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DEMETRIUS, 
 
 THE IMPOSTORi 
 
 A TRAGEBY. 
 
 soew*^* 
 
 BY 
 
 tRANSLATED FROM THE RUSSIAN. 
 
 LONDON: 
 
 Printed ly J, Nichols and Son, Rtd Lion Pajfage, Flesf Street) 
 
 lOR J. BOOTH, 14, DUKE STREET, PORTLAND FiACE. 
 I8O6. 
 
PG- ^3/? 
 
 111 ; 
 
 ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 Alexander Soumarokovc, the Father 
 of the Ruffian Theatre, and its firft Dra- 
 matic Poet, was born at Mofcow in the year 
 /1727; and died in 1777, at the age of 30. 
 Hrfe was contemporary with the celebrated 
 Lomonoffove, fojuftly ftyled " The Pindar of 
 Ruffia.'* Thefe two rival fons of Apollo (the 
 art of Poetry having been very little known 
 before their time) were the firfl:, and are 
 confidered the beil, of the Ruffian Poets. 
 They formed, or rather created the lan- 
 guage, and, with a power almoft magic, 
 dlfplayed its wonderful energy, amazing ca* 
 pability, grace-, and enchanting melody. 
 The pathetic ilrains of the Tragic Mufe in the 
 one, and the darins; flio-hts of the Heroic in the 
 other, broke forth on a fuddsn, and aflo- 
 niflied the age. Emerging as it were from 
 the regions of ice, they fiione forth like 
 two meteors, piercing through the native 
 darknefs of the clime, and exnofing at once 
 
IV ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 the abfurdity of afcribing great talents to 
 the influence of a climate. 
 
 Soiimarokove melted the heart with the 
 foftnefs of Racine ;iiomono(lbve fhook the 
 foul with the thunder of Pindar. Such is 
 the harmony of language, the fublimity of 
 thought, the ever-flowing majefl:y of ftyle, 
 the awfulnefs of imagery, and folemn energy 
 of expreflion, in the latter, that, were it 
 poflible to transfer them to another language, 
 it w^ould appear, that Europe cannot boafl: 
 of a Poet Vv'ho excelled him, and that there 
 are fev\^ capable even of approaching him. 
 
 The works of Soumarokove, which form 
 at prefent feveral volumes, have been ho- 
 noured with the mod flattering approbation 
 of the public. Whether in Tragedy or in 
 Comedy, his genius Hill led him to fame. 
 As a dramatic writer, whatever may be the 
 degree of his merit, when judged by impar- 
 tial and difcerning pofterity ; and however 
 he may be fuppofcd to owe, in fome meafure, 
 his reputation to that indulgence, which is 
 always fhewn in favour of a firfl; attempt; 
 he certainly m.eritcd the title beftowed upon 
 him, fmce the Ruflian Theatre owed to him 
 its origin, and its exiftence. 
 
 Ee 
 
ADVERTISEMENT. V 
 
 Be this as it may, the Traiiflator, by the 
 prefent undertaking, had in view, to fatisfy 
 tlie curiofity of the Enghfh pubhc, and to 
 afford it an opportunity of dccidirjg, in fome 
 meafure, upon the deferts of an Author, 
 hitherto known only by name and reputa- 
 tion. He thinks, however, it is his duty to 
 ftate, that the choice of the Tragedy prc- 
 fcnted here, is owing more to chance than 
 to any convi6lion of its being the Author's 
 mafter-piece. 
 
 Soumarokove was a ftricl obferver of the 
 rules laid down by the Ancients, and a great 
 lover of unity and hmplicity. He main- 
 tained, with Racine (a poet whom he mofb 
 admired, and endeavoured to imitate), that 
 he, who, in one fingle event, important 
 enough to become the fubje6f of a Tragedy, 
 cannot find matter enough to fupply five 
 acls, wants genius, and the power of in- 
 vention. For it is much eafier to fill up the 
 fpace of a drama, by a number and variety 
 of far-fetched, or fupernatural incidents, 
 no ways relating to the main plot, than by 
 a fimple and uniform connection of one 
 particular event, or tranfaclion, which muft 
 
 be confined within certain limits of time. 
 
 TVT ..a 
 
VI ADVERTISEMENT. 
 
 Mofl of Soumarokove*s plays are founded 
 upon the events of the Ruffian Hiftory -, and 
 fuch is the Tragedy of Deiiietrius the Im- 
 poftor. The hiftory of this bold adventurer, 
 fuch as it is, or is fuppofed to be, is ex- 
 prefled in the firft a6l, with great accuracy 
 and precifion. In expofing the chara6ler of 
 the tyrant, unnatural * and monftrous as it 
 needs muft appear, Soumarokove has ftriclly 
 adhered to hiftoric truth ; he has not availed 
 himfelf of the privileges of a Poet, but has 
 followed a great example, — - 
 
 Not to extenuate ; 
 Nor fet down aught in malice ! 
 
 Shakspeare's 1 hello. 
 
 To a generous People, celebrated for their 
 benignity to Foreigners occafionally refiding 
 amongft them, and for liberal indulgence 
 to their own Dramatic Authors, the Tranf- 
 
 * Mr. LcvcTque, in his Hiftory of Ruffia, in oppofition 
 to all the Ruflian Hirtorians, affirms, that the rcip^n of 
 Demetrius was the nioft humane and benevolent, and 
 doubts even the fa£l of tlie Impoilure: bur, independent 
 of different traditions, it is well known, that Soumarokolf 
 had examined attentively, the records of the reign of Deme- 
 trius in the archives of the empire, and undoubtedly formed 
 his judgment upon the refult of his own enquiries. 
 
 lator 
 
ADVERTISEMENT. Vll 
 
 Jator fubmits the following fcenes ; in hum- 
 ble expe^lation of public encouragement 
 (even fliould they appear to have no higher 
 merit), in confideration of its being the firft 
 attempt to prefent to Britifh readers, a lite- 
 rary novelty — a RufTian Tragedy, in a Bri- 
 tilli drefs. 
 
DRAMATIS PERSONS. 
 
 M EN. 
 
 Demetrius, the Impoflor. 
 
 Shcusky, a Ruffian Nobleman, 
 
 Georgius, Prince of Galitz. 
 
 Parmen, Confident of Demetrius. 
 
 Captain of the Guards, Grandees, Soldiers, Sec, 
 
 W O M EN. 
 
 KscEKiA, Daughter to Shoufky. 
 Attendants, &c. 
 
 Scene — Kremle *, in the Royal PaUcc. 
 
 * The Fortrefs of Mofcovv. 
 
( 9 ) 
 
 DEMETRIUS. 
 ACT I 
 
 SCENE J. 
 Demetrius arid Parmen.- 
 
 jVlY gracious liege ! Thirty days have thy 
 
 aftoniflied rubje£ls beheld thee fad and dejeded, 
 
 amidfl the fplendours of the throne j and io long 
 
 has thy faithful Parmen been the filent obferver of 
 
 thy inward ftruggles. Honoured with thy augull 
 
 confidence, let him no longer be ignorant of that 
 
 hidden fource, from whence thy brooding mind 
 
 draws the fubtle venom of deep-fecreted anguiih, 
 
 and imbibes thofe malignant vapours, which feem 
 
 to blaft thy juft unfolded glory in its livelieft bloom. 
 
 Surely fome fecrer, potent grief overwhelms thy 
 
 mighty foul! What ails Demetrius? What for- 
 
 rows poifon his felicity ? JDoes his fariated eye fur- 
 
 vey no longer with delight, the dazzling charms of 
 
 the diadem ; or is his prefent ftate embittered by the 
 
 remembrance of the pad ? Mighty monarch I now, 
 
 that 
 
lO DEMETRIUS; 
 
 that thy new career of majefly has commenced ; that 
 thy lawful inheritance, ufurped by the pcifidious 
 Godunoff, has been reftored, and the bafe attempts 
 of that traitor, to hurl thee prematurely into the 
 grave, fruftrated ; — now that propitious F'ate has ref- 
 cued thee from the grafp of Death, and, proclaim- 
 ing thy right, placed thee on thy father's throne ; — 
 what is there flill wanting to gratify thy wiflies ? 
 Or, what new calamities, what frelli difafters ? 
 
 Det}u Tormenting furies prey on my bleeding 
 heart ! They gnaw my entrails ; they drain my 
 vital blood ! All, all, is hell within ! Can inward 
 agony be concealed, under the feigned fmile of calm 
 ferenity } No ! The w'cked foul enjoys no peace. 
 There is no relief, no tranquillity, for the confcious 
 guilty ! 
 
 Par. Alas ! tis true ; — thou haft indulged the 
 utmoft excefles of cruelty : many of thy fubjedts ex- 
 piring under tortures, and the whole Realm diftrafted 
 by profcriptions, exile, and the perfecution of in- 
 nocence; — laws, human and divine, trampled upon; — 
 the mofi: facred duties, and the deareft interefts of 
 mankind, fhamefully difregarded ; — dilhonour and 
 difgrace heaped upon this unhappy country; — thefe 
 are the trophies, the fanguinary omens, of an in- 
 aufpicious reign. This city, once fo fair and beau- 
 tiful, has now become a gloomy prifon, the difmal 
 dungeon of the unfortunate, whofe only crimes were 
 
 nobl« 
 
A TRACED-/. II 
 
 noble dignity of foul, integriry, and confplcnous' 
 virtue. The flower of R.Liffia, her nobleft progeny, : 
 are excluded, difdainfully, from thy prefcnce ; while \ 
 ftrangers fupplant them in their exalted and moft 
 favourite offices-, while the proud oftentatious Poles 
 are infultingly admitted the only guardians of thy 
 throne. Deftruftion threatens the Church, and the 
 whole Empire is on the verge of falling under the i 
 oppreffive yoke of Rome. Oh ! if Nature rebels j 
 within thee ; if thou art fwayed folely by the malig- ' 
 nancy of thy evil genius ; roufe thy better fpirit, ■ 
 fubdue thyfelf, and be a Father to thy People ! 
 
 Dem, My folemn oath to Clement, the Sovereign 
 Pontiff, binds me irrevocably to the Roman faith. I 
 owe much, nay, everything, to the friendly fervices 
 of Poland. RulTia, therefore, unlefs ihe fubmits to 
 pay homage to the holy See, can have no claim to 
 my favours. 
 
 Far. Methinks, a man, at mofl, is but a man; 
 nor can perverted doftrine make him more: a doc- 
 trine, whofe fanftified impoflure feeds hypocrites, 
 awes the credulous, and thrives with the fpoils of 
 ignorance beguiled ; a do6lrine, which the Fathers 
 of our Church have r.obiy difclaimed, and, in dif- 
 claiming, have juOly gloried. Great Britain, Hol- 
 land, half the German States, have (haken ofi' this 
 yoke of ftupid credulity, and blind fuperflition. 
 They have unravelled this web, this intricate maze, 
 
 of 
 
12 DEMETRIUS; 
 
 of the defignlng priellhood j and the time is fafl ap* 
 proaching, when all Europe, unfhackled from her 
 fears, and reftored to religious freedom, will hurl 
 the ambiuous Pontiff from his ufurped throne ; no 
 longer the idol of mifguided worfhip ; no longer a 
 God in the fphere of mortals; nor a felf-ereded Co- 
 lolTus, foaring above mankind, and prefumptuoufly 
 overleaping tne limits of humanity. 
 
 Dent. Audacious man, forbear ! curb thy, licen- 
 tious tongue ! He, whom thy infulting fpeech af- 
 fails thus impioufly, is a facred luminary, whofe orb, 
 refplendent with refulgent rays, even the mightieft of 
 our earthly potentates behold with awful reverence. / 
 
 Tar, Not all his difciples fubmit by choice to his 
 government. Many are compelled to it by force. 
 In the eye of reafon, he is but a Patriarch ; no God, 
 no Judge, no Sovereign of the World. Thinks he, 
 that men want judgment and underftanding to re- 
 :^e6l on the true God ? 
 
 Dem. In reafoning thus, thou doft but wafle thji 
 words. There is no alternative between reafon and \ 
 religion. To follow wifdom is to dray from hea- 
 ven. It flatters, but it foon betrays to mifery. 
 
 Tar. Can the Almighty be averfe to w-ifdom, of 
 which he is the fountain-head? That wifdom, 
 which, fird engendered in himfelf, planned the 
 
 er.\nd 
 
A TRAGEDY. IJ 
 
 grand creation of the world ; which to a (hapelefs 
 mafs gave fymiiietry and matchlefs beauty ; endued 
 with a living foul the cold and llfelefs clay ; and dif- 
 played, in moft tranfccndent. order, this majeflic 
 univerfe ! Can that wifdom be reprobated, which 
 Ihines, fublimely confpicuous, in the works of the 
 Supreme? Or mud we condemn in ourfelves, what 
 in Him we cannot but love and adore ? 
 
 Bern. To man, the wifdom of God is incomprc- ' 
 henfible » ' 
 
 Tar. Then it is equally fo to your Pontiff. 
 Though the human mind is doomed to dwell in nar- 
 row limits, yet it is not precluded from improving, 
 by contemplating the features of divinity imprinted 
 on the face of Nature. Guided by the unerring 
 torch of Truth, and aided by mature reflection, it 
 will foon arrive at that degree of knowledge, which 
 the fpiritual monopoiift fain would wrcft from man- 
 kind ; and fix, with all the pompous machinery of 
 craft, in the oftentatious phantom of a Pope. 
 
 Bern, Thy tongue profane, will lead thee to ever- 
 lafting damnation. 
 
 Par. I fear it not. I might, were I a tyrant. 
 
 Dem. Hold ! no more I — And what if my heart 
 delights in deeds of cruelty ? 
 
 Tar. 
 
X4 DEMETRIUS; 
 
 Far. Methinks^ thou iliouldll: forego the vicious 
 courfe* 
 
 Dem, Impoffible. Demetrius cannot, will not 
 change himfelf, to pleafe the Have. The proflrate 
 Realm Ihall kifs the holy Pontiffs feet ; elfe, (hall its 
 name, its fplendour, and its high renown, be funk in 
 dark oblivion. My hand (hall, by force, extort fub- 
 miffion. So wills the monarch j and what he wills, 
 who can, who dares oppofe ? 
 
 ^^ Far. Thou ventureil, heedlefs, on a ftormy fea, 
 i' where, whilft thou meditatefl 'he ruin of Mofkow's 
 fons, thy vengeful fate flies on the wind, impels 
 the fiil, and wafts thee, rapid, to thy own difaftrous 
 end. Thy unfteady throne doth fliake, and the 
 crown already totters on thy head. A'^-*^^ 
 
 Bern, High-raifed, I fcorn the clamour of the ab- 
 
 je£t populace; and, in defpite, I will perfilt in my 
 
 defpotic rule. Avevlion and hatred are the fruits 
 
 which this pernicious clime bears for me; averfion, 
 
 then, and hatred, will I breed in turn. Can I be- 
 
 ftow my affections, where I am detefted ? No. 
 
 ; Let me, at lead, have the confolation of reigning, 
 
 j to the terror and conllernation of the race I abhor. 
 
 ' Till they are extirpated, or reduced to the moft ab- 
 
 / jedt flavery ; till my extcnfive domains are lorded 
 
 over by the Poles, ?sA peopled with ftrangersj till 
 
 \ then, my impatient Ibul will languifli, diftafteful of 
 
 the 
 
A TRAGEDY. I5 
 
 the comforts of the crown ; nor will it then, though^ 
 fatiated, be at reft, unlefs It obtains its iaft, its fondell I 
 wiih. For, be it known to thee, Parmen, that I | 
 have doubly to fuffer. Befide the agonizing pangs I 
 of confcience; I have to endure the torments of/ 
 love, irrefiltible love, for Kfoenia. I 
 
 Far. Kfcenia has a lover, and you a wife. 
 
 Dc?n. Parmen ; thee have I chofen for my friend, 
 the fole partner of my fecret thoughts. Mark mc, 
 then. There are means j — there are fuch things as 
 poifon, to rid me of the irkfome yoke. 
 
 Par, I iliudder at the thought ! 
 
 Dsm, It is becaufe thou art one of Nature's blun- 
 ders. By miflake flie made a man, where fhe de- 
 figned a woman. 
 
 Par. My foul recoils with horror ! 
 
 Dem. But mine is proof againft it. Set it to 
 murder, to things e'er fo atrocious, and thou wilt 
 never find it fhrink. It courteth fccnes of blood. 
 It gro'.vs and lives on deeds of cruelty. 
 
 Par. Confider thy confori's innocence and virtue. 
 
 De?n. Truth mull be filent before a monarch. It 
 Is not truth, bun I that govern iiere. My power is 
 
 law, 
 
tS DEMETRIUS^ 
 
 law, and my paffions are my laws. He is not i 
 monarch, but a flave, who would renounce his plea- 
 fares merely to gratify the vulgar notions of pro- 
 priety and juftioe. Where is the privilege of a king, 
 if he is to fubmit to rules, made only for flaves ? 
 "What benefit could he reap from all his cares for 
 the public welfare, were he reduced to a level with 
 his fubjeds, to the fame cenfure, and harfli con- 
 demnation ? 
 
 Par> (aftde) Heavens ! let me be the inflrument 
 of faving a royal, innocent life ! — (To Demetrius) This 
 one deed will for ever exclude thee from the pre- 
 fence of God ! 
 
 yJDem, O Clement! if I may enter the kingdom of 
 /jheaven, where is the man that fhall undergo thofe 
 [( dreadful and endlefs torments, which fhake the very 
 \ foul with horror ! 
 
 SCENE U. 
 
 Demetrius, Parmen, ^«i Captain of the Guards. 
 
 Captain, Mighty fovereign ! the fpirit of revolt 
 fpreads like a huge torrent through thy vaft do- 
 mains. Tumultuous, like the foaming waves, the 
 people rife in arms ; they rave, they threaten, and, 
 with unreferved audacity, proclaim their traiterous 
 deTigns, and their abhorrence of thy power. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 17 
 
 DlW. I fliall foon crudi the defpicablc herd of 
 ilaves ! What is it their licentious tongue pre- 
 fumes to utter ? 
 
 Captain. I cannot ; I dare not repeat it. 
 
 Dem. Proceed ; I know how to chaftife their 
 infolence. 
 
 Captain. They fay thou art not of royal defcent. 
 Demetrius, the prince, vvhofe nan[ie and person, like 
 an impoftor, thou had affumed, was , llain, and is 
 buried in Ouliiz. They call thee ** OFfepieve," and 
 thus relate thy hiftory : Thou haft been a monk; 
 ihou haft fled from a convent ; taken refuge in 
 Poland ; impofed there, on thy father-in-law and 
 thy prefent confort, under the alTumed name of the 
 deceafed prince ;• and ftlll continuing to impofe, 
 thou haft at length obtained, through their aid, 
 the royal dignity. They add, that the fafety of the 
 ftate is endangered by tRy innovations and thy indul- 
 gence to the treacherous Poles : that thou art t]^ 
 proteclor of the Weftern church ; the abettor of 
 herefy and impiety ; a foe to Mofkow ; an enemy 
 to Ruflia, and a dreadful fcourge of thy Tubjecls. 
 
 Dem. Pvcdouble the guard ; fummon my faithful 
 
 Poles; place them on the w;uch. My foul burns 
 
 v/ithin ; I cun no longer liflen to- the monftrous tale. 
 
 B Where 
 
1^ DfiMETRlUS; 
 
 Where is ShoufKy ? bring him hither; conduct hinl 
 and his daughter inftantly to my prefence. 
 
 SCENE III. 
 
 Demetrius and Parmen. 
 
 Par. Since thou wert decreed by fate to reign, 
 it is no longer birth, but adlions befitting the royal 
 dignity, that can alone fupport the bails of thy throne. 
 Were thy reign propitious and upright, the people, 
 whether thou beeft the true Demetrius or not, would 
 blefs — would adore thee ! 
 
 Bern. Shoulky is at the bottom of this confpiracy. 
 I fee — I read it in his countenance. If I fail to 
 make this foe, my friend, this very day fhall be his 
 laft. The grave which is open for him, Ihall alfo 
 clofe upon his daughter ! 
 
 Par. My blood freezes ! What ? her, for whom 
 ^ou profefTeft unbounded love and admiration ? 
 
 Bern. From love, which meets not a return, to 
 revenge the paffage is rapid, in a mind unufed to 
 controul. Should Kfcenia difregard this maxim, 
 her blooming rofes (hall fade, Ihall drop unheeded 
 into the grave, and yield their laft perfumes to mid- 
 night ihades and all-devouring time. To oppofe 
 
 my 
 
A tRAGEDY. I9 
 
 my will, is facrilegioufly to trample upon the high 
 and facrcd prerogatives of a rightful fovereign. 
 
 SCENE IV* 
 
 Demetrius, Parm£.\;, Ghousky, ^WKscenia. 
 
 Dem» The bold rebellion of the outrageous mob 
 has reached my ears ; who are their fecret agents 
 and inftigators has alfo co;r:e to my knowledge. 
 They are the nobles of Mofl^ow. It is they who 
 endanger the fafety of my throne. 
 
 Shou. Nothing of moment can be apprehended 
 from the murmurs of the rabble. Their clamour 
 is but an empty found difperfed by the flighted 
 breath of Heaven. It will foon vanilh, 
 
 Dem. Hold ! Thy myfterious condudt is no 
 longer proof againfl my penetration. It is clear ; 
 I fee it plain ; thou afpireft to the pofleffion of my 
 throne ! 
 
 Shou. To reign in this glorious clime is a chi- 
 mera too diftant from my thoughts — too diftant 
 even from my dreams. Thou art our lawful fove^ 
 reign, the legitimate offspring of the late beloved 
 monarch. Thou art our illuftrious prince, crowned 
 folemnly in the face of God and the people, and 
 veiled with the fceptre by the unanimous fan^lion 
 
 B 2 of 
 
2-0 DEMETRIUS J 
 
 of both. It is the perverfe Godunoff on whom the 
 old and the young vent iheir eternal curfes. Thou 
 art beloved. Thou art fevere, becaufe thou art 
 juft ; yet not more fo than was thy royal father. 
 None but the wicked complain of thee ; the virtu- 
 ous adore thee; thy apparent cruelty is neceffity», 
 which done away, thy mercy and benevolence will 
 refume their ordinary channel I 
 
 Dem, Mark me ! I am not to be duped by 
 linooth and flattering fpeeches. Thy looks and thy 
 words do but ill difguife thy thoughts. If thou 
 wouldftbe a friend, prove thyfelf fuch ! 
 
 Shou, I am thy faithful fervant. 
 
 De?n. Parmen, leave us. 
 
 SCENE V. 
 
 Demetrius, Shousky, and KscenIa. 
 
 Dem. I will have proofs — fpeedy and unequivocal 
 proofs of thy attachment! Weigh my propofal 
 attentively, and anfwer decifively. My heart burns 
 fiercely with love ! My whole blood is chafed by 
 its fubtle and penetrating flame ! Thou alone canfl: 
 quench it ! In Kfcenia thou holdeft both my remedy 
 and the pledge of thy fealty. Give me her hand 1 
 
A TRAGEDY, 2£ 
 
 Kftt, My hand ? 
 
 Shou, Think of the Queen ». 
 
 Bern, She is of the Roman faith ! A modeft vk.- 
 gin of Ruffian birth, brought up in the religion of 
 her country, will, with greater propriety and dignity, 
 Ihare the throne of the Rufi'ian monarch. 
 
 Kfix. My heart has been long united to another. 
 
 Dem. Doft thou then refufe me ? 
 
 Kf(z. The dazzling fpiendour of the crown ; 
 the fovereignty of the world ; the poffeffion of ail 
 that is mofl precious in human eilimation, cannot 
 fvverve me from my faith, nor Ihake my confhancy^ 
 The flame that glows within my bofom is chafle, 
 and pure as Heaven's light. No power on earth can 
 ever extinguilh it ! It warms my frame, it expands 
 my foul, and it abforbs my fenfes. No one but 
 Gcorgius fhall ever dwell in this faithful and devoted 
 heart ! 
 
 Dem. Reflecfl that death can inflantly, in both of 
 you, annihilate this flame, 
 
 Kfa;. Should it be fo, we mull forget each 
 other. Till then, we will preferve our love and faith 
 perfedl: and unfullied, 
 
 Venu 
 
2Jt . DEMETRIUS; 
 
 Bern. Art thou confcious to whom thou repiiell } 
 Has torture, anguifh, death, nothing to difmay thee? 
 
 Kf(2. Nothing ! 
 
 De7n. Weil then. *Tis done. I am refolved. 
 Tremble at the fufferings that await thee ! Wel- 
 come, if thou canft, thy dreadful fate ! Not a par- 
 ticle — not an atom of thee fliall be fpared. I call 
 Heaven to witnefs, my revenge is juft. Oh that 
 I could but torment, and flill keep life within her ! 
 I would rend Kfoenia's heart ! I would revel in her 
 blood ! I would try her with perpetual agonies 1 
 I would conjure up from Heaven, Earth, land Hell, 
 cverlafting torments for her foul ! 
 
 Shou. Gracious liege, urge not fo haftily thy ven-t 
 geance ! fufpend awhile thy dreadful indignation ! 
 Difmifs thy anger, 1 befeech thee ; and, fmce her 
 form is pleafing in thine eyes, let the father anfwer 
 for the reft. The wayward fpirit of petulance has 
 dwelt in her from her infancy. Commit her to my 
 care ; I am beft acquainted with the temper of her 
 mind; I know beft how to reafon with her, and 
 doubt not of foothing her into compliance. 
 
 Kfis. My honour I will preferve inviolable to the 
 grave. Vain will be thy admonition — vain ! fince, 
 forgetful ot a parent's duty, thou undcrtakeft to 
 jTiake thy daughter faithlcfs! to flain her fpotlefs 
 
A TRAGEDY. 23 
 
 name with dishonour, and plunge her headlong into 
 a gulph of defpair ! 
 
 Shou, Truft me, my liege, I fliall keep my word, 
 I {hall perfuade her inro reafon, and fubdue her ob- 
 flinacy. Till then I iblicit thy forbearance. 
 
 Denu Take her; and remember that I expe(fl 
 every thing from the authority and influence of a 
 father, 
 
 Kfr. Imagine not I can ever be thine ! 
 
 S C E N E VI. 
 
 SiiousKY and Ks<enia. 
 
 Shou, Juflice and Vengeance, arife to crufh this 
 mercilefs tyrant ! Juft Heaven, be propitious to the 
 dcfigns of Shoufky ! behold my adions with com- 
 placence, and the monfter fliaii no longer tyrannize 
 over this afflicted country ! 
 
 Kfce. How 's this, my fa'ber ? juft now you held 
 a different language to the tyrant. 
 
 Sbou. Think not I would difclofe my real thoughts 
 to him. Thy inexpfrippce, and youthful mind 
 wrapt up in love ; thy foul ablorbed in one obj''i5> ; 
 and thy words and adlions direfted foleiy by that 
 
 nioit 
 
S4 DEMETRIUS; 
 
 moft powerful of pafiions, have made thee blind to 
 all the conOderations of caution and prudence. The 
 /way to happinefs and the refined luxuries of the foul, 
 is not, at all times, to be purfued by expofing the 
 heart to open and unobftrufied view. Diflimulation 
 and difguiTe are often indifpenfable. When we have 
 to deal with a lawlefs and inexorable tyrant — a tyrant 
 into whofe grafping and inflexible power we are 
 
 \pitilefsly delivered up; then it is not the time for 
 cpennefs and fincerity. One word of an unfeigned 
 fentiment may prove fatal. Where Fraud and Im- 
 poflure hold a fovereign fway. Truth, their eternal 
 enemy, cannot fpeak without offence. To diffemble, 
 or chain the tongue in filence, is the only fad alter- 
 native lefc for her adoption. When the mafk is 
 once taken off, the chains of tyranny loofened, and 
 the people gathering breath and flfuggling againft 
 oppreffion — then is the time for her to make a bold 
 and decifive appeal ! — Merciful God ! fpeed this 
 thrice-bleffed-time ! Bring us to the longed-for 
 moment of deliverance, freedom, and peace ! 
 
 Kfoe. The tyrant threatens my life, 
 
 SIjozl Simulation, therefore, h thy fafefl courfe. 
 Difguife thy fentiments as much as thou canft ; give 
 him hopes ; invent delays and excufes ; foothe and 
 lull his favage fpirit with the feigned voice of love ; 
 ;ind let the fighs of a lover cool, from time to time. 
 
A TRAGEDY, 2^ 
 
 his raging fury. The power of love is irrefiftlble. 
 The moft obdurate outcafts of nature fubmit to its 
 impulfe; the lion, the tiger, the fubtle ferpent, even 
 thefe with eagernefs obey its imperious didtates. 
 The mod infenfible among the favage race, tem- 
 pered into mildnefs, and divefted of their native 
 ferocity, yield to its inftincf^, and come to facrifice 
 at its everlading (brine. 
 
 Kfa;. Crocodiles, bafilifKS, even flones of flint, arc 
 not half fo inflexible as this unfeeling tyrant. 
 
 Shou. Banifli fuch thoughts! keep thy mind un- 
 harralTed and free from fuch deftru£live apprehen- 
 ilons.' Arm thyfelf againft defpair. Remember, 
 the fafety of thy father, thy lover, and thy whole 
 country, depends upon thy condu^. 
 
 KJce. I know it, dear father. I am fully fenfible 
 of this great truth ; yet I fear my weaknefs. I fear, 
 alas ! the tafk is too great for my feeble fpirits. — 
 Gracious Heaven, fave ns from peril! deliver our 
 dear opprelFed country from the galling yoke of 
 iibhorred tyranny. 
 
 E^^D OF ACT I. 
 
 ACT 
 
^6 DEMETRIUS | 
 
 ACT 11. 
 
 SCENE I. 
 
 Georgius ^nd Kscenia, 
 
 Gsorgius, 
 
 And am I come to this ? muft I belle myfelf, and 
 utter what my thoughts difown ? Thus it is that 
 an honeft man becomes a hypocrite, when violence 
 fills the throne, and maddened fury fupsrfedes thci 
 
 laws. 
 
 Kfa. How unlike — how bleffed muft be that mo- 
 narch, whofe commands are a6ts of kindnefs, and 
 who delights in deeds of mercy ; whofe power 
 extends not to deprive the mind of her genuine free- 
 dom ; whofe virtues are an ornament to his throne ; 
 Avhofe glory and greatnefs confifts in the welfare of 
 Bis people ; and whofe julliy-exercifed authority is 
 dreaded by none but the vicious and the guilty ! 
 
 Geor. Poor deferted Kremle, the filent witnefs of 
 perfecuted virtue, even thou fcemeft to mourn 
 thy woeful and deplorable ftate! Thy mofly aged 
 walls feem to ftiake with horror at the fad devafta- 
 
 tion 
 
A TRAGEDY. 1^ 
 
 tion around thee. Ho.v defolare a fcene ! Nature's 
 bountiful riches, hitherto ga}'- and radiant on th^ 
 plains of Mofkow, are withered and defpoiled. The 
 fporting gambols of the heavenly rays, the emblem 
 of mirth, content, and innocence, fecm now to fink 
 in dark and endlefs nighr. Thick and unwieldy- 
 clouds of fuddeniy-emerging vapours overhang, in 
 ominous fufpence, this drooping city. Scarcely able 
 to uphold her tottering head, (he fees her fquares 
 forfel'.en.; her habitations deferted ; her children 
 torn from her embraces, and led lawlefsly to execu- 
 tion. The folemn bell, hitherto devotion's facred 
 monitor, feems now to mimick the groans of her 
 expiring victims, and to announce the approaching 
 fall of her beloved church ; — fhc hears it, and her 
 power fails her. In vain fne looks for fuccour; in 
 vain Ihe pleads againfi the ufurpation of Rome; her 
 tears avail not ; ihe trembles and finks into defpair. 
 The cruel and relentlefs Clement has already devoted 
 her to the wretched fate, deplorably wretched, of 
 the new world. His pernicious tongue has already 
 proclaimed Heaven's high reward, to all who will rife 
 for her deftru61ion, who will imbrue their impious 
 
 hands in her unfullied blood. O Father of Heaven ! 
 
 avert thefe dreadful evils ! Save our unhappy coun- 
 try- — fave it from being a prey to bigorry and the 
 cruelty of religious enthufi.ifm ! Cut off that mon- 
 fter of Popifh fuperftition, which, with the crofs in one 
 band, and the dagger in the other, overran the vaft 
 territories of the new world i drenched the earth in 
 
 the 
 
aS DEMETRIUS; 
 
 the blood of a guiltlefs race ; perpetrated the mofl 
 horrid acts of ravage, torture^ and maffacre; and 
 ftrewed with mangled bodies, the tracks of his bloody 
 career. All-ruling Providence I let not Mofl«:ow be 
 a fecond vi6lim to this deflruftive fiend, engendered 
 in the felfiihnefs, the bafe artinces, and the fanguinary 
 ambition of Rome ! 
 
 Kfci\ Whatever befals us, Kfosnia's conf^ancy will 
 ren#in ever unimpaifed. All the efforts of niallcin 
 jDus power; all the horrors of provoked cruelty; 
 Demetrius ! Clement ! — all that is moft dreadful to 
 my thoughts, my love for thee will meet with un^' 
 daunted fortitude. Since there is no redrefs — fincc 
 the tyrant's will is his only law, let him do his 
 word. The OuW'Orn Caucafus gave him birth; 
 I^ircania's favage milk nouriihed his flinty heart^ 
 Tutored by favage<^, call up fiom hell to fcourgp 
 mankind, dill I will defy him. Let me only hope, 
 thou Supreme and Merciful Being, that thou wilt 
 preferve our dear country from the rapacious power 
 of the iniidious and ai'piiing heretic ! O let not this 
 ufurper of thy divine authority, with the flavifh arms 
 qf his bigoted wretches, prevail over a people, 
 hitherto guided by the genuine emanation of thy 
 heavenly light! Permit not the profanation of thy 
 facred altars by his iniquitous and facrilegious bands! 
 Protect thy temples and thy patriarchs, who daily 
 prefent thee the offerings of thy pious race ! Plurl 
 ^JeLlriilion on the tyran^-, who. in league with P-.ome, 
 
 rebels 
 
A TRAGEDY.. l-y 
 
 rebels again ft thy facred will, and pours fliowcrs of 
 mifery upon this dcfolated cli ne ! People ot Ruf-- 
 fia! aiife — awake to the voice of vengeance ! Pluck 
 the wreath of royalty from the ulurpcr's head! 
 Wrench the fceptre from the barbarous hand thar 
 opprefles }'0u ! Crufh the monger who exults in 
 your fufferings, and give the crown to him who 
 mod deferves, yet leaft defires it ; to him who would 
 have his power fubjeiftcd to law and juftice, and nos 
 govern by caprice and violence ; — to him whofe 
 view- ?nd actions would folely tend to fix the happi- 
 nefs of his people, and not to gratify his lawlefs 
 wifhes. To him who, anointed and veiled with the 
 diadem, would adt as behoves the facred and awful 
 vicegerent of the King of Kings. Alas ! were we 
 blefled with fuch a monarch, Kfoenia would not 
 have been doomed to fuffer, and to be torn from alJ 
 that is dear to her. She mig-ht 
 
 SCENE II. 
 
 t)EMETRiL's, Georgius, and KSCENIA. 
 
 Bern. Rep:.Ls, crawling upon the earth in low 
 obfcurity, b. -w to the will of }()ur monarch ! lie- 
 fpect it ; it is the will of Heaven ! G^oi'mus, thou 
 haft prefuaied t 'O much in thy views upon this Pi ;n- 
 cefs;^ — (he is mme. It is her luperior deft in y to be 
 fo. Hear me I 1 forbid ihec, under pain of death, 
 
 to 
 
30 DSrvIETRltTS; 
 
 to tliinl: of her^ except with the refpe^fl due to the 
 confort cf thy fovereign. 
 
 Geo7\ I murmur nou— I obey 1 
 
 Kfii\ 1 Cubmit, my liege. 
 
 Dem. To-morrow, then, \ {hall clafp thee in thefc 
 arms. 
 
 Kfa\ A mind long accuftomed to doat upon one 
 objeft, is not fo eafily reconc!l"d to a fpeedy union* 
 with another. Great as is the power of a monarch, 
 that of love is no lefs fo. To relinquiili what has been 
 
 rio dear, and pluck from the heai-t, at once, the deep- 
 rooted paffion, is more than human ftrcngth can efFeft. 
 Allow me, Sire, a time, in which the violence of 
 paft affe£l:ion fubfiding, I may learn how to forget 
 Georgius, and heal the ilill bleeding wounds, of my 
 
 ! heart. What pleafure can it be to fee me at the 
 altar in tears ; expiring perhaps at the very moment 
 of pronouncing the folemn oath of eternal fidelity ? 
 
 Dem. Stifle this degrading paflion ; — renounce It, 
 or Georgius is no more ! His life is on a caft ; — he 
 dies a vidim unworthy of a monarch's wrath. Can 
 this worm — this inngnificant being (land in compe- 
 tition with the crowned head of Demetrius ? 
 
 Ceor. I have fubmitted too much. 
 
 Kfa, 
 
A TRAGEDY; 3.t 
 
 Kf(s. Reftrain tby indignation. 
 
 Geor. I can bear it no longer. 
 
 Kf^. My prince ! 
 
 De?n. My vengeance is on the wing. Wretch, 
 that dareft to abufe my clemency, tby doom is fixed. 
 Death's devouring jaws already open for thee. Who 
 wai:s there ? (Guards enter.) Seize that traitor ! 
 
 Gecr. Prifspare thy tormenis, tyrant, I am ready to 
 endure \'nem, fince it is my fate to fall into thy bar- 
 barons hands. Since thy third of blood is not 
 quenched yet with the torrent that flows inceflantly 
 from the veins of this bleeding country — Villain ! 
 Ufurper ! Murderer ! drink mine \ — drink it, till it 
 burfl thy hideous trunk. Kill, deftroy, riot in wanton 
 cruelty, till Heaven's jufl vengeance overtakes thee, 
 and fmks thee ten thoufand fathoms deeper than the 
 low and abjeci dtn of mifery, from Vvhich, like a vil- 
 lain — like an Impodor, thou hafl fuddenly vaulted 
 into the facred feat of majefly. 
 
 Dem. Away with him to prifon. 
 
 SCENE III. 
 Demetrius and Kscenia. 
 Kfa:. Rack me — torture me, barbarian ! fummon 
 all thy ftrength of cruelty! walle on me all the 
 
 (lores 
 
33 DEMETRIUS J 
 
 ftores of torments, hoarded in thy blood- thirfty mind ! 
 i curfc thee ; I execrate thee ; I pray for thy deftruc- 
 tion ! O God, that feeft the horrid atrocities of this 
 inhuman monfler ; that heareft inceffantly the groans, 
 the piercing cries extorted by his mercilefs fury ; 
 that alone canft meafure the extent of my fufferings ; 
 
 E deign to view them with pity ! behold my tears I 
 shold my heart corroded with forrow ! Lend an 
 car of companion to the fupplicating voice of mifery ! 
 Strike the tyrant^ and fnatch my linking, foul from 
 wretchednefs and defpair ! 
 
 Dem, I Ihall foon grant thy praj^ers. Thou fhaU 
 foon be better acquainted with Demetrius ! Geor- 
 gius ihall be torn to pieces — to ten thoufand atoms* 
 Thou (halt feaft thy eyes on his fcattered limbs, and 
 read in them, the fate which my compaffion has in 
 refer ve for thee, 
 
 / K/i^. To dieonthe fcafFold by the fideof Georgius, 
 [ is more gratifying, more honourable, than to live and 
 j^ign with Demetrius. 
 
 Dem, Thou flialt foon have that happinefs. Thef 
 flame for Georgius will no longer confume thee ; — ^I 
 will quench it with thy life. I will (land forth the 
 ample avenger of infulted majefty. 
 
 Kfa. I wait. Impatient, for death. Thcu fparefl 
 neither rank, nor birth; neither age^ nor fex. To 
 
 die. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 33 
 
 die, th:rcTorc, I am prepared. This only will I pro- 
 phecy ro thy CQullernaiion : thy end is near ; dc- 
 llru(5lion hovers over thee ; the daily appeal of the 
 blood wantonly and barbaroully Ihed by thee is too 
 powerful for Heaven to I'uffer thee long upon the 
 throne. The melting touch of pity never warmed 
 thy foul ! the dew of mercy never moiftened thy 
 parched heart; the groans of the people, the echoes 
 of the very walls that enclofe thee, are the infallible 
 prognoftics of thy approaching ruin. Thou threat- 
 ened me in vain ; thy tortures ftrike no fear into me. 
 Virtue is above fear. I defpife them as much as 
 I do the wretch that inflidts them. Lead me, tyrant, 
 to execution ! — Why thus flow in thy bloody 
 purpofe ? 
 
 SCENE IV. 
 
 Demetrius, Shousky, and Kscenia. 
 
 Shou. Outrageous girl ! whence is this difobc- 
 dience — this glaring defiance of thy fovereign's au- 
 thority ? 
 
 Dem. Unexatnpled audacity ! mod daring infult 
 to a monarch ! • The Vvorld will Icarcely credit the 
 offence. 
 
 SIjqu* Is this the rcfult of the advice I gave thffs? 
 
 C Kf€o 
 
34 DEMETRIUS', 
 
 Kfcs, Driven to defpair 
 
 Shou. Worthlefs wretch, that darell to brave thy 
 Monarch ! Away from my fight ! 
 
 SCENE V. 
 
 Demetrius and Shousky. 
 
 Shou. My liege, before the Queen of Night dif- 
 plays her filver orb in the fields of Heaven, my 
 daughter fliall return to her duty and obedience. 
 
 Bern. The fweet perfuafive voice of love pleads 
 
 powerful in her behalf. Till now, I have not felt 
 
 the full energy of my paffion. My foul hitherto 
 
 panted for glory, nor could the fofter charms of 
 
 love entice it to purfue them. It was enough that 
 
 I imagined love to be the lot of vulgar and inferior 
 
 fouls. I placed my delight in majefty and fplendor; 
 
 my heart felt gratified when RufTia trembled at my 
 
 nod ; when Mojkow brightened up at my fmile, and 
 
 funk into dejedion at my frown ! My foul danced 
 
 with joy to fee the rich, the nobles, the princes prof- 
 
 trate at my feet with awful expedtation of my plea- 
 
 fure. Yet this very foul, proud and afpiring, is at 
 
 length fubdued. Love, in glorious triumph, has 
 
 brought it to the common flandard, and placed it 
 
 ^on the level with its fpecies. Bid thy daughter to 
 
 throw 
 
A TRAGEDY. 35 
 
 throw herfelf at my feet ; and, ihould (he be vvIUingS 
 with bccoaiing obscJience, to gr.'tify my vvifhes, 
 prefent her this ring, which, if accepted, Ihall be- 
 come a pledge of her affedions ; or if refufed, a 
 fatal meifenger of her fpeedy death. 
 
 Shou. To difobey thee is to incenfe Heaven. Thy 
 refolve is jufl:, and Shoufky is all fubmiffion. Our 
 wifhes and paffions were given to us only to be fub- 
 fervient to the will of God, and to that of our 
 Sovereign. 
 
 SCENE VI. 
 
 Demetrius, Parmex, and Shousky. 
 
 Tarin. The ftorm of revolt gathers afrefh. The 
 raging populace fwclls more and more. Puflitd on by 
 a frefh provocation, like the heavy clouds impelled 
 by a fuddcn northern blall, they threaten to buril over 
 thy head, and overwhelm thee in a deluge of mighty 
 devaftation. The imprifonment and condcmnarion'N 
 •of Georgius, reviving in memory thy pa[l cruelties, ) 
 has put the whole mafs of citizens in commotiun. 
 It has roufed the dormant fpirit of redrefs; kindled 
 the fpark of mutiny in the mind; and fpread thror:gh 
 all ranks, the flames of fury and revenge. Thy 
 peril is not lefs than thy greatnefsj dangers befiege 
 thee^ and deflirudion- hems thee in, on every fide. 
 c 2 Ic 
 
$6 DEMETRIUS; 
 
 It is tKus thou reapeft, at length, the fruit of thy 
 oppreffive reign. Hadfl: thou had the happinefs of 
 thy people at heart, the very multitude that affiil 
 ihy throne, would now range themlelves around it, 
 and protedt it, at the hazard of their lives. 
 
 Shou, I will prote(5l it ftill ; — I will ftem the tor- 
 rent, and bring the incenfcd mob to the fenle of 
 their duty. My liege, rely upcii Shoufky ! 
 
 Bern. Mud I be reproached with cruelty, even 
 while I endure Gcorgius living; while 1 behold rhe 
 outrages of the populace, without bedewing the 
 ftree.s nfivfh wiih their treacherous blood? Is it 
 cruelty that I fhould hug the very ferpent that aims 
 his venomous fting at my breaft ? Well — Be it io. 
 Shorfky, repair to the mifcreants ; be it your talk to 
 reflore them to reafon. Parmen, look to the watch ; 
 — Itt the guard be augmented. 
 
 SCENE VII. 
 
 Demetrius folus. 
 
 I can with (land no longer the boding fears of my 
 foul. In vain would I conceal the danger from 
 ,'myfelf. I feel my crown fits unfteady ; the hand of 
 Juftice is ready to tear it from my head. Methinks 
 fhe avenging Angel has armed all Nature to vent its 
 
 curfcs 
 
A TRAGEDY.. 37 
 
 curfes and rcproache<; on Demetrius ! The towering 
 Kremle frowns dreadful, and fcems as it its ponder- 
 ous weight bcnr forward, ready to fall and crufli me, 
 ji«> liire and mortal foe. The facred temples feem as 
 if they would uplift mc to their fpiry tops, and da(h 
 me on the hallov\ed Hones beneath, which my de- 
 flroying hand fo often forced to bear its bleeding pal- 
 pitating vi(5\ims. Each countenance, each feature I 
 behold proclaims I -aiv a t) rant, who has undone, 
 who has d.ftio^ed every fource of human happinefs. 
 Within, without, and around MoHcow, where'er I 
 look, where'er I bend my (Icps, abhorrence of Deme- 
 trius univerfally prevails. All, all, confpire againft 
 me ! I toticr on the verge of an abyfs — dark and 
 fathomlefs ! The veil of mortality falls off, and the 
 dreaded prorpe<51: of Hell breaks fuddenly on my 
 fight. Methmks I behold the ghaftly fpedres grin! 
 — I hear the dire yeil of dasuions innumerable exult- 
 ing at the approach of their new vicflim. Ah, where 
 to look — which way to turn to avoid the dilmal 
 fcene ? fhall I lift my eyes to Heaven ! There, reft 
 the fouls of good, of righteous and illuftrious icings. 
 Enclofed in circlets bright of heavenly rays, they mix 
 Vv'ich angels, drink ambrofia, and foar aloft, like them, 
 on the wings of light, elaftic fpirit. 1 dare not, can- 
 not look that way. Defpair and endlels anguifii is 
 my hard-earned portion ! living and after death in- 
 ceffant torments await me ! I am no crowned mo- 
 narch, but a wretch, a wicked wretch, renounced 
 by God, caft off by men. I perlfh — yet why fo late ? 
 
 fooner : 
 
38 DEMETRIUS; 
 
 fooner ; how many thoufands had been faved 1 — ^but 
 now — whac ? — I mull away — 1 muft fly from this 
 deteiled fpot ! It is polluted by the prefence of a 
 tyrant, of a murderer ! — There he is ! — Where ? 
 I fee no one ; I am alone ! — Alas ! it is myfelf ; — 
 I am that tyrant and murderer. I would revenge — 
 I would ftrike the villain to the heart ! yet that vil- 
 lain is myfelf. Shall I purfue myfelf with hatred ? 
 No, 'tis impoffible ; — I love myfelf too well — 1 love 
 myfelf, yet know not why. Even the earth I tread 
 rifes up againft me. There is nothing living, nothing 
 fuffering, but what appeals to Heaven for vengeance ! 
 I f I live but for the mifery of mankind, and my death 
 the only relief they are anxioufly imploring. The 
 humbleft lot in Sfe to me is enviable : even they 
 who are opprefled with various calamines, with 
 flavery and with grievous poverty, are permitted to 
 enjoy that peace, that tranquillity, from which, though 
 monarch, I am forever excluded. Mud I then for 
 ever fuffer ? muft I pine and perifli like a miferable 
 wretch? — No; — fince fraud and impofture have 
 raifed me to the throne, I will maintain them to the 
 laft. Let mankind hate me i let them perfecute me ; 
 I will retort their hatred, and perfecute in turn 1 I 
 have lived, and I will die, a perlevering tyrant ! 
 
 END OF ACT II. 
 
 ACT 
 
A TRAGEDY. 39 
 
 ACT III. 
 
 SCENE I. 
 
 Shousky and Parmen. 
 
 Farmen, 
 
 1 HAVE endeavoured to appeafe the tyrant, and 
 prevent the repetition of farther cruelties. My argu- 
 ments have forced convi^ion upon his diflraded 
 mind, and Georgius is reftored to life and freedom. 
 As a friend and confident, my whole life Ihould be 
 devoted to his fervice, were he a better man, and a 
 better king ! — but as he is 
 
 Shou, Demetrius's birth has raifed him to the 
 throne. 
 
 Far, Birth is nothing, where there are none of^ 
 thofe diftinguilhed talents which qualify one indi- 
 vidual to govern a vafl empire. Let him be Ohrepieve, 
 the monk ; ftill, were he a good and vyorthy fovercign, 
 he would deferve his exalted ftation. Let him be 
 the iffue of a Ruffian monarch ; yet, if his actions do 
 not come up to the flandard of monarchical dignity, 
 we cannot love him j — we cannot think of him as a 
 
 father. 
 
40 DEMETRIUS; 
 
 father, and look up to him, as we onght, with filial 
 affeftion. When a people find no relief from the 
 throne ; when Innocence pines away, overwhelmed 
 with delpair ; widows and orphans are bathed in 
 tears ; and property, life, and honour are in danger— 
 When bribery, flattery, corruption, and hypocrify 
 block up every accefs to redrefs, and mingle virtue 
 and undiflinguiflied merit in one loathfome groupe 
 with vice and ignorance — When humanity fuffers, 
 and villainy fleeps in profound fecurity, the glory of 
 a monarch is a mere phantom — a mere illufion that 
 vanifhes like a dream. Empty praife is no fooner 
 born than it expires; — that fame which is not war- 
 ranted by the happinefs of others, has no folidlry, and, 
 at mofi, is but a creaiure of chance, and a fpurious 
 offspring of fortune. 
 
 Sbou, I am equally attached to the king and to 
 the people. 
 
 Farm. Beware, Shoufky ! while I can only pray to 
 Heaven, thou mayefl: fave tiiy counrry. Remember 
 that in doing {o, thou wilr fave thyfelf, Georgius, 
 and thy only daughter. 
 
 SCENE II. 
 
 Shousky jrAus, 
 
 DifTen^bUft thou or nor, Demetrius fh.^il perifh. 
 He fhall tall to nfe no m^re ! I a ill die, \i fuch be 
 
 the 
 
A TRAGF.DY. 4I 
 
 the decree of Heaven ; ycr I will raife cigiinfc Deme- 
 trius a florm, that, looncr or late:-, (hull overwhelm 
 him. 1 will venture my life to fave my country; and 
 if it fhould be loft, I fliall have another and better 
 life in exchange — life immortal ! Great is the hero 
 who has triumphed over a mighty foe; yet he who 
 relcues his country from ihe heavy yokeof oppreffion 
 is infinitely greater. It is fvvccL and praifeworthy 
 to die for one's country. -J 
 
 SCENE III. 
 
 SnousKY, Georgil's, ^;;JKsn:NJiA, 
 
 Shou. Once more, in hopes of forcing you to a 
 reconciliation with your fate, the comn^.on dellroyer 
 of our peace defircs a conference with you, Dil- 
 gufting as are his propofals, you needs mufi; fcem 
 to receive them with complacence. Above all, be 
 careful that this advice may not a fu-cond time p:ove 
 fruiilefs, through your inadvertency and imprudence. 
 He that cannot temporize witli ncceffity, and yield 
 to the urgency of thetin)es, is totally ignorant ot the 
 manners and cufloms of focial life. 
 
 Gcor, I am to blame. Youih and warmth of 
 temper h.ivc betraved me. My honour could not 
 brook, fo infulting a langnagf ; — a. keen fcnfe of 
 injury, that penetrated my vvhule frame, broke 
 
 through 
 
4^ DEMETRIUS; 
 
 through all the barriers of cautious prudence. Un- 
 ufed to fo harfli a treatiiient, and born with a fpirit 
 ill calculated to endure it, I was thunder-ftruck at 
 the opprobrious terms difdainfully caft upon mfo 
 It was what I never expelled, and was therefore lefs 
 prepared to bear. Had not the dread of my Kfcenia^ 
 being loft for ever bereft me of my reafon, I Ihould/ 
 have plunged the dagger into the very heart of the 
 cruel defpot. Be allured, however, that for her 
 fake, I will bear the worft of injuries. In as much 
 as the infolent upftart is ralh and infulting, Georgius 
 fliall be cautious and patient. After this, Kfoenia, 
 need I fay how much I love thee ? 
 
 Kfcs. And I, my father, feeing Georgius con- 
 demned to fuffer, could no longer diffemble with the 
 tyrant. My patience fled, and my foul burft with 
 agony ; my tongue no longer obeyed me. Life 
 without him was not worth preferving. — My prince, 
 my Georgius ! I live but in thee, and for thee alone. 
 My joys, my treafures, and all earthly happinefs 
 centre in thee. There is no mifery I would not 
 endure — no fufTerings I would not call bleffings, if 
 they purchafed me the poffeflion of thee; — there 
 is no lot of life, however obfcure and comfortlefs, 
 that I would not think a happinefs to fhare with thee. 
 No tyrant — no torments can ever burft the chain 
 that binds me to thee ; — no power, however mali- 
 cious, fhall ever tear me from thy beloved arms. 
 
 Shou, 
 
A TR«AGEDY. 43 
 
 Sbou. Supprefs thefe tranlpoits, and endeavour 
 to ftlfle thy pallion in the prefcnce ot the tyrant. 
 
 Gcor. Heavens ! fbould he tear her away from 
 me ! — fhould he force her to the altar ! Such a 
 Ughc would ftrike me with inftant death. My blood 
 curdles at the thought. — Impoffible ! It would burlt 
 a heart much firmer than mine. 
 
 Kj'(r. Difmifs thy fears. Death Is the guardian \ 
 of my fafety j — to him I would fly from the deteftable 
 facrifice ! If not in this world, at lead in the grave 
 we may hope to be united. Oh, my prince, it is my 
 death that alarms thee, and not the tyrant's odious / 
 love. 
 
 Geor. O Kfcenia, let me die alone ! let me alone 
 be the vidlim of cruelty and injudice! To behold 
 thee expire — Heavens ! the thought is infuppoitable. 
 Dear, beloved Kfcenia, any thing but that Georgius 
 can bear. Live, dear object of my v/iflies ! Com- 
 mit thy .chadity to Heaven, and be an angel on earth. 
 The fpirit of our church is not yet fubdued, and 
 ihy vows to God will flill prote(ft thee- from the 
 tyrant. We have men — holy men, who, regardlefs 
 of worldly danger, Vv^ill oppofe the heretic, and 
 flruggling glorioully, ftill dare to refill his ufurping 
 power. 
 
 S/jcu. God Is merciful and jiiH:; — rcfign to hiiii 
 your cares and your furrow.-, and r^iy firm:y upon 
 
 Lis 
 
AX'^""^^ DEMETRIUS;- 
 
 / 
 
 I his kind providence. Mean while, arm yourfelf with 
 fortitude, and adt as the advice I have given will 
 dired: you. 
 
 Kjce. Thy wifdom, my father, Ihall be our guide. 
 
 SCENE IV. 
 
 Georgius and Kscenia. 
 
 Kf(2. Days of tears — days of forrovv, when will ye 
 be over ? 
 
 Geor, Days of woe, fly on ; pafs on fwiftly, and 
 return no more ! Ahnighty love, ceafe to rage in 
 my bofom ! — ceafe to burn in my veins ! — yield for 
 a moment to dire neceffity, and hdc thy torch in 
 the deepeft recefles of my heart ! Let not the 
 emanation of thy flaming light betray once more 
 the dear fecret of my foul. One ghmce, alas ! — one 
 unguarded moment of the mutual interchange of 
 tenderncfs, may prove our mifery and utter deftruc- 
 tion. 
 
 Kfae. Diffemble, my fond eyes ; — gaze not with 
 rapture on Georgius ! — Forego your wonted felicity, 
 and aid me to deceive the tyrant ! Moments of 
 blifs — of happinefs, pad, yet dear — dear as the pre- 
 feat mifery is infupportable, keep away from my 
 
 memory, 
 
A TRAGEDY. 45 
 
 memory, and haunt not my imagination ! Let me 
 not think of you, that my mind, unintruded by the 
 remembrance of its pad felicity, may, with more 
 fafcty, go through the dreadful tiial that awaits it I 
 
 Gcor. O God, gracious God, deign to relieve 
 fufferings ! 
 
 my 
 
 Kfce. Deign to enumerate my fighs and my gal- 
 ling tears ! 
 
 Geor. Pity my hard defliny ! Take back my ex- 
 iflence, or with the balm of thy heavenly mercy 
 revive the growth of hope expiring in ray bofom ! — 
 O Kfcenia, my conftancy is as firm as my love is 
 unexlinguifhable. Let fate llrike, the blow cannot 
 part us. — We will live and die together. 
 
 Kfo. Kfoenia will welcome death with thee ; flic 
 will joyfully, for thy fake, undergo all the torments 
 of inventive cruelty. She loves thee more than 
 life. This city, made odious by tyranny, is dill dear 
 to me — dear as paradile, bccaufe it contains thee. 
 Every place in it fcems full of thee; Nature's whole 
 fpace without thee, would be one immenfe and dif- 
 mal void to Kfcenia. I kifs the verdant grafs that 
 bends beneath thy feet. I do^t;bn the ground that 
 bore thee, and gaze, enraptured, on the gliding 
 ftreamlet, whofe foft and gentle murmurs were 
 mingled with the fweet melody of thy voice. 
 
 Cecr, 
 
fl 
 
 46 DEMETRIUS; 
 
 Geor. The city, the adjacent plains, the neighbour- 
 ing foreft, the fparkling cryfial delc^^nding from 
 rocks and fcattcring his trcafures beneath ; the radi- 
 ant glory of a fumnier's day; the awful dr'rknefs of 
 nicijcdic night; all, all prcilent to me my Kfoenia. 
 An age paft.with thee would appear to me but as 
 one blefled moment of uninterrupted happincfs. Thy 
 power over me is facred, uncontroulable, and lading 
 as the never-fading charms of thy heavenly mind. 
 
 KfcE. My love for thee is as true, as conftant, as 
 the objedt that infpires it in merit and virtue is 
 above all comparilbn. 
 
 S C E N E V. 
 
 Demetrius, Georgius, ^k^/Kscenia. 
 Bern, Came ye hither to pay obedience to my 
 xvlll ? 
 
 Gcor. Convinced by relle6tion, we come duly 
 to offer our homage and fubmilTion. 
 
 Dcm. In confideration of this, I pardon your part: 
 offences. But remember tuy authority cannot be 
 abufed with impunity ; — fhould ye offend again, ex- 
 pert no mercy from Demetrius. Female weaknefs 
 lluinks from the feverity of jullice ; but manly, and 
 above all, royal vengeance finds in it a fource of fupe- 
 
 rior 
 
A TRAGEDY. 47 
 
 rior delight. It is the perfedion of worldly hap- , 
 pinefs, that while thoufands of worthlefs and 
 ignoble lives knguifh in obfcurity, a monarch by 
 his fole authority can call forth, or annihilate them 
 at pleafure. 
 
 Geor. The eftablifhment of their welfare and hap- 
 pinefs mull certainly be a fource of infinite gratifi- 
 cation to him. 
 
 Dem. Their welfa re is prejudicial to hini^. - To 
 enrich him, the people muft toil in perpetual poverty ; 
 his joy and felicity is incompatible with theirs ; they 
 muft weep to make him fmile. The Have, before 
 he works, muft fmart under the lafti of ftrift and 
 wholefome difcipline. 
 
 Geor. Attachment, love, and proper laws are 
 better calculated to excite his induftry. 
 
 Bern. Of what ufe are laws where there is a power 
 that can enad:, or annuU them at pleafure ? 
 
 Gecr. If fuch a power a£ls on the principle of 
 Jiiftice, it is beft calculated to promote a people's 
 happinefs. To be thus governed is, thank Heaven, 
 the happy lot of Ruflla! Where it exifts nor, una- 
 nimity is deftroyed, and the love of virtue and honour 
 is loft in general confufion. Men as infignificant — 
 23 infoknt, dart up, fcize on the fovereign authority, 
 
 and 
 
48 DEMETRIUS ; 
 
 and txam[^!e with impunity upon the rig,hts of 
 their fdlow-cirizcns. He who wifhes his equals to 
 hold in iheir har.ds the reins of govcrnn.ent, is a foe 
 to his couniiy. vSuch a form of government has 
 lever been known.in Ruffia. The fupreme power, 
 \vhcn no fovereign exifts, is a heavy, multiplied 
 burthen ; it breeds as many oppreiiors as there are 
 individuals blinded by ambition and endowed with 
 talents. Woe to the country depending on their 
 mercy ! Cabals, intrigues, and parry-dillentions 
 defolate the people; injuries find no redrefs ; truth 
 mourns in filence, and the intereft of the community 
 is facriliced to private revenge, and the bafe felfifh- 
 iiefs Of a few felf-created tyrants. Our country 
 repofes happily under the aufpices of monarchical 
 government •, and if the regal fplendour is not main- 
 rained at the [)rice of the people's mifery ; if the 
 monarch's jiovver is not 0|)preliive to his fubjef^s, 
 they will blefs hitn ; and ih'cir pofierity, contem- 
 plating his life with confcious pride, vviil pay the 
 tribute of love and gratitude to his memory. 
 
 Dcm. Talcs like thefe befit a woman's ear^ ; — they 
 plcafe me not ! Whether Molkovv fmiles with 
 content, or groans with anguidi, it matters not. 
 Demetrius lives not for the people, but the people 
 for Demetrius. From the flrain of thy difcourfe, 
 thou wouldil fain perfuade me to give up the 
 princefs. 
 
 C€or, 
 
A TRAGEDYi 4^ 
 
 Geor. Truth is not weakened from being uttered^ 
 under the influence of a virtuous palfion. Surely, 
 in this inftance, I do not merit my fovereign's dif- 
 pleafure ; — his will rules over me, but that will can- 
 not command my paffions j they are implanted by 
 Nature, and Ihe alone has the power of directing 
 
 them. 
 
 « 
 
 Dem. There is nothing but what mull and fhall 
 be fubjeded to my controul. All ihou haft is mine. 
 Prince as thou art, defcended from the illuftrious 
 Condantine, before me thou art a mere atom — a 
 mere nothing. All is God's and mine ! 
 
 Geor. Am I not the owner of myfelf ? 
 
 Bern. No. God and Demetrius claim thee ; — thy 
 whole is theirs. Thou haft nought of thy own. 
 
 Geor. May I call the foul, that infpires me, my 
 own? 
 
 Dem. Thou dareft not ! God has given it to 
 Demetrius. 
 
 Geor. Yet that fame God has given to all his 
 creatures, the privilege of property and freedom ; — • 
 can they lawfully be deprived of them ? A poten- 
 tate may do what is unjult; but what is unjuft, ic 
 can never make otherwifc. 
 
5© DEMETRIUS; 
 
 Dcm. Ccafe thy impertinent loquacit}^ ; it grows 
 troublefome. — It incommodes me. Repair, my 
 prlncefs, to the ?.partmen's affigned for thy reception. 
 Thy attendants wait to conduct thee. To-mi)rrov/ 
 my hand iliall lead thee, a bnde, to the altar. Why 
 thofe tears ? 
 
 Kfce. Grief overcomes me ; — yet — I wil^ obey ; 
 I will flrive to conquer it. (To Georg'ius,) My 
 prince, fummon thy fortitude ; fubdue thy forrow ; 
 and aids fecond, by thy example, my feeble efforts ! 
 Adieu ! imperious deftiny deaiands this facrifice ! 
 
 SCENE VI. 
 
 Demetrius and Georgius. 
 
 Dem. Thou biii ill compliefl: with my wifh ; — why 
 that mournful countenance ? 
 
 Gecr. A flight ilruggle, my liege. — It is over. 
 
 Denu TIiou turneft pale ! 
 
 / Geor. No. 1 am well — quite well. Qiiite com- 
 f pofed ; only a little alTeded at the parting — that 
 
 is all ! One cannot altogether refign what one has 
 loved, without fome trifling tenfation of regret. • 
 
 Dc?n. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 5 I 
 
 D:m. It is culpable, neveithclcTs ; none but) 
 cro'.vnei) heads fliould give vent to their feelings ; — ! 
 they, being exalted above ihe refi: of mortals, alone, 
 may indulge them, liieir p^ifiions alone may fiow 
 with the courfe of unreftrained ficcdom. / 
 
 Gear. Whatever be the diftance between fove- 
 reign and lubjecl, they are eOjUals under the fweet 
 doirdnon of love. To cieify man is an abfurd flat- 
 tery. The various avocations of life, the divers 
 paths men purfue, are fometimes the accidental caufe 
 of one individual being raifed to an immenfe height 
 above another. Pcrfonal merit and fplendid talenTTl 
 are often produ6f ive of fuch events ; — iViU a monarch \ 
 Ihould be a father, and look upon his people as fo \ 
 many children committed to his care. Our life is 
 Ihort; — monarch and flave both mull die. The 
 failing peafant and the mighty conqueror, both, 
 fooner or later, mud defcend into the grave ; — one 
 is (natched from an humble cottage ; the other from 
 a magnificent palace. He that rules, and he tliat 
 is ruled, are actuated by the (lime impulfe of Nature — • 
 her laws admit of no dilVinction. The moft renowned 
 hero, as well as the meaneft wretch, has his pang^ 
 and his ftruggles ; in both, nrfery or happinefs will 
 produce pain or pleafure. Pvlighty fovereign, thy 
 foul feels the power of love — fo does mine ! 'I hy 
 royal breaft is agitated by the tempen: of pafilons— 
 fo is mine ! God alone can know what I fufTf r,by 
 this cruel fepa ration ; — to Him then, I Ihall look 
 D a ^ f^r 
 
52 DEMETRIUS; 
 
 for fuccour; — to Him alone, ihall flow my tears and 
 my fecret prayers. Oh, that he would, in pity, 
 flretch his all-powerful hand for my relief! — My 
 loft, my lamented Kfoenia — alas, I might ftill pre- 
 ferve thee ! 
 
 Dem. Moralize, pray, weep, grieve, implore 
 God's protection — thou art at liberty to do it. It 
 does my heart good to fee thee bewail fo bitterly, 
 thofe charms, which, for ever loft to thee, are now 
 ■ in my-poffeffion. 
 
 SCENE VII. 
 
 Georgius folus. 
 
 Difregardful of God — difdainful of man ! rejoice, 
 thou tyrant, in my fufFerings ! Triumph at the 
 torments thy barbarity inflidts ! 'Tis well — thy 
 time is fhort. Thou doeft well to profit by it. O 
 God !— O Kfoenia l—Muft I lofe thee ?— The very 
 thought chills, like ice, my veins — it benumbs my 
 fenfes ; my ftrength fails me ; my fight grows dim. 
 Difmal darknefs invades all nature. Poifon drops 
 from the brooding vapours above ! Muft I then 
 perilh ? — Muft I never behold my Kfoenia ? O Sun, 
 thou father of light, Ihall thy benignant rays infufc 
 no joy into the wretched inhabitants of Molkow ? 
 Are they doomed never to greet thee, as thy morning 
 
 ray 
 
A TRAGEDY. 53 
 
 ray dawns joyous upon the reft of the world, with 
 refponfive gladnefs and ferenity ? Shall thy pene- 
 trating eye never behold ihem freed from cruelty 
 and oppreflion ? Shall the peaceful waves that bathe 
 the walls of this once bleffed metropolis, never again 
 refound with the joyful acclamations of a happy 
 people ? Shall I never again behold the time, in 
 which Kfoenia hung on me with rapturous delight, 
 while I feafled my foul on the charms of her beau- 
 teous angelic form ? How long is this city o wit- 
 nefs impiety, brutality, and the barbarous exceffes 
 of furious defpotifm ? How long muft the rage andA 
 malice of tyranny fill her ftreets wi^h di^guft and \ 
 horror ? How long are its palaces and temples lo j 
 be bathed in innocent blood ? How long muH: i 
 youthful beauty, the brighteft ornament of M' Ikow, 
 be a prey to luft and hwlefs defire ? Oh, let me 
 hope — let me think that peace and tranquillity will 
 again revive in this defolated realm ! Let me hope 
 that Molkow, refcucd from the iron hand which 
 oppreffes her, once more will rear her drooping 
 head. That the people, no longer dreading the 
 never-ileeping jealoufy of the tyrant, will again enjoy 
 the happinefs of folid iiitcrcourfe — again will rafte 
 the fweets of friendihip and benevolence ; and ag.iin 
 poflels the bleffings of freedom, which is the kindeft 
 and the choiceil gift of Heaven ! 
 
 END OF ACT III. 
 
 ACT 
 
54 DEMETRIUS ; 
 
 ACT IV. 
 
 SCENE I. 
 
 Demetrius and KscE-tiiA» 
 
 Demetrius. 
 
 VyIiARMING Kfoenia, why this gloomy counte- 
 nance ; why this dejection — this apparent reluctai ce 
 to comply with the fweer dictates of Irve r — of lo\e 
 which, even now, inv'Ces us to the dehc >us banquet 
 of its pure and heavenly deligh's. Let it conloie 
 /thee, beauteous pruicels, 'hat thy hufband, ac- 
 cuftomed ro the exercife of del pot ic rule, invites thee 
 to Ihare his throne for ^he charitable purpofe of 
 I mitigating his feverity, bv thy mild and htm ne 
 1 interceffion. The unfortunaie will find in ihee, that 
 I mercy which my hdrfli and ftubborn nature will not 
 \ grant them Thy pity will dry up the tears of 
 VafBitfiion! Like an adminiftering angel thou wilt 
 give relief and comfort, -here my decrees produce 
 mifery and defpondence.' Thy compaffion and gene- 
 rofity Vv^ill be proportionate to my iiiflex)i)ility. 
 Should ff thou fail in this virtuous and pleafing talk — 
 ilili, the alldrance of a patronefs, ready to confole 
 
 and 
 
A TRAGEDY. S^ 
 
 and relieve them, will be a valuable acquifition to 
 thofe who are compelled to implo-e thy perfuafive 
 aid. Should their grievances renvain unredretred, 
 yet, while there is a prcfpeft of relief, each com- 
 plainant will bear his burthen without repining ; 
 and though every day adds to the weight, ilil) he 
 will cling to hope ; think every fucceeding toil the 
 lafl, and expire under the iwec,: deiufion. It is 
 the nature of a low-born wretch to put up with 
 to-day, in hopes of better fare to-morrow ; — to-mor- 
 row comes, and brings frefli Liffli6lion ; — frill another 
 to-mcrroiu remains, and he reils fatisficd. The world 
 
 is..djpraYs.drz:e_v£rxj3ne_Jn^it„J j v£3 for h im4€lf. Of 
 
 what import is it then to Demetrius that his fub- 
 jeds fuif.r ? Virtue is the phantom of a difordered 
 imagination : — every thing proves that it has no real 
 cxiiience. Whether I am a tjTvint, or not,-can make 
 no dilTcrence. Inclinaiion is my guide ; it excites 
 me to cruelty, and in eKeicinng it, I feek my own 
 gratification. Hell, that child of terror and fuperfti- 
 tion, whether it cxifis or not, does not appal n:e. 
 To extirpate, therefore, a few mean wretches, is no 
 more than to trample upon fome obnoxious reptiles 
 that may chance to crawl un.ier my feet. 
 
 Kfo. It is judice to exterminate the wicked, but to 
 confound the innocent with them is unjuft and cruel. 
 Without a proper diftin^iion, where would be the 
 ufe of rewards and punifliments ? 
 
 Dsm, 
 
5$ DEMETRIUS; 
 
 Dem. All mankind are wicked ; — therefore ought 
 to peiilh. I 
 
 Kfa. If fo, art thou alone excepted ? 
 
 Dem. Were it not for felf-love, Demetrius would 
 long ago have deftroyed Demetrius. Could I become 
 two perfons inftead of one; one felf would rejoice 
 at the fufferings of the other felf; — each would 
 exult in the 'orments of the other, and both would 
 feed on their own dcfpair, 
 
 Kfce. Admirable profpe^l for thy confort ! will that 
 man fpare his wife, who, but for necellity, would 
 not fpare himfelf ? 
 
 Dem. Certainly — fince it depends upon herfelf 
 
 to fecure his favour, by cultivating his affe^lion with 
 
 the utmoft ardour and affiduity ; by refpeaing him 
 
 as a being fuperior to mortals, and revering in him 
 
 Vthe image of her God. 
 
 Kicc. Removed as are monarchs to an immenfe 
 diftance <rom 'he rtil of mankind — love makes that 
 diflance vanilh. She, whom a monarch deigns to 
 receive as his quedi, however humble her lot, be- 
 comes his equal. It this pleafe thee not, thou hadft 
 better k^k a b ide of more noble birth", and more 
 approximated to thy elevated rank. 
 
 Dem, 
 
A TRAGEDY. 57 
 
 Dem. I feek a bride that is endowed with angelic 
 beauty and celeftial virtues — fuch as neither birth 
 nor rank can beftow ! Flowers fprii.g up in defarts, 
 as well as in cities. Once mine, thou mull obey thy 
 deftiny ; adore in me, thy hu{band and thy fovereign; 
 and, by fubmiflion, feek to inl'ure my love. Shouidft 
 thou difregard this advice, dreadful will be the con- 
 fcquence I 
 
 Kfx. Not fo Georgius! — Generous fentiments and 
 liberal difcourfe ever ilow from his tongue, 
 
 Bern. Georgius thinks and fpeaks like a flave — = 
 Demetrius like a monarch. 
 
 S C E N E II. 
 Demetrius, Kscenja, and Captain of the Guard, 
 
 Capt. Dread liege, the city teems with difmal 
 news. Thy peace and fecuriry will vanifh with ihe 
 fun's fetting ray; thy eyes will ntver again behold 
 its radiant luftre. Certain as the day declines, dan- 
 ger advances ! The approaching night portends 
 ruin and perdition ! Ignatius* tne patriarch, pro- 
 
 * A Greek by birth, and elevated to flie dig! ity of Patriarch 
 by Demetrius, for the purpole, as was fiippofed, of alfiiliug him 
 in fubvcrting the Greek religion. 
 
 fcribed 
 
^S DEMETRIUS; 
 
 fcribed as a beretlc and fupplanted by another, has 
 already fled the impending deftrufticn of the popu- 
 lar vengeance. The nobles and the people have 
 fvvorn thy ruin ; and this very night have fixed for 
 the execution of their treafonable purpofe. Thou 
 hsd no fafety but in thy own refources. Beware, 
 my liege, the crown is fulling from thy head. 
 
 Bc;7i. Let ic ! it fhall crufh the traitors in its fall. 
 
 C/7pt. The guards wait thy orders ; — what are thy 
 commands ? 
 
 Dem, Valour is the word ! Send Parmen hither 
 — mount the watch ! — Remember, this night admits 
 of no repofe ! 
 
 SCENE III. 
 Demetrius and Kscenia. 
 
 Dem. Thcfe are the fruits of the fidelity of thy 
 beloved princes. 
 
 Kfce. Heaven, gj^.rd them ! Can they be culpa- 
 lle for the m"/g'ii. ed la^e of the pOi>uUce ? 
 
 Dem. I kno v th<m b^th too well. — Retire ! 
 
 SCENE 
 
A TRAGEDY, ^5 
 
 SCENE IV. 
 
 Demetrius and Parmen. 
 
 Bern. Do as I bid thee, and fee my commands 
 fulfilled. This dreadful night chills my foul with 
 appiehenfions ! ftiffening fear feizes forcibly on my 
 nerves ; I tremble — my heart beats convullive. The 
 torch of life decays within — where fnall I fly ? AH 
 rife np;a;nft me ; my throne totters ! burning fulphur 
 glows in my veins ! vengeful fiends tear my guilty 
 fou! ! God forfukcs me ! men flirink with horror at 
 the fight of me ! Traitor to my country ; cruel 
 fcourge of mankind ! — Nature fhudders at me ; and 
 the vindictive arm of Heaven already wields its pon- 
 derous bolt to hurl deftruiStion on my head ! 
 
 Par. Perfifl: not thus in harbouring black dffpair ! 
 The mercy of our God is greater than thy offences. \ 
 
 Dem. It is much greater than my ability to de- 
 ferve it. 
 
 Par. It requires no more than to obey the dictates 
 of virtue. 
 
 Dem. They are not congenial to my mind. My 
 heart finds the acctfs to virtue infurmountable. 
 There is no hope — no cfcaprg' Heaven, Cirth, 
 all is in the power of the irritated Deity. There is 
 
 no 
 
6o DEMETRIUS; 
 
 no refuge left me ! Oh, that fome fudden blaft 
 would fvveep me from the earth, or the keen flalh of 
 lightning pierce my difirr^fied brain ! — Yet hold ! — 
 There is a confolation ftill in my power. 
 
 Par. I hope it proceeds from conviflion of the 
 divine mercy. Would but thy reafon once yield to 
 truths repentance would make confolation certain. 
 
 Dem. (giving a paper.) Perufe the contents, and 
 fee them fully carried into execution. 
 
 Far. Heavens ! ftill bent on frefli atrocities ? 
 
 Bern. Were my power equal to my will, I fhould 
 fpare neither age nor fex. The clergy, the citizens, 
 and the nobles, — all fhould fall under the keen edge \ 
 of my vengeance. J 
 
 Par. Since it is thy politivc will, I have only to 
 obey. 
 
 Dem. Let Kfoenia with her father and Georgius 
 be inftantly brought hither. 
 
 SCENE V. 
 Demetrius 7^ Avi. 
 
 While the righteous foul, when departing, fceks 
 its way back to Heaven ; — mine fees no road but 
 
 that 
 
A TRAGEDY. 6l 
 
 that which leads to the dark abode of the infernal 
 regions. This night will be my lafl: ! What is hor- 
 rible even in a dream, will appear then in reality. 
 Farewell to all my greatnefs I A miferabie death 
 will at length deliver the wretched people from their 
 delegable tyrant. Already the crimfon hue tinges 
 the fky; — the weary fun defcends to reft, that he 
 may again with frelli vigour pierce the fullen dark- 
 nefs of the retreating night I — Stay, thou bright 
 luminary — ah, wait av;hile ! Let me flill gaze on 
 thee ! Fear not to difappoint Nature ! thy radiant 
 form again, in the revolving hours, will cheer her ! 
 But I, alas, fhall never more behold thee ! 
 
 SCENE VI. 
 Demetrius, Shousky, and Georgius. 
 
 Dem. Your plots and machinations I no longer 
 doubt. Traitors, prepare for your doom ! — Prepare 
 for torture and execution ! 
 
 Sbou. Gracious fovereign ! 
 
 Dem. Spare thy fupplications. 
 
 Geor. Torn from Kfoenia, death is welcome to me 
 — life has no charms for Georgius. 
 
 Sbou» 
 
62 DEMETRIUS ; 
 
 Shou, O, grant me, my laft requeH: i — let me bid 
 adieu to my daughter ! let m.e breathe my iall' 
 farewei on her lips, and I die content. It is tor 
 her alone that I tremble ! 
 
 Dc?n. I mean it fo, that your fufferings may Rrikc 
 the keener, and link the deeper into your iouL 
 
 SCENE VIL 
 SiiOusKY arid Georgius. 
 
 Geor. Let us die nobly ! — let us undaunted meet 
 the flroke of death, and (hew that our fortitude is 
 no lefs than our devotion to our country ! 
 
 Shou. Since it is the decree of Providence, Shouiky 
 cheerfully refigns his life ! 
 
 SCENE VIII. 
 
 Shousky, Georgius, ^«^Ks(enia. 
 
 Kf(s. At length the dreadful hour approaches! 
 The fatal day is come of eternal feparation ! Oh 
 cruel day ! — Inhuman wretch ! — To be parted thus, 
 
 to 
 
A TRAGEDY. 63 
 
 to be fnatchccl from each other by r.n accmf.d ty- 
 rant ! — lUuiian fortitude cannot lupuorc it. — My h; art 
 dies within me. — My frame iinlis. — Succour m". 
 
 gracious Heaven ! 
 
 Sboii. Thus does the tyrant crown thy bridal day! 
 
 Ct-cr. Thus does he end my love for thee ! 
 
 Kfcz. And dooms Kfcenia to everhfling wretched- 
 nefs and defpair ! 
 
 Geor. Dear, beloved prlncefs ! 
 
 Shoiu My comfort, my only daughter! Ilofethee! 
 
 Geor. I part with thee for ever. 
 
 Shou. Pattern of virtue and excellence ; delight of 
 my days ; prop of m^y declining years ; m.y hope, 
 my only fol.ice ! — In thee I lofe my all. Nature has 
 reared thee up to grace the age, to be an honour to 
 thy family, a treafure to thy friends, the pride and 
 ornament to thy fex I Oh, happy, happy would have 
 been the princely youth that was to have poflciled 
 thee I 
 
 Gsor. Dear, thrice blefud h-^pe ! thou art gone I 
 
 Kfa. My father ! my prince ! dear obio£>s of mv 
 love, duty, and affedion ! All my vifions of hapi>i- 
 
 nefs 
 
64 DEMETRIUS; 
 
 nefs vanifh with you ! All chat made my life dear 
 to me; all that bufy fancy had pourtrayed of worldly 
 blifs and felicity ; one unpropitious monnent has 
 blafted for ever ! Oh, wicked, fafcinating dreams ! 
 Falfe, deceitful hopes ! Alas ! the fweet delufion 
 now is over ; the mifl that concealed our awful fate 
 is difperfed, and a bottomlefs precipice opens fud- 
 denly underneath ! My feet tremble upon the brink! 
 O'erwhelming giddlnefs feizes on me ! Oh, favc"A 
 me, fave me, my father 1 Take back thy gift of 
 life, now grown infuppoitable ! Strike, in mercy, 
 the laft, the welcome blow! Georgius, fave thy 
 loving Kl'oenia ! plunge the friendly dagger into my . 
 heart, and thus put an eternal feal on my inviolable / 
 fidelity ! -^ 
 
 Geor. Princefs, exert thy fortitude. 
 
 Shou. Moderate thy grief. We die in a noble 
 caufe, the caufe of our country. 
 
 Geor, Such a death is happinefs ! 
 
 SCENE IX. 
 
 Shousky, Georgius, Kscenia, with her Attendants, 
 and Par MEN. 
 
 Tarm, I am commanded to conduct you to prifon. 
 
A TRAGEDY. 6^ 
 
 Sboii. I follow ! 
 
 Geor. I go prepared to meet my doom ! 
 
 Sbou. No more. — Since it muft be fo, undaunted 
 we encounter death. 
 
 Farm. Since ye have dared to violate the peace, 
 receive the juft reward 1 
 
 Shoii. Shame on thee ! art thou a man ' — Is this 
 the fpeech of a Ruffian ? 
 
 Geor. Thou art our executioner — a judge thou 
 canft never be. 
 
 Kfoe, Thou haft exchanged thy compaffon for 
 the -Hivnge ferocity which, but lately, thou hadft 
 thyfelf condemned. 
 
 Farm. Lead them on ! 
 
 Shoii. Farewell, dear Kfoenia ! — Weep not — fub- 
 due thy grief, if poffible ! 
 
 Geor. Adieu, dear princefs, forget thy wretched 
 Gcorgius ! 
 
 SCENE 
 
65 DEMETRIUS; 
 
 SCENE X. 
 Parmex and Kscehia. 
 
 Kf(£. Minifter of death ! Odious executor of a 
 flill more odious tyrant ! fince no pity moves th^e— *i 
 fince no woe can melt thy flinty heart, exult in my 
 torments ! let the fight of agonizing grief fatiate thy 1 
 favpge joy ! Since thy only law is the unbridled I 
 will of the tyrant, here I fland — here I defy thee !' 
 Strike me — tear my trembling joints I wade in my 
 innocent blood ! — then, if thou dareft, lift thy polluted 
 hands up to Heaven for falvation ! God is juft ai^d 
 mercifal ; he beholds the tyrant's excefiive enormi- 
 ties, and his thunder is on the wing. Vain will be 
 your fupplications ! perdition will fcize the tyrant, 
 and all the infamous executors cf his diabolical 
 commands. Yet, alas, what comfort can it bring 
 me? What, though the wretch groans in the ago-^.. 
 nies of death — though loofened fiends fnatch his 
 wicked foul ? — My father, my prince are gone, to 
 return no more ! Who can dilToIve the icy chain of 
 death, and rekindle the extinguifhed fpark of life ! 
 O God ! my guide, my guardian ! foothe my dif- 
 trafted mind ; atid, ah ! reflore to me my friends — 
 my loft, lamented friends ! 
 
 Farm. Weep on! indulge thy defperate grief! 
 Pour complaints and reproaches into the tyrant's 
 
 ear! 
 
A TRACED'/. 67 
 
 ear ! I hy nothing. I t ray only that my hopes and 
 wiflies may be fulfilled, (Afide.) Unhappy prin- 
 cefs, you miftake my cha.aftcr ! 
 
 Kfa:. The wrongs — the fufTeitngs of innocence, 
 appeal ftrongly to He?vcn. Etcrra; wrath of God, 
 Iboner or later^ will avenge — fiercely avenge them I 
 
 SCENE XI. 
 
 KscENiA and her Attendants, 
 
 Kfa, All is over. — The bitter cup of wee Is filled 
 to the brim. My father, my prince — where are 
 they ? I fee them linger in tortures ! — I lee th» 
 murderer's hand uplifted ! — the fatal inftrument 
 defcends I— O God, it ftrikes ! They fall I they ex- 
 pire! Hark! they call on Kfoenia ! — Sweet fhades, 
 I obey your fummons — I fly to you 1 Oh, fheltei:^ 
 me from the tyrant ; leave me not to his mercy, an 
 orphan forlorn and unprotefled ! let my throbbing 
 heart once more beat in nnifon with yours I — Who 
 holds me here ? — let me go !— Help ! help ! Avaunr, 
 ye fiends 1 Releafe me trom this dark and difmal 
 
 dungeon ! What dungeon ? I fee no dungeon. 
 
 Where am I — do I (till live? Has the earth opened? 
 
 Has the firmament fallen In ? Alas ! Heaven and 
 
 E 2 earth 
 
68 DEMETRIUS ; 
 
 earth are flill the fame. The world falls not ini\ 
 ruins i bur my princes — my fvveet, beloved princes 
 are gone — are loft for ever. Where would ye have 
 me go, mlnlfters of cruelty, fatellites of the fan- 
 guinary defpot ? — Lead me on — any where ! all 
 places are equally wretched to Kfoenia ! (Led off 
 difiraSied.) 
 
 END OF ACT IV, 
 
 ACT 
 
A TRAGEDY. 69 
 
 ACT V 
 
 SCENE I. 
 
 Demetrius folus. 
 
 (Sleeping on a couch, ivith a table near him, on zvhich 
 arefeen the royal infignia ; — he Jiarts, and /peaks :) 
 
 XTlWAY, horrid dreams, frightful vifions, hideous 
 phantoms! Away, ye namelefs terrors of a difor- 
 dered brain ! Is it not enough to feel the llin^ 
 of remorfe ? — Is it not enough (o endure the agonies j 
 of a guilty confcience, that malignant Fancy fhouldl 
 thus, with her magic ipell, fet thoufands of horrible j 
 and ihapelefs things athwart my fight ; and thus I 
 by imaginary, add wantonly to my real tortures ? — j 
 but hold — methinks her images were juft. All th^ 
 diftallfers with which this city threatens mc ; all 
 the torments which I dread hereafter; all that is 
 moft terrible and afilic^iing to human nature, ap- 
 peared in forms fo palpable, in colours fo fubflantial, 
 that my harrowed foul Ihrunk within me, and froze 
 with horror. (Bell Jlrikes.) Hark! the bell ftrikes 
 — What can it mean ? It is the (ignal of alarm -, it 
 
 rcfounds 
 
DEMETRIUS 
 
 refounds my i-nifery, or elfe ic warns me of my fate ! 
 My end then is near, arid rny lad hour faft approach- 
 ing ! This night — this auful nigiic will clofe the 
 lingering fcene of my tranficnt gbry. , Thoufand^. 
 will hail my fall, for they will exclaim, it is the fall | 
 of a monfter that preyed on their vitals ! — I tremble ! | 
 Fear, never felt till now, fiiakes my guilty frame^ 
 The earth feems to burft and whelm me in its ruin ! 
 Where ihall I look for fiifety ? — To God ! Wretch 
 that I am, I dare not implore his mercy. I have 
 forfeited all claim to it ! — No, I have nothing to 
 hope from God — nothing from men. Hell is the 
 only alylum lett me ; thither then will my foul 
 efcape. Vain hopes ! even there the mighty wrath 
 of God will puiTue it ; his fcarching eye will pierce 
 the depth of infernal darkncfs, and his power call it 
 up for judgment ! My monftrous deeds will be laid 
 open, and the awful fentence of the juil and never- 
 erring Judge be pafled upon them. Curfed be the \ 
 hour that gave me birih ! Curfed be the chance \ 
 that gave me power, which made m.e a tyrant — a 
 rclentlefs pcrfecutor of what it was my duty to chc- 
 rifli mod, and a dire exterminator of God's nobleft 
 creation. Mark I the noife increafes; — conflerna-.^ 
 tion and wild uproar nil the air ! The palace is 
 befet I Single-handed, how fliall I withfcand a rifing 
 hod of foes ? Defencelefs and forlorn here mull 
 I wait, trembling, for m.y deftiny. Heaven and 
 earth have leagued again 0: me ! My crown, my 
 realm, my vail: empire are already v/refted 
 
 from 
 
A TRAGEDY. ^1 
 
 from me ! Oh, 'tis too much for mortal man to 
 bear! ' ~ y 
 
 S C E N E IL 
 Demetrius, Guards, and their Captain. 
 Capt. My liege, Kienile is filled with rebels. The 
 palace is bcfieged ! Fury and revenge fpur them 
 on ! The flames of fedition rage b?yond controul ! 
 All the avenues — all the principal pods are fdzed ! 
 The guard is forced ; and we arc the only few who 
 have efcaped. 
 
 Dcm, Then all is loft. Curfed fate I barbarous 
 reverfe ! — let us away — let us chaftife the traitors ! 
 Stay ! — Advance ! — Pvemain here — -Speed forward ! 
 Oppofe, flrike, overpower their numbers ! fly to 
 fave Demetrius I Whtre would ye go \ — would ye 
 leave me alone and helnlcfs ? — Stand here — recede 
 not an Inch ! defend the door'! let us be gone ! :ilas, 
 it is too late! The lafl: link of fate is broken. 
 Bring Kfoenia before me !• 
 
 SCENE III. 
 
 DexMEtrius [olus. 
 It is not the lofs of kingdom, nor the lofs of life 
 that afflidts me, -—my poignant grief is, that I die 
 
 and 
 
'Jl DEMETRIUS; 
 
 and talle not the ^eeuifii of ^revenge. Oh, that 
 I were a monarch ftill ! J would drown the traitors 
 in then- blood ! — I would pile up mountains of their 
 mangled bodies ! — 1 would rife a dsemon of deflruc- 
 tion, with fword, fire, pefcilence, and famine, to 
 extirpate this detefted city, and in its ruins leave an 
 awful and lading monument of my wrath ! . I would 
 teach the affrighted world what it is to provoke a 
 monarch's vengeance! — Vain hope! never can I 
 have this confolation. 
 
 SCENE IV. 
 
 DEMETRICS^/ii KsCEl^JIA. 
 
 Dem. Imiagine not that, though treachery over- 
 powers me, thou canfi: efcape in fafety. The mo- 
 ment my power is gone, thou art no more I the 
 blow that flrikes me, will fall with double weight, 
 on thee. Since thou, can ft not fliare my throne, 
 Ihare now my death ! 
 
 Kfoe. How have I offended, to forfeit thus my 
 life ? 
 
 Dem. To doar on my mortal foes is a crime that 
 nothing but death can expiate. Attached to the 
 traitors that have undone me ! — thy blood mud: be 
 
 the 
 
A TRAGEDY. 73 
 
 the forfeit, which, had they not efcaped, their own 
 Ihould pay. 
 
 Kf(X. Then let it be fo. Since my father lives--^' 
 fince my prince is fafe, I refign my life with plea- 
 fure ! The facrifice of youth and health, fince it is 
 for their fake, I offer here without regret ! — yet I fain 
 would fpare thee, the lliame and ignominy of having 
 perpetrated a deed, as atrocious as dilhonoiirable ; 
 unworthy of a man — much more of a monarch ! 
 What will the world fay, when it is known, that thy 
 hand has wantonly deftroyed her who was neareft to 
 thy heart — deftroyed her while guiltlefs and inno- 
 cent ? Who could hear, and not deprecate fo infar 
 mous — fo unmanly an adtion ? Who would not 
 lliudder at fo fudden and unnatural a revolution in 
 thy affe£tions? — Ah, little did I expect fuch bitter 
 fruits from thy love ! Little thinks my father that 
 his daughter is doomed to fuffer for offences, of which 
 fhe never was guilty ;. — for the crimes, of the very 
 knowledge of which, llie was innocent ! 
 
 Bern. While I reigned, I loved thee; but now 
 that my end is certain, thy death becomes my only 
 wifli. Were it not that my revenge has no other 
 vidim but thee, I might, perhaps, fpare thee — I 
 might even view thy fufferings with pity ; but now, 
 guilty or not, thou muft precede me to the grave ! 
 The tumult increafes — The ruffians are at hand — 
 prepare ! Be my meffenger to the dead. (Seizes 
 F ker. 
 
74 DEMETRIUS ; 
 
 heVi and holds the dagger over her.) Tell them Demc- 
 trius follows thee ! 
 
 SCENE the LAST. 
 
 Demetrius, Shousky, Georgius, Kscenia, Sol- 
 . DiERS, and People. 
 
 Geor. Horrid fight ! 
 
 Shou, Savage monfter ! 
 
 Deni, Traitorsj behold her death ! 
 
 Geor, If thy vengeance feeks the offender, I am 
 he ! (Advancing.) Strike Georgius, but fpare the 
 guildefs Kfcenia ! — Spare her innocence ! Oh, let 
 thy own heart plead for her. 
 
 S>hou. Wreak thy vengeance upon me. Georgius 
 and my daughter both are innocent. It is I who 
 have fought thy deftrudion ; — Shoufky is chief of 
 the rebels, and he alone is your enemy. 
 
 Dem. If thou wouldft have me fpare her, refume 
 thy duty of allegiance, and fue for mercy. Proclaim 
 to the people my pardon, fhould they return to obe- 
 dience ; or this iiiftant the princefs dies ! 
 
 . ^hou. 
 
A TRAGEDY. *J ^ 
 
 Shou. Then be it fo. — Daughter, fear not to die ! 
 Thy fufferings are in behalf of thy country ; and 
 who that loves it would not envy them ? 
 
 Gear, Affliflion pad meafure ! dire, cruel woe ! — 
 Heavens — countrymen, fave her ! Monfler, releafe 
 her ! Plunge the dagger into my heart ! — let my 
 blood flow inltead ! 
 
 Vem, My vengeance demands a greater vi6lim ! 
 
 Geor. (Retreating^ and turning to the people.) De- 
 prived of her, I fly to death. (Advancing towards 
 Demetrius.) Farewell, Kfoenia ! 
 
 Kfoe. Farewell ! 
 
 Dem. (Offering to Jlah her,) Fade, ye blooming 
 rofcs ! 
 
 I^ar. (Rujlymg fuddenly from behind tie Jl age, fword 
 in hand, and fnatching Kfcenia from Bis hands.) The 
 time of thy* arbitrary fway is over. Thy rage is 
 as fruitlefs, as thy threats are vain !^ Heaven mocks 
 thy feeble, pitiful efforts ! A tyrJ^nt, difablwJ and 
 powerlefs, is dreaded by none. "Enough of blood 
 already haft thou ihed. The hour/ of retribution is 
 come ! The people, once more r.^Hored to freedom 
 and liberty, deride the impotent.Tury of the fallen 
 tyrant, from whofe grafp Pror^ence, aiding their 
 
 i^ative 
 
DEMETRIUS, 
 
 Vvaiive courage, has refcued them. Cruelty, injuftiee, 
 -iortures, and bloody executions will now expire 
 yj'ith thee; and accurfed be the wretch that ever 
 ^ \j ives them ! 
 
 Dem. Perfidious traitor !— Perdition feize ye all ! 
 Defcend, my foul, to Hell, and languilh therein ever- 
 Jailing pain. (Stabs binifelf, and fallhg into the hands 
 of attendants,) Oh, that the whole univerfe might 
 perifli with Demetrius ! (Dies.) *• 
 
 THE CURTAIN FALLS, 
 
 ^ -^ THE END. 
 
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