m 
 
STORIES FROM 
 THE RUSSIAN 
 OPERAS 
 
iu 
 
 STORIES FROM 
 
 THE RUSSIAN 
 
 OPERAS. 
 
 BY 
 
 GLADYS DAVIDSON 
 
 Author of 
 
 "Stories from the Operas," 
 
 "Tales from the Woods and Fields," 
 
 etc. 
 
 ^^^ 
 
 PHILADELPHIA 
 ].. B. LIPPINCOTT COMPANY 
 
 M 
 
 ^•^1 
 

 Printed in Great Britain, 
 
I 
 
 PREFACE 
 
 The composers of the Russian Operas have 
 been fortunately placed as regards dramatic 
 and fantastic subjects for the libretti of their 
 operas. The works of their famous poet and 
 romanticist, Poushkin, proved quite a gold- 
 mine for several of them ; and no difficulty 
 appears to have been experienced in finding 
 interesting and happy subjects for their in- 
 spiration. 
 
 The stories selected for this volume are those 
 of the Russian Operas best known to opera- 
 goers in this country, most of them having 
 already been performed in London or else- 
 where. 
 
 The object, as in the case of my former 
 Stories from the Operas^ has been to present 
 all the incidents of each libretto, exactly as 
 they occur in the various acts and scenes, in 
 the clear, readable form of a short story. The 
 work thus serves the purpose of a text-book 
 
 F90 
 
 > / > 
 
vi STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 for opera-lovers, while providing at the same 
 time a collection of dramatic tales of consider- 
 able interest to the general reader, giving 
 glimpses of Russian history and legendary lore 
 and pictures of Russian scenes and character. 
 
 AUTHOR'S NOTE 
 
 It is desired to acknowledge with thanks the 
 information and assistance rendered by Messrs 
 J. & W. Chester, Ltd., of ii Great Marlborough 
 Street, London, W.i, in the preparation of this 
 volume. It is also desired to acknowledge the 
 source of ** Mademoiselle Fill," the libretto of 
 which is based upon Guy de Maupassant's well- 
 known story. 
 
 G. D. 
 
CONTENTS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 Notes on the Operas . . . . x 
 
 BORODIN 
 
 1. Prince Igor ..... i 
 
 GUI 
 
 2. " Mademoiselle Fifi " . . .12 
 
 DARGOMIJSKT 
 
 3. The Stone Guest . . . -23 
 
 MOUSSORGSKT 
 
 4. Boris Godounov . . . .42 
 
 5. Khovanstchina . . . .61 
 
 RACHMANINOV 
 
 6. Aleko ...... 77 
 
 7. Francesca da Rimini . . -84 
 
 RIMSKT-KORSAKOF 
 
 8. A Night in May . . • 97 
 
 9. Ivan the Terrible . . . .118 
 
 10. Mozart and Salieri . . .138 
 
 11. The Golden Cockerel . . • i49 
 
 vii 
 
viii STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 PAGE 
 
 RUBINSTEIN 
 
 12. The Demon . . . . • i75 
 
 STRAVINSKY 
 
 13. The Nightingale . . . .186 
 
 TCHAIKOVSKT 
 
 ■ 14. Eugene Oniegin . . . .193 
 
 Is. Iolanta ..... 206 
 
 16. The Queen of Spades . . .225 
 
LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS 
 
 Remorse and a Guilty Conscience Frontispiece 
 
 (Chaliapin as Boris Codounov) 
 
 Facing page 
 
 The Tartar Maiden dances before her 
 
 Captive Lover ...... 6 
 
 (Mile Nesterosiska as Khonchakovna) 
 
 "FiFi's" Partner i8 
 
 (Mile Dobrovolska as Rachel) 
 
 The Pretender's Queen .... 54 
 
 (Mile Germanova as Marina Mnichek) 
 
 Dositheus calls upon his Followers to 
 
 DIE FOR their FaITH ... .74 
 
 (Chaliapin as Dositheus) 
 
 The Tsar realises that Olga is his Daughter i 30 
 
 (Chaliapin as Ivan the Terrible) 
 
 The Enchantress charms King Dodon . 166 
 
 (Mme Thamar Karsavina as The Queen of Shemakhan) 
 
 The Preoccupied Bride- elect . . .180 
 
 (Mile Drusikina as Tamara) 
 
 Unhappy Memories 202 
 
 (D. a. Smirnoff as Eugene Oniegin) 
 
 IX 
 

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STORIES FROM 
 THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 BORODIN 
 
 PRINCE IGOR 
 
 One day, towards the close of the twelfth century, 
 the great Russian Prince, Igor of Seversk, a mighty 
 and renowned warrior, gathered his fighting men 
 together in the market-place of Poltivle, his capital, 
 preparatory to leading them forth to battle with 
 his hereditary enemy, the Polovtsy, a Tartar tribe 
 equally renowned for their bravery and prowess in 
 the field. 
 
 A vast crowd of the townsfolk had also met in the 
 square for the purpose of giving a rousing send-off 
 to the departing warriors ; and on the steps of the 
 palace stood Igor's wife, the beautiful Princess 
 Yaroslavna, bidding a sad farewell to her royal 
 husband and her son, the handsome young Prince 
 Vladimir, who was to accompany his father to the 
 wars. 
 
 The Princess had vainly endeavoured to prevent 
 her husband from entering upon this expedition, 
 having had a strange foreboding that it would end in 
 disaster ; and the people also tried to hold the warriors 
 in conversation in order to delay their departure, they, 
 too, being depressed by a sense of approaching 
 calamity. 
 
2 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 While the expeditionary party thus tarried in the 
 square an ecHpse of the sun, which fell due that 
 day, came on apace ; and as the light thus vanished 
 and an uncanny darkness overshadowed the heavens, 
 the superstitious people, taking this disturbance of 
 Nature as a certain omen of disaster to their arms, 
 fell upon their knees and implored their Prince to 
 abandon his project and to remain with them. 
 
 Prince Igor, however, was not to be scared by 
 signs and omens ; and having learned that his foes, 
 the Polovtsy, had been driven by another rival prince 
 into the Plains of the Don, he determined to go 
 forward with his plan of meeting them there, expect- 
 ing thus to take them at a disadvantage. 
 
 He, therefore, proceeded calmly to place the affairs 
 of state in the hands of his brother-in-law, Prince 
 Galitsky, and then bade a final loving farewell to 
 his wife ; and as the sun peeped forth once more from 
 behind its enveloping shadow, he marshalled his 
 warriors, and, with his son riding beside him, set 
 forth with them towards the plains. 
 
 In the weary weeks of waiting that followed, the 
 Princess Yaroslavna had to face many difficulties 
 and troubles ; for she soon found that her brother, 
 Galitsky, always a dissolute and licentious prince, 
 now intended to add treachery to his other bad 
 qualities. No sooner did he enter upon his duties 
 as Regent, than he began to plot for the usurpation 
 of his brother-in-law's state. In this piece of bare- 
 faced villainy, he was assisted by two clever rogues 
 
PRINCE IGOR 
 
 named Skoula and Eroshka, who, having deserted 
 from Prince Igor's army, were wiUing enough to 
 accept the bribes now offered them by the base 
 Gahtsky ; and as they were also famed as bards 
 and skilful performers upon the native musical 
 instruments of the period, they were welcome guests 
 wherever they went. Thus were the deserter min- 
 strels, while pursuing a seemingly innocent calling, 
 able to carry the seditious messages of the treacherous 
 Regent into the homes of those inhabitants of the 
 city who were sufficiently base to listen to a scheme 
 for the betrayal of their liege lord. 
 
 While hatching this dastardly plot, the intending 
 usurper did not fail also to employ his powers as 
 Regent in order to pander to his own pleasures ; 
 and by indulging too freely in his libertine vices, he 
 unconsciously brought about the discovery of his 
 secret plot. 
 
 One day, as Igor's faithful wife, the Princess 
 Yaroslavna, sat in the reception hall of the palace, 
 sighing as she thought of her absent lord, a party 
 of young maidens suddenly interrupted her musings 
 by flinging themselves at her feet and entreating 
 her protection, declaring tearfully that one of their 
 fairest companions had been abducted for the amuse- 
 ment of the licentious Regent, Prince Galitsky. 
 
 Greatly distressed at the story told by the weeping 
 girls, Yaroslavna determined to sift the matter to 
 the bottom ; and, on instituting further inquiries, 
 she discovered, in addition, the whole perfidious plot 
 
4 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 for the overthrow of her absent lord which had been 
 set on foot by the treachery of her brother. 
 
 When, therefore, Prince GaUtsky presently entered 
 the hall, followed by the lords of the Court, she 
 denounced him before all as a traitor ; and after a 
 stormy scene, in which she faced his baffled fury 
 unflinchingly, she deprived him of his authority and 
 drove him from the Court with indignation and 
 contumely. 
 
 Even as this painful scene concluded, a terrified 
 messenger from the seat of war hastened into the 
 presence of the Princess, bearing the terrible news 
 that the noble Prince Igor had met with disaster to 
 his arms, the Russian warriors having been utterly 
 defeated by the Polovtsy, and that, worst tidings 
 of all, the Prince and his gallant son Vladimir had 
 been carried away with their remaining followers as 
 prisoners into the Tartar camp. Nor was this all — 
 elated with their victory, the Tartar warriors were 
 even at that moment marching on Poltivle, with 
 the object of sacking the city and reducing its in- 
 habitants to slavery. 
 
 At first, all were stunned by the fearful tidings 
 brought by the distracted messenger ; but presently 
 their patriotic feelings, stirred by this national 
 disaster and increased by the sight of their helpless, 
 grief-stricken Princess, roused the nobles into an 
 outburst of loyal devotion, and, drawing their swords, 
 they bade their liege lady not to despair, swearing to 
 defend her until death should claim them. 
 
PRINCE IGOR 
 
 Meanwhile, the defeated Prince Igor lay chafing 
 in the Tartar camp, even though an honoured prisoner; 
 for his captor, the Khan Khontchah, was an Oriental 
 of the noblest type, and, with the chivalrous spirit 
 of his race, treated the brave enemy now in his power 
 with the utmost courtesy and honour, so that the 
 captive Igor experienced no hardship or indignity 
 but only suffered in spirit from anxiety as to the fate 
 of his fair city and of his beloved wife. 
 
 As for the gallant young Prince Vladimir, he also 
 was treated as an honoured guest ; and his woes were 
 soon forgotten when he was invited into the presence 
 of the Khan's beautiful daughter, Khonchakovna, 
 with whom he quickly fell in love. Nor was it long 
 ere his love was returned ; for the Tartar maiden was 
 instantly attracted by the handsome young captive, 
 and, with the fiery ardour of the East, she readily 
 responded to the eager wooing of the Russian Prince. 
 
 With the magnanimity of a noble conqueror and the 
 courteous hospitality of the Eastern potentate, the 
 Khan ordered a sumptuous banquet to be prepared in 
 honour of his distinguished guests ; and Igor and his 
 son were astonished at the brilliant festivities thus 
 provided for them, which far excelled any entertain- 
 ment of the kind they had ever experienced before. 
 
 After the banquet was over, a number of beautiful 
 dancing girls were introduced into the midst of the 
 company to give an exhibition of the wild barbaric 
 dances of the East, their performance being accom- 
 panied by skilful musicians who played exquisite 
 
 B 
 
6 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 airs upon their weird native instruments. The 
 beauty of these maidens, the grace of their move- 
 ments, and the wonderful music of the players, together 
 with the blaze of jewels and the gorgeous costumes 
 and tent decorations lingered long in the memories 
 of the Russian captives ; and the honour thus shown 
 him helped Prince Igor to bear his woes with more 
 resignation, though he still could not refrain from 
 giving vent to his grief and shame from time to time. 
 On one of these latter occasions he was approached 
 by a renegade Polovtsy soldier, by name Ovlour, 
 who happened to be a Christian, and who, eager to 
 help a captive of his own religion, laid a plan of 
 escape before the Russian Prince, declaring that this 
 would not be a difficult matter to carry out with the 
 assistance he was prepared to give. But the noble 
 Igor, appreciating the kindness and consideration 
 with which he had been treated by the Tartar Khan, 
 felt an equal honour within himself which forbade him 
 to repay the latter's chivalry by thus breaking his 
 parole ; and, though sorely tempted, he proudly 
 declined the offer. He, therefore, continued to 
 endure his captivity with outward resignation, though 
 inwardly chafing at the hard misfortune which had 
 befallen him. Meanwhile, the young Prince Vladimir 
 and the lovely Tartar maiden, Khonchakovna, 
 pursued their love-making under the most romantic 
 conditions, oblivious of what the future might hold 
 for them, and living only for the joyful meetings 
 each present day brought them. 
 
The Tartar Maiden dances before her Captive Lover. 
 
 (Mile Neslerosiska as Khonchakovna.') 
 

PRINCE IGOR 
 
 Some weeks later, the victorious Tartar army 
 returned to the Polovtsy camp, laden with the rich 
 treasures recently taken in the sack of Poltivle, 
 bringing in also many prisoners they had captured 
 after breaking down the defences of the city ; and 
 upon their arrival great rejoicings were held by the 
 victors, banquets were given, and the wildest orgies 
 of dancing, feasting and drinking took place in every 
 tent. 
 
 And now the temptation to escape was more than 
 the wretched Igor could resist ; and the sight of his 
 own men being brought into the enemy's camp as 
 captives and the knowledge that his city had been 
 sacked and that even his beloved wife might be in 
 danger of captivity, stirred his chafing spirits to 
 such a pitch of despair that he determined to accept 
 the renegade's offer of facilitating his escape, feeling 
 now that he was justified in doing so. 
 
 He sent for Ovlour, therefore, and listened eagerly 
 to his daring plans for escape in company with young 
 Vladimir ; and the royal captives arranged to steal 
 out of the camp that same night when the revels 
 were at their highest, knowing well that it would be 
 quite an easy matter to step past the already drunken 
 guards and thus reach the plains in safety, where 
 horses would be waiting for them. 
 
 All the elaborate plans made by Ovlour worked out 
 satisfactorily ; but just as the time arrived for the 
 departure of the runaways, there came an unexpected 
 and unforeseen obstacle. 
 
8 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 The Tartar maiden, Khonchakovna, seeking her 
 lover in accordance with her frequent custom, dis- 
 covered the preparations of the plotters just as they 
 were about to set forth ; and with true Eastern 
 fervour, she passionately entreated Vladimir not 
 to leave her to die of grief and despair, declaring that 
 she could not live without his love. 
 
 The young Russian Prince was now placed in a 
 heart-rending predicament, compelled to choose 
 between love and duty ; and after a hard struggle 
 he stifled for a few brief moments the yearning of his 
 heart, and yielded to the stern pleading of his father 
 who, already mounted, now spurred on his steed. He 
 was about to spring upon his own horse and to follow 
 in filial obedience, when Khonchakovna flung herself 
 upon him, and, winding her clinging arms around his 
 neck, held him back by sheer force, declaring fiercely 
 that she would never part from him while the breath 
 of life remained in her. Nor did the passionate maiden 
 relax her detaining hold upon the lover whom the 
 vicissitudes of war had sent to her until Prince Igor 
 and Ovlour had successfully passed the camp's 
 drunken sentries and had vanished into the darkness 
 beyond ; and then Vladimir, no longer influenced 
 by his father's domination, and realising that his 
 chance of escape had gone, yielded to the dictates of 
 his heart and willingly enough returned to the revels 
 with his beloved one, declaring himself ready to live 
 and even to die for her alone. 
 
 And death came very nigh to him within the next 
 
 / 
 
PRINCE IGOR 
 
 few hours ; for, when morning broke, the escape of 
 Prince Igor was discovered ; and the Tartar soldiers, 
 furious because their own careless revellings had made 
 the escape possible and eager to vent their wrath 
 and disappointment upon the young Prince, seized 
 Vladimir and would have slain him then and there 
 had not the dignified Khan, still true to his benign 
 and noble character, sternly ordered the prisoner's 
 release, observing with true Eastern philosophy that 
 he had a better plan for reconcihng the young Prince 
 to his captivity than putting him to death or even 
 tightening his bonds. " The bonds of Love are 
 stronger than iron bands," he added, as he placed the 
 hands of Vladimir in those of Khonchakovna : " there- 
 fore, he shall be wedded to my daughter, who holds his 
 heart in thrall and from whom he will have no desire 
 to escape." 
 
 So the young Russian Prince was wedded to the 
 Tartar maiden ; and they lived happily together in 
 the sunshine of each other's love. 
 
 Meanwhile, the unhappy Princess Yaroslavna pined 
 and mourned in her lonely palace, which lay partly in 
 ruins ; and though she had escaped from indignity 
 at the hands of the invaders by remaining in hiding 
 until their departure, there now seemed nothing left 
 for her to live for, since she felt that by this time her 
 well-beloved lord and her gallant son were surely 
 dead. 
 
 Every now and again, however, a faint hope would 
 creep into her heart once more ; and then she would 
 
10 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 take food with the few faithful attendants who still 
 remained with her, and would endeavour to cheer 
 herself and them. 
 
 One day, after many weary weeks of waiting had 
 gone by, Yaroslavna went out upon the terrace of 
 the palace, on every side of which lay broken walls 
 and loosened stones to bear witness to the sack of the 
 city by the Tartar hordes ; and as she gazed across 
 the ruined city and over the bare fields beyond, she 
 observed two horsemen approaching at a furious pace. 
 
 At first, fearing that these travellers might prove to 
 be Tartar soldiers returning to effect her capture, she 
 was about to fly to her former hiding-place, when a 
 second glance revealed to her astonished gaze and 
 unbounded joy the fact that the leading horseman 
 was her own beloved husband. Prince Igor, whilst 
 his sole attendant was the faithful Ovlour, who had 
 so successfully arranged the escape. 
 
 A tender and truly thankful reunion took place 
 between the royal pair, whose love and conjugal 
 happiness had ever been of that ideal and edifying 
 quality only enjoyed by the noblest natures ; and 
 after gathering their few scattered followers around 
 them once more, the Prince and Princess entered the 
 citadel to return thanks for their wonderful deliver- 
 ance and to take up the reins of government once 
 more. 
 
 As it happened, the two minstrel rogues, Skoula and 
 Eroshka, who had assisted the traitor. Prince Galitsk3% 
 in his evil schemes, were skulking about the pre- 
 
PRINCE IGOR II 
 
 cincts of the historic edifice as the royal procession 
 approached ; and, in order to save their own skins 
 and to incUne popular opinion in their favour, should 
 awkward questions be asked later on, they hastened 
 to the belfry and set the bells ringing merrily — thus 
 cunningly giving the impression of at least present 
 loyalty by their eager haste to acquaint the scattered 
 populace, by their joyful bell-ringing, of the happy 
 return of the well-beloved Prince Igor. 
 
GUI 
 
 "MADEMOISELLE FIFI" 
 
 During the never-to-be-forgotten January of 1871, 
 when the Franco-German War was raging and France 
 was still suffering the terrible woes of invasion by her 
 hated enemy, a party of Prussians were in occupa- 
 tion of the pretty little village of Uville, where, 
 owing to the bad weather conditions and the exigencies 
 of the moment, they were compelled to remain for a 
 much longer period than they had at first anticipated. 
 
 The invading officers had installed themselves in the 
 fme old Chateau d' Uville as their head-quarters ; 
 and here, greatly to their disgust, they were compelled 
 to pass many weary days of inactivity, without even 
 amusements or distractions of any kind. The tempes- 
 tuous weather and incessant rain made outdoor 
 adventures impossible ; and they quickly exhausted 
 such amusement as was to be obtained by exploration 
 of the chateau and interest in its many wonderful art 
 treasures. In fact, they had no admiration, but only 
 contempt, for the latter ; and they had even applauded 
 the Vandal-like behaviour of the youngest Lieutenant, 
 the Marquis Wilhem Eyrik, in wantonly destroying 
 many of the most beautiful works of art in their 
 temporary abode. 
 
 This latter degenerate youth — who passed by the 
 name of " Mademoiselle Fifi," owing to his effeminate 
 
"MADEMOISELLE FIFI " 13 
 
 appearance, which was accentuated by a fair com- 
 plexion, a small slender figure pinched in at the waist, 
 and a habit of expressing his scorn for things that 
 did not meet with his approval by the contemptuous 
 phrase " fi, fi done " — found real delight and a con- 
 tinual amusement in defacing the treasures about 
 him which had been collected during many years past 
 by the former seigneurs of the chateau. Evidence 
 of his wanton love of destruction was to be found in 
 every room of the castle — more notably so in the 
 large salon which served as the chief meeting-room of 
 the officers. 
 
 In the salon in question he had allowed his vulgar 
 fancy to run riot, and, out of pure wantonness, had 
 slashed the priceless Gobelin tapestries on the walls 
 into ribbons with his sword, and had cracked the 
 crystal chandeliers and mirrors with well-aimed 
 bullets from his pistol. Even the family portraits had 
 been maltreated ; for, adding insult to injury, he 
 had thought it a good joke to stick ugly German pipes 
 into the canvases representing cardinals, judges and 
 knights in armour, in order to vulgarise the aristo- 
 cratic features painted thereon by various master 
 hands. Upon the portrait of a proud lady he had 
 sketched in charcoal a huge pair of German mous- 
 taches ; and other flagrant examples of his insulting 
 attentions were to be seen here and there. 
 
 In this apartment, one day after dejeuner ^ the 
 commanding officer. Major the Comte de Farlsberg, 
 sat smoking and drinking with his subordinates. 
 
14 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 As usual, the junior officers soon began to grumble 
 at the atrocious weather and the deadly dullness 
 of their present monotonous existence. The Major 
 commiserated with them good-naturedly, bidding 
 them follow the example of their young companion. 
 Lieutenant Eyrik, who could always find some way 
 of amusing himself, even if the results were disastrous ; 
 but the young men only showed further signs of 
 restiveness, declaring that the childish amusements of 
 " Mademoiselle Fifi" had no attraction for them. Even 
 the story of Fifi's latest exploit — the exploding of a 
 small mine in the art gallery of the chateau, full of 
 famous pictures, priceless ceramics, carvings and 
 other exquisite works of art, most of which had, in 
 consequence of the explosion, been destroyed — did 
 not restore their drooping spirits ; and seeing that, 
 evidently, they had some request to make of him, the 
 Major bade them unburden their minds. 
 
 The Captain, Baron de Kelweingstein, pushed 
 forward by the others as spokesman, now begged the 
 Major to allow them to indulge in an evening of 
 festivity, and to invite some lively girls from the 
 neighbouring town of Rouen to join them in making 
 merry for a few hours. 
 
 So strong were their appeals, that the good-natured 
 Major — himself secretly pleased at the thought of 
 what promised to be a pleasant respite from the 
 weariness of inaction — agreed to the suggestion. 
 The wily young Captain, fearful lest his senior should 
 change his mind, immediately made the arrange- 
 
"MADEMOISELLE FIFI" 15 
 
 ments for the revels to be held that night, and quickly 
 sent a covered baggage-wagon into Rouen in charge 
 of his own servant, who bore to a rakish officer friend 
 there a note requesting the latter to select a party 
 of the most charming of the light-living ladies of 
 the town and to send them to the Chateau d'Uville 
 in the returning wagon. 
 
 The Major, forbearing to reprimand the Captain for 
 his precipitancy, the prospect of the approaching 
 frolic being equally enticing to himself as to his 
 juniors, directed the young men to go forward with 
 their plans and to see that nothing was lacking for 
 the pleasure of themselves and their lady guests. He 
 then turned aside and gazed out through the open 
 window at the soaked country-side and dripping trees. 
 As his eyes fell upon the belfry of the little village 
 church near by, he was reminded of the defiance of 
 the brave old cur^, the Abb^ Chantovoine, who, as a 
 protest against the invasion of the Prussians, refused 
 to permit the church bell to be rung. The priest 
 was willing enough to act as intermediary between the 
 invaders and his flock, and, by his conciliatory con- 
 duct, saved the latter from many hardships and woes 
 that might otherwise have befallen them ; but he 
 clung boldly and unwaveringly to this one mild form 
 of resistance — the protest of a silent bell, by which 
 he and the humble peasants upheld their national 
 honour. Until the invaders had been driven forth 
 and their land was free once more, the chimes of the 
 village church should not be heard. Strange to say, 
 
i6 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 the Prussian Major, hardened campaigner though he 
 was and ruthless though he might be on other occa- 
 sions, respected this peaceful protest of the good old 
 Abb^, whose gentle courage irresistibly appealed 
 to his better nature ; and he had given instructions 
 that the latter's wishes in this matter should be obeyed 
 by his men. 
 
 This curious clemency on the part of his superior 
 was greatly resented by the hot-tempered, intolerant 
 young Marquis, who was infuriated at the calm 
 resistance of the old Ahh6 ; and not only did he many 
 times call upon the Major to let his men themselves 
 ring the church bell merrily in acclamation of their 
 conquest of the village, but, with all a bully's cowardly 
 love of oppression, frequently begged to be allowed 
 personally to chastise the cur^ and his village sup- 
 porters for daring thus to resist the conqueror in their 
 midst. 
 
 The Major, however, had refused firmly to allow his 
 junior to interfere with the instructions he had given 
 for the old Abbe's wishes to be respected ; and the 
 church bell thus remained silent, while " Mademoiselle 
 Fifi " perforce had to satisf}^ himself with his destruc- 
 tive amusements within the Chateau d'Uville. 
 
 By the time the Major's reverie was at an end, 
 he found that the young men were making lavish 
 preparations for their forthcoming entertainment and 
 were already in riotous spirits. The large dining- 
 table was invitingly laid out for an elaborate supper ; 
 and from the well-stocked cellars below an extravagant 
 
"MADEMOISELLE FIFI " 17 
 
 quantity of champagne and other rich wines of 
 various kinds were brought up for the delectation of 
 the revellers. 
 
 Scarcely were the preparations finished, when the 
 rumbling and bumping of an approaching baggage- 
 wagon announced to the eagerly expectant Prussians 
 that their guests, willing or not, had arrived ; and the 
 officers, shouting with delight at the pleasure now 
 within their grasp, hastened outside, and shortly 
 returned to the room, each escorting a pretty lady upon 
 his arm. 
 
 These girls of the town had, for the most part, come 
 willingly enough ; for they had grown accustomed to 
 the presence of the Prussians in their midst, and, 
 with the philosophic good-humour of their class, 
 were quite content to tolerate the amorous advances 
 of even enemy admirers in return for a good 
 supper and any further payment that might also be 
 offered. Therefore, with one exception only, they 
 entered whole-heartedly into the gaiety of the young 
 men for whose pleasure they had been brought to the 
 chateau, eating and drinking all that was offered to 
 them, and cheerfully enduring the rough and fre- 
 quently insulting caresses of their hosts, laughing 
 loudly at the vulgar jokes and horseplay of the 
 latter. 
 
 The only one among these free-and-easy " joy- 
 girls " who resented the insulting attentions of her 
 partner was a beautiful young Jewess, named Rachel, 
 who, though she had joined the party of girls with 
 
i8 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 seeming willingness and even smiled and danced as 
 she entered the room, had not come with them to 
 the chateau for the same purpose of merely amusing 
 the Prussian officers. Having suffered much shame 
 and loss at the hands of her country's foes, she 
 had seen in this adventure a possible means of 
 securing revenge. 
 
 Rachel had been handed over as a partner to the 
 lively young subaltern, Wilhem EjTik ; and the 
 insolent behaviour of this degenerate youth had 
 quickly aroused her indignation. For " Fifi," though 
 pleased at having secured the most beautiful of the 
 visitors as his prize, yet treated her with the utmost 
 contempt and rudeness ; and the sensitive, high- 
 spirited girl quickly let him see that she hated and 
 despised him for thus displaying his power as one of 
 the conquering Prussians. 
 
 On parading round the room with her as his partner, 
 the insolent youth had bent his head as though about 
 to kiss her, but, instead, had blown a full puff of 
 smoke from his cigar into her face ; and Rachel, 
 angry at such an indignit}^ though remaining silent, 
 had cast such a furious glance upon him that the 
 Major, fearing lest the revel should be spoilt before 
 it had scarce begun, called the young man to order, 
 and invited the party to seat themselves at the supper- 
 table. 
 
 With the enjoyment of unaccustomed luxuries 
 and the lavish supply of champagne, the fun waxed 
 fast and furious ; and it was not long before 
 
"FiFi's" Partner. 
 
 (Mile Dobrovolska as Rachel.) 
 
..?.'-'.%.• 
 
"MADEMOISELLE FIFI " 19 
 
 the revel developed into an orgy of excess and 
 licence. 
 
 However, though her girl companions adapted 
 themselves readily enough to the scene of levity 
 into which they had been introduced, enduring the 
 boorish attentions of their ill-mannered hosts with at 
 least outward good-humour, Rachel stubbornly refused 
 to submit tamel}^ to the rough treatment she received 
 at the hands of Lieutenant Eyrik. The latter had as 
 equal a talent for tormenting as for destroying ; and 
 seeing that the beautiful Jewess objected to his ill 
 manners, it gave him pleasure to tease and aggravate 
 her all the more. 
 
 Consequently, he several times dragged her to his 
 knees, twisting his fingers in the dark curls that 
 clustered around her pretty neck, and pinching her 
 arms and shoulders until her black eyes blazed with 
 increasing anger and disgust ; but still she preserved 
 a contemptuous silence. 
 
 Frequently the young officer was good-naturedly 
 reprimanded by the Commandant, who endeavoured 
 to keep the revel within bounds by calling for noisy 
 drinking songs, in which all the party, with the one 
 exception of Rachel, took part with great hilarity. 
 
 His partner's silence, however, evoked further 
 unwelcome attentions from the young Marquis, 
 who found the girl's increasing contempt both amusing 
 and exasperating, while her dark beauty, enhanced 
 tenfold by her flashing glances and scornful demean- 
 our, became more and more alluring. Suddenly, he 
 
20 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 snatched her in a close embrace and kissed her so 
 long and violently upon the mouth that he even 
 bit into the soft flesh, with the result that a streak 
 of blood appeared on her chin when at last he released 
 her. Furious at this outrage, Rachel again cast glances 
 of hatred upon her brutal partner, as she dipped 
 her handkerchief into water and bathed her bleeding 
 lip ; but she still maintained her silence. 
 
 As the evening advanced the boisterous conduct of 
 the party increased ; for a long series of toasts were 
 now proposed, to which the young men drank so 
 deeply that they soon threw off all restraint and 
 treated their partners more roughly still. 
 
 Though the other girls joined noisily in the coarse 
 hilarity of their hosts, Rachel still endeavoured to 
 remain proudly aloof. The only effect of her disdain- 
 ful glances, however, was to produce guffaws of 
 derisive laughter from the now half-intoxicated 
 Prussians, and, in particular, to increase the irritation 
 of " Mademoiselle Fifi," who, rising unsteadily to 
 his feet and raising an overflowing glass of cham- 
 pagne, drank to the continued success of the Prussian 
 army and to the utter annihilation of the French, 
 calling upon his companions to do likewise. 
 
 The other ofticers all honoured the toast noisily, 
 but Rachel, her patriotic feelings wounded past 
 further endurance, now broke her silence and hotly 
 reminded the Marquis that it was lucky for him no 
 French soldiers were present, or those blustering 
 words would have been crammed down his throat. 
 
"MADEMOISELLE FIFI " 21 
 
 To this, the excited young Prussian repUed con- 
 temptuously that the French were cowards and runa- 
 ways, and that all the men of France were in the power 
 of the victorious invader ; and he added tantalisingly, 
 as he set a glass of champagne on the head of the 
 Jewess : " And all the women of France are our 
 slaves and playthings, too ! Even you, beautiful 
 Rachel, came willingly for my pleasure and embraces, 
 you spitfire Frenchwoman ! " 
 
 " Don't dare to call me by the honourable name of 
 Frenchwoman ! " cried Rachel, her eyes blazing with 
 wrath ; and she raised her head so sharply that the 
 wine-glass was dashed to the ground, and the cham- 
 pagne splashed in a golden shower over her black 
 curls. 
 
 " What are you, then, you fury ? " demanded her 
 tormentor. 
 
 " I am what you brutal invaders have made of me 
 — a creature of the streets ! " cried Rachel, with 
 bitter scorn : " yet am I good enough for a Prussian ! " 
 
 Scarcely had she thus spoken than the young 
 Lieutenant, stung to madness by her scorn, sprang up 
 wildly and struck the girl a savage blow in the face. 
 Immediately, Rachel fell upon him like a tigress, and, 
 snatching a knife from the table, stabbed him in the 
 throat — and, as the young Prussian fell back in a dying 
 condition, she dashed out through the open window 
 which led on to the veranda and made her escape 
 before the dazed officers had time to seize her. 
 
 The Major and his subordinates, sobered by this 
 
 C 
 
22 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 tragic end to their orgy, gathered round the fallen 
 body of their comrade ; and presently as they silently 
 laid the dead body of " Mademoiselle Fifi " upon the 
 hastily cleared table, to their amazement, they heard 
 the solemn tolling of the bell of the old village church. 
 
 Upon demanding of the Abb6 Chantovoine, who 
 entered the room later on, why the sacristan thus 
 disobeyed the order of his superior, the good old 
 man replied humbly : "I cannot refuse to bid him 
 toll the bell for one who has passed away ! " 
 
 Then, falling upon his knees, he offered up a prayer 
 for the soul of his dead enemy. 
 
DARGOMIJSKT 
 
 THE STONE GUEST 
 
 It was evening time in Madrid. Soon the quickly 
 deepening shadows would merge into twilight and 
 darkness would reign over the city until the rising 
 moon cast its shimmering mantle of pale silvery 
 light over the violet depths to reveal the mystic 
 beauty of a perfect summer night. 
 
 The evening strollers were already returning to their 
 homes, and few people were lingering outside the 
 city gates ; but within the cloister enclosures of the 
 famous Monastery at the entrance to Madrid two 
 silent cloaked forms still lurked in the shadowy 
 background, as though anxious not to be seen, making 
 no attempt to join the stragglers now returning to 
 the city. 
 
 These two intruders within the holy precincts 
 were Don Juan, the handsomest and most licentious 
 of all the gay cavaliers of Madrid, and his confidential 
 body-servant, Laporello ; and their reason for thus 
 lurking in the shadows and keeping themselves well 
 out of sight of any chance passers-by was that they 
 were under the ban of exile from the fair city and 
 would be arrested immediately were they seen by any 
 of the officials. For Don Juan was not only famous 
 for his amorous pursuit of numerous fair ladies, 
 
 23 
 
24 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 but also for the deadly skill with which he slew his 
 rivals in the duels and frequent night encounters 
 connected with his audacious love-affairs. 
 
 At the present moment Don Juan was under the 
 darkest cloud that had ever shadowed his scandalous 
 career ; and despite his usual reckless defiance of 
 authority, he was, to his great chagrin, compelled for 
 the time being to move with caution and to consider 
 every step he took. In one of the many desperate 
 duelling encounters for which he was celebrated, he 
 had deliberately slain a Grandee of Spain — Don 
 Pedro, the Commandant, one of the most respected 
 and highly placed officials in Madrid ; and for this 
 evil deed he had been exiled from the city by the 
 King. 
 
 For a few anxious days the shadow of final disaster 
 had hung gloomily over the murderer, who feared 
 for that brief space of time that he might be called 
 upon to expiate his crime upon the scaffold ; but so 
 great a favourite was he with the King — who had 
 himself shared in many of the secret adventures of 
 this gay cavalier — that the latter had decided that 
 justice was sufficiently satisfied by the slayer of the 
 Commandant being banished from Madrid. The 
 family of the Commandant, however — and in par- 
 ticular his young wife, the beautiful Donna Anna — 
 thought otherwise and had sworn vengeance upon 
 the murderer of their distinguished relative, having 
 vowed to kill him should he ever fall into their hands ; 
 and this was the chief danger the venturesome Don 
 
THE STONE GUEST 25 
 
 Juan had to fear as he now lurked on the threshold 
 of the fair city he loved so well. 
 
 He declared this much to the more timorous 
 Laporello, who had accompanied him very unwill- 
 ingly, fearing that they would almost certainly fall 
 into the hands of his master's many enemies ; and he 
 added that he was not afraid thus to defy even the 
 orders of the King, whose most favoured cavalier he 
 well knew himself to be and whose very sentence of 
 exile he believed to have been pronounced solely 
 because of his (Don Juan's) personal danger of sum- 
 mary justice at the hands of the dead Commandant's 
 family. 
 
 " Cease to tremble, my good Laporello ! " he said 
 to his quaking servant. " If the worst comes to the 
 worst and I am captured by the guards, His Majesty 
 will only order me to be banished again — and I shall 
 be no worse off ! Meanwhile, if, under cover of the 
 darkness and before the moon rises, we can manage to 
 slip unnoticed into the city, we may enjoy our accus- 
 tomed nightly pleasures in the secret haunts we know 
 so well, without let or hindrance — for, even at this 
 moment, methinks Don Juan still holds sway over the 
 hearts of more than one fair but frail lady of Madrid, 
 none of whom, for the love she bears him, will be 
 likely to betray him ! " 
 
 This fact Laporello knew to be only too true, since 
 the part of Lothario was ever the role of his unscrupu- 
 lous master, to whom the caresses of fair women and 
 the passionate pleasures of youth were as the breath of 
 
26 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 life. No wonder, therefore, the young nobleman found 
 banishment insupportably irksome, and pined for the 
 sunny days and romantic nights spent in the company 
 of the dark-eyed beauties of Madrid ; and for the sake 
 of enjoying his old pleasures once more for a few hours, 
 he thus boldly defied the law, risking his liberty and, 
 possibly, his life, by venturing into forbidden territory. 
 
 As he moved impatiently amidst the shadows of the 
 cloisters Don Juan whispered to his servant that he 
 now recognised the spot as a place of rendezvous 
 where he used to meet the pretty damsel, Ineza, one 
 of his former conquests ; and he spoke enthusiasti- 
 cally, even regretfully, of the fresh charms of this 
 early victim of his passion, Laporello, well accus- 
 tomed to pandering to his master's many moods, 
 bade him be of good comfort, since there was never a 
 lack of fair ladies for him to pursue ; and he asked him, 
 casually, whom he intended to visit that night — know- 
 ing, from past experience, that his gay lord was never 
 without an assignation. 
 
 " I intend to visit Laoura, the beautiful actress, as 
 soon as we can get within these cursed gates ! " 
 replied his master. " She loves me still, and wiU give 
 me a glad welcome, I know ; and I will learn from her 
 all the news of the town ! How I pine for a goblet of 
 wine and a fair woman's kiss ! Come, let us see if we 
 can make an attempt now to pass the guards, for dark- 
 ness is drawing on apace ! " 
 
 As ill luck would have it, however, at that moment 
 a monk came strolling through the cloisters, who. 
 
THE STONE GUEST 27 
 
 seeing the strangers lurking in the shadows, asked 
 their business, adding : " Are you of the household 
 of Donna Anna, the widow of the murdered Com- 
 mandant ? " 
 
 Laporello quaked on hearing this, but Don Juan 
 calmly replied that he and his servant were merely 
 taking a stroll in the cool of the evening ; and, pre- 
 tending that they were strangers to the town, he 
 inquired further particulars as to Donna Anna and 
 her late husband. The monk, little suspecting with 
 whom he spoke, informed him that the Commandant 
 had been killed by the shameless Don Juan, whose 
 unscrupulous conduct and scandalous orgies were a 
 disgrace to the city and who was now living in exile 
 as a punishment for this last evil deed, which crime, 
 but for the ill-placed favour and leniency of the King, 
 he would by this time have expiated upon the scaffold. 
 
 While Don Juan inwardly marvelled that his ill- 
 fame should have penetrated even to these outlying 
 cloisters the loquacious monk went on to inform him 
 that the murdered body of the Commandant had been 
 buried in the grounds of this same Monastery, and 
 that a splendid monument, surmounted by a statue 
 of the late Grandee, had been erected in honour of 
 his memory by his widow. Donna Anna, who came 
 thither every evening to visit the tomb and to pray 
 for the soul of the good husband she had thus lost in 
 such untimely fashion. 
 
 Astonished at this exhibition of wifely devotion — 
 having heard the gossips say that the dead man had 
 
28 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 been exceedingly jealous of his wife and had always 
 kept a strict guard upon her actions, refusing per- 
 mission for her ever to venture out of doors alone — 
 Don Juan inquired casually if the bereaved lady were 
 pretty ; and on hearing from the monk that the late 
 Commandant's widow was both young and extremely 
 beautiful but that she shunned intercourse with all 
 would-be admirers and wooers, he became intensely 
 interested and desirous of making her acquaintance, 
 flattering himself, with all a libertine's vanity, that she 
 would not long deny herself to him. 
 
 At this moment a lady, clad in deep mourning 
 garments, approached ; and the monk informed the 
 strangers that this new-comer was none other than 
 Donna Anna herself, come, according to her evening 
 custom, to pray at the graveside of her husband. 
 
 In a low, sweet voice Donna Anna requested the 
 monk to open the gate that led to the Monastery 
 grounds ; and the monk having done so she passed 
 through and vanished from sight — but not before 
 Don Juan's inquisitive gaze had discovered that her 
 long black draperies hid a form of voluptuous grace, 
 that, although her face only showed indistinctly 
 through the heavy veil she wore, her eyes were 
 wonderfully large and bright and that her undoubted 
 beauty must certainly be of a very high order. 
 
 With his usual impetuosity, his hot blood fired by 
 the mere thought of this hidden beauty, Don Juan took 
 a hasty step forward, in order to follow and intercept 
 the veiled lady ; but Laporello quickly drew him back 
 
THE STONE GUEST 29 
 
 again, reprimanding him, with an old servant's free- 
 dom, for desiring to intrude, unasked, upon the grief 
 of the widow whose husband he had slain. 
 
 Don Juan, momentarily ashamed, drew back into 
 the shadows, though inwardly vowing to make the 
 acquaintance of the fascinating widow later on. 
 Then, as darkness had now fallen, the two men made 
 their way to the city gates, through which they 
 managed to slip unnoticed just before closing time, 
 and, favoured by the darkness and the long cloaks 
 they wore muffled around them, passed through the 
 streets without comment. 
 
 Leaving his servant in a certain spot with instruc- 
 tions to rejoin him later, Don Juan made his way to 
 the abode of Laoura, the beautiful actress, who was, 
 at this time, the toast of all Madrid. Upon arriving 
 at her house, however, he found it brilliantly illumin- 
 ated ; and knowing that this meant that an enter- 
 tainment was being held within, he was filled with 
 chagrin. Prudently realising that he must not show 
 himself in public when he was believed to be in exile, 
 he decided to remain hidden in the grounds outside 
 until he had seen the guests depart, when he would 
 make his presence known to the hostess, whose lover 
 he had been in the past and who he knew could never 
 resist his advances but would willingly receive him 
 even though she knew him to be under a cloud. 
 
 The popular actress was indeed giving a supper- 
 party to a number of her friends and admirers, among 
 whom was Don Carlos, her latest lover ; and after 
 
30 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 her guests had partaken of the feast she had provided 
 for them, Laoura began to repeat for their further 
 entertainment various extracts from the play in 
 which she had been performing at the theatre that 
 night. Her efforts met with enthusiastic applause 
 from her guests ; and then, eager for their continued 
 admiration, she sang to them a light, dainty 
 song, which they applauded more vociferously than 
 ever. 
 
 In answer to their interested inquiries, she told 
 them that the composer of this song was Don Juan ; 
 on hearing which Don Carlos was moved to sudden 
 anger and reproached his inamorata for caring to 
 sing lines composed by such a villainous reprobate as 
 Don Juan, upon whom he violently called down 
 maledictions, declaring that his own (Don Carlos') 
 young brother had been one of the many duelling 
 victims of this unscrupulous libertine. 
 
 Laoura was greatly offended at this outburst. 
 Having favoured Don Juan in the past, she did not 
 care to hear him ill spoken of ; and, now realising 
 this, Don Carlos, fearing, with a lover's anxiety, lest 
 her smiles should no longer rest upon him, at once 
 apologised for having given way to his jealous anger, 
 and even entreated Laoura to sing the same song 
 again as a proof that she had forgiven him for his 
 lapse. 
 
 The actress, now all smiles once more, willingly 
 enough responded to his request ; and then, when the 
 song came to an end, she dismissed all her guests, 
 
THE STONE GUEST 31 
 
 with the exception of Don Carlos, whom, with a 
 tender glance, she invited to remain. 
 
 When the other guests had all retired Don Carlos 
 began to talk more confidentially with the fair actress ; 
 and upon learning that she was only eighteen years of 
 age, he said to her : " While you are still so young, 
 all the world seems fair, for you have many admirers 
 and lovers and are happy because you wield the 
 mighty, but short-lived, power of youth and beauty ; 
 but, have you ever thought of what will happen when 
 youth and beauty wanes and departs, and admirers 
 no longer crowd to your salons ? " 
 
 Laoura, however, did not wish to speak or even to 
 think of anything so unpleasant as a loverless future, 
 for she was gay and light-hearted and took joy only in 
 the present ; and, feeling suddenly shy, knowing 
 that Don Carlos was about to declare his love for her, 
 she gazed out through the open window and exclaimed 
 at the beauty of the night. 
 
 Just then there came a loud knock at the door ; and 
 next moment Don Juan, having seen the guests depart 
 and imagining that the beautiful actress would now 
 be alone in her apartments, made his way into the 
 house and unceremoniously entered the banqueting- 
 room. 
 
 Laoura uttered a cry of surprise and dismay ; and 
 Don Carlos emitted a curse as he instantly drew his 
 sword and rushed upon the hated murderer of his 
 brother. Don Juan, however, though furious at thus 
 finding Laoura occupied with a new lover, was equal 
 
32 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 to the occasion, and, whipping out his own sword, 
 instantly engaged in a deadly duel with his rival, 
 whom, owing to his wonderful dexterity as a swords- 
 man, he soon stretched lifeless at his feet. 
 
 As Don Carlos fell Laoura shrank back, covering her 
 face with her hands ; but the ever-successful Don Juan, 
 always an adept in such scenes, drew her tenderly into 
 his embrace and led her away into an adjoining room, 
 where she quickly fell under the spell of his personal 
 attraction once more and readily enough received him 
 upon his old footing. 
 
 But Don Juan had not forgotten his sudden infatua- 
 tion for the beautiful Donna Anna, whose half-hidden 
 charms had so fired his imagination, and next evening 
 he repaired to the Monastery at the entrance to Madrid. 
 Here, in the disguise of a monk, he hoped not only 
 to make the acquaintance of the fair widow, but, at 
 the same time, to find a safe refuge from pursuit as 
 the murderer of Don Carlos — for which new crime he 
 was already being sought by the officers of justice. 
 
 With his usual cool daring, he put aside all thought 
 of his own personal danger and gave himself up to the 
 joy and excitement of the fresh conquest he hoped to 
 make. The half-concealed features and graceful form 
 of Donna Anna had impressed and interested him more 
 than he had thought possible, so that he found himself 
 wondering, for the first time in his amorous career, 
 what he should say to the object of this sudden passion. 
 In order to calm himself somewhat, he made his way 
 to the monument erected to the memory of the late 
 
THE STONE GUEST 33 
 
 Commandant and began to admire the excellent 
 likeness and fine detail work of the life-size statue of 
 Don Pedro which surmounted it. 
 
 While he was thus engaged, Donna Anna, still 
 heavily veiled, came through the open gates and made 
 her way to her husband's graveside, where she was 
 much surprised to observe the stranger monk, who 
 immediately raised his bold eyes and gazed so eagerly 
 upon her that, to hide her embarrassment, she turned 
 as though to move away, saying in her soft, gentle 
 voice : " Pardon me, good Father ! I fear I have 
 disturbed your holy meditations ! " 
 
 " Nay, not so ! " replied the pretended monk ; 
 " it is I who must ask your forgiveness for intruding 
 upon your grief and prayers ! " 
 
 Donna Anna now asked the young monk to pray 
 with her ; but, to her amazement, he replied : "I 
 cannot pray with you, fair lady, but, I prithee, grant 
 me the happiness of admiring you while you pray ! " 
 
 These audacious words confirmed the growing 
 suspicion in the mind of Donna Anna, who now threw 
 back her veil and looked searchingly upon the bold 
 stranger, as she said coldly : " The holy Fathers do 
 not speak thus ! You are no monk, sir, and I must 
 request you to leave these sacred grounds immedi- 
 ately ! " 
 
 Don Juan, though his heart leaped at this first 
 revelation of the lovely features of the Commandant's 
 widow, replied humbly that she had indeed guessed 
 the truth and that he was no monk. He added that 
 
34 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 he was a young man of noble birth, and the victim of 
 a hopeless love, having donned his present disguise 
 in order to have the opportunity of gazing upon his 
 adored one, who had no knowledge yet of his passion. 
 
 So bold was the burning gaze she now encountered 
 that Donna Anna quickly lowered her eyes, asking 
 confusedly : " What, then, do you desire, sir ? " 
 
 Don Juan, with affected humility, replied that he 
 was but an unworthy person who deserved not the 
 love of a beautiful lady ; and he added : " All I now 
 wish for, madam, is death, and the privilege of being 
 buried here at the gates of the Monastery, so that 
 your fairy-like footsteps may pass over my grave every 
 evening when you come hither to pray at the tomb of 
 your husband." 
 
 Donna Anna, though truly amazed at the audacity 
 of the bold stranger, could not fail to realise that she 
 herself was the object of his passion ; but, despite 
 the fact that his reckless avowal was not unpleasant 
 to her and that the handsome looks and admiring 
 glances of the young man caused her own heart to 
 flutter strangely, she endeavoured still to speak coldly 
 and reproved him for daring to address her thus at her 
 husband's grave. 
 
 But Don Juan had seen and read in the one short 
 tender glance she had been unable to repress that she 
 was not indifferent to him ; and he was confirmed in 
 this impression when she stopped his next hot flow 
 of passionate words by saying that she could no 
 longer listen to him there, but that he might visit 
 
THE STONE GUEST 35 
 
 her at her house in the evenmg if he had anything of 
 importance to say to her. 
 
 Then, as though afraid of having acted rashly, 
 Donna Anna hastily dropped her veil and hurried 
 away, leaving Don Juan full of triumph in his con- 
 quest and delighted at the prospect of a new love 
 affair. He quickly sought out his servant Laporello, 
 who was waiting in the background, and when the 
 latter reproved him laughingly for his shameless 
 audacity in making love to the fair widow over the 
 grave of the husband he had slain, he dared him to go 
 back and tell the Commandant's statue what was afoot 
 and to invite it to be present also at his meeting 
 with the lovely Donna Anna. 
 
 Laporello, entering into the joke, ran back and 
 delivered his master's invitation, in jocose fashion, 
 to the statue of the Commandant ; but, to his horror 
 and dismay, he observed that the statue actually 
 bowed its head gravely, as though in acceptance of 
 the invitation. Trembling in every limb, he staggered 
 back to his master and related to him the uncanny 
 occurrence in terrified accents ; but Don Juan 
 laughed at the tale, declaring merrily that his servant 
 must be intoxicated, or dreaming, to imagine that a 
 stone statue could move. 
 
 " Nay, master, I tell you the truth ! " declared the 
 quaking Laporello, in a scared whisper. "If you do 
 not believe me, go and see for yourself ! " 
 
 Still laughing at the fears of his servant, Don 
 Juan gaily returned to the monument, and, with great 
 
36 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 bravado, repeated his impudent invitation to the 
 statue to be a guest that evening in his own house 
 and to witness the love-making between his fair 
 widow and his murderer ; and, strange to say, even as 
 he ceased speaking, the statue again bowed its head in 
 acquiescence. 
 
 Sobered by this weird circumstance, Don Juan now 
 allowed himself to be hurried away by his terrified 
 servant ; but though Laporello endeavoured to dis- 
 suade him from keeping the assignation he had made 
 with Donna Anna, his sudden infatuation for the 
 Commandant's beautiful widow was so great that he 
 refused to be deprived of the joy of seeing her again. 
 Besides, the curious chain of circumstances that had 
 led up to the meeting and the mystery connected 
 with the strange movements of the Commandant's 
 statue, which pointed to supernatural agencies being 
 at work, only added zest to what promised to be a 
 delightful and exciting adventure. Later that even- 
 ing, therefore, he repaired, with an eager step and the 
 air of an expectant conqueror, to the splendid mansion 
 still occupied by Don Pedro's widow, into whose 
 presence he was ushered at once and whom he greeted 
 audaciously with all the fervour of an accepted lover. 
 
 But though Donna Anna received him kindly, she 
 appeared to be very sad, weeping frequently as 
 though unable to restrain her grief ; and she begged 
 her visitor to excuse her tears, because her bereave- 
 ment was so recent. 
 
 Don Juan, though he declared that it was happiness 
 
THE STONE GUEST 37 
 
 to him merely to be in her presence, notwithstanding 
 her tears, could not refrain from giving vent to his 
 jealousy for the cause of her grief. Seeing this, 
 Donna Anna reassured him by saying that there 
 was no need for him to be jealous of her tears, as she 
 only wept as though for the loss of a kindly and 
 respected friend ; adding that she had never felt a 
 lover's affection for her late husband, who had been 
 considerably older than she and whom she had been 
 desired by her parents to marry because of his wealth, 
 her own family being very poor. 
 
 To this Don Juan replied that the Commandant 
 must indeed have been happy in having secured such 
 a beautiful wife ; and he added passionately : " Would 
 that / deserved such happiness ! I would gladly be 
 your slave and do your bidding for ever, and would 
 even risk my life for the sake of one smile from you, 
 my beloved lady ! " 
 
 Donna Anna, though she did not look displeased, 
 now turned away her head and declared that she could 
 not listen to such words, for she believed it was her 
 duty to remain true to the memory of her husband. 
 
 " Sweet lady, do not name that virtuous gentleman 
 to me again, I beg of you ! " cried Don Juan, exasper- 
 ated by her constant references to the dead Com- 
 mandant. " Say not that my love is hopeless, but 
 have pity upon me, though indeed I deserve no pity, 
 but, rather, dire punishment at your hands ! " 
 
 " But why should you deserve punishment at my 
 hands ? " demanded the astonished Donna Anna. 
 
 D 
 
38 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 " You have done me no wrong, and I did not even 
 know you before this evening ! " 
 
 Don Juan, reahsing that, in his extravagant reck- 
 lessness, he had gone too far, rephed confusedly that 
 he could not tell her this reason ; but the more he 
 refused the information the more did the beautiful 
 widow persist in her demand, her curiosity being now 
 intensely aroused, so that she reproached him bitterly 
 for refusing to grant her first request, adding almost 
 tearfully that he must certainly have been only 
 deceiving her when he had declared himself willing 
 to be her slave, for he evidently did not care to please 
 her. 
 
 Don Juan was now in a quandary. His sudden 
 infatuation for Donna Anna had already strengthened 
 into a much deeper feehng, so that he hesitated to 
 make himself known to her for fear of being denied 
 the pleasure of ever seeing her again ; but so per- 
 sistently did she importune him that at length he 
 realised that he would have to tell her the truth, 
 since she was bound to learn it sooner or later, and 
 he sought eagerly for the gentlest means of revealing 
 his identity. 
 
 He adroitly turned the conversation round to the 
 subject of her husband's murderer, asking her casually 
 in what way she regarded the shameless Don Juan 
 and how she would treat him should she ever come 
 face to face with him. 
 
 " I hate the vile wretch ! " she cried, indignantly 
 and with great vehemence. " If ever I meet him, I 
 
THE STONE GUEST 39 
 
 will stab him with my poniard and gladly send him to 
 the eternal torments he so well deserves ! " 
 
 " Then, take up your dagger now, madam, and stab 
 me to the heart, for / am Don Juan ! Your enemy 
 stands before you ! " cried the young man, dramati- 
 cally opening his vesture as he spoke. 
 
 On hearing this astounding announcement, Donna 
 Anna, with a cry of horror, fell back in a fainting 
 condition ; and when, after the anxious and tender 
 ministrations of her visitor, she had recovered some- 
 what, she endeavoured to denounce him with a 
 great show of indignation and contempt for one whom 
 she had always regarded as an unscrupulous scoundrel. 
 But the fascination of Don Juan's dazzling personahty 
 and charm of manner was more than she could resist ; 
 and his present air of deep humility and well-simu- 
 lated contrite penitence, coupled with his continuous 
 protestations of love and devotion to herself, made 
 such a great impression upon her that she soon found 
 her righteous anger melting away. She even began 
 to show anxiety for him to get to a place of safety, 
 away from the fear of arrest, declaring that his pres- 
 ence in her house might be discovered at any moment 
 should her friends or relatives appear unexpectedly. 
 
 From this Don Juan rightly gathered that the 
 beautiful widow was by no means indifferent to him, 
 and seizing her hand in a tender clasp he said in his 
 most ardent tones : " Beloved one, your words put 
 hope into my despairing heart ! Your anxiety for 
 my safety proves that at least you do not hate me ! " 
 
40 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 " Alas, it is true ! I only wish it were possible for 
 me to hate you ! " murmured the distracted lady. 
 " I know and feel that I ought to do so, but I find I 
 cannot ! " 
 
 Encouraged and further emboldened by this con- 
 fession Don Juan put his arms around her ; then, 
 saying that he must indeed depart, it not being safe 
 for him to remain longer, he humbly begged her to 
 kiss him once, in token of her forgiveness, so that he 
 might have courage to visit her again another evening. 
 To his joy, Donna Anna, unable to resist his passionate 
 appeal and the promptings of her own heart, returned 
 his embrace with an equal warmth, and for one short, 
 supreme moment, happiness filled the hearts of both. 
 
 But only for one moment, for, even as they em- 
 braced, they heard the heavy measured tread of 
 approaching footsteps, followed by a loud, ominous 
 knock upon the door. 
 
 After a few moments of terrified silence Don Juan 
 opened the door ; and there, to the horror and amaze- 
 ment of the lovers, upon the threshold, stood the now 
 animated statue of the late Commandant, Don 
 Pedro, with a fierce look of righteous wrath upon its 
 marble face ! As Don Juan stepped back involun- 
 tarily the statue said sternly : " You invited me to 
 come hither to-night as your guest and I have come ! 
 Vile murderer and libertine, your end is nigh ! Do 
 you not tremble ? " 
 
 But Don Juan, for all his wickedness, was no 
 coward, and he replied boldly : " No ! I am not 
 
THE STONE GUEST 41 
 
 afraid ! I invited you to come and witness my 
 meeting with this fair lady whom I love ! I now bid 
 you welcome ! " 
 
 " Then shake hands with me ! " commanded the 
 Stone Guest unrelentingly ; and the murderer, with 
 bravado, but powerless to resist, placed his hand in 
 that of the animated statue, which grasped it savagely, 
 and held it as in a vice. 
 
 Then Don Juan shrieked aloud with pain and 
 terror as he now reahsed that justice was at hand and 
 that he must at last expiate his many crimes ; and 
 as the Stone Guest held him in a remorseless grasp 
 and he felt himself becoming stiff and cold, he cried 
 with his last breath : " The end has come ! Farewell, 
 my beautiful and beloved Anna ! " 
 
MOUSSORGSKT 
 
 BORIS GODOUNOV 
 
 A LARGE crowd of the humble people of Moscow and 
 the outlying districts were gathered one evening 
 during the year 1598 in the outer courtyard of the 
 Monastery of Novodievich, near the great capital of 
 Russia. Though the majority of these ignorant, 
 down-trodden peasants had not the slightest idea of 
 the reason why they had been summoned thither, 
 they meekly followed out the directions of certain 
 military officials in charge of them with the same 
 dull, blind obedience that had brought them forth 
 from their homes, unquestioningly, earlier in the day, 
 at the word of command. When the officials sternly 
 bade them sing aloud hymns and prayers of supplica- 
 tion to their " Father, protector and guardian," 
 entreating him not to desert them in their hour of 
 need but to bring them comfort and safety once more, 
 they willingly enough obeyed ; but though they sang 
 out the prescribed words of entreaty lustily, the why 
 and the wherefore of their supplications mattered 
 little to them, because long years of oppression, 
 suffering, and ignorance had made them impervious 
 to everything except their own bodily comforts and 
 discomforts. All they knew was that they had been 
 commanded to sing these songs of supplication and 
 
 42 
 
BORIS GODOUNOV 43 
 
 that if they ceased from doing so they were beaten and 
 cuffed by the officials — therefore, they sang obediently 
 when the latter were close at hand to hear them, 
 and sank back into silent apathy or chattered and 
 squabbled among themselves as to the reason of it all 
 when their prompters were at a safe distance. 
 
 Towards sunset, after they had been singing most 
 of the day, some of the more enlightened among the 
 crowd at length and rightly guessed the reason for 
 their presence and performance, and gradually com- 
 municated the information to the others — that they 
 were there to secure a new ruler for their country, 
 and that by their songs of supplication they were 
 entreating the all-powerful Regent, Boris Godounov, 
 to accept the throne of Russia and to become their 
 Tsar. Little did it matter to them that the ambitious 
 Regent's own secret agents were thus bullying them 
 into entreating him to accept the throne ; all they 
 realised was that they were to have a new ruler — the 
 imbecile Tsar Feodor having just died — and that 
 Boris, the Regent, might just as well be their sovereign 
 as any other tyrant, the more so as they were already 
 used to his rule. Neither did they trouble to re- 
 member the dark rumours that had been rife some 
 years ago and which had whispered the sinister 
 words " murderer " and " regicide " in connection 
 with the Regent's name — all that was over and done 
 with, a tale that was told. 
 
 But for the powerful Boris Godounov himself there 
 was no forgetting, only torturing remembrance. 
 
44 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 When the great Tsar, Ivan the Terrible, had died, 
 his son Feodor had succeeded him ; but as the new 
 Tsar was of weak intellect, Boris Godounov had been 
 appointed Regent. The next heir to the throne was 
 Feodor's young brother, Dmitri, a beautiful boy, who 
 early gave promise of brilliant achievements in the 
 future ; and Boris, who was intensely ambitious, 
 knowing that the half-witted weakling, Feodor, was 
 not likely to live long, soon came to regard the latter's 
 fair young brother as the only obstacle to his donning 
 the purple himself in due course. Already he held 
 the reins of power ; and though power was sweet to 
 the ambitious man, the thought of kingship was 
 sweeter still. The consequence was that the young 
 Dmitri was found dead one morning, stabbed by the 
 hand of an assassin ; and though for a short time 
 suspicion pointed an accusing finger at the brilliant 
 Regent, the latter defended himself so ingeniously 
 that his innocence came to be believed in and his 
 powerful position was unassailed. 
 
 When, therefore, Feodor died in the year 1598 Boris 
 Godounov had little difficulty in securing nomination 
 as his successor, in default of a direct heir to the 
 throne. He took the precaution, however, to send 
 out his secret agents to gather the common people 
 together and to force them to utter supplications 
 to him to become their Tsar, with the idea, chiefly, 
 of impressing the Boyards, or nobles. To give colour 
 to the idea that sovereignty was being thrust upon 
 him by the people against his own wish he at first 
 
BORIS GODOUNOV 45 
 
 cunningly declined to become their ruler — so that the 
 songs and prayers of entreaty had to be renewed 
 with greater fervour still. Then, finally, he feigned 
 to give way to the insistent desires of the common 
 people ; and Boris Godounov was crowned Tsar of 
 Russia amidst great pomp and splendour, and was 
 received by the populace after his coronation with a 
 tumultuous and inspiring song of welcome and adula- 
 tion, in which they called down upon him the heavenly 
 blessings of glory, peace and contentment. 
 
 But although glory and the splendour of a powerful 
 King were certainly added unto him, peace and con- 
 tentment never came to the remorseful soul of Boris 
 Godounov ; for ever and anon the memory of the 
 innocent child, Dmitri, murdered in years gone by 
 to pave the way for the attainment of his earthly 
 ambitions, would rise up to torment his guilty con- 
 science, so that he never knew the joys of a peaceful 
 mind. At the time of his coronation . he had vowed 
 to heaven in a sincere prayer of consecration that he 
 would be a just ruler, and had prayed for wisdom and 
 strength to use well the vast power for which he had 
 paid such a terrible price ; but though he hoped that 
 by exercising mercy he might also receive mercy and 
 absolution for that one dark deed, peace of mind was 
 denied to him, and many were the woes that fell upon 
 him. Though he kept his coronation vows sincerely, 
 happiness did not come to him, and much of the good 
 he desired to do turned to evil. He hoped to make a 
 joyful marriage for his beloved daughter, the young 
 
46 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Tsarevna Xenia, but misfortune overtook his plans 
 and the proposed bridegroom met with an untimely 
 death before the betrothal was consummated. His 
 nobles plotted against him ; famine and pestilence 
 ravaged the land and drove his people to despair ; 
 and finally, after he had reigned for six years, a 
 gigantic conspiracy arose in Poland, from whence 
 there marched a powerful army of rebels supporting 
 an audacious Pretender to the throne of Russia, who 
 succeeded in bringing disaster and death to the 
 conscience-stricken usurper. 
 
 Though Boris Godounov, despite his ever-present 
 remorse and fear of retribution, hoped that his secret 
 crime would never become known and that in the 
 pages of history he would not be branded as a regi- 
 cide, having taken great pains to cover up the traces 
 of his guilt, there was one humble man of peace who 
 knew all and had placed this black deed on record. 
 This humble man, who was to prove himself the 
 Nemesis of Boris, was a pious old monk named Pimen, 
 who was an historian and the most industrious 
 chronicler of his time. In the Monastery of the 
 Miracle, old Pimen would sit up late into the night 
 after his devotions for the day were over, writing out 
 his chronicles in feverish haste, for he always had the 
 fear that he might die before he had completed his 
 great mission, which he believed had been divinely 
 assigned to him — the mighty task of setting forth his 
 country's history in all truth and faithfulness. As 
 his task drew nearer to its close he worked more con- 
 
BORIS GODOUNOV 47 
 
 tinuously than ever, feeling his strength to be waning, 
 and could scarcely be persuaded to take rest at all ; 
 and one night he sat in his cell writing until the dawn 
 and brought his chronicle up to the accession of the 
 present ruler, Boris Godounov. 
 
 As old Pimen worked through the night by the 
 light of a solitar\^ candle, scarcely lifting his cramped 
 hand from the closely written parchment, a young 
 monk, named Gregory, slept in a corner of the cell. 
 Every now and again the sleeper would utter inco- 
 herent words and toss his arms high in agitation, as 
 though excited by some strange dream — as indeed he 
 was. Gregory's young and ardent spirit had not yet 
 been crushed or subdued by his brief monastic life, 
 and he had never been able to beat down the thoughts 
 of the bright world without, where adventure, fame, 
 glory and love awaited those who sincerely sought 
 such earthly joys, and often in his sleep he would 
 dream of these forbidden things. 
 
 Gregory was specially attracted by the gentle old 
 Pimen, who had taught him much of his own learning 
 and whose knowledge of the great world and of the 
 history of the past had a strange fascination for him ; 
 and he would often pass the night in the latter's 
 cell, listening eagerly as the old man read out to him 
 from his chronicle, until, from sheer youthful weari- 
 ness, he fell asleep. This had happened on the night 
 when Pimen had brought his chronicle up to date. 
 When the young monk had at length fallen back into 
 a deep slumber, tired out, he was visited by a strange 
 
48 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 dream which had come to him three times lately — a 
 dream in which it seemed to him that he stood on the 
 pinnacle of a tower with all the people of Moscow at 
 his feet, who at first acclaimed him with rejoicing 
 and praises which later turned to such execrations 
 and mocking laughter and caused him such terror that 
 he fell from the tower to the ground. 
 
 The realistic force of this dream caused Gregory to 
 awaken suddenly as dawn was breaking ; and seeing 
 old Pimen still writing by the light of the now guttering 
 candle, he drew near to him and craved his blessing, 
 telling him of the strange dream that had visited him. 
 He then begged his revered friend to teU him about 
 the wonderful days of his own early youth, when he 
 had beheld and spoken with Ivan the Terrible in all 
 his glory, when he had fought against the enemies of 
 his country, and when he had loved beautiful women, 
 had worn sumptuous garments, and had eaten at 
 splendid banquets. Old Pimen smiled indulgently at 
 the eagerness of the youth, reminding him that such 
 earthly joys were but vanity, and that even the 
 magnificent Tsar Ivan had known sorrow ; and he 
 added that the present ruler, Boris, though outwardly'' 
 glorious and seemingly to be envied, was inwardly 
 filled with the wretched and ever-present remorse of a 
 regicide. But Gregory was not thus to be put off 
 from indulging the natural longings of youth by these 
 gloomy pictures, and he eagerly asked for further 
 information about the murdered Tsarevich, Dmitri, 
 and of what age he would have been at the present 
 
BORIS GODOUNOV 49 
 
 time — for old Pimen had related all the circumstances 
 of this crime to his young companion, whom he desired 
 should continue his chronicle after he himself had been 
 called to his long rest. The good Pimen replied that 
 had the young Dmitri lived, he would now have been of 
 the same age as Gregory himself. Then, as the voices 
 of their brother monks were now heard in the adjoining 
 chapel chanting their early morning prayers for 
 grace, the old chronicler, though weary and tottering 
 from his all-night labours, reached for his staff and 
 departed with his young companion to take part in 
 the devotions of the day. 
 
 But though Gregory knelt with the good brethren 
 and appeared to be joining in their prayers and chants, 
 his thoughts we^-e far away ; for an audacious and 
 daring scheme had suddenly presented itself to him, 
 and his quick, active brain was already planning 
 how to carry it out. The murdered Dmitri would 
 now have been of his own age had he lived — why, 
 then, should not he, Gregory, appear in Russia and 
 impersonate that royal youth, giving out to the 
 world that though news of his untimely death had been 
 circulated years ago, he had not been murdered as 
 then believed but had been hidden in a monastery 
 until the present time, when, learning his true identity 
 accidentally, he had effected his escape and had come 
 to claim the throne usurped by Boris Godounov ? 
 Even though his representation would be a fraud, was 
 not the deception justified if he brought retribution 
 upon the criminal Boris ? Was it right or seemly that 
 
50 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 a regicide should reign as Tsar of Holy Russia, when 
 he, Gregory, an innocent young man who had never 
 sinned, would be a more worthy ruler, and had now, 
 by means of the knowledge revealed to him in old 
 Pimen's chronicle — at present a secret known to no 
 one else — the chance of thus avenging the assassinated 
 royal youth, and, at the same time, of fulfilling his 
 own ambitions and aspirations ? 
 
 The more the adventurous Gregory considered this 
 stupendous scheme, the more determined he became 
 to carry it out ; and night and day he thought out 
 his plans, arranging all his subsequent actions care- 
 fully beforehand. From the conversations he had 
 held with old Pimen in regard to the political situation 
 of the country, he concluded that the most advan- 
 tageous spot from whence to launch his career as the 
 Prince Dmitri would be Poland ; for the Poles had 
 ever been at variance with their Russian rulers and 
 were at the present time in a state of great disaffection 
 against the reigning Tsar, Boris. They would, there- 
 fore, be the more willing to accept the story he had 
 concocted and to gather around him an army of 
 rebel supporters to march against the usurper, whom 
 they already hated. Having thus boldly planned, 
 Gregory's first step was to find a suitable opportunity 
 of escaping, unnoticed and unsuspected, from the 
 monastery where he had lived since his early child- 
 hood. 
 
 After patiently waiting for some considerable time 
 a chance at length presented itself ; and the young 
 
BORIS GODOUNOV 51 
 
 monk, Gregory, slipped out from the monastery 
 grounds in the dead of night and started forth upon 
 his adventurous career as Pretender to the throne of 
 Russia. He was strong and of a good courage, and 
 had, moreover, infinite faith in his own powers and 
 such absolute confidence in the story he had to tell 
 that he came almost to believe himself actually to be 
 the long-lost Dmitri. Strange to say, so successful 
 was his audacious imposture, so well-conceived were 
 all his plans and so remarkably did circumstances and 
 events play into his hands, that he actually attained 
 to the height of his ambition and sat upon the throne 
 of Russia upon the death of Boris, reigning as Tsar 
 for a short time until he, in his turn, was cast down 
 from the pinnacle of glory to which he had so pre- 
 sumptuously aspired and was slain with his adherents 
 — so that the warning prophecy given to him in the 
 strange dream that had visited him three times in 
 succession before he started upon his mad adventure 
 was fulfilled in all its details. 
 
 After escaping from the monastery Gregory first of 
 all fell in with a coUple of roving friars, named Var- 
 laam and Missail, who, though wearing the ragged 
 garb of holy pilgrims, and having once upon a time 
 probably been attached to some monastery, were now 
 merely vagabonds, wandering from place to place and 
 securing a precarious living by begging alms and food 
 at the homesteads and inns they passed on their way. 
 These two vagrants were willing enough to admit 
 Gregory to their companionship for a short time. 
 
52 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 wisely refraining from asking him awkward questions, 
 and feeling that his respectable garb as an orthodox 
 monk would certainly secure for them better hospi- 
 tality and consideration than they were accustomed 
 to enjoy, owing to their own disreputable appearance. 
 The three travellers, therefore, journeyed on together 
 for some considerable distance ; but on reaching a 
 certain inn on the Lithuanian frontier, circumstances 
 compelled them to part company. Here they were 
 received very graciously by the hostess of the inn, 
 who had great reverence and respect for such " holy 
 hermits," as she termed them, and who spread before 
 them a gratuitous meal with plenty of her best wine 
 in which to drink her health. 
 
 Although the two vagabonds drank deeply and made 
 merry with the good wine and food secured for them 
 by the respectable appearance of their travelling 
 companion, Gregory himself remained silent and 
 refused to join in their revels, for he was full of 
 anxiety and knew that he would not be safe from 
 pursuit until he entered Lithuania and could discover 
 himself to the leading Polish nobles as the long-lost 
 and presumably murdered Tsarevich Dmitri. He 
 therefore questioned the hostess as to the roads that 
 led into Lithuania and also learned from her a piece 
 of very disconcerting news, namely, that during the 
 last few days parties of guards had appeared in the 
 neighbourhood searching for a " young heretic who 
 had escaped from a certain monastery near Moscow 
 and who was believed to be attempting to cross over 
 
BORIS GODOUNOV 53 
 
 the border that he might enter into some conspiracy 
 with the Poles." Knowing well enough that this 
 runaway could only be himself, he was about to beat a 
 hasty retreat when a party of the soldiery entered the 
 inn at that same moment and roughly began to 
 question the hostess as to the identity of the three 
 guests whom she designated " holy hermits," which 
 designation they were inclined to doubt. They 
 produced an edict which set forth a full description of 
 the " escaped heretic " whom they stated they were 
 searching for ; and as the guards themselves were too 
 ignorant to read what the edict contained, they com- 
 manded the " friars," being men who were supposed 
 to have some learning, to read forth the written matter 
 upon the parchment. 
 
 Gregory eagerly took up the document and pre- 
 tended to read out what it contained, cunningly 
 painting the portrait of a person similar in appearance 
 to the rogue Varlaam. The guards thereupon seized 
 the terrified vagabond, declaring that they had orders 
 to hang the runaway immediately when caught. 
 Then Varlaam, in self-defence, declared that he also 
 had a fair knowledge of written characters, and upon 
 the document being handed to him to read, he spelled 
 out slowly the true description written therein, which 
 description could not be taken for anyone else but 
 Gregory. Finding, therefore, that he could no longer 
 deceive the guards, the young monk drew a dagger 
 to defend himself and made his escape through the 
 window. Although the astonished soldiers pursued 
 
 £ 
 
54 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 him for some distance, he managed to outrun and 
 elude them, and being now well advanced into Lithu- 
 ania he had no further fear of danger from pursuit, 
 but at once proceeded thence to Poland and set about 
 his mighty task of establishing his false identity as 
 the long-hidden Tsarevich Dmitri. 
 
 The Poles received the j^oung stranger and his 
 clever story with surprisingly credulous cordiality 
 and accepted him willingly enough as Pretender to 
 the throne of Russia under the supposed identity of 
 the Tsarevich Dmitri, and the powerful nobles of 
 Poland gathered a large army together in support of 
 his claim and were full of eagerness to march with him 
 against the usurper Boris, whom they hated. Con- 
 sequently, the enterprising young monk soon found 
 himself a person of the greatest importance and power, 
 and settled down to the excitement of his new and 
 dazzling position with the utmost ease and the keenest 
 enjoyment, as though indeed born to such great 
 honours. He was received all over Poland with 
 astonishing acclamations ; and as the months went 
 on his strength and followers grew apace until at 
 last he felt he might relax his efforts for a while and 
 take a short spell of rest and pleasure before making 
 his final raid into Russia, as success now seemed 
 certain. 
 
 At this time the young Pretender was living quite 
 royally in the gay city of Sandomir ; and here he 
 succumbed to the counter-attraction of love, which at 
 one time threatened to turn him aside from the path 
 
The Pretender's Queen. 
 
 (Mile Germanova as Marina .Vnichel'.) 
 
C < C I c « 
 
 «. c ' ' » ^ ' 
 
 < « C-C » < 1 
 
BORIS GODOUNOV 55 
 
 of ambition. He fell passionately in love with 
 Marina Mnichek, the beautiful and fascinating 
 daughter of the Voyevode of Sandomir ; and loving 
 with all the ardour of early youth and an intensely 
 romantic nature brought suddenly into contact with 
 that all-devouring flame, he ceased for the time being 
 to give even a thought to his mission, being content to 
 experience only the lover's rapture of reciprocated 
 passion, and would fain have dallied for ever in the 
 company of the fair maiden who thus enthralled him. 
 But the beautiful Marina, though she returned his 
 love with equal passion, was also intensely ambitious ; 
 and with all the art and persistence of a clever woman, 
 while returning her lover's caresses, she would not let 
 him forget the brilliant future in store for him, which 
 she meant to share. Marina herself had the regal 
 bearing and the proud manner of a woman born to 
 command, and in the Pretender Dmitri she had 
 instantly recognised one who could bring within her 
 grasp the power she loved and coveted to wield. 
 Already picturing herself reigning with him upon the 
 throne at Moscow, the beautiful Marina, therefore, 
 eagerly listened to the love declarations of the young 
 Dmitri, but, while returning his love, kept ever before 
 him his dazzling mission. 
 
 In this effort Marina was strongly supported by a 
 fiercely fanatical priest, Rangoni by name, who 
 entreated her to lay siege to the heart of the young 
 Pretender and to use him as the means of establishing 
 once more the waning faith in Russia. At first 
 
56 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Marina proudly resented the idea of thus exploiting 
 her love for the benefit of her country's religion ; but 
 upon the angry priest's stern threats should she dare 
 to disobey or question the Church's command, she 
 was cowed and humbly agreed to use her influence 
 in the way demanded. Therefore, she encouraged 
 Dmitri to meet her secretly, that his passion might be 
 the more inflamed ; and when he spoke to her only of 
 love, she reproached him for thus dallying and wasting 
 his time in pleasure when he should be driving forth 
 the usurper Boris and be crowning his ambitious 
 career by seizing the throne of Russia and taking up 
 the reins of power. When Dmitri declared with a 
 lover's fondness that all he now desired was her love, 
 she would answer passionately : " Nay, I want not the 
 embraces of a laggard ! Seize the throne of Russia 
 and make Marina thy Queen, and then she will love 
 thee ! " On hearing this Dmitri would be hrurt that 
 his beautiful mistress should thus seem to care for 
 power more than for his love ; and then Marina would 
 fling her arms around his neck and declare that it was 
 her great love that made her ambitious for him, and 
 would thus skilfully lead him back to the enterprise 
 he had embarked upon. 
 
 While the great rebellion was thus progressing, 
 Boris Godounov became more and more a prey to 
 remorse and a guilty conscience ; and even in the 
 presence of his beloved children he could not shake off 
 the memory of his evil deed, nor the dark forebodings 
 of coming disaster. One day he appeared suddenly 
 
BORIS GODOUNOV 37 
 
 in the apartment of the royal children and surprised 
 the young Tsarevich Feodor in the midst of a merry 
 clapping game with his old nurse ; but though he 
 smiled at the child's eager enjoyment the sight could 
 not drive away his sadness. He saw that his beloved 
 elder child, the Tsarevna Xenia, who was present also 
 on this occasion, was still grieving and weeping for the 
 untimely loss of her betrothed husband ; and after 
 dismissing her with a few tender words of comfort, 
 he endeavoured to forget his own woes for a short time 
 by encouraging the little Tsarevich to talk with 
 him. 
 
 The artless prattle of his child, however, was 
 presently interrupted by the hurried entrance of his 
 chief adviser, Prince Shouisky, who came to announce 
 in great agitation that he brought news of a serious 
 rebellion — that a Pretender had arisen in Poland and 
 was already marching into Russia at the head of a 
 gigantic army ; adding in an awed tone that it was 
 whispered among the common people that this bold 
 leader was none other than the young Tsarevich 
 Dmitri come again. Turning pale as death, Boris 
 quickly sent away his little son, and in agitated tones 
 demanded further particulars from the Boyard, whom 
 he then dismissed ; but as Prince Shouisky left the 
 apartment he glanced back and beheld a strange 
 sight. The conscience-stricken Tsar was crouching 
 in a comer, and, with outstretched hands, appeared to 
 be trying to keep back some unseen person — the 
 spectre of his own diseased mind, the murdered child. 
 
58 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Dmitri, whom he now called out upon in agonised 
 tones : " Torment me not with the sight of thy 
 wounds ! Begone and leave me in peace ! " 
 
 The great rebellion now rapidly spread as a huge 
 forest fire, and when the false Dmitri entered Russia at 
 the head of his great Polish army thousands flocked to 
 his standard. The oppressed peasantry received the 
 Pretender with joyous acclamations, and, defying the 
 established authorities, indulged in many acts of law- 
 lessness and licence. When opportunities occurred 
 they seized the partisans of Boris and ill-treated them ; 
 nor did they hesitate to torment and pile indignities 
 upon any of the Boyards who were unfortunate enough 
 to fall into their hands, in revenge for the latter's 
 oppression of them in the past. In one village where 
 an orgy of this kind occurred, the vagabonds Varlaam 
 and Missail took part in the tormenting of an elderly 
 Boyard and two Jesuit priests — which vile enter- 
 tainment was suddenly brought to an end by the 
 timely arrival of the Pretender Dmitri himself, who 
 sternly forbade the repetition of such excesses ; and as 
 his brilliant cavalcade departed on its way, followed 
 by the excited rabble, the village idiot — who had 
 himself had to submit to much teasing and rough 
 treatment — was left lamenting the woes of his native 
 land. 
 
 As the triumphant army of the Pretender, conquer- 
 ing all before it, drew nearer to Moscow, a special 
 meeting of the Duma was hastily summoned ; and as 
 the Boyards gathered together with anxious faces. 
 
BORIS GODOUNOV 59 
 
 waiting for the arrival of their ruler, whose counsel 
 they eagerly desired in this moment of peril, Prince 
 Shouisky entered hurriedly in great agitation to tell 
 them that the Tsar appeared to be in a disturbed state 
 of mind. He then related to them the story of the 
 strange mutterings and actions he had observed when 
 last in his presence — the conduct of a man with a 
 guilty conscience. While they thus conferred to- 
 gether Boris Godounov staggered into the council 
 chamber in disordered attire, and, with wild gestures 
 and distracted mien, beat the air as though to shut 
 out from his sight some fearful vision, shrieking aloud 
 in the tones of a madman : " Begone, thou bleeding 
 child, Dmitri ! Who dares to say I murdered thee ? 
 They say thou art still living ! Why, then, dost thou 
 haunt me still ? " 
 
 AstheBoyards gazed upon their distraught monarch, 
 in sorrow and amazement at this strange outburst, 
 Boris gradually recovered somewhat and spoke to 
 them in a more rational manner ; and when Prince 
 Shouisky informed him that an old monk waited 
 without and desired to speak with him, he commanded 
 that the stranger should enter, hoping that the good 
 old man of God might bring comfort to his tortured 
 mind. 
 
 The stranger monk proved to be old Pimen, who, 
 gazing fixedly and accusingly upon the unhappy Tsar, 
 related to him the story of a miracle that had just been 
 wrought, whereby an old blind shepherd had recovered 
 his sight upon uttering a prayer at the tomb of the 
 
6o STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 murdered Tsarevich Dmitri, whose childish voice he 
 beheved had spoken to him from the grave. 
 
 On hearing this the conscience-stricken and remorse- 
 worn Tsar fell back unconscious ; and seeing that he was 
 in a dying condition the Boyards gathered around him 
 and sent for the young Tsarevich Feodor, at the same 
 time calHng the priests to minister the last rites to 
 him and to cause the passing bell to toll. 
 
 The dying monarch recovered sufficiently to bestow 
 his blessing upon the young prince, and to pray that the 
 protection of heaven might rest upon him ; and then, 
 as the chants of the priests arose, with a last faint 
 prayer for his own forgiveness, the soul of the unhappy 
 but repentant Boris Godounov passed away. 
 
MOUSSORGSKT 
 
 KHOVANSTCHINA 
 
 In the early days of the mighty Tsar, Peter the Great, 
 the Russian people suffered much, and misery and 
 strife were rampant ; for during the long minority 
 of this afterwards brilliant monarch and his brother, 
 Ivan, who at that time shared the throne as joint 
 Tsars, many rebellions and changes of government 
 took place, and the unhappy people were forced to 
 submit to the misrule and tyranny of first one powerful 
 party or individual and then another, each of whom 
 snatched power for a certain time and enjoyed it to 
 the full, until another and stronger hand snatched it 
 away again. 
 
 During the year 1682 a great crisis was close at 
 hand. The beautiful city of Moscow was rife with 
 insurrection and the people were torn in twain knowing 
 not whom to serve in order to protect themselves ; 
 for, at this time, there were two powerful leaders, 
 whilst the Boyards, or noblemen, formed a third party 
 — and dl\ were strong, unscrupulous, and greatly to be 
 feared. 
 
 Prince Galitsin, the Prime Minister, had for many 
 
 years held the chief power in the land, ruling as the 
 
 representative of the two youthful Tsars and enjoying 
 
 the somewhat doubtful favour of their Regent sister, 
 
 ci 
 
62 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 the Tsarevna Sophia, who had chosen him not only as 
 her chief official but also as her lover ; and he had 
 thought to consolidate his position and the authority 
 bestowed upon him by his royal mistress by restricting 
 the powers of the haughty and lawless nobles, who 
 furiously resented his ruthless curtailment of their 
 ancient feudal privileges and means of wealth. 
 
 For several years the Boyards fretted and fumed 
 under the yoke of the tyrant Prime Minister ; and then, 
 one of the strongest and proudest of them all, Prince 
 Ivan Khovanstky, who traced his ancestry back to a 
 Lithuanian sovereign, gathered a following of his own 
 together in opposition to the rule of Prince Galitsin, 
 and proved a formidable rival, many of the nobles and 
 the majority of the oppressed populace — who dared 
 not do otherwise — ^joining his ranks. As Commander 
 also of the famous Streltsy or Archer Guards he 
 engendered fear in the hearts of all who opposed him ; 
 for he permitted his own men unlimited licence, so that 
 they committed all kinds of excesses and cruelties 
 in the name of order and were the terror of the whole 
 community. 
 
 Khovanstky's handsome son, Prince Andrew, was 
 a wild young libertine, willing to take part in any 
 roystering carousal or vicious orgy ; and the two 
 Khovanstkys soon caused keen anxiety to the schem- 
 ing Prince Galitsin, who, with ill-concealed dread, saw 
 them snatching at and seizing his own already waning 
 powers. 
 
 But the sudden rise and wonderful success of the 
 
KHOVANSTCHINA 63 
 
 Khovanstkys was not attained without bringing upon 
 them the jealousy and hatred of most of the other 
 great Boyards who now found themselves smarting 
 under the heels of two tyrants instead of one ; and 
 many of them retired to the country Court of the 
 Tsarevna and began to plot there for the overthrow of 
 their rivals and to ingratiate themselves with the 
 youthful sovereigns by reveahng the misrule and 
 tyranny of both powerful parties. 
 
 The result was that, early one morning, one of these 
 injured and jealous Boyards, by name Shaklovity, 
 entered Moscow at sunrise and accosted a scrivener in 
 the famous Red Square near the Kremlin. He bade 
 the man write out a letter for him, to be addressed to 
 the two youthful Tsars, and which was to the effect 
 that a plot was being hatched against their rule and 
 welfare by the powerful Khovanstkys, who had 
 already gathered a great following together and were 
 endeavouring to raise a rebellion by fostering discon- 
 tent amongst the citizens and the troops, and even 
 stirring up the peasants in outlying districts. The 
 letter added that when the plotters had thus safely 
 ignited this consuming fire of sedition they intended to 
 overthrow the government by the further aid of a 
 certain religious sect known as the Old Believers, and 
 then to depose the two young monarchs and to set 
 Prince Andrew Khovanstky on the throne in their 
 stead. 
 
 Leaving this indictment unsigned and refusing to 
 reveal his identity to the curious scrivener, Shaklovity 
 
64 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 snatched the document from the latter's hand, and 
 after paying him for the work, conjured him never to 
 reveal the fact that he had written it or had ever set 
 eyes upon its author, under the threat of enduring 
 terrible tortures and banishment. 
 
 As the scrivener fell back a few paces, pale and 
 trembling at the awful threats he had heard and wish- 
 ing that he had never consented to write so dangerous 
 a document, Shaklovity hurried away to seek a 
 messenger to deliver the letter that should bring 
 about the downfall of the hated Khovanstkys ; and 
 at that moment a number of the latter's famous 
 Archer Guards, the Streltsy, hastened into the square 
 pell-mell, followed by crowds of the populace who were 
 the followers of their leader, in honour of whose 
 approach they now began to sing a song of welcome 
 and praise. 
 
 Almost immediately there followed Prince Ivan 
 Khovanstky himself, who entered the square with a 
 proud and haughty air, receiving the song of welcome 
 and the fulsome praises of the people with disdainful 
 complacency. When their song of welcome was 
 ended he called on them to assist him in crushing the 
 tyranny of the Prime Minister and the lawlessness of 
 those Boyards who had not joined his own standard — 
 all of whom he declared to be traitors to the youthful 
 Tsars, whilst he, himself, they might regard as their 
 protector. 
 
 While the meek populace thus listened to the 
 harangues of his father and obediently sang his 
 
KHOVANSTCHINA 65 
 
 praises, young Prince Andrew, in a quieter and less 
 frequented spot not very far distant, was enacting 
 the tyrant in another way — the way of a licentious 
 bully, who sought to satisfy his selfish passions by 
 brute force. He held in his arms a young girl, Emma, 
 whom he had discovered in the German quarter of the 
 town, and whose beauty and freshness had inflamed 
 him with a sudden lawless passion ; and although the 
 unfortunate girl protested in agonised tones and 
 struggled to escape from her tormentor, he only held 
 her the closer and kissed her the more fiercely. Prince 
 Andrew laughed derisively at her pitiful requests to be 
 released, for he had exercised great effort and cunning 
 in putting aside all obstacles to his pursuit of this 
 girl. He had caused her father to be slain, her true 
 lover he had exiled, and her mother's pleas for mercy 
 he had refused to listen to. And now that he held 
 the lovely maiden in his actual grasp he intended to 
 compel her to yield to his desires. It was in vain that 
 poor Emma declared she knew him to be Khovanstky, 
 the wrecker of her home and the enemy of her lover, 
 and entreated him now to slay her, since she preferred 
 to die rather than to endure his embraces. Her 
 protestations, however, only inflamed the young man's 
 passion the more ; and he, in his turn, entreated her 
 to accept his love, while still holding her firmly in his 
 grasp. 
 
 Just as Emma's strength was beginning to fail, a 
 sudden interruption occurred. There came past that 
 way a young widow, named Martha, who was a 
 
66 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 prominent member of the religious sect known as the 
 Rasskolniki, or Old Believers. Only a few weeks ago 
 this young woman had herself been the beloved 
 mistress of Prince Andrew Khovanstky, who, though 
 he had once professed undying love for her — which she 
 had passionately returned — had carelessly cast her 
 aside when his infatuation waned. Seeing that he 
 now held another struggling victim — and an unwilling 
 one this time — in his arms, Martha accosted him 
 sharply, reproaching him for his faithlessness and 
 for thus wantonly seeking the ruin of the unhappy 
 and helpless Emma. 
 
 Stung and infuriated by the just reproaches of his 
 cast-off mistress, Prince Andrew loosened his hold upon 
 Emma, who quickly shrank back, still half-stunned by 
 terror ; and then drawing a dagger, he furiously flung 
 himself upon the young widow and attempted to 
 stab her. Martha, however, was ready for him, and 
 knowing well the desperate character of the man she 
 had to deal with, she, in her turn, swiftly drew a 
 dagger from the folds of her own garments and skil- 
 fully parried the blow. 
 
 As Prince Andrew fell back, angry and baffled at 
 this unexpected set-back to his murderous onslaught, 
 the obsequious crowd of laudatory supporters attached 
 to his lawless father's retinue drew near, followed by 
 that haughty noble himself ; and the young Prince 
 Andrew, unable to escape, was compelled to await 
 the approach of the party. 
 
 Prince Ivan Khovanstky greeted his son and 
 
KHOVANSTCHINA 67 
 
 Martha, recognising in the latter an important member 
 of the sect of Old Believers, with whom he was anxious 
 to ingratiate himself ; and then observing the tremb- 
 ling Emma, and being greatly struck with her fresh 
 young beauty, he commanded one of the archers to 
 seize the girl and hold her in readiness for his own 
 pleasure. 
 
 On hearing this, Prince Andrew passionately remon- 
 strated with his father, declaring that he dearly 
 loved Emma and that he had secured her for himself ; 
 but seeing that Prince Ivan was not likely to yield to 
 his protestations, he resolved that Emma should not 
 be taken from him alive, and was just about to stab 
 the terrified maiden when Dositheus, the revered 
 leader of the Old Believers, appeared on the scene, 
 and, quickly grasping what was afoot, fearlessly took 
 matters into his own hands. Calmly Dositheus bade 
 Martha lead Emma away to a place of safety ; and 
 when the two women had departed he began to 
 reproach the Princes Khovanstky for their undignified 
 conduct in quarrelling at a time when all their energies 
 and thoughts should be given to righting the wrongs of 
 the people and to firmly establishing the old religion 
 in view of the schism in their midst. 
 
 Prince Ivan, inwardly fuming at this interruption, 
 but not daring at the moment to protest, since he 
 desired the assistance of the Old Believers in his own 
 political schemes, called upon his archers and retired 
 with the best dignity he could to the Kremlin, fol- 
 lowed by the now downcast Prince Andrew, who, like 
 
68 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 all bullies, had but little real courage. When the 
 brilliant party had departed the calm Dositheus, who 
 was an elderly and truly sincere leader of his flock, 
 addressed the humble people gathered around, entreat- 
 ing them, with the passion of the fanatic, to cling fast 
 by their religion and to be willing even to die for its 
 sake. 
 
 While these scenes were taking place Prince Galitsin, 
 in his splendid mansion, was sitting alone in a pleasant 
 summer chamber that opened out into a beautiful 
 garden beyond, where sweet-smelling flowers still 
 glowed brightly in the golden rays of the setting sun ; 
 but, despite the fairness of the scene he gazed out upon, 
 the Prime Minister's thoughts were dark and gloomy. 
 He held in his hand a love letter he had just received 
 from the Tsarevna, which, however, brought neither 
 joy nor comfort to his heavy heart. He doubted the 
 sincerity of its extravagant expressions, and reasoned 
 within himself, rightly enough, that with such a 
 woman, when passion wanes, coldness and disfavour 
 quickly follow — and then woe betide the unfortunate 
 lover she has tired of ! 
 
 As Galitsin thus contemptuously decided not to be 
 deceived or lured into rashness by the present warmth 
 of the epistle he held in his hand — little dreaming, how- 
 ever, that the fickle writer was already showing favour 
 to his enemies and turning a listening ear to their plots 
 for his downfall — his attendant entered, ushering in 
 the Old Believer, Martha, whom he described, to the 
 annoyance of the Prime Minister, as the " Sorceress " 
 
KHOVANSTCHINA 69 
 
 whom his master had desired to consult, the yoimg 
 widow having a great reputation in the city as a seer 
 whose foretelhngs of the future had proved weirdly 
 correct and whose thought-reading powers were 
 regarded with awe. 
 
 The harassed Minister had sought the advice of 
 Martha on several occasions, although he regarded her 
 with considerable distrust, knowing her to be a strong 
 adherent of the Khovanstkys ; and as she now entered 
 into his presence with her usual silent tread, he shivered 
 slightly as he bade her curtly to reveal to him his 
 future destiny — for he hoped that her prophecy might 
 disprove his gloomy forebodings, and he waited eagerly 
 for her to speak the words of fate. 
 
 Out in the garden beyond, twilight had fallen 
 quickly after sunset and a pale moonlight now gleamed 
 faintly through the trees throwing long silvery shafts 
 into the richly furnished chamber and upon the tall 
 figure of Martha, who, enveloped in a long black cloak, 
 stood at a central table making her incantation. She 
 had poured water into a silver bowl, and now, gazing 
 intently into its clear depths, she revealed to the 
 anxious Prince his destiny as she saw it therein — that 
 he was surrounded by false friends who wore smiling 
 faces and spoke fair words in his presence but plotted 
 against him in secret ; that an ignominious downfall 
 awaited him, hastened by these same traitors ; that 
 he would be dragged in the dust of royal disfavour and 
 lose all his present honours, and that he would end his 
 days in wretched exile, where the sufferings of hunger 
 
 F 
 
70 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 and hardship and the hopeless tears of woe should 
 teach him, the once powerful tyrant, the wonderful 
 lesson of Divine justice. 
 
 Having thus delivered her prophecy Martha silently 
 glided out of the room, leaving Galitsin with the bowed 
 head of a despairing man whose worst fears have been 
 confirmed. Then, as a drowning man clutches eagerly 
 at a straw, the Prince started up, and calling his atten- 
 dant, commanded him to follow the seer and have her 
 drowned in a neighbouring sheet of water known as 
 " The Marsh," that she, at least, might be silenced for 
 ever and carry no news of him to his enemies. 
 
 Then, as he paced the floor of the apartment in deep 
 agitation, a second interruption came. His arch- 
 enemy, Prince Ivan Khovanstky, entered unan- 
 nounced, and, with his most insolent and arrogant air,, 
 demanded of the Minister why he had presumed to 
 restrict the powers of the nobles and how he dared to 
 interfere with the rights and privileges of such a one 
 as himself, in whose veins ran the blood of the ancient 
 kings. 
 
 Galitsin answered his visitor with an equal haughti- 
 ness of demeanour and hot flow of words ; and they 
 were only prevented from doing each other violence by 
 the timely arrival of the aged Dositheus, the fearless 
 Old Believer, who likewise entered unannounced 
 and calmly began to reason with the rivals, remind- 
 ing them that by thus pursuing their own private 
 quarrels they would never bring peace or happiness 
 to their distressed country, and that they should 
 
KHOVANSTCHINA 71 
 
 rather stifle their own pride and seek wisdom from on 
 high. 
 
 The words of the earnest Dositheus were taken up by 
 a number of his disciples in the antechamber, who 
 now began to chant a hymn of praise for the triumph 
 of good over evil which might only be attained by the 
 righteous doer and true believer. 
 
 Prince Khovanstky, who tolerated the Old Believers 
 as his likely followers and had, indeed, caused them to 
 come thither thus opportunely, listened to their song 
 with a respectful countenance. Galitsin, however, 
 was furious at their intrusion and was about to issue 
 a harsh command concerning them, when the young 
 widow, Martha, rushed into the room and clinging to 
 Dositheus, implored his protection, declaring that the 
 Minister's servants had attempted to drown her in 
 "The Marsh," and that she had only been saved by the 
 timely arrival of a party of the Petrovsky or Royal 
 Guards, who had seized her would-be assassins, whom 
 they now held in the outer court. 
 
 The rival Princes both heard of the arrival of the 
 Royal Guards with feelings of alarm, each realising that 
 their presence boded ill to one or other of them. 
 Next moment the fears of Khovanstky were con- 
 firmed by the entrance of the Boyard Shaklovity, who 
 announced that the Royal Guards had accompanied 
 him as the bringer of a message from the Tsarevna, 
 who bade him say that a proclamation had been 
 posted up to the effect that the Khovanstkys were 
 conspiring against the Empire and that the young 
 
72 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Tsar Peter had commanded an inquiry to be made 
 into the matter. 
 
 During the confusion that followed this announce- 
 ment Martha and Dositheus escaped from the chamber 
 and returned to the district where dwelt the Old 
 Believers, whom they exhorted to further righteous- 
 ness, in order to strengthen themselves for the ordeal 
 of persecution that might now fall upon them at any 
 moment ; and Khovanstky, still haughty and brave 
 in his calm arrogance, retired to his mansion, refusing 
 to resign his powers until Shaklovity's accusation 
 could be proved, and proudly continuing to occupy 
 his days as before even though his nights might be 
 disturbed by dark forebodings. 
 
 After returning to her home Martha became very 
 unhappy and depressed by the sense of coming disaster 
 to the sect of the Old Believers, which, in her present 
 state of mind, she felt was due to her own sin in having 
 loved and been the mistress of the graceless Prince 
 Andrew. In this belief she was supported by a 
 fanatical old member of the sect, named Susanna, who 
 upbraided her sternly for her frailty, refusing to listen 
 to her defence that she had only loved too well and 
 that love could not be evil, and painting for her a 
 terrible picture of the everlasting punishment that she 
 declared awaited her. 
 
 Poor Martha's tears, however, only awakened pity 
 in the breast of old Dositheus, who rebuked Susanna 
 for her uncharitableness and comforted the unhappy 
 young widow by telling her that she could yet be of 
 
KHOVANSTCHINA 73 
 
 much service to their cause by seeking news for them, 
 and that, also, by the love she still bore for Prince 
 Andrew, she might be the means of bringing that young 
 libertine back into the ways of grace and thus save his 
 soul alive — whereby her own sin might be cleansed. 
 
 While the comforted Martha now spent her days in 
 devoted service to the cause she had espoused, Prince 
 Ivan Khovanstky held up his head as proudly as of 
 yore, and continued to secure new followers and to 
 encourage his old ones, in spite of the repeated warn- 
 ings of the Boyard Shaklovity, who, seeing that the 
 lawless noble had no intention of altering his plans of 
 insurrection or of submitting quietly to any restriction 
 of his power, sent him messages full of prognostica- 
 tions of coming misfortune and disgrace. Neither 
 was he to be intimidated by the presence in the city 
 of ever-increasing numbers of the Petrovsky or Royal 
 Guards, and of the " troopers " or foreign mercenaries, 
 who were obviously being gathered there for the 
 purpose of suppressing insurrection and crushing the 
 powers of the tyrant leaders. Deliberately shutting 
 his eyes to these ominous signs and turning a deaf 
 ear to hints of personal danger to himself from the 
 quickly growing power and influence of his enemies, 
 he still kept a brave front and continued to hold feasts 
 and festivities in his mansion, as though the tide in 
 his favour had not changed. But at last the storm 
 burst, and the proud Khovanstky fell to rise no more. 
 
 One day Prince Ivan sat feasting in his splendid 
 banqueting-hall, surrounded by his attendants and 
 
74 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 serving-maids who, as he feasted, sang for his cheering 
 the Hvely ditties of youth and the laudatory songs 
 beloved by their lord. Just as a troupe of beautiful 
 Persian slaves had concluded a voluptuous and grace- 
 ful dance for his further amusement the Boyard 
 Shaklovity entered, unannounced as usual ; and 
 angry at this interruption to his revels, Khovanstky 
 haughtily demanded the intruder's business. 
 
 Shaklovity replied boldly that he brought yet a 
 further message from the Tsarevna to the effect that, 
 owing to the disturbed state of the country, she had 
 convened the Grand Council that day and desired 
 Khovanstky's attendance at the same, commanding 
 that he should set forth for the conference at once 
 without delay. 
 
 Prince Ivan immediately arose from his board and 
 fearlessly announced that he was willing to attend the 
 conference and to give the Tsarevna the benefit of his 
 counsel ; and he called for his magnificent robes of 
 state and caused himself to be arrayed in them and 
 to be decorated with his most splendid jewels and 
 the dazzling insignia of a powerful noble of high 
 degree. 
 
 When he was ready to leave the hall he bade his 
 serving-maids once more to sing his praises as he set 
 forth ; but little did he dream that this song of fulsome 
 flattery now raised by the obedient maidens should 
 also serve as his dirge ! As he was about to pass over 
 the threshold, a dazzling figure, supported on either 
 side by his attendants, there came the sudden flash of 
 
DOSITHEUS CALLS UPON HIS FOLLOWERS TO DIE FOR THEIR FaITH. 
 
 (Chaliapin as Dosithcus.) 
 
tec 
 etc 
 
 < C I 
 
KHOVANSTCHINA 75 
 
 a dagger — and the mighty Khovanstky uttered a loud 
 cry of agony and fell to the ground, dead ! 
 
 The attendants and serving-maids fied away in 
 terror, but Shaklovity approached the corpse and 
 gcLzed down in mocking triumph upon the still form 
 of his rival and victim, rejoicing in the fact that his 
 plot had thus far succeeded. 
 
 The downfall of the Prime Minister quickly fol- 
 lowed this tragedy, for the Tsarevna, tired of the lover 
 whom she had raised to power, listened only too 
 readily to the accusations made against him by her 
 jealous counsellors — and the result was that the once 
 powerful Prince Galitsin was deprived of all his 
 dignities and was driven forth from his beloved 
 country a disgraced and a despairing exile. Thus was 
 the prophecy of the young widow Martha fulfilled. 
 
 After the death of their chief the followers of 
 Khovanstky were quickly dispersed, though the famous 
 Streltsy were won over to the royal side ; and Prince 
 Andrew was forced to keep in hiding as his life was in 
 constant jeopardy. 
 
 The Old Believers, learning that instructions had 
 been given to the fierce troopers to slay every member 
 of their sect, retired to a hermitage in a wood near 
 Moscow, there to await their end — but not at the hands 
 of the soldiery. Old Dositheus, seeing that they 
 could not now escape death, bid them build up and 
 fire a huge pyre of wood, upon which they could 
 mount and perish as did the martyrs of old for the 
 faith they held. 
 
76 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Whilst these sinister preparations were afoot, 
 Martha had sought for and found Prince Andrew who, 
 craven-hearted now that death threatened him on 
 every side, entreated the mistress he had tired of and 
 flouted in the days of his own prosperity to save him 
 now from his enemies ; and he fled gladly with her to 
 the hermitage, where he quickly changed his tone and 
 angrily demanded of her news of the fair maid, Emma, 
 whom he still loved and had vainly sought for many 
 days past. Martha, however, told him that Emma was 
 safe from his pursuit and would shortly be united to 
 her own faithful lover who had now returned from his 
 unjust exile ; and bidding the distracted young man 
 think no more of this girl nor of earthly matters at all, 
 but rather to bend his thoughts upon heaven, since 
 his death was nigh, she succeeded in persuading him, 
 by the power of her own love, which had never waned, 
 to mount the now burning pyre with her. 
 
 When, therefore, the troopers arrived at the her- 
 mitage, thirsting for the blood of their expected 
 victims, they were greeted with a great blaze of light ; 
 and as the flames sprang up around them the Old 
 Believers went cheerfully to death, singing a song of 
 praise and thanksgiving, inasmuch as they were 
 accounted worthy to suffer death for their faith. 
 
RACHMANINOV 
 
 ALEKO 
 
 In a certain peaceful spot on the banks of a river 
 which flowed through vast country wilds a tribe of 
 gipsies had pitched their tents ; and here, late one 
 evening, the careless wanderers gathered about their 
 blazing camp-fires, or stood in groups outside the 
 tents, chatting and singing snatches of merry songs 
 as they waited to refresh themselves with the savoury 
 supper which already steamed and bubbled in the 
 huge cauldrons hanging from tripods over the fires. 
 
 They were a simple, happy folk, these wanderers, 
 who lived and loved and died amidst the beauties of 
 nature, knowing not the many evils and doubtful 
 joys of civilisation, who loved freedom above all 
 things, and whose code of honour, while forbidding 
 them to judge any man, would not permit them to 
 dwell with a wrongdoer in their midst. 
 
 This evening as the rising moon, silvery bright, 
 appeared above the glittering stream, a strange feeling 
 of uneasiness had crept over the gipsies ; and in order 
 to distract their minds and to make the time pass by 
 more quickly while their supper was in process of 
 preparation the young men and girls called upon the 
 Chief to tell them a story. 
 
 The leader of the gipsies was a venerable and digni- 
 
 77 
 
78 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 lied old man, whose sad yet glowing eyes and deeply- 
 lined face revealed the secret of passion's fiery touch 
 and sorrow's bitter sting ; and a host of unhappy 
 recollections having intruded themselves upon his 
 broodings this evening, he gathered the young people 
 about him and told them the story of his own early 
 love and of the grievous wrong that had been done 
 him by a stranger not of his own tribe. 
 
 " Years ago," he said, " I loved and wedded the 
 most beautiful maiden of our tribe, and for one short 
 year I enjoyed the divine rapture that only those who 
 truly love can know. Had a fabulous fortune or even 
 a kingdom been offered to me in exchange I would have 
 laughed such a gift to scorn ; for the love of my fair 
 Marioula was more precious to me than all the wealth 
 and honours that the world could lay at my feet. 
 When our child, the maiden Zemfira yonder, was 
 born, I felt that my joy was almost too great to bear, 
 and alas ! I soon found that it was certainly too great 
 to last ! 
 
 " Marioula, free, loving child of the desert as she 
 was, proved herself to be as fickle as she was fair ! 
 Another tribe of wanderers pitched their camp beside 
 ours just after my joy had lasted for a year ; and 
 though they rested in our neighbourhood but two days, 
 when they struck their tents my beautiful but false 
 Marioula went with them — ^her love having been 
 stolen from me by one of their hot-blooded youths, for 
 whom she forsook me, her adoring husband, and her 
 helpless babe ! Ah me ! The woe of that cruel hour 
 
ALEKO 79 
 
 struck deep into my heart and the pain of the still 
 bleeding wound will never depart whilst breath 
 remains in me ! " 
 
 While the old Chief thus related the story of his life's 
 tragedy, his lovely daughter — the same Zemfira whose 
 fickle mother had deserted her in infancy — shivered 
 slightly as she glanced furtively from her husband, 
 Aleko, to the handsome young gipsy who was now her 
 secret lover. By a strange fatality the faithlessness 
 of the Chief's wife was actually at that moment being 
 repeated in her daughter who, whilst inheriting the 
 mother's alluring beauty, also showed an equally 
 capricious and fickle temperament, chafing at restraint, 
 fitful as the wind, and claiming love from all for the 
 satisfaction of her passionate nature. 
 
 A year ago Aleko, her husband, had come as a 
 stranger to the tribe and, declaring himself weary of 
 the trials and disappointments of ordinary civilised 
 life, had begged to be allowed to remain for a time with 
 the gipsies, who received him with the courtesy and 
 hospitality of their kind. 
 
 Aleko, a disappointed and somewhat melancholy 
 man, past his first youth, soon recovered tranquillity 
 and peace of mind among the simple-hearted wan- 
 derers ; and, on becoming acquainted with the Chief's 
 beautiful daughter, he had fallen passionately in love 
 with her, loving with all the intensity of a man who 
 had never before felt the magic thrill of a woman's 
 attraction. 
 
 The ardent young Zemfira on her part was equally 
 
8o STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 attracted by the stranger, about whom hung an air of 
 mystery and romance ; and upon her accepting his 
 love and surrendering her own in return, the pair were 
 wedded in accordance with the quaint gipsy rites and 
 customs. 
 
 In one short year, however, the fickle Zemfira tired 
 of the stranger husband who adored her and began to 
 accept the attentions of a young gipsy of her own 
 tribe, whose passionate love-making she eagerly re- 
 sponded to and whom she met in secret whenever the 
 opportunity occurred. 
 
 This evening as the Chief's tragic story came to an 
 end and his hearers trooped off to partake of the 
 savoury supper now ready, Zemfira and her lover 
 snatched a few moments' conversation and arranged 
 to steal away together from the camp that night after 
 the moon had set and all was dark. 
 
 The young gipsy scornfully laughed away Zemfira's 
 timid expressions of fear lest Aleko should discover 
 their secret plans and her declarations that he was 
 already suspicious because of her coldness and in- 
 difference to him. She added that he might prove 
 dangerous in his jealousy, which he had plainly 
 exhibited in a sudden outburst of anger on hearing the 
 old Chief's story — the circumstances of the latter 
 having evidently caused him to doubt still more the 
 constancy of his own fair wife. Her lover, however, 
 succeeded in reassuring her ; and after many tender 
 embraces the pair parted, as Aleko was observed to 
 be lurking near. 
 
ALEKO - -8x 
 
 Zemfira retired at once to her tent, where she sat 
 beside the cradle of her infant child and began to sing 
 a cradle-song which, however, instead of being a gentle 
 lullaby soon developed into a wild gipsy song, in which 
 she railed recklessly at her husband and hinted auda- 
 ciously at a secret lover whose embraces she meant to 
 accept. 
 
 Aleko, upon entering the tent at this moment, was 
 shocked and angered on hearing the song, which 
 strengthened his suspicions of her change towards 
 himself ; and he sternly rebuked the wild Zemfira who, 
 however, paid no heed to him, but hurried from the 
 tent still recklessly singing her tantalising song of 
 defiance. 
 
 Aleko, now sadly realising that the love of his 
 beautiful gipsy wife was indeed lost to him for ever, 
 at first gave himself up to despair and grief. Then 
 a fierce, unrestrained anger seized him, and, vowing 
 that none other should enjoy the favours of his beloved 
 one, even though these were denied to himself, he 
 hastened after the now flying form of Zemfira who had 
 vanished in the darkness. 
 
 Meanwhile, the lovers had met at the appointed 
 spot and Zemfira, full of fear for the anger of her 
 jealous husband, was eagerly urging the young gipsy 
 to hasten their departure, which the latter continually 
 delayed in order to enjoy the intense joy of the 
 moment, when Aleko himself suddenly appeared before 
 them, upbraiding the pair for their perfidy and threat- 
 ening the young gipsy in furious accents. 
 
82 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Zemfira bravely met the wrath of the husband whom 
 she had wronged, declaring that true love was free and 
 not to be restrained and adding that she was willing to 
 die rather than to return to one who no longer held her 
 heart. Almost in the same breath, however, she 
 entreated her lover, in terrified accents, to fly from the 
 vengeance she could read in her husband's flashing 
 eyes ; but, ere he could escape, Aleko, in a frenzy of 
 jealous passion, sprang upon the young gipsy and 
 stabbed him to the heart. 
 
 Zemfira, with a cry of despairing grief, flung herself, 
 weeping, upon the dead body of her lover, uttering 
 wild curses upon his murderer ; and Aleko, still 
 further infuriated, drew forth the dagger again and 
 plunged it into the breast of the unhappy girl. 
 
 By this time the whole camp had been aroused by 
 the noise of the quarrel and the cries of the lovers as 
 they fell ; and the old Chief and his scared companions 
 now appeared upon the scene as the beautiful Zemfira 
 expired. 
 
 The passion- tossed Aleko, soon filled with remorse 
 and despair, knelt over the corpse of his beloved 
 Zemfira imploring forgiveness ; and then, standing 
 bravely before the bereaved and grief-stricken father, 
 he awaited sentence, humbly expressing his readiness 
 to expiate his crime by death. 
 
 But the old Chief, with calm and beautiful dignity, 
 merely rebuked him sternly for thus bringing bloodshed 
 and strife into the peaceful gipsy life ; then, declaring 
 that while he and his simple tribe judged not and 
 
ALEKO 83 
 
 took no man's life in expiation, they could not permit 
 a murderer to abide in their camp, he commanded the 
 young men to carry away the bodies of the dead lovers 
 and returned to his tent, followed quietly and sadly by 
 the rest of his people. 
 
 Thus was the wretched Aleko left alone without 
 love or companionship, to wander forth into the 
 world, an exile, who must expiate his sin and bear his 
 grief as best he might. 
 
RACHMANINOV 
 
 FRANCESCA DA RIMINI 
 
 Within the First Circle of the Inferno gigantic black 
 rocks led down into the terrible abyss below. Gloomy 
 darkness reigned for the most part, but every now and 
 again the sombre blackness was suddenly illuminated 
 brilliantly by red gleams from the everlasting flames 
 and steel-blue lightning from the lurid clouds that were 
 rushing through the storm-riven sky. 
 
 When the subterranean rumblings and the ominous 
 rolling of the thunder ceased for a few brief moments, 
 heart-rending cries and the hopeless sighs of souls in 
 torment could be heard ; and these again would 
 quickly be drowned by the awful crashing of fresh 
 peals of thunder and the roar of the returning whirl- 
 winds. 
 
 Into this awe-inspiring scene, breathing the sultry 
 atmosphere with difficulty, appeared the great 
 Italian poet, Dante, according to the wonderful 
 vision he afterwards pictured so exquisitely in his 
 masterpiece, the " Divine Comedy," which tells of the 
 imaginary experiences of a soul after death in the 
 three stages he believed it to pass through, and de- 
 scribed as the " Inferno/' the " Purgatorio " and the 
 " Paradiso." 
 
 As Dante appeared on the fearful rocky heights of 
 
 84 
 
FRANCESCA DA RIMINI 85 
 
 the First Circle of the Inferno, he was accompanied by 
 the Shade of the Roman poet, Virgil, who was to be 
 his guide through the wonderful and mysterious paths 
 and by-ways of these subterranean regions. As the 
 two travellers drew near to the edge of the precipice, 
 the spectral guide suddenly drew back and shuddered, 
 as though with fear ; and then, turning to Dante, he 
 announced that they were about to descend into the 
 yawning abyss and that he must be of a good courage 
 and follow closely. 
 
 Dante replied that it was not encouraging to follow 
 one who appeared obviously to be afraid of what was 
 before him ; but the Shade of Virgil told him that 
 though he shuddered and drew back for a moment on 
 approaching the precipice, he did so voluntarily and 
 that his action was not one of fear, but rather of 
 compassion for those unhappy souls who were suffer- 
 ing torments below. He then called upon Dante to 
 hasten ere their courage should in truth desert them ; 
 and, without further pause, the pair began their 
 awful descent into the abyss and were soon lost in the 
 darkness below. 
 
 Dense black clouds gathered around and enwrapped 
 them as in a stifling mantle and at first nothing could 
 be distinguished through the thick atmosphere ; but 
 after the travellers had descended for a considerable 
 distance the air cleared somewhat, and, though an 
 intense gloom reigned supreme, objects and land- 
 marks could be observed once more. 
 
 Dante now saw that he stood with his companion 
 
 G 
 
86 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 on the summit of a high rock which ran down sheer 
 into the abyss. On every side overhanging rocks 
 were to be seen, while the angry crimson horizon 
 stretched far away in the distance Hke a streak of 
 blood, from whence came the warning sound of a 
 quickly approaching storm, still mingled with the cries 
 and moans of the souls in torment which never ceased. 
 
 As Dante discovered himself upon the summit of 
 the rock his spectre guide informed him that they had 
 now arrived at the place where eternal darkness 
 reigned in company with an eternal and terrible 
 tempest which drew in its wake the spirits suffering 
 in anguish and continually gathered in its tumult 
 souls from everywhere with no hope of release from 
 their endless sufferings. 
 
 " Who, then, are these unhappy souls ? " asked 
 Dante in compassionate tones ; and the Shade of 
 Virgil replied : 
 
 " These are the tortured spirits of those who, in 
 earthly life, permitted the passions of love and desire 
 to reign uncontrolled, so that they dominated over 
 reason and ruined their lives ! Behold ! Here they 
 come ! " 
 
 Just then the noise of the approaching whirlwind 
 drew nearer and, next moment, the tempest burst 
 upon them in all its fury, so that the voices of the 
 travellers could no longer be heard. In the wake of 
 the storm came crowds of phantoms rushing past them 
 with the loud sighs and lamentations only uttered by 
 those in anguish. 
 
FRANCESCA DA RIMINI 87 
 
 Dante was horrified at this fearful spectacle and drew 
 back, aghast ; but the Shade of Virgil was bolder and 
 called to several of the phantoms by the names they 
 had borne in their earthly life. 
 
 After awhile the storm grew somewhat less violent, 
 there was a sHght lull, and the ranks of the suffering 
 spirits became thinner ; and presently there appeared 
 the phantoms of Paolo and Francesca, the devoted 
 lovers of Rimini, whose interlocked arms and appear- 
 ance of loving one another still even in their agony 
 strangely attracted Dante, so that he inquired of his 
 companion their names, expressing a wish to speak 
 with them. 
 
 In reply to his request Virgil said : " In the name of 
 the love which has drawn them to this suffering, 
 ask them, and they will speak to you ! " 
 
 As the spirit lovers came floating by, united still 
 even in the midst of their torment, Dante approached 
 them, therefore, and called out to them compassion- 
 ately : 
 
 " Unhappy spirits, your sufferings make me weep ! 
 I prithee, if it is possible, draw nigh unto us, and 
 while there is a lull in this terrible tempest, tell us 
 where you hail from and how you came to fall 
 thus ! " 
 
 As if in answer to the poet's plea, the lover phan- 
 toms drew nearer ; and at the same moment the dense 
 clouds descended once more and darkness reigned. 
 But, out of the darkness, the voices of Paolo and 
 Francesca were heard saying : " There is no greater 
 
88 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 suffering in the world than the remembrance of happy 
 days when happiness has fled ! " 
 
 Then they related the story of their tragic passion 
 to the sympathetic poet, knowing that he who had 
 also known the joys and sorrows of a beautiful love 
 would have mercy and compassion upon their trials, 
 temptations and sufferings. 
 
 THE LOVE OF PAOLO AND FRANCESCA 
 
 Within his splendid palace at Rimini the powerful 
 and successful Commander, Malatesta, was engaged in 
 discussing with a famous militant Cardinal his plans 
 for the defeat of the Ghibellines, the great enemies of 
 the Pope. For a long time past these powerful foes 
 had threatened to secure the upper hand, but now a 
 plan of campaign had been formed for their defeat. 
 When this new scheme had been discussed and 
 approved, the mighty leader, Malatesta, entreated 
 the Cardinal to bless him, his sword and his troops. 
 Willingly and with confidence the Cardinal pro- 
 nounced his solemn benediction upon the enterprise, 
 and then he departed, with his attendants, in pomp 
 and dignity. 
 
 After the departure of the prelate, Malatesta 
 addressed his own attendants and generals, desiring 
 them to bid farewell to their wives and friends, and to 
 go forth and make their preparations for immediate 
 
FRANCESCA DA RIMINI 89 
 
 departure to the seat of war. He then dispatched a 
 servant to bring into his presence his wife, Francesca. 
 As he now waited in the chamber alone a dark 
 frown overspread the stern countenance of the 
 Commander-in-Chief. He was a prey to that torturing 
 malady, jealousy, having reason to fear that his fair 
 wife did not return his love, but that, although her 
 hand was his, she had bestowed her heart elsewhere. 
 So strong a hold had this tormenting suspicion taken 
 upon him that even the sound of the trumpets' fan- 
 fare C£illing the soldiers and strong young men together 
 to go forth to fight the enemies at their gates — a sound 
 which had formerly been wont to thrill him and to 
 fill his heart with rejoicing — had now no power to 
 stir him even slightly, for his jealous thoughts would 
 give him no peace. 
 
 Yet he had only himself to blame, having done his 
 wooing by proxy. Having beheld the beautiful 
 Francesca he had immediately desired to wed with 
 her, but, being occupied with military affairs and also 
 unaccustomed to social dalliance, he had sent his 
 young brother, Paolo, as the bearer of his proposals to 
 the maiden's father asking her hand in marriage. 
 
 The proposals were willingly accepted; but, whether 
 carelessly or for some reason known only to himself, 
 Francesca's father permitted her to believe that it was 
 Paolo himself who was the suitor for her hand. 
 Possibly he may have thought that the maiden would 
 be afraid of the black-browed Malatesta and that he 
 might have trouble in forcing her consent to a marriage 
 
90 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 with one so much older than herself, and one, withal, of 
 so serious and gloomy a disposition ; or, perhaps, 
 on seeing that she was instantly attracted by the 
 grace and charm of the young Paolo and that she 
 seemed naturally to regard him as her suitor, he pre- 
 ferred to leave her thus unenlightened in order to 
 secure her willing agreement with the proposals 
 brought. 
 
 However the deception may have arisen, Francesca 
 and Paolo had no sooner looked into one another's 
 eyes than a deep and abiding love sprang up in their 
 hearts ; and the fair maiden, imagining that it was 
 Malatesta who stood before her, placed her hand in 
 that of the latter's ambassador, declaring that she 
 willingly gave it to him, that her heart was his also 
 and that she would love him for ever. 
 
 When the nuptial day arrived, however, and she 
 realised the awful mistake she had made, or had been 
 permitted to make, and that it was the grim warrior 
 who was to be her husband and not the handsome 
 young Paolo, she was overcome with grief and the 
 sunshine of joy left her heart for ever. Although she 
 was compelled to give her hand to Malatesta and went 
 through the marriage ceremon}^ as one in a dream, she 
 could not also give him her heart, having already 
 bestowed her love upon another. She became a duti- 
 ful and obedient wife, but her lack of warmth to him 
 was a constant source of disappointment to her gloomy 
 husband, whose own passion was the more strongly 
 kindled by reason of her coldness. 
 
FRANCESCA DA RIMINI 91 
 
 All this passed through the mind of Malatesta as 
 he now sat in his audience chamber waiting for his 
 wife to come and bid him farewell before his departure 
 to the war, and he wondered if, had she never seen 
 Paolo, Francesca would have loved him, Malatesta. 
 Accustomed to compel attention and to carry all 
 before him, Malatesta was inclined to think that the 
 latter would have been the case, and a jealous anger 
 grew up in his heart against his young brother. He 
 decided that he must get rid of the latter by some 
 means or other ; and so strong a hold did this dark 
 thought take of him that he even went so far as to 
 invoke the aid of infernal agencies in his evil scheme. 
 
 He was interrupted, however, by the entrance of 
 Francesca, who came and stood before him sub- 
 missively with folded hands and listened quietly and 
 without any emotion as he informed her of his depar- 
 ture that night to fight the Pope's enemies, and added 
 that, therefore, he must leave her for a time. Fran- 
 cesca asked that she might be permitted to enter a 
 convent during his absence, but her husband refused 
 her request curtly, saying that he had appointed his 
 brother Paolo to act as her guardian during the wars. 
 He gazed searchingly at her as he made this announce- 
 ment, but Francesca had her feelings well under 
 control and replied quietly that she would obey him. 
 
 Her calmness and apparent resignation served only 
 to exasperate Malatesta. He asked her roughly and 
 fiercely if she ever intended to love him or, at least, to 
 treat him with some degree of the warmth expected by 
 
92 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 a husband of his wife, and he bade her look upon the 
 havoc she had wrought in him — the wreck of his 
 former self, owing to his unrequited love for her. 
 
 To this outburst Francesca replied very gently : 
 " Forgive me, my lord, but I cannot lie by saying that 
 I love you when I do not ! " 
 
 She then asked him when he would return ; and he 
 replied ominously : " When the Pope's foes are beaten 
 and when I have slain all my enemies ! " 
 
 Though still raging with jealousy and unsatisfied 
 passion Malatesta then hastily dismissed Francesca ; 
 and after giving instructions to his brother to act as 
 the guardian of his wife, goods, and chattels during his 
 absence, he departed for the wars at the head of his 
 troops. 
 
 After the departure of Malatesta a period of great 
 happiness dawned for Francesca and Paolo, for, 
 owing to the latter's trust as guardian of his brother's 
 wife and property, they were now able to meet fre- 
 quently and to pass many joyful hours together. At 
 first they tried to meet as ordinary friends, endeavour- 
 ing earnestly to avoid the tender intercourse of 
 lovers, but, after awhile, they found that it was im- 
 possible to resist the imperative call of youth and the 
 passionate love that consumed them both. 
 
 The constant fear of her stern lord's wrath and her 
 own sincere desire to fight the temptation of disloyalty 
 to him caused Francesca to struggle valiantly against 
 the eager pleading and passion in the eyes of Paolo, 
 whom she forbade to speak to her of love; but though 
 
FRANCESCA DA RIMINI 93 
 
 she succeeded for a time in crushing down the smoul- 
 dering fire she could not extinguish it nor prevent it 
 from bursting forth eventually into unquenchable 
 flames. For these two young people, so fresh and so 
 fair, seemed to have been created for one another, and 
 their rapture was so beautiful a thing that it seemed as 
 natural for them to love as for the flowers to bloom and 
 the sun to shine. Cruel, indeed, was the fate which 
 ordained that so perfect a love should be unlawful ; 
 still more cruel the temptations placed in their path ; 
 and most cruel of all the vengeance and punishment 
 meted out to them for following the dictates of their 
 young hearts. 
 
 When Francesca found that Paolo could no longer 
 refrain from speaking of love in her presence, she 
 brought forth a book and made him read to her 
 instead ; and, for a short time, she gained a further 
 respite. But the book she happened to produce told 
 of the immortal passion of those fairest of lovers, 
 Lancelot and Guinevere, and it was not long before 
 these readings added fuel to the fire she thus sought to 
 quench, for the enthralling story of those royal lovers 
 of olden times was a perfect picture of their own love. 
 
 Thus the weeks and months went by, swiftly and 
 enchantingly, like a beautiful dream. Paolo and 
 Francesca were so happy that they almost forgot that 
 Malatesta was at the wars and would one day return to 
 claim his own and that gloomy darkness would follow 
 the golden sunshine they now rejoiced in. 
 
 The end csune with tragic swiftness. 
 
94 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 First came the day when Francesca could no longer 
 keep Paolo from declaring his overwhelming love for 
 her and entreating for hers in return. According to 
 their usual custom she sat at her tapestry frame 
 plying her needle while Paolo lay at her feet and read 
 aloud to her from the beautiful story they both loved 
 so well. After reading of the many wonderful ex- 
 ploits performed by the chivalrous knight, Lancelot, 
 in honour of his fair lady, Paolo asked Francesca if 
 she believed that the Queen would receive the hero 
 in answer to his plea. 
 
 Francesca replied : " Surely ! She would be cruel 
 if she refused to do so ! " 
 
 " You also are cruel, for you often refuse to see me ! " 
 began Paolo, but Francesca gently stemmed the com- 
 ing outburst and bade him read further. Then Paolo 
 read on, describing how the Queen received Lancelot 
 kindly, and both agreed that they must have been very 
 happy. But when the next few lines pictured how, 
 upon the Queen's inquiry as to what reward Lancelot 
 sought for the deeds he had done and, how, for answer, 
 the knight had gazed into her eyes and they both 
 understood, Paolo could read no further. Flinging 
 himself at the feet of Francesca he sobbed forth his 
 own love, which refused to be repressed any longer, and 
 entreated her to have pity upon him and to love him 
 in return. 
 
 Francesca made one more desperate attempt to 
 resist the fierce answering call of her own heart, 
 gently bidding the kneeling youth to remember that 
 
FRANCESCA DA RIMINI 95 
 
 though they must suffer renunciation in their present 
 Uves, yet joy would be theirs in the next world. Paolo, 
 however, declared that love in Paradise seemed cold 
 and a long way off, and that he longed only for love 
 now in this present life ; and he added passionately : 
 " I would gladly renounce Paradise and all it means 
 for one sweet kiss from thee, for that kiss would hold 
 in one moment all that Eternity could give ! " 
 
 He endeavoured to draw her towards him as he 
 spoke, but Francesca, pale and frightened, drew back, 
 bidding him remember that she belonged to another, 
 and that if she should thus prove unfaithful to her 
 wedded lord — even though she loved him not — she 
 believed that the punishment of the Inferno awaited 
 her and her fellow-sinner. 
 
 " What of that ! " cried Paolo, once more drawing 
 her into his grasp. " At least, we should be together ! 
 We were made for one another ! Therefore, let us 
 love and live and suffer together ! Come, love me, 
 my Francesca, and let the memory of our kisses be 
 eternal happiness for us ! " 
 
 Francesca could no longer resist the passionate 
 pleading of Paolo and the call of youth within her, and, 
 with a cry of joy the lovers fell into each other's arms 
 and resigned themselves to the exquisite happiness of 
 the love that consumed them. 
 
 Thus were they found by the returning conqueror, 
 Malatesta, who took up his sword and slew them both 
 as they lay clasped in their first embrace ; and so 
 passed away, in that moment of perfect joy, Paolo and 
 
96 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Francesca, from the dazzling golden light of love into 
 the blackness of oblivion, to awaken in the abode of 
 lost souls. 
 
 EPILOGUE 
 
 As the unhappy Shades of Paolo and Francesca 
 finished the recital of their tale of love and woe and 
 passed on with the other phantoms upon the rushing 
 wind of the eternal storm, Dante, full of compassion 
 for their sufferings, fell back unconscious. At the 
 same moment the sad dirge of the lost spirits could be 
 heard in the distance chanting their chorus : " There 
 is no greater sorrow in the world than the remembrance 
 of happy days when happiness has fled ! " 
 
RIMSKT-KORSAKOV 
 
 A NIGHT IN MAY 
 
 One warm evening in May great merry-makings were 
 taking place in a certain village of Little Russia, for 
 it was the season of Whitsuntide or the Week of the 
 Water-nymphs, when the youths and maidens of the 
 country-side decked themselves in their gayest attire 
 and met to play their national games and to dance 
 and sing together in happy groups. 
 
 This was the most joyous season of the year for 
 the young people, for Love was in the air and many a 
 pretty maid secured a bold sweetheart during these 
 springtime festivities, and first one couple and then 
 another would slip apart from the noisy throng to 
 wander away together into the more unfrequented 
 woodland paths, there to exchange their sweet vows, 
 or to sit by the lake-side, waiting, hand locked in 
 hand, for the water-nymphs to appear. For at this 
 particular festival-time the superstitious village folk 
 believed that the spirits of unhappy maidens who 
 had sought oblivion from their sorrows by drowning, 
 appeared again in the form of water-nymphs and 
 might often be seen dancing in rings on the banks ot 
 streams and lakes, weaving wreaths of flowers and 
 singing mysterious songs of love, now sad, now gay. 
 But the silence and air of mystery pervading these 
 
 97 
 
98 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 more unfrequented sylvan scenes soon oppressed the 
 newly-made lovers, and most of them were glad enough 
 to rejoin the light-hearted revellers in the village 
 after a short absence. 
 
 On this particular evening the young people had 
 chosen for their meeting-place a pretty spot at the 
 end of the village, opposite the cottage of the village 
 belle, Hanna, and here they held high revels. Not 
 very far distant there stretched a large lake, set in 
 somewhat gloomy surroundings, and beyond this, in 
 the distance, stood the ruins of a nobleman's ancient 
 mansion, once the scene of a grim tragedy and now 
 reputed to be haunted. The shadow of mystery that 
 hung over the sombre lake and castle beyond, however, 
 did not cloud the high spirits of the rustic revellers, 
 and they still pursued their games and dances as 
 untiringly as at the beginning of the day, although the 
 shadows of evening were already creeping down the 
 hill-sides and darkening the forest glades beyond. 
 
 Such interest did the villagers take in this festival 
 that quite a large number of the old folks and gossips 
 of the place had gathered together near the abode of 
 the favoured beauty, Hanna, and formed a delighted 
 audience, renewing the memories of their own young 
 days, while the youths and maidens played the cele- 
 brated " Khorovods " or country games, in which the 
 players not only acted the various " plots " in a very 
 spirited manner, but also sang and danced in artistic 
 rhythm to a musical accompaniment supplied by an 
 energetic performer on a pipe. 
 
A NIGHT IN MAY 99 
 
 Special interest and applause was accorded to an 
 enthusiastic rendering of the favourite game known as 
 *' The Millet," for, in addition to the combined singing 
 and actions of the performers, intricate solo dances 
 were introduced into the game by a young man named 
 Kalennik, the best dancer of all the village youths. 
 So great a favourite was this famous game that it 
 had to be repeated at various points of the village, 
 so that all might enjoy its merry measures ; and after 
 it had come to an end outside the cottage of Hanna the 
 lively party tripped off to begin it again at the other 
 end of the village, while the old folks returned to their 
 cottages to gossip and to criticise the performance 
 they had just witnessed. 
 
 Thus, as the twilight deepened, the open space in 
 front of Hanna's abode became quite silent and 
 deserted ; and presently a graceful youth slipped out 
 from amidst the shadows and, approaching the cottage, 
 began to sing in subdued but passionate tones a love- 
 song to the low accompaniment of the bandoora, a 
 native instrument upon which he was a very skilful 
 player. 
 
 This serenader was the son of the village Mayor and 
 was a handsome young man named Levko, who was 
 the favoured admirer of the fair Hanna, and who had 
 given the slip to his gay companions in order to steal 
 a few blissful moments with his beloved one, whom he 
 well knew to be waiting within her closed doors for his 
 expected arrival. However, although the love-sick 
 youth sang more passionately than usual beneath her 
 
100 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 window, entreating her to come forth, Hanna — who, 
 Uke most other fair maidens, dehghted in teasing her 
 lover — did not immediately appear ; and it was not 
 until Levko was about to depart in a pet that she at 
 length came forth with a sweet surprised smile of 
 welcome which at once scattered the threatening 
 clouds from the young man's face. 
 
 The lovers indulged in happy converse for a short 
 time, and when Hanna tearfully expressed fear that 
 their happiness might not last, because she occupied 
 a humbler position in the village than did the Mayor's 
 son, Levko comforted her tenderly and declared stoutly 
 that he would soon gain the consent of his father to 
 their union, even though that all-important person 
 withheld it at present. 
 
 By this time the twilight had deepened almost to 
 darkness and the stars were already shining overhead : 
 and as Hanna's gaze travelled back from the ghttering 
 heavens and across to the mysterious lake and haunted 
 mansion beyond, she shuddered for a moment. Then, 
 suddenly, she begged her lover to relate to her the 
 story of the tragedy that had happened years ago in 
 the castle before it was deserted and had fallen into 
 ruins — a story of mystery which had never been told 
 to her, but which she knew the old village gossips 
 sometimes spoke of to one another in awed whispers. 
 To-night, as she gazed across at the ancient mansion 
 over the sombre depths of the lake, her curiosity was 
 aroused afresh, and she entreated Levko to repeat the 
 story to her. For a long time, however, Levko, 
 
A NlGHi IN MA7 loi 
 
 although he was well acquainted with the story, 
 tried to avoid repeating it to her, declaring that it was 
 too sad and grim a tale for a young maid to hear and 
 would only fill her with fears and keep her awake at 
 nights ; but Hanna desired all the more to hear the 
 story, and became so importunate in her entreaties 
 that at last the young man yielded to her wish and 
 related to her the old legend, which was as follows : 
 
 In the early days of the castle a certain nobleman 
 had lived there with his beautiful daughter and only 
 child, whose name was Pannochka, and who loved him 
 with such passionate devotion that her whole life was 
 bound up in him, so that she had no love left to 
 bestow even upon a sweetheart. But, as the daughter 
 grew to maidenhood, the father, who was a widower, 
 decided to marry again ; and one day, to the great 
 grief of the lovely Pannochka, she was bidden to give 
 greeting and place to a stepmother, who, though also 
 of great beauty, bestowed such an evil glance of 
 jealous hatred upon her husband's child that the 
 latter was frightened and fled from her presence. 
 With tearful entreaty she clung to her father and 
 begged that he would still love her and caress her as 
 before, and she refused to be comforted until he 
 promised to do so. 
 
 But that night, as Pannochka sat alone in her 
 chamber very sad at heart, feeling that she was no 
 longer first in her father's affections, a fierce black 
 cat suddenly approached her, and, with a snarl of 
 rage, pounced upon her with its dreadful claws ex- 
 
 H 
 
102 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 tended. The maiden sprang to her feet in terror and 
 seizing her father's sabre, which happened to be lying 
 close by, struck wildly at the strange cat and drove 
 it, still snarling and screeching, from the room. 
 
 The next day the nobleman's new wife kept her 
 chamber and was not even seen at table, and for 
 another day also she did not appear. When, on the 
 third day, she came forth from her chamber, it was 
 seen that her hand was bound up with a linen cloth, 
 as though wounded; and then thenobleman's daughter 
 realised the dreadful truth. Her beloved father's 
 new wife was a wicked witch, and by means of her 
 enchantments had transformed herself into a black 
 cat on the night of her arrival, hoping, in that dis- 
 guise, to bring about the death from fright of her 
 beautiful stepdaughter, of whom she was already 
 jealous. 
 
 Her first plan having failed she was quick to find 
 another ; and, by her evil influence, she succeeded in 
 poisoning the mind of the father against his child. 
 That same day Pannochka was commanded to perform 
 the menial tasks of the humblest servant and was for- 
 bidden to enter her father's presence, and before the 
 fifth day was ended she was driven forth from the 
 castle gates, cold, hungry and clad in rags — this cruel 
 deed being done by the nobleman himself at the bid- 
 ding of his witch-wife, whose evil influence he was 
 already powerless to resist. 
 
 The heart-broken Pannochka wandered but a few 
 steps ; and then, in her mad despair, she flung herself 
 
A NIGHT IN MAY 103 
 
 from the top of a steep bank into the depths of the 
 silent lake below, and was seen no more in mortal 
 form. 
 
 " Poor, unhappy Pannochka, how my heart bleeds 
 for her ! " murmured the sympathetic Hanna, as she 
 clung to her lover's arm ; and Levko, with great 
 tenderness, drew her closer to his side as he con- 
 tinued : " But that is not the end of the tale, my 
 Hanna ! As the years have gone by the legend has 
 come down to us with mysterious additions. It is 
 said that as the despairing Pannochka plunged into 
 the lake she was received there by the water-nymphs 
 who dwell in its depths, and that she became their 
 Queen ; and with them, every now and again, so the 
 gossips declare, she would come out into the castle 
 grounds at night to dance and play in the moonlight. 
 On one of these occasions, the legend says, she saw her 
 stepmother walking on the lawn, and, enticing the 
 wicked woman to the edge of the water, dragged her 
 down into the lake. The witch, however, was quick 
 to save herself from destruction, and, by means of lier 
 magic, instantly transformed herself into a water- 
 nymph, and thus escaped. 
 
 " The old wives of the village," added Levko, 
 " say even now that at intervals Pannochka still 
 dances with her nymphs in the moonlight, and that 
 if any mortal happens to come by she compels the 
 stranger to guess which of the water sprites is her 
 witch-stepmother, declaring that she can never be 
 light and gay as are her fairy companions until she 
 
104 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 has discovered this evil enemy of her mortal days, 
 whom she seeks persistently. 
 
 " But do not tremble, my Hanna, for these are but 
 old wives' tales and you must not pay heed to them 
 nor let them affright you ! Hark ! the merry revellers 
 are approaching once more, and we must part until 
 to-morrow. Good-night, my beloved one, and may 
 sweet dreams visit thee ! " 
 
 With a last hasty embrace Levko slipped away once 
 more into the shadows of the trees ; and as Hanna 
 retired into her cottage and closed the door, the rustic 
 dancers returned, more lively than before. 
 
 This time the dancing was fast and furious, for now 
 that darkness had fallen the fussy old Mayor of the 
 village had commanded that the revels should cease 
 and that the young people should retire to their 
 homes at once, that they thus might be prevented 
 from getting into mischief or indulging in unseemly 
 pranks. The young men, however, thought other- 
 wise, and were determined to keep up their frolics as 
 long as they pleased ; and for a short time the girls 
 also lingered to applaud the wild dancing of their 
 favourite, Kalennik, who, now in a half-intoxicated 
 condition, was vainly endeavouring to dance the 
 " Hopak," another national dance which required 
 careful balancing on the part of the performer, and 
 which, rendered by the young Cossack with his 
 already unsteady legs, caused much amusement to 
 the onlookers. 
 
 Seeing that the girls were laughing at him, Kalennik 
 
A NIGHT IN MAY 105 
 
 gave chase to them, declaring that he would snatch a 
 kiss from each one ; then, finding that the giris were 
 too quick for him and that they were all clever enough 
 to elude his random embraces, he announced his 
 intention of resting for awhile in the first house he 
 came to, no matter whose it might prove to be, even 
 the Mayor's, adding recklessly and with drunken 
 bravado : " Who cares a fig for the fat, old, one-eyed 
 Mayor ? He's a silly dotard, wanting to stop our 
 revels just when we are beginning to enjoy ourselves ! 
 I'll look for his house, and when I find it, I'll go in 
 without being asked and tell him I don't care a jot for 
 any Mayor ! I'll be my own Mayor ! " 
 
 With these words Kalennik reeled down the street in 
 the direction of the Mayor's house. The maidens, 
 now somewhat alarmed, fled hastily to their homes, 
 but the young men hid in the shadows, waiting, with 
 stifled laughter, to see what would happen next. 
 Very soon they were in the midst of a glorious prank, 
 for Levko, who was also hidden amongst the bushes, 
 quickly enlisted their services on his behalf. 
 
 The young serenader had observed a cloaked figure 
 approach stealthily to the door of Hanna's house and 
 knock thereon. Full of surprise and curiosity to 
 know who this nocturnal visitor — who was of bulky 
 figure — could be, Levko drew nearer, though still 
 keeping in hiding, and he was just in time to hear a 
 declaration of love uttered by the stranger as soon as 
 the village beauty appeared in the doorway in answer 
 to the request for admission. Then, to the utter 
 
io6 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 amazement of the young man, he recognised the voice 
 of this new suitor to be that of his own father, and 
 he reahsed, at first with indignation and later with 
 amusement, that the pompous and fussy Mayor, 
 although so fond of preaching propriety to the youths 
 of the village, was nothing more nor less than a vain 
 old philanderer himself, who, in secret, ran after pretty 
 girls and indulged in many unseemly frivolities not in 
 keeping with his years and exalted position. 
 
 In his present pursuit, however, this elderly Don 
 Juan met with no success and with scant civility, for, 
 to the great delight of the concealed Levko, Hanna 
 indignantly refused all the advances of the Mayor with 
 great scorn, expressing disgust at his daring to make 
 love to her, and threatening to reveal his baseness to 
 her own true lover, Levko. Nevertheless, the old 
 libertine was not easily got rid of ; and in wheedling 
 tones he continued to entreat the pretty girl to accept 
 his advances, promising to give her in return fine 
 necklaces and to deck her gaily as became the fairest 
 maiden in the village and the chosen of himself. With 
 inordinate vanity he reminded her that when the 
 great Empress Catherine had visited the Crimea he had 
 been chosen, as the cleverest and handsomest of the 
 Cossacks, to accompany her, and was accommodated 
 with a seat on her coach of state and given fine gar- 
 ments to wear ; and he declared that, although he was 
 certainly now grey-haired and had but one eye, he 
 was still a fine Cossack, and that it was an honour for 
 any girl to receive his attentions, adding that his son 
 
A NIGHT IN MAY 107 
 
 Levko, who had had the impudence to declare love 
 for her, was but a foolish boy, too young to know the 
 meaning of love. 
 
 This last remark was more than Levko could stand, 
 and, determining to teach his ridiculous parent a 
 lesson, he sought out the other youths in their hiding- 
 places and whispered the suggestion to them that they 
 should seize the importunate suitor and make a 
 laughing-stock of him. Needing no second bidding, 
 but full of delight at the thought of such a prank, the 
 young men flung themselves upon the astonished 
 Mayor and began to hug and kiss him, to the great 
 relief of Hanna, who quickly retired within her cottage 
 and bolted the door ; and it was not until after much 
 struggling and angry expostulation that her elderly 
 and unwanted admirer managed to free himself 
 from the encircling embraces of the boisterous youths 
 and to break away from them and hasten back to his 
 own house. 
 
 But Levko did not intend to let the foolish official 
 off so lightly, considering that such an absurd old 
 humbug deserved a more salutary punishment for 
 refusing consent to his son's marriage and then 
 attempting to make love himself to the latter's 
 sweetheart. So he gathered his boon companions 
 together again and taught them a disrespectful song 
 about the " one-eyed, crazy Mayor," which he com- 
 posed on the spur of the moment, and which he 
 arranged they should presently sing beneath the 
 windows of the " great man's " house. 
 
io8 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Meanwhile, the Mayor had quickly recovered his 
 equanimity and lost dignity within the safe and respec- 
 table confines of his own home ; and here, a little later 
 in the evening, he entertained a visitor in the person 
 of a noted distiller, who had been sent by the present 
 owner of the haunted castle to establish a distillery 
 upon that ill-omened spot. 
 
 The Mayor's sister-in-law, a prim and fussy old 
 maid, who had kept house for him since he had been a 
 widower, was paying obsequious attention to the guest, 
 who was very desirable in her eyes, in spite of the fact 
 that he was extremely rotund in appearance and 
 was, in addition, the possessor of a loud coarse laugh, 
 which shook the whole of his fat, flabby body every 
 few moments ; and both she and her brother-in-law 
 waxed enthusiastic in their approval on hearing that 
 the distillery would be built and in working order by 
 the autumn, and that the jovial distiller himself 
 would live in their midst for the next few months as a 
 gay " grass- widower." 
 
 The three were laughing heartily at the new-comer's 
 comic description of his conjugal dullness when 
 suddenly the door was burst open and Kal^nnik, 
 the drunken dancer, reeled into the room, still de- 
 claring in maudlin tones : " What is the one-eyed old 
 Mayor to me ? I am my own Mayor ! " 
 
 Paying no attention to the occupants of the room 
 the roysterer coolly flung himself on to a bench, 
 where he promptly fell asleep and was soon snoring 
 loudly ; and the distiller quickly dissipated the indig- 
 
A NIGHT IN MAY 109 
 
 nation of his host by declaring with his fat laugh that 
 such a spectacle boded well for the new distillery. 
 
 Next moment, however, a stone was flung into the 
 room through the unbarred window, and the Mayor, 
 now suspecting that mischief was afoot, angrily 
 called down maledictions upon the impudent thrower 
 of the missile, wishing that it might return and choke 
 him. On hearing this the distiller turned pale and in 
 trembling tones begged the Mayor not to utter such a 
 curse, lest the same fate should overtake him as had 
 befallen his (the distiller's) mother-in-law, who, 
 having once, in a fit of rage, uttered a similar curse 
 upon a greedy guest who had eaten at her board more 
 heartily than was consistent with good manners, 
 wishing that the food might choke him, had been 
 horrified at the sudden consummation of her wish, the 
 stranger having choked and died the next instant — 
 and his ghost had haunted her ever since. 
 
 As the recital of this comical yet gruesome tale came 
 to an end the sound of music came from outside the 
 windows and, next moment, a number of youths' 
 voices were heard singing the disrespectful song 
 about the " one-eyed, crazy Mayor " which had just 
 been composed by Levko. 
 
 The Mayor was furious at being thus held up to 
 ridicule in the presence of a guest of importance, and 
 hastened out of doors angrily to catch the ring- 
 leader — little dreaming that this was his own son ; 
 and presently he returned dragging in with him a 
 youth who was indeed Levko, but whom he did not 
 
no STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 recognise, as the mischievous youth had disguised 
 himself very effectively by wearing his sheepskin 
 coat turned inside out and by blacking his face with 
 soot. 
 
 There was a small lock-up adjoining the Mayor's 
 parlour, and seeing that his irate father was about to 
 thrust him within this undesirable chamber, Levko 
 managed to wrench himself free and to rejoin his 
 companions outside ; and at the same moment a 
 sudden gust of wind extinguished the lights, so that 
 the angry Mayor, seeking to recapture his prisoner in 
 the dark, seized his sister-in-law by mistake, and, 
 heedless of her frantic expostulations, clapped her 
 unceremoniously into the lock-up and barred the door. 
 
 He was just recovering breath after his exciting 
 chase when the village clerk bustled in, puffing and 
 blowing also, declaring that the rowdy youths had 
 caused a tumult in the street by their ribald singing ; 
 and he added with great satisfaction : " But I have 
 caught the ringleader, Mr Mayor, that rascal in the 
 sheepskin coat turned inside out, and I have him 
 safely under lock and key in the penthouse adjoining 
 my poor dwelling ! " 
 
 " Then, who is the rascal in my lock-up, for me- 
 thought I caught the ringleader myself ! " demanded 
 the stupid old Mayor ; and hastily unfastening the 
 door of the strong-room, he was amazed at being con- 
 fronted by his infuriated sister-in-law, who poured 
 forth an angry tirade upon him for having dared to 
 imprison her. Nearly choking with rage the offended 
 
A NIGHT IN MAY iii 
 
 spinster ran out into the street, where she was instantly 
 seized by the rowdy serenaders, who had already 
 managed to effect the escape of Levko from the clerk's 
 lock-up, and who now, still bent on mischief, hurried 
 the struggling female along and deposited her in the, 
 penthouse in place of their merry leader. Then 
 they dispersed quickly, well satisfied with their frolic 
 for the time being. 
 
 The consequence was that when, a short time later, 
 the pompous old Mayor came along with the distiller 
 and attended by the triumphant clerk to examine the 
 supposed roysterer within the penthouse, upon the 
 door being opened, he was again confounded by be- 
 holding his irate sister-in-law, whose vituperations on 
 this occasion were even more venomous than on the 
 last. After declaring spitefully that the insinuations 
 in the ribald song of the roysterers were true, that she 
 had known of his dallyings for a long time past, and 
 that he was a vain old dotard to run after young 
 girls, the indignant female stalked away to her home, 
 leaving the Mayor to follow in sober silence, cowed by 
 her violence and obliged to endure the quizzical 
 side-glances of his guest and of his subordinate. 
 
 Meanwhile, Levko, the mischievous cause of all this 
 commotion, had escaped from his companions for a 
 short spell, and, after washing the soot from his face, 
 had wandered off to the now deserted lake-side to 
 collect his scattered wits. Quickly the thoughts of 
 the ardent young lover came to the object of his 
 passion, his fair sweetheart, Hanna ; and soon he 
 
112 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 brought forth his bandoora and began to play upon it 
 with a tender touch and to sing to its accompaniment 
 a sweet love-song in honour of his adored one. 
 
 So engrossed was he in his happy thoughts that at 
 first he did not notice that strange happenings were 
 taking place around him. Almost immediately after 
 he commenced singing, a window in the haunted castle 
 hard by was flung open, and at the same moment 
 the pale reflection of a lovely maiden was seen in the 
 water below — the reflection of the drowned Pannochka 
 — who called softly to the love-sick serenader to sing 
 on, since his music was welcome. 
 
 Not until the spirit-maiden had called the second 
 time did the rapt Levko real^'se that he was not alone ; 
 and then he suddenly sprang to his feet and rubbed his 
 eyes in amazement as his gaze fell upon a marvellous 
 sight — a scene which he had thought until this moment 
 was only to be met within the dreams of childhood. 
 While he had been singing a host of ethereal water- 
 nymphs had stepped out from the lake and were 
 now singing and dancing lightly upon the banks and 
 dew-sprinkled lawns beyond ; and as the silvery 
 beams of the moonlight shone upon them, their 
 shadowy forms appeared to be almost transparent, 
 though their clinging white draperies and long tresses 
 of hair sparkled with water-drops and sprayed the 
 mossy ground with crystal showers at every move- 
 ment. 
 
 These pale yet lovely beings were the ghostly 
 spirits of drowned maidens who had sought in watery 
 
A NIGHT IN MAY 113 
 
 graves oblivion from the persecutions of the wicked or 
 from the heartlessnessof faithless lovers; and it seemed 
 that the sweet music made by the young Cossack had 
 brought them forth and that for the time being they 
 had cast aside their melancholy and were happy once 
 more as they sang and danced or wove wreaths of the 
 pale spring flowers which gemmed the banks and 
 grassy dells. 
 
 As Levko gazed upon this fair company with 
 mingled awe and admiration, Pannochka, the most 
 beautiful of all the nymphs — of whom she was the 
 Queen — came and stood beside the young man and 
 said to him in her sweet unearthly voice : " Sing on, 
 kind youth ! Your music brings joy to my maidens 
 and me, and helps us to forget the sorrows of the 
 past ! Play on, brave Cossack, I prithee ! " 
 
 Levko needed no second bidding, for he was thrilled 
 and fascinated by the fairy-like scene ; and he played 
 willingly and enthusiastically upon his bandoora, 
 and even joined in the songs of the water-nymphs 
 as they tripped lightly as butterflies in the rhythmic 
 measures of their fantastic dance. At first they sang 
 gaily as they danced with garlands of flowers in their 
 hands ; and then, suddenly, their song came to an end 
 and they cast their wreaths into the lake and stood 
 with drooping heads, sadly watching the drowning 
 flowers. 
 
 Whilst her maidens thus enacted in song and dance 
 the joys and sorrows of their mortal days, the lovely 
 Pannochka flitted to the side of Levko and whispered 
 
114 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 in his ear : " Find my wicked stepmother for me, good 
 youth ! Even now her evil spell is still upon me, so 
 that I cannot swim freely through the waters, but am 
 stifled in their depths ! She is here amongst the 
 nymphs, but I know not which is she ! Find her 
 for me, brave Cossack, and I will reward thee by giving 
 thee thy heart's desire ! " 
 
 So full of entreaty was the voice of the drowned 
 Pannochka that Levko longed to grant her request, 
 though he knew not how to do so ; but just at that 
 moment the nymphs recovered their lost gaiety once 
 more and began to play the game known as " The 
 Raven," which, as luck would have it, gave the young 
 man the clue to the information he desired to obtain. 
 In this game one of the performers represents a raven 
 which desires to harry and peck to death the rest of 
 the players, who represent chickens, supposed to be 
 the family of another member of the company repre- 
 senting a brood hen, who, in her turn, endeavours to 
 protect her chicks from the attacks of the fierce raven. 
 
 The game was quickly played through by the 
 nymphs, who immediately desired to play it over 
 again a second time; but soon they were in a quandary, 
 for the nymph who had played the " raven " refused 
 to play it again, being so tender-hearted that she did 
 not like to peck the " chicks " even in play. Soon, 
 however, another nymph came forward and said that 
 she had no such objection to playing the " raven " ; 
 and so eager was she to take this thankless part that 
 Levko's attention was drawn to her and he watched 
 
A NIGHT IN MAY 115 
 
 her subsequent actions with curiosity, fascinated by 
 her strangely realistic animosity to the harmless 
 " chicks." As the game proceeded he became sus- 
 picious as to her identity, and when, at the end, she 
 pounced upon the " chicks," such a baleful light 
 gleamed in her eyes that he cried out accusingly : 
 " The nymph who plays the ' raven ' is the wicked 
 witch ! " 
 
 Full of joy at the young man's discovery the 
 players seized the spiteful nymph who had played the 
 " raven " and disappeared with her into the depths 
 of the lake ; but, next moment, Pannochka again 
 appeared beside the still gazing Levko, and, thanking 
 him for having discovered for her the wicked enemy of 
 her mortal days, whose evil spell was thus removed 
 from her for ever so that she could now swim freely 
 in the water with ease and pleasure, she desired the 
 young Cossack to name the reward he desired for the 
 good service he had rendered to her. Upon his 
 modest refusal to do so, she placed a sealed letter in 
 his hand, and said softly : " You love Hanna, the 
 fairest maiden in the village, and your selfish father 
 refuses consent to your union. But now let him 
 know the contents of this packet and he will no longer 
 refuse. Fare thee well, brave youth, and may you 
 be happy evermore with your adored one ! " 
 
 With these words the Queen of the Water-nymphs 
 vanished, and Levko was left rubbing his still 
 astonished eyes and trying to believe that he had 
 been dreaming. But no ! The letter which the 
 
ii6 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 drowned Pannochka had given to him still lay in 
 his hand ; and the young Cossack, not stopping to 
 consider its supernatural source, but thankful for 
 the gift of the beautiful stranger, hurried back to the 
 village without further ado, to test its magic powers. 
 
 He found that, followed by a gaping crowd, the 
 Mayor, accompanied by his clerk, was still endeavour- 
 ing to discover the ringleader of the roystering youths 
 who had so rudely disturbed his peace of mind ; and 
 upon Levko suddenly appearing, still wearing his 
 sheepskin coat turned inside out, he was at once 
 seized by the clerk as the culprit and brought before 
 the irate official. 
 
 As the Mayor glared at the captive, thus learning 
 with amazement that the saucy rogue was none other 
 than his own adventurous son, Levko calmly handed 
 to him the sealed document placed in his hands by 
 Pannochka, and the clerk was bidden to read it aloud. 
 To the astonishment of all, including Levko himself, 
 the document proved to be an official letter from the 
 Governor of the district, stating that as the Mayor 
 had behaved himself in an unseemly fashion of la^^ 
 he must straightway make amends for his misd 
 by giving consent to the union of his son, Levko, ..itu 
 the village beauty, Hanna. The Governor further 
 commanded that the marriage should take place at 
 once, and that he expected to find that his order had 
 been carried out upon his next visit to the village, 
 which Levko now added was to be the following 
 evening, declaring mendaciously that he had just met 
 
A NIGHT IN MAY 117 
 
 a special messenger who had given him the news ; and 
 the young man advised his father to prepare feasts 
 accordingly. 
 
 Although angry and deeply mortified, the Mayor 
 did not dare to disobey the command contained in 
 this document which bore the official seal and signa- 
 ture of the tyrannical Governor ; and the consequence 
 was that the marriage ceremony of Levko and Hanna 
 took place next morning, to the great joy of the happy 
 lovers and the satisfaction of their many friends, who 
 all came to take part in the festivities. 
 
 To Hanna alone did Levko reveal the true origin of 
 the lucky document that had secured happiness for 
 them, leading the Mayor and others to believe that 
 the Governor's own messenger had indeed handed it 
 to him ; and, full of joy, not unmingled with awe, 
 the bridal pair knelt to offer up thanksgiving for the 
 miracle that had been wrought on their behalf and to 
 pray together for the soul of the drowned Pannochka. 
 
RIMSKY-KORSAKOV 
 
 IVAN THE TERRIBLE 
 
 One summer evening during the latter part of the 
 sixteenth century a number of Hght-hearted maidens 
 were playing games together in the gardens surround- 
 ing the mansion of Prince Youry Tokmakov, the 
 Tsar's Viceroy and Governor of the ancient city of 
 Pskov, and the air rang with the music of their fresh 
 young voices and resounded with their happy laughter 
 as they flitted hither and thither in the merry romp of 
 " Catch who catch can." 
 
 These lively girls were the guests of Princess Olga, 
 the Viceroy's fair young daughter, who, however, had 
 slipped away from their merry ranks and was now 
 standing a Httle to one side, half concealed by a 
 clump of thick bushes, listening eagerly to a message 
 brought by her chief friend and confidante, Stesha, 
 with whom she shared a wonderful secret. For the 
 beautiful Olga, although already betrothed against 
 her wish to the Boyard Matouta — an elderly suitor 
 of mean disposition, whom she disliked and despised 
 — had recently made the acquaintance of a handsome 
 young burgher, by name Michael Toucha, between 
 whom and herself there had sprung up a passionate 
 love and to whom she had plighted her troth in secret. 
 With the aid of her friend, Stesha, who acted as 
 
 H8 
 
IVAN THE TERRIBLE 119 
 
 messenger and go-between, the lovers were able to 
 meet now and again at twilight in unfrequented parts 
 of the Viceregal gardens to snatch brief moments of 
 bliss, even though realising only too well that the 
 future held Httle hope for the consummation of their 
 union. Apart from the fact that Michael was not 
 of noble birth, there was another reason why he 
 would never find favour in the eyes of Prince Tok- 
 makov. The young man was also a revolutionary, 
 and, fired by a patriotic love for his native city and 
 the freedom and rights of her inhabitants, his soul 
 rebelled against the despotic rule under which she 
 was compelled to exist. He was already an ardent 
 leader of the more advanced and soaring spirits 
 among the community who sought to break away from 
 the tyranny of the all-powerful Tsar, Ivan the Terrible, 
 whose stern belief in the invincibility of " Divine 
 Right " had led him to take fearful vengeance on all 
 those venturesome souls who dared to defy his iron 
 rule in order to secure absolute dominion over the vast 
 lands he held. 
 
 The message now brought by Stesha to her friend 
 was to the effect that Michael Toucha intended to 
 visit his beloved one that same evening and might 
 arrive at any moment ; and, full of joy that she was 
 so soon to feel the arms of her lover around her, 
 Olga hurried with her friend to rejoin her guests, 
 whom she was now eager to get safely within the house. 
 By this time, the young ladies had tired of their 
 romping games and had persuaded one of the old 
 
120 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 nurses in charge of the party to tell them a favourite 
 story, in which a fierce dragon of terrible aspect 
 played an important part. The girls were so deeply 
 interested in this exciting tale that the sudden sound 
 of a shrill whistle which came from the other side 
 of the bushes startled them so much that they all 
 fled away into the mansion at once, followed by the 
 grumbling old dames — to the intense relief of Olga, 
 who knew well that the whistle was the signal of her 
 lover's approach. 
 
 The new-comer was, indeed, Michael Toucha, who 
 
 stepped forth from the bushes and sat on the fence 
 
 beyond, singing softly to himself, until he saw the 
 
 cloaked form of the Princess Olga slip out from the 
 
 house and trip lightly to the trysting-place, when he 
 
 hastened to her side. After their first happy greetings 
 
 were over Olga was quickly plunged into grief on 
 
 learning from her lover that he had come to bid her 
 
 farewell. Realising that Prince Tokmakov would 
 
 never consent to wed his daughter to a portionless 
 
 suitor, Michael announced that he was resolved to 
 
 journey to the borders of Siberia, where he meant to 
 
 trade in furs and silver ; and then, when he had become 
 
 quite wealthy, it was his intention to return and to 
 
 lay his riches at the feet of the Viceroy, in the hope 
 
 of securing his favour and the hand of the beautiful 
 
 Olga. 
 
 As he concluded the recital of his hopeful plan and 
 begged the young Princess to bestow her blessing upon 
 him ere he departed, Olga flung her arms around his 
 
IVAN THE TERRIBLE 121 
 
 neck and tearfully entreated him not to leave her nor 
 to risk the terrible dangers of the unknown snow-clad 
 land of Siberia ; and she declared that, in spite of the 
 fact that she was betrothed to the Boyard Matouta, 
 she would now reveal to her father the secret of her 
 passionate love for Michael and entreat him to consent 
 to their union. 
 
 Gently, but insistently, her lover endeavoured to 
 set aside her clinging arms, knowing only too well that 
 her entreaties would be of no avail ; but the more 
 passionately did Olga cling to him and announce her 
 resolve never to be parted from him. 
 
 Darkness had now fallen ; and whilst the lovers 
 were still engaged in earnest discussion of the future 
 which looked so gloomy for them, comforting one 
 another by repeated declarations of their intense love, 
 they were startled on seeing two persons approaching 
 from the mansion. To their alarm, they quickly recog- 
 nised these as the Viceroy and the Boyard Matouta, 
 who sought the cool evening air and the privacy of 
 the gardens as they spoke together on urgent personal 
 matters. With a hastily whispered farewell the lovers 
 parted, Michael escaping over the fence and vanishing 
 into the darkness beyond, whilst Olga crouched in 
 the bushes close by, afraid to move further away until 
 the nobles had retired. Thus the young girl over- 
 heard a piece of news not intended for her ears and 
 which filled her with an additional sorrow. 
 
 At first the two nobles discussed matters of state, 
 for the disturbing news had just been received that 
 
122 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 the Tsar Ivan had wreaked terrible vengeance upon 
 the neighbouring city of Novgorod because the sons 
 of the freemen and burghers there had rebelled against 
 his rule, fearful massacres having been ordered by the 
 stern tyrant, whereby the innocent had suffered with 
 the guilty and the whole town was filled with lamenta- 
 tion. 
 
 The Viceroy expressed the hopeful view that 
 Pskov was not likely to share a similar fate, as he 
 had himself discharged his duties as Viceroy with 
 unblamable loyalty, and had so far been able to keep 
 the revolutionary element under reasonable control ; 
 but Matouta was full of fears and doubts, declaring 
 that such daring spirits as the young malcontent, 
 Toucha, had caused much disaffection in the city, so 
 that the Iron Tsar, following his inflexible resolve to 
 rule as an absolute autocrat, might well cause dire 
 punishment to be inflicted upon all the citizens of 
 Pskov because of the few who had dared to resist his 
 power. 
 
 So full of fear was the craven-hearted Boyard that 
 he trembled at every sound, even at the rustling of a 
 leaf ; but having been assured by his host that there 
 was no danger of their conversation being overheard 
 in these private gardens and that they might talk 
 there in safety, he recovered somewhat and began to 
 speak of his betrothal to Olga, expressing the desire 
 that their marriage might soon take place. The 
 Viceroy, however, who well realised that the young 
 Princess regarded the match with repugnance, 
 
IVAN THE TERRIBLE 123 
 
 desired, for her sake, to put off its consummation a 
 little longer, hoping that the maiden might thus 
 become more reconciled ; and he even went so far as 
 to endanger the Boyard's withdrawal from the con- 
 tract altogether by confessing to him that Olga was 
 not, as supposed, his own child, but was the daughter 
 of his dead wife's sister. Vera, who had died years 
 ago without naming the father of her child. The 
 little one, he continued, had been taken into his own 
 house and brought up as his daughter ; but though 
 Vera's faithful old nurse, who alone knew the secret, 
 still served and cherished the fair maiden, Olga, the 
 mystery of her true parentage had never been revealed 
 — beyond the fact that her unknown father was of the 
 highest rank. 
 
 The concealed Olga, on thus learning that the 
 Viceroy, whom she loved tenderly, was not her real 
 father, could no longer keep her feelings under control, 
 and uttered a faint cry of woe. The sound was 
 instantly caught by the Boyard Matouta, who was 
 about to hasten in the direction of her hiding-place 
 when, suddenly, a bell pealed forth loudly from the 
 neighbouring Kremlin. At the same time a distant 
 glow appeared in the sky ; and realising that the bell, 
 which now pealed on unceasingly, was the tocsin to 
 call the townsfolk together, and that the beacon fires 
 had also been Hghted around the city to warn the 
 inhabitants of outlying districts of coming danger, 
 the Viceroy hurried his now terrified guest away at 
 once and proceeded with him to the market-place to 
 
124 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 address the people already gathering there. Thus the 
 unhappy Olga escaped discovery and hastened within 
 doors overcome with grief. 
 
 At the sound of the tocsin the townsfolk had come 
 hurrying forth from their homes, their curiosity being 
 mingled with fear, for the great bell was only rung at 
 long intervals, when it was necessary to gather the 
 people together to hear the announcement of important 
 news or proclamations, or in times of great danger. 
 The market-place, which was already brightly illu- 
 minated by the now blazing beacons, quickly filled, and 
 hasty greetings were called to every new arrival of 
 note, whilst eager questions were asked on all sides 
 as to the reason for the assembly. Soon it was 
 noticed that a dust-covered, travel-stained messenger 
 had entered the square, and all crowded round to 
 hear his message as he mounted the platform for the 
 speakers. 
 
 The Viceroy, accompanied by the Boyards, Judges 
 and all persons of authority in the city, having now 
 arrived, the messenger after saluting the company 
 announced that he had brought a greeting to Pskov 
 from her fair sister city, Novgorod, which lay in 
 smoking ruins, whilst her few remaining inhabitants 
 filled the deserted streets with lamentations. He 
 went on to describe how the mighty Tsar, Ivan the 
 Terrible, had come with his savage soldiery, the 
 Oprichniki, and had ordered a massacre of the people 
 and a sack of the city because of a rebellious faction 
 there which had had the audacity to resist his laws, 
 
IVAN THE TERRIBLE 125 
 
 and how, in consequence, hosts of innocent persons — 
 men, women and children — had been slain to satisfy 
 the vengeance of the tyrant, who was now marching 
 on Pskov and might arrive at daybreak. 
 
 As the people heard this terrible news loud cries 
 rent the air, for they were full of fear lest the same 
 fate might befall them as had laid low their sister 
 city, Novgorod ; but soon they were somewhat com- 
 forted by the calm demeanour of the Viceroy, who next 
 addressed them. Prince Tokmakov reminded the 
 frightened people that they had done no wrong and 
 that so long as they showed themselves loyal and 
 obedient to the mighty Tsar, their ruler, and sought 
 his royal favour, they were not likely to meet with the 
 sad fate of Novgorod, where sedition had been rife. 
 He then bade them cease from moaning and hasten 
 to bake loaves of fine meal, to prepare mead and to 
 set forth in the streets bread and salt as the symbols of 
 welcome against the arrival of their exalted guest, 
 whom he counselled them to greet with deep humility 
 and to implore that he would show clemency towards 
 them. He next informed his white-faced listeners 
 that the Tsar was also passing through their city on 
 his way to pray at the shrines of local saints, which 
 fact they might take as a favourable sign that he was 
 coming in peace, and that it would be foolish, there- 
 fore, to attempt to arm themselves or to make any 
 show of resistance, which would only bring upon them 
 the anger of their powerful ruler. 
 
 The words of the Viceroy — whom they loved and 
 
126 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 revered — brought back hope to the hearts of the 
 majority of the people ; but another section of the 
 crowd called upon their favourite, Michael Toucha, 
 who was also present, to speak, the young revolu- 
 tionary having kept ominous silence throughout the 
 foregoing speech, his set face and impatient gestures 
 having revealed to them that the advice of Prince 
 Tokmakov was not to his liking. 
 
 Michael needed no second bidding to speak out his 
 mind, and, mounting to the platform, he made a 
 speech full of fire, repudiating with scorn the idea that 
 the people should humble themselves before their 
 tyrant ruler, declaring that as they had done no wrong 
 they neither deserved punishment nor needed to 
 crave for mercy. He boldly called upon his followers 
 and all others who were of his way of thinking to 
 refuse to pay homage to one who respected not their 
 rights, but, instead, to arm themselves and march out 
 of the city now with him, to dwell in freedom as out- 
 laws rather than lose their self-respect by abasing 
 themselves before the terrible Tsar, and to seek some 
 means of striking a decisive blow for their rights and 
 for the liberty of Pskov, their beloved city. 
 
 This inflammatory speech quickly caught the vivid 
 imaginations of the younger and more revolutionary 
 members of the assembly, so that a considerable 
 number of bold and reckless young men immediately 
 went over to the side of Toucha, whom they had 
 always recognised as their leader ; and refusing to 
 be guided by the more sober counsels of the Viceroy, 
 
IVAN THE TERRIBLE 127 
 
 the rebel band marched out of the city singing their 
 songs of freedom as they went. 
 
 The rest of the community, however, followed out 
 the instructions of Prince Tokmakov, and spent the 
 remainder of the night baking loaves and brewing 
 strong mead. At daybreak they began to set out 
 tables in the streets, upon which they placed bread and 
 salt as the symbols of hospitality and welcome ; and 
 they brought forth their banners and their icons and 
 crosses to carry in procession as the Tsar entered 
 the city, that he might be pleased with his recep- 
 tion and that his anger might be turned away from 
 them. 
 
 Whilst these hasty preparations were taking place 
 in the early hours of the morning the Princess Olga 
 appeared on the balcony of the Viceregal mansion, 
 attended by her faithful old nurse who, quickly 
 observing the unhappy looks of her young charge, 
 begged for her confidence in this evident trouble. 
 Olga, with many bitter tears, related to the old dame 
 the story contained in the conversation she had over- 
 heard the previous evening between the Viceroy and 
 the Boyard Matouta, bemoaning her sad fate as an 
 orphan and expressing her grief because of the mis- 
 fortunes that were falling upon her. Then, somewhat 
 comforted by the kindly sympathy of her nurse, she 
 dried her eyes once more and expressed the hope that 
 her troubles might be set aright upon the arrival of 
 the great Tsar Ivan, for whom she had an unaccount- 
 ably sacred affection and respect and had always 
 
128 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 cherished an intense longing to see him in the flesh, 
 having, from her earhest childhood, been taught to 
 regard him as second only to her Divine Father. 
 
 Even as Olga and her old nurse spoke together the 
 great square in front of the mansion became crowded 
 with a host of excited people, whilst the simultaneous 
 pealing of all the bells in the city and the sound of 
 loud acclamations from the adjoining streets heralded 
 the approach of the dreaded tyrant ; and as the noise 
 of the tumult drew nearer, the people fell upon their 
 knees, bowing their heads to the ground in sign of 
 their deep humility and reverence. 
 
 First came a procession of fierce Tartar warriors clad 
 in full battle array, followed by the celebrated Oprich- 
 niki Guards, resplendent in their rich trappings and 
 awe-inspiring of aspect ; and then, mounted upon a 
 fiery steed, the mighty Tsar, Ivan the Terrible, 
 appeared in the square — a man of noble beauty and 
 regal bearing, who gazed proudly upon the kneeling 
 populace thus humbly greeting him and pleading that 
 he would show mercy upon them. 
 
 With calm dignity the Viceroy approached the 
 silent sovereign and bade him welcome to the city of 
 Pskov ; and the Tsar, pleased with his reception, 
 graciously desired his representative to lead the way 
 into the Viceregal palace, where he wished to partake 
 of refreshment. 
 
 When the party had taken their places within the 
 handsome reception rooms of the Viceregal mansion, 
 Prince Tokmakov standing at the right hand of the 
 
IVAN THE TERRIBLE 129 
 
 exalted guest and the trembling Matouta upon his 
 left with the other Boyards grouped around, the Tsar 
 commanded that a goblet of mead should be presented 
 to him by the mistress of the house. The Viceroy 
 explained that his wife had long since been dead, 
 but that his daughter would be honoured to wait upon 
 her sovereign, for whom she had ever had the greatest 
 respect and affection ; whereupon Olga entered the 
 room with eager yet trembling steps and deeply 
 bowed head, and, kneeling, presented the goblet of 
 mead to the royal guest. She was followed by her 
 friend, Stesha, and a bevy of other fair maidens 
 bearing salvers of the choicest sweetmeats and rarest 
 foods the city could produce. 
 
 As Olga approached him the sternness of the Tsar's 
 features relaxed and he greeted her gently and in- 
 quired her name, afterwards addressing her in a 
 caressing manner by the pet-name " Olenka," and 
 bidding her to greet him with a kiss — the privilege of a 
 welcome guest. When the maiden looked up with a 
 startled glance he stepped back suddenly and gazed 
 into her beautiful face with amazement, as a host of 
 tender recollections rushed upon him — for Olga was 
 the exact Hving image of a fair girl whom he had 
 loved with all the strength of a passionate nature many 
 years ago in the romantic days of his early manhood, 
 when the call of youth meant more to him than the 
 powers of kingship and when love was the only 
 thing that mattered. 
 
 Olga, on her part, gazed affectionately, yet timidly. 
 
130 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 at the Tsar, whom she had reverenced from her earhest 
 days ; and she repHed modestly that it was too great 
 an honour for a humble maiden thus to salute her 
 sovereign. The transformed Ivan, however, still 
 smiled upon her and took off a handsome ring, which 
 he slipped upon Olga's finger, at the same time stoop- 
 ing to kiss her reverently and gently, for a strange 
 emotion thrilled him ; then, recovering himself 
 somewhat, he greeted the other girls and bade them 
 sing to him. 
 
 His eyes, however, never left the sweet face of 
 Olga, whom he kept by his side and continued to 
 caress ; and when, presently, she retired with her 
 friends, he dismissed his own attendants also and bade 
 the Viceroy remain awhile with him alone. He then 
 eagerly demanded of his host : " From what family 
 did you take your wife. Prince ? This fair maid, 
 Olga, is the living image of one I loved long years 
 ago ! " 
 
 Prince Tokmakov replied that he had wedded a 
 lady of the noble house of Nassonov, at which name 
 the Tsar appeared violently agitated ; and then, too 
 proud to deceive his sovereign, he told him simply 
 that although he had wedded Nadejda, the elder 
 daughter of that house, Olga was not her child, but 
 was the daughter of her erring sister. Vera, the name 
 of whose unknown lover had never been revealed. 
 With feelings of the deepest emotion the Tsar now 
 realised that the fair maiden to whom he had felt 
 himself so strangely drawn was, indeed, his own 
 
The Tsar Realises that Olga is his Daughter 
 
 (Chaliapin as Ivan the Terrible.) 
 
or* u > k 
 - c c « • c , c 
 
 « e c » r ► 
 
IVAN THE TERRIBLE 131 
 
 daughter — the child of the beautiful Vera Nassonov, 
 whom he had loved so passionately in the golden 
 days of his youth and who had gladly shared with him 
 in secret for a brief spell the magic bliss of a stolen 
 joy, which her own equally passionate nature made 
 her powerless to resist. Bowing his head humbly 
 before this realisation of the inscrutable workings 
 of the Divine Father, the chastened Ivan registered 
 a vow then and there to make an end to war and blood- 
 shed, and declared devoutly : " God is the Protector 
 of the City of Pskov and her people may rest in 
 peace ! " 
 
 Great rejoicings were now held by the inhabitants 
 of Pskov when it became known that Ivan the Terrible 
 had no evil intentions towards them, but had only 
 fatherly blessings to bestow upon all ; and for a 
 short time the softened Tsar remained in the district, 
 engaged in hunting and other peaceful pastimes. 
 Then he determined to carry out his original intention 
 of visiting the local shrines and set forth for the 
 Monastery of Pechersk, where a number of pilgrims 
 also went out from Pskov at the same time to return 
 thanks to the saints for preserving their city ; and 
 whilst his tent was pitched upon the banks of the 
 RiverMiededna, ashe journeyed thither, he had another 
 and unexpected meeting with Olga — a meeting that 
 was destined to end in tragedy. 
 
 When the chief inhabitants of Pskov, following the 
 example set them by the Tsar, set forth to visit the 
 Monastery of Pechersk and to worship at the shrines 
 
132 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 of the local saints, there came with the pilgrims, 
 attended by their nurses, a party of young girls, 
 among whom was Olga, still regarded by her friends 
 as the daughter of the great Prince Tokmakov. 
 Olga's object, however, was not only a religious one. 
 She had received tidings again of Michael Toucha, 
 who had contrived to send her a message, asking her 
 to meet him in the forest during her journey to the 
 Monastery, and the young girl's sad heart had been 
 filled with joy at the prospect of seeing her outlaw 
 lover once more. The consequence was that as the 
 girl pilgrims journeyed through the forest, singing 
 as they went, Olga managed to slip away unnoticed 
 from the rest of the party and made her way to the 
 place of tryst chosen by Michael — a lonely spot at 
 some distance from the more frequented paths. It 
 was late in the evening and darkness had already 
 fallen — for the party had been delayed on the way 
 by a thunderstorm and had been compelled to take 
 shelter from the rain — and Olga trembled with fear 
 at finding herself alone in the darkness surrounded 
 by all the terrors of the forest. ( 
 
 She had not long to wait, however, before she was 
 joined by Michael Toucha, and the lovers quickly 
 clasped one another in a glad embrace, forgetting their 
 troubles for the moment in the intense joy of meeting. 
 Then, a little later, they began to talk of their future, 
 and Olga told her lover that no one could now keep 
 them apart, since she also was an outlaw. She then 
 related to him how she had learned that she was not 
 
IVAN THE TERRIBLE 133 
 
 the daughter of Prince Tokmakov, so that, not know- 
 ing her paternal parentage, she was thus free to wed 
 with a burgher ; and again the now happy pair 
 rejoiced in the seemingly rosy prospect before them, 
 Michael declaring that they would go away together 
 and make their home on the far distant banks of the 
 Volga. 
 
 But fate was against the union of Michael and Olga, 
 and their fair castle in the air was soon dashed to 
 pieces. Even as they spoke thus happily together a 
 gang of armed men suddenly sprang out from the 
 neighbouring bushes and set upon them. Michael 
 endeavoured to protect his beloved one ; but he was 
 quickly dragged from her side and flung to the ground, 
 insensible. At the same time a cloak was thrown 
 over Olga's head and she was lifted up, half-fainting, 
 and carried away through the forest. 
 
 This outrage had been carried out by order of the 
 Boyard Matouta, who, having learnt by means of 
 the spies he employed that the young Princess had 
 arranged to meet her outlaw lover in the forest, had 
 determined, in revenge for her unfavourable reception 
 of his own suit and for the Viceroy's contempt for 
 the craven spirit he had shown at the time of the 
 Tsar's arrival in Pskov, to use the circumstance as a 
 means of disgracing her in the eyes of the terrible 
 Ivan — Httle dreaming that the latter was the unknown 
 father of the girl. 
 
 Therefore he bade his men carry the captive to the 
 rocky banks of the River Miededna where the Tsar's 
 
 K 
 
134 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 tent had been pitched not far from the Monastery of 
 Pechersk ; and here, in a few hours' time, the party 
 arrived, and Matouta insolently demanded admittance 
 of the royal pilgrim's chief attendant, Prince Viazem- 
 sky. 
 
 Within the tent the Tsar Ivan sat alone at a table 
 reading certain documents spread out before him, but 
 stopping every now and again to gaze fixedly in front 
 of him and to lose himself in deep reflection. The 
 tent had rich appurtenances, such as became its royal 
 occupier. Splendid furs were spread upon the ground 
 and over the seats, the table was covered with cloth 
 of gold and bore silver candlesticks, and heavy curtains 
 of gorgeous Eastern handicraft had been hung before 
 the tent opening. 
 
 So deeply engrossed was the Tsar in his reflections 
 that he resented the sudden entrance of his Chief 
 Counsellor, Prince Viazemsky, with the request that 
 the Boyard Matouta desired an interview, having 
 brought with him a fair maiden whom he had snatched 
 from the arms of a rebel lover in the forest ; but on 
 learning that the captive was none other than the 
 beautiful Princess Olga, the startled and now angry 
 Ivan commanded the Boyard to enter and sternly 
 bade him explain why he had brought the girl thither 
 and at such a late hour. 
 
 The craven Matouta, trembling with fear now that 
 he found himself in the presence of the powerful 
 tyrant, declared that although the young Princess 
 Olga had set forth from her home ostensibly with the 
 
IVAN THE TERRIBLE 135 
 
 object of praying at the local shrines, she had managed 
 to escape from her companions in order to meet her 
 burgher lover, Michael Toucha, a dangerous rebel 
 from whose polluting touch he, Matouta, had arrived 
 just in time to snatch her away ; but Ivan, furious 
 at the Boyard's covertly insulting accusation against 
 the fair girl in whom he himself was so intensely 
 interested, with scornful anger dismissed him from his 
 presence. 
 
 He then sent for Olga, who entered weeping and 
 flung herself at his feet, imploring his pardon and pro- 
 tection. The unhappy girl confessed her love for 
 Michael and admitted that she had indeed gone to 
 keep tryst with him that evening when she had been 
 so roughly taken captive by order of the hated and 
 despicable Matouta. 
 
 At first the Tsar listened to her explanations with 
 cold displeasure, sternly reprimanding her for for- 
 saking her pilgrimage in order to meet her lover, and 
 declaring harshly that she must now travel with the 
 royal party to Moscow and choose a husband from 
 among the nobles there. He added that the young 
 man, Toucha, should be sent in chains to prison ; but 
 Olga's tears and distress quickly broke down his harsh 
 resolutions. With passionate words of entreaty the 
 grief-stricken girl implored the Emperor to have 
 mercy upon her ; and she went on to declare that, 
 so far from believing her listener to be only a cruel 
 tyrant, she regarded him as a loving and gracious 
 father of the people, who would protect and care for 
 
136 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 her as her own unknown father would have done. 
 She added that as a httle child she had been taught to 
 pray for him night and morning as her " father, the 
 mighty Tsar Ivan," and that in her dreams he had 
 visited her always with a gracious and benevolent 
 aspect as though he indeed loved her as a father. 
 
 On hearing this impulsive outburst and realising 
 the undoubted sincerity of the maiden's words, the 
 Tsar was deeply moved and now spoke tenderly to 
 her, bidding her to dry her tears and have no fear 
 that he would deal harshly with her ; and he was 
 almost on the point of revealing himself to her as her 
 true father whom she had seen in her dreams and for 
 whom she had prayed, when there came the ominous 
 sounds of a disturbance taking place outside the tent, 
 and the voice of Michael Toucha was heard demanding 
 that Olga Tokmakov should be given up to him. 
 
 The young rebel had soon recovered consciousness 
 after Olga had been abducted by Matouta's men ; and 
 quickly calling his own outlaw friends to his aid, he 
 had followed in the wake of the ravishers. A few 
 hours later, learning that his beloved one was in the 
 tent of the tyrant Tsar, he determined to rescue her at 
 all costs. The rebel band was instantly engaged in a 
 hot encounter with the guards, who imagined that the 
 outlaws were about to make an attempt on the life 
 of their royal master ; and Olga, hearing her name 
 passionately called in agonising tones by her lover, 
 tore herself from the grasp of the Tsar — who vainly 
 tried to restrain her — and rushed outside into the 
 
IVAN THE TERRIBLE 137 
 
 midst of the fight which was taking place on the banks 
 of the river, into which Toucha and his adherents 
 had now been driven and were already swimming 
 across to a place of temporary safety before making 
 a second attempt to rescue the captive. 
 
 As the distracted Olga broke away from his grasp 
 and fled outside, the Tsar heard almost immediately 
 afterwards the sound of a shot; and next moment, the 
 unhappy girl's dead body was brought back into the 
 tent and laid at his feet — and Ivan the Terrible who, 
 by his tyrannies, had brought woe and despair upon 
 thousands of wretched parents, himself now felt the 
 poignant anguish of a loving father bereft of his child, 
 and as he knelt beside the corpse of the fair daughter 
 he had found and lost within so short a space of time, 
 he humbly bowed his head beneath the chastening 
 hand of a just God. 
 
RIMSKl'-KORSAKOV 
 
 MOZART AND SALIERI 
 
 The famous Italian Kapellmeister, Salieri, sat alone, 
 buried in deep reflection, in the music-room of his 
 fine house in Vienna one day during the year 1792. 
 Despite the fact that the warm sunshine of fame and 
 good favour now shone brightly upon him after many 
 years of hard struggling through the gloomy clouds 
 of stupendous labour, disappointment, and con- 
 tinuous perseverance, his thoughts were not pleasant 
 ones. Although he had attained to so high a position 
 in the world of music, and now lived in comfort and 
 honour secured after y^dixs of toil spent in the pursuit 
 of his well-beloved art, happiness and peace of mind 
 were not his. For he, whose talent was greatly 
 admired, who had thought himself so secure in his 
 fame as the premier musician of his day that he could 
 even afford to smile indulgently upon other struggling 
 aspirants and to hear them spoken of without envy, 
 was now plunged into the black abyss of jealousy by 
 the advent of a rival in the wonderful musician and 
 composer, Mozart, who possessed the heavenly gift 
 of music genius — and genius is to talent what a 
 planet is to a twinkling star. 
 
 Yet, this same Mozart had not his, Salieri's, com- 
 fortable and honourable position, but was poor — and 
 
 138 
 
MOZART AND SALIERI 139 
 
 never likely to be otherwise, since he had no idea of 
 the value of money, but lived, like all real bohemians, 
 from hand to mouth. True, he had not the Italian 
 Kapellmeister's strength of mind and determina- 
 tion of character to struggle against the difficulties 
 and obstacles in his path ; but then he did not 
 need to wear himself out by endless toil and laborious 
 effort in order to produce the divine harmonies with 
 which his imaginative brain teemed. For genius is a 
 thing that cannot be attained merely by the will of 
 man, but is, like physical beauty, the blessed gift of 
 God ; and Salieri, in his blind jealousy, railed at what 
 he regarded as Divine injustice in thus indiscrimin- 
 ately bestowing this same immortal gift of genius 
 upon certain favoured individuals here and there, 
 to swamp in a moment the loving toil of lifelong 
 devotion to Art given by such lovers of Art as himself, 
 who merely possessed talent. 
 
 Mozart lived the careless, happy-go-lucky life of a 
 man whose every action is the outcome of impulse, 
 and to whom routine, service, and discipline were 
 things abhorred, who only worked when he felt in- 
 clined to do so, and whose very labour might almost 
 be called a pastime, since he composed without any 
 apparent effort at all the marvellous harmonies 
 which poured forth from his brain in such rich profu- 
 sion. 
 
 Of what use, then, was it for such an artist as 
 Salieri — highly talented and sound musician though 
 he knew himself to be — to spend months and even 
 
140 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 years producing and perfecting a composition, 
 admired though it might afterwards be, when the 
 careless, but heaven-gifted Mozart, the genius, could 
 sit down and pour forth in a few hours a perfect 
 flood of divine melody, such as he — the merely talented 
 Salieri — could never hope to equal in a lifetime of 
 laborious work. 
 
 While Salieri was thus indulging in morbidly jealous 
 reflections about his mighty rival and railing because 
 the chance gifts of an inscrutable Providence should 
 ever and anon light upon — in his opinion — some 
 undeserving, idle trifler and so cause him to wear the 
 evergreen crown of immortal glory, passing by the 
 industrious and serious devotee of Art, Mozart him- 
 self entered the room unceremoniously. For Salieri, 
 notwithstanding his envy, received his rival on a 
 friendly footing, being, despite himself, as attracted 
 by the latter's irresistible charm and personality as 
 by his genius — and to listen to the music of Mozart, 
 played by the composer himself, was to forget one's 
 earthly surroundings and to pass for the moment 
 within the portals of Paradise. 
 
 An illustration of this unwilling but irresistible 
 admiration and homage to genius — undreamt of by 
 the modest recipient, who was himself strangely 
 unsusceptible to flattery and adulation — was quickly 
 forthcoming. Mozart, gay, careless, debonair and 
 still 3^oung enough to appreciate the mere joy of 
 living, entered the room with a brisk step and fair 
 greeting, laughing light-heartedly as though at some 
 
MOZART AND SALIERI 141 
 
 merry jest. When Salieri, after a somewhat strained 
 return of greetings, inquired the cause of his amuse- 
 ment, the harum-scarum musician repHed with another 
 burst of laughter that on his way thither, on passing 
 the open door of a tavern, he had heard an old blind 
 fiddler playing an air of his own — Mozart's — and 
 making such a comical travesty of it that he had 
 bribed him to come along with him at once and repeat 
 the performance that Salieri might also be enter- 
 tained thereby. 
 
 He thereupon called into the room the decrepit old 
 blind musician he had spoken of, bidding him play the 
 same composition he had just heard him perform in 
 the tavern ; and the old man willingly enough took 
 up his fiddle and played one of the graceful airs from 
 " Don Giovanni " so execrably that Salieri, despite 
 his envy of his rival, angrily bade him depart and 
 play no more, declaring that it hurt him as much to 
 hear such exquisite music thus murdered as it would 
 to see Raphael's beautiful " Madonna " bedaubed by 
 some novice, or to read the inspired lines of Dante 
 with the impudent additions of some wretched 
 rhymster. 
 
 Mozart, however, still laughing, gave the fiddler a 
 coin — which he could ill spare, money being ever 
 scarce with him — and after dismissing the old man 
 told Salieri that he had come to ask his opinion upon 
 some musical themes that had been worrying him 
 insistently all morning, until he had, at last, in self- 
 defence, scribbled them down. He added, casually, 
 
142 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 that he would come another time, if more opportune, 
 observing that SaUeri did not seem to be in a favour- 
 able mood ; but the jealous Italian, who, though 
 filled with fresh envy on thus hearing of this new 
 composition so obviously inspired, could never resist 
 the personality of the careless, happy-go-lucky Mozart, 
 nor the intense joy of listening to his enthralling 
 music, invited him to remain and to let him hear the 
 melody. 
 
 Mozart thereupon went to the piano and after 
 describing the subject of his composition in a whimsical 
 fashion — a youth in love with some fair lady, both 
 very happy, when, suddenly, a dark cloud of gloom and 
 mystery envelops them — his fingers strayed over the 
 keys and a flood of exquisite melody filled the room. 
 
 Salieri, in spite of the gnawing envy tearing at his 
 heart, was completely carried out of himself, and, 
 overcome by spontaneous admiration and delight, 
 poured forth burning words of praise. At the same 
 time he reproached Mozart, the composer of such a 
 priceless gem, for having cared to stop at a tavern door 
 to hear a blind beggar murder another of his loveliest 
 airs — a proceeding which he, Salieri, greatly depre- 
 cated as unworthy of an artist, being undignified and 
 belittling. 
 
 Mozart, however, who never could be persuaded to 
 take himself seriously, and was as modest and as 
 simple as a child — which characteristics naturally 
 annoyed the self-important and flattery-loving 
 Salieri, who, like many merely talented individuals 
 
MOZART AND SALIERI 143 
 
 lacking the force of true genius, had a consider- 
 able amount of vanity — expressed wondering sur- 
 prise that his friend should be so deeply impressed 
 and moved by what was to himself a mere trifle. 
 Then, merrily declaring that, whether a genius or 
 not, he was nevertheless mightily hungry, he made as 
 though to retire. 
 
 Still under the spell of the wonderful music he had 
 just listened to, Salieri immediately suggested that 
 they should dine together at the " Golden Lion," 
 a favourite inn, and Mozart, nothing loth, cheerfully 
 accepted the invitation and said that he would meet 
 him again at the inn as soon as he had been home to 
 inform his wife that he was dining out. 
 
 When his prospective guest had hurried away with a 
 merry song on his lips, Salieri quickly fell back again 
 into his morose mood, more jealous than ever of his 
 heaven-gifted rival ; and he realised with despair 
 that it was absolutely hopeless for him — Salieri — 
 or any other devotee of musical art even to attempt 
 to reach the golden heights of fame while Mozart, the 
 wizard of harmony, still lived to soar ever above 
 them. In a frantic burst of envious rage he called 
 down curses upon the master musician, who had just 
 held his heart in rapturous thrall when playing the 
 simple composition that had come to him as direct 
 inspiration from the Divine Bestower of genius ; and, 
 in his blind jealousy, he vowed to slay him that day, 
 that he might no longer obstruct his own path to 
 glory. 
 
144 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 In feverish haste the ItaUan now drew forth from 
 a secret hiding-place a tiny flask containing a deadly 
 poison which had been- given him eighteen years 
 ago by a friend, and which he had himself been 
 tempted to take on many occasions when luck had 
 gone against him, but which he had always set aside 
 again in the hope of a rosier dawn to come, or for the 
 silencing later on of some deadly foe whose machina- 
 tions might overcast his life. 
 
 " Such a foe is Mozart ! " he now cried, passion- 
 ately. " He blights my life and prospects, even while 
 he enraptures me ! The contents of this phial shall 
 bring oblivion to him this day, and leave me alone on 
 the path of fame ! " 
 
 Placing the fatal flask in an inner pocket, the Italian 
 Kapellmeister sallied forth to keep his appointment 
 at the sign of the " Golden Lion," where Mozart pre- 
 sently joined him ; and the two partook of dinner 
 together. 
 
 Salieri was excited and in high spirits and ordered 
 the best foods and the most expensive wines, but 
 Mozart, on the other hand, seemed strangely de- 
 pressed, having suddenly become sad and silent, so 
 that he spoke little and his thoughts seemed far away. 
 When Salieri presently rallied him on the subject he 
 admitted his abstraction, saying that it was due to the 
 fact that his thoughts were engaged with the com- 
 position of the great Requiem Mass he had quite 
 recently received a commission for under strange cir- 
 cumstances, with which he had thought all his friends 
 
MOZART AND SALIERI 145 
 
 were acquainted ; and finding that his host had not 
 heard of it, he told him the story which has since be- 
 come so famous, and which was as follows : 
 
 A mysterious stranger — who afterwards turned out 
 to be a rich nobleman — had called at his house twice 
 during his absence from home, and had been so eager 
 to see him that he had actually called a third time, 
 when he saw and commissioned the famous musician 
 to write for him a Requiem Mass in memory of his 
 wife, whom he had loved passionately and for the 
 loss of whom he was clad in the deepest mourning ; 
 and Mozart had agreed to do so, and had at once 
 commenced the work, to which he had grown so much 
 attached that he did not now wish to part with it, 
 but hoped that the mysterious stranger would never 
 appear to claim it. 
 
 Then, as Salieri listened to this tale of a strange 
 commission with increased envy still gnawing at his 
 heart, Mozart added in a hesitating tone as though 
 somewhat shy of confessing to superstition, that ever 
 since he had been writing this work he had fancied 
 that the piece would be his own Requiem, that the 
 black-robed stranger seemed to be dogging his steps 
 wherever he went, and that even now he imagined his 
 shadow to be seated at the table beside him. 
 
 Salieri, though he shuddered involuntarily, rallied 
 his guest upon his low spirits and for succumbing to 
 such morbid thoughts, bidding him put these idle 
 superstitious fancies away from him ; and he advised 
 him, when he felt dull, to take a drink of good wine 
 
146 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 and to read the lively story of " The Marriage of 
 Figaro." 
 
 This chance remark, however, brought up the sub- 
 ject of Beaumarchais, the author of " Figaro " ; and 
 Mozart suddenly asked his host if he believed, as was 
 popularly supposed, that Beaumarchais had met his 
 death by poison. To this, Salieri, with a violent 
 start, replied hastily that he did not think so, as that 
 author had ever been of particularly lively and cheer- 
 ful disposition, not likely to have taken his own life 
 nor to have had enemies who might wish to destroy 
 him. Mozart agreed with him, adding that Beau- 
 marchais was also a genius and, therefore, not likely 
 to commit a crime, it being his — Mozart's — belief 
 that genius and crime were never found together. 
 
 This last remark sounded unpleasantly ominous 
 in the ears of the envious Salieri, who, however, 
 became more excited in his manner ; and filling up 
 both their glasses to overflowing, he bade his guest 
 drink with him again and again to each other's health 
 and to their lasting friendship. 
 
 Under this cloak of seeming hilarity, however, the 
 Italian kept a keen eye upon the master musician ; 
 and when the latter's glance again wandered aside 
 and remained fixed as though his thoughts had just 
 strayed into unknown regions far away, he stealthily 
 produced his hidden phial and poured forth the 
 poison into the other's glass. Then, hardly able to 
 conceal his agitation, he called upon his companion 
 to drink yet once again ; and after Mozart had, un- 
 
MOZART AND SALIERI 147 
 
 suspectingly, swallowed the poisoned draught, he 
 filled up his glass again with fresh wine and bade him 
 drink still more. 
 
 But Mozart refused to drink again, and, rising, went 
 over to the open piano saying he would play to him 
 some passages from his " Requiem." 
 
 As the glorious music, so perfectly played by the 
 master's loving touch, filled the chamber, Salieri 
 once more fell under its magic spell, and, against his 
 will, was moved to such sincere and irresistible admira- 
 tion that the tears rolled down his cheeks ; and when 
 Mozart stopped for a moment, astonished that his 
 wonderful harmonies should have thus moved his 
 host to tears, the latter entreated him to continue, 
 declaring that his tears, though bitter, were yet 
 consoling. 
 
 For a short time longer the magnificent notes of the 
 famous Requiem filled the room. Then, Mozart rose, 
 somewhat unsteadily, announcing that he felt suddenly 
 unwell ; and, saying that he would go to his home to 
 rest for awhile, he bade farewell to his host and retired. 
 
 " Yes, rest, Mozart, but from that sleep there will 
 be no awakening in this life ! " muttered Salieri, 
 as his rival departed ; and then, a horrible thought 
 came into the murderer's mind. Suppose, as the 
 master musician had said, that " crime and genius 
 never go together ? " If that were the case, then he, 
 Salieri, could never win the fame of a genius, even 
 though he now had no longer a rival to fear, and his 
 dark deed had thus been committed in vain ! 
 
148 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Then he pulled himself together and endeavoured to 
 comfort himself with the reflection that he had heard 
 it whispered among the common folk of his own 
 country that the great master sculptor, Michael- 
 angelo — of whose genius there had never been any 
 doubt — secretly slew the man who designed the 
 Vatican. 
 
 But in vain he sought for comfort, and he now 
 realised with the anguish of a stricken conscience, 
 that for ever afterwards there would ring in his 
 memory the last marvellous harmonies of a true genius 
 as the Requiem for the death of his own peace of 
 mind.^ 
 
 1 There has never been any proof, or even any definite suspicion 
 that Mozart was poisoned by Saheri, or that he met his death by 
 poisoning at all, most of his biographers having written to the con- 
 trary ; but the fact that the Italian Kapellmeister was known to be 
 inordinately jealous of his brilliant contemporary and that it was said 
 by some of his friends that Mozart himself believed, when dying, that 
 he had been poisoned, gave rise to the suspicion upon which Poushkin 
 based the poem from which the libretto of this opera has been taken. 
 
RIMSKT-KORSAKOV 
 
 THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 
 
 The mighty and famous King Dodon sat upon a 
 gorgeously gilded and feather-bedecked throne in 
 the magnihcent hall of his palace, surrounded by his 
 courtiers and the Boyards or lords who formed his 
 Council ; and over all the brilliant assemblage there 
 was a solemn hush and an air of anxious expectancy. 
 
 It was a lovely spring-time day and bright shafts of 
 sunshine pierced their way into the richly-gilded hall 
 between the thick columns of a balustrade which gave 
 out on to the streets of the capital beyond, where 
 even the common people who passed by spoke only 
 in whispers as though fearful of the sound of their own 
 voices. 
 
 Against a background of brocaded hangings and 
 rich carved work the Boyards were seated in a semi- 
 circle — most of them men of advanced years with 
 venerable beards and all splendidly attired ; and on 
 either side of the throne were seated the King's two 
 sons, the handsome young Princes Afron and Guidon, 
 who both showed clear signs of youthful impatience 
 at the ceremonious and respectful silence of the 
 Counsellors, and awaited with scarcely restrained 
 eagerness the words of their royal father who seemed 
 buried in anxious thought. 
 
 L 
 
150 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Well might King Dodon be anxious ; for though 
 in his youth and prime he had been famed as a re- 
 doubtable monarch who was always ready to repel 
 his foes and did not even hesitate to affront his 
 neighbours for the sake of a skirmish which should 
 add to his glory, he had long since ceased to care for 
 warlike pursuits and had no desire to engage in certain 
 serious conflicts which now threatened the peace of 
 his dominions. 
 
 During recent years the once active king had lost all 
 interest in warfare or bold pursuits of any kind and had 
 devoted himself to a life of indolence and luxurious 
 ease ; and, following the example of their monarch, his 
 people also had ceased to care for the profession of 
 arms, and even the young men had given themselves 
 up to pleasure, to which they devoted more time than 
 they gave to manly exercises. 
 
 The rulers of neighbouring countries were not slow 
 to take advantage of this state of affairs ; and now, in 
 his advancing years, the splendid and once redoubt- 
 able King Dodon was threatened by invasion on every 
 side and could not sleep at nights for fear of possible 
 dangers for which he was not prepared. In great 
 alarm his armies had been gathered together and 
 dispatched to the borders, but still the King could 
 not rest in peace, knowing not when the danger would 
 draw nearer and his capital and even his own sacred 
 person be threatened. 
 
 The Boyards, therefore, were called to meet their 
 monarch in the Council, together with the two young 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 151 
 
 Princes, each of whom had a plan to suggest ; and 
 when King Dodon, after a long and solemn hush, had 
 at last broken silence and placed the serious position 
 of affairs before the company, he called upon his 
 elder son, Prince Guidon, for advice in this time of 
 difficulty. 
 
 The young Prince, who, like his brother, had been 
 brought up in soft ease and luxury, yet desired to be 
 regarded as a dashing youth full of fiery ardour, wit, 
 and brilliancy, sprang eagerly to his feet as though 
 he had longed for the moment to come when his 
 advice should be asked thus in the Council ; and he 
 declared that he had lain awake all night seeking 
 for some clever ruse to circumvent the coming 
 danger. 
 
 " My dear son, you will injure your precious health 
 if you thus spend your nights in thought and lose 
 your rest ! " cried the King, anxiouslj^ " Do not 
 add to my troubles in this way, I beg of you." 
 
 Prince Guidon, with a proud and magnanimous 
 gesture, waved aside any such fear on his account ; 
 and then he added, in a self-complacent tone, as 
 though well pleased with the cleverness of his own 
 ideas : " The chief of our troubles is that our enemy 
 is so near to us that he is already about to fall upon our 
 army and annihilate it ! Let us, then, bring back our 
 warriors from the borders and place them around our 
 beloved capital to protect it and ourselves from harm. 
 Then we may all eat, drink, sleep, and make merry 
 once more, as though we had no foes ! Even though 
 
152 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 the enemy comes over the frontier and ravages the 
 villages round about, yet may your Majesty and we 
 who love and serve you rest in peace, knowing that we 
 are well guarded from harm ! " 
 
 All the company were delighted at this inglorious 
 advice, which pleased such comfort-lovers mightily — 
 with the exception of Prince Afron and the most 
 venerable of all the Boyards, Polkan, the aged Voe- 
 voda or head of the army. The latter angrily opposed 
 such a foolish plan, declaring in violent tones that it 
 was much more dangerous to have a cruel foe at close 
 quarters than at a safe distance. 
 
 The Boyards were furious at having their prospects 
 of ease thus disturbed, and the King, after threatening 
 Polkan with being put in chains for casting such a 
 damper upon the Heir- Apparent 's plan, turned to his 
 younger son and entreated his advice on the weighty 
 question. 
 
 Prince Afron also repudiated his brother's scheme 
 with contempt and suggested instead that the army 
 should be disbanded for a time and that the soldiers 
 should be recalled to the colours just a month before 
 the enemy attacked. " And then," he added grandi- 
 loquently, " we will go forth and crush him ! " 
 
 This short-sighted advice was extremely pleasing to 
 the doddering old King and his Boyards, who ac- 
 claimed the young Prince's speech with loud applause ; 
 but the Voevoda Polkan opposed this plan too, 
 pointing out sarcastically that their enemies were 
 hardly likely to be so obliging as to give them timely 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 153 
 
 notice beforehand as to when it was their intention 
 to make an attack. 
 
 The King passionately denounced his sage Coun- 
 sellor for once again throwing cold water upon a 
 plan which had appeared to promise at any rate 
 temporary exemption from the warlike activity which 
 would so sadly interfere with his own rest and com- 
 fort ; and a scene of wild uproar now ensued, the two 
 young Princes and the Boyards all drawing their 
 swords, ready to attack the old Voevoda who had dared 
 to speak his mind so boldly and who valiantly prepared 
 to defend himself. 
 
 The King, however, called the company to order, 
 and once more asked for advice ; and then several of 
 the Boyards began to regret that they had no fortune- 
 teller to consult, who might have divined a way out 
 of the difficulty and revealed the future to them by 
 means of beans or by wine-dregs or by the stars. An 
 altercation now arose as to which was the best way 
 of securing such magical divination, whether by means 
 of beans, dregs, or stars, and the noisy uproar was 
 resumed. 
 
 In the midst of this confusion there appeared at the 
 top of the stairway that led down into the street a 
 very old and venerable-looking Astrologer, who wore 
 flowing blue garments sprinkled with golden stars, 
 and a tall white hat. He carried in one hand an 
 astrolabe and in the other a bag ; and as the whole 
 company relapsed instantly into respectful silence and 
 gazed upon the new-comer with awe and veneration, 
 
154 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 the dignified stranger slowly approached the throne 
 and bowed low before the King, saying as he 
 did so : 
 
 " Hail, King Dodon ! Although thon knowest me 
 not, yet art thou well-known to me. I have served 
 thy sires in long ages gone by, when they were in 
 difficulties which could only be overcome by means of 
 magic. Such a trouble has now come into thy life, 
 O King Dodon ; and as it seems a pity that so gor- 
 geous a monarch should lose his sleep because of the 
 cares of state that overwhelm him and the dangers 
 that beset him, I have come to offer unto thee a magic 
 remedy, so that thou mayest once more sleep in 
 peace ! " 
 
 So saying, the Astrologer took out from his bag a 
 Golden Weathercock ; and whilst the whole company 
 gazed admiringly upon this enchanted object, which 
 flapped its wings and crowed, its owner continued : 
 " Accept my Golden Cockerel, O Sire, and place it 
 upon the highest spire upon thy palace ; and it shall 
 be a true watchman unto thee ! When all is peaceful 
 and quiet, it will make no sound whatever, and thou 
 mayest rest and take thy pleasure in safety and com- 
 fort ; but if enemies are about to assault thy gates 
 or to draw nigh to thee from any quarter, or if thy 
 peace is threatened in any way, then will my magic 
 Golden Cockerel raise his comb, flap his wings, and, 
 turning in the direction from whence the danger 
 appears, will crow aloud * Cock-a-doodle-do ! Be- 
 ware ! ' " 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 155 
 
 All the people were full of admiration for the beauti- 
 ful Golden Weather-vane ; and King Dodon, over- 
 joyed at the thought of securing such a treasure which 
 should warn him when danger was at hand, poured 
 grateful thanks upon the Astrologer for bringing 
 him so splendid a gift, asking what favour he could 
 bestow upon him in return, promising to give him 
 anything he might desire, even to the half of his 
 kingdom. The Astrologer, however, declared that 
 the ordinary gifts of riches and high rank were as 
 nothing to him, since he regarded love only as precious; 
 and he added that he would call upon the King later 
 on to redeem his promise by bestowing upon him a 
 certain gift which he would then ask for. 
 
 King Dodon gladly reassured his venerable visitor 
 that he would certainly be willing to redeem his 
 promise when the right time came ; and then the 
 Astrologer bowed low before the throne once more, 
 and departed as quietly as he had come. 
 
 The enchanted Weather-vane was taken away at 
 once and placed with great reverence and care upon 
 the highest spire on the palace roof ; and as the King 
 came down from his throne and walked about the hall, 
 joyfully rubbing his hands together at the thought 
 of the magical treasure he now possessed and receiving 
 the congratulations of his courtiers, the voice of the 
 Golden Cockerel was heard crowing from its lofty 
 perch : " Cock-a-doodle-do ! Eat, sleep, and take 
 your ease." 
 
 " Ah, what happiness for me to know that my land 
 
156 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 is free from enemies, and that I shall be warned the 
 moment danger approaches ! " cried the King, joy- 
 fully. " I may sleep as long as I wish, without the 
 thought of cares to awaken me ! The most daring of 
 foes cannot reach me until I shall have had time to 
 know of their base plans ! Once more my jesters 
 may amuse me, and my dancers may delight me ; 
 and I may well forget that there are such things in 
 the world as troubles and dangers, since I shall not 
 know of them, nor see them coming ! " 
 
 Rejoicing in this ostrich-like comfort. King Dodon 
 dismissed his Counsellors ; and, calling to his chief 
 female attendant, old Amelfa, the Royal Housekeeper, 
 he announced his desire to indulge in a long siesta in 
 the warm sunshine now pouring in through the open 
 balustrade. 
 
 At a sign from the Housekeeper, the palace servants 
 carried out into the sunshine a luxurious couch of 
 ivory, with fur coverings, upon which the King 
 seated himself ; and then Amelfa herself brought a 
 tray filled with dainty confections and other deli- 
 cacies, upon which her royal master feasted for 
 awhile. When he had finished this repast, he sent 
 for his favourite parrot, which had been taught by 
 Amelfa to make flattering remarks about His Majesty ; 
 and after amusing himself with the bird for a short 
 time, he waved it aside, and settled down in his couch 
 to sleep, whilst Amelfa, whose chief duty it was to 
 chase away the flies from her royal master's nose, 
 seated herself on the ground beside him, and 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 157 
 
 slowly fanned him with a long fan of peacock 
 feathers. 
 
 It seemed that, for the moment, even the King's 
 slumber should bring him the joys of peace, for in 
 his dream he was visited by the vision of a most 
 beautiful Queen, whose alluring charms thrilled him 
 and caused his heart to beat as in the days of his 
 youth. 
 
 Following the example of their royal master, as 
 the sleepy guards repeated the words of the magic 
 Weathercock, "Rest, and be at ease ! " all the courtiers 
 and palace attendants likewise retired to their resting- 
 places and indulged in a long sweet sleep — with the 
 exception of the faithful Amelfa, who never ceased 
 in her occupation of fanning the King ; and for some 
 hours a peaceful quiet reigned, whilst the sun still 
 shone brightly overhead. 
 
 Then, suddenly, the voice of the Golden Cockerel 
 was heard loudly crowing his warning cry : " Cock- 
 a-doodle-do ! Arouse yourselves and beware ! Be- 
 ware ! " 
 
 Instantly, all was hustle, bustle, and confusion in the 
 palace. The guards sprang to their feet in alarm, the 
 people in the streets crowded round the palace with 
 their children, and the aged Voevoda, Polkan, rushed 
 in to the presence of the King, crying loudly : 
 " Awaken, O my King ! Awaken ! The Golden 
 Cock is crowing, and terrible danger threatens ! " 
 
 At first. King Dodon, rising sleepily and unwillingly 
 from his comfortable couch, was most annoyed at 
 
158 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 being thus rudely awakened and disturbed in the 
 midst of the most seductive dream that had ever 
 visited him ; but upon hearing from the impatient 
 Polkan that the magic Cockerel was indeed giving 
 lively warning of an approaching enemy, he became 
 resigned. Addressing the frightened people, he bade 
 them calm their fears and prepare their fighting men 
 to set forth to the frontier at once ; also to make a 
 generous offer of their riches and goods to provide 
 against the many new expenses that would have to be 
 met. 
 
 He then appointed his two sons as the leaders of the 
 expedition against the coming foe, bidding them divide 
 the army between them, and go forth to gain glory and 
 renown ; but the young Princes were both in great 
 ill-humour at having been roughly disturbed from 
 their own enticing dreams, and, being cowards at 
 heart, grumbled at the prospect of hardships in store 
 and of the dullness of their lives if thus parted from 
 their sweethearts. 
 
 King Dodon reproved his sons for their softness and 
 poor spirit, and with a parting embrace and a blessing, 
 bade them take command of his hosts forthwith ; and 
 the young Princes, though much cast down, were fain 
 to depart with the Boyards and chief warriors, leaving 
 the aged Polkan and remaining soldiers in charge of 
 the capital. 
 
 When the blare of trumpets and the noise of the 
 departing army had died away in the far distance, 
 peace and calm descended upon the city once more ; 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 159 
 
 and presently, the voice of the Golden Cockerel was 
 heard crowing : " Cock-a-doodle-do ! Rest and take 
 your ease ! " 
 
 When the people heard this reassuring announce- 
 ment, they gladly returned to their homes again, to 
 eat, drink, sleep, and be merry ; and King Dodon 
 dismissed his Court and retired to his couch once 
 more, calling upon his Housekeeper, Amelfa, to recall 
 to his mind the already half-forgotten but seductive 
 dream out of which he had been awakened by the 
 recent hubbub and to reveal its meaning to him. 
 
 The old dame, wishful to please her royal lord and 
 jealous of her reputation as a Wise Woman, though 
 sorely puzzled by such a sudden request, made several 
 wild guesses at the subject of the pleasant vision 
 which had so delighted the King ; and when Dodon 
 impatiently chided her for her lack of skill in such 
 matters, she begged him to give her more time. 
 Then, knowing that it flattered him to be regarded as 
 still young enough to play the lover, she slyly shook 
 her finger at him and declared that he had dreamed 
 of a beautiful lady who had loved him and whose love 
 he had returned. 
 
 King Dodon, thus reminded of the charmer of his 
 ravishing dream, and already full of drowsiness, once 
 more settled down in his luxurious couch and fell into 
 a deep and peaceful slumber, again dreaming happily 
 of the mysterious charmer who had before filled him 
 with such joy. 
 
 The whole Court, including the guards and even 
 
i6o STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Amelfa this time, fell into the same heavy yet peaceful 
 slumber, which appeared to be caused by some 
 hypnotic means, since it lasted for an unusually long 
 time and affected one and all. 
 
 Then, once more, there sounded the clear clarion 
 cry of the Golden Cockerel, crowing insistently and 
 calling out the warning : " Cock-a-doodle-do ! Arouse 
 yourselves, and beware ! Beware ! " 
 
 Quickly awakened by the warning cry of the magic 
 Weathercock, the people again arose from their couches 
 and m^ade their way to the royal palace, where the 
 guards and courtiers were all hastening hither and 
 thither, whilst the old Voevoda, Polkan, was en- 
 deavouring to arouse the drowsy King, declaring 
 that the Golden Cockerel had again crowed forth a 
 warning, which could only mean that disaster must 
 have already befallen the brilliant army before it had 
 even had time to reach the borders. 
 
 King Dodon hastened to the balustrade to observe 
 for himself the antics of the magic Weathercock ; 
 and seeing that it was still flapping its wings wildly 
 and crowing continually, he agreed to Polkan 's 
 suggestion of calling up the reserves of old men, 
 declaring that he himself would lead this second army 
 and go forth to the rescue of his children. He then 
 called for his armour and weapons of war ; and 
 though the former had become too tight for his rotund 
 body, and his favourite sword was red with rust, 
 he donned the complete equipment boldly, and was 
 carried forth and mounted upon his white charger, 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL i6i 
 
 which had also grown dull and decrepit with age and 
 had lost all the fire of its youth. 
 
 When the people beheld their King riding at the 
 head of this stout army of greybeards, and followed 
 by his old Voevoda, Polkan, they raised loud shouts 
 of joyful pride, pouring blessings upon their beloved 
 monarch for thus going forth himself in their defence, 
 but entreating him to take care of his own sacred 
 person and to keep out of all danger, that he might 
 return safely to them once more. Thus, though 
 well advanced in years, rode forth King Dodon, in 
 great splendour and comic pride — though mightily 
 afraid of his staggering old war-horse — to meet the 
 foe, of which he had been so timely warned by the 
 Golden Cockerel. 
 
 After marching many weary miles in the wake of the 
 first splendid if reluctant army of young men that had 
 set out before them. King Dodon and his greybeards 
 were puzzled because they could find no trace of their 
 children, nor of the foe of whom they had been 
 warned ; and full of an ever-growing uneasiness, when 
 darkness fell, they still continued to wander on, though 
 weary and longing for rest. 
 
 By this time, they had reached a wild and desolate 
 spot ; and as the moon came up, it cast pale gleams 
 over a narrow gorge covered with stunted bushes and 
 bare hillocks, and hemmed in by rugged, threatening 
 cliffs. 
 
 Here, at last, they came upon traces of a great 
 battle ; for as they penetrated into the gorge, the 
 
i62 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 moonlight shone down upon the ghastly upturned 
 faces of countless dead bodies of warriors, strewn in 
 every direction, lying stark upon the hillocks, or 
 crowded in heaps among the bushes. All these dead 
 bodies were those of the handsome youths of King 
 Dodon's first splendid army ; and the mystery of the 
 hidden foes deepened, as no corpse or even wounded 
 warrior could be seen of the enemy battalions, which 
 had vanished as completely as though they had never 
 been in the gorge at all. 
 
 As the old warriors burst forth into a wail of sorrow 
 and lamentation while seeking for their beloved ones 
 amongst the slain, King Dodon and the old Voevoda 
 dismounted and penetrated a little further into the 
 gorge, full of amazement at the mysterious battle 
 which had evidently been fought either with an in- 
 visible foe, or with no foe at all, each warrior evidently 
 having turned upon his neighbour. This latter 
 terrible suggestion was presentl}^ confirmed by King 
 Dodon, who, stumbling against two bodies, dis- 
 covered them to be the corpses of his own well- 
 beloved sons, whose swords were each buried in the 
 heart of the other. 
 
 As the grief-stricken King flung himself upon the 
 bodies of his heirs and poured forth tears and lamenta- 
 tions for their untimely end, the aged Voevoda fetched 
 up his followers and claimed their allegiance to the 
 old monarch, calling upon them to join him now in 
 search for this mysterious enemy, who had thus robbed 
 them of their Princes and their own sons, and to destroy 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 163 
 
 him. All the warriors swore to avenge the deaths of 
 their children ; and they searched the gorge through- 
 out the night, but in vain, since no sign of any enemy 
 warrior could they find. 
 
 Then, at last, as the night mists began to clear and 
 the first rosy glow of early dawn slowly penetrated the 
 entrance to the gorge, to the amazement of all, in one 
 of the hollows, the outline of a large silken tent of 
 brilliant colours became clearly discernible. 
 
 King Dodon would have made a sudden raid upon 
 the strange tent ; but he was prevented from so doing 
 by the more prudent Polkan, who declared that it 
 would be better to fire upon the unseen — but evidently 
 deadly — foe from a safe distance. He gave orders, 
 therefore, for a culverin to be brought up and loaded ; 
 and the charge was just about to be fired, when the 
 flaps of the tent were silently moved aside, and a 
 queenly woman of dazzling beauty came forth, 
 attended by four female slaves, and, regardless of 
 the presence of King Dodon and his army, raised 
 her arms and addressed a song of welcome to the 
 rising sun. 
 
 This dazzling vision of female loveliness was clad in 
 filmy shimmering robes of rose-colour, adorned with 
 chains of pearls and priceless jewels ; and as the soft 
 tones of her seductive voice reached them, the anger 
 in the hearts of the approaching warriors vanished 
 utterly, and they drew back to a respectful distance, 
 leaving King Dodon and his Voevoda alone to parley 
 with the mysterious siren. 
 
i64 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 As the beautiful singer finished her hymn of praise, 
 she turned and gazed long and intently upon King 
 Dodon, who turned pale and whose heart began to 
 beat wildly as he recognised in this wonderful stranger 
 the lovely and seductive maiden of the joyful vision 
 which had visited him since his possession of the 
 Golden Cockerel ; and when the bewildered monarch 
 at length asked in a trembling voice from whence she 
 came and whither she was travelling, she replied 
 boldly : " I am the far-famed Virgin Queen of Shema- 
 khan ; and I am journeying silently, like a thief in the 
 night, to make conquest of thy city, and to take it for 
 mine own ! " 
 
 Then, as King Dodon and the amazed Polkan 
 demanded roughly how she intended to accomplish 
 her bold intention, seeing that she had no army and 
 was merely attended by a retinue of slaves, she 
 replied with an enchanting smile : " Beauty needs no 
 army ! Beauty provides me with all the weapons I 
 need, and by means of my beauty I conquer one and 
 all ! " 
 
 She then clapped her hands, and called for goblets 
 of wine to be brought, declaring that the King and 
 Polkan were welcome guests to her tent ; and, at 
 her command, a company of slaves brought forth a 
 gorgeous carpet from the tent, spread it out, and threw 
 upon it silken cushions, upon which the Queen sank in 
 a graceful attitude, inviting her stranger guests with 
 an imperious yet irresistible gesture to seat them- 
 selves beside her and to partake of the rich wine now 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 165 
 
 proffered to them by fair slave maidens on bended 
 knees. 
 
 Both the warriors hesitated, uncertain, and fearful 
 of enchantment, or, at least, of poison ; and then the 
 King, already under the spell of the Queen's alluring 
 beauty, took the goblet and drank deeply and with 
 delight of its luscious ruby contents, and old Polkan, 
 somewhat sulkily, followed his royal master's example. 
 
 The Queen of Shemakhan continued to talk to her 
 guests, telling them of a delightful dream which had 
 visited her that night, in which a strange and un- 
 known lover, whose face she could not see, had whis- 
 pered passionate words of love to her ; and upon 
 the rough Polkan gruffly making light of this vision, 
 declaring that it was caused by indigestion, the lovely 
 Queen, in angry tones, commanded King Dodon to 
 dismiss the tiresome old Voevoda, since his presence 
 was distasteful to her. 
 
 Nothing loath, the already enamoured King curtly 
 bade Polkan betake himself to the back of the tent ; 
 and when the old warrior had grumblingly retired, 
 Dodon gave himself up gladly to the joy of the moment, 
 and eagerly submitted to the blandishments of the 
 beautiful Queen, who now made flattering love to 
 him and soon had him completely under the sway of 
 her magical fascination. She sang love-songs to him 
 in her most alluring tones ; and she compelled the 
 King to sing to her in return — which he did in an old 
 cracked voice, upon hearing which his fair listener 
 burst into peals of silvery laughter. 
 
 M 
 
iC6 STORIES FROxM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Seeing, however, that Kmg Dodon still held back 
 from caressing her, the beautiful Queen sought to 
 arouse his jealousy by telling him that, but a few 
 hours since, both the young Princes, his sons, had vied 
 with one another for her love and had fought each 
 other to the death for possession of it. As she pro- 
 ceeded with her story. King Dodon realised that, 
 though unaccompanied by an army, yet this siren 
 Queen was the most irresistible of all foes, since her 
 seductive beauty had caused his entire army of 
 youthful warriors to turn on themselves and to slay 
 one another for the favour of her smiles ; yet so com- 
 pletely had he, also, fallen beneath her fatal spell, 
 that these terrible misfortunes were as nothing to him, 
 and, in spite of his advanced years, all he foolishly 
 desired was the love of the beautiful enchantress 
 beside him, whose every word was already law to him. 
 
 When the lovely Queen, therefore, playfully in- 
 sisted upon him joining her in a merry dance, he per- 
 mitted her to relieve him of his cumbersome armour 
 and to bind his silver locks with her own gaily-coloured 
 silken kerchief, ready to join in the impromptu revels 
 which now took place. 
 
 A company of pretty slave maidens went through 
 many graceful evolutions ; and after joining in the 
 dance herself for a short time, the Queen forced the 
 unwilling Dodon — who had not danced for many 
 years and was exceedingly stiff in his movements — 
 into the whirl of the mad revel, to the accompaniment 
 of wild music played by the slaves. 
 
The Enchantress Charms King Dodon. 
 
 (Mme Thamar Karsavina as The Queen of Shemakhan.') 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 167 
 
 At last, the foolish King sank back amongst the 
 cushions, exhausted, but still full of the strange joy 
 which held him in thrall ; and, seizing the Queen's 
 hand, he acknowledged himself her slave, begging 
 of her to become his Consort and to return with him 
 to his capital, there to reign over all his people. 
 
 The Queen now coquetted with her elderly lover, 
 declaring that she desired only to wed with one 
 who would dare to resist her will and to thwart her 
 plans ; but King Dodon only the more eagerly 
 agreed to please her in this respect also, if only she 
 would consent to be his and to return with him. 
 
 The wily Queen of Shemakhan, who had foreseen 
 this offer and played her hand for it, and had, in 
 addition, other desperate plans for the future formu- 
 lated in her scheming brain, now made pretence of 
 agreement and gave orders for her slaves to strike the 
 tent and to join in the procession of King Dodon's 
 triumphant return to his capital. 
 
 Meanwhile, the people left behind in the capital 
 were full of fears and presentiments of coming disaster, 
 wondering what was to become of them should their 
 King meet with defeat ; and when, at length, after 
 many anxious hours of waiting throughout the night, 
 runners were seen next morning entering the city 
 gates towards midda}^ vast crowds collected around 
 the palace to learn what news the messengers had 
 brought. When, a few hours later, the old House- 
 keeper, Amelfa, was observed through the open 
 balustrade bustling about the Council Chamber, 
 
i68 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 arranging the drapery about the King's throne, and 
 giving orders to the slaves, some of the bolder spirits 
 amongst the observers ventured to the entrance and 
 began to importune the old dame with questions. 
 Had victory attended the arms of King Dodon, or 
 had a direct calamity befallen him ? Was their 
 royal father returning to them, or had he been killed 
 or captured ? Were they themselves to become the 
 slaves of a foreign conqueror ? What news had the 
 runners brought, and what was about to happen ? 
 
 To these questioners, at first, Amelfa, full of her 
 own importance and proud of her secret knowledge, 
 refused to divulge any information at all, delighting 
 in her power to keep the eager inquirers on the tenter- 
 hooks of suspense ; but, at length, unable to keep 
 such a weighty secret to herself any longer, she told 
 them of the expected return of her royal master, 
 enlarging considerably upon the story brought in by 
 the runners, and leading her hearers to imagine that 
 the King had made a great conquest, saying menda- 
 ciously : " Have you ever heard of the four great 
 Kings of Hearts, Diamonds, Clubs and Spades ? 
 Well, our noble lord has conquered them all ! More- 
 over, he has saved from the jaws of a terrible dragon 
 the most beautiful royal damsel in the world ; and 
 he brings her back with him to be his bride ! They 
 will soon be here ; so prepare a splendid and joy- 
 ous welcome for them ! Leap like goats, and 
 turn somersaults, sing, clap your hands and dance 
 for joy ! If not, woe betide you, for our new 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 169 
 
 Queen is not likely to endure the sight of doleful 
 faces ! " 
 
 On hearing this astonishing news, the people were 
 plunged into a great state of excitement ; and though 
 grieved at learning also that their beloved Princes 
 were slain, they did not hesitate to don their gala 
 attire in joyful anticipation of a holiday, and con- 
 gregated in great masses in the streets ready to 
 welcome the returning " conqueror." They even 
 swarmed on to the roofs of the houses, sat on the 
 window-ledges, and clung to the chimney-pots, in 
 order to get the best possible view of the approaching 
 procession. 
 
 Within the palace, the bustle increased tenfold, 
 and old Amelfa was soon nearly raving with fussy 
 preparations ; and in between the pillars of the open 
 balustrade, the oldest of the Boyards — who had been 
 left behind to guard the city — assembled with their 
 wives and children, all garbed in the richest of raiment. 
 The atmosphere soon became stifling ; and although 
 the sun still shone brightly, it was observed that a 
 dense black cloud was creeping up from the East, 
 giving warning that a terrible thunderstorm was 
 approaching. The joyful people, however, refused 
 to have their spirits damped by the ominous appear- 
 ance of the eastern sky ; and since the beautiful 
 Golden Cockerel still remained silent and glistened in 
 the bright sunshine, with its wings folded as the sign 
 of peace, they had no qualms of fear, but awaited with 
 eager anticipation the approach of the royal procession. 
 
170 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 At last, just before the black thundercloud obscured 
 the sun, the triumphal procession appeared in the 
 distance ; and a mighty shout of welcome went up 
 from the thousands of spectators. 
 
 First came the royal warriors, some mounted on 
 dashing steeds and others marching on foot, all 
 holding up their heads high with pride as though 
 indeed returning from some mighty feat of arms ; 
 and after these, there followed the splendid retinue 
 of the Queen of Shemakhan. This gorgeous proces- 
 sion ol eastern courtiers and slaves was an amazing 
 sight to the humble people gathered in the streets 
 of King Dodon's city ; for there were many strange 
 and fantastic beings amongst them, the like of which 
 had never before been seen in that country. 
 
 Amongst these strangers were giants of huge size, 
 and dwarfs so tiny that they scarcely reached to the 
 knees of the shortest man present. There were even 
 stranger and more freakish creatures — people with 
 horns on their heads, some with but one eye in the 
 centre of their foreheads, and a few who had heads 
 like those of a dog. Besides these, there were many 
 gigantic negroes and tiny black boys, whose ebony 
 skins shone like satin in the sunshine, and whose 
 decorations were sashes and turbans of brilliant 
 colours and barbaric ornaments of curious workman- 
 ship ; and these were followed by a bevy of lovely 
 slave maidens, whose charms and delicate outlines 
 were only half concealed by the long, diaphanous 
 veils of shimmering gauze which enveloped them. 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 171 
 
 Many of these gorgeously-attired attendants carried 
 caskets overflowing with strings of pearls and precious 
 stones ; and the sight of these stupendous riches 
 filled the observers with greater satisfaction still, 
 since it was good to know that such treasures were to 
 be added to the wealth of their city. 
 
 The enthusiasm of the people, therefore, knew no 
 bounds when, presently, the magnificent golden 
 chariot containing King Dodon and his royal bride 
 came slowly by ; and for a few moments they were 
 dazed and struck almost dumb by the dazzling 
 beauty of the siren Queen, which held them spell- 
 bound as they gazed upon it. Then, seeing that the 
 lovely Queen, so far from being gracious and kindly 
 in her demeanour, threw only haughty, scornful 
 glances on all around, they sought to please her and 
 to win her smiles by renewed cheers and joyful songs, 
 turning somersaults and leaping high into the air, 
 to prove to her the joy of their welcome. 
 
 King Dodon, on his part, looked older and more 
 worn than when he had set forth upon this strange 
 enterprise, and he appeared also to be nervous and 
 restless ; but he gazed continually and with doting 
 sentimentality into the wonderful eyes of the haughty 
 Queen of Shemakhan, who returned his glances of 
 love with cold indifference and disdain, as though he 
 were but a pawn in some mysterious game she was 
 playing — as, indeed, he was. What was more, the 
 end of this curious game was at hand ; for, as the 
 people's glad song of welcome came to an end, and 
 
172 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 the golden chariot drew up at the entrance to the 
 palace, a stranger suddenly emerged from a neigh- 
 bouring portico, in whom all recognised at once the 
 mysterious old Astrologer who had presented the 
 Golden Cockerel to King Dodon. 
 
 Clad in the same star-spangled blue garment and 
 tall hat, the Astrologer stood, motionless and silent, 
 gazing earnestly into the eyes of the Queen of Shema- 
 khan, who returned his gaze long and steadfastly ; 
 but King Dodon, delighted at the sight of one who 
 had bestowed upon him so precious a gift, hailed him 
 genially as his respected benefactor and asked him 
 to claim now his reward for bringing the Golden 
 Cockerel, promising again to give him anything 
 he might desire. 
 
 The Astrologer, with slow, measured tread, made his 
 way to the side of the chariot, and said : " Give me, 
 then, O King, this beautiful maiden, the Queen of 
 Shemakhan ! I demand nothing more, nothing less! " 
 
 King Dodon sprang to his feet in anger on hearing 
 this amazing demand from his benefactor ; and, 
 thinking the Astrologer must have taken leave of his 
 senses, he declared that such a request was ridiculous 
 and impossible, since one so hoary-headed and aged 
 could not hope to feel the thrills of passion, as in the 
 days of youth. 
 
 The Astrologer replied with dignity that, never- 
 theless, it was his desire to try the joys of marriage, 
 even in his old age ; but King Dodon, beside himself 
 with indignation, commanded him to name some 
 
THE GOLDEN COCKEREL 173 
 
 other price, promising him the highest noble rank, or 
 even the half of his kingdom. 
 
 To this, the Astrologer still firmly declared that he 
 desired only to have possession of the beautiful 
 Queen of Shemakhan, that nothing else would satisfy 
 him, and since the King had made a solemn promise 
 to grant him whatever he might desire, he must 
 certainly redeem that promise now that the time of 
 reckoning had come. 
 
 King Dodon, no longer able to restrain his rage, 
 burst forth into a torrent of abuse ; and to such a 
 great height of excitement did his uncontrollable 
 passion lead him that, raising his royal sceptre, he 
 aimed a violent blow at the Astrologer, and stretched 
 him dead at his feet. At the same time, the sun went 
 behind the cloud, and a loud clap of thunder was 
 heard, whilst a strange darkness began to creep over 
 the land. 
 
 As the people all drew back, awed and horrified at 
 this deed of violence, King Dodon was relieved when 
 the Queen of Shemakhan declared coldly that the 
 foolish old man had only got his deserts for his pre- 
 sumption ; but when the King endeavoured to con- 
 tinue his love-making and would have embraced her, 
 she repulsed him with unutterable scorn and pushed 
 him away from her side, saying contemptuously: "Pre- 
 pare to die, thou hoary-headed old imbecile ! This 
 sorry jest has gone far enough. Thy death is at hand!" 
 
 As the crestfallen King now turned to mount the 
 steps of the palace, the voice of the Golden Cockerel 
 
174 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 was heard crowing loudly : " Cock-a-doodle-do ! 
 I will avenge my mysterious master ! I will peck this 
 foolish old dotard and kill him ! " 
 
 With these words, the Golden Cockerel flew down 
 from its perch on the spire above, circled over the 
 heads of the people a few times, and then aimed a 
 heavy blow with its powerful beak at the head of 
 King Dodon, who fell instantly to the ground, dead. 
 At the same moment, there was a violent peal of 
 thunder, which struck the terrified people almost 
 dumb ; and for a few minutes a veil of black darkness 
 hung over all, through which could be heard the scorn- 
 ful laugh of the stranger Queen. 
 
 When at length the storm had ended and the cloud 
 of darkness began to pass away, it was seen that the 
 mysterious Queen of Shemakhan and the Golden 
 Cockerel had both vanished, as though they had never 
 been present. Knowing now that some enchant- 
 ment was at work, the trembling people slowly 
 approached the still form of their fallen King, hoping 
 that the preceding events had been but a terrible 
 dream, and that he was asleep or in a trance. But 
 their hopes were in vain, for King Dodon was indeed 
 dead ; and the people raised their voices in loud 
 lamentations for the loss of their beloved monarch. 
 
 Thus did a mighty magician vainly endeavour to 
 bring within his own power a beautiful enchantress, 
 through the means of a doting old King, and, though 
 failing in his enterprise, repaid the latter for base 
 ingratitude in his own coin. 
 
RUBINSTEIN 
 
 THE DEMON 
 
 Amidst the wild, lonely heights of the Caucasus 
 Mountains, a terrific storm was raging. The four 
 winds of Heaven seemed to have been let loose and 
 to have joined their forces into one stupendous 
 hurricane ; and while the fierce tempest roared and 
 raged, the ground was rent by a fearful earthquake, 
 and out of the wide chasms that yawned in every 
 direction evil spirits escaped for a brief spell from 
 their abode of darkness, laughing in derision as they 
 passed now and again groups of good spirits appearing 
 through the lightning-rent skies. 
 
 Into the midst of this awe-inspiring scene, their 
 master, half-mortal and half-demon, presently 
 appeared upon the highest mountain peak of Kazbec, 
 in answer to the call of the truant evil spirits over 
 whom he ruled, cursing the world and its Creator 
 and railing at the Spirit of Light Who so often pre- 
 vented his wicked plans from coming to pass. His 
 curses, however, were futile and seemed to give him 
 but little satisfaction ; and presently, wearying of 
 everything, even of his own terrible power, he dropped 
 his head for a moment and appeared to be upon the 
 verge of despair. 
 
 Just then, however, in a flash of dazzling radiance, 
 
 175 
 
176 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 the Spirit of Good appeared, crowned with Light ; 
 and instantly, the Demon burst forth once again into 
 a passion of vindictive rage, railing at the Light that 
 would destroy his darkness, defying all the hosts of 
 Heaven, and uttering violent curses against the 
 dwellers upon earth. 
 
 In spite of the stern rebukes of the Angel of Light, 
 Who warned him again that his evil hatred would 
 never conquer the Goodness of Divine Love, the 
 Demon continued to hurl defiance at the Creator, 
 his sole satisfaction since he had succumbed to the 
 evil within him being to offer opposition to every- 
 thing good and pure and to engage in endless strife 
 with the heavenly hosts. Even when the fury of the 
 present storm abated somewhat and his attendant 
 evil spirits had returned to their own abode, he lin- 
 gered upon the mountain-tops, still cursing and plan- 
 ning further wickedness into which to plunge weak 
 mortals. 
 
 As the hours rolled on, however, and the storm 
 passed, a sudden change came over him, and his fury 
 vanished as the sun rose in the clearing sky ; and 
 he who had railed at the hosts of Heaven and cursed 
 the dwellers upon earth throughout the tempestuous 
 night became strangely silent, his rage vanishing with 
 the dawn of a glorious summer day as a new passion 
 took possession of him. 
 
 The reason for this sudden change was a remark- 
 able and almost unbelievable one. Down in the 
 valley below, which lay in the district of Grusia, he 
 
THE DEMON 177 
 
 beheld a mortal maiden of such exquisite beauty 
 that he mimediately conceived a wild and violent 
 passion for her, remaining silent, heedless of all nature, 
 as he gazed, fascinated, upon her. 
 
 This lovely maiden, who had come forth thus early 
 to gather flowers and to wander upon the banks of a 
 sparkling streamlet that flowed below, was Tamara, 
 the daughter of Prince Gudal, the Ruler of Grusia. 
 As she filled her arms with sweet-scented blossoms 
 and rejoiced in the beauty of the peaceful morning 
 that had succeeded the storm-racked night, her 
 reflections were no less sweet and beautiful — for her 
 thoughts were all of her betrothed lover, the Prince 
 of Sinodal, who was even now travelling with all 
 speed from his distant land to be united to her, and 
 who was expected to arrive for the marriage cere- 
 mony within the next few days. 
 
 So pleasantly were her thoughts engaged in anticipa- 
 tion of her gallant lover's arrival that Tamara wan- 
 dered somewhat further afield than was her usual 
 custom, soon leaving her attendant maidens far 
 behind ; and presently, to her intense alarm, as she 
 turned to retrace her steps, she was accosted by a 
 stranger, whose unearthly fascination held her in 
 instant thrall. For the Demon, having conceived 
 an overwhelming passion for the beautiful maiden 
 on beholding her for the first time in the valley below, 
 had ceased his railings against the Spirit of Good, and, 
 determining to lose no time in securing this new prize, 
 he now appeared before her in the guise of the hand- 
 
178 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 somest young man she had ever seen, and clad in the 
 rich garments of a great Prince. He addressed her 
 eagerly, and plunged at once into a passionate declara- 
 tion of his love. 
 
 Amazed and terrified at the hot flow of words 
 uttered by the stranger, Tamara's first thought was 
 to fly from his presence ; but so fascinated was she 
 by his sinister beauty and by his earnest pleading 
 for her love, that she felt, for the moment, almost 
 powerless to move. As she listened to this wild 
 love-making, all remembrance of her betrothed faded 
 from her mind and an answering passion began to 
 kindle in her own heart for this brilliant new lover 
 who had so suddenly appeared from she knew not 
 where, and whose wooing, though she felt it to be 
 unearthly and unholy, yet filled her with a strange 
 
 joy- 
 When, however, the Demon would have folded her 
 
 in a passionate embrace as he uttered these extrava- 
 gant words : " Thou art the Queen of my Love, and 
 I will make thee Queen of all the world ! " she was 
 terrified, as she thus realised that the stranger was 
 certainly no ordinary mortal but a being possessed of 
 supernatural powers. She made the sign of the 
 cross, and, with a mighty effort, tore herself away 
 from his inviting arms and fled from his presence, 
 not slackening her steps until she had rejoined her 
 companions and had returned with them to her 
 father's castle. 
 The Demon, however, was full of triumph, and. 
 
THE DEMON 179 
 
 satisfied that he had already ensnared the heart of 
 Tamara, he felt that she could not now escape his 
 toils ; and in order that he might satisfy his sudden 
 desire, he determined that her betrothed lover, the 
 Prince of Sinodal, should never arrive in Grusia but 
 should meet with an untimely end upon his present 
 journey. By means of his supernatural powers, 
 therefore, he caused terrible disaster to fall upon his 
 rival. 
 
 Little dreaming that he had innocently earned the 
 fatal hatred of a supernatural rival, the young Prince 
 of Sinodal proceeded eagerly and patiently upon the 
 long and weary journey which he hoped and believed 
 was to bring him to the crowning happiness of his 
 life — his marriage with the beautiful Tamara, whose 
 love he prized more than all the world. The journey 
 had been a troubled one from the first, for the dis- 
 tance was great and the way had been exceedingly 
 rough ; and during the night that followed the 
 meeting of his beloved one with her new sinister 
 wooer, final disaster overtook him. 
 
 That night the young Prince and his suite encamped 
 near a wayside chapel which, as it happened, had been 
 built many years ago as a memorial to one of his own 
 ancestors, who had been treacherously murdered upon 
 that spot by an enemy ; and the old body-servant of 
 the Prince, full of superstition and trembling lest the 
 place should be haunted, entreated his royal master 
 to pray for the soul of his murdered ancestor ere he lay 
 down to rest. The young Prince, however, was too 
 
i8o STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 footsore and weary to attempt special devotions at 
 so late an hour ; and, despite the admonitions and 
 warnings of his old servant, whose fears of approach- 
 ing danger he endeavoured to allay by promising to 
 pray for the soul of his murdered ancestor when day- 
 light came, he fell asleep within his tent and was soon 
 dreaming of Tamara, his beautiful bride-elect. 
 
 But the premonitions of the old servant were well- 
 founded and what he had feared came to pass. A 
 few hours later, when the whole caravan was wrapped 
 in unsuspecting slumber, a party of savage Tartars — 
 ancient enemies of this particular royal family — 
 brought up swiftly and silently by the mysterious 
 powers of the Demon, made a sudden raid upon the 
 sleeping camp ; and the unfortunate young Prince, 
 with his suite and followers, was taken unawares, 
 and all were massacred save a few swift runners who 
 managed to escape and to bring the terrible news 
 to Grusia. Thus did the Demon dispose of the rival 
 in his path ; and he now hoped that his pursuit of 
 the fair Tamara would end in conquest and joy for 
 himself — for, strange to say, the passionate love he 
 had conceived for this beautiful maiden was a real 
 and sincere one, and he even ventured to hope that 
 if he could win her love in return, he might redeem 
 himself from his fallen estate and thus escape from the 
 evil influences with which he had encompassed himself. 
 Meanwhile, the Court of Prince Gudal made all the 
 necessary preparations for the approaching nuptials 
 of the royal maiden ; and on the day of the marriage. 
 
* > > > 
 
 The Preoccupied Bride-elect. 
 
 (Mile Drusikina as Tamara.) 
 

 O ( C « «l f 
 
THE DEMON i8i 
 
 Tamara stood in the reception-hall of her father's 
 palace, clothed in her bridal robes, awaiting the arrival 
 of her bridegroom, of whose approach news had been 
 received the day before. 
 
 While her attendants were full of animation and 
 gaiety, Tamara herself was strangely preoccupied. 
 Though she anticipated with pleasure the meeting 
 with her bridegroom, for whom she had a sincere love, 
 ever since her meeting in the valley with the mysteri- 
 ous stranger who had laid such sudden and over- 
 whelming siege to her heart, she had been unable to 
 keep her mind free from thoughts of him. The 
 beauty of his person, the softly tender tones of his 
 musical voice, his deep admiration and passionate 
 wooing haunted her constantly, so that his magnetic 
 personality seemed ever present with her though she 
 saw him not, and she could not forget his tempting 
 pleading words. Consequently, the present sounds of 
 revelry seemed to her far away and to be unconnected 
 with herself. When the lively guests from the ban- 
 queting-tables beyond drained goblets of wine in her 
 honour, it was with a great effort that she roused 
 herself sufficiently to acknowledge their greetings 
 and good wishes with a smile. Even when a number 
 of her own girl friends took part in a wild fantastic 
 dance specially arranged and devised for the bridal 
 festivities, she scarcely noticed the mazy rhythm of it ; 
 and leaving the applauding guests to enjoy the spec- 
 tacle, she moved aside to a quieter part of the chamber, 
 allowing her disturbing thoughts free play once more. 
 
 N 
 
i82 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 It was at this moment that there came a sudden and 
 tragic interruption to the revels. Just as the merry 
 dance came to an end and the guests were about to 
 drain their goblets once more in honour of the nuptials 
 of their host's fair daughter, the news was brought 
 that the gallant young Prince of Sinodal had been 
 surprised and slain by marauding Tartars the night 
 before, and that his corpse was even now being brought 
 to the castle. 
 
 Immediately the gay music ceased, giving place to 
 wailings and cries of woe ; and presently, the chanting 
 of a funeral dirge was heard as the body of the dead 
 bridegroom was brought into the chamber. 
 
 With despairing cries, the grief-stricken Tamara 
 flung herself upon the body of her beloved one and 
 burst into passionate weeping ; and despite the pity- 
 ing commiserations of her royal father and of her 
 many girl friends, she refused to be comforted, begging 
 only to be left alone with her dead lover. 
 
 When the guests had all retired, however, Tamara 
 was instantly confronted with a fresh trial. No 
 sooner had she been left alone than she heard tender 
 words of comfort whispered in her ear by the same 
 soft, seductive voice that had haunted her continually 
 since her meeting with the stranger in the valley, 
 and, looking up in alarm, she once more beheld that 
 mysterious being standing beside her with out- 
 stretched arms. 
 
 Enthralled against her will, Tamara listened with a 
 beating heart as the Demon sought to console her 
 
THE DEMON 183 
 
 for the loss of her betrothed ; but when, emboldened 
 by her downcast eyes and seeing that she was not 
 indifferent to the lure of his irresistible fascination, 
 the stranger once more hotly pressed his own suit 
 and endeavoured to fold her in a passionate embrace, 
 she was again terrified and fled wildly from his 
 presence. 
 
 But, wherever she went, whether alone or in com- 
 pany, the words of the Demon still rang in her ears 
 and his sinister yet alluring presence seemed ever 
 with her, pervading her every thought. At length, 
 feeling that her power of resistance was weakening 
 and that she would not have strength to refuse his 
 evil desires should she meet him in person again, 
 realising that he possessed supernatural powers, 
 Tamara sought her father and tearfully entreated 
 him to allow her to enter a convent, declaring that 
 now her betrothed had been taken from her she only 
 sought oblivion, the world and its pleasures no longer 
 having any attraction for her. 
 
 At first. Prince Gudal endeavoured to dissuade his 
 daughter from taking the veil, offering first one 
 objection and then another, as he desired to seek for 
 her another bridegroom ; but seeing that she was 
 almost distracted with grief and that the seclusion 
 of a nunnery alone could bring her peace of mind, 
 he finally gave his consent, and the unhappy Tamara 
 was received into the nearest convent. 
 
 Even here, however, she had to face another and 
 final terrible conflict ere peace was vouchsafed to 
 
i84 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 her ; for the Demon, whose passion for this beautiful 
 maiden was intense and overwhelming, sought her 
 yet once again even in the sanctuary in which she 
 had sought refuge. At the entrance to the nunnery, 
 he found his way barred ; but, by means of his super- 
 natural powers, he quickly forced an entrance and 
 made his way to the apartment of the victim he 
 sought. 
 
 Once more he made violent protestations of love 
 to Tamara, and, now revealing to her his true identity 
 as a demoniacally possessed mortal, he begged her to 
 have compassion upon him, declaring that if she 
 would return his love he would forsake the ways 
 of evil and would, for her sake, even humble himself 
 and bow once more to the Will of the God Whom, 
 in his pride and disobedience, he had offended. The 
 unhappy girl was now torn by conflicting feelings, 
 believing that this strange being's seeming penitence 
 could not be sincere, yet feeling the warmth of an 
 answering passion, which she seemed powerless to 
 resist, enveloping her on every side. 
 
 She was about to succumb to the intoxicating joy 
 of the stranger's unholy love, when, as the Demon 
 folded her in a close embrace, she saw the evil light 
 of triumph in his burning eyes and made a last 
 frantic effort to resist his influence and to escape from 
 his toils. At this terrible moment, the Angel of Light 
 appeared at the entrance to the cell ; and Tamara, 
 with a cry of relief and joy, was about to fly to Him 
 for protection, when, overcome by the fearful ordeal 
 
THE DEMON 185 
 
 through which she had just passed, her overwrought 
 strength gave way and she fell lifeless to the ground. 
 
 The Demon, seeing that his hope of an earthly joy 
 had been thus snatched from his evil grasp, and 
 that, in addition, he had lost the redemption he had 
 sought, was filled with rage and despair ; and renew- 
 ing his curses against mankind and all the heavenly 
 hosts, he vanished from the spot amidst the lightnings 
 and tumults of a terrible storm. At the same moment 
 the Angel of Light appeared, bearing aloft with him 
 the purified spirit of the love-rent Tamara to rest in 
 peace at last. 
 
STRAVINSKY 
 
 THE NIGHTINGALE 
 
 Many thousands of years ago, there hved a certain 
 mighty Emperor of China, who was the most magni- 
 ficent sovereign on earth. He Hved in a wonderful 
 palace made of precious porcelain ; and the throne 
 he sat upon was all of solid gold, studded with 
 sparkling gems. His robes were so richly jewelled 
 and so stiff with gold and silver threads that they 
 would stand alone. 
 
 So luxurious were all the appurtenances of this 
 Emperor's Court that no one had ever seen their 
 like before ; and the lords-in-waiting were very nearly 
 as dazzling in appearance as the Emperor himself. 
 This was especially the case with the Lord Chamber- 
 lain, who was extremely haughty and pompous and 
 held his aristocratic head so high up in the air that 
 he had never seen the ground he walked upon since 
 he was a child ; and when any one of a lesser rank 
 than his own spoke to him, he only condescended to 
 answer " Pooh ! " 
 
 The most exquisite flowers grew in the palace 
 gardens, and they all had silver bells attached to 
 them, which tinkled in the soft breezes ; and the 
 garden was so large that even the head gardener 
 did not know where it ended. The furthest point 
 
 18G 
 
THE NIGHTINGALE 187 
 
 most people had reached in this enormously large 
 garden had brought them to a beautiful forest, 
 beyond which it was believed that the blue ocean 
 rolled ; and here, amongst the tall trees on the borders 
 of this forest, dwelt a Nightingale, who had the 
 loveliest voice in the world and whose magical song 
 could charm away evil and bring joy to the saddest 
 hearts. 
 
 There was a poor Fisherman who came all the way 
 from the seashore every evening for the sole pleasure 
 of listening to the sweet singing of the Nightingale ; 
 and the humble folk who dwelt round about loved to 
 listen to her joyous song, which made them forget 
 their troubles for the time being. 
 
 And many travellers who came past that way were 
 so entranced when they heard the thrilling notes of 
 the Nightingale that when they returned to their own 
 lands, they wrote entire books about it, declaring it 
 to be the most wonderful thing they had come across 
 on their travels. 
 
 Yet, strange to say, neither the Emperor of China 
 himself, nor any of his courtiers, had ever heard of the 
 little bird whose fame had travelled so far and wide ; 
 and it was not until he had read a description of the 
 songstress's powers in a book of travels sent him as 
 a present by the Emperor of Japan, that the mighty 
 Ruler of China learned that such a wonderful creature 
 existed in his dominions. 
 
 He was then extremely annoyed that he had never 
 been told of it before ; and he commanded the Lord 
 
i88 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Chamberlain to have the celebrated songstress 
 brought to Court that he might judge of her voice 
 for himself. 
 
 At first, the pompous Lord Chamberlain declared 
 that, not knowing the abode of the lady in question, 
 he was afraid he could not gratify this sudden wish 
 of his lord and master ; but when the Emperor 
 announced angrily that unless he produced the bird 
 that evening, he and all his fellow-courtiers should 
 be trampled upon, he bestirred himself at once, as 
 he did not relish the idea of being trodden under foot 
 by the royal elephants, even though the latter had 
 their tusks gilded and wore golden bells around their 
 big ugly feet. 
 
 After inquiring in vain from hundreds of people 
 as to the whereabouts of the Nightingale's abode, 
 the Lord Chamberlain was informed by a little kitchen- 
 maid that she knew the bird well, and that, as she went 
 to listen to its song every evening, she would gladly 
 lead him to the haunt of the songstress. 
 
 So the Lord Chamberlain and a few other courtiers 
 followed the little kitchen-maid, who led them through 
 the palace garden to the borders of the forest beyond ; 
 and after mistaking first the lowing of a heifer and 
 then the croaking of the frogs in the marshes for the 
 famous singer, they at last heard the wonderful 
 voice of the Nightingale, as it trilled through the 
 woodland depths. 
 
 The Lord Chamberlain was so amazed and over- 
 joyed as he listened to the magic song, that he lost 
 
THE NIGHTINGALE 189 
 
 his breath for quite a minute ; but as soon as he had 
 recovered himself, he made a pompous speech and 
 invited the Nightingale to come to Court that same 
 evening, to sing before the Emperor. 
 
 " Thank you, I will come with pleasure ! " replied 
 the Nightingale. " But my voice really sounds very 
 much better in the green woods, and I hope His 
 Majesty will not be disappointed ! " 
 
 The coming of the Nightingale to Court was the 
 greatest event of the Emperor's reign ; and the excite- 
 ment in the palace was intense. 
 
 When the Nightingale arrived, she took up her 
 stand upon the golden perch which had been pro- 
 vided for her and began to sing at once. Everybody 
 was enchanted with the wonderful charm of her 
 sweet voice, which had the magic power of making 
 people feel intense joy or sorrow as she willed. 
 
 There were tears in the eyes of the Emperor when 
 the song came to an end ; and the Nightingale had to 
 sing again to chase the tears away and to make him 
 smile. 
 
 The plain little brown and grey bird now became 
 the rage, and was established as Chief Musician at 
 Court, with many lords and ladies to wait upon her ; 
 and she was only allowed to go out into the garden 
 once at night and twice in the daytime. So much 
 admiration did she attract that all the Court ladies 
 became quite jealous, and vainly attempted to sing 
 in shakes and trills that they also might be regarded 
 as Nightingales ; and there was nothing else talked 
 
190 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 of but the new songstress. Even the common people 
 were allowed to hear her occasionally ; and the little 
 kitchen-maid often stood at the scullery door to listen 
 while the performance was taking place. 
 
 Then, just when the new singer's popularity was at 
 its height, a second gift arrived from the Emperor of 
 Japan, which turned out to be a clockwork Nightingale 
 made of precious gems which sparkled at every turn, 
 and which, when wound up, could sing pretty tunes. 
 True, these tunes were only waltzes and were quite 
 mechanical ; but the jewelled bird's outward appear- 
 ance was so gorgeous and dazzling, and the clock- 
 work apparatus inside its body which produced the 
 tunes appeared so marvellous to the Emperor and his 
 courtiers, that it was at once appointed Imperial 
 Court Singer, being voted much more wonderful 
 than the real Nightingale, whose sombre garb had 
 never been wholly approved of, though her voice had 
 enchanted all. 
 
 So the plain little bird, surprised and hurt by the 
 ingratitude of man, flew away to her beloved wood- 
 lands once more, where she again sang sweetly every 
 night to the humble Fisherman and to the kindly 
 country folk ; and the gaudy artificial Nightingale 
 became the craze of the Emperor and his Court. 
 
 The popularity of the new toy lasted quite a long 
 time ; and then, one day, its mainspring broke, and 
 it was found to be nearly worn-out. The royal 
 clockmaker mended and patched it up as best he 
 could ; but it was never the same again, and its wheels 
 
THE NIGHTINGALE 191 
 
 were worn so thin that it was only allowed to be 
 wound up to sing occasionally on the most important 
 festivals. 
 
 The Emperor was so upset at this catastrophe that 
 he lost not only his good spirits but his appetite as 
 well ; and, at last, he became so extremely ill that he 
 was expected to die any minute. The order was given 
 out for his coming funeral, and a new Emperor even 
 was chosen to be in readiness to succeed him. 
 
 While these dismal preparations were taking place, 
 the sick Emperor lay upon his bed, pale and wan, 
 with the spectral form of Death sitting at his bedside ; 
 and the shades of his Good and Evil Deeds hovered 
 around and peeped at him from behind the bed- 
 hangings. The royal invalid was just on the point of 
 expiring, when, suddenly, he heard the sound of the 
 most beautiful music floating in through the open 
 window, and, to his joy, recognised the sweet song of 
 the little bird whom he had treated with such in- 
 gratitude. 
 
 It was indeed the humble little Nightingale, who, 
 having heard of her Imperial admirer's illness, had 
 come, out of the kindness of her heart — and not 
 because he deserved it — to sing to him, and to heal 
 him with her magical voice ; and as the Emperor 
 lay back in bed and listened to the wonderful sounds, 
 his pains left him, his vitality returned, and he began 
 to feel better. 
 
 Even the gaunt visage of Death showed delight as 
 he Ustened to the song of the Nightingale ; and the 
 
192 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 sinister visitor begged her to continue her song, 
 promising to depart at daybreak, if she would con- 
 sent to do so. The Nightingale gladly agreed to 
 this bargain, singing joyfully all the night through ; 
 and at daybreak, Death and his shadowy spirits 
 departed and the Emperor arose from his couch, 
 cured of his sickness and in the best of health. 
 
 As soon as he had arrayed himself in his royal robes, 
 and had put the crown upon his head once more, he 
 thanked the Nightingale for having saved his life 
 by her soothing song, and entreated her to take up 
 her abode at Court once more ; but the humble 
 little songstress replied : " Nay, my lord, I am not 
 a courtier, but a creature of the wilds, loving the 
 beauties of Nature. My home must be in the forest ; 
 but I will come and sing to you every night, and I 
 will tell you wonderful secrets, too, if you will promise 
 never to let any one know that it is a little bird who 
 tells you everything ! " 
 
 The Emperor gladly gave the promise asked by the 
 Nightingale, and retired to his bed once more ; and 
 then, as the funeral procession approached, and his 
 courtiers, robed in mourning garments, entered the 
 chamber in order to bear him away to his burial, 
 believing that he must surely have died during the 
 night, as he had been on the point of expiring when last 
 they saw him, he thrust aside the curtains and greeted 
 the astonished beholders with a hearty " Good- 
 morning ! " 
 
TCHAIKOVSKT 
 
 EUGENE ONIEGIN 
 
 It was a warm evening in the late autumn, and 
 Madame Larina, a wealthy landowner in Russia, 
 was sitting in the garden of her beautiful country 
 house, busily engaged upon the homely task of 
 peeling and picking fruit, in which occupation she 
 was assisted by an old nurse named Philipjevna. 
 Through the open windows of the mansion close by 
 came the sound of the happy singing of her two fair 
 young daughters, Olga and Tatiana ; and as she 
 listened to their song, the mother's heart was filled with 
 sympathy and tender recollection, for the song was 
 one she had herself sung in the days of her youth. 
 
 Twilight was fast closing around, and presently 
 a band of merry peasants came trooping into the 
 grounds, carrying sheaves of com, which they pre- 
 sented to Madame Larina, for to-day was the last of 
 the harvest and they had come to lay their customary 
 tribute at the feet of their benefactress. 
 
 Madame Larina received the peasants with great 
 kindness, inviting them to sing and dance before her 
 and to partake of the refreshment she had ordered 
 to be prepared for them. So the lively youths and 
 maidens, notwithstanding their weariness after a 
 long day's toil, began to go through the mazy figures 
 
 193 
 
194 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 of a country dance upon the lawn, singing a merry 
 harvest song as an accompaniment. 
 
 On hearing the song of the peasants, Olga and 
 Tatiana came out into the garden and stood beside 
 their mother, Hstening to the singing and watching 
 the dance with interest. 
 
 The two sisters, though both fair to look upon, 
 presented a great contrast to each other ; for whereas 
 the elder, Olga, was light-hearted, matter-of-fact, 
 and frivolous, loving gaiety and amusement, Tatiana, 
 on the other hand, was dreamy, romantic, and retiring, 
 caring little for the usual excitements of youth, but 
 preferring to wander off alone to read in solitude or to 
 indulge in day-dreams. 
 
 This difference in disposition was shown now, as 
 they emerged from the house ; for Olga, exhilarated 
 by the lively music, was ready enough to join the 
 peasants in their merry revels, but Tatiana, in whom 
 the music had awakened more romantic thoughts, 
 retired to a quiet corner of the terrace to read a 
 favourite book and to enjoy the beauty of the 
 twilight. 
 
 Seeing that her young daughter was more than 
 usually quiet and dreamy this evening, Madame 
 Larina, with motherly solicitude, approached to 
 nquire if anything troubled her ; but Tatiana de- 
 clared that nothing ailed her, and that she was but 
 deeply interested in her book and in her own musings. 
 
 When the peasants had finished their dance, they 
 trooped away again to partake of their patroness's 
 
EUGENE ONIEGIN 195 
 
 hospitality ; and immediately afterwards, a carriage 
 arrived, from which alighted two gentlemen who 
 lived in the neighbourhood. These were Vladimir 
 Lenski, a young nobleman who was betrothed to 
 Olga, and his friend, Eugene Oniegin, who, although 
 he owned land in the district, yet was unknown to 
 Madame Larina and her daughters. 
 
 At sight of the stranger, the shy and timid Tatiana 
 would have retired to the house, but was detained by 
 her mother ; and a few moments later, Lenski came 
 forward to greet the ladies, at the same time intro- 
 ducing his friend. 
 
 Oniegin was a handsome man, who had seen much 
 of the world and possessed an interesting, fascinating 
 and even mysterious personality ; and as the im- 
 pressionable Tatiana lifted her timid eyes and gazed 
 shyly upon him, she was strangely attracted by him, 
 feeling that he was the very impersonation of the 
 romantic hero of her girlish dreams. Oniegin, too, 
 was interested in the pensive girl, who attracted him 
 more than did the laughing Olga ; and entering into 
 conversation with her, they presently strolled into 
 the garden together. 
 
 Lenski was overjoyed at finding himself alone with 
 his beloved Olga, and poured forth passionate pro- 
 testations of devotion into her ear, which, although 
 she received them with merry bantering, were never- 
 theless pleasing to his fiancee ; and the time passed 
 all too quickly for the happy lovers. 
 
 Presently, however, Madame Larina reappeared, 
 
196 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 calling them to the evening meal which was now 
 ready ; and as the lovers retired to the house, 
 Tatiana and Oniegin emerged from the garden, deep 
 in conversation, and passed in after them. 
 
 Tatiana, in spite of her shyness, had found intense 
 enjoyment in the society of Oniegin ; and although 
 his conversation revealed him to be a world-weary 
 cynic, with little belief in human goodness, yet his 
 curious melancholy and his fascinating personality 
 thrilled her intensely, so that her heart beat with 
 a strange delirious joy that would not be suppressed. 
 As the night advanced, this sudden passion grew more 
 and more intensified ; and when at last she retired 
 to her chamber, her agitation was so great that she 
 could restrain her feelings no longer. 
 
 The old nurse, who had accompanied her to attend 
 to her wants, endeavoured to soothe the young girl, 
 seeing that she was overwrought ; but she found her 
 task a hard one, for Tatiana insisted on hearing the 
 story of Philipjevna's own love and betrothal and 
 was not to be diverted from this all-enthralling sub- 
 ject. The old dame, therefore, described the events 
 connected with her marriage, which were prosaic and 
 unromantic enough ; for, according to the usual 
 custom of the Russian peasantry, a husband had been 
 chosen for her, and she had been bidden to wed him, 
 the short courtship being a mere matter of form and 
 the question of love having had nothing whatever to 
 do with the transaction. 
 
 Tatiana, however, paid little heed to the story she 
 
EUGENE ONIEGIN 197 
 
 had asked for, being too much engrossed with her 
 own conflicting emotions ; and as the recital came to 
 an end, she desired the old nurse to bring writing 
 materials into the room and then retire. 
 
 Philipjevna, thinking it best to humour the young 
 girl, obeyed her behest at once ; and having placed 
 writing materials on the table, she kissed her nursling 
 tenderly and left the room, hoping that sleep and 
 pleasant dreams would restore her to calmness by the 
 morning. 
 
 But sleep was very far from the thoughts of the 
 agitated Tatiana ; for, unable to restrain her feelings 
 any longer, she had determined to write a letter to 
 Eugene Oniegin, confessing the passionate love she 
 had conceived for him and asking him to grant her 
 a meeting in the grounds next day. For a long time 
 conflicting thoughts assailed her, maidenly modesty 
 and natural reticence struggling with her newly- 
 born love and the desire to have it returned ; but at 
 length the intensity of her passion overcame all other 
 feelings, and, seizing a pen, she began to write. But 
 even now, when her decision was made, she found it a 
 difficult task to put her overwhelming thoughts upon 
 the paper ; and many were the sheets she destroyed 
 and the new attempts she made. 
 
 The night crept on, but Tatiana was heedless of 
 the passing hours ; and at length, as the first signs of 
 dawn appeared, she finished the letter, and, with 
 trembling hands and much misgiving, placed it in an 
 envelope ready to be delivered. 
 
 o 
 
198 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 The letter was characteristic of the girl's disposition, 
 and every line breathed the sweet trustfulness that 
 had prompted its writing. It was the simple out- 
 pouring of a generous romantic nature, and the depth 
 and intensity of passion it revealed but proved the 
 value of the gift offered — the gift of a pure young 
 girl's love. 
 
 Having sealed the letter, Tatiana went up to the 
 window, and, drawing aside the curtains, pensively 
 watched the rosy dawn of another beautiful autumn 
 morning ; and a short time afterwards, Philipjevna 
 came in to awaken her, according to her usual custom. 
 Amazed to find her young mistress already dressed, 
 the old nurse hurried forward to greet her, noticing 
 with alarm that the bed had not been slept in ; but 
 Tatiana, scarcely waiting for her greeting, hastily 
 placed in her hand the letter she had written, and 
 nervously entreated her to have it conveyed to 
 Eugene Oniegin without delay. 
 
 At first the nurse hesitated, knowing that this was 
 an extraordinary request ; but seeing that the girl 
 was still in a state of nervous excitement, she again 
 thought it best to humour her, so took the note and 
 promised to have it delivered at once. 
 
 As soon as Philipjevna had left the room, Tatiana 
 buried her face in her hands, half-regretting that she 
 had sent the letter and wondering if Oniegin would 
 grant her the appointment she had asked for, first 
 hoping that he would come to the trysting-place and 
 the next moment praying that he would not. 
 
EUGENE ONIEGIN 199 
 
 However, later in the day, as the time appointed 
 for the meeting drew near, she gathered her courage 
 together and went out into the garden, with doubt 
 and longing in her heart, trembling at the thought of 
 what the result of her interview would be, fearing 
 lest her love should be scorned yet equally full of 
 shy fears should it be returned. 
 
 As she appeared in the garden, she found that a 
 group of village maidens were continuing their harvest 
 festivities by indulging in further merry songs and 
 dances on the lawn ; but presently they departed to 
 another part of the grounds, leaving Tatiana alone, 
 and a few moments later Eugene Oniegin appeared and 
 came towards her. 
 
 In the presence of the man she now loved so passion- 
 ately, Tatiana's little stock of courage entirely for- 
 sook her, leaving her trembling ; and she would 
 certainly have run away again had not Oniegin 
 peremptorily bidden her to remain. Then, drawing 
 nearer to the agitated girl, he told her gently that he 
 had received and read her letter ; and he added that 
 because she had been so frank with him, he would, 
 in return, be equally frank with her. 
 
 He then went on to declare in passionless tones, 
 yet half-regretfully, that he was too world-weary to 
 accept the fresh young love she had to offer and that 
 he was neither worthy to receive so generous a gift 
 nor had he a like passion to give in return. 
 
 As the trembling Tatiana listened to these cold, 
 unresponsive words, each one of which wounded her 
 
200 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 deeply, she felt crushed to the earth ; and, overcome 
 with grief and shame, she buried her face in her hands. 
 Oniegin, sorry for the pain he was thus inflicting upon 
 the heart of this romantic girl, now bade her, in a 
 more tender tone than he had yet used, to restrain her 
 feelings, since another, less conscientious than himself, 
 might take advantage of such impulsiveness for his 
 own selfish ends ; and then, taking her by the hand, 
 he led her into the house as though she had been a 
 little child. 
 
 A short time after these events, Madame Larina 
 gave a splendid ball in honour of Tatiana's eighteenth 
 birthday, and all the young people of the neigh- 
 bourhood were invited to join in the festivities, pro- 
 minent amongst the guests being Lenski and his 
 friend Eugene Oniegin. 
 
 The entertainment was an elegant one, and the 
 assemblage brilliant ; but Oniegin found it dull and 
 was frankly bored. He passed most of his time with 
 Tatiana, for the impressionable girl still interested 
 him ; but Tatiana was restless and silent, and at 
 last he left her to her own reflections, seeing that she 
 seemed ill at ease with him. 
 
 Being now more bored than ever, he felt annoyed 
 with Lenski for having persuaded him to come ; and 
 presently he sought and found a means for paying off 
 this small grudge against his friend. Seeing the 
 pretty, smiling Olga approaching at the moment, he 
 invited her to dance with him several times, including 
 the cotillion she had promised to her fiance ; and 
 
EUGENE ONIEGIN 201 
 
 Olga, being by nature a daring coquette, gaily accepted 
 his attentions with such evident pleasure that Lenski's 
 brow grew black with disappointment and jealousy, 
 for he loved her passionately and could brook no 
 rival in his affections. Full of gloom, he watched the 
 pair as they danced through the intricate figures of 
 the cotillion, noting with increasing anger the many 
 roguish glances bestowed by the coquettish Olga 
 upon her partner ; and when the cotillion came to an 
 end, unable to restrain his jealous feelings any longer, 
 he openly accused Oniegin of endeavouring to steal 
 away the affection of his fiancee, and, before all the 
 guests, furiously challenged him to give him satisfac- 
 tion and to fight with him on the morrow. 
 
 At first, Oniegin tried to laugh the matter off, 
 declaring that he had had no thought of doing his 
 friend a wrong ; and Olga, now frightened and full 
 of remorse that her giddy conduct should have thus 
 been the means of causing strife, also implored her 
 fiance to calm himself and to think no more of the 
 matter. 
 
 But Lenski's jealous passion could not be restrained, 
 and he continued to pour such angry reproaches and 
 stinging taunts upon Oniegin, that the latter at length 
 lost control of himself also, and, goaded beyond 
 bearing, angrily accepted the challenge. The guests, 
 alarmed and dismayed, at once took a hurried depar- 
 ture, and the ball, which had commenced so brightly, 
 ended in confusion and gloom. 
 
 Early next morning, Lenski and Oniegin, with their 
 
202 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 seconds, met in a retired part of the grounds ; and 
 there, with all the usual ceremonious etiquette, the 
 duel was fought. Both felt sad at the thought that 
 their long and happy friendship should end in this 
 terrible way, and longed to utter the one word that 
 would have reconciled them ; but pride kept their 
 lips sealed, and, when the signal was given, they raised 
 their pistols and fired instantaneously. 
 
 Lenski fell to the ground at once ; and when Onie- 
 gin, who was untouched, ran forward with the seconds 
 and clasped him in his arms, he found, to his horror, 
 that he was dead. 
 
 Full of grief and remorse that he had thus for the 
 sake of a foolish code of honour slain the dearest 
 friend of his youth, Oniegin, dazed and miserable, 
 left the neighbourhood at once ; and for several 
 years afterwards he wandered restlessly from country 
 to country, in the vain endeavour to drown the tor- 
 menting regrets and harrowing recollections that 
 haunted his brain. 
 
 But neither change of scene nor wildest adventure 
 could succeed in bringing any comfort or peace to his 
 wounded and remorseful heart ; and at last, over- 
 ruled by an irresistible longing to return to the scene 
 of his trouble, he travelled to Russia once more, and 
 upon arriving in the capital, was sought out by his old 
 friends and induced to remain there for a while. On 
 receiving an invitation to a magnificent ball from one 
 of his near relations, Prince Gremin, a nobleman of 
 high position and honour, he was persuaded to accept 
 
 \ 
 
Unhappy Memories. 
 
 (D. A. Smirnoff as Eugene Oniegin.^ 
 
1. fc • 1. < . , 
 • » • - - e t c- 
 
 1 C 4 C «^ C 
 
EUGENE ONIEGIN 203 
 
 this ; and when the evening arrived, he proceeded to 
 attend the function, though somewhat against his will. 
 
 But even such a brilliant scene as this could not 
 bring distraction to the torn and weary heart of 
 Eugene Oniegin ; and as he wandered restlessly from 
 room to room, his self-accusing thoughts still haunted 
 him and the memory of the fatal duel was again 
 pictured in his mind as vividly as ever. Presently, 
 however, he noticed a stir among the guests and a 
 subdued murmur of admiration ; and following their 
 gaze, he saw that the centre of their attraction was a 
 beautiful young woman, richly clad and sparkling 
 with jewels, who was passing from one group to an- 
 other with easy dignity, bestowing smiles and gracious 
 words on all. A second glance revealed to Oniegin 
 that this brilliant figure was Tatiana, the young 
 daughter of Madame Larina, the romantic maiden who 
 had so impulsively offered him her fresh girlish love 
 a few years ago — Tatiana, no longer a dreamy child, 
 but grown into a lovely, soulful woman, gracious and 
 self-controlled, moving with queenly dignity amidst 
 this dazzling array of fair women. 
 
 Quite recently Tatiana had been taken from 
 her quiet country home to become the admired wife 
 of Prince Gremin, who, though many years her 
 senior, yet loved her tenderly and did all in his power 
 to make her happy ; and the fair young girl, though 
 she could not give him love, yet made him a dutiful 
 and devoted wife and had soon learned to bear her 
 exalted position with becoming dignity. 
 
204 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 As Oniegin gazed once again upon Tatiana, always 
 interesting to him, but doubly so now in her matured 
 beauty with all her natural charms of mind, body and 
 disposition intensified a hundredfold, his heart sud- 
 denly throbbed with a new and strange feeling of 
 exaltation ; and he who had thought himself dead to 
 all passion, suddenly felt his pulses quicken and a 
 thrill of keenest joy pass through his whole being. 
 
 His emotion increased presently when Prince 
 Gremin brought his beautiful young wife forward and 
 introduced her to him with pride and affection ; for 
 although Tatiana greeted him with easy calm and 
 even coldness, making no attempt to hide their former 
 acquaintance, the intense look of repressed passion in 
 her deep, tender eyes told him plainly that her feel- 
 ing for him had not altered, but, indeed, had deepened 
 with her growth. As she moved away again on the 
 arm of her husband, Oniegin felt the sharp pangs of 
 jealousy for the first time in his life, and knew that 
 he now loved this woman with his whole heart ; and 
 he was seized with a passionate desire to possess the 
 love he had once refused. 
 
 Unable to restrain his overwhelming feelings, he 
 determined to declare himself at all costs ; and, 
 making his way to a retired spot, he waited until 
 Tatiana came past that way alone. Then, hastening 
 towards her, trembling with emotion, he told her of his 
 love and implored her to grant him hers in return ; 
 but Tatiana reminded him bitterly that he had slighted 
 her proffered affection years ago, treating it as the 
 
EUGENE ONIEGIN 205 
 
 mere fancy of a sentimental girl and had even blamed 
 her for her boldness. Cut to the quick by this just 
 retort, Oniegin sank to his knees and begged her with 
 increasing emotion to have pity and to grant him the 
 love he now longed for above all things ; and his 
 pleading was so powerful that Tatiana, unable to keep 
 up her pretence of coldness any longer, admitted that 
 her passion for him was still the same, and for a few 
 moments a feeling of delirious joy surged through her 
 heart at the thought that her love was at last returned. 
 But when Oniegin next entreated her to depart with 
 him at once, that they might yet be happy together, 
 theirs being a love that could not be denied, then the 
 young wife declared in broken accents that she would 
 remain faithful to her husband, no matter how hard 
 it might be to refuse the pleading of the man she 
 loved. 
 
 Again and again Oniegin besought her to obey the 
 dictates of her heart ; but Tatiana, though tempted 
 almost beyond endurance, still brokenly, yet firmly, 
 refused, and then, fearing to remain longer lest her 
 resolution should break down, fled away from his 
 presence with a last distracted look. 
 
 Immediately afterwards, the guests were startled by 
 the sound of a pistol shot ; and, upon hastening to the 
 alcove, they were horrified to discover Oniegin lying 
 dead upon the floor, his despair on realising that the 
 happiness he desired could never now be his having 
 proved more than he could endure. 
 
TCHAIKOVSKY 
 
 lOLANTA 
 
 About the middle of the fifteenth century, in a 
 secluded valley amidst the hills of Provence, there 
 was to be seen an exquisite garden, so full of beauty 
 that to gaze upon it seemed almost like taking a peep 
 into the wonderful fairyland of childhood's days. 
 Masses of roses and other lovely flowers blossomed 
 in profusion on every side ; fruit-trees grew luxuri- 
 antly among the flowers ; and splendid vines twined 
 about the trellises placed in the sunniest part of the 
 grounds. 
 
 In the midst of this wonderful garden, there arose 
 a small one-storied dwelling, handsomely appointed 
 within and without. In front of the house there 
 stretched a flower-gemmed terrace, beneath which was 
 to be seen a wall overgrown with ivy and other climb- 
 ing plants, concealing a door which led to a summer 
 bower within. 
 
 The approach to this little earthly paradise was 
 hidden by the heavy undergrowth and was not 
 readily to be discovered ; for all around, even to the 
 distant mountains, the country was wild and rugged, 
 and no one would have dreamed of finding so refreshing 
 an oasis in such an unlikely wilderness. 
 
 •200 
 
lOLANTA 207 
 
 But, though an air of mystery overhung the spot, 
 as though it were the abode of some enchanted Princess 
 in a fairy-tale, joyful life and beauty dwelt therein ; 
 and one glorious summer afternoon, the fair maiden 
 whose home it was might have been seen wandering 
 as usual in her blossoming garden with her nurse and 
 girl companions. Lovely though her surroundings 
 were, the maiden herself was the fairest blossom of 
 all. The fresh pink roses were not more delicately 
 tinted than were her softly-rounded cheeks ; the tall 
 white lilies were not more graceful than her slender 
 form, and could scarcely vie with the purity of her 
 smooth brow ; and her soft dewy eyes and shining 
 tresses seemed but reflections of the sky and dazzling 
 sunshine. 
 
 The divinity to be worshipped at this secret shrine 
 was certainly more than worthy of her surroundings ; 
 yet as she moved among her companions and joined 
 in their games and amusements, the tragedy of her 
 existence became apparent. The girls had all brought 
 baskets with them into the garden, and every now 
 and again would stop to place in them various flowers 
 and fruits from the choicest plots ; but when their 
 lovely mistress wished to do likewise, they guided her 
 hands in the right direction and gently pulled down the 
 branches and briers until her slender fingers felt and 
 closed over the luscious fruit. The Princess of this 
 fairy-like abode was not enchanted, as one might have 
 readily imagined ; but she was blind ! For that 
 reason she had been kept hidden away from the world 
 
2o8 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 and brought up in this lonely but lovely spot, the 
 beauties of which, however, were only known to her 
 by her marvellously acute senses of touch and hearing ; 
 and with only a few faithful servants around her, 
 she had never learned the truth of her infirmit}^ and 
 did not know the meaning of sight. 
 
 Such was lolanta, the blind daughter of Rene, 
 King of Naples and Count of Provenge ; and as she 
 occupied herself with her companions on the after- 
 noon on which this story commences, she little 
 dreamed that the uneventfulness of her life was at 
 last to be broken and that within the next few hours 
 her destiny would be changed. 
 
 lolanta had not been born blind ; and while she was 
 still an infant. King Ren^ had been engaged in an 
 ancient feud that had existed for many years between 
 his family and the Dukes of Burgundy. Both sides 
 having grown heartily weary of the struggle, the 
 reigning Duke proposed at this time to his hereditary 
 enemy that they should agree to bury the hatchet and 
 to seal the compact of their renewed friendship by the 
 betrothal of his only son to the newly-born Princess 
 lolanta, whose budding infantile charms already gave 
 promise of wonderful beauty later on. 
 
 The compact was readily entered into by King 
 Rene, and the betrothal contract of the children was 
 duly drawn up and signed. Then, shortly after- 
 wards, a terrible misfortune befell the King of Naples, 
 which threatened to destroy all his plans and hopes 
 of a peaceful future and to plunge him once more into 
 
lOLANTA 209 
 
 a renewed feud with his haughty and powerful neigh- 
 bour. One night, a fire broke out in his palace, and 
 the flames gained so rapidly in the apartments of the 
 baby Princess that at first it was feared she could not 
 be saved from death. It was impossible to get her 
 out of the blazing apartment ; and in the last ex- 
 tremity, as a final attempt at rescue, the terrified 
 babe was dropped out of the window from a great 
 height and caught into willing arms below. Her life 
 was thus saved ; but, to the grief of her royal father, 
 it was afterwards found that — whether from fright 
 and shock or from the dazzling glare of the flames 
 could not be determined — though her lovely eyes 
 still retained their brilliancy and beauty, the sight 
 had gone from them and she was blind. 
 
 Full of woe for the terrible affliction of his beloved 
 and motherless child, whose bright hopes of a joyous 
 life thus seemed darkened for ever. King Rene was 
 further plunged in despair as he also realised that his 
 ancient feud was now likely to be renewed, for the 
 proud Duke of Burgundy would scarcely desire to wed 
 his only son to a blind girl, and would almost certainly 
 refuse to believe that she had ever been otherwise than 
 blind, being more likely to imagine that he had been 
 purposely deceived at the time when the betrothal 
 contract was signed. 
 
 In order to preserve peace in his long harassed land, 
 therefore, the troubled King resolved to keep the 
 knowledge of his child's blindness a secret from all 
 save a few faithful servants whom he could trust. 
 
210 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 With this object in view, he had caused a retreat to be 
 prepared for her in an almost unknown valley of the 
 Provence hills, where she could be brought up away 
 from the sight of the world and in complete ignorance 
 even of the awful fact that she was blind. 
 
 To the Duke of Burgundy and to all other inquirers, 
 it was given out that the child was delicate and had 
 been sent to be brought up in a convent in Spain, 
 there to remain until her sixteenth year, when her 
 marriage was to be celebrated ; and the secret of her 
 true hiding-place and the real reason for her isolation 
 had been safely preserved up to the present time. 
 
 To Bertran, a faithful retainer, the guardianship of 
 the royal child had been entrusted ; and a careful, 
 loving nurse was found for her in Martha, the wife of 
 Bertran. This loyal couple also were the custodians 
 of the tiny chateau that had been erected in the midst 
 of the beautiful retreat ; and, with the addition of a 
 few serving-maids and archer guards, these were 
 the only persons who ever saw the little blind Princess, 
 save her father, who was only able to visit her at long 
 intervals. The latter's true estate was not revealed to 
 her, and she learned to know and to love him as her 
 father under the title of Raymbaut, a troubadour or 
 wandering minstrel. 
 
 At first, the ministrations and companionship of 
 her nurse, Martha, were sufficient for the blind child ; 
 but as she grew to maidenhood, it was deemed advis- 
 able to provide for her companions of her own age. 
 Therefore, a few maidens of high degree were sent as 
 
lOLANTA 211 
 
 attendants upon her, all of whom were bound to 
 secrecy and instructed to keep from her the know- 
 ledge of her blindness and of her true rank. 
 
 Thus lolanta, sightless herself and accustomed to 
 living and moving in a world of darkness, never having 
 heard of the joys of light and colour, knowing beauty 
 only by her delicate sense of touch and intuition, 
 believed all others to be even as she herself ; and 
 therefore, she was happy, in spite of her dire affliction, 
 and grew up light-hearted as a bird and beautiful 
 as the dawn. 
 
 All through the early childhood of lolanta, King 
 Rene had been resigned to her affliction, though he 
 lived in dread of the time, then long-distant, when he 
 would have to reveal the fact of her blindness to her 
 betrothed and thus bring almost certain warfare once 
 more upon his now smiling land ; but as the young 
 Princess approached to maidenhood, hope revived 
 within him, and he began to think it possible that some 
 wonderful miracle might happen to restore her sight 
 before the time for her marriage should arrive. Not 
 contented merely to hope, he sought eagerly for means 
 of help ; and hearing of a certain Moorish physician, 
 famed for his marvellous powers of healing, he sent for 
 him and offered him great rewards if, out of his wonder- 
 ful store of Eastern learning and even of his know- 
 ledge of the Dark Science, he could bring back the 
 sight to his daughter's beautiful eyes. 
 
 The physician, Abn Hakia, was willing to devote his 
 great talents to this congenial task ; and after visiting 
 
212 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 the blind child, he gave hope that, though it would be 
 necessary to wait until she attained the age of sixteen 
 years, it was possible that, by that time, he might 
 effect a cure, and announced that if, in the meantime, 
 his directions were faithfully followed out, " by the 
 grace of Allah — Who is great as He is merciful — the 
 sight may even return to the beauteous eyes of the 
 royal maiden ! " 
 
 Such tidings of hope revived the drooping spirits of 
 King Rene ; and giving instructions that the direc- 
 tions of the Moorish physician should be strictly 
 carried out, he looked forward with anxious eagerness 
 to the time when his daughter should attain her 
 sixteenth year, when the final treatments and tests 
 were to be made. 
 
 That time had now arrived ; and, full of loving 
 anticipation, almost agonising in its intensity, the 
 King of Naples dispatched one of his Knights to the 
 retreat of lolanta, to announce to her custodians that 
 he would shortly arrive there with Abn Hakia, the 
 Moorish physician. 
 
 Strangely enough, lolanta, unconscious that her 
 fate and future welfare thus hung in the balance, 
 throughout that day had experienced an unusual 
 feeling of depression which she found it difficult to 
 shake off ; and as she joined her companions in their 
 fruit and flower gathering, her step seemed less elastic 
 than usual. A strange, undefinable feeling that she 
 lacked something — she knew not what, but something 
 that she could not name — took possession of her, and 
 
lOLANTA 213 
 
 caused her usually happy spirits to droop almost to 
 the point of sadness. 
 
 This slight depression of lolanta's communicated 
 itself also, in a less degree, to her companions, who 
 seemed not so lively as was their wont ; and even the 
 musicians who had been bidden to make sweet music 
 for her amusement played only plaintive airs, as 
 though they, too, were in sympathy with the royal 
 maiden's faint intuition of something lacking. 
 
 Presently, lolanta's steps grew slow and heavy, and, 
 as though weary, she sank weeping upon a mossy 
 bank. 
 
 Her friends gathered quickly around her in concern, 
 asking what ailed her ; but she replied that she felt 
 she lacked something, though she knew not what, and 
 bade them go on gathering blossoms for her, as the 
 touch and scent of such fair flowers might comfort 
 her. When the girls had retired to do her bidding, 
 she called her nurse, Martha, to her side, and, saying 
 that she had wept instead of sleeping during the night 
 before, asked suddenly if eyes were meant only for 
 weeping, adding that formerly the sweet songs of the 
 birds and the other happy sounds of Nature had 
 brought her joy enough but that now a change had 
 come and that even in the song of the nightingale she 
 heard only sobs. 
 
 Martha, full of alarm at this strange alteration in 
 her nursling, uttered words of comfort and good cheer ; 
 and when the merry girls had returned once more, 
 laden with blossoms, the royal maiden's spirits 
 
 p 
 
214 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 revived somewhat, and, after thanking them for their 
 gifts, she begged Martha to sing to her as in the 
 days of her early childhood. The fond nurse gladly 
 did so ; and when, at the end of her crooning lullaby, 
 it was found that lolanta had fallen asleep, the attend- 
 ants lifted her gently and carried her away to rest 
 upon a couch in the bowery apartment beneath the 
 terrace, the entrance to which was almost hidden by 
 the overhanging roses. 
 
 Soon after the sleeping lolanta had been carried 
 away by her maidens, the sound of a hunter's horn 
 was heard in the near vicinity of the retreat ; and 
 almost immediately following this, there came a 
 knock at the great door of the entrance to the 
 grounds. 
 
 The custodian, Bertran, immediately answered the 
 summons, and, opening the door, peremptorily asked 
 the business of the visitor, adding sternly that he had 
 orders to slay any unwarranted intruder. 
 
 The new-comer, however, announced that he was 
 the Knight, Almeric, and that he brought a message 
 from King Rene. Boldly entering, he handed a 
 sealed letter to Bertran, at the same time showing 
 him the King's ring as the s37mbol of his ambassador- 
 ship, but stating that he knew not the reason why his 
 royal master should visit this strange retreat nor 
 who lived within it. 
 
 On reading the royal missive, which announced the 
 early arrival of King Rene with the Moorish doctor, 
 Bertran, now realising that the stranger might be 
 
lOLANTA 215 
 
 trusted, received him with cordiaHty and revealed to 
 him the true identity of his beautiful charge. Sir 
 Almeric was filled with astonishment and pity on 
 learning for the first time that the King's fair daughter 
 was blind and that she had been thus hidden away in 
 order to preserve the secret of her affliction from her 
 fiance, who had never yet beheld her, but who was 
 now expected at any time to come forward to claim 
 her as his betrothed. Realising and sympathising 
 with the dilemma of King Rene, he expressed the 
 earnest hope that the treatment and tests about to 
 be applied by the learned physician — whose early 
 arrival he had come to announce — would prove 
 successful and that the Princess would at last recover 
 her long-lost sight. 
 
 Even while Sir Almeric spoke with Bertran and 
 Martha — who had also now joined her husband — the 
 sound of a further hunting horn heralded the approach 
 of the royal party ; and, next moment, King Rene 
 entered the garden, accompanied by the Moorish 
 physician, Abn Hakia. In a voice trembling with 
 emotion, the King bade Martha lead the doctor into 
 the presence of the sleeping maiden, as he desired 
 to examine her eyes whilst she slept ; and when the 
 learned leech returned, he eagerly begged for his 
 report, saying passionately that he would give every- 
 thing he possessed if his daughter could regain her 
 sight. 
 
 In the calm eyes of the physician, dark, unfathom- 
 able, and inscrutable, he could read nothing ; but 
 
2i6 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 his heart leapt with joy when Abn Hakia said : 
 " Have hope, King, for Allah is great, and all 
 things are in His hands ! There is a chance that 
 the royal maid may be cured under the special treat- 
 ment I shall now give her ; but it is essential that she 
 be told that she is blind, of which fact she is now 
 ignorant, for, unless she has the desire to see, nothing 
 can be done for her ! " 
 
 On hearing this condition, the King became angry 
 and impatient, declaring that he would not permit 
 lolanta to be told of her affliction, for fear the cure 
 should not be successful, when the knowledge — so 
 carefully and lovingly kept from her all these years — 
 might make her unhappy ; and he even announced 
 his resolve to punish with death an}^ person who 
 should dare to reveal to his daughter that she was 
 blind. 
 
 While the King and physician thus argued upon this 
 vital point, a stranger in another part of the garden 
 was unconsciously playing into the hands of Abn 
 Hakia. Two handsome young men of high degree, 
 having wandered from the beaten tracks and lost 
 their way in this wild district, had, accidentally, 
 stumbled upon the hidden retreat ; and being amazed 
 at the beautiful surroundings in which they so un- 
 expectedly found themselves, they hastened through 
 the luxurious garden until they reached the rose- 
 hung terrace. 
 
 These wanderers were none other than the young 
 Duke of Burgundy and his friend, Count Vaudemont, 
 
lOLANTA 217 
 
 who were even now journeying to the Court of King 
 Rene that the former might claim his affianced bride ; 
 and as they stopped to rest a few moments by the 
 terrace, the bridegroom-elect spoke of his errand and 
 future bride in tones of the greatest discontent. He 
 railed at his late father for having made such a tire- 
 some contract for him, declaring that he had no desire 
 at all to meet his betrothed, having already given 
 his heart to another maiden, Matilda, the fair Countess 
 of Loteringia, whose beauty and wit were beyond 
 compare. 
 
 Count Vaudemont bade him take cheer, since King 
 Rene's daughter might prove to be even more beauti- 
 ful still ; and then, noticing a tiny footprint in the 
 soft ground leading to the terrace, he cried gaily : 
 " Surely, a fairy must dwell in this wonderful para- 
 dise ! Let us seek her out ! " 
 
 Soon noticing the half-hidden door amongst the 
 roses, he pushed it open ; and the two young men 
 fell back in amazement, lost in admiration as their 
 gaze fell upon the beautiful form of the Princess 
 lolanta, who slept upon a couch within. 
 
 The young Duke hastened back into the open, full 
 of alarm, calling to his friend to withdraw also and 
 declaring that the place was surely enchanted and 
 that the ethereal being within must almost certainly 
 be some dangerous siren who would enchant them also 
 with her evil spells should she awaken and find them 
 there ; but Vaudemont remained fascinated, his 
 senses enthralled, and, scorning the fears of the Duke, 
 
2i8 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 said softly : " Nay, say rather that she is an Angel 
 from Heaven ! " 
 
 He also stepped back, however ; for, at the sound of 
 strange voices, lolanta awakened, and, rising from 
 her couch, came slowly forth upon the terrace and 
 asked in her sweet voice : " Who is here ? " 
 
 The Count, in spite of the Duke's attempt to restrain 
 him, announced their names and titles, explaining 
 that they were weary travellers who had lost their 
 way ; and lolanta, ever mindful of the wants of 
 others, said : "I will fetch wine and fruit, then, for 
 your refreshment ! " 
 
 As she moved back into her apartment to fetch the 
 wine and fruit, placed there by her own thoughtful 
 attendants, the Duke, still fearful of being thrown 
 under a spell of enchantment, hastened away from 
 the spot to seek for help ; but Vaudemont, already 
 strangely attracted by the lovely maiden, waited, 
 full of eagerness for her anticipated return. 
 
 When lolanta appeared, therefore, with fruit and 
 wine, and invited him to refresh himself, he did not 
 hesitate to do so, for fear of offending her ; and then, 
 feeling more and more the rapture of her charming 
 presence and realising that he already loved her, he 
 spoke to her tenderly, yet reverently, admiring her 
 beauty and wooing her very gently. But lolanta 
 appeared confused, and said she did not understand 
 such words, though they sounded very sweetly in her 
 ears, for no one had ever spoken thus to her before ; 
 and afraid lest he might alarm her, Vaudemont 
 
lOLANTA 219 
 
 realised that he must have patience, though he ven- 
 tured to ask her to pluck for him a red rose to keep in 
 remembrance of her flushed cheeks, and that he might 
 know she was not merely a dream maiden. " Gladly 
 will I do so ! " replied lolanta ; but not knowing 
 one from the other, she plucked for him a white rose. 
 
 " Thanks, sweet maiden ! I will keep this white 
 rose as the emblem of your purity ! " said Vaude- 
 mont, adding : " but will you not give me also a red 
 rose ? " 
 
 " But what is red, and what is white ? " asked the 
 puzzled lolanta. " I know not what you mean by 
 such words ! " 
 
 Not willing at first to believe that the beautiful girl 
 could be afflicted with blindness, as her words now 
 led him to suppose, Vaudemont hastily plucked a 
 number of roses, and asked her to say how many 
 blossoms he held in his hand ; and when she could 
 only tell him this by coming near to him and passing 
 her delicate fingers over the flowers he held, he realised, 
 to his sorrow, that she was, indeed, blind, and his 
 deep pity for her reduced him to sudden silence. 
 
 Fearing by his silence that she had unwittingly 
 offended him, lolanta's tears began to flow ; and 
 Vaudemont, with great gentleness, endeavoured to 
 comfort and cheer her by telling her about the great 
 world in which he lived and of the wonderful things 
 to be seen and done therein, amazed that she should 
 be so ignorant of these matters and even of her own 
 infirmity. 
 
220 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 lolanta thus learned from her new friend the fact 
 that she was bUnd, and reahsed that the feeUng of 
 something lacking which had possessed her all day 
 was a true feeling. Full of interest in Vaudemont's 
 revelations of wonders and beauties unknown to her, 
 she begged him eagerly to tell her more about these 
 marvels of sunshine, colour, and form, all of which 
 special beauties of Nature he said helped mankind to 
 understand and to realise God, the Creator of all. 
 
 " You say beautiful things ! " she said. " I, too, 
 understand God by something within myself, by the 
 scent of the flowers and the songs of the birds ; but 
 how much greater must be your understanding of 
 Him, by the wonders of which you speak ! " 
 
 So engrossed were the two young people in their 
 happy talk, every word strengthening the wonderful 
 bond of sympathy between them, that they heeded 
 not the sound of approaching footsteps ; and inter- 
 ruption came all too soon. 
 
 King Rene with the Moorish physician and his 
 daughter's companions had come to seek lolanta in 
 her rose bower, where they imagined her to be still 
 sleeping ; and they were astounded and bewildered 
 at finding her not resting as they had supposed, but 
 awake and talking with a stranger. 
 
 Angrily, the King came forward and demanded of 
 the intruder how he came thither and how he dared to 
 speak to his daughter. lolanta replied for the Count, 
 begging her father not to be angry with the stranger, 
 declaring that his company had given her great deHght, 
 
lOLANTA 221 
 
 as he had told her of the beauties of the great world 
 and of the mighty wonders of Nature which she had 
 never seen, and had expressed pity for her in her 
 blindness. 
 
 All exclaimed in alarm on thus hearing that their 
 beloved Princess had been made acquainted with her 
 affliction ; and the King cried aloud in fury : " What 
 have you done, rash youth ? My child's happiness 
 is destroyed for ever ; and you shall surely die for 
 the evil thing you have done ! " 
 
 The doctor, however, was glad to learn that 
 lolanta thus knew of her blindness, which was in 
 accordance with his desires ; and he told the King 
 that the maiden now might certainly be cured, if 
 only she would desire to see. He, therefore, asked his 
 patient if she now wished to see ; but lolanta shook 
 her head and said she could not desire for that which 
 she did not know, but that she was willing to do as 
 her father wished in the matter. 
 
 The doctor, nonplussed, declared sadly that he 
 could not cure her unless she, herself, had the desire 
 to see ; and then, realising at last the trend of the 
 physician's plan, a sudden idea occurred to King 
 Rene for securing the consummation of Abn Hakia's 
 wish, and he said sternly : " Commence your cure, 
 physician, for it is almost twilight, which is the time 
 you have chosen for performing this mighty work ; 
 and if by the time your treatment is completed my 
 daughter has not regained her sight, this young 
 stranger shall certainly be slain. If, on the other hand. 
 
222 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 by your mighty healing art and by her own strong 
 desire to see, she is cured, then shall the young man 
 live and receive my favour ! " 
 
 lolanta, who had conceived a deep affection for the 
 young stranger whose sj'mpathetic presence and 
 tender words had already taught her the meaning of 
 love, was full of alarm lest he might lose his life for 
 his rashness. She now longed passionately to see, 
 for his sake, that his precious life might be spared, 
 and she cried eagerly : " Oh, hasten, wise physician, 
 and apply your cure ; for I wish above all things in the 
 world that my eyes may be opened and that I may 
 see and thus look upon the countenance of my new 
 friend ! " 
 
 Well pleased on hearing these words, the physician 
 now led lolanta within the palace, in order to apply 
 his final tests for her cure ; and Count Vaudemont 
 and the King were left alone. 
 
 King Rene immediately apologised to the stranger 
 for the harsh attitude he had been obliged to take, 
 explaining to him his real reason for doing so ; and 
 the Count assured him that he fully understood the 
 plan in his mind. He then declared his love for the 
 fair lolanta and begged that her hand might be 
 bestowed upon him, whether she regained her sight or 
 not, revealing his name and high rank ; but King 
 Ren6 replied sadly that his daughter had been be- 
 trothed to another since infancy. 
 
 Just then, Almeric appeared and announced to the 
 King that the young Duke of Burgundy had arrived 
 
lOLANTA 223 
 
 and craved an immediate audience ; and King Rene 
 turned to Vaudemont and said : " Behold your 
 rival, for he even now approaches ! " 
 
 The Duke now appeared on the scene, and explana- 
 tions quickly followed, for the young men were 
 astounded at thus learning that the beautiful blind 
 maiden whom they had discovered so romantically 
 was King Rene's daughter and the Duke's betrothed, 
 whom they had come to claim in fulfilment of the 
 contract made so many years ago. 
 
 The Count now begged the Duke to confess to 
 King Rend that his affections were already bestowed 
 upon the Countess Matilda of Loteringia, and that he 
 desired to be released from the contract made by his 
 late father ; and seeing that his friend had conceived 
 a deep love for the afflicted royal maiden, the young 
 noble gladly did so. 
 
 King Rene willingly agreed that the contract with 
 the Duke of Burgundy should be annulled ; and he 
 now consented to the marriage of his daughter with 
 Count Vaudemont. 
 
 By this time twilight was far advanced, and the 
 doctor's tests were completed ; and, to the over- 
 whelming joy of all, when the bandages were removed 
 from lolanta's eyes, it was found that the cure had 
 been successful and that the royal maiden could now 
 see. 
 
 Although bewildered at first on beholding the 
 wonders around her, lolanta quickly accustomed her- 
 self to her new powers ; and when King Rene placed 
 
224 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 her hands in those of Count Vaudemont, she smiled 
 upon him with great joy, and uttered praises to Heaven 
 for the mighty miracle that had been wrought on her 
 behalf and for the wonderful happiness that now filled 
 her heart. 
 
ICHAIKOVSKT 
 
 THE QUEEN OF SPADES 
 
 One bright springtime day, merry throngs of people 
 might have been seen enjoying themselves in the 
 beautiful Summer Garden at St Petersburg. Now 
 that the ice and snows of the severe Russian winter 
 had at last melted away and the warm sunshine 
 shone forth once more, everyone was eager to be out 
 in the open air and to inhale the gentle breezes, to 
 admire the beauty of the freshly-opened flowers, 
 and to rejoice with the happy singing birds carolling 
 among the branches of the trees. 
 
 The Summer Garden presented a specially gay and 
 animated scene, providing as it did a happy recreation 
 ground for many groups of children, who played their 
 merry games while their nurses and governesses 
 strolled about and chatted together. 
 
 This pleasant spot being also a favourite meeting- 
 place for the wealthy and aristocratic, a number of 
 ladies and gentlemen in fashionable garb contributed 
 a buzz of conversation ; and a good sprinkling of 
 military men in brilliant uniforms added further to 
 the brightness of the scene. 
 
 Among these latter were two young officers, named 
 Tchekalinsky and Sourin, who, however, were not 
 quite in the best of spirits, having met with bad luck 
 
 225 
 
226 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 in their card play the night before ; and they were 
 just consohng themselves with the reflection that 
 their own misfortunes had been capped by the extra 
 bad luck of their friend Herman, a fellow-ofhcer, 
 when they observed the latter approaching, and moved 
 aside on noting his gloomy looks. 
 
 Young Herman was indeed in a melancholy frame 
 of mind ; and presently, on being rallied for his silence 
 and gloom by his companion, Count Tomsky, he 
 confessed to the latter that his bad spirits were caused 
 by the fact that he had fallen in love, and that he 
 was at the same time filled with despair since he did 
 not even know the name of his beloved one, who 
 was certainly of a noble family not likely to consider 
 the advances of so humble a suitor as himself. 
 
 Tomsky, deeply interested, asked for further par- 
 ticulars ; and Herman, being a young man of ardent 
 and romantic temperament, burst forth into an 
 enthusiastic description of the object of his affections, 
 saying that her beauty and sweetness had never 
 been excelled ; and then, to Tomsky 's surprise, he 
 declared that he had never yet spoken to her, and that 
 he had only met her a few times walking in the 
 Gardens and accompanied by her constant guardian, 
 a sinister-looking old woman, whose rich clothing, 
 priceless jewels, and haughty bearing, however, 
 proclaimed her to be of high degree. 
 
 " Nevertheless," he added, " I know that my 
 ardent glances have made an impression upon this 
 beautiful maiden, and that she cannot be insensible 
 
THE QUEEN OF SPADES 227 
 
 to the deep passion she has aroused in me ; and her 
 terrible old guardian also has noted me, and while 
 casting looks of indignation and disdain upon me for 
 presuming to gaze upon her ward with eyes of love, 
 I have remarked a strange look, almost of fear, in 
 her baleful glances ! " 
 
 As Tomsky, greatly interested in his young friend's 
 mysterious love affair, was about to question him 
 further on the matter, Tchekalinsky and Sourin 
 approached them in company with their friend, Prince 
 Yeletsky, a wealthy nobleman of great dignity and 
 brilliant attainments, to whom they were at the 
 moment offering their congratulations, his engage- 
 ment to a certain beautiful young lady having just 
 been announced. 
 
 Whilst Herman, still further plunged into gloom 
 at the sight of another man's happiness, drew back 
 a few paces, Tomsky hastened forward to join in the 
 congratulations to Prince Yeletsky ; and upon asking 
 the latter to say which of the charming maidens of 
 high degree adorning St Petersburg society he had 
 chosen for his future bride, the Prince, indicating the 
 approach of two ladies, said with joyful eagerness : 
 " Behold ! Here she comes ! It is the beautiful Lisa ! " 
 
 As Prince Yeletsky hastened forward to greet his 
 fiancee, the young officer, Herman, fell back with a 
 gasp of despair ; for the lovely maiden who now 
 approached to place her hand in that of her nobly- 
 born suitor was none other than his own beloved 
 one, whom he had so passionately adored from a 
 
228 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 distance and whose name he now heard for the first 
 time. 
 
 The fair young girl was accompanied by her 
 guardian, a weird-looking old dame, whose piercing 
 black eyes set deeply in her parchment-like painted 
 face, cast forth almost malignant glances on all 
 around, until they rested upon the stricken Herman, 
 when a strange look of fear instantly appeared in 
 them ; and, with a shudder, she drew Tomsky aside 
 to ask the name of the gloom}^ young officer, declaring 
 that she had a mysterious fear of him. 
 
 Lisa, on her part, was also greatly disturbed at thus 
 coming face to face with her unknown admirer, whose 
 attractive personality already had an extraordinary 
 fascination for her ; and the two ladies, unwilling to 
 prolong their strange uneasiness, quickly passed on 
 with Prince Yeletsky. 
 
 When they had gone, Tomsky, having guessed at 
 the cause of Herman's agitation and full of pity for 
 the unhappy young man, endeavoured to divert him 
 from his unlucky attachment by telling him of the 
 evil reputation of his beloved one's guardian — who 
 was also her grandmother — stating that she was 
 a Countess, who, owing to her weird looks, dangerous 
 dabbling in occult matters, and celebrated exploits 
 as a cunning gambler, was usually spoken of as " The 
 Queen of Spades." 
 
 He stated further that, in the early days of her 
 youth, the Countess had been a famous beauty, 
 toasted in all the capitals of Europe as " The Venus of 
 
THE QUEEN OF SPADES 229 
 
 Moscow " ; but, strange to say, though lovers in- 
 numerable fluttered constantly around her, eager for 
 her smiles, love made no appeal to her, as she lived 
 only for gambling, for which she had an overwhelming 
 passion. It was further reported by the gossips of 
 the town that her continuous and marvellous good 
 luck at the gaming-table was due to her secret know- 
 ledge of a certain combination of three cards which 
 never failed to bring her success — a secret which the 
 tattlers further affirmed had become hers at the price 
 of yielding to the importunities of one of her many 
 adorers. She had been forbidden to reveal the secret 
 to anyone else ; but having twice disobeyed this 
 command of her now dead lover, the latter had since 
 visited her in ghostly guise to proclaim that she would 
 surely die when a third man, forced by despair, should 
 try to wrest from her this secret of the three cards. 
 Tchekalinsky and Sourin laughed at the gossipc' tale 
 told by Tomsky, and soon strolled away with the 
 latter, as the rumblings of an approaching thunder- 
 storm came nearer ; and Herman, left alone and 
 heedless of the storm which quickly broke with 
 sudden fury, pondered over the strange story he had 
 just heard. His own convictions forced him to believe 
 in its truth, as he now realised that here was the key 
 to the curious fear in the eyes of the old Countess when- 
 ever she gazed upon him — proof that she had a pre- 
 sentiment that he was to be the third man who would 
 force her to reveal the fatal secret and thus bring about 
 her death. 
 
 Q 
 
230 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 The more Herman pondered upon this matter, the 
 more obsessed he became with a strange mad desire 
 to work out what he now regarded as his destiny and 
 to learn the magic secret of the three cards from the 
 ill-reputed old Countess, and thus, by gaining a 
 fortune at the gaming-tables, to win as his bride the 
 lovely Lisa, who he felt had only been plighted to 
 Prince Yeletsky because of the latter's wealth. 
 
 So great a hold did this idea take upon the imagi- 
 nation of the romantic Herman that he determined to 
 put aside his former humility and to pursue an ardent 
 wooing of his beloved one by means of clandestine 
 meetings, and to induce her to help him in his efforts 
 to persuade the celebrated " Queen of Spades " to 
 yield up her secret to him. 
 
 With this object in view, the young officer secreted 
 himself one evening on the balcony outside the window 
 of Lisa's room, to await an opportunity of seeing her 
 and declaring his love. 
 
 The fair Lisa, being still but a youthful maiden, 
 had been entertaining some girl friends that evening ; 
 and when her guests rallied her upon her somewhat 
 downcast looks, declaring that being but newly 
 betrothed she should be all smiles and liveliness, she 
 had made a special effort to rouse herself and to join 
 in their games and dances. 
 
 When the girls had departed, however, a strange 
 feeling of depression and of coming calamity crept 
 over her ; and, instead of retiring to rest at once, she 
 dismissed her maid and gave herself up to sad refiec- 
 
THE QUEEN OF SPADES 231 
 
 tions. Ever since her last meeting with Herman in 
 the Summer Garden, she had reaUsed that her love 
 was wholly given to this mysterious young officer 
 whose ardent glances had won her heart against her 
 will ; and, in spite of her respect for the courtly 
 Yeletsky — whose love for her she knew to be sincere — 
 she felt that despite the honours and dignities she 
 would enjoy as his wife, the sunshine of happiness 
 would nevertheless have vanished from her life now 
 that her love was given to another. 
 
 As she wept at this sad thought, a sound caused her 
 to look up ; and she beheld the romantic subject of her 
 affections, Herman, stepping into her room from the 
 balcony. 
 
 With a stifled cry, Lisa drew back, overcome by 
 mingled feelings of surprise, fear, and a strange joy ; 
 but Herman hastened forward with eager steps and 
 outstretched arms, pouring forth an ardent declaration 
 of his passion and entreating her to accept his love 
 and so obey the true dictates of her heart. 
 
 At first, Lisa made a movement as of anger, declar- 
 ing that she would rouse the household unless her 
 intruding lover departed ; but upon Herman, half mad 
 with love and doubt, drawing a pistol and announc- 
 ing that he had but come for one kind word from her 
 ere putting an end to his now useless life, she endeav- 
 oured to calm him. Being unable, however, to 
 disguise her own agitation, and betraying her love 
 thereby, Herman was emboldened to continue his 
 declaration, being overcome with joy on realising that 
 
232 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 his passion was thus returned ; but at this moment 
 there came an interruption in the form of a sharp 
 knock at the door, and the young officer had only 
 just time to conceal himself behind a curtain when the 
 old Countess entered the room, scolding her grand- 
 daughter for not having retired to rest. 
 
 The old dame seemed to be haunted by a super- 
 natural warning of her own approaching death, 
 appearing to feel instinctively the unseen presence of 
 one who was to have a fatal influence over her and to 
 bring calamity ; but Lisa succeeded in reassuring her 
 and promised to seek her couch at once, whereupon 
 the Countess departed. 
 
 Herman then came forth once more ; and his 
 wooing now became so intensely ardent that Lisa 
 could no longer resist his pleadings, and with great 
 joy the lovers sealed their compact of love with many 
 tender embraces. 
 
 After this mutual understanding, Herman and Lisa 
 had few opportunities of seeing one another, for the 
 latter was kept strictly guarded by the old Countess, 
 who now lived in constant fear of meeting with the 
 mysterious young officer in whose presence she always 
 felt such a strange foreboding of coming evil. Her- 
 man, thus realising that without at least unbounded 
 wealth he could not possibly present himself as a 
 rival suitor to the rich and aristocratic Prince Yeletsky, 
 became more than ever obsessed by the idea of 
 wresting from the notorious " Queen of Spades " 
 the magic secret of the three cards, the combination 
 
THE QUEEN OF SPADES 233 
 
 of which brought such good luck at the gaming- 
 tables. 
 
 This idea of his was fostered, unconsciously, by his 
 friends, Tchekalinsky and Sourin, who, knowing of his 
 poverty, continually exhorted him in joking fashion 
 to make friends with the uncanny old Countess and 
 to learn her secret ; and, finally, the idea took such a 
 strong hold upon his imagination that he was haunted 
 continually by it and could think of nothing else. 
 
 At last, he determined to induce Lisa to help him to 
 gain an interview with her grandmother ; and with 
 this idea, he attended a masked ball given one evening 
 by a rich dignitary of the city, knowing that Lisa 
 would certainly be attending this ball in company 
 with her fiance. Prince Yeletsky. 
 
 Among the brilliant throng attending this function 
 the unhappy Herman wandered in disguise, feverishly 
 awaiting the chance of an interview with his beloved 
 one, from whom he had that morning received a note 
 stating that she desired urgently to speak with him. 
 
 Soon, to his relief, he saw Lisa enter on the arm of 
 Prince Yeletsky ; and, later on in the evening, after 
 the close of a musical interlude performed by some of 
 the guests, the lovers managed to snatch a few stolen 
 moments together. 
 
 After the first joy of meeting was over, Lisa gave to 
 Herman a key of her garden gate, telling him that by 
 means of a ladder she had left there he would be able 
 to gain access to the room of her grandmother, with 
 whom he would thus secure the coveted interview. 
 
234 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Having thus arranged their plan, the lovers mingled 
 once more with the other guests ; and that night, 
 just before the ball came to a close, Herman made 
 his way to the home of " The Queen of Spades " and 
 gained entrance by means of a secret passage to the 
 Countess's sleeping apartment, where he concealed 
 himself until the old dame returned from the ball, 
 which she also had attended, dressed in gorgeous 
 attire and blazing with jewels. 
 
 He had not long to wait ere he heard the arrival of 
 the ladies in the boudoir beyond ; and after the aged 
 Countess had been prepared for bed, she was brought 
 into her sleeping chamber by a bevy of flattering 
 maids and attendants, who praised her brilliant 
 appearance at the ball and wished her a good night's 
 rest. 
 
 The weird old dame looked even more uncanny 
 than usual, a strange light shining in her dark, yet 
 piercing eyes ; and, refusing to go to bed just then, 
 she insisted on being propped up on a couch, where, 
 after dismissing her maids, she indulged in chattering 
 reminiscences of the triumphs and conquests of her 
 youth. 
 
 Whilst she thus crooned to herself, Herman suddenly 
 presented himself before her and implored her to make 
 him happy by telling him her famous secret — the 
 names of the three cards that brought good luck to 
 the gambler. 
 
 The old Countess, at first full of amazement and 
 anger at the intrusion of a stranger into her room. 
 
THE QUEEN OF SPADES 235 
 
 gazed at him with menacing glances ; then, as Her- 
 man, growing reckless and despairing in his frantic 
 eagerness to learn the secret, drew forth a pistol, 
 declaring that he would force her to speak, a sudden 
 change came over her. Overwhelmed with a name- 
 less terror as she now recognised the strange young 
 man whose presence always caused her to shudder 
 with unaccountable fear, the shock was more than she 
 could bear ; and, flinging up her shaking arms, she 
 fell back upon the couch, dead. 
 
 For several moments, Herman remained trans- 
 fixed with horror and overcome by an eerie feeling 
 that supernatural agencies were at work ; then, 
 realising that the old dame's secret had perished with 
 her, he was filled with despair, which increased when 
 Lisa, entering the room a few moments later and 
 seeing the pistol in his hand, accused him of having 
 murdered her grandmother and drove him from her 
 presence. 
 
 The wretched Herman now passed some terrible 
 days, almost mad with grief and remorse and haunted 
 constantly by visions of the dead Countess ; and, 
 shutting himself up in his room at the barracks, he 
 refused to see anyone or to go out, feeling that nothing 
 mattered if Lisa refused to smile upon him. 
 
 Lisa, however, could not long bear to live without 
 seeing her beloved one ; and soon believing that she 
 had wronged him by her hasty suspicions, she sent 
 him a note asking for his forgiveness and entreating 
 him to meet her that evening at midnight on the 
 
236 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 Quay, where they would be unseen, or, at least, 
 unknown. 
 
 Herman received the note on the day of the 
 Countess's funeral ; and though it brought him some 
 comfort, he could not overcome a strange uncanny 
 feeling which he had experienced all that day. As 
 evening drew on apace, a sudden storm arose and the 
 wind howled around the house ; and as he sat in his 
 lonely apartment, shivering with a nameless fear, the 
 apparition of the dead Countess appeared before him, 
 telling him in ghostly accents the names of the three 
 cards he had desired to know — three, seven, ace. 
 
 As soon as the spectre had vanished and he had 
 recovered somewhat from his fright, Herman once 
 more became obsessed with a mad desire to try his 
 luck at the gaming-table immediately ; but refraining, 
 for a short time longer, from giving vent to his freshly 
 stimulated passion he set forth at midnight to the 
 Quay, to keep his appointment with Lisa, who was 
 already waiting for him by the bridge. 
 
 There was a passionate meeting between the lovers ; 
 but Lisa was soon plunged into grief and alarm once 
 more on hearing from Herman that he now knew the 
 secret of the three cards, so that she was again forced 
 to believe that he had indeed murdered the Countess 
 with his own hands ; and she imagined him to be 
 raving when presently he told her excitedly that he 
 was about to make a wonderful fortune at the gaming- 
 tables. 
 With tearful entreaties, Lisa implored him to go 
 
THE QUEEN OF SPADES 237 
 
 away with her and to forget the evil knowledge he 
 had gained by supernatural means ; but Herman, 
 now indeed raving and quite beside himself with the 
 gambler's passion, tore himself from her side in a 
 frenzy and rushed off to the gambling-house. 
 
 Now realising that her beloved one was indeed mad 
 and lost to her for ever, the unhappy Lisa gave way to 
 a paroxysm of despair ; and feeling that life had no 
 joy left for her, she flung herself from the bridge into 
 the river below, there to seek oblivion from the woes 
 she could not bear. 
 
 Meanwhile, Herman fled with mad haste to the 
 gambling-house, where he found his rival. Prince 
 Yeletsky, whom he at once challenged to play him 
 ihree times for terrific stakes. 
 
 His friends, Tchekalinsky, Sourin and Tomsky, 
 who were also present, endeavoured to prevent him 
 from engaging in such a reckless game, reminding 
 him of the bad luck he always experienced at cards ; 
 but their efforts were unavailing, and the play began 
 at once. 
 
 To the astonishment of all, the first game fell to 
 Herman, who won with his three ; and, encouraged 
 by this, he doubled the stakes and won a second time 
 with the seven. Already a large fortune was his ; 
 but, not satisfied with this, the rash young officer, 
 elated with his success, insisted upon a third game, 
 staking all upon a single card — and lost ! 
 
 Instead of turning up the ace, as foretold by the 
 apparition of the Countess, he saw, to his horror, that 
 
238 STORIES FROM THE RUSSIAN OPERAS 
 
 he held in his hand the Queen of Spades ! At the same 
 moment, he once more beheld the spectre of the sinister 
 old Countess, who had been his evil genius and had 
 thus brought him to utter ruin, appearing to smile in 
 triumph at his downfall ; and, filled with the madness 
 of despair, the unhappy Herman plunged a dagger 
 into his heart as his ghostly deceiver vanished from 
 sight. 
 
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