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Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.
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Untitled Article
mprftlfty on which he has acted . He never knows , it is true , tgjLf the king ' s only cause for exacting the fatal promise was , th ^ Pedro had defended Estrella from his licen ti ousn ess ; but he goes know that the character of Pedro is so pure and high that t ) ie king can have no good cause of vengeance . He also finds that he is himself condemned to be publicly executed for
the crime thus forced upon him . It is no matter . The king commanded ; he swore to obey ; he followed the course of loyalty and honour , and he endures all that follows as though he bad obeyed the laws of God and Nature , and suffered in the course of inevitable fate . The drama ought to teach a higher morality . Our favourite scene , with the exception of one nearer the
close pf the play , is that between Estrella and the nurse the night before the intended marriage . An extract will shew how sweetly and naturally it proceeds : — " Ursula . What , art thou thinking of thy sleep already ? Estrellit . I ' m weary of to-day ; I'll get to bed , 1 % will fe morrow sooner when I sleep . Come , gossip , dear ; be sure a wondrous story ;
^ . 11 golden halls , and pearl-strewn tapestry , And Indian spicy wainscoting , and curtains O * the crimson damask , glittering o ' er with gems , To give me shining dreams—come , now begin . "—p 55 . * # * # * 11 Ursula .- Thy dark lash droops to thy velvet cheek ; thou ' rt half asleep . Estrella , Carlos ! dear Carlos 1 Ursula * She sleeps , by my good faith ! Hark ! mistress I lady ! chick 1 lie not aslant thus , thou ' lt get aches , ere age ; get up , arid sleep in thy bed , ' twere best , sweet . Esirella . The dreaming poppies drop upon my lids ; Oh me t I ' m heavy—I'll to bed ; Good nurse , Help me to doff my vest ; take thou good care Of all these gay attires , they be rich gifts From my good Kinsfolk . "—pp 56 . 57 . There are some good passages in tjie scene between Carlos ana Estrella in the first act , but as a whole we think it poor . A quotation will best illustrate our objections : — " Estrella . Farewell 1 I wish you a fair ride , Bwift horse , Smoqjtti road , safe journey—and what more ? Carlos . That kiss—JEstrflla . J 3 eshrew thee for a spendthrift that dost make me Lo ££ my good time in silly bargaining . ¦ ( jarfos . That kiss—Esirella . If I should live an hundred years , FHneW give thee another . Cj | rfc # ; Granted so—Gi ¥ * tftt * i but this , I will lake all the rest
Untitled Article
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Citation
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Monthly Repository (1806-1838) and Unitarian Chronicle (1832-1833), May 1, 1837, page 298, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/mruc/issues/vm2-ncseproduct1831/page/43/
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