"Yes, my child, my sore vexation! Another mother would have cursed his bones; she would have said: 'You are not my son, I am not your mother,'--But I cannot do that,--forgive me, O Lord, that I still call him 'my child, my son'!... Oh, I can ask for my death of You, but not for the death of my child! Punish me, Lord of the Universe, me, his sinful mother! Maybe I am to be blamed that he has departed from the road of righteousness, and has forgotten You, O living God, and has abandoned Your Law and does not do Your commandments! Yes, I am to be blamed for it, I have loved him too much; I always did what he wanted me to do; I have always quarrelled with his pious father when he wanted to punish him. I have raised him such as he is, and do punish me for him!"... XVII. ON THE BOSOM OF THE OCEAN The terrible wind, the dangerous storm, is wrestling with a ship on the ocean; it is trying to break her, but she in distress cuts through the deep, groaning heavily. The mast cracks, the sail trembles, frightful is the depth of the roaring waters; the wind struggles desperately with the ship in a life and death combat. Ot mus sie sich lēgen, ot mus sie sich stellen, Ot treibt es zurück ihr, ot treibt es varaus,-- A Spielchel is' itzter die Schiff bei die Wellen, See schlingen sie ein un' see speien sie aus. Es laremt der Jam, un' es hēben sich Chwales; Es huzet, es pildert mit Schreck un' mit Graul;-- Der Sturem, der Gaslen, will umbrengen Alles, Der Thom öffent auf sein varschlossene Maul. Es hören sich Süfzen, es hört sich ēin Beten, 's is' grōss die Ssakone, 's is' schrecklich die Nōt, Un' Jederer bet't bei sein Gott, er soll retten, Befreien die Menschen vun sicheren Tōdt. Dās wēinen die Kinder, es klāgen die Weiber, Män schreit un' män is' sich miswade azünd: Es flatteren Sēelen, es zitteren Leiber Var Schreck var dem boesen, varnichtenden Wind. Doch unten, in Zwischendeck, sitzen zwēi Männer Ganz ruhig, see rührt nit der mindester Wēh; See suchen kēin Rettung, see klären kēin Pläner, Wie Alls wollt' sein sicher un' still arum see. Es laremt dās Wasser, die Wellen, see schäumen, Es wojet, es mojet meschune der Wind; Es ssappet der Kessel, es hužet der Kōmen; Doch unten die Zwēi, seht, see schweigen azünd. See kucken mit Kaltkeit dem Tōdt in die Äugen, See rührt nit dem Sturem's gefährliche Macht; Es scheint, as der Tōdt hāt allēin nor erzōgen See Bēiden, in Schreck un' in finsterer Nacht. Now she must lie down, now again she must rise, now she is driven back, now forward;--the ship is a plaything of the waves that swallow her up and spit her out again. The ocean roars, the billows rise, and lash, and thunder in awful terror, the murderous storm wants to destroy everything,--the abyss opens up its closed jaws.