Early Plays by Henrik Ibsen (best novels in english txt) 📕

[LADY KIRSTEN alone.]

LADY KIRSTEN.  The evil and cursed woman!  Happy and gay she is

though she knows that Olaf is to wed another.  But that very fact

will serve me well; it will go easier than I had thought.  She

looks as innocent as a child, and yet she can agree to take him

as a husband whom I first pick out for her.  And I who thought

that she truly loved Olaf!  If he is still ignorant of her real

spirit, he shall soon learn.  He shall know her to the core, he

shall know how she has bewitched and lured him, and then, well,

then she is no longer dangerous.

LADY KIRSTEN.  [Smiling.]  Well, well!  Olaf thought of the same

way of saving himself that I did; so good-natured I had never

imagined him.--But where shall we find the man who is willing

to--well, she is pretty, and I shall not mind a little silver and

even a bit of land.  Has Olaf already spoken to some one?  That

is hardly thinkable!--Well, then I shall see to that.  I have

servants enough on the estate and--

[Looks out to the right.]

LADY KIRSTEN.  Hemming! what if I should try him!  But he saw

them together in the mountain yesterday; he must surely know

there is something between the two.  But none the less--he is a

humble serving-man, and poor besides, and weak of mind--we shall

see, we shall see!

[LADY KIRSTEN.  HEMMING from the right.]

HEMMING.  [To himself.]  Nowhere is Ingeborg to be found; she

will bring me to my grave,--that is certain.  Yesterday she was

gracious to me; she gave me her ring; but then she took it away

from me again; and today she will not so much as look at me as I

pass.

LADY KIRSTEN.  [Slowly, as she approaches.]  A little cautious I

must be.

LADY KIRSTEN.  [Aloud.]  Ah, Hemming, is it you?  You prefer to

wander alone, I see; you keep yourself away from the servants and

maids; when I see such things I realize very well that you do so

not without reason.

HEMMING.  Why, my noble lady! what should--

LADY KIRSTEN.  Yes, Hemming! there is something that you keep all

to yourself as you go about; you are not very cheerful!

HEMMING.  [Disconcerted.]  Not cheerful?  I?

LADY KIRSTEN.  [Smiling.]  There is here today a young and

beautiful girl whom you fancy very much.

 HEMMING.  All saints!

LADY KIRSTEN.  And she in turn has a fancy for you.

 HEMMING.  Me--Whom?  I do not know whom you mean.

LADY KIRSTEN.  Come, Hemming, do not speak so; before me you need

not feel ashamed.  Yes, yes, I see clearly, I tell you.

HEMMING.  [Aside.]  Heaven! she must have noticed by Ingeborg's

manner that--

LADY KIRSTEN.  I have seen that the wedding is but little joy to

you.  The trip to the church you care little about, since you

would yourself like to go as a groom, yet cannot see your way

clear.

HEMMING.  [In the greatest agitation.]  Alas, Lady Kirsten! my

noble, august lady! be not offended!

LADY KIRSTEN.  [Surprised.]  I?  And why should I be offended?

HEMMING.  [Continuing.]  I have struggled and fought against this

unhappy love as long as I have been able, and I honestly believe

she has done the same.

LADY KIRSTEN.  She?  Has she then told you that she cares for

you?

HEMMING.  Yes, almost!

LADY KIRSTEN.  Well and good; then you talked about it together?

HEMMING.  Yes,--but only once, only one single time, I swear.

LADY KIRSTEN.  Once or ten times, it is all the same to me.

LADY KIRSTEN.  [Aside.]  Then they are already agreed; it was

certainly a stroke of luck that I came upon Hemming; now I am not

at all surprised that Alfhild was so willing to go to the altar.

LADY KIRSTEN.  [Aloud.]  Hemming!  I am much indebted to you for

finding my son again and for otherwise being of help to me; now I

shall make requital,--I shall to the limit of my power stand by

you in the matter we just spoke of.

HEMMING.  [Overcome with joy.]  You!  You will!  Lady Kirsten!

Alas, great God and holy saints!  I hardly dare believe it.

LADY KIRSTEN.  [Stops.]  But Lord Olaf, your son!  What do you

think he will say?

LADY KIRSTEN.  He will not interpose any objection,--I shall see

to that.

HEMMING.  [Unsuspecting.]  Yes, truly, it would be best for him

too, for I know she cares little for him.

LADY KIRSTEN.  [Smiling.]  That I have noticed, Hemming!

HEMMING.  Have you!  Well, you are so clever, Lady Kirsten!  And

I who thought that I was the only one who had noticed it.

HEMMING.  [Doubtfully.]  Do you think that Lord Arne will give

his consent?

LADY KIRSTEN.  Your master?  I shall know how to talk him into

it,--that will not be so difficult.

HEMMING.  You think so?  Alas, but I am so poor a man.

LADY KIRSTEN.  I shall remedy that all right, in case Lord Arne

is not prepared to do so.

HEMMING.  Thanks, thanks, Lady Kirsten!  Heaven reward you for

your kindness!

LADY KIRSTEN.  But you will keep this that we have been speaking

of to yourself.

HEMMING.  That I promise.

LADY KIRSTEN.  Then hold yourself in readiness; the guests will

assemble out here in a little while now, and do you be on hand.

[She goes over to the door of the store house and looks for

ALFHILD.]

HEMMING.  [To himself.]  No, this is to me like a strange

illusive dream.  Ingeborg and I,--we are to belong to

each other!  Ah, can it be true?  So high I never dared let

my thoughts ascend;--it seemed to me in the morning that

I had been guilty of the greatest presumption if during

the night I had dreamed about it.--Hm!  I know very

well of course that it is not for my sake that Lady Kirsten

goes to all this trouble.  She has something up her sleeve;

she thinks it necessary to break the agreement with Lord

Arne, and now that she has noticed that Ingeborg cares for

me she will use that as an excuse.  Well, I have so often

given my master warning, but he will never believe me.

ARNE.  [Calls outside to the left.]  Hemming!  Hemming!

LADY KIRSTEN.  [Comes forward.]  Your master calls!  Go now!

After a while I shall speak to him; he will agree.  Believe me,

he shall follow his page to the church in the same hour that he

leads his daughter thither.

HEMMING.  Thanks, thanks, Lady Kirsten!  Truly, you confer a

blessing on us all.

[He goes out to the left.]

LADY KIRSTEN.  [To herself.]  So young she is and yet so cunning;

she has been coquetting with Hemming all the while she made my

son believe that--Well and good, he shall soon learn to know her

arts.  But first I must see Lord Arne; he thinks highly of

Hemming and would reluctantly part with him; it seemed too that

Hemming feared that something like that might stand in the way;

but they can easily remain as they are even if Hemming

marries.--Hemming sees more clearly in the affair than I had

expected.  What will Olaf say, he asked; he has evidently noticed

that my son still thinks of Alfhild.  Well, let him; if he takes

her he will say nothing, and when Alfhild is married,--I know

Olaf; he has always wanted to stand in high honor among the men

of the village, and for that reason he will certainly--yes, yes,

it must, it shall succeed.

[She goes out to the right.]

[HEMMING comes from the left with a bowl of ale hidden

under his coat.  ARNE follows him cautiously, looking

about.]

ARNE.  Is there anyone?

HEMMING.  No, come along, master.

ARNE.  But it seemed to me I heard Lady Kirsten.

HEMMING.  She is gone now, come along!

ARNE.  [Sits down on the bench to the left.]  Hemming!  it is

well that the wedding is to be held tonight.  Tomorrow I go home;

yes, that I will.  Not a day longer will I remain in Lady

Kirsten's house.

HEMMING.  Why, master! is there enmity again between you?

ARNE.  Is it not enough, do you think, that she and all her

superior relatives look down on me; at supper they laughed and

jested among themselves because I could not bring myself to eat

of all those ungodly, outlandish dishes.  And what was it that we

got to drink?  Sweet wine and cider that will stay in my stomach

for eight days.  No, the good old homebrewed ale for me.

[Drinks and adds softly and bitterly.]

ARNE.  Of this I had sent the wretched woman three full barrels.

And what has she done?  Thrown it to her servants, and here I

must steal myself a drink,--yes, Hemming! steal myself a drink of

my own ale, that they may not revile me as a coarse peasant, who

doesn't understand the more refined drinks.

HEMMING.  Well, master!  I gave you warning.

ARNE.  Ah--gave me warning!  You are stupid, Hemming!  You think

I haven't noticed it myself; but wait, just wait!

ARNE.  [Flaring up.]  To place my good nourishing ale before the

house servants, as though it were not worthy to be put on the

table of a lord.--

HEMMING.  Yes, Lady Kirsten treats you ill, that is certain.

ARNE.  [Hands him the bowl.]  Come, sit down and drink!

ARNE.  [HEMMING sits down.]  Listen, Hemming!  I could wish we

were home again.

HEMMING.  Well, I have no fancy for this festive home.

ARNE.  No, my old room at Guldvik for me;--when we sat there of

an evening and played chess with the ale jug between us--

HEMMING.  The while Mistress Ingeborg sat at the loom and

embroidered roses and all sorts of flowers in the linen--

ARNE.  And sang all the time so merrily that it seemed to me that

I became young and active again.  Yes, Hemming! when the wedding

is over, we shall go back and live our old ways again.

HEMMING.  But then there will be no one who works the loom and

sings merry lays the while.

ARNE.  No, that is true enough; Ingeborg will then be gone.  It

will be a little hard on me; she is wild and self-willed, but I

shall miss her nevertheless,--miss her greatly.

ARNE.  [Considers.]  Now and then I suppose I could visit her

here--But no, that I will not!  Here they laugh at me, they

whisper behind my back,--I see it well enough.

HEMMING.  But in case you wished, it could still be changed.

ARNE.  Changed!  You are stupid, Hemming!  Always you talk about

changing.

ARNE.  [Hands him the bowl.]  Come, drink, it will do you good.

Changed; no, no, it shall never be changed!  It was evil spirits

who put into my head the idea of marrying into Lady Kirsten's

family.  But now it is done; the superior kinsmen will have to

behave as they please, but my own relatives and friends shall not

laugh at me,--if I have given my word, I shall keep it too.

ARNE.  [Disheartened.]  If I only knew that Olaf would be kind to

her; I shall ask him to--.

ARNE.  [Vehemently.]  He _shall_ be kind, else I shall come

and beat him with my old fists.

HEMMING.  Yes, it is well that you keep your eye on her, for Olaf

cares little for her, I do believe.

ARNE.  So, you think so?

HEMMING.  Do you remember Alfhild, the poor girl, who yesterday

followed us down from