_A fierce combat ensues--VALENTINE, by his lightness and activity, escapes many dreadful blows, aimed at him by ORSON.--They stand to breathe awhile, when the Bear suddenly totters from the cave--VALENTINE, at the moment she opens her mouth, presents his sword in the attitude of thrusting it down her throat--ORSON, as if instinctively apprised of the danger of his foster-mother, drops his club, and seems to implore mercy for the old and feeble Bear--VALENTINE retires, the Bear follows--ORSON recovers his club, and is about to attack VALENTINE, when the latter cuts ORSON's hand--the club falls, and VALENTINE is once more attacking the Bear, when ORSON supplicates--VALENTINE suddenly throws a cord round ORSON's hands, and bids him follow him--VALENTINE holding the other end of the cord.--ORSON looks at the Bear, and then at VALENTINE, who throws him fruit--he gives it to the Bear--VALENTINE gives him wine from a flask, he tastes it, likes it, and gives some to the Bear, who seems half strangled with it, and totters towards the cave._ _VALENTINE again bids ORSON follow him--ORSON suddenly snaps the cord, and follows the Bear--the Bear unable to reach the cave, drops with a faint roar, and dies, as if from old age._ _ORSON shakes her, puts the food and bottle by her, throws himself on the ground, and seems to weep._ _VALENTINE ventures to caress him--ORSON turns short on him, snatches at his sword by the blade, and again cuts his fingers--resumes his club, but throws it down again on seeing the dead Bear.--VALENTINE caresses ORSON again (still keeping on his guard), ORSON seeing VALENTINE's attention to himself and the Bear, seems pleased and overcome by it--presents VALENTINE with one end of the cord, and holding the other, suffers himself to be led off, looking back from time to time, at the dead Bear, and making an uncouth and mournful kind of lamentation._ ACT II. SCENE I.-- _A Court-Yard of the Palace at Orleans_--(Phillips.)--_in front a pair of great Gates, with Posts before them, and a Chain across from one to the other_. (_Pantomime Music._)