Opera Books
THE OPERA
EDITED BY
ALBERT HILLERY BERGH
VOLUME II.
1909
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Auber.
Daniel François-Esprit Auber was born January 29,
1784 (according to Fétis, 1782), at Caen, where his parents were on a
visit. The family, although of Norman origin, had been settled in Paris
for two generations, and that city was always considered his home by the
composer. In his mature years he hardly ever left it for a single day,
and not even the dangers of the Prussian siege could induce him, then an
octogenarian, to desert his beloved Paris. Although destined by his
father for a commercial career, young Auber began to evince his talent
for music at a very early period. At the age of eleven he wrote a number
of ballads and romances, then much in vogue among the ladies of the
Directoire period.
A few years later we find Auber in London, nominally as a
commercial clerk, but in reality more than ever devoted to his art. Here
also his vocal compositions are said to have met with great success in
fashionable drawing-rooms. His personal timidity, however— a trait which
he never lost—prevented the young artist from reaping the full benefit
of his precocious gifts. In consequence of the breach of the treaty of
Amiens (1804), Auber had to leave England, and on his return to Paris we
hear no more of his commercial pursuits.
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Music had now engrossed all his thoughts and faculties. His debut as an
instrumental composer was attended by somewhat peculiar circumstances.
Auber had become acquainted with Lamarre, a violoncello player of
considerable reputation, and to suit the peculiar style of his friend
the composer wrote several concertos for his instrument, which
originally appeared under Lamarre’s name, but the real authorship of
which soon became known. The reputation thus acquired Auber increased by
a violin cencerto written for and first played by Mazas at the
Conservatoire with signal success.
Auber’s first attempt at dramatic composition was of a very modest
kind. It consisted in the resetting of an old opera libretto called
Julie, for a society of amateurs, in 1811 or 1812. The orchestra was
composed of two violins, two violas, a violoncello and double-bass. The
reception of the piece was favorable. Cherubini, the ruler of the
operatic stage at that time, was in the audience, and recognizing at
once the untrained yet powerful genius of the young composer, offered to
superintend his further studies. To the instruction of this great
composer Auber owed his mastery over the technical difficulties of his
art.
Auber’s next work was a mass written for the private chapel of the
Prince de Chimay, from which the beautiful a eapella prayer in
Masaniello is taken. His first publicly performed opera was Le
Séjour Militaire, played in 1813 at the Théâtre Feydeau. The
reception was anything but favorable, and so discouraged was the
youthful composer by this unexpected failure that for six years he
refrained from operatic productions. His second opera, Le Testament,
or Les Billets-doux,
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brought out at the Opéra Comique in 1819, proved unsuccessful also; but
Auber was now too certain of his vocation to be silenced by a momentary
disappointment. He immediately set to work again, and his next effort,
La Begère Châtelaine, first performed in the following year,
realized to a great extent his bold expectations of ultimate success.
The duration of this success was, to a great extent, founded on
Auber’s friendship and artistic alliance with Scribe. To this union,
which lasted unbroken until the death. of Scribe, a great number of both
comic and serious operas owe their existence, not all equal in beauty
and value, but all evincing in various degrees the inexhaustible
productive powers of their joint authors. Leicester, the first of
Auber’s operas with a libretto by Scribe, was written in 1822; Le
Maçon, in 1825; La Muette de Portici, also known as
Masaniello, in 1828; Fra Diavolo, in 1830; Lestocq and
Le Cheval de Bronze, in 1835; L’Ambassadrice, in 1836;
Le Domino Noir, in 1837; Les Diamants de la Couronne, in
1841; Carlo Broschi, in 1842 ; Haydée, in 1847; L’Enf
ant Prodigue, in 1850; Zerline, in 1851; Manon Lescaut,
in 1856; La Fiancée du Roi des Garbes, in 1867; Le Premier
Jour du Bonheur, in 1868; and Le Rêve d’Amour, first
performed in 1869, at the Opéra Comique.
Auber’s position in the history of his art may be defined as that
of the last great eminent representative of opéra comique, a phase of
dramatic music in which, more than any other, the peculiarities of the
French character have found their full expression. In such works as
Le Maçon or Les Diamants de la Couronne Auber has rendered
the chivalrous grace, the verve and
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amorous sweetness of French feeling in a manner both charming and
essentially national. It is here that he proves himself to be the
legitimate follower of Boieidieu, and the equal, if not superior, of
Hérold and Adam. With these masters Auber shares the charm of melody
founded on the simple grace of the popular chanson, the piquancy
of rhythm, and the care bestowed upon the distinct enunciation of the
words, all characteristic of the French school. Like them also he is
unable, or perhaps unwilling, to divest his music of the peculiarities
of his own national type.
We have cited the Diamants de la Couronne as evincing the
charm of French feeling, although the scene of that opera is laid in
Portugal. Like George Brown and the Tribut d’Avenel in
Boieldieu’s Dame Blanche, Auber’s Portuguese are in reality
Frenchmen in disguise—a disguise put on more for the sake of pretty show
than of actual deception. We here again recognize that amalgamating
force of French culture to which all civilized nations have to some
extent submitted. But so great is the charm of the natural grace and the
true gaieté de cœur with which Auber endows his creations that we
forget the incongruity of the mongrel type.
In comparing Auber’s individual gifts with those of other French
composers, it may be said that he surpasses Boieldieu and others in
brilliancy of orchestral effect. He is, on the other hand, decidedly
inferior to Boieldieu as regards the structure of his concerted pieces.
Auber here seems to lack that firm grasp which enables the musician, by
a distinct grouping of individual components, to blend into a harmonious
whole what seems most contradictory, without losing hold of the single
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are, therefore, frequently slight in construction; but he is a master in
the art of delineating a character by touches of subtlest refinement.
Among his serious operas, it is particularly one work more than any
other which has contributed to its author’s wide reputation. At the same
time it differs so widely from Auber’s usual style that without the most
indubitable proofs one would hardly believe it to have been actually
written by the composer of Le Dieu et la Bayadère, or Fra
Diavolo. We refer to La Muette de Portici, in England and
America frequently called after its chief hero, Masaniello. In it
the most violent passions of excited popular fury have their fullest
sway, and the heroic feeling, of self -surrendering love and devotion
are expressed in an original and effective manner. Auber’s style in
Masaniello is as different as can be imagined from his usual mode of
utterance, founded on Boieldieu, with a strong admixture of Rossim.
Wagner, who was undoubtedly a good judge in the matter, and
certainly free from prejudice in the French master’s favor, acknowledges
in this opera “the bold effects in the orchestration, particularly in
the treatment of the strings; the drastic grouping of the choral masses,
which here for the first time take an important part in the action, no
less than the original harmonies and the happy strokes of dramatic
characterization.” Various conjectures have been propounded to account
for this singular flight of inspiration. It has been said, for instance,
that the most stirring melodies of the opera are of popular Neapolitan
origin, but this has been emphatically
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contradicted by the composer himself. The solution of the problem seems
to us to lie in the thoroughly revolutionized feeling of the time
(1828), which two years after was to explode the established
government of France and other countries. This opera was, indeed,
destined to become historically connected with the popular movement of
that eventful period. It is well known that the riots in Brussels began
after a performance of La Mue tte de Portici (August 25, 1830),
which drove the Putch out of the country, thus in a manner acting the
part of the famous ballad “Lillibulero.” There is a sad significance in
the fact that the death of Auber, the author of this revolutionary
inspiration, was partly caused by the terrors of the Paris commune.
Auber died on May 12, 1871.
About Auber’s life little remains to be added. He received marks of
highest distinction from his own and foreign sovereigns. Louis Philippe
made him director of the Conservatoire, and Napoleon the Third added the
dignity of Imperial Maitre de Chapelle. He never acted as
conductor, however, perhaps owing to the timidity already alluded to.
Indeed, he was never present at the first performance of his own works.
When questioned about this extraordinary circumstance, he is said to
have returned the characteristic answer, “Si j’assistais à un de mes
ouvrages, je n’écrirais de ma vie une note de musique.” His
habits were gentle and benevolent, slightly tinged with epicureanism. He
was a thorough Parisian, and the bon mots attributed to him are
legion.
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Opera in three acts by’ Auber. Libretto by Scribe
and Delavigne.
Characters: Colonel Léon de Mérinville; Roger, a mason; Baptiste, a
locksmith; Henrietta, his sister; Irma, a Greek; Zobeide, playmate of
Irma; Abdallah, the Turkish ambassador; Madame Bertrand; Rica and Usbeck,
slaves; townspeople and servants.
Place, the suburbs of St. Antoine, at Paris. Time, Eighteenth
Century (1788). First production at Paris in 1825.
The first act represents the merry wedding of Roger, a mason, with
Henrietta, sister of Baptiste, a locksmith. A jealous old hag, Madame
Bertrand, who would fain have married the young man, is wondering whence
the poor mason has obtained the money for his wedding, when suddenly a
young nobleman, Léon de Mérinville, appears, greeting Roger warmly. He
relates to the astonished hearers that Roger saved his life, but would
not take any reward, nor tell his name. Roger explains that the nobleman
put so much money into his pocket, that it enabled him to marry his
charming Henrietta, but Mérinville is determined to do more for him.
Meanwhile Roger tries to withdraw from the ball with his young wife; but
Henrietta is called back’ by her relations, according to custom.
Roger, being left alone, is accosted by two unknown men, who,
veiling his eyes, force him to follow them to a spot unknown to him, in
order to do some masonwork
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work for them. It is to the house of Abdallah, the Turkish ambassador,
that he is led. The latter has heard that his mistress Irma, a young
Greek maiden, is about to take flight with a French officer, who is no
other than de Mérinville.
The lovers are warned by a slave, named Rica, but it is too late;
Abdallah’s people overtake and bind them. They are brought into a cavern,
the entrance to which Roger is ordered to wall up. There before him he
finds his friend, Léon, and his brother-in-law, Baptiste, who was
likewise caught and is now forced to help him.
Recognizing in the officer his benefactor, Roger revives hope in
him by singing a song which Léon heard him sing at the time his life was
saved. Meanwhile Henrietta has passed a dreadful night, not being able
to account for her husband’s absence. In the morning Madame Bertrand
succeeds in exciting the young wife’s sorrow and jealousy to a terrible
degree, so that when Roger at last appears she receives him with a
volley of reproaches and questions.
Roger, unhappy about Mérinville’s fate and ignorant of where he has
been in the night, scarcely listens to his wife’s complaints, until
Henrietta remarks that she well knows where he has been, Madame Bertrand
having recognized the carriage of the Turkish ambassador, in which he
was carried off. This brings light into Roger’s brain, and without more
ado he rushes to the police, with whose help the poor prisoners are
delivered. Roger returns with him to his wife’s house, where things are
cleared up in the most satisfactory manner.
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La
Muette de Portici.
(Masaniello.)
Opera in five acts by Auber. Libretto by Scribe.
Characters: Alfonso, Count of Arcos, son of the Viceroy of Naples;
Elvira, his betrothed; Lorenzo, Alfonso’s confidant; Masaniello, a
Neapolitan fisherman; Fenella, a mute, his sister; Selva, captain of the
Spanish guard; Borella, Pietro and iMiorena, friends of Masaniello; a
court lady; fishermen, guards, magistrates, citizens.
Place, Naples and Portici. Time, Seventeenth Century. First
produced at Paris in 1828.
In the first act occurs the wedding of Alfonso, son of the Viceroy
of Naples, with the Spanish Princess Elvira. Alfonso, who has wronged
Fenella, the Neapolitan Masaniello’s ‘dumb sister and abandoned her, is
tormented by doubts and remorse, fearing that she has committed suicide.
During the festival Fenella rushes in to seek protection from the
Viceroy, who has kept her a prisoner for the past month. She has escaped
from her prison, and narrates the story of her misfortune by gestures,
showing a scarf which her lover gave her. Elvira promises to protect her
and proceeds to the altar, Fenella vainly trying to follow. In the
chapel Fenella recognizes her lover in the bridegroom of the Princess.
When the newly married couple come out of the church, Elvira presents
Fenella to her husband, and discovers from the dumb girl’s gestures that
he was her faithless lover. Fenella flies, leaving Alfonso and Elvira in
sorrow and despair.
In the second act the fishermen, who have been
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brooding in silence over the tyranny of their foes, begin to assemble.
Pietro, Masaniello’s friend, has sought for Fenella in vain, but at
length she appears of her own accord and confesses her wrongs.
Masaniello is infuriated and swears to have revenge, but Fenella, who
still loves Alfonso, does not mention his name. Then Masaniello calls
the fishermen to arms and they swear perdition to the enemy of their
country.
The third act passes in the market-place in Xaples, where the
people go to and fro, selling and buying, all the while concealing their
purpose under a show of merriment and indifference. Selva, the officer
of the Viceroy’s bodyguard, from whom Fenella has escaped, discovers her,
and the attempt to rearrest her is the sign for a general revolt, in
which the people are victorious.
In the fourth act Fenella comes to her brother’s dwelling, and
describes the horrors which are taking place in the town. The
description fills his noble soul with sorrow and disgust. When Fenella
has retired to rest, Pietro enters with comrades and tries to excite
Masaniello to further deeds, but he only wants liberty, and shrinks from
murder and cruelties. They tell him that Alfonso has escaped, and that
they are resolved to overtake and kill him. Fenella, who hears all,
decides to save her lover. At this moment Alfonso begs at her door for a
biding-place. He enters with Elvira, and Fenella, though at first
disposed to avenge herself on her rival, pardons her for
Alfonso’s sake. Masaniello, re-entering, assures the strangers of his
protection, and even when Pietro denounces Alfonso as the Viceroy’s son,
he holds his promise sacred. Pietro, with his fellow-conspirators,
leaves him full of rage and hatred. Meanwhile the magistrate of the city
presents Masaniello
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with the royal crown and he is proclaimed King of Naples.
In the fifth act Pietro comes with the other fishermen before the
Viceroy’s palace. He confides to Mioreno that he has administered poison
to Masaniello to punish him for his treason, and that thus he will have
been King for a day only. While he speaks, Borella rushes in to tell of
the approach of a fresh troop of soldiers, marching against the people
with Alfonso at their head. Knowing that Masaniello alone can save them,
the fishermen entreat him to take the command of them once more, and
Masaniello, though deadly ill and half bereft of reason, complies with
their request. The combat takes place while an eruption of Vesuvius is
going on. Masaniello falls in the act ‘of saving Elvira’s life. On
hearing these terrible tidings Fenella rushes to the terrace, from which
she leaps into the abyss below, while the fugitive noblemen again take
possession of the city.
Opera in three acts by Auber. Libretto by Scribe.
Characters: Fra Diavolo, also known as the Marquis of San Marco;
Lord Cockburn, a traveling Englishman; Pamela, his wife; Lorenzo, Roman
officer of dragoons; Matteo, an innkeeper; Zerline, his daughter;
Giacomo and Beppo, bandits; Francesco, a miller; dragoons, bandits,
villagers.
Place, a village near Terracina, in Italy. Time, Nineteenth Century.
First produced at Paris in 1830.
Fra Diavolo is a celebrated and much feared chief of brigands. The
Roman court of justice has set a price of ten thousand piastres on his
head. In the first act we
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meet the Roman soldiers, who undertake to win the money. Their captain
Lorenzo has a double aim in trying to catch the brigand, he is Zerline’s
lover, but, having no money, Zerline’s father Matteo, the owner of a
hotel, threatens to give her to a rich farmer’s son. Meanwhile Fra
Diavolo has forced his society on a rich English lord, Cockburn by name,
who is on his wedding tour with his fair young wife Pamela. Lord
Cockburn looks jealously at Fra Diavolo, though he does not recognize in
him a brigand. The English are robbed by Diavolo’s band. Disgusted with
the insecurity of la bella Italia, they reach the inn at
Terracina, where the dragoons, hearing the account of this new robbery,
believe that it was Fra Diavolo with his band, and at once decide to
pursue him.
Shortly afterwards Fra Diavolo arrives at the inn, disguised as the
Marquis of San Marco, under which name the English lord has already made
his acquaintance. Cockburn is not pleased by the arrival of this
Marquis; he fears a new flirtation with his pretty wife. Pamela wears
valuable diamonds, and these take the eye of Fra Diavolo. He sees that
the English have been clever enough to conceal the greater part of their
wealth, and resolves to put himself speedily into possession of it.
Fra Diavolo is flirting desperately with Pamela and looking
tenderly at the charming Zerline, when the soldiers return, having
captured twenty of the brigands and retaken the greater part of Lord
Cockburn’s money and jewels. Lorenzo, captain of dragoons, is rewarded
by the magnanimous lord with one thousand lire, and now hopes to win
Zerline’s hand. But Fra Diavolo vows vengeance on Lorenzo for the death
of his comrades.
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In the second act the bandit-chief conceals himself behind the
curtains in Zerline’s sleeping-room, and during the night admits his two
companions, Beppo and Giacomo. Zerline enters and is about to retire to
rest, after praying to the Holy Virgin for protection. During her sleep
Giacomo is to stab her, while the two others are to rob the English
lord.
But Zerline’s prayer and her innocence touch even the robbers, the
deed is delayed, and this delay brings Lorenzo upon them. Fra Piavolo’s
two companions hide themselves, and the false Marquis alone is found in
Zerline’s room. He assures Lorenzo that he had a rendezvous with his
bride, and at the same time whispers into “Milord’s” ear that he came by
appointment with “Milady,” showing her portrait, of which he had robbed
her the day before, as proof.
The consequence of these lies is a challenge from Lorenzo, and a
meeting with Diavolo is fixed. The latter is full of triumphant glee; he
has arranged a deep-laid plan with the surviving members of his band,
and hopes to ensnare not only Lorenzo but his whole company. Ordinarily
Diavolo is a noble brigand; he never troubles women, and he loads poor
people with gifts, taking the gold out of rich men’s purses only. But
now he is full of ire, and his one thought is of vengeance.
Finally he is betrayed by the carelessness of his own comrades.
Beppo and Giacomo, seeing Zerline, recognize in her their fair prey of
the evening before, and betray themselves by repeating some of the words
which she had given utterance to. Zerline, hearing them, is now able to
comprehend the wicked plot which was woven to destroy her happiness. The
two banditti are
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captured and compelled to lure their captain into a trap. Diavolo
appears, not in his disguise as a Marquis, but in his own well-known
dress, with the red plume waving from his bonnet, and being assured by
Beppo that all is secure, is easily captured. Now all the false
imputations are cleared up. “Milord” is reconciled to his wife, and
Lorenzo obtains the hand of Zerline.
Le
Domino noir.
(The Black Domino.)
Opera in three acts by Auber. Libretto by Scribe.
Characters: Lord Elfort; Count Juliano; Horatio di Massarena; Gil
Perez, bailiff of the royal nunnery; Angela; Brigitta; Claudia, the
Count’s housekeeper; Ursula, a nun; Gertrude, a doorkeeper; nuns, guests.
Place, Madrid. Time, Seventeenth Century. First produced at Paris
in 1837.
The curtain rises on a masked ball given by the Queen of Spain,
masked at which the heroine, Angela, is present, accompanied by her
companion, Brigitta. There she is seen by Massarena, a young nobleman,
who had met her a year previous at one of these balls, and had fallen in
love with her without knowing who she was.
This time he detains her at the ball, but is again unable to
discover her real name, and confessing his love for her, he receives the
answer that she can be no more than a friend to him. Massarena detains
her so long that the clock strikes the midnight hour as Angela prepares
to seek her companion. Massarena confesses to having removed Brigitta
under some pretext, and
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Angela in despair cries out that she is lost. She is in reality the
inmate of a convent, and destined to be Lady Abbess, though she has not
yet taken the vows. She is very highly connected, and has secretly
helped Massarena to advance in his career as a diplomatist. Great is her
anxiety to return to her convent after midnight, but she declines escort,
and walking alone through the streets comes by chance into the house of
Count Juliano, a gentleman of somewhat uncertain reputation, and
Massarena’s friend.
Juliano is giving a supper to his gay friends, and Angela bribes
his housekeeper, Claudia, to keep her for the night. She appears before
the guests disguised as an Arragonian waiting-maid, and charms them all,
particularly Massarena, with her grace and coquetry. But as the young
gentlemen begin to be impertinent, she disappears, fearful of being
recognized. Massarena, discovering in her the lady of the charming black
domino, is unhappy at seeing her in such company.
Meanwhile Angela succeeds in getting the keys of the convent from
Gil Perez, the porter, who has also left his post, seduced by his love
of gormandizing, and has come to pay court to Claudia. Angela troubles
his conscience and frightens him with her black mask, and then flies.
When she has gone, the housekeeper confesses that her pretended
Arragonian was a stranger, to all appearances a noble lady, who sought
refuge in Juliano’s house.
In the third act Angela reaches the convent, but not without having
had more adventures. Through Brigitta’s cleverness her absence has not
been discovered.
At length the day comes when she is to be made Lady
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Abbess, and she is arrayed in the attire suited to her future high
office, when iMassarena is announced, lie comes to ask to be relieved
from a marriage with Ursula, Lord Elfort’s daughter, who is destined for
him, and who is also an inmate of the convent, but whom he cannot love.
Notwithstanding her disguise he recognizes his beloved “domino,” who,
happily for both, is released by the Queen from her high mission and
permitted to choose a husband. Her choice, of course, is no other than
the happy Massarena. Ursula is consoled by being made Lady Abbess, a
position which suits her ambitious nature.
Le
Diamants de la Couronne.
(The Crown Diamonds.)
Opera in three acts by Auber. Libretto by
Saint-Georges.
Characters: Don Henry, Marquis di Sandoval; Count Campo Mayor; Don
Sebastian; Rebolledo, the brigand chief; Diana; Caterina; Queen Maria
Francesca; ladies and gentlemen of the court; brigands, monks and
villagers, etc.
Place, Portugal. Time, the Middle Ages. First produced at Paris in
1841.
When the opera begins a tempest is raging in the mountains of
Estremadura, near the hermitage of St. Hubert. Don Henry, Marquis of
Sandoval, after an absence of six years, has recently returned to
Portugal to marry his cousin Diana, daughter of Count Campo Mayor,
minister of justice to the Queen Maria Francesca.
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Don Henry is seeking shelter from the storm. He finds himself in a cave
occupied by brigands and coiners. The bandits resolve to assassinate him,
but he is protected by the niece of the chieftain, a handsome girl named
Caterina, who has fallen in love with him at first sight.
Soldiers surround the cave of the bandits, and by a secret passage
Caterina escapes. Disguised as monks the brigands also leave in safety,
bearing with them what is supposed to be the shrine of St. Hubert, but
which in reality is a hoard of false diamonds, the result of their
nefarious manufacture.
The scene of the second act is laid at Lisbon, in the castle of
Coimbra. The loss of the Crown -Diamonds has reached the ears of Don
Campo Mayor, and prevents him from extending his hospitality to the
occupants of a carriage which has come to grief just outside the castle
walls. The marriage of Don Henry and Diana is about to be solemnized,
although not altogether with the good-will of the expectant bride, who
is secretly in love with a handsome young officer, Don Sebastian. In the
persons of the strangers Don Henry recognizes the brigand chief and his
daughter Caterina. Diana is about to betray them to her father, but on
Don Henry declaring his love for Caterina, and promising to give up his
intentions towards her, she determines to aid Caterina to escape, and
the brigand’s daughter departs in Campo Mayor’s carriage, the act
terminating with Don Henry’s abrogation of the marriage contract.
The consummation takes place in the third act, the scene being the
palace at Lisbon. The young Queen is
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about to be crowned, and Diana, her father and Sebastian are present on
the occasion. Don Henry also comes in search of Caterina. Caterina’s
father, Rebolledo, is now a court favorite, having enriched the royal
coffers by selling the counterfeit crown jewels. He is made Minister of
Police, and Don Henry, utterly bewildered, is committed to prison. The
Queen, however, relenting on the side of justices summons Don Henry
before her, and in her he recognizes Caterina. Allowed a husband of her
own choice, she proclaims to her subjects that she has chosen Don Henry
to be her consort and their king.
Opera in three acts by Auber. Libretto by Scribe.
Characters: Ferdinand VI of Spain; Queen Maria Theresa; Raphael d’Estuniga;
Gil Vargas, his steward; Carlo Broschi, a singer; Casilda, his sister;
the Grand Inquisitor; nobles and ladies of the court; retainers and
servants.
Place, the vicinity of Madrid and Aranjuez, Spain. Time, Eighteenth
Century. First produced at Paris in 1843.
Carlo Broschi, a singer, has placed his only sister Casilda in a
convent near Madrid, to save her from the persecutions of the clergy who
have been trying for reasons of their own to give the beautiful maiden
to the King. At the beginning of the opera Casilda confesses to her
brother that she is in love with an unknown cavalier, who entertains a
like passion for her, but Carlo considers that his sister, a milliner,
does not stand high
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enough in the social scale to permit a lawful union with a nobleman.
Carlo then meets the King accidentally. He has fallen into deep
melancholy, and Carlo succeeds in cheering him by singing an old
romance, which he learned from his mother. Both King and Queen are full
of gratitude, and Carlo soon finds himself at court, loaded with honors.
In his new position he meets Raphael d’Estuniga, Casilda’s lover.
In despair at having lost his lady-love, Raphael is about to appeal
to the devil for help, when Carlo appears, representing himself as
Satan. He promises his help on condition that Raphael shall give him
one-half of all his winnings. This is a condition easily accepted, and
Raphael is made a court official through Carlo’s influence. Meanwhile
the clergy vainly try to ensnare the King again. Carlo is like His
Majesty’s better self; he disperses his Sire’s melancholy by singing to
him, and rekindles his interest in government.
Raphael, feeling quite secure in his league with the devil, begins
to play. He is fortunate, but Carlo never fails to claim the share,
which is willingly surrendered to him. All at once Casilda appears on
the scene to put herself under the protection of her brother, the
priests having found out her refuge. She recognizes the King, and tells
her brother that it was he to whom she was taken against her will. The
King believes her to be a ghost and his reason threatens to give way,
but Carlo assures him that the girl is living. The Queen, who knows
nothing of her husband’s secret, here interrupts the conversation, and
bids Carlo follow her.
Meanwhile Raphael and Casilda have an interview, but the King comes
suddenly upon them and at once
{148}
orders Raphael to be put to death, the latter having failed in the
reverence due to his sovereign. Raphael, however, trusting in the
devil’s help, does not lose courage, and Carlo actually saves him by
telling the King that Casilda is Raphael’s wife.
The Grand Inquisitor, however, succeeds in discovering this untruth,
and in exciting the King’s anger against his favorite. Carlo, much
embarrassed, obtains an interview with the King, and confessing the
whole truth assures him that the Queen knows as yet nothing, and
implores him to give his thoughts and his affections once more to her
and to his country. The King, touched to generosity, gives his
benediction to the lovers, together with a new title for Raphael, who is
henceforth to be called Count of Puycerda. Raphael at last learns that
the so-called devil is his bride’s brother, who tells him that this time
his share lies in making two lovers happy, a share which gives him both
pleasure and content.
Last updated February 09, 2007