Page:Poet Lore, volume 34, 1923.djvu/35

 Mahulena.—Speak, then, speak.

Vratko.—I have a child, thou knowest, Mahulena; and I love that boy above all things. Well, that little son of mine has a kid, so charming an animal that thou mightst kiss it; it is a joy to see it gambol, and at times it seems to me that it smiles, believe me, the dumb animal!

Mahulena.—My good Vratko, I gladly believe thee—but do not tell me about that now; it was thy wish to tell me something about Radúz.

Vratko.—That is true! Of what should I tell thee except of him? So, the next day after they had led Radúz through the forest I came home in the evening, and my son was weeping bitterly, bitterly. His kid had wandered away somewhere and my wife said that perhaps a wolf had carried it off! At that the child began crying anew, until his heart was breaking. What was I to do? I went out to seek the kid, through it was very dark, in fact the dead of night Thou knowest the abyss near the castle in the forest, that ghostly ravine in the depths of which the dark, wild waters roar? When I reached there I distinctly heard our kid weeping from out its depths! It had fallen in and yet still lived! I became frightened! Had it fallen to the very bottom? Should I lower myself thither? I thought of the joy of my son when I should bring him the animal safe and sound, and cautiously I began gradually to descend into the abyss.

Mahulena.—Thou torturest me! Why dost thou tell me all this?

Vratko.—Thou shalt see I was-already some distance down; already I held the kid in my arms and was feeling its bruised limbs and kissing the animal compassionately—when suddenly above me footsteps were heard; then clay came sprinkling down on my head, stones were falling: ah, how they crashed into the depths below me! And when I glanced up in fright, there I saw a terrible face! The moon shone brightly upon it, and that pale face bending over the abyss was familiar to me—it was the face of Queen Runa! I was frightened as thou art frightened now, and in the shadow I stood motionless as thou standest now. But her lips opened and an awful curse, a black prayer, poured forth from them—dost thou wish to hear it?

Mahulena.—No, I do not. What anguish I feel!

Vratko.—Then she said: “As nevermore shall anyone on this earth find this key, so nevermore shall that iron circle leave his body! May it hold him as firmly as death holds us when it