Lord Byron - Delphi Poets Series, page 143
Cain. I have no flocks;
I am a tiller of the ground, and must
Yield what it yieldeth to my toil — its fruit:
[He gathers fruits.
Behold them in their various bloom and ripeness.
[They dress their altars, and kindle aflame upon them.
Abel. My brother, as the elder, offer first 220
Thy prayer and thanksgiving with sacrifice.
Cain. No — I am new to this; lead thou the way,
And I will follow — as I may.
Abel (kneeling).Oh, God!
Who made us, and who breathed the breath of life
Within our nostrils, who hath blessed us,
And spared, despite our father’s sin, to make
His children all lost, as they might have been,
Had not thy justice been so tempered with
The mercy which is thy delight, as to
Accord a pardon like a Paradise, 230
Compared with our great crimes: — Sole Lord of light!
Of good, and glory, and eternity!
Without whom all were evil, and with whom
Nothing can err, except to some good end
Of thine omnipotent benevolence!
Inscrutable, but still to be fulfilled!
Accept from out thy humble first of shepherds’
First of the first-born flocks — an offering,
In itself nothing — as what offering can be
Aught unto thee? — but yet accept it for 240
The thanksgiving of him who spreads it in
The face of thy high heaven — bowing his own
Even to the dust, of which he is — in honour
Of thee, and of thy name, for evermore!
Cain (standing erect during this speech).
Spirit whate’er or whosoe’er thou art,
Omnipotent, it may be — and, if good,
Shown in the exemption of thy deeds from evil;
Jehovah upon earth! and God in heaven!
And it may be with other names, because
Thine attributes seem many, as thy works: — 250
If thou must be propitiated with prayers,
Take them! If thou must be induced with altars,
And softened with a sacrifice, receive them;
Two beings here erect them unto thee.
If thou lov’st blood, the shepherd’s shrine, which smokes
On my right hand, hath shed it for thy service
In the first of his flock, whose limbs now reek
In sanguinary incense to thy skies;
Or, if the sweet and blooming fruits of earth,
And milder seasons, which the unstained turf 260
I spread them on now offers in the face
Of the broad sun which ripened them, may seem
Good to thee — inasmuch as they have not
Suffered in limb or life — and rather form
A sample of thy works, than supplication
To look on ours! If a shrine without victim,
And altar without gore, may win thy favour,
Look on it! and for him who dresseth it,
He is — such as thou mad’st him; and seeks nothing
Which must be won by kneeling: if he’s evil, 270
Strike him! thou art omnipotent, and may’st —
For what can he oppose? If he be good,
Strike him, or spare him, as thou wilt! since all
Rests upon thee; and Good and Evil seem
To have no power themselves, save in thy will —
And whether that be good or ill I know not,
Not being omnipotent, nor fit to judge
Omnipotence — but merely to endure
Its mandate; which thus far I have endured.
[The fire upon the altar of Abel kindles into a column of the brightest flame, and ascends to heaven; while a whirlwind throws down the altar of Cain, and scatters the fruits abroad upon the earth.
Abel (kneeling). Oh, brother, pray! Jehovah’s wroth with thee. 280
Cain. Why so?
Abel. Thy fruits are scattered on the earth.
Cain. From earth they came, to earth let them return;
Their seed will bear fresh fruit there ere the summer:
Thy burnt flesh-offering prospers better; see
How Heaven licks up the flames, when thick with blood!
Abel. Think not upon my offering’s acceptance,
But make another of thine own — before
It is too late.
Cain. I will build no more altars,
Nor suffer any — —
Abel (rising).Cain! what meanest thou?
Cain. To cast down yon vile flatterer of the clouds, 290
The smoky harbinger of thy dull prayers —
Thine altar, with its blood of lambs and kids,
Which fed on milk, to be destroyed in blood.
Abel (opposing him).
Thou shalt not: — add not impious works to impious
Words! let that altar stand — ‘tis hallowed now
By the immortal pleasure of Jehovah,
In his acceptance of the victims.
Cain. His!
His pleasure! what was his high pleasure in
The fumes of scorching flesh and smoking blood,
To the pain of the bleating mothers, which 300
Still yearn for their dead offspring? or the pangs
Of the sad ignorant victims underneath
Thy pious knife? Give way! this bloody record
Shall not stand in the sun, to shame creation!
Abel. Brother, give back! thou shalt not touch my altar
With violence: if that thou wilt adopt it,
To try another sacrifice, ‘tis thine.
Cain. Another sacrifice! Give way, or else
That sacrifice may be — —
Abel. What mean’st thou?
Cain. Give —
Give way! — thy God loves blood! — then look to it: — 310
Give way, ere he hath more!
Abel. In his great name,
I stand between thee and the shrine which hath
Had his acceptance.
Cain. If thou lov’st thyself,
Stand back till I have strewed this turf along
Its native soil: — else — —
Abel (opposing him).I love God far more
Than life.
Cain (striking him with a brand, on the temples, which
he snatches from the altar). Then take thy life unto thy God,
Since he loves lives.
Abel (falls).What hast thou done — my brother?
Cain. Brother!
Abel. Oh, God! receive thy servant! and
Forgive his slayer, for he knew not what
He did — Cain, give me — give me thy hand; and tell 320
Poor Zillah —
Cain (after a moment’s stupefaction).
My hand! ‘tis all red, and with — —
What?[A long pause. — Looking slowly round.
Where am I? alone! Where’s Abel? where
Cain? Can it be that I am he? My brother,
Awake! — why liest thou so long on the green earth?
‘Tis not the hour of slumber: — why so pale?
What hast thou! — thou wert full of life this morn!
Abel! I pray thee, mock me not! I smote
Too fiercely, but not fatally. Ah, why
Wouldst thou oppose me? This is mockery;
And only done to daunt me: — ‘twas a blow — 330
And but a blow. Stir — stir — nay, only stir!
Why, so — that’s well! — thou breathest! breathe upon me!
Oh God! Oh God!
Abel (very faintly). What’s he who speaks of God?
Cain. Thy murderer.
Abel. Then may God forgive him! Cain,
Comfort poor Zillah: — she has but one brother
Now.[Abel dies.
Cain. And I none! — Who makes me brotherless?
His eyes are open! then he is not dead!
Death is like sleep; and sleep shuts down our lids.
His lips, too, are apart; why then he breathes;
And yet I feel it not. — His heart! — his heart! — 340
Let me see, doth it beat? methinks — — No! — no!
This is a vision, else I am become
The native of another and worse world.
The earth swims round me: — what is this? — ‘tis wet;
[Puts his hand to his brow, and then looks at it.
And yet there are no dews! ‘Tis blood — my blood —
My brother’s and my own! and shed by me!
Then what have I further to do with life,
Since I have taken life from my own flesh?
But he can not be dead! — Is silence death?
No; he will wake; then let me watch by him. 350
Life cannot be so slight, as to be quenched
Thus quickly! — he hath spoken to me since —
What shall I say to him? — My brother! — No:
He will not answer to that name; for brethren
Smite not each other. Yet — yet — speak to me.
Oh! for a word more of that gentle voice,
That I may bear to hear my own again!
Enter Zillah.
Zillah. I heard a heavy sound; what can it be?
‘Tis Cain; and watching by my husband. What
Dost thou there, brother? Doth he sleep? Oh, Heaven! 360
What means this paleness, and yon stream? — No, no!
It is not blood; for who would shed his blood?
Abel! what’s this? — who hath done this? He moves not;
He breathes not: and his hands drop down from mine
With stony lifelessness! Ah! cruel Cain!
Why camest thou not in time to save him from
This violence? Whatever hath assailed him,
Thou wert the stronger, and shouldst have stepped in
Between him and aggression! Father! — Eve! —
Adah! — come hither! Death is in the world! 370
[Exit Zillah, calling on her Parents, etc.
Cain (solus) And who hath brought him there? — I — who abhor
The name of Death so deeply, that the thought
Empoisoned all my life, before I knew
His aspect — I have led him here, and given
My brother to his cold and still embrace,
As if he would not have asserted his
Inexorable claim without my aid.
I am awake at last — a dreary dream
Had maddened me; — but he shall ne’er awake!
Enter Adam, Eve, Adah, and Zillah.
Adam. A voice of woe from Zillah brings me here — 380
What do I see? — ‘Tis true! — My son! — my son!
Woman, behold the Serpent’s work, and thine
