Salomé: A Tragedy in One Act
My daughter has done well to ask the head of Jokanaan. He has
covered me with insults. He has said monstrous things against me.
One can see that she loves her mother well. Do not yield, my
daughter. He has sworn, he has sworn.
HEROD
Be silent, speak not to me!... Come, Salomé, be reasonable. I
have never been hard to you. I have ever loved you.... It may be
that I have loved you too much. Therefore ask not this thing of
me. This is a terrible thing, an awful thing to ask of me.
Surely, I think thou art jesting. The head of a man that is cut
from his body is ill to look upon, is it not? It is not meet
that the eyes of a virgin should look upon such a thing. What
pleasure could you have in it? None. No, no, it is not what you
desire. Hearken to me. I have an emerald, a great round emerald,
which Cæsar's minion sent me. If you look through this emerald
you can see things which happen at a great distance. Cæsar
himself carries such an emerald when he goes to the circus. But
my emerald is larger. I know well that it is larger. It is the
largest emerald in the whole world. You would like that, would
you not? Ask it of me and I will give it you.
SALOMÉ
I demand the head of Jokanaan.
HEROD
You are not listening. You are not listening. Suffer me to speak,
Salomé.
SALOMÉ
The head of Jokanaan.
HEROD
No, no, you would not have that. You say that to trouble me,
because I have looked at you all this evening. It is true, I have
looked at you all this evening. Your beauty troubled me. Your
beauty has grievously troubled me, and I have looked at you too
much. But I will look at you no more. Neither at things, nor at
people should one look. Only in mirrors should one look, for
mirrors do but show us masks. Oh! oh! bring wine! I thirst....
Salomé, Salomé, let us be friends. Come now!... Ah! what would I
say? What was't? Ah! I remember!... Salomé--nay, but come nearer
to me; I fear you will not hear me--Salomé, you know my white
peacocks, my beautiful white peacocks, that walk in the garden
between the myrtles and the tall cypress trees. Their beaks are
gilded with gold, and the grains that they eat are gilded with
gold also, and their feet are stained with purple. When they cry
out the rain comes, and the moon shows herself in the heavens
when they spread their tails. Two by two they walk between the
cypress trees and the black myrtles, and each has a slave to tend
it. Sometimes they fly across the trees, and anon they crouch in
the grass, and round the lake. There are not in all the world
birds so wonderful. There is no king in all the world who
possesses such wonderful birds. I am sure that Cæsar himself has
no birds so fair as my birds. I will give you fifty of my
peacocks. They will follow you whithersoever you go, and in the
midst of them you will be like the moon in the midst of a great
white cloud.... I will give them all to you. I have but a
hundred, and in the whole world there is no king who has peacocks
like unto my peacocks. But I will give them all to you. Only you
must loose me from my oath, and must not ask of me that which you
have asked of me.
[_He empties the cup of wine._]
SALOMÉ
Give me the head of Jokanaan.
HERODIAS
Well said, my daughter! As for you, you are ridiculous with your
peacocks.
HEROD
Be silent! You cry out always; you cry out like a beast of prey.
You must not. Your voice wearies me. Be silent, I say Salomé,
think of what you are doing. This man comes perchance from God.
He is a holy man. The finger of God has touched him. God has put
into his mouth terrible words. In the palace as in the desert God
is always with him.... At least it is possible. One does not
know. It is possible that God is for him and with him.
Furthermore, if he died some misfortune might happen to me. In
any case, he said that the day he dies a misfortune will happen
to some one. That could only be to me. Remember, I slipped in
blood when I entered. Also, I heard a beating of wings in the
air, a beating of mighty wings. These are very evil omens, and
there were others. I am sure there were others though I did not
see them. Well, Salomé, you do not wish a misfortune to happen to
me? You do not wish that. Listen to me, then.
SALOMÉ
Give me the head of Jokanaan.
HEROD
Ah! you are not listening to me. Be calm. I--I am calm. I am
quite calm. Listen. I have jewels hidden in this place--jewels
that your mother even has never seen; jewels that are marvellous.
I have a collar of pearls, set in four rows. They are like unto
moons chained with rays of silver. They are like fifty moons
caught in a golden net. On the ivory of her breast a queen has
worn it. Thou shalt be as fair as a queen when thou wearest it. I
have amethysts of two kinds, one that is black like wine, and one
that is red like wine which has been coloured with water. I have
topazes, yellow as are the eyes of tigers, and topazes that are
pink as the eyes of a wood-pigeon, and green topazes that are as
the eyes of cats. I have opals that burn always, with an icelike
flame, opals that make sad men's minds, and are fearful of the
shadows. I have onyxes like the eyeballs of a dead woman. I have
moonstones that change when the moon changes, and are wan when
they see the sun. I have sapphires big like eggs, and as blue as
blue flowers. The sea wanders within them and the moon comes
never to trouble the blue of their waves. I have chrysolites and
beryls and chrysoprases and rubies. I have sardonyx and hyacinth
stones, and stones of chalcedony, and I will give them all to
you, all, and other things will I add to them. The King of the
Indies has but even now sent me four fans fashioned from the
feathers of parrots, and the King of Numidia a garment of ostrich
feathers. I have a crystal, into which it is not lawful for a
woman to look, nor may young men behold it until they have been
beaten with rods. In a coffer of nacre I have three wondrous
turquoises. He who wears them on his forehead can imagine things
which are not, and he who carries them in his hand can make women
sterile. These are great treasures above all price. They are
treasures without price. But this is not all. In an ebony coffer
I have two cups of amber, that are like apples of gold. If an
enemy pour poison into these cups, they become like an apple of
silver. In a coffer incrusted with amber I have sandals incrusted
with glass. I have mantles that have been brought from the land
of the Seres, and bracelets decked about with carbuncles and with
jade that come from the city of Euphrates.... What desirest thou
more than this, Salomé? Tell me the thing that thou desirest, and
I will give it thee. All that thou askest I will give thee, save
one thing. I will give thee all that is mine, save one life. I
will give thee the mantle of the high priest. I will give thee
the veil of the sanctuary.
THE JEWS
Oh! oh!
SALOMÉ
Give me the head of Jokanaan.
HEROD
[_Sinking back in his seat_]. Let her be given what she asks! Of
a truth she is her mother's child! [_The first Soldier
approaches. Herodias draws from the hand of the Tetrarch the ring
of death and gives it to the Soldier, who straightway bears it to
the Executioner. The Executioner looks scared._] Who has taken my
ring? There was a ring on my right hand. Who has drunk my wine?
There was wine in my cup. It was full of wine. Someone has drunk
it! Oh! surely some evil will befall some one. [_The Executioner
goes down into the cistern._] Ah! Wherefore did I give my oath?
Kings ought never to pledge their word. If they keep it not, it
is terrible, and if they keep it, it is terrible also.
HERODIAS
My daughter has done well.
HEROD
I am sure that some misfortune will happen.
SALOMÉ
[_She leans over the cistern and listens._]
There is no sound. I hear nothing. Why does he not cry out, this
man? Ah! if any man sought to kill me, I would cry out, I would
struggle, I would not suffer.... Strike, strike, Naaman, strike,
I tell you.... No, I hear nothing. There is a silence, a terrible
silence. Ah! something has fallen upon the ground. I heard
something fall. It is the sword of the headsman. He is afraid,
this slave. He has let his sword fall. He dare not kill him. He
is a coward, this slave! Let soldiers be sent. [_She sees the
Page of Herodias and addresses him._] Come hither, thou wert the
friend of him who is dead, is it not so? Well, I tell thee, there
are not dead men enough. Go to the soldiers and bid them go down
and bring me the thing I ask, the thing the Tetrarch has promised
me, the thing that is mine. [_The Page recoils. She turns to the
soldiers._] Hither, ye soldiers. Get ye down into this cistern
and bring me the head of this man. [_The Soldiers recoil._]
Tetrarch, Tetrarch, command your soldiers that they bring me the
head of Jokanaan.
[_A huge black arm, the arm of the Executioner, comes forth from
the cistern, bearing on a silver shield the head of Jokanaan.
Salomé seizes it. Herod hides his face with his cloak. Herodias
smiles and fans herself. The Nazarenes fall on their knees and
begin to pray._]
Ah! thou wouldst not suffer me to kiss thy mouth, Jokanaan. Well!
I will kiss it now. I will bite it with my teeth as one bites a
ripe fruit. Yes, I will kiss thy mouth, Jokanaan. I said it; did
I not say it? I said it. Ah! I will kiss it now.... But,
wherefore dost thou not look at me, Jokanaan? Thine eyes that
were so terrible, so full of rage and scorn, are shut now.
Wherefore are they shut? Open thine eyes! Lift up thine eyelids,
Jokanaan! Wherefore dost thou not look at me? Art thou afraid of
me, Jokanaan, that thou wilt not look at me?... And thy tongue,
that was like a red snake darting poison, it moves no more, it
says nothing now, Jokanaan, that scarlet viper that spat its
venom upon me. It is strange, is it not? How is it that the red
viper stirs no longer?... Thou wouldst have none of me, Jokanaan.
Thou didst reject me. Thou didst speak evil words against me.
Thou didst treat me as a harlot, as a wanton, me, Salomé,
daughter of Herodias, Princess of Judæa! Well, Jokanaan, I still
live, but thou, thou art dead, and thy head belongs to me. I can
do with it what I will. I can throw it to the dogs and to the
birds of the air. That which the dogs leave, the birds of the air
shall devour.... Ah, Jokanaan, Jokanaan, thou wert the only man
that I have loved. All other men are hateful to me. But thou,
thou wert beautiful! Thy body was a column of ivory set on a
silver socket. It was a garden full of doves and of silver
lilies. It was a tower of silver decked with shields of ivory.
There was nothing in the world so white as thy body. There was
nothing in the world so black as thy hair. In the whole world
there was nothing so red as thy mouth. Thy voice was a censer
that scattered strange perfumes, and when I looked on thee I
heard a strange music. Ah! wherefore didst thou not look at me,
Jokanaan? Behind thine hands and thy curses thou didst hide thy
face. Thou didst put upon thine eyes the covering of him who
would see his God. Well, thou hast seen thy God, Jokanaan, but
me, me, thou didst never see. If thou hadst seen me thou wouldst
have loved me. I, I saw thee, Jokanaan, and I loved thee. Oh, how
I loved thee! I love thee yet, Jokanaan, I love thee only.... I
am athirst for thy beauty; I am hungry for thy body; and neither
wine nor fruits can appease my desire. What shall I do now,
Jokanaan? Neither the floods nor the great waters can quench my
passion. I was a princess, and thou didst scorn me. I was a
virgin, and thou didst take my virginity from me. I was chaste,
and thou didst fill my veins with fire.... Ah! ah! wherefore
didst thou not look at me, Jokanaan? If thou hadst looked at me