

AGLAVAINE & SELYSETTE 



ACT FIRST 

A Room in the Castle. 

Meligrane is asleep on a high-backed chair at the 
fa/r end of the room. Enter Meleander and 
Selysktte. 

Meleander. 

I will read you Aglavaine's letter : " Do not go out 
to meet me. Wait for me in the room wherein 
you linger, every evening, — and thus I shall not 
come upon you as a stranger. It is as I leave the 
boat that has brought me to you that I write these 
lines. Our crossing was very calm and beautiful, 
but, when I landed, I found the roads all sodden 
with rain ; and the sun will probably have set ere 
I behold the towers of the old castle where our 
good Selysette has offered shelter to her brother's 
widow. . . . 

Selysette. 

[Clapping her hands.] Oh ! the sun is setting ! 
. . . Look . — she must be near at hand. ... I wUl 
see whether .... 

A 



I. 

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2 AGLA VAINB AND SBLYSETTB 

Meleander. 

[Staying her with a gestvvre, and continuing to 
read.] ". . . I have only seen you once, Meleander, 
and it was in the midst of the confusion and dis- 
traction of my wedding— my poor wedding, alas ! 
where we beheld not the guest none ever invite, 
who yet always usurps the seat of the happiness we 
look for. Only once have I seen you, and more 
than three years have passed since then; but I 
come to you as confidently as though we two had 
known each other from infancy, and had been 
rocked to sleep in the same cradle. . • . 

Selysette. 

[Tv/rning rovmd.] Oh ! Grandam is still asleep ! 

. . . Ought we to wake her when Aglavaine 

comes? . . • 

Meleander. 

Tes, it is her wish. • . . 

/ 

Selysette. 

Her eyes are almost hidden beneath her white 
hair. . . . She is not happy to-night. ... Oh ! I 
want to kiss her. . . 

Meleander. 

Be careful you do not wake her too soon. . . • 
[He continues to read.] " And, coming to you, I 
know full well that it is as a brother you will 
greet me ! . • . We said but little to each other, 
and yet the few words you spoke to me were 
different from all those I had heard till then. 



• . 



^ -A 



AGLA VAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 3 

Selysette. 
Do not read so quickly. . . . 

Meleander. 

[Reading.] "... And besides, I look forward so 
eagerly to taking Selysette in my arms ! . . . She 
must be good, she must be beautiful, since she 
loves you and has your love. I feel that I shall 
love her much more than you ever can, for I 
know how to give more love; I have been un- 
happy. . . . And now, I am glad to have suffered ; 
I shall be able to share with you all that sorrow 
brings us. There are times when I think that the 
tribute I have paid may well suffice for the three 
of us; that destiny can have no further claim 
upon us, and that we may look forward to a mar- 
vellous life. We shall seek happiness, and naught 
beside. We shall so fill ourselves, and all around 
us, with beauty, that there will no longer be room 
for sorrow or misfortune; and, would these none 
the less force their entrance, needs must they too 
become beautiful before they dare knock at our 

door." 

[A door opens. Enter little Yssaline. 

Yss aline. 
I have the key, little sister, I have the key ! . . . 

Meleander. 
What key ? 

Selysette. 
The key of the old tower. 



4 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Meleander. 
I thought it was lost. . . . 

Selysettb. 
I have had another one made. 

Meleander. 
I hope you will lose that one too. 

Selysette. 

[Eocarmning the key.] Oh ! how large it is ! . . . 
It does not look like the one I lost. 

Yssaline. 

I was there, little sister, when they tried it. . . , 
They opened the door three times, then they shut 
it again. ... It fits much better than the other 
key, which was all rusty. . . . But it was hard to 
close the last time, because of the wind, which was 
pushing from the other side. . . . There is a great 
wind to-night. You can hear the sea-gulls all 
round the tower; and the doves too. . . . They 
have not yet gone to sleep. ... 

Selysette. 

They are looking for me; they have not seen 
me up there for a long time — two weeks and more. 
... I will go to-morrow. 

Yssaline. 
With me, little sister ? 



A OLA VA INB A ND SBLYSBTTB 5 

Selysette. 

Yes, if you will go to bed at once ; your nurse 
is waiting. . . . [Yssaline goes.] She is beauti- 
ful ?.. . 

Meleander. 
Who? 

Selysette. 
Aglavaine. 

Meleander. 

Yes, very beautiful. . . . 

Selysette. 
Whom is she like ? 

Meleander. 

She is like no other woman. • . . Her beauty is 
different, that is all . . . stranger and Inore 
ethereal ; it is never the same — one might almost 
say it was more manifold ... it is a beauty along 
which the soul can pass unhindered. . . . 

Selysette. 
I know I am not beautiful. . . . 

Meleander. 

You will never say that again, once she is here. 
It is impossible to say anything one does not 
believe, or that is useless, in her presence. Nothing 
can live near her that is not true. . . . 

Selysette. 
Nothing can live near her that is not true. . . . 



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6 AGLA VAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Meleander. 

Selysette? . . . 

Selysette, 
Meleander ? 

Meleander. 

We have lived together for nearly four years, 
have we not ? . . . 

Selysette. 
It will be four years, when the summer ends. 

Meleander. 

Nearly four years that you have been by my 
side, always beautiful, always tender and loving, 
and the soft smile on your lips revealed the deep 
happiness within. . . . Tell me, you have not shed 
many tears during these four years? At most 
some few little tears when a pet bird flew away, or 
your grandmother reproved you, or your favourite 
flowers died. But no sooner had the bird returned, 
or your grandmother forgiven you, than you came 
back into the room laughing merrily and leapt on 
my knee, kissing me like a little girl home from 
school. I think we may fairly claim to have been 
happy; and yet there are times when I wonder 
whether we have truly lived near enough to each 
other. ... I know not whether it was I who 
lacked the patience to follow you, or you who fled 
too swiftly; but often, when I tried to speak to 
you as I spoke just now, you would seem to reply 
to me from the other end of the world, where 
reasons unknown to me had impelled you to seek 



• • • 



t » 

« ' « r 

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A GLA VA INB A ND SELYSETTE 7 

refuge. . . . I do not know why this is borne home 
to me so clearly this evening. — Is it because 
Aglavaine lives more freshly in my menory? 
Has her letter, the news of her arrival, already 
freed something in our soul ? — You and I would 
seem to have loved each other as much as it is 
possible to love. But, when she is here, we shall 
love each other still more; we shall love each 
other differently, more deeply— you will see. . . . 

Selysette. 
Love her if you will. I shall go away. . . . 

Meleander. 
Selysette! . . . 

Selysette. 
I know that I cannot understand. . . 

Meleander. 

You do understand, Selysette, and it is because 

I know that you understand, though you feign the 

contrary, that I speak to you of these things. . . . 

There are depths in your soul that you never reveal 

tome; nay, you take pleasure in hiding them. . . . 

Do not cry, Selysette, I am not reproaching 

you. . . 

Selysette. 

I was not crying. Wherefore should I cry ? 

Meleander. 

And yet I can see that your lips are 
trembling. . . 



8 A GLA VA INB A ND SBLYSBTTB 

Selysette. 

My thoughts were far away. . . Is it true that 
she has been unhappy ? 

Meleander. 

Yes, she has been unhappy on account of your 
brother. . . 

Selysette. 

Perhaps she deserved to be. . . 

Meleander. 

I doubt whether a woman can ever deserve to 
be unhappy. . . 

Selysette. 

What was it my brother did ? 

Meleander. 
She begged me not to tell you. . . 

Selysette. 
You have been writing to each other ? 

Meleander. 
Yes ; from time to time. 

Selysette. 
You never told me. 

Meleander. 

When her letters came I have more than once 
shown them to you, but you did not seem anxious 
to read them. . . 



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AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 9 

Selysette. 
I don't remember. . . 

Meleander. 
But I remember it well. . . 

Selysette. 

Where was it that you saw her for the last 
time? 

Meleander. 

Have I not told you 1 only saw her once ? It 
was in the garden of your brother's castle. . . . 
With great trees spreading over us. . . 

Selysette. 
In the evening ? 

Meleander. 
Tes ; in the evening. 

Selysette. 
What did she say ? 

Meleander. 

We said but little to each other. But we could 
see that the lives of both of us tended towards the 
same goal. . . 

Selysette. 

Did you kiss each other ? 

Meleander. 
When? 



io AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Selyseite. 
On that evening. • . 

Meleander. 
Yes, when I went away. . . 

Selysette. 
Ah! 

Meleander. 

I think she will stay but a short time with us, 
Selysette. • . 

Selysettb. 

No, no; I want her to stay. . . . [There is a 
noise outside.] There she is ! [She runs to the 
window.] There are torches in the courtyard. 

[A moment 9 8 silence. The great door opens 
and Aglavaine appears on the thres- 
hold. She comes in without saying a 
word, amd stands in front of Sely- 
sette, looking fixedly at her. 

Meleander. 
Will you not kiss each other ? 

Aglavaine. 

Yes. [She presses a long hiss on Selysette's 
lips, then goes to Meleander, whom she kisses 
likewise.] And you too. . . . 

Selysette. 
I must wake grandam. . . . 



> 



AGLAVA1NB AND SBLYSETTE u 

Aglavaine. 

[Looking at Meligbane.] How profoundly she 
sleeps! . . . 

Meleander. 

She sleeps like this for many hours each day. 
... Her arms are paralysed. ... Go close to her ; 
she wishes to see you to-night. ... 

Aglavaine. 

[Taking Meligrane's hand and bending over 
her.] Grandmother! . . . 

Meligbane. 

[Awaking.'] Selysette! . . . [She opens her 
eyes.] Oh ! who are you ? 

Aglavaine. 
Aglavaine. . . . 

Meligbane. 
I was startled. . . . 

Aglavaine. 
May I kiss you, grandmother ? 

Meligbane. 

You call me grandmother? I cannot see you 
very well. . . . Who is that behind you ? 

Selysette. 
[Coming forward.] It is I, grandam. 



12 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Meligrane. 

Ah! it is you, Selysette. ... I could not see 
you. . . . Bring the lamp a little nearer, my 
child. . . . 

[Selysette brings a lamp, whose light falls 
on Aglavaine. 

Meligrane. 

[Looking at Aglavaine.] Oh! you are beauti- 
ful! .. . 

Aglavaine. 

May I kiss you now, grandmother ? 

Meligrane. 

No ; do not kiss me to-night. . . . The pain is 
worse than usual. Selysette is the only one who 
can touch me without hurting. 

Aglavaine. 

That is what I want to learn, too — to touch 
without hurting. . . . 

Meligrane. 

Kiss me, Selysette, before I go to sleep again, 
and take away the lamp. ... I was in the midst 
of a strange dream. . . . 

Selysette. 

[Going back with the lamp.] You must forgive 
her ; she suffers so much. . . . 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSETTB 13 

Aglavaine. 

What is there to forgive, Selysette ? You have 
dropped something. . . . What is it that has fallen 
on the floor ? [She picks up a key.] Oh ! what a 
strange key ! . . . 

Selysette. 

It is the key of my tower. . . . You don't know 
all that it unlocks. 

Aglavaine. 

It is strange and heavy. . . . I, too, have brought 
a golden key; you shall see. ... A key is the 
most beautiful of all things, so long as we do not 
know what it unlocks. . . . 

Selysette. 

You shall know to-morrow. . . . Did you notice, 
as you came here, a very old tower, with its turret 
in ruins, at the far end of the castle ? 

Aglavaine. 

Yes ; I saw something that seemed to be crum- 
bling beneath the sky. The stars shone through 
the crevices in the wall. 

Selysette. 

Well, that is it ; it is my tower — an old forsaken 
lighthouse. No one dare go up. . . . You have 
to traverse a long corridor, of which I found 
the key. But then I lost it again. . . . Now I 
have had another one made, for I am the only 
one who goes there. Sometimes I take Yssaline. 



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14 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Meleander only went once; he felt giddy. It is 
very high — you will see. The ocean stretches 
before you. It foams all round the tower, except 
on the castle side. And all the birds of the sea 
live in the crevices of the walls. They send forth 
loud cries when they recognise me. There are 
hundreds of doves, too; people tried to drive 
them away, but they refuse to leave the tower. 
They always come back. . . . Are you tired ? 

Aglavaine. 

Yes, a little, Selysetta I have had a long 

journey. 

Selysette. 

Yes, of course. . . . We will go thither to- 
morrow; and besides, there is a strong wind 

to-night. ... 

[A silence. 
Meleandeb. 

It is strange, Aglavaine. ... I had so much 
to tell you. . . . But in these first moments every- 
thing is still, and I feel as though there were 
something for which we were waiting. 

Aglavaine. 
We are waiting for the silence to speak. . . 

Meleandeb. 
What does it say to you ? 

Aglavaine. 

It would not be the refd silence, Meleander, 
were we able to repeat all that it tells us. . . . 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 1$ 

We have exchanged a few, almost meaningless, 
words — words that any one could have spoken — 
and for all that, do we not feel at rest, do we 
not know that we have said things to each other 
that far outvalue our words? We have uttered 
the little timid words that strangers speak when 
they meet ; and yet, who can tell all that has taken 
place between the three of us? Who can tell 
whether all that has to happen may not have 
been decided beneath one of these words? . . . 
But this much our silence has foretold to me: 
that I shall love Selysette like a little sister. . . . 
It cried that out to me, through all my soul, as 
I took my first step into the room ; and it is the 
only voice that I have heard clearly. . . . [Draw* 
ing Selysette to her.] Why is it, Selysette, that 
one has to love you so dearly, and that the un- 
bidden tears flow forth as one kisses you ? . . . 
[She presses a long kiss on her lips.] Come, you 
too, Meleander. . . . [She kisses him likewise.] 
It was perhaps this kiss for which we were all 
waiting, and it will be the seal of our silence for 
the night. . . . 

[They go out 



ACT SECOND 

Scene I. — A leafy grove in the park. 
Aglavaine and Meleandeb. 

Meleander. 

For five or six days only have we been living 
together under this roof, and already it seems to 
me that we must have spent our whole lives 
together; that I must have known you before I 
knew myself. All that I am appears to result 
from you ; I am more conscious of your soul than 
of my own, you are nearer to me than all that is 
myself. • . . Were you not there I should no 
longer be conscious of myself; it is only in you 
that I can smile, only in you that I can love. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

So it is with me, too, Meleander. . . . Your 
least gesture reveals me to myself ; there is not a 
smile, not a silence, not a word that comes from 
you but links me to a newer beauty. . . I feel that 
I flower in you as you flower in me ; and we are 
ever springing to birth again in each other. . . 
Our souls speak to each other long before the 
words leave our lips. 

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AGLAVAINE AND SELYSETTB 17 

Meleander. 

The same world is within us, Aglavaine. God 
must have erred when He fashioned two souls out 
of our one. Where were you all these years of 
our life when neither of us knew of the other's 
existence ? 

Aglavaine. 

And you, Meleander, where were you, all these 
years that I have been waiting, in solitude ? . . . 

Meleander. 

I was alone, too, and waiting, but hope had left 
me. • . 

Aglavaine. 

I was alone and waiting, but had never ceased 
to hope. . . Oh, there are times when I feel that it 
cannot be ! . . . 

Meleander. 

I too, Aglavaine, and it frightens me. ... 

Aglavaine. 

Why should we be frightened? . . . We have 
found each other, what can there be to fear ? 

Meleander. 

Is it not at the very moment of happiness that 
fear should come to us ? ... Is that not the most 
ominous time of all ? for not a kiss is given but an 
enemy may be awakened . . . and besides there 
is something else. . . . 

B 



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18 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Aglavaine. 
What? 

Meleander. 
Selysette. . . 

Aglavaine. 
Well? 

Meleander. 

Have you thought of Selysette ? 

Aglavaine. 
Yes. 

Meleander. 

And does that not trouble you ? 

Aglavaine. 
No, Meleander, it shall trouble me no more. . . 

Meleander. 
There may be sorrow in store for her. . . 

Aglavaine. 
Can I not love you like a brother, Meleander ? 

Meleander. 
But if her tears fall ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Let her ascend with us, and her tears will soon 
cease to fall . . . Why should she not strive hand- 
in-hand with us towards the love that disdains the 
pettiness of love ? She is more beautiful than you 
believe, Meleander. We shall hold out our hands 
to her ; she will soon rejoin us, and then she will 



F.'\ 



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AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 19 

weep no more. . . . And she will bless us for the 
tears she has shed, for some tears are sweeter than 
kisses. . . 

Meleander. 

Do you believe I can love you like a sister, 
Aglavaine ? 

Aglavaine. 
Ah! . . . 

Meleander. 

Aglavaine, do you believe you can love me like 
a brother ? 

Aglavaine. 

Now that you have asked me, I no longer seem 
to know, Meleander. . . . 

Meleander. 

I cannot believe it. We shall struggle day and 
night; we shall struggle for a long, long time; 
and all that is finest in us, all that might have 
turned into exquisite love, into beauty and deepest 
truth, wffl be exhausted in this futile effort. . . . 
And the more we struggle, the more shall we be 
conscious of a desire creeping up between our two 
souls like a heavy curtain. . . And all that is best 
in us will perish, because of this desire. . . It may 
seem to mean so little . . . and yet . . . is it not 
by the kiss we give that all things are transformed 
— stars and flowers, night and morning, thoughts 
and tears ? ... Is the immensity of the night as 
clear to the sister's eyes as it is to the woman who 
loves? Let us not bar the door to the most 



X 



20 A GLA VA INB A ND SBLYSBtTB 

beautiful of all truths, Aglavaine. . . . Let not all 
that is radiant in our two souls go break itself 
against one petty falsehood. . . Tou are not my 
sister, Aglavaine, and I cannot love you like a 
sister. . . 

Aglavaine. 

It is true that you are not my brother, Mele- 
ander; and it is here, doubtless, that suffering 
awaits us. . . 

Meleander. 
I know it, Aglavaine, but what can we do ? , . . 

Aglavaine. 

It was destiny brought us together, Meleander, 
We recognised each other as perhaps two souls 
have never recognised each other before. We 
love; and henceforth nothing in the world can 
alter my love for you or yours for me. . . 

Meleander. 

That I believe, too, Aglavaine. — I see nothing 
in the world. . . 

Aglavaine. 

But if I brought sorrow to one who is innocent, 
would I be the same to you ? . . . 

Meleander. 

If she be sorrowful, it will only be because she 
has not understood. . . 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 21 

Aglavaine. 

Tears are not less bitter because they should 
not fall. . . 

Meleander. 

There would be nothing left us but to fly from 
each other, Aglavaine ; yet that is impossible . . . 
So beautiful a thing was not born only to die; 
and we have duties towards ourselves. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

I believe that too ; and I believe that there is 
something better to be done than to fly from each 
other. . . In the meanwhile, if suffering there must 
be, let that suffering be ours. . . . 

Meleander. 

[Taking her in his arms.] You are beautiful, 
Aglavaine. . . 

Aglavaine. 

[Throwing her arms around Aim.] I love you, 
Meleander. . . 

[They kiss each other. A cry of pain is heard, 
through the foliage, and Selysette is seen, 
all dishevelled, flying towards the castle. 

Meleander. 
Selysette! . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Yes. 



22 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTE 

Meleandek. 

She lias overheard us. . . She is flying to the 
castle. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

[Pointing to Selysette, who is already far 
away.] Go after her ! . . . Go ! . . . 

[He rushes after Selysette. Aglavaine 
leans against a tree and weeps silently. 

Scene II. — In the depths of the park Aglavaine 
is asleep on a bench, with a veil thrown round 
her head. 

Enter Selysette. 

Selysette. 

" Selysette, little Selysette, we must not let her 
cry." ... He pities me, because he no longer loves 
me. . . Neither do I love him any more. . . They 
fancy that I shall keep very quiet, and that all 
they have to do is to kiss me with their eyes 
turned away. . . "Selysette, little Selysette." . . 
They say that very tenderly; oh, much more 
tenderly than they used to. . . . When he kisses 
me now he dare not look at me, or, if he does, he 
seems to be begging forgiveness. . . And while 
they are embracing each other I must crouch 
away and hide, as though I had stolen some- 
thing. . . They have gone out again to-night, and 
I have lost sight of them. . . "Little Selysette" 
is not in the secret ... we always smile when 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 23 

we speak to her ... we kiss her on the fore- 
head . . . and bring her flowers and fruit. . . 
The stranger takes "little Selysette" under her 
wing . . . and we cry when we kiss her, and say, 
"Poor little thing . . . there is nothing to be 
done. . . . She will not go^iway . . . but at least 
she shall not see anything" . . . and when her 
head is turned we take each other by the hand 
• • • yes> yes, till the time comes . . . only wait, 
wait. ..." Little Selysette " will have her day too. 
. . • She does not yet quite know what she ought 
to do, but wait a little ... we shall see. . . [Per- 
ceiving Aglavaine on the bench.] There they 
are! . . . Asleep in each other's arms! ... Oh! 
this! this! . . . I must . . . Tssaline! Grandam! 
. . . They must see . . . they must see this ! . . . 
There is no one coming ! . . . I am alone, always. 
... I will . . . [Going closer.] She is alone, too 
. . . was it a ray of the moon or her white 
veil? Perhaps . • . She is asleep. What shall 
I do ? . . . Oh, she doesn't know ! . . . She is on 
the brink of the well; a sudden turn and she 
would fall in. ... It has been raining . . . she 
threw her veil over her head, but her bosom is 
bare . . . she is wet through . . . how cold she 
must be . . . this country is strange to her. . . . 
Oh, how she trembles in her sleep! ... I will 
put my cloak around her . . . [She covers Agla- 
vaine wp and lifts the veil that hides her face.] 
How deep is this sleep of hers ! . . . She looks as 
though she had been crying . . . she does not 
seem happy . . . she seems no happier than I 



24 AGLAVAINB AND SELYSETTB 

. . . How pale she is ; she is crying too, I see. . . . 
She is beautiful. . . . She is even mort beautiful 
when she is so pale . . . she seems to blend with 
the light of the moon ... I must wake her gently 
. . . she might be frightened and fall into the 
well . . . [Bending tenderly over her.] Aglavaine 
. . . Aglavaine . . . 

Aglavaine. 
[Waking], Ah! . . . how light it is. . . . 

Selysette. 

Be careful . . . you are on the edge. . . . Don't 
turn round, you would be giddy. . . . 

Aglavaine. 
Where am I ? 

Selysette. 

By the side of the castle well. Did you not 
know? . . . You should not come here alone. 
One has to be very careful; this spot is dan- 
gerous. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

I did not know ... it was so dark. ... I 
saw the boxwood hedge, and a bench. ... I was 
weary, and sad. . . . 

Selysette. 
Are you cold ? Draw the cloak around you. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Whose cloak is this ? Yours, Selysette ? You 
put it over me while I was sleeping? You 
must be cold too. . . . Come hither, let me wrap 



A GLA VA INB A ND SBLYSBTTB 25 

it round you too. . . . You are trembling more 
than I. . . . [Twming round.] Oh ! . . . Now that 
the moon has risen I can see the glimmer of the 
water between the walls. ... If I had moved . . . 
and it is you. . . . [She throws a long look at 
Selysette and puis her awns arovmd herJ] 
Selysette. . . . 

Selysette. 

Let us not stay here. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

We should never resist moments such as these, 
Selysette. . . . They do not come a second time. 
... I have seen your soul, Selysette, for just 
now you loved me, though it was against your 
will. . . . 

Selysette. 

Let us go, Aglavaine . . . there is fever about 
this place. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

I beseech you, Selysette, do not try to escape 
me at the very moment when all that is deepest 
in you is striving towards me. ... Do you think 
we shall ever be nearer to each other ? . . . Shall 
we allow little childish words, little words that are 
as thorns, to steal between these poor hearts of 
ours? . . . Come close to me, Selysette, come 
close to me in the night and let my arms enfold 
you ; and it matters not though you find no words. 
. . . Something is speaking within you, and I hear 
it as you hear it. . . . 



26 AGLAVAINE AND SELYSBTTE 

Selysettb. 
[Bv/rstiTig into tews.] Aglavaine. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Aglavaine's tears are falling too, Selysette. . . . 
She is weeping because she too is ignorant of the 
thing that should be done, the thing that should 
be said. . . . We are alone here, my poor Sely- 
sette ; we two are all alone here in the darkness, 
clinging close to each other . . . and the happi- 
ness or unhappiness that must befall is being 
decided within us, at this very moment, perhaps. 
. . . But what is to be none can tell. And I have 
only my tears with which to question the future. 
I held myself the wiser of the two, but now that 
the moment has come that calls for wisdom I feel 
that my need of you is greater than your need of 
ma And therefore do my tears flow, Selysette, 
and therefore do I press my lips upon yours, so 
that we two may be as near as we possibly can to 
that which is being decided in the depths of us. 
I hurt you sorely this morning. . . • 

Selysette. 
No, no ; you did not hurt me. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

I hurt you sorely this morning, and my one 
desire is never to hurt you again. But how can 
we help giving pain to those we love most ? . . . 



A GLA VA INE A ND SBL YSBTTB 27 

Selysette. 
[Sobbing.] Aglavaine ! 

Aglavaine. 
What is it, Selysette ? You are trembling. 

Selysette. 
It was the first time I had seen you asleep. . . . 

Aglavaine. 
You will often see me asleep, Selysette. 

Selysette. 

And no one had ever told me anything. . . . 
No one, no one ! 

Aglavaine. 

Yes, yes, my poor Selysette, they will doubtless 
have told you the things they tell to all. But you 
had not yet learned to listen. . . . 

Selysette. 

It was not the same thing. . . . Never, 
never. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Because you did not listen, Selysette ; and look 
you, it is not only the ear that listens ; and the 
things that I am saying to you now have not been 
truly heard save by your heart alone, and your 
heart has flung the words aside, and gathered only 
that I love you. . . . 



28 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSETTB 

Selysette. 
I love you, too. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

And therefore have you listened to me, and 
understood so well all that I cannot say. It is not 
only our hands that are joined at this moment, my 
poor Selysette. . . . But Meleander loves you too. 
Why would you not listen to him ? . . . 

Selysette. 
He is not like you, Aglavaine. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

He is better than I ; and more than once must 
he have spoken to you far more wisely than I could 
speak. . . . 

Selysette. 

No, no ! it is not the same thing. . . . Listen, I 
cannot quite explain what I mean. When he is 
there I hide within myself. ... I keep back my 
tears. ... I do not want him' to think I under- 
stand. . . . My love is too great. . . . 

Aglavaine. 
Say on, Selysette. . . . 

Selysette. 

It is so difficult. . . . You will never understand, 
and I know not how to tell you. . . . 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTE 29 

Aglavaine. 

Though I fail to understand your words, I shall 
know what your tears are saying. ... 

Selysette. 

Well, there it is, Aglavaine. ... I do not want 
him to love me for anything else. ... I want him 
to love me because it is I. . . . Oh, it is impossible 
to say quite what I mean ! ... I do not want him 
to love me because I agree with him, or because 
I can answer him. ... It is as though I were 
jealous of myself Can you understand a little, 
Aglavaine ? 

Aglavaine. 

When we look into a crystal vase we can soon 
tell whether there be pure water within, Sely- 
sette. . . . You were afraid lest he should see how 
beautiful you are. . . . This fear comes often to 
those who love, and know not why they fear. . . . 
We are too anxious, perhaps, that the others should 
divine. . . . And it is a fear that should be over- 
come. . . . For look you, Selysette, by dint of\ 
hiding from others the self that is in us, we may I 
end by being unable to find it ourselves. . . . 

Selysette. 

I know I am not wise, Aglavaine. ... I would 
have him love me, even though I knew nothing, 
though I did nothing, though I saw nothing, 
though I were nothing. ... I feel that I would 
have him love me though I no longer existed. . . . 



30 A GLA VA INB A ND SBLYSBTTB 

And so I hid, I hid. ... I wanted to keep every- 
thing hidden. . . It is not his fault, Agla- 
vaine. . . . And so I was glad when he shrugged 
his shoulders or shook his head as he kissed 
me . . . much happier than when he admired 
me. . . . But I suppose I am wrong in wishing to 
be loved like this ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Who can tell how we should love, Selysette ? . . . 
Some love one way, some another ; love does this 
or that, and it is always well, because it is love. . . . 
In the very heart of us have we built love's cage, 
and we eye it as we would a vulture or strange 
eagle. . . The cage is ours, but the bird belongs to 

none There is nothing in the world that is 

further from us than our love, my poor Selysette. 
Needs must we wait, and try to understand. . . . 

Selysette. 
You love him, Aglavaine ? 

Aglavaine. 
Whom, Selysette ? 

Selysette. 
Meleander. . . . 

Aglavaine. 
How can I help loving him ? 

Selysette. 
But do you love him as I love him ? 



AGLAVAINB AND SELYSBTTB 31 

Aglavaine. 
I try to love him as I love you, Selysette. 

Selysette. 
Put if your love for him became too great ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 
I do not think one's love can ever be too great. 

Selysette. 
But if he loved you more than he loves me ? 

Aglavaine. 

He will love in you what he loved in me, for it is 
all one. . . There is not a creature in the world 
so like to me as Meleander. How could he not 
love you, seeing that I love you ? And how could 
I love you if he did not ? He would no longer be 
like himself, or like me. . . . 

Selysette. 

There is nothing in me that he can love, and 
you know so much that I shall never know. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Ah, Selysette, believe me when I tell you 
that all my knowledge may well be worth no 
more than what you deem your ignorance. . . . 
I shall show him that you are more beautiful 
than he thought, that your feelings lie far deeper 
too. . . . 



32 AGLAVAINB AND SELYSBTTB 

Selysette, 

Can you bring about that lie will still love me 
when you are there ? 

Aglavaine. 

Were he no longer to love you because of my 
being here, I would go away at once, Selysette, . . . 

Selysette. 
I will not let you go away. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

And yet that would have to be, for I should no 
longer love. . . . 

Selysette. 

It would make me very unhappy, Aglavaine. 
. . . Oh, I am beginning to love you, to love 
you! . . . 

Aglavaine. 

I have loved you a long time. . . . 

Selysette. 

I have not ; and when I first saw you I did not 
love you, though I loved you all the same. . . . 
There was a moment when I wanted ... oh! 
wicked things, very wicked. . . . But I did not 
know that you were like this. I should have 
been wicked had I been you. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

No, no, Selysette ... in your real self 
you would never have been wicked, but, being 



AGLAVAINB AND SELYSETTB 33 

unhappy, you would not have known how to be 

good. • . . 

Selysette. 

I should like to kiss you again, Aglavaine. . . . 
It is strange ; at first I could not kiss you. ... Oh ! 
I was afraid of your lips ... I know not why . . . 
and now. . . . Does he often kiss you ? 

Aglavaine. 
He? 

Selysette. 
Yes. 

Aglavaine. 

Yes, Selysette, and I kiss him too. 

Selysette. 
Why ? 

Aglavaine. / 

Because there are things that only a kiss can j 
tell. . . . Because it is perhaps only when sum- / 
moned by a kiss that all that is deepest and 
purest issues forth from our soul. . . . 

Selysette. 
You can kiss him when I am there, Aglavaine. . . . 

Aglavaine. 
If you wish it I will never kiss him again. 

Selysette. 

[Suddenly bursting into tears."] And you can 
kiss him when I am not there. ... I am glad I 
Awakened you, Aglavaine. . . . 

[She leans on Aglavaine's shoulder and 
sobs softly.] 



/ 



\ 



34 A GLA VA INB A ND SEL YSETTB 

Aglavaine. 

I am glad I awakened you, Selysette. . . . Come, 
let us go. ... It is well not to linger too long in 
a spot where one's soul has been happier than a 
human soul may be. . . . 

[They go out together with their arms about 
each other. 

Scene III. — A room in the castle. 

Meligrane and Selysette are at the far 
end in the shadow. # 

Meligrane. 

It is too much for you, my poor Selysette, say 

what you will. . . . You shake your head, but at 

this very moment you are wiping away your 

v6ars* • • . 

Selysette. 

But, grandam, have I not told you that it is only 
because I am happy that my tears flow ? . . . 

Meligrane. 

When people are happy they do not cry like 

that. . . . 

Selysette. 

Oh yes, they must ; otherwise, why should I be 

crying? . . . 

Meligrane. 

Listen to me, Selysette. . . . Just now I heard 
all you had to tell me about Aglavaine. I cannot 



s 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTE 35 

speak as she does. I am an old woman who knows 
but little, yet I have suffered, too, and you are all 
I have in the world. . . There are truths in these 
things, let me tell you, that may, perhaps, not be 
as beautiful as those whereof Aglavaine speaks ; 
but it is not always the most beautiful truths that 
are right, and the oldest and simplest that are 
wrong. . . One thing is very clear to me, my poor 
Selysette ; that, for all your smiles, your cheek is 
ever growing paler and paler, and no sooner do 
you believe you are alone than your tears begin 
to flow. . . . 

[Aglavaine enters, umpereeived, at the back 
of the room. 

Meligrane. 

. . . And tell me how you think all this can 
end . . I have turned it over patiently, sitting 
here in this corner of mine, and I am doing what 
I can to speak calmly, though I grieve to see the 
suffering that has come to you, and that you have 
done nothing to deserve. There are only two 
human solutions to sorrows such as these ; either 
must one of you die or the other go away. . . And 
who should go away, if not the one whom destiny 
sent too late ? . . . 

Selysette. 
Why she, rather than the one who came too soon ? 

Aglavaine. 

[Coming forwa/rd.] One cannot come too soon, 
my poor Selysette . . . one comes when the hour 



h 



36 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

has sounded, and I think our grandmother is 
right. . . 

Selysette. 

If she be right there is much unhappiness before 
us. . . . 

Aglavaine. 

And if she be wrong, there will still be tears. . . 
Adieu, Selysette. It is late ; Meleander is waiting 
for you. . . 

Selysette. 

Will you not come and embrace him with me, 

Aglavaine ? 

Aglavaine. 

I shall never kiss him again, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 

What has happened, Aglavaine? Your eyes 
are shining. You are keeping something from 
me. . . 

Aglavaine. 

My eyes are shining because I have no longer 
anything to keep back, Selysette. . . But a few 
moments ago I realised how far deeper his love 
lay for you than he imagined. . . 

Selysette. 
Did he say so ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Nay, if he had said so I should not have been 
so sure. . . 



A GLA VA JNB A ND SBLYSETTB 37 

Selysette. 

And you, Aglavaine, does he not love you any 
more? 

Aglavaine. 

He loves me less- than he loves you, Sely- 

S6vu6* • • 

Selysette. 

Oh ! my poor Aglavaine ! . . . But it is im- 
possible. . . Why should he love you less ? Tell 
me what to do. . . Shall I stay with you ? . . . 
I will tell him. . . 

Aglavaine. 

No, no ... go to him, Selysette . . . never 
shall I be happier than I am to-night. . . 

[They kiss each other silently and go out by 
different doors. 



ACT THIRD 

Scene I. — In the Pwrk. 
Enter Meleander and Selysette. 

Selysette. 

Forgive me, Meleander — you would rather be 
alone, I know. I am always a cause of sorrow to 
you ; but I will only stay a moment. . . I have 
just come from Aglavaine's room — she is already 
asleep; I kissed her and she awoke not, though 
the stars were shining on her bed. . . I shall not 
keep you long ; and then we will go and wake her, 
for she is sobbing in her sleep ... I was afraid 
to wake her by myself — but there is something 
I want to ask you ... so far, I do not know 
whether I am right or wrong— or whether it be 
good or bad ... I cannot ask Aglavaine, and you 
will forgive me if I am mistaken. 

Meleander. 

What is it, Selysette ? — Come here, and sit by 
me. I will play with your hair while you talk ; and 
not seeing me, you will be able to speak out more 
bravely ... I believe there is something that 

presses heavily on your heart. . . 

38 



AGLAVAINB AND SELYSBTTB 39 

Selysettb. 

Not on my heart, Meleander . . . but on me . . . 

I know not where ... on my soul, perhaps ... it 

is something that weighs me down and makes 

me understand — what ? . . . I know nothing of 

it yet, but I am happier than when my soul was 

free. . . 

Meleander. 

. . . There are times when the poor heart is 
almost overwhelmed, and the soul still deems 
itself happy. . . But enough of this ; tell me first 
of all what it is that distresses you to-night. . . 

Selysette. 
Aglavaine is going. . . 

Meleander. 
Who ? — Aglavaine ? Did she say so to you ? 

Selysette. 
Yes. . . 

Meleander. 

When ? . . . And why is she going ? 

Selysette. 

She did not say . . . but she will certainly go ; 
for now she thinks it is right, and that it should 
be done . . . and I am asking myself whether it 
would not be better that I should go instead. . . 

Meleander. 

Who? — You, Selysette ?— But what can have 
happened? . 



• . 



40 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Selysette. 

Nothing has happened, Meleander; and I beseech 
you, say not a word of this to Aglavaine — you 
would only call forth her tears, though there be no 
cause for them. . . But, you see, Meleander, I have 
been thinking these things over, too, while you and 
she have been together and I sat there by the side 
of our grandmother . . . and when you two came 
back, you were always so happy, so united, that 
every one was compelled to be silent, as you drew 
near. I have often said to myself that I am only 
a poor little creature who could never follow in 
your footsteps ; but you have both been so good 
to me that I did not realise this as soon as I should, 
and you have often wanted me to go with you, 
because I was sad. And when I was there, each 
of you seemed very lighthearted, but there was 
not the same happiness in your souls, and I 
was between you like a stranger shivering with 
cold. And yet it was not your fault, nor was it 
my fault either. I know full well that I cannot 
understand ; but I know also that this is a thing 
that has to be understood. . . 

Meleander. 

My dear, dear and good Selysette . . . what is it 
that you think you do not understand ? — Do you 
imagine that we understand something that you 
do not? ... It is always the soul that knows 
how to display itself that attracts us, but the one 
that hides is no less beautiful ; nay, it may well be 



AGLAVAINE AND SBLYSBTTB 41 

more beautiful, by dint of its very unconscious- 
ness. . . 

Selysette. 

No, no ; though I tried my hardest, there would 
always be a difference, Meleander ; and whenever 
something I do pleases you, it is only because I 
have been trying to imitate Aglavaine. . . 

Meleander. 
Selysette. . 

Selysette. ' 

Oh, Meleander, I did not say that to reproach 
you . . . did you think it was meant as a re- 
proach ? I am no longer as I used to be, and I 
shall never reproach any one again. Even I 
myself cannot tell why I have changed like this, 
and if any one had told me, a little time ago, that 
the sadness would bring happiness with it, and 
that I should one day press my lips on the lips of 
the woman you were to love — if any one had told 
me this, I should never have believed it ; and yet 
it has all come to pass and I cannot help it. . . 
And though you tell me that you love me, thinking 
thus to drive away my sadness, you can never say 
to me the things you say to Aglavaine. . . 

Meleander. 

Perhaps I could not say the same things, 
Selysette. The things that we really wish to say 
can never be put into words, and it may be that 
when we wish to speak very earnestly to one we 



42 AGLA VAINB AND SBLYSSTTB 

love, we are but replying to questions that the ears 
cannot hear. And never do two different souls 
ask the same questions. And therefore, though 
we know it not, are our words never the same. . . 
But the questions that your candid soul puts to 
me, my poor Selysette, are as beautiful as the 
questions of Aglavaine's soul. . . They come from 
another region, that is all. So let that not sadden 
you, Selysette. . . Come, give me your lips. . . I 
kiss you on your soul to-night, Selysette. . . 
Come, midnight is striking. . . Let us go and see 
whether Aglavaine be still sobbing in her sleep. . . 
[They go out with their arms abowt each 
other. 



Scene II. — A room in the castle. 

Enter Aglavaine and Meleander. 

Aglavaine. 
Do you hear that door close ? 

Meleander. 
Yes. 

Aglavaine. 

It is Selysette. . . She heard us coming and 
wished to leave us alone together. . . 

Meleander. 

She said to me that she would be going to her 
tower this morning ; they have told her of a great 
strange bird. . . 



AGLAVAINE AND SBLYSETTB 43 

Aglavaine. 

I am certain she must have been here; the 
whole room seems to be awaiting her return. . . 
Look at the little work-things she has left by the 
window . . . the skeins of silk, the jewels, the 
gold and silver threads. . . 

Meleander. 

And here is her ring with our names inscribed 
on it. . . And there are violets— and here is her 
handkerchief. . . [He takes the handkerchief and 
trembles as he touches it] Ah ! . . . 

Aglavaine. 
What is it ? . . . 

Meleander. 
[Hands her the handkerchief.] Here. . . 

Aglavaine. -^ 

Ah! . . . 

Meleandeb. 
It is still warm with her tears. . . 

Aglavaine. 

You see, Meleander ... as she will not speak, 
here are these smallest things of all that speak 
for her, and tell me it is time. . . [She takes the 
handkerchief] Give it to me, Meleander. . . Poor 
little witness of all that is hidden from us, not to 
understand thee one must be dead indeed. . . 



ifc 



44 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Meleander. 
Aglavaine. . . 

[He tries to kiss her. 

Aglavaine. 

Do' not kiss me. . . Love her well, Mele- 
ander. . . 

Meleander. 

I do not know what to believe, Aglavaine. . . 
There are times when I seem to love her almost 
as much as I love you, and times when I love her 
more than you, because she is further from me, 
or that I understand her less. . . And then, when 
I see you again, she disappears, I no longer am 
conscious of her. . . 

Aglavaine. 

I know that you love her, Meleander, and there- 
fore I must go. . . 

Meleander. 

But it is only in you that I can love her, 
Aglavaine, and when you are far away, I shall 
love her no longer. 

Aglavaine. 

I know that you love her, Meleander, and so 
well do I know it that I have more than once 
envied the poor child the love that you gave 
her. . . Ah! do not think I am perfect! ... If 
Selysette is no longer as she seemed, I too have 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 45 

changed since I have lived among you. When 
I came I was wiser than one had need to be. I 
told myself that beauty could not be blamed for 
the tears it caused to flow, and I believed the 
goodness vain that had not wisdom for its guide. 
But now I realise that true goodness is human 
and foolish, and stands in no need of wisdom. . . 
I thought myself the most beautiful of women; 
I have learned that the feeblest of creatures are 
as beautiful as I, and they know not of their 
beauty. . . When I look at Selysette, I ask myself 
whether the timid efforts of her tender soul be 
not greater, and a thousand times purer, than 
anything I can do. There is something in my 
heart whispers me that she is unspeakably beauti- 
ful She has only to stretch out her hands, and 
they come back laden with her heart's treasures, 
and she offers the priceless gems as tremblingly 
as might a little maid who was blind, and knew 
not that her two hands were full of diamonds and 
pearls. . . 

Meleander. 

It is strange, Aglavaine. . . . When you speak 
to me of her I admire you and you only, and love 
you more and more. . . You praise her, but the 
praise falls back on you, and nothing in this world 
can make it otherwise. My love for her can never 
approach my love for you, even though a God so 
willed it. . . 




46 AOL A VAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Aglavaine. 

When I came here, I believed that all things 
were possible, and that no one need suffer. . . 
But now I see that life refuses to conform to 
our plans, be they never so beautiful. . . . And I 
feel too that were I to linger by your side and 
cause others to suffer, I should no longer be what 
you are, nor would you be what I am, and our love 
would no longer be the same as our love of to- 
day. . . 

Meleander. 

It may be so, Aglavaine. . . But, for all that, 
should we not be in the right ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Ah, Meleander, it matters so little whether one 
be right or not ! Better, I think, be wrong all / 
one's life than bring tears to the eyes of those who | 
are not in the right! ... I too know all that 
might be said; but why say it, seeing that we 
know full well that it can nowise alter the deeper 
truth that will have none of our most beautiful 
words. ... It is this we must listen to, this truth 
that disdains fair speeches ! Notwithstanding all 
that we say and do, it is the simplicity of things 
that directs our life ; and to stru/gle iamst that 
which is simple is only to court failure. . . . Why 
were we made to meet, you and I, when it was too 
late ? Who knows ? Who would dare to say that 
destiny and Providence are not one ? . . . 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSETTB 47 

Meleander. 

[Clasping her in his arms.] I love you, 
Aglavaine ; and it is the best love of all that is 
coming upon us. . . 

Aglavaine. 

[Putting her arms arovmd his nech] I love you, 

Meleander, and the love that is coming upon us is 

the love that never dies. . . 

[4 silence. 

Meleander. 

Have you given a thought to what our life will 
be in the time to come, when we shall be far away 
from each other, when all that will remain of this 
great love of ours will be the faint memory that 
will fade away like all memories ? What shall I 
be doing next year ? What will you be doing 
next «year, out yonder ? . . . The weary days and 
months will frown upon us as we stretch out arms 

to each other across the emptiness For all - 

that we say that our love will remain unchanged 
through the years that will divide us, and the 
forests and trees that will stretch between, this 
poor life of ours is too full of moments when the 
tenderest recollection yields before the absence that 
lasts too long. . . 

Aglavaine. 

I know it, Meleander. . . Here, we might be 
happy ; there, unhappiness most assuredly awaits 
us, . . And none the less do we both feel that the 



48 A GLA VA INB A ND SBLYSBTTB 

thing which I am doing is the thing which should 
be done. . . . And, were you able to pronounce a 
word that would keep me here, you would not say 
that word. . . Needs must those who love that for 
which others care not, have sorrows that others 
cannot conceive. There is no reward, my poor 
Meleander, but we two look for none. 

[ They go ovi. 



Scene III. — At the foot of a tower. 
Enter Aglavaine and Meleander. 

Aglavaine. 

'Twas not a moment ago that I saw her. She 
was at the top of the tower, surrounded by scream- 
ing sea-gulls. For the last two or three days she 
has spent most of her time up there. And I know 
not what strange shadow it throws across my soul. 
She seems to be less unhappy, but at the same 
time more troubled in her mind, and it is as 
though some plan were being prepared in that 
profound little heart of hers. . . 

Meleander. 

She seems to be smiling at her former life — at 
the Selysette of old. . . Have you not noticed that 
there is always a song on her lips ? . . A mysterious 
light seems to shine upon her as she walks before 
us. . . It would be better not to speak of your 
departure till she is calmer ; better to wait till all 



A GLA VA INB A ND SBLYSETTB 49 

that is now transforming her has taken deeper 
root in her souL . . 



Aglavaine. 

No ; I shall tell her to-day. . . And as to what 
should be said to her, I have thought that over 
too, and at first I imagined it would be well to 
conceal the truth, so that she should suffer less. . . . 
Do not smile, Meleander. . . There is so little of 
the ordinary woman in me that you may well be 
surprised to find that I am like other women in 
this — that in the depths of my heart I, too, possess 
their feeble, tortuous wisdom — and that, when love 
commands it, falsehood comes to me as readily as 
to my sisters. . . So I had made up my mind to 
tell her that I no longer loved you, that I had 
deceived myself, that your love for me was dead 
too, and countless other little things that would 
have lessened me in her eyes, and thus lessen 
her grief, too. But in truth, when those great 
pure eyes of hers confronted me, I felt that it was 
not possible, because it was not beautiful . . 
Listen. . . I hear her; she is coming down the 
tower-stairs, singing. . . Leave us, Meleander; I 
must speak to her alone, for she says things to me 
that she cannot yet say to you ; and besides, it is 
only when two people are alone together that truth 
descends from its very fairest heaven. . . 

[Meleander goes. A silence; then the voice 

of Selysette is heard as it gradually 

comes nearer."] 

D 



50 AGLAVAINB AND SELYSBTTB 

The voice of Selysette. 

When forth her love went 
(I heard the door close) 
When forth her love went, 
She smiled. . . 

When back he did fare 
(I heard the lamp burn) 
When back he did fare 
Another was there. . . 

And I could see Death 

(I heard her soul moan) 

And I could see Death 

That still watches her breath. . . 

» 

Selysette comes in. 

Aglavaine. 

Oh, Selysette, how bright your eyes are this 
morning! . . . 

Selysette. 

It is because a beautiful thought has come to 
me, Aglavaine. . . 

Aglavaine. 
Tell it to me ; we must never keep back a beauti- 
ful thought, for all the world is the happier for 
it. . . 

Selysette. 

I cannot tell it to you yet. . . Little Selysette 
has her secret too, and a secret it must remain ! 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSETTB 51 

. . . But what would you have done had you been 
Selysette — what would you have done if another 
Aglavaine, even more beautiful than you, had 
appeared one day and thrown her arms around 
Meleander ? 

Aglavaine. 

I think I should have tried to be happy — to feel 

that more light had flown into the house, and I 

should have tried to love her even as you love 

me, Selysette* . . 

Selysette. 

You would not have been jealous ? 

Aglavaine. 

I cannot tell, Selysette ... in the depths of my 
heart, perhaps ... for one moment . . . but I 
should have recognised that it was unworthy, and 
I should have tried to be happy. . . 

Selysette. 
I am going to be happy, Aglavaine. . . 

Aglavaine. 

Not for one single instant shall you ever be 
unhappy again. . . 

Selysette. ^ 

I should be perfectly happy if I were only sure 
that this idea of mine was good. . . 

Aglavaine. 

So there is something you mean to hide from 
me, Selysette ? . . . 



$2 AGLAVAINB AND SELYSBTTB 

Selysettb. 

Yes, but only till it has become very beauti- 
ful. . . 

Aglavaine. 
When will it be very beautiful ? 

Selysette. 

When I know . . . when I know. . . Little 
Selysette can be beautiful too . . . you will see, 
you will see. . . Oh you will love me much more, 
both of you. . . 

Aglavaine. 

Is it possible to love you more than we do, 
Selysette ? . . . 

Selysette. 

I would so dearly like to know what you would 
do, if you were I ? 

Aglavaine. 

Tell me then, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 

If I were to tell you it would no longer be the 
same, and you could not tell me the truth. . . 

Aglavaine. 
Do I not speak the truth ? . . . 

Selysette. 
Yes, I know ; but here you could not. . . 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 53 

Aglavaine. 

You are strange to-day, Selysette; take care, 
for it may be that you are wrong. . . 

Selysette. 

No, no ; let me kiss you, Aglavaine . . . every 
kiss will whisper to me that I am not wrong. . . 

Aglavaine. 

There is a strange brightness in your eyes, my 
little Selysette ... as though your soul were 
leaping within you. . . 

Selysette. 

And your eyes are brighter to-day, too, though 
you try to hide them. . . 

Aglavaine. 
I also have something to say to you, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 

Oh what is it, Aglavaine? . . . you look as 
though you were afraid, as well as I . . . Can it 
be the same thing ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 
What thing, Selysette ? . . . 

Selysette. 

Nothing, nothing ... I was merely . . . tell 
me what it is, quickly. . . 



\'\. 



54 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Aglavaine. 

I am afraid it may distress you, Selysette, 
though it ought to bring happiness to you. . . 

Selysette. 
I shall never shed another tear, Aglavaine. . . 

Aglavaine. 

[Seizing her curmJ] What does this mean, 
Selysette ? you said that so strangely. . . 

Selysette. 

No, no ... I shall not cry any more, that is 
all ; is that not as it should be ? 

Aglavaine. 
Let me look into your eyes. . . 

Selysette. 
Look, look . . * tell me what you see. . . 

Aglavaine. 

For all that we say the soul shows itself in the 
eyes, it seems to vanish as we gaze into them. . . 
And as I stand, with the fears I dare not speak of 
upon me, before the limpid waters of your eyes, it 
is they that seem to question me, and to murmur 
timidly: "What dost thou read?" instead of 
answering the question I cannot frame. . . 

[A silence. 

Selysette. 
Aglavaine? . . . 



\ 



AGLAVAINE AND SELYSETTE $7 

Aglavaine. 
Selysette? . . . 

Selysette. 
What was it you were going to tell me ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Come to me, little Selysette ! Alas ! but a little 
more and I had taken from you all you had in 
the world. . . 

Selysette. 

You are sad, Aglavaine ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Let us sit here, at the threshold of your tower, 
and let your lips be close to mine, as on that 
evening when we spoke to each other for the first 
time ... do you remember that evening by the 
well? More than a month ago, my poor Sely- 
sette ; many things have died since then, many 
sprung to life, and a little more light has come 
unto the soul. . . Not many more moments such 
as this will be vouchsafed to us, for to-morrow I 
wend my way from amongst you, and everything 
that we do for the last time of all seems so grave 
and solemn to these poor hearts of ours. . . 

Selysette. 
You mean to go to-morrow ? 

Aglavaine. 

Yes, to-morrow, Selysette : it was that I wanted 
to tell you. At first I thought it would be best 



56 A OLA VA INB A ND SBLYSETTB 

to keep back the truth, so that the sorrow should 
not come upon you all at once. . . But when 
I thought of you, I felt at once that it could not 
be. . . And therefore I have come to tell you 
that to-morrow I shall go from here in order that 
you may be happy, and I tell it you in all sim- 
plicity, content that you should know how my 
departure saddens me, content even that you 
should share in the sacrifice ; for we are all three 
making this sacrifice, and making it for something 
that, nameless though it be, is yet far stronger 
than we. . . 

Selysettb. 

Do not go to-morrow, Aglavaine. . . 

Aglavaine. 
Why not to-morrow, since go I must ? . . . 

Selysettb. 

I ask you not to go till I have told what I have 
to telL . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Will you tell me soon ? 

Selysette. 

Yes, for now I am sure. . . And does Mele- 
ander know what you have just now said to me ? 

Aglavaine. 
Yes. 

(Selysette. 

I am no longer sad, Aglavaine. . . 



AGLAVAINB AND SELYSBTTB $7 

Aglavaine. 

What would you have done, Selysette, if I had 
gone away without telling you ? 

Selysette. 

I should have followed and brought you back, 
Aglavaine. . . 

Aglavaine. 
And if you had not found me ? 

Selysette. 
I should have spent my life seeking you. . . 

Aglavaine. 

My fear is lest you should go before I do, Sely- 
sette — I am wondering whether that can be the 
idea you spoke of. . . 

Selysette. 

No, for there would be sorrow in that, and my 
idea now is full of gladness ... I had thought, 
I too, of going away without saying a word, but 
now. . • 

Aglavaine. 
Now you will not go ? 

Selysette. 

No, no, Aglavaine mine ; I shall not leave the 
castle. . . 



58 AGLAVAINE AND SBLYSBTTB 

Aglavaine. 

You promise me that, from the depths of your 
soul? 

Selysette. 

From the depths of my soul, and by my eternal 
happiness, Aglavaine. . . 

Aglavaine. 

It had been better, perhaps, that I had never 
come. • • 

Selysette. 

In that case I had never been happy or un- 
happy, for I was nothing. . . 

Aglavaine. 

Perhaps it is not well to awaken those who 
slumber, above all when their sleep is innocent 
and sweet. • . 

Selysette. 

Surely it must be well, Aglavaine, since they 
never wish to slumber again. . . When I think of 
the time when my eyes were sealed, I would fain 
hide myself for shame. . . When I used to kiss 
Meleander I was only a little blind girl who did 
not know . . • but was it altogether my fault that 
I counted for so little ? . . . Whereas now ... I 
looked at him to-night as he lay asleep . . . and 
then ... I can tell you, Aglavaine ? . . . 



/ 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB $9 

Aglavaine. 
[Embracing her.] Selysette, my little Sely- 

Selysette. 

And then I kissed him, but he did not 
awake. . « And I could see the stars in the blue 
of the windows; and I felt as though all those 
stars had come to me to build a heaven in my 
soul. . . Oh my poor Aglavaine, you will never 
know — for you always knew. . . But to be able to 
say, " I love you/' to be able to say it with one's 
eyes open, to the man one loves! ... I under- 
stand now. . . I know not why I am yearning all 
the time to go away or to die. . . I am happy, and 
fain would I die, so a* to be happier still. 

Aglavaine. 

It is dangerous to think of death at moments of 
too much happiness. . . I will make a confession 
to you. . . For one second the fear rushed across 
me that the idea you spoke of before . . . 

Selysette. 
Yes. . . 

Aglavaine. 
That that might have been the idea. . . 

Selysette. 

Tou need not be afraid, Aglavaine, such an idea 
as that could come only to quite a little girl . . 



/] 



\ 



60 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSETTB 

Aglavaine. 

Yes, it would be the idea of a blind little heart, 
to whom death might seem the one proof of love. 
. . . Whereas, on the contrary, those who love 
must live ; and the more we love, the more must 
we wish to live. . . But apart from that, I knew 
that your love for us was far above that kind of 
love. . . And surely it is only some one who longs 
to plunge two fellow creatures into despair, who 
could devise anything so terribly cruel as to place 
an innocent death between them. . . 

Selysette. 
Shall I make a confession too, Aglavaine ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Tell me everything, even as I have told you 
everything, my little Selysette. It is sweet to 
feel that there is nothing between us, not even a 
flower wherein could hide a thought not shared 
by both. . . 

Selysette. 

I had thought of it for an instant. . . 

Aglavaine. 
Of death ? 

Selysette. 

Yes, long ago. . . But I at once told myself all 
you have just told me ; and then something else 
came to me. . . 

Aglavaine. 

And that is ? 



A GLA VA INB AND SBLYSBTTB 61 

Selysette. 

Oil something quite different, and it is on the 
side of life. . . But the time for telling is not yet. 
. . . You shall see. . . I kiss you, Aglavaine. . . 
I feel I know not what ... it is as though my 
soul — was it you who said it ? . . as though my 
soul were leaping within me. . . And now I know 
at last what you would do if you were I. . . 

[They go out with their arms about each other. 



ACT FOURTH 

Scene I. — A terrace overlooking the sea. 

Aglavaine and Seltsette enter and meet each 

other. 
Aglavaine. 

The sun is rising oyer the sea, Selysette ; and the 
waves are full of joy in their tranquillity. The 
fragrance and limpid silence of the dawn make one 
feel as though one were alone in the world, and 
there is something of the dawn in every word one 
says ; is it not so ? The day will be very beautiful. 
Shall it be the day of my departure ? 

Seltsette. 

No, no ; you shall not go. . . 

Aglavaine. 

I came to meet you because I saw you just now 
from the window of my room. I was frightened, 
Selysette. . . You were leaning over, nearly all 
your body was leaning over the crumbling old wall 
at the top of the tower. I imagined for a moment 
that the stones were giving way. I turned pale, 
pale — there was a chill at my heart that I had 
never known before. I felt my life trembling on 

6a 



AGLAVAINB AND SELYSBTTB 63 

my lips. ... I opened the window and screamed 
to warn you; but you did not understand. . . . 
Destiny is capricious — you do wrong to tempt it 
thus. What were you doing up there ? This is the 
third time I have seen you on the tower. . . Your 
hands seemed to be pulling at the stones. . . What 
were you doing, Selysette? You seemed to be 
seeking something in space. . . 

Selysette. 

Yes, I was seeking something. . . Have they not 
told you ? . . . But first of all do not be frightened 
about me, there is no cause. . . My old tower is 
stronger than they think; it will outlive us all. 
Why speak ill of it ? It has done no one any harm, 
so far ; and the stones are fast ; I know that better 
than any one. . . But have you not noticed? 
Here is something taking place so close to you, 
and you know nothing of it ! . . . Five or six days 
ago a strange {bird came to us, and it flies round 
and round my tower, and never seems to tire. . . 
Its wings are green — a strange, pale green, incon- 
ceivably strange and pale. . . And there is some- 
thing else that is inconceivable, too ; it seems to 
grow day by day. . . None have been able to tell 
me from what country it has come. . . I think it 
must have made its nest in a crevice in the wall ; 
it was there that you saw me bending over. . . 

Aglavaine. 

Is that the key of the tower, that great golden 
key with which you are playing ? . . , 



s 



64 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSETTB 

Selysette. 

Yes ; you remember I let it fall the day you 
arrived. . . 

Aglavaine. 
Will you give it to me ? . . . 

Selysette. 
Give it to you ? . . . Why ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 
I would like to keep it by me till I go. . . 

Selysette. 
But why, Aglavaine ? 

Aglavaine. 

I scarcely know. . . Wait till I am far away 
before you go up there again, Selysette, and leave 
the bird with the green wings alone. . . Last night 
I dreamed, and the bird appeared in my dream. . . 

Selysette. 

Here is the key, Aglavaine. . . I don't mind 
giving it to you. . . It is heavy. . . 

Aglavaine. 
Yes, it is very heavy. 

Selysette. 

Kiss me, Aglavaine. . . Have I made you un- 
happy ? . . . 



AGLAVAINE AND SBLYSBTTB 65 

Aglavaine. 

You have never yet made any one unhappy. . . 
Tour eyes are filled with tears. . . 

Selysette. 

I was looking at the sun, as I kissed you. . . 
Kiss me again. . . I was going to Meleander, he 
told me he would be up early. . . Good-bye, 
Aglavaine. . . 

Aglavaine. 

[Slowly.] Good-bye, Selysette. . . 

[Selysette goes. Aglavaine waits till she 
is far away, then, going to the end of the 
terrace, she looks for an instant at the 
golden key and, with a sudden movement, 
flings it far away into the sea. Then she 
goes too. 



Scene II. — A room in the castle. 

Meligbane is asleep at the back Enter Selysette 
holding little Tssaline by the hand. 

Selysette. 

Let us kiss grandam first of all; for who will kiss 
her when we are gone ? And surely she needs our 
kisses no less than the others. . . . But say no- 
thing to her. . . Aglavaine took away the key of 
my tower, because she was afraid. But I have 
found the other key — the one we thought was 

E 



66 A GLA VA INB A ND SBLYSBTTB 

lost. And so we can go up without any one 
knowing, and I will capture the green bird. . . 

Yssaline. 
Will you give it to me at once ? 

Selysette. 

I will give it to you if you say nothing. But 
be careful, I am going to awaken grandam. . . 
Do I look unhappy, Yssaline ? . . . 

Yssaline. 

Is there anything I can say that would make you 
happy, little sister ? 

Selysette. 

You must tell me the truth. . . Grandam must 
not imagine that I am unhappy. You see, often 
when one is very happy people make mistakes 
and believe one has been crying. . . You cannot 
see that I have been crying ? 

Yssaline. 
Let me look at you carefully, little sister. . . 

Selysette. 
Can you see anything ? 

Yssaline. 
You must come nearer to me, little sister. . . 

Selysette. 

I will take you in my arms and kiss you. . . You 
see nothing ? . . 



A OLA VA INE A ND SELYSETTE 67 

YSSALINE. 

One never quite knows when you are crying, 
little sister ; you do it so softly. . . 

Selysette. 

But I have not been crying at all. . . And 
remember, if they ask you to-day, when you are 
alone, " What did she say, what did she do, was 
she pale, or sad ? " you must not answer all at once 
if you see that they are frightened, or if those 
about you are too pale. . . But you must tell 
them that I seemed to be happy, and indeed 
every one can see that I do nothing but smile, 
that I am smiling all the time; and we must 
always tell the truth. Now, be careful, for I am 
going to grandam. . . Ah ! how forsaken she 
looks ! . . . [She imprints a long kiss upon Meli- 
grane' s lips.] Grandam. . . [Meligrane does not 
awaked It is I, grandam. . . How heavily she 
sleeps. . . Grandam, I am come to bid you good- 
bye. 

Meligrane. 

[Awaking.] Ah ! it is you, Selysette ? . . . 

Selysette. 

Tes, grandam, Tssaline and I have come to kiss 
you, for we are going for a walk to-day. . . 

Meligrane. 
Whither are you going ? 






68 A GLA VA INB A ND SBLYSBTTB 

Selysette. 

I do not know yet, but we mean to go a little 
further than usual. . . We shall not be back be- 
fore evening. Have you all you need, grandam ? 
Aglavaine will come and take care of you in my 
stead. Shall I arrange the cushions before I go ? 
I am the only one who knows how to lift you 
without hurting you. But Aglavaine will learn. 
She is so good that she will know at once if you 
will only let her. . . Shall I call her ? . . . 

Meligrane. 
No, no ; I shall sleep till you return. . . 

Selysette. 
Good-bye, grandam, good-bye. , . 

Meligrane. 

Good-bye, Selysette; come back before the 
night. . • 

[Selysette goes quickly, holding little Yssa- 
line by the hand. 



Scene IIL — A corridor in the castle. - 

Meleander meets Selysette, who is holding little 

Yssaline by the hand. 

Meleander. 
Where are you going so hurriedly, Selysette ? 



AGLAVAINE AND SBLYSBTTE 69 

Selysette. 

Nowhere, Meleander. . . We are seeking shelter 
from the sun. . . 

Meleander. 

In very truth this is a day when the stones 
seem to melt in the walls, and the sea to haye 
turned into a fiery lake. The eternal freshness of 
the forest is nothing but the heated breath of a 
funeral pile ; and the sun looks like a raging lion 
about to swallow up the sky. . . Kiss me, Sely- 
sette, for if there linger yet any fragrance of the 
dawn it is surely to be found on your lips. . . 

Selysette. 
No ; I have no time ; they are waiting for me — 
you shall kiss me this evening. . . 

Meleander. 
What is the matter, Selysette ? 

Selysette. 

Ah! It is such a little thing and over so 

soon ! . . 

Meleander, 

What do you say ? 

Selysette. 

Nothing, nothing. . . Kiss me quickly. . . 

[She kisses him violently, 

Meleander. 
Ah ! . . . my lip is bleeding. . . 



70 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSETTB 

Selysette. 
What? 

Meleander. 

A drop of blood. . . Those beautiful little teeth 
of yours have wounded me, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 

Oh, I am a little ... a little wolf. . . Hare I 
hurt you, Meleander ? . . . 

Meleander. 
It is nothing. . . 

Selysette. 
Oh, I am a little ... a little wolf. . . What 

time is it ? 

Meleander. 
Close on noon. 

Selysette. 

Noon ? Oh, I must hurry . . . they are waiting, 
waiting. . . Good-bye, my Meleander. 

Meleander. 
Selysette, Selysette, where are you going ? 

Selysette. 

[Singing as she hastens away with little 
Tssaline. 
When forth her love went 
(I heard the door close) 
When forth her love went 
She smiled. . . 
[Meleander stands looking after her : then 
goes out. 



AGLAVAINB AND SELYSBTTE 71 

Scene IV. — At the tap of the tower. 
Enter Selysette anfid little Yssaline. 

Selysette. 

Here we are, Yssaline, in the turret of the tower, 
and now we must know what we have to do. . . 
Oh the brightness there is this morning over 
earth and sea and sky ! Why is this day so much 
more beautiful than other days ? . . . 

Yssaline. 
Where is the green bird ? 

Selysette. 

He is there, but we cannot see him yet. . . In a 
minute or two we will lean over the wall, but let 
us look around us first. One can see the castle 
and the courtyards, the woods and the gardens. 
All the flowers have opened on the banks. . . 
How green the grass is this morning ! . . . I can- 
not see Aglavaine. . . Oh look, there is Meleander. 
. . He is waiting for her. . . Bend down, we must 
hide; he must not know we are here. He is 
close to the well; it was there that I awakened 
Aglavaine. . . 

Yssaline. 

Look, little sister, look ; come here. . . I can see 
the gardener planting flowers round the house. . . 



72 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Selysette. 

Tou will see them grow and you will see them 
open, Yssaline, and you will pluck them for me. 
. . Come, come, it is more than I can bear. . . Let 
us look from here; here there is only the sea, 
which is far away. . . [They go to the other side of 
the tower.] How beautiful the sea is too ! ... In 
not a single corner is sorrow to be found to-day. 
• . The sea is so green, so deep, so beautiful, that 
one's courage goes. . . And whatever may happen, 
Yssaline, it will go on smiling just the same until 
nightfall. . . Look at the little waves on the 
beach. . . I cannot, I tell you, I cannot ! . . . The 
flowers and the sea will not let ma . . I shall 
never be able to do it in the daylight. 

Yssaline. 

Oh, here are the gulls, little sister, the gulls are 
coming! Oh how many there are! . . . how 
many ! There must be two thousand ! . . . 

Selysette. 

They have all flown here together from the far 
end of the sea. • . They look as though they were 
bringing us news. . . 

Yssaline. 

No, no; it is fish they are bringing, little 
sister. . . And their young ones are screaming, 
too, from their holes in the wall. . . Their beaks 
are bigger than they are. . . Look, look, do you 



AGLA VA1NE AND SBLYSBTTB 73 

see that great gull with the eel ? . . . Don't you 
see? . • . There, there. . . They hare eaten it 
already. . . And the others are oyer there too. . • 
The big ones are eating nothing. • . There again, 
did you see ? . . . She kept nothing for herself. 
. • Is she the mother, little sister ? 

Seltsstte. 
What did I say to grandam, Tssaline ? 

Yssaline. 
Why are you crying, little sister ? 

Selysbttb. 

I am not crying, Yssaline — I am thinking, 
thinking. Did I kiss her before I went away ? . . . 

Yssaunb. 
Tes, you kissed her as you said good-bye. 

Selysbttb. 
How often did I kiss her ? 

Yssaline. 
Once, little sister, we had no time. . . 

Selysette. 
I fear I was not gentle enough. . . 

Yssaline. 
We were in a great liurry, little sister. . . 



\ 



74 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Selysette. 

No, no ; it must not be. . • She will be quite 
alone, Yssaline, and this will ever linger in her 
mind* Tou see, if you have not been gentler 
than usual when you go away, they believe that 
you no longer love them. . . Whereas it is the 
contrary they should believe; it is just when 
our love is too great that we are afraid to be 
gentle. . . Though perhaps we are wrong; for 
whatever they do, and were they to live a thousand 
years, it is only the last word we said to them that 
they can remember. . . I saw that myself when 
my mother went. . . At the last moment of all 
she did not smile at me, and it comes back to me 
again and again that she did not smile. . . And 
the rest of life seems scarcely to count. . . And 
besides, what did I say of Aglavaine ? . . . I don't 
remember. I must see grandam again. • . The 
others, it is for them ; they must not know. . • 
But she is quite alone ; and it is not for her sake 
that I climb into the tower, not for her sake that 
I shall go down . . . you must see that it is 
impossible. . • Come, come, we will go and kiss 
her very tenderly. . . [They go out. 

Scene V.— A room in the castle. 

Meligrane is asleep. Selysette and little 

Yssaline come in. 

Selysette. 
[Waking Mdigrane.] Grandam. . . 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 7S 

Meligrane. 

Tou are back at last, Selysette. . . I hare long 
been waiting for you. . . 

Selysette. 

Forgive me, grandam, I fear I was not as 
gentle as I should have been when I bade you 
good-bye. . . 

Meligrane. 

Oh but you were, Selysette, you were very 
gentle. What is the matter? There is some- 
thing on your mind. . . 

Selysette. 

There is nothing on my mind, grandam. It is 
only that I feel I must tell you how I love 
you. . . 

Meligrane. 

I know you do, Selysette. You have shown 
me your love again and again, and I never have 
doubted it. . . 

Selysette. 

Tes, grandam, I know . . • but I myself have 
never known till now. . . 

Meligrane. 

Come nearer to me, my child — you know that 
I can no longer embrace those I love, now that 
these' poor arms of mine have ceased to do my 
bidding. . . Put your arms round me again as 
I cannot put mine around you. . . Tou seem 



76 AGLAVAINE AND SBLYSBTTB 

strange to-day, Selysette. And so it is only now 
that you know you love me ? 

Selysette. 

Oh no ; I knew it, I knew it, but sometimes one 
knows a thing so long without knowing. . . And 
then, one day, we feel we have not been kind 
enough, that we might have done more, that we 
have not loved as we should have loved. And we 
want to begin again before it be too late. I have 
neither father nor mother, grandam, and had you 
not been there, I should have forgotten what a 
mother might mean. . . . But you never forsook 
little Selysette, and it was a great joy to know there 
was some one to go to when I was unhappy. . . 

Meligbane. 

No, no, Selysette mine, it was you who did not 
abandon me. . . 

Selysette. 

No, no, grandam. . . I know full well that it is 
you who stayed on for my sake. . . 

Meligbane. 

Tou are strangely serious this afternoon, Sely- 
sette, and for all that you do not seem sad. . . 

Selysette. 

I have always been very happy, grandam, and 
now I know the meaning of happiness. . . . 



AGLAVAINE AND SBLYSBTTB 77 

Meugrane. 

You do not mean that it has gone from you, 

Selysette ? 

Selysbtte. 

Far from that, I believe I have found it, 
grandam. . . . And tell me, have you been happy ? 

Meligrane. 
When, Selysette ? 

Selysette. 
In the time that has gone, grandam. . . 

Meligrane. 
Of what time do you speak, my child ? 

Selysette. 
The time when life was. . . 

Meligrane. 

There have come to me days of sorrow even as 
they come to all that live on this earth, but I may 
truly claim to have been happy, since you have 
never once left me. . . 

Selysette. 

You must not let me count for so much in your 
happiness, grandam. . . If you were to lose me you 
would still have Aglavaine. . . 

Meugrane. 

I have never lulled her to sleep on my knee, 
Selysette. . . 



78 A GLA VA INE A ND SBLYSBTTB 

Selysette. 
But still you must love her, grandam. . . 

Meligrane. 

You love her, and therefore I love her, my 
child. . . 

Selysette. 

And most of all should you love her, because it 
was she who brought happiness to me. . . She is 
so beautiful, she is so beautiful that ever since my 
heart has known of her, I have lived by her side 
with my eyes full of tears. . . 

Meligrane. 
How your hands burn to-day, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 
It is because my happiness is too great. . . 

Meligrane. 
I love you, Selysette mine. . . 

Selysette. 

Have I ever been the cause of sorrow to you, 
grandam ? 

Meligrane. 

I cannot remember, my child. . . 

Selysette. 

Yes, yes, you must needs remember ... for we 
bring sorrow to all those we love. . . But tell me, 
I beg of you, when it was that I hurt you the 
most. . • 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSETTE 79 

Meligrane. 

It was only when you cried that you saddened 
me; and then it was not your fault. . . I remember 
nothing else. . . 

Selysette. 
I shall never cry again. . . 

Meligrane. 

Ah, Selysette, happiness sways to and fro like 
the pendulum of a clock. But we do well to keep 
back our tears as long as we can. . . 

Selysette. 

You are right, grandam; and when happiness 
shall have returned to you — to them and to you, 
grandam, get them to sit beside you one evening 
and tell them the story of a poor little girL . . 

Meligrane. 
What are you saying, Selysette ? 

Selysette. 

Nothing, nothing. . . I was thinking of the days 
when I was a little child. . . 

Meligrane. 

So do I often think of those days, Selysette. I 
was not ill, then, and I was able to carry you in my 
arms or run after you. . . And thus, thanks to you, 
I have been a mother a second time, long after my 



So A GLA VA 1KB AND SBLYSBTTB 

> beauty had left me ; and some day you will know 
; that women never weary of motherhood, that they 
j would cherish death itself, did it fall asleep on their 
knee. . . But little by little all passes away, Sely- 
sette, and the very smallest soon cease to be 
small. . . 

Selysette. 

I know it, grandam, and sorrow passes away, too, 
passes away and disappears. . . But beauty remains 
and others are happy. . . 

Meligrane. 
Who told you that, my child ? 

Selysette. 
I learned it from Aglavaine. . . 

Meligrane. 
How your eyes sparkle to-day, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 

[Stifling a sob.] It is because I love all the 
world, grandam. . . 

Meligrane. 
I believe you are crying, my child ? . . . 

Selysette. 

Oh no, I am not crying ; and if one or two tears 
are falling, they are only tears of joy. . . 



AGLAVAINB AND SELYSETTB 8 1 

Meligrane. 

Put your arms around me, Selysette — closer, 
closer, and stay with me. . . 

Tssaline. 
Little sister, I want to be kissed too. . . 

Selysette. 

[Gently moving Yssaline away.] No, no, Yssa- 
line, she shall have all my kisses to-day. . . The 
day will soon come when it will be your turn to 
have all the kisses. . . . Farewell, grandam, fare- 
well. . . 

Meligrane. 

Selysette ! . . . what is the matter ? . . . where 
are you going ? . . -. 

Selysette. 
Farewell, grandam, farewelL . . 

Meligrane. 

Selysette, stay here. . . I won't have it. . . 
You shall not go. . . [She struggles in vain to 
rise and stretch out her arms.] I cannot, I can- 
not. . . You see that I cannot, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 

I, too, cannot, grandam . . . farewell . . . sleep 
in peace to-night an^ — do not dream . . . fare- 
well, farewell. . . 

[She goes out quickly holding little Yssa- 
line by the lvand. 



82 A GLA VAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Meligbane. 

Selysette! . . . Selysette! . . . 

[She is heard sobbing softly to hersdf as the 
light grows fainter and fainter. 

Scene VI. — A Corridor in the Castle. 

[Enter Selysette holding little Yssaline 
by the hcmd. She sees Aglavaine 
coming to meet her, and hides with 
little Yssaline behind one of thepiUa/rs 
which sv/pport the roof 

Aglavaine. 

[Drawing necvr.] Is it you, Selysette? Why 
are you hiding ? 

Selysette. 

I scarcely know, Aglavaine. . . I thought you 
would like to be alone. . . 

Aglavaine. 

Where were you going to, Selysette? . . And 

here is little Yssaline looking at me from the 

corners of her eyes. . . Is there a plot between 

you? 

Selysette. 

I have made a promise that I must keep. . . 

Aglavaine. 

Whither were you dragging Selysette, Yssaline ? 
[Yssaline does not answer.] Won't you tell me ? 



r* 



A GLA VAINB A ND SBLYSBTTB 83 

Selysette. 

Oh, she knows how to keep a secret quite as 
well as though she were grown up. . . 

Aglavaine. 

It may be the evening light, but you look very 
pale, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 

I want to kiss you, Aglavaine. . . 

[They exchannge a long kiss, 

Aglavaine. 

Oh, your lips are soft and sweet to-night, Sely- 
setiue. . * 

Selysette. 

Yours too, Aglavaine. . . I am very happy. 
. . . There is strength on your lips. . . 

Aglavaine. 
A light shines from you as from a lamp. . . 

Selysette. 
Tou have not seen grandam ? 

Aglavaine. 
No. Shall I go to her ? 

Selysette. 

No, no ; there is no need ; she is asleep. . • Tou 
were looking for Meleander ? 



84 A GLA VA INE A ND SBLYSBTTB 

Aglavaine. 
Yes. And you, Selysette ? 

Selysettb. 

When you see him, kiss him for me. . . I am 
glad to think that it is you who will kiss him 
when I am not there. . . I love you so much, so 
much! . . . But see how impatient Tssaline is, 
and how she is pulling my hand. . . Good-bye, 
Aglavaine mine ; you will see me soon. . . 

[She goes with little Yssaline, and sings 
as she moves along. 
When back he did fare 
(I heard the lamp burn) 
When back he did fare 
Another was there . . . 
And I could see. . . Ah ! Ah ! . . . 
[The song ceases suddenly and Aglavaine 
goes out 



Scene VII. — At the top of the Tower. 
Enter Selysette and little •Yssaline. 

Selysette. 

And now the hour has come, my little Yssaline. 
I shall not go down to them again; I shall not 
smile gently at them any more. . . How cold it is 
in the tower; the wind comes from the north. 
See the light that it throws on the waves. . . The 



AGLAVAINE AND SBLYSBTTB 85 

flowers are hidden from sight, the voice of man- 
kind is still, and sadness hangs over all. . . How 
different from this morning. . . 

YSSALINE. 

And where is the bird, little sister ? 

Selysette. 

We must wait till the sun has sunk into the 
very depths of the sea, till the light lies dead on 
the horizon, for the bird is afraid of the light* and 
has never yet looked at the sun. . . 

YSSALINE. 

And if there should be any stars, little sister ? 

Selysette. 

And if there should be any stars ? . . . [Looking 
at the sky.] There are no stars yet, but they are 
all waiting, eager to peer through the sky ; and we 
must hasten, for it will be more terrible still when 
they are there. . . 

Yssaline. 
I am very cold, little sister. . . 

Selysette. 

Let us sit here-; the wall will keep the wind 
from us, and we will wait till the last gleam of 
crimson shall have died away in the sea. . . How 
slowly the sun is sinking. . . When it is gone L 
will look for the bird. . . Let me wrap my whitS^ 
scarf about you ; I shall want it no more. . . 



•M 



\ 



86 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTE 

TSSALINE. 

Why are you holding me so close to you, little 
sister? . . 

Selysbtte. 

Because my happiness is too much for me, 
Yssaline; never have I been happier than I am 
to-day. . . But look well at me. . . I am smiling, I 
am sure I am smiling. . . Why do you not smile 
at me ? . . . 

Yssaline. 

You are speaking so quickly, little sister. . . 

Selysette. 

Am I speaking quickly ? . . . I have no time to 
lose. . . 

Yssaline. 
And besides, you are tearing up all my flowers. . . 

Selysette. 

What flowers ? Oh, these ! . . . I was forgetting 
that they were yours. . . 

Yssaline. 
I will not have you cry, little sister. . . 

Selysette. 

But I am not crying, my little Yssaline. . . That 
is the very last thing of all that any one must 
believe. ... I am smiling so much that I seem to 
be crying. . . 



AGLAVAINE AND SBLYSETTE 87 

YSSALINE. 

Then why do your eyes seem to be crying ? . . . 

Selysette. 

How can I tell what my eyes choose to do ? . . . 
But remember this well : if you tell any one that 
I seemed to be sad, you will be punished for a 
long, long time. . . 

Yssaline. 
Why? 

Selysette. 

You will know some day. And you must not 
ask me so many questions ; you are only a little 
girl who cannot yet understand the things that are 
clear to others. I did not understand either when 
I was your age, no, not until very long after. . . I 
may do this or that ; but it is not the things you 
see that matter the most. . . Look you, my little 
Yssaline, I must not speak of it, though I should 
so much like to tell some one, for it is sad to be 
the only one who knows. . . 

Yssaline. 
I can hardly see the sun now, little sister. . . 

Selysette. 

Wait, wait yet a little, Yssaline ; for as the sun 
goes down, so does something else come nearer 
and the nearer it comes to me the more clearly do 
I see. . . I can no longer tell whether I have acted 
wisely in bringing you to the tower; but some one 
had to come with me, for they will want to know 






88 AGLAVAINE AND SBLYSBTTB 

all that took place, and they will be happy if only 
they do not know. . . You do not understand a 
word of what I am saying to you now, little sister 
mine. . . Yes, but a day will come when you will 
understand it all, when you will see all that you 
cannot see now that your eyes are beholding it . . 
And then you will be sorrowful, nor will you ever 
be able to forget what you are about to see. . . 
But when you are a woman you will shed many 
tears because of this, and it may even weigh upon 
your life. . . And therefore I ask you to-day to 
forgive me, though you know not why, for the 
suffering that will come upon you some time when 
you know too well. . . 

Yssaline. 
The flocks are coming back, little sister. . . 

Selysette. 
They will come back to-morrow too, Yssaline. 

Yssaline. 
Yes, little sister. . . 

Selysette. 
And the birds will sing to-morrow. . . 

Yssaline. 
Yes, little sister. . . 

Selysette. 
And the flowers will open to-morrow. . . 

Yssaline. 
Yes, yes, little sister. . • 



AGLAVAINE AND SELYSETTB 89 

SELYSETTE. 

Why had it to be the younger of the two ? . . . 

Yssaline. 

There is only a little red line there now, little 
sister. . . 

Selysette. 

You are right ; it is time. . . You yourself are 
urging me to it ; and the stars too are growing 
impatient. . . Farewell, Yssaline. I am very, 
very happy. . . 

Yssaline. 

So am I, little sister. Be quick, the stars are 
coming. . . 

Selysette. 

Have no fear, Yssaline; they will see me no 
more. . . Come, sit in this corner, and let me 
fasten my scarf around you, for the wind is very 
cold. . . Do you really love me ? No, no ; do not 
answer; I know, I know ... I am going to roll up this 
big stone, so that you cannot go near the opening 
over which I mean to bend. . . Do not be frightened 
if you should not see me any more. It will only 
mean that I have had to go down the other side. 
. . . Do not wait for me ; go down the stone stair- 
case by yourself. . . And, above all, do not try to 
see what I have done, do not go near this wall. . . 
You would see nothing and you would be punished. 
... I shall wait for you below. . . Kiss me, 
Yssaline, and tell grandam. . . 



90 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSETTB 

YSSAUNE. 

What shall I tell her, little sister ? . • . 

Selysette. 

Nothing, nothing. ... I thought I had forgotten 
something. . . [She goes to the crumbling wall that 
faces the sea and leans over.] Oh, how deep and 
cold the sea looks ! . . . 

Yssaline. 
Little sister ? 

Selysette. 

There it is; I see it. . . Do not move. . . 

Yssaline. 
Where is it ? . • . 

Selysette. 

Wait . . . wait ... I must bend over a little 

more. . . . Yssaline ! . . . Yssaline ! . . . The 

stones are trembling ! . . . I am falling ! . . . Oh ! 

[A side of the wall gives. The sound of a 

fall is heard, and a low cry of pain. 

Then a long silence. 

*r ■"* 

Yssaline. 

[Rising, in tears.] Little sister! . . . little 
sister ! . . . Where are you ? . . . I am frightened, 
little sister ! . . . 

[She bwrsts out sobbing, alone in the turret. 



ACT FIFTH 

Scene I. — A Corridor in the Castle. 
Enter Aglavaine and Meleandeb. 

Meleandeb. 

She has fallen asleep ; but the doctors are going, 
and, pray as I might, I have not been able to draw 
a single word of hope' from them. . . She fell on 
to a hillock of sand, that the wind had swept to 
the foot of the tower, as though to receive her 
more tenderly. It is there that the servants 
found her, whilst you were hoping to meet her 
on the road to the village. There is no wound 
to be seen on her poor little body ; but a stream 
of blood flows from her lips ; and when she opened 
her eyes she smiled at me, but said not a word. . . 

Aglavaine. 

But Yssaline ? What does Yssaline say ? They 
tell me she was with her. . . 

Meleandeb. 

I have questioned her. . . She was found at the 
top of the tower, trembling with cold and fright. 
. . . She repeats, over and over again, through 

9* 



92 AGLAVAINB AND SELYSETTB 

her tears, that the wall opened while Selysette 
was leaning over so as to lay hold of a bird that 
was passing. . . When I met her this afternoon, 
here in the corridor — and it was on this very spot, 
between the pillars — she seemed less sad than 
usual. . . " She seemed less sad than usual ! " . . . 
Do we not both stand condemned by those words ? 
. . . And now, when I think of all she has said to 
us, of all she has done, monstrous suspicions burst 
upon my soul, and crush my life. . . Love is as 
cruel as hate. . . I no longer believe, I no longer 
believe. . . And all my sorrow turns into loathing ! 
. . . Curses on the beauty that brings disaster 
with it! . . Curses on the mind that craves for 
too much beauty ! . . . Curses on the destiny that 
is blind and deaf! . . . And I curse the words 
that deceive and betray, and I curse the life that 
will not give ear to life ! . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Meleander. . . 

Meleandeb. 

What do you want of me ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Come with me. . . I must see her, for it is 
not possible. . . . We must know. . . She cannot 
have done it deliberately. She cannot, for in that 
case. . . 

Meleandeb. 
In that case ? 



A GLA VA INB A ND SBLYSBTTB 93 

Aglavaine. 

We must know. . . Come. . . No matter how. 
. . . Her suffering must have been too great before 
she would have done that! . . . And I would 
never again be able, never, never. . . 

[She chugs him away quickly. 

Scene II. — Selysette' s Bedroom. 

Sblysette lies upon her bed. Enter Aglavaine 

and Meleander. 

Selysette. 

[With a slight movement] Is it you, Aglavaine ? 
Is it you, Meleander ? — I was wanting you both so 
much. I am happy now you have come. . . 

Meleander. 

[Bursting into tears as he throws himself upon 
the bed.] Selysette ! . . . 

Selysette. 

What is the matter? . . . You are both 

crying. . . 

Aglavaine. 

Selysette! Selysette! . . . What have you 
done ? . . . Oh wretch that I am ! . . . 

Selysette. 

What is the matter, Aglavaine ? . . . Why are 
you so distressed ? . . . Have I done anything to 
make you unhappy ? . . . 



94 AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Aglavaine. 

No, no, my poor Selysette, you do not bring 
unhappiness. . . It is I who bring death ... it is 
I who have failed to do all that I should have 
done. . . 

Selysette. 

I do not understand, Aglavaine. . . What has 
happened — tell me. . . 

Aglavaine. 

I ought to have known, Selysette, and I thought 
I did know, when I spoke to you the other day. 
. . For many days past something has been un- 
ceasingly cryLg aloud in my hea^ and I found 
nothing, and knew nothing, of what should be 
done — though it needed but the simplest word 
that the simplest creature on earth might have 
spoken to save a life that only craved to live. , . 

Selysette. 
What did you know ? tell me. . . 

Aglavaine. 

When you spoke of that idea of yours, the 
other day, Selysette . . . and this morning, and 
again this afternoon, I should have held you close 
to me, so close that it should have fallen between us 
like a pressed-out grape. . . I should have plunged 
my two hands into your soul, and dragged forth 
the death that I felt was living there. . . I should 
have achieved something by dint of love . . . and 



JEI 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 95 

I knew of nothing I could do, and I looked on and 
was blind to it all, though I saw everything, every- 
thing ! . . . The wretchedest girl of this wretched 
village would have found a kiss that should save 
life for us ! ... I have been either unutterably base 
or unutterably blind ! . . . The first time, perhaps 
that I have fled from the truth like a child ! . . . 
And I dare not look into myself. . . Forgive me, 
Selysette ; I shall never be happy again. 

Seltsette. 

Listen to me, Aglavaine. I am very glad that 
you have come to me at once, for I feel that ere 
long my mind will wander from me. . . There 
is something here which presses on my eyelids. 
. . But whatever I may say, later on — I cannot 
tell what I may say — you know the strange fancies 
that flit across the dying. . . I was at a death-bed 
once, and it is my turn now. . . Well, whatever 
I may say later on, pay no heed. . . But at present 
I know what I am saying ; and do you listen to 
that only, and recall that only, and that alone. . . 
Surely there lingers not a doubt within you, 
Aglavaine? . . . 

Aglavaine. 

Of what should I be in doubt, my poor 
Selysette ? 

Selysette. 

Do you imagine that . . . ? 

Aglavaine. 
Yes! , • 



96 AOL A VAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 

Selysette. 
That it was not by accident I fell ? 

Aglavaine. 
I know it was not, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 

We are told that falsehood is impossible to those 
who are dying, Aglavaine, and I mean to tell you 
the truth. . . 

Aglavaine. 

I knew that, from the love you bore us, you 
would be strong enough for that. . . 

Selysette. 

It was an accident, and I fell, Aglavaine. Is 

it you who are sobbing, Meleander ? 

Aglavaine. 

Listen now to me, Selysette. . . Tou know that 
the truth is known to us. . . And if at this moment 
I question you, it is not from doubt of mine, but 
it is so that you, you, should doubt no more. . . 
You are very beautiful, Selysette, and I am on my 
knees before you. . . The thing that you have 
done, so simply, is the most beautiful thing 
whereof love is capable when love is blind. . . 
But now I ask you to do something more beautiful 
still, and I ask it in the name of a wiser love. . . 
Locked between your lips, there lies the perfect 
peace of all our life. . . 



AGLAVAINE AND SBLYSBTTB 97 

Selysette. 
Of what peace do you speak, Aglavaine ? 

Aglavaine. 
Of one that is deep and very sad. . . 

Selysette. 

But how can I give it to you, Aglavaine ? There 
is nothing in me. . . 

Aglavaine. 

You need but tell us that you wished to die, 
thinking thus to make us happy. . . 

Selysette. 

Gladly would I say this to you, Aglavaine, but 
it is impossible, seeing that it is untrue. . . You 
do not believe that one could tell an untruth on 
one's death-bed ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 

I beseech you, think not of death, Selysette. . . • 
See, I kiss you, and pour all my life into your 
veins, and flood your soul with the spirit of life ! 
... If death were near I could understand the 
telling of this falsehood. . . But death is far away, 
and all life is clamouring for the truth. . . Admit 
it, Selysette ; and do not shake your head ; speaking 
to each other as we are now speaking, can we pos- 
sibly misunderstand ? . . . 

G 



1 

i 



98 AGLA VAINB AND SRLYSBTTR 

Selysette. 
And none the less you are wrong, Aglavaine. . . 

Aglavaine. 

Must we weep far apart then, with thousands of 
miles between us ? . . . 

Selysette. 
Why will you not believe it to be true ? 

Aglavaine. 

Not even a child would believe it — for there is 
not a word of yours, not an act, but proves the 
contrary. . . 

Selysette. 

Which words and acts do you speak of? . . . 

Aglavaine. 
Why did you bid farewell to our grandmother ? 

Selysette. 

I never left the house without first bidding her 
good-bye. . . 

Aglavaine. 

Why. . • But why everything, Selysette? . . . 
Oh, the misery of questions such as these, when 
death is close by, and we know that the truth is 
there, to our hand, nestling beneath her heart ! . . . 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 99 

Selysette. 

Tour doubts sadden me, Aglavaine, and I was 
feeling so happy. . . What can I do so that you 
shall doubt no more ? . . • 

Aglavaine. 
Give us the truth, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 
But what is the truth you desire ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 

It was I who, all unwittingly, urged you to 
this. . . 

Selysette. 

No, no, Aglavaine, urged was I by none. . . 

Aglavaine. 

It needs but one word to dispel the clouds from 
life, and on my knees do I beseech you to say 
this one poor word. . . Whisper it to me if you 
will, let your eyes make a sign to me, and even 
Meleander shall never know. . . 

Meleander. 

Aglavaine is right, Selysette. . . I ask it, 
too. . . 

Selysette. 

I was leaning over, and I felL . . 






ioo AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSETTB 

Aglavaine. 

You asked me so often what I would do in your 
place. . . 

Selysette. 
I was leaning over, and I fell. . . 

Aglavaine. 
Do you not know why I question you thus ? . . . 

Selysette. 

Yes, yes, Aglavaine mine, I can see that it would 
have been more beautiful, but it would not be the 
truth. . . 

Aglavaine. 

[Sobbing.] Oh, God ! how poor we are before all 
those of simple love I . . . . 

Selysette. 
Aglavaine! • . . 

Aglavaine. 

Selysette ! • • • What has happened ? . . . You 
are turning pale. ... Is the pain worse ? . • . 

Selysette. 

No. . . It is the joy that makes me suffer. . . 
Oh ! how you are weeping, Meleander ! . • . 

Meleander. 
Selysette! . . . 



AGLAVAINB AND SBLYSBTTB 101 

Seltsette. 

Do not weep like this, my poor Meleander. . . 
Now indeed do we love each other. . . There is 
no need for tears. . . Soon I shall be dead, and 
there will be so glad a smile on my lips that you 
will scarce believe I can be dead, so happy shall 
I seem. . . What ? Tou crying too, Aglavaine ? 
Is it not happiness, then ? . . . 

Aglavaine. 
Give us the perfect peace, Selysette. . . 

Seltsette. 

I will give you the peace you gave me, Agla- 
vaine. . . 

Aglavaine. 

Tou could give it, but you will not. . . 

Seltsette. 

And yet is there such great peace within me, 
Aglavaine. . . 

Aglavaine. 

[Sobbing.] God Himself were wrong before you, 
Selysette. . . 

Seltsette. 

[With a change in her voice.'] But why are you 
going, said my grandam to me, why go away, my 
child ? Because of a key I have found, grandam, 
because of a key I have found. . . 



i 



ioa A GLA VA INB AND SELYSBTTB 

Aglavaine. 

Selysette! . . . 

Selysette. 

[Coming to herself.] Yssaline ! . . . What was I 
saying ? • . . Tell me what I said ... it is not 
true . . . I warned you* . . 

Aglavaine. 

Tou said nothing, nothing. ... Do not torment 
yourself, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 

I warned you. . . I may perhaps be saying 
things soon, but they will not be true. . . You will 
forgive me, for my soul is growing so weak. . . Did 
I speak of grandam ? . • . 

Aglavaine. 

Yes. . . 

Selysette. 

Yes, I wanted to tell you. . . You must raise 
her without touching her arms. ... I would have 
taught you, but time, time would not allow. Oh ! 
Aglavaine, be careful ! . . . 

Aglavaine. 
[Alarmed.] What is it, what is it, Selysette ? . . 

Selysette. 

Nothing, nothing; it is going. . . I thought I 
was about to say things that were not true. . . 



r 



A GLA VA INE A ND SBLYSBTTB 103 



I AaLAVAINE. 



I will not seek for the truth any I more, Sely- 
sette. • • 

Selysette. 

Put your hand over my mouth when I say things 
that are untrue. . • Promise, promise, I beseech 
you. . . 

Aglavaine. 
I promise, Selysette. . . 

Selysette [to Meleandeb]. 

I have something to say to her, Meleander. . . 
[Meleandeb goes away silently.] He is sad, he is 
sad. . . . You will tell him some day, by-and-by, 
when he has forgotten . . . put your hand on my 
lips, Aglavaine, a sudden pain has come to me. . . 

Aglavaine. 
Tell me, tell me, Selysette. . . 

Selysette. 

I have forgotten what I had to say. . . It was 
not truth, but falsehood, that was coming. . . Put 
your hand over my eyes, too. ... It is well that 
I they should be closed by you who opened them. 

• . It is true ; it is true. 

i 

[ Aglavaine. 

1 Selysette! . . . 



io4 AGLAVAINB AND SELYSETTB 

Selysette. 

[Very fmntty.] I was ... I was leaning over, 

and I fell. . . 

[She dies. 
Aglavaine. 

[With a sob.] Meleander. . . 

Meleandee. 

[Falls, sobbing, on to Selysette's body.] Sely- 
sette! . . . 



THE END 
