Chapter VII. - MADAME VON COCCEJI.
The Marquis d'Argens was right. Barbarina and her sister had left England and returned to Berlin. They occupied the same expensive and beautiful hotel in Behren Street; but it was no longer surrounded by costly equipages, and besieged by gallant cavaliers. The elite of the court no longer came to wonder and to worship.
Barbarina's house was lonely and deserted, and she herself was changed. She was no longer the graceful, enchanting prima donna, the floating sylph; she was a calm, proud woman, almost imposing in her grave, pale beauty; her melancholy smile touched the heart, while it contrasted strangely with her flashing eye.
Barbarina was in the same saloon where we last saw her, surrounded with dukes and princes--worshippers at her shrine! To-day she was alone; no one was by her side but her faithful sister Marietta. She lay stretched upon the divan, with her arms folded across her bosom; her head was thrown back upon the white, gold-embroidered cushion, and her long, black curls fell in rich profusion around her; with wide-open eyes she stared upon the ceiling, completely lost in sad and painful thoughts. At a small table by her side sat her sister Marietta, busily occupied in opening and reading the letters with which the table was covered.
And now she uttered a cry of joy, and a happy smile played upon her face. „A letter from Milan, from the impressario, Bintelli,“ said she.
Barbarina remained immovable, and still stared at the ceiling.
„Binatelli offers you a magnificent engagement; he declares that all Italy languishes with impatience to see you. that every city implores your presence, and he is ambitious to be the first to allure you back to your fatherland.“
„Did you write to him that I desired an engagement?“ said Barbarina.
„No, sister,“ said Marietta, slightly blushing; „I wrote to him as to an old and valued friend; I described the restless, weary, nomadic life we were leading, and told him you had left the London stage forever.“
„And does it follow that I will therefore appear in Milan? Write at once that I am grateful for his offer, but neither in Milan nor any other Italian city will I appear upon the stage.“
„Ah, Barbarina, will we never again return to our beautiful Italy?“ said Marietta, tearfully.
„Did I say that, sister? I said only, I would not appear in public.“
„But, Barbarina, he entreats so earnestly, and he offers you an enormous salary!“
„I am rich enough, Marietta.“
„No! no one is rich enough! Money is power, and the more millions one has to spend, the more is one beloved.“
„What care I for the love of men? I despise them all--all!“ cried Barbarina, passionately.
„What! all?“ said Marietta, with a meaning smile; „all--even Cocceji?“
Babarina raised herself hastily, and leaning upon her elbow, she gazed with surprise upon her sister. „You think, then, that I love Cocceji?“
„Did you not tell me so yourself?“
„Ah! I said so myself, did I?“ said Barbarina, contemptuously, and sinking back into her former quiet position.
„Yes, sister, do you not remember,“ said Marietta, eagerly; „can you not recall how sad you were when we left Berlin a year ago? You sobbed and wept, and looked ever backward from the carriage, then lightly whispered, 'My happiness, my life, my love remain in Berlin!' I asked you in what your happiness, your love, your life consisted. Your answer was, 'Do you not know, then, that I love Cocceji?' In truth, good sister I did not believe you! I thought you left Berlin because the mother of Cocceji implored you to do so. I know you to be magnanimous enough to sacrifice yourself to the prayers and happiness of another, and for this reason alone you went to London, where Lord Stuart McKenzie awaited us.“
„Poor lord!“ said Barbarina, thoughtfully. „I sinned greatly against him! He loved me fondly; he waited for me with constancy; he was so truly happy when I came at last, as he hoped, to fulfil my promise, and become his wife! God knows I meant to be true, and I swore to myself to make him a faithful wife; but my will was weaker than my heart. I could not marry him, and on my wedding-day I fled from London. Poor Lord Stuart!“
„And on that day, when, bathed in tears, you told me to prepare to leave London with you secretly; on that day you said to me, 'I cannot, no, I cannot wed a man I do not love. The air chokes me, Marietta; I must return to Berlin; he is there whom I love, whom I will love eternally!' I said again, 'Whom do you love, my sister?' and you replied, 'I love Cocceji!' And now you are amazed that I believe you! In it possible that I can doubt your word? Is it possible that Barbarina tells an untruth to her fond and faithful sister? that she shrouds her heart, and will not allow Marietta to read what is written there?“
„If I did that,“ said Barbarina, uneasily, „it was because I shrank from reading my own heart. Be pitiful, Marietta, do not lift the veil; allow my poor heart to heal its wounds in peace and quiet.“
„It cannot heal, sister, if we remain here,“ said Marietta, trembling with suppressed tears. „Let us fly far, far away; accept the offer of Binatelli; it is the call of God. Come, come, Barbarina, we will return to our own Italy, to beautiful Rome. Remain no longer in this cold north, by these icy hearts!“
„I cannot, I cannot!“ cried Barbarina, with anguish. „I have no fatherland--no home. I am no longer a Roman, no longer an Italian. I am a wretched, homeless wanderer. Why will not my heart bleed and die? Why am I condemned to live, and be conscious of this torture?“
„Stop, stop, my sister!“ cried Marietta, wildly; „not another word! You are right; we will not lift this fearful veil. Cover up your heart in darkness--it will heal!“
„It will heal!“ repeated Barbarina, pressing Marietta to her bosom and weeping bitterly.
The entrance of a servant aroused them both; Barbarina turned away to hide her weeping eyes. The servant announced a lady, who desired anxiously to speak with the signora.
„Say to her that Barbarina is unwell, and can receive no one.“
In a few moments the servant returned with a card, which he handed to Marietta. „The lady declared she knew the signora would receive her when she saw the card.“
„Madame Cocceji,“ said Marietta.
Barbarina rose up hastily.
„Will you receive her?“ asked Marietta.
„I will receive her.“
And now a great change passed over Barbarina: all melancholy; all languor had disappeared; her eyes sparkled, her cheeks glowed with an engaging smile, as she advanced to greet the proud lady who stood upon the threshold.
„Ah, generous lady, how good you are!“ said Barbarina, in a slightly mocking tone. „I have but just returned to Berlin, and you gladden my heart again by your visit, and grant me the distinction and privilege of receiving in my house one of the most eminent and virtuous ladies of Berlin.“
Madame Cocceji threw a contemptuous glance upon the beautiful young woman who dared to look in her face with such smiling composure.
„I have not come, madame, to visit you, but to speak to you!“
„I do not see the distinction; we visit those with whom we wish to speak.“
„We visit those with whom we wish to speak, and who are trying to evade an interview! I have sent to you twice, signora, and commanded you to come to me, but you have not obeyed!“
„I am accustomed to receive those who wish to see me at my own house,“ said Barbarina, quietly. „Indeed, madame, I understand your language perhaps but poorly. Is it according to the forms of etiquette to say, 'I have commanded you to come to me?' In my own fair land we give a finer turn to our speech, and we beg for the honor of a visit.“ As Barbarina said this, she bowed with laughing grace to the proud woman, who gazed at her with suppressed rage.
„This is the second time I have been forced to seek an interview with you.“
„The first time, madame, you came with a petition, and I was so happy as to be able to grant your request. May I be equally fortunate to-day! Without doubt you come again as a petitioner,“ said Barbarina, with the cunning manner of a cat, who purrs while she scratches.
The proud Cocceji was wounded; she frowned sternly, but suppressed her anger. Barbarina was right--she came with a request.
„I called upon you a year ago,“ said she, „and implored you to cure my son of that wild love which had fallen upon him like the fever of madness--which made him forget his duty, his rank, his parents. I besought you to leave Berlin, and withdraw from his sight that magical beauty which had seduced him.“
„And I declared myself ready to grant your petition,“ interrupted Barbarina. „Yes, I conformed myself to your wishes, and left Berlin, not, however, I confess, to do you a service, but because I did not love your son; and there is nothing more dull and wearisome than to listen to protestations of love that you cannot return. But look you, gracious lady, that is a misfortune that pursues me at every step. I left Berlin to escape this evil, and fled to London, to find there the same old story of a love I could not return. I fled then from London, to escape the danger of becoming the wife of Lord Stuart McKenzie.“
„Why did you return to Berlin?“ said Madame Cocceji, in an imperious tone.
Barbarina looked up surprised. „Madame,“ said she, „for that step I am accountable to no one.“
„Yes, you are accountable to me!“ cried Madame Cocceji, enraged to the utmost by Barbarina's proud composure. „You are accountable to me--me, the mother of Cocceji! You have seduced him by your charms, and driven him to madness. He defies his parents and the anger of his king, and yields himself up to this shameful passion, which covers his family with disgrace.“
Barbarina uttered a cry of rage, and advanced a few steps. „Madame,“ said she, laying her hand upon the arm of Madame Cocceji, „you have called this love shameful. You have said that an alliance with me would disgrace your family. Take back your words, I pray you!“
„I retract nothing. I said but the truth,“ cried Madame Cocceji, freeing herself from Barbarina.
„Take back your words, madame, for your own sake!“ said Barbarina, threateningly.
„I cannot, and will not!“ she replied, imperiously, „and if your pride and arrogance has not completely blinded you, in your heart you will confess that I am right. The dancer Barbarina can never be the daughter of the Coccejis. That would be a mockery of all honorable customs, would cast contempt upon the graves of our ancestors, and bring shame upon our nobility. And yet my unhappy son dares think of this dishonor. In his insane folly, he rushed madly from my presence, uttering words of rage and bitter reproach, because I tried to show him that this marriage was impossible.“
„Ah, I love him for this!“ cried Barbarina, with a genial smile.
Without regarding her, Madame Cocceji went on: „Even against his father, he has dared to oppose himself. He defies the anger of his king. Oh, signora, in the anguish of my soul I turn to you; have pity with me and with my most unhappy son! He is lost; he will go down to the grave dishonored, if you do not come to my help! If, indeed, you love him, your love will teach you to make the offering of self-sacrifice, and I will bless you, and forgive you all the anguish you have caused me. If you love him not, you will not be so cruel as to bury the happiness and honor of a whole family because of your lofty ambition and your relentless will. Hear my prayer-- leave this city, and go so far away that my son can never follow, never reach you!“
„Then I must go into my grave,“ said Barbarina; „there is no other refuge to which, if he truly loves, he cannot follow me. I, dear madame, cannot, like yourself, move unknown and unregarded through the world. My fame is the herald which announces my presence in every land, and every city offers me, with bended knee, the keys of her gates and the keys of her heart. I cannot hide myself. Nothing is known of the proud and noble family of Cocceji outside of Prussia; but the wide, wide world knows of the Barbarina, and the laurel-wreaths with which I have been crowned in every land have never been desecrated by an unworthy act or an impure thought. There is nothing in my life of which I repent, nothing for which I blush or am ashamed! And yet you have dared to reproach me--you have had the audacity to seek to humiliate me in my own house.“
„You forget with whom you have the honor to speak.“
„You, madame, were the first to forget yourself; I follow your example. I suppose Madame Cocceji knows and does ever that which is great and right. I said you had vilified me in my own house, and yet you ask of me an act of magnanimity! Why should I relinquish your son's love?“
„Why? Because there remains even yet, perhaps, a spark of honorable feeling in your bosom. Because you know that my family will never receive you, but will curse and abhor you, if you dare to entice my son into a marriage. Because you know that the Prussian nobles, the king himself, are on my side. The king, signora, no longer favors you; the king has promised us his assistance. The king will use every means of grace and power to prevent a marriage, which he himself has written to me will cover my son with dishonor!“ [Footnote: Schneider, „History of the Opera in Berlin.“]
„That is false!“ cried Barbarina.
„It is true! and it is true that the king, in order to protect the house of Cocceji from this shame, has given my husband authority to arrest my son and cast him into prison, provided my prayers and tears and menaces should be of no avail! If we fail, we will make use of this authority, and give him over to General Hake. [Footnote: Ibid.] Think well what you do--do not drive us to this extremity. I say there is a point at which even a mother's love will fail, and the head of our house will act with all the sternness which the law and the king permit. Go, then, Signora Barbarina--bow your proud head--leave Berlin. Return to your own land. I repeat to you, do not drive us to extremity!“
Barbarina listened to this with cool and mocking composure. Not a muscle of her face moved--she was indeed striking in her majesty and her beauty. Her imposing bearing, her pallid but clear complexion, her crimson, tightly-compressed lips, her great, fiery eyes, which spoke the scorn and contempt her proud lips disdained to utter, made a picture never to be forgotten.
„Madame,“ said she, slowly, emphasizing every word, „you have, indeed, driven ME to extremity. It was not my intention to marry your son. But your conduct has now made that a point of honor. Now, madame, I will graciously yield to the passionate entreaties of your son, and I will wed him.“
„That is to say, you will force my husband to make use of the power the king has given him?“
Barbarina shrugged her shoulders contemptuously. „Arrest your son, and cast him into prison, you will thereby add a new celebrity to your name, and quench the last spark of piety and obedience in his heart. Love has wings, and will follow him everywhere, and will waft him to the altar, where he will wed Barbarina. Neither your curse, nor your arrest, nor the will of the king, will now protect him. Before six months are over, will Barbarina the dancer be the wife of Cocceji.“
„Never, never shall that be!“ cried Madame Cocceji, trembling with rage.
„That will be!“ said Barbarina, smiling sadly, and bending low. „And now, madame, I think you have attained the object of your visit, and we have nothing more to say to each other. It only remains for me to commend myself to your grace and courtesy, and to thank you for the honor of your visit. Allow me to call my servant, to conduct you to your carriage.“
She rang and commanded the servant to open the folding doors, and carry the large muff of the countess to the carriage. Madame Cocceji was pale with rage. She wished to remain incognito, and now her name had been called before the servant. All Berlin would know before night that she had visited Barbarina!
„Give me my muff,“ she said impatiently to the servant; „it is not necessary you should carry it. I came on foot.“
„On foot?“ said Barbarina, laughing merrily. „Truly, you wished to remain incognito, and you would not leave your equipage with its coat of arms, standing before my door! I thank you once more for the honor of your visit, and commend myself to you with the glad wish that we may meet again.“
„Never more!“ said Madame Cocceji, casting a withering look upon the gay dancer, and hastening from the room.
Barbarina's house was lonely and deserted, and she herself was changed. She was no longer the graceful, enchanting prima donna, the floating sylph; she was a calm, proud woman, almost imposing in her grave, pale beauty; her melancholy smile touched the heart, while it contrasted strangely with her flashing eye.
Barbarina was in the same saloon where we last saw her, surrounded with dukes and princes--worshippers at her shrine! To-day she was alone; no one was by her side but her faithful sister Marietta. She lay stretched upon the divan, with her arms folded across her bosom; her head was thrown back upon the white, gold-embroidered cushion, and her long, black curls fell in rich profusion around her; with wide-open eyes she stared upon the ceiling, completely lost in sad and painful thoughts. At a small table by her side sat her sister Marietta, busily occupied in opening and reading the letters with which the table was covered.
And now she uttered a cry of joy, and a happy smile played upon her face. „A letter from Milan, from the impressario, Bintelli,“ said she.
Barbarina remained immovable, and still stared at the ceiling.
„Binatelli offers you a magnificent engagement; he declares that all Italy languishes with impatience to see you. that every city implores your presence, and he is ambitious to be the first to allure you back to your fatherland.“
„Did you write to him that I desired an engagement?“ said Barbarina.
„No, sister,“ said Marietta, slightly blushing; „I wrote to him as to an old and valued friend; I described the restless, weary, nomadic life we were leading, and told him you had left the London stage forever.“
„And does it follow that I will therefore appear in Milan? Write at once that I am grateful for his offer, but neither in Milan nor any other Italian city will I appear upon the stage.“
„Ah, Barbarina, will we never again return to our beautiful Italy?“ said Marietta, tearfully.
„Did I say that, sister? I said only, I would not appear in public.“
„But, Barbarina, he entreats so earnestly, and he offers you an enormous salary!“
„I am rich enough, Marietta.“
„No! no one is rich enough! Money is power, and the more millions one has to spend, the more is one beloved.“
„What care I for the love of men? I despise them all--all!“ cried Barbarina, passionately.
„What! all?“ said Marietta, with a meaning smile; „all--even Cocceji?“
Babarina raised herself hastily, and leaning upon her elbow, she gazed with surprise upon her sister. „You think, then, that I love Cocceji?“
„Did you not tell me so yourself?“
„Ah! I said so myself, did I?“ said Barbarina, contemptuously, and sinking back into her former quiet position.
„Yes, sister, do you not remember,“ said Marietta, eagerly; „can you not recall how sad you were when we left Berlin a year ago? You sobbed and wept, and looked ever backward from the carriage, then lightly whispered, 'My happiness, my life, my love remain in Berlin!' I asked you in what your happiness, your love, your life consisted. Your answer was, 'Do you not know, then, that I love Cocceji?' In truth, good sister I did not believe you! I thought you left Berlin because the mother of Cocceji implored you to do so. I know you to be magnanimous enough to sacrifice yourself to the prayers and happiness of another, and for this reason alone you went to London, where Lord Stuart McKenzie awaited us.“
„Poor lord!“ said Barbarina, thoughtfully. „I sinned greatly against him! He loved me fondly; he waited for me with constancy; he was so truly happy when I came at last, as he hoped, to fulfil my promise, and become his wife! God knows I meant to be true, and I swore to myself to make him a faithful wife; but my will was weaker than my heart. I could not marry him, and on my wedding-day I fled from London. Poor Lord Stuart!“
„And on that day, when, bathed in tears, you told me to prepare to leave London with you secretly; on that day you said to me, 'I cannot, no, I cannot wed a man I do not love. The air chokes me, Marietta; I must return to Berlin; he is there whom I love, whom I will love eternally!' I said again, 'Whom do you love, my sister?' and you replied, 'I love Cocceji!' And now you are amazed that I believe you! In it possible that I can doubt your word? Is it possible that Barbarina tells an untruth to her fond and faithful sister? that she shrouds her heart, and will not allow Marietta to read what is written there?“
„If I did that,“ said Barbarina, uneasily, „it was because I shrank from reading my own heart. Be pitiful, Marietta, do not lift the veil; allow my poor heart to heal its wounds in peace and quiet.“
„It cannot heal, sister, if we remain here,“ said Marietta, trembling with suppressed tears. „Let us fly far, far away; accept the offer of Binatelli; it is the call of God. Come, come, Barbarina, we will return to our own Italy, to beautiful Rome. Remain no longer in this cold north, by these icy hearts!“
„I cannot, I cannot!“ cried Barbarina, with anguish. „I have no fatherland--no home. I am no longer a Roman, no longer an Italian. I am a wretched, homeless wanderer. Why will not my heart bleed and die? Why am I condemned to live, and be conscious of this torture?“
„Stop, stop, my sister!“ cried Marietta, wildly; „not another word! You are right; we will not lift this fearful veil. Cover up your heart in darkness--it will heal!“
„It will heal!“ repeated Barbarina, pressing Marietta to her bosom and weeping bitterly.
The entrance of a servant aroused them both; Barbarina turned away to hide her weeping eyes. The servant announced a lady, who desired anxiously to speak with the signora.
„Say to her that Barbarina is unwell, and can receive no one.“
In a few moments the servant returned with a card, which he handed to Marietta. „The lady declared she knew the signora would receive her when she saw the card.“
„Madame Cocceji,“ said Marietta.
Barbarina rose up hastily.
„Will you receive her?“ asked Marietta.
„I will receive her.“
And now a great change passed over Barbarina: all melancholy; all languor had disappeared; her eyes sparkled, her cheeks glowed with an engaging smile, as she advanced to greet the proud lady who stood upon the threshold.
„Ah, generous lady, how good you are!“ said Barbarina, in a slightly mocking tone. „I have but just returned to Berlin, and you gladden my heart again by your visit, and grant me the distinction and privilege of receiving in my house one of the most eminent and virtuous ladies of Berlin.“
Madame Cocceji threw a contemptuous glance upon the beautiful young woman who dared to look in her face with such smiling composure.
„I have not come, madame, to visit you, but to speak to you!“
„I do not see the distinction; we visit those with whom we wish to speak.“
„We visit those with whom we wish to speak, and who are trying to evade an interview! I have sent to you twice, signora, and commanded you to come to me, but you have not obeyed!“
„I am accustomed to receive those who wish to see me at my own house,“ said Barbarina, quietly. „Indeed, madame, I understand your language perhaps but poorly. Is it according to the forms of etiquette to say, 'I have commanded you to come to me?' In my own fair land we give a finer turn to our speech, and we beg for the honor of a visit.“ As Barbarina said this, she bowed with laughing grace to the proud woman, who gazed at her with suppressed rage.
„This is the second time I have been forced to seek an interview with you.“
„The first time, madame, you came with a petition, and I was so happy as to be able to grant your request. May I be equally fortunate to-day! Without doubt you come again as a petitioner,“ said Barbarina, with the cunning manner of a cat, who purrs while she scratches.
The proud Cocceji was wounded; she frowned sternly, but suppressed her anger. Barbarina was right--she came with a request.
„I called upon you a year ago,“ said she, „and implored you to cure my son of that wild love which had fallen upon him like the fever of madness--which made him forget his duty, his rank, his parents. I besought you to leave Berlin, and withdraw from his sight that magical beauty which had seduced him.“
„And I declared myself ready to grant your petition,“ interrupted Barbarina. „Yes, I conformed myself to your wishes, and left Berlin, not, however, I confess, to do you a service, but because I did not love your son; and there is nothing more dull and wearisome than to listen to protestations of love that you cannot return. But look you, gracious lady, that is a misfortune that pursues me at every step. I left Berlin to escape this evil, and fled to London, to find there the same old story of a love I could not return. I fled then from London, to escape the danger of becoming the wife of Lord Stuart McKenzie.“
„Why did you return to Berlin?“ said Madame Cocceji, in an imperious tone.
Barbarina looked up surprised. „Madame,“ said she, „for that step I am accountable to no one.“
„Yes, you are accountable to me!“ cried Madame Cocceji, enraged to the utmost by Barbarina's proud composure. „You are accountable to me--me, the mother of Cocceji! You have seduced him by your charms, and driven him to madness. He defies his parents and the anger of his king, and yields himself up to this shameful passion, which covers his family with disgrace.“
Barbarina uttered a cry of rage, and advanced a few steps. „Madame,“ said she, laying her hand upon the arm of Madame Cocceji, „you have called this love shameful. You have said that an alliance with me would disgrace your family. Take back your words, I pray you!“
„I retract nothing. I said but the truth,“ cried Madame Cocceji, freeing herself from Barbarina.
„Take back your words, madame, for your own sake!“ said Barbarina, threateningly.
„I cannot, and will not!“ she replied, imperiously, „and if your pride and arrogance has not completely blinded you, in your heart you will confess that I am right. The dancer Barbarina can never be the daughter of the Coccejis. That would be a mockery of all honorable customs, would cast contempt upon the graves of our ancestors, and bring shame upon our nobility. And yet my unhappy son dares think of this dishonor. In his insane folly, he rushed madly from my presence, uttering words of rage and bitter reproach, because I tried to show him that this marriage was impossible.“
„Ah, I love him for this!“ cried Barbarina, with a genial smile.
Without regarding her, Madame Cocceji went on: „Even against his father, he has dared to oppose himself. He defies the anger of his king. Oh, signora, in the anguish of my soul I turn to you; have pity with me and with my most unhappy son! He is lost; he will go down to the grave dishonored, if you do not come to my help! If, indeed, you love him, your love will teach you to make the offering of self-sacrifice, and I will bless you, and forgive you all the anguish you have caused me. If you love him not, you will not be so cruel as to bury the happiness and honor of a whole family because of your lofty ambition and your relentless will. Hear my prayer-- leave this city, and go so far away that my son can never follow, never reach you!“
„Then I must go into my grave,“ said Barbarina; „there is no other refuge to which, if he truly loves, he cannot follow me. I, dear madame, cannot, like yourself, move unknown and unregarded through the world. My fame is the herald which announces my presence in every land, and every city offers me, with bended knee, the keys of her gates and the keys of her heart. I cannot hide myself. Nothing is known of the proud and noble family of Cocceji outside of Prussia; but the wide, wide world knows of the Barbarina, and the laurel-wreaths with which I have been crowned in every land have never been desecrated by an unworthy act or an impure thought. There is nothing in my life of which I repent, nothing for which I blush or am ashamed! And yet you have dared to reproach me--you have had the audacity to seek to humiliate me in my own house.“
„You forget with whom you have the honor to speak.“
„You, madame, were the first to forget yourself; I follow your example. I suppose Madame Cocceji knows and does ever that which is great and right. I said you had vilified me in my own house, and yet you ask of me an act of magnanimity! Why should I relinquish your son's love?“
„Why? Because there remains even yet, perhaps, a spark of honorable feeling in your bosom. Because you know that my family will never receive you, but will curse and abhor you, if you dare to entice my son into a marriage. Because you know that the Prussian nobles, the king himself, are on my side. The king, signora, no longer favors you; the king has promised us his assistance. The king will use every means of grace and power to prevent a marriage, which he himself has written to me will cover my son with dishonor!“ [Footnote: Schneider, „History of the Opera in Berlin.“]
„That is false!“ cried Barbarina.
„It is true! and it is true that the king, in order to protect the house of Cocceji from this shame, has given my husband authority to arrest my son and cast him into prison, provided my prayers and tears and menaces should be of no avail! If we fail, we will make use of this authority, and give him over to General Hake. [Footnote: Ibid.] Think well what you do--do not drive us to this extremity. I say there is a point at which even a mother's love will fail, and the head of our house will act with all the sternness which the law and the king permit. Go, then, Signora Barbarina--bow your proud head--leave Berlin. Return to your own land. I repeat to you, do not drive us to extremity!“
Barbarina listened to this with cool and mocking composure. Not a muscle of her face moved--she was indeed striking in her majesty and her beauty. Her imposing bearing, her pallid but clear complexion, her crimson, tightly-compressed lips, her great, fiery eyes, which spoke the scorn and contempt her proud lips disdained to utter, made a picture never to be forgotten.
„Madame,“ said she, slowly, emphasizing every word, „you have, indeed, driven ME to extremity. It was not my intention to marry your son. But your conduct has now made that a point of honor. Now, madame, I will graciously yield to the passionate entreaties of your son, and I will wed him.“
„That is to say, you will force my husband to make use of the power the king has given him?“
Barbarina shrugged her shoulders contemptuously. „Arrest your son, and cast him into prison, you will thereby add a new celebrity to your name, and quench the last spark of piety and obedience in his heart. Love has wings, and will follow him everywhere, and will waft him to the altar, where he will wed Barbarina. Neither your curse, nor your arrest, nor the will of the king, will now protect him. Before six months are over, will Barbarina the dancer be the wife of Cocceji.“
„Never, never shall that be!“ cried Madame Cocceji, trembling with rage.
„That will be!“ said Barbarina, smiling sadly, and bending low. „And now, madame, I think you have attained the object of your visit, and we have nothing more to say to each other. It only remains for me to commend myself to your grace and courtesy, and to thank you for the honor of your visit. Allow me to call my servant, to conduct you to your carriage.“
She rang and commanded the servant to open the folding doors, and carry the large muff of the countess to the carriage. Madame Cocceji was pale with rage. She wished to remain incognito, and now her name had been called before the servant. All Berlin would know before night that she had visited Barbarina!
„Give me my muff,“ she said impatiently to the servant; „it is not necessary you should carry it. I came on foot.“
„On foot?“ said Barbarina, laughing merrily. „Truly, you wished to remain incognito, and you would not leave your equipage with its coat of arms, standing before my door! I thank you once more for the honor of your visit, and commend myself to you with the glad wish that we may meet again.“
„Never more!“ said Madame Cocceji, casting a withering look upon the gay dancer, and hastening from the room.
Dieses Kapitel ist Teil des Buches Berlin and Sans-Souci; or, Frederick the Great and his friends. Book IV.