CERES. Is there no help, great Jove? If she depart I will descend with her—the Earth shall lose Its proud fertility, and Erebus Shall bear my gifts throughout th’ unchanging year. Valued till now by thee, tyrant of Gods! My harvests ripening by Tartarian fires Shall feed the dead with Heaven’s ambrosial food. Wilt thou not then repent, brother unkind, Viewing the barren earth with vain regret, Thou didst not shew more mercy to my child? INO. We will all leave the light and go with thee, In Hell thou shalt be girt by Heaven-born nymphs, Elysium shall be Enna,—thou’lt not mourn Thy natal plain, which will have lost its worth Having lost thee, its nursling and its Queen. ARETHUSE. I will sink down with thee;—my lily crown Shall bloom in Erebus, portentous loss To Earth, which by degrees will fade & fall In envy of our happier lot in Hell;— And the bright sun and the fresh winds of heaven Shall light its depths and fan its stagnant air. (They cling round Proserpine; the Shades of Hell seperate and stand between them.) ASCALAPHUS. Depart! She is our Queen! Ye may not come! Hark to Jove’s thunder! shrink away in fear From unknown forms, whose tyranny ye’ll feel In groans and tears if ye insult their power. IRIS. Behold Jove’s balance hung in upper sky; There are ye weighed,—to that ye must submit. CERES. Oh! Jove, have mercy on a Mother’s prayer! Shall it be nought to be akin to thee? And shall thy sister, Queen of fertile Earth, Derided be by these foul shapes of Hell? Look at the scales, they’re poized with equal weights! What can this mean? Leave me not[,] Proserpine[,] Cling to thy Mother’s side! He shall not dare Divide the sucker from the parent stem. (_embraces her_) ASCALAPHUS. He is almighty! who shall set the bounds To his high will? let him decide our plea! Fate is with us, & Proserpine is ours! (He endeavours to part Ceres & Proserpine, the nymphs prevent him.) CERES. Peace, ominous bird of Hell & Night! Depart! Nor with thy skriech disturb a Mother’s grief, Avaunt! It is to Jove we pray, not thee.