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Tried troops and true, all honourable soldiers,

More than a thousand noblemen among them,
From oaths, from duty, from their honour lure them,
And make them all unanimous to do

A deed that brands them scoundrels?

Such a deed,

Oct. With such a front of infamy, the Duke Noways desires-what he requires of us Bears a far gentler appellation. Nothing He wishes, but to give the Empire peace. And so, because the Emperor hates this peace, Therefore the Duke-the Duke will force him to it. All parts of the Empire will he pacify.

And for his trouble will retain in payment

(What he has already in his gripe)—Bohemia ! Max. Has he, Octavio, merited of us,

That we

—that we should think so vilely of him?
Oct. What we would think is not the question here.
The affair speaks for itself-and clearest proofs !
Hear me, my son—'tis not unknown to thee,
In what ill credit with the Court we stand.
But little dost thou know, or guess what tricks,
What base intrigues, what lying artifices,
Have been employ'd-for this sole end-to sow
Mutiny in the camp! All bands are loos'd—
Loos'd all the bands that link the officer
To his liege Emperor, all that bind the soldier
Affectionately to the citizen.

Lawless he stands, and threat'ningly beleaguers
The state he's bound to guard. To such a height
"T is swoln, that at this hour the Emperor
Before his armies-his own armies-trembles;
Yea, in his capital, his palace, fears

The traitors' poniards, and is meditating

To hurry off and hide his tender offspring

Not from the Swedes, not from the Lutherans—
No! from his own troops hide and hurry them!
Max. Cease, cease! thou tortur'st, shatter'st me.
I know

That oft we tremble at an empty terror;

But the false phantasm brings a real misery.
Oct. It is no phantasm. An intestine war,
Of all the most unnatural and cruel,
Will burst out into flames, if instantly
We do not fly and stifle it. The Generals
Are many of them long ago won over;
The subalterns are vacillating-whole
Regiments and garrisons are vacillating.
To foreigners our strong holds are intrusted;
l'o that suspected Shafgotch is the whole
Force of Silesia given up; to Tertsky
Five Regiments, foot and horse-to Isolani,
To Illo, Kinsky, Butler, the best troops.

Max. Likewise to both of us.

Oct.

Because the Duke

Believes he has secur'd us-means to lure us
Still further on by splendid promises.
To me he portions forth the princedoms Glatz
And Sagan; and too plain I see the angel
With which he doubts not to catch thee.

Max.

I tell thee-no!

Oct.

O open yet thine eyes!

No! no!

And to what purpose think'st thou he has call'd us
Hither to Pilsen? To avail himself

Of our advice? O when did Friedland ever
Need our advice? Be calm, and listen to me.
To sell ourselves are we call'd hither, and
Decline we that—to be his hostages.
Therefore doth noble Galas stand aioof;

Thy father, too, thou would'st not have seen here,
If higher duties had not held him fetter'd.

Max. He makes no secret of it-needs make none-
That we're call'd hither for his sake-he owns it.
He needs our aidance to maintain himself-

He did so much for us; and 'tis but fair

That we, too, should do somewhat now for him.

Oct. And know'st thou what it is which we must

do?

That Illo's drunken mood betray'd it to thee.
Bethink thyself--what hast thou heard, what seen?
The counterfeited paper--the omission

Of that particular clause, so full of meaning,
Does it not prove that they would bind us down
To nothing good?

Max.

That counterfeited paper

Appears to me no other than a trick

Of Illo's own device. These underhand
Traders in great men's interests, ever use
To urge and hurry all things to the extreme.
They see the Duke at variance with the court,

And fondly think to serve him, when they widen
The breach irreparably. Trust me, father,

The Duke knows nothing of all this.

It grieves me

Oct.
That I must dash to earth, that I must shatter
A faith so specious; but I may not spare thee!

For this is not a time for tenderness.

Thou must take measures, speedy ones-must act.
I therefore will confess to thee, that all

Which I've intrusted to thee now-that all
Which seems to thee so unbelievable,

That—yes, I will tell thee—(a pause)—Max. I had it all
From his own mouth-from the Duke's mouth I had it.
Max. (in excessive agitation). No!-no!-never!

Oct.

Himself confided to me What I, 't is true, had long before discover'd By other means—himself confided to me, That 't was his settled plan to join the Swedes; And, at the head of the united armies,

Compel the Emperor

Max.

He is passionate.

The court has stung him-he is sore all over
With injuries and affronts; and in a moment
Of irritation, what if he, for once,

Forgot himself? He's an impetuous man.

Oct. Nay, in cold blood he did confess this to me;

And having construed my astonishment

Into a scruple of his power, he show'd me

His written evidences-show'd me letters,

Both from the Saxon and the Swede, that gave
Promise of aidance, and defin'd th' amount.

Max. It cannot be !-can not be—can not be!
Dost thou not see, it cannot!

Thou wouldest of necessity have shown him
Such horror, such deep loathing—that or he
Had tak'n thee for his better genius, or

Thou stood'st not now a living man before me-
Oct. I have laid open my objections to him,
Dissuaded him with pressing earnestness;
But my abhorrence, the full sentiment

Of my whole heart-that I have still kept sacred
To my own consciousness.

Max.

And thou hast been

So treacherous? That looks not like my father!
I trusted not thy words, when thou didst tell me
Evil of him; much less can I now do it.

That thou calumniatest thy own self.

Oct. I did not thrust myself into his secresy.
Max. Uprightness merited his confidence.

S

Oct. He was no longer worthy of sincerity. Max. Dissimulation, sure, was still less worthy Of thee, Octavio !

Oct.

Gave I him a cause

To entertain a scruple of my honour?

Max. That he did not, evinc'd his confidence.
Oct. Dear son, it is not always possible
Still to preserve that infant purity

Which the voice teaches in our inmost heart.
Still in alarm, for ever on the watch

Against the wiles of wicked men, e'en Virtue
Will sometimes bear away her outward robes
Soil'd in the wrestle with Iniquity.
This is the curse of every evil deed,
That, propagating still, it brings forth evil.
I do not cheat my better soul with sophisms;
I but perform my orders; the Emperor
Prescribes my conduct to me.
Dearest boy,
Far better were it, doubtless, if we all
Obey'd the heart at all times; but so doing,
In this our present sojourn with bad men,
We must abandon many an honest object.
'Tis now our call to serve the Emperor,
By what means he can best be serv'd-the heart
May whisper what it will—this is our call!

Max. It seems a thing appointed, that to-day
I should not comprehend, not understand thee.
The Duke, thou say'st, did honestly pour out
His heart to thee, but for an evil purpose;
And thou dishonestly hast cheated him
For a good purpose! Silence, I intreat thee—
My friend thou stealest not from me-

Let me not lose my father!

Oct. (suppressing resentment). As yet thou know'st not all, my son. I have

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