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Marquis. No, prince. Uuburden here your heart! Sorrow may find relief in words.

Carlos. Often have I ftruggled with my foul; often, at dead of night, when all around me flept, I've thrown myself before the holy image of the Virgin, and pray'd that she would warm my heart with filial love-My prayers were unheard. Ah, Rodrigo! canft thou unriddle to me the decrees of Providence? Canft thou tell why, among ten thoufand fathers, this man was mark'd for mine? Why I alone, among ten thoufand better fons, was given, to him? Two more oppofing contraries exift not within the sphere of nature; yet has the bound together these two extremes, of human kind, with the most facred ties! Unhappy fate! What strong neceffity impell'd it? Why did two beings, who never met before, agree fo fatally in this one defire? Thou seeft, Rodrigo, two hof tile ftars, which in the courfe of ages ne'er met but once, then big with mutual deftruction, they rufh'd together; but from the fhock recoil'd eternally to endless distance.

Marquis. Alas! I prophefy fome terrible event.

Carlos. Such are my fears. Deadly forebodings like furies, haunt me my good genius feems, trembling, to contend with thoughts of horror: the miferable ingenuity of vice creeps through the labyrinths of fophiftry, till at length it startles on a precipice.. O Rodrigo! if I fhould ever forget in him the father-In thy. death-like looks I read, that thou understandest me.-If I should forget in him the father, what would the king be to me?

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Marquis, (After a paufe.)-May I venture, Carlos, to make. one request? Whate'er you wifh, however paffion urges you, pro-, mife to refolve on nothing without your friend. Will you make this promise?

Carlos. All, all that friendship afks-I throw myself wholly into thy arms,' P. 13.

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The marquis is the prominent perfonage in the drama, and like the Fiefco and Charles de Moor of the fame writer, extravagantly great. He perfuades the queen to affift him in roufing the prince to the active fupport of the cause of liberty in the Netherlands. Carlos receives a note from the princess Eboli, inviting him to her apartment: he believes it to have. come from the queen; and his conduct, on difcovering his miftake, betrays his paffion. The princefs is ftimulated by rage and difappointment to disclose this to the king, to whofe amorous folicitations fhe now yields. The duke of Alva, and the confeffor of Philip, have previously been filling him with fufpicions; and the wretched tyrant, dreading all and fufpect ing all, feels the want of a friend. With this feeling he turns over his tablets, and finds the name of Pofa among the perfons whofe actions have been meritorious; he fends for him; and a strange scene enfues. The marquis is encouraged to

fpeak freely; and he attempts to infpire the king with the feelings of humanity.

Marquis. May it please your majefty, I lately pafs'd through Flanders and Brabant. Such rich and blooming provinces! a people fo great, fo valiant, and fo good! To be the father of fuch a people, methought, was godlike-But then-I saw the scattered bones of men, (He fops, and fixes a penetrating look on the king, who, unable to refift it, cafts his eyes on the ground, in confufion.) Right! You are forced to act thus-but that you should be able to act as you are forced that 'tis, which fills me with awful wonder. To purfue the dictates of calm unbiaffed reason, amidst the torture of repugnant feelings-to grafp ice unmelting in the fiery hand, is more than nature ever granted to another mortal. Alas! The victim weltering in his blood, can scarcely praise those virtues' in the priest, who facrifices him. The hiftory of man should be written by beings fuperior to all human frailty.-Milder ages, attended by more lenient wifdom, will fucceed the reign of Philip. The happiness of the fubject will walk hand in hand with the prince's greatnefs. The careful ftate will fpare her children's blood, and even tyrant neceffity will be humane.

King. Think you, these better times would e'er arrive, if I were frighted from my duty by the fear of present flander? Look around you, and fee in Spain a happy people, who flourish in uninterrupted peace. The fame quiet, I wish to give to Flanders.

Marquis. The quiet of the grave-And do you hope to finish what you have begun? Think you, you can retard the ripen'd change of the whole chriftian world? Would you alone in Europe) ftop the wheel of deftiny, whilft urging onward its refiftless course? The attempt is vain 'tis vain, believe me. Enthufiafm, with tenfold greater force, rifes against the oppreffor. Already thou fands have fled your land in joyful poverty. Those whom their faith has driven into exile, were your most valuable fubjects. Elizabeth receives the fugitives with a mother's kindness, and Britain flourishes in the arts, which have been banished from our country. Grenada mourns the lofs of her industrious citizens, and exulting Europe fees her enemy bleeding by felf-inflicted wounds. (The king appears moved) A work fo contrary to nature, though planned for eternity, muft quickly perish; it cannot survive the existence of its author. You have labour'd for ingratitude. In vain you have ftruggled with mankind in vain you have lavished a precious life, and facrificed fo many royal virtues, in the pursuit of a delufive phantom. You have esteem'd man too lightly this was your error, this alone. A future race will trample on the ruins of that edifice, which you intended for its tomb; will, with contemptuous mockery, join your name to thofe of Nero and Bufiris. Alas! I pity you for you were good.

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King. Are you fo lure of that?

Marquis, Yes, by the Almighty! Yes, I repeat it. Restore. what you have taken from us: pour forth univerfal happiness from the horn of plenty. Cherish the ripening mind of your vaft em.. pire; and you will be a king of godlike fubjects. (He advances boldly, grafps the king's hand, and fixes on him a look of earnestness and enthufiafm.) Oh! could the eloquence of all those thousands, who fhare the exiftence of this hour, hover on my lips, that I might fan into a flame the fpark, which animates thofe eyes! -Give up this mad ambition. Become to us an example of true greatnefs. Never, never did a mortal poffefs fo much, for pur pofes fo noble. All the kings of Europe pay homage to the Spanith name. Step forth as leader of thefe kings. One line, one word, written by this hand, may create anew the world, ing himself at his feet.)

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King. Strange enthusiasm !-But rife!

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Marquis. Look through the wide extent of nature! All is li berty. The great Creator of the universe beftows it on the infect, which the dew-drop nourishes. How narrow, how poor is your creation; The master of the Chriftian world is ftartled at the ruftling of a leaf. He trembles even at virtues.

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King. And will you undertake to trace this glorious plan of lif berty in my ftates?

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Marquis. You can, and you alone. Let all those talents, which have fo long been fubfervient to ambition, be henceforth devoted to your people. Confer on man his former dignity. Let the citizen be once more the object of his monarch's care.-Then, fire, when you have raised your kingdom to this envied height, the mighty plan is ripe-Then may you-'twill be your duty-ex tend your empire o'er the world.

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King. (After a long paufe.)-I have fuffer'd you to conclude; and I perceive you look not on the world with common eyes. I will not, therefore, judge you by common rules. You have laid open to me alone the inmoft receffes of your foul. For your commend able moderation, in keeping fecret until now these bold conceptions -for fuch difcretion will I forget, young man, that I have heard thefe words-forget, with what freedom you have uttered them. Rife; I will refute your youthful errors by maturer reason, and not by kingly power. Such is my will, and therefore do I fo. (After looking earnestly at him for fome time.) Poifon itself, I find, may in a worthy nature be converted into goodness.-Beware of the inquifition; I fhould be forry

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'Marquis. Indeed!

King. (Contemplating the Marquis with admiration.)-Never be fore have I beheld fuch a man. No, Marquis, no! You wrong me. I will not be a Nero: to you, at leaft, I will not. AH happiness fhall not be blafted beneath my fceptre. You yourself, you, to your own confufion, fhall still poffefs inviolate the privi leges of humanity.

Marquis. And my countrymen? O fire! It was not for myfelf alone I pleaded. Your fubjects, fire

King (Continuing.)-If you know, how future times will judge me, tell them, when I found a man indeed, how 'twas I treated him.

Marquis. Oh! let not the moft juft of kings be, at the fame time, most unjuft. In your provinces of Flanders, fire, are thou fands worthier than I. Perhaps, great monarch-may I freely: speak it? you n'er till now have viewed liberty in fo amiable a light.

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King. No more of that, young man. I am perfuaded, when you know mankind, your fentiments will alter. But I fhould with to see you foon again. Tell me how can I oblige you? You are the first, of whom I ever was compell'd to ask that queftion." P. 178.

If the enthufiaftic goodness of the marquis could have ventured to express fuch fentiments, a king so stern, so fullen, fo bigoted as Philip, would not have endured them. That mo narch certainly poffeffed abilities, and, execrable as he was, fome virtues; but Schiller has mifreprefented him in making him for a moment liberal: ftill lefs is it probable that he fhould choose fuch a man for his minifter, and entrust him with a warrant for the arrest of Carlos.

Pofa's defigns are vaft; but they are dark and intriguing. He explains nothing to Carlos, procures the prince's pocketbook, and thows its contents to the king, to forward his fchemes, and more completely to fecure the confidence of Philip. This is reported to Carlos; and he becomes fufpicious of his friend. He haftens to the princefs Eboli, and requests an interview with the queen. At that inftant the marquis enters; and, to prevent the confeffion of his love, arrefts him. Pofa now fees that he cannot preferve both Carlos and himfelf. He writes a treasonable letter, which he knows will be intercepted, that thus he may fall, and the prince be reinstated in his father's good opinion. He then haftens to his place of confinement to explain all. There is a perplexity in this which it is difficult to unravel.

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During the explanation in the prifon, the marquis is fhot by Philip's command. The king foon enters with his nobles to deliver Carlos. Inflamed almoft to phrenfy by the death of his friend, he bitterly reproaches his father for the murder, and declares that the letter for which the marquis fuffered was written to fave him. The king feels fome remorfe, and throws himself upon the dead body. A tumult is heard; and the people rife for the refcue of Carlos.

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The prince now determines to depart for Bruffels, and put himfelf at the head of the infurgents. He must first take leaves

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of the queen; and, in order to fee her, he affumes the ap pearance of a spectre to pafs through apartments which were fuppofed to be haunted. Intelligence of this apparition is brought to the king; and, at the fame time, Alva delivers to him the papers of Pofa, which develope all his plans. Philip fends for the grand inquifitor. This is perhaps the fineft fcene in the play. The fuperiority of the pricft is admirably preferved.

Grand Inquifitor. Why did you not confult us, ere you entrufted yourself to him?-You yourself knew him. A fingle glance unmask'd to you his herefy. Why did you defraud the holy office of its victim? Are we thus trifled with? When majefty defcends to fuch concealment; when kings are doubletongued, and league themfelves, in fecret, with our worst enemies,* what must be our fate? If one finds favor, why should thousands perish ?

King. He too is facrificed.

• G. Inquifitor. No! he is bafely murdered. An affaffin's hand has thed that blood, which fhould have flowed to honor us. He was ours. What can juftify this bold invafion of our rights? He but exifted, to die through us. It was the will of Providence, that, in the punishment of his vaunted reafon, he fhould afford at terrible example to thefe times. We fhould have expofed him, torn limb from limb in horrid torture, to the infulting mockery of the multitude. Such was my long premeditated plan: years were employ'd to ripen it, and in one fingle inftant 'twas deftroy'd. We have been robbed, and you have but involved yourself in blood. King. Paffion impell'd me to it-Oh, forgive me!

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G. Inquifitor. Paffion! Is it a youth, that fpeaks to me? or have years paffed o'er my head alone?-Paffion! Oh, grant freedom to thy fubjects, if thou thyfelf art thus enflaved!

me!

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King. In thefe things I am but a novice. Bear patiently with

G. Inquifitor. No! I am ill pleased to fee you thus difgrace your former merits. Where is that Philip, whofe foul was once unalterably fix'd, as the polar ftar of heaven? Was all the memory of preceding years obliterated? Was the whole world new moulded, in that moment, when you stretched out to him your hand? Was all diftinction between good and evil, between truth and falsehood, at once thrown down? What then is refolution? what is firmnefs? what is the faith of man, if in one weak, unguarded moment, the labor of threefcore years fhall be annihilated ?

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King. His looks deceived me.

Pardon this frailty, from which you are free. Your eyes are closed against the world.

G. Inquifitor. What was there in this man? What attraction < had he to boat, before unknown to you? Were you fo ignorant

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