FAUSTUS:HISLIFE, DEATH, AND DOOM. 

 A ROMANCE IN PROSE. 

 Translated from the German. 

 "Speed thee, speed thee, Liberty lead thee, Many this night shall hearken and heed thee. Far abroad, Demi-god, Who shall appal thee! Javal, or devil, or what else we call thee. "

 LONDON: W. KENT AND CO. , PATERNOSTER-ROW. 1864. 

 LONDON: ROBSON AND LEVEY, PRINTERS, GREAT NEW STREET, FETTER LANE. 

THE TRANSLATOR TO THE PUBLIC. 

The publication of the present volume may at first sight appear torequire some brief explanation from the Translator, inasmuch as thecharacter of the incidents may justify such an expectation on the part ofthe reader. It is therefore necessary to state, that although strangescenes of vice and crime are here exhibited, it is in the hope that theymay serve as beacons, to guide the ignorant and unwary from the shoals onwhich they might otherwise be wrecked. 

The work, when considered as a whole, is strictly moral. The Catholicpriest is not praised for burning his fellow-creature at an _auto-da-fe_, and for wallowing in licentiousness; nor is the Calvinist commended forhis unrelenting malignity to all those whose tenets are different fromhis own, and for crying down the most innocent pleasures and relaxationswhich a bountiful and just God has been pleased to place within the reachof his earthly children. 

The tyrant and the oppressor of mankind will here find himself depictedin his proper colours. 

Neither will the _champions of freedom_ pass the fiery ordeal with feetunseared; since a glorious specimen of what they all are will be foundamong the following pages. Ye who with ever-open mouths are constantlyclamouring at whatever is established, whether it be beneficial to thehuman race or injurious, will here find the motives for your conductpointed out and held up to contempt and execration. 

But, above all, this work contains the following highly useful advice:

Let every one bear his lot with patience, and not seek, at the expense ofhis repose, to penetrate into those secrets which the spirit of man, while dressed in the garb of mortality, cannot and must not unveil. Letevery one bridle those emotions which the strange and frequentlyrevolting phenomena of the moral world may cause to arise in his bosom, and beware of deciding upon them; for He alone who has power to check orpermit them, can know how and why they happen, whither they tend, andwhat will be their ultimate consequence. To the mind of man all is dark;he is an enigma to himself: let him live, therefore, in the hope of onceseeing clearly; and happy indeed is he who in this manner passes hisdays. 

The present translation, it should be added, has been executed with asmuch fidelity to the original as the difference of the two languages, andother considerations, would allow. 

CONTENTS. CHAPTER I. 1Ambitious Character ofFaustus--His Discovery ofPrinting--Journey toFrankfort--The Devil, the WhiteNun, and Father Gebhardt ofMayence--Faustus offers his Bibleto the Council of Frankfort--Hisfirst Interview with aSpirit--The InfernalBanquet--Speech ofSatan--Allegorical Entertainmentsof Leviathan--Faustus's Dialoguewith the Devil CHAPTER II. 60Leviathan meets Faustus at an Innat Frankfort--Assembling of theCouncil, and Discussion onFaustus's Bible--CorporationSquabbles--Leviathan and Faustusinvited to a grand CivicEntertainment--Faustus presentshis Bible to the City--HisIntroduction to theMayoress--Knighthood of theMayor--The Devil's Revenge on theCorrupt Corporation--The Hermitof Homburg--A Lesson toMisanthropists--The Hermit andthe lovely Pilgrim--His Hut burntby Leviathan, and he perishes inthe Flames--Faustus returns tohis Wife and Family atMayence--Espouses the Cause of adespairing Client, and corruptsthe Judge--Dispute about the NunClara--Leviathan's Revenge on theavaricious Judge--Faustus'sAdventure with Clara--Takes leaveof his Family--Rescues a Youthfrom Drowning CHAPTER III. 116The Devil and Faustus continuetheir Journey on the Banks of theFulda--The oppressivePrince-Bishop--Faustus'sInterview with theBishop--Clerical Luxury--Case ofDr. Robertus, the Protector ofthe People--Faustus espouses hisCause, and liberates the"Patriot"--The Devil and Faustusvisit the Court of the Prince of---. --The betrayed Minister andhis Daughter--The Devil andFaustus imprisoned--The Fiendsuffocates the Prince, and, withFaustus, resumes his Journey--TheWildgrave and burningVillage--The infatuatedMonk--School ofPhysiognomy--Faustus and theVirgin Student--The Devil'sPeep-show, and its TalismanicInfluence--Portrait of the Fiend CHAPTER IV. 181France in the Reign of LouisXI. --Interview of the Devil andFaustus with Father Vesois--Lovesof Madame de Monserau--Faustusand the French Widow--The FatalSupper--Arrival of Faustus andthe Devil at Paris--Execution ofthe Duke of Nemours--Faustus andthe avariciousFather--Infanticiderecommended--Horrible Death ofthe Miser, and Ruin of hisDaughter--Trial of a humaneSurgeon, and ungratefulMurderer--AnatomicalCruelties--Prisons ofParis--Bishop of Verdun'sCages--Perillus, the TyrantPhalaris, and the BrazenBull--Atrocious Character ofLouis XI. --The Hermit ofCalabria--Faustus and the Devilvisit England--Cruelties ofRichard, Duke of Gloucester--TheDevil's Portraiture of theEnglish Character--Arrival ofFaustus and the Fiend atMilan--Murder of the Duke GaleasSforza--Florence--SpanishAuto-da-Fe--Pope AlexanderVI. --Combat of a Papal Generalwith one of his Officers for aWhite Goat--Machinations of thePope--Ancient and Modern Rome, and her Abominations--CardinalCaesar Borgia--LicentiousEntertainments at theVatican--The Pope and hisIllegitimates--Caesar Borgia andMichelotto--Stratagem to deposehis Brother Francisco--Murder ofthe latter--Faustus and thelovely Lucretia--Vanity of HumanPhilosophy, and Sophistry of itsProfessors--Atrocious Plots andExcesses of Pope Alexander--HisSale of Indulgences--AmendedCatalogue, with increasedPrices--Murder of Alphonso ofArragon--Caesar Borgia's Letterto the Pope--CardinalOrsini--Borgia's Triumphal Entryinto Rome--Marriage ofLucretia--Gross Festivities--TheDevil's Apostrophethereon--Descent of the Pope intoHell, and Death of Caesar Borgia CHAPTER V. 261Faustus's Consolation for hisCrimes--Philosophy ofVoltaire--Faustus's portentousDream--Apparition of hisFather--Baseness and Ingratitudeof Man--Flight of the Devil andFaustus to Mayence--Death of hisSon, and Destruction of hisFamily--Retrospect of hiscriminal Career--Accursed Destinyof Faustus, and Triumph of theDevil--Descent of Faustus intoHell CHAPTER I. 

Faustus, having long struggled with the shadows of Theology, the bubblesof Metaphysics, and the _ignes-fatui_ of Morality, without being able tobring his mind to a firm conviction, at length cast himself into the darkfields of Magic, in the hope of forcing from Nature what she had soobstinately withheld from him. His first attainment was the remarkableinvention of Printing; but his second was horrible. He discovered, almost fortuitously, the dreadful formula by which devils are called outof hell, and made subservient to the will of man. But as yet he had notexerted his power, out of love to his immortal soul, for whose welfareevery Christian is so anxious. At this period he was in the full bloomof manhood. Nature had favoured him in his person, and had given him anoble and expressive countenance. Here was enough to bespeak hishappiness in the world; but she superadded pride and untamableimpetuosity of mind, which displayed itself in deep determination ofpurpose, and in the constant workings of a heated imagination, which wasnever satisfied with the present, but affected to discover the emptinessand insufficiency of the acquired object, even in the zest of itsenjoyment. 

Faustus soon lost the path by which moderation leads frail mortals to theabode of true happiness. He soon felt the narrow limits of humanity, andendeavoured to burst their bonds. By what he had learnt and believed inhis youth, he entertained a high opinion of the capacity and moral worthof man; and, in comparing himself with others, he naturally laid thegreatest part of the sum-total to his own account. Here were finematerials for greatness and glory: but true greatness and true glorygenerally fly from him who is on the point of attaining them, just beforehe can separate their fine pure forms from the mist and vapour whichdelusion has shed round them. It appeared to Faustus that, in hissituation, the nearest and most convenient way to honour and reputationwould be the sciences; yet scarcely had he tasted their enchantment whenhis soul became inflamed with an ardent passion after truth. Every onewho is acquainted with these sirens, and has heard their deceitful song, must know that, provided he does not make a mere trade of them, he mustinfallibly miss his aim, from the necessity of assuaging the burningthirst with which they inspire him. Faustus, after he had for a longtime groped about in the labyrinth, found that his earnings were doubt;displeasure at the short-sightedness of man; and discontent and murmuringagainst the Being who had formed him. He might still have beencomparatively happy had he had only these feelings to combat: but whenthe perusal of the sages and the poets awakened a thousand new wants inhis soul, and his now winged and artificial imagination conjured upbefore his eyes the many intoxicating enjoyments which gold andreputation could only procure him, his blood ran like fire through hisveins, and all his faculties were soon swallowed up by this sensation. 

By the discovery of Printing, Faustus thought he had at length opened thedoor to riches, honour, and enjoyment. He exerted himself to the utmost, in order to bring the art to perfection, and he now laid his discoverybefore mankind; but their lukewarmness quickly convinced him that, although the greatest inventor of his age, he and his family would soonperish with hunger unless his genius continually displayed itself in somenew forms. Hurled from the pinnacle of hope, oppressed by heavydebts, --which he had incurred by generosity and extravagant living, andby his becoming security for false friends, --he now surveyed the worldthrough a gloomy medium. His domestic ties, when he no longer knew howto support his family, became an intolerable burden. He began to thinkthat there was a malign influence in the distribution of men's fortunes:or how did it happen that the noble and intellectual man was every whereoppressed, neglected, and in misery; whilst the knave and the fool wererich, prosperous, and honoured in life?

In this melancholy state of mind Faustus wandered from Mayence toFrankfort, intending to sell one of his printed Latin Bibles to themagistracy, and then to return and buy with the produce food for hishungry children. He had been able to accomplish nothing in his nativecity, because at that time the Archbishop was at war with the wholeChapter, and all Mayence found itself in the greatest confusion. Thecause was as follows: a Dominican monk had dreamt that he passed thenight with his penitent, the lovely Clara, who was a white nun, and aniece of the Archbishop. In the morning it was his turn to read mass; hedid so, and, unabsolved from the night of sin, received the host in hisprofane hands. At eve-tide, after a cup or two of Rhenish, he relatedhis dream to a young novice. The dream tickled the imagination of thenovice: he told it with some additions to a monk; and in this manner thestory, embellished with horrors and licentiousness, ran through theconvent, until it came to the ears of the Prior himself. This holy man, who hated Father Gebhardt on account of his intimacy with the mostrespectable houses, was shocked at the scandalousness of the affair, which he considered as a profanation of the holy sacrament; and, refusingto decide on such a weighty matter, he referred it to the Archbishop. The Archbishop, wisely concluding that whatever sinful man wishes orthinks by day he dreams of by night, denounced the ban of the Churchagainst the monk. The Chapter, whose hatred to an Archbishop alwaysincreases the longer he lives, and gladly seizes every opportunity toannoy him, took Father Gerhardt under its protection, and opposed the banon these grounds: "It is well known that the Devil tempted St. Anthonywith the most licentious representations and voluptuous enticements; andif the Devil dared to act so with a saint, whose equal was not to befound in the calendar, what should prevent him from playing off hispranks with a Dominican? We must therefore advise the monk to follow theexample of the holy Anthony, and, like him, to oppose the temptations ofthe fiend with the weapons of prayer and fasting. It is, however, muchto be lamented, that Satan should have so little respect for theArchbishop as to make the instrument of his wiles assume the figure ofone of his reverence's family. " The Chapter conducted itself in thiscase exactly in the same manner as hereditary princes do whose fatherslive too long. But what served more completely to confuse the case was areport from the nunnery. The nuns had assembled in the refectory, andwere busied in dressing up a Madonna for the next festival, hoping tosurpass by its magnificence their rivals the black nuns, when suddenlythe old porteress entered, told the licentious story, and added, that theDominican, whose name she had forgot, would certainly be burnt alive, forthat the Chapter had even then assembled for the purpose of trying him. Whilst the porteress was relating the tale with its variouscircumstances, the faces of the young nuns were violently flushed, andSin, who never loses an opportunity of corrupting innocent hearts, shotinto their blood, and hastily pictured the dangerous scene to theirimaginations. Fury and consternation, in the mean time, deformed thefeatures of the old ones. The abbess trembled and leaned on her staff, while the spectacles fell from her face. But when the porteress added, that it was the sister Clara whom the fiend had brought to the Dominicanin his dream, a dreadful shriek filled the whole hall. Clara aloneremained tranquil, and when the uproar had ceased, she said, smiling:"Dear sisters, why do you shriek so fearfully? I myself dreamt that Ipassed the night with Father Gebhardt, my confessor; and if it was thework of the fiend" (here she and all the rest made the sign of thecross), "why, we must give him the discipline. " "The Father Gebhardt!"cried the porteress; "now, all ye saints and angels, that is the veryperson who dreamt of you; that is he whom they are about to burn. " Theporteress having thus expressed herself, this second version of the dreamwas immediately circulated through the city. The Madonna was allowed toremain naked, for the sisters cared now very little if the black nunsbore away the palm. The abbess did all in her power to spread the newsabroad, the housekeeper followed her example, the porteress harangued anaudience beneath the gateway, and Clara candidly replied to the yet morecandid questions of her companions. The last trumpet could not havediffused in Mayence more terror and confusion than did this extraordinarytale. 

No sooner did the Dominican prior hear of this accident than he ran tothe assembled Chapter, and gave, by his information, a new turn to theaffair. The Archbishop would willingly have suppressed the wholebusiness; but it was now time for the Chapter to take it up, and all thecanons were unanimously of opinion, that so strange a circumstance oughtto be communicated to the Holy Father at Rome. They now becameinfuriated, and nothing but the midday bell had power to separate them. From that moment, all Mayence, clergy and laity, divided into twoparties; and for many years nothing was heard, spoken, or dreamt of, butthe Devil, the white nun, and Father Gebhardt. The matter was arguedfrom the pulpit of every sect: mountebanks, Capuchins, and dog-doctors, made it their theme; while the lawyers, after having taken thedepositions of the nun and the father, and confronted them with eachother, wrote folio volumes concerning the sinful and unsinful chances ofthe dream. Was this a time for Faustus and his discoveries to succeed?

In Frankfort, which is at the present day the asylum of science, Faustus, however, hoped for better fortune. He offered his Bible to the reverendTown Council for two hundred gold guilders; but, as a large sum had justbeen expended in purchasing five hogsheads of prime Rhenish for thecouncil cellar, his demand came rather unseasonably. He paid his courtto the town-clerk, to the speaker, and to the senators, --from the proudpatrician to the yet prouder head of the shoemaker guild. He waspromised by all favour, protection, and assistance. 

At length he attached himself to the then presiding mayor, from whom hefor a long time gained nothing; but, as if in recompense, thelady-mayoress kindled a violent passion in his susceptible heart. Oneevening the mayor assured him that the council, on their next day ofmeeting, would come to a determination, by virtue of which the assembledmembers would most probably pay down the sum for the Bible. Faustusreplied, that his children might very possibly die of hunger before soenlightened an assembly had decided; and, maddened with despair, he nowreturned to his solitary apartment. In this moment he suddenlyrecollected his magic formula. The thought of running some bold risk, and of purchasing independence of man by an alliance with the Devil, rushed more vividly than ever through his brain. Yet the idea terrifiedhim. With hasty steps, furious gestures, and fearful cries, he strode upand down the chamber, struggling with his rebellious spirit, which urgedhim to penetrate the surrounding darkness; still his soul shuddered andwas unresolved. The clock struck eleven from the neighbouring tower. Black night hung about the earth. The north-wind howled, and cloudsobscured the face of the full moon. Nature now appeared in a secondchaos. A night more suited to bewilder an excited imagination could notbe conceived. Yet was the beam of his mind balanced. In one scale hungreligion and its firm supporter--the hope of immortality; while thirstfor independence and knowledge, pride, pleasure, malevolence, andbitterness filled the other. 

At length Faustus, according to the custom of magic, drew the horriblecircle which was for ever to remove him from the providential care of theOmnipotent, and from the sweet ties of humanity. His eyes sparkled, hisheart beat louder, and his yellow tresses stood erect on his head. Atthis moment he thought he saw his aged father and his blooming wife andchildren wring their hands in despair, and fall down upon their knees topray for him to that Being whom he was about to renounce. "It is theirmisery, it is their situation, that maddens me, " he wildly shrieked, andstamped on the ground with his foot. He now became enraged at theweakness of his heart, and advanced towards the circle; the storm rattledagainst the windows, the foundation of the house trembled: a nobleangelic figure appeared before him, exclaiming, "Stay, Faustus!" and thefollowing colloquy ensued:

_Faustus_. Who art thou, that disturbest my daring work?

_Figure_. I am the Genius of Man, and will save thee, if thou art to besaved. 

_Faustus_. What canst thou give me to assuage my thirst for knowledge, and my desire for freedom and enjoyment?

_Figure_. Humility, resignation in suffering, content, and a properestimation of thyself; above all, an easy death, and light in the worldto come. 

_Faustus_. Begone, vision of my heated fancy! I know thee by thecunning with which thou wouldst deceive the wretches whom thou hast madesubservient to power. Begone, and hover around the brows of the beggar, of the monk, of the debased slave, and of all those who have their heartsfettered by unnatural bonds; and who keep their senses locked up, inorder to escape from the claws of despair. The powers of my soul requireroom, and let Him who has given me it answer for its workings. 

"Farewell, unhappy man, " sighed the Genius, and disappeared. 

Faustus cried, "Am I to be frightened on the very brink of hell bynursery-tales? But they shall not prevent me from piercing the darkness;I will know what the gloomy curtain conceals, which a tyrannical hand hasdrawn before our eyes. And who is to blame, I repeat? Was it I thatformed myself so that trifling exertion exhausts my strength? Did Iplant in my bosom the seeds of passion? Did I place there that impulsefor aggrandisement which never lets me rest? Did I fashion my soul, sothat it will not submit, and will not bear contempt? Perhaps I am likethe earthen pot, which, formed by a strange hand, is broken into pieces, because it does not hit the fancy of the maker, and because it does notanswer the use for which it appears to have been designed. Alas! I am amere vessel; yet wherefore then this struggle with my destiny, whichwould fetter my noblest resolves? And was mind given for no purpose?Surely not! The bull trusts in his horns, and the stag in his swiftnessto escape from the hunter; and is that which so eminently distinguishesman less his own? Mind I possess; I employed it for the benefit of myfellow-men, and neglect was my reward; perhaps the devils will respect itmore. "

Here he sprung furiously into the circle; while the lamentations of hiswife, father, and children seemed to echo, in the deep tones of despair, "Lost! for ever lost!"

Satan, ruler of hell, had, by the hoarse sound of his trumpets, whichechoed even to the glowing sides of the sun, announced to all the fallenspirits dispersed through the upper and lower world, that he intended onthis day to give a great festival. The spirits assembled at the mightycall. Even his envoys at the papal stool, and at the different courts ofEurope, forsook their posts; for the invitation led them to expectsomething great and important. 

Already the monstrous vaults of hell resounded with the wild cries of thefiendish populace, while myriads seated themselves upon the scorchedground. The princes then stepped forth, and commanded silence to themultitude, whilst Satan heard the intelligence brought by his envoys fromthe upper world. The devils obeyed, and a death-like stillness prevailedamid the thick, misty darkness, interrupted only by the groans of thedamned. In the mean time the slaves of the fiends--shades who areneither worthy of happiness nor damnation--prepared the immeasurabletables for the banquet; and they deserved to be under the thraldom ofsuch a task. When they were yet in flesh and blood, and ate the fruitsof the earth, they were of that equivocal kind, who seem the friends ofall men and yet are the friends of none; whose tongues continuallyprattle of the noble precepts of virtue, which they feel not in theirhearts; who only abstain from evil because it is accompanied by danger, and from doing good because it requires courage and self-denial; whotraffic with religion, and, like avaricious Jews, lay out their capitalat interest, for the purpose of securing a comfortable berth for theirmiserable souls; and who worship God from fear, and tremble before Himlike slaves. 

The devils, who, to say the truth, are no better masters than the Polish, Livonian, and Hungarian nobility, drove them about in hell at a furiousrate. Others were sweating in the infernal kitchen, and cooking the mealfor their haughty lords--an unpleasant service for a soul which had oncesupported its own human body by eating and drinking. For although thedevils originally neither ate nor drank, yet they had learnt from men thecustom of celebrating every solemnity by means of the glass and platter;and on such occasions they feast on souls. The general of each legion(for hell is arranged on a military footing, and in this respectresembles every despotic government, or rather every despotic governmentin this respect resembles hell) chooses a certain number of damned souls, as food for his subalterns. These are delivered over to the slaves, whostew, broil, and baste them with infernal sauce. It frequently happensthat these wretches have to stick their own wives, daughters, fathers, sons, or brothers upon the spits, and to keep up the purgatorial firebeneath them; a truly horrible and tragic employment, rendered yet moreso, since their overseer, a capricious devil, like all understrappers ofgreat lords, stands behind them with a whip in order to expedite thework. On the present occasion two popes, a conqueror, a celebratedphilosopher, and a recently canonised saint, were intended to feast thepalates of Satan, his viziers, and his favourites. Abundance of freshvictuals had just arrived for the common people. The pope had a littletime before set by the ears two armies of French, Italians, Spaniards, and Germans, in order to fish up in the tumult certain districts, to addto the patrimony of St. Peter. They fought like heroes, and fell bythousands into the infernal regions. What happiness would it be for thesouls intended for these devilish repasts, if they were thereby to findan end to their torments! But no sooner are they swallowed, digested, and returned piecemeal into the pools of hell than they are regenerated, and arise to become the patients of new suffering. 

While these victims were writhing on the spits, the cellarers andbutlers, slaves of the above-mentioned order, decked out the sideboards. The flasks were filled with tears of hypocrites, of would-be saints, ofpretenders to sensibility, and of persons who repent from weakness ofsoul; with tears which envy squeezes out on hearing of another'sprosperity; with tears of egotists who weep for joy because theythemselves have escaped the misfortunes by which others are overwhelmed;and of sons who weep over the palls of their harsh and avariciousfathers. The flasks on the supper-table were filled with the tears ofpriests, who, like actors, play a part in the pulpit, in order to movetheir auditors; and to give the liquor a sharper flavour, it was mingledwith tears of courtesans, who walk the streets weeping for hunger, untilsome inexperienced youth barters his dollar with them for sin. Reservedfor Satan and his princes stood, on various sideboards, flasks of thenoblest drink. This was heady and foaming, being a mixture of the tearsof monarchs, who weep for the misery of their subjects, whilst they issuecommands only calculated to perpetuate it; of the tears of maidens whoweep for the loss of their chastity with streaming eyes; and of the tearsof favourites who have fallen into disgrace, and now weep because theycan no longer rob and oppress under the protection of their masters. 

No sooner had the slaves decked the table, and stationed themselvesbehind the chairs of their masters, than the grandees poured forth fromthe chambers of Satan. The furies went foremost; the body-guardsfollowed them, and were succeeded by the chamberlains. Then came pagesbearing lighted torches, woven out of the souls of monks who entrapwives, and press round the deathbed of husbands to force them to leavetheir property to the Church, without reflecting that their ownillegitimate spawn must beg for bread through the land. Then came Satanhimself, closely followed by the remaining nobility of his court, according to their rank and favour. The devils bowed their heads inreverence, the pages placed the torches upon the table of theirsovereign; while Satan, with a triumphant air, mounted his high throne, and delivered the following speech:

"Princes, potentates, immortal spirits, welcome! thrice welcome!Rapturous emotions glow through me when I cast my eyes along yoursquadrons of countless heroes. We are yet what we were when, for thefirst time, we awoke in this pool from the stunning consequences of ourfall, and for the first time assembled here. Only one feeling stillrules, --unanimity alone maintains her sway, and in this place only do alldevote themselves to the same end. He who has the happiness ofcommanding you may easily forget all other glory. I own we havesuffered, and still suffer, much, especially since the full exercise ofour powers is restrained. But in the feeling of the vengeance which wetake on the sons of dust, --in the contemplation of their madness andcrimes, by which they continually thwart the purposes of theirbeing, --lies a recompense for our suffering. Welcome, thrice welcome, all ye whom this sentiment inflames. 

"Hear now the occasion of the festival which I intend this day tocelebrate with you. Faustus, a daring mortal, who, like us, is at warwith the Eternal, and who, through the strength of his spirit, may atsome future period be deemed worthy to dwell along with us here, hasdiscovered the art of multiplying, on an easy principle, a thousand and athousandfold, those things denominated books, --those dangerous toys ofmen, --those vehicles of delusion, of error, of lies, and ofhorror, --those sources of pride and of painful doubt. Until now theyhave been too costly, and only in the hands of the rich, whom they filledwith fancies, and from whom they chased that humility which God had fortheir happiness infused into their hearts. Triumph! Soon will thepoison of knowledge and inquiry be communicated to all classes. Newcravings, new wants, will arise; and I doubt whether my enormous kingdomwill be able to contain all those who will destroy themselves by thisdelicious poison. But this were only a slight victory: my eye piercesdeeper into that distant period, which is to us no more than an hour isto man. Soon will cavillers and haters of the established Church spreadabout like the plague: pretended reformers of heaven and earth willarise, and their doctrines, from the facility of communication, willpenetrate even into the hut of the beggar. They will think to do good, and to purify the object of their hope from falsehood. But, if men beginwell, how long do they continue to act so! Sin is not more inseparablefrom them than are ill consequences from their noblest pursuits. Thewell-beloved people of God, whom he endeavoured to snatch from evil bythe sacrifice of his only Son, will quarrel about tenets which no oneunderstands, and will tear each other to pieces like wild-beasts. Horrible atrocities, surpassing all the abominations perpetrated by mensince they first sprung into existence, will desolate unhappy Europe. Myhopes appear to you too bold, --I read it in your doubting countenances;but listen to me whilst I explain. Religious disagreements will giverise to these frenzies. Then first will Fanaticism, the wild son ofHatred and Superstition, untie all the bonds of nature and humanity. Thefather will murder the son, and the son the father; kings will joyfullydip their fingers in the blood of their subjects, and place the sword inthe hands of bigots, in order that they may slaughter their brothers bythousands, because their opinions are different. Then will the water ofthe rivers turn into streams of blood, and the shrieks of the murderedwill shake hell to its very centre. We shall see wretches come down tous stained with crimes for which we have had hitherto neither names norpunishments. Already do I see them attack the papal chair, which keepstogether the fragile fabric through treachery and deceit, whilst itundermines itself through crime and luxury. The great props of thereligion which we dread give way; and, if the sinking structure be notsustained by means of new miracles, it will disappear from the face ofthe earth, and we shall once more shine in the temples as worshipeddivinities. Where will the spirit of man stop, when he has onceundertaken to illumine that which he formerly honoured as a mystery? Hewill dance on the grave of the tyrant, at whose frown he the day beforetrembled. He will break to pieces the altar on which he latelysacrificed, if he once endeavour to find the way to heaven by his ownwisdom. Will the Creator take home to himself a human being, who is nota million times more allied to us than to him? Man abuses every thing, even the strength of his soul as well as of his body. He abuses all thathe sees, hears, feels, or thinks; and all with which he trifles, or withwhich he is seriously engaged. Not content with deforming whatever hecan seize with his hands, he soars upon the wings of imagination intoworlds to him unknown, and arrays them in ideal deformity. Even freedom, the noblest of his treasures, to obtain which he has shed rivers ofblood, he readily sells for gold and pleasure, before he has tasted itssweets. Incapable of good, he yet trembles at evil, he heaps horror uponhorror to escape it, and then destroys his own handiwork. 

"After the bloodshed of war, mankind, wearied with slaughter, will take afew moments' repose, and then their venomous hatred will be displayed inpetty and private bickerings. Some, indeed, will every now and thenraise piles of wood and fagot, and burn those alive who disagree withthem in religion; others will attempt the solution of inexplicableriddles; and those born for darkness will dare to struggle for light;their imaginations will become inflamed, and their desires insatiable. Truth, simplicity, and religion will be trodden under foot, for the sakeof writing a book. Yes, yes, book-writing will become a universalemployment, by which fools and men of genius will alike seek fame andemolument; caring very little whether they confuse the heads of theirfellow-creatures, and hurl firebrands into the hearts of the innocent. The heaven, the earth, the secret strength of nature, the dark causes ofher phenomena, the power which rules the stars and bowls the cometsthrough space, --every thing visible and invisible, --they will wish tohandle, measure, and dive into. They will invent, for all that isincomprehensible, words and numbers; and heap system upon system, tillthey have brought deeper darkness upon the earth, through which doubt, like the fen-fire, will only shine to allure the wanderer into themorass. Only then will they think to see clearly, and then I expectthem. After they have shovelled away religion, and are forced, out ofthe remains, to patch together a new and monstrous mixture of humanwisdom and superstition, then I expect them. And then open wide thegates of hell, that the race of man may enter. The first step is alreadytaken; the second is near. But this must be preceded by a horriblerevolution upon the face of the earth. Soon will the inhabitants of theold world emigrate, for the purpose of discovering new, and to themunknown, regions of the globe. They will there attack and slaughtermillions, to possess themselves of that gold which the innocents valuenot. They will fill this new world with all their crimes, and thenreturn with materials for corrupting even the old one. Thus will nationsbecome our prey, whom till now innocence and ignorance have protectedfrom us. And thus shall we, by the assistance of the favourites ofheaven, triumph. 

"This, then, O potentates! is what I wished to communicate to you; andnow rejoice with me over this mighty day, and enjoy in anticipation thevictory which I, who know men, promise you. Long live Faustus!"

With horrible uproar, which made the axis of the earth tremble, and thebones of the dead rattle in their coffins, the devils shouted, "Long liveFaustus!" "Long live the corrupter of the sons of dust!" Hereupon thechief nobility of the kingdom were permitted to kiss the hand of hisSatanic majesty. 

The triumphant devils now sat down to table, and fell upon the preparedmeal. The goblets clattered, the souls were craunched between their ironteeth; and they drank the health of Satan, of Faustus, of the clergy, ofthe tyrants of the earth, and of future and living authors, amidst theclang of hellish artillery. In order to render the banquet moremagnificent, the masters of the revels went to the pools, drew out theburning souls, and chased them over the tables, to illumine the gloomyscene; while they ran behind the wretches with poisoned whips, forcingthem to caper; and sparks ascended to the blackened roofs, crackling likewheat-sheaves ignited by lightning in an autumn storm. That the devilsmight have music to their meat, others hastened to the pools, and pouredmolten metal amid the flames, so that the damned howled and cursed ingrisly despair. If priests now could, instead of their cold andfruitless sermons about penitence, give a specimen upon earth of thesehorrid cries, sinners would quickly turn a deaf ear to the voluptuouswarblings of castrati, and join in some pious psalm: but, alas, hell isdistant, and pleasure close at hand. After the banquet a great stage waserected, and various plays were performed, founded on the heroic deeds ofSatan; for example, the Fall of Man, the Betrayal of Judas Iscariot, &c. 

The performance was then suddenly changed to an allegorical ballet. Thescene was a wild and dreary spot. In a dark cavern sat Metaphysics, inthe shape of an Egyptian mummy, whose eyes were fixed upon fiveglittering words, which flitted continually backwards and forwards, andat each change had a different import. The mummy ceased not to followthem with its stony eyes; while in a corner stood a little roguish devil, who incessantly blew bubbles of air into its face. Pride, the amanuensisof Metaphysics, gathered the bubbles up as they fell, pressed the airout, and kneaded them into hypotheses. The mummy was clothed in anEgyptian waistcoat, embroidered with mystic characters. Over this itwore a Grecian mantle, which ought to have concealed the characters, butwas much too short and too narrow for that purpose. Its legs, thighs, and body, were cased in long loose drawers, which did not, however, entirely conceal its nakedness. A huge doctorial hat covered its baldhead, which was marked with the scratches worn by its long nails inprovoking deep reflection. Its shoes were made after the Europeanfashion, and sprinkled with the finest dust of the schools anduniversities. After it had gazed a considerable time on the movingwords, without being able to understand them, its attendant, Pride, gavethe wink to Delusion, who was walking near. He seized a wooden trumpet, and sounded a dance. No sooner did the mummy hear the noise than it tookPride by the hand, and danced about with antic gambols; but its thinwithered legs could not bear this long, and it soon sunk breathless intoits former posture. 

Then came forward Morality, a fine female form, hooded in a veil, which, chameleon-like, sported all colours. She held Virtue and Vice by thehands, and danced a trio with them. For music, a naked savage playedupon an oaten pipe, a European philosopher scraped the fiddle, while anAsiatic beat the drum; and although these contradictory tones would havedistracted an harmonious ear, yet the dancers did not once lose thestep, --so well had they learnt their parts. When the maiden gave Viceher hand, she coquetted and languished significantly before him; but whenshe gave it to Virtue, she moved along with the modest gait of a matron. After the dance, she reposed upon a thin, transparent, andbeautifully-painted cloud, which her admirers had woven out of variousshreds and remnants. 

Next appeared nude Poetry: she danced with Sensuality a characteristicdance, to which Imagination played the flute d'amour. 

History then advanced upon the stage. Before her went Fame, with a longbrazen trumpet. She herself was hung round with stories of murders, poisonings, perjuries, conspiracies, and other horrors. Behind herpanted, beneath a prodigious load of chronicles, diplomas, and documents, a strong nervous man, clothed in the German fashion. She danced withSlavery, to the rustling of the stories with which she was hung. Falsehood at length took the trumpet from the mouth of Fame, and tuned itto the dance; and Flattery led the figures. 

Then appeared Medicine and Quackery, and were received with loudlaughter: they danced a minuet, to which Death clinked the music with apurse of gold. 

After them were seen Astrology, Cabala, Theosophy, and Mysticism. Theygrasped each other by the hands, and whirled around in intricate figures;while Superstition, Delusion, and Fraud stood near, and blew thebagpipes. 

These were followed by Jurisprudence, a sleek, rosy-faced dame, fed withfees, and hung about with commentaries--she coughed through a tedioussolo; and Chicanery played the bass-viol. 

Last of all entered Policy, in a triumphant car drawn by two mares, Weakness and Deceit. On her right sat Theology, holding in one hand asharp-pointed dagger, and in the other a blazing torch. Policy herselfwore a golden crown upon her head, and supported a sceptre over her rightshoulder. She descended from the car, and danced with Theology apas-de-deux, to which Cunning, Ambition, and Tyranny played on softtinkling instruments. After she had finished the pas-de-deux, she madeall the other figures a sign to begin a general dance. They immediatelyobeyed, and sprang about in wild confusion. All the before-mentionedmusicians played on their instruments, and raised a din, only surpassedin loudness by the table-music of Satan. Yet Contention soon insinuatedherself among the unsuspicious dancers; and, animated by Zeal and Fury, they hastily snatched up weapons. When Theology perceived that allembraced delightful Poetry, and that Morality wished to tear off her ownveil, in order to cover her with it, she gave the latter a thrust with aponiard from behind, and singed the nude and tender Poetry with herflaming torch. Both raised a dreadful shriek: Policy commanded silence, and Quackery hastened to bind up the wound of Morality, whilst Medicinecut a shred from her robe in payment. Death stretched out his claw fromunder the mantle of thievish Medicine to seize Morality, but Policy gavehim such a blow that he yelled aloud, and grinned most hideously. Poetrywas allowed to hop about, because she was naked, and had nothing to bedespoiled of. At length History took pity on her, and laid upon the burna wet leaf from a sentimental romance. Policy then tied them all behindher chariot, and drove away in triumph. 

All hell expressed approbation of this last spectacle by reiteratedclappings; and Satan embraced the devil Leviathan for having got up theentertainment, which flattered him exceedingly, it being one of his chiefwhims to be reckoned by the fiends as the inventor of the sciences. Heoften said, in his pride, that he had begotten them in his intercoursewith the daughters of earth, in order to divert men from thestraightforward and noble feelings of their hearts; to remove from theireyes the mystic veil which constitutes their happiness; to make themacquainted with their state of restriction and weakness; and to fill themwith painful doubt concerning their after destination. "I taught them, "he would continue, "by their means, to reason, so that they might forgetto practise virtue, and to worship. We ourselves have defied Heaven withbold and open weapons, and I have at least shown them the way ofskirmishing incessantly with the Eternal. "

The sensible reader will here pause, and admire the strict resemblance ofall courts to each other: that is, how the great, through the service, toil, and sweat of the little, win the favour of their sovereigns, andbear away the rewards. Leviathan gave himself out as the inventor ofthis allegorical ballet, and was on that account thanked and caressed, although the real author of it was the Bavarian Poet Laureate, who ashort time before had died of hunger, and found his way to hell. Heprepared the ballet after the latest court-fashion, by the command ofPrince Leviathan, who had at least talent enough to discover merit: thereason of his bitter allusions to the sciences was, probably, becausethey had so ill supported him; and perhaps Leviathan, who knew perfectlywell what would please Satan, had given him a hint to that effect. Bethis as it may, the devil had the reward, and the thin shade of theBavarian Laureate sat cowering behind a rock of the theatre, and observedwith bitterest agony the marks of unmerited favour which Satan hadlavished on Leviathan. 

The half-intoxicated devils now became so clamorous as nearly to drownthe howls of the damned; when suddenly the powerful voice of Faustusechoed from the upper world through hell. He had at length surmountedevery obstacle, and now summoned before him one of the first princes ofthe kingdom of darkness. 

Satan started up in ecstasy: "It is Faustus who calls there. No one elsehas the power; and no one else, if he had such power, would dare to knockso loudly against the iron portals. Up! up! a man like him is worth athousand of the scoundrels who come down hither every day by rote. "Then, turning to the devil Leviathan, his favourite, he added, "I choosethee, the subtlest seducer, the deadliest hater of the human race, toascend and purchase for me, by thy dangerous services, the soul of thisdesperado. Only thou canst chain, satiate, and then, drive to despair, his craving heart and his proud and restless spirit. Quick, quick!ascend! dispel the vapours of school-wisdom from his brain. Consume withthe fire of voluptuousness the noble feelings of his heart. Disclose tohim the treasures of nature, and hurry him into life, that he may thesooner grow tired of it. Let him see evil arise from good, vicerewarded, justice and innocence trodden under foot, as is the custom ofmen. Conduct him through the wild and terrible scenes of human life; lethim mistake its aim, and lose among its horrors the guiding thread ofvirtue. And when he stands separated from all natural and heavenly ties, in doubt concerning the noble destination of his race, --when evenpleasure and enjoyment have left him, and the inward worm awakes, --thendepict to him, with infernal bitterness, the consequences of his deedsand delusions, and unfold to him all their links, extending to remotestgenerations. If despair should then seize him, hurl him down, and returnin triumph to hell. "

_Leviathan_. Wherefore, O Satan, dost thou impose this work upon me?Thou knowest that I have long ago had enough of men, and of theirplayground, --the world. What is to be made out of wretches who, as thouhast observed, have strength neither for good nor evil? Gold, ambition, or pleasure, can quickly make rascals of them, who have for a shortperiod pursued the phantom virtue; and if any one should move boldly atfirst along the path of vice, he will be driven back when half-way by thespectres of his crazy imagination. If, indeed, it were a proudhot-headed Spaniard, a revengeful assassinating Italian, or even a wildlascivious Frenchman, whom you wanted me to catch--but a German, one ofthose thick-pated swine, who slavishly bend before rank, riches, and allthe artificial distinctions of men, who believe that their lords andprinces are made of superior materials to themselves, and have a right todispose of them just as they please, either in fighting their ownbattles, or those of other sovereigns! Hast thou heard from them forcenturies a single word of rebellion against tyranny, or of sheddingblood for the rights of man? Not one of them has, as yet, come down tohell in glory; a proof that these people have no distinguished headsamong them. Those are to my mind who wish to clear up every thing, whofight with the adamantine shield of individuality, against which allprejudices, earthly or heavenly, are shivered. Show me such a man who iswilling to become great on earth at the expense of his soul, and I willimmediately ascend. 

_Satan_. Shall devils, O Leviathan, be blinded by prejudice, like thesons of dust? I tell thee, the man after our own heart is born underthat district of heaven. He is one of those who, endued by nature withhot and furious passions, rebel against all the old-established customsof society. When such a spirit tears its way through these cobwebs, itresembles a flame, which, by its own fury, speedily consumes thematerials which feed its lustre. He is one of those visionaryphilosophers who strive to seize, through imagination, what is denied tocold understanding; and who, if they are unsuccessful, laugh at allknowledge, and make pleasure and enjoyment their gods. Away, away, Leviathan! soon shall a fire break out in Germany which will spreadthrough all Europe. Already is the germ of that delusion springing upwhich shall endure for centuries. What the German has once caught, hewill not easily let go. 

The commanding voice of Faustus now resounded for the second time. Satancontinued:

"Thou mayst know by this call that he is no trembler. Hasten to him, for, if thou delayest, perhaps he may doubt the strength of his charms, and hell will lose the fruits of his temerity. Truly, the fellow is sucha genius, that I can almost overlook his origin. "

The devil Leviathan angrily replied: "I swear, by the hot and foul poolof the damned, that the rebel shall one day blaspheme, and curse this andthe hour of his birth. "

He went away wrapt in a veil of smoke, and the fiends pursued him withloud huzzas. 

Faustus stood within the magic circle, while his breast swelled withrage. For the third time he repeated the dreadful formula, in a voicethat resembled thunder. The door suddenly flew open; a thick vapourhovered around the margin of the circle; he struck into it with his magicrod, and cried in triumph, "Unveil thyself, thou thing of darkness!" Thevapour dispersed, and Faustus saw a tall figure concealed beneath a redmantle. 

_Faustus_. Why this tedious disguise to one who wishes to see thee?Discover thyself to him, who fears thee not in whatever shape thou maystappear. 

The Devil flung back his mantle, and stood in a daring and majesticattitude before the circle. His fiery eyes sparkled from beneath theirblack brows, between which malice, hatred, fury, agony, and scorn hadformed themselves in thick folds. These furrows were sunk in a smooth, clear, high-arched forehead, which contrasted strangely with the fiendishmarks between the eyes. A finely-formed aquiline nose inclined towards amouth which seemed to have been framed only for the enjoyment of immortalthings. He had the mien of a fallen angel, whose countenance was onceilluminated by the Godhead, but which was now obscured by a gloomy veil. 

_Faustus_ (_in surprise_). Is man, then, every where at home? Who artthou?

_Devil_. I am a prince of hell, and come because thy mighty call compelsme. 

_Faustus_. A prince of hell under this mask; under the figure of a man!I wished for a fiend, and not one of my own race. 

_Devil_. Perhaps, Faustus, we are most so when we resemble ye; at least, no mask suits us better. Besides, is it not your custom to conceal whatye are, and to appear what ye are not?

_Faustus_. Bitter enough, and yet true as bitter; for, if our outsideslooked like our insides, we should not be very different from that whichwe imagine you to be; still, I expected to see thee more terrible, andeven hoped that thy appearance would try the strength of my courage. 

_Devil_. Thus do ye always imagine things contrary to what they are. Probably you expected a devil with horns and a cloven foot, as thecowardly age has depicted him. But since you have ceased to worship thepowers of nature, they have forsaken you, and you can no longer conceiveany thing great. If I were to stand before thee such as I really am, --myeyes threatening comets, my body a dark, hovering cloud, which shootslightning from its gloom, in my hand the sword which I once brandishedagainst the Avenger, and on my arm the ponderous shield which his thunderpierced, --thou wouldst become a heap of ashes in thy circle. 

_Faustus_. But then I should at least see something great. 

_Devil_. I might admire your courage; but you are never more ridiculousthan in these would-be grand bursts of feeling, when you contrast thelittle you can embrace with the monstrous and great which are so highabove you. Thus may the worm measure the trampling elephant, and reckonhis weight in the moment when it dies beneath his powerful foot. 

_Faustus_. Mocker! and what, then, is the spirit within me, which, if itonce get fairly on the ladder, will mount from step to step intoinfinity? What are its limits?

_Devil_. The length of your own nose. But, if you called me out of hellmerely for this chit-chat, permit me to return for ever. I have longknown your inclination to prate about that which you do not understand. 

_Faustus_. Thy bitterness pleases me; it chimes in with my humour, and Ishould like to be better acquainted with thee. What is thy name?

_Devil_. Leviathan; which signifies _all_, for I can do all. 

_Faustus_. Hear the braggart! Are devils, then, so boastful?

_Devil_. 'Twas said merely to do honour to the shape in which thou seestme: but words are vain. Set me to the proof. What dost thou require?

_Faustus_. Require? What an indefinite word for a devil! If thou artwhat thou seemest, anticipate desires, and gratify them ere they becomewishes. 

_Devil_. The noble steed champs the bit in fury when curbed by a timidrider: how he then resembles the man who feels wings that could bear himinto light, yet who is kept down in the dark abyss! Faustus, thou artone of those fiery spirits who are not contented with the scanty meal ofknowledge which Omniscience has set before them. Great is thy strength, mighty is thy soul, and bold thy will; but the curse of finite reasonlies upon thee, as it does upon all. Faustus, thou art as great as mancan be. 

_Faustus_. Masquerading fiend, return into hell; must thou, too, deceiveus by flattery?

_Devil_. Faustus, I am a spirit formed of flaming light; I saw themonstrous worlds arise out of nothing: thou art of dust, and ofyesterday. Do I flatter thee?

_Faustus_. And yet must thou serve me if I command. 

_Devil_. For that I expect the approbation of hell, besides a reward;neither man nor devil will work for nothing. 

_Faustus_. What reward dost thou expect?

_Devil_. To have that which animates thee; that which would make thee myequal if it had power. 

_Faustus_. I were well off then, truly; yet, adept as thou art, thouknowest little of men, if thou doubtest the strength of one who has sethimself free from the bonds which nature has drawn so tightly round ourhearts. How gentle did they appear to me once, when the eye of my youthclothed men and the world in the pure colours of morning! 'Tis gone;dark is my horizon; I stand on the gloomy verge of eternity, and havebroken through the laws which keep the human race in harmony. 

_Devil_. What madness is this, Faustus? Harmony! does _she_ rule theconfused dance of life?

_Faustus_. Silence! I feel it perhaps for the last time; and perhapslook back for the last time upon the pleasant, joyous days of youth. Howlamentable that man must awake from this dream of bliss; that the plantmust shoot up, in order to wither away as a tree, or be felled! Ha, demon, smile; I was once happy. But let that be forgotten which cannever be recalled. Yes, we have only strength when we pursue wickedness. But wherein am I great? If I were so, should I want thee? Go, cunningflatterer; thou wilt only make me feel my own littleness. 

_Devil_. He who is capable of feeling where the shoe pinches him, andhas courage enough to tear away the cause of it, is at least great sofar. More I will not say, and woe to thee if I were to stimulate theewith words. 

_Faustus_. Observe me now, and tell me what my spirit requires, but whatI dare not utter. 

At these words Faustus pointed to himself, then towards the heavens, andmoved his magic staff towards the east and the west. He then continued, "Thou wast, when nothing was. " He laid his hand upon his breast andforehead: "Here is darkness; let it be dispelled. "

_Devil_. Desperate man! full well I know thy wish, and tremble, devil asI am, at thy boldness. 

_Faustus_. Wretched spirit! thou shalt not escape by this subterfuge. In my burning thirst I would undertake to drink dry the deep sea, if Ihoped to find at its bottom what I sought. I am thine, or another's: Iyet stand where no devil can penetrate. Faustus is yet his own master. 

_Devil_. Thou wast so a few minutes since. But thy lot was cast whenthou enteredst this circle. Whoever has looked me in the face turns backin vain; and thus I leave thee. 

_Faustus_. Thou shalt speak, and remove the dark covering which concealsfrom me the world of spirits. I will know the destination of man, andthe cause of moral evil in the world; I will know wherefore virtuesuffers, and vice is rewarded; I will know why we must purchase amoment's enjoyment by years of agony and sorrow. Thou shalt disclose tome the source of things, and the mysterious causes of the phenomena ofthe physical and moral world. Thou shalt make Him, who has arranged all, comprehensible to me--yes! even if the vivid lightnings, which at thismoment shoot from thy demon eyes, were to stretch me lifeless in thiscircle of damnation. Dost thou think that I have summoned thee merelyfor pleasure and gold? Any dastard may fill his belly, and satiate thedesires of the flesh. Thou tremblest! Have I more courage than thyself?What quaking devil has hell vomited out? And thou callest thyselfLeviathan, who canst do all! Away, away! thou art no fiend, but amiserable thing like myself. 

_Devil_. Madman! thou hast not yet felt, as I have, the vindictivenessof the Avenger, the anticipation of which alone would make thee return todust, even if thou didst bear in thy bosom the united strength of menfrom the first to the last sinner. Urge me no farther. 

_Faustus_. I will, and am resolved. 

_Devil_. Thou inspirest me with reverence and pity. 

_Faustus_. Obedience is all I require. 

_Devil_. Go to war with him who has lighted up a torch within thee whichwill consume thee, if fear do not extinguish it. 

_Faustus_. I have done so, and in vain. Obey!

_Devil_. Insatiable man! But know that a devil has his bounds too. Since our fall, we have lost the idea of these sublime secrets, andforget even the language to express them. The pure spirits of yonderworld can alone sing and imagine them. 

_Faustus_. Dost thou think by this crafty excuse to cheat me of thatwhich I desire?

_Devil_. Fool! I would wish for no better revenge upon thee than to beable to paint to thy soul, in the glittering colours of Paradise, allthat thou hast lost, and then see thee writhe in despair. Knew I morethan I know, can the tongue formed of flesh make intelligible to the earof flesh what lies beyond the bounds of sense, and the disembodied spiritonly comprehends?

_Faustus_. Then be a spirit, and speak! Shake off this figure. 

_Devil_. Wilt thou then understand me?

_Faustus_. Shake off this figure, and let me see thee as a spirit. 

_Devil_. Thy words are folly. Now, then, see me: I shall exist, but notfor thee; I shall speak, but thou wilt not catch my meaning. 

Leviathan then melted into a thin clear flame, and disappeared. 

_Faustus_. Speak, and unfold the enigma. 

As the soft west wind moves along the perfumed meadows and gently kissesthe tender flowers, so did it murmur around the ears of Faustus. Thenthe murmur changed to a loud continued tumult, which resembled therolling of thunder, or the dash of a breaker against the coral reef, orits howl and bellow in the caves of the ocean. Faustus crept closewithin his circle, and with difficulty supported himself. 

_Faustus_. Ah, if this be the language of spirits, my dream hasvanished; I am deceived, and must gnash my teeth in darkness. I have, then, exchanged my soul for the gratification of earthly lust! for thatis all in which this intriguing devil can assist me. That is all againstwhich I risked eternity! I thought to move among men enlightened as noone had ever yet been, and to dazzle them with my glory like the risingsun. The sublime thought of living for ever as the greatest in theirhearts is gone; and I am more wretched than I was. Where art thou, trickster, that I may vent my fury upon thee?

_Devil_ (_in his former figure_). Here I am. I spoke, and thou didstnot understand the sense of my words. Dost thou not feel that thou artborn for darkness? Thou canst not become that which thou must not. Withdraw thy mind from impossibilities, and direct it to what isattainable. Thou wishedst to hear the language of spirits; thou heardstit, and wert stunned and deafened by the sound. 

_Faustus_. Provoke but my wrath, and I will bruise thee to tears with mymagic rod. I will chain thee to the rim of my circle, and then stamp onthy neck. 

_Devil_. Do it, and hell will laugh at thy anger. For every tear thoumakest me shed, Despair shall one day wring a drop of blood from thybrow, and Revenge shall hold the scales to catch and weigh it. 

_Faustus_. How revolting to a noble creature like myself to holdconverse with an outcast, who has only sense for wickedness, and willonly assist in wickedness!

_Devil_. How disgusting to be forced to listen to a man who reproachesthe Devil because he is a devil, and does not boast of that shadow, Virtue, like one of you!

_Faustus_. Vain boast. If thou couldst but taste the moral value ofman, by which he approaches the immortal, and which makes him worthy ofimmortality!

_Devil_. I can prove that it does not exist. 

_Faustus_. Yes; I believe thou canst. And so can any one of us whomakes the measure of his own wickedness that of all mankind, and whomakes that virtue contemptible which he has never felt in his breast. Wehave had philosophers who in this matter have long had the start of theDevil. 

_Devil_. Better if thou hadst never read them; thy head would then havebeen more clear, and thy heart more sound. 

_Faustus_. Damnation! Is the Devil always right?

_Devil_. I will show you that which those philosophers only talk of. Iwill blow away from your eyes the clouds which pride, vanity, andself-love have collected, and so charmingly coloured. 

_Faustus_. How wilt thou accomplish that?

_Devil_. By conducting thee through the theatre of the world, andshowing thee men in their nakedness. Let us travel by water, by land, onfoot, on horseback, on the rapid winds, and see the race of man. Perhapswe may discover that for which so many thousand adventurers have brokentheir necks. 

_Faustus_. Agreed. Let us go through the world; I must intoxicatemyself by variety and enjoyment; and I have long wished for a broadersphere of observation than my own wild heart. Let us go forth, and Iwill force the Devil to believe in human virtue. He shall avow to methat man is the eye-apple of Him whom I now no more must name. 

_Devil_. Then will I return to hell a convicted liar, and give thee backthe bond which thou wilt presently sign with thy blood. 

_Faustus_. But if I were to trust a devil, who might palm upon me hisown fiendish performances for the works of men, how would the scofferlaugh?

_Devil_. Such a monkish notion I should not have expected from one whohas so long toyed with philosophy; but in this ye are all alike, foolsand wise men. If any thing goes wrong, pride and self-love will neverpermit you to lay the blame on yourselves. Observe now those two words, Good and Evil, which you would fain stamp into ideas; for when you havewords, you always think you have coined the empty sound into a thought. You labour with your eyes closed, and when you open them it is butnatural that the good should be your own work, and the evil that of theDevil. Thus, then, must we poor devils ride about day and night, inorder to turn to this or that piece of roguery the heart or theimagination of this or that scoundrel, who, if it had not been for us, would have remained an honest fellow. Faustus! Faustus! man seeks abroadand in the clouds a thousand things which lie in his own bosom, or beforehis face. No; during our tour I will add to nothing, except thou commandme. All that thou seest shall be the work of men; and thou wilt soonperceive that they do not require the Devil to incite them. 

_Faustus_. And is this all that thou canst afford me?

_Devil_. I will lead you from step to step; when we have run throughthis course, another scene will immediately open. Get first acquaintedwith that which surrounds thee, and then mount upwards. The treasures ofthe earth are thine; thou mayst command my power: do but dream--do butwish. 

_Faustus_. That is something. 

_Devil_. Only something! Discontented being, thou shalt be able toforce Leviathan to further the projects which thou callest good andnoble, and the consequences of them shall be thy earnings, and the rewardof thy heart. 

_Faustus_. That were more, if the Devil did not say it. 

_Devil_. Who can boast that he has forced the fiend to do good?However, let this thought inflate thy bosom. Faustus, step out of thecircle!

_Faustus_. It is not yet time. 

_Devil_. Dost thou fear me? I repeat, thou shalt spend the momentsallotted to thee according to thy own pleasure: yes, Faustus, I will fillfor thee the intoxicating cup of enjoyment, as it has never been filledfor any other mortal. Thy nerves shall wear away before thou hastemptied it. Count the sands of the shore, and thence thou mayst guessthe number of joys that I will strew before thee. 

Thereupon he placed a casket of gold near the circle. The figures of themayoress and a train of lovely maidens then passed by. 

_Faustus_. Ha, devil, who has showed thee the way to my heart?

_Devil_. Is not my name Leviathan? I have weighed thee, and thystrength. Dost thou respect these?

(He shook upon the ground, from a sack, a quantity of orders ofknighthood, bishops' hats, crosses of honour, and diplomas of nobility. )

"No, no; I know Faustus better: knowledge and pleasure are his gods. Remain what you are; these things are vain and futile. Thus, bydifferent bribes may ye all be won; and for the sake of lust oradvancement, ye would work bare your hands and your intellects. But, whilst fools toil for them in the sweat of their brow, and in theexhaustion of their mind, do thou enjoy, without care or labour, what Ishall serve up. To-morrow, with thy consent, I will conduct thee to themayoress. "

_Faustus_. But how?

_Devil_. Accept the conditions, and I will tell thee. Come out of thecircle; thou lookest still like a drunken man. 

_Faustus_. I would annihilate myself if it were not for one thought!

_Devil_. Which is--

_Faustus_. That I shall only thereby sooner fall into thy power. 

_Devil_. How rash and hasty are men! Learn but to know me, and, if Icannot gratify thy wildest earthly desires, return to poverty, tocontempt, and thy starving philosophy. Step forth, I say. 

_Faustus_. The fury of a lion inflames me, and, if hell were to yawnbeneath my foot, I would spring beyond the limits of humanity. 

He sprang out of the circle, and cried, "I am thy lord. "

_Devil_. Yes; as long as thy time runs. I lead a mighty man by thehand, and am proud to be his slave. 

CHAPTER II. 

On the following morning the devil Leviathan came with all the pomp andretinue of a nobleman to the inn where Faustus sojourned. He alightedfrom his richly caparisoned steed, and asked the host whether the famousFaustus sojourned there?

The host replied by a reverential bow, and ushered him into the house. The Devil then advanced to Faustus, and said to him, in the presence ofthe host:

"Your renown, your great talents, and, above all, your mighty invention, have induced me to make a wide circuit in my journey in order to becomeacquainted with so remarkable a man, whom the world, in spite of itslukewarmness, knows how to value. I came, likewise, to request yourcompany in the tour of Europe, and shall be happy to accede to whateverstipulations you may choose to make, for I am perfectly aware that such apleasure is above all price. "

Faustus played his part agreeably to that of the Devil; and the hosthurried out in order to relate the adventure to his household. Therumour was immediately spread, by a thousand channels, through allFrankfort; and the arrival of the distinguished stranger was soon known, from the sentinel at the city-gate to his most worshipful the mayorhimself. Away ran the magistrates, as if the Devil drove them, to thesenate-house, leaving all the weighty affairs of state to remainunsettled whilst they consulted about this unexpected apparition. Thesenior alderman, a patrician, who was particularly expert in decipheringthe meaning of the signs which occasionally appeared in the politicalhorizon, and had thereby obtained a powerful ascendency in the council, pressed his fat chin into furrows, and his narrow brow into wrinkles, and, with reflection in his little eyes, assured his sapient brethrenthat "This distinguished stranger was nothing else than a secret envoy ofhis imperial majesty, who was come into Germany to observe attentivelythe situation, the comparative strength, the disagreements, and thealliances, of the various states and princes; so that the high and mightycourt, at the opening of the approaching Diet, might know how to comportitself. And since the imperial court had always kept a watchful eye upontheir republic, they must now endeavour to convince this distinguishedvisitor of the fiery zeal which they had always entertained for the highimperial house, and not let him depart without winning him over to theinterest of the state. That they must, in so doing, take as theirpattern the prudent senate of Venice, who never failed to show thegreatest friendship and honour towards him whom they intended todeceive. "

The subordinate members of the assembly affirmed that the alderman hadspoken like the Doge of Venice himself; but the mayor, who bore thealderman a secret grudge, because the latter, like a true patrician, hated the democratic form of government, and was accustomed to say, whenever he was outvoted, "Ha, thus it goes when tradesmen andshopkeepers are made statesmen, " quickly took up the cudgels against himin these words:

"Truly laudable and excellent, most sapient masters, seems to me thatwhich our most prudent and politic brother has now advanced, were it notfor one single circumstance which unhappily spoils all. I, indeed, donot make a boast of possessing the deep visual penetration of thealderman, --a penetration, my brethren, which can spy out a storm beforeit arises; nevertheless, whether it be from chance or reflection, I havelong foreseen, and have long foretold, that which is now gathering aroundus. You must all remember, that at each of our sittings I advised younot to treat this Faustus so contemptuously, but to purchase his LatinBible for the small sum he demanded. Even my wife, who is a mere woman, like all other women, has frequently said that, although we ourselvesneither understood nor could use the book, we ought nevertheless to haveit; and, on account of the beautiful letters in the title-page, and ofthe curious invention, to make a show of it, as we do of our golden bull, and attract strangers from all parts. It was likewise fitting that afree and rich state like ours should protect the arts, and give them ahelping hand. But I know very well what was in your minds; 'twasenvy--sheer envy. You could not brook that my name should be renderedimmortal. You could not digest that posterity should read in thechronicle, '_Sub consulatu_ . . . A Latin Bible was bought from Faustusof Mayence for two hundred gold guilders. ' Yes, yes; 'twas that stuck inyour gizzards; but, as you have brewed, so may you drink: Faustus is adevilish wild fellow, and a very strange hand to deal with; I saw thatproved yesterday. And now that the imperial envoy has travelled hithermerely on his account, merely on account of him whom we have treatedworse than a poor cobbler, think ye not he will blow us up with the envoyout of revenge, and all our scrapings and grimaces will serve for nothingbut to make us appear ridiculous before the citizens? But he who hasdriven his cart into the mire may draw it out again. I wash my hands ofthe whole business, and, like Pilate, am innocent of Israel's blindnessand destruction. "

Here followed a deep silence. The bloody battle of Cannae, whichthreatened Rome with ruin, did not terrify her senate more than did thiseloquent philippic the enlightened magistracy of Frankfort. Already themayor triumphed in proud anticipation: he thought even that he had hurledthe alderman entirely out of his saddle; when the latter, collecting hispolitical wisdom and heroic strength, hastened to the assistance of thesinking state, and bellowing aloud, _ad majora_, undauntedly proposed"immediately to send an embassy from the council to the hotel, in orderto welcome the distinguished guest, and to offer Faustus four hundredgold guilders for his Latin Bible, and thereby to appease him, and tomake him favourable to the state. "

The mayor scoffed at the idea of giving four hundred gold guilders for athing which the day before they might, in all probability, have had forone hundred; but his jeers and his scoffs availed nothing. "_Saluspopuli suprema lex_, " cried the alderman; and, with the approbation ofthe council, he commanded the mayor to entertain Faustus and the envoy inthe most sumptuous manner, at the expense of the state. 

This circumstance consoled his worship, who willingly displayed hiswealth, partly on account of his defeat by the alderman, while theconcluding words, "at the expense of the state, " put him in good humour. The junior alderman immediately set out with one of the four syndics, andthe mayor sent to his house to order every thing proper for the festival. The devil Leviathan was engaged with Faustus in a deep discourse whenthese ambassadors were announced. They were instantly admitted. Theywelcomed, with all humility, in the name of the senate, the distinguishedguest, and gave him to understand that his noble person, as well as hisimportant errand, were well known to them; assuring him at the same time, in set terms, of their zeal and devotion for the high imperial house. The Devil, upon this, screwed up his features, turned to Faustus, tookhim by the hand, and assured the speakers that nothing had brought him totheir town but the desire of removing from it this great man, whom he hadno doubt they knew how to prize. The ambassadors were now somewhatdisturbed; however, they soon recollected themselves, and continued thus:

"It rejoiced them highly that they could give him on the spot aconvincing proof of the respect which the magistracy entertained for sogreat a man, as they were authorised to tender to Faustus four hundredgold guilders for his Latin Bible, which they had long been anxious topossess, and preserve as a precious treasure. The illustrious magistracywould also be most happy to enrol him, if it were agreeable, among thenumber of citizens, and thereby open to him the way to glory andemolument. "

This last stroke was added by their own political wisdom; a proof thatthey, as skilful negotiators, knew how to supply and fill up every vacuumwhich had been at first overlooked. 

Faustus started up in a fury, stamped on the ground, and cried:

"Base, lying, deceitful pack! How long did I not fawn upon you, from theproud patrician down to the shoemaker and the pepper-seller, around whosenecks you hang the magisterial insignia, like halters around asses? Anddid ye not permit me to wait at your dirty thresholds without deigning mea single look? And now that you hear this noble personage sees that inme which you did not, you come and would pay me back in my own coin. Butsee, here is gold; for which you would barter the Holy Roman Empire, provided you could find fools gross enough to buy the huge, monstrouscarcass, without head, sense, or proportion. "

The Devil highly enjoyed the rage of Faustus and the downcast looks ofthe young senators; but they, who had never read Roman history, were notso high-spirited as to fling Faustus a declaration of war from beneaththeir closely-folded robes of office; on the contrary, they communicatedthe invitation to the mayor's festival in as unconcerned a tone as ifnothing had happened, --a new proof of their expertness in negotiation. Had they, for example, replied to the insult, they would thereby haveacknowledged that they felt the force of it; but when they let it fallflat upon the ground, as if it were nothing to any of them, it lost allits power, and assumed the colour of an unfair reproach. Genius alone iscapable in such critical moments of like discrimination. 

At the word "mayor, " Faustus pricked up his ears, and the Devil gave hima significant side-glance. Faustus thereupon took the Bible from thecasket, handed it over to the senators, and said, with some degree ofcomplaisance, "That, upon due consideration, he was determined to make the city apresent of his Bible, on condition that they showed the sentence which hemarked under, and of which he wrote a German translation on the margin, to the assembled magistrates; and, in remembrance of him, caused it to bewritten in letters of gold on the wall of the council-chamber. "

The senators hastened back to their brethren, as delighted as envoys who, after a ruinous war, return with an advantageous peace. They werereceived with great joy, and, the Bible being opened at the appointedplace, they read--

"_And lo_!_ the fools sat in council_, _and idiots clamoured in thejudgment-chamber_. "

They swallowed this bitter pill, because the presumptive shadow ofimperial majesty, in the form of the demon, prevented them from spittingit out. They comforted themselves with having been spared the fourhundred gold guilders, and wished each other joy for having escaped sowell out of this unpleasant affair. The envoys received a vote ofthanks, and it is to be regretted that their names are not handed down toposterity. When at last they spoke of Faustus's well-filled money-chest, the glitter of gold darted like lightning through the souls of all, andeach secretly determined to make the man his friend, in order to getpossession of it. The alderman shouted, "We must make him a citizen, andgive him a seat and voice in the council. Policy demands that we shouldoverstep law and custom, if the advantage of the State depends upon it. "

Faustus, in the mean time, strolled out with the Devil; but they foundthe people of the place modelled after so unsightly a pattern, with suchugly figures and fiat features, that the Devil owned he had never seenthem equalled, except by the inhabitants of an English town called N---, when dressed in their Sunday's best. "Envy, malice, curiosity, andavarice, " said he, "are here and there the sole springs of action; andboth places are governed by a pitiful mercantile spirit, which preventsthem from being grandly wicked or nobly virtuous. In short, Faustus, there is little to be done in either place by a man of spirit, and wewill hurry away from hence as soon as you have brought the mayoress tothe point you wish her. "

The clock sounded the hour of dinner; the Devil and Faustus, mounted uponnoble horses, and attended by a numerous retinue, proceeded to the houseof the mayor. They entered the hall of assembly, where all themagistrates awaited them, and, on their appearance, bowed before themeven to the dust. The fat, bloated mayor, after a long speech, introduced them to the wives of the dignitaries of the corporation, whosefigures, loaded with tawdry ornaments, seemed now to display a doubleportion of awkwardness and vulgarity. They stared like a flock of geese, and could not satiate themselves with looking at the dress andphysiognomy of Leviathan; but the mayoress, a native of Saxony, toweredabove them all, like an Oriad. The expressive look of Faustus hadattracted her attention, as well as his prepossessing figure, and hisfine handsome face. She blushed when he saluted her, and could find noother answer to his eloquent address than a few broken words, which theears of Faustus caught like enchanting music. The senators exerted theirwits to the utmost in complimenting their guests, and all now sat down tothe well-spread table. After dinner the Devil led the mayor by the handto a private apartment, --a circumstance which flattered himextraordinarily, but which was a dagger-blow to all the other guests, especially to the alderman. 

The mayor, heated with wine, and intoxicated with the honour which thesupposed imperial envoy showed him, in a bending attitude and withstaring eyes awaited the communication. The Devil assured him, in soft, silvery tones, how much he was flattered by the mayor's hospitablereception, and how very desirous he was to prove himself thankful;adding, that he carried with him a number of letters of nobility, signedby the emperor's own hand, and he would gladly bestow the first upon him, provided--

Joy, transport, and astonishment darted through the mayor's soul; hestood before the Devil with wide-gaping mouth, and at length stammeredout, "Provided how--what--oh!" The Devil then murmured softly into hisear: "His friend Faustus was desperately in love with the beautifulmayoress, and that for his sake only he would do it; and if the mayoresswould retire with Faustus for a few moments, --which would be entirelyunobserved amid the noise and confusion of a festival, --he should deliverinto her hand the patent of nobility. "

Thereupon the Devil hastened to Faustus, informed him of what hadhappened, and gave him the letter of nobility, with certainty of success. Faustus doubted, and the Devil laughed at his doubts. 

The mayor remained in his cabinet almost petrified. The sudden glitterof such unexpected happiness was at once so clouded by an odious anddetestable condition, that he determined upon rejecting it. But all atonce Ambition blew into his ear: "Ho! ho! Mr. Mayor; to be dubbed anobleman at once, and in such an off-hand manner, as the saying is, andthereby to be placed on a footing with the proudest of thy foes, and toraise thy voice in the council like a trumpet, and appear among thosethere like a man whom, on account of his services, his imperial majestywill exalt above the heads of all!"

Another feeling softly whispered--

"Uh! uh! with my own knowledge and consent to be thus disgraced! Butthen, again, who will know it? and what is there in the whole affair? Ireceive a certain good in lieu of what has long ceased to have any charmsfor me. The evil consists in the idea alone, and it will be a secretbetween me and my wife. But, stating the case fairly, can I arrive at sohigh a distinction at a cheaper rate? Will it not be a nail in thealderman's coffin; and what will the citizens not say when they see thathis imperial majesty knows how to value me? Shall I not get every thinginto my power, and revenge myself on those who have thwarted andcontradicted me? Ho! ho! Mr. Mayor; be no fool; seize fortune by theforelock. Man is only what he appears in the eyes of the world, and noone asks the nobleman how he became so. But there is my wife; she willset herself against my advancement, for I well know her Saxon prudery. "

At that very moment she entered the room, eager to learn from her husbandwhat the magnificent stranger had confided to him in private. He lookedat her with a roguish leer, but still with some degree of bashfulness. 

_Mayor_. Well, my chick, suppose I were to make thee a noblewomanto-day?

_Mayoress_. Then, duck, the wives of all the citizens and magistrateswould swoon with envy, and the alderman's lady would instantly die ofthat husky cough which has so long assailed her. 

_Mayor_. That she would, for certain; and I could crush her proudhusband beneath my foot. But hark, my chick: it only rests with you tobring all this about. 

_Mayoress_. Who ever heard of wives making their husbands noblemen, duck?

_Mayor_. Who knows, my child, how many have been made so? But be notterrified; you have driven that cursed Faustus out of his wits. (_TheMayoress blushed_; _he continued_) Only on his account will the envoycreate me a nobleman, and Faustus is to deliver to thee the patent ofnobility in private. You understand me, I perceive. Hem! What do youthink of the plan?

_Mayoress_. I was thinking, my treasure, that if these two gentlemenwere to change their minds, we should certainly lose the patent. 

_Mayor_. Curse it! so we might. Let us be quick, my mouse; suchbargains are not met with every day. 

The company had in the mean while dispersed themselves in the garden; andhis worship, getting behind Faustus, whispered softly in his ear that"his wife would esteem it an honour to receive the patent of nobilityfrom his hand; and he had only to step up a back staircase, which hewould show him, to an apartment where he would find her. That as forhimself, he feared nothing from a man who had shown so much honour andconscience. " He led him thereupon to the back staircase. Faustus glidedup immediately, and entered a chamber, where he found the mayoress: heflew to her, and created the mayor a knight of the Holy Roman Empire. She then went and delivered to her spouse the letter of nobility; andthey determined between them that it should be laid upon the supper-tablein a covered golden dish, in order, by its unexpected appearance, to makethe blow more painful to the guests. The Devil, to whom the mayorconfided the plan, highly approved of it; but Faustus murmured in the earof Leviathan, "I command thee to play this rascal, who has prostitutedhis wife for ambition's sake, a thorough knavish trick; and to revengeme, at the same time, on all these sheep-headed magistrates, who so longforced me to pay my court to them. "

They sat down to supper, and the glasses went quickly round; when all atonce the Devil commanded the dish, which had so long excited theCuriosity of the surrounders, to be uncovered; then, holding up theletter of nobility, he delivered it to the mayor with these words:"Worthy sir, his majesty the emperor, my master, is pleased by thispatent letter of nobility to create you, on account of your fidelity andservices, a knight of the Holy Roman Empire. I hope and trust that youwill never grow lukewarm in your zeal for the high imperial house; andnow, Sir Knight, I have the honour of first drinking your health. "

These words rolled like thunder in the ears of the guests. The drunkenbecame sober, and the sober drunk; the lips of the women turned blue withrage, and could scarcely stammer out a congratulation. The alderman wasseized with an apoplectic fit, and his wife was near dying of her huskycough. Fear, in the mean time, obliged the rest to assume a joyouscountenance; and they drank, with a loud huzza, the health of thenew-made knight. While the tumult was at the highest pitch, a thinvapour suddenly filled the hall; the glasses began to dance about uponthe tables; and the roasted geese, turkeys, and fowls cackled, gobbled, and crowed. The calves, sheep, and boars' heads cried, bleated, andgrunted, bounced across the table, and snapped at the fingers of theguests. The wine issued in blue flames from out the flasks; and thepatent of nobility caught fire, and was burnt to ashes in the hands ofthe trembling mayor. The whole assembly now sat like so many ridiculouscharacters in a mad masquerade. The mayor bore a stag's head upon hisshoulders; and the rest, men and women, adorned with grotesque masks, spoke, cackled, crowed, neighed, or bellowed, according to the kind ofmask which had been allotted to each individual. The alderman alone, inthe dress of a harlequin, sat motionless; and Faustus avowed to the Devilthat the ruse did great honour to his ingenuity. After Faustus hadsatiated himself by gazing at the spectacle, he gave the Devil the wink, and they both flew out of the window; the latter personage, according tocustom, leaving behind him the sulphurous stench. 

By and by the whole illusion disappeared; and when the sapientmagistrates re-assembled next morning in the council-chamber, theyscarcely mentioned to each other what had taken place the night before. They kept the whole matter a state secret, and only revealed it now andthen to a chosen few. All that the mayor got by this business was, thathis adversary, the alderman, lost the use of his limbs, and never againtook his seat in the council. 

Faustus and Leviathan, in the mean time, passed over the city-walls; andwhen they were in the open field, the Devil despatched an attendantspirit to the hotel, in order to pay the reckoning, and to fetch awayFaustus's baggage. Then turning to the young German, he asked him if hewere contented with this first feat. 

_Faustus_. Hem! if the Devil wants praise, I am content to give it him. But I should never have imagined that yon pompous scoundrel would havesold his wife for ambition's sake. 

_Devil_. Let us proceed a little further, my Faustus, and I will soonconvince thee that Ambition is the godhead which ye all worship; althoughyou disguise it under all kind of glittering forms, in order to concealits nakedness. Till now you have studied man merely in books andphilosophical treatises; or, in other words, you have been thrashingempty straw. But the film will soon fall from your eyes. We willshortly quit this dirty country of yours, where priestcraft, pedantry, and oppression reign unmolested and undisturbed. I will usher you upon astage where the passions have a freer scope, and where great energies areemployed to great ends. 

_Faustus_. But I will force thee to believe in the moral worth of manbefore we quit my native land. Not far from hence lives a prince, whomall Germany praises as a paragon of every virtue. Let us seek him, andput him to the test. 

_Devil_. Agreed; such a man would please me for his rarity. 

The spirit now returned with the baggage, and was sent forward to Mayenceto bespeak a lodging in an hotel. Faustus, for secret reasons which theDevil guessed, proposed spending the night with a hermit who dwelt in thehill of Homburg, and who was renowned through the whole neighbourhood forhis piety. They reached the hermitage about midnight, and knocked at thedoor. The solitary opened it; and Faustus, who had dressed himself inthe richest clothes which the Devil had provided for him, begged pardonfor disturbing the repose of the holy man, and said that the night hadsurprised him and his companion while hunting, and had separated themfrom their attendants, and that they should be obliged by his giving themhouse-room for a few hours. The hermit looked on the ground, andreplied, with a deep sigh:

"He who lives for heaven seldom abandons himself to dangerous repose. You have not disturbed me; and, if you wish to stay here till sunrise, you must take things as you find them. Bread and water, with straw tolie on, is all I can afford you. "

_Faustus_. Brother hermit, we have brought all that the stomach requiresalong with us. We will only trouble you for a draught of water. 

(_The hermit took his pitcher and went to a fountain_. )

_Faustus_. Peace dwells in his heart as well as on his brow, and I maythink myself happy that he is not acquainted with that which binds me tothee. Faith and hope serve him instead of those things which I havedamned myself for; at least it seems so. 

_Devil_. And only seems. What if I were to prove that your heart ispure as gold in comparison with his?

_Faustus_. Devil!

_Devil_. Faustus, thou wert poor, ill-treated, and despised; thou didstsee thyself in the dust; but, like an energetic being, thou hast sprungout of contempt at thy own risk. Thou wert incapable of gratifying thylusts by the murder of thy fellow-creatures, as this saint would if I ledhim into temptation. 

_Faustus_. I see all thy infernal craftiness. If I were to command theeto put him to a fair trial, thou wouldst confuse the senses of the justman, so that he would commit acts which his heart abhorred. 

_Devil_. Ridiculous! Why, then, do ye boast of your free-will, andthereby ascribe your deeds to your own hearts? But ye are all saintswhile there is nothing to tempt ye. No, Faustus; I will remain neuter, and merely offer delights to his senses; for the Devil has no need tocreep into ye when you are already disposed for wickedness. 

_Faustus_. And if things do not turn out as you assert, think not thatyour assurance shall remain unpunished. 

_Devil_. Thou mayst then torment me a whole day by preaching of thevirtues of men. Let us see whether this will allure him. 

A table, provided with dainty meats and delicious wines, now appeared inthe middle of the hermitage. The solitary entered, and silently placedthe pitcher before Faustus, and then retired into a corner, withoutheeding the luxurious banquet. 

_Faustus_. Now, brother hermit, since the things are on the table, fallto without waiting to be asked twice. You may eat of our fare withoutthe least injury to your reputation. I see your mouth begins to water. Come, a glass to the honour of your patron saint. What is his name?

_Hermit_. St. George. 

_Faustus_. Here's his health. 

_Devil_. Ho, ho, brother hermit! the renowned St. George of Cappadociawas a fellow after my own heart; and if you take him for a model, youcannot go wrong. I am perfectly well acquainted with his history, andwill relate it in a few words for your instruction. He was the son ofwretchedly poor people, and was born in a miserable hut in Cilicia. Ashe grew up, he early perceived his own talents, and, by force offlattery, servility, and corruption, found his way into the houses of thegreat and opulent, who at length, out of gratitude for his services, procured him a commission in the army of the Greek emperor. But whenthere he pilfered and plundered to so enormous an extent, that he wassoon obliged to fly, to avoid being hanged. Thereupon he joined himselfto the sect of the Arians, and, by his quick parts, soon learnt to gabblethe unintelligible jargon of theology and metaphysics. About this timethe Arian emperor, Constantine, kicked from the episcopal chair atAlexandria the good and most Catholic Athanasius; and your redoubtableCappadocian was, by an Arian synod, appointed to the vacant see. Georgewas now completely in his element: he puffed, strutted, and filled hispaunch. But when he, by his injustice and cruelty, had driven hissubjects to the verge of madness, they put him to death, and carried hisbody in triumph through the streets of Alexandria. Thus did he become amartyr, and consequently a saint. 

_Hermit_. There is not a word of this in the legend. 

_Devil_. I believe ye, brother; and, for the sake of truth, the Devilonly ought to have written it. 

The hermit then crossed himself. 

_Faustus_. Do you call eating and drinking crimes?

_Hermit_. They may tempt us to commit crimes. 

_Devil_. Your virtue must be very weak if it cannot resist temptation;for temptation and resistance should be the glory of a saint. 

_Hermit_. You are right so far; but every one is not a saint. 

_Faustus_. Are you happy, brother?

_Hermit_. Solitude makes me happy; a good conscience makes me blessed. 

_Devil_. How do you obtain your food?

_Hermit_. The peasants bring me wherewithal to support my existence. 

_Faustus_. And what do you give them in return?

_Hermit_. I pray for them. 

_Faustus_. Are they bettered by your prayers?

_Hermit_. They think so, and I hope so. 

_Devil_. Brother, you are a rogue. 

_Hermit_. The reproaches of the sinful world are what the just man oughtto expect. 

_Devil_. Why do you not look upwards, and why do you blush? But know, that I have the art of reading in a man's face what is passing in hisheart. 

_Hermit_. So much the worse for yourself. You will have littleenjoyment in company. 

_Devil_. Ho, ho! you know that? (_Looking at Faustus_. )

_Hermit_. It is a vile world in which we live, and woe for you ifthousands did not hasten into solitude to avert by their prayers theanger of incensed Heaven from the heads of sinners. 

_Faustus_. Reverend brother, you own yourself that you are paid for yourprayers; and, believe me, it is much easier to pray than work. 

_Devil_. Listen once more. You have a twist of the mouth which tells meyou are a hypocrite; and your eyes, which revolve in so narrow a circle, and which are generally cast downward, tell me that you are convincedthey would betray the feelings of your heart, were you to raise them. 

The hermit lifted his eyes towards the heavens, prayed with claspedhands, and said, "Thus does the righteous man reply to the scoffer. "

_Faustus_. Enough. Come, brother, and bear us company in our repast. 

But the hermit remained inflexible. Faustus looked scornfully on theDevil, who merely smiled and shook his head. Suddenly the door opened, and a young female pilgrim rushed in almost breathless. When she hadrecovered from her fear, she related how she had been pursued by aknight, from whom she had the good fortune to escape by reaching the cellof the pious hermit. She was received in a friendly manner; and, unclasping her long mantle, she exhibited such beauty as would have madethe victory over the flesh no easy matter for the holy Anthony himself. She placed herself by the side of Leviathan, ate sparingly of the meal, and the Devil began to--

 * * * * *

The hermit was at first shocked, and at last confused; and he hadscarcely power to struggle with the temptation. The pilgrim toreherself, ashamed and angry, from the arms of Leviathan, to seekprotection by the side of the hermit, which he could not refuse her. 

The Devil and Faustus now pretended to be intoxicated and overwhelmedwith sleep; but before they took repose the Devil placed, in the presenceof the hermit, a weighty purse of money under the straw, and depositedhis own rich rings and those of Faustus in a casket, which the latterlaid close beside him. On the table they placed their swords anddaggers, and then flung themselves down and soon snored. 

The pilgrim softly approached the table, and poured out with her delicateand snow-white hands a goblet of foaming wine. She just touched the rimwith her rosy lips, and then offered it to the hermit. He stood like oneamazed; and in his confusion emptied it, and another besides, andgreedily swallowed the luxurious morsels which the tempter, one afteranother, held up to his mouth. She then led him out, and bursting intotears, entreated his pardon for having been forced to outrage his holyeyes. She then looked mournful and inconsolable, pressed his handwarmly, and at last fell down on her knees before him. At this instantthe silvery moon beamed upon her bosom, over which the gentle night-windmoved her dark, dishevelled locks. The hermit sank upon this dazzlingbosom, without knowing whether he was dead or alive. At length thepilgrim said, "That she would yield herself entirely to his wishes, if hewould revenge her first on those daring reprobates, and take possessionof their treasure, which would enable him and her to live happily to theend of their days. "

The hermit, at these words, recovered in some degree from hisintoxication, and asked her, in a trembling voice, what she meant, andwhat she would have him do. 

Amongst broken exclamations of rapture she murmured, "Their daggers lieon the table: do you murder the one; I will manage the other. Then dressyourself in their clothes, and seize their treasure. We will then setthe hermitage on fire, and fly to France together. "

The horrible idea of murder made the hermit shudder. He hesitated, wasundecided, looked on the charms of the siren; he saw that he could makehimself master of her and of the treasure without danger; and, all hisvirtue yielding, he forgot heaven and his oft-repeated vows. The pilgrimdragged the reeling miscreant into the hut; each seized a dagger; andjust as he was about to aim a blow at Faustus, the Devil burst into thefiendish scorn-laugh; and Faustus saw the hermit, with a lifted dagger, standing by his side. 

_Faustus_. Cursed monster, who, under the mask of religion, wouldstmurder thy guest!

The hermit sunk trembling to the earth. The pilgrim, a phantom of hell, appeared to him in a frightful form, and then vanished. 

Faustus commanded Leviathan to set fire to the hut, and burn it to ashes, along with the hypocrite. The Devil obeyed with joy. The followingmorning the peasants shed many tears for the fate of the righteous man;and, having collected his bones, they preserved them as precious relics. 

Faustus and the Devil arrived early the next day at Mayence, and alightedat the dwelling of the former. His young wife fell with a cry of joyupon his neck, embraced him, and then burst into tears of sorrow. Thechildren clung sobbing to his knees, and greedily examined his pockets, to see whether he had brought them any thing. His old gray-headed fathernext staggered towards him, and shook him mournfully by the hand. Theheart of Faustus was moved, and his eyes began to moisten, while hetrembled, and looked angrily upon the Devil. When he asked his wife whyshe wept, she wrung her hands, and replied, "Ah, Faustus, do you notperceive how the hungry ones examine your pockets for bread? How can Isee that without tears? They have eaten nothing for a long time; we havebeen unfortunate, and all thy friends have forsaken us; but now I seethee again, it is to me as though I saw the countenance of an angel. Iand thy father have suffered more on thy account than on our own. Wehave had such frightful dreams and visions; and when my eyes, weary withweeping, have closed for a few hours, I saw thee torn from us by force, and all was dark and horrible. "

_Faustus_. Thy dream, love, is about to be partly fulfilled. Thisgentleman here will reward thy husband for those talents which hisungrateful country overlooked or despised. I have agreed to travel withhim far and wide. 

_Old Faustus_. "My son, stay at home and support thyself honourably, "says Scripture. 

_Faustus_. And die of hunger, says Experience. 

The wife began to weep yet more bitterly, and the children screamed forbread. Faustus gave the Devil a sign, and he called to his servant, whopresently afterwards brought into the room a heavy coffer. Faustusunlocked it, and flung a large bag of gold upon the table; which beingopened, and the yellow coin appearing, a lively flush of joy wasinstantly diffused over the melancholy countenances of the family. Hethen took out magnificent clothes and jewels, which he delivered to hiswife. Her tears vanished, and vanity at once dried them up, as thesun-rays dry up the morning dew. The Devil smiled, and Faustus mutteredto himself, "O magic of gold and of vanity! I may now go to theantipodes, and no other tears than those of hypocrisy will be shed. "Then, aloud, "Well, wife, these are the fruits of my journey, reaped inadvance. Is not this better than staying at home with you and starving?"

But the wife heard him not; for she stood with her rich robes and jewelsbefore the looking-glass to see how they became her. The little girlsfrolicked around her, took up the clothes and ornaments she had laidaside, and aped the mother. In the mean time a servant brought in asubstantial breakfast, the children fell upon it, cried and shouted withjoy; but the mother had, in the mean time, forgotten her hunger. 

The old father took Faustus aside, and said, "If thou hast obtained allthese things by honourable means, let us thank God, my son, and enjoy hisbounty; but for some nights past I have had horrible dreams, although Ihope they were merely caused by our necessities. "

This remark of the old man sank deep into the heart of Faustus; but thepleasure of seeing his children eat so heartily, and of observing withwhat love and thankfulness his eldest son and favourite looked at him;the thought of having relieved them from their misery; and, above all, aninward longing for pleasure, --considerably damped the impression. TheDevil added a large sum to the money in the bag, presented the young wifewith a costly necklace, gave each of the children a trifle, and assuredthe family that he would bring back Faustus to them safe, sound, andwealthy at no very distant period. 

Faustus, attended by the Devil, now went to see a friend, whom he foundmuch dejected. He asked him the cause of his unhappiness, and the otherreplied:

"This afternoon the law-suit which you have often heard me speak of is tobe determined; and I am certain of losing it, although justice is on myside. In short, Master Faustus, nothing remains for me to do but to beg, or drown myself in the deepest part of the Rhine. "

_Faustus_. How can you be certain that you will lose your cause, ifjustice is for you, as you say it is?

_Friend_. But the five hundred gold guilders which my opponent has giventhe Judge are against me; and if I cannot outbid him, I must fall to theground. 

_Faustus_. Pooh! does it merely depend on that? Come, lead me to theJudge. I have a friend here who willingly assists people out of suchdifficulties. 

They found the Judge to be a proud, inflated man, who would scarcelydeign to honour a poor client with a look. Faustus had long known himfor what he was. When they entered the room, the Judge, in an imperioustone, thus addressed Faustus's friend, "Why do you come to trouble me?Do you not know that tears never interrupt the course of justice?"

The unhappy friend looked humbly to the ground. 

_Faustus_. Mighty sir, you have spoken well: tears are like water; theymerely spoil the eyes of those that shed them. But do you know that myfriend has right on his side?

_Judge_. Master Faustus, I know you for a man who plays away his moneyat ducks-and-drakes, and who has a loose tongue. Right and law are verydifferent things: if he has the first for him, it is no reason that heshould have the second. 

_Faustus_. You say that right and law are two different things:something like judge and justice, perhaps. 

_Judge_. Master Faustus, I have already said that I know you. 

_Faustus_. Perhaps we are mistaken in each other, most enlightened sir. But it is mere waste of soap to attempt to wash a blackamoor white. (_Heopened the door_, _and in stalked the Devil_. ) Here is a gentleman whowill lay before you a document, which I hope will give the cause of myfriend a new aspect. 

When the Judge saw the richly-dressed Leviathan, he assumed a morefriendly countenance, and asked them all to be seated. 

_Faustus_. We can settle the whole business standing. (_To the Devil_)Produce the document which we have found. 

The Devil counted out of his purse five hundred gold guilders; he thenstopped and looked at the Judge. 

_Judge_. The document is by no means a bad one, gentlemen; but theadverse party has long ago given me one of equal weight. 

The Devil continued counting till he had told out a thousand; he thenstopped. 

_Judge_. In truth, I had overlooked this circumstance. Such vouchers, however, are not to be withstood. 

He then gathered up the gold and secured it in his coffer. 

_Faustus_. I hope now that right and law will go together. 

_Judge_. Master Faustus, you understand the art of appeasing thebitterest enemies. 

Faustus, whom the servility of the Judge as much offended as his formerrudeness, whispered to the Devil, in going away, "Do thou avenge justiceon this wretch. "

Thereupon he left his friend, without waiting for his thanks, and wentabout with the Devil to discharge his debts. He then paid visits to hisother friends, showered gold upon them by handfuls, even on those who hadforsaken him in his adversity; and he felt happy in being able to giveunbridled scope to his generosity and greatness of soul. The Devil, however, who saw deeper into things than Faustus, laughed within himselfat the consequences. 

They now went to the hotel, Faustus, recollecting the conduct of hiswife, once again fell into an exceedingly ill humour. He could notpardon her for having ceased to lament his departure the moment she hadseen the gold and jewels. Till now he had imagined that she loved himmore than all the treasures of the earth; but what he had just observedforced him to believe the contrary, and his affection for her was turnedto bitterness. The Devil, who perceived where the shoe pinched, willingly allowed Faustus to torment himself with these gloomy thoughts, so that he might tear himself from that sweet tie by which nature stillgently fettered him. He foresaw, with secret rapture, the dreadfulanguish which would one day arise in the bosom of the headstrong Faustus, when the future should disclose to him all the horrors which he was nowabout to perpetrate. 

They dined in the public room, in company with some professors of law anddivinity, who, to the great delight of the Devil, soon fell into aviolent dispute concerning the nun Clara. The flame of that controversywas still at its full height; party-spirit raged in all houses, and thepresent disputants talked so loudly, and said so many ridiculous things, that Faustus soon forgot his ill humour. But when a doctor of theologyasserted that it was possible for Satan to have carried his wickedness sofar as to have brought the nun into certain circumstances by means of thedream, the Devil burst into a bellowing laugh; and Faustus immediatelythought of a scheme by which he might revenge himself, in a signalmanner, upon the Archbishop, who had paid so little attention to hisdiscovery. He hoped then to involve the thread of the theological andpolitical war at Mayence in such confusion that no human power would beable to unravel it. After dinner he asked the demon whether it would bepossible for him, under the figure of the Dominican, to pass that nightwith the lovely Clara. The Devil assured him that nothing was more easy;and, if he chose, the abbess herself should usher him into the nun'scell. Faustus, who had always considered the abbess to be a strict, pious, and conscientious woman, laughed in scorn at these last words ofthe Devil. 

_Devil_. Thy wife, O Faustus, set up a shriek of despair when thou didsttell her of thy intended departure; but when the glitter of gold anddress burst upon her view, the sorrows of her heart vanished at once. Irepeat, that the abbess herself shall introduce thee to the cell of thenun, and I will employ no supernatural means. Thou thyself shalt see howthe old gudgeon will swallow the hook. Come, we will pay her a visitunder the pious figures of two nuns. I know the manners and ways of thenuns, ay, and of the monks too, of Germany, well enough to ape them. Iwill represent the Abbess of the Black Nuns, and thou shalt be herfriend, Sister Agatha. 

At this moment Faustus's friend came, full of joy, to inform him of thehappy issue of the law-suit. He was about to thank Faustus and the Devilupon his knees; but Faustus said, "Spare your thanks, and take care of mywife and family during my absence. " He then whispered into the ear ofthe Devil, "It is time to think of the Judge. "

The Judge wished after dinner to gratify his beloved wife by counting thegold pieces in her presence. He unlocked the coffer, and started back ina tremor at the sight of its contents: the gold pieces were changed intolarge rats, which sprang out, and fell furiously upon his face and hands. The Judge, who had a great aversion to these animals, rushed out of theroom; but they pursued him, fastening on his heels. He hurried from thehouse, and ran through the streets; but still they were close behind him. He fled into the fields; but they allowed him no rest, and at last forcedthe terrified wretch to seek shelter in the stone tower where the tollsare gathered, and which stands in the middle of the Rhine. Here hethought himself safe from farther pursuit; but rats and mice hot fromhell are not to be terrified by water: they swam through, fell upon him, and ate him up alive. His wife, in her terror and astonishment, told thehistory of the transformation of the gold pieces by which her unfortunatehusband had allowed himself to be dazzled; and from that time there hasnot been in the whole diocese of Mayence a single instance of a judge ora man in office taking a bribe. The Devil could not have foreseen this, or he certainly would have let the scoundrel go unpunished. 

Faustus and the Devil stood in their disguises before the gate of theconvent of White Nuns. The portress ran as fast as she could in order toinform the abbess of the unexpected visitors. The abbess received themwith conventual greetings, to which the Devil answered in a similar tone. Sweetmeats and wines were then brought in, and while partaking of themthe two abbesses talked together, of cloister affairs, and of the wickedworld; and the Devil, with a deep sigh, turned the discourse to Clara'saccident. Clara, who, on account of her rank, was the pet-lamb of thecloister, stood near the abbess, and laughed beneath her veil. Faustusobserved this, and, looking at her, really thought he had never seen amore charming rogue wear the sacred veil. The Devil at length gave theconversation a serious turn, and led the abbess to conclude that he hadsomething weighty to confide to her. 

_Abbess_ (_to Clara_). You may go, my lamb, to the nuns in the garden, and divert yourself with them; I will send you out some sweetmeats, sothat you may celebrate the coming of our venerable sister. 

Clara bounded away. After a few words, which the Devil uttered in adisturbed and thoughtful kind of tone, so that he might thereby arousethe curiosity of the abbess, he came to the point. 

_Devil_. Ah, dear sister, how much do I pity you! It is true, and thatought in some degree to comfort you, that the whole city and the entiredistrict are convinced of your holiness, your piety, and the strictnessof your discipline. In a word, you possess all the virtues requisite fora bride of heaven. But, alas, the world will be the world still; and theFiend often infuses evil thoughts into the minds of worldly men, so thatthrough them he may disturb those saints who are thorns in his side. No, no; the wicked Devil cannot bear that you should bring up your lambs inuntainted purity. I pity you, as I said before, and still more thelittle innocents who are at present confided to your care. What willbecome of them when they lose you?

_Abbess_. Kind sister, be of good cheer; though I am old, I am yet, thanks to Heaven, sound and hearty, and the little inconveniences whichattend a uniform course of devotion and penitence prolong life ratherthan shorten it. So, at least, the physician of the convent tells mewhen I complain to him. 

The Devil looked at her attentively. 

"Have you, then, had no anticipation of what is hanging over your head?no warning vision? Has nothing occurred in the convent to make you lookforward to the future with anxiety? It is customary for pious souls tobe informed by certain signs when any disaster menaces them. "

_Abbess_. You frighten me so, that I tremble in my whole body. But letme reflect;--yes, yes, I am very restless, and dream of raw heads andbloody bones; and some days ago--ah, yes!--that certainly was a sign anda warning--some few days ago I went with my lap-dog, which you see there, to walk in the garden. I was alone; the nuns were at some distance, telling stories beneath the linden-trees. All at once the gardener'sgreat mastiff sprung upon _Piety_, for that is the name of my pet. Ishuddered from head to foot, and crossed myself again and again; but thatwould avail nothing. At last I struck at the hideous brute with mystaff, --yes, I struck with all my strength the filthy hound who wouldthus profane the cloister; and I continued striking until the staff, which his reverence the Archbishop delivered to me upon my consecrationas abbess, broke in two. Was that a sign or a warning, think ye?

The Devil and Faustus pretended to be shocked. 

_Devil_. Ah, the very worst in the world. All now is but too clear andmanifest. Did not I tell you how it would turn out, Sister Agatha?

Faustus made a humble bow of assent. 

_Abbess_. For Heaven's sake, speak, or I shall run mad. 

_Devil_. Contain yourself, dear sister. Help is to be found, and whoknows but I bring it with me? Remember that it was the staff which theArchbishop presented to you upon your being consecrated an abbess whichyou broke; and now listen to me attentively. You know my cousin theprebend; well, he confided to me a very terrible affair. He indeed mademe solemnly promise not to tell you; but I know it is best to commit alittle sin, if by its means we can prevent a great one and confound theprojects of Satan. 

_Abbess_. You are perfectly right; and the Fathers of the Church holdthat doctrine, as my confessor has often told me. 

_Devil_. Know, then, that the Archbishop has so far got the upper handof the Chapter, that he has brought them to consent to your being deposedafter the lapse of a few months, and his niece Clara being made abbess inyour stead. 

"Jesu Maria!" cried the abbess, wrung her hands, and fell into a swoon. The Devil made a sour face at her exclamation, and Faustus, laughing, rubbed her wrinkled brows. After she had recovered herself, she shed atorrent of tears, and shrieked a thousand curses against the wickednessof the world. 

_Devil_. Do not despair, dear sister. For a distant evil there isalways a remedy. 

_Abbess_. And what do you advise me to do? Wretch that I am! OHeavens! what will become of me, --what will become of the nuns?

_Devil_. I have already said that it is best to commit a slight sin if, by so doing, we prevent a great one, and you yourself have proved it bythe authority of holy Fathers; but, dear sister, courage andunderstanding will be necessary, if you wish to obtain your purposewithout danger to your own soul, by loading another person with thecapital sin. 

_Abbess_. Ah, dear sister, and how is that to be contrived?

_Devil_. I was once in our convent in almost a similar perplexity. Thegood Sister Agatha here is my witness; and as she saw every thing, andassisted me, we may speak out before her. 

Faustus bowed with humility. 

_Devil_. A nun who, by sinful wit, and yet more sinful beauty, had foundfavour among the great and powerful, was, by their assistance, on thepoint of rising above me. Ah! I have felt how grievous are the thoughtsof being forced to obey, after one has for a long time exercisedboundless power. Well, in the presence of Sister Agatha, I entered intoa consultation with my relation the prebend: he is very knowing inaffairs of conscience and crime, and understands to a hair's-breadth whatis damnable and what is not. This wise man gave me a piece of advicewhich helped me out of my trouble, and for which I shall always havereason to bless him. I admit that the expedient at first appeared to mesinful; but he assured me, and proved to me out of the casuists, that alittle fasting and penance would do away with all that was culpable init. 

_Abbess_. But the advice--the advice!

_Devil_. I am ashamed to tell it you aloud. 

_Abbess_. Then whisper it into my ear. What the Abbess of the BlackNuns could do without endangering her salvation, the Abbess of the WhiteNuns may do also. 

_Devil_ (_softly into her ear_). He advised me to contrive so that thisdangerous nun should commit the sin of * * *

_Abbess_ (_crossing herself_). Blessed Ursula! Why, that is the work ofthe Devil, and leads directly to hell. 

_Devil_. Ay, very true, but only the person who commits it; and I wasnot advising you to do it. Remember, dear sister, you are not to bepunished for all the sins which your nuns may choose to commit. 

_Abbess_. But, in Heaven's name, how did you manage this dangerousaffair without being discovered?

_Devil_. Oh, my situation was much more difficult than yours, for youare assisted by the report of the dream, which already fills the wholecity. Suppose, now, you were to let a man, dressed like the Dominican, slip into Clara's cell, and the signs of the sinful deed were afterwardsto appear, would not the whole world say that it was a trick of the archfoe of mankind? Let Satan have the credit of it, and do you remainsitting in your chair, adorned with that dignity which Heaven has beenpleased to grant you. I have given you this advice out of friendship, and for your good; you are now at liberty to do as you please. At allevents, I will send you some one to-night to personate the Dominican, andhe will only have to return if you are too scrupulous. 

The abbess sat like one amazed, and in her confusion began to tell herRosary: "_Ave Maria_. It is certainly allying oneself to the Devil. Blessed Ursula, illumine my darkness. " She cast her eyes upon the imageof the saint. "It would certainly be a great scandal to the convent. _Ave Maria_. But then it would be placed to Satan's account. Perhaps, though, I might be damned for it. _Pater noster_. And am I now tobecome a servant in the cloister, and in my old days to be tormented by asuperior, after I have so long tormented the nuns? This little baggagehas already afforded sufficient scandal to the whole town without this. Alas, when I have no longer authority to box the nuns about, how willthis and that malignant creature revenge herself upon me! _Ave Maria_. Well, I have made up my mind, and, for the good of the cloister, I willcontinue abbess the remainder of any days, cost what it will. "

The Devil applauded her, and the plan was soon arranged. Upon going awaythe Devil said to Faustus:

"Now, what have I done else than ask the pride of this old beldamewhether it is better to risk eternal damnation, or to give up thattyrannical power over the poor nuns, which the hand of Death will soondeprive her of?"

Whatever pleasure Faustus derived from the certainty that his desireswould be gratified, he was nevertheless much displeased that the Devilshould always be in the right. That same evening the abbess herselfintroduced him, under the disguise of the Dominican, into Clara's cellwhile the nuns were at vespers. Clara herself soon appeared, and aftershe had commended herself to St. Ursula, she laid herself down. Herimagination, which had once been directed to a certain object, oftenrepeated to her in dreams her former vision; and she lay in just such atransport, when Faustus approached her, and embodied the apparition, uponwhich Clara awoke, and still believed herself merely in a dream. Theabbess in the mean time did penance in her cell, and made a vow to fastevery week for the good of her soul. But the consequences of this nightwere horrible to poor Clara. 

 * * * * *

The next morning Faustus took leave of his family. Few tears were shed;but his old father, in a mournful tone, gave him wholesome advice. 

As Faustus, with the Devil, rode over the bridge which leads across theRhine, thinking of last night's adventure, and making comments upon theabbess, he saw afar off a man in the water, who seemed upon the point ofdrowning, and only feebly struggled against approaching death. Hecommanded Leviathan to save the man. The Devil answered, with asignificant look:

"Think well of what thou requirest; he is a youth, and perhaps it will bebetter for him and for thee that he ends his life here. "

_Faustus_. Thou fiend, only ready for mischief, wouldst thou have mewithstand the sacred feeling of nature? Hasten and save him, I repeat. 

_Devil_. Canst thou not swim thyself? No. Well, the consequences bethy reward; thou wilt repent of this. 

He rushed into the stream, and rescued the youth. Faustus consoledhimself with the idea of having, by this good act, atoned for thepreceding night of sin; and Leviathan laughed at the consolation. 

CHAPTER III. 

The Devil now led Faustus through a series of adventures which were toserve as a prelude to the most afflicting vicissitudes. What Faustus hadhitherto seen had embittered his heart; but the scenes which now openedupon him by degrees so wounded his spirit, that his mind was unableeither to support or remedy them; and only one of the worldly great, or, what is nearly synonymous, a worker and designer of human misery, couldhave witnessed them unmoved. 

The Devil and Faustus were riding in close conversation along the banksof the Fulda, when they saw beneath an oak-tree a countrywoman sittingwith her children, appearing to be the lifeless image of agony and dumbdespair. Faustus, whom sorrow attracted as much as joy, went hurriedlyup to her, and inquired the cause of her grief. The woman gazed at himfor some time, and it was not until his sympathising look had in somedegree melted her frozen heart that she was able, amidst tears andsobbings, to explain herself in the following words:

"In the whole world there are no beings so wretched as myself and thesepoor children. My husband was indebted to the Prince-Bishop for threeyears' rent. The first year he could not pay it, on account of thefailure of his crops; during the second the Bishop's wild-boars grubbedup all his seed from the ground; and during the third his wholehunting-train galloped over our fields and destroyed our harvest. As myhusband had often been threatened by the steward with a distress, heintended to have gone this morning to Frankfort, to sell a fat calf andhis last pair of oxen, and with the amount to have paid his rent. Butjust as he was setting out the Bishop's clerk-of-the-kitchen came, anddemanded the calf for his lordship's table. My husband pleaded hispoverty, and told him how unjust it would be to take away his calf, whichwould fetch a high price at Frankfort. The clerk-of-the-kitchenanswered, that no peasant had a right to carry any thing out of hismaster's domain. The steward and his bailiffs then came, and instead oftaking my husband's part, he drove off the oxen; the clerk-of-the-kitchentook the calf; the bailiffs turned me and my children out of house andhome; and while they were pillaging and carrying off our goods, myhusband went into the barn and out his throat in despair. The poorwretch lies under that sheet, and we sit here to watch the body, so thatit may not be devoured by the wild-beasts, for the priest has refused tobury it. "

She tore away the white sheet which had concealed the body, and fell tothe ground. Faustus started at the horrible sight, while tears gushedfrom his eyes, and he cried, "Man, man, is this thy lot?" Then lookingup to heaven, "Oh! didst thou create this unfortunate man merely that aservant of thy religion might drive him to despair and suicide?" He castthe cloth over the body, flung the woman some gold, and said, "I will goto the Bishop and tell him your melancholy story. I am certain that hewill bury your husband, give you back your goods, and punish thevillains. "

This circumstance made so strong an impression upon Faustus, that he andthe Devil reached the Bishop's castle before he could collect himself. They were received with great civility, and shown into a spacious hall, where his reverence was at table. The Prince-Bishop was a man in hisbest years, but so enormously corpulent that fat seemed to haveoverwhelmed his nerves, his heart, and his very soul. He was onlyanimated while eating; all his sense lay in his palate, and he never knewvexation, except when he was disappointed of a dish which he had ordered. His table was so well furnished, that Faustus, whom the Devil had oftenbanqueted by means of his spirits, thought to himself that the Bishopsurpassed the master of a thousand arts in his dinners. In the middle ofthe table stood, amongst other dishes, a large calf's-head, --a favouritemorsel with the Bishop. He was engaged, both body and soul, in thefeast, and had not yet spoken a single word, when suddenly Faustusexclaimed:

"Gracious sir, do not take it ill of me if I spoil your appetite, but itis impossible for me to look on that calf's-head without telling you of ashocking affair which has this day occurred in the neighbourhood of yourpalace. I hope, from your humanity and Christian mildness, that you willcause those aggrieved to be recompensed, and take care in future thatyour officers do not again outrage humanity, as they have done in thisaffair. "

The Bishop raised his eyes in wonder, looked at Faustus, and emptied hisglass. 

Faustus related the story with warmth and feeling; none of those present, however, paid any attention to him, and the Bishop continued eating. Faustus then said: "I think I am speaking to a Bishop, a shepherd of hisflock, and am standing among teachers and preachers of religion andChristian charity? My lord, am I right or not?"

The Bishop eyed him scornfully; then calling for theclerk-of-the-kitchen, he said: "What hubbub is this about a peasant whohas been fool enough to cut his throat?"

The clerk-of-the-kitchen laughed, told the story as Faustus had done, andadded: "I took away his calf because it would grace your lordship'stable, and was too good for the Frankfort burghers, to whom he wished tosell it. The steward distrained his goods because he had always been abad tenant, and for three years had not paid his rent. Thus, my lord, does the case stand; and truly no peasant shall drive any thing good outof your demesne with my consent. "

_Bishop_. Go; you are quite right. (_To Faustus_) What have you now tosay? you see that he did his duty in taking the calf; or do you thinkthat the Frankfort citizens ought to eat the fat calves of my land, and Ithe lean?

Faustus was about to speak. 

_Bishop_. Listen! eat, drink, and be silent. You are the first personthat has ever spoken of peasants and such rabble at my table. Verily, ifyour dress did not declare you to be a gentleman, I should be inclined tothink that you were sprung from beggars, since you speak so warmly intheir favour. Learn that the peasant who does not pay his rent does justas well in cutting his throat, as certain people would do in holdingtheir tongues instead of spoiling my appetite with useless speeches. Clerk-of-the-kitchen, that is a noble calf's-head. 

_Clerk-of-the-kitchen_. It is the head of Hans Ruprecht's calf. 

_Bishop_. So, so! Send it me here, and reach me the pepper. I will cutmyself a slice. And you, Mr. What's-your-name, may as well take a piecewith me. 

The clerk-of-the-kitchen placed the pepper-castor before the Bishop. Faustus whispered into the ear of the Devil; and at the moment the Bishopran his knife into the calf's-head, the Devil changed it to the head ofHans Ruprecht, which, wild, horrible, and bloody, now stared the Bishopin the face. His reverence let fall his knife, and sank back in afeinting fit; while the whole company sat in lifeless horror andstupefaction. 

_Faustus_. My Lord Bishop, and ye most reverend gentlemen, learn fromthis to practise Christian charity as well as to preach it. 

He hurried away with the Devil. 

The _sang-froid_ of the Bishop and his table-companions, and the brutalmanner in which he spoke of the fate of the unfortunate suicide, sowedthe first seeds of gloomy horror in the breast of Faustus. He revolvedin his mind his former experience, as well as what he had seen since hehad roamed about with the Devil, and perceived, whichever way he turned, nothing but hard-heartedness, deceit, tyranny, and a willingness tocommit crime for the sake of gold, preferment, or luxury. He wished toseek for the cause of all this in man himself; but his own unquiet anddoubtful spirit, and his imagination, which always avoided difficultieswithin its reach, began already in dark dissatisfaction to make theCreator of mankind, if not the author, yet, by his sufferance of allthese horrors, at least the accomplice. These impious ideas onlyrequired the aid of a few more horrible scenes to derange hisunderstanding entirely; and the Devil inwardly rejoiced in being able toafford a future opportunity for that purpose. Faustus hoped soon to curehimself of this sadness at the court of the renowned prince, and hiscompanion willingly left him in this delusion. About evening theyarrived at a city, at the entrance of which they perceived a crowd ofpeople assembled round a tower, in which culprits condemned to death wereaccustomed to pass the last night of their lives. Faustus, observingthat the people were looking up to the ironed windows with the deepestsorrow, asked the cause of this assemblage. Whereupon a hundred voicesgave him an answer. 

"Dr. Robertus, our father, the friend of freedom, the protector of thepeople, the avenger of the oppressed, sits imprisoned in yonder tower. The cruel tyrannical Minister, once his friend, has now condemned him todeath; and to-morrow he is to be executed, because he dared to uphold ourprivileges. "

These words sunk deep into the soul of Faustus. He conceived a highopinion of a man who, at the risk of his own life, had dared to standforward as the avenger of his fellow-creatures. As he himself had justbeen a witness of the consequences of oppression, he commanded the Devilto carry him to this doctor. The Devil took him aside, and then flew upwith him into the tower, and entered the cell of the avenger of thepeople. Faustus saw before him a man whose daring and gloomy physiognomywas truly disgusting. But the romantic imagination of Faustus pictured, at first sight, the form of a great man, from what he had heard and fromwhat he saw before him. The doctor did not seem much surprised at theirsudden appearance. Faustus approached him, and said:

"Doctor Robertus, I come to hear your story from your own mouth; not thatI have any doubt, for your appearance confirms all that has been told meof you; I am now convinced that you fall a sacrifice to that tyrannywhich oppresses the race of man, and which I abhor as much as you do. Icome likewise to offer you my assistance, which, contrary to allappearances, can extricate you from this dreadful situation. "

The doctor looked coldly upon him, let his face sink into his hands, andreplied:

"Yes, I fall a victim to power and tyranny; and, what is most grievous tome, through the means of a false friend, who sacrifices me more to hisfear and envy than to his despotic principles. I know not who ye are, and whether ye can save me; but I wish that men of your appearance shouldknow Dr. Robertus, who is to bleed to-morrow in the cause of freedom. From my earliest youth the noble spirit of independence, which man isbound to thank for every thing great that he is capable of, fired mybreast; from my early youth the numerous examples of tyranny andoppression which I saw with my eyes, or read of in history, roused mysoul and inflamed me to fury. Often did I shed tears because I feltmyself unable to avenge the sufferings of mankind. To increase mymisery, I read in the history of the Greeks and Romans what advancementman made in virtue when tyrants were put down, and he was left to followthe bent of his own nature. Think not that I am one of those fools whoseidea of freedom is that every one should do as he pleases. Full well Iknow that the capacities of men are different, and that their situationsin life must be different; but when I considered the laws which shouldsecure to each individual his life and property, I found nothing but awild chaos, which tyrannical power had artfully mixed up in order to makeherself the sole and arbitrary mistress of the happiness and theexistence of the subject. After this discovery, the whole human raceappeared to me as a flock of sheep, which a band of robbers had conspiredto plunder and devour by means of laws enacted by themselves, and towhich they themselves are not amenable: for where is the law that fettersthe rulers of the earth? Is it not madness that those very people who, by their situations, are most liable to the abuse of their passions, aresubservient to no law, and acknowledge no tribunal which can call them toaccount? Misery is near, and promised vengeance is far off; and thatchimes-in but poorly with the feelings and nature of man. " Faustusearnestly listened to all this, looked furious, and struck his foreheadwith his hand. The Devil was quite enraptured with the orator, whocontinued:

"The wild indignation which I expressed at every new act of oppressiondoes honour to my heart, and therefore I care very little though myenemies can reproach me for want of prudence; for what is termed prudenceby the world is nothing else than blind submission, servility, flattery, and being unscrupulous how or in what manner a place is obtained; but anindependent being like myself seeks for happiness by purer means. I hadthe misfortune to be allied, by the bonds of friendship, to the presentMinister from the time we were at school together. He soughtadvancement, and he has the spirit which insures it; for, from his veryinfancy, he has endeavoured to obtain power and riches by principlesentirely opposite to mine; and in proportion as I have attackedtyrannical forms of government, he has defended them. We have disputedthis delicate point privately and in public, and my honesty has alwaysenabled me to defeat him; but as it was natural that I should have theoppressed part of mankind on my side, so was it yet more reasonable thathe should succeed in winning over all those who derive advantage fromenslaving their fellow-men. As these are the very people who can openthe door of happiness and fortune to their confederates, so was he soondistinguished and raised, step by step, to the rank of prime-minister ofthe kingdom; whilst I, neglected, despised, and unknown, remainedstationary. The proud despot exerted his utmost to bring me over to hisparty by bribery and promise of place; but I saw that he only wished tomake me thereby more deeply feel his power, and that he felt nothing morewas wanting to complete his triumph than to have a man of my principlesacknowledge him as patron, and sanctify his arbitrary measures bycooperating with him. True, therefore, to myself, I the more eagerlyexposed and censured the crimes which he was daily committing. You mustbe aware that if he had been capable of feeling what was great, thishostility would have inspired him with admiration for a man who took himto task with so much danger to himself; but it operated in a differentmanner. The more I exposed him, the more his hatred against meincreased; and when I, a month ago, published a paper in which I depictedhim in his true colours, and the people thereupon assembled round hishouse, threatened his life, and shouted my name with enthusiasm, thewretch had the baseness to send the paper forthwith to the Prince, whohad me tried and condemned to death. Thus the laws of tyrants condemnme, but the rights of man acquit me. --I have now told you my history, andyou shall hear nothing more from me. I die without a murmur, and merelygrieve that I cannot burst the chain which fetters my fellow-men. If youcan assist me, good; but know that death from the hand of my foe is morewelcome to me than mercy. Leave me now to myself; return to slavery, while I wing my course to everlasting freedom. "

Faustus was confounded at the magnanimity of the Doctor, and hurried awayto reproach the minister with his injustice, and put him to shame. TheDevil, who saw deeper into matters, perceived that the Doctor wasanimated with quite a different spirit than that of freedom. Theminister gave them an immediate audience; when Faustus spoke to him withmuch warmth and boldness concerning the situation and opinions of theDoctor. He represented to him how injurious it would be to hisreputation to sacrifice a man, whom he once called friend, at the shrineof despotism. He gave him to understand that every man would believethat revenge and fear had actuated him to get rid of so sharp-sighted anobserver of his actions. "If your proceedings be just, " he continued, "you have, then, nothing to fear from him; if, on the contrary, you aresuch a man as he declares you to be, his execution will only strengthenhis assertion, and every honest man will call you a false friend and anoppressor of your fellow-citizens. "

_Minister_. I do not know you, nor do I ask who you are. The manner inwhich I bear your reproaches and your epithets will best prove my opinionof you. Consider, now, whether you have a right to bestow them from merehearsay, being yourself unacquainted with the affairs of this country. Iwill conclude, however, that you speak from compassion, and thereforewill give you an answer. I was, and am still, the friend of Dr. Robertus; and I deplore the necessity which forces me to deliver up tojustice a man whose talents might have made him useful to his country, had he not perverted them to her destruction. I will not search for thecause of this in his breast, but will leave it to his own conscience. For a long time I have tolerated his dangerous infatuation; but since hehas inflamed the minds of the people for whose welfare I am answerable, and has placed himself at the head of a rebellion, he must die, as my ownson must, were he guilty of the like offence. The law has judged him, and not I; he knew this law, and knew what penalties rebellion draws downupon its sons. I have nothing to say against the opinion of the people:when they are no longer misled, I believe they will consider me as theirfather. If you please, you may stay among us; and whenever you can seeany thing really calculated for the people's good, be assured that Ishall always pay attention to it. 

After these words, which he spoke in a firm and unaltered tone, heretired, and left Faustus, who was unable at the moment to make anyreply. Upon going away, the latter said to the Devil, "Which of thesetwo, now, shall I believe?" The Devil shrugged his shoulders; for hegenerally appeared to be ignorant when concealing the truth would beprofitable to himself and injurious to mankind. 

_Faustus_. But why should I ask thee? I will obey the call of my ownheart. A man who is so nearly allied to me by his way of thinking shallnot die. 

If Faustus had been acquainted with some of our modern bawlers forfreedom, he would not have been so mistaken in the Doctor; but such abeing was a novelty at that period. 

The next morning, when the execution was to take place, Faustus went intothe grand square, attended by the Devil, and told him in going along whathe was to do. At the very moment the executioner was about to decapitatethe Doctor, who had kneeled down, looking very ghastly, the latterdisappeared. The Devil carried him through the air beyond the frontiers;and there, delivering him a large sum of money, he abandoned him joyfullyto his fate, for he saw pretty clearly how he would employ his gold andliberty. The people raised a wild shout of joy at the disappearance ofthe Doctor, and believed that Providence had rescued their favourite. Faustus also shouted, and rejoiced at the glorious action. 

Faustus and the Devil now rode to the court of the Prince of ---. {134}They soon reached the court of this prince, who was cried up through allGermany as a wise and virtuous ruler, whose only happiness consisted inthe welfare of his subjects. It is true that the subjects themselves didnot always join in this cry; but the prince is not yet born who can givesatisfaction to all men. 

Faustus and the Devil, by means of their dress and equipage, soon foundadmittance at court. Faustus regarded the Prince with the eyes of a manwhose heart was already prepossessed in his favour; and to carry thisprepossession even to conviction, nothing more was necessary than thenoble exterior of the Prince himself. He was, or appeared to be, frankand open; endeavoured to please and to win all hearts without appearingto do so; was familiar without laying aside his dignity, and possessedthat prudent coldness which inspires respect, though we scarcely knowwhy. All this was blended with so much elegance, urbanity, and decorum, that it would have been difficult for the most acute eye to havedistinguished the acquired, the artificial, and the assumed, from theplain and natural. Faustus, who had as yet seen few of those men of theworld whose natural characters are swallowed up by political prudence, formed an ideal one out of the above-mentioned materials; and after hehad for some time visited the court, and believed that he had obtained athorough knowledge of the head personage, the following conversation tookplace one evening between him and the Devil:

_Faustus_. I have hitherto purposely said nothing to you of this Prince;but now, having, as I flatter myself, caught his character, I venture toaffirm that report is no liar, and I hope to wring from thee an avowalthat he is the man we have been seeking. 

_Devil_. I guessed, from your beginning, how you would end. I supposeyou verily believe that you have brought the Devil into a quandary; butof this anon. Your prince shall be for the present a thoroughly honestfellow. I will tell you nothing of the result of the observations I havemade upon him; for, from what I have learnt at the minister's, there issomething going forward which will soon give you ocular demonstration ofhis worth; till then keep the idea you have formed of him in your bosom, and tell me what is your opinion of Count C. , his favourite. 

_Faustus_. Curse it: he is the only person here whom I cannotcomprehend. He is the bosom friend of the Prince, and yet is as slipperyas an eel, which always escapes through your fingers; and as smooth as awoman is towards her husband when she has resolved to deceive him. Butperhaps he is obliged to conceal the emotions of his soul, lest some ofthose spies who are always hanging round the favourites of princes shouldtake advantage of him. 

_Devil_. His soul! Dost think then, Faustus, that a man who sostudiously endeavours to disguise himself has a breast that would bearthe light? Never trust him in whom art and subtlety have so far overcomeanimal nature, that even the signs of his instinct and his sensations areextinguished. When that which works and ferments within you shows itselfno more in your face, in your eyes, and in your actions, you are nolonger what nature formed you; but are become the most dangerous bruteson the earth. 

_Faustus_. And is the Count such a being as you have described?

_Devil_. The Count is a man who has travelled much and has made the tourof the courts of Europe, has smoothed down the rugged man, and hassacrificed the noble feelings of his heart at the cold shrine of reason;in short, one of those calculating heads who laugh at your ideal virtue, and act with men like the potters, who dash the work of their hands topieces if it does not please their fancy. He is one of those who thinkthemselves justified, by their experience, to consider the entire race ofmen as a pack of wolves who will devour all who put confidence in them. Nothing delights him more than to carry on an intricate state-plot; andhe treats a maiden as he does a rose which he plucks from thestalk, --inhales the sweetness, and then very coolly treads it under foot. 

_Faustus_. Malicious devil! and can the man thou hast depicted to me bethe bosom friend of the Prince of ---?

_Devil_. Time will show what he is to him. I tell thee there issomething going forward. Didst thou, by the by, observe the ministerthis evening?

_Faustus_. He appeared sad and melancholy. 

_Devil_. He, now, is one of those whom you call honest men. He is just, noble-minded, and attentive to the duties of his situation; but, like allof you, he has a foible to counterbalance his virtues; this is anunbounded tenderness for the other sex: and as he, out of principle, required the blessing of the priest to his pleasures, so did he, afterthe death of his first wife, make a fool of himself by marrying the womanwhom you have seen. Through a few hours' enjoyment he destroyed thefabric of his fortune. She took advantage of his doting fondness, andwasted in luxury, dress, and play, her, his, and his children's property, and involved him in debts to an immense amount. It is true she found inBaron H. , whom you know, and who is sole master in the house, a powerfulcoadjutor. When they were completely aground, and their desires hadbecome more craving in proportion as the difficulty of gratifying themincreased, the lady readily agreed to a plan which her minion proposed toher in private, and which was nothing else "than to sell the honour ofher stepdaughter, under an equivocal promise of marriage, at as high aprice as the favourite would buy it. " The minister had not the slightestsuspicion of all this; he only felt his lack of money, the weight of hisdebts, the full mass of his folly, and trembled in momentary expectationof the arrival of his son, whom the wife had driven from home in orderthat she might dissipate his property. The poor youth had in theinterval departed for the Turkish wars, and had been rewarded for hisinterference with a wooden arm. I do not say that the favourite mightnot have had, at the commencement of this affair, serious views ofmarrying the daughter, for he was well aware of the father's interestwith the Prince; but during these last few days the scene has quitechanged. The Prince has proposed to him an alliance with one of therichest heiresses in the land; and he has determined, by one secretstroke, so entirely to overwhelm the minister and his whole house, thatno one shall dare to cry for revenge or to complain of him. They willall be silent, and the minister will be crushed beneath his foot, likethe worm, whose sufferings are unheard. 

_Faustus_. But will not the Prince hear of this deed, and punish it?

_Devil_. Thine own eyes shall be witnesses of the issue of the affair. 

_Faustus_. I command thee, under pain of my displeasure, to play none ofthy tricks here. 

_Devil_. Those who by their crimes put the Devil himself to blush, havevery little need of his assistance. We begin now, O Faustus, to removethe covering from the hearts of men; and I own that I feel sincere joy infinding that the Germans are capable of something grand. You, indeed, are merely the imitators of other nations, and lose thereby the glory oforiginality; but in hell that is not esteemed essential, and good-will inthe cause of wickedness is all that is required. 

Faustus passed his time gaily among the women of the court, corruptingall those who were to be obtained by money or a fine face; whilst thedrama of the favourite was rapidly hastening to a conclusion. He nowrevealed his finely-spun design to Baron H. The latter was to be theinstrument of it; and as the glitter of gold was no longer at hand tosharpen his palled passion for the minister's wife, and as the tears ofthe unfortunate daughter, the misery of the father, and the expectedarrival of the crippled son, began to bear heavily upon his tenderconscience, he determined at once to free himself of all these burdens. His reward consisted in the Count's undertaking to persuade the Prince tosend the Baron on an important mission to the imperial court. Inconsideration of this, the Baron was to procure the wife of the ministerto purloin secretly, from the cabinet of her husband, a certainparchment, considered to be one of the most important title-deeds of theprincely house; and which the favourite was well aware would shortly becalled for, on account of a certain law-suit with another illustriousfamily. The Count then hoped to make it appear that the minister, for asum of money, would have delivered it into the hands of the adversaries, if the favourite's watchfulness had not detected his treachery. Thespouse of the minister, who thought that an old man who could no longersupply her with gold for her follies deserved no mercy, readily deliveredthe paper into the hands of the Baron, for whom she had the most dotingfondness. 

The minister was walking, in a melancholy manner, up and down hisapartment. The sense of approaching shame, and the certainty of deceivedlove, had removed from him even his daughter, who latterly had been hisonly consolation. She was weeping in her chamber, and breaking a heartworthy of a better destiny. The minister's meditations were interruptedby his wife, who now came to reproach him, and thereby add to his misery. Baron H. Presently entered, and coolly demanded the commission, by virtueof which he was to act at the imperial court. As he brought with him thePrince's order for the same, the minister instantly went into his cabinetto fetch it. In the mean time the lady, who now first heard of theBaron's intended departure, began to rave at him in the agony of despair. No sooner did the minister return with the Baron's commission than amessenger brought him a note from the Prince, in which he was commandedinstantly to bring the title-deed into court in order that it might belaid before the envoy of the adverse party. The minister searched thecabinet, emptied all his drawers of their contents, and the cold sweat ofdeath began to trickle down his face. He questioned his secretaries andclerks, his wife also, and his daughter; but to no purpose. At length hewas obliged to resolve, fortified as he was by his innocence, to exposehimself to the dreadful storm. He hastened to the Prince, who wassitting alone with the Count, informed him of his misfortune, assured himof his innocence, and submitted to his destiny. The Count allowed thePrince to give way to his first indignation at this unwelcomeintelligence, when, advancing very coolly, he took the title-deed out ofhis own pocket, and delivered it to the Prince with a low bow. He thensuffered himself to be closely questioned as to the means by which thedeed came into his possession; but not until the Prince had threatenedhim with his displeasure did he confess, with the greatest apparentreluctance, the process of the affair according to his concerted plan. The minister was dumb; this evidence of his guilt so confused him, thatnot even the consciousness of his innocence could dispel the darknesswhich had come over him. The Prince looked furiously upon him, and said:"I ought long since to have expected that you would endeavour to pay thedebts of your waste and extravagance by betraying me. " This lastreproach in some degree restored the wretched man to his senses; he wasabout to speak, but the Prince commanded him to be silent, to resign hissituation immediately, go home, and not leave his house till sentenceshould have been pronounced upon him. 

The minister accordingly went home, while big tears rolled down hischeeks. Despair forced from the daughter the secret of her shame, andfrom the wife the avowal of her crime. The strength of his spirit gaveway, his senses became confused, and that most frightful of allvisitations, insanity, drew a gloomy veil over the remembrance of thepast, and, by the ruin of his mind, healed his heart of the wounds whichhis nearest and dearest had inflicted upon it. 

It was at this moment that the Devil led Faustus into the chamber of theminister, having previously informed him of every particular of theaffair. All the fibres of feeling were not yet entirely destroyed, andsome few drops of paternal sensibility were yet falling from the eyes ofthe good old man upon the miserable daughter who was clasping his knees. He smiled once more, played with her dishevelled locks, and smiled yetagain. Suddenly his son rushed in, and was about to precipitate himselfinto his embrace. The father gave him a ghastly look; a wild shriek ofmadness, which thrilled through the nerves of every one present, burstfrom his heaving breast; and the poor sufferer became for ever an objectof horror and painful compassion. 

Faustus raged, and uttered the most frightful curses. He instantlydetermined to inform the Prince of the whole proceeding, and to unmaskthe traitors. The Devil smiled, and advised him to go softly to work ifhe wished thoroughly to know this Prince whom he boasted of as animpersonation of all human virtues. Faustus hastened to court; andcertain, as he imagined, of being able to cause the ruin of the favouriteby this discovery, he coolly communicated every thing to the Prince. When he came to the motive which urged the Count to this horrible action, namely, his wish to free himself from his engagements with the daughterof the minister, the countenance of the Prince brightened; he sent forthe Count, and embracing him on his entrance, said:

"Happy is the Prince who finds a friend who, out of obedience and thefear of displeasing him, dares commit an action which the common rules ofmorality condemn. The minister has always acted like a fool. I am gladthat we have thus got rid of him. Thou wilt fill his situation muchbetter. "

Faustus stood for a moment petrified with horror. Noble warmth soon, however, began to fire his breast. He depicted in frightful colours thepresent situation of the minister. He then burst into fury andreproaches, and, without the least reserve or fear, spoke like an avengerof humanity when unmasking a cold-blooded, hypocritical tyrant. He wasturned out of the palace as a madman. He returned home, and the Devilreceived him with a triumphant air. Faustus said nothing, but gnashedhis teeth, and, in his venomous wrath, rejoiced that he was entirelyseparated from the race of man. 

About midnight the Count caused the Devil and Faustus to be arrested, andcast into a frightful dungeon. Faustus commanded the fiend to submitquietly, because he wished to see how far these hypocrites would carrytheir wickedness. When in prison, the dreadful scene of the day flittedbefore his mind's eye in colours of tenfold horror; and wild thoughtsagainst Him who rules the destiny of man arose from the contemplation ofit. His soul became inflamed; and at length he exclaimed, with scornfullaughter:

"Where is here the finger of the Godhead, and where is that Providencewhich presides over the path of the righteous? I see the just maninsane, and the wretch who drove him to madness rewarded; I disclosed tothe tyrant, who affects virtue, the wickedness of his favourite, and hefound him only so much the more worthy of his friendship and favour. Ifthis be the order and harmony of the moral world, then there is harmonyand order in the brain of the poor lunatic, who is suffered to fallunprotected and unrevenged. "

He continued, while the Devil listened and laughed: "But allowing thatman is obliged, by necessity, to do every thing he does, then must hisdeeds and his actions be ascribed to the Supreme Being, and they therebycease to be punishable. If nothing but what is good and perfect can flowfrom a Perfect Being, then are our deeds, horrible as they seem to us, good and perfect. If they are wicked, and in reality what they seem tous, then ought that Being to be looked up to with horror and aversion. Come, fiend, resolve my doubts, and tell me what causes the moral miseryof man. "

_Devil_. A truce to your doubts! no one clothed in flesh is permitted tountie that knot, and _therefore_ _a thousand fools will hang_, _drown_, _and destroy themselves_. Do not, O Faustus, forget the end which weproposed to ourselves at our first interview. I promised to show theemen in their nakedness, in order to cure thee of the prejudices thouhadst imbibed from thy books, so that they might not disturb thee in theenjoyment of life. But when thou hast rid thyself of all these humanfrailties, and hast discovered that the pretended guidance of the EternalOne whom thou hast renounced on my account, and before whose sight thoumayst commit, undeterred, the most horrible atrocities, is only adelusion, perhaps thy soul will then have sufficient strength tounderstand these horrible mysteries; and, if so, I will reveal them tothee. 

_Faustus_. Then, by the mysteries of evil which surround men from theirbirth to their grave, I shall yet be the greatest of my race; for, insummoning thee, I shall have threaded the labyrinth in which the restmust grope about to all eternity. 

_Devil_. It is well that the rest of men do not possess the magic artwhich has enabled thee to render me thy subject, else would hell soon beemptied; and thou wouldst see more devils walking upon the earth thanthere are saints in the Calendar. Heigh ho! I know what a troublesomelife a devil has who is forced to put in execution all the designs of anhonest heart and a sound head: what, then, would become of us, if everyrascal and fool could call us out of hell!

This observation of the Devil's was on the point of putting Faustus intoa better humour; but his attention was almost immediately directed toanother subject. Six armed men, with dark lanterns, followed by twoexecutioners with empty sacks, now entered the dungeon. Faustus askedthem what they wanted; and the leader answered, with great politeness:"We are merely come, sir, to request you and your honourable companion tocreep into these sacks; for we are ordered to tie you up in them, andthen fling you into the neighbouring stream. " The Devil laughed aloud, and exclaimed: "See, Faustus, the Prince of --- wishes to cool in youthat enthusiasm for virtue which you displayed so warmly before himto-day. " Faustus looked furiously, and gave a sign: a fiendish roarinstantly filled the arched vaults; the soldiers and executioners sunktrembling to the ground, and out flew the prisoners on the wings of themighty wind. 

Revenge now inflamed the breast of Faustus, and arrayed itself in thebrilliant hues of a great and noble call. The idea of avenging mankindon its oppressors rushed through his brain, and he determined to employthe power of the Devil in clearing the earth of hypocrites and villains. He therefore exclaimed:

"Fly this moment to the palace, and strangle the wretch who makes a gameof virtue. Annihilate him who rewards the traitor, and knowingly treadsupon the righteous man. Avenge mankind on him, in my name. "

_Devil_. Faustus, thou art forestalling the vengeance of the Avenger. 

_Faustus_. His vengeance sleeps, and the righteous man suffers; I willhave him destroyed who wears only the mask of virtue. 

_Devil_. Bid me, then, breathe pestilence and death over the wholeearth, so that the whole race of man may perish. I tell thee, Faustus, thou art giving thyself useless trouble, and sending wretches down tohell in vain; for things will still go on as they did, or perhaps worse. 

_Faustus_. Crafty fiend, thou wouldst willingly save him in order thathe might commit more crimes. Princes like him do indeed deserve thyprotection, for they render virtue contemptible by rewarding villany. Die he shall, and, loaded with his last deed, sink trembling intodamnation. 

_Devil_. Know, thou fool, that the Devil rejoices over the death of asinner; and what I said was merely to secure myself from thy futurereproaches, and that thou mightest have no excuse remaining. Theconsequences of this deed be thine. 

_Faustus_. Yes, be they mine. I will lay them in the scale against mysins. Hasten, and be firm. Be thou the arrow of my vengeance. Seizethe favourite and hurl him among the sands of burning Libya, so that hemay perish by inches. 

_Devil_. Only private revenge, and spite in finding thyself deceived, drive thee to this. 

_Faustus_. Babbling fiend! It is a solitary remnant of what you call myyouthful prejudices which inspires me with angry thoughts at the sight ofany atrocious act. If I could have seen and tolerated the wickedness ofmen, should I have wanted thee? Hasten and obey. 

The Devil suffocated the Prince on his magnificent couch, then seized thetrembling favourite and hurled him among the burning sands of Libya. Hethen returned to Faustus, and cried, "The deed is done!" They once moremounted the rapid winds, and sailed out of the country. 

Faustus sat, melancholy, upon his horse; for, after they had passed thefrontiers, the Devil had changed their method of travelling. The historyof the minister still gnawed his heart, and he was stung to the quick atbeing obliged to acknowledge that the Devil had as yet been right inrespect to men; and the bitterness of his spirit increased in proportionas they displayed themselves to him in their true colours. Yet the ideaof having avenged the unfortunate minister upon the hypocrites cheeredhim in the midst of his gloomy sorrows. Pride by degrees so inflated hisheart, that he almost began to consider his alliance with the Devil asthe act of a man who yields up his soul for the good of his race, andthereby surpasses all the heroes of antiquity, who merely sacrificedtheir temporal existence; nay more, for as they sacrificed themselves forthe sake of glory, or for a recompense, --which he, on account of hisengagement, could entertain no hopes of, --so at last he imagined thatthey were not worthy to stand for a moment in comparison with him. Thus, place men in whatever situation you will, they soon begin to feel happy, provided their self-love has an opportunity of working; for self-love caneven gild the yawning gulf of hell, as in the case of Faustus. Heforgot, in his pride, the motives of his alliance with the Devil, and histhirst for pleasure and enjoyment; and while he sat upon his horse, hisimagination dubbed him the knight-errant of virtue and the champion ofinnocence. The Devil rode by his side without once disturbing hismeditations; for he only saw in each of these would-be noble feelings thesources of future torment and despair. His hatred of Faustus, however, increased in proportion as the ideal prospects of the latter brightenedand expanded; he enjoyed, in anticipation, the hour when all these airyvisions would melt and disappear, and all these painted images of fancywould deck themselves in the livery of hell, and tear the rash one'sheart as the heart of mortal had never yet been torn. After a longsilence, Faustus suddenly exclaimed: "Tell me how it fares with the falsefavourite. "

_Devil_. He pants upon the scorched sands, and stretches his parchedtongue from out his burning jaws, that the air and dew may refresh andmoisten it; but no cooling wind blows there, and for a millennium therewill fall no refreshing drop from heaven. His blood boils like moltenmetal in his veins, and the rays of the sun fall perpendicularly upon hisbare head. Already is a curse against the Almighty conceived in hisinflamed brain, but his tongue is unable to stammer it forth. He turnsup the hot sand like a mole, in order that he may suck the damp earth;but thus he only digs his own grave. Is thy revenge satisfied?

_Faustus_. Revenge! Why dost thou call the exercise of justice revenge?Here am I shedding cold drops of sweat through my skin at what thou hastbeen telling me; but I saw him laugh when I described to him and hispatron the sufferings of the noble father and the ruined daughter. 

_Devil_. Time, which slowly draws up the curtain, will at lengthdisclose every thing. If the villanies of a petty despot and hiscatamite horrify thee, what wilt thou think when thou seest men who havea thousand times more power, and consequently will, to commit evil? Wehave, as yet, only removed the first skin of the monster: what willbecome of thee when we tear open his breast? Soon would He, to whomvengeance properly belongs, empty the magazine of his thunder, were he todestroy all those who, according to thy opinion, do not deserve to live. 

Faustus was about to reply, when he saw afar off a village in a blaze. As every thing uncommon excited his curiosity, he spurred forward hishorse, and the Devil followed at his heels. He was soon met by aconfused rout of knights and attendants, who had been vanquished byanother party, which, however, did not pursue them. When they camenearer to the village, they found the plain strewed with the bodies ofmen and horses. They saw among the dead a miserable wretch, who, withboth his hands, was endeavouring to force back his entrails, which werehanging out of his mangled belly. He howled and cursed frightfullyduring this horrid operation. Faustus asked him the cause of all thisbloodshed. The fellow screamed, "Get to the Devil, Mr. Curiosity; if yousaw your inside outmost, as I see mine, you would have no wish to answerquestions. If you want to know why they have served me thus, inquire ofthat noble gentleman, my master, who lies there dead, and whom I have tothank for this treatment. "

They left him, and approached a knight who was wounded in the shoulder, and Faustus put the same question to him. The knight answered: "A boorbelonging to yon burning village killed, some time ago, a stag, theproperty of the mighty Wildgrave. Thereupon the Wildgrave demanded theculprit of my master, in order that he might be tied upon the back of astag and run to death, according to the German custom. My master refusedto give up the boor; but in order to punish him, seized every thing hepossessed, and confiscated it to his own use. The Wildgrave then sent aletter of defiance to my lord, in the name of Heaven, and with thepermission of the emperor. We were worsted in the battle, and theWildgrave has set fire to the village, which he has surrounded with hishorsemen, so that the inhabitants cannot escape; for he intends to fulfilthe oath which he swore, viz. To roast all the peasants, like Michaelmasgeese, for his hounds and wild-boars. "

_Faustus_ (_furiously_). Where is his castle?

_Knight_. On yonder eminence; it is the strongest and most magnificentcastle in the whole country. 

Faustus rode to the top of a hill, and looked down upon the burningvillage, which lay beneath him in the valley. Mothers with children intheir arms, old men, youths, and maidens rushed out, cast themselves atthe feet of the horsemen, and begged for mercy. The Wildgrave shoutedtill the valley reechoed, "Drive the rabble back; they shall perish inthe flames!" The peasants screamed out, again and again: "We areinnocent! we are innocent! He who offended you has escaped. What havewe and our children done? Ah, spare but them!" The horsemen whippedthem up from the ground, and drove them into the fire. The poor mothersflung down their babes, in the hope that they would pity them; but thehoofs of the horses trampled them to death. 

Faustus cried deliriously: "Fly, Devil, and return not till thou hastconsumed the tyrant's castle, and all that is therein. When he returnshome, let him find retribution. "

The Devil laughed, shook his head, and flew away; whilst Faustus flunghimself down beneath a tree, and gazed impatiently upon the castle. Whenhe beheld it in flames, the madman imagined that he had restored allthings to their right order, and received the Devil on his return withthe utmost joy. The latter came back in triumph, and boasted of the ruinhe had caused; and, pointing to the Wildgrave and his myrmidon, who werescampering towards the castle, he exclaimed: "The vapours of the hellishpool will not, one day, strike him with such horror, O Faustus, as thisthy deed: his young and beloved wife was a few days ago delivered of herfirstborn. "

_Faustus_. Oh, save her and the new-born babe!

_Devil_. It is too late. The mother pressed the boy in her arms, and hewas burnt to ashes upon her bosom. 

This episode made Faustus shudder, and he exclaimed, "How ready is theDevil to destroy!"

_Devil_. Not so ready as daring men are to decide and punish. Had yebut our might, ye would long ago have shattered the vast globe, andreduced it to a chaos. Are you not a proof of this yourself, since youso madly abuse the power which you have over me? Go to; go to. The manwho does not bridle himself resembles the wheel which rolls down thesteep: who can stop its course? It springs from rock to rock till it isshivered. Faustus, I would willingly have permitted the babe to grow upand commit sin; for I am now deprived both of him and his mother. Yes, Faustus; she endeavoured to preserve him from the scorching flames withher arms, the flesh of which was already frightfully burnt. 

_Faustus_. Thou drivest it home to my very heart. (_Hiding his face inhis mantle_, _already wet with his tears_. )

The desire of avenging the virtuous and the innocent upon the wicked nowbegan to cool in the heart of Faustus. He however comforted his spirit, tormented by the last spectacle, with the thought of the mother and thesuckling being preserved from hell. Besides this, his hot blood, hiseagerness for pleasure, his desire for change, and finally his doubts, did not permit any sensation to make a lasting impression upon his heart. As he was attracted by every new object, his feelings, therefore, burntlike sky-rockets, which for a moment illumine the darkness of the night, and then suddenly disappear. The rich meal and the delicious wines whichhe enjoyed in the next city where they arrived soon chased away hismelancholy fancies; and as the grand fair was being held there at thattime, Faustus and the Devil, after they had dined, went into themarket-place to see the crowd. 

They now found themselves in a strange city. There lived in one of theconvents a young monk, who had, by means of a heated imagination, succeeded in so powerfully convincing himself of the force of religiousfaith, that he believed he should be able to remove mountains, and toprove himself a new apostle in deeds and miracles, if once his soulreceived the true inspiration, and the Holy Spirit worked its way throughhim. Besides this, he imbibed all the follies and quackeries whichothers had rejected, --a circumstance in which visionaries entirely differfrom philosophers. The young monk, like every theorist who is inspiredwith the importance of his subject, was a fiery orator; he thereby soonwon over the minds of the simple, especially of the women, who wereeasily caught by any warm and impassioned appeal. His imagination, however, quickly formed for him another magic wand; for as he, on accountof his alliance with the highest of all beings, had a lofty opinion ofman, he formed the design of physiognomically dissecting the masterpieceof creation, this favourite of heaven, and of allotting to him hisinterior qualities by means of his exterior appearance. Men of hischaracter so frequently deceive themselves, that it is impossible to saywhether some remaining spark of understanding had whispered to him thatthis new delusion would give a fresh polish to the old one; and that morepious souls would come to him than ever, in order to be told so manywondrous things about their faces. As he had only seen the four walls ofhis cell, his penitents, and people of his own cast, and as he was asignorant in regard to mankind, the world, and true science, as men ofsanguine imaginations usually are, --it may be concluded that fancy aloneexcited him to this scheme. His words and his writings operatedprodigiously upon the minds of all those who would much rather beconfused than think clearly. This is the case with the greater part ofmankind; and, as the hours of life glide away very pleasantly whenself-love is tickled, it was impossible that he should be withoutdisciples, for he flattered every body. Our monk did not confine hisresearches to man alone; for he descended to the more ignoble beasts ofthe earth, allotted to them their qualities by examining their faces andthe structure of their bodies, and imagined that he had made a wonderfuldiscovery when he proved--from the mighty claws, the teeth, and theaspect of the lion, and from the tender, light fabric of the hare--whythe lion was not a hare, and the hare a lion. He was strangely surprisedthat he had succeeded in pointing out so clearly the appropriate andunalterable signs of brute nature, and to be able to apply them toman, --although society has so much accustomed the latter to mask hisfeatures, that they are rarely to be seen in their primitive state. Notsatisfied with these triumphs, our monk descended even into the kingdomsof the dead--tore skulls from the graves, and the bones of animals fromthe muck-heaps; and showed his visitors why the dead were dead, and, fromtheir bones, how it was impossible that they should be otherwise thandead. In a word, he proved, clearly and unanswerably, that death neveryet came without a cause. 

The Devil was well aware of the general infatuation, and perceived that, while he and Faustus sat at dinner in the public room, some of thecompany, and even the innkeeper himself, were surveying them with theutmost attention; and were communicating to each other, in whispers, theresult of their observations, and showing the profiles which they hadsecretly taken. The fame of the wonderful monk had long since reachedthe ears of Faustus; but he had hitherto paid so little attention to it, that he now hardly knew what to make of these signs and whisperings. When they arrived in the market-place, they were surprised by a new andextraordinary spectacle. This resort was the true school forphysiognomists. Every one there could single out his man, lay his visageupon the balance, and weigh out the powers of his mind. Some stoodgazing at horses, asses, goats, swine, dogs, and sheep. Others heldbetween their fingers spiders, butterflies, grasshoppers, and otherinsects, and endeavoured to ascertain what their instinct might be froman attentive survey of their exterior. Some were employed in judging, from the weight of jaw-bones or the sharpness of teeth, to what animalsthey belonged. But when Faustus and the Devil advanced among them, eachman desisted from his occupation, and began to cry out, "What a nose!what eyes! what a searching glance! what a soft and beautiful curve ofthe chin! what strength! what intuition! what penetration! what acleanly-made figure! what a vigorous and majestic gait! what strength oflimb! how uniform and harmonious is his whole frame!" "I would give Iknow not what for the autographs of the gentlemen, " said a weaver, "inorder that I might judge, by their handwriting, of the quickness of theirthoughts. " The Devil happening to knit his brows from impatience of thisfolly, one of the physiognomists instantly said, "The internal force ofthe lion, which the gentleman possesses, has been aroused by someexternal provocation, or some trifling thought. "

Faustus was laughing at all this, when suddenly a beautiful female lookeddown upon him from a window, and cried, in sweet amazement: "HolyCatherine! what a noble head! what soft and angelic pensiveness in theeyes! what a sweet and lovely physiognomy!" These melodious words sunkinto the heart of Faustus. He looked up to the window: her eyes met hisfor a moment ere she drew herself back. Faustus whispered to the Devil:"I will not quit this town till I have possessed that maiden: whatvoluptuousness beams in her eyes!" They had scarcely entered a sidestreet, when one of the physiognomists came up and asked them verycivilly for "the physiognomy of their writing, " assuring them that nostranger had hitherto refused him this favour, and he hoped and trustedthat they would not. He thereupon pulled out his album, and offered itto Faustus, at the same time producing pen and ink. 

_Faustus_. Not so fast, my friend; one good turn deserves another. Tellme, first, who the maiden is that I this moment saw at the window ofyonder house, and whose countenance is so celestial. 

_Physiognomist_. Ah! she is an angel in every sense of the word. Ourillustrious master has often assured us, that her eyes are the verymirrors of chastity, her lovely mouth only formed to express theinspiration of a heart filled with heavenly ideas; that her brow is thepolished shield of virtue, against which all temptations, all earthlysin, will be shivered; that her nose snuffs the odours of the fields ofbliss; and that she is the most perfect cast of ideal beauty ever yetpermitted to appear in the world. 

_Faustus_. Truly, you have depicted her to me with more than earthlycolours; and now tell me her situation in life, and her name. 

_Physiognomist_. She is the daughter of a physician; but her father andmother being lately dead, she lives by herself on her own property. Hername is Angelica. 

They then wrote some nonsensical lines in his album, and thephysiognomist departed, delighted with his treasure. 

_Faustus_. Now tell me, Devil, how this child of grace is to be come at. I am just inclined to see this monk's ideal beauty. 

_Devil_. By the high road to the human heart you will certainly meether; for sooner or later all must fall in with it, however far theirfancies may have caused them to stray from it. 

_Faustus_. What a delightful enjoyment it would be to fill so exalted animagination as hers with images of pleasure!

_Devil_. The monk has already had the start of you, and has so sharpenedher feelings, and filled her little soul with so much vanity andself-conceit, and made her piety so carnal, that you have nothing else todo than give one audible tap at the gate of her heart, in order to beadmitted. Let us now see to what lengths such delusions will lead ayoung woman. 

_Faustus_. And let it be done quickly. 

The Devil was perfectly willing to steal so pure a soul from heaven, andthereby to consummate more speedily the measure of Faustus's sins. Hesuddenly stood in the shape of an old man with a peep-show, and, givingFaustus the wink, he hurried away into the market-place. He raised hisvoice, and invited the people to come and see his peep-show. Thepopulace flocked around him, --footmen and chambermaids, wives and widows, boys and graybeards. The Devil showed them all kinds of scenes, which heaccompanied with pious explanations and moral sayings. Each personstepped back delighted from the peep-show, and charmed the bystanderswith the recital of the wonders he had witnessed. The beautiful Angelicanow looked out of her window; and, hearing the Devil descant in so piousa tone, she felt an irresistible desire to see the wonders of his box, and to bestow alms upon the devout old showman. The Devil was sent for. Even he was struck by her wondrous beauty, her gentle manners, and heringenuousness; but he became only so much the more desirous to confuseher senses and entrap her. She placed her enthusiastic eye to the windowof the box. The Devil preluded with a few proverbs and wise saws, andunfolded to her view scenes of love, in which he led her fancy soadroitly from the spiritual to the carnal, that she was scarcely aware ofthe gradation. If she were about to turn away her eyes with shame, theoffensive object changed itself at once into a sublime image, which againattracted her attention. Her cheeks glowed, and she believed herselfgazing upon an unknown and enchanted world. The artful Devil caused thefigure of Faustus to appear in all these scenes. She saw him pursuing ashadow which resembled her own, and undertaking for its sake the greatestactions, and exposing himself to dangers of every description. When theDevil had completely chained her attention, and perceived that she washighly curious to know wherefore the figure of Faustus was thusassociated with her own, he changed the scene, and represented theparties in situations not to be misconstrued. Lightning does not soquickly glance through the darkness as did these scenes flit before theeyes of the innocent maiden; a moment is an age in comparison, and thepoison was glowing in her breast before she was able to retreat. Shestarted back, and, with her hands before her eyes, rushed into herchamber, and sunk senseless into the arms of Faustus. When she becameaware of her fall, she hid her face and repulsed the miscreant. He laidcostly jewels at her feet; but she spurned them, and cried, "Tremble, thou wretch! the hand of the Avenger will one day fall heavily upon theefor this crime. "

The insensate Faustus rejoiced at his victory; and went, without theleast feeling of repentance, to the Devil, who laughed at the affair, andyet more fiendishly when he thought of its terrific consequences. 

Faustus found himself here in his element. He flew from conquest toconquest, and made very little use of the power of the Devil, but a greatdeal of his gold, which has some influence even over devout minds. Angelica became invisible, and all the endeavours of Faustus to see heronce more were of no avail; but he soon forgot her in the tumult of hispleasures. Reading by chance some of the manuscript publications of themonk, he was irritated by the self-conceit and ignorance of the author. He proposed to the Devil to play him a trick, and with that intentionthey both went to the convent. As they were exceedingly well dressed, and appeared to be persons of distinction, they were received by theyoung monk in the most cordial and friendly manner. His eyes hadscarcely met those of the Devil when he became so agitated by hisphysiognomy, that, forgetting all the forms of politeness, he shook himviolently by the hand; and going to some distance, he looked at him firstfull in the face, and then in the profile. He then cried out:

"Ha! who art thou, most mighty one? Yes; you can do what you like; andwhat you wish you can also do: your physiognomy tells me this; thereforeit is not necessary for me to know you. Never have I been more perfectlyconvinced of the truth of my science than at this moment. Who can beholdsuch a human visage without interest, without admiration? Who cannotperceive in that nose, original greatness; in that eye, penetration, strength, and expression?"

He felt his forehead, and then continued:

"Permit me, with my measure, to ascertain the height of your brow? Yes;I see unshaken courage in that forehead, as clearly as I do steadfastfriendship, fidelity, love of God and man, in those lips. What anobleness in the whole! Thy face is the physiognomy of an extraordinaryman, who thinks deeply, who holds fast to whatever he undertakes, works, flies, triumphs, finds few men in whom he will confide, but many who willrely on him. 

"Ah! if a common mortal had such a brow, such a mouth, such a nose, oreven such hair, what would become of physiognomy?

"Perhaps there is not a man existing whom thy countenance would not byturns attract and repel. What infantine simplicity! What heroicgrandeur! Few mortals can be so well known and so little known asyourself. 

"Eagle, lion, destroyer, reformer of mankind, move on, move on, andreclaim men from their blindness; share with them the intellectualstrength which nature has given thee; and announce thyself to all as Ihave just announced thee to thyself. "

Faustus craunched his teeth while the monk was saying all these noblethings about the countenance of the Devil, who turning coolly to thephysiognomist, said, "And what is thy opinion of that gentleman? Tell me what he is. "

_Monk_. Great, bold, mighty, powerful, soft, and mild; but thou, hiscompanion, art greater, bolder, mightier, more powerful, more soft, moremild. 

Then looking at Faustus, he exclaimed:

"Mighty pupil of a mightier man, if thy spirit and thy heart couldentirely catch his greatness, thou wouldst still be merely reflecting therays of his glory. But seat thyself, and let me take thy shadow. "

Faustus, more and more enraged to see how infinitely the monk rated himbelow the Devil, now burst forth:

"Shadows! yes, indeed, shadows only hast thou seen. How darest thou thusjudge and measure the human race? Hast thou seen men? Where, and how?Thou hast merely seen their shadows, which thou adornest with the tinselof thy crazed imagination, and givest them out as the true forms. Tellme what kind of human beings thou hast seen. Were they not sectaries, fanatics, visionaries, the very offscourings of human nature? Were theynot vain devotees, young wives who have cold husbands, and widows whohave sleepless nights? Were they not authors eager to have every markand pimple on their insignificant features turned into a sign andprognostication of genius? Were they not grandees, whose brilliantstations rendered their physiognomies imposing to thine eye? Thou seestthat I know thy customers, and have read thy book. "

_Devil_. Bravo, Faustus! Let me now put in a word, and tell hisreverence a few mortifying truths. Brother monk, thou hast formed in thysolitary cell a phantom of perfection, and wouldst fain thrust that intopeople's heads, which, when there, poisons the brain, as the gangrenecorrupts all the flesh around it. There were men long ago who venturedto judge of the innermost of their fellow-creatures from the outside; butthere was some difference between them and thee. They had travelled overa considerable part of the earth; experience had made them gray; they hadlived and conversed with men, visited all the lurking holes of vice andiniquity, roved from the palace to the cot, crept into the caves ofsavages, and thus knew what belonged to a well-organised man, and what hecould do with his faculties. But shalt thou--swollen with prejudices, pent up in a convent like a toad in the trunk of an oak--pretend to havea clear idea of that which even they barely understood?

The monk stood between the two speakers as between two volcanoes ineruption; he crossed his hands humbly upon his breast, and cried, "Havemercy!"

The Devil continued:

"Among the many impudent follies which I observed in thy book was anattempt to draw the Devil's portrait. It is now high time for him toappear to thee, in order that thou mayst correct the likeness. Look atme; and for once thou shalt be able to say thou hast seen an object inits proper form. "

The Devil then appeared to him in the most frightful of infernal figures;but he rolled a thick mist before the eyes of Faustus, in order that hemight not blast his sight. The monk fell to the earth; and the Devil, resuming all his former comeliness, exclaimed:

"Now thou mayst paint the Devil in his proper colours, provided thou haststrength. Thou wouldst often be thus overcome, if thou didst in realitysee the innermost of those whom thou makest angels. "

_Faustus_. Persist in thy folly; communicate it to others; and by thyextravagances render religion repulsive to reasonable people. Thou canstnot farther more efficaciously the interests of the enemy. Farewell!

The monk had lost his senses through terror; but he still continuedwriting notwithstanding his madness; and his readers never once perceivedhis derangement, so much did his new books resemble his old ones. 

Faustus was delighted with this adventure; but becoming weary of thetown, he quitted it the next morning with the Devil, and took the road toFrance. 

CHAPTER IV. 

When Faustus and the Devil entered upon the fertile soil of France, itwas groaning beneath the oppression of that cruel and cowardly tyrantLouis the Eleventh, who was the first that ever styled himself "the mostChristian king. " The Devil had determined not to give Faustus theslightest information beforehand concerning this prince. He had resolvedto drive him to despair, and then overwhelm him with the most frightfulblow a mortal can receive who has rebelliously transgressed the boundswhich a powerful hand has drawn around him. 

The Devil had learnt from one of his spies that the most Christian kingwas meditating a masterpiece of state policy; or, in other words, was onthe point of getting rid of his brother, the Duke de Berry, in order thata province which had been granted to him might revert to the crown. Themalicious fiend resolved to make Faustus a spectator of this horridscene. They rode through a wood of oaks contiguous to a castle, and sawamong the trees a Benedictine monk, who seemed to be telling his rosary. The Devil rejoiced inwardly at this sight; for he read upon thecountenance of the monk that he was imploring the Mother of God to assisthim in the great enterprise which his abbot had intrusted him with, andlikewise to save him from all danger. This monk was Faber Vesois, confessor of the king's brother. The Devil did not disturb him in hispious meditations, but went on to the castle with Faustus. They werereceived with all the respect generally shown to persons of distinctionwho come to visit a prince. The duke passed his days here in the companyof his beloved Monserau, thinking of no harm, and expecting nomisfortune. His agreeable manners soon gained him the good-will ofFaustus, who was delighted to see a scion of royalty think and act like aman; for he had been accustomed to see among the German princes nothingbut pride, coldness, and that foolish ceremony which is only intended tomake visitors appear contemptible in their own eyes. Some days were verypleasantly spent in hunting and other amusements, and the prince gainedmore and more upon the heart of Faustus. The only thing that displeasedhim in the prince was the weakness he displayed in regard to hisconfessor, the Benedictine. He loaded him with so much tenderness, andsubmitted with so much complaisance to his will, and the monk alwayslooked so studiously devout, that Faustus could not conceive how a man sofrank himself could prize such a hypocrite. The Devil, however, soon lethim into the secret by informing him of the duke's connexion withMonserau. His love for this fair lady was equalled by his fear of hell;and, Madame de Monserau having a husband still living, he was notaltogether easy in respect to his amours with her. As he neither wishedto renounce her nor expose himself to eternal punishment, he greedilycaught at the baits which the monks hang out in order to make themselvesmasters of the minds of men; and when the dread of hell tormented him toomuch, he allayed his fears by receiving absolution for his sins; while hethought it impossible for him to be too grateful to a man who encouragedhim to enjoy the present, and tranquillised him in respect to the future. "Thou seest, O Faustus, " said the Devil, "what men have made of religion. Its abuse has often been associated with crimes and horrors, but isnevertheless used by the wicked to cajole and appease their rebelliousconsciences. "

The conduct of the prince in this respect did him little honour in theopinion of Faustus, who had long ago parted with his own conscience, andthis last remark of the Devil's operated strongly upon his mind; however, he permitted things to go on in their own way, and chiefly thought ofpassing his time pleasantly. 

They were one evening at table in excellent humour; the Devil wasdiverting the company with his pleasant stories, and Faustus was employedin saying soft things to a pretty French widow, who listened to him verycomplaisantly; when all of a sudden, Death, in his most frightful shape, came to disturb the festival. The Benedictine caused a basket ofextraordinarily large peaches, which he had just received as a present, to be brought in at dessert; and, selecting one of the finest, he offeredit to the prince with a smiling and benignant air. The prince divided itwith his beloved, and both ate of the peach without the slightestsuspicion. They then rose from table; the monk gave his benediction toall, and hurried away. The Devil was about to commence a new story, whenMadame de Monserau uttered a loud shriek. Her lovely features weredistorted, her lips became blue, and the paleness of death covered hercountenance. The prince rushed to her assistance; but the terriblepoison began likewise to operate upon him; he fell at her feet, andcried, "Listen, O Heaven: my brother, my cruel brother, has assassinatedme by the hand of that monster. He who caused his father to die ofhunger in order to avoid being poisoned, has now bribed the minister ofreligion to poison me. "

Faustus ran out of the room to seize the confessor, but he had fled; atroop of horse were waiting for him in the forest, and accompanied him inhis flight. Faustus returned; but Death had seized his victims, and theyhad ceased to struggle with him. Faustus and the fiend instantly quittedthe place. 

_Devil_. Well, Faustus, what think you of the deed committed by theBenedictine in the name of the most Christian king?

_Faustus_. I am almost inclined to believe that our bodies are animatedby fiendish spirits, and that we are only their instruments. 

_Devil_. What a debasing employment for an immortal spirit to have toanimate such an ill-contrived machine! Although I am a haughty demon, yet, believe me, I would rather animate a swine that wallows in the mirethan one of ye, who roll in all manner of vice, and yet have theconfidence to call yourselves images of the Most High. 

Faustus was silent; for the adventures he was every day compelled towitness forced him, against his inclination, to believe in the moralworthlessness of man. They travelled forward, and found every wherehideous monuments of the cruelty of Louis the Eleventh. Faustusfrequently made use of the Devil's gold and treasure to stop the bleedingwounds which the hand of the tyrant had inflicted. 

At length they arrived at Paris. Upon entering the city they found everything in commotion. The people were rushing in crowds down oneparticular street; they followed the populace, and arrived in front of ascaffold covered with black cloth, and which communicated, by means of adoor, with an adjoining building. Faustus asked what was the cause ofall this; and he was told "that the rich Duke of Nemours was just goingto be executed. " "And for what?" "The king has commanded it: there is areport, indeed, that he had hostile designs against the royal house, andthat he intended to murder the dauphin; but as he has only been tried inhis dungeon by judges named by the king, we know nothing for certain. "

"Say, rather, " exclaimed another of the bystanders, "that it is hisproperty which costs him his life; for our sovereign, in order to make usa great and celebrated nation, cuts off the heads of all our wealthy men, and would serve us in the same manner if we were to find fault with hisproceedings. "

The Devil left the horses at the nearest inn, and then led Faustusthrough the crowd. They saw the duke, accompanied by his children, entera chamber hung round with black, where a monk waited to receive his lastconfession. The father had his eyes fixed upon his sons, and could notlook to heaven. After he had confessed himself, he laid his tremblinghands upon the heads of the children, who were sobbing, and said, "Maythe blessing of an unhappy father, who falls a victim to tyranny andavarice, be your safeguard through life; but, alas, ye are the heirs ofmisfortune. Your rights and pretensions will infallibly doom you to longsufferings; ye are born for misery, and I shall die in this conviction. "He wished to say something more; but the guards silenced him, and hurriedhim out upon the scaffold. 

The tyrannical king had given orders that the duke's children should beplaced under the scaffold, so that the blood of their father might dropthrough the boards upon their white robes. The cries which the wretchedparent uttered at the moment his darlings were torn from him struckterror to the hearts of all around. Tristan alone, who was theexecutioner, and the king's most intimate friend, looked on with perfectcoolness, and felt the sharpness of the axe. Faustus imagined that thegroans of the unhappy parent would excite Heaven to avenge outragedhumanity. He lifted his tearful eyes towards the bright blue sky, whichseemed to smile upon the horrid scene. For a moment he felt himselfstrongly tempted to command the Devil to rescue the duke from the handsof the executioner; but his troubled and agitated mind was incapable ofcoming to any resolution. The duke fell upon his knees; he heard theshrieks and lamentations of his children who were beneath the scaffold;his own infamous death no longer occupied his mind; he felt for the lasttime, and felt only for these unfortunates; big tears hung in his eyes, his lips trembled; the executioner gave the fatal blow, and the boilingblood of the father trickled down upon the trembling children. Bathedwith paternal gore, they were then led upon the scaffold. They wereshown the livid headless trunk, were made to kiss it, and thenre-conducted to their prison, where they were chained up against the dampwall, so that whenever they took repose the whole weight of their bodiesrested on the galling fetters. To increase their misery, their teethwere torn out from time to time. 

Faustus, overwhelmed by the frightful scene he had witnessed, returnedshuddering to the inn, and commanded the Devil to annihilate the tyrantwho thus made a sport of human suffering. 

_Devil_. I will not annihilate him, for that would be against theinterest of hell; and why should the Devil put a stop to his crueltieswhen by some they are viewed with patience? If I were to further theprojects of thy blind rage, who would escape thy vengeance?

_Faustus_. Should I not be performing a noble part, if, like untoanother Hercules, I were to roam the world, and purge its thrones of suchmonsters?

_Devil_. Short-sighted man, does not your own corrupt nature prove thatyou must have these kings? And would not new monsters arise out of theirashes? There would then be no end of murder; the people would bedivided, and thousands would fall the victims of civil war. You see heremillions of bipeds like yourself, who suffer a man like themselves todespoil them of their property, to flay them alive, and to murder them athis pleasure. Did not they witness the execution of this duke, who diedinnocent as any lamb? Did they not gaze with pleasure, mingled withagony and grief, upon the tragic spectacle? Does not that prove theydeserve their lot, and are unworthy of a better? Could they not crushthe tyrant at a blow? If they have the power of relieving themselves intheir own hands, wherefore should we pity their sufferings?

Here the disputation ceased. 

Faustus shortly afterwards became acquainted with a gentleman of senseand education, who had an excellent character for probity. Faustus andthe Devil pleased him so much, that he invited them to come and pass somedays with him on his estate at a short distance from Paris, where helived with his family, which consisted of his wife and his daughter, whowas about sixteen years old, and lovely as an angel. At the sight ofthis divine object Faustus was like one enchanted, and felt, for thefirst time, the sweet torments of delicate love. He confided hissufferings to the Devil, who instantly offered to assist him, and laughedat the pretended delicacy of his sentiments. Faustus owned that it wasrepugnant to his feelings to violate the laws of hospitality. The Devilreplied: "Well, Faustus, if you wish to have the gentleman's consent, Iwill engage to procure it. For what do you take him?"

_Faustus_. For an honest man. 

_Devil_. It is a great pity, O Faustus, that you are so liable todeception. And so you really believe him to be an honest man! I admitthat all Paris is of the same opinion. What do you think he loves bestin the world?

_Faustus_. His daughter. 

_Devil_. I know something which he loves more. 

_Faustus_. And what is that?

_Devil_. Gold; and you ought to have seen that long ago. But since Ihave been obliged to open to thee the treasures of the earth, and thouhast had them at thy disposal, thou hast resembled the torrent whichinundates the fields, caring very little where its waters flow, or wherethey are received. How much hast thou lost at play with this gentleman?

_Faustus_. Let them reckon who care more for the dross than I. 

_Devil_. He who tricked you can tell to a ducat. 

_Faustus_. Tricked!

_Devil_. Yes, tricked you. He saw how little you cared for money, andhas made a noble harvest out of you. Think not that the table of thismiser would be so well provided, and that he would be so prodigal of therichest wines, and that thou wouldst see so many guests around him, provided thy gold did not work these miracles. At every moment hetrembles lest we should leave his house. I see by thy astonishment thatthou hast been a spendthrift all thy life, and that thou hast never feltthis thirst for gold, which can extinguish all the desires of the heart, and even the most pressing wants of nature. Follow me, but tread softly. 

They descended a staircase, went through several subterranean passages, and came at last to an iron door. The Devil then said to Faustus: "Lookthrough the key-hole. " Faustus perceived in a vault, illumined by thefeeble light of a lamp, the gentleman seated by the side of a strong-box, in which were many sacks of money, which he was looking at withtenderness. He then flung the money he had won from Faustus into anotherbox, and wept because he saw there was not sufficient to fill it. TheDevil said softly to Faustus: "For the sum which is wanting to fill thatbox, he will sell thee his daughter. "

Faustus was incredulous. The Devil waxed wroth, and said impatiently:

"I will show thee that gold has such irresistible power over the minds ofmen, that even at this moment some fathers and mothers belonging to thevillage are in the neighbouring wood selling for money their babes andsucklings to the emissaries of the king, although they are well awarethat the poor little things are destined to be slaughtered, in order thatthe king may drink their blood, with the foolish hope of renovating andrefreshing the corrupt tide which flows in his own veins. 

_Faustus_ (_with a shudder_). Then the world is worse than hell, and Ishall quit it without regret. But I will be convinced with my own eyesbefore I credit any thing so horrible. 

They now went into the wood, and concealed themselves among the bushes, where they perceived the emissaries of the king in conference with somemen and women, and the priest of the parish. Four little children werestretched upon the grass, one of them crying pitiably. The mother liftedit up and gave it pap, in order to quiet it; whilst the others crept uponthe ground, and played with the flowers. The emissaries counted moneyinto the hands of the husbands; the priest had his share, and thechildren were delivered up. The echoes of the wood repeated for a longtime the cries of the little wretches as they were carried away. Themothers groaned; but the men said to them, "Here is gold; let us go tothe public-house and buy wine, and drink to a fresh offspring. It isbetter that the king should eat the brats now they are young than flaythem when they are old, or tie them up in a sack and fling them into theSeine. It would have been much better for us if we had been devoured assoon as we were born. "

The priest comforted them, and said:

"They had done a meritorious act, and one which was pleasing to theMother of God, to whom the king was entirely devoted. " He added, "thatsubjects were born for the king; and that, as he reigned upon earth asHeaven's vicegerent, he had a right to dispose of them according to hispleasure, and that they were bound to revere the slightest of his fanciesas a sacred law. "

The peasants then went to the public-house, where they spent half theblood-money in drink, and kept the rest to pay the king's taxes. 

The Devil now looked at Faustus with an air of mockery, and said, "Hastthou still doubts whether the gentleman will sell thee his daughter?Thou at least wilt not eat her. "

_Faustus_. I swear by the black hell which at this moment appears to mea paradise when compared with the earth, that I will henceforward giveboundless scope to all my passions, and, by ravaging and destroying, believe that I am acting consistently to such a monster as man. Fly, andpurchase me his daughter: she is doomed to destruction, as is every thingthat breathes. 

This was exactly the disposition in which the Devil had long beendesirous to see Faustus, in order that he might precipitate him to theend of his career, and thereby ease himself of a grievous burden, andcease to be the slave of a thing so contemptible as man was in his eyes. That very evening he began to sound the father; and the next morning, whilst they walked together, he made proposals to him, and showed himgold and jewels, which the miser gazed at with rapture; but which, however, he would not take until he had made a parade of his virtue. Atevery objection the old hypocrite started, the Devil augmented the sum;and at last he bade so high that the miser accepted it, after muchceremony, laughing secretly at the madman who flung away his gold sofoolishly. The contract was made, and the father led Faustus to hisdaughter; and as he could prove that her parent was a consenting party, she fell a willing victim. 

The father in the mean time went with his gold and a lamp to the vaultwhere he kept his treasure, and which was known to none of his family. He was overjoyed in having obtained sufficient to fill his secondstrong-box. From fear of being followed, he closed the door hastilybehind him, forgetting that it went with a spring-lock, and that he hadleft the key on the outside. The lamp was extinguished by the wind ofthe door, and he found himself suddenly involved in profound darkness. The air of the vault was thick and damp, and he soon felt a difficulty inhis respiration. He now first perceived that he had not the key withhim, and death-like anguish shot coldly through his heart. He had stillstrength and instinct sufficient to find his box; he laid the gold in it, and staggered back to the door, where he considered whether he should cryout or not. He was cruelly agitated by the alternative of discoveringhis secret, or of making this vault his tomb. But his cries would havebeen to no purpose; for the cavern had no connexion with the inhabitedpart of the house, and he had always so well chosen his time, that no onehad ever yet seen him when he crept to the worship of his idol. Afterhaving for a long time struggled with himself, without coming to anyresolution, the terrible images which assailed his imagination, joined tothe thickness of the air, totally disordered his brain. He sunk to theearth, and rolling himself to the spot where his box stood, he hugged itin his arms, and became raving mad. He struggled with despair and deathat the moment of the ruin of his daughter, whose innocence he hadbartered for gold. Some days after, when all the corners of the househad been closely searched, chance led a servant to the cavern; it wasopened, and the unfortunate wretch was found lying, a blue and ghastlycorpse, upon his dear-bought treasure. The Devil informed Faustus upontheir return to Paris of the issue of this affair, and Faustus believedthat, on this occasion, Providence had justified itself. 

The fiend having learnt that the Parliament were about to decide upon acase unexampled and disgraceful to humanity, he thought it advisable thatFaustus should hear it. The fact was this: a surgeon, returning late onenight to Paris with his faithful servant, heard, not far from thehighway, the groans and lamentations of a man. His heart led him to thespot, where he found a murderer broken alive upon the wheel, who conjuredhim, in the name of God, to put an end to his existence. The surgeonshuddered with horror and fright; but recovering himself, he thoughtwhether it would not be possible for him to reset the bones of thiswretch, and preserve his life. He spoke a few words to his servant, tookthe murderer from the wheel, and laid him gently in the chaise. He thencarried him to his house, where he undertook his cure, which he at lastaccomplished. He had been informed that the Parliament had offered areward of one hundred louis-d'ors to any one who would discover theperson who had taken the assassin from the wheel. He told the murdererof this when he sent him away, and, giving him money, he advised him notto stay in Paris. The very first thing which this monster did was to goto the Parliament and betray his benefactor, for the sake of the hundredlouis-d'ors. The cheeks of the judges, which so seldom change colour, became pallid at this denunciation; for he informed them with thegreatest effrontery that he was the very assassin, who, having beenbroken alive upon the place where he had committed the murder, had beensaved by the compassion of the surgeon. The latter was sent for; and theDevil conducted Faustus into the hall of judgment exactly at the momenthe appeared. The attorney-general informed the surgeon of what he wasaccused; but the surgeon, being certain of his servant's fidelity, stoutly denied the charge. He was advised to confess, because a mostconvincing witness could be brought against him. He bade them producehim. A side-door opened, and the murderer stepped coolly into the court, and, looking the surgeon full in the face, undauntedly repeated hisaccusation, without forgetting a single circumstance. The surgeonshrieked, "O monster! what can have urged thee to this horribleingratitude?"

_Murderer_. The hundred louis-d'ors, which you told me of when you sentme away. Did you think that I was satisfied with merely recovering theuse of my limbs? I was broken alive on the wheel for a murder which Icommitted for ten crowns, and I was not fool enough to lose gaining ahundred louis without running any risk. 

_Surgeon_. Thou wretch! thy cries and groans touched my heart. I tookthee down from the wheel, comforted thee, and bound up thy wounds. I fedthee with mine own hand, till thou couldst use thy shattered joints. Igave thee money, which thou canst not yet have spent. I discovered tothee, from regard to thy own safety, the reward which had been offered bythe Parliament; and I swear to thee, by Heaven above, that if thou hadsttold me of thy devilish intention, I would have sold my last rag, andhave furnished thee with the sum, in order that so horrible a piece ofingratitude might remain for ever unknown to the world. Gentlemen, judgebetween me and him; I confess myself guilty. 

_President_. You have grievously offended justice by endeavouring topreserve the life of him whom the law, for the common safety, hadcondemned to die; but for this once strict justice shall be silent, andhumanity only shall sit in judgment. The hundred louis-d'ors shall beyours, and the murderer shall be again broken upon the wheel. 

Faustus, who during the whole of this strange trial had been snortinglike a madman, gave now such a thundering huzza, that the whole galleryechoed. The Devil, who observed that the last impression was about todestroy the first, soon led him to another scene. 

Some surgeons, doctors of medicine, and naturalists had formed a secretsociety, for the purpose of inquiring into the mechanism of the humanbody, and the effect of the soul upon matter. In order to satisfy theircuriosity, they inveigled, under all sorts of pretences, poor men andwomen into a house at some distance from the city, the upper part ofwhich was constructed in such a manner that it was impossible to discoverfrom without what was going forward within. Having tied their victimswith strong cords down upon a long table, and having placed a gag intheir mouths, they then removed their skin and their flesh, and laid baretheir muscles, their nerves, their hearts, and their brains. In order tocome at what they sought, they fed the wretches with strengtheningbroths, and caused them to die slowly under the slashing of their knivesand lancets. The Devil knew that they intended this night to assemble, and said to Faustus, "Thou hast seen a surgeon, who, for the sake ofhumanity, or for love of his art, cured an assassin whom justice hadbroken on the wheel; I will now show thee physicians, who, in pursuit ofsecrets which they will not discover, skin their fellow-creatures alive. Thou appearest incredulous! Follow me, and I will convince thee. Wewill represent two doctors. "

He led him to a solitary house. They entered the laboratory, which therays of the sun never penetrated. Here they saw the surgeons dissectinga miserable being, whose flesh quivered beneath their fratricidal hands, and whose bosom heaved with the most painful agony. They were so engagedwith their object, that they never once perceived the Devil and Faustus. The latter, feeling his nerves thrill with horror, rushed out, struck hisforehead with his hand, and commanded the fiend to tear down the houseupon their heads, and bury them and their deed beneath its ruins. 

_Devil_. Why this rage, O Faustus? Dost thou not perceive that thou artacting, in respect to the moral world, in the same manner as they act inregard to the physical world? They mangle the flesh of the living; andthou, by my destructive hand, exercisest thy fury upon the wholecreation. 

_Faustus_. Outcast fiend! dost thou think my heart is made of stone?Dost thou think that I can see unmoved the torments of yon poor flayedand butchered wretch? But if I can neither dry his tears nor cure hiswounds, I can avenge him, and put him out of pain. Away! away! do as Ihave bid thee, or dread my wrath!

The Devil obeyed with pleasure. He shook the house to its foundation, and down it toppled with a hideous noise, and overwhelmed the wickeddoctors. Faustus hurried to Paris, without attending to the look of wildexultation which the Devil cast upon him. 

Faustus, having heard much talk of the prisons which the most Christianking had caused to be built for the purpose of receiving those whom hedreaded, had a strong desire to see the interior of them. The Devilwillingly undertook to satisfy his curiosity; and although the guardswere forbidden, under pain of death, to permit any strangers to enterthese habitations of horror, yet the golden arguments which the Devilused procured him and his companion a ready admittance. They saw therecages of iron, in which it was impossible for a man to stand upright, orsit down, or place himself in any easy posture. The wretches who werecompelled to tenant these iron dwellings had their limbs galled by heavychains. The keeper said, confidentially, that when the king was in goodhealth, he frequently walked in the gallery, in order to enjoy the songof his nightingales; for thus did he call these wretched victims. Faustus asked some of the unfortunates the cause of their captivity; andhe heard stories which pierced him to the heart. At last, coming to acage wherein was a venerable-looking old man, he put the same question tohim, and the prisoner answered, in a plaintive tone:

"Whoever you are, let my sad story serve you as a warning never to assista tyrant in his cruelties. You behold in me the Bishop of Verdun, whofirst gave to the king the idea of these horrible cages, and was the veryfirst to be shut up in one of them after they were completed. Here haveI, for fourteen years, done penance for my sins, praying daily to God toend my torments by death. "

_Faustus_. Ha, ha! Your excellence, then, like another Perillus, hasfound a Phalaris. Do you know that story? You shake your head. Well, Iwill tell it you. 

"This Perillus, who was neither a bishop nor a Christian, constructed abrazen bull, which he showed to the tyrant Phalaris as a masterpiece ofinvention, and assured him that it was constructed in such a manner, that, if his majesty would shut up a man in it, and then heat it red-hotby a fire laid beneath it, the shrieks of the tormented man would exactlyresemble the bellowings of a bull, which would doubtless afford hismajesty great pleasure. 'My dear Perillus, ' said the tyrant, 'I am muchindebted to you; but it is right that the artist should prove his ownwork. ' He then made Perillus creep into the beast's belly; and when thefire was laid beneath it, he did in reality bellow like a bull. Thus didPhalaris, a thousand years ago, play very much the same part withPerillus which the most Christian king has been playing with you, mostreverend Bishop of Verdun. "

_Bishop_. I wish I had heard this story twenty years ago; I should thenhave taken warning from it. 

_Faustus_. You see that history may sometimes be useful, even to abishop. I weep for the fate of your companions in misery; but I laugh atyours. 

Faustus wished now to see this king, whose horrible deeds had so heatedhis imagination, that he could hardly represent him to himself under ahuman figure. The Devil told him that it would be impossible for them intheir present forms to enter the Castle of Plessis du Parc, wherecowardice and fear kept the tyrant a prisoner. He added, that no one, with the exception of some necessary domestics, the physician, theconfessor, and one or two astrologers, could enter without a particularorder. 

_Faustus_. Then let us assume other figures and dresses. 

_Devil_. Good; I will instantly remove two of his guards, and we will dotheir duty. This is an excellent time to see the tyrant. The fear ofdeath is already avenging upon his cowardly spirit the thousands whom hehas slaughtered. Day and night he only thinks of putting off the momentwhich is to terminate his existence, and death seems to him more hideousevery second. I will make you a witness of his torments. 

The Devil instantly put his project into execution, and they foundthemselves standing sentinels in the interior of the castle, wherereigned the mournful silence of the tomb. Thither had he, before whommillions trembled, banished himself, in order to escape from thevengeance of the relations of the murdered. Although he could thus flyfrom the sight of his subjects, he could not escape the cutting remorseof his own heart, nor the pains of his emaciated body. In vain did heimplore Heaven to grant him health and repose; in vain did he attempt tobribe it by presents to saints, to priests, and to churches; in vain didhe cover himself with relics from all parts of the world: that frightfulsentence, _thou shall die_, seemed always ringing in his ears. Hescarcely ventured to move out of his chamber, lest he should find anassassin in one of those whom he might meet. If anguish drove him intothe free air, he went armed with lance and dagger, just as if he hadstrength to use either. Four hundred guards watched day and night aroundthe stronghold of the half-dead monster; three times every hour did theirhoarse calls, echoing from post to post, break the solemn stillness, andremind the tyrant of the flight of time. All around his castle gibbetswere erected; and the hangman, Tristan, his only true friend, went aboutthe country every day, and returned at night with fresh victims, inorder, by their execution, to diminish the fears of the tyrant, who fromtime to time would walk in an apartment which was only separated from thetorture-room by a thin partition. There he listened to the groans andshrieks of the wretches on the rack, and found in the sufferings ofothers a slight alleviation of his own. Wearing on his hat a leadenimage of the Virgin, --his pretended protectress, --he drank the blood ofmurdered sucklings, and allowed himself to be tormented by his physician, whom he requited with ten thousand crowns a month. 

This was the wretch whom Faustus saw; and his heart rejoiced when hecontemplated the paleness of his cheeks, and the farrows which anguishand despair had made in his brow. He was on the point of leaving thisabode of monotonous horror, when the Devil whispered him to remain untilthe next day, and he would see a singular spectacle. The king had heardthat a hermit lived in Calabria, who was honoured as a saint through allSicily. This fool had, from his fourteenth to his fortieth year, dweltupon a naked rock, where, exposed to the rains and tempests of heaven, hemartyred his body by stripes and fasting, and refused his mind allcultivation. But, the rays of sanctity concealing his stupidity, he soonsaw the prince and the peasant at his feet. Louis had requested the Kingof Sicily to send him this creature, because he hoped to be cured by him. The hermit was now on the road; and as he brought with him the holy oilof Rheims, to anoint the tyrant's body, the latter imagined that all hisdisorders would soon vanish, and he should become young again. The happyday arrived: the Calabrian boor approached the castle; the king receivedhim at the gate, fell at his feet, and asked him for life and health. The Calabrian played his part in so ridiculous a manner, that Faustuscould not avoid laughing aloud at the farce. Tristan and his myrmidonswere advancing to seize him, and he would doubtlessly have paid forlaughing with his life, had not the Devil rescued him from their claws, and flown away with him. When they arrived at Paris, Faustus said:

"Is it by this contemptible, superstitious, tottering object, that thebold sons of France allow themselves to be enslaved? He is a mereskeleton in purple, who can scarcely cough out of his asthmatic throatthe desire to live; yet they tremble before him, as if he were a giant, whose terrible arms could encircle the whole earth. When the lion, enfeebled by age, lies languishing in his den, the most insignificantbeasts of the forests are not afraid of him, but approach and mock thefallen tyrant. "

_Devil_. It is this which chiefly distinguishes the king of men from theking of beasts. The latter is only formidable as long as he can use hisown strength; but the former, who binds the strength of his slaves to hiswill, is as powerful when lying on the bed of sickness, as when, in thevigour of health, he is at the head of his armies. Are you not nowconvinced that men are only guided by folly, which dooms them to beslaves? Break their chains to-day, and they would forge themselvesothers to-morrow. Do what you can, they will always go on in the sameeternal circle, and are condemned for ever to seize the shadow for thereality. 

The Devil, having shown Faustus all that was remarkable in and about thecapital of France, took him to Calais; and, crossing the Channel, theyarrived in London at the very moment that hideous abortion, the Duke ofGloucester, made himself Protector of the kingdom, and was endeavouringto take away the crown from the children of his brother, the late king. He had removed the father by means of poison, and had already persuadedthe queen (who, upon the first discovery of his projects, had fled forrefuge, with her children, to Westminster Sanctuary) to deliver up to himthe youthful heir of the throne, together with his brother York. Faustuswas present when Doctor Shaw, by the command of the Protector, informedthe astonished people from the pulpit, that the yet living mother of theduke and the deceased king had admitted various lovers; that the lateking was the offspring of such adultery; and that no one of the royalline, except the Protector, could boast of a legitimate birth. He sawthose noblemen executed who would not accede to the execrable plot; andthe Devil conducted him into the Tower at the very moment when Tyrrelland his assistant murdered the lawful king and his brother, and buriedthem beneath the threshold of the dungeon. He was a witness of the basesubmission of the Parliament, and of the coronation of the frightfultyrant. He witnessed the negotiation of the queen to support themurderer of her sons in his usurped throne, by giving him the hand of hereldest daughter, in order that she herself might still retain a shadow ofsovereignty; although at the same time she had entered into a secretalliance with the Earl of Richmond, who was destined to be her avenger. Faustus felt himself so enraged, that not all the charms of the bloomingEnglishwomen could keep him any longer in this cursed isle, which hequitted with hatred and disgust; for neither in Germany nor in France hadhe seen crimes committed with so much coolness and impunity. When theywere on the point of embarking, the Devil said to him:

"These people will groan for a time beneath the yoke of despotism; theywill then sacrifice one of their kings upon the scaffold of freedom, inorder that they may sell themselves to his successors for gold andtitles. In hell there is very little respect paid to these gloomyislanders, who would suck the marrow from all the carcasses in theuniverse, if they thought to find gold in the bones. They boast of theirmorality, and despise all other nations; yet if you were to place whatyou call virtue in one scale, and vice, with twopence, in the other, theywould forget their morality, and pocket the money. They talk of theirhonour and integrity, but never enter into a treaty but with a firmresolution of breaking it as soon as a farthing is to be gained by sodoing. After death, they inhabit the most pestilential marsh of thekingdom of darkness, and their souls are scourged without mercy. None ofthe other damned will have any communication with them. If theinhabitants of the Continent could do without sugar and coffee, the sonsof proud England would soon return to the state in which they were whenJulius Caesar, Canute of Denmark, or William the Conqueror, did them thehonour to invade their island. "

_Faustus_. For a devil, thou knowest history passably well. 

Hereupon he led him to Milan, where they saw the Duke Galeas Sforzamurdered on St. Stephen's day in the cathedral; Faustus having previouslyheard the assassins loudly beseeching St. Stephen and St. Ambrose toinspire them with the courage necessary for so noble a deed. 

In Florence, the seat of the Muses, they saw the nephew of the greatCosmo, the father of his country, murdered in the church of SantaReparata, at the altar, just at the moment when the priest raised thehost in his hands; for the Archbishop of Florence, Salviati, had informedthe murderers that this was to be the signal. He had been bribed toassist in this enterprise by the Pope, who was determined to annihilatethe Medicis, in order to rule sole sovereign in Italy. 

In the north of Europe they saw wild barbarians and drunken ruffiansmurdering and pillaging like the more civilised Europeans. In Spain theyfound upon the throne deceit and hypocrisy wearing the mask of religion. They saw, at an _auto-da-fe_, men and women immolated in the flames tothe mild Deity of the Christians; and they heard the grand inquisitor, Torquemada, boast to Ferdinand and Isabella that, since the establishmentof the holy tribunal, it had tried eighty thousand suspected persons, andhad burnt six thousand convicted heretics. When Faustus first saw theladies and cavaliers assembled in the grand square, dressed in theirrichest habits, he imagined that he had come just in time for some joyousfestival; but when he heard the condemned wretches howling and lamentingin the midst of a mob of monks who were at their devotions, he wasconvinced that religion, when misused, makes man the most execrablemonster on the earth. He, however, began to imagine that all thesehorrors were the necessary consequences of man's nature, who is an animalthat must either tear his fellow-creatures to pieces, or be torn topieces by them. 

The Devil, perceiving that Faustus was amazed and confounded by thesescenes, said to him:

"Thou seest how the courts of Europe resemble each other in wickednessand crime. Let us now go to Rome, and see whether the ecclesiasticalgovernment goes on better. "

The malicious Leviathan flattered himself that Alexander the Sixth, whowore at that time the triple crown, and held in his hands the keys ofheaven and of hell, would give the finishing blow to the harassed spiritof Faustus, and would enable him to return below with his victim. For along time he had been weary of staying on the earth; for although he hadin the course of many thousand years so often traversed it, he still sawmerely the same beings and the same actions. From this we may learn thatthere is something so annoying in uniformity, that even the wild horrorsof Satan's hall are to be preferred to it. 

On the way to Rome they passed by two hostile armies encamped face toface. The one was commanded by Malatesta of Rimini, the other by a papalgeneral. The crafty Alexander was now endeavouring, either by poisoning, secret assassination, or open war, to deprive all the Italian noblemen oftheir property, in order that he might convert their castles and domainsinto principalities for his illegitimates. He began with the weakest, and had despatched this little army to eject Malatesta from his fief ofRimini. Faustus and the Devil, riding along the road, perceived upon aneminence contiguous to the papal camp two men, magnificently dressed, engaged in a furious combat. Moved by curiosity, Faustus advanced to thespot; the fiend followed him; and they perceived, by the rage of theantagonists, that nothing less than the death of one of them would endthe struggle. But what appeared to Faustus most extraordinary was amilk-white goat, adorned with ribbons of various colours, which a pageseemed to hold as the prize of victory, as he stood, with the utmostcoolness, near the two raging warriors. Many cavaliers had assembledupon the height, and awaited the issue of the affair. Faustus approachedone of them, and asked, with his German simplicity, whether the gentlemenwere fighting for that handsome goat. He had observed that the twochampions, whenever they paused to take breath, looked at the goat withmuch tenderness, and each seemed, according to knightly custom, toentreat it to assist him in his danger. The Italian, turning to Faustus, coolly answered, "Yes, certainly; and I hope our general will punish withdeath the audacious knight who dared to remove from his tent thehandsomest goat in the world, at the time he was gone to reconnoitre theenemy's camp. " Faustus stepped back, shook his head, and scarcely knewwhether he was dreaming or awake. The Devil let him remain for some timein this perplexity; he then took him aside, and whispered certain thingsin his ear, which made Faustus blush, and which will not bear repetition. The duel in the mean time went on as hotly as ever, until the sword ofthe papal general found an opening in the knight's mail, and laid himwallowing in blood upon the ground. He yielded up his soul amidst cursesand imprecations, and took, with his last look, a tender farewell of thepretty animal. The general was congratulated by the surrounders, and thepage delivered him the goat. He called it "his dearest, hisbest-beloved, " and loaded it with the most tender caresses. 

Faustus departed from the place of combat, and was hesitating between adesire to laugh and a feeling of disgust, when the Devil said to him:

"This duel has made thee acquainted with the papal general; but he whocommands the hostile army does not deserve thy attention less. The onehas risked his life for love of a white goat; and the other has alreadypoisoned and strangled with his own hand, in order that he might getpossession of their property, two of his wives, sprung from the bestfamilies in Italy. He is now on the point of marrying a third; and shewill, in all probability, experience the same fate. Both of thesepersonages are otherwise very religious men, --attend processions, makevows to Heaven, and implore it for assistance. For which side do youthink it will now declare?"

Faustus gave the Devil a wild look, and left the malicious questionunanswered; but the Devil, who wished to punish him for having formerlyboasted of the moral worth of man, failed not to make some bitter jokesupon the amours of the papal general and the conjugal tenderness ofMalatesta of Rimini. 

The sight of Rome and its majestic ruins, over which the mighty spirit ofthe old Romans seemed yet to hover, filled Faustus with wonder; and, ashe was well acquainted with the history of those lords of the ancientworld, the remembrance of their heroic actions elevated his soul to apitch of enthusiasm. But the modern inhabitants of this celebrated citysoon inspired him with very different sentiments. By the Devil's advice, they announced themselves as German noblemen, whom curiosity to see themagnificence of Rome had brought there. But their retinue, their pomp, and their demeanour, caused a suspicion to be entertained that they wereof more consequence than they pretended to be. Friars and matrons, quacks and harlequins, flocked to them, as soon as the noise of theirarrival had echoed through all the haunts of those who get theirlivelihood by administering to the crimes and the weaknesses of men. They offered them their several female relations, and depicted theircharms and various attractions with such fiery eloquence, that Faustus, besieged on every side, knew not which to prefer. As these wretchesuttered religious maxims in the same breath with the most stimulantdescriptions of voluptuousness, Faustus imagined himself authorised inbelieving that they merely made use of religion to appease the cravingsof passion, revolted by their shameful deeds and wickedness. 

The next day after their arrival, Faustus and the Devil were invited todinner by the Cardinal Caesar Borgia, one of the many illegitimates ofthe Pope. He received them in the most splendid manner, and promised tointroduce them to his holiness. They went on horseback, attended by aretinue of servants, to the Vatican, and Faustus and the Devil kissed thetoe of the Pope: the German performed this act of devotion with all thefervour of a good Christian Catholic; but the Devil muttered to himself, "If Alexander knew who I am, I should, most probably, see him at my ownfeet. " After the usual ceremonies were over, the Pope invited them intohis private apartments, where he spoke to them very freely, and made themacquainted with his other illegitimates, the famous Lucretia; FranciscoBorgia, Duke of Candia, &c. 

The Pope found the society of the handsome and well-made Leviathan somuch to his liking, that, from the first interview, he showed himparticular favour, which grew at length, as we shall see, to the closestintimacy. Faustus attached himself to Cardinal Borgia, who gave him sucha glowing description of the pleasures and temptations of Rome, that hehardly knew whether he was in the Vatican or in the Temple of Venus. TheCardinal made him more nearly acquainted with his sister, who was marriedto Alphonso of Arragon. This siren displayed voluptuousness andsensuality in a form and face so attractive and charming, that Faustusstood before her like one enchanted. 

Faustus and the Devil went one evening to the Vatican to see a play, which astonished the young German more than any thing he had yet seen atthe papal court. It was the _Mandragola_ which was represented. Thenoble Machiavel had composed this licentious and satirical piece, inorder to lay before the eyes of the court of Rome a striking picture ofthe boundless corruption of the clergy, and to prove that to be the solecause of the dissolute lives of the laity. But he deceived himself inhis honourable design: the _Mandragola_ was applauded, not on account ofits morality, which was not understood, but of its licentiousness. Faustus heard the Pope and the cardinals, the nuns and the ladies, praising certain things which, in his opinion, the most dissolute of theRoman emperors would not have permitted upon their theatre. But realscenes yet more abominable soon put an end to his astonishment; and heperceived that the actions of Alexander and his children infinitelysurpassed all that which the annals of the human race had hithertoconsigned to infamy and abhorrence. Lucretia was pleased yet more byFaustus's rich presents than his fine face and form. By this intimateconnexion with her, he discovered her incestuous intercourse with her twobrothers, the Cardinal and Francisco; which she also extended to the Popeher father. The only one whom she treated ill was Alphonso, who had thehonour to be her spouse. Faustus now guessed the cause of the implacablehatred which the Cardinal entertained against his brother Francisco: itarose from jealousy at his sister's preferring the latter to himself; andhe often swore to take vengeance upon his brother. 

It was the custom of Faustus, after having the whole day wallowed in theshameful pleasures of the court and city, to pester the Devil's ears withcomplaints of the wickedness of men. He was shocked at their crimes, although he himself had neither strength nor desire to resist any of hisinclinations. He generally concluded his sermonising by asking, "Howcould such a monster ever have been elected Pope?"

The Devil, who perfectly knew how that event had been brought about (forone of the princes of hell had been at the election), would tell him how"Alexander bought up the votes of the cardinals by magnificent promises;and being called upon, after his installation, to fulfil them, he eitherbanished or caused to be privately assassinated all those who had anyclaims upon him. "

_Faustus_. I can easily conceive that the cardinals were sufficientlycorrupt to make him Pope; but how the people can submit to his decrees isbeyond my comprehension. 

_Devil_. The Romans are perfectly content with him. He protects thepopulace, and ravages and pillages the great. Can they wish for a betterPope than one who sanctifies their crimes by his own example; and who, besides the indulgences he distributes, shows by his actions that menhave no reason to be terrified at any crime?

The Pope having, at a consistorial court, elevated his eldestillegitimate, Francisco, to the dignity of General of the Papal See, theCardinal instantly formed the Christian resolution of putting his brotherout of the way, and thereby opening a more extensive field to his ownambition. Vanosa, his mother, had informed him that the Pope intended toraise a throne for Francisco upon the ruin of the Italian princes; andthrough him, as his eldest-born, execute all the projects which he hadformed for the prosperity and aggrandisement of his family. TheCardinal, who had always certain assassins in his pay, sent for hisfaithful Dom Michelotto, and thus addressed him:

"Brave and honest Michelotto, five years have already passed since theaccession of my father to the papal chair, and I am not yet what I mighthave been, had I acted with less delicacy and more prudence. He firstmade me an archbishop, and now I am become a cardinal; but what is thatfor a spirit which burns with a desire to distinguish itself, and whichaspires to glory! My revenues scarcely supply me with absolutenecessaries, and it is impossible for me to reward, according to the wishof my heart, those friends who have rendered me essential services. Artthou not, O Michelotto, a striking example of it thyself? Have I beenable to acquit myself towards thee in the manner which my obligations tothee demand? But shall we always languish in this shameful inactivity;and shall we wait till fortune or chance do something for those who willdo nothing for themselves? Dost thou think that the monotonous life Ilead in the conclave and in the church was intended for a spirit likemine? Am I born for all these ridiculous and superstitious ceremonies?If nature had not by foolish caprice brought my brother into the worldbefore me, would not all those situations, all those honours, by whichmen are alone enabled to perform great actions, have fallen to my lot?Does my brother know how to profit by the advantages which the Pope andblind Fortune fling in his way? Let me once occupy his place, and myname shall soon resound through all Europe. Nature stamped me for ahero, and him for a priest; therefore I must seek to repair thenegligence of Fortune if I wish to fulfil my destiny. Compare him andme, and who will say we are sprung from the same father? But be he mybrother--and it little matters; for the man who wishes to rise above therest should forget tenderness and relationship--those puny bonds ofnature--and should not hesitate to dip his hands in the sacrifice of anyone whose existence may be an obstacle to his noble views. It is thusthat all great men act; it is thus that the founder of immortal Romeacted. In order that Rome might arrive at the height of grandeur towhich his genius wished to carry it, he did not hesitate to stab hisbrother; and, in order that Caesar Borgia may attain immortality, hisbrother Francisco must bleed beneath thy knife, most courageousMichelotto. Yes; for although it would be easy for me, in the darknessof the night, to assassinate him myself and remain unsuspected, I reservefor thee this deed, in order that thou mayst have a greater right toshare with me my grandeur and my future fortunes. To-morrow I shall goto Naples to assist, in quality of legate, at the coronation of the king. Vanosa, my mother, who, between you and me, is weary of seeing herenterprising Caesar a cardinal, gives this evening a supper to myself, mybrother, and a few friends. Francisco will go late at night to anassignation in which he and I mutually share; and I ill know Michelottoif ever he finds his way back to his palace. My name is Caesar, and Iwill be all or nothing. "

Michelotto grasped the cardinal's hand, thanked him for his confidence, assured him of his fidelity, and went his way in order to get some of hiscompanions to assist him in the affair. 

Faustus and the Devil were also invited to the supper. Gaiety reignedamong the guests. The good-natured Francisco loaded his brother withcaresses, which, however, did not shake his resolution. When they rosefrom table, Caesar took leave of his mother, and said he must now go tothe Pope and receive his orders for Naples. The two brothers walked witheach other a little way, followed by Faustus and the Devil. Franciscosoon took leave of his brother, having first told him where he was going. The Cardinal, with a smiling air, wished him much pleasure: hurrying tothe Vatican, he finished his business there, and then went to therendezvous, where he found Michelotto and his ruffians, whom he directedhow to proceed. Faustus had not the slightest suspicion of what wasgoing forward; but the Devil, who knew when the horrible drama was toconclude, transported him to the banks of the Tiber at the very momentMichelotto and his assistants flung into the stream the corpse of themurdered Francisco. Faustus would have attacked the assassins, though hewas still ignorant who their victim was; but the Devil prevented him, andsaid:

"Do not approach; keep thyself quiet, and let none of those people seethee; they swarm so at Rome and at the Vatican, that thou wouldst not besafe, even at my side, if they were to perceive that thou didst observethem. The murdered man whom they flung into the water is FranciscoBorgia, Duke of Candia; his murderer is his brother, and what thou seestnow is only the prelude to actions which will astonish hell itself andmake it tremble. "

He then discovered to him the whole of the plot, and repeated to him theCardinal's conversation with Michelotto. Faustus replied, with morecoolness than the Devil expected:

"Their deeds will not astonish me, however infamous they may be; for whatelse can we expect from a family where the father lives in incest withhis daughter, and the brothers with their sister? But henceforth I willnever suffer any one to boast in my presence of the moral worth of man;for, in comparison with man, especially if he be a priest, the worstfiend is innocent as an angel. Oh, why was I not born in happy Arabia, where I might have passed my solitary existence, with a palm-tree for myshelter, and with Nature for my god!"

The body of Francisco being found in the Tiber, his assassination wassoon noised about Rome and through all Italy. The Pope was so afflictedat the intelligence, that he abandoned himself to the most frightfuldespair, and remained three days without eating or drinking; but he didnot forget to offer immense rewards for the discovery of the murderers. His daughter, who guessed from whence the blow came, gave her motherintelligence of the severe intentions of the Pope; and Vanosa, at dead ofnight, went to the Vatican. The Devil, who, in quality of favourite, hadremained alone with his holiness whilst his affliction was at its height, hastened away upon the appearance of Vanosa; and having found Faustus, who was consoling the lovely Lucretia, he led him to the door of thePope's apartment, where they heard the following dialogue. 

"A fratricide! a cardinal!--and thou, mother of them both, dost tell methis with as much coolness as if Caesar had merely poisoned one of theColonnas or Orsinis. He has, in murdering his brother, destroyed his ownfame, and has undermined the foundation of that monument of grandeurwhich I was about to raise. But the monster shall not escape punishment;he shall feel my vengeance. "

_Vanosa_. Rodrigo Borgia, thou hast shared the couch of my mother andmyself, and wast the first that dishonoured Lucretia, my daughter andthine. Who can number all those whom thou hast secretly poisoned andassassinated? Yet thou art not less a pope. Rome trembles before thee, and all Christianity adores thee. Every thing depends upon the situationin which men are when they commit crimes. I am the mother of both, Rodrigo, and I knew that Caesar would murder Francisco. 

_Pope_. Thou wretch!

_Vanosa_. Am I? If I be, I have become so in thy school. It was rightthat the timorous and gentle Francisco should give place to the fiery, the enterprising Caesar, in order that the glittering hopes may befulfilled which thou didst confide to me upon thy elevation to the papalchair. Francisco was intended by nature to be a monk; my Caesar to be aconqueror--and I call him so already in prophetic spirit. He alone haspower to annihilate the great and petty tyrants of Italy, and to winhimself a crown. Appoint him standard-bearer to the papal see, and hewill make the Borgias kings of the Italian realms. Is not this thy mostardent wish? All thy poisonings and murders will have been to no morepurpose if Caesar remains a cardinal, than they would have been if yonfeeble driveller had lived. Only from Caesar can I expect protectionwhen thou art no more. He loves his mother; but the other boy neglectedme, and only flattered thee, from whom he expected his greatness. Caesarfeels that a woman like me, who could bring forth a hero, can likewisepoint out to him the way to immortal deeds. Brighten up, Rodrigo, and bewise; for know that the hand which dispatched thy favourite was directedby a daring spirit, who would not hesitate to take thy own life wert thouto remove the veil which has been flung over this deed of necessity. 

_Pope_. The solidity of thy arguments restores me to myself, and thyeloquence exalts my soul, although it makes me shudder. Francisco isdead; Caesar lives: let him live, and take his brother's place, sincefate will have it so. 

He rang the bell, caused refreshments to be brought, and was in excellentspirits. 

Francisco was forgotten, and the Pope thought of nothing else than toopen to the daring Caesar a wider field in which he might exercise hisdangerous talents. The latter, in the mean time, crowned the King ofNaples, with hands yet reeking with fraternal blood. He returned toRome; and Faustus saw, with a malicious laugh, the cardinals and theambassadors of Spain and Venice receive the fratricide, whom they knewfor such, at the city-gate, and then conduct him in triumph to the Pope, who embraced him with great tenderness. Vanosa laid aside her mourning, and celebrated the day of his return by a festival, at which appeared allthe grandees of Rome. Caesar shortly afterwards changed his cardinal'shat for a helmet, and was with much pomp and magnificence consecratedGonfalonier, or Standard-bearer of the Holy See. 

The Devil saw, with much pleasure, Faustus endeavouring, by the wildestexcesses, to escape the pangs by which his heart was now torn. Heremarked how every new scene of horror he was doomed to witness galledhis soul, and that he was becoming more and more convinced that all hesaw or heard had its origin in the nature of man. The Devil supportedhim in this idea by sophisms, which later philosophers have worked upinto systems. He ransacked the earth of its treasures, and showered goldand precious gems upon his victim; and Faustus, dishonouring the wivesand daughters of Rome, believed that he could not sufficiently corruptthe human family, which, in his opinion, was doomed to misfortune anddestruction. The lessons he had learnt from Lucretia had long sincepoisoned his senses. All the sweet ties of humanity, which had so longfettered his heart, were now totally destroyed. He represented the worldto himself as a stormy sea, on which the human race is cast, and istossed here and there by the wind, which drives this man upon a rock, where he is dashed to pieces, and blows the other happily to his haven. But what seemed to Faustus most incomprehensible was, that theshipwrecked mariner should be punished in an after-state for not havingguided his vessel better; when the rudder which had been given him toshape his course by was so weak that any extraordinary billow could notfail to shatter it. 

A new scene now presented itself. Alexander had determined on taking theamusements of the chase at Ostia. He was accompanied thither by a vastthrong of cardinals, bishops, ladies, and nuns; the latter being summonedfrom their cloisters, and, by their beauty, rendering the cavalcade aglorious spectacle. The Devil was constantly by the side of the Pope, and Faustus and Lucretia were inseparable. Every one abandoned himselfat Ostia to pleasure, and in the course of a few days excesses werecommitted there from which even Tiberius and Nero might have learntsomething. Faustus had now an excellent opportunity of examining man inhis nakedness, as the Devil had expressively termed it; but what were allthese scenes of wickedness when compared with the plans which the Popeformed with his bastards, by way of relaxation, in the presence ofFaustus and the Devil? It was here determined that Alphonso of Arragon, the husband of Lucretia, should be assassinated, in order that they mightgive the King of France a proof that they were willing to break entirelywith the King of Naples, and to assist the former in his usurpation ofthe crown of Sicily. Louis the Twelfth had already, with the approbationof Alexander, invaded Italy, and the Borgias thereby saw all theirprojects ripening. Lucretia intrusted this bloody deed to the managementof her brother, and already considered herself as a widow. The plan ofthe ensuing campaign was then adjusted in a very expeditious manner; forit was merely to take possession of all the towns, castles, and domainsof the noblemen of Italy, who were one and all of them to be murdered, together with their offspring and relations, in order that not a soulmight remain alive who had the slightest claim upon the property, and whomight therefore trouble the assassins with future conspiracies. Tosupport the army in the interim, the Pope and Caesar dictated to Lucretiaa list of rich cardinals and prelates, who were to be poisonedsuccessively, and their goods to be taken possession of by the right ofinheritance vested in the papal chair. 

When this secret council was broken up, the members of it repaired to thegrand hall, where supper awaited them. The Pope was so contented withhis schemes, and the certainty of their accomplishment, that hecommitted, in his joy, the most shameful extravagances, and by hisexample incited his guests to actions similar to what we have read of inthe pages of Petronius Arbiter, and other writers of the same character. He, nevertheless, did not entirely forget the cares of the state; for hesuddenly asked those present how the revenues of the papal see might beincreased, so as to support its numerous army during the approachingcampaign. After various projects, Ferrara of Modena, Bishop of Patria, Alexander's worthy minister, by whom he caused the benefices of theChurch to be disposed of to the highest bidder, proposed that indulgencesshould be sold through Europe, under the pretence of an approaching warwith the Turks; adding, like a true papal financier, "that the foolishidea which men entertained, of being able to wash away their sins bymeans of gold, was the surest source from which the income of a popearose. "

Lucretia, who lay on the lap of her father, and played with Faustus'syellow looks, incidentally remarked, with a smile, "The present list of indulgences contains such insipid, antiquated, andabsurd crimes, that it is impossible to turn it to much account. It wascomposed in stupid and barbarous times; and it is now highly necessary tomake a new tariff of sin, for which Rome herself can furnish the mostimportant articles. "

The company, hot with wine, and reeking from their abominations, eagerlycaught up this sally of female wantonness; and the Pope commanded eachone present to propose some particular sin, and to tax it; recommendingthem, above all, to choose those which were most in vogue, and whichwould consequently bring in the most wealth. 

_Borgia_. Holy father, leave this to the cardinals and prelates; theyare better versed in crime than any other people. 

Ferrara of Modena sat down to fulfil the office of secretary. 

_A Cardinal_. Absolution to each and every priest who commitsfornication, let it be with whom it may; with permission to perform allthe duties of the Church, and to receive and hold new benefices, providedhe pay into the papal treasury nine gold ducats. 

_Pope_. Write down nine gold ducats, Bishop; and then let us drinkabsolution to those priests who shall pay the sum. 

Each guest filled his glass, and exclaimed in chorus, "Absolutio!dispensatio!"

 * * * * *

_A Nun_. Ha; what means all this? Will no one think of us? Holyfather, have we alone no claim to your paternal favour? I entreat you tolet us be taxed also, in order that we may sin in peace. 

_Pope_. Right, my daughter; and you shall not be dealt with more hardlythan the priests. Bishop, write down: Absolution for each nun who shallcommit carnal sin, be it with whom it may, within or out of the circle ofthe cloister; with fall capacity of assuming any conventual dignity whencalled upon so to do: nine ducats. 

_Chorus_. Absolutio! dispensatio!

_A Bishop_. Absolution and dispensation to each priest who publiclykeeps a mistress: five ducats. 

Lucretia then interposed: "Absolution for carnal knowledge, the enormityof which is indicated by fifteen ducats. "

Faustus, whom this scene had horribly mortified, on account of thetriumph which it afforded the Devil over him, but who, nevertheless, wished to have a hit at Borgia, exclaimed, with a voice of thunder, "Absolution to any parricide, matricide, or fratricide, for threeducats. "

_Pope_. Ho, ho, friend; what are you aiming at now? Will you tax murderlower than fornication?

_Caesar Borgia_. Holy father, he does not wish, by too high a penalty, to deter men from the commission of the crime. 

_Devil_. You are well aware, gentlemen, that the poor are incapable ofreceiving benefit from any of the above-named absolutions anddispensations. 

_Chorus_ (_amidst shouts of laughter_). Damnation to him who has nomoney!

_Caesar Borgia_. Whoever commits theft, be it sacrilege or not, shallhave his soul secured from damnation, upon depositing in the papaltreasury three parts of what he has stolen. 

_Chorus_. Absolution to all thieves, sacrilegious or not, provided theyshare their booty with the Pope. 

_Pope_. Thou hast opened a rich mine, Caesar. Write that down, Bishop. 

_Faustus_. Absolution to any one who shall practise magic, or enter intoan alliance with the Devil. How high shall I tax that, father?

_Pope_. My son, you will not, by this last article, enrich the papaltreasury. The fiend does not understand his own advantage; we call uponhim in vain. 

_Faustus_. But provided that should so happen, how high, I repeat?

_Pope_. For rarity's sake, one hundred ducats. 

_Faustus_. Here they are; and now write me out an absolution, that I maybe able to shake it in the face of the Devil, provided I ever sell myselfto him. 

_Chorus_. Absolution to him who shall sell himself to the fiend. 

_A Nun_. Most reverend Bishop, since you are writing out the absolutionfor the magician, be so good as to furnish me with a paper likewise, --youknow for what. Here is my rosary; it is worth fifteen ducats; I shallhave, therefore, something in bank until another absolution becomesnecessary. 

Ferrara wrote, and the Pope signed his name beneath. 

_Devil_. Does your holiness imagine that Satan will pay any regard tothese scraps of paper?

The grand inquisitor snatched his hand out of the bosom of an abbess, andscreamed, with stammering tongue:

"I smell heresy! Who is the atheist? who has uttered that blasphemy?"

The Pope pressed his forefinger softly upon the mouth of the Devil, andsaid, "Cavalier, these are state secrets: handle them not; for if you do, I myself, with all my authority, shall not be able to protect you. "

Every male in the assembly now opened his purse, either from a wish topay his court to the Pope, or to quiet his conscience. The Bishop had somany applications, that he was soon obliged to call in other secretaries, to assist him in expediting absolutions. Each applicant took away hisparticular license, and each sought and found an opportunity of using itduring the remainder of the night. Never were sins committed with morequiet minds. 

Ferrara of Modena, the next day, caused this tariff to be fairly copied;he then sent it to the press, {249} and caused it to be secretlycirculated throughout Christendom. 

Caesar Borgia did not forget the promise which he had made to his sister. Alphonso of Arragon was dispatched on the steps of the Gonfalonier'spalace, at the moment he was about to enter, in order to be present at aplay to which all the nobility of Rome had been invited, and whichrepresented the victories of the great Caesar, whom Borgia intendedhenceforward to imitate, if not excel. This latter personage shortlyafter marched out of Rome with his army; and, within the space of a fewmonths, the Devil purloined from the Pope's pocket the following letter, which he gave Faustus to read:

 "REVEREND FATHER, --

 "I kiss the feet of your holiness. Victory and fortune have followed my steps, and I drag them behind my car like slaves. I hope now that Caesar is worthy of his name; for I also can say, _Veni_, _vidi_, _vici_. The Duke of Urbino has fallen into the snare which I laid for him. By virtue of your holiness' letter, I asked him for his artillery to fight your enemies with. Dazzled by the marks of friendship and affection which I showed him, and which flattered his self-love, he sent to me a gentleman with his consent in writing. Having thus a very decent pretence, I instantly despatched some thousands of men to Urbino, who, by my commands, took possession of that city and of the whole duchy. The duke, unfortunately, escaped; but I revenged myself for his flight upon the powerful and dangerous family of Montefeltro, and annihilated their whole race. Vitelozzo was fool enough to join me, with all his troops, near Camerino. I deceived Caesar di Varono by promising him honourable conditions if he would evacuate Camerino, and I attacked the city at the very moment he was engaged in signing the articles of capitulation. I had hoped to have exterminated the whole family at once; but the father found means to elude me. However, I strangled his wife, and cut the throats of his two sons; and I flatter myself that despair and grief will soon send the old fellow after them. I left Camerino, and despatched Paul Orsino, Vitelozzo, and Oliverotto, to Sinegaglia, with orders to take the town by storm, so that they might prepare their future grave with their own hands. When I saw them all in the net, I sent forward my trusty Michelotto and his associates, with directions to seize the fools when I should give the signal. I then put myself upon the march, and Orsino, Vitelozzo, and Oliverotto came to meet me, and pay me their respects. They had left all the troops behind them, according to my expectations. I received them with caresses, and went with them into the city; and at the very moment my people fell upon their straggling soldiers, Michelotto and his comrades each seized his man. Thus I made myself master of the domains and fortresses of those whom we deceived by pretending to assist them in subduing their enemies. The following night I caused them to be slaughtered in their dungeons. Michelotto, to whom I intrusted this business, told me, with much laughter, that all the mercy Vitelozzo prayed for was, _that he might not be murdered until he had received_, _from your holiness_, _absolution for his sins_. Who now will tell me that it requires much art to make oneself master of the minds of men? As soon as your holiness shall have put out of the way the Orsinis and the rest, I will send the Pagolas, the Duke of Gravina, and my other prisoners, to bear them company. If Carraccioli, General of the Venetians, whose lovely wife I seized upon her journey, and who now sweetens my labour, should come to Rome with his _complaint_, send him Michelotto's brother to be his physician. I hear that he is a turbulent, hot-headed fellow, and therefore it will be as well to get rid of him. The tumult of arms has not made me forget my sister's widowhood: the envoy of the eldest son of the Duke of Este is already on the way to marry her, in his name. We have now massacred the most dangerous of our foes; if we can win over or exterminate (which is almost the same thing) the houses of Este and Medici, who will then have the audacity to oppose the Borgias in Italy? I kiss the feet of your holiness. 

 "CAESAR BORGIA, Gonfalonier. "

Faustus, after reading this letter, looked angrily upward; but the Devil, without giving him time to moralise, led him to the Vatican, where theyfound the Pope overjoyed at the success which had attended his weapons. He had already ordered the remaining Orsinis, Alvianis, Santa Croces, andthe other cardinals and archbishops, to be arrested, and awaited theevent with impatience. All Rome hastened to congratulate him. Those whowere marked out for destruction were seized in the Vatican, conductedinto different prisons, and privately executed; whilst the myrmidons ofthe Pope plundered their palaces. The Cardinal Orsini alone was sent tothe Castle of Saint Angelo, and was permitted, for a few days, to besupplied with food from his mother's kitchen; but the Pope, having heardthat he possessed a pearl, very precious on account of its extraordinarysize, retracted this favour. The mother of the once mighty andflourishing Orsinis went to the Vatican, and offered the Pope the pearland two thousand crowns if he would liberate her son; when he seized thepearl and the money with one hand, and with the other gave the sign forthe cardinal's execution. 

When Caesar Borgia learnt that the Pope had accomplished his design, heinstantly commanded all his own prisoners to be assassinated; and, entering Rome in triumph, shared, with his holiness and the otherillegitimates, the booty he had brought with him; and, in return, received his dividend of the confiscated property of the slaughteredcardinals and ecclesiastics. 

The marriage of Lucretia was soon afterwards celebrated with more thanAsiatic pomp, and the Romans contributed to render it as brilliant aspossible. The bells pealed from the churches; the artillery thunderedfrom Saint Angelo; there were bull-fights; the most immoral and indecentcomedies were performed; and the delighted populace shouted before theVatican, "Long live Pope Alexander! long live Lucretia, Duchess of Este!"Faustus huzzaed with the best of them, and said to the Devil: "If theseacclamations ascend to heaven with the groans of the assassinated, whichwill the Eternal believe?" The fiend bowed himself to the earth, and wassilent. 

In order to crown the festivities of the marriage, Alexander and hisdaughter commanded a spectacle which must for ever stand unparalleled inthe annals of human infamy. The Pope sat, with his daughter, upon acouch, in a vast illuminated hall. Faustus, the Devil, and others whohad been invited to this scene, stood around them. Suddenly the doorsopened, and in rushed fifty nude courtesans, --more beautiful than thehouris in Mahomet's paradise, --and performed, to the voluptuous sound offlutes and other instruments, a dance which decency forbids us todescribe, although it was a Pope who designed the figure. When the dancewas ended, his Holiness gave the signal for a combat which we are stillless permitted to depict, --he himself holding the prize of victory. Theyproclaimed Faustus to be the conqueror. Lucretia overwhelmed him withkisses, and crowned him with laurels; while the Pope delivered to him theprize, --a golden goblet, on which Lucretia had caused to be engraven theSchool of Pleasure. Faustus gave it the very next day to a Venetianmonk, in whose possession Aretino saw it a long time afterwards, andillustrated some of its incidents in his sonnets. 

The Pope, on the day of his daughter's marriage, had made an election ofcardinals, choosing only the richest prelates for that dignity. CaesarBorgia, being in want of large sums of money for the next campaign, determined to send some of the newly-elected into the other world, at afestival which his father intended to give at one of his villas. [Thedetails of these marriage-festivities are omitted; inasmuch as thegrossness of the spectacle renders it unfit for the general reader. Theconduct of Lucretia Borgia has been the subject of much obloquy, whichher defenders maintain rests chiefly on inferences from her living in aflagitious court, where she witnessed the most profligate scenes. It isasserted that some of the accusations have no better foundation than theepigrams of Pontano, and other Neapolitan poets, the natural enemies ofher family. --_Transl_. ] The Pope went in a coach, with his daughter, theDevil, Faustus, Borgia, and the wife of the Venetian general. Here, after witnessing a gross spectacle, Lucretia retired with Faustus; andBorgia went with the Venetian; and the Pope remained alone with theDevil. His holiness now made to the fiend certain proposals, which soexasperated the Devil that he appeared under a form which no mortal eyehad ever yet been able to sustain. The Pope, who knew him immediately, uttered a cry of joy. 

"Ah, ben venuto Signor Diavolo! You could not have come to me at a moreseasonable time than the present; I have long wished to see you, for Iknow perfectly well what a deal of use might be made of so powerful aspirit as yourself. Ha, ha, ha! you please me now much better than youdid before, you rogue, you! Come, be my friend; assume your formerfigure, and I will make you a cardinal; for you only can raise me at onceto the height which I wish to attain. I entreat you to destroy my foes, procure me money, and drive the French out of Italy, since I have nofurther occasion for them. This to you will merely be the work of amoment; and you may then ask me for any reward you please. But by allmeans do not discover yourself to my son Caesar: he is so great a wretch, that I verily believe he would poison me, his father, in order to become, by thy help, King of Italy and Pope at the same time. "

The Devil, who had at first been a little mortified that his frightfulexterior had produced no greater effect, was now unable to refrain fromlaughing; for what he saw and heard surpassed every thing which had asyet come to the knowledge of hell. But recovering himself, he said, witha serious air, "Pope Alexander, Satan once showed to the Son of theEternal all the kingdoms of the world, and offered him them, if he wouldfall down and worship him. "

_Pope_. I understand you. He was a God, and wanted nothing; had he beena man, and a pope, he would have done what I will now do. 

He fell upon his knees, and kissed the fiend's feet. 

The Devil stamped upon the floor, so that the whole villa trembled. Faustus and Lucretia, Caesar and the Venetian, saw through the door, which had been burst open by the shock, the Pope kneeling with claspedhands before the frightful figure of the Devil, who seized the tremblingmiscreant, strangled him, and gave his soul to an attendant spirit to beconveyed to hell. Borgia fell to the ground in an agony of terror; andthe horrible spectacle brought upon him an illness, which soon sent himafter his father. The body of the Pope, frightfully disfigured, wasburied with much pomp; and his historians, who are not well acquaintedwith his tragic end, invented the story, which is partly founded ontruth, that he and his son having drunk, by the cupbearer's mistake, somepoisoned wine which had been intended for the cardinals, were thus caughtin their own net. 

CHAPTER V. 

The horrible death of the Pope, and the frightful figure of the Devil, whom Faustus had hitherto only seen majestic and comely, made so strongan impression upon him, that he hastened from the villa to Rome; and, having packed up his things, instantly departed, with perturbed mind andbeating heart. His spirit had become so weak from all that he had seenand heard, that he who once dared to defy the Eternal in thought scarcelyventured now to look Satan in the face, though he still had absolutedominion over him. Hatred and contempt for men, cruel doubt, indifference to every thing which occurred around him, murmurings at theinsufficiency of his moral and physical powers, were the rewards of hisexperience and the fruits of his life; yet he consoled himself with theidea that what he had witnessed authorised in him these gloomysentiments, and confirmed him in the opinion, that there either existedon earth no connexion between man and his Creator, or that, if any didexist, such connexion ran so confusedly and equivocally through thelabyrinth of life, that it was impossible for the eye of man to followit. He yet flattered himself with the delusion, that his crimes, whenadded to the vast mass of earthly wickedness, would be like a drop ofwater falling into the ocean. The Devil willingly permitted him torepose in this dream, in order that the blow he intended for him mightfall with greater violence. Faustus resembled those men of the world whoabandon themselves to their pleasures without thinking of theconsequences; and at length, worn out and dejected, look morosely on theworld, and judge of the human race according to their own sad experience, without reflecting that they have only trodden the worst paths of life, and seen the worst part of the creation. In a word, he was on the pointof becoming a philosopher of the species of Voltaire, who, whenever hefound the _bad_, always held it forth to public view; and, withunexampled industry, always endeavoured to keep the _good_ in thebackground. 

Faustus was lying in a sweet morning slumber on the frontiers of Italy, when a portentous dream depicted itself to his soul in the liveliestcolours; and this dream was followed by a frightful apparition. He sawthe Genius of Man, whom he had once before seen. He saw him upon a vastand blooming island, surrounded by a stormy sea, wandering up and down, and looking very anxiously upon the raging billows. The ocean wascovered with innumerable barks, in which men, aged and young, children, women, and maidens, of all the nations of the world, were strugglingagainst the tempest, in order to reach the island. When they arrivedthere, their first care was to bring to land different buildingmaterials, which they flung together confusedly. After an immense numberhad gained the shore, the Genius marked out, upon the most elevated partof the island, the plan of a vast edifice; and each of the crowd, youngand old, weak or strong, took, according to his or her strength, a piecefrom the mass of materials, and, directed by those whom the Genius hadchosen, carried it, and deposited it at the proper place. All workedwith pleasure, with courage, and without relaxation; and the fabric hadalready risen high above the ground, when they were suddenly attacked bynumerous foes, who advanced out of a dark ambush in three columns. Atthe head of each of these columns stood a general. The first bore aglittering crown upon his head; on his brazen shield was written the word_Power_; and in his right hand he held a sceptre, which, like the rod ofMercury, had a snake and a scourge twisted round it. Before him went afierce hyena, holding in its jaws a book, on the back of which waswritten _My Word_. His troops were armed with swords, spears, and otherimplements of destruction. The second column was commanded by a majesticmatron, whose noble figure was clothed in a sacerdotal robe. On herright stood _Superstition_, a gloomy-eyed spectre, bearing in his hand abow formed from the bones of the dead, and on his back a quiver filledwith poisoned arrows. On her left hovered a wild, fantastically clothedfigure, called _Fanaticism_, bearing a blazing torch. These twophantoms, with menacing gestures and frightful grimaces, led the noblematron in chains, like a prisoner. Before them went _Ambition_, whosehead was adorned with a triple crown; in his hand was an episcopal staff, and on his mailed breast shone the word _Religion_. Fanaticism andSuperstition waited, with the utmost impatience, until Religion shouldgive them the signal to vent their fury, which they could scarcelyrestrain. The army was a confused and howling rabble, and each soldiercarried a dagger and a flaming torch. The chief of the third columnadvanced with bold and haughty steps; he was clothed in the simple dressof the sages, and was called _Philosophy_. He bore in his hand, as didall his followers, a golden cup, filled with foaming and intoxicatingliquor. These two last armies howled and screamed so frightfully, thateven the bellowing of the waters and the roar of the tempest were nolonger audible. 

When the three columns arrived near the labourers, they united, by thedirections of their generals, and attacked them furiously with theirmurderous weapons. The most courageous of the workmen flung away theirimplements of labour, and drew their swords, which hung at their belts, in order to drive their foes back. The others, in the mean time, endeavoured, with redoubled zeal, to complete the fabric they had begun. The Genius protected his brave warriors and his industrious labourerswith a huge glittering shield, which was handed to him from the sky; buthe could not cover the whole of the countless multitude. He saw withdeep sorrow thousands of his people sink to the earth beneath the swordsand poisoned darts of their adversaries. Many allowed themselves to beensnared by the invitations and allurements of those who offered them theenchanted cup to refresh themselves with; and, in their intoxication, they soon destroyed the laborious work of their hands. 

Those who bore torches made their way with their daggers, and hurled thetorches into the unfinished edifice, when the flames, rearing up, threatened to reduce it to ashes. The Genius looked mournfully upon theslain, and on those who had been intoxicated by the deceitful beverage;but he encouraged the rest, and inspired them, by his firmness and hisdignity, with strength and patience. They extinguished the flames;replaced what the others had overturned; and laboured, amid death anddestruction, with so much zeal, that, in spite of the fury and malignityof their foes, they raised at length a vast and sublime temple. TheGenius then healed the wounded, comforted the weary, praised the boldwarriors, and conducted them all, amid songs of triumph, into the temple. The foes stood confounded at the enormous work; and, after they had invain attempted to shatter its solidity, they retreated, with rage intheir hearts. Faustus now found himself upon the island. The fieldaround the majestic building was covered with dead bodies of all ages andof both sexes; and those who had tasted of the enchanted cup walkedcoolly among the corpses, disputed with each other, and laughed at andcriticised the structure of the temple. Faustus went past them, and ashe approached the edifice he read over the entrance the following words:"Mortal, if thou hast bravely struggled, and hast remained faithful, enter, and learn to know thy noble destiny. "

At these words he felt his heart leap with joy, and he hoped to be nowable to penetrate the obscurity which had so long tormented him. Withbold and daring pace he ran up the lofty steps, and caught a glimpse ofthe interior of the edifice, which seemed filled with the roseate coloursof morning. He heard the soft voice of the Genius, and was about toenter; but the gate of brass closed before him with a harsh sound, and herecoiled in terror. His desire to penetrate into the secrets of thetemple was increased by the impossibility. All of a sudden he feltwings, and rising high into the air, he precipitated himself furiouslyagainst the brazen gate, was hurled back, and started out of his sleepjust as he was on the point of touching the ground. He opened his eyesin dismay. A ghastly figure, wrapped in a winding-sheet, drew back thecurtains of his bed. He recognised the features of his old father, who, gazing upon him for a moment, said, in a lamentable voice:

"Faustus! Faustus! never yet did father beget a more unfortunate son; andin this feeling I have just died. For ever--ah! for ever!--must the gulfof damnation lie between thee and me. "

The portentous dream and this horrible apparition filled the soul ofFaustus with affright. He sprang from his bed, and opened the window toinhale the fresh air. Before him lay the enormous Alps, whose tops werejust gilded by the rising sun. He surveyed them for some time, and atlast fell into a profound reverie. He trembled as he thought of hisnocturnal vision, and was endeavouring to explain to himself its mostprominent passages, when, falling anew into his cruel doubts, heexclaimed:

"Whence came those monsters who attacked the industrious labourers? Bywhom were they authorised to disturb and destroy them while engaged intheir noble occupation? Who permitted it? Was he who permitted itunable, or did he not wish, to hinder it? And why did the Supreme Geniusprotect and save only a part of them who were assailed by thosecannibals? Were some predestined to perish, in order that the othersmight triumph and taste repose? Who, then, will dare to tell me that Iam not one of those who are born with destruction for their lot? Whatevil had those unfortunates committed, and why should those be esteemedcriminal who, pressed by a burning thirst, endeavoured to quench it bytasting the enchanted cup?"

Faustus wandered for a long time in a maze of doubt; but, remembering theapparition of his father, it brought back to his mind his long-forgottenfamily. He instantly determined to return to them; to become again amember of society; to resume his business; and to get rid of his infernalcompanion. He pursued his journey towards home like many others, who, mistaking the ardour of insensate youth for genius, enter upon the careerof the world with high pretensions, and, having quickly exhausted thelittle fire which their souls possess, soon find themselves a burden totheir kindred and their friends, at the very place from whence theystarted. Faustus brooded over all this, while he rode silently andmoodily by the side of the Devil. 

The latter left him to his reflections, laughed inwardly at hisresolution, and shortened the time with the sweet idea of soon being ableto breathe the pleasant vapours of hell. He determined to have a bitterlaugh at Satan, who had represented to him as a man of superior strengthof mind this Faustus, whom he now saw completely dejected even before heknew the horrors of his fate. He compared his present downcast and timidlooks with the haughty and bold glances he had cast upon him when hefirst made him appear before his magic circle. His hatred against himincreased, and he rejoiced in his black soul when he saw Worms lie beforethem in the plain. 

They rode towards the celebrated city; and when they were about half amile distant from it, they perceived a gibbet, to which was suspended atall, slender youth. Faustus lifted up his eyes and gazed upon him. Theevening wind blew freshly among his long hair, which half-concealed hisface, and swung his body to and fro. Faustus burst into tears at thisspectacle, and cried, with trembling voice:

"Poor youth! hanging at the cursed tree before thou hadst reached theflower of life! What sin hast thou committed, which induced the tribunalof men to cut thee off so soon?"

_Devil_ (_in a solemn and impressive tone_). Faustus, this is thy work. 

_Faustus_. My work!

_Devil_. Thy work. Look at him closer. He is thy eldest son. 

Faustus looked up, recognised him, and sunk from his horse. 

_Devil_. Cry and groan! The hour approaches in which I must remove thethick veil from before thine eyes, and blow away, with a single breath, the labyrinth in which thou hast so long wandered. I will fling lightupon the moral world, and show thee how thou hast outraged it by each ofthy actions. I, a devil, will show thee what are the consequences when aworm like thyself dares to stop the wheel of so exact and so enormous amachine. Dost thou remember the youth whom I, at our departure fromMayence, saved from drowning by thy command? I gave thee warning, butthou wouldst obey the rash impulse of thy heart. If thou hadst permittedthat miscreant to perish, thy son would not now be rotting on yon gibbet. He on whose account thou didst change the order of things, insinuatedhimself, shortly after thy departure, into the society of thy young wife. The glitter of the gold which we had left her in such abundance, attracted him much more than her youth and beauty. It was no difficultthing for him to win the affections of her who had been forsaken by thee;and in a short time he gained such influence over her, that she deliveredup herself and all she possessed to his will and control. Thy old fatherendeavoured to oppose his shameless sway; but the young man insulted himand beat him: the poor old man sought an asylum in the workhouse, wherehe died, a few days ago, of grief for thee and thy family. Thy son, having taken his grandfather's part, and threatened the life of hismother's seducer, was by him turned out of the house also. The boywandered among the woods and wildernesses till he was half famished. Arriving at length in this city, and being ashamed to beg, he stole a fewpence from the poor-box in a church, in order to assuage his hunger; buthe committed this theft so artlessly, that several people perceived him, and the most worshipful magistrate, in consideration of his youth, sentenced him only to be hanged: he was accordingly hanged; although heprotested, with tears, that for the last four days he had swallowednothing but grass. Thy daughter is at Frankfort, where she subsists uponthe earnings of vice; thy second son is in the profligate service of aninfamous prelate. The young man whom thou didst save from death robbedthy wife not long ago of her last stiver; thy friend whom we preservedfrom beggary refused thy old father the slightest assistance, and spurnedthy children from his door when they came to him for bread. And I willnow show thee thy family, in order that thou mayest see to what a statethou hast reduced them. I will then bring thee here again, and holdreckoning with thee; for I am no longer thy slave--thou art mine. Theworm of despair begins to gnaw within thee; thou art no longer fit tolive, and hell only is fit to receive thee. 

The Devil seized the wretched man, flew with him to Mayence, and showedhim his wife and two youngest children sitting at the gate of theFranciscan convent in expectation of the remnant of the monks' supper. When the mother beheld Faustus, she screamed, "O Heaven! Faustus! yourfather--" then, covering her eyes with her hands, she fell into a swoon. The children ran to him, clung about him, and cried for bread. 

_Faustus_. Devil, decide upon my fate: let it be more frightful than theheart of man can support or conceive, but supply these unfortunatecreatures with bread, and rescue them from misery and hunger. 

_Devil_. I have plundered for thee the earth of its treasures; thou hastsacrificed them to thy infamous pleasures, without once thinking of thesewretches. Feel now thy folly; thou hast spun the web of their destiny, and thy hungry, beggarly, miserable brood will transmit to their remotestposterity the misery of which thou art the cause. Thou didst begetchildren--wherefore hast thou not been a father to them? Wherefore hastthou sought happiness where mortal never yet found it? Look at them oncemore. In hell thou shalt see them again; and they will there curse theefor the inheritance which thou didst entail upon them. 

He tore him from his miserable family at the moment the wife was about toembrace his knees, and to ask his pardon. Faustus wished to comfort her;but the Devil grasped him, and placed him once more beneath the gibbet atWorms. 

Night sunk dark upon the earth. Faustus stood gazing on the remains ofhis unfortunate son; madness glowed in his brain, and he cried, in thewild tone of despair:

"Devil, let me bury this poor victim; take then my life, and bear me tohell, where I shall never again see men in flesh and bone. I have learntto know them; I am disgusted with them, with their destination, with theworld, and with life. Since one good action brings on my head suchinexpressible evils, I have reason to believe that the wicked only have aright to happiness. If such be the order of things in this world, hurlme at once into hell. Its darkness is a thousand times preferable to thelight of day. 

_Devil_. Not so fast, Faustus. In the first place, I take away fromthee thy mighty magic rod, and confine thee in the narrow circle which Idraw around thee. Here shalt thou listen to me, and howl and tremble. Iwill unfold to thee the consequences of thy deeds, and will assassinatethee through downright despair. 

"Fool! thou sayest thou hast learnt to know man! Where? How and whenhast thou attained this knowledge? Hast thou ever sounded his nature?Hast thou separated from him that which he has acquired, and which isforeign to him? Hast thou distinguished that which proceeds from hisheart, from that which is merely the affect of an imagination corruptedby artifice? Hast thou compared the wants and the desires resulting fromhis nature, with those which he owes to civilisation? Hast thouconsidered man in his proper shape, where each of his movements bears thestamp of his inward disposition? _Thou hast taken the mask of societyfor his natural figure_; _and thou hast only known that man whom histitles_, _his rank_, _his riches_, _his power_, _and his acquirementshave corrupted_. _Thou hast only known him who has sacrificed his natureto thy own idol_, --_to vanity_. Thou hast merely frequented palaces andcourts, where men spurn away the unfortunate, and laugh at the complaintsof the oppressed, whilst they are dissipating in revel-rout and roar thatwhich they have robbed them of. Thou hast seen the sovereigns of theworld; thou hast seen tyrants surrounded by their parasites and theirinfamous courtesans; and thou hast seen priests who make use of religionas an instrument of oppression. Such are the men thou hast seen, and nothim who groans under the heavy yoke, and comforts himself with the hopeof futurity. Thou hast passed by with disdain the hut of the poor andsimple man, who does not even know your artificial wants by name, whogains his bread by the sweat of his brow, shares it faithfully with hiswife and children, and rejoices, at the last moment of his life, inhaving completed his long and laborious task. If thou hadst opened hisdoor, thou wouldst not indeed have found a vain ideal of heroic andover-refined virtue, which is only the offspring of your vices and yourcrimes; but thou wouldst have seen a man who, in meekness and resignedmagnanimity, shows more force of soul, than do your renowned heroes intheir blood-stained fields of battle, or your ministers in theirperfidious cabinets. If it were not for these, and for your priests, andabove all for your false philosophers, the gates of hell would soon beclosed. Canst thou say that thou knowest man, when thou hast only soughtfor him in the paths of vice and crime? Dost thou know thyself? I willmake your wounds yet deeper, and pour poison into them. But if I had athousand human tongues, and were to keep thee here confined for as manyyears, I should still be unable to enumerate to thee all the frightfulconsequences of thy actions and thy temerity. Know now the result of thylife, and remember, that I have scarcely fulfilled one of thy insensatedesires without having forewarned thee to check it. It is by thy commandthat I have interrupted the course of things, and committed crimes whichI myself could scarcely have imagined; so that, devil as I am, I am notso bad as thyself. 

"Dost thou remember the nun Clara, and the voluptuous night which thoudidst pass with her? But how canst thou have forgotten her? Listen nowto the consequences. A short time after thy departure, the Bishop, whowas her friend and protector, died; and she, having become a mother, wascondemned, as an object of public horror, to be starved with her child ina dark dungeon. In her ravenous hunger she fell upon the newly-born, ateof thy flesh and her own, and prolonged her existence as long as therewas a bone for her to gnaw. In what had she sinned?--she who did notcomprehend her crime; she who did not know, or even suspect, the authorof her ignominy and her frightful death. Feel now the result of onesingle moment of pleasure, and tremble! Hast thou not strengthened thedelusion which condemned her? Must not hell now bear the reproach of thycrime? Those people condemned the child as the spawn of Satan, andmurdered the mother under the idea that she had been possessed by him;and through this thy deed thou hast bewildered their minds, and those oftheir posterity. 

"Thou wast not more fortunate with the Prince Bishop. He caused, it istrue, Hans Ruprecht to be buried, and provided for his family. Helikewise, by the trick I played him, lost his fat, and became the mostmild and merciful of princes; but he so relaxed the band of social orderby his over-indulgence, that his subjects soon became a horde ofdrunkards, sluggards, ruffians, and highwaymen. The present Bishop isobliged to be their executioner, and to disperse and destroy a hundredfamilies, in order that the rest, terrified by their example, may againbecome humanised, and submit to the laws. The furies themselves couldnot do half the injury to these people which those now do to whom theBishop has been obliged to intrust the sword of justice and the power ofvengeance. 

"Doctor Robertus, the renowned champion of freedom, the man after thineown heart, was from his earliest youth an enemy to the Minister, whom hehated on account of his talents. Envy and jealousy caused hisindependence of spirit; and if he had been in the situation of the other, he would have adopted with pleasure the most cruel principles ofdespotism, for which his wild and ferocious heart was only formed. Thehonest man was the Minister; Robertus was a monster, who would have setthe whole world in a blaze, and has done it partly, in order to satisfyhis boundless ambition. Thou didst oblige me to rescue him, and tofurnish him with a large sum of money. He made such good use of hisfreedom, his gold, and the enthusiasm which his miraculous escape hadcaused among the people, that he soon succeeded in stirring up a dreadfulrebellion. He armed the peasants; they murdered the nobility, anddesolated the whole land. The noble Minister fell a victim to hisrevenge; and Robertus, the friend of liberty, the champion of theoppressed, is the author of the calamitous war of the peasants, which bydegrees will spread over the whole of Germany, and will ravage it. Murders, assassinations, robberies, and sacrilege are now committed withimpunity; and thy noble hero stands at the head of a furious rabble, andthreatens to make Germany the cemetery of the human race. Satan himselfcould not have laboured more effectually for the destruction of mankind, than thou didst when I was forced by thee to rescue this madman from thestroke of justice. 

"Let us now return to the court of the German prince, where thou soaudaciously didst make thyself the avenger of virtue and oppressedinnocence. That prince and his favourite affected virtues which they didnot possess; but their actions contributed to the good of the people, because both had sense enough to perceive that the happiness of thepeople constitutes that of the prince. Does the thirsty traveller know, or does he care, if the spring of which he drinks gushes out of amountain filled with poison, provided he cools his hot blood withoutreceiving any harm? That hypocrite displeased thee because he did notanswer to thy preconceived high opinion, which thou, for certain reasons, didst wish to thrust upon me; and I was compelled to strangle him by thyorders. His infant son was destined to succeed him in the government. His tutors harassed and oppressed the people, once happy under thedominion of his father; they corrupted the heart and the mind of thefuture regent, who having enervated his body through early pleasure, theyrule him now he is come of age, and are his and his people's tyrants. Hadst thou not compelled me to murder the father, he would have broughtup his son in his own maxims; he would have developed his faculties, andhave made him a man fit to govern a nation. The numerous subjects whoare now groaning beneath iron-handed oppression, and whose misery is allto be imputed to thee, would then have been the happiest in Germany. Lettheir tears, their despair, and the horrors of an approachinginsurrection, reward thee for having rashly exercised the duty of ajudge. 

"Madman! in obedience to thy command, I burnt the castle of the fierceWildgrave, with all its inhabitants, with his wife and his infant. Whatcrime had they committed? It was a moment of delight to me. If theinfant was consumed on the breast of the mother, it was thy work. If theWildgrave attacked a neighbouring nobleman as the cause of theconflagration, set fire to his house, and ignominiously whipped him, itwas thy work. Thousands have already fallen beneath their reciprocalvengeance, and tranquillity will not be restored to that part of Germanyuntil the hostile families shall be completely exhausted and annihilated. And thus, poor worm, hast thou avenged the innocent; thou, who all thylife hast been wallowing in the grossest sensuality; thou, who didst pullme out of hell merely to satiate thy lusts. Groan and weep; but I willoverwhelm thee with fresh horrors. 

"By thy order I infused the poison of lust into the heart of the innocentAngelica, she who was the ornament of her sex and of the world. Thoudidst enjoy her in the wild intoxication of thy senses, and she scarcelyknew what had happened to her. Shudder at the consequences! I, who findpleasure in evil and destruction, think with pity and compassion on herend. She fled from her native place, and a feeling of shame forced herto conceal the state in which she found herself, and to which thou hadstreduced her. Alone, in solitude, and without help, amid agonising throesand deadly pains, she became a mother. The child died as soon as it sawthe light of day. She, the wretched victim of thy momentary pleasure, was cast into prison, and publicly executed as an infanticide. Thoushouldst have seen her in the last moments of her life; thou shouldsthave seen her pure blood spouting high into the air, when the sword ofthe executioner separated her lovely neck. "

Faustus gave a loud groan. Despair was raging in his heart. 

_Devil_. The daughter of the miser in France, whom thou didst seduce, and in whose bosom thou didst cause slumbering desire to awake, becameshortly afterwards the mistress of the youthful king. She ruled himentirely, and in order that he might not disturb her in her intercoursewith another lover, she urged him to the disastrous expedition intoItaly, and brought misfortunes upon France which many future reigns willnot be able to heal. The flower of the French nobility, and the heroesof the kingdom, are rotting on the sun-scorched plains of Italy; and theking has returned home overwhelmed with shame and ignominy. Thus, wherever thou hast wandered, thou hast scattered around thee the seeds ofmisery, which have sprung up, and will bear fruit to all eternity. 

"Thou didst not pay attention to the look I gave thee when I tore downthe house upon the cruel physicians at Paris. I had previously told theethat, by my destructive hand, thou didst mangle the moral world worsethan they did the flesh of their fellow-creatures. Thou didst pay noattention to that look--hear now the cause of it. Those wretches deserveto perish beneath the ruins of their laboratory; but what evil had thepoor people committed who lodged in the lower part of the house, and whowere totally ignorant of what was going forward above their heads? Whyshould an innocent, happy family be crushed along with those monsters?To satisfy thy blind vengeance, I was forced to bury them beneath stonesand falling timbers. Judge and avenger at the same time, thou hadst notthought of this. Consider now all the consequences of thy delirium andthy folly; cast thine eyes along the whole chain, extending to theremotest posterity, and then sink beneath the terrible survey. Did I notonce tell thee that man is much more rash in his decisions and in hisvengeance, than the Devil is in the accomplishment of wickedness?"

Faustus opened his haggard eyes, and looked towards heaven. 

_Devil_. It is deaf to thee. Be proud of having lived a moment when thyatrocity was so great that it almost made the deeds of the devilsthemselves forgotten. I speak of that moment when thou didst command meto withdraw the veil which concealed the Eternal from thy sight. Theangel whose charge it was to register thy sins averted his face, andstruck thy name from the Book of Life. 

_Faustus_ (_springing up_). Cursed be thou; cursed be myself; cursed bethe hour of my birth; cursed be he who begot me; cursed be the breastwhich I sucked!

_Devil_. O the delightful moment! Precious reward of my toils! Hellrejoices at thy curses, and expects a yet more frightful one from thee. Fool! wast thou not born free? Didst thou not bear in thy breast, likeall who live in flesh, the instinct of good as well as of evil? Whydidst thou transgress, with so much temerity, the bounds which had beenprescribed to thee? Why didst thou endeavour to try thy strength withand against Him who is not to be reached? Did not God create you in sucha manner, that you were as much elevated above the devils as above thebeasts of the earth? Did he not grant you the perceptive faculty of goodand evil? Were not your will and choice free? We wretches are withoutchoice, without will; we are the slaves of evil and of imperiousnecessity; constrained and condemned to all eternity to wish nothing butevil, we are the instruments of revenge and punishment upon you. Ye arekings of the creation, free beings, masters of your destiny, which ye fixyourselves; masters of the future, which only depends upon your actions. It is on account of these prerogatives that we detest you, and rejoicewhen, by your follies, your impatience, and your crimes, you cease to bemasters of yourselves. It is only in resignation, Faustus, that presentor future happiness consists. Hadst thou remained what thou wast, andhad not doubt, pride, vanity, and voluptuousness torn thee out of thehappy and limited sphere for which thou wast born, thou mightst havefollowed an honourable employment, and have supported thy wife andchildren; and thy family, which is now sunk into the refuse of humanity, would have been blooming and prosperous; lamented by them, thou wouldsthave died calmly on thy bed, and thy example would have guided thyposterity along the thorny path of life. 

_Faustus_. Ah, the greatest torment of the damned is, no doubt, to hearthe devil preach penitence. 

_Devil_. It is pleasant enough that you force us to moralise; but, wretch, if the voice of truth and of penitence were to echo down fromheaven, you would close your ears to it. 

_Faustus_. Destroy me at once, and do not kill me by thy prattling, which tears my heart without convincing my spirit. Pour out thy venom, and do not distil it upon me drop by drop. I am not to blame if, havingsown the seeds of good, bad has arisen from them. A good action hascaused the ignominious death of my son, and a good action hasprecipitated my family into the most profound misery. 

_Devil_. Why dost thou boast to me of thy good deed? How does itdeserve that name? I suppose because thou didst give me a command, which, by the by, did not cost thee much. To have made the actionmeritorious, thou shouldst have cast thyself into the water, and havesaved the young man at the risk of thine own life. I brought him to theshore, and disappeared; he would have known thee, and, moved bygratitude, would probably have become the protector, instead of thedestroyer, of thy family. 

_Faustus_. Thou canst torment me, Devil; but thou canst not, fromstupidity, or thou wilt not, from wickedness, dispel my doubts. Neverhave they torn my heart more venomously than at this moment, when Iconsider the miseries of my existence and of my after-destination. Ishuman life any thing else than a tissue of crimes, torments, pains, hypocrisy, contradictions, and false virtues? What are free agency, choice, will, and that so much vaunted faculty of distinguishing goodfrom evil, if the passions drown the feeble voice of reason, as the roarof the sea drowns the voice of the pilot whose vessel is about to bedashed against the rocks? Is it possible for man to destroy and root outof his breast the germ of evil which has been designedly introducedthere? I hate, more bitterly than ever, the world, my fellow-creatures, and myself. Destined to suffer, why was I born with the desire of beinghappy? Born for darkness, why was I filled with the desire of seeinglight? Why had the slave the thirst for freedom? Why had the worm thewish to fly? Why had I a boundless imagination, the teeming mother ofbold desires, daring wishes and thoughts? Tear from my uncertain anddoubtful soul the flesh which envelops it; destroy in it all remembranceof its ever having animated a human body: I wish to become henceforwardone of you, and only to live in the desire of evil. Ah, Devil, this isnot so pleasant to thy ears as the hissing, howling song of despair whichthou didst expect. But loosen the enchantment which fetters me in thiscircle; and let me perform my last sad duty. I will not attempt toescape from thee; if I could, I would not, for the pain of hell cannot begreater than that which I now feel. 

_Devil_. Faustus, I am pleased with thy courage, and I would sooner hearwhat thou hast said than the wild shriek of despair. Be proud that theforce of thy spirit has carried thee even to madness and blasphemy, forwhich the pain of hell awaits thee. Step out of thy circle; bury thatwretched youth; thy part will then be played here, and thou must beginanother, which will never end. 

Faustus climbed the gibbet, and cut the rope from the neck of his son. He then bore him into a neighbouring field which the plough had latelyturned up, and scratching a grave with his hands, he buried the body ofthe unfortunate youth. He then returned to the Devil, and said, in awild tone:

"The measure of my wretchedness is full; break now the vase which canhold nothing more; but I have yet courage to struggle with thee for mylife. I will not perish like the slave who yields without resistance tothe might of his master. Appear to me under whatever form thou wilt, andI will grapple with thee. For freedom, for independence, I once drewthee out of hell; on its verge I will yet assert my right to both; on theverge of the frightful gulf I will use my strength, and remember that Ionce saw thee tremble before my magic circle, when I threatened toscourge thee with my rod. The tears which thou seest in my eyes oretears of indignation, of hate, and of disgust. Not the fiend, but my ownheart, triumphs over me. 

_Devil_. Insipid braggart! With this form I tear off the mask whichbelied my courage. Vengeance is at hand, and Leviathan is himself oncemore!

He stood in gigantic stature before him. His eyes glowed like full-ladenthunder-clouds, which reflect the rays of the descending sun. The noiseof his breath was like the rushing of the tempest-blast. The earthgroaned beneath his iron feet. The storm rustled in his hair, whichwaved round his head like the tail from the threatening comet. Faustuslay before him like a worm; for the horrible sight had deprived him ofhis senses and his strength. The Devil uttered a contemptuous laugh, which hissed over the surface of the earth; and seizing the tremblingbeing, he tore him to pieces, as a capricious boy would tear an insect. He strewed the bloody members with fury and disgust about the field, andplunged with the soul into the depths of hell. 

The devils were assembled round Satan, who was consulting with hisprinces concerning the punishments which should be inflicted upon PopeAlexander the Sixth. His crimes, and the last moments of his life, hadbeen unparalleled, so that even the worst devils found themselves at aloss to allot him a punishment suitable to his deserts. The Pope stoodbefore his judges, who treated him as contemptuously as a tribunal ofprinces treats an accused person who has nothing else to recommend himthan his being a man. All of a sudden Leviathan rushed triumphantly intothe midst, held the soul of Faustus on high, and then hurled it withviolence upon the table, saying:

"There you have Faustus!"

He was received with so loud a bellow of joy, that the damned trembled intheir pools: "Welcome, Prince Leviathan! There is Faustus! There isFaustus!"

_Satan_. Welcome, prince of hell. Welcome, Faustus; we have heardenough of you here. 

_Leviathan_. There he is, Satan; see him yourself. He has plagued menot a little, but he has been a good recruit for us, and I hope that thouart contented with my long sojourn upon earth. But I entreat thee, formany centuries to come, to send me no more on such errands; for I amquite weary of the human race. I must, however, acknowledge that thisfellow did not badly support the last hour of his life, hard as it was;but that arose, I suppose, from his having applied himself in his youthto that philosophy which thou hast taught mankind. 

_Satan_. I thank thee, Prince Leviathan; and I promise thee that thoushalt long continue with me among the sweet vapours of this place, andscourge the shades of the great princes of the earth for thy pastime. Hem! a fine fellow, and seems to have had quite enough of men and things. Despair, audacity, hate, rancour, agony, and pride, have torn deepfurrows in his soul. He looks even at us and hell without trembling. Faustus, art thou become dumb of a sudden?

_Faustus_. Not from fear, I assure thee. I have been bold to one muchmightier than thyself, and therefore am I here. 

_Satan_. Hey! carry the saucy hound to the pool of the damned; and afterbeing soused therein, let him be well scourged by a legion of my mostactive pages, in order that he may become a little acquainted with therules of these regions. 

A devil dragged Faustus to the pool; the legion swarmed after him. 

_Leviathan_ (_perceiving the Pope_). Ah! welcome, Pope Alexander. Ihope you no longer feel any desire to make a Ganymede of the Devil. 

_Pope_ (_sighing_). No, alas!

_Satan_. Ha, ha, ha! This is now a good specimen of the men who atpresent ravage the earth; but let them once get to the new world, andthey will make it a theatre of crimes which will put the old one toshame. 

_Pope_. Would that I could be there too!

_Satan_. A wish truly worthy of a pope; but console thyself, --thycountrymen will murder millions of men for their gold. 

_Pope_. What will men not do for gold?

Faustus came back with his fiendish attendants. 

_Satan_. Well, Faustus, how do you like your bath, and those that rubbedyou dry?

_Faustus_. Maddening and intolerable thought, that the noble andethereal part of man must expiate the sins of a body formed of clay!

The devils laughed till the vaults reechoed. 

_Satan_. Bravo, Faustus! I am convinced, from thy words and behaviour, that thou art too good for a man. I am, besides, much indebted to theefor having invented Printing, that art which is so singularly useful tous. 

_Pope_. What, a printer! He gave himself out at my court for agentleman, and won my daughter Lucretia!

_Faustus_. Silence, proud Spaniard. I paid her richly; and thou wouldsthave prostituted thyself to me for a like sum, if I had been one of thineown stamp. My noble invention will sow more good, and will be moreprofitable to the human race, than all the popes from St. Peter down tothyself. 

_Satan_. Thou art mistaken, Faustus. In the first place, men will robthee of the honour of having invented this art. 

_Faustus_. That is worse than damnation. 

_Satan_. Observe now this man: he stands before me, the ruler here, andholds everlasting torments as nothing when compared with the loss of hisfame and glory, those chimeras of his overheated brain. In the secondplace, Faustus, the shades will descend by hundreds of thousands, willfall upon thee, and overwhelm thee with curses, for having converted thelittle stream which poisoned the human mind into a monstrous flood. I, who am the ruler here, and shall gain by it, am therefore thy debtor; andif thou wilt curse the Eternal, who either could not or would not makethee better, thou shalt escape the torments of this place, and I willmake thee a prince of my dark kingdom. 

_Pope_. Let me be the first to curse, O Satan; as a pope, I have anundoubted right to the precedence. 

_Satan_. Observe these men, ye devils, and see how they outdo ye. No, Pope; thou didst it when thy lips kissed the feet of my Leviathan. Choose, Faustus. 

Faustus stepped forward; raging despair was engraven in frightfulcharacters on his shadowy face. He--! Who can express what he said?

The devils trembled at his words, and were astonished at his audacity. Since hell first existed, no such stillness had reigned in the dark, frightful kingdom, the abode of eternal misery. Faustus broke it, andrequired Satan to fulfil his promise. 

_Satan_. Fool! how canst thou imagine that I, ruler of hell, will keepmy word, as there is no example of a prince of earth ever having kept hisword when he got nothing by so doing? If thou canst forget that thou arta man, forget not that thou standest before the Devil. My fiendishsubjects turned pale at thy temerity; thy horrid words made my firm andimperishable throne tremble; and I thought for a moment that I had riskedtoo much. Away! thy presence makes me uneasy; and thou art a proof thatman can do more than the Devil can bear. Drag him, ye fiends, into themost frightful corner; let him there languish in solitude, and madden atthe recollection of his deeds, and of this moment, which he can neveratone for. Let no shade approach him. Go, thou accursed one, and hoveralone and abandoned in that land where neither hope, comfort, nor sleepare found. Those doubts which have tormented thee in life shall for evergnaw thy soul, and no one shall explain to thee that mystery, the pursuitof which has brought thee here. This is the most painful punishment ofall to a philosopher like thee. Drag him away, I repeat; torture him. Seize that Pope, and plunge him into the hottest pool; for their equalsare not to be found in hell. 

After their departure, Satan said to himself, smiling:

"When men wish to represent any thing abominable, they paint the Devil:let us, therefore, in revenge, when we wish to represent any thinginfamous, depict man; and philosophers, popes, priests, conquerors, ministers, and authors, shall serve us as models. "

Footnotes:

{134} It is not out of fear that I refrain from giving the names of theGerman princes who appear in this work, but because, having discoveredthe secret springs of their actions, I should too often have tocontradict their lying, flattering, ignorant historians; and men whowillingly allow themselves to be deceived, might perhaps doubt the truthof my assertions. Hercules himself could not clear away all the ordurewhich these historians have heaped up. --_Original_. 

{249} See _Taxae Cancellariae Apostolicae_, &c. , printed at Rome andParis.