The Collected Works in Verse and Prose of William Butler Yeats, Vol. 3 (of 8): The Countess Cathleen. The Land of Heart's Desire. The Unicorn from the StarsYeats, W. B. (William Butler)
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The Collected Works in Verse and Prose of William Butler Yeats, Vol. 3 (of 8): The Countess Cathleen. The Land of Heart's Desire. The Unicorn from the Stars
Yeats, W. B. (William Butler)
English literature -- Irish authors
It is that troop of beggars. Bringing their tricks and their thieveries
they are to the Kinvara Fair.
MARTIN [_impatiently_].
There is no quiet—come to the other room. I am trying to remember.
[_They go to door of inner room, but ANDREW stops him._
ANDREW.
They are a bad-looking fleet. I have a mind to drive them away, giving
them a charity.
MARTIN.
Drive them away or come away from their voices.
ANOTHER VOICE.
I put under the power of my prayer
All that will give me help.
Rafael keep him Wednesday,
Sachiel feed him Thursday,
Hamiel provide him Friday,
Cassiel increase him Saturday.
Sure giving to us is giving to the Lord and laying up a store in the
treasury of heaven.
ANDREW.
Whisht! He is entering by the window!
[_JOHNNY climbs up._
JOHNNY.
That I may never sin, but the place is empty.
PAUDEEN.
Go in and see what can you make a grab at.
JOHNNY [_getting in_].
That every blessing I gave may be turned to a curse on them that left
the place so bare! [_He turns things over._] I might chance something
in this chest if it was open.
[_ANDREW begins creeping towards him._
NANNY [_outside_].
Hurry on, now, you limping crabfish you! We can’t be stopping here
while you’ll boil stirabout!
JOHNNY.
[_Seizing bag of money and holding it up high in both
hands._]
Look at this, now, look!
[_ANDREW comes behind, seizes his arm._
JOHNNY [_letting bag fall with a crash_].
Destruction on us all!
MARTIN.
[_Running forward, seizes him. Heads disappear._]
That is it! O, I remember. That is what happened. That is the command.
Who was it sent you here with that command?
JOHNNY.
It was misery sent me in, and starvation, and the hard ways of the
world.
NANNY [_outside_].
It was that, my poor child, and my one son only. Show mercy to him now
and he after leaving gaol this morning.
MARTIN [_to ANDREW_].
I was trying to remember it—when he spoke that word it all came back to
me. I saw a bright many-changing figure; it was holding up a shining
vessel [_holds up arms_]; then the vessel fell and was broken with a
great crash; then I saw the unicorns trampling it. They were breaking
the world to pieces—when I saw the cracks coming I shouted for joy! And
I heard the command ‘Destroy, destroy, destruction is the life-giver!
destroy!’
ANDREW.
What will we do with him? He was thinking to rob you of your gold.
MARTIN.
How could I forget it or mistake it? It has all come upon me now; the
reasons of it all, like a flood, like a flooded river.
JOHNNY [_weeping_].
It was the hunger brought me in and the drouth.
MARTIN.
Were you given any other message? Did you see the unicorns?
JOHNNY.
I saw nothing and heard nothing; near dead I am with the fright I got
and with the hardship of the gaol.
MARTIN.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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