takes her in her arms. A WOMAN begins to wail.)
Toutefois, les p`echeurs de la Blackwater pr`etendent quils sont enchain`es dans une prison souterraine par
PEASANTS Hush!
Les deux envoy`es de Satan tressaillirent, Leurs griffes
Her hand was laid upon my hand, it trembled.
Till you speak
en vain pr`es de Ketty d`epouill`ee, elle ne pouvait plus
ALEEL. Angels and devils clash in the middle air,
A PEASANT. She was the great white lily of the world.
however, no reason to regret the result, for the stalls, containing almost all that was distinguished in Dublin,
Quimporte si elle est pr`ecieuse? L`ame, comme le diamant, sappr`ecie `a sa blancheur.?
(ALEEL releases the ANGEL and kneels.)
de car`eme?
Chantons sous la nef de l`eglise,
students to sign a protest against the play, and a Cardinal, who avowed that he had not read it, to make
PEASANTS. Hush!
way lasts a little over an hour.
the play was revived in New York by Miss Wycherley as well as being played a good deal in England and
elle `etait jolie, ou cent quand elle `etait laide. L`Ame dune jeune fille se payait des prix fous: les fleurs les
A PEASANT WOMAN. Pull him upon his knees,
Et Ketty navait plus une obole, car elle avait abandonn`e son ch`ateaux aux malheureux.
Gentille dame, combien voulez?vouz??
La famine n`etait plus possible. Quant aux marchands, ils
ALEEL. Theyre rising up?theyre rising through the earth,
The years like great black oxen tread the world,
(A WOMAN brings it to her out of inner room. OONA holds glass over the lips of CATHLEEN. All is Silent
Il y a bien longtemps quil apparut tout?`a?coup dans la vielle Irlande deux marchands inconnus dont
Satan paya
out
Hither and hither, to and fro theyre running.
And die, dull heart, for you that were a mirror
Nest ce pas que ce r`ecit, n`e de limagination des po`etes catholiques de la verte Erin, est une V`eritable r`ecit
OONA. Bring me the looking?glass.
Pendant ce temps, il existait dans la ville un ange de beaut`e, la comtesse Ketty OConnor. Elle `etait lidole du
Cest fait, dirent les marchands: et ils tendirent `a Ketty un parchemin cachet`e de noir, quelle signa
ex`ecues et le tr`esor `etait d九*九*藏*书*网istribu`e aux pauvres au fur et `a mesure de leurs besoins.
But why does Hells gate creak so? Round and round,
sixpense dargent `a la main.?Il nest pas une jeune fille catholique `a laquelle on ne Fait appris pendant les
Cest la mienne, dit Ketty.?
les eut mis en fuite, mais ses mains `etaient captives?Le larcin fut effectu`e.
Looks always on the motive, not the deed,
of the Countess, and the last scene from the going out of the Merchants was as follows:?
And farewell, Oona, you who played with me
(A winged ANGEL, carrying a torch and a sword, enters from the R. with eyes fixed upon some distant thing.
Dans lh`otellerie o`u descendirent les marchands fastueux on chercha `a p`en`etrer leurs desseins: mais cc fut
Demons are out, old heron.
jours de pr`eparation `a la communion sainte, pas un berger des bords de la Blackwater qui ne le puisse redire `a la veill`ee.
(MERCHANTS rush out. ALEEL crawls into the middle of the room; the twilight has fallen and gradually
(ALEEL takes looking?glass from OONA and flings it upon fkoor, so that it is broken in manypieces.)
vitres du logis.
And bore me in your arms about the house
His curses will pluck lightning on our heads.
Des quelle fut rentr`ee, elle dit au majordome:
That brimmed you up with beauty is no more;
Look, look, a spear has gone through Belials eye!
politician or the newspaper persuaded some forty Catholic
PEASANT WOMEN. Hush!
Shemus Rua, and because I made a woman sell her soul and yet escape damnation, and of a lack of patriotism
En `ecus dor,
audience to break the peace, that a score or so of police were sent to the theatre to see that they did not. I had,
Or, `a cette `epoque, comme aujourdhui, lIrlande `etait pauvre, car le soleil avait `et`e rare, et des r`ecoltes presque nulles. Les indigents ne savaient `a quel sainte se vouer, et la mis`ere devenai de plus en plus terrible.
secourir leur mis`ere;?elle les abandonnait `a la tentation. Pourtant il ny avait plus que huit jours `a passer
ALEEL. I shatter you in fragments, for the face
According to their needs.
I found the story of the Countess Cathleen in what professed to be a collection of Irish folk?lore in an Irish newspaper some years ago. I wrote to the compiler, asking about its source, but got no answer, but have since heard that it was translated from Les Matin`ees de Timoth`e Trimm a good many years ago, and has been drifting about the Irish press ever since. L`eo Lesp`es gives it as an Irish story, and though the editor of Folklore has kindly advertised for information, the only Christian variant I know of is a Donegal tale, given by Mr. Larminie in his West Irish Folk Tales and Romances, of a woman who goes to hell for ten years to save her husband, and s九-九-藏-书-网tays there another ten, having been granted permission to carry away as many souls as could cling to her skirt. L`eo Lesp`es may have added a few details, but I have no doubt of the essential antiquity of what seems to me the most impressive form of one of the supreme parables of the world. The parable came to the Greeks in the sacrifice of Alcestis, but her sacrifice was less overwhelming, less apparently irremediable. L`eo Lesp`es tells the story as follows:??
Cent cinquante mille `ecus dor.?
Deux jours apr`es, les ordres de la pieuse Ketty `etaient
And God the herdsman goads them on behind,
(The ANGEL turns again and is about to go, but is seized by ALEEL.)
To every man and woman: judge, and give
printed in the body of this book, because the change for dramatic purposes has been made for no better reason
ALEEL. Shes bartered it away this very hour,
taking the part
Quand on ouvrit sa porte, on la trouva raide et froide: elle `etait morte de douleur.
The Countess Cathleen was acted in Dublin in 1899, with Mr. Marcus St. John and Mr. Trevor Lowe as the
Eh bien! Patrick, vendez tout cc qui nest pas or et apportez?men le montant. je ne veux garder `a moi
Therefore happy even like those that dance.
en frissonnant.
Fat Asmodel and giddy Belial,
Pour le double de ces sommes.?
Master Patrick, lui dit elle, combien ai?je de pi`eces dor dans mon coffre??
She wander the loud waters. Do not weep
Et pendant quils demeur`erent dans lh`otellerie, ils ne
faces of the players, making footlights
Jai une `ame `a vendre; mais elle est ch`ere.?
Abbey Theatre. The first two scenes are almost wholly new, and throughout the play I have added or left out
l`egende telle que je la sais.
another, and both
O, Queen of Heaven, and all you blessed saints,
CATHLEEN. (half rising) Lay all the bags of money in a heap, And when I am gone, old Oona, share them
Le lendemain, quand on sut quil existait deux opulents
A PEASANT WOMAN. And will she give
sallong`erent sous leurs gants de cuir; leurs yeux gris
(She dies.)
A PEASANT. She was more beautiful than the pale stars.
?
full of rich tints under the stream of light from the arcs. The two or more arches in the third scene permit the
majordome.
Tenez, distribuez ceci. Avec la somme que je vous donne les pauvres attendront la huitaine
crainte d`etre tromp`es par des mis`eres fictives: que la douleur frappe `a la porte, nous ouvrirons.
Cent mille.?
`etaient bien diverses. Les uns avaient la fiert`e dans le regard, les autres portaient la honte au front. Les deux
ordre de Lucifer jusquau moment o`u ils pourront livrer l`ame de Ketty qui leur a `echapp`e. je vous dis la
On the High Altar though one fall. Aleel,
Let us and ours be lost, so she be shriven.
a moment and tu藏书网rns.)
commisvoyageurs du malin esprit, qui ne trouvaient plus d`ames `a acheter.
and a gallery of artisans alike insisted on the freedom of literature.
Her eyes were full of tears, and when for a moment
Mais la vente de cette `ame si adorable dans sa charit`e fut d`eclar`ee nulle par le Seigneur: car elle avait
Combien de ch`ateaux, de bois et de terres??
That it may be no more with mortal things:
?
Puis elle senferma et recommanda quon ne vint pas la d`eranger.
disparurent de leur h`otellerie, sans quon s`ut jamais ce quils `etaient devenus.
OONA. Where is the Countess Cathleen? All this day
OONA. O, that so many pitchers of rough clay
Alors les pauvres sollicit`erent
Should prosper and the porcelain break in two!
After the performance in 1899 I added the love scene between Aleel and the Countess, and in this new form
OTHER PEASANT WOMEN. Hush!
sauv`e ses concitoyens de la morte `eternelle.
Pour autant dargent.?
Aides par un valet infame, ils p`en`etr`erent dans la retraite de la noble dame et lui d`erob`erent le reste de son
O, she is dead!
That I would die and go to her I love,
And haughty sky, fall down!
mis`ere
than that audiences??even at the Abbey Theatre??are almost ignorant of Irish mythology or because a
(He kneels beside her, but does not seem to hear her words. The PEASANTS return. They carry the
And brazen swords clang upon brazen helms.
You shall not drift into eternity.
Kathleen. They had to face a very vehement opposition stirred up by a politician and a newspaper, the one
America by amateurs. Now at last I have made a complete revision to make it suitable for performance at the
Look no more on the half?closed gates of Hell,
incidental music to allow the scene set behind it to be changed. The play when played without interval in this
ANOTHER PEASANT WOMAN.
Son esprit, sa croyance m`eme
Est remont`e.
OONA. God guard her soul.
And I am broken by their passing feet.
Pour sauver les pauvres quelle aime
The play was performed at the Abbey Theatre for the first time on December 14, 1911, Miss Maire ONeill
opposite side. The principal lighting is from two arc lights in the balcony which throw their lights into the
personne navait oui parler, et qui parlaient n`eanmoins avec la plus grande perfection la langue du pays. Leurs cheveux `etaient noirs et ferr`es avec de lor et leurs robes dune grande magnificence.
maximes de lEvangile,
darkens as the scene goes on.)
Carola as Mary, Miss Florence Farr as Aleel, Miss Anna Mather as Oona, Mr. Charles Holmes as the
La somme lui fut compt`ee.
And tell of her who lies there.
Au s`ejour damour ineffable
Having but breath in their kind bodies, farewell
Vous achetez des `ames??
shallow stage made the elaborate vision of armed angels upon a mounhttp://www.99lib.nettain?side impossible. The new end is
First and Second Demon, Mr. Valentine Grace as Shemus Rua, Master Charles Sefton as Teig, Madame San
m`ecr`eants profitaient de la mis`ere publique pour d`erober des coeurs `a Dieu, elle fit appeler son
`etincel`erent:??l`ame, pure, immacul`ee, virginale de Ketty c`etait une acquisition inappr`eciable.
is dragging me away.
politician and newspaper made such obvious appeals to the
tr`esor. . . en vain lutta?t?elle de toutes ses forces pour sauver le contenu de son coffre, les larrons diaboliques
because I made Irish men and women, who, it seems, never did such a thing, sell theirs. The
Too great a while, for there is many a candle
(She kisses the hands Of CATHLEEN.)
n`ecessaire et pas une de leurs `ames ne sera livr`ee au d`emon.
Cette `ame au d`evoument sublime,
dont voici les derniers couplets:?
I gaze upon them as the swallow gazes
?Mais les pauvres lont racont`e d`age en `age et les enfants de Cork et de Dublin chantent encore la ballade
Confiteor.
ANGEL. The light beats down; the gates of pearl are wide.
He moves about as though the air was full of spirits.
AN OLD PEASANT WOMAN. The little plant I loved is broken in two.
But speak to me whose mind is smitten of God,
Has fallen on her face; the Light of Lights
A PEASANT. We were under the tree where the path turns
Elle passa douze heures dans les larmes et le deuil, arrachant ses cheveux couleur de soleil et meurtrissant son
Crouch down, old heron, out of the blind storm.
OONA enters.)
Gentlemen, leur dit lh`otesse un jour, do`u vient que vous `etes si opulents, et que, venus pour secourir la
COUNTESS CATHLEEN and lay her upon the ground before OONA and ALEEL. She lies there as if dead.)
unnecessary. The room at Shemus Ruas house is suggested by a great grey curtain?a colour which becomes
And all the fiends. Now they leap in the air.
As though we two were never in the world.
Ceci ne faisait pas le compte, dit la tradition, des
Upon the nest under the eave, before
M. Kelly as a Peasant Woman, Mr. T. E. Wilkinson as a Servant, and Miss May Whitty as The Countess
Trois jours se pass`erent; elle nappela pas; elle ne sortit pas.
Combien de bijoux??
And Mary of the seven times wounded heart
Oui, un peu malgr`e vous, nest ce pas, sainte aux yeux de sapbir??
use of a gauze. The short front scene before the last is just long enough when played with
for a moment, then she speaks in a half?scream.)
When she grew pale as death and fainted away.
OONA. Tell them who walk upon the floor of peace,
And now I do not know where she is gone.
The Shadow of Shadows on the deed alone.
Enough to keep my children through the dearth?
accusing me in a
having been written before I knew anything of the theatre. I have left the old99lib.net end, however, in the version
Mais lange qui se fit coupable
Satan vaincu neut pas de prise
exigences de la disette, et les pauvres allaient ou expirer dans les angoisses de la faim, ou, reniant les saintes
que ce castel et le champs qui lentoure.
Elle se rendit chez les marchands d`ames.
And they are rising through the hollow world.
de plus; car Satan avait eu le temps dy former hypoth`eque. L`ame dune `pouse en valait cinquante quand
dOrient. Mais, huit jours, c`etait un si`ecle : huit jours n`ecessitaient une somme immense pour subvenir aux
The storm is in my hair and I must go.
trafiquants achetaient des `ames pour le d`emon. L`ame dun vieillard valait vingt pi`eces dor, pas un penny
sein couleur du lis: puis elle se leva r`esolue, anim`ee par un vif sentiment de d`esespoir.
Tous deux semblaient avoir le m`eme age; ils paraissaient `etre des hommes de cinquante ans, car leur barbe grisormait un peu.
pamphlet, the other in long articles day after day, of blasphemy because of the language of the demons or of
Apr`es la huitaine, des vaisseaux nombreux amen`erent lIrlande affam`ee dimmenses provisions de grains.
Aujourdhui je viens vous proposer un march`e, reprit elle.?
CATHLEEN. O! hold me, and hold me tightly, for the storm
Que voulez?vous? dirent ils.?
pour que les grains et les fourrages arrivassent en abondance des pays
plus belles et les plus pures sont les plus ch`eres.
Disons pour racheter son crime,
peuple, et la providence des indigents. D`es quelle eut appris que des
Confiteor.
ALEEL. Cathleen has chosen other friends than us,
Sur ce coeur dor;
CATHLEEN. Bend down your faces, Oona and Aleel;
`etrangers pr`ets `a prodiguer lor, la foule assi`egea leur logis; mais les figures des gens qui en sortaient
vendre `a vil prix leur `ame, le plus beau pr`esent de la
And she is passing to the floor of peace,
Par charit`e
publique, vous ne fassiez pas de bonnes oeuvres?
Ketty donna
?
munificence du Seigneur toutpuissant.
Herdsman, Mr. Jack Wilcox as the Gardener, Mr. Walford as a Peasant, Miss Dorothy Paget as a Spirit, Miss
?Belle h`otesse, r`epondit lun deux, nous navons pas voulu aller au?devant dinfortunes honorables, dans la
en vain, ils demeur`erent silencieux et discrets.
That know not the hard burden of the world,
Ce que je vais vous dire est un r`ecit du car`eme Irlandais. Le boiteux, laveugle, le paralytique des rues de Dublin ou de Limerick, vous le diraient mieux que moi, cher lecteur, si vous alliez le leur demander, un
Has kissed her lips, and the long blessed hair
The ANGEL is about to pass out to the L. when ALEEL speaks. The ANGEL Stops
and have a flight of steps at one side up which the Angel comes, crossing towards the back of the stage at the
Are but a ball of passionate dust again!