xt7h707wmk67 https://exploreuk.uky.edu/dips/xt7h707wmk67/data/mets.xml Noe, James Thomas Cotton, 1864-1953 1916  books b92-243-31440126 English John P. Morton & Co., Inc., : Louisville, Ky. : Contact the Special Collections Research Center for information regarding rights and use of this collection. Blood of Rachel  : a dramatization of Esther, and other poems / by Cotton Noe. text Blood of Rachel  : a dramatization of Esther, and other poems / by Cotton Noe. 1916 2002 true xt7h707wmk67 section xt7h707wmk67 
































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The Blood of Rachel
      I Agarnatfiation of v4ttr

   AND OTHE-IR POEINRS

       BY COTTON NOE
    Author of "The Loom of Life"











    JOHN P. MORTON  COMPANY
            INCORPORATED
       LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY
             1916

 






























                   COPYRIG1HT 1916
                 By COTTON NOE
  All producing rights reserved, including photo play.
Permission to produce must be obtained from the author.

 

















                      To

      HONORABLE MOSES KAUFMAN

From whom I differ on some political and religious
   questions, but whose warm friendship and
     keen literary appreciation have been a
        source of much inspiration to me,
            particularly in the writing
                of this drama.

 This page in the original text is blank.


 



                 CONTENTS.
                                            PAGE
The Blood of Rachel..                            I
The Old Dog Irons ........    ..................  79
The Age Electric .........   ...................  82
Grandmother Days .......................... 86
Just to Dream .............................. 88
Amnemon .................................. go
A Romance of the Cuniberland ................ 102
Morning Glories ........   .................... iII
Christmastide ..............................     2 I12
K inship  ....................................  113
Precocity........................           I14
The Secret..........      .............. ii5
A Rhymeless Sonnet ......................... II6
Ambition .................................. 117
Opportunity...............                  i8
Holiday Thoughts...............I .              9
The Old Year and the New ................... i20
Fellow Travelers ..........      .......... I21
James Whitcomb Riley ....................      122
Cale Young Rice....................         123
Pilate's Mono'ogue .1........................ 124
The Virile Spirit ....................1 28
Bluebird .................... 13I
An Autumn Minor ................       .... 132
Slabs and  Obelisk ...........................  I33
On Broadway ..............                  I34
An Ember Etching.                           '37
A Tragedy in Birdland.                      140

 







        PERSONS OF THE DRAMA


AHASUERUS ........................ King of Persia
VASHTI...                       Queen of Persia
ESTHER ...... Second Queen of Persia
HAMAN ...... . Premier
MORDECAI ...      ... A Jew, afterwards Premier
ZERESH......                    Wife of Haman
MEHEUMAN ...............      ... A Chamberlain
ABAGTHA..........           Another Chamberlain
AHAFID..........                     Court Poet
SMERDIS..........                    Court Fool
SAADI.......................... Young Court Poet
PARSHANDATHA .......... Lady in Waiting to Zeresh
ZETHAR..........       Lady in Waiting to Vashti

Chamberlains, Ladies and Gentlemen of the Court,
       Heralds, Royal Dancers, Nubian
           Slaves, Waiters, and others.


 




         The Blood of Rachel


                     ACT I

                     SBEND I

Place-Shushan, the Capital of Persia.
Time-478 B. C.
    IA hall in the potalace of !he keng  e Enter Smerdis,
the king's jester, and Ahafia, poet-and mninstrel to the
king, from opposite sides of the hall. Ahafid is already
an old man, with long grey beard and a little stooped
with age. He carries a golden Persian harp on which
he plays and accompanies his own song.]

                      Ahafid
                      [Sings.1
        Now War has doffed his mailed coat
             And Peace forgot her art;
        The lute but not the bugle's note
            Can stir the kingly heart;
        Nights of revel and carp,
            And days of sensuous rust,
        How can a poet's harp
             Intone a song of lust



1

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



The king is mad. His flight from Salamis
Was bad enough. But t1tt could be excused.
For six months now what has he done but drink,
Carouse and wallow in lascivious ease,
While subjects driven to despair with tax
Have fallen on the ooi.sonied sword and cursed
In death the son of their once goody king


                     Srwedas

Ahafid, you do seem to think the first
Great business of a king is war. Now pray
You, why should Xerxes waste the lusty days
Of youth in bloody strife To furnish themes,
No doubt, for dullard bards and minstrelsv.
Ahasuerus is the wisest king
That ever sat upon a Persian throne.
You graybeard fool, stupid as poets are.
Can you not see the wisdom of our king
In substitution of the flight for death,
Of feast for fight, of wine for blood Think you
'Tis wise to wear the plaited mail of Mars
When Venus bids you to the festival
Of love

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     A hafid

        You call me then a graybeard fool!
Though I have dropped the purple bloom of spring
The autumn's silvery down may indicate
The ripened fruit of wisdom which your youth
Has never tasted. Smerdis, you are blind!
My beard is white, but vision clear. The king
Does daily waste the substance of his realm,
And nightly dissipates his energies
In vices of the blood. Vashti, the queen,
The idol of her people, is in grief.

                     Smnerdis
In grief for what Does she too wish the king
To take the field I know our queen is fair
Of face and most voluptuous of form.
Perhaps her grief is due to jealousy.
Would she monopolize his love, because
Her beauty is surpassing

                     A hafid

                     Vashti does
Not know that she is beautiful. She loves
Her country and is brave as well as good.



3

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



I dread the issue of this night. The king
Has ordered that the queen be brought before
The court, a target for licentious eyes.
She will refuse to go because her heart
Is pure. Ahasuerus, flushed with wine,
Will brook no opposition to his will.
A tragedy that never Persia knew
Will see the rising of to-morrow's sun.

                     Smerdis

A tragedy no country ever knew-
A woman who is beautiful, but doesn't know it's true.

                     A hafid

                     [Sings.]

        Oh, for a song to cleanse the heart
          Or touch the sceptred power;
        Oh, might the gods a strength impart
          To meet this tragic hour.

                      [Exeunt Ahafid and Smerdis.]



[Enter Vashti and Zethar.]

 

THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                      Vashli

Oh, Zethar, do you think this night will end
The revels that dishonor Persia's king
To-day unknown I strolled through squalid parts
Of this old city and observed the poor.
My lord, unmindful of their misery,
Has laid a heavy tax for his insane
Extravagance upon the helpless child
That begs in Shushan's streets. Not here alone,
This suffering; but Persia's peasantry,
The glory of the old empire, the heart
That once defied the world, is broken on
The wheel of tax. And all for what

                     Zethar

                     0 queen,
Always the world has had its poverty.
You shall forget the poor. One stoop of wine
Will bring you happiness. Vashti, drink.

                     Vashti

Forgive me, Zethar, but no wine to-night.



[Enter Meheuman, BizIha and Abagtha.]

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                   Meheuman

                   [Loftily.]

Our most imperial queen, the king has laid
A banquet in the palace garden court,
The crowning act of that munificence
Toward prince and people great and small alike,
Ahasuerus now for many months
Has shown the loyal subjects of his realm.
The adornment of the court displays a rich
Magnificence of taste; the couches are
Of fretted gold and silver set upon
A pavement of mosaic inlaid stone.
The drinking is according to the law-
None can compel, each vessel is diverse,
But all of gold. Th' abundance of the wine
Shows the unstinted bounty of the king.
Our monarch's heart is merry in the cup,
And boasts that Vashti's beauty does excel
In magic power the fabled Helen's charms,
And bids us bring immediately before
The court great Persia's matchless queen!



c

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                    Vashli
Meheuman, tell Ahasuerus I
Must thank his majesty since he can still
Remember Vashti's beauty, though his grace
Has lost all sense of modesty and shame.
You say his heart is merry now in wine
And that he glories with exceeding pride
Because my face is fair to look upon!
I do not doubt his tongue is eloquent;
The fiery phrase is his! Why, often I
Have heard him praise his horse in language that
Seemed kindled at the altar of the gods.
It may be that he holds me higher than
His hundred concubines.

                   Meheuman
                   Your majesty,
The king does hold his queen a goddess.

                     Vashli
                     Well,
Perhaps he thinks himself divine. Go tell
The king I do not wish to be enrolled
Among divinities. I am the queen-
He must respect me as the one who wears
The Persian crown.

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                   'Tis scarce three years since he
Began to reign. He was Darius' son-
A king of whom the world was proud. He wooed
Me as a prince of noble blood, and I
Received his hand with dignity as well
As love. I was a princess, but I had
A heart. Long since I found that he had none.
A hundred eighty days continuous feast
He has oppressed the people of his rule
With drunken revels and with wanton waste.
And now to crown his sensuality
He sends his vulgar chamberlains to bring
Me to his palace garden that his lords
May gaze with unchaste eyes upon my form.
Meheuman, Biztha, will you tell the king
That Vashti bids him come to her if he
Would see the queen.


                   Meheuman

                   You understand
The costly hangings of the garden court
Are blue and green and white



8

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     Vashli
                     Now pray you what
Significance has that What if each couch
Is gold and silver and each goblet set
With stones
                   Meheuman
The king's great love for Vashti!

                    Vashti
                    Then
He has prepared this banquet for his queen
And does he think this is an evidence
Of love. It rather means the king's debauched.
I will not be a party to his sin.

                   Meheuman
The etiquette of court commands you to
Obey.
                     Vashti
       Commands! Well, has it come to that
But I will not obey. I am a queen!
Here! Take this purple robe and coronet,
And tell Ahasuerus to adorn
Some harlot of his harem. She will grace
The queenship of his kingdom better than
A pure and modest wife.
                       9

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                    A bagtha

                       You do not know
The meaning of your words!

                     Vashti

                       Abagtha, why
Do you admonish me Do I not know
The forfeit Chamberlains, this message take
Licentious Xerxes from his virtuous queen:
I do not fear his wrath. I will not come
At his command. I have a royal heart
And will not thus disgrace the Persian throne.
The king that's halfway worthy of my hand
Would hate the queen that yielded to his lust.
My heart, 0 chamberlains, is broken, not
That Vashti's crown is lost, but oh, to see
The regal name of Persia brought so low!
I weep. The tears are for my country. Go!
                  [Exeunt Vashti, Abagtha, etc.]

 [Curtain is lowered to denote the passage of six yecrs.]



10

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                    SCENE II

    [Outer hall in palace. Throne room back concealed
by curtain. Queen Esther, disguised by loose dress
thrown over royal robe and head and face below the eyes
hidden by mask, approaches the door where Mordecai,
the Jew, is standing.]

                    Mordecai

Ah, Esther! Though your queenly robe you do
Conceal, I know that regal gait. Before
I ever looked upon these palace walls,
When you were yet a little child beyond
The purple peaks, where shepherds led their flocks
In pastures green, I often dreamed that you
Would one day wear a golden coronet
And sit in majesty upon a throne.

                      Esther
                   [Dejectedly.]
Four years I have been queen, which time I have
Not heard the voice of any one I love;
And though disguised, I hardly dare to speak
My heart even to you. This palace is
A gloomy prison cell. The Persian crown



11

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



Is meaningless to me. The hundred gems
That blaze upon its field of gold are dull
And heavy lead. I would exchange it all
For but a glint of sunshine on the hills
Where I was born. But why this interview


                   Mordecai

My royal niece, I know that you are queen.


                    Esther

A queen But what of that Though of my blood,
You can not even look upon my face.
What would you have
                             [Wailing without.]

                   Mordecai

                   My daughter, do you hear
The cries of anguish that disturb the peace
Of Shushan's streets Your people everywhere
Are clothed in sackcloth. Read the king's decree!
                           [Handing her paper.]



12

 

THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     Esther
                     [Reads.]
"It has been written and commanded by
Ahasuerus, emperor of all
The East, and sealed in every tongue with his
Own ring-the royal seal-that governors
And princes and lieutenants, everyone
Within the Persian rule, shall make and cause
To die and perish every Jew, both young
And old, the women and the children, rich
And poor alike, and forfeit all their goods.
This is Ahasuerus' sovereign will
And shall be done and executed in
The month of Adar on the thirteenth day."
Oh, God! It is Ahasuerus' seal.

                    Mordecai

But Haman's hand.

                     Esther

              Why does the premier hate
The Jews



13

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                    Mordecai
           Because the children of the true
And living God will never bend the knee
To heathen pride. He hates the Jews because
Your uncle is a child of Abraham
And will not do obeisance to a son
Of Baal. Esther, though I made you queen,
I plead not for the life of Mordecai,
But for the sacred blood of Israel.
You alone can intervene. Go straight
Before the king and make demand that he
Reverse this law that puts the Jews to death.

                     Esther
A Persian king can not reverse his own
Decree. Besides, the queen who goes into
The presence of her lord unless by his
Express command, must sacrifice her life,
Except through some unguarded impulse he
Extends his golden sceptre that she live.
I can not go unto the king.

                    Mordecai
                          Your life
Is forfeited already, child; you are
A Jew.
                       14

 

THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     Esther
        You did conceal my blood nor dare
Reveal my lineage now. Your own deceit
Has brought this death upon the house of Israel,
Nor will Jehovah hold you guiltless in
The hour of doom.
                    Mordecai
                    Esther, if you keep
Your peace when Rachel's children wail and cry
For help, deliverance will arise
Unto the Jews but you shall be destroyed
And all your father's house.

                     Esther
Depart.              [Sound of trumpets within.]
                 The king
Is on his throne. I go, and if I die,
I can but perish. Peace to Israel.
                                [Exit Mordecai.]
    [The curtain back rises and discloses Ahasuerus on
his throne surrounded by court. Esther approaches to
center of hall before the king, and extends her hands as
though supplicating. The king seems dazed for a
moment and then deeply moved; slowly he lifts the golden
sceptre and extends it toward the queen who approaches
and touches it.]
                        15

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                  Ahasuerus.

Why did you, Esther, 0 most beauteous queen,
Thus dare to come unbidden to the king
'Twas jealous Death unbarred the royal door
That he might claim you for his paramour
Your innocence and charms have saved your life!

                   Esther
                   [Innocently.]
My lord, how now was I in danger Ah,
You know I am your loyal wife I would
Not be your queen alone. The crown is naught
Compared to pleasures of companionship.
O Xerxes, may not Esther share your joys
Of wine and song Too long you have denied
That which I covet most-to be beside
My king.
                  Ahasuerus

         There is no favor, Esther, I
Would longer hold from you; even to half
My kingdom, tell me what you most desire,
And I will give it you.



16

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     Esther
                               My lord, I have
Already spoke my heart, but you will not
Believe. To test Ahasuerus' love,
I have a favor I would ask of you;
But first that my most gracious lord may know
His queen has taste and skill as well as charms,
I will prepare a banquet for the king
With my own hands. You are a judge of wine,
And every dish that graces banquet halls.
To-morrow, let Ahasuerus come,
And bring his premier Haman, who no doubt
Can tell a heron from a hawk, and if
My lord shall praise my art, and I
Find favor in his sight, I will make known
My dearest wish.
                   A hasuerus
                   Oh, Esther, you have pleased
Your king already far beyond what he
Had ever hoped. To-morrow night at six!
                 [Music and revels. Esther retires.]
    [The king and retinue retire in opposite direction.
Haman and followers pass out front where Mordecai sits
by the gate, together with others. All except Mordecai
salaam, but the Jew remains stiff, looking Haman defi-
antly in the face.]
                    [Curtain.]
                       17

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                  SCENE III

Home of Haman-two days later.
    [Enter Haman, Zeresh, and Parshandatha.]

                    Haman
My star grows brighter with each setting sun;
The lowly child of old Hammedetha
Is first among the servants of the king.
Ah, Mordecai, you did not know I am
An Agagite, who fed upon the breast
Of unrelenting hate toward every child
Of Israel, who will not bend the knee
Save to the God of Abraham. Oh, do
                           [Wailing in Street.]
You, Zeresh, hear that wail of anguish Love,
I know that you are proud to be the wife
Of him who can direct such music.

                    Zeresh
                    I
Am proud of Haman's power.

                    Haman
                    Go call our friends.



18

 

THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     Zeresh

Before the rising sun had touched with gold
The treetops on the peaks of Zagros, Tesh,
The son of Zalphon, was abroad
In Shushan on the errand of my lord.

                     Haman

Not only in this city, but, my spouse,
In every province of the king, the Jews
In sackcloth mourn because of Haman's might.
But would you know the secret of my strength
This ring! The seal of Xerxes. It is death
To every drop of Jacob's blood within
The Domain of Ahasuerus' rule.

                     Zeresh

The guests are coming.

                    Haman

                      Oh, the messages
Of enmity are swift as shafts of love.
Now, Zeresh, call the servants of the house
And set a sumptuous feast, for Haman would
Take counsel of his friends.
                       19

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                    Zeresh

                    My gracious lord,
The table is already set. Go greet
The guests and bring them in.
                                  [Exit Haman.]
               [Zeresh continues.]

                     Parshandatha,
What do you think of Haman Did you note
My lord
                 Parshandatha

         I did, madam. His happiness
Is most complete. His rapid rise to power
Has all but ravished him with joy. And yet,
Methought that something still he lacked. Perhaps
The queen's consent has not yet been obtained
To this decree that puts the Jews to death.

                     Zeresh

What do you mean The queen's consent My Lord
Has naught to do with Xerxes' wife, and why
Should he be troubled for a woman's whim
Besides, who knows but Esther does approve
This slaughter of the Jews



20

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                 Parshandatha
                      Approve, madam
She is a queen, but still a woman!

                     Zeresh
                                   So
Am I, though not a queen! A woman, yes
But with no stomach for that hated race!

                  Parshandatha

'Tis whispered in the court that Esther is
Herself a Jew.
                     Zeresh
              The Persian queen a Jew!
Then let her perish with her blood.

                  Parshandatha
                          But would
My lord consent to Esther's death

                     Zeresh
                          Consent
Again! Parshandatha, why do you harp
Upon consent Now listen to my words.
But should you e'er disclose one breath
Of what I say, you are yourself a Jew,
                       21

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



Nor is there any power in Persia's king
To save your life. My lord pretends to hate
The Jews. His hate is only wounded pride.
The deference of Mordecai is all
That Haman wants. He does not know the queen
Is Hebrew blood. This fact must still be kept
Concealed-concealed, that is, until the day
Of death. Oh, he shall know who Esther is-
This Israelite that banquets with my lord!
You think his rise is due to Esther's power

                 Parshandatha

Madam, I do not know.

                    Zeresh

                       Not know! not know!
But what think you, Parshandatha Of course
You do not know.

                 Pars/handatha

                 Madam, he often dines
With Esther and the king. The king no doubt
Is very fond of your most gracious lord.



22

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     Zeresh
The king!
                  Parshandatha
           Mayhap the queen also. Your lord
Is young and handsome still. The king is far
Beyond the queen in years.

                     Zeresh
                        I can
Not catch X our drift.

                 Parshandatha
                 Madam, your husband has
A ready wit. The queen enjoys life.

                     Zeresh
                            Enjoys life!
And so do I, and likewise death. Now hold
Your blasted tongue. My husband sups again
To-morrow with the Jewish queen. They say
When Haman dines her majesty prepares
The banquet with her own most dainty hand!
Parshandatha, whose hand, think you, has laid
The feast of Adar



23

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                  Parshandatha

              Zeresh! call you death
A feast!
                       Zeresh

         A glorious feast on which my soul
Already feeds, and Esther shall be there!

          [Re-enter Haman and Friends.,!

                    Haman

Be seated at the table.
                            Citizens
Of Shushan, patriots of Persia, friends,
The servant of the king has called you here
To tell you of his triumph and to ask
Your sage advice. Two days ago the prince
And I sat down together to a feast
Within the palace walls and drank your health.
The royal cup was blushing like the spume
Of autumn clouds at sunset, when a wail
Arose in Shushan that has sore perplexed
The people. Mordecai, the haughty Jew,
Who sits beside the palace gate, refused
To bow or do me reverence, although



24

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



Admonished by the king. I was born
A humble subject in the private ranks
Of life; but now I wear the signet ring
Of Xerxes. Friends, the law that dooms the Jews
To simultaneous slaughter can not be
Revoked. Last night the queen invited me
To banquet with her lord. The necklace that
She wore of iridescent pearls was like
A rainbow over polar snows. Ah, she
Was fair to look upon! And now my cup
Was filled to overflowing-

                      [Zeresh shows great emotion.]

                        (Zeresh, are
You ill)-w hen Esther begged that I would come
Again to-morrow to another feast
Her hand would lay for Haman and the king.
My wealth is multiplied beyond my ken;
The sceptre is almost within my grasp.
But all these things avail me naught, so long
As yonder hated Jew remains unbent.

                   A Friend

Destroy the brute at once!



25

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     Ilanzan

                          Oh, that will not
Suffice. 'Tis not his death, but homage that
Must sweeten my revenge. Ah, I would see
Him groveling on the earth as Haman passed.
My rank and station must be recognized.
I sit beside the king; I am premier
Of Persia. Yet this Jewish dog is still
Unmoved!
                     Zeresh

            Hang him where the kites will eat
His eyes!
                      Haman

           0 Zeresh, you are like the rising sun-
An inspiration in the hour of gloom.
We'll build this gallows fifty cubits high,
And then his Hebrew pride will bite the dust.
Oh, I can hear him whining like a cur,
My love, your wisdom is above the head.
A woman's heart is like an oracle
Divine. Prepare this gallows. Friends, I go
At dawn to greet the king. At night we dine
Alone with Esther, and-
                                [Zeresh faints.]

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                        Why Zeresh, are
You ill again Send for the leech. Her blood
Is over wrought with too much happiness.

                   [Curtain.]



2t

--> 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                   ACT II

                   SCENE I

Place-The palace of the king. Outer room of ban-
   quet hall. Curtain back.

      [Enter Meheuman, Biztha, and Smerdis.]

                   Meheuman

Ahafid has become most deaf of late;
Advancing age has wrought a piteous change
In him. He can not understand our king.

                    Smerdis

'Tis not the king but age that makes him groan.
I mean this age, the age in which we live.

    [IMeheuman and Biztha exeunt on the opposite
side of stage, as Alzafid enters more stooped, and singing.]

                    Ahafid
                    [Sings.]
          A country but no king,
            An empire but no throne,
          An upstart wears the signet ring,
            My harp has lost its tone.
          I can no longer sing great Persia's praise.
                       28

 

THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                    Smerdis

The trouble isn't with the harp, the country, king, nor
      throne;
Nor that an upstart wears the ring: Ahafid's
      voice is gone.
                     Ahafid

What say you, Smerdis



                    Smerdis

                    Ahafid

Even Ahasuerus once was king.
He was a despot, it is true, but still
A prince.
                     Smerdis



Eh, Smerdis



29



Art is marvelous.



If prince, then why not still a king

     Ahafid

     Smerdis
     [Aloud.]
More than prince and less than king.

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     A hafid

Why now the sceptre, aye, almost the crown
Are worn by Haman, not of noble birth,
But lowborn, vulgar, raised by royal will
To first place in a land renowned for blood.

                     Smerdis

To first place in a land renowned for fools.



What's that



A hafid



      Smerdis

This Haman is a cunning fox.

       A hafid



The exile of
A fatal sin.



the virtuous Vashti was



      Smerdis

She should have feasted with



The king.

I did not hear.



A hafid



:3 )

 

THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                    Smerdis
                    [A loud.]
                            Old Xerxes lost
The finest houri in his harem. Oh,
The royal fool!
                    A hafid
               The Jewess Esther's but
A girl, as beauteous as a lustrous star,
But innocent as dawn of dew-washed day.

                    Smerdis

As wise as snakes and innocent as doves!

                    A hafid
What, Smerdis, what You catch my simile

                    Snierdis

Ah, yes, Ahafid, yes, Aurora in
The bath pool. That was fine. Your poetry
Like wine improves with age. Go on, go on,
Let's have another picture of the dawn.

                     A hafid
Her beauty made her queen, but can not save
Her life.
                       2e1

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



Smerdis



           Ahasuerus will attend
To that.
                     Ahafid

[Not hearing.] Ahasuerus does not seem
To know a Persian law can not be changed.

                     Smerdis



He knows that lawyers can be bribed.



Ahafid



What's that



Smerdis
[Louder.]



Just thinking of the lustrous stars of dawn.

                     A hafid

But Mordecai believes that Esther can
Control the king, and yet may save the Jews.

                    Smerdis



I am more interested in fools than Jews.

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     A hafid

The golden sceptre was extended when
She went into his presence yesterday.
Last night she banqueted with him but still
Refused to name the favor that she wished.

                    Smerdis

A bathrobe or some new stars for her crown.

                     Ahafid
                 [Not hearing.]
The king does not suspect her origin.
What will he do when he finds out the truth

                    Smerdis

Since when has Xerxes cared for truth

                     Ahafid



                          What say

                    Smerdis

He'll add two extra stars to Esther's crown.



33

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     A hafid

Beloved Vashti lives in poverty,
The victim of a lewd and brutal whim.
And now it seems that Esther's fate was sealed
When Haman wrote that every Jew must die
Because the Hebrew Mordecai refused
Obeisance to his over-bearing pride.

                    Smerdis

Watch Esther smash that seal.

                     A hafid
                               I did not hear.
                    Smerdis
                    [Louder.]
Still quoting lines upon the innocence
Of lustrous stars, and dawn of dew-washed day.

                     A hafid
                     [Singing.]
        Minstrelsy shall be no more,
          The poet's tongue is still;
        The strings that woke to deeds of yore
          No longer feel the thrill.
                       34

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                    Smerdis

I'm glad no more we'll feel the thrill
For I, for one have had my fill.



Eh, Smerdis



A hafid



  Snicrdis
  [Louder.]
Bathing in that simile.
    [Exeuint Ahafid and Smerdis.]


 SCENE II



    [The curtain rises, disclosing Ahasuerus, Esther,
Haman, and attendants at the banquet table.]

                   A hasuerus

Beloved Esther, my most beauteous queen,
This banquet does surpass in excellence
Even the feast of yesterday, which you
Prepared for Haman and the king. Your hand
Grows deft with practice.



OR,1

 


THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                     Esther

                But, my lord, you are
A connoisseur, and can but speak these words
In flattery. 0 king, it was my heart,
And not my hand that flavored every dish
That lies before you.


                    A hasuerus

                    Esther, now it is
Your tongue that flatters. Still, it does rejoice
Me much to hear such language from the queen.
A connoisseur, say you Haman, can
You tell me, now, what bay or bight in all
The salted seas once held this shrimp

                              [Holding up shrimp.]

                     Haman

             [Tasting it meditatively.]

                                My lord,
I think it must have been the Persian Gulf.



I6G

 

THE BLOOD OF RACHEL



                   A hasuerus
Ha, ha, Haman, why you do not know
A wild goose from the Bird of Paradise.
This crangonoid is found nowhere except
Along the Red Sea beach not far from where
The hosts of Pharaoh were engulfed and lost.

                      Esther
            [With suppressed emotion.]
Oh, king, your tongue is most acute. But whence,
Think you, this tinct of cinnamon that makes
The savor of the dish.

                    A hasuerus
            [Tasting for a long time.]
                           I give it up,
Unless it came from Java