 | The Fatal Vision : Or, The Fall of Siam |  |
53
ACT V.
SCENE, The Palace.Enter Selim, and Orontes, still disguis'd.
Oront.
And did he, ere he dy'd, so name a Son?
Selim.
He did, nor have I yet recall'd my Spirits,
Which fled, alarm'd at the encreasing Fear,
And left me trembling, 'till his fainting Voice
Deny'd him Utt'rance for a Tale so base.
Oront.
Never came Death more timely, wretched Slave!
Thus may vile Treason, still prevented, fall!
But the two Princes? Ha! my Royal Mother!
My guiltless Brothers, by this chance betray'd!
Selim.
Help me, Orontes, for whose dear lov'd sake,
Expos'd a friendless Wand'rer o'er the World,
I've stoop'd to court the Life, I else disdain'd;
Teach me, instruct me, to avoid this Mis'ry,
To 'scape this Tempest, which o'rewhelms my Hope,
And save their destin'd Innocence from Death.
Oront.
Said you, from Death? The Gods forbid the Doubt.
Selim.
Now, by my Soul, the rash, the headlong Man,
Fierce Passion's Slave, enflam'd, and deaf to Reason,
Deaf to the Calls of Nature, swore but now,
Swore, by an Oath, like that, which made me wretched,
That, neither owning Guilt, they both shou'd die;
Oront.
And is it possible? Gods! is it possible,
That he shou'd perpetrate this horrid Deed?
Selim.
Not surer is it, that yon glorious Sun
Shines on thy wretched Mother: Possible?
In his hot Rage all Ills are possible.
54
Blind, and unweighing Consequence, he rush'd,
Headlong he rush'd, and acted every Wish;
He never purpos'd Ill, he not perform'd.
Oront.
What, if to save them from th'impending Stroke,
I fly, undreading, to discover all,
And so prevent the Danger?
Selim.
Heav'n forbid!
So shalt thou fall, a Victim to that Rage,
Thou wou'd'st, with impious Aim, avert from them.
Oront.
What then can we resolve?
Selim.
The Gods direct!
Oront.
O! for a Band of those brave Souls, who fell
On Sagra's cursed Plain! Then wou'd I on,
Then wou'd I plunge amidst his bloody Guards,
And force the Brother Pris'ners from their Hands.
Selim.
[Aside.]
Oh! How this Honour Charms me! [To him.]
Were this possible,
The guiltless. Youths, in safety kept a while,
Till Reason's Dawn breaks in upon his Passion,
All might perhaps be well.
Oront.
Ha! By the Stars!
The smiling Stars! the Wish may be attain'd;
As Selim, you had Pow'r to set me free.
Be Selim still, and use like Means for Thou;
Twice fifty chosen Leaders came with me,
The Flow'r of Siam's Empire! came with me,
Copartners in my Glories, and my Shame;
They shar'd my late Captivity, all came
All bore unwilling Part, and grac'd the Triumph,
'Midst whose insulting Shouts our Conqu'rors led us.
Oh! were but these made Masters of their Swords!
Speak, Royal Mother! May not this be done?
Selim.
For ever bless'd be those propitious Pow'rs,
Which have inspir'd thy Courage, and thy Aim!
The glorious Task is to thy Hand perform'd.
55
I have set free the Warlike Chiefs of Siam,
And arm'd their Valour for thy noble Purpose;
Nor doubt I, by the Plan, which I have laid,
To win the Tartar Captains to our Cause;
They owe their envied Greatness to my Smiles;
Haste, follow me; your Friends, by this, expect you.
Oront.
Genius of War! look down, and bless my Arm!
[Exeunt Orontes and Selim.
The SCENE opens, and discovers Uncham, Omalco, Zarodin, and Arbanes.
Uncham.
Command, that Selim instantly attend us,
And bring, once more, that Fiend of Siam hither;
That Female Devil!
[Exit Arbanes
Wretches! To call you Sons,
Were to make Nature start, with strong Abhorrence.
We shall confront you with your Prize of Murder,
Your wish'd Reward of Parricide! we shall!
Once more, we shall, before we take a Vengeance,
Dreadful, and shocking, as your Guilt, once more,
With fainting Hope, that it may yet be possible,
Both are not black alike, pursue the search
Of which is most a Villain.
Omal.
If that Name,
(A Title no way fit for China's Sons)
Can be deserv'd by either, 'tis, at least,
Amidst my Misery, some Bliss, to know,
It cannot be Omalco.
Zarodin.
Cannot, Brother?
I hope, to say it cannot be Omalco,
Wou'd not inferr, it can be Zarodin.
Omal.
I hope it cannot, Brother.
56
Do not seek,
By vile, equivocating, damn'd Deceit,
To hide a Guilt, which, bury'd in the Centre,
Wou'd shake the World with Earthquakes, till disclos'd;
Whose black Contagion, Hell, unpoison'd yet
With so abhorr'd a Draught, wou'd vomit up,
To blot extinguish'd Day, and stain the Sun with.
Traitors! inhumane Traitors! one of you
Murder'd Sizangar in my very Closet,
Omal.
Sizangar, Sir?
Uncham.
Nay, Wretch! deny it not,
His latest Gasp affirm'd it; and your Bane,
Your Devil, Ipanthe, who seduc'd you to it
Scorning your base Compliance, has accus'd you.
Zarodin.
Now, Brother! Can it be Omalca now?
O! All ye Gods of China! Can it be!
That he, this half my self, this Prince, this Brother,
So near my Heart, so lov'd! so seeming wise!
And so by me admir'd for various Virtues!
Cou'd think his Soul, bound by an Oath so vile,
And offer Duty up to barb'rous Love?
Uncham.
'Tis, as I thought, Omalco: Yes, thy Letter,
Monster! thy subtile Letter, which advis'd,
I shou'd confine Sizangar; that instructs me,
That guides me; that confirms, that thou art he!
Immortal Regents of yon blazing World!
If you, as Priests persuade us, roll that Thunder,
Which can split Rocks, and shake the Globe to Atoms,
Now let it roar, now, now, assert your Justice,
And strike the guilty Rebel to the Centre.
Omal.
Rage will have way, but if—
Uncham.
Ha! Dar'st thou speak?
Hush my vex d Soul to Peace, with humble Silence,
Or thou wilt raise a Storm, whose dreadful Fury.
Will tear thee from the Basis of my Heart,
And scatter thee upon the Winds of Vengeance.
57
If, Zarodin! Thou dar'st suspect my Virtue,
Thou giv'st me Cause to think that thine is feign'd;
For guilty Men will still judge others like them;
Thou know'st, when first the cruel Maid propos'd
The horrid Oath, I swore, with Zarodin;
Like him, deceiv'd, I swore; but shock'd, like him,
Flew, frighted, from the unintended Vow.
Uncham.
Ha! was it sworn? O bloody Wretches! sworn?
Rage and Distraction! what a thing is Man!
Who wou'd not be a Beast, and drudge out Life
Beneath hard Burdens, rather than be Man,
And marry, and get Children, and be miserable?
Boast we of Reason? Curse on the empty Vanity!
'Tis but the want of that makes Brutes more happy,
Amidst their wretchedness, they cannot think;
And, therefore, cannot feel their Miseries.
Zarodin.
Own it, Omalco, if thou hast been won
To follow blindly Love's imperious Call,
Our Royal Father's Mercy may forgive
A Fault, which not your Will, but Passion caus'd.
Omal.
Forbear, rash Youth, to tempt a backward Rage;
Nor charge my Honour with a Crime, that's Thine,
One Son is guilty, and there are but Two.
Zarodin.
It must be you, for I am Innocent!
Uncham.
Now, by the Peace of my Forefathers Ghosts,
You both are Guilty, and you both shall die.
Children! and Sons! Call you these Blessings? Gods!
Look on my Woes, ye poor mistaken Fools,
Who spin out wretched Life in anxious Toils,
To leave your Children happy after you!
Such are the Comforts which you vainly wish for.
These are the Joys, with which fond Hope deceives us;
These are the Ends, which crown a Parent's Care.
Let me forget, I gave these Monsters Being,
And seek some Vengeance, ample, as my Wrongs;
So Times to come shall say, when they report
58
Torments like mine, none were like me reveng'd?
Drums, Trumpets, and suddain shouts without; and clashing of Swords.
Enter Arbanes hastily.
Arban.
The Gods preserve your Life, Imperial Master!
Treason, prodigious Treason breaks upon us!
Unch.
What wou'dst thou say? Why art thou pale, and trembling?
And what imports this sudden sound of War?
Arban.
As on the Guard, your faithful Soldiers stood,
Who keep the Gates of the Sofalian Tow'r,
Sudden, and unexpected, came upon them,
Arm'd at all Points, and furious as a Whirlwind;
The Captive Leaders of the Troops of Siam,
Assisted by some Men of Name in China,
Some Traitors most in Trust about your Person.
Unch.
The Chiefs of Siam?
Arban.
The most fam'd, and dreadful,
Of those, who threaten'd, late, to shake your Throne,
How freed I know not, but with head-long Rage,
They bear down all Opposers; and rush on,
With Force amazing, to some horrid Purpose.
Unch.
Who leads them on? Saw you Orontes with them?
Arban.
No, not Orontes; but an unknown Moor,
Fiercer than he, deals Death with fatal Hand,
Rolling his Eyes, stretching his swarthy Nostrills,
And, with white Teeth, hard biting his big Lips,
He looks, and dares, and does, beyond a Man.
Omal.
Now, Brother, now! the Gods have giv'n Occasion,
To prove your boasted Virtue against mine:
The Guards, which lately watch'd us, at the Call
Of the shrill Trumpet, fled to the Alarm;
59
O! That the Army, we so lately led,
Surrounded now, Great Sir, your Royal Person!
You, free from Danger, I cou'd know no Fear;
But come, distrustful Zarodin! let's on;
'Tis easy here to prove, which Son most loves
His Father's Life; he, who defends it best,
Can never be the Traitor, he requires.
[Exit O mlco
Zarod.
O! By my Hopes of Glory, bravely thought!
My ravish'd Soul leaps high, to snatch the Offer;
Judge me, dread Sir, by what I now perform,
And if I act less bravely in your Cause
Than my proud Brother, in this glorious Trial,
Be mine the Punishment; and his the Honour.
[Exit Zarodin.
Unch.
This mock Appearance of high Virtue in them,
Confounds me, more, than my new Danger can;
Arbanes! swift as Lightning, cross the Square;
And, thro' the Temple, bring to my Assistance,
The Zarian Band, that keeps its holy Entrance;
[Exit Arbanes
If there be Fire, in Majesty provok'd,
These Hostile Slaves shall dearly buy the Blood,
The rashness of their Enterprize has cost me.
[Exit Uncham.
Enter Selim, with Ipanthe.
Selim.
Thus, have I told thee all the great Design,
And ev'ry op'ning Wonder, which produc'd it;
Henceforth, Ipanthe shall not need to blush
At the low Birth of her belov'd Orontes,
The Son of China's Monarch, will not shame
Confess'd Affection in the Heir of Siam;
Haste, this way leads to an Appartment, where
60
'Till you are free for ever; follow me.
Shouts, and clashing of Swords again.
Ipant.
Hark! How the dismal Noise of Battel rises!
The Gods preserve Orontes! Gentle Empress,
How are we sure, amidst this Scene of Slaughter,
Push'd by his Courage, high beyond Example,
He may not fall, a Victim to his Virtue,
And make the fatal Day for ever curs'd?
Selim.
Fear not, fair Princess, Innocence, and Honour,
Are the peculiar Care of watchful Heav'n;
Uncham's rash Vow had else took Place; and Steel,
Not Love, had pierc'd Orontes' Noble Heart!
From this near Window, which commands a View
Of half the City, we may see what passes;
Will you look out?
Ipant.
Alas! my trembling Heart
Forbids me, with a Fear, that something fatal
May meet my Eyes; and curse their curious wand'ring,
Selim goes to the Window.
Ipant.
Tell me, what see you?
Selim.
'Tis not in my Tongue
To speak the Wonders, which my Eyes behold;
Wide as the spacious Square, the Battel spreads,
Oh Gods! How truly dreadful is this Scene!
One way the Emp'ror, rash, and furious, strides
From Death, to Death; amidst a shining Crowd
Of Swords, and Lances, bent a thousand Ways:
And now Orontes! (Let them not meet, good Heav'n!)
Orontes, follow'd by a glorious Few,
Rushes amidst them; from his conqu'ring Arm
They fly! They open! See! where-e'er he comes,
There is no Battel! Ha!—
61
Ipant.
What means that shouting?
Selim.
From the West Corner of the Square, that joins
To the near. Temple, swarms a sudden Aid;
The Zarian Band—I know them by their Ensigns;
And now they join—And now they cover All;
Ha! They surround! Help him, ye gracious Gods!
They hem him in. O! I can see no more—
Happy art thou, whose Fear forbade thy Eyes
The dismal Object!—Hark! the Noise comes nearer,
I hear them ent'ring;—From a neighb'ring Closet
We may, unseen, observe the fear'd Event.
[Exeunt Selim, and Ipanthe.
Enter Uncham, with Orontes's Sword in his Hand; and Orontes Prisoner, attended by Arbanes, and Soldiers.
Unch.
I thank ye, Stars! Immortal Sun! I thank thee!
Thou hast, this Day, shone kindly on my Arms,
And giv'n back Youth, and Glory: Brave Arbanes!
Lead back the faithful Soldiers, who have follow'd us,
And search, and bring to my glad Arms, those Sons,
Those matchless Sons, whose noble Deeds, this Day,
Shame my Remembrance; and upbraid their Father,
With false Suspicion of corruptless Innocence;
Go, scatter the faint Remnant of these Slaves;
And bring their Conqu'rors to my burning Bosom.
[Exit Arbanes, follow'd by the Soldiers.
Unch.
Now, tell me, thou black Master of War's Art!
Thou dreadful unknown Enemy, what art thou?
Oront.
I am a Man, well pleas'd to hear you say,
You wrong'd your noble Sons with low Suspicion.
Unch.
My Sons? why, what are my Sons Wrongs to Thee,
That thou shou'dst feel a Pleasure in their Innocence?
62
Whoe'er I am, and howe'er strange it seems!
To free those Sons, and save them from thy Rashness,
Was the sole End, for which my Arms oppos'd thee;
Was the sole End, for which the Foes of China,
The gen'rous Chiefs of Siam, won their Liberty;
And have, so bravely, sold their Lives in vain.
Unch.
New Wonders. Do I wake? Thou talk'st in Riddles.
Oront.
Bid your great Soul be calm, and you shall hear.
Unch.
Ere thou go'st on, I charge thee, on thy Life,
Speak, plainly, who thou art;
Oront.
You knew Sizangar—
Unch.
Why dost thou name Sizangar?
Oront.
That Sizangar
Was a base Villain.
Unch.
Well: Suppose him Villain;
Thou can'st not be Sizangar!
Oront.
No; thank Heav'n!
I was his Punisher.
Unch.
How so?
Oront.
I kill'd him.
Unch.
Thou?
Oront.
I, within thy Closet, kill'd him.
Unch.
'Tis impossible!
Oront.
Selim shall witness for me; Honest Selim
Abhorr'd a Villain; see! This Key was Selim's.
Unch.
Did Selim give you Entrance to my Closet?
Oront.
He did,
Unch.
What, trusty Selim?
Oront.
Even that Selim,
Who always lov'd your Peace; who sought it always;
But most in this; as you shall own hereafter;
When, free from Passion, with unruffled Brow,
Patience shall lend you Leisure to attend it.
Unch.
I am so us'd, of late, to fresh Amazements;
So swiftly, Wonders dance before my Eye,
Close treading on the Heels of one another,
63
That this is possible. But hold! Sizangar
Fell, by Son of mine; He said, he fell so;
Was he indeed a Villain?
Oront.
A most base one.
Unch.
Why, if he was a Villain, he might lie;
Brave, injur'd, pious Sons! I tremble now,
To think, how I have wrong'd you; Noble Moor!
Thou hast brought Comfort to me. Why thou kill'st him
I will not ask thee now, speak that hereafter.
If by thy Arm he dy'd, be thou immortal;
Take back thy Sword; a braver Hand than thine
Can never grasp it; teach me to express
The Joy thou giv'st me, and thou shalt be worship'd
In China, like some Tutelary Pow'r;
But now, I was a childless, wretched Man,
And thou, thou honest Moor, at once hast made me
Again a Father, and happy as a God!
Oront.
I doubt not, mighty Prince! to make you happy,
Most truly happy, when you hear me further;
But more of that, when Time shall—
Shouting again.
Unch.
Ha! They come, blest Sons!
He, who escaping from some dismal Storm,
Meets, on the welcome Beach, his dearest Friend,
Whom, just before, the Waves had swallow'd down,
Tastes but a faint Resemblance of my Joy!
Omalco comes! and faithful Zarodin!
My much wrong'd Sons! Both come to bless my Bosom!
To heal my galling Wounds of Misery,
And tell me with what Pleasure they forgive me.
64
Unch.
Where are my noble Sons?
Arba.
Oh! Sir they come,
But—
Unch.
But; what? Immortal Gods! What woud'st thou,
By that portending But?
Arba.
No sooner had you left the fatal Place,
But, with a sudden, high-redoubled, Rage,
The Chiefs of Siam, who, before, seem'd fainting,
Sustain'd, and re-inforc'd, by six Revolters
Who led a Squadron of your Tartar Guards,
Fir'd with revengeful Fury, grew resistless;
And gain'd so far, on our dishearten'd Bands,
That the brave Prince Umalco, beaten down,
Amidst unnumber'd Wounds; and trampled o'er
By crowding Enemies, Oh! ghess the rest.
Unch.
Thou can'st not, Villain! dar'st not, for thy Soul,
Say, he is dead.
Oront.
The gracious Gods forbid!
Arba.
The gen'rous Zarodin, who saw, from far,
His Brother's Danger, flew to his Assistance;
In vain a hundred Spears oppos'd his Way:
Fierce as a hunted Lion in the Toils,
He threw himself upon the pointed Steel;
His Sword high-brandish'd o'er his Princely Head,
And his Eyes glowing red with breaking Vengeance,
Give me Omalco, cry'd the noble Youth.
Give me my Brother, whom I lately wrong'd
With poor Distrust; look up, my lov'd Omalco,
And see thy Zarodin, in Death, deserve thee;
He wou'd have said much more; but then, just then,
A Host of Lances pierc'd, at once, his Bosom;
And all, that I cou'd hear, was, in low Accents,
Fate, Father—Innocence—and poor, lost Brother—
65
Strike me some Thunderbolt, or I am mad!
Oront.
Oh! How has Destiny misguided All!
Unch.
Black, damn'd, deceitful Villain, thou shalt die!
Draws and offers to kill Orontes.
Oront.
I will defend my self, but hurt not you:
Hear me, O mighty Emp'ror! hold! and hear me!
I have a wond'rous Secret to disclose.
Unch.
Curse on my feeble Arm! Arbanes! help me.
Arbanes joins with the Emperor, and attacks Orontes.
Oront.
Nay then—Thou hast no sacred Shield to guard thee.
Orontes parries the Emperor, and thrusts hard at Arbanes.
A sudden Shout.
Arba.
Great Sir, retire! The conqu'ring Chiefs of Siam
Enter your Palace; See They come, retire.
Enter three or four Captains of Siam, driving in several Soldiers.
1st Capt.
Where is our Gen'ral? Give us our Orontes:
Oh! Baseness! See! Revenge, and Victory!
All Capt.
Revenge and Victory!
They rush at once upon the Emperor, and thrust him thro' with their Swords, he falls.
Oront.
Oh! hold your bloody Hands, mistaken Men!
What have you done? This rash, this well-meant Act,
Has more than kill'd me, while it gives me Life!
1st Capt.
What have we done? Is't not the Emperor?
66
Sel.
Oh! Son! Oh, why have thus the Gods undone us?
Ipant.
Oh, my Orontes! Guard my trembling Heart.
Ipanthe runs to Orontes; Selim kneels weeping over the Emperor.
Oront.
Oh, Mother! Royal Mother! Great Caimantha!
Fate has unravel'd wrong the Plot we laid;
Unch.
I have yet Strength, amidst the Pangs of Death,
To turn my Eyes up at Caimantha's Name,
Art thou Caimantha?
Selim.
'Tis my wretched Name.
Oront.
Oh! 'Tis too long a Tale! Thus, on my Knees,
Caimantha's Son calls China's Monarch Father.
Unch.
I ghess the wondrous Story! All-just Gods!
How vainly Man wou'd shun, what Heav'n resolves!
The Vision is too fatally fulfill'd!
The Punishment is just; I thank you, Heav'n!
I have a Son yet left! I thank you, Heav'n!
I have a Wife; and live to say, I wrong'd her,
To say so, and be pardon'd; Oh! Caimantha!
Dies, and the Empress faints.
Ipant.
The Empress faints! Help, help her!
Oront.
Rigid Stars!
1st Capt.
The Princes, whom we, now, must call your Brothers,
Tho' wounded, far beyond all Hope of Cure,
Live yet; and, by our Soldiers, were convey'd
Into a near Appartment of the Palace,
I doubt not, but they, yet, have Sense, and Strength,
To hear, and understand, the fatal Story.
67
Oh! see! she now revives!
Empress.
Oh! Day of Woe!
Oront.
Bear the sad Empress to the pious Brothers,
That, as she wakes, yet further, into Life,
She may bestow a parting Blessing on them,
And teach them, how the Punishment they share
Follow'd a Fathers Crimes, and not their Innocence.
The Empress is led off, betwixt Arbanes, and the first Captain of Siam.
Oh! my Ipanthe, thou, whom Heav'n has made,
A soft Atonement for the Woes I feel!
Restor'd to Siam's Throne, reign happy on it;
And, if you shall vouchsafe to share the Sceptre
Of China's Empire, by this fatal Chance
Fall'n to my Hand; jointly to rule, with thee,
Will make Dominion's Burthen worth the Bearing.
Ipant.
Struck with a mix'd Astonishment and Horror,
Lab'ring 'twixt Gratitude and Apprehension,
I just recover Strength, in Uncham's Son
To thank my great Deliv'rer. Yes, Orontes,
A vow has bound my Soul, to grant thy Pray'r,
Nobly compleating, thus, thy promis'd Service!
How full of Windings are the mazy Paths,
Thro' which our Sins are trac'd to Punishment!
How is Ambition curs'd! Unhappy Monarch!
Vainly attempting Heav'n's Decrees to shun,
Avenging Heav'n has turn'd thy Means against thee!
And nothing cou'd have giv'n thee Woes like these,
But struggling to avoid 'em. Ruin'd Siam,
Wrong'd as she is, must weep for her Destroyer.
Oront.
Chear thy afflicted Soul, with Views of Comfort:
Be it our Task, in a long happy Reign
To teach the doubting Nations, blind to Truth,
That Kingly Pow'r can never grow too mighty;
68
Let this Example teach us, how to shun
The blind Effects of Rage, and Superstition;
Since, in the Consequences of our Sin,
Not we our selves feel Punishment alone,
But Childrens Sufferings Parents Guilt atone.
Exeunt omnes.
FINIS.
| The Fatal Vision : Or, The Fall of Siam | |