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diff --git a/.gitattributes b/.gitattributes new file mode 100644 index 0000000..d7b82bc --- /dev/null +++ b/.gitattributes @@ -0,0 +1,4 @@ +*.txt text eol=lf +*.htm text eol=lf +*.html text eol=lf +*.md text eol=lf diff --git a/LICENSE.txt b/LICENSE.txt new file mode 100644 index 0000000..6312041 --- /dev/null +++ b/LICENSE.txt @@ -0,0 +1,11 @@ +This eBook, including all associated images, markup, improvements, +metadata, and any other content or labor, has been confirmed to be +in the PUBLIC DOMAIN IN THE UNITED STATES. + +Procedures for determining public domain status are described in +the "Copyright How-To" at https://www.gutenberg.org. + +No investigation has been made concerning possible copyrights in +jurisdictions other than the United States. Anyone seeking to utilize +this eBook outside of the United States should confirm copyright +status under the laws that apply to them. diff --git a/README.md b/README.md new file mode 100644 index 0000000..c82bbcb --- /dev/null +++ b/README.md @@ -0,0 +1,2 @@ +Project Gutenberg (https://www.gutenberg.org) public repository for +eBook #65860 (https://www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/65860) diff --git a/old/65860-0.txt b/old/65860-0.txt deleted file mode 100644 index fbbd688..0000000 --- a/old/65860-0.txt +++ /dev/null @@ -1,3951 +0,0 @@ -The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Old Miracle Plays of England, by -Netta Syrett - -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online at -www.gutenberg.org. If you are not located in the United States, you -will have to check the laws of the country where you are located before -using this eBook. - -Title: The Old Miracle Plays of England - -Author: Netta Syrett - -Illustrator: Helen Thorp - -Release Date: July 17, 2021 [eBook #65860] - -Language: English - -Produced by: MWS, Stephen Hutcheson, and the Online Distributed - Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was - produced from images generously made available by The - Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries) - -*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE OLD MIRACLE PLAYS OF -ENGLAND *** - - - - - - _BY THE SAME AUTHOR_ - - THE STORY OF ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA - - With twelve illustrations in half-tone, and frontispiece in colours. - - 2/6 net. - -Miss Syrett writes with a remarkable freshness and deftness of touch -which will appeal to readers of all ages, but especially to the young -reader. For the story as she tells it has the colour and joy of a fairy -tale—and yet is true; and the delicate reserve shown in dealing with the -religious side of the narrative adds to its impressiveness. - - A. R. MOWBRAY & CO. Ltd. - London and Oxford - - [Illustration: Entrance of the Magi. [Page 83].] - - - - - THE - OLD MIRACLE PLAYS - OF ENGLAND - - - By NETTA SYRETT - _AUTHOR OF - “THE STORY OF ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA”_ - - WITH TWO ILLUSTRATIONS FROM WATER-COLOUR DRAWINGS BY - HELEN THORP - - - A. R. MOWBRAY & CO. Ltd. - London: 28 Margaret Street, Oxford Circus, W. - Oxford: 9 High Street - The Young Churchman Co., Milwaukee - - - First impression, 1911 - - - - - PREFACE - - -In the hope of bringing the actual presentment of Mediaeval Miracle -Plays more vividly before the minds of children, I have cast information -concerning them into the form of a story. But, while this method of -dealing with the plays may prove to the childish reader more interesting -and palatable than a mere summary of what is known concerning them, it -leads to certain liberties difficult to avoid in fiction. - -It seemed, to take an example, in some ways more convenient to lay the -scene of the little story in York. Yet many of the Wakefield and -Coventry plays lend themselves to description better than those of the -York series. However, when in the course of the tale I have made use of -an alien play, I have taken care to mention the fact, and to invent a -reason (plausible enough, I trust, in a story) for its performance at -York. - -Again, the stage directions for some of these old plays are so vague -that the precise manner of their presentment must be left to individual -imagination and common sense. In a story there is no room for tentative -speculations, nor for suggested alternative treatments; and this being -the case, I trust I may be forgiven if occasionally I handle my material -over-confidently. This explanation is offered to older students, to -whom, simple as it is, my little summary, compiled from the recognized -authorities on the subject of miracle plays, may yet be of some value. -In writing it I found most helpful and delightful Mr. Sidney W. Clarke’s -book, _The Miracle Play in England_, and, written by Mr. Ernest Rhys, -the preface to _Everyman_, in Everyman’s Library. To both these -gentlemen my thanks are specially due. - - N. S. - - - - - CONTENTS - - - CHAP. PAGE - I. Introduction 1 - II. How Colin and Margery kept the Feast of Corpus Christi 17 - III. The Creation of the Angels, and the Fall of Lucifer 23 - IV. The Making of Sun, Moon and Stars: of Birds, Beasts, and - Fishes: of Man and Woman. The Garden of Eden 35 - V. Noah’s Ark 44 - VI. The Story of Abraham and of Isaac 56 - VII. The Shepherds’ Play 67 - VIII. King Herod, the Wise Men, and the Massacre of the Innocents 77 - IX. At the End of the Day 91 - X. Everyman 99 - - - - - THE OLD MIRACLE PLAYS OF ENGLAND - - - - - I - INTRODUCTION - - -Of all the delightful games which children play in the nursery or in the -schoolroom, perhaps the favourite one is dressing-up, and acting. And of -all the Christmas treats, perhaps the best is going to the -theatre—either to the pantomime or to one of the fairy plays which -fortunate children can now enjoy. - -There are grown-up people too who never get tired of dressing-up and -acting, nor of going to the theatre to see other people act. It is a -taste which is shared by children and grown-up people alike. And it has -always been so. Long, long ago, when all the people in the world were -savage, there is no doubt that little naked children picked up their -fathers’ spears, and bows and arrows (or made smaller ones in imitation -of them), and “acted” the hunting of animals or the killing of enemies, -while their parents looked on, pleased and interested by the -performance. - -Thousands of years have passed since the first “acting” took place on -some lonely beach, perhaps, or in a clearing of the forest where savage -children played; and now in all our big towns we have big houses -specially built for acting, and there are many men and women who spend -most of their time either in writing plays or in learning and acting -them. - -Every evening in London hundreds of cabs and motor-cars stop before some -brilliantly lighted theatre to set down people who have come to see one -of the many plays performed night after night in this great city. And -seven hundred years ago people also crowded to see plays in London, -though it was a very different London then, and a very different -building at which they arrived. - -Instead of ladies in evening gowns, and gentlemen all dressed alike in -black coats, stepping out of cabs and motor-cars to walk across a -pavement to the theatre door, you would have seen, on certain days long -ago, a curiously dressed crowd of men, women, and children, some on -horseback, some on foot, all pressing in one direction. There would be -barefooted monks, soldiers with breastplates and helmets of steel, nuns -with white caps and veils, little boys with long stockings, one red, one -green perhaps, and short tunics belted at the waist; ladies with full -flowing robes and strange head-dresses, some pointed like a sugar-loaf, -some with veils arranged over a frame in the shape of two horns. And all -these people in their quaint and varying costumes would be threading -their way through narrow, dirty streets, like lanes, between overhanging -houses, till they stopped—not before a big lighted house with playbills -outside, and a marble hall and gilded ceiling with doors leading to the -theatre within—but in front of the great gates of a church, and that -church might have been Westminster Abbey. For there the play they had -come to see was to be performed! - -Strange as it may seem to us now, the first theatres in England were the -churches, and, as you may guess, the first plays to be acted were -religious plays. - -Let us try to understand the reason for this. You remember that William -I conquered England in 1066—eight hundred years ago. Well, from the time -that he and his followers came to this country the English race has been -gradually growing into the nation to which we belong and into the sort -of people we see round us every day. Even the very poorest English -children nowadays go to school and can read and write. Children whose -parents are not so poor learn much besides reading and writing, and -thousands of the sons and daughters of rich or fairly well-to-do people -go to college, and spend years of their life in study. So that now, in -the twentieth century, English people are on the whole _educated_. But -it has taken a very long time to arrive at such a state of things as -this, and for hundreds of years after the Conquest, not only the poor, -but even the richer and quite rich people were ignorant. Very few men -except those who belonged to the Church studied at all. Thousands of the -rest could neither read nor write. - -Now very naturally the Church considered that _religion_ at least must -in some way be taught and explained to these masses of ignorant folk. -Whatever else they knew, or did not know, it was necessary that they -should understand the faith they professed. They called themselves -Christians, yet how were people who could not read, to learn even the -Bible stories, or anything at all about the teaching of Christ? - -“They might go to the churches,” you will say, perhaps, “where the Bible -would be read to them by the priests.” But _that_ would not do. For -remember that for hundreds of years after the Conquest the service was -always read in Latin, a language which very few people except lawyers, -priests, and scholars understood. No doubt, so far as they could, the -clergy privately explained the teaching of the Church to as many people -as they could reach. But thousands and thousands of them were never -reached privately at all. They just came to church on Sundays and on -Saints’ days, and went away without any real knowledge of what the -services meant. - -It was a difficult problem, yet the monks and clergy conquered it. They -thought of a way of teaching for which no books were necessary. A way -moreover, by which hundreds of people could learn at the same time, -merely by using their eyes and their ears. The life of Christ, the lives -of the Saints, the whole Bible history, they discovered, could be -_shown_ to the people in the form of plays or acted stories. The clergy -should write the plays, they agreed, and the clergy themselves should -act them! - -It was a clever idea, cleverly carried out. In various monasteries monks -began to write and to arrange such plays, to be acted in the churches on -special days, at special pauses in the service. - -At first the religious scenes they prepared were very simple, and -performed chiefly in dumb show. - -We know, for instance, of one little play that was acted about eight -hundred years ago in a church dedicated to S. Nicholas. - -Now the priests of that church were naturally anxious for the people in -their charge to know as much as possible about the saint—their own -special saint, whose name they mentioned every time they spoke of the -church. - -On the feast day of S. Nicholas therefore, before the service began, -they removed from its niche the stone image of the saint, and in its -place a priest stood, dressed as much like the statue as possible. - -That was the beginning of the story. The rest had to be explained by -acting. Not only was S. Nicholas the special saint of children, he was -also the protector of travellers, and the play was meant to show how -powerful he was in this respect, and what miracles he could work for -those who put their trust in him. - -The usual service was begun, and then, at a stated time, a pause was -made. The church doors were thrown open, and a priest dressed as a -traveller from a distant land, came in and bowed before the shrine of S. -Nicholas. The priest represented a heathen who had heard of the saint’s -power, and wanted to discover whether all he had been told was true. His -flowing robes and his jewelled turban showed the audience that he came -from a foreign land, and was not a Christian. Presently, from the folds -of his robe, this man took a rich treasure, and placing it at the feet -of the saint, told him that he was going on a journey, and prayed him to -guard the wealth he left in his keeping. Then he went his way out of the -church. - -But no sooner had he departed, than other priests dressed as robbers, -crept in, and stealing up to the shrine, took the treasure and hurried -away with their booty. Meanwhile, the heathen, who felt uneasy about -leaving his wealth in the saint’s care, returned to make quite sure of -its safety and finding the treasure gone, began to storm and rave. He -was proceeding to beat and insult the image, when to his amazement it -moved! Stepping down from the niche, it went out to seek the robbers who -were hidden just outside the church. So terrified were they at the -approach of a living saint when as they thought, only a statue had -watched their theft, that they immediately restored the treasure, and -tremblingly followed S. Nicholas into the church. The heathen, overjoyed -and full of awe and wonder, fell at the saint’s feet. Then S. Nicholas -bade him become a Christian, and worship the true God. - -So the play ended, and the interrupted service went on. - -Simple as it was, the little scene no doubt persuaded the congregation -that S. Nicholas was a great and powerful personage, and the impression -it made upon them was one they were not likely to forget, because of the -strange and interesting manner in which the lesson was taught. - -This is the first play we know anything about, but we may guess that -others more or less like it, began to be very popular, for we find from -old books—books written hundreds of years ago, that twice a year at -least, at Christmas and at Easter, the people were taught by means of -acting, two of the greatest events in the life of Christ. - -Let us try to imagine a Christmas Eve in Westminster Abbey, long ago, -when Henry III was king. The Abbey was not nearly so large then as it is -to-day, for much of it has been built since. Yet the central part was -finished, and six hundred years ago people looked up at some of the same -soaring arches, and leant against some of the same pillars as those we -now see in the beautiful church. - -The Abbey bells had been ringing for a long time, calling the Londoners -from their homes, and from the crooked narrow lanes of the city, through -the gates in the walls which then surrounded Westminster, there had come -flocking to the church a great crowd of gentle and simple folk. There -were merchants and shopkeepers, wearing hoods like jelly-bags with their -long points dangling at the back; ladies with strange fantastic -head-dresses; poor women and children muffled in cloaks; soldiers, -nobles, and monks of various orders. Some of them stood thronging the -aisles, others knelt on stools, or beside wooden benches. - -The church was dark and mysterious. Only on the altars, candles blazed -like golden stars, and above them the arches rose stretching up into the -gloom overhead. The air was full of a sweet heavy scent—the scent of -incense. - -Near the altar, surrounded by gleaming lights, the people could see a -rough cradle shaped like a manger, and beside it, dressed in long robes, -an image of the Virgin Mary. - -Then from the side-doors leading to the space about the altar, there -entered, in twos and threes, men dressed as shepherds, holding crooks, -and driving before them real sheep. They were followed by dogs, who kept -the flock together, running round them, and ordering them in the -wonderful way of sheep-dogs. Some of the shepherds lay down as though to -sleep. Others watched their flock, wide awake and talking amongst -themselves. - -Suddenly, while interested and curious the congregation looked on, a -blast of trumpets rang out, and before the startling sound had died -away, echoing through the aisles and the arches, an angel in a robe of -rose colour, with big white wings, appeared in the pulpit. Very sweet -and clear his voice sounded as he announced tidings of great joy. -_Christ was born in Bethlehem._ - -Then, somewhere from the darkness above, there followed, in a burst of -song, the voices of the angels. - -“Glory to God in the highest,” they sang, “and on earth, peace, good -will toward men.” - -Can you not imagine how the children gazed up through the gloom, -expecting to see the white-winged angels hovering down towards them? And -though the grown-up people knew that the music came from the singing -boys placed in a gallery high up over the windows, they too must have -felt that the message was a heavenly one, and many of them were filled -with awe. And now, when the beautiful voices were silent, the shepherds -began to crowd towards the altar. There, kneeling before the manger, -they adored the Baby and His Mother, and afterwards, walking in -procession through the church, past the watching crowd, they sang a hymn -of praise. - -This was the scene which in numberless churches all over England took -place six hundred years ago on Christmas Eve, and even now a memory of -it dwells at Christmas-time in many churches. - -Nearly every church in Roman Catholic countries gives up one of its -little chapels to a representation of the stable at Bethlehem. The -actors are no longer real, but figures of Joseph and Mary and the -shepherds take their place. - -In Italy, the Christmas “manger scene” in the churches is often very -elaborate. I remember one in a church just outside Florence, before -which there was always a crowd of little children staring in delight. -The whole of a tiny chapel was turned into a sort of cave or grotto, -with winding paths from the heights, down which came figures to -represent the Wise Men from the East, with toy camels and leopards -following them. In the midst of the grotto there was a straw-filled -manger, and in it lay the Baby Jesus. The Virgin Mary with clasped hands -knelt beside it, and Joseph, leaning on his staff, looked over her -shoulder at the Child. A group of shepherds with crooks knelt near the -Holy Family, while their woolly toy flocks were huddled round them. - -At Easter-time also, six hundred years ago, the people in England were -taught by means of acting that _Easter_ means the Resurrection of Christ -from the dead. - -Before the altar, a grave was prepared, and at a certain part of the -service, choristers, representing the women who went to the sepulchre, -walked up the aisle, bearing the spices and the ointments. When they -arrived at the grave, they found seated beside it an angel, who said, -“Why seek ye the living among the dead? He is not here, but is risen.” - -Then the story as it is told in the Bible went on, acted by the clergy, -till one of them, representing Christ Himself, appeared to the rest, -announcing that He had risen from the grave. At this point the whole -choir burst into songs of “Alleluia,” and the play ended. - -Like the “manger scene,” a memory of this old play persists in some -religious customs which still linger. In Italy, if you go to any of the -churches just before Easter, you will see in front of one of the altars -something that looks like a little garden of flowers. There are tubs of -blossoming shrubs; masses of tulips and daffodils and anemones, some in -pots, some in jars of water, and amongst the flowers you will find, cut -in wood perhaps, and painted to look as real as possible, the spear, the -nails, the cross—all the terrible things that were used at the -Crucifixion. And this little “arranged” plot of colour and scent is -called _The Sepulchre_. The Easter play is acted no more, but it is a -beautiful thought to make a _garden_ in memory of it, to show that death -is conquered. For the “sepulchre” holds not death, but life—the lovely -life of flowers. - -This, you see, is another way of teaching people the meaning of the -Resurrection. - - -The first plays, then, were religious plays, and they were acted in -churches. But soon they grew so popular, and so many people crowded to -see them, that the churches were not large enough to contain the throng, -and by degrees the custom grew up of acting them _outside_ the church, -so that they might be seen by a much larger audience than the building -itself could hold. - -From a very old play in which stage directions are given, we are able to -understand how the performance was arranged. The story of this play is -The Disobedience of Eve, and the loss of Paradise through her sin. - -Just below one of the windows of the church, supported by scaffolding, a -platform was put up. From this platform, steps led to a lower stage, and -there was a space between this under platform and the ground. - -Thus the church itself stood for Heaven. The first platform was -Paradise, the second Earth, and the space beneath it, Hell. So that when -God the Father descended from Heaven to walk in the garden of Paradise -“in the cool of the day,” the priest who represented Him, came from the -church window to the “Paradise” platform. And when Adam and Eve, having -tasted of the fruit, were driven out of the garden, they descended the -steps to the “Earth” stage, and at last to the space below which meant -Hell, where in the midst of clouds of smoke, and with great rattling of -chains, boys dressed as demons lay in wait for them. - -A play such as this must have been a quaint and curious sight, and to us -who live so many years after the people who gazed at it from some -churchyard long ago, it seems childish and even occasionally horrible. -But we are in many ways unlike those homely folk who used to stand -open-mouthed in amazement before such a scene. We have read many books, -and our ideas about religion have changed so much that it is difficult -to imagine how greatly acting, even of this sort, must have impressed -the simple minds of men and women who had read nothing, and were often -full of fears and superstitions. They were like little children who have -to be taught in a way that will fix and hold their attention. Just as a -tiny boy or girl is taught its letters with bright and highly coloured -picture-blocks. - -So far we have seen how these religious plays were at first acted in -churches, then came to be performed outside them. Now we shall discover -that a further change was presently to be made. As the years passed, -people began to expect more and more in the way of acting. They wanted -richer dresses for the players, more scenery, and bigger spaces for the -performances. Far from getting tired of these theatrical performances, -the taste for them grew, and greater and still greater throngs pressed -towards the churchyards every time a play was announced. You will -understand how disorder arose, and spread. Rough crowds spoilt the grass -in the churchyards, and trampled upon the graves, for the plays began to -be looked upon as amusements for a holiday, rather than as religious -ceremonies to be watched quietly and with reverence. So in time it was -felt that a churchyard was not a fit place for a boisterous throng. It -was too near the sacred building, which the people profaned with their -noise. - -Yet if the plays were removed from the surroundings of the church, it no -longer seemed fitting that priests should take part in them. Thus it -happened that by the end of the thirteenth century, about the time when -Edward I was king, the clergy had left off acting, except at -Christmas-time and at Easter, when, as usual, the Nativity scene, and -the scene of the Resurrection were performed in the churches. Every -other sort of religious play was henceforward acted by the _laity_ (that -is, by people who, whatever they may be by trade or profession, are not -clergy). So a class of men grew up who were paid for acting, and often -gained their living in this way alone; and though the plays they acted -were still religious plays, the cost of them was borne by rich people, -and they were by degrees made into grand performances, as we shall see. - -All through those years which are known as the Middle Ages it was the -custom for men who belonged to the same trade to form themselves into a -society, or _guild_ as it was called, to protect and help one another in -their own particular work. Each trade had its own guild, and its own -special saint as guardian. There was the Tanners’ Guild, the -Fishmongers’, the Carpenters’, the Armourers’, the Bakers’, and so -forth—too many of them to mention. Now many of these guilds in the -course of time had become very rich societies, and could afford to spend -a great deal of money upon anything that interested them. Plays -interested all the townsfolk immensely, and so even before the clergy -had quite left off acting in them, the guilds began to take the -management of these plays into their charge, paying the actors, -providing rich and costly dresses, such scenery as could in those days -be made, and everything in fact that is known as “stage property.” - -The priests still _wrote_ the stories, but the acting and the whole -management of them passed into the care of the rich guilds. - -_Miracle plays_ was the name given to these religious “acted stories,” -and very fortunately, four sets of Miracle plays have been found and -preserved, so that we can read the very words spoken by actors long ago -to audiences of eager and interested people. - -These four sets are the York, Wakefield, Chester, and Coventry plays. -Each “set” includes a great many plays—in the York collection, for -instance, there are forty-eight—and year after year from the reign of -Edward III to the time of Henry VII they were acted at the four towns -mentioned. Not in these towns alone either, but all over England; for if -a city had no plays of its own it borrowed one of the York, Chester, -Wakefield, or Coventry set. - -If we look at the York collection of Miracle plays, it will do as an -example of the rest. We find that it begins with the _Story of the -Creation of the World_, and all the chief stories of the Old and New -Testament follow in proper order. So that, even if he could not read, -any one who saw the whole series one after the other, would have a very -good idea of all the teaching of the Bible. - -Now let us in thought go back to the Middle Ages, and try to picture the -scene in some old market-place, soon after Whitsuntide, the time when -Miracle plays were generally acted. To help us to do this, let us -imagine how the sight of them impressed two out of the thousands of -children who with their parents went to see these plays. - - - - - II - How Colin and Margery kept the Feast of Corpus Christi - - -Colin and Margery were two children who, five hundred years ago, lived -in the country, not far from York. Their father, who had a little farm, -held his land from the great lord whose castle with its battlements and -turrets stood up proudly on a neighbouring hill, and sometimes the -children had seen him when, with a great company of followers, he went -hawking, and rode past their cottage. - -Now, except for the Lady Alicia, her young children, and a few -retainers, the castle stood empty. Its lord, with all his men-at-arms, -had gone to fight in the wars with France, for Henry V was king, and, -not content with ruling England, he wanted to be King of France as well. - -The children’s father, Farmer Short, was not rich, but neither was he -very poor. The cottage in which he lived with his wife and his little -son and daughter was in those days considered comfortable. - -It was built of stone, had low walls and a thatched roof, and the -kitchen, in which Colin and Margery slept, was paved with stone, and had -a wooden ceiling, which Farmer Short could easily touch with his hand. - -Neither Colin nor Margery went to school. There was no school nearer -than York, some miles distant; and though Margery was nine and Colin -ten, they did not even know their letters, and all their lives they -never learnt to read. But without going to school there was plenty to do -all day long. Colin had to look after the cows and to help his father in -the fields; and every morning, besides learning to help her mother in -the house, Margery was sent out on to the common to watch the geese, and -to drive them back if they strayed too far. - -One June evening both the children went to bed in a state of great -excitement. The next day was the Feast of Corpus Christi—a festival in -honour of the Lord’s Supper—and with their father and mother they were -to ride into York to see the Miracle plays. The last time they were in -church they had smiled at one another when they found it was Trinity -Sunday, because they knew that Corpus Christi would come on the -following Thursday, four days later. Now the great day was close at -hand, and, though they lay down on the little sacks of straw which -served them for beds, it was a long time before either of them slept. -Colin had once seen the plays, and his sister kept asking him questions -about them. What were they like? What did the people do? What did they -say? But Colin’s explanations did not satisfy her. He remembered a big -man dressed in bright clothes, who stamped and made a great noise, and -had a sword. He told her about angels with great white wings, and -something also about people with black faces and feathers and claws. But -Margery was very little the wiser; and presently, when she found her -brother’s voice growing drowsier and drowsier, she too curled round on -her straw bed and went to sleep. - -It was light when she awoke, though the sun had not yet risen; and, -jumping up, she shook Colin, who directly he could be made to understand -that the day had come, also leaped from his bed and began to struggle -with the great bars of the kitchen-door. Just as he managed to undo them -and to throw open the door to make quite certain that the morning was -fine, his mother, Mistress Short, came clattering down the steps that -led from the upper room right into the kitchen. - -She wore all her best things. A gown of grey material was looped high -over a girdle to show her red stockings and her buckled shoes. On her -head there was a white cap, indented over the forehead, and rising into -two wings on either side, while folds of linen were brought round her -neck under her chin. Over her arm she carried the children’s holiday -clothes, for this was a great occasion. The whole family was to spend -the day at the house of her husband’s sister, Mistress Harpham, a rich -glover’s wife in York, and Mistress Short was determined to make a good -appearance. - -Colin and Margery were soon dressed, and if no idea of much washing -occurred to them, you must remember that they lived hundreds of years -ago, when soap and water were not considered so necessary as they are -now. They dipped their heads indeed, into a trough of water in the -farmyard just outside, and rubbing their faces with a cloth, were ready -to have the finishing-touches put to their clothes. In his long -stockings and little brown tunic, Colin looked quite charming, and -Margery was very proud of her green frock looped up over a girdle like -her mother’s. Both children wore little capes of linen, to which a hood -was attached, to be buttoned under the chin or left hanging, according -to the state of the weather. - -Their mother had prepared a meal of cakes and ale, but they were almost -too excited to eat and drink, and it was not till their father, who had -gone to fetch the horses, appeared, riding on Dobbin and leading Jock, -that they could believe they were really going to start. - -Margery was soon seated in front of her father on Dobbin’s broad saddle, -and Colin rode with his mother on Jock, the other farm-horse; and so, -long before the sun rose, they ambled out of the yard into a lane which -led to the high road to York. - -The sky was clear, the larks were singing, and the wild roses in the -hedges were all wet with dew, as they rode under the arching trees. -Soon, however, they turned into the long white road, where already -groups of people, some on foot, some on horseback, others in wooden -carts, were wending their way to the city, whose walls and gates could -be seen in the distance. - -Before long they were joined by several friends, and a company of ten or -twelve jogged along together, discussing the probable events of the day. - -You might find it difficult to understand their conversation if you -could hear it now, for though these country people of course spoke -English, it was not the English of to-day. Though many of the words were -those we know well, there were others which have since fallen out of -use, or are pronounced differently; so if I put their talk into the -language to which we are accustomed, you must remember that though the -sense of it is the same, it was not spoken in just this way. - -“Whereabouts does the first play begin?” asked Farmer Short, who had not -been to the city for a whole year. - -“At the gates of the priory in Mikelgate,” said the man who rode next to -him. - -Master Brigg was a townsman on a visit to his country relations, with -whom he was journeying. - -“Next, at the door of Robert Harpham,” he went on. “Then at Skeldergate -End. After that, I don’t know. I’ve forgotten.” - -Colin pricked up his ears. - -“We shan’t have to wait long,” he whispered, leaning across to Margery. -“Aunt Harpham lives close to Mikelgate.” - -“And who plays the _Creation_ this year?” his father was asking. - -“The Plasterers,” replied Master Brigg. - -“And _Adam and Eve_?” - -“That I forget. But the Glovers have charge of _Cain and Abel_, and the -Shipwrights this year are giving _The Building of the Ark_.” - -“A good thought! ’Tis the best play for shipwrights!” declared the -farmer, laughing. “I’ll be bound they’ll see it built well and truly. -What of _The Shepherds’ Play_?” - -“The Chandlers have the care of that, and the Goldsmiths of _The Coming -of the Three Kings to Herod_.” - -“That’s the man I told you about,” cried Colin. “The man that stamped, -and talked loud, and had a sword.” - -“Oh, look!” interrupted Margery, excitedly. “We are coming quite close! -We shall soon be there!” And indeed, while they talked, the little -company had drawn near to the city, whose walls and frowning gates rose -up before them. In a very few minutes they had clattered under the -archway of Petergate, and the children found themselves in the city. - - - - - III - The Creation of the Angels, and the Fall of Lucifer - - -Margery, who had never been to any big town before, looked about her -with delight and amazement as they rode towards the inn where Dobbin and -Jock were to be left in the stables till the evening. The narrow streets -were paved with cobble-stones, and lined with houses which compared with -the little cottage at home, seemed to her marvellously grand and -imposing. They were built of plaster and timber, with gables curiously -carved, and as in many of them each story projected beyond the lower -one, the top windows on either side of the streets were close together, -so that opposite neighbours were near enough to shake hands. There was -such a crowd that the horses had to walk very slowly, pushing their way -amongst the people. Early as it still was, the whole city seemed to be -awake and astir, and the noise was deafening. Carts clattered over the -rough stones, their drivers shouting to the throng to make way. Boys -whistled and screamed, whips cracked; mothers called to their children -to keep close, and the whole crowd seemed to be moving in one direction. - -“They are going to Mikelgate; that’s where the first play begins,” -called Colin, looking back over his shoulder. “Oh, father, make haste! -We shall be late.” - -“Plenty o’ time! plenty o’ time!” declared Farmer Short. “Here we turn -in, at the sign of the ‘Dragon.’ Pull Jock’s head round, mother!” - -They had now reached an archway, and following a procession of other -horses and carts, they soon found themselves in the big courtyard of the -inn, which had a wooden gallery upon which the living-rooms of the first -floor opened, running along three sides of it. Above the gallery there -was another story, surmounted by gabled roofs, with carvings upon them -of curious birds and beasts and hobgoblins. The blue sky formed the -ceiling over the courtyard. - -A stableman ran to lift Margery from Dobbin’s back, and then to help -Mistress Short to dismount. Colin had slipped from the saddle by -himself, and his father following him, went to see that the horses were -as comfortably lodged as possible, for there were so many others that -there was scarcely room for them all in the stables. - -The children waited impatiently till he reappeared, for they were to go -on foot to the house of Mistress Harpham, near Mikelgate. - -“We shall be late! I know we shall be late!” Margery kept repeating till -her mother bade her be quiet. - -“It will take at least an hour for the first play to reach the house of -your Aunt Harpham,” she assured her. “It has but just begun at -Mikelgate.” - -But Margery was not happy till, having pushed their way out of the -throng in the courtyard, they found themselves on the way to their -kinswoman’s dwelling. - -Master Harpham’s house appeared very grand to the children. It had a big -carved doorway leading to the shop, and the rooms above seemed to them -magnificently furnished, with their big oak chests, and their -high-backed chairs with leather seats, and the ornamented beams across -the ceiling. Mistress Harpham, a stout, rosy-faced dame, greeted them -very kindly, and called to her son to come and be introduced to his -little cousins. - -“Giles is going to act!” she told them proudly. “But not yet. His turn -comes later. He is to be Isaac in the play of _Abraham’s Sacrifice_.” - -Colin and Margery looked with awe and amazement upon their cousin. He -was a pretty boy of twelve, with fair hair hanging to his shoulders, and -a pale, delicate little face. - -“Won’t you be frightened?” whispered Margery, gazing at him with -breathless interest. - -“No; not very,” he said, laughing. “I have been in the plays before. -Last year I was an angel.” - -“Take them to the window, Giles!” called his mother. “It’s time we were -in our seats. Little ones in the front; grown-ups at the back!” - -The room was by this time full of townsfolk, invited by the glover and -his wife, and the first-floor windows, as well as the upper ones, were -crowded with people in holiday dresses; the women in snowy wimples, and -gowns of many colours; the men in tunics of russet brown or dull green. - -Colin, Margery, and Giles sat on stools close to the window, and the -country children looked with interest at the scene before them. The -glover’s house was at the corner of the market-place, and the windows of -all the houses surrounding it were hung with gay cloths, and packed from -basement to roof with people. - -Below, in the cobble-paved square, with a babel of noise and confusion, -the poorer folk crowded. - -“There won’t be any room when the play _does_ come!” exclaimed Colin. - -“The heralds will clear the way,” said Giles. “Last night it was such -fun to watch them! They rode through all the town reading the -proclamation. That’s a warning, you know, for every one to behave -properly to-day.” - -“Oh, what did they say?” asked Margery, with interest. - -“Well, they came to the market-place here, on horseback, with trumpets, -and one man shouted at the top of his voice. Let me see. What did he -say? I believe I can remember some of it. It was like this.... _Oyez. -We command, on the King’s behalf, and the Mayor and the Sheriffs of this -city, that no man go armed in this city with swords nor Carlisle axes, -nor none other defences in disturbance of the King’s peace and the play, -or hindering of the procession of Corpus Christi, and that they leave -their harness in their inns...._ I forget the words that came next, but -they meant that each guild was to act its play in proper order. And that -all manner of craftsmen who were responsible for a play should employ -‘good players well-arranged and openly speaking’ upon pain of a fine. -And all that sort of thing, you know.” - -“I can’t think how you can remember it!” said Margery. - -“Oh, when you act, you have a great deal to learn by heart, so you -_must_ have a good memory,” returned Giles, airily. - -“Oh, look! look!” interrupted Colin. “Here they come! These are the -heralds, aren’t they?” - -There was a stir and a swaying in the crowd, and all the people at the -windows began to crane their necks to see three or four horsemen, who -came riding down a narrow side-alley into the market-place, scattering -the throng, which pressed back before them. Then a silence fell. - -“Oh, how beautiful they look!” Margery whispered. And indeed in their -tunics of blue and crimson, embroidered with gold, their horses also -decked in gay velvet trappings, the heralds, with their silver trumpets, -were quite magnificent. - -One of them, after a long blast on his trumpet, had by this time begun -to announce the plays. - - “Reverend lords and ladies all, - That at this time here assembled be,” - -he chanted, and then went on to mention the subject of each play, and -the special guild by which it was to be acted. - -The children exchanged delighted glances when the Parchment-makers’ and -Bookbinders’ Guild came in its place on the list, for in that play, -“Abraham sacrificing his son Isaac on an altar,” they were, of course, -specially interested. - -At last, with another blast from the trumpets, the heralds clattered -away. - -“The first pageant will be here in a minute,” said Giles. “It must be -nearly over at Mikelgate by this time. The heralds were late.” - -“What are all those flags for?” asked Colin. He was looking down into -the market-place, where a great square was marked out by gay banners -stuck at intervals into the ground between the cobble-stones. Each -banner had the arms of the city painted upon it, and all the flags -fluttered bravely in the wind. - -“They’re to mark the place where the pageant is to stand,” said Giles. -“It’s arranged like that all over the town. Wherever a platform is to be -placed, the banners are put to show the exact position.” - -“Is Giles telling you all about it?” asked Master Harpham, leaning over -the shoulders of his friends at the window to pat Margery’s head. “Aye! -aye! You ask him anything you want to know, and I’ll warrant he’ll have -an answer ready. A fine fellow at the pageants is Giles! The Town -Council chose him out of a score of others to play Isaac. Aye, that they -did!” he added proudly, turning to the women who crowded behind the -children. - -Margery looked up shyly at the big man, whom they had not seen before. -He had just come up from his shop in the basement to bring the news that -the first platform, or _pageant_, as every one called it, was on its -way; and now he was passing from group to group at the windows, greeting -his acquaintances in a loud, hearty voice, and inquiring whether every -one could see. - -“Did you have to practise a long time for Isaac?” asked Margery, who -could not get over her awe at the knowledge that Giles was one of the -players. - -“Oh, not so very long. We had about six rehearsals at the Town Hall. But -some of the people _were_ such a long time learning their parts!” said -Giles, sighing. - -“It’s coming! it’s coming!” cried Colin; and every one turned eagerly to -the window. - -Down below in the square there was a swaying amongst the crowd, and a -great murmur of expectation as at the corner of the market-place, a huge -object came into view, towering high above the heads of the people. It -was preceded by a body of young men, who pressed back the crowd with -clubs or with the flat sides of their swords, so as to clear the space -marked out by the banners. - -“Who are all these people with clubs and swords?” inquired Colin -excitedly, while Margery’s eyes were fixed on the swaying blue canvas -that was approaching. - -“They are the apprentices of the guild—the Tanners’ Guild, you -know”—Giles explained. “The apprentices of each guild have to keep the -crowd in order, and some of them have to drag the pageant along. Here -they come! That’s Master Smith pulling in front. We know him well. And -there’s Robin Coke next to him!” - -The throng in the market-place was now well enough ordered for the -pageant to be clearly visible, and the children saw a big wooden stage -of two platforms, one above the other. - -It ran upon huge wheels, and in front there were ropes, which were -passed round the waists of eight or ten men, who were pulling with all -their might. - -On it came, jolting over the cobble-stones of the market-square till the -men ceased to pull, and the double platform stopped just in front of the -window at which the children sat. - -The upper stage was just on a level with their eyes, and Margery clasped -her hands in delight. - -“We’ve got the best place of all!” she whispered to her brother. - -As yet the curtains of the upper platform were close drawn, and she had -time to look at the whole car before the play actually began. - -The lower half, she noticed, was all covered in by brightly-coloured -painted cloths, so that nothing of the interior could be seen. - -“That’s where the players dress,” Giles told her. “And there are -trap-doors and steps leading from it to the upper part, which is the -stage, you know. And——.” - -But the curtains were now pulled aside, disclosing what seemed to the -children a grand and beautiful scene. A canopy, painted deep blue to -represent the sky, stretched above the head of an imposing figure seated -upon a gilt throne. - -Those of you who have seen pictures of popes, can imagine the dress of -the player who represented Almighty God. He wore a mitre upon his head, -over hair that was made stiff with gold. His beard was also of stiff -gold, and his robes were magnificently embroidered and clasped with -jewels. In his hand he held a jewelled sceptre. The floor at his feet -was strewn with rushes, and at first there was nothing on the stage but -this stately figure, over-arched by the blue sky. - -Then he spoke, chanting in a grave full voice, so that the sound of it -reached over the market-place; and these were his words, put into the -kind of English we speak to-day. Below on this page you will find them -as they were then written. - - “I am gracious and great, God without beginning; - I am maker unmade, all might is in me; - I am life and way unto salvation winning; - I am foremost and first; as I bid shall it be. - My blessing of face shall be blinding, - And descending from harm to be hiding, - My body in bliss ever abiding, - Unending without any ending.” - - “I am gracyus and grete, God without you begynning; - I am maker unmade, all mighte es in me; - I am lyfe and way unto welth wynnyng; - I am foremaste and fyrste, als I bid sall it be. - My blyssing of ble sall be blending, - And held and fro harme to be hydande, - My body in blys ay abydande, - Une dande withouten any endyng.” - -Then, with other grave words, the Lord began the work of Creation. First -He brought into existence the angels, summoning them in nine orders of -rank and power, each order greater and more powerful than the last. One -after another they appeared from a platform at the back of the stage, -wearing coats of gilded skin, over which long robes hung to their feet. -Golden wings were fastened to their shoulders, and on their foreheads -diadems sparkled. - -Then, greatest of all, and more beautiful and resplendent than the rest, -came Lucifer. - -On him the Almighty conferred dignity and honour above all the other -spirits He had created. He was the Star of the Morning, the great and -splendid archangel. - -But Lucifer, filled with pride, soon began to contend before God. He -claimed still higher powers than those which had been granted him, -trying to make himself the equal of the Almighty. - -Then at last God spoke his sentence of banishment, and he and the angels -who worshipped him, were cast down from heaven. - -“_O Lucifer, Star of the Morning, how art thou fallen!_” is a beautiful -line in the Bible, which alludes to the disgrace and banishment which -the audience now saw acted before their eyes. - -Shortly after the fall of Lucifer, the curtains of the pageant closed -upon the scene of God enthroned, surrounded by the good angels singing -their praises to the one and only deity. - -Margery, who had looked and listened in amazed delight, drew a long -breath when this first play was over. Colin, no less excited, began at -once to talk and to ask questions. - -“Look! they are dragging the stage away!” he exclaimed, “There’s the man -you called Robin Coke, and there’s Master Smith, pulling with all his -might. Where are they going to take it now?” - -“In front of John Gyseburn’s door; that’s where it’s played next,” said -Giles. “That’s his son, Matthew Gyseburn, the lawyer,” he added, -pointing out a man who stood at the other window. - -“See!” called Margery. “Here comes another pageant. What is this, -Giles?” - -“Still the _Creation_. The earth is made now, and the birds and fishes -and all the animals. This is the Plasterers’ pageant. Yesterday John -Wiseman showed me all the pigeons he had got for it.” - -“Pigeons?” echoed Colin. - -“You’ll see,” said Giles, nodding. “I wonder whether I ought to go?” he -added, looking back anxiously at his mother. “They’ll be doing the third -play now at Mikelgate, as the second one has just reached us.” - -“Plenty of time,” declared Mistress Harpham, reassuringly. “You needn’t -go for another hour yet, my boy.” - -Meanwhile Colin and Margery were already absorbed in the second pageant, -which, drawn as before by men (this time by the Plasterers’ -apprentices), had stopped in the same place just beneath the window. - - - - - IV - The Making of Sun, Moon, and Stars: of Birds, Beasts, and Fishes: of - Man and Woman. The Garden of Eden - - -When the curtains were drawn aside, another figure, representing God -Almighty, was seen seated on a golden throne. When He spoke, it was to -bid the earth take shape; and as He uttered commands, various painted -cloths were unrolled, falling one over the other to form a background to -His throne. - -First, He commanded the light to be divided from the darkness. - -At the word, a curtain, half of which was black, the other half white, -fell from the canopy overhead down to the rush-strewn floor. - -When He bade two great lights appear, “the greater light to rule the day -and the lesser light to rule the night,” when “He made the stars also,” -a painted sky was unrolled with the sun, the moon, and the stars upon -it, and a picture of the sea, with fish swimming in it, followed the -words, “Let the waters bring forth abundantly the moving creature that -hath life.” - -“Now the birds are coming!” whispered Giles, just before the command -that fowl should “fly above the earth in the open firmament of heaven.” - -Almost as he spoke, a flight of pigeons rose into the air, first -fluttering a moment above the pageant, then wheeling off in many -directions, while the crowd watched them open-mouthed. - -“John Wiseman had them ready in a basket!” Giles eagerly explained. “He -is standing on the platform at the back of the stage, behind the sky, -you know; and he let them out just at the right moment, didn’t he? There -ought to have been a lot of other birds, but they are difficult to get. -You see what the direction says?”—he pointed to a page in a -parchment-covered book which he held, but Colin and Margery shook their -heads and looked with respect at their cousin, who could actually read! -They remembered that Giles was said to be a great scholar, and was -probably going to be a priest when he grew up. That, of course, -accounted for his learning. - -“I’ll read it to you,” said the boy, remembering that his cousins knew -nothing of books. “The words of the pageant are here, and all the stage -directions, just as Robert Crowe, who wrote out the play for the -Plasterers, has copied them. This is what it says about the birds—_Then -one ought in secret to put little birds flying in the air and alighting -upon the_ _earth with the most foreign birds that one is able to -procure._” - -“That’s all very well,” remarked Giles, closing the book; “but it’s -difficult. So they had to make pigeons do.” - -“But they were so pretty!” Margery said. She did not mind talking for a -little while now, for there were no more painted scenes to look at, and -she scarcely understood the speech which followed the command for -“cattle and creeping things, and beasts of the earth” to come into -existence. - -In a moment however, her attention was again arrested, for the curtains -were drawn, the pageant was pulled away, and, before it had disappeared, -a new one, the third, had come into sight. - -“This is the _Cardmakers’_ play,” said Giles, consulting his pageant -book. “It is about God the Father creating Adam and Eve.” - -“Cardmakers?” Margery asked, rather puzzled at the name. As a country -child she did not know all the trades of the town guilds. - -“They are the people who make the cards for the wool to be combed on, -before it is made up into stuffs, you know,” Giles told her. - -“Then comes the _Fullers’_ play,” he went on, reading from the book, -“God forbidding Adam and Eve to eat of the Tree of Life. Afterwards the -_Coopers_ do Adam and Eve in the Garden of Eden; and the serpent -deceiving them with apples; and God speaking to them and cursing the -serpent, and with a sword driving them out of Paradise.” - -“Come, children! you must be hungry!” called Mistress Harpham at this -moment. “Come and have something to eat.” - -Margery turned reluctantly from the window, where, on the scaffolding, -the third play was just beginning; and her aunt laughed. - -“Bless the child! You can’t sit looking at the pageants all day without -food!” she exclaimed. “There are plenty more of ’em in all conscience. -Come along now. Giles will have to go when he’s eaten something. He must -soon be starting for his play.” - -By this time all of the guests were seated at trestle-tables, which had -been placed at the back of the room and spread with all sorts of food. -There were huge joints, and fat capons, and plenty of ale, to which the -guests did ample justice. - -Colin and Margery, with Giles between them, were squeezed in at one of -the tables, and soon discovered that they were very hungry. There was a -great clattering of plates and knives, and a babel of conversation. The -pageants already seen, were criticized, praised, or condemned, and -compared with those of the preceding year; and all the guests politely -declared how they were looking forward to the play of the -Parchment-makers and Bookbinders, the guild to which their host -belonged. - -“How is it that Giles is allowed to be here, and not with his company?” -inquired the grave but kind-looking man whom Giles had pointed out as -Matthew Gyseburn, the lawyer. - -“The council gave him special permission to stay at home till the fifth -pageant was on its way,” explained his mother. “My husband is an -important man on the Town Council, as you know,” she added proudly. “And -you see, Giles isn’t a _paid_ player! He acts for the love of it—bless -him. And he’s none too strong,” she added, lowering her voice. “Those -hours of waiting would make him ill. But as soon as ever this Coopers’ -pageant moves off, his father will take him to join his company and help -him to dress.” - -“Are you going?” asked Margery sadly, as Giles got up from the table. -“I’m so sorry. There won’t be any one to tell us all about it now, and I -shan’t understand!” - -“You shall sit by me, little mistress and master,” said the good-natured -lawyer, smiling. “I’ll do my best to make up for Giles. Here, boy! leave -me the ‘pageant-book,’ in case I’m asked more questions than I know how -to answer.” - -Giles gave him the book, and, then anxiously pulling his father by the -arm, forced him to get up. - -“So afraid he’ll be late!” cried Master Harpham, laughing. “There’s -heaps of time; but perhaps we’d better be starting.” - -“Will you ever get through the crowd?” asked a woman anxiously. - -“Oh, we know all the backways; don’t we, Giles? We shall slip along the -side-alleys in no time, up to where his pageant is waiting. See you -again, neighbours!” He nodded to the company, and, pushing Giles before -him, went out. - -“May we go to the window now?” begged Margery, who could hear the -players talking, and was longing not to miss too many of the plays. - -“To be sure, my dears, if you have had enough to eat,” said Mistress -Harpham. - -The children ran to their places, and found the Coopers’ play going on. - -This pageant, they noticed, had _three_ rooms or stages one beneath the -other. On the highest, or Heaven stage, sat God Almighty; beneath it, in -the Garden of Eden, were Adam and Eve; and the third, still lower stage, -represented Earth. - -But the children’s attention was riveted on the second stage, round -which branches of trees and flowers were placed to represent a garden. -In the midst was the Tree of Life, with golden fruit upon it, and in the -shadow of the tree there was a strange group. Adam and Eve, both of whom -were played by tall boys dressed in close-fitting skins dyed -flesh-colour, were talking to a huge serpent who, coiled round the trunk -of the tree, was tempting them. - -“There must be some one speaking inside him,” exclaimed Margery. “He’s -big enough to hide a boy at least—isn’t he?” - -“Hush!” said Colin; “listen to what he’s saying.” - -The serpent’s great head was turned towards Eve, and his voice was full -of persuasion. “Ye shall not surely die!” he told her; “for God doth -know that in the day ye eat thereof then your eyes shall be opened, and -ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.” - -Then Eve looked longingly at the golden fruit, and hesitated. - -“She’s going to pick it!” whispered Margery. - -“Yes! look! She has broken off a branch, and she’s giving the fruit to -Adam. Now she’s talking to him.” - -“And now they’re eating the apples!” cried Colin; “and God will be -angry! They know He will be angry. See, they’re hiding themselves. They -can hear His voice!” - -And presently, while they watched, God Almighty came down the steps -which led from Heaven to Paradise, and entered the garden. Here he -questioned Adam and Eve, and afterwards turned to the serpent and cursed -him. Then, holding a flashing sword above the heads of the guilty man -and woman, He told them of their punishment; and finally drove them -weeping from the garden, down to the earth, upon which they were -henceforth to live. - -The Armourers’ pageant was by this time waiting its turn at the corner -of the market-place, and when the Coopers’ scaffold was dragged away it -speedily took its place. - -“Now we shall see Adam and Eve’s life on the earth,” said the lawyer, -who had come to the window, and was standing just behind the children. - -The curtains before the stage were drawn back, and Adam and Eve, no -longer happy and light-hearted, were seen on the earth, where henceforth -they had to work in sorrow and suffering. As they sadly talked together, -an angel with golden wings appeared to them. To Adam he gave a spade, -bidding him till the ground, and to Eve a distaff, commanding her to -work for her household. - -The Glovers’ play came next. The characters in it were Cain and Abel, -and the story told of the murder of Abel by Cain, and of Cain’s -punishment. - -It was all very interesting to the children, but they were looking -forward so eagerly to the following pageant that they could not refrain -from glancing every now and again towards the corner of the market-place -at which it would appear. - -Noah’s ark was the subject, and the lawyer, Master Gyseburn, had told -them it would be an amusing play. - -It did not seem strange to any of the people assembled that a few of the -plays should be written on purpose to make the audience laugh. It had -long been the custom to make into comic scenes one or two of the Bible -stories in which no sacred characters appeared. The monks who wrote the -plays remembered how long and how patiently the crowd had to stand, and -they thought that if the people sometimes laughed, their attention would -be kept fresh for the more serious part of the Bible teaching. - -So Colin and Margery heard without surprise and with joyful anticipation -that Noah’s wife would be very funny. They were exceedingly anxious also -to see the ark, which Master Gyseburn described as a wonderful piece of -work. - -There was altogether a good deal of excitement about the two following -plays, and much conversation concerning them went on amongst the guests -assembled at Master Harpham’s. - -“They are not our plays—the York plays—at all, are they?” asked a pretty -young girl who sat near Margery. - -“No,” returned a neighbour; “I hear they are both borrowed from Chester, -because they are better than our own pageants.” - -“’Tis very fitting that Noah’s ark should be performed by the -Shipwrights and Mariners!” said Master Gyseburn. “If they don’t -understand seafaring business, who should?” - -“Here it comes!” shouted Colin, and every one gazed eagerly at the -approaching pageant, which was drawn by the Shipwrights’ apprentices. - - - - - V - Noah’s Ark - - -It paused, as usual, just beneath Master Harpham’s window. - -“Why, there’s no ark!” exclaimed Margery, in a disappointed tone. - -“Wait a bit!” Colin warned her. “It’s behind those curtains at the back, -I expect. Noah has first to be told to build it, you see.” - -Colin was right, for the play began with God’s announcement to Noah that -the Deluge was approaching, and His command that a ship should be built. - -Then Noah, a venerable old man with a long white beard, praised God for -the warning, and spoke as follows: - - “O Lorde, I thank Thee lowde and still, - That to me arte in suche will, - And spares me and my howse to spill, - As I now southly [truly] fynde. - Thy byddinge, Lorde, I shall fulfill, - And never more Thee greve nor grill [provoke] - That such grace hath sent me till, - Amongst all mankinde.” - -Noah’s sons and their wives now entered, and the old man turned to them -and told them of the flood that was coming: - - “Have done, you men and women all, - Hye you, lest this watter fall - To worche [work] this shippe chamber and hall - As God hath bidden us doe,” - -he said. - -For the first time now, Noah’s wife came in, and her appearance was -greeted by a roar of laughter from the crowd in the market-place and at -the windows. The people understood that she was meant to be a very -bad-tempered lady, and both her dress and her face were meant to make -them laugh. The part was of course acted by a man (no woman ever acted -in those days), and the player was a good actor whom every one knew. - -At first the wife did not speak, though all the time her behaviour was -amusing. Meanwhile the sons declared themselves ready to help with the -ark. - - “Father” (said Shem), “I am already bowne [prepared], - An axe I have, by my croune! - As sharp as any in all this toun - For to go thereto.” - -Then Ham spoke: - - “I have a hatchet, wonder keen - To bite well, as may be seen, - A better ground one, as I ween, - Is not in all this toun.” - -Japhet also intended to do his best: - - “And I can well make a pin, - And with this hammer knock it in, - Go and work without more din, - And I am ready bowne [prepared].” - -But Noah’s wife at once showed by her grumbling speech that she was -obstinate, and did not intend to do much work: - - “And we shall bring timber too, - For women nothing else to do; - Women be weak to undergo - Any great travail,” - -she declared. - -At last, to the children’s delight, the curtains at the back of the -stage parted, and they saw the ark. It was already very substantially -built, for of course in the few minutes at the actors’ disposal they -could do no more than _pretend_ to hammer and plane and saw. Indeed all -the time that it was not in use, this ark hung in one of the churches in -York, slung to the beams across the nave, from which place of safety it -was every year taken down to do duty in the pageant. - -Margery and Colin gazed with admiration upon the big ship, which was -very much like the Noah’s arks we see nowadays in the toy-shops, only of -course enormously larger. It was roofed in at the top, and gaily -painted. There were little windows along the sides that opened and -showed glimpses of rooms within. A mast with sails and rigging appeared -above the roof, and altogether a more satisfactory and interesting ark -can scarcely be imagined. - -Noah and his sons began at once to work very busily, as though they were -really building, Noah in these words explaining all there was to do: - - “Now in the Name of God I will begin - To make the ship that we shall in, - That we be ready for to swim - At the coming of the flood. - These boards I join together, - To keep us safe from the weather, - That we may roam both hither and thither, - And safe be from this flood. - Of this tree will I have the mast, - Tied with cables that will last. - With a sail-yard for each blast, - And each thing in its kind. - With topmast high and bowsprit, - With cords and ropes I hold all fit - To sail forth at the next weete [tide] - This ship is at an end.” - -The ark, now finished by the pretended labours of the men, Noah turned -to his wife and family. - - “Wife” (he said), “in this castle we shall be kept; - My children and thou I would in leaped.” - -But Noah’s wife immediately began to show her temper. She had been -looking all the time with scorn upon the building of the ship, and -laughing with her neighbours, or “gossips,” as she called them, to see -her husband and her sons working, as she considered, so foolishly; and -when Noah begged her to come into safety, this was her contemptuous -answer: - - “In faith, Noe, I had as lief thou had slept, - For all thy frankishfare [nonsense], - For I will not do after thy rede [advice].” - - “Good wife, do as I thee bid,” - -said Noah, coaxingly. - - “By Christ not, or I see more need, - Though thou stand all the day and rave,” - -she replied, while the crowd broke into roars of laughter to see the -husband and wife quarrelling. - - “Lord, that women be crabbed ay!” - -exclaimed Noah, amid fresh laughter, - - “And never are meek, that I dare say. - This is well seen of me to-day, - In witness of you each one. - Good wife, let all this beere [noise] - That thou makest in this place here; - For they all ween thou art master, - And so thou art, by St. John!” - -But here, in order to attend to the various animals which had to be -taken into the ark, Noah was obliged to cease arguing for a time; and -the way in which this difficult business of the animals was represented, -greatly amused and interested the children. - -Each of Noah’s sons and daughters-in-law mentioned the names of many -birds and beasts, and as they named them, they held up great figures -painted on parchment, and cut out to represent the various creatures of -which they spoke. - -_Shem_ began the list: - - “Sir, here are lions, leopards in, - Horses, mares, oxen, and swine, - Goats, calves, sheep, and kine - Here sitten [settled] may you see.” - -“Oh, look at the lion!” exclaimed Margery. “Isn’t he beautiful? And the -pig, Colin! Did you ever see such a fat pig in your life?” - -_Ham_ had now begun to show the animals in his charge: - - “Camels, asses, men may find; - Buck, doe, hart, and hind,” - -he chanted, holding up the figure of each beast before putting it in the -ark. - - “Take here cats and dogs too (said _Japhet_), - Otter, fox, fulmart also; - Hares hopping gaily, can ye - Have kail here for to eat.” - -Presently also Noah’s wife, very scornfully laughing, showed _her_ -animals: - - “And here are bears, wolves set, - Apes, owls, marmoset; - Weasels, squirrels, and ferret, - Here they eat their meat,” - -she said. - -Shem’s wife then went on with the list of creatures, first exclaiming at -their number: - - “Yet more beasts are in this house! - Here cats come in full crowse [comfort], - Here a rat and here a mouse, - They stand nigh together.” - -Margery wondered how the cats would get on with the rats and mice, but -Shem’s wife offered no explanation, and immediately after her followed -the wife of Ham: - - “And here are fowls, less and more (she declared), - Herons, cranes, and bittern; - Swans, peacocks, have them before! [in front] - Meat for this weather.” - - “Here are cocks, kites, crows (said Japhet’s wife), - Rooks, ravens, many rows; - Cuckoos, curlews, whoso knows, - Each one in his kind. - And here are doves, ducks, drakes, - Redshanks, running through the lakes— - And each fowl that language makes - In this ship men may find.” - -At length, after the animals had all gone safely into the ark, Noah, to -the huge delight of the crowd, turned again to his wife, and once more -began to urge her to enter. - - “Wife, come in, why standest thou there? (he entreated). - Thou art ever forward, that I dare swear; - Come on God’s half [behalf], time it were, - For fear lest that we drown.” - -But the foolish woman could not be persuaded. Nothing would induce her -to enter the ark, she declared, unless her “gossips” were allowed to -come too; and that, as we know from the story of the Flood, was -forbidden, since only Noah and his family were allowed to embark. - - “Yes, sir; set up your sail (said she), - And row forth with evil heale, - For without any fail - I will not out of this town; - But I have my gossips every one, - One foot further I will not go. - They shall not drown, by S. John! - If I may save their life. - They loved me full well, by Christ! - But thou wilt let them in thy chest, - Else row forth, Noah, whither thou list, - And get thee a new wife.” - -“It’s rather nice of her to want to save her friends, though—isn’t it?” -exclaimed Margery, who was breathlessly interested. - -“I don’t believe she cares a bit about them, really,” said Colin. “She -only wants to be obstinate, and to make a fuss.” - -“Now what are they doing? Will she be left behind?” asked Margery, -anxiously. - -“No,” said Master Gyseburn. “You see, Noah is sending his sons to make -her go in. Listen to what Japhet says. He is just going to speak to -her.” - - “Mother (begged Japhet), we pray you altogether, - For we are here, your children; - Come into the ship for fear of the weather.” - -“She won’t go! she won’t go!” cried Margery. - -“Noah’s sending Shem to her again! There! he’s lifted her right in!” -Colin exclaimed. “Oh, isn’t she angry!” - -The people all round were laughing so much by this time, that the -children could only just hear Shem’s words as he carried his mother up -the plank into the ark: - - “In faith, mother, yet you shall, - Whether you will or not!” - - “Welcome, wife, into this boat!” (cried Noah.) - - “And have, then, that for thy note!” [trouble] - -she returned, boxing her husband’s ears. - -At this outbreak the crowd again shouted with laughter, and went on -laughing still more when Noah put his hands to his ears, moaning and -complaining. By degrees, however, as the flood was supposed to rise -higher and higher, he and his wife were quieted. - - “Over the land the water spreads! (Noah explained.) - Now all this world is in a flood, - As I see well in sight, - This window will I close anon, - And into my chamber will I gone.” - -The children eagerly watched him as, one after one, he closed the -windows of the ark, shutting in all the little company of people and all -the beasts and birds that were to be saved. - -“Now you must imagine that the ark is floating on the water!” said -Master Gyseburn, smiling at Colin and Margery, who found no difficulty -at all in doing so. “The windows will be shut for a little while, and we -have to pretend that forty days have passed before Noah opens them -again. Soon we shall hear him singing, and then we shall see him once -more.” - -In a few moments, indeed, voices were heard within the ark, upraised in -a psalm of praise; and when it was ended the windows were slowly slipped -back, and at one of them stood Noah, a leaden weight fastened to a long -cord in his hand. - -“What’s that for?” asked Colin. “What is he going to do?” - -“Ah! he’s going to ‘cast the lead’ in proper fashion, just as sailors do -when they want to find out how deep the sea is,” explained Master -Gyseburn. “Don’t forget that this is the Shipwrights’ pageant, and they -are learned in all seafaring business, as you may imagine.” - -“Yes! he’s unwinding the line!” cried Colin; “and I suppose he finds -that the water has gone down? He can see the tops of the mountains -now—can’t he?” - -“The _whole_ of the mountains, I should think!” returned Master -Gyseburn, laughing. “Listen! he’s going to speak.” - - “Now forty days are fully gone (Noah began), - Send a raven I will anon; - If aught were earth, tree, or stone, - Be dry in any place. - And, if this fowl come not again, - It is a sign, sooth to say, - That dry it is, on hill and plain, - And God hath done some grace.” - -“Oh! he’s going to let out a _real_ raven!” said Margery joyfully. “What -a big black thing! Look, how he’s clapping his wings!” - -“There!—now he’s flown!” exclaimed Colin. “He’s gone right over the -roofs of those houses opposite. See how the people are staring after -him. _He’ll_ never come back again!” - -“But the dove will!” declared Margery excitedly. “Noah’s going to let a -dove fly now. He’s talking to him—see!” - - “Thou wilt turn again to me, - For of all fowls that may fly - Thou art most meek and hend [kind],” - -said Noah, as he threw the bird up into the air. - -“It won’t be the _same_ bird that comes back—will it?” asked Colin, -looking up at Master Gyseburn, who smiled again. - -“No—there’s another dove already fastened with a cord from the top of -the stage. We shall see it in a minute!” And, sure enough, while he was -speaking, the bird came fluttering down, almost into Noah’s hands. - -“Oh! it’s got the olive-branch in its beak!” exclaimed Margery. “That -shows that the trees are out of the water—doesn’t it?” - -“Yes; listen—then you will hear Noah saying that the flood has gone -down.” - - “By this sight I well may say, - This flood begins to cease (Noah was declaring). - My sweet dove to me brought has - A branch of olive from some place; - This betokeneth God has done us some grace, - And is a sign of peace.” - -By this time all the windows in the ark were open, disclosing the whole -family, including Noah’s wife, who looked much subdued. - -“She’s glad she’s saved now!” Margery remarked. “Look!—they’re all -coming out, and God is talking to them.” - -“He is promising that the rainbow shall be a sign from heaven that the -earth shall never more be drowned,” said Master Gyseburn. “It’s all over -now. Look!—the men are dragging the pageant away to the next -halting-place.” - -“And _now_ it’s Abraham and Isaac!” said Margery joyfully. - - - - - VI - The Story of Abraham and of Isaac - - -Both the children looked anxiously in the direction from which all the -pageants coming from the gates of the Priory, approached the -market-place. - -“It isn’t in sight yet!” said Colin in surprise, for hitherto one -pageant had followed swiftly upon another. - -“Oh! but here’s a man on horseback, dressed _splendidly_!” Margery -cried. “What is he going to do?” - -“He’s part of the play,” Master Gyseburn explained. “He is a messenger -who is going to tell us what it’s all about.” - -By this time the rider, who came from a side-street, was clattering over -the stones of the market-place. Just beneath the window he drew up his -horse, and, raising his plumed cap, began in these words to address the -multitude: - - “All peace, Lordings, that be present, - And hearken now with good intent - How Noah away from us he went - With all his company; - And Abraham, through God’s grace - He is come forth into this place, - And you will give him room and space - To tell you his storye. - This play, forsooth, begin shall he, - In worship of the Trinity, - That you may all hear and see - What shall be done to-day. - My name is Gobbet-on-the-Green, - No longer here I may be seen; - Farewell, my Lordings, all by dene [in haste] - For letting [hindering] of your play.” - -Setting spurs to his horse, the messenger, a brilliant figure in a -doublet of sapphire blue laced with gold, and long crimson hose, rode -away, disappearing at the opposite corner of the market-place from that -at which he had entered. - -And now another figure came into view, also riding. - -This was a stately man in long robes, wearing a curious turban of linen. - -“Is that Abraham?” asked Colin. “But where is Isaac?” - -“He doesn’t come yet,” answered Master Gyseburn. “The story, you see, -begins long before Isaac is born. Abraham has just returned from his -victory over the four kings. Listen! He is explaining how the kings took -his nephew Lot prisoner, and how he released him, and conquered the -kings.” - -“Now there’s another man coming on horseback!” said Margery. “Oh! look -how beautifully he is dressed, with rubies on his gown, and on the thing -that comes over his forehead. Who is he?” - -“That’s Melchizedek, King of Salem, and priest of the Most High God. He -is coming to bless Abraham for conquering the kings, and to give him -bread and wine.” - -“Yes! A servant is holding up a golden cup to him and a golden plate!” -said Colin. “And now he’s going to give the bread and wine to Abraham, I -suppose.” - -This duly happened as Colin had guessed, for Melchizedek, reining up his -horse close to Abraham, began to speak, offering him presently the -golden cup and platter: - - “Abraham, welcome must thou be, - God’s grace is fully in thee; - Blessed ever must thou be - That enemies so can make. - I have brought, as thou may’st see, - Bread and wine for thy degree; - Receive this present now from me, - And that I thee beseke [beseech].” - -Then Abraham, taking the bread and wine, answered in this fashion: - - “Sir King, welcome in good say, - Thy present is welcome to my pay. - God has helped me to-day, - Unworthy though I were. - He shall have part of my prey - That I won since I went away. - Therefore to thee thou take it may, - The tenth I offer thee.” - -At this moment a horse richly laden with all sorts of precious gifts of -gold and silver and jewels was led forward by a page. The beautiful -animal had splendid harness and trappings upon him, and he walked -proudly as though conscious of the royal presents he brought. - -Melchizedek accepted the gift and, after further talk with Abraham, rode -away, followed by his servants, who led the laden steed. - -Abraham now wheeled his horse aside to make room for the messenger, who -rode into the cleared space, and once more addressed the audience. In a -long speech he explained to the people that the scene they had just -witnessed was a sort of parable, and meant the Holy Communion, the Bread -and Wine commemorating Christ’s sacrifice for the world. - -So far the pageant or wooden stage had not been used at all. All the -characters had come riding in to act their parts. But now the platform -which stood waiting in the background, was drawn into the midst of the -open space, and the rest of the play took place as usual, upon it. - -First God the Father appeared, and Abraham entreated Him to send him a -child to be his heir. The Almighty promised to grant his request, laid -various commands upon him, and told him that his descendants should be -as the stars of heaven for number; and the scene ended with Abraham -kneeling to bless and thank the Lord for His mercy. - -The curtains were now drawn, and before they were once more unclosed, -the messenger again rode up, and explained to the people how some of the -commands which God had just given to Abraham pointed to and foreshadowed -the Sacrament of Baptism, which followed the birth of Christ. - -When he had ridden away, and the curtains of the pageant again swung -back, the children grew very excited, for almost the first words of the -scene told them that Isaac might soon be expected to appear. - -“You see,” said Master Gyseburn, “that some years are supposed to have -passed between the last scene and this. God’s promise has been -fulfilled, and Abraham now has a son. Listen!” - -Abraham was alone on the stage, but just as Master Gyseburn finished -speaking, God’s voice was heard: - - “Abraham, My servant Abraham!” - - “Lo, Lord, already here I am,” - -replied Abraham. - - “Take Isaac thy son by name,” - -the voice continued, - - “And in sacrifice offer him to Me - Upon that hill, beside thee. - Abraham, I will that it so be - For aught that may befall.” - -Though almost stunned with grief at the command, Abraham at once -declared himself ready to obey the Lord. He said that all his household -should remain at home except Isaac, with whom he would go to the -appointed hill. - -By this time Mistress Harpham was leaning anxiously over the children’s -shoulders, for she knew that Giles in the character of Isaac was waiting -to come on to the stage. All the guests were also very excited and full -of expectation. - -“It’s well that the boy acts with so good a man as Master Eliott!” -exclaimed a woman who stood close to her hostess. - -“Aye! John Eliott is a rare good player!” answered Mistress Harpham -nervously. “We’ve never had a better ‘Abraham’ than he makes, and he’s -taken such pains with Giles too, teaching him and training him for the -part.” - -“There he is! There he is!” cried Margery, as a pretty, delicate little -figure in a linen tunic entered. “Oh! _doesn’t_ he look nice!” - -And indeed, with his fair curly hair and sweet face, Giles made quite a -touching little Isaac. - -“Hush! Hush! Abraham is speaking,” Master Gyseburn reminded her. - -“Make thee ready, my darling,” he was saying in a voice which made -Margery feel as though she wanted to cry: - - “Make thee ready, my darling, - For we must do a little thing; - This wood upon thy back you bring, - We must not long abide. - A sword and fire I will take, - For sacrifice I must make; - God’s bidding will I not forsake, - But ay obedient be.” - -There was a deep silence in the crowd, as speaking in a very clear, -gentle voice, Isaac made reply: - - “Father, I am all ready - To do your bidding meekly; - To bear this wood full bound am I - As you command me.” - -Abraham then in trembling tone gave a blessing to his son, whose look of -bewilderment and growing fear brought tears to the eyes of some of the -women at the window. - -Then, after the old man had bound the wood on the boy’s back, he was -suddenly overcome with misery. - - “Oh! my heart will break in three, - To hear thy words I have pity,” - -he exclaimed. But the cry of despair was immediately followed by - - “As thou wilt, Lord, so must it be.” - -Still wondering and afraid, Isaac spoke: - - “Are you anything adread? (he asked) - Father, if it be your will, - Where is the beast that we shall kill?” - -And when Abraham told him that he saw no animal at all, the boy went on -in a shaking voice: - - “Father, I am full sore afraid - To see you bare this naked sword. - I hope for all middle-yard [instead of any creature from the - farmyard], - You will not slay your child?” - -Then the father, who could not bear to detect the fear in his boy’s -voice, tried to comfort him by saying that the Lord would surely provide -some beast that might be slain for the sacrifice. But Isaac was not -satisfied. He begged the old man to tell him whether any evil would -happen to him, and at the entreaty Abraham could no longer hide his -terrible grief, but broke into wild words. - - “Ah, dear God, that me is woe! - Thou bursts my heart in sunder,” - -he exclaimed, wringing his hands; and finally, when Isaac again implored -him to hide nothing from him, he told the dreadful truth. - - “O Isaac, Isaac, I must thee kill!” - -he cried. - -Then poor little Isaac went down on his knees and entreated his father -to spare him: - - “Alas! father,” he sobbed, “is that your will, - Your own child here for to spill - Upon this hill’s brink? - If I have trespassed in any degree - With a rod you may beat me; - Put up your sword, if your will be, - For I am but a child.... - Would God my mother were here with me! - She would kneel upon her knee, - Praying you, father, if it might be, - For to save my life.” - -By this time Mistress Harpham was crying, and so were many other mothers -in the crowd, while they listened to the boy’s voice, and the words of -Abraham as he explained to his son that this terrible thing must come to -pass because it was God’s command. - -Isaac listened, and, forgetting himself, tried very sweetly to comfort -his poor father, begging him not to linger, but to do the deed quickly. - -“Father, tell my mother of nothing,” he implored, anxious to spare her -the knowledge of his fate; and then he asked that a handkerchief might -be tied over his eyes to prevent him from seeing the flash of the sword. - -Most of the women hid their own eyes while poor little Isaac was bound -and laid upon the altar; when the boy spoke again, for the last time, -they sobbed aloud. - - “Now, father, I see that I shall die! - Almighty God in Majesty, - My soul I offer unto Thee; - Lord, to it be kind.” - -Margery could not look when Abraham, snatching up the sword, held it -high over the child’s head, and it was only when she heard a gentle -voice that she dared to take her hands from her eyes. - - “Abraham, My servant dear!” - -“Look up! He’s not going to be hurt,” whispered Colin. “The angel has -come. _Two_ angels!” - -With great relief Margery gazed at them. They were beautiful, she -thought, with their long golden wings, and their white gowns; and she -loved them for coming to save poor little Isaac. - -She saw that Abraham had dropped his sword, and she heard his trembling -voice saying, - - “_Lo, Lord! I am already here._” - - “Lay not thy sword in any manner - On Isaac, thy dear darling!” - -replied one of the gracious angels, while the other pointed to a ram -which was struggling in a thicket of bushes close by, and bade Abraham -sacrifice the animal instead of his only son. - -Then Abraham rejoiced, and offered praise to God: - - “Ah, Lord of heaven, and King of bliss! - Thy bidding I shall do, I wis; - Sacrifice here to me sent is, - And all, Lord, through Thy grace. - A hornèd wether here I see, - Among the briars tied is he. - To Thee offered it shall be - Anon, right in this place.” - -Margery drew a long breath when, just before the curtains were closed, -she saw Abraham unbinding and embracing his poor little son. But even -then the play was not quite over, for again the messenger rode forward, -and, placing himself in front of the pageant, explained to the audience -that Isaac was a type of Christ, and that the sacrifice was meant to -foreshadow His death upon the Cross. These were the words of his -message: - - “Lordings, the signification - Of this deed of devotion, - An you will, it is shown, - May turn you to much good. - This deed you see done in this place, - In example of Jesus done it was, - That for to win mankind grace - Was sacrificed on the rood. - By Abraham you may understand - The Father of heaven that can fand [find means] - With His Son’s blood to break that band - The devil had brought us to. - By Isaac understand I may - Jesus Who was obedient ay, - His Father’s will to work alway, - His death to undergo.” - - - - - VII - The Shepherds’ Play - - -Many were the exclamations of wonder and delight at the performance, and -many the congratulations to the parents of the little actor, when _The -Sacrifice of Isaac_ passed on its way to the next halting-place. Indeed -so excited and talkative were the guests at the house of Master Harpham, -that the four following pageants received little attention from them. - -“The poor child will be worn out before evening comes!” declared the -women again and again, and Giles’ mother agreed. “Though he so loves -playing,” she said, “that I don’t think he feels the fatigue as much as -one might imagine. I know who _will_ be worn out, though!” she -exclaimed, turning to Mistress Short. “Your little ones ought to go and -rest awhile. It’s altogether too long a day for them.” - -Colin and Margery protested, but their mother was firm, and they were -obliged to follow her to Mistress Harpham’s guest-room, the grandest -they had ever seen, where Margery was placed on the big four-posted bed -of oak, and Colin, grumbling a great deal, was forced to lie down on a -little truckle-bed at its foot. - -“You’ll be all the fresher, and enjoy the plays all the better for a bit -of a sleep,” Mistress Harpham assured them. “And you shall be called in -time for the Shepherds’ play—that I promise you.” - -Margery brightened at this, for she had heard that the Shepherds’ play -was the most popular of all the pageants, and she had been afraid of -missing it. Though she and Colin had laughed at the idea of “a bit of a -sleep,” each found a strange feeling of drowsiness creeping nearer, and -considering that they had been up since daybreak, and it was now past -noon, this was not so surprising as they considered it. At any rate, -when their mother softly entered the room an hour later, she roused both -children from sleep. - -The Shepherds’ play, she told them, was expected in a few minutes; and -they ran eagerly into the front room to take their old places at the -window. - -“Do tell us what they’ve been acting!” begged Margery, as their friend -Master Gyseburn welcomed them with a smile. - -“Well! we’ve had _Moses lifting up the Serpent in the Wilderness_. That -was the Hosiers’ pageant. Then came the Grocers with the _Salutation of -Mary to Elisabeth_. Next came _Mary and Joseph with an angel commanding -them to go to Bethlehem_, acted by the Pewterers; and the last one was -the Tylers’ (Thatchers’) pageant of the _Stable at Bethlehem, with the -Child Jesus in the Manger_.” - -“Oh! we wanted to see that!” exclaimed both the children, very -disappointed. - -“You will,” Master Gyseburn assured them. “After this pageant, the -Shepherds go to the stable to worship the Child, so the manger scene -appears again; in fact it appears several times.” - -By the stir and noise in the crowd below, it was evident that the -Shepherds’ play was awaited with great eagerness. There was a pushing -and scrambling in the throng, which had greatly increased in numbers. -Many people who had strolled away to get something to eat and drink had -returned, and were trying to recover their lost places. - -“Is this a funny play?” asked Colin. - -“Yes,” said Master Gyseburn. “The Shepherds’ play, or at any rate the -first part of it, is always expected to be amusing. It is an old custom, -and the people would be very disappointed, and perhaps angry, if it were -changed. This particular play is one that is always acted at Wakefield, -but our Chandlers have borrowed it this year, because it is such a good -one.” - -“Oh! this is the Chandlers’ pageant, then?” asked Margery. - -Master Gyseburn nodded. “Here it comes,” said he. “You will find that it -has very little to do with the Bible story about the Shepherds.” - -“Just a made-up play, I suppose?” said Colin. - -“That’s it. Just a funny story to make people laugh.” - -By this time the pageant stood in its place before the Harphams’ window, -and the children noticed that the big stage was divided into two parts. -One part represented a field, in which three shepherds were seated with -their sheep huddled round them; and next to this scene, on a line with -it, there was a sort of separate compartment, at present covered by -curtains. - -The shepherds began at once to grumble about the weather. They -complained of the cold, which one of them said made his legs cramped, -and his hands all chapped. - -Neither Margery nor Colin, nor indeed any of the simple people who -watched the play, found anything strange in this. Indeed very few of -them realized that all the events they were watching, took place in an -Eastern country, whose scenery and climate were very different from -anything that was represented by the pageant. They imagined all the -scenes as happening in a country very like England—if not in England -itself! So the shepherds talked about the “moors,” which, as you know, -spread through Yorkshire, and of “bannocks,” which are special cakes -made in the North of England, and of “ale,” the usual English drink; and -no one criticized nor found fault, because scarcely anybody knew, or -remembered, if they knew, that Christ’s life was spent in a warm -far-away Eastern land, whose manners, customs, and language were as -different as possible from those of England. - -The shepherds talked about many things familiar in the every-day life of -most of the people in the crowd. They grumbled about the taxes they had -to pay, and they gossiped about their wives, who they said were always -scolding and nagging; and they complained bitterly about their hard -work, and their low wages. And the listening people laughed and were -delighted, because all they heard came home to them and was thoroughly -well understood. - -Presently another shepherd entered, dressed like the rest in a linen -smock, though over it he had thrown a heavy cloak. His appearance was -hailed by a shout of delight from the audience, for he was a favourite -actor, and the part he was going to play was well known. - -His name was Mac, and with the shepherds he evidently had the reputation -of a thief, for directly he arrived one of them warned the others. - -“Is he come?” he asked. “Then each one take heed to his things!” And to -make sure of him when they thought of going to sleep, the men forced him -to lie down in the midst of them, so that if he stirred they would be -warned. - -But no sooner did his companions begin to snore than Mac got up, and -walking round the men, he worked a spell upon them to make them sleep -heavily, chanting these words: - - “Be about you a circle as round as the moon - Till I have done that I will, till that it be noon, - That ye lie stone-still till that I have done. - Over your heads my hand I lift, ... - Out go your eyes, fore to do your sight....” - -Then seeing that they were all motionless, he crept to the flock, and -taking a fat sheep, put it under his cloak. - -At this moment the curtains in front of the other division of the stage -were pulled aside, showing a poor cottage room, in which sat Mac’s wife -spinning. A little wicket-gate in front of the cottage was locked, and -Mac (who was supposed to have walked some distance to his home) began to -knock upon it, and to beg his wife to let him in. At first she was angry -with him, saying that one day he would be hanged for sheep-stealing. But -the first question after all was to decide how they were to hide the -sheep during the search which was sure to be made by its owners. And -here Mac’s wife showed her quick wits, for she suggested a splendid way -out of the difficulty. This was to dress the creature up as a baby, and -put it in the cradle! - -Mac agreed, and there were roars of laughter as the poor struggling -sheep was wrapped in flannels and robes, and at last tucked so securely -in the cradle that it could not move. - -When this was at last accomplished, Mac went back to the field, and -lying down quietly in his old place, pretended to be fast asleep. Then -one by one the shepherds awoke, and began to tell their dreams. All of -them except Mac had dreamt that a sheep had been carried off; and _Mac_, -so he said, had dreamt that his wife was very ill. He pretended to be -much concerned and, telling the men he must go and see whether anything -had happened to her, he got up and once more went home. Meanwhile the -shepherds began to count their flock, and presently found that a sheep -was missing. It was Mac, of course!—who else could have stolen it?—and -at once in a body they rushed to his house, and insisted upon searching -it. - -No sheep could they find, and Mac and his wife pretended to be so angry -at being disturbed, that at last the shepherds were leaving the cottage -in despair, when an idea occurred to one of them. - -He suddenly exclaimed that he would like to give something to the little -baby. - -“_Mac, by your leave, let me give your bairn but sixpence_,” he said. - -“_Nay, go ’way, he sleeps_,” returned Mac. “_When he wakens he weeps_,” -he added. “_I pray you go hence._” - -“_Give me leave him to kiss, and lift up the clout_,” begged one of the -other men. And before Mac’s wife could prevent him he had pulled down -the blanket. - -“_He has a long snout!_” exclaimed the shepherd, who had only caught one -glimpse of the strange “baby” in the cradle. - -But Mac’s wife was most indignant, and at once declared that it was a -beautiful baby: - - “A pretty child is he - As sits upon a woman’s knee; - A dylly-downe, perdie, - To make a man laugh!” - -But all she could say was useless, for by this time of course the -shepherds were very suspicious, and the sheep was pulled out from the -cradle, while the market-place rang with laughter. The angry shepherds, -seizing a blanket, now forced Mac into it, and to the huge delight of -the crowd, before returning to their field they tossed him violently, as -a punishment for his evil-doing. - -The laughter caused by this farce had scarcely died away when the -serious part of the performance began. A second stage had been drawn -meanwhile to the market-place, and was stationed at a little distance -from the first one, where to the shepherds, once more quietly guarding -their flock, there suddenly appeared an angel. The simple countrymen -gazed in awe, while in a sweet voice he sang _Gloria in Excelsis_, and -then, as he came closer, they sank on their knees, while he addressed -them: - - “Rise, gracious hired-men, for now is He born - That shall take from the fiend that Adam had lorn [lost] ... - God is made your friend: now at this morn - He behests [commands] - To Bedlem go see - There lies that free [Divine One] - In a crib full poorly, - Betwixt two beasts.” - -In amaze the shepherds listened, and in amaze they talked together when -the shining angel had gone. - -Pointing to a brilliant star, one of them declared it was a token to -guide them “where the young Child lay.” - - “Hie we thither quickly; - If we be wet and weary, - To that Child and that Lady,” - -another urged. And so descending from the stage-field, they began their -journey to Bethlehem, a journey represented by the space between the two -pageants. - -On the other platform meanwhile a charming scene was disclosed. There -was the stable at Bethlehem, with its broken roof, and within the stable -Mary in a long blue robe knelt beside the manger, at which, with their -kind, patient eyes, an ox and an ass were also gazing. - -Now the shepherds had arrived, and finding themselves in the presence of -“that Child and that Lady,” they bent low their knees, and began to talk -to the Baby Jesus as though they loved Him, and as though He were a -child of their own to whom they had brought tiny presents. - - “Hail, comely and clean; hail, young child!” - -said the first shepherd. - - “Lo, He merry is; - Lo, He laughs, my sweeting, - A welcome meeting! - I have given my greeting, - Have a bob of cherries?” - -Then in the same homely, delightful way, the second shepherd greeted the -Baby: - - “Hail, Sovereign Saviour, for Thou hast us sought! - Hail! I kneel and I cower.... A bird have I brought - To my bairn. - Hail, little tiny mop [little tiny pate] ... - Little day-starn [star].” - -And the third shepherd said: - - “Hail, darling dear, full of Godheed! - I pray Thee be near when that I have need.... - Hail, put forth Thy dall [hand], - I bring Thee but a ball: - Have and play Thee with all, - And go to the tennis.” - -Mary, bending down to the shepherds, then spoke to them gently, telling -them that she would pray her Son to keep them from woe, and bidding them -spread the glad tidings of His birth. After a while the shepherds left -her presence, singing glad songs in honour of the new-born King. - -“I like that best of all, except Abraham and Isaac!” Margery exclaimed, -as the pageants were drawn away. “And _now_ we shall see the wicked King -Herod, shan’t we?” - - - - - VIII - King Herod, the Wise Men, and the Massacre of the Innocents - - -That the children should long to see the pageant in which Herod appeared -was no wonder, for he was a very well-known character in the miracle -plays. Just as in some fairy tales the wicked giant is well known, and -is always expected to be as wicked as possible, so in these plays Herod -was always represented as a furious tyrant and a great boaster, who -raged and stormed and used such exaggerated language that he seemed more -like a madman than a sane human being. Though in the time of Queen -Elizabeth miracle plays were growing rare, it is just possible that -Shakespeare as a boy may have seen some of them, and when he makes -Hamlet say that one of the actors in the play-scene “out-herods Herod,” -he may have been thinking of the particular stamping and shouting Herod -whom he himself had watched. But in any case, during the lifetime of -Shakespeare the memory of the furious king must have lingered in the -minds of old people at Stratford-on-Avon, many of whom as children must -often have seen him blustering and screaming and ordering people to be -killed. - -At the windows of Master Robert Harpham’s house at any rate, on this -June day when Henry V was king, there was much talk about the coming -“Herod,” who was said to be an excellent player and to rage more -furiously than any of the actors who had taken part in previous years. -Excitement therefore ran high, when the Goldsmiths’ pageant drew up, for -in their play—_The Three Kings coming from the East_—Herod was for the -first time to appear. - -The stage represented Herod’s palace. It was a very small palace, and it -looked something like an enlarged sentry-box, brightly painted and -ornamented at the top with a dome and various pinnacles. From its -doorway, on to the space in front of it, there presently stepped a -herald, who in these pompous words announced the coming of the King: - - “Peace, Lord Barons of great renown! - Peace, Sir Knights of noble presence! - Peace, gentleman companions of noble order! - I command that all of you keep silence. - Peace, while your noble king is in presence! - Let no person stint to pay him deference; - Be not bold to strike, but keep your hearts in patience, - And to your lord keep heart of reverence, - For he, your king, has all _puissance_! - In the name of the law, I command you peace! - And King Herod—‘_la grandeaboly vos umport._’” - -The last words, spoken by the herald in a low voice and with a knowing -smile, were greeted with a roar of delight, for Herod was to some extent -a comic character, at whom every one might laugh and “_la grandeaboly -vos umport_” is bad French for “_the devil run away with you_!” - -And now Herod himself majestically strode forth, and again laughter, -half derisive, half admiring, rang out, for in spite of all the boasting -and stamping which every one knew was coming, he made a magnificent -figure. - -Dressed as a Saracen, he wore wonderful Eastern robes, and a jewelled -turban. His black hair was dishevelled, his face red and angry, and with -his flashing eyes, and huge flashing sword, he looked formidable enough. - -“_Qui status in Jude ex Rex Israel_,” he began in a loud commanding -tone. - -“That means—‘He that reigns King in Judea and Israel,’” explained Master -Gyseburn to the children. “Now listen to his boasting.” - - “Qui status in Jude et Rex Israel, - And the mightiest conquerer that ever - Walked on ground” (Herod went on), - “For I am even he that made both heaven and hell, - And of my mighty power holdeth up this world round. - I am the cause of this great light and thunder. - It is through my fury that they such noise do make. - My fearful countenance the clouds doth so encumber, - That often for dread thereof the very earth doth shake.” - -This was only part of the foolish king’s boasting, for he went on to -declare that with one word he could destroy the whole world from the -north unto the south; that he was prince of purgatory and chief captain -of hell. No tongue, he declared, could tell of his possessions, his -wealth, and his power. At last, turning to his servant the herald, he -warned him to allow no strangers to pass through the realm without -paying tribute to him, and bade him be gone hastily, - - “For they that will the contrary, - Upon a gallows hanged shall be.” - -Then ordering “trumpets, viols, and other harmony” to announce his -presence to all the world, Herod re-entered the palace, and the herald -departed to do his bidding. - -Now appeared riding through the market-place in great state, two of the -three kings from the East. They were mounted on white horses with -beautiful trappings, and each horse had a long cloth of velvet over his -back. The kings were Gaspar (or Jaspar) and Balthazar. The first was an -old man with a long white beard, the second a man in the prime of life. -They both wore crowns of gold upon which the sunshine sparkled, and -their dresses of wonderful colours were embroidered with jewels. Both of -them had seen the Star in the East, and from a far country had followed -it into Herod’s kingdom. As they rode, they talked together, reminding -one another that the prophets had foretold the birth of a wonderful -Child. - -Presently, riding from another direction, came the third king, Melchior, -a handsome youth also crowned and richly clothed. He was looking about -him as he came, evidently seeking some guide, and his words showed that -he too had seen the Star in the East. - - “I ride wandering in ways wide, - Over mountains and dales, I wot not where I am. - Now King of all kings send me such guide, - That I may have knowledge of this country’s name.... - Two kings yonder, I see, and to them will I ride, - For to have their company I trust they will me abide [await].” - -Spurring his horse, he rode up to the two monarchs and addressed them: - - “Hail, comely kings augent [gentle], - Good sirs, I pray you, whither are ye meant?” - - “To seek a Child is our intent, - Which betokens yonder star as ye may see,” - -said the old king, Gaspar. - - “To whom I purpose this present,” - -added Balthazar, showing him a golden vase full of frankincense. - -Then the third king, Melchior, replied, - - “Sirs, I pray you, and that right humbly, - With you that I may ride in company; - To Almighty God now pray we - That His precious person we may see.” - -Thus having greeted one another, the kings rode aside, while on the -pageant, Herod came out of his palace to meet the herald, who, on seeing -him, exclaimed: - - “Hail, Lord, most of might! - Thy commandment is right. - Into thy land is come this night - Three kings, and with them a great company.” - - “What make those kings in this country?” - -returned Herod. - - “To seek a King and a Child, they say,” - -answered the herald. - - “Of what age should He be?” - -Herod inquired angrily. - - “Scant twelve days old fully,” - -said the herald. - -Whereupon Herod, restraining his wrath, commanded the herald on pain of -death to follow the kings, to speak gently to them, in order to deceive -them into imagining that they would be well treated, and then to speed -in hot haste to Jerusalem to make inquiries about the Child they sought. - -So the herald, descending from the stage, followed Gaspar, Balthazar, -and Melchior, and very courteously told them that Herod, “king of these -countries wide,” desired to speak with them. The travellers, immediately -agreeing to his wish, were brought before the palace. There Herod -received them courteously, wished them a safe journey, and begged them -to return the same way. - - “And with great concord banquet with me, - And that Child myself then will I see - And honour Him also,” - -he added, allowing his guests to depart with many compliments on either -side. - -But no sooner had they mounted their horses and ridden away than Herod’s -rage blazed forth. - - “When they come again, they shall die that same day, - And thus these vile wretches to death shall be brought!” - -he exclaimed, stalking into his palace, while the kings rode a little -distance to another pageant where again the stable at Bethlehem was -represented, with Mary watching by the manger. - -Here, just as the shepherds had done, but in much more stately language, -they offered their costly gifts to the Child. - -Gaspar gave a cup of gold. “_In tokening Thou art without peer_,” he -said, as he laid his offering at the foot of the manger. - -A cup full of frankincense was Balthazar’s gift, “_In tokening of -priesthood and dignity of office_;” while the young king Melchior had -brought a precious goblet, with “_myrrh for mortality, in tokening Thou -shalt mankind restore to life by Thy death upon a tree_.” - -Then Mary spoke to the kings as sweetly as she had addressed the -shepherds, and presently they withdrew a little from her presence and -began to discuss their homeward journey. Gaspar declared that according -to their promise they must return through Herod’s land; and though the -others agreed, they were all so fatigued that they decided to lie down -and rest awhile. Accordingly, at a distance from the manger, they threw -themselves on the ground. Before long they slept, and while they slept, -a beautiful vision appeared to them. - -An angel, who seemed to be hovering in the air, descended from the -darkness of the stable-roof, and bent still hovering above them. - -“Is he _really_ flying?” exclaimed Margery, in an awed voice; and Master -Gyseburn smiled. - -“It looks as though he were, certainly,” he agreed; “but there’s a -clever contrivance arranged by the carpenters and fastened to the roof -up there, by which the angel is let down and made to look as though he -were fluttering in the air.” - -“He is _lovely_!” declared Margery, sighing with pleasure. “Look at his -golden curls and his long wings! What is he going to say to the kings?” - -“Listen!” Colin advised her. - - “King of Tarsus, Sir Gaspar!” (exclaimed the angel) - “King of Araby, Sir Balthazar! - Melchior, King of Aginara! - To you now I am sent. - For dread of Herod, go you west home ... - The Holy Ghost this knowledge hath sent.” - -Then, bending a moment longer over the still sleeping kings, he flew -upwards and was lost to sight. - -When the kings awoke, it was to discover that each one of them had heard -the angel’s warning; so taking a last leave of the Babe and His Mother, -they set out on their journey, carefully arranging not to pass through -the dominions of the wicked and treacherous Herod. - -Meanwhile, the herald, in fear and trembling, once more ascended the -steps leading to the palace-portal, and broke the news to his master: - - “These three kings that forth were sent, - And should have come again before thee here present, - Another way, Lord, home they went, - Contrary to thine honour.” - -Then indeed the audience had an opportunity of watching Herod’s rage: - - “Another way!” (he exclaimed, trembling with fury) - “Out! Out! Out! - Hath those foul traitors done me this deed? - I stamp, I stare, I look all about; - Might them I take I should them burn at a glede [fire]. - I rend, I roar, and now run I wood [mad] ... - They shall be hanged if I come them to.” - -Roaring and stamping and raving, as he said of himself, the king rushed -down the pageant steps and “raged” in the market-place amongst the -people, to the delight of the grown-up folk and the terror of the -children in the crowd. And all the while he was running to-and-fro, -screaming with fury, he was giving orders that “all young children” -should be slain. - -But even the rough soldiers who had come from the palace to follow their -master, and had at last succeeded in getting him to return to the stage, -were horrified at this cruel command, and one of them spoke indignantly: - - “My Lord, King Herod by name, - Thy words against my will shall be. - To see so many young children die is shame, - Therefore counsel thereto gettest thou none of me.” - -Another one agreed with his companion, and warned Herod that to murder -little children in such wholesale fashion would be sufficient -provocation for a general rising among his subjects. - - “A rising! Out! Out! Out!” - -shouted the mad tyrant; and, raging and stamping once more, he commanded -both soldiers to be hanged on the gallows unless they immediately -carried out his orders. - -So for very fear the soldiers were obliged to obey, and Herod drove them -forth to do the cruel deed, telling them to bring all the little dead -children “before his sight,” so that he might be sure his orders had -been carried out. - -But now the attention of the audience was directed towards the other -pageant representing the Stable at Bethlehem. Here the beautiful angel -who had already appeared to the three kings was seen fluttering down -towards the Mother of Jesus and her husband Joseph, and soon his voice -was heard: - - “Mary and Joseph, to you I say, - Sweet word from the Father I bring you full right; - Out of Bethlehem into Egypt forth go ye the way, - And with you take the King, full of might, - For dread of Herod’s red [order].” - -In reply, Joseph turned to Mary: - - “Arise up, Mary, hastily and soon! - Our Lord’s will needs must be done, - Like as the angel bade.” - -And Mary answered: - - “Meekly, Joseph, mine own spouse, - Toward that country let us repair; - In Egypt—some tokens of house— - God grant us grace safe to come there!” - -While she spoke, she was tenderly lifting the Baby from His cradle, and -the curtains closed upon the Holy Family making preparations for their -journey. - -The play now went on in the street, for presently, threading their way -through the crowd, a company of women entered, each bearing in her arms -her little baby. And as the mothers walked to-and-fro and rocked their -children, they sang this pretty song: - - “Lulla, lulla, thou little tiny child; - By, by, lullay, lullay, thou little tiny child. - By, by, lully, lullay. - - O sisters too! how may we do, - For to preserve this day - This poor youngling for whom we do sing, - By, by, lully, lullay. - - Herod the king, in his raging, - Charged he hath this day - His men of might, in his own sight, - All young children to slay. - - That woe is me, poor child, for thee! - And ever, morn and day, - For thy parting neither say nor sing, - By, by, lully, lullay.” - -The poor distracted mothers, with their faces full of grief, won the -pity of the crowd, and many women exclaimed aloud, half believing that -the babies were really going to be snatched from them and killed! - -Then one of the women, in a voice shaken with fear, sang alone: - - “I lull my child wondrously sweet, - And in my arms I do it keep, - Because that it should not cry.” - -And another replied, calling on the new-born King: - - “That Babe that is born in Bethlehem so meek, - He save my child and me from villainy.” - -Yet another said: - - “Be still! be still! my little child! - That Lord of lords save both thee and me; - For Herod hath sworn with words wild - That all young children slain they shall be.” - -Now the soldiers come rushing forward with drawn swords, and though -Colin assured her that it was only pretence, Margery could not look -while they grasped the screaming women by the arms or by the hair and -snatched their little baby-boys away from them. - -In vain the poor mothers struggled and implored. Their children were all -killed, and presently the soldiers went away to fetch “wains and wagons” -on which to heap the little bodies. - -“I suppose they are only dolls?” Margery asked anxiously; but though -Master Gyseburn reassured her, she could not bear the sound of the -screams and the shouting. - -It was a relief when all the women went sobbing away, and the herald -stood once more before King Herod, and addressed him: - - “Herod, king! I shall thee tell, - All thy deeds is come to naught. - This Child is gone into Egypt to dwell, - Lo, sir, in thine own land what wonders byn [have been] wrought.” - -Margery sympathized deeply with the herald’s indignant tone. - -“He’s killed all the babies, and it was no good after all!” she -exclaimed. “He’s the wickedest and the most horrid man I ever saw! Look -at him ‘raging’ again! What is he going to do now? See! the servants are -getting his horse ready.” - -“He’s going to ride into Egypt to see if he can find the three kings, to -put them to death,” said Master Gyseburn. - -“But he won’t!” observed Colin with much satisfaction. “There he goes -riding through the crowd, still storming. Now he’s out of sight—and a -good thing too.” - -The last they saw of Herod was his huge sword brandished aloft; and the -last sound they heard was his foolish voice raised in anger. - - - - - IX - At the End of the Day - - -The children had been so absorbed and interested in the last play, which -was a long one, that when the pageant was wheeled away, they were -surprised to find the market-place all glowing in the light of sunset. -Little pink clouds like feathers were floating in the sky, across which -flights of birds were winging their way to nests in the trees round the -city. - -“Giles will soon be home!” said Mistress Harpham. “If there’s time for -one more play this evening I shall be mistaken. It will soon be dark.” - -“Do they stop when it gets dark?” asked Margery. - -“But there are lots more to come!” objected Colin, looking at the -“pageant book” which Master Gyseburn held open on his knee. Though he -could not read, he saw by the long list which followed the _Massacre of -the Innocents_ that scarcely half of the plays had as yet been -performed. - -Mistress Harpham had turned away to superintend arrangements for the -supper she was about to offer her guests, but Master Gyseburn answered -the children’s questions. - -“The plays will go on all day to-morrow, and the next day too, I -expect,” he told them. “It very seldom happens that any town gets -through all its pageants on one day. Certainly not here in York, where -we generally act forty of them.” - -“But suppose it gets dark in the middle of a play?” asked Margery. “What -happens then?” - -“Then the torch-bearers are called out,” said Master Gyseburn. “I expect -they’ll be needed before the next one is over,” he added. “The daylight -will scarcely last.” - -“And they’ll go on to-morrow, and we shan’t be here!” sighed Margery, so -dolefully that Master Gyseburn laughed. - -“You’re not tired of them? And yet you’ve had a long day of it!” - -“Tired? Oh! I should love to see every one of them!” Margery declared. - -“And so should I,” echoed her brother. - -“A great many sad and dreadful scenes will come to-morrow,” said Master -Gyseburn. “I really think you’ve seen all that would please you. The -others are for grown-up people. And some are too horrible for _them_,” -he added. “At least I think so.” - -“Now children, come to supper!” called Mistress Harpham, who was busy -lighting candles on the table, for the room with its dark oak-panelling, -and heavy beams overhead, was growing very gloomy. - -“We shall have to think about saying good-bye directly!” declared Farmer -Short as he took his seat. “’Tis a long ride home, and we have to get -the horses out of the stable.” - -“Plenty of time for a meal!” said Mistress Harpham, bustling about and -filling the children’s plates with good things. - -“Will Giles come before we have to go?” asked Margery. “I do hope he -will!” - -Almost as she spoke, the door opened, and Giles came in. - -He was welcomed rapturously by all the guests, and though the poor boy -looked very tired, he was made to answer a hundred questions about the -success of the Parchment-makers’ pageant in other parts of the town. - -It had been well received everywhere apparently; and though Giles was -very modest, his mother learnt with pride that her son’s acting had been -praised almost as much as she desired. - -“We missed you so much after you went,” whispered Margery to her cousin, -a little shyly, for she was still very much impressed at the thought of -his talents. - -“But Master Gyseburn explained everything to us,” put in Colin. “And all -the plays were _splendid_!” - -Before long there was a general bustle and movement round the table. -Many of the guests, like the children, had a long way to go to reach -their homes, and they were anxious to set out before the day’s pageants -were quite over. - -“There’ll be a fine crowd in the streets by the time they’re all done,” -said Master Harpham. “But if you go now, while some of the folk are -still looking at the plays, you’ll reach the inn without much trouble.” - -“Aye, and Robert will go with you and show you the quickest by-ways to -reach it; won’t you, Robert?” suggested his wife, as she prepared to -follow Mistress Short and the children to the best bedroom, where they -had left their cloaks. - -Colin and Margery were soon ready, and with their little hoods tied -round their necks they returned to the parlour, and ran eagerly to the -window, anxious up to the last moment to see all that was going on. - -They found Giles kneeling on one of the wide window-seats, looking out -into the street, and Margery climbed up beside him. She had taken a -great fancy to her clever, interesting cousin, and she thought how -pretty he looked with his fair head resting against the woodwork of the -window. - -“What are they doing now?” she asked before her own curly head appeared -above the level of the window-sill. - -“_The Child Jesus in the Temple_,” said Giles. “It’s the Spur-makers’ -and Bit-makers’ pageant, and Andrew Martin is the Child Jesus. He’s a -friend of mine,” he added. - -“Oh! the torch-bearers are there!” exclaimed Colin. “It _has_ got dark -quickly!” - -“Doesn’t it look nice in this light?” said Margery; and Giles nodded, -too intent upon the play to reply. - -At the foot of the pageant, all holding flaming torches aloft, four boys -were stationed, and the ruddy glow flickered over a beautiful group on -the stage. The learned doctors in their long robes leant upon one -another’s shoulders or whispered together, their eyes fixed upon a -youthful figure in their midst, Who in a grave yet charming voice was -reading something from a roll of parchment. - -“It’s Jesus when He was a Boy, isn’t it?” whispered Margery; and again -Giles nodded. - -The boy wore a long sheepskin coat, and his fair hair was made brighter -by gilding. His legs were bare, and on his feet were sandals. - -“Andrew is wonderful!” said Giles gravely, “all his gestures are good -and dignified. And so is his voice. This was the part they wanted me to -play, but I would not attempt it. I knew Andrew would do it better.” - -Margery glanced at her cousin admiringly. In her little mind she felt -sure that Giles too was wonderful, and that all she had heard about the -great things he was to do in the future had not been exaggerated. Some -day, she was certain, Giles would be a famous man. Her thoughts were put -to flight, however, by the entrance of her mother and a large company of -other guests all ready for departure; so leave-takings were very -hurried. - -But she found time to hug Giles, who in spite of the laughter which went -round, allowed himself to be kissed with very good grace. - -“We will go out by the back way,” called Master Harpham, and the -children soon found themselves in a quiet street, where the noise from -the market-place sounded only as a faint murmur. - -By winding lanes and passages Master Harpham led his guests towards the -“Dragon” inn where they had left their horses and their wagons. Every -now and then however, when they turned a corner, Margery and Colin -caught a glimpse of a crowd, of flaming torches, and of the top of one -of the pageants stationed sometimes half-way up a street, sometimes in a -little open space, sometimes beneath a city gate. - -“They are still going on!” Colin exclaimed. - -“Yes; but only till the pageant of the _Doctors in the Temple_ has been -played at the last halting-place,” said Master Harpham, looking back -over his shoulder at the little boy. “It’s all over for to-night in our -market-place, for instance; but the Doctors’ play won’t reach -Girdlegate, the last place, for another half-hour, perhaps.... Now, -here’s the inn! Hurry, all of you, and you will get out your horses -before there’s too much of a crush.” - -Dobbin and Jock, looking quite fresh after their long day’s rest, were -soon led out from their corner of the stables, and in a moment Margery -was perched on Dobbin’s back, in front of her father. - -“Good-nights” were called, and, in company with various other -travellers, the children rode along the cobble-paved streets towards -Mikelgate, from which the pageants had long ago departed, leaving the -road to the gate clear. - -“’Tis luck to have moonlight!” exclaimed Farmer Short, as they emerged -upon the country-road. - -Margery looked back towards the city they had left, over which hung a -dull red glow from the torchlights which still streamed and flickered -there; and as she looked she drew a long sigh. - -“She’s tired!” said her mother; but Margery indignantly denied the fact. - -“I was thinking what a lovely day it’s been,” she declared; “and about -all the plays they will be acting to-morrow and the next day. But Master -Gyseburn says they will be sad plays. So perhaps I shouldn’t like to see -them after all. I didn’t like it when the babies were killed!” - -“Yes,” said a neighbour; “there are about twenty still to come. They’ll -need two days more at least. The saddest plays will come last, when the -Tapestry-weavers act the _Trial of Christ_; and the Tile-makers and -Painters _The Crucifixion_.” - -“’Twas a mercy it was fine,” exclaimed Mistress Short. “And likely to be -fine to-morrow,” she added, with a glance at the clear sky, in which a -full moon sailed. - -Both the children grew silent as they jogged towards home along the -white road, upon which fell their shadows and the shadows of the horses -and of overhanging trees. It was very quiet and peaceful in the country, -and they were both sleepy. All the curious and novel things they had -seen during the day began to appear like a dream, in which the three -kings passed and re-passed; and Herod, with his flashing sword, stamped -and raved; and beautiful angels, with golden wings, hovered above a -stable in Bethlehem; and the serpent talked to Adam and Eve. But more -frequently than any of the other figures in the plays Margery saw the -little white-robed Isaac begging for his life; and, when the cottage was -reached at last, and she was in bed and really asleep, it was of him she -dreamt. - - - - - X - Everyman - - -As some of you may have noticed, the miracle plays to which long ago -Colin and Margery listened were for the most part badly written, in such -rough, uncouth verse, that a great deal of each play may be described as -mere doggerel. Very few of them have any claim to be called -_literature_. They are just rhyming stories, often very badly rhymed, to -be acted before uncritical people, thousands of whom were poor and -simple folk who, if the stories were sufficiently exciting and the -actors well enough dressed, neither knew nor cared that the words were -poor. Every now and then, indeed, in these old plays a fragment of verse -is charming. For instance, in the Nativity scene, which used to be acted -at Coventry, there are some delightful words. Here are a few lines from -the prophets’ speeches about the new-born King. - -Second prophet: - - “Yet do I marvel - In what pile or castle - These herdsmen did Him see” - -And the first prophet replies: - - “Neither in halls not yet in bowers, - Born would He not be, - Neither in castles nor in towers - That seemly were to see; - But at His Father’s will, - The prophecy to fulfil, - Betwixt an ox and an ass - Jesu this King born He was.” - -The lullaby to the babies in the same play is pretty too, and so is the -shepherds’ song when the angels have announced to them the birth of -Christ. Here are the words: - - “As I out rode this enderes’ night, - Of three jolly shepherds I saw a sight, - And all about their fold a star shone bright; - They sang, Terli, ter low; - So merrily the shepherds their pipes can blow.” - -But the best of all the plays is one that does not appear in either of -the four sets known as the York, the Coventry, the Chester, and the -Wakefield series. It was probably first written in Dutch, and afterwards -translated into English. For we must remember that not only in England -were these miracle plays acted; they were just as popular in France, in -Germany, and in Holland, as in our own country. This particular play is -called _Everyman_, and it is in many ways different from any of the -pageants we have so far talked about. - -In the first place, instead of being a Bible story, it is an allegory, -something like the allegory of the _Pilgrim’s Progress_. Just as -Christian, the “Pilgrim,” stands for any human being born into this -world and passing through it on his way to another life, so Everyman -means just what the word says. Every man or woman of us. _Everyone_, in -fact; since every one of us is born into this world and, after -journeying through life, has to pass out of it at the gate of death. - -Though the play is so old (it was first written and acted, perhaps, in -the reign of Henry V), it remains true for people who live nowadays, and -for the people who will live after us. Not only because it is true, but -also because it is so dignified and touching, certain people who lately -read it, thought that it might very well be acted again, and presented -as nearly as possible in the same way as it was played by actors in -bygone days—five hundred years ago. - -So men and women were found to study it, to learn the parts, and to copy -old dresses for the characters, and the first revival performance of -_Everyman_ was given in London some years ago, in the open air, at -Charterhouse, the old city school for boys. Since then it has been acted -in many theatres, but perhaps that first performance was the best of -all, because the play, like all other miracle plays, was meant to be -acted out of doors, and Charterhouse, with its old courtyard and its old -grey walls, was the best frame that could possibly have been devised for -an old play. - -In the courtyard of Charterhouse, then, a big wooden platform or -scaffolding was set up, close against the wall of the school chapel. -Steps at either end of the platform led down to the cobble-paved yard, -and on the wooden stage itself, there were one or two little recesses, -like shrines, hidden by curtains. There was no other scenery. - -Some of the spectators sat on benches in front of the platform, and all -the windows looking into the courtyard were filled with people, just as -the windows overlooking that market-place in York were crowded, when -miracle plays were acted long ago. And just as some of those plays began -with the coming of a herald to explain what was going to take place, so -this play of _Everyman_ began with the appearance of a messenger or -_doctor_. He was dressed in a long black gown, something like those -still worn by the dons and students at Oxford or Cambridge. Round his -neck was a white ruff, and on his head a flat cap of velvet. Coming from -one of the doorways which opened into the courtyard, he walked towards -the platform, ascended its steps, and addressed the audience, beginning -with these words. - -Messenger: - - “I pray you all give your audience, - And hear this matter with reverence, - By figure a moral play— - The _Summoning of Everyman_ called it is, - That to our lives and ending shows - How transitory we be all day. - This matter is wondrous precious, - But the intent of it is more gracious - And sweet to bear away.” - -Continuing, he reminded his listeners that _Everyman_ would be required -to give an account of his life before “the Heaven King,” and he called -upon them to listen to the voice of the Almighty Himself. - -His speech ended, he left the platform, and in a moment, a stately -figure representing God the Father appeared at the chapel window which -overhung the stage, in much the same way as five hundred years ago God -Almighty used to come from a window above the church porch. - -A balcony with a stone balustrade projected from the window, and leaning -upon it the Figure, dressed as in olden days, like a pope, in costly -robe and mitre, addressed the audience. - - “I perceive here in My Majesty - How all creatures are to Me unkind”— - -He began in solemn tones— - - “Living without dread in worldly prosperity; - Of ghostly sight the people be so blind, - Drowned in sin they know Me not for their God.” - -He reminded them of the great Sacrifice which seemed to have passed from -their thoughts. - - “My law that I showed, when I for them died, - They forget clean, and shedding of My blood red; - I hanged between two, it cannot be denied; - To get them life, I suffered to be dead; - I healed their feet, with thorns hurt was My head; - I could do no more than I did truly, - And now I see the people do clean forsake Me.” - -“And now,” went on the Almighty, “I must bring Everyman to a reckoning, -for he is so cumbered with worldly riches that he forgets how all riches -and pleasures are only lent to him for a time, and are to be used for My -glory. I will send Death to him.” - - “Where art thou, _Death_, thou mighty messenger?” - -He called in grave accents. Then from a door beneath the stage there -came a curious and grotesque creature. - -He was like a skeleton; or rather the bones of a skeleton were painted -on his close-fitting dress of black leather. The mask of a skull was -over his face; his head was crowned with fading roses, and he carried a -drum, upon which he beat with warning blows. - - “Almighty God, I am here at your will, - Your commandment to fulfil” (said Death). - - “Go thou to _Everyman_, - And show him in My Name - A pilgrimage he must on him take, - Which he in no wise may escape” (commanded God the Father). - -To whom Death replied that he would run the world over and search for -all who lived “out of God’s laws.” - - “Lo, yonder I see _Everyman_ walking! (he exclaimed suddenly)— - Full little he thinketh on my coming.” - -And indeed it seemed as though the slim and handsome youth who at that -moment came from one of the houses in the courtyard had never thought -seriously of anything. Careless and light-hearted, beautifully dressed, -and playing on a lute as he walked, he was thinking only of amusement -and gaiety, when, as he reached the platform, he was suddenly confronted -with Death. - - “_Everyman_, stand still! (commanded the mighty messenger). - Whither art thou going - Thus gaily? Hast thou thy Master forgot?” - -At these words poor Everyman trembled and hesitated, and Death went on -to say that he had been sent to him in great haste “from God out of His -Majesty” to tell him he was bidden to take a long journey and to bring -with him his book of reckoning, to answer before God for all his deeds -in this, his present life. In vain Everyman begged for a delay. - - “O _Death_” (he cried), “thou comest when I had thee least in mind! - In thy power it lieth me to save, - Yet of my good will I give thee, if ye will be kind— - Yea, a thousand pound shalt thou have, - And defer this matter till another day.” - -But Death replied that “to cry, weep, and pray” was of no avail, since -he took neither gold, silver, nor riches from pope, emperor, king, duke, -nor princes. He must instantly set forth on the journey from which there -was no returning. - -Then, in his great trouble, Everyman called upon God: - - “O gracious God, in the high seat celestial, - Have mercy on me in this most need!... - Shall I have no company from this vale terrestrial?” - -he asked of Death. For he dreaded to take the long journey alone. - - “Yea, if any be so hardy - That would go with thee and bear thee company,” - -Death replied. - -Then Everyman began to think of his friends, and to wonder which of them -loved him well enough to go with him into the Valley of the Shadow of -Death. And presently he saw _Good Fellowship_ approaching. Now in this -story “Good Fellowship” means all the companions with whom Everyman had -spent gay and delightful hours—men with whom he had laughed and jested; -men who had professed the greatest affection for him. So when he saw the -smiling face of Fellowship, he was full of hope, and he went eagerly to -meet him. - - “_Everyman_, good-morrow by this day (said _Fellowship_); - Sir, why lookest thou so piteously? - If anything be amiss, I pray thee, me say, - That I may help to remedy.” - -Everyman admitted that he was in great trouble, and nothing could have -been kinder than Fellowship’s voice, as he declared himself ready to do -anything for his friend. If any one had wronged him, he was ready to -kill the offender. That he would never forsake his dear companion -Everyman might rest assured. - -So, greatly consoled, Everyman told him that he must take a long -journey, and he begged that Fellowship would be his travelling -companion. Then, for the first time, the gay and cheerful fellow began -to look serious. “I promised not to forsake you,” he said; “but we must -discuss the matter at greater length. If we took such a journey, when -should we come again?” - -“Nay, never again till the day of doom,” answered Everyman sadly. - -At these words Fellowship started back in fear. - -“Who hath you these tidings brought?” he asked in a strange voice. - -“Indeed, Death was with me here,” Everyman replied. - -Then Fellowship, more than ever afraid, absolutely refused to go on a -journey commanded by Death. If Everyman had wanted him to eat and drink -with him, or to help him in any of his pleasures, he would never have -forsaken him, he declared. Even if he had wanted him to commit murder he -would have been ready to serve him. But this request was an impossible -one, so impossible that he would not even accompany him as far as the -town gates. - -So, very mournfully, Everyman wished him farewell, gazing after him as -he hurried away, a brilliant figure in his scarlet doublet and hose, -with his sword clanking at his side. - -Good Fellowship had failed him; “but surely,” thought Everyman, “my own -relations will be faithful to me in my sorrow?” And when he saw them -strolling across the courtyard, hope once more revived in his heart. - -Of the little company of young men who now came on to the platform, one -was Everyman’s cousin, of whom he was very fond; and this cousin, seeing -that something was wrong, begged for an explanation, which, in these -words, Everyman gave: - - “Gramercy, my friends and kinsmen kind, - Now shall I show you the grief of my mind: - I was commanded by a messenger, - That is an high King’s chief officer; - He bade me go a pilgrimage, to my pain, - And I know well I shall never come again; - Also I must give a reckoning straight, - For I have a great enemy that lieth me in wait, - Which intendeth me for to hinder.” - -Now, as he spoke, the faces of the young men grew very grave and -anxious. - - “What account is that which ye must render? - That would I know,” - -demanded one of them. - -And Everyman replied: - - “Of all my works I must show - How I have lived and my days spent; - Also of ill deeds that I have used - In my time, sith life was me lent; - And of all virtues that I have refused. - Therefore I pray you go thither with me - To help to make mine account, for Saint Charity.” - -But the kinsmen started back in horror. - - “Nay, Everyman, I had liefer fast bread and water - All this five year and more!” - -exclaimed one of them. - -And the cousin said: - - “I have the cramp in my toe. Trust not to me.” - -One by one they hastened away, and poor Everyman was left lamenting, -till suddenly a thought struck him: - - “All my life I have loved riches” (he reflected); - “If that my Good [wealth] now help me might, - He would make my heart full light. - I will speak to him in this distress. - Where art thou, my _Goods_ and riches?” - -No sooner had he called, than the curtains before one of the recesses on -the stage slid back, and disclosed a man richly dressed, seated within. -Before him money-bags were piled, and huge chests containing gold and -precious stones. - - “Who calleth me?” (said _Goods_). “Everyman? What haste thou hast!... - What would ye have, lightly me say.” - -So Everyman began to relate his trouble, while _Goods_ gazed at him with -his cold inhuman eyes. - - “Therefore, I pray thee, go with me,” - -concluded Everyman, falteringly; - - “For, peradventure, thou may’st before God Almighty - My reckoning help to clean and purify; - For it is said ever among - That money maketh all right that is wrong.” - - “Nay, Everyman, I sing another song; - I follow no man in such voyages,” - -declared _Goods_; and, when Everyman spoke to him indignantly, - - “What, weenest [imaginest] thou that I am thine?” - -he exclaimed. - - “I had wend [imagined] so,” - -stammered Everyman. - - “Nay, Everyman; I say no!” - -returned Goods; and went on to assure him that _Goods_ were only lent, -and that they generally killed a man’s soul. Then, in his great despair, -Everyman cursed the cruel spirit, who only laughed mockingly, refused to -follow him out of this world, and before Everyman could speak again drew -close the curtains of his shrine. - -Once more he strove to think of some help, and, at last, he recalled -_Good Deeds_, only to remember that she was so weak that she could -“neither go nor speak.” - -“Yet will I venture on her now,” he told himself. - - “My _Good Deeds_, where be you?” - -Again, at the other end of the stage, a recess opened, and there, lying -on the ground, so feeble and starved that she could scarcely move, was a -beautiful woman dressed in a long white robe embroidered with stars. - - “Here I lie cold in the ground (she said faintly). - Thy sins hath me sore bound, - That I cannot stir.” - -Very humbly Everyman approached her, for he knew that it was through his -fault that she was so weak and ill. He had neglected and scorned her, -but now she seemed his only hope, and so he implored her to take the -journey with him. - -“I would full fain, but I cannot stand verily,” she declared. And then -she showed him how his “book of accounts,” in which his good deeds -should have been numbered, was almost empty, and the pages were so -blurred and the letters so confused that Everyman could not decipher -them. He was almost beside himself with grief and fear, when Good Deeds -advised him to seek counsel of her sister, who was called _Knowledge_, -for she possibly might help him “to make that dreadful reckoning.” - -So Everyman stood before her shrine, and, when the curtains parted, he -saw that Knowledge was grave, and beautiful, and kind. - -To his great joy she promised to be his guide; but before all things she -told him he must first seek _Confession_, who would cleanse him from his -sins. - -So Knowledge brought him to Confession, a stately figure in a monk’s -cowl. Confession stepped from his shrine to counsel and instruct poor -Everyman, who confessed his sins, and begged that Good Deeds might be -strengthened. - -Kneeling before Confession, he prayed earnestly to God, and presently -Good Deeds stood at his side. - - “I thank God, now I can walk and go; - And am delivered of my sickness and woe (she said). - Therefore with Everyman I will go, and not spare. - His good works I will help him to declare.” - -With an encouraging smile, Knowledge bade the penitent Everyman be of -good cheer; and, with these words, she gave him a robe, which she told -him to wear. - - “It is (she said) a garment of sorrow: - From pain it will you borrow; - Contrition it is - That getteth forgiveness; - It pleaseth God passing well.” - -So Everyman put on the sad-coloured robe, and was preparing to set -forward on his journey with the two beautiful women, when Good Deeds -told him that three other people must go with them, their names being -_Discretion_, _Strength_, and _Beauty_. - - “Also (said Knowledge), ye must call to mind - Your five wits [five senses] as for your counsellors.” - -So Everyman called aloud, and Discretion, Strength, Beauty, and the Five -Senses (or wits), one after another, came towards him. They were all -splendid and stately figures, and the _Five Wits_ were five beautiful -women dressed in rainbow-coloured garments. - -Then Good Deeds addressed them, praying them all to accompany Everyman -on his last long journey, and each one in turn promised faithfully never -to forsake him. - -It seemed, therefore, as though the poor traveller had many friends with -him after all, and when Knowledge advised him to go to a priest and take -the Holy Sacrament, he consented gladly and humbly. - -On his return, Everyman found his companions waiting for him, but -suddenly he felt so weak that he knew he was almost at the end of that -journey commanded by Death. - -In the courtyard below the platform, at some distance, there was an open -grave; and looking at it he said to Beauty: - - “Friends, let us not turn again to this land, - Not for all the world’s gold; - For into this cave must I creep - And turn to earth, and then to sleep.” - - “What! into this grave? Alas! (exclaimed Beauty) - And what—should I smother here?” - - “Yes, by my faith (said Everyman), and never more appear; - In this world live no more we shall, - But in heaven, before the highest Lord of all.” - -Then, full of fear, Beauty declined to go with Everyman. - - “Peace, I am deaf; I look not behind me; - Not and thou would give me all the gold in thy chest,” - -she exclaimed; and turning from him in spite of her promise, she hurried -away. - -Strength followed, crying: - - “Thy game liketh me not at all!” - -And, after him, fled Discretion, saying: - - “When Strength goeth before, I follow after evermore.” - -Deserted by these three friends, Everyman, who had descended the steps -of the stage, was now quite close to the grave, and the scene was very -solemn and impressive. Evening was drawing near. Long shadows were cast -upon the courtyard, and across the sky, still clear, but rosy with -sunset, flights of birds moved slowly. The last rays of the sun touched -the roofs of the old grey houses, and the bells from the city churches -near were chiming together. - -One by one the beautiful figures who had forsaken him crossed the -courtyard and filed back to the world, across the stage, while Everyman, -in his black robe of sorrow, attended only by _Knowledge_ and _Good -Deeds_, stood at the brink of the tomb. - - “Oh, all things faileth save God alone! (he cried) - _Beauty_, _Strength_, and _Discretion_; - For when _Death_ bloweth his blast, - They all run from me full fast.” - -And now the _Five Senses_, who had come near to the tomb and formed a -shining group round it, also one by one turned away; and, in a failing -voice, Everyman murmured: - - “O Jesus, help! all hath forsaken me.” - -But _Good Deeds_, with a sweet smile, drew close to him. - - “Nay, Everyman” (she said), “I will bide with thee; - I will not forsake thee indeed; - Thou shalt find me a good friend at need.” - -Thus Everyman found that though he had loved all his other friends -better than _Good Deeds_, she alone was faithful, for even _Knowledge_, -who had so far followed him, now sadly moved aside, and he knew the -truth of the words uttered at the very edge of the grave by _Good -Deeds_: - - “All earthly things is but vanity: - _Beauty_, _Strength_, and _Discretion_ do man forsake; - Foolish friends and kinsmen that fair spake, - All fleeth save _Good Deeds_, and that am I.” - -Right into the grave she followed Everyman, and when, as he was sinking -back, he cried: - - “Have mercy on me, God most mighty; - And stand by me, thou Mother and Maid, holy Mary!” - -she answered: - - “Fear not, I will speak for thee.” - -And when the grave covered both of them, _Knowledge_ came near, and -bending over it, said: - - “Now hath he suffered that we all shall endure; - The _Good Deeds_ shall make all sure. - Now hath he made an ending.” - -She paused, listening, and in a joyful voice added: - - “Methinketh that I hear angels sing, - And make great joy and melody, - Where Everyman’s soul received shall be.” - -And indeed, almost before _Knowledge_ had finished speaking, there -appeared on the balcony, high above the stage, an angel with long wings -of rose-colour; and, while sweet music sounded, the angel spoke: - - “Come, excellent elect spouse, to Jesu:... - Thy reckoning is crystal-clear; - Now shalt thou into the heavenly sphere, - Unto the which ye all shall come - That liveth well, before the day of doom.” - -So, though the play had been very sad, it ended with beautiful sights -and sounds, and before the people in the audience moved, the Messenger -stood once more alone upon the stage, warning them to bear the moral of -Everyman in mind: - - “Forsake pride (he said), for he deceiveth you in the end; - And remember _Beauty_, _Five Wits_, _Strength_, and _Discretion_: - They all at the last do Everyman forsake, - Save his _Good Deeds_, there doth he take. - But beware, and they be small - Before God he hath no help at all.... - For after death amends may no man make.” - -But though this simple and beautiful old play is sometimes acted -nowadays, and though many people are interested and touched whenever it -is performed, yet, at any rate in England, the time for miracle plays -has gone by. - -If not wiser, the world has at least grown older since the days when -crowds of simple and unlearned folk assembled in market-places, or on -village-greens, to be taught the Bible history which they can now read -for themselves. - -A few men and women, it is true, occasionally write religious plays even -now. There is one, for instance, called _Bethlehem_, written by Laurence -Housman, which has lately been acted several times, and another by Miss -Buckland, with the title of _Eager Heart_, has for six years been played -every Christmas in the big hall at Lincoln’s Inn. - -But these modern religious dramas are like late violets blooming when -the real violet time is over. It may be delightful to find them still -growing here and there, but just as some flowers belong to the spring -and cannot live into the summer, so the real miracle plays which -flourished in the spring-time of our country’s history have died away -now that the country’s life is older. - -There is in Europe at the present day only one important religious play -to which, as in olden times, thousands of people flock, and that is -called the Ober Ammergau Passion Play, and is given once in ten years. - -Ober Ammergau is a village in Bavaria, and the play, acted by the -villagers, deals with the last days of Christ on earth, and is so -wonderful and so beautiful that it has become very celebrated. - -In a far-away German village like Ober Ammergau, where the natives are -simple folk living apart from the great world, such a performance as -this is still possible, and still a beautiful thing. Nevertheless it -remains true that for the great mass of people the age of miracle plays -is over. - -But though as national events they have passed away from our country for -ever, we must not forget that quite apart from the work of teaching -which they once performed, they are very important in the history of our -literature. - -Rough and often badly written as they are, these miracle plays prepared -the way for the drama which was to follow them in the days of Queen -Elizabeth. It is not too much to say that without them we might never -have had _Hamlet_, nor _As you like it_, nor any of the splendid and -beautiful plays of such a great dramatist as William Shakespeare. - - - _Printed by A. R. Mowbray & Co. Ltd., London and Oxford_ - - - - - ADVERTISEMENTS - - -The Story of St. Catherine of Siena - -By NETTA SYRETT. With 12 Illustrations and a Coloured Frontispiece. -Cloth, 2/6 net. - - Miss Syrett writes with a remarkable freshness and deftness of touch - which will appeal to readers of all ages, but especially to the young - reader. For the story as she tells it has the colour and joy of a - fairy tale—and yet is true; and the delicate reserve shown in dealing - with the religious side of the narrative adds to its impressiveness. - - -Roses of Martyrdom -Stories of the “Noble Army of Martyrs” for Children - - With 8 Illustrations in Colour. Cloth, 2/6 net. - - -Our Kings and Westminster Abbey -Being a revised and abridged Edition of “A Child’s History of -Westminster Abbey” - -By AGATHA G. TWINING, Author of _The Children’s Creed_; _The Childhood -of our Blessed Lord Jesus Christ_, etc. With 33 Illustrations, and -Frontispiece in Colour. Cloth, 2/6 net. - - -Everyman’s History of the English Church - -By the Rev. PERCY DEARMER, D.D. With 112 Illustrations. 176 pages. Paper -boards, 1/- net; Cloth boards, 1/6 net. Gift Edition, cloth boards, -gilt, 2/- net. - - “A capital conspectus of English Church History.... It would be - difficult to name a better or cheaper work for the purpose in view, - one better printed or more convenient to handle and easier to - read.”—_Guardian._ - - -The Last Abbot of Glastonbury -A Tale of the Dissolution of the Monasteries - -By the late Rev. A. D. CRAKE, B.A. A new Edition, with 9 Illustrations -by George E. Kruger. Cloth, 2/6 net. - - “This is a very attractive volume, telling of a tragic episode in our - history which ought to be better known by Churchmen than it - is.”—_Guardian._ - - -The Doomed City -Or, the Last Days of Durocina -A Tale of the Anglo-Saxon Conquest of Britain, and the Mission of -Augustine - -By the late Rev. A. D. CRAKE, B.A. A new Edition, with 9 Illustrations -by George E. Kruger. Cloth, 2/6 net. - - -How the Church came to England - -By GERTRUDE HOLLIS, Author of _The Son of Aella_, _In the days of -Anselm_, etc. Cloth, limp, 1/- net; Cloth gilt, 1/6 net. - - “This book is meant for children, and has the excellent object of - teaching them to be loyal to the English Church.”—_Guardian._ - - -What the Church did for England -Being the Story of the Church of England up to A.D. 1215 - -With 15 Illustrations. By GERTRUDE HOLLIS. Cloth, 2/- net. - - - A. R. MOWBRAY & CO. Ltd., London and Oxford - - - - - Transcriber’s Notes - - -—Silently corrected a few typos. - -—Retained publication information from the printed edition: this eBook - is public-domain in the country of publication. - -—In the text versions only, text in italics is delimited by - _underscores_. - - - -*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE OLD MIRACLE PLAYS OF -ENGLAND *** - -Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions will -be renamed. - -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the -United States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. Special rules, set forth in the General Terms of Use part -of this license, apply to copying and distributing Project -Gutenberg-tm electronic works to protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm -concept and trademark. 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text-align:left; } -p.lr, div.lr, span.lr { display:block; margin-left:0em; margin-right:1em; margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0; text-align:right; } -dt.lr { width:100%; margin-left:0em; margin-right:0em; margin-top:0; margin-bottom:0; margin-top:1em; text-align:right; } -dl dt.lr a { text-align:left; clear:left; float:left; } - -.fnblock { margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:2em; } -.fndef, p.fn { text-align:justify; margin-top:1.5em; margin-left:1.5em; text-indent:-1.5em; } -.fndef p.fncont, .fndef dl { margin-left:0em; text-indent:0em; } -.fnblock div.fncont { margin-left:1.5em; text-indent:0em; margin-top:1em; text-align:justify; } -.fnblock dl { margin-top:0; margin-left:4em; text-indent:-2em; } -.fnblock dt { text-align:justify; } -dl.catalog dd { font-style:italic; } -dl.catalog dt { margin-top:1em; } -.author { text-align:right; margin-top:0em; margin-bottom:0em; display:block; } - -dl.biblio dt { margin-top:.6em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:justify; clear:both; } -dl.biblio dt div { display:block; float:left; margin-left:-6em; width:6em; clear:both; } -dl.biblio dt.center { margin-left:0em; text-align:center; text-indent:0; } -dl.biblio dd { margin-top:.3em; margin-left:3em; text-align:justify; font-size:90%; } -p.biblio { margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; } -.clear { clear:both; } -p.book { margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; } -p.review { margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; font-size:80%; } -p.pcap { margin-left:0em; text-indent:0; text-align:center; margin-top:0; font-size:110%; } -p.pcapc { margin-left:4.7em; text-indent:0em; text-align:justify; } -span.attr { font-size:80%; font-family:sans-serif; } -span.pn { display:inline-block; width:4.7em; text-align:left; margin-left:0; text-indent:0; } -</style> -</head> -<body> -<p style='text-align:center; font-size:1.2em; font-weight:bold'>The Project Gutenberg eBook of The Old Miracle Plays of England, by Netta Syrett</p> -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -This eBook is for the use of anyone anywhere in the United States and -most other parts of the world at no cost and with almost no restrictions -whatsoever. You may copy it, give it away or re-use it under the terms -of the Project Gutenberg License included with this eBook or online -at <a href="https://www.gutenberg.org">www.gutenberg.org</a>. If you -are not located in the United States, you will have to check the laws of the -country where you are located before using this eBook. -</div> - -<p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:1em; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Title: The Old Miracle Plays of England</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Author: Netta Syrett</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em'>Illustrator: Helen Thorp</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Release Date: July 17, 2021 [eBook #65860]</p> -<p style='display:block; text-indent:0; margin:1em 0'>Language: English</p> - <p style='display:block; margin-top:1em; margin-bottom:0; margin-left:2em; text-indent:-2em; text-align:left'>Produced by: MWS, Stephen Hutcheson, and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at https://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive/Canadian Libraries) </p> -<div style='margin-top:2em; margin-bottom:4em'>*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE OLD MIRACLE PLAYS OF ENGLAND ***</div> -<div id="cover" class="img"> -<img id="coverpage" src="images/cover.jpg" alt="The Old Miracle Plays of England" width="749" height="1000" /> -</div> -<div class="box"> -<p class="center"><i class="small">BY THE SAME AUTHOR</i></p> -<p class="center">THE STORY OF ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA</p> -<p class="center">With twelve illustrations in half-tone, and frontispiece in colours.</p> -<p class="center">2/6 net.</p> -<p>Miss Syrett writes with a remarkable freshness and -deftness of touch which will appeal to readers of all -ages, but especially to the young reader. For the -story as she tells it has the colour and joy of a fairy -tale—and yet is true; and the delicate reserve -shown in dealing with the religious side of the -narrative adds to its impressiveness.</p> -<p class="center">A. R. MOWBRAY & CO. <span class="sc">Ltd.</span> -<br /><span class="sc">London and Oxford</span></p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_004">004</div> -<div class="img" id="fig1"> -<img src="images/p2.jpg" alt="" width="674" height="1000" /> -<p class="pcap"><span class="sc">Entrance of the Magi.</span> [<a href="#Page_83">Page 83</a>].</p> -</div> -<div class="box"> -<h1><span class="small"><span class="smaller">THE</span> -<br />OLD MIRACLE PLAYS -<br />OF ENGLAND</span></h1> -<p class="center"><span class="sc">By</span> NETTA SYRETT -<br /><i class="smaller">AUTHOR OF -<br />“THE STORY OF ST. CATHERINE OF SIENA”</i></p> -<p class="center"><span class="smallest">WITH TWO ILLUSTRATIONS FROM WATER-COLOUR DRAWINGS BY</span> -<br /><span class="smaller">HELEN THORP</span></p> -<p class="tbcenter"><span class="smaller">A. R. MOWBRAY & CO. <span class="sc">Ltd.</span> -<br /><span class="sc">London</span>: 28 Margaret Street, Oxford Circus, W. -<br /><span class="sc">Oxford</span>: 9 High Street -<br /><span class="sc">The Young Churchman Co., Milwaukee</span></span></p> -</div> -<p class="tbcenter">First impression, 1911</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_v">v</div> -<h2><span class="small">PREFACE</span></h2> -<p>In the hope of bringing the actual presentment of -Mediaeval Miracle Plays more vividly before the minds -of children, I have cast information concerning them -into the form of a story. But, while this method of -dealing with the plays may prove to the childish reader -more interesting and palatable than a mere summary -of what is known concerning them, it leads to certain -liberties difficult to avoid in fiction.</p> -<p>It seemed, to take an example, in some ways more -convenient to lay the scene of the little story in York. -Yet many of the Wakefield and Coventry plays lend -themselves to description better than those of the -York series. However, when in the course of the -tale I have made use of an alien play, I have taken -care to mention the fact, and to invent a reason -(plausible enough, I trust, in a story) for its performance -at York.</p> -<p>Again, the stage directions for some of these old -plays are so vague that the precise manner of their -presentment must be left to individual imagination -and common sense. In a story there is no room for -<span class="pb" id="Page_vi">vi</span> -tentative speculations, nor for suggested alternative -treatments; and this being the case, I trust I may be -forgiven if occasionally I handle my material over-confidently. -This explanation is offered to older -students, to whom, simple as it is, my little summary, -compiled from the recognized authorities on the subject -of miracle plays, may yet be of some value. -In writing it I found most helpful and delightful -Mr. Sidney W. Clarke’s book, <i>The Miracle Play in -England</i>, and, written by Mr. Ernest Rhys, the preface -to <i>Everyman</i>, in Everyman’s Library. To both these -gentlemen my thanks are specially due.</p> -<p><span class="lr">N. S.</span></p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_vii">vii</div> -<h2 id="toc" class="center">CONTENTS</h2> -<dl class="toc"> -<dt class="small"><span class="jl"><span class="small">CHAP.</span></span> <span class="small">PAGE</span></dt> -<dt><a href="#c1"><span class="cn">I. </span><span class="sc">Introduction</span></a> 1</dt> -<dt><a href="#c2"><span class="cn">II. </span><span class="sc">How Colin and Margery kept the Feast of Corpus Christi</span></a> 17</dt> -<dt><a href="#c3"><span class="cn">III. </span><span class="sc">The Creation of the Angels, and the Fall of Lucifer</span></a> 23</dt> -<dt><a href="#c4"><span class="cn">IV. </span><span class="sc">The Making of Sun, Moon and Stars: of Birds, Beasts, and Fishes: of Man and Woman. The Garden of Eden</span></a> 35</dt> -<dt><a href="#c5"><span class="cn">V. </span><span class="sc">Noah’s Ark</span></a> 44</dt> -<dt><a href="#c6"><span class="cn">VI. </span><span class="sc">The Story of Abraham and of Isaac</span></a> 56</dt> -<dt><a href="#c7"><span class="cn">VII. </span><span class="sc">The Shepherds’ Play</span></a> 67</dt> -<dt><a href="#c8"><span class="cn">VIII. </span><span class="sc">King Herod, the Wise Men, and the Massacre of the Innocents</span></a> 77</dt> -<dt><a href="#c9"><span class="cn">IX. </span><span class="sc">At the End of the Day</span></a> 91</dt> -<dt><a href="#c10"><span class="cn">X. </span><span class="sc">Everyman</span></a> 99</dt> -</dl> -<div class="pb" id="Page_1">1</div> -<h1 title=""><span class="smaller">THE OLD MIRACLE PLAYS OF ENGLAND</span></h1> -<h2 id="c1"><span class="small">I</span> -<br />INTRODUCTION</h2> -<p>Of all the delightful games which children play in -the nursery or in the schoolroom, perhaps the -favourite one is dressing-up, and acting. And of -all the Christmas treats, perhaps the best is going to -the theatre—either to the pantomime or to one of the -fairy plays which fortunate children can now enjoy.</p> -<p>There are grown-up people too who never get -tired of dressing-up and acting, nor of going to the -theatre to see other people act. It is a taste which -is shared by children and grown-up people alike. -And it has always been so. Long, long ago, when -all the people in the world were savage, there is no -doubt that little naked children picked up their -fathers’ spears, and bows and arrows (or made smaller -ones in imitation of them), and “acted” the hunting -<span class="pb" id="Page_2">2</span> -of animals or the killing of enemies, while their -parents looked on, pleased and interested by the -performance.</p> -<p>Thousands of years have passed since the first -“acting” took place on some lonely beach, perhaps, -or in a clearing of the forest where savage children -played; and now in all our big towns we have big -houses specially built for acting, and there are many -men and women who spend most of their time either -in writing plays or in learning and acting them.</p> -<p>Every evening in London hundreds of cabs and -motor-cars stop before some brilliantly lighted theatre -to set down people who have come to see one of the -many plays performed night after night in this great -city. And seven hundred years ago people also -crowded to see plays in London, though it was a very -different London then, and a very different building -at which they arrived.</p> -<p>Instead of ladies in evening gowns, and gentlemen -all dressed alike in black coats, stepping out of cabs -and motor-cars to walk across a pavement to the -theatre door, you would have seen, on certain days -long ago, a curiously dressed crowd of men, women, -and children, some on horseback, some on foot, all -pressing in one direction. There would be barefooted -monks, soldiers with breastplates and helmets -of steel, nuns with white caps and veils, little boys -with long stockings, one red, one green perhaps, and -short tunics belted at the waist; ladies with full -<span class="pb" id="Page_3">3</span> -flowing robes and strange head-dresses, some pointed -like a sugar-loaf, some with veils arranged over a -frame in the shape of two horns. And all these -people in their quaint and varying costumes would -be threading their way through narrow, dirty streets, -like lanes, between overhanging houses, till they -stopped—not before a big lighted house with playbills -outside, and a marble hall and gilded ceiling -with doors leading to the theatre within—but in front -of the great gates of a church, and that church might -have been Westminster Abbey. For there the play -they had come to see was to be performed!</p> -<p>Strange as it may seem to us now, the first theatres -in England were the churches, and, as you may guess, -the first plays to be acted were religious plays.</p> -<p>Let us try to understand the reason for this. -You remember that William I conquered England -in 1066—eight hundred years ago. Well, from the -time that he and his followers came to this country -the English race has been gradually growing into the -nation to which we belong and into the sort of people -we see round us every day. Even the very poorest -English children nowadays go to school and can read -and write. Children whose parents are not so poor -learn much besides reading and writing, and thousands -of the sons and daughters of rich or fairly well-to-do -people go to college, and spend years of their life -in study. So that now, in the twentieth century, -English people are on the whole <i>educated</i>. But it -<span class="pb" id="Page_4">4</span> -has taken a very long time to arrive at such a state -of things as this, and for hundreds of years after the -Conquest, not only the poor, but even the richer and -quite rich people were ignorant. Very few men -except those who belonged to the Church studied at -all. Thousands of the rest could neither read nor -write.</p> -<p>Now very naturally the Church considered that -<i>religion</i> at least must in some way be taught and -explained to these masses of ignorant folk. Whatever -else they knew, or did not know, it was necessary -that they should understand the faith they -professed. They called themselves Christians, yet -how were people who could not read, to learn even -the Bible stories, or anything at all about the teaching -of <span class="sc">Christ</span>?</p> -<p>“They might go to the churches,” you will say, -perhaps, “where the Bible would be read to them by -the priests.” But <i>that</i> would not do. For remember -that for hundreds of years after the Conquest the -service was always read in Latin, a language which -very few people except lawyers, priests, and scholars -understood. No doubt, so far as they could, the -clergy privately explained the teaching of the Church -to as many people as they could reach. But thousands -and thousands of them were never reached -privately at all. They just came to church on -Sundays and on Saints’ days, and went away without -any real knowledge of what the services meant.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_5">5</div> -<p>It was a difficult problem, yet the monks and clergy -conquered it. They thought of a way of teaching -for which no books were necessary. A way moreover, -by which hundreds of people could learn at the -same time, merely by using their eyes and their ears. -The life of <span class="sc">Christ</span>, the lives of the Saints, the whole -Bible history, they discovered, could be <i>shown</i> to the -people in the form of plays or acted stories. The -clergy should write the plays, they agreed, and the -clergy themselves should act them!</p> -<p>It was a clever idea, cleverly carried out. In -various monasteries monks began to write and to -arrange such plays, to be acted in the churches on -special days, at special pauses in the service.</p> -<p>At first the religious scenes they prepared were -very simple, and performed chiefly in dumb show.</p> -<p>We know, for instance, of one little play that was -acted about eight hundred years ago in a church -dedicated to S. Nicholas.</p> -<p>Now the priests of that church were naturally -anxious for the people in their charge to know as -much as possible about the saint—their own special -saint, whose name they mentioned every time they -spoke of the church.</p> -<p>On the feast day of S. Nicholas therefore, before -the service began, they removed from its niche the -stone image of the saint, and in its place a priest -stood, dressed as much like the statue as possible.</p> -<p>That was the beginning of the story. The rest -<span class="pb" id="Page_6">6</span> -had to be explained by acting. Not only was -S. Nicholas the special saint of children, he was -also the protector of travellers, and the play was -meant to show how powerful he was in this respect, -and what miracles he could work for those who put -their trust in him.</p> -<p>The usual service was begun, and then, at a stated -time, a pause was made. The church doors were -thrown open, and a priest dressed as a traveller from -a distant land, came in and bowed before the shrine -of S. Nicholas. The priest represented a heathen -who had heard of the saint’s power, and wanted to -discover whether all he had been told was true. His -flowing robes and his jewelled turban showed the -audience that he came from a foreign land, and was -not a Christian. Presently, from the folds of his -robe, this man took a rich treasure, and placing it at -the feet of the saint, told him that he was going on -a journey, and prayed him to guard the wealth he -left in his keeping. Then he went his way out of -the church.</p> -<p>But no sooner had he departed, than other priests -dressed as robbers, crept in, and stealing up to the -shrine, took the treasure and hurried away with their -booty. Meanwhile, the heathen, who felt uneasy -about leaving his wealth in the saint’s care, returned -to make quite sure of its safety and finding the -treasure gone, began to storm and rave. He was -proceeding to beat and insult the image, when to -<span class="pb" id="Page_7">7</span> -his amazement it moved! Stepping down from the -niche, it went out to seek the robbers who were -hidden just outside the church. So terrified were -they at the approach of a living saint when as they -thought, only a statue had watched their theft, that -they immediately restored the treasure, and tremblingly -followed S. Nicholas into the church. The -heathen, overjoyed and full of awe and wonder, fell -at the saint’s feet. Then S. Nicholas bade him -become a Christian, and worship the true <span class="sc">God</span>.</p> -<p>So the play ended, and the interrupted service -went on.</p> -<p>Simple as it was, the little scene no doubt persuaded -the congregation that S. Nicholas was a great -and powerful personage, and the impression it made -upon them was one they were not likely to forget, -because of the strange and interesting manner in -which the lesson was taught.</p> -<p>This is the first play we know anything about, -but we may guess that others more or less like -it, began to be very popular, for we find from -old books—books written hundreds of years ago, -that twice a year at least, at Christmas and at Easter, -the people were taught by means of acting, two of -the greatest events in the life of <span class="sc">Christ</span>.</p> -<p>Let us try to imagine a Christmas Eve in Westminster -Abbey, long ago, when Henry III was king. -The Abbey was not nearly so large then as it is -to-day, for much of it has been built since. Yet -<span class="pb" id="Page_8">8</span> -the central part was finished, and six hundred years -ago people looked up at some of the same soaring -arches, and leant against some of the same pillars as -those we now see in the beautiful church.</p> -<p>The Abbey bells had been ringing for a long -time, calling the Londoners from their homes, and -from the crooked narrow lanes of the city, through -the gates in the walls which then surrounded Westminster, -there had come flocking to the church a -great crowd of gentle and simple folk. There were -merchants and shopkeepers, wearing hoods like jelly-bags -with their long points dangling at the back; -ladies with strange fantastic head-dresses; poor -women and children muffled in cloaks; soldiers, -nobles, and monks of various orders. Some of -them stood thronging the aisles, others knelt on -stools, or beside wooden benches.</p> -<p>The church was dark and mysterious. Only on -the altars, candles blazed like golden stars, and above -them the arches rose stretching up into the gloom -overhead. The air was full of a sweet heavy scent—the -scent of incense.</p> -<p>Near the altar, surrounded by gleaming lights, the -people could see a rough cradle shaped like a manger, -and beside it, dressed in long robes, an image of the -Virgin Mary.</p> -<p>Then from the side-doors leading to the space about -the altar, there entered, in twos and threes, men dressed -as shepherds, holding crooks, and driving before them -<span class="pb" id="Page_9">9</span> -real sheep. They were followed by dogs, who kept -the flock together, running round them, and ordering -them in the wonderful way of sheep-dogs. Some -of the shepherds lay down as though to sleep. Others -watched their flock, wide awake and talking amongst -themselves.</p> -<p>Suddenly, while interested and curious the congregation -looked on, a blast of trumpets rang out, and -before the startling sound had died away, echoing -through the aisles and the arches, an angel in a robe of -rose colour, with big white wings, appeared in the -pulpit. Very sweet and clear his voice sounded as he -announced tidings of great joy. <i>Christ was born in -Bethlehem.</i></p> -<p>Then, somewhere from the darkness above, there -followed, in a burst of song, the voices of the -angels.</p> -<p>“Glory to <span class="sc">God</span> in the highest,” they sang, “and on -earth, peace, good will toward men.”</p> -<p>Can you not imagine how the children gazed up -through the gloom, expecting to see the white-winged -angels hovering down towards them? And though -the grown-up people knew that the music came from -the singing boys placed in a gallery high up over the -windows, they too must have felt that the message was -a heavenly one, and many of them were filled with awe. -And now, when the beautiful voices were silent, the -shepherds began to crowd towards the altar. There, -kneeling before the manger, they adored the Baby and -<span class="pb" id="Page_10">10</span> -His Mother, and afterwards, walking in procession -through the church, past the watching crowd, they -sang a hymn of praise.</p> -<p>This was the scene which in numberless churches all -over England took place six hundred years ago on -Christmas Eve, and even now a memory of it dwells -at Christmas-time in many churches.</p> -<p>Nearly every church in Roman Catholic countries -gives up one of its little chapels to a representation of -the stable at Bethlehem. The actors are no longer -real, but figures of Joseph and Mary and the shepherds -take their place.</p> -<p>In Italy, the Christmas “manger scene” in the -churches is often very elaborate. I remember one -in a church just outside Florence, before which -there was always a crowd of little children staring in -delight. The whole of a tiny chapel was turned into -a sort of cave or grotto, with winding paths from the -heights, down which came figures to represent the -Wise Men from the East, with toy camels and leopards -following them. In the midst of the grotto there was -a straw-filled manger, and in it lay the Baby <span class="sc">Jesus</span>. -The Virgin Mary with clasped hands knelt beside -it, and Joseph, leaning on his staff, looked over her -shoulder at the Child. A group of shepherds with -crooks knelt near the Holy Family, while their woolly -toy flocks were huddled round them.</p> -<p>At Easter-time also, six hundred years ago, the -people in England were taught by means of acting that -<span class="pb" id="Page_11">11</span> -<i>Easter</i> means the Resurrection of <span class="sc">Christ</span> from the -dead.</p> -<p>Before the altar, a grave was prepared, and at a -certain part of the service, choristers, representing the -women who went to the sepulchre, walked up the -aisle, bearing the spices and the ointments. When -they arrived at the grave, they found seated beside it -an angel, who said, “Why seek ye the living among -the dead? He is not here, but is risen.”</p> -<p>Then the story as it is told in the Bible went on, -acted by the clergy, till one of them, representing -<span class="sc">Christ</span> Himself, appeared to the rest, announcing that -He had risen from the grave. At this point the whole -choir burst into songs of “Alleluia,” and the play -ended.</p> -<p>Like the “manger scene,” a memory of this old -play persists in some religious customs which still -linger. In Italy, if you go to any of the churches just -before Easter, you will see in front of one of the altars -something that looks like a little garden of flowers. -There are tubs of blossoming shrubs; masses of tulips -and daffodils and anemones, some in pots, some in jars -of water, and amongst the flowers you will find, cut in -wood perhaps, and painted to look as real as possible, -the spear, the nails, the cross—all the terrible things -that were used at the Crucifixion. And this little -“arranged” plot of colour and scent is called <i>The -Sepulchre</i>. The Easter play is acted no more, but it is -a beautiful thought to make a <i>garden</i> in memory of it, -<span class="pb" id="Page_12">12</span> -to show that death is conquered. For the “sepulchre” -holds not death, but life—the lovely life of flowers.</p> -<p>This, you see, is another way of teaching people the -meaning of the Resurrection.</p> -<p class="tb">The first plays, then, were religious plays, and they -were acted in churches. But soon they grew so -popular, and so many people crowded to see them, -that the churches were not large enough to contain the -throng, and by degrees the custom grew up of acting -them <i>outside</i> the church, so that they might be seen by -a much larger audience than the building itself could -hold.</p> -<p>From a very old play in which stage directions are -given, we are able to understand how the performance -was arranged. The story of this play is The -Disobedience of Eve, and the loss of Paradise through -her sin.</p> -<p>Just below one of the windows of the church, -supported by scaffolding, a platform was put up. -From this platform, steps led to a lower stage, and -there was a space between this under platform and the -ground.</p> -<p>Thus the church itself stood for Heaven. The -first platform was Paradise, the second Earth, and the -space beneath it, Hell. So that when <span class="sc">God</span> the <span class="sc">Father</span> -descended from Heaven to walk in the garden of -Paradise “in the cool of the day,” the priest who -represented Him, came from the church window to -<span class="pb" id="Page_13">13</span> -the “Paradise” platform. And when Adam and Eve, -having tasted of the fruit, were driven out of the -garden, they descended the steps to the “Earth” -stage, and at last to the space below which meant Hell, -where in the midst of clouds of smoke, and with great -rattling of chains, boys dressed as demons lay in -wait for them.</p> -<p>A play such as this must have been a quaint and -curious sight, and to us who live so many years after -the people who gazed at it from some churchyard -long ago, it seems childish and even occasionally -horrible. But we are in many ways unlike those -homely folk who used to stand open-mouthed in -amazement before such a scene. We have read many -books, and our ideas about religion have changed -so much that it is difficult to imagine how greatly -acting, even of this sort, must have impressed the -simple minds of men and women who had read -nothing, and were often full of fears and superstitions. -They were like little children who have to be taught -in a way that will fix and hold their attention. Just as -a tiny boy or girl is taught its letters with bright and -highly coloured picture-blocks.</p> -<p>So far we have seen how these religious plays were at -first acted in churches, then came to be performed -outside them. Now we shall discover that a further -change was presently to be made. As the years passed, -people began to expect more and more in the way of -acting. They wanted richer dresses for the players, -<span class="pb" id="Page_14">14</span> -more scenery, and bigger spaces for the performances. -Far from getting tired of these theatrical performances, -the taste for them grew, and greater and still greater -throngs pressed towards the churchyards every time a -play was announced. You will understand how disorder -arose, and spread. Rough crowds spoilt the -grass in the churchyards, and trampled upon the -graves, for the plays began to be looked upon as -amusements for a holiday, rather than as religious -ceremonies to be watched quietly and with reverence. -So in time it was felt that a churchyard was not a -fit place for a boisterous throng. It was too near the -sacred building, which the people profaned with their -noise.</p> -<p>Yet if the plays were removed from the surroundings -of the church, it no longer seemed fitting that -priests should take part in them. Thus it happened -that by the end of the thirteenth century, about the -time when Edward I was king, the clergy had left off -acting, except at Christmas-time and at Easter, when, -as usual, the Nativity scene, and the scene of the -Resurrection were performed in the churches. Every -other sort of religious play was henceforward acted by -the <i>laity</i> (that is, by people who, whatever they may be -by trade or profession, are not clergy). So a class of -men grew up who were paid for acting, and often -gained their living in this way alone; and though the -plays they acted were still religious plays, the cost -of them was borne by rich people, and they were -<span class="pb" id="Page_15">15</span> -by degrees made into grand performances, as we -shall see.</p> -<p>All through those years which are known as the -Middle Ages it was the custom for men who belonged -to the same trade to form themselves into a society, -or <i>guild</i> as it was called, to protect and help one -another in their own particular work. Each trade had -its own guild, and its own special saint as guardian. -There was the Tanners’ Guild, the Fishmongers’, the -Carpenters’, the Armourers’, the Bakers’, and so forth—too -many of them to mention. Now many of these -guilds in the course of time had become very rich -societies, and could afford to spend a great deal of -money upon anything that interested them. Plays -interested all the townsfolk immensely, and so even -before the clergy had quite left off acting in them, -the guilds began to take the management of these -plays into their charge, paying the actors, providing -rich and costly dresses, such scenery as could in those -days be made, and everything in fact that is known as -“stage property.”</p> -<p>The priests still <i>wrote</i> the stories, but the acting and -the whole management of them passed into the care of -the rich guilds.</p> -<p><i>Miracle plays</i> was the name given to these religious -“acted stories,” and very fortunately, four sets of -Miracle plays have been found and preserved, so that -we can read the very words spoken by actors long ago -to audiences of eager and interested people.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_16">16</div> -<p>These four sets are the York, Wakefield, Chester, -and Coventry plays. Each “set” includes a great -many plays—in the York collection, for instance, there -are forty-eight—and year after year from the reign of -Edward III to the time of Henry VII they were acted -at the four towns mentioned. Not in these towns -alone either, but all over England; for if a city had no -plays of its own it borrowed one of the York, Chester, -Wakefield, or Coventry set.</p> -<p>If we look at the York collection of Miracle plays, -it will do as an example of the rest. We find that it -begins with the <i>Story of the Creation of the World</i>, and -all the chief stories of the Old and New Testament -follow in proper order. So that, even if he could not -read, any one who saw the whole series one after the -other, would have a very good idea of all the teaching -of the Bible.</p> -<p>Now let us in thought go back to the Middle Ages, -and try to picture the scene in some old market-place, -soon after Whitsuntide, the time when Miracle plays -were generally acted. To help us to do this, let us -imagine how the sight of them impressed two out -of the thousands of children who with their parents -went to see these plays.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_17">17</div> -<h2 id="c2"><span class="small">II</span> -<br /><span class="sc">How Colin and Margery kept the Feast of Corpus Christi</span></h2> -<p>Colin and Margery were two children who, five -hundred years ago, lived in the country, not far -from York. Their father, who had a little farm, -held his land from the great lord whose castle with -its battlements and turrets stood up proudly on a -neighbouring hill, and sometimes the children had -seen him when, with a great company of followers, -he went hawking, and rode past their cottage.</p> -<p>Now, except for the Lady Alicia, her young children, -and a few retainers, the castle stood empty. Its lord, -with all his men-at-arms, had gone to fight in the wars -with France, for Henry V was king, and, not content -with ruling England, he wanted to be King of France -as well.</p> -<p>The children’s father, Farmer Short, was not rich, -but neither was he very poor. The cottage in which -he lived with his wife and his little son and daughter -was in those days considered comfortable.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_18">18</div> -<p>It was built of stone, had low walls and a thatched -roof, and the kitchen, in which Colin and Margery -slept, was paved with stone, and had a wooden ceiling, -which Farmer Short could easily touch with his hand.</p> -<p>Neither Colin nor Margery went to school. There -was no school nearer than York, some miles distant; -and though Margery was nine and Colin ten, they did -not even know their letters, and all their lives they -never learnt to read. But without going to school -there was plenty to do all day long. Colin had to -look after the cows and to help his father in the fields; -and every morning, besides learning to help her mother -in the house, Margery was sent out on to the common -to watch the geese, and to drive them back if they -strayed too far.</p> -<p>One June evening both the children went to bed -in a state of great excitement. The next day was the -Feast of Corpus Christi—a festival in honour of the -<span class="sc">Lord’s</span> Supper—and with their father and mother -they were to ride into York to see the Miracle plays. -The last time they were in church they had smiled at -one another when they found it was Trinity Sunday, -because they knew that Corpus Christi would come on -the following Thursday, four days later. Now the -great day was close at hand, and, though they lay down -on the little sacks of straw which served them for -beds, it was a long time before either of them slept. -Colin had once seen the plays, and his sister kept -asking him questions about them. What were they -<span class="pb" id="Page_19">19</span> -like? What did the people do? What did they say? -But Colin’s explanations did not satisfy her. He -remembered a big man dressed in bright clothes, who -stamped and made a great noise, and had a sword. -He told her about angels with great white wings, and -something also about people with black faces and -feathers and claws. But Margery was very little the -wiser; and presently, when she found her brother’s -voice growing drowsier and drowsier, she too curled -round on her straw bed and went to sleep.</p> -<p>It was light when she awoke, though the sun had -not yet risen; and, jumping up, she shook Colin, who -directly he could be made to understand that the day -had come, also leaped from his bed and began to -struggle with the great bars of the kitchen-door. Just -as he managed to undo them and to throw open the -door to make quite certain that the morning was fine, -his mother, Mistress Short, came clattering down the -steps that led from the upper room right into the -kitchen.</p> -<p>She wore all her best things. A gown of grey -material was looped high over a girdle to show her -red stockings and her buckled shoes. On her head -there was a white cap, indented over the forehead, and -rising into two wings on either side, while folds of -linen were brought round her neck under her chin. -Over her arm she carried the children’s holiday clothes, -for this was a great occasion. The whole family was -to spend the day at the house of her husband’s sister, -<span class="pb" id="Page_20">20</span> -Mistress Harpham, a rich glover’s wife in York, and -Mistress Short was determined to make a good -appearance.</p> -<p>Colin and Margery were soon dressed, and if no -idea of much washing occurred to them, you must -remember that they lived hundreds of years ago, when -soap and water were not considered so necessary as -they are now. They dipped their heads indeed, into -a trough of water in the farmyard just outside, and -rubbing their faces with a cloth, were ready to have -the finishing-touches put to their clothes. In his -long stockings and little brown tunic, Colin looked -quite charming, and Margery was very proud of her -green frock looped up over a girdle like her mother’s. -Both children wore little capes of linen, to which -a hood was attached, to be buttoned under the chin -or left hanging, according to the state of the weather.</p> -<p>Their mother had prepared a meal of cakes and ale, -but they were almost too excited to eat and drink, and -it was not till their father, who had gone to fetch the -horses, appeared, riding on Dobbin and leading Jock, -that they could believe they were really going to start.</p> -<p>Margery was soon seated in front of her father on -Dobbin’s broad saddle, and Colin rode with his mother -on Jock, the other farm-horse; and so, long before -the sun rose, they ambled out of the yard into a lane -which led to the high road to York.</p> -<p>The sky was clear, the larks were singing, and the -wild roses in the hedges were all wet with dew, as they -<span class="pb" id="Page_21">21</span> -rode under the arching trees. Soon, however, they -turned into the long white road, where already groups -of people, some on foot, some on horseback, others -in wooden carts, were wending their way to the city, -whose walls and gates could be seen in the distance.</p> -<p>Before long they were joined by several friends, and -a company of ten or twelve jogged along together, -discussing the probable events of the day.</p> -<p>You might find it difficult to understand their -conversation if you could hear it now, for though -these country people of course spoke English, it was -not the English of to-day. Though many of the -words were those we know well, there were others which -have since fallen out of use, or are pronounced differently; -so if I put their talk into the language to -which we are accustomed, you must remember that -though the sense of it is the same, it was not spoken -in just this way.</p> -<p>“Whereabouts does the first play begin?” asked -Farmer Short, who had not been to the city for -a whole year.</p> -<p>“At the gates of the priory in Mikelgate,” said -the man who rode next to him.</p> -<p>Master Brigg was a townsman on a visit to his -country relations, with whom he was journeying.</p> -<p>“Next, at the door of Robert Harpham,” he went -on. “Then at Skeldergate End. After that, I don’t -know. I’ve forgotten.”</p> -<p>Colin pricked up his ears.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_22">22</div> -<p>“We shan’t have to wait long,” he whispered, -leaning across to Margery. “Aunt Harpham lives -close to Mikelgate.”</p> -<p>“And who plays the <i>Creation</i> this year?” his father -was asking.</p> -<p>“The Plasterers,” replied Master Brigg.</p> -<p>“And <i>Adam and Eve</i>?”</p> -<p>“That I forget. But the Glovers have charge of -<i>Cain and Abel</i>, and the Shipwrights this year are giving -<i>The Building of the Ark</i>.”</p> -<p>“A good thought! ’Tis the best play for shipwrights!” -declared the farmer, laughing. “I’ll be -bound they’ll see it built well and truly. What of -<i>The Shepherds’ Play</i>?”</p> -<p>“The Chandlers have the care of that, and the -Goldsmiths of <i>The Coming of the Three Kings to Herod</i>.”</p> -<p>“That’s the man I told you about,” cried Colin. -“The man that stamped, and talked loud, and had -a sword.”</p> -<p>“Oh, look!” interrupted Margery, excitedly. “We -are coming quite close! We shall soon be there!” -And indeed, while they talked, the little company had -drawn near to the city, whose walls and frowning -gates rose up before them. In a very few minutes -they had clattered under the archway of Petergate, -and the children found themselves in the city.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_23">23</div> -<h2 id="c3"><span class="small">III</span> -<br /><span class="sc">The Creation of the Angels, and the Fall of Lucifer</span></h2> -<p>Margery, who had never been to any big town before, -looked about her with delight and amazement as they -rode towards the inn where Dobbin and Jock were to -be left in the stables till the evening. The narrow -streets were paved with cobble-stones, and lined with -houses which compared with the little cottage at home, -seemed to her marvellously grand and imposing. They -were built of plaster and timber, with gables curiously -carved, and as in many of them each story projected -beyond the lower one, the top windows on either side -of the streets were close together, so that opposite -neighbours were near enough to shake hands. There -was such a crowd that the horses had to walk very -slowly, pushing their way amongst the people. Early -as it still was, the whole city seemed to be awake and -astir, and the noise was deafening. Carts clattered -over the rough stones, their drivers shouting to the -throng to make way. Boys whistled and screamed, -whips cracked; mothers called to their children to -<span class="pb" id="Page_24">24</span> -keep close, and the whole crowd seemed to be moving -in one direction.</p> -<p>“They are going to Mikelgate; that’s where the -first play begins,” called Colin, looking back over his -shoulder. “Oh, father, make haste! We shall be -late.”</p> -<p>“Plenty o’ time! plenty o’ time!” declared Farmer -Short. “Here we turn in, at the sign of the ‘Dragon.’ -Pull Jock’s head round, mother!”</p> -<p>They had now reached an archway, and following a -procession of other horses and carts, they soon found -themselves in the big courtyard of the inn, which had -a wooden gallery upon which the living-rooms of the -first floor opened, running along three sides of it. -Above the gallery there was another story, surmounted -by gabled roofs, with carvings upon them of -curious birds and beasts and hobgoblins. The blue -sky formed the ceiling over the courtyard.</p> -<p>A stableman ran to lift Margery from Dobbin’s -back, and then to help Mistress Short to dismount. -Colin had slipped from the saddle by himself, and his -father following him, went to see that the horses were -as comfortably lodged as possible, for there were so -many others that there was scarcely room for them all -in the stables.</p> -<p>The children waited impatiently till he reappeared, -for they were to go on foot to the house of Mistress -Harpham, near Mikelgate.</p> -<p>“We shall be late! I know we shall be late!” -<span class="pb" id="Page_25">25</span> -Margery kept repeating till her mother bade her be -quiet.</p> -<p>“It will take at least an hour for the first play to -reach the house of your Aunt Harpham,” she assured -her. “It has but just begun at Mikelgate.”</p> -<p>But Margery was not happy till, having pushed -their way out of the throng in the courtyard, they -found themselves on the way to their kinswoman’s -dwelling.</p> -<p>Master Harpham’s house appeared very grand to -the children. It had a big carved doorway leading to -the shop, and the rooms above seemed to them magnificently -furnished, with their big oak chests, and -their high-backed chairs with leather seats, and the -ornamented beams across the ceiling. Mistress Harpham, -a stout, rosy-faced dame, greeted them very -kindly, and called to her son to come and be introduced -to his little cousins.</p> -<p>“Giles is going to act!” she told them proudly. -“But not yet. His turn comes later. He is to be -Isaac in the play of <i>Abraham’s Sacrifice</i>.”</p> -<p>Colin and Margery looked with awe and amazement -upon their cousin. He was a pretty boy of twelve, -with fair hair hanging to his shoulders, and a pale, -delicate little face.</p> -<p>“Won’t you be frightened?” whispered Margery, -gazing at him with breathless interest.</p> -<p>“No; not very,” he said, laughing. “I have been -in the plays before. Last year I was an angel.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_26">26</div> -<p>“Take them to the window, Giles!” called his -mother. “It’s time we were in our seats. Little -ones in the front; grown-ups at the back!”</p> -<p>The room was by this time full of townsfolk, invited -by the glover and his wife, and the first-floor windows, -as well as the upper ones, were crowded with people in -holiday dresses; the women in snowy wimples, and -gowns of many colours; the men in tunics of russet -brown or dull green.</p> -<p>Colin, Margery, and Giles sat on stools close to the -window, and the country children looked with interest -at the scene before them. The glover’s house was at -the corner of the market-place, and the windows of all -the houses surrounding it were hung with gay cloths, -and packed from basement to roof with people.</p> -<p>Below, in the cobble-paved square, with a babel of -noise and confusion, the poorer folk crowded.</p> -<p>“There won’t be any room when the play <i>does</i> -come!” exclaimed Colin.</p> -<p>“The heralds will clear the way,” said Giles. “Last -night it was such fun to watch them! They rode -through all the town reading the proclamation. That’s -a warning, you know, for every one to behave properly -to-day.”</p> -<p>“Oh, what did they say?” asked Margery, with -interest.</p> -<p>“Well, they came to the market-place here, on -horseback, with trumpets, and one man shouted at -the top of his voice. Let me see. What did he say? -<span class="pb" id="Page_27">27</span> -I believe I can remember some of it. It was like this.... -<i>Oyez. We command, on the King’s behalf, and the -Mayor and the Sheriffs of this city, that no man go armed -in this city with swords nor Carlisle axes, nor none other -defences in disturbance of the King’s peace and the play, or -hindering of the procession of Corpus Christi, and that they -leave their harness in their inns....</i> I forget the words -that came next, but they meant that each guild was to -act its play in proper order. And that all manner of -craftsmen who were responsible for a play should -employ ‘good players well-arranged and openly speaking’ -upon pain of a fine. And all that sort of thing, -you know.”</p> -<p>“I can’t think how you can remember it!” said -Margery.</p> -<p>“Oh, when you act, you have a great deal to learn -by heart, so you <i>must</i> have a good memory,” returned -Giles, airily.</p> -<p>“Oh, look! look!” interrupted Colin. “Here -they come! These are the heralds, aren’t they?”</p> -<p>There was a stir and a swaying in the crowd, and all -the people at the windows began to crane their necks -to see three or four horsemen, who came riding down -a narrow side-alley into the market-place, scattering -the throng, which pressed back before them. Then a -silence fell.</p> -<p>“Oh, how beautiful they look!” Margery whispered. -And indeed in their tunics of blue and crimson, -embroidered with gold, their horses also decked in gay -<span class="pb" id="Page_28">28</span> -velvet trappings, the heralds, with their silver trumpets, -were quite magnificent.</p> -<p>One of them, after a long blast on his trumpet, had -by this time begun to announce the plays.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Reverend lords and ladies all,</p> -<p class="t0">That at this time here assembled be,”</p> -</div> -<p>he chanted, and then went on to mention the subject -of each play, and the special guild by which it was to -be acted.</p> -<p>The children exchanged delighted glances when the -Parchment-makers’ and Bookbinders’ Guild came in -its place on the list, for in that play, “Abraham sacrificing -his son Isaac on an altar,” they were, of course, -specially interested.</p> -<p>At last, with another blast from the trumpets, the -heralds clattered away.</p> -<p>“The first pageant will be here in a minute,” said -Giles. “It must be nearly over at Mikelgate by this -time. The heralds were late.”</p> -<p>“What are all those flags for?” asked Colin. He -was looking down into the market-place, where a great -square was marked out by gay banners stuck at intervals -into the ground between the cobble-stones. Each -banner had the arms of the city painted upon it, and -all the flags fluttered bravely in the wind.</p> -<p>“They’re to mark the place where the pageant is to -stand,” said Giles. “It’s arranged like that all over -the town. Wherever a platform is to be placed, the -banners are put to show the exact position.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_29">29</div> -<p>“Is Giles telling you all about it?” asked Master -Harpham, leaning over the shoulders of his friends at -the window to pat Margery’s head. “Aye! aye! -You ask him anything you want to know, and I’ll -warrant he’ll have an answer ready. A fine fellow at -the pageants is Giles! The Town Council chose him -out of a score of others to play Isaac. Aye, that they -did!” he added proudly, turning to the women who -crowded behind the children.</p> -<p>Margery looked up shyly at the big man, whom -they had not seen before. He had just come up from -his shop in the basement to bring the news that the -first platform, or <i>pageant</i>, as every one called it, was on -its way; and now he was passing from group to group -at the windows, greeting his acquaintances in a loud, -hearty voice, and inquiring whether every one could -see.</p> -<p>“Did you have to practise a long time for Isaac?” -asked Margery, who could not get over her awe at the -knowledge that Giles was one of the players.</p> -<p>“Oh, not so very long. We had about six rehearsals -at the Town Hall. But some of the people <i>were</i> such -a long time learning their parts!” said Giles, -sighing.</p> -<p>“It’s coming! it’s coming!” cried Colin; and -every one turned eagerly to the window.</p> -<p>Down below in the square there was a swaying -amongst the crowd, and a great murmur of expectation -as at the corner of the market-place, a huge object -<span class="pb" id="Page_30">30</span> -came into view, towering high above the heads of the -people. It was preceded by a body of young men, -who pressed back the crowd with clubs or with the flat -sides of their swords, so as to clear the space marked -out by the banners.</p> -<p>“Who are all these people with clubs and swords?” -inquired Colin excitedly, while Margery’s eyes were -fixed on the swaying blue canvas that was approaching.</p> -<p>“They are the apprentices of the guild—the Tanners’ -Guild, you know”—Giles explained. “The -apprentices of each guild have to keep the crowd in -order, and some of them have to drag the pageant -along. Here they come! That’s Master Smith -pulling in front. We know him well. And there’s -Robin Coke next to him!”</p> -<p>The throng in the market-place was now well enough -ordered for the pageant to be clearly visible, and the -children saw a big wooden stage of two platforms, one -above the other.</p> -<p>It ran upon huge wheels, and in front there were -ropes, which were passed round the waists of eight or -ten men, who were pulling with all their might.</p> -<p>On it came, jolting over the cobble-stones of the -market-square till the men ceased to pull, and the -double platform stopped just in front of the window -at which the children sat.</p> -<p>The upper stage was just on a level with their eyes, -and Margery clasped her hands in delight.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_31">31</div> -<p>“We’ve got the best place of all!” she whispered -to her brother.</p> -<p>As yet the curtains of the upper platform were close -drawn, and she had time to look at the whole car -before the play actually began.</p> -<p>The lower half, she noticed, was all covered in by -brightly-coloured painted cloths, so that nothing of the -interior could be seen.</p> -<p>“That’s where the players dress,” Giles told her. -“And there are trap-doors and steps leading from -it to the upper part, which is the stage, you know. -And——.”</p> -<p>But the curtains were now pulled aside, disclosing -what seemed to the children a grand and beautiful -scene. A canopy, painted deep blue to represent the -sky, stretched above the head of an imposing figure -seated upon a gilt throne.</p> -<p>Those of you who have seen pictures of popes, -can imagine the dress of the player who represented -Almighty God. He wore a mitre upon his head, over -hair that was made stiff with gold. His beard was also -of stiff gold, and his robes were magnificently embroidered -and clasped with jewels. In his hand he held a -jewelled sceptre. The floor at his feet was strewn with -rushes, and at first there was nothing on the stage but -this stately figure, over-arched by the blue sky.</p> -<p>Then he spoke, chanting in a grave full voice, so -that the sound of it reached over the market-place; -and these were his words, put into the kind of English -<span class="pb" id="Page_32">32</span> -we speak to-day. Below on this page you will find -them as they were then written.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“I am gracious and great, <span class="sc">God</span> without beginning;</p> -<p class="t0">I am maker unmade, all might is in me;</p> -<p class="t0">I am life and way unto salvation winning;</p> -<p class="t0">I am foremost and first; as I bid shall it be.</p> -<p class="t0">My blessing of face shall be blinding,</p> -<p class="t0">And descending from harm to be hiding,</p> -<p class="t0">My body in bliss ever abiding,</p> -<p class="t0">Unending without any ending.”</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t2">“I am gracyus and grete, <span class="sc">God</span> without you begynning;</p> -<p class="t2">I am maker unmade, all mighte es in me;</p> -<p class="t2">I am lyfe and way unto welth wynnyng;</p> -<p class="t2">I am foremaste and fyrste, als I bid sall it be.</p> -<p class="t2">My blyssing of ble sall be blending,</p> -<p class="t2">And held and fro harme to be hydande,</p> -<p class="t2">My body in blys ay abydande,</p> -<p class="t2">Une dande withouten any endyng.”</p> -</div> -<p>Then, with other grave words, the <span class="sc">Lord</span> began the -work of Creation. First He brought into existence -the angels, summoning them in nine orders of rank -and power, each order greater and more powerful than -the last. One after another they appeared from a -platform at the back of the stage, wearing coats of -gilded skin, over which long robes hung to their feet. -Golden wings were fastened to their shoulders, and on -their foreheads diadems sparkled.</p> -<p>Then, greatest of all, and more beautiful and -resplendent than the rest, came Lucifer.</p> -<p>On him the Almighty conferred dignity and honour -above all the other spirits He had created. He was -the Star of the Morning, the great and splendid archangel.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_33">33</div> -<p>But Lucifer, filled with pride, soon began to contend -before <span class="sc">God</span>. He claimed still higher powers -than those which had been granted him, trying to -make himself the equal of the Almighty.</p> -<p>Then at last <span class="sc">God</span> spoke his sentence of banishment, -and he and the angels who worshipped him, were cast -down from heaven.</p> -<p>“<i>O Lucifer, Star of the Morning, how art thou -fallen!</i>” is a beautiful line in the Bible, which alludes -to the disgrace and banishment which the audience -now saw acted before their eyes.</p> -<p>Shortly after the fall of Lucifer, the curtains of the -pageant closed upon the scene of <span class="sc">God</span> enthroned, -surrounded by the good angels singing their praises to -the one and only deity.</p> -<p>Margery, who had looked and listened in amazed -delight, drew a long breath when this first play was -over. Colin, no less excited, began at once to talk -and to ask questions.</p> -<p>“Look! they are dragging the stage away!” he -exclaimed, “There’s the man you called Robin Coke, -and there’s Master Smith, pulling with all his might. -Where are they going to take it now?”</p> -<p>“In front of John Gyseburn’s door; that’s where -it’s played next,” said Giles. “That’s his son, -Matthew Gyseburn, the lawyer,” he added, pointing -out a man who stood at the other window.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_34">34</div> -<p>“See!” called Margery. “Here comes another -pageant. What is this, Giles?”</p> -<p>“Still the <i>Creation</i>. The earth is made now, and -the birds and fishes and all the animals. This is the -Plasterers’ pageant. Yesterday John Wiseman showed -me all the pigeons he had got for it.”</p> -<p>“Pigeons?” echoed Colin.</p> -<p>“You’ll see,” said Giles, nodding. “I wonder -whether I ought to go?” he added, looking back -anxiously at his mother. “They’ll be doing the third -play now at Mikelgate, as the second one has just -reached us.”</p> -<p>“Plenty of time,” declared Mistress Harpham, -reassuringly. “You needn’t go for another hour yet, -my boy.”</p> -<p>Meanwhile Colin and Margery were already absorbed -in the second pageant, which, drawn as before by men -(this time by the Plasterers’ apprentices), had stopped -in the same place just beneath the window.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_35">35</div> -<h2 id="c4"><span class="small">IV</span> -<br /><span class="sc">The Making of Sun, Moon, and Stars: of Birds, Beasts, and Fishes: of Man and Woman. The Garden of Eden</span></h2> -<p>When the curtains were drawn aside, another figure, -representing <span class="sc">God</span> Almighty, was seen seated on a -golden throne. When He spoke, it was to bid the -earth take shape; and as He uttered commands, -various painted cloths were unrolled, falling one over -the other to form a background to His throne.</p> -<p>First, He commanded the light to be divided from -the darkness.</p> -<p>At the word, a curtain, half of which was black, the -other half white, fell from the canopy overhead down -to the rush-strewn floor.</p> -<p>When He bade two great lights appear, “the greater -light to rule the day and the lesser light to rule the -night,” when “He made the stars also,” a painted -sky was unrolled with the sun, the moon, and the stars -upon it, and a picture of the sea, with fish swimming -<span class="pb" id="Page_36">36</span> -in it, followed the words, “Let the waters bring forth -abundantly the moving creature that hath life.”</p> -<p>“Now the birds are coming!” whispered Giles, -just before the command that fowl should “fly above -the earth in the open firmament of heaven.”</p> -<p>Almost as he spoke, a flight of pigeons rose into the -air, first fluttering a moment above the pageant, then -wheeling off in many directions, while the crowd -watched them open-mouthed.</p> -<p>“John Wiseman had them ready in a basket!” -Giles eagerly explained. “He is standing on the -platform at the back of the stage, behind the sky, you -know; and he let them out just at the right moment, -didn’t he? There ought to have been a lot of other -birds, but they are difficult to get. You see what the -direction says?”—he pointed to a page in a parchment-covered -book which he held, but Colin and Margery -shook their heads and looked with respect at their -cousin, who could actually read! They remembered -that Giles was said to be a great scholar, and was -probably going to be a priest when he grew up. That, -of course, accounted for his learning.</p> -<p>“I’ll read it to you,” said the boy, remembering that -his cousins knew nothing of books. “The words of -the pageant are here, and all the stage directions, -just as Robert Crowe, who wrote out the play for -the Plasterers, has copied them. This is what it -says about the birds—<i>Then one ought in secret to -put little birds flying in the air and alighting upon the</i> -<span class="pb" id="Page_37">37</span> -<i>earth with the most foreign birds that one is able to -procure.</i>”</p> -<p>“That’s all very well,” remarked Giles, closing the -book; “but it’s difficult. So they had to make -pigeons do.”</p> -<p>“But they were so pretty!” Margery said. She -did not mind talking for a little while now, for there -were no more painted scenes to look at, and she -scarcely understood the speech which followed the -command for “cattle and creeping things, and beasts -of the earth” to come into existence.</p> -<p>In a moment however, her attention was again -arrested, for the curtains were drawn, the pageant was -pulled away, and, before it had disappeared, a new one, -the third, had come into sight.</p> -<p>“This is the <i>Cardmakers’</i> play,” said Giles, consulting -his pageant book. “It is about <span class="sc">God</span> the <span class="sc">Father</span> -creating Adam and Eve.”</p> -<p>“Cardmakers?” Margery asked, rather puzzled at -the name. As a country child she did not know all -the trades of the town guilds.</p> -<p>“They are the people who make the cards for the -wool to be combed on, before it is made up into stuffs, -you know,” Giles told her.</p> -<p>“Then comes the <i>Fullers’</i> play,” he went on, reading -from the book, “<span class="sc">God</span> forbidding Adam and Eve to eat -of the Tree of Life. Afterwards the <i>Coopers</i> do Adam -and Eve in the Garden of Eden; and the serpent -deceiving them with apples; and <span class="sc">God</span> speaking to -<span class="pb" id="Page_38">38</span> -them and cursing the serpent, and with a sword -driving them out of Paradise.”</p> -<p>“Come, children! you must be hungry!” called -Mistress Harpham at this moment. “Come and -have something to eat.”</p> -<p>Margery turned reluctantly from the window, -where, on the scaffolding, the third play was just -beginning; and her aunt laughed.</p> -<p>“Bless the child! You can’t sit looking at the -pageants all day without food!” she exclaimed. -“There are plenty more of ’em in all conscience. -Come along now. Giles will have to go when he’s -eaten something. He must soon be starting for his play.”</p> -<p>By this time all of the guests were seated at trestle-tables, -which had been placed at the back of the room -and spread with all sorts of food. There were huge -joints, and fat capons, and plenty of ale, to which the -guests did ample justice.</p> -<p>Colin and Margery, with Giles between them, were -squeezed in at one of the tables, and soon discovered -that they were very hungry. There was a great -clattering of plates and knives, and a babel of conversation. -The pageants already seen, were criticized, -praised, or condemned, and compared with those of -the preceding year; and all the guests politely declared -how they were looking forward to the play of the -Parchment-makers and Bookbinders, the guild to -which their host belonged.</p> -<p>“How is it that Giles is allowed to be here, and not -<span class="pb" id="Page_39">39</span> -with his company?” inquired the grave but kind-looking -man whom Giles had pointed out as Matthew -Gyseburn, the lawyer.</p> -<p>“The council gave him special permission to stay -at home till the fifth pageant was on its way,” explained -his mother. “My husband is an important man on -the Town Council, as you know,” she added proudly. -“And you see, Giles isn’t a <i>paid</i> player! He acts for -the love of it—bless him. And he’s none too strong,” -she added, lowering her voice. “Those hours of -waiting would make him ill. But as soon as ever this -Coopers’ pageant moves off, his father will take him -to join his company and help him to dress.”</p> -<p>“Are you going?” asked Margery sadly, as Giles -got up from the table. “I’m so sorry. There won’t -be any one to tell us all about it now, and I shan’t -understand!”</p> -<p>“You shall sit by me, little mistress and master,” -said the good-natured lawyer, smiling. “I’ll do my -best to make up for Giles. Here, boy! leave me the -‘pageant-book,’ in case I’m asked more questions -than I know how to answer.”</p> -<p>Giles gave him the book, and, then anxiously pulling -his father by the arm, forced him to get up.</p> -<p>“So afraid he’ll be late!” cried Master Harpham, -laughing. “There’s heaps of time; but perhaps we’d -better be starting.”</p> -<p>“Will you ever get through the crowd?” asked -a woman anxiously.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_40">40</div> -<p>“Oh, we know all the backways; don’t we, Giles? -We shall slip along the side-alleys in no time, up to -where his pageant is waiting. See you again, neighbours!” -He nodded to the company, and, pushing -Giles before him, went out.</p> -<p>“May we go to the window now?” begged -Margery, who could hear the players talking, and -was longing not to miss too many of the plays.</p> -<p>“To be sure, my dears, if you have had enough to -eat,” said Mistress Harpham.</p> -<p>The children ran to their places, and found the -Coopers’ play going on.</p> -<p>This pageant, they noticed, had <i>three</i> rooms or stages -one beneath the other. On the highest, or Heaven -stage, sat <span class="sc">God</span> Almighty; beneath it, in the Garden -of Eden, were Adam and Eve; and the third, still lower -stage, represented Earth.</p> -<p>But the children’s attention was riveted on the -second stage, round which branches of trees and -flowers were placed to represent a garden. In the -midst was the Tree of Life, with golden fruit upon -it, and in the shadow of the tree there was a strange -group. Adam and Eve, both of whom were played -by tall boys dressed in close-fitting skins dyed flesh-colour, -were talking to a huge serpent who, coiled -round the trunk of the tree, was tempting them.</p> -<p>“There must be some one speaking inside him,” -exclaimed Margery. “He’s big enough to hide a boy -at least—isn’t he?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_41">41</div> -<p>“Hush!” said Colin; “listen to what he’s saying.”</p> -<p>The serpent’s great head was turned towards Eve, -and his voice was full of persuasion. “Ye shall not -surely die!” he told her; “for <span class="sc">God</span> doth know that in -the day ye eat thereof then your eyes shall be opened, -and ye shall be as gods, knowing good and evil.”</p> -<p>Then Eve looked longingly at the golden fruit, and -hesitated.</p> -<p>“She’s going to pick it!” whispered Margery.</p> -<p>“Yes! look! She has broken off a branch, and -she’s giving the fruit to Adam. Now she’s talking -to him.”</p> -<p>“And now they’re eating the apples!” cried Colin; -“and <span class="sc">God</span> will be angry! They know He will be -angry. See, they’re hiding themselves. They can -hear His voice!”</p> -<p>And presently, while they watched, <span class="sc">God</span> Almighty -came down the steps which led from Heaven to -Paradise, and entered the garden. Here he questioned -Adam and Eve, and afterwards turned to the serpent -and cursed him. Then, holding a flashing sword -above the heads of the guilty man and woman, He -told them of their punishment; and finally drove them -weeping from the garden, down to the earth, upon -which they were henceforth to live.</p> -<p>The Armourers’ pageant was by this time waiting -its turn at the corner of the market-place, and when -the Coopers’ scaffold was dragged away it speedily -took its place.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_42">42</div> -<p>“Now we shall see Adam and Eve’s life on the -earth,” said the lawyer, who had come to the window, -and was standing just behind the children.</p> -<p>The curtains before the stage were drawn back, and -Adam and Eve, no longer happy and light-hearted, -were seen on the earth, where henceforth they had to -work in sorrow and suffering. As they sadly talked -together, an angel with golden wings appeared to -them. To Adam he gave a spade, bidding him till -the ground, and to Eve a distaff, commanding her -to work for her household.</p> -<p>The Glovers’ play came next. The characters in it -were Cain and Abel, and the story told of the murder -of Abel by Cain, and of Cain’s punishment.</p> -<p>It was all very interesting to the children, but they -were looking forward so eagerly to the following -pageant that they could not refrain from glancing -every now and again towards the corner of the market-place -at which it would appear.</p> -<p>Noah’s ark was the subject, and the lawyer, Master -Gyseburn, had told them it would be an amusing -play.</p> -<p>It did not seem strange to any of the people -assembled that a few of the plays should be written -on purpose to make the audience laugh. It had long -been the custom to make into comic scenes one or two -of the Bible stories in which no sacred characters -appeared. The monks who wrote the plays remembered -how long and how patiently the crowd had to -<span class="pb" id="Page_43">43</span> -stand, and they thought that if the people sometimes -laughed, their attention would be kept fresh for the -more serious part of the Bible teaching.</p> -<p>So Colin and Margery heard without surprise and -with joyful anticipation that Noah’s wife would be -very funny. They were exceedingly anxious also to -see the ark, which Master Gyseburn described as -a wonderful piece of work.</p> -<p>There was altogether a good deal of excitement -about the two following plays, and much conversation -concerning them went on amongst the guests assembled -at Master Harpham’s.</p> -<p>“They are not our plays—the York plays—at all, -are they?” asked a pretty young girl who sat near -Margery.</p> -<p>“No,” returned a neighbour; “I hear they are both -borrowed from Chester, because they are better than -our own pageants.”</p> -<p>“’Tis very fitting that Noah’s ark should be performed -by the Shipwrights and Mariners!” said -Master Gyseburn. “If they don’t understand seafaring -business, who should?”</p> -<p>“Here it comes!” shouted Colin, and every one -gazed eagerly at the approaching pageant, which was -drawn by the Shipwrights’ apprentices.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_44">44</div> -<h2 id="c5"><span class="small">V</span> -<br /><span class="sc">Noah’s Ark</span></h2> -<p>It paused, as usual, just beneath Master Harpham’s -window.</p> -<p>“Why, there’s no ark!” exclaimed Margery, in -a disappointed tone.</p> -<p>“Wait a bit!” Colin warned her. “It’s behind -those curtains at the back, I expect. Noah has first -to be told to build it, you see.”</p> -<p>Colin was right, for the play began with <span class="sc">God’s</span> announcement -to Noah that the Deluge was approaching, -and His command that a ship should be built.</p> -<p>Then Noah, a venerable old man with a long white -beard, praised <span class="sc">God</span> for the warning, and spoke as -follows:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“O <span class="sc">Lorde</span>, I thank Thee lowde and still,</p> -<p class="t0">That to me arte in suche will,</p> -<p class="t0">And spares me and my howse to spill,</p> -<p class="t0">As I now southly [truly] fynde.</p> -<p class="t0">Thy byddinge, <span class="sc">Lorde</span>, I shall fulfill,</p> -<p class="t0">And never more Thee greve nor grill [provoke]</p> -<p class="t0">That such grace hath sent me till,</p> -<p class="t0">Amongst all mankinde.”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_45">45</div> -<p>Noah’s sons and their wives now entered, and the -old man turned to them and told them of the flood -that was coming:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Have done, you men and women all,</p> -<p class="t0">Hye you, lest this watter fall</p> -<p class="t0">To worche [work] this shippe chamber and hall</p> -<p class="t0">As <span class="sc">God</span> hath bidden us doe,”</p> -</div> -<p>he said.</p> -<p>For the first time now, Noah’s wife came in, and -her appearance was greeted by a roar of laughter from -the crowd in the market-place and at the windows. -The people understood that she was meant to be -a very bad-tempered lady, and both her dress and her -face were meant to make them laugh. The part was -of course acted by a man (no woman ever acted in -those days), and the player was a good actor whom -every one knew.</p> -<p>At first the wife did not speak, though all the time -her behaviour was amusing. Meanwhile the sons -declared themselves ready to help with the ark.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Father” (said Shem), “I am already bowne [prepared],</p> -<p class="t0">An axe I have, by my croune!</p> -<p class="t0">As sharp as any in all this toun</p> -<p class="t0">For to go thereto.”</p> -</div> -<p>Then Ham spoke:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“I have a hatchet, wonder keen</p> -<p class="t0">To bite well, as may be seen,</p> -<p class="t0">A better ground one, as I ween,</p> -<p class="t0">Is not in all this toun.”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_46">46</div> -<p>Japhet also intended to do his best:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“And I can well make a pin,</p> -<p class="t0">And with this hammer knock it in,</p> -<p class="t0">Go and work without more din,</p> -<p class="t0">And I am ready bowne [prepared].”</p> -</div> -<p>But Noah’s wife at once showed by her grumbling -speech that she was obstinate, and did not intend to do -much work:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“And we shall bring timber too,</p> -<p class="t0">For women nothing else to do;</p> -<p class="t0">Women be weak to undergo</p> -<p class="t0">Any great travail,”</p> -</div> -<p>she declared.</p> -<p>At last, to the children’s delight, the curtains at the -back of the stage parted, and they saw the ark. It -was already very substantially built, for of course in -the few minutes at the actors’ disposal they could do -no more than <i>pretend</i> to hammer and plane and saw. -Indeed all the time that it was not in use, this -ark hung in one of the churches in York, slung -to the beams across the nave, from which place of -safety it was every year taken down to do duty in -the pageant.</p> -<p>Margery and Colin gazed with admiration upon the -big ship, which was very much like the Noah’s arks -we see nowadays in the toy-shops, only of course -enormously larger. It was roofed in at the top, and -gaily painted. There were little windows along the -sides that opened and showed glimpses of rooms -within. A mast with sails and rigging appeared above -<span class="pb" id="Page_47">47</span> -the roof, and altogether a more satisfactory and -interesting ark can scarcely be imagined.</p> -<p>Noah and his sons began at once to work very -busily, as though they were really building, Noah -in these words explaining all there was to do:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Now in the Name of <span class="sc">God</span> I will begin</p> -<p class="t0">To make the ship that we shall in,</p> -<p class="t0">That we be ready for to swim</p> -<p class="t0">At the coming of the flood.</p> -<p class="t0">These boards I join together,</p> -<p class="t0">To keep us safe from the weather,</p> -<p class="t0">That we may roam both hither and thither,</p> -<p class="t0">And safe be from this flood.</p> -<p class="t0">Of this tree will I have the mast,</p> -<p class="t0">Tied with cables that will last.</p> -<p class="t0">With a sail-yard for each blast,</p> -<p class="t0">And each thing in its kind.</p> -<p class="t0">With topmast high and bowsprit,</p> -<p class="t0">With cords and ropes I hold all fit</p> -<p class="t0">To sail forth at the next weete [tide]</p> -<p class="t0">This ship is at an end.”</p> -</div> -<p>The ark, now finished by the pretended labours of -the men, Noah turned to his wife and family.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Wife” (he said), “in this castle we shall be kept;</p> -<p class="t0">My children and thou I would in leaped.”</p> -</div> -<p>But Noah’s wife immediately began to show her -temper. She had been looking all the time with -scorn upon the building of the ship, and laughing -with her neighbours, or “gossips,” as she called them, -to see her husband and her sons working, as she -considered, so foolishly; and when Noah begged her -<span class="pb" id="Page_48">48</span> -to come into safety, this was her contemptuous -answer:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“In faith, Noe, I had as lief thou had slept,</p> -<p class="t0">For all thy frankishfare [nonsense],</p> -<p class="t0">For I will not do after thy rede [advice].”</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Good wife, do as I thee bid,”</p> -</div> -<p>said Noah, coaxingly.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“By <span class="sc">Christ</span> not, or I see more need,</p> -<p class="t0">Though thou stand all the day and rave,”</p> -</div> -<p>she replied, while the crowd broke into roars of -laughter to see the husband and wife quarrelling.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“<span class="sc">Lord</span>, that women be crabbed ay!”</p> -</div> -<p>exclaimed Noah, amid fresh laughter,</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“And never are meek, that I dare say.</p> -<p class="t0">This is well seen of me to-day,</p> -<p class="t0">In witness of you each one.</p> -<p class="t0">Good wife, let all this beere [noise]</p> -<p class="t0">That thou makest in this place here;</p> -<p class="t0">For they all ween thou art master,</p> -<p class="t0">And so thou art, by St. John!”</p> -</div> -<p>But here, in order to attend to the various animals -which had to be taken into the ark, Noah was obliged -to cease arguing for a time; and the way in which this -difficult business of the animals was represented, greatly -amused and interested the children.</p> -<p>Each of Noah’s sons and daughters-in-law mentioned -the names of many birds and beasts, and as they -named them, they held up great figures painted on -parchment, and cut out to represent the various -creatures of which they spoke.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_49">49</div> -<p><i>Shem</i> began the list:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Sir, here are lions, leopards in,</p> -<p class="t0">Horses, mares, oxen, and swine,</p> -<p class="t0">Goats, calves, sheep, and kine</p> -<p class="t0">Here sitten [settled] may you see.”</p> -</div> -<p>“Oh, look at the lion!” exclaimed Margery. -“Isn’t he beautiful? And the pig, Colin! Did you -ever see such a fat pig in your life?”</p> -<p><i>Ham</i> had now begun to show the animals in his -charge:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Camels, asses, men may find;</p> -<p class="t0">Buck, doe, hart, and hind,”</p> -</div> -<p>he chanted, holding up the figure of each beast before -putting it in the ark.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Take here cats and dogs too (said <i>Japhet</i>),</p> -<p class="t0">Otter, fox, fulmart also;</p> -<p class="t0">Hares hopping gaily, can ye</p> -<p class="t0">Have kail here for to eat.”</p> -</div> -<p>Presently also Noah’s wife, very scornfully laughing, -showed <i>her</i> animals:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“And here are bears, wolves set,</p> -<p class="t0">Apes, owls, marmoset;</p> -<p class="t0">Weasels, squirrels, and ferret,</p> -<p class="t0">Here they eat their meat,”</p> -</div> -<p>she said.</p> -<p>Shem’s wife then went on with the list of creatures, -first exclaiming at their number:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Yet more beasts are in this house!</p> -<p class="t0">Here cats come in full crowse [comfort],</p> -<p class="t0">Here a rat and here a mouse,</p> -<p class="t0">They stand nigh together.”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_50">50</div> -<p>Margery wondered how the cats would get on -with the rats and mice, but Shem’s wife offered no -explanation, and immediately after her followed the -wife of Ham:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“And here are fowls, less and more (she declared),</p> -<p class="t0">Herons, cranes, and bittern;</p> -<p class="t0">Swans, peacocks, have them before! [in front]</p> -<p class="t0">Meat for this weather.”</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Here are cocks, kites, crows (said Japhet’s wife),</p> -<p class="t0">Rooks, ravens, many rows;</p> -<p class="t0">Cuckoos, curlews, whoso knows,</p> -<p class="t0">Each one in his kind.</p> -<p class="t0">And here are doves, ducks, drakes,</p> -<p class="t0">Redshanks, running through the lakes—</p> -<p class="t0">And each fowl that language makes</p> -<p class="t0">In this ship men may find.”</p> -</div> -<p>At length, after the animals had all gone safely into -the ark, Noah, to the huge delight of the crowd, -turned again to his wife, and once more began to urge -her to enter.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Wife, come in, why standest thou there? (he entreated).</p> -<p class="t0">Thou art ever forward, that I dare swear;</p> -<p class="t0">Come on <span class="sc">God’s</span> half [behalf], time it were,</p> -<p class="t0">For fear lest that we drown.”</p> -</div> -<p>But the foolish woman could not be persuaded. -Nothing would induce her to enter the ark, she -declared, unless her “gossips” were allowed to come -too; and that, as we know from the story of the -Flood, was forbidden, since only Noah and his family -were allowed to embark.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_51">51</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Yes, sir; set up your sail (said she),</p> -<p class="t0">And row forth with evil heale,</p> -<p class="t0">For without any fail</p> -<p class="t0">I will not out of this town;</p> -<p class="t0">But I have my gossips every one,</p> -<p class="t0">One foot further I will not go.</p> -<p class="t0">They shall not drown, by S. John!</p> -<p class="t0">If I may save their life.</p> -<p class="t0">They loved me full well, by <span class="sc">Christ</span>!</p> -<p class="t0">But thou wilt let them in thy chest,</p> -<p class="t0">Else row forth, Noah, whither thou list,</p> -<p class="t0">And get thee a new wife.”</p> -</div> -<p>“It’s rather nice of her to want to save her friends, -though—isn’t it?” exclaimed Margery, who was -breathlessly interested.</p> -<p>“I don’t believe she cares a bit about them, really,” -said Colin. “She only wants to be obstinate, and to -make a fuss.”</p> -<p>“Now what are they doing? Will she be left -behind?” asked Margery, anxiously.</p> -<p>“No,” said Master Gyseburn. “You see, Noah is -sending his sons to make her go in. Listen to what -Japhet says. He is just going to speak to her.”</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Mother (begged Japhet), we pray you altogether,</p> -<p class="t0">For we are here, your children;</p> -<p class="t0">Come into the ship for fear of the weather.”</p> -</div> -<p>“She won’t go! she won’t go!” cried Margery.</p> -<p>“Noah’s sending Shem to her again! There! -he’s lifted her right in!” Colin exclaimed. “Oh, -isn’t she angry!”</p> -<p>The people all round were laughing so much by -<span class="pb" id="Page_52">52</span> -this time, that the children could only just hear -Shem’s words as he carried his mother up the plank -into the ark:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“In faith, mother, yet you shall,</p> -<p class="t0">Whether you will or not!”</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Welcome, wife, into this boat!” (cried Noah.)</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“And have, then, that for thy note!” [trouble]</p> -</div> -<p>she returned, boxing her husband’s ears.</p> -<p>At this outbreak the crowd again shouted with -laughter, and went on laughing still more when Noah -put his hands to his ears, moaning and complaining. -By degrees, however, as the flood was supposed to rise -higher and higher, he and his wife were quieted.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Over the land the water spreads! (Noah explained.)</p> -<p class="t0">Now all this world is in a flood,</p> -<p class="t0">As I see well in sight,</p> -<p class="t0">This window will I close anon,</p> -<p class="t0">And into my chamber will I gone.”</p> -</div> -<p>The children eagerly watched him as, one after one, -he closed the windows of the ark, shutting in all the -little company of people and all the beasts and birds -that were to be saved.</p> -<p>“Now you must imagine that the ark is floating on -the water!” said Master Gyseburn, smiling at Colin -and Margery, who found no difficulty at all in doing so. -“The windows will be shut for a little while, and -we have to pretend that forty days have passed before -Noah opens them again. Soon we shall hear him -singing, and then we shall see him once more.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_53">53</div> -<p>In a few moments, indeed, voices were heard within -the ark, upraised in a psalm of praise; and when it -was ended the windows were slowly slipped back, and -at one of them stood Noah, a leaden weight fastened -to a long cord in his hand.</p> -<p>“What’s that for?” asked Colin. “What is he -going to do?”</p> -<p>“Ah! he’s going to ‘cast the lead’ in proper -fashion, just as sailors do when they want to find out -how deep the sea is,” explained Master Gyseburn. -“Don’t forget that this is the Shipwrights’ pageant, -and they are learned in all seafaring business, as you -may imagine.”</p> -<p>“Yes! he’s unwinding the line!” cried Colin; -“and I suppose he finds that the water has gone down? -He can see the tops of the mountains now—can’t he?”</p> -<p>“The <i>whole</i> of the mountains, I should think!” -returned Master Gyseburn, laughing. “Listen! he’s -going to speak.”</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Now forty days are fully gone (Noah began),</p> -<p class="t0">Send a raven I will anon;</p> -<p class="t0">If aught were earth, tree, or stone,</p> -<p class="t0">Be dry in any place.</p> -<p class="t0">And, if this fowl come not again,</p> -<p class="t0">It is a sign, sooth to say,</p> -<p class="t0">That dry it is, on hill and plain,</p> -<p class="t0">And <span class="sc">God</span> hath done some grace.”</p> -</div> -<p>“Oh! he’s going to let out a <i>real</i> raven!” said -Margery joyfully. “What a big black thing! Look, -how he’s clapping his wings!”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_54">54</div> -<p>“There!—now he’s flown!” exclaimed Colin. -“He’s gone right over the roofs of those houses -opposite. See how the people are staring after him. -<i>He’ll</i> never come back again!”</p> -<p>“But the dove will!” declared Margery excitedly. -“Noah’s going to let a dove fly now. He’s talking -to him—see!”</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Thou wilt turn again to me,</p> -<p class="t0">For of all fowls that may fly</p> -<p class="t0">Thou art most meek and hend [kind],”</p> -</div> -<p>said Noah, as he threw the bird up into the air.</p> -<p>“It won’t be the <i>same</i> bird that comes back—will -it?” asked Colin, looking up at Master Gyseburn, -who smiled again.</p> -<p>“No—there’s another dove already fastened with -a cord from the top of the stage. We shall see it in -a minute!” And, sure enough, while he was speaking, -the bird came fluttering down, almost into Noah’s -hands.</p> -<p>“Oh! it’s got the olive-branch in its beak!” -exclaimed Margery. “That shows that the trees are -out of the water—doesn’t it?”</p> -<p>“Yes; listen—then you will hear Noah saying that -the flood has gone down.”</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“By this sight I well may say,</p> -<p class="t0">This flood begins to cease (Noah was declaring).</p> -<p class="t0">My sweet dove to me brought has</p> -<p class="t0">A branch of olive from some place;</p> -<p class="t0">This betokeneth <span class="sc">God</span> has done us some grace,</p> -<p class="t0">And is a sign of peace.”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_55">55</div> -<p>By this time all the windows in the ark were open, -disclosing the whole family, including Noah’s wife, -who looked much subdued.</p> -<p>“She’s glad she’s saved now!” Margery remarked. -“Look!—they’re all coming out, and <span class="sc">God</span> is talking -to them.”</p> -<p>“He is promising that the rainbow shall be a sign -from heaven that the earth shall never more be -drowned,” said Master Gyseburn. “It’s all over -now. Look!—the men are dragging the pageant -away to the next halting-place.”</p> -<p>“And <i>now</i> it’s Abraham and Isaac!” said Margery -joyfully.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_56">56</div> -<h2 id="c6"><span class="small">VI</span> -<br /><span class="sc">The Story of Abraham and of Isaac</span></h2> -<p>Both the children looked anxiously in the direction -from which all the pageants coming from the gates -of the Priory, approached the market-place.</p> -<p>“It isn’t in sight yet!” said Colin in surprise, for -hitherto one pageant had followed swiftly upon -another.</p> -<p>“Oh! but here’s a man on horseback, dressed -<i>splendidly</i>!” Margery cried. “What is he going -to do?”</p> -<p>“He’s part of the play,” Master Gyseburn explained. -“He is a messenger who is going to tell -us what it’s all about.”</p> -<p>By this time the rider, who came from a side-street, -was clattering over the stones of the market-place. -Just beneath the window he drew up his horse, and, -raising his plumed cap, began in these words to -address the multitude:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“All peace, Lordings, that be present,</p> -<p class="t0">And hearken now with good intent</p> -<p class="t0">How Noah away from us he went</p> -<p class="t0">With all his company;</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_57">57</div> -<p class="t0">And Abraham, through <span class="sc">God’s</span> grace</p> -<p class="t0">He is come forth into this place,</p> -<p class="t0">And you will give him room and space</p> -<p class="t0">To tell you his storye.</p> -<p class="t0">This play, forsooth, begin shall he,</p> -<p class="t0">In worship of the Trinity,</p> -<p class="t0">That you may all hear and see</p> -<p class="t0">What shall be done to-day.</p> -<p class="t0">My name is Gobbet-on-the-Green,</p> -<p class="t0">No longer here I may be seen;</p> -<p class="t0">Farewell, my Lordings, all by dene [in haste]</p> -<p class="t0">For letting [hindering] of your play.”</p> -</div> -<p>Setting spurs to his horse, the messenger, a brilliant -figure in a doublet of sapphire blue laced with gold, -and long crimson hose, rode away, disappearing at the -opposite corner of the market-place from that at which -he had entered.</p> -<p>And now another figure came into view, also -riding.</p> -<p>This was a stately man in long robes, wearing a -curious turban of linen.</p> -<p>“Is that Abraham?” asked Colin. “But where -is Isaac?”</p> -<p>“He doesn’t come yet,” answered Master Gyseburn. -“The story, you see, begins long before Isaac -is born. Abraham has just returned from his victory -over the four kings. Listen! He is explaining how -the kings took his nephew Lot prisoner, and how he -released him, and conquered the kings.”</p> -<p>“Now there’s another man coming on horseback!” -said Margery. “Oh! look how beautifully he is -<span class="pb" id="Page_58">58</span> -dressed, with rubies on his gown, and on the thing -that comes over his forehead. Who is he?”</p> -<p>“That’s Melchizedek, King of Salem, and priest of -the Most High <span class="sc">God</span>. He is coming to bless Abraham -for conquering the kings, and to give him bread and -wine.”</p> -<p>“Yes! A servant is holding up a golden cup to -him and a golden plate!” said Colin. “And now -he’s going to give the bread and wine to Abraham, -I suppose.”</p> -<p>This duly happened as Colin had guessed, for -Melchizedek, reining up his horse close to Abraham, -began to speak, offering him presently the golden -cup and platter:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Abraham, welcome must thou be,</p> -<p class="t0"><span class="sc">God’s</span> grace is fully in thee;</p> -<p class="t0">Blessed ever must thou be</p> -<p class="t0">That enemies so can make.</p> -<p class="t0">I have brought, as thou may’st see,</p> -<p class="t0">Bread and wine for thy degree;</p> -<p class="t0">Receive this present now from me,</p> -<p class="t0">And that I thee beseke [beseech].”</p> -</div> -<p>Then Abraham, taking the bread and wine, answered -in this fashion:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Sir King, welcome in good say,</p> -<p class="t0">Thy present is welcome to my pay.</p> -<p class="t0"><span class="sc">God</span> has helped me to-day,</p> -<p class="t0">Unworthy though I were.</p> -<p class="t0">He shall have part of my prey</p> -<p class="t0">That I won since I went away.</p> -<p class="t0">Therefore to thee thou take it may,</p> -<p class="t0">The tenth I offer thee.”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_59">59</div> -<p>At this moment a horse richly laden with all sorts -of precious gifts of gold and silver and jewels was led -forward by a page. The beautiful animal had splendid -harness and trappings upon him, and he walked -proudly as though conscious of the royal presents he -brought.</p> -<p>Melchizedek accepted the gift and, after further talk -with Abraham, rode away, followed by his servants, -who led the laden steed.</p> -<p>Abraham now wheeled his horse aside to make -room for the messenger, who rode into the cleared -space, and once more addressed the audience. In a -long speech he explained to the people that the -scene they had just witnessed was a sort of parable, -and meant the Holy Communion, the Bread and -Wine commemorating <span class="sc">Christ’s</span> sacrifice for the world.</p> -<p>So far the pageant or wooden stage had not been -used at all. All the characters had come riding in -to act their parts. But now the platform which -stood waiting in the background, was drawn into -the midst of the open space, and the rest of the -play took place as usual, upon it.</p> -<p>First <span class="sc">God</span> the <span class="sc">Father</span> appeared, and Abraham -entreated Him to send him a child to be his heir. -The Almighty promised to grant his request, laid -various commands upon him, and told him that his -descendants should be as the stars of heaven for -number; and the scene ended with Abraham kneeling -to bless and thank the <span class="sc">Lord</span> for His mercy.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_60">60</div> -<p>The curtains were now drawn, and before they -were once more unclosed, the messenger again rode -up, and explained to the people how some of the -commands which <span class="sc">God</span> had just given to Abraham -pointed to and foreshadowed the Sacrament of -Baptism, which followed the birth of <span class="sc">Christ</span>.</p> -<p>When he had ridden away, and the curtains of -the pageant again swung back, the children grew -very excited, for almost the first words of the scene -told them that Isaac might soon be expected to -appear.</p> -<p>“You see,” said Master Gyseburn, “that some -years are supposed to have passed between the last -scene and this. <span class="sc">God’s</span> promise has been fulfilled, -and Abraham now has a son. Listen!”</p> -<p>Abraham was alone on the stage, but just as -Master Gyseburn finished speaking, <span class="sc">God’s</span> voice was -heard:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Abraham, My servant Abraham!”</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Lo, <span class="sc">Lord</span>, already here I am,”</p> -</div> -<p>replied Abraham.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Take Isaac thy son by name,”</p> -</div> -<p>the voice continued,</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“And in sacrifice offer him to Me</p> -<p class="t0">Upon that hill, beside thee.</p> -<p class="t0">Abraham, I will that it so be</p> -<p class="t0">For aught that may befall.”</p> -</div> -<p>Though almost stunned with grief at the command, -Abraham at once declared himself ready to obey the -<span class="pb" id="Page_61">61</span> -<span class="sc">Lord</span>. He said that all his household should remain -at home except Isaac, with whom he would go to the -appointed hill.</p> -<p>By this time Mistress Harpham was leaning -anxiously over the children’s shoulders, for she knew -that Giles in the character of Isaac was waiting to -come on to the stage. All the guests were also -very excited and full of expectation.</p> -<p>“It’s well that the boy acts with so good a man -as Master Eliott!” exclaimed a woman who stood -close to her hostess.</p> -<p>“Aye! John Eliott is a rare good player!” -answered Mistress Harpham nervously. “We’ve -never had a better ‘Abraham’ than he makes, and -he’s taken such pains with Giles too, teaching him -and training him for the part.”</p> -<p>“There he is! There he is!” cried Margery, as -a pretty, delicate little figure in a linen tunic entered. -“Oh! <i>doesn’t</i> he look nice!”</p> -<p>And indeed, with his fair curly hair and sweet face, -Giles made quite a touching little Isaac.</p> -<p>“Hush! Hush! Abraham is speaking,” Master -Gyseburn reminded her.</p> -<p>“Make thee ready, my darling,” he was saying in a -voice which made Margery feel as though she wanted -to cry:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Make thee ready, my darling,</p> -<p class="t0">For we must do a little thing;</p> -<p class="t0">This wood upon thy back you bring,</p> -<p class="t0">We must not long abide.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_62">62</div> -<p class="t0">A sword and fire I will take,</p> -<p class="t0">For sacrifice I must make;</p> -<p class="t0"><span class="sc">God’s</span> bidding will I not forsake,</p> -<p class="t0">But ay obedient be.”</p> -</div> -<p>There was a deep silence in the crowd, as speaking -in a very clear, gentle voice, Isaac made reply:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Father, I am all ready</p> -<p class="t0">To do your bidding meekly;</p> -<p class="t0">To bear this wood full bound am I</p> -<p class="t0">As you command me.”</p> -</div> -<p>Abraham then in trembling tone gave a blessing -to his son, whose look of bewilderment and growing -fear brought tears to the eyes of some of the women at -the window.</p> -<p>Then, after the old man had bound the wood on -the boy’s back, he was suddenly overcome with misery.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Oh! my heart will break in three,</p> -<p class="t0">To hear thy words I have pity,”</p> -</div> -<p>he exclaimed. But the cry of despair was immediately -followed by</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“As thou wilt, <span class="sc">Lord</span>, so must it be.”</p> -</div> -<p>Still wondering and afraid, Isaac spoke:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Are you anything adread? (he asked)</p> -<p class="t0">Father, if it be your will,</p> -<p class="t0">Where is the beast that we shall kill?”</p> -</div> -<p>And when Abraham told him that he saw no animal -at all, the boy went on in a shaking voice:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Father, I am full sore afraid</p> -<p class="t0">To see you bare this naked sword.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_63">63</div> -<p class="t0">I hope for all middle-yard [instead of any creature from the farmyard],</p> -<p class="t0">You will not slay your child?”</p> -</div> -<p>Then the father, who could not bear to detect the -fear in his boy’s voice, tried to comfort him by saying -that the <span class="sc">Lord</span> would surely provide some beast that -might be slain for the sacrifice. But Isaac was not -satisfied. He begged the old man to tell him whether -any evil would happen to him, and at the entreaty -Abraham could no longer hide his terrible grief, -but broke into wild words.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Ah, dear <span class="sc">God</span>, that me is woe!</p> -<p class="t0">Thou bursts my heart in sunder,”</p> -</div> -<p>he exclaimed, wringing his hands; and finally, when -Isaac again implored him to hide nothing from him, -he told the dreadful truth.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“O Isaac, Isaac, I must thee kill!”</p> -</div> -<p>he cried.</p> -<p>Then poor little Isaac went down on his knees -and entreated his father to spare him:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Alas! father,” he sobbed, “is that your will,</p> -<p class="t0">Your own child here for to spill</p> -<p class="t0">Upon this hill’s brink?</p> -<p class="t0">If I have trespassed in any degree</p> -<p class="t0">With a rod you may beat me;</p> -<p class="t0">Put up your sword, if your will be,</p> -<p class="t0">For I am but a child....</p> -<p class="t0">Would <span class="sc">God</span> my mother were here with me!</p> -<p class="t0">She would kneel upon her knee,</p> -<p class="t0">Praying you, father, if it might be,</p> -<p class="t0">For to save my life.”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_64">64</div> -<p>By this time Mistress Harpham was crying, and -so were many other mothers in the crowd, while -they listened to the boy’s voice, and the words of -Abraham as he explained to his son that this terrible -thing must come to pass because it was <span class="sc">God’s</span> -command.</p> -<p>Isaac listened, and, forgetting himself, tried very -sweetly to comfort his poor father, begging him not to -linger, but to do the deed quickly.</p> -<p>“Father, tell my mother of nothing,” he implored, -anxious to spare her the knowledge of his fate; -and then he asked that a handkerchief might be tied -over his eyes to prevent him from seeing the flash -of the sword.</p> -<p>Most of the women hid their own eyes while poor -little Isaac was bound and laid upon the altar; when -the boy spoke again, for the last time, they sobbed -aloud.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Now, father, I see that I shall die!</p> -<p class="t0">Almighty <span class="sc">God</span> in Majesty,</p> -<p class="t0">My soul I offer unto Thee;</p> -<p class="t0"><span class="sc">Lord</span>, to it be kind.”</p> -</div> -<p>Margery could not look when Abraham, snatching -up the sword, held it high over the child’s head, and it -was only when she heard a gentle voice that she dared -to take her hands from her eyes.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Abraham, My servant dear!”</p> -</div> -<p>“Look up! He’s not going to be hurt,” whispered -Colin. “The angel has come. <i>Two</i> angels!”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_65">65</div> -<p>With great relief Margery gazed at them. They -were beautiful, she thought, with their long golden -wings, and their white gowns; and she loved them for -coming to save poor little Isaac.</p> -<p>She saw that Abraham had dropped his sword, and -she heard his trembling voice saying,</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“<i>Lo, Lord! I am already here.</i>”</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Lay not thy sword in any manner</p> -<p class="t0">On Isaac, thy dear darling!”</p> -</div> -<p>replied one of the gracious angels, while the other -pointed to a ram which was struggling in a thicket -of bushes close by, and bade Abraham sacrifice the -animal instead of his only son.</p> -<p>Then Abraham rejoiced, and offered praise to <span class="sc">God</span>:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Ah, <span class="sc">Lord</span> of heaven, and King of bliss!</p> -<p class="t0">Thy bidding I shall do, I wis;</p> -<p class="t0">Sacrifice here to me sent is,</p> -<p class="t0">And all, <span class="sc">Lord</span>, through Thy grace.</p> -<p class="t0">A hornèd wether here I see,</p> -<p class="t0">Among the briars tied is he.</p> -<p class="t0">To Thee offered it shall be</p> -<p class="t0">Anon, right in this place.”</p> -</div> -<p>Margery drew a long breath when, just before the -curtains were closed, she saw Abraham unbinding and -embracing his poor little son. But even then the -play was not quite over, for again the messenger rode -forward, and, placing himself in front of the pageant, -explained to the audience that Isaac was a type of -<span class="sc">Christ</span>, and that the sacrifice was meant to foreshadow -<span class="pb" id="Page_66">66</span> -His death upon the Cross. These were the words of -his message:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Lordings, the signification</p> -<p class="t0">Of this deed of devotion,</p> -<p class="t0">An you will, it is shown,</p> -<p class="t0">May turn you to much good.</p> -<p class="t0">This deed you see done in this place,</p> -<p class="t0">In example of <span class="sc">Jesus</span> done it was,</p> -<p class="t0">That for to win mankind grace</p> -<p class="t0">Was sacrificed on the rood.</p> -<p class="t0">By Abraham you may understand</p> -<p class="t0">The <span class="sc">Father</span> of heaven that can fand [find means]</p> -<p class="t0">With His <span class="sc">Son’s</span> blood to break that band</p> -<p class="t0">The devil had brought us to.</p> -<p class="t0">By Isaac understand I may</p> -<p class="t0"><span class="sc">Jesus</span> Who was obedient ay,</p> -<p class="t0">His <span class="sc">Father’s</span> will to work alway,</p> -<p class="t0">His death to undergo.”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_67">67</div> -<h2 id="c7"><span class="small">VII</span> -<br /><span class="sc">The Shepherds’ Play</span></h2> -<p>Many were the exclamations of wonder and delight at -the performance, and many the congratulations to the -parents of the little actor, when <i>The Sacrifice of Isaac</i> -passed on its way to the next halting-place. Indeed so -excited and talkative were the guests at the house of -Master Harpham, that the four following pageants -received little attention from them.</p> -<p>“The poor child will be worn out before evening -comes!” declared the women again and again, and -Giles’ mother agreed. “Though he so loves playing,” -she said, “that I don’t think he feels the fatigue as -much as one might imagine. I know who <i>will</i> be worn -out, though!” she exclaimed, turning to Mistress -Short. “Your little ones ought to go and rest awhile. -It’s altogether too long a day for them.”</p> -<p>Colin and Margery protested, but their mother was -firm, and they were obliged to follow her to Mistress -Harpham’s guest-room, the grandest they had ever -seen, where Margery was placed on the big four-posted -<span class="pb" id="Page_68">68</span> -bed of oak, and Colin, grumbling a great -deal, was forced to lie down on a little truckle-bed at -its foot.</p> -<p>“You’ll be all the fresher, and enjoy the plays all -the better for a bit of a sleep,” Mistress Harpham -assured them. “And you shall be called in time for -the Shepherds’ play—that I promise you.”</p> -<p>Margery brightened at this, for she had heard that -the Shepherds’ play was the most popular of all the -pageants, and she had been afraid of missing it. -Though she and Colin had laughed at the idea of -“a bit of a sleep,” each found a strange feeling of -drowsiness creeping nearer, and considering that they -had been up since daybreak, and it was now past noon, -this was not so surprising as they considered it. At -any rate, when their mother softly entered the room -an hour later, she roused both children from sleep.</p> -<p>The Shepherds’ play, she told them, was expected -in a few minutes; and they ran eagerly into the front -room to take their old places at the window.</p> -<p>“Do tell us what they’ve been acting!” begged -Margery, as their friend Master Gyseburn welcomed -them with a smile.</p> -<p>“Well! we’ve had <i>Moses lifting up the Serpent in the -Wilderness</i>. That was the Hosiers’ pageant. Then -came the Grocers with the <i>Salutation of Mary to Elisabeth</i>. -Next came <i>Mary and Joseph with an angel commanding -them to go to Bethlehem</i>, acted by the Pewterers; -and the last one was the Tylers’ (Thatchers’) pageant -<span class="pb" id="Page_69">69</span> -of the <i>Stable at Bethlehem, with the Child Jesus in the -Manger</i>.”</p> -<p>“Oh! we wanted to see that!” exclaimed both the -children, very disappointed.</p> -<p>“You will,” Master Gyseburn assured them. “After -this pageant, the Shepherds go to the stable to worship -the Child, so the manger scene appears again; in fact -it appears several times.”</p> -<p>By the stir and noise in the crowd below, it was -evident that the Shepherds’ play was awaited with -great eagerness. There was a pushing and scrambling -in the throng, which had greatly increased in numbers. -Many people who had strolled away to get something -to eat and drink had returned, and were trying to -recover their lost places.</p> -<p>“Is this a funny play?” asked Colin.</p> -<p>“Yes,” said Master Gyseburn. “The Shepherds’ -play, or at any rate the first part of it, is always -expected to be amusing. It is an old custom, and -the people would be very disappointed, and perhaps -angry, if it were changed. This particular play is one -that is always acted at Wakefield, but our Chandlers -have borrowed it this year, because it is such a good -one.”</p> -<p>“Oh! this is the Chandlers’ pageant, then?” asked -Margery.</p> -<p>Master Gyseburn nodded. “Here it comes,” said -he. “You will find that it has very little to do with -the Bible story about the Shepherds.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_70">70</div> -<p>“Just a made-up play, I suppose?” said Colin.</p> -<p>“That’s it. Just a funny story to make people -laugh.”</p> -<p>By this time the pageant stood in its place before -the Harphams’ window, and the children noticed that -the big stage was divided into two parts. One part -represented a field, in which three shepherds were -seated with their sheep huddled round them; and -next to this scene, on a line with it, there was a sort -of separate compartment, at present covered by curtains.</p> -<p>The shepherds began at once to grumble about the -weather. They complained of the cold, which one of -them said made his legs cramped, and his hands all -chapped.</p> -<p>Neither Margery nor Colin, nor indeed any of the -simple people who watched the play, found anything -strange in this. Indeed very few of them realized -that all the events they were watching, took place in -an Eastern country, whose scenery and climate were -very different from anything that was represented by -the pageant. They imagined all the scenes as happening -in a country very like England—if not in -England itself! So the shepherds talked about -the “moors,” which, as you know, spread through -Yorkshire, and of “bannocks,” which are special cakes -made in the North of England, and of “ale,” the -usual English drink; and no one criticized nor found -fault, because scarcely anybody knew, or remembered, -<span class="pb" id="Page_71">71</span> -if they knew, that <span class="sc">Christ’s</span> life was spent in a warm -far-away Eastern land, whose manners, customs, and -language were as different as possible from those of -England.</p> -<p>The shepherds talked about many things familiar in -the every-day life of most of the people in the crowd. -They grumbled about the taxes they had to pay, and -they gossiped about their wives, who they said were -always scolding and nagging; and they complained -bitterly about their hard work, and their low wages. -And the listening people laughed and were delighted, -because all they heard came home to them and was -thoroughly well understood.</p> -<p>Presently another shepherd entered, dressed like -the rest in a linen smock, though over it he had -thrown a heavy cloak. His appearance was hailed by -a shout of delight from the audience, for he was a -favourite actor, and the part he was going to play was -well known.</p> -<p>His name was Mac, and with the shepherds he -evidently had the reputation of a thief, for directly he -arrived one of them warned the others.</p> -<p>“Is he come?” he asked. “Then each one take -heed to his things!” And to make sure of him when -they thought of going to sleep, the men forced him to -lie down in the midst of them, so that if he stirred -they would be warned.</p> -<p>But no sooner did his companions begin to snore -than Mac got up, and walking round the men, he -<span class="pb" id="Page_72">72</span> -worked a spell upon them to make them sleep heavily, -chanting these words:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Be about you a circle as round as the moon</p> -<p class="t0">Till I have done that I will, till that it be noon,</p> -<p class="t0">That ye lie stone-still till that I have done.</p> -<p class="t0">Over your heads my hand I lift, ...</p> -<p class="t0">Out go your eyes, fore to do your sight....”</p> -</div> -<p>Then seeing that they were all motionless, he crept -to the flock, and taking a fat sheep, put it under his -cloak.</p> -<p>At this moment the curtains in front of the other -division of the stage were pulled aside, showing a poor -cottage room, in which sat Mac’s wife spinning. A -little wicket-gate in front of the cottage was locked, -and Mac (who was supposed to have walked some -distance to his home) began to knock upon it, and to -beg his wife to let him in. At first she was angry -with him, saying that one day he would be hanged for -sheep-stealing. But the first question after all was to -decide how they were to hide the sheep during the -search which was sure to be made by its owners. And -here Mac’s wife showed her quick wits, for she suggested -a splendid way out of the difficulty. This was -to dress the creature up as a baby, and put it in the -cradle!</p> -<p>Mac agreed, and there were roars of laughter as the -poor struggling sheep was wrapped in flannels and -robes, and at last tucked so securely in the cradle that -it could not move.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_73">73</div> -<p>When this was at last accomplished, Mac went back -to the field, and lying down quietly in his old place, -pretended to be fast asleep. Then one by one the -shepherds awoke, and began to tell their dreams. All -of them except Mac had dreamt that a sheep had been -carried off; and <i>Mac</i>, so he said, had dreamt that his -wife was very ill. He pretended to be much concerned -and, telling the men he must go and see -whether anything had happened to her, he got up and -once more went home. Meanwhile the shepherds -began to count their flock, and presently found that a -sheep was missing. It was Mac, of course!—who -else could have stolen it?—and at once in a body they -rushed to his house, and insisted upon searching it.</p> -<p>No sheep could they find, and Mac and his wife -pretended to be so angry at being disturbed, that at -last the shepherds were leaving the cottage in despair, -when an idea occurred to one of them.</p> -<p>He suddenly exclaimed that he would like to give -something to the little baby.</p> -<p>“<i>Mac, by your leave, let me give your bairn but -sixpence</i>,” he said.</p> -<p>“<i>Nay, go ’way, he sleeps</i>,” returned Mac. “<i>When he -wakens he weeps</i>,” he added. “<i>I pray you go hence.</i>”</p> -<p>“<i>Give me leave him to kiss, and lift up the clout</i>,” -begged one of the other men. And before Mac’s -wife could prevent him he had pulled down the -blanket.</p> -<p>“<i>He has a long snout!</i>” exclaimed the shepherd, -<span class="pb" id="Page_74">74</span> -who had only caught one glimpse of the strange -“baby” in the cradle.</p> -<p>But Mac’s wife was most indignant, and at once -declared that it was a beautiful baby:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“A pretty child is he</p> -<p class="t0">As sits upon a woman’s knee;</p> -<p class="t0">A dylly-downe, perdie,</p> -<p class="t0">To make a man laugh!”</p> -</div> -<p>But all she could say was useless, for by this time -of course the shepherds were very suspicious, and the -sheep was pulled out from the cradle, while the -market-place rang with laughter. The angry shepherds, -seizing a blanket, now forced Mac into it, and -to the huge delight of the crowd, before returning to -their field they tossed him violently, as a punishment -for his evil-doing.</p> -<p>The laughter caused by this farce had scarcely died -away when the serious part of the performance began. -A second stage had been drawn meanwhile to the -market-place, and was stationed at a little distance -from the first one, where to the shepherds, once more -quietly guarding their flock, there suddenly appeared -an angel. The simple countrymen gazed in awe, while -in a sweet voice he sang <i>Gloria in Excelsis</i>, and then, as -he came closer, they sank on their knees, while he -addressed them:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Rise, gracious hired-men, for now is He born</p> -<p class="t0">That shall take from the fiend that Adam had lorn [lost] ...</p> -<p class="t0"><span class="sc">God</span> is made your friend: now at this morn</p> -<p class="t0">He behests [commands]</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_75">75</div> -<p class="t0">To Bedlem go see</p> -<p class="t0">There lies that free [Divine One]</p> -<p class="t0">In a crib full poorly,</p> -<p class="t0">Betwixt two beasts.”</p> -</div> -<p>In amaze the shepherds listened, and in amaze they -talked together when the shining angel had gone.</p> -<p>Pointing to a brilliant star, one of them declared it -was a token to guide them “where the young Child -lay.”</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Hie we thither quickly;</p> -<p class="t0">If we be wet and weary,</p> -<p class="t0">To that Child and that Lady,”</p> -</div> -<p>another urged. And so descending from the stage-field, -they began their journey to Bethlehem, a journey -represented by the space between the two pageants.</p> -<p>On the other platform meanwhile a charming scene -was disclosed. There was the stable at Bethlehem, -with its broken roof, and within the stable Mary in a -long blue robe knelt beside the manger, at which, -with their kind, patient eyes, an ox and an ass were -also gazing.</p> -<p>Now the shepherds had arrived, and finding themselves -in the presence of “that Child and that Lady,” -they bent low their knees, and began to talk to the -Baby <span class="sc">Jesus</span> as though they loved Him, and as though -He were a child of their own to whom they had -brought tiny presents.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Hail, comely and clean; hail, young child!”</p> -</div> -<p>said the first shepherd.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_76">76</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Lo, He merry is;</p> -<p class="t0">Lo, He laughs, my sweeting,</p> -<p class="t0">A welcome meeting!</p> -<p class="t0">I have given my greeting,</p> -<p class="t0">Have a bob of cherries?”</p> -</div> -<p>Then in the same homely, delightful way, the -second shepherd greeted the Baby:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Hail, Sovereign Saviour, for Thou hast us sought!</p> -<p class="t0">Hail! I kneel and I cower.... A bird have I brought</p> -<p class="t0">To my bairn.</p> -<p class="t0">Hail, little tiny mop [little tiny pate] ...</p> -<p class="t0">Little day-starn [star].”</p> -</div> -<p>And the third shepherd said:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Hail, darling dear, full of Godheed!</p> -<p class="t0">I pray Thee be near when that I have need....</p> -<p class="t0">Hail, put forth Thy dall [hand],</p> -<p class="t0">I bring Thee but a ball:</p> -<p class="t0">Have and play Thee with all,</p> -<p class="t0">And go to the tennis.”</p> -</div> -<p>Mary, bending down to the shepherds, then spoke -to them gently, telling them that she would pray her -Son to keep them from woe, and bidding them spread -the glad tidings of His birth. After a while the shepherds -left her presence, singing glad songs in honour -of the new-born King.</p> -<p>“I like that best of all, except Abraham and Isaac!” -Margery exclaimed, as the pageants were drawn away. -“And <i>now</i> we shall see the wicked King Herod, shan’t -we?”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_77">77</div> -<h2 id="c8"><span class="small">VIII</span> -<br /><span class="sc">King Herod, the Wise Men, and the Massacre of the Innocents</span></h2> -<p>That the children should long to see the pageant in -which Herod appeared was no wonder, for he was a -very well-known character in the miracle plays. Just -as in some fairy tales the wicked giant is well known, -and is always expected to be as wicked as possible, so -in these plays Herod was always represented as a furious -tyrant and a great boaster, who raged and stormed and -used such exaggerated language that he seemed more -like a madman than a sane human being. Though in -the time of Queen Elizabeth miracle plays were -growing rare, it is just possible that Shakespeare as -a boy may have seen some of them, and when he makes -Hamlet say that one of the actors in the play-scene -“out-herods Herod,” he may have been thinking of -the particular stamping and shouting Herod whom he -himself had watched. But in any case, during the -lifetime of Shakespeare the memory of the furious -king must have lingered in the minds of old people -at Stratford-on-Avon, many of whom as children must -<span class="pb" id="Page_78">78</span> -often have seen him blustering and screaming and -ordering people to be killed.</p> -<p>At the windows of Master Robert Harpham’s house -at any rate, on this June day when Henry V was king, -there was much talk about the coming “Herod,” who -was said to be an excellent player and to rage more -furiously than any of the actors who had taken part in -previous years. Excitement therefore ran high, when -the Goldsmiths’ pageant drew up, for in their play—<i>The -Three Kings coming from the East</i>—Herod was for -the first time to appear.</p> -<p>The stage represented Herod’s palace. It was -a very small palace, and it looked something like an -enlarged sentry-box, brightly painted and ornamented -at the top with a dome and various pinnacles. From -its doorway, on to the space in front of it, there -presently stepped a herald, who in these pompous -words announced the coming of the King:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Peace, Lord Barons of great renown!</p> -<p class="t0">Peace, Sir Knights of noble presence!</p> -<p class="t0">Peace, gentleman companions of noble order!</p> -<p class="t0">I command that all of you keep silence.</p> -<p class="t0">Peace, while your noble king is in presence!</p> -<p class="t0">Let no person stint to pay him deference;</p> -<p class="t0">Be not bold to strike, but keep your hearts in patience,</p> -<p class="t0">And to your lord keep heart of reverence,</p> -<p class="t0">For he, your king, has all <i>puissance</i>!</p> -<p class="t0">In the name of the law, I command you peace!</p> -<p class="t0">And King Herod—‘<i>la grandeaboly vos umport.</i>’”</p> -</div> -<p>The last words, spoken by the herald in a low voice -and with a knowing smile, were greeted with a roar of -<span class="pb" id="Page_79">79</span> -delight, for Herod was to some extent a comic -character, at whom every one might laugh and “<i>la -grandeaboly vos umport</i>” is bad French for “<i>the devil -run away with you</i>!”</p> -<p>And now Herod himself majestically strode forth, -and again laughter, half derisive, half admiring, rang -out, for in spite of all the boasting and stamping which -every one knew was coming, he made a magnificent -figure.</p> -<p>Dressed as a Saracen, he wore wonderful Eastern -robes, and a jewelled turban. His black hair was -dishevelled, his face red and angry, and with his -flashing eyes, and huge flashing sword, he looked -formidable enough.</p> -<p>“<i>Qui status in Jude ex Rex Israel</i>,” he began in a -loud commanding tone.</p> -<p>“That means—‘He that reigns King in Judea and -Israel,’” explained Master Gyseburn to the children. -“Now listen to his boasting.”</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Qui status in Jude et Rex Israel,</p> -<p class="t0">And the mightiest conquerer that ever</p> -<p class="t0">Walked on ground” (Herod went on),</p> -<p class="t0">“For I am even he that made both heaven and hell,</p> -<p class="t0">And of my mighty power holdeth up this world round.</p> -<p class="t0">I am the cause of this great light and thunder.</p> -<p class="t0">It is through my fury that they such noise do make.</p> -<p class="t0">My fearful countenance the clouds doth so encumber,</p> -<p class="t0">That often for dread thereof the very earth doth shake.”</p> -</div> -<p>This was only part of the foolish king’s boasting, -for he went on to declare that with one word he could -<span class="pb" id="Page_80">80</span> -destroy the whole world from the north unto the -south; that he was prince of purgatory and chief -captain of hell. No tongue, he declared, could tell of -his possessions, his wealth, and his power. At last, -turning to his servant the herald, he warned him -to allow no strangers to pass through the realm -without paying tribute to him, and bade him be -gone hastily,</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“For they that will the contrary,</p> -<p class="t0">Upon a gallows hanged shall be.”</p> -</div> -<p>Then ordering “trumpets, viols, and other harmony” -to announce his presence to all the world, Herod re-entered -the palace, and the herald departed to do his -bidding.</p> -<p>Now appeared riding through the market-place in -great state, two of the three kings from the East. They -were mounted on white horses with beautiful trappings, -and each horse had a long cloth of velvet over his -back. The kings were Gaspar (or Jaspar) and -Balthazar. The first was an old man with a long white -beard, the second a man in the prime of life. They -both wore crowns of gold upon which the sunshine -sparkled, and their dresses of wonderful colours were -embroidered with jewels. Both of them had seen the -Star in the East, and from a far country had followed -it into Herod’s kingdom. As they rode, they talked -together, reminding one another that the prophets had -foretold the birth of a wonderful Child.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_81">81</div> -<p>Presently, riding from another direction, came the -third king, Melchior, a handsome youth also crowned -and richly clothed. He was looking about him as he -came, evidently seeking some guide, and his words -showed that he too had seen the Star in the East.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“I ride wandering in ways wide,</p> -<p class="t0">Over mountains and dales, I wot not where I am.</p> -<p class="t0">Now King of all kings send me such guide,</p> -<p class="t0">That I may have knowledge of this country’s name....</p> -<p class="t0">Two kings yonder, I see, and to them will I ride,</p> -<p class="t0">For to have their company I trust they will me abide [await].”</p> -</div> -<p>Spurring his horse, he rode up to the two monarchs -and addressed them:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Hail, comely kings augent [gentle],</p> -<p class="t0">Good sirs, I pray you, whither are ye meant?”</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“To seek a Child is our intent,</p> -<p class="t0">Which betokens yonder star as ye may see,”</p> -</div> -<p>said the old king, Gaspar.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“To whom I purpose this present,”</p> -</div> -<p>added Balthazar, showing him a golden vase full of -frankincense.</p> -<p>Then the third king, Melchior, replied,</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Sirs, I pray you, and that right humbly,</p> -<p class="t0">With you that I may ride in company;</p> -<p class="t0">To Almighty <span class="sc">God</span> now pray we</p> -<p class="t0">That His precious person we may see.”</p> -</div> -<p>Thus having greeted one another, the kings rode -aside, while on the pageant, Herod came out of his -<span class="pb" id="Page_82">82</span> -palace to meet the herald, who, on seeing him, -exclaimed:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Hail, Lord, most of might!</p> -<p class="t0">Thy commandment is right.</p> -<p class="t0">Into thy land is come this night</p> -<p class="t0">Three kings, and with them a great company.”</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“What make those kings in this country?”</p> -</div> -<p>returned Herod.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“To seek a King and a Child, they say,”</p> -</div> -<p>answered the herald.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Of what age should He be?”</p> -</div> -<p>Herod inquired angrily.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Scant twelve days old fully,”</p> -</div> -<p>said the herald.</p> -<p>Whereupon Herod, restraining his wrath, commanded -the herald on pain of death to follow the -kings, to speak gently to them, in order to deceive -them into imagining that they would be well treated, -and then to speed in hot haste to Jerusalem to make -inquiries about the Child they sought.</p> -<p>So the herald, descending from the stage, followed -Gaspar, Balthazar, and Melchior, and very courteously -told them that Herod, “king of these countries wide,” -desired to speak with them. The travellers, immediately -agreeing to his wish, were brought before the -palace. There Herod received them courteously, -wished them a safe journey, and begged them to return -the same way.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_83">83</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“And with great concord banquet with me,</p> -<p class="t0">And that Child myself then will I see</p> -<p class="t0">And honour Him also,”</p> -</div> -<p>he added, allowing his guests to depart with many -compliments on either side.</p> -<p>But no sooner had they mounted their horses and -ridden away than Herod’s rage blazed forth.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“When they come again, they shall die that same day,</p> -<p class="t0">And thus these vile wretches to death shall be brought!”</p> -</div> -<p>he exclaimed, stalking into his palace, while the kings -rode a little distance to another pageant where again -the stable at Bethlehem was represented, with Mary -watching by the manger.</p> -<p>Here, just as the shepherds had done, but in much -more stately language, they offered their costly gifts -to the Child.</p> -<p>Gaspar gave a cup of gold. “<i>In tokening Thou art -without peer</i>,” he said, as he laid his offering at the -foot of the manger.</p> -<p>A cup full of frankincense was Balthazar’s gift, -“<i>In tokening of priesthood and dignity of office</i>;” while -the young king Melchior had brought a precious -goblet, with “<i>myrrh for mortality, in tokening Thou -shalt mankind restore to life by Thy death upon a tree</i>.”</p> -<p>Then Mary spoke to the kings as sweetly as she -had addressed the shepherds, and presently they withdrew -a little from her presence and began to discuss -their homeward journey. Gaspar declared that according -<span class="pb" id="Page_84">84</span> -to their promise they must return through -Herod’s land; and though the others agreed, they -were all so fatigued that they decided to lie down -and rest awhile. Accordingly, at a distance from the -manger, they threw themselves on the ground. Before -long they slept, and while they slept, a beautiful vision -appeared to them.</p> -<p>An angel, who seemed to be hovering in the air, -descended from the darkness of the stable-roof, and -bent still hovering above them.</p> -<p>“Is he <i>really</i> flying?” exclaimed Margery, in an -awed voice; and Master Gyseburn smiled.</p> -<p>“It looks as though he were, certainly,” he agreed; -“but there’s a clever contrivance arranged by the -carpenters and fastened to the roof up there, by which -the angel is let down and made to look as though he -were fluttering in the air.”</p> -<p>“He is <i>lovely</i>!” declared Margery, sighing with -pleasure. “Look at his golden curls and his long -wings! What is he going to say to the kings?”</p> -<p>“Listen!” Colin advised her.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“King of Tarsus, Sir Gaspar!” (exclaimed the angel)</p> -<p class="t0">“King of Araby, Sir Balthazar!</p> -<p class="t0">Melchior, King of Aginara!</p> -<p class="t0">To you now I am sent.</p> -<p class="t0">For dread of Herod, go you west home ...</p> -<p class="t0">The <span class="sc">Holy Ghost</span> this knowledge hath sent.”</p> -</div> -<p>Then, bending a moment longer over the still -sleeping kings, he flew upwards and was lost to -sight.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_85">85</div> -<p>When the kings awoke, it was to discover that each -one of them had heard the angel’s warning; so taking -a last leave of the Babe and His Mother, they set -out on their journey, carefully arranging not to pass -through the dominions of the wicked and treacherous -Herod.</p> -<p>Meanwhile, the herald, in fear and trembling, once -more ascended the steps leading to the palace-portal, -and broke the news to his master:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“These three kings that forth were sent,</p> -<p class="t0">And should have come again before thee here present,</p> -<p class="t0">Another way, Lord, home they went,</p> -<p class="t0">Contrary to thine honour.”</p> -</div> -<p>Then indeed the audience had an opportunity of -watching Herod’s rage:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Another way!” (he exclaimed, trembling with fury)</p> -<p class="t2">“Out! Out! Out!</p> -<p class="t0">Hath those foul traitors done me this deed?</p> -<p class="t0">I stamp, I stare, I look all about;</p> -<p class="t0">Might them I take I should them burn at a glede [fire].</p> -<p class="t0">I rend, I roar, and now run I wood [mad] ...</p> -<p class="t0">They shall be hanged if I come them to.”</p> -</div> -<p>Roaring and stamping and raving, as he said of -himself, the king rushed down the pageant steps and -“raged” in the market-place amongst the people, to -the delight of the grown-up folk and the terror of -the children in the crowd. And all the while he -was running to-and-fro, screaming with fury, he was -giving orders that “all young children” should be -slain.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_86">86</div> -<p>But even the rough soldiers who had come from the -palace to follow their master, and had at last succeeded -in getting him to return to the stage, were horrified -at this cruel command, and one of them spoke indignantly:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“My Lord, King Herod by name,</p> -<p class="t0">Thy words against my will shall be.</p> -<p class="t0">To see so many young children die is shame,</p> -<p class="t0">Therefore counsel thereto gettest thou none of me.”</p> -</div> -<p>Another one agreed with his companion, and warned -Herod that to murder little children in such wholesale -fashion would be sufficient provocation for a general -rising among his subjects.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“A rising! Out! Out! Out!”</p> -</div> -<p>shouted the mad tyrant; and, raging and stamping -once more, he commanded both soldiers to be hanged -on the gallows unless they immediately carried out his -orders.</p> -<p>So for very fear the soldiers were obliged to obey, -and Herod drove them forth to do the cruel deed, -telling them to bring all the little dead children -“before his sight,” so that he might be sure his -orders had been carried out.</p> -<p>But now the attention of the audience was directed -towards the other pageant representing the Stable at -Bethlehem. Here the beautiful angel who had already -appeared to the three kings was seen fluttering down -towards the Mother of <span class="sc">Jesus</span> and her husband Joseph, -and soon his voice was heard:</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_87">87</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Mary and Joseph, to you I say,</p> -<p class="t0">Sweet word from the <span class="sc">Father</span> I bring you full right;</p> -<p class="t0">Out of Bethlehem into Egypt forth go ye the way,</p> -<p class="t0">And with you take the King, full of might,</p> -<p class="t0">For dread of Herod’s red [order].”</p> -</div> -<p>In reply, Joseph turned to Mary:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Arise up, Mary, hastily and soon!</p> -<p class="t0">Our <span class="sc">Lord’s</span> will needs must be done,</p> -<p class="t0">Like as the angel bade.”</p> -</div> -<p>And Mary answered:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Meekly, Joseph, mine own spouse,</p> -<p class="t0">Toward that country let us repair;</p> -<p class="t0">In Egypt—some tokens of house—</p> -<p class="t0"><span class="sc">God</span> grant us grace safe to come there!”</p> -</div> -<p>While she spoke, she was tenderly lifting the -Baby from His cradle, and the curtains closed upon -the Holy Family making preparations for their -journey.</p> -<p>The play now went on in the street, for presently, -threading their way through the crowd, a company of -women entered, each bearing in her arms her little -baby. And as the mothers walked to-and-fro and -rocked their children, they sang this pretty song:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Lulla, lulla, thou little tiny child;</p> -<p class="t0">By, by, lullay, lullay, thou little tiny child.</p> -<p class="t8">By, by, lully, lullay.</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">O sisters too! how may we do,</p> -<p class="t0">For to preserve this day</p> -<p class="t0">This poor youngling for whom we do sing,</p> -<p class="t8">By, by, lully, lullay.</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_88">88</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">Herod the king, in his raging,</p> -<p class="t0">Charged he hath this day</p> -<p class="t0">His men of might, in his own sight,</p> -<p class="t0">All young children to slay.</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">That woe is me, poor child, for thee!</p> -<p class="t0">And ever, morn and day,</p> -<p class="t0">For thy parting neither say nor sing,</p> -<p class="t8">By, by, lully, lullay.”</p> -</div> -<p>The poor distracted mothers, with their faces full -of grief, won the pity of the crowd, and many women -exclaimed aloud, half believing that the babies were -really going to be snatched from them and killed!</p> -<p>Then one of the women, in a voice shaken with -fear, sang alone:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“I lull my child wondrously sweet,</p> -<p class="t0">And in my arms I do it keep,</p> -<p class="t0">Because that it should not cry.”</p> -</div> -<p>And another replied, calling on the new-born King:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“That Babe that is born in Bethlehem so meek,</p> -<p class="t0">He save my child and me from villainy.”</p> -</div> -<p>Yet another said:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Be still! be still! my little child!</p> -<p class="t0">That <span class="sc">Lord</span> of lords save both thee and me;</p> -<p class="t0">For Herod hath sworn with words wild</p> -<p class="t0">That all young children slain they shall be.”</p> -</div> -<p>Now the soldiers come rushing forward with drawn -swords, and though Colin assured her that it was only -pretence, Margery could not look while they grasped -the screaming women by the arms or by the hair and -snatched their little baby-boys away from them.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_89">89</div> -<p>In vain the poor mothers struggled and implored. -Their children were all killed, and presently the -soldiers went away to fetch “wains and wagons” -on which to heap the little bodies.</p> -<p>“I suppose they are only dolls?” Margery asked -anxiously; but though Master Gyseburn reassured -her, she could not bear the sound of the screams and -the shouting.</p> -<p>It was a relief when all the women went sobbing -away, and the herald stood once more before King -Herod, and addressed him:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Herod, king! I shall thee tell,</p> -<p class="t0">All thy deeds is come to naught.</p> -<p class="t0">This Child is gone into Egypt to dwell,</p> -<p class="t0">Lo, sir, in thine own land what wonders byn [have been] wrought.”</p> -</div> -<p>Margery sympathized deeply with the herald’s -indignant tone.</p> -<p>“He’s killed all the babies, and it was no good -after all!” she exclaimed. “He’s the wickedest -and the most horrid man I ever saw! Look at -him ‘raging’ again! What is he going to do -now? See! the servants are getting his horse -ready.”</p> -<p>“He’s going to ride into Egypt to see if he can -find the three kings, to put them to death,” said -Master Gyseburn.</p> -<p>“But he won’t!” observed Colin with much satisfaction. -“There he goes riding through the crowd, -<span class="pb" id="Page_90">90</span> -still storming. Now he’s out of sight—and a good -thing too.”</p> -<p>The last they saw of Herod was his huge sword -brandished aloft; and the last sound they heard was -his foolish voice raised in anger.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_91">91</div> -<h2 id="c9"><span class="small">IX</span> -<br /><span class="sc">At the End of the Day</span></h2> -<p>The children had been so absorbed and interested in -the last play, which was a long one, that when the -pageant was wheeled away, they were surprised to -find the market-place all glowing in the light of -sunset. Little pink clouds like feathers were floating -in the sky, across which flights of birds were winging -their way to nests in the trees round the city.</p> -<p>“Giles will soon be home!” said Mistress Harpham. -“If there’s time for one more play this -evening I shall be mistaken. It will soon be dark.”</p> -<p>“Do they stop when it gets dark?” asked Margery.</p> -<p>“But there are lots more to come!” objected -Colin, looking at the “pageant book” which Master -Gyseburn held open on his knee. Though he could -not read, he saw by the long list which followed the -<i>Massacre of the Innocents</i> that scarcely half of the -plays had as yet been performed.</p> -<p>Mistress Harpham had turned away to superintend -<span class="pb" id="Page_92">92</span> -arrangements for the supper she was about to offer -her guests, but Master Gyseburn answered the -children’s questions.</p> -<p>“The plays will go on all day to-morrow, and the -next day too, I expect,” he told them. “It very -seldom happens that any town gets through all its -pageants on one day. Certainly not here in York, -where we generally act forty of them.”</p> -<p>“But suppose it gets dark in the middle of a -play?” asked Margery. “What happens then?”</p> -<p>“Then the torch-bearers are called out,” said -Master Gyseburn. “I expect they’ll be needed -before the next one is over,” he added. “The -daylight will scarcely last.”</p> -<p>“And they’ll go on to-morrow, and we shan’t be -here!” sighed Margery, so dolefully that Master -Gyseburn laughed.</p> -<p>“You’re not tired of them? And yet you’ve had -a long day of it!”</p> -<p>“Tired? Oh! I should love to see every one -of them!” Margery declared.</p> -<p>“And so should I,” echoed her brother.</p> -<p>“A great many sad and dreadful scenes will come -to-morrow,” said Master Gyseburn. “I really think -you’ve seen all that would please you. The others -are for grown-up people. And some are too horrible -for <i>them</i>,” he added. “At least I think so.”</p> -<p>“Now children, come to supper!” called Mistress -Harpham, who was busy lighting candles on the -<span class="pb" id="Page_93">93</span> -table, for the room with its dark oak-panelling, and -heavy beams overhead, was growing very gloomy.</p> -<p>“We shall have to think about saying good-bye -directly!” declared Farmer Short as he took his seat. -“’Tis a long ride home, and we have to get the -horses out of the stable.”</p> -<p>“Plenty of time for a meal!” said Mistress -Harpham, bustling about and filling the children’s -plates with good things.</p> -<p>“Will Giles come before we have to go?” asked -Margery. “I do hope he will!”</p> -<p>Almost as she spoke, the door opened, and Giles -came in.</p> -<p>He was welcomed rapturously by all the guests, -and though the poor boy looked very tired, he was -made to answer a hundred questions about the success -of the Parchment-makers’ pageant in other parts of -the town.</p> -<p>It had been well received everywhere apparently; -and though Giles was very modest, his mother learnt -with pride that her son’s acting had been praised -almost as much as she desired.</p> -<p>“We missed you so much after you went,” -whispered Margery to her cousin, a little shyly, for -she was still very much impressed at the thought of -his talents.</p> -<p>“But Master Gyseburn explained everything to -us,” put in Colin. “And all the plays were -<i>splendid</i>!”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_94">94</div> -<p>Before long there was a general bustle and movement -round the table. Many of the guests, like the -children, had a long way to go to reach their homes, -and they were anxious to set out before the day’s -pageants were quite over.</p> -<p>“There’ll be a fine crowd in the streets by the time -they’re all done,” said Master Harpham. “But if you -go now, while some of the folk are still looking at the -plays, you’ll reach the inn without much trouble.”</p> -<p>“Aye, and Robert will go with you and show you -the quickest by-ways to reach it; won’t you, Robert?” -suggested his wife, as she prepared to follow Mistress -Short and the children to the best bedroom, where -they had left their cloaks.</p> -<p>Colin and Margery were soon ready, and with their -little hoods tied round their necks they returned to -the parlour, and ran eagerly to the window, anxious -up to the last moment to see all that was going on.</p> -<p>They found Giles kneeling on one of the wide -window-seats, looking out into the street, and Margery -climbed up beside him. She had taken a great fancy -to her clever, interesting cousin, and she thought how -pretty he looked with his fair head resting against the -woodwork of the window.</p> -<p>“What are they doing now?” she asked before -her own curly head appeared above the level of the -window-sill.</p> -<p>“<i>The Child Jesus in the Temple</i>,” said Giles. “It’s -the Spur-makers’ and Bit-makers’ pageant, and Andrew -<span class="pb" id="Page_95">95</span> -Martin is the Child <span class="sc">Jesus</span>. He’s a friend of mine,” -he added.</p> -<p>“Oh! the torch-bearers are there!” exclaimed -Colin. “It <i>has</i> got dark quickly!”</p> -<p>“Doesn’t it look nice in this light?” said Margery; -and Giles nodded, too intent upon the play to reply.</p> -<p>At the foot of the pageant, all holding flaming -torches aloft, four boys were stationed, and the ruddy -glow flickered over a beautiful group on the stage. -The learned doctors in their long robes leant upon -one another’s shoulders or whispered together, their -eyes fixed upon a youthful figure in their midst, Who -in a grave yet charming voice was reading something -from a roll of parchment.</p> -<p>“It’s <span class="sc">Jesus</span> when He was a Boy, isn’t it?” whispered -Margery; and again Giles nodded.</p> -<p>The boy wore a long sheepskin coat, and his fair -hair was made brighter by gilding. His legs were -bare, and on his feet were sandals.</p> -<p>“Andrew is wonderful!” said Giles gravely, “all -his gestures are good and dignified. And so is his -voice. This was the part they wanted me to play, -but I would not attempt it. I knew Andrew would -do it better.”</p> -<p>Margery glanced at her cousin admiringly. In her -little mind she felt sure that Giles too was wonderful, -and that all she had heard about the great things he -was to do in the future had not been exaggerated. -Some day, she was certain, Giles would be a famous -<span class="pb" id="Page_96">96</span> -man. Her thoughts were put to flight, however, by -the entrance of her mother and a large company of -other guests all ready for departure; so leave-takings -were very hurried.</p> -<p>But she found time to hug Giles, who in spite of -the laughter which went round, allowed himself to be -kissed with very good grace.</p> -<p>“We will go out by the back way,” called Master -Harpham, and the children soon found themselves in -a quiet street, where the noise from the market-place -sounded only as a faint murmur.</p> -<p>By winding lanes and passages Master Harpham led -his guests towards the “Dragon” inn where they had -left their horses and their wagons. Every now and -then however, when they turned a corner, Margery -and Colin caught a glimpse of a crowd, of flaming -torches, and of the top of one of the pageants -stationed sometimes half-way up a street, sometimes -in a little open space, sometimes beneath a city gate.</p> -<p>“They are still going on!” Colin exclaimed.</p> -<p>“Yes; but only till the pageant of the <i>Doctors in the -Temple</i> has been played at the last halting-place,” said -Master Harpham, looking back over his shoulder at -the little boy. “It’s all over for to-night in our -market-place, for instance; but the Doctors’ play won’t -reach Girdlegate, the last place, for another half-hour, -perhaps.... Now, here’s the inn! Hurry, all of -you, and you will get out your horses before there’s -too much of a crush.”</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_97">97</div> -<p>Dobbin and Jock, looking quite fresh after their -long day’s rest, were soon led out from their corner -of the stables, and in a moment Margery was perched -on Dobbin’s back, in front of her father.</p> -<p>“Good-nights” were called, and, in company with -various other travellers, the children rode along the -cobble-paved streets towards Mikelgate, from which -the pageants had long ago departed, leaving the road -to the gate clear.</p> -<p>“’Tis luck to have moonlight!” exclaimed Farmer -Short, as they emerged upon the country-road.</p> -<p>Margery looked back towards the city they had left, -over which hung a dull red glow from the torchlights -which still streamed and flickered there; and as she -looked she drew a long sigh.</p> -<p>“She’s tired!” said her mother; but Margery -indignantly denied the fact.</p> -<p>“I was thinking what a lovely day it’s been,” she -declared; “and about all the plays they will be acting -to-morrow and the next day. But Master Gyseburn -says they will be sad plays. So perhaps I shouldn’t -like to see them after all. I didn’t like it when the -babies were killed!”</p> -<p>“Yes,” said a neighbour; “there are about twenty -still to come. They’ll need two days more at least. -The saddest plays will come last, when the Tapestry-weavers -act the <i>Trial of Christ</i>; and the Tile-makers -and Painters <i>The Crucifixion</i>.”</p> -<p>“’Twas a mercy it was fine,” exclaimed Mistress -<span class="pb" id="Page_98">98</span> -Short. “And likely to be fine to-morrow,” she added, -with a glance at the clear sky, in which a full moon -sailed.</p> -<p>Both the children grew silent as they jogged towards -home along the white road, upon which fell their -shadows and the shadows of the horses and of overhanging -trees. It was very quiet and peaceful in the -country, and they were both sleepy. All the curious -and novel things they had seen during the day began -to appear like a dream, in which the three kings -passed and re-passed; and Herod, with his flashing -sword, stamped and raved; and beautiful angels, with -golden wings, hovered above a stable in Bethlehem; -and the serpent talked to Adam and Eve. But more -frequently than any of the other figures in the plays -Margery saw the little white-robed Isaac begging for -his life; and, when the cottage was reached at last, -and she was in bed and really asleep, it was of him -she dreamt.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_99">99</div> -<h2 id="c10"><span class="small">X</span> -<br /><span class="sc">Everyman</span></h2> -<p>As some of you may have noticed, the miracle plays -to which long ago Colin and Margery listened were -for the most part badly written, in such rough, uncouth -verse, that a great deal of each play may be described -as mere doggerel. Very few of them have any claim -to be called <i>literature</i>. They are just rhyming stories, -often very badly rhymed, to be acted before uncritical -people, thousands of whom were poor and simple folk -who, if the stories were sufficiently exciting and the -actors well enough dressed, neither knew nor cared -that the words were poor. Every now and then, -indeed, in these old plays a fragment of verse is -charming. For instance, in the Nativity scene, which -used to be acted at Coventry, there are some delightful -words. Here are a few lines from the prophets’ -speeches about the new-born King.</p> -<p>Second prophet:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Yet do I marvel</p> -<p class="t0">In what pile or castle</p> -<p class="t0">These herdsmen did Him see”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_100">100</div> -<p>And the first prophet replies:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Neither in halls not yet in bowers,</p> -<p class="t0">Born would He not be,</p> -<p class="t0">Neither in castles nor in towers</p> -<p class="t0">That seemly were to see;</p> -<p class="t0">But at His <span class="sc">Father’s</span> will,</p> -<p class="t0">The prophecy to fulfil,</p> -<p class="t0">Betwixt an ox and an ass</p> -<p class="t0"><span class="sc">Jesu</span> this King born He was.”</p> -</div> -<p>The lullaby to the babies in the same play is pretty -too, and so is the shepherds’ song when the angels -have announced to them the birth of <span class="sc">Christ</span>. Here -are the words:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“As I out rode this enderes’ night,</p> -<p class="t0">Of three jolly shepherds I saw a sight,</p> -<p class="t0">And all about their fold a star shone bright;</p> -<p class="t0">They sang, Terli, ter low;</p> -<p class="t0">So merrily the shepherds their pipes can blow.”</p> -</div> -<p>But the best of all the plays is one that does not -appear in either of the four sets known as the York, -the Coventry, the Chester, and the Wakefield series. -It was probably first written in Dutch, and afterwards -translated into English. For we must remember that -not only in England were these miracle plays acted; -they were just as popular in France, in Germany, and -in Holland, as in our own country. This particular -play is called <i>Everyman</i>, and it is in many ways different -from any of the pageants we have so far talked about.</p> -<p>In the first place, instead of being a Bible story, it is -an allegory, something like the allegory of the -<i>Pilgrim’s Progress</i>. Just as Christian, the “Pilgrim,” -<span class="pb" id="Page_101">101</span> -stands for any human being born into this world and -passing through it on his way to another life, so -Everyman means just what the word says. Every -man or woman of us. <i>Everyone</i>, in fact; since every -one of us is born into this world and, after journeying -through life, has to pass out of it at the gate of -death.</p> -<p>Though the play is so old (it was first written and -acted, perhaps, in the reign of Henry V), it remains -true for people who live nowadays, and for the people -who will live after us. Not only because it is true, -but also because it is so dignified and touching, certain -people who lately read it, thought that it might very -well be acted again, and presented as nearly as possible -in the same way as it was played by actors in bygone -days—five hundred years ago.</p> -<p>So men and women were found to study it, to learn -the parts, and to copy old dresses for the characters, -and the first revival performance of <i>Everyman</i> was given -in London some years ago, in the open air, at Charterhouse, -the old city school for boys. Since then it has -been acted in many theatres, but perhaps that first -performance was the best of all, because the play, like -all other miracle plays, was meant to be acted out -of doors, and Charterhouse, with its old courtyard and -its old grey walls, was the best frame that could possibly -have been devised for an old play.</p> -<p>In the courtyard of Charterhouse, then, a big wooden -platform or scaffolding was set up, close against the -<span class="pb" id="Page_102">102</span> -wall of the school chapel. Steps at either end of the -platform led down to the cobble-paved yard, and on -the wooden stage itself, there were one or two little -recesses, like shrines, hidden by curtains. There was -no other scenery.</p> -<p>Some of the spectators sat on benches in front of the -platform, and all the windows looking into the courtyard -were filled with people, just as the windows -overlooking that market-place in York were crowded, -when miracle plays were acted long ago. And just as -some of those plays began with the coming of a -herald to explain what was going to take place, so this -play of <i>Everyman</i> began with the appearance of a -messenger or <i>doctor</i>. He was dressed in a long black -gown, something like those still worn by the dons and -students at Oxford or Cambridge. Round his neck -was a white ruff, and on his head a flat cap of velvet. -Coming from one of the doorways which opened -into the courtyard, he walked towards the platform, -ascended its steps, and addressed the audience, -beginning with these words.</p> -<p>Messenger:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“I pray you all give your audience,</p> -<p class="t0">And hear this matter with reverence,</p> -<p class="t0">By figure a moral play—</p> -<p class="t0">The <i>Summoning of Everyman</i> called it is,</p> -<p class="t0">That to our lives and ending shows</p> -<p class="t0">How transitory we be all day.</p> -<p class="t0">This matter is wondrous precious,</p> -<p class="t0">But the intent of it is more gracious</p> -<p class="t0">And sweet to bear away.”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_103">103</div> -<p>Continuing, he reminded his listeners that <i>Everyman</i> -would be required to give an account of his life before -“the Heaven King,” and he called upon them to listen -to the voice of the Almighty Himself.</p> -<p>His speech ended, he left the platform, and in a -moment, a stately figure representing <span class="sc">God</span> the <span class="sc">Father</span> -appeared at the chapel window which overhung the -stage, in much the same way as five hundred years ago -<span class="sc">God</span> Almighty used to come from a window above the -church porch.</p> -<p>A balcony with a stone balustrade projected from -the window, and leaning upon it the Figure, dressed -as in olden days, like a pope, in costly robe and mitre, -addressed the audience.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“I perceive here in My Majesty</p> -<p class="t0">How all creatures are to Me unkind”—</p> -</div> -<p>He began in solemn tones—</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Living without dread in worldly prosperity;</p> -<p class="t0">Of ghostly sight the people be so blind,</p> -<p class="t0">Drowned in sin they know Me not for their <span class="sc">God</span>.”</p> -</div> -<p>He reminded them of the great Sacrifice which -seemed to have passed from their thoughts.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“My law that I showed, when I for them died,</p> -<p class="t0">They forget clean, and shedding of My blood red;</p> -<p class="t0">I hanged between two, it cannot be denied;</p> -<p class="t0">To get them life, I suffered to be dead;</p> -<p class="t0">I healed their feet, with thorns hurt was My head;</p> -<p class="t0">I could do no more than I did truly,</p> -<p class="t0">And now I see the people do clean forsake Me.”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_104">104</div> -<p>“And now,” went on the Almighty, “I must bring -Everyman to a reckoning, for he is so cumbered with -worldly riches that he forgets how all riches and -pleasures are only lent to him for a time, and are to be -used for My glory. I will send Death to him.”</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Where art thou, <i>Death</i>, thou mighty messenger?”</p> -</div> -<p>He called in grave accents. Then from a door beneath -the stage there came a curious and grotesque creature.</p> -<p>He was like a skeleton; or rather the bones of a -skeleton were painted on his close-fitting dress of black -leather. The mask of a skull was over his face; his -head was crowned with fading roses, and he carried a -drum, upon which he beat with warning blows.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Almighty <span class="sc">God</span>, I am here at your will,</p> -<p class="t0">Your commandment to fulfil” (said Death).</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Go thou to <i>Everyman</i>,</p> -<p class="t0">And show him in My Name</p> -<p class="t0">A pilgrimage he must on him take,</p> -<p class="t0">Which he in no wise may escape” (commanded <span class="sc">God</span> the <span class="sc">Father</span>).</p> -</div> -<p>To whom Death replied that he would run the world -over and search for all who lived “out of <span class="sc">God’s</span> laws.”</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Lo, yonder I see <i>Everyman</i> walking! (he exclaimed suddenly)—</p> -<p class="t0">Full little he thinketh on my coming.”</p> -</div> -<p>And indeed it seemed as though the slim and -handsome youth who at that moment came from one -of the houses in the courtyard had never thought -seriously of anything. Careless and light-hearted, -beautifully dressed, and playing on a lute as he walked, -<span class="pb" id="Page_105">105</span> -he was thinking only of amusement and gaiety, when, -as he reached the platform, he was suddenly confronted -with Death.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“<i>Everyman</i>, stand still! (commanded the mighty messenger).</p> -<p class="t0">Whither art thou going</p> -<p class="t0">Thus gaily? Hast thou thy Master forgot?”</p> -</div> -<p>At these words poor Everyman trembled and -hesitated, and Death went on to say that he had been -sent to him in great haste “from <span class="sc">God</span> out of His -Majesty” to tell him he was bidden to take a long -journey and to bring with him his book of reckoning, -to answer before <span class="sc">God</span> for all his deeds in this, his -present life. In vain Everyman begged for a delay.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“O <i>Death</i>” (he cried), “thou comest when I had thee least in mind!</p> -<p class="t0">In thy power it lieth me to save,</p> -<p class="t0">Yet of my good will I give thee, if ye will be kind—</p> -<p class="t0">Yea, a thousand pound shalt thou have,</p> -<p class="t0">And defer this matter till another day.”</p> -</div> -<p>But Death replied that “to cry, weep, and pray” -was of no avail, since he took neither gold, silver, nor -riches from pope, emperor, king, duke, nor princes. -He must instantly set forth on the journey from which -there was no returning.</p> -<p>Then, in his great trouble, Everyman called upon -<span class="sc">God</span>:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“O gracious <span class="sc">God</span>, in the high seat celestial,</p> -<p class="t0">Have mercy on me in this most need!...</p> -<p class="t0">Shall I have no company from this vale terrestrial?”</p> -</div> -<p>he asked of Death. For he dreaded to take the long -journey alone.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_106">106</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Yea, if any be so hardy</p> -<p class="t0">That would go with thee and bear thee company,”</p> -</div> -<p>Death replied.</p> -<p>Then Everyman began to think of his friends, and -to wonder which of them loved him well enough to go -with him into the Valley of the Shadow of Death. -And presently he saw <i>Good Fellowship</i> approaching. -Now in this story “Good Fellowship” means all the -companions with whom Everyman had spent gay and -delightful hours—men with whom he had laughed -and jested; men who had professed the greatest affection -for him. So when he saw the smiling face of -Fellowship, he was full of hope, and he went eagerly -to meet him.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“<i>Everyman</i>, good-morrow by this day (said <i>Fellowship</i>);</p> -<p class="t0">Sir, why lookest thou so piteously?</p> -<p class="t0">If anything be amiss, I pray thee, me say,</p> -<p class="t0">That I may help to remedy.”</p> -</div> -<p>Everyman admitted that he was in great trouble, -and nothing could have been kinder than Fellowship’s -voice, as he declared himself ready to do anything for -his friend. If any one had wronged him, he was ready -to kill the offender. That he would never forsake his -dear companion Everyman might rest assured.</p> -<p>So, greatly consoled, Everyman told him that he -must take a long journey, and he begged that Fellowship -would be his travelling companion. Then, for -the first time, the gay and cheerful fellow began to -look serious. “I promised not to forsake you,” he -<span class="pb" id="Page_107">107</span> -said; “but we must discuss the matter at greater -length. If we took such a journey, when should we -come again?”</p> -<p>“Nay, never again till the day of doom,” answered -Everyman sadly.</p> -<p>At these words Fellowship started back in fear.</p> -<p>“Who hath you these tidings brought?” he asked -in a strange voice.</p> -<p>“Indeed, Death was with me here,” Everyman -replied.</p> -<p>Then Fellowship, more than ever afraid, absolutely -refused to go on a journey commanded by Death. If -Everyman had wanted him to eat and drink with him, -or to help him in any of his pleasures, he would never -have forsaken him, he declared. Even if he had -wanted him to commit murder he would have been -ready to serve him. But this request was an impossible -one, so impossible that he would not even accompany -him as far as the town gates.</p> -<p>So, very mournfully, Everyman wished him farewell, -gazing after him as he hurried away, a brilliant -figure in his scarlet doublet and hose, with his sword -clanking at his side.</p> -<p>Good Fellowship had failed him; “but surely,” -thought Everyman, “my own relations will be faithful -to me in my sorrow?” And when he saw them -strolling across the courtyard, hope once more revived -in his heart.</p> -<p>Of the little company of young men who now came -<span class="pb" id="Page_108">108</span> -on to the platform, one was Everyman’s cousin, of -whom he was very fond; and this cousin, seeing that -something was wrong, begged for an explanation, -which, in these words, Everyman gave:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Gramercy, my friends and kinsmen kind,</p> -<p class="t0">Now shall I show you the grief of my mind:</p> -<p class="t0">I was commanded by a messenger,</p> -<p class="t0">That is an high King’s chief officer;</p> -<p class="t0">He bade me go a pilgrimage, to my pain,</p> -<p class="t0">And I know well I shall never come again;</p> -<p class="t0">Also I must give a reckoning straight,</p> -<p class="t0">For I have a great enemy that lieth me in wait,</p> -<p class="t0">Which intendeth me for to hinder.”</p> -</div> -<p>Now, as he spoke, the faces of the young men grew -very grave and anxious.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“What account is that which ye must render?</p> -<p class="t0">That would I know,”</p> -</div> -<p>demanded one of them.</p> -<p>And Everyman replied:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Of all my works I must show</p> -<p class="t0">How I have lived and my days spent;</p> -<p class="t0">Also of ill deeds that I have used</p> -<p class="t0">In my time, sith life was me lent;</p> -<p class="t0">And of all virtues that I have refused.</p> -<p class="t0">Therefore I pray you go thither with me</p> -<p class="t0">To help to make mine account, for Saint Charity.”</p> -</div> -<p>But the kinsmen started back in horror.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Nay, Everyman, I had liefer fast bread and water</p> -<p class="t0">All this five year and more!”</p> -</div> -<p>exclaimed one of them.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_109">109</div> -<p>And the cousin said:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“I have the cramp in my toe. Trust not to me.”</p> -</div> -<p>One by one they hastened away, and poor Everyman -was left lamenting, till suddenly a thought struck -him:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“All my life I have loved riches” (he reflected);</p> -<p class="t0">“If that my Good [wealth] now help me might,</p> -<p class="t0">He would make my heart full light.</p> -<p class="t0">I will speak to him in this distress.</p> -<p class="t0">Where art thou, my <i>Goods</i> and riches?”</p> -</div> -<p>No sooner had he called, than the curtains before -one of the recesses on the stage slid back, and disclosed -a man richly dressed, seated within. Before -him money-bags were piled, and huge chests containing -gold and precious stones.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Who calleth me?” (said <i>Goods</i>). “Everyman? What haste thou hast!...</p> -<p class="t0">What would ye have, lightly me say.”</p> -</div> -<p>So Everyman began to relate his trouble, while -<i>Goods</i> gazed at him with his cold inhuman eyes.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Therefore, I pray thee, go with me,”</p> -</div> -<p>concluded Everyman, falteringly;</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“For, peradventure, thou may’st before <span class="sc">God</span> Almighty</p> -<p class="t0">My reckoning help to clean and purify;</p> -<p class="t0">For it is said ever among</p> -<p class="t0">That money maketh all right that is wrong.”</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Nay, Everyman, I sing another song;</p> -<p class="t0">I follow no man in such voyages,”</p> -</div> -<p>declared <i>Goods</i>; and, when Everyman spoke to him -indignantly,</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_110">110</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“What, weenest [imaginest] thou that I am thine?”</p> -</div> -<p>he exclaimed.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“I had wend [imagined] so,”</p> -</div> -<p>stammered Everyman.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Nay, Everyman; I say no!”</p> -</div> -<p>returned Goods; and went on to assure him that -<i>Goods</i> were only lent, and that they generally killed -a man’s soul. Then, in his great despair, Everyman -cursed the cruel spirit, who only laughed mockingly, -refused to follow him out of this world, and before -Everyman could speak again drew close the curtains -of his shrine.</p> -<p>Once more he strove to think of some help, and, at -last, he recalled <i>Good Deeds</i>, only to remember that -she was so weak that she could “neither go nor -speak.”</p> -<p>“Yet will I venture on her now,” he told himself.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“My <i>Good Deeds</i>, where be you?”</p> -</div> -<p>Again, at the other end of the stage, a recess opened, -and there, lying on the ground, so feeble and starved -that she could scarcely move, was a beautiful woman -dressed in a long white robe embroidered with stars.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Here I lie cold in the ground (she said faintly).</p> -<p class="t0">Thy sins hath me sore bound,</p> -<p class="t0">That I cannot stir.”</p> -</div> -<p>Very humbly Everyman approached her, for he -knew that it was through his fault that she was so -weak and ill. He had neglected and scorned her, but -<span class="pb" id="Page_111">111</span> -now she seemed his only hope, and so he implored her -to take the journey with him.</p> -<p>“I would full fain, but I cannot stand verily,” she -declared. And then she showed him how his “book -of accounts,” in which his good deeds should have -been numbered, was almost empty, and the pages -were so blurred and the letters so confused that -Everyman could not decipher them. He was almost -beside himself with grief and fear, when Good Deeds -advised him to seek counsel of her sister, who was -called <i>Knowledge</i>, for she possibly might help him -“to make that dreadful reckoning.”</p> -<p>So Everyman stood before her shrine, and, when -the curtains parted, he saw that Knowledge was grave, -and beautiful, and kind.</p> -<p>To his great joy she promised to be his guide; but -before all things she told him he must first seek -<i>Confession</i>, who would cleanse him from his sins.</p> -<p>So Knowledge brought him to Confession, a stately -figure in a monk’s cowl. Confession stepped from -his shrine to counsel and instruct poor Everyman, -who confessed his sins, and begged that Good Deeds -might be strengthened.</p> -<p>Kneeling before Confession, he prayed earnestly to -<span class="sc">God</span>, and presently Good Deeds stood at his side.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“I thank <span class="sc">God</span>, now I can walk and go;</p> -<p class="t0">And am delivered of my sickness and woe (she said).</p> -<p class="t0">Therefore with Everyman I will go, and not spare.</p> -<p class="t0">His good works I will help him to declare.”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_112">112</div> -<p>With an encouraging smile, Knowledge bade the -penitent Everyman be of good cheer; and, with these -words, she gave him a robe, which she told him to -wear.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“It is (she said) a garment of sorrow:</p> -<p class="t0">From pain it will you borrow;</p> -<p class="t0">Contrition it is</p> -<p class="t0">That getteth forgiveness;</p> -<p class="t0">It pleaseth <span class="sc">God</span> passing well.”</p> -</div> -<p>So Everyman put on the sad-coloured robe, and -was preparing to set forward on his journey with the -two beautiful women, when Good Deeds told him -that three other people must go with them, their names -being <i>Discretion</i>, <i>Strength</i>, and <i>Beauty</i>.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Also (said Knowledge), ye must call to mind</p> -<p class="t0">Your five wits [five senses] as for your counsellors.”</p> -</div> -<p>So Everyman called aloud, and Discretion, Strength, -Beauty, and the Five Senses (or wits), one after -another, came towards him. They were all splendid -and stately figures, and the <i>Five Wits</i> were five -beautiful women dressed in rainbow-coloured garments.</p> -<p>Then Good Deeds addressed them, praying them -all to accompany Everyman on his last long journey, -and each one in turn promised faithfully never to -forsake him.</p> -<p>It seemed, therefore, as though the poor traveller -had many friends with him after all, and when -Knowledge advised him to go to a priest and take -the Holy Sacrament, he consented gladly and humbly.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_113">113</div> -<p>On his return, Everyman found his companions -waiting for him, but suddenly he felt so weak that -he knew he was almost at the end of that journey -commanded by Death.</p> -<p>In the courtyard below the platform, at some -distance, there was an open grave; and looking at it -he said to Beauty:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Friends, let us not turn again to this land,</p> -<p class="t0">Not for all the world’s gold;</p> -<p class="t0">For into this cave must I creep</p> -<p class="t0">And turn to earth, and then to sleep.”</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“What! into this grave? Alas! (exclaimed Beauty)</p> -<p class="t0">And what—should I smother here?”</p> -</div> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Yes, by my faith (said Everyman), and never more appear;</p> -<p class="t0">In this world live no more we shall,</p> -<p class="t0">But in heaven, before the highest <span class="sc">Lord</span> of all.”</p> -</div> -<p>Then, full of fear, Beauty declined to go with -Everyman.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Peace, I am deaf; I look not behind me;</p> -<p class="t0">Not and thou would give me all the gold in thy chest,”</p> -</div> -<p>she exclaimed; and turning from him in spite of her -promise, she hurried away.</p> -<p>Strength followed, crying:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Thy game liketh me not at all!”</p> -</div> -<p>And, after him, fled Discretion, saying:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“When Strength goeth before, I follow after evermore.”</p> -</div> -<p>Deserted by these three friends, Everyman, who -had descended the steps of the stage, was now quite -close to the grave, and the scene was very solemn -<span class="pb" id="Page_114">114</span> -and impressive. Evening was drawing near. Long -shadows were cast upon the courtyard, and across -the sky, still clear, but rosy with sunset, flights of -birds moved slowly. The last rays of the sun touched -the roofs of the old grey houses, and the bells from -the city churches near were chiming together.</p> -<p>One by one the beautiful figures who had forsaken -him crossed the courtyard and filed back to the -world, across the stage, while Everyman, in his black -robe of sorrow, attended only by <i>Knowledge</i> and <i>Good -Deeds</i>, stood at the brink of the tomb.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Oh, all things faileth save <span class="sc">God</span> alone! (he cried)</p> -<p class="t0"><i>Beauty</i>, <i>Strength</i>, and <i>Discretion</i>;</p> -<p class="t0">For when <i>Death</i> bloweth his blast,</p> -<p class="t0">They all run from me full fast.”</p> -</div> -<p>And now the <i>Five Senses</i>, who had come near to -the tomb and formed a shining group round it, also -one by one turned away; and, in a failing voice, -Everyman murmured:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“O <span class="sc">Jesus</span>, help! all hath forsaken me.”</p> -</div> -<p>But <i>Good Deeds</i>, with a sweet smile, drew close -to him.</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Nay, Everyman” (she said), “I will bide with thee;</p> -<p class="t0">I will not forsake thee indeed;</p> -<p class="t0">Thou shalt find me a good friend at need.”</p> -</div> -<p>Thus Everyman found that though he had loved -all his other friends better than <i>Good Deeds</i>, she alone -was faithful, for even <i>Knowledge</i>, who had so far -followed him, now sadly moved aside, and he knew -<span class="pb" id="Page_115">115</span> -the truth of the words uttered at the very edge of -the grave by <i>Good Deeds</i>:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“All earthly things is but vanity:</p> -<p class="t0"><i>Beauty</i>, <i>Strength</i>, and <i>Discretion</i> do man forsake;</p> -<p class="t0">Foolish friends and kinsmen that fair spake,</p> -<p class="t0">All fleeth save <i>Good Deeds</i>, and that am I.”</p> -</div> -<p>Right into the grave she followed Everyman, and -when, as he was sinking back, he cried:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Have mercy on me, <span class="sc">God</span> most mighty;</p> -<p class="t0">And stand by me, thou Mother and Maid, holy Mary!”</p> -</div> -<p>she answered:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Fear not, I will speak for thee.”</p> -</div> -<p>And when the grave covered both of them, <i>Knowledge</i> -came near, and bending over it, said:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Now hath he suffered that we all shall endure;</p> -<p class="t0">The <i>Good Deeds</i> shall make all sure.</p> -<p class="t0">Now hath he made an ending.”</p> -</div> -<p>She paused, listening, and in a joyful voice added:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Methinketh that I hear angels sing,</p> -<p class="t0">And make great joy and melody,</p> -<p class="t0">Where Everyman’s soul received shall be.”</p> -</div> -<p>And indeed, almost before <i>Knowledge</i> had finished -speaking, there appeared on the balcony, high above -the stage, an angel with long wings of rose-colour; -and, while sweet music sounded, the angel spoke:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Come, excellent elect spouse, to <span class="sc">Jesu</span>:...</p> -<p class="t0">Thy reckoning is crystal-clear;</p> -<p class="t0">Now shalt thou into the heavenly sphere,</p> -<p class="t0">Unto the which ye all shall come</p> -<p class="t0">That liveth well, before the day of doom.”</p> -</div> -<div class="pb" id="Page_116">116</div> -<p>So, though the play had been very sad, it ended -with beautiful sights and sounds, and before the -people in the audience moved, the Messenger stood -once more alone upon the stage, warning them to -bear the moral of Everyman in mind:</p> -<div class="verse"> -<p class="t0">“Forsake pride (he said), for he deceiveth you in the end;</p> -<p class="t0">And remember <i>Beauty</i>, <i>Five Wits</i>, <i>Strength</i>, and <i>Discretion</i>:</p> -<p class="t0">They all at the last do Everyman forsake,</p> -<p class="t0">Save his <i>Good Deeds</i>, there doth he take.</p> -<p class="t0">But beware, and they be small</p> -<p class="t0">Before <span class="sc">God</span> he hath no help at all....</p> -<p class="t0">For after death amends may no man make.”</p> -</div> -<p>But though this simple and beautiful old play is -sometimes acted nowadays, and though many people -are interested and touched whenever it is performed, -yet, at any rate in England, the time for miracle plays -has gone by.</p> -<p>If not wiser, the world has at least grown older -since the days when crowds of simple and unlearned -folk assembled in market-places, or on village-greens, -to be taught the Bible history which they can now -read for themselves.</p> -<p>A few men and women, it is true, occasionally write -religious plays even now. There is one, for instance, -called <i>Bethlehem</i>, written by Laurence Housman, -which has lately been acted several times, and another -by Miss Buckland, with the title of <i>Eager Heart</i>, has -for six years been played every Christmas in the big -hall at Lincoln’s Inn.</p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_117">117</div> -<p>But these modern religious dramas are like late -violets blooming when the real violet time is over. -It may be delightful to find them still growing here -and there, but just as some flowers belong to the -spring and cannot live into the summer, so the real -miracle plays which flourished in the spring-time of -our country’s history have died away now that the -country’s life is older.</p> -<p>There is in Europe at the present day only one -important religious play to which, as in olden times, -thousands of people flock, and that is called the Ober -Ammergau Passion Play, and is given once in ten -years.</p> -<p>Ober Ammergau is a village in Bavaria, and the -play, acted by the villagers, deals with the last days of -<span class="sc">Christ</span> on earth, and is so wonderful and so beautiful -that it has become very celebrated.</p> -<p>In a far-away German village like Ober Ammergau, -where the natives are simple folk living apart from -the great world, such a performance as this is still -possible, and still a beautiful thing. Nevertheless it -remains true that for the great mass of people the age -of miracle plays is over.</p> -<p>But though as national events they have passed away -from our country for ever, we must not forget that -quite apart from the work of teaching which they once -performed, they are very important in the history of -our literature.</p> -<p>Rough and often badly written as they are, these -<span class="pb" id="Page_118">118</span> -miracle plays prepared the way for the drama which -was to follow them in the days of Queen Elizabeth. -It is not too much to say that without them we might -never have had <i>Hamlet</i>, nor <i>As you like it</i>, nor any of -the splendid and beautiful plays of such a great -dramatist as William Shakespeare.</p> -<hr class="dwide" /> -<p class="center smaller"><i>Printed by A. R. Mowbray & Co. Ltd., London and Oxford</i></p> -<div class="pb" id="Page_119">119</div> -<h2 id="c11"><span class="small"><span class="smallest">ADVERTISEMENTS</span></span></h2> -<h3 id="c12"><span class="large">The Story of St. Catherine of Siena</span></h3> -<p>By NETTA SYRETT. With 12 Illustrations and a Coloured -Frontispiece. Cloth, 2/6 net.</p> -<blockquote> -<p>Miss Syrett writes with a remarkable freshness and deftness of touch which will -appeal to readers of all ages, but especially to the young reader. For the story as she -tells it has the colour and joy of a fairy tale—and yet is true; and the delicate reserve -shown in dealing with the religious side of the narrative adds to its impressiveness.</p> -</blockquote> -<h3 id="c13"><span class="large">Roses of Martyrdom</span> -<br /><b>Stories of the “Noble Army of Martyrs” for Children</b></h3> -<p class="center">With 8 Illustrations in Colour. Cloth, 2/6 net.</p> -<h3 id="c14"><span class="large">Our Kings and Westminster Abbey</span> -<br /><b>Being a revised and abridged Edition of “A Child’s History of Westminster Abbey”</b></h3> -<p>By AGATHA G. TWINING, Author of <i>The Children’s Creed</i>; -<i>The Childhood of our Blessed Lord Jesus Christ</i>, etc. With 33 -Illustrations, and Frontispiece in Colour. Cloth, 2/6 net.</p> -<h3 id="c15"><span class="large">Everyman’s History of the English Church</span></h3> -<p>By the Rev. PERCY DEARMER, D.D. With 112 Illustrations. -176 pages. Paper boards, 1/- net; Cloth boards, 1/6 net. Gift -Edition, cloth boards, gilt, 2/- net.</p> -<blockquote> -<p>“A capital conspectus of English Church History.... It would be difficult -to name a better or cheaper work for the purpose in view, one better printed or more -convenient to handle and easier to read.”—<i>Guardian.</i></p> -</blockquote> -<div class="pb" id="Page_120">120</div> -<h3 id="c16"><span class="large">The Last Abbot of Glastonbury</span> -<br />A Tale of the Dissolution of the Monasteries</h3> -<p>By the late Rev. A. D. CRAKE, B.A. A new Edition, with -9 Illustrations by <span class="sc">George E. Kruger</span>. Cloth, 2/6 net.</p> -<blockquote> -<p>“This is a very attractive volume, telling of a tragic episode in our history -which ought to be better known by Churchmen than it is.”—<i>Guardian.</i></p> -</blockquote> -<h3 id="c17"><span class="large">The Doomed City</span> -<br />Or, the Last Days of Durocina -<br /><span class="smaller">A Tale of the Anglo-Saxon Conquest of Britain, and the Mission of Augustine</span></h3> -<p>By the late Rev. A. D. CRAKE, B.A. A new Edition, with -9 Illustrations by <span class="sc">George E. Kruger</span>. Cloth, 2/6 net.</p> -<h3 id="c18"><span class="large">How the Church came to England</span></h3> -<p>By GERTRUDE HOLLIS, Author of <i>The Son of Aella</i>, <i>In -the days of Anselm</i>, etc. Cloth, limp, 1/- net; Cloth gilt, 1/6 net.</p> -<blockquote> -<p>“This book is meant for children, and has the excellent object of teaching -them to be loyal to the English Church.”—<i>Guardian.</i></p> -</blockquote> -<h3 id="c19"><span class="large">What the Church did for England</span> -<br />Being the Story of the Church of England up to A.D. 1215</h3> -<p>With 15 Illustrations. By GERTRUDE HOLLIS. Cloth, -2/- net.</p> -<hr class="dwide" /> -<p class="center smaller">A. R. MOWBRAY & CO. Ltd., London and Oxford</p> -<h2 id="trnotes">Transcriber’s Notes</h2> -<ul> -<li>Silently corrected a few typos.</li> -<li>Retained publication information from the printed edition: this eBook is public-domain in the country of publication.</li> -<li>In the text versions only, text in italics is delimited by _underscores_.</li> -</ul> -<div style='display:block; margin-top:4em'>*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE OLD MIRACLE PLAYS OF ENGLAND ***</div> -<div style='text-align:left'> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Updated editions will replace the previous one—the old editions will -be renamed. -</div> - -<div style='display:block; margin:1em 0'> -Creating the works from print editions not protected by U.S. copyright -law means that no one owns a United States copyright in these works, -so the Foundation (and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United -States without permission and without paying copyright -royalties. 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