Encompass round. You may convey him thence
To some safe shelter. Yet a moment's pause;
I must conceal your flight from ev'ry eye.
Yes, I will save, or perish in their cause.

Hannah More.

PERCY.

The Feads of the rival Houses of PERCY and DOUGLAS have furnished the materials for this Tragedy. ELWINA, the Daughter of EARL RABY, was betrothed to EARL PERCY. In consequence of her Father's Dependents having received an insult from the Followers of PERCY, the Match is broken off by EARL RABY, and PERCY joins the Crusaders in the Holy Land. During his absence, ELWINA is compelled to marry EARL DOUGLAS. Shortly after, PERCY returns, and seeks an Interview with ELWINA, being ignorant of her Marriage. PERCY is accompanied by his Friends, SIR HUBERT and Harcourt.

SCENE L.-A Garden at Raby Castle, with a Bower. Enter PERCY.

Per.... She comes! by all my hopes, she comes! "Tis she-the blissful vision is Elwina!

But ah! what mean those tears?-She weeps for me!
O transport!-go. I'll listen unobserved,
And for a moment taste the precious joy,
The banquet of a tear which falls for love.

[PERCY goes into the bower.

Enter ELWINA.

Elw. Shall I not weep? and have I then no cause?

If I could break the eternal bands of death,

And wrench the sceptre from his iron grasp;
If I could bid the yawning sepulchre
Restore to life its long-committed dust;
If I could teach the slaughtering hand of war
To give me back my dear, my murdered Percy,
Then I indeed might once more cease to weep.

[PERCY comes out of the bower.

Per. Then cease, for Percy lives.

Elw. Protect me, Heaven!

Per. O joy unspeakable! My life, my love! End of my toils, and crown of all my cares! Kind as consenting peace, as conquest bright, Dearer than arms, and lovelier than renown! Elw. It is his voice-it is, it is my Percy! And dost thou live?

Per. I never lived till now.

Elw. And did my sighs, and did my sorrows reach thee? And art thou come at last to dry my tears?

How didst thou 'scape the fury of the foe?

Per. Thy guardian genius hovered o'er the field,
And turned the hostile spear from Percy's breast,
Lest thy fair image should be wounded there.
But Harcourt should have told thee all my fate,
How I survived-

Elw. Alas! I have not seen him.

Oh! I have suffered much.

Per. Of that no more;

For every minute of our future lives

Shall be so blessed, that we will learn to wonder
How we could ever think we were unhappy.

Elw. Percy-1 cannot speak.

Per. Those tears how eloquent!

I would not change this motionless, mute joy,
For the sweet strains of angels: I look down
With pity on the rest of human kind,

However great may be their fame of happiness,
And think their niggard fate has given them nothing,
Not giving thee; or, granting some small blessing,
Denies them my capacity to feel it.

Elw. Alas! what mean you?

Per. Can I speak my meaning?

'Tis of such magnitude that words would wrong it;

But surely my Elwina's faithful bosom

Should beat in kind responses of delight,

And feel, but never question, what I mean.

Elw. Hold, hold, my heart, thou hast much more to suffer! Per. Let the slow form, and tedious ceremony,

Wait on the splendid victims of ambition.

Love stays for none of these. Thy father's softened;
He will forget the fatal Cheviot chace;

Raby is brave, and I have served my country:

I would not boast, it was for thee I conquered;
Then come, my love.

Elw. Oh, never, never, never!

Per. Am I awake? is that Elwina's voice?

Elw. Percy, thou most adored, and most deceived!

If ever fortitude sustained thy soul,

When vulgar minds have sunk beneath the stroke,

Let thy imperial spirit now support thee.—
If thou canst be so wondrous merciful,

Do not, oh, do not curse me! but thou wilt,
Thou must; for I have done a fearful deed,
A deed of wild despair, a deed of horror.
I am, I am-

Per. Speak, say, what art thou?

Elw. Married!

Per. Oh!

Elw. Percy, I think I begged thee not to curse me;
But now I do revoke the fond petition.

Speak! ease thy bursting soul; reproach, upbraid,
O'erwhelm me with thy wrongs—I'll bear it all.

Per. Open, thou earth, and hide me from her sight; Didst thou not bid me curse thee?

Elw. Mercy! mercy!

Per. And have I 'scaped the Saracen's fell sword Only to perish by Elwina's guilt?

I would have bared my bosom to the foe,

I would have died, had I but known you wished it.

Elw. Percy, I loved thee most when most I wronged thee; Yes, by these tears I did.

Per. Married! just Heaven!

Married! to whom? Yet wherefore should I know?

It cannot add fresh horrors to thy crime,

Elw. Oh! 'twill add to both.

How shall I tell! Prepare for something dreadful.

Hast thou not heard of-Douglas?

Per. Why, 'tis well!

Thou awful Power, why waste thy wrath on me?
Why arm omnipotence to crush a worm?

I could have fallen without this waste of ruin.

Married to Douglas! by my wrongs, I like it;
'Tis perfidy complete, 'tis finished falsehood,
'Tis adding fresh perdition to the sin,

And filling up the measure of offence!

Elw. Oh! 'twas my father's deed! he made his child

An instrument of vengeance on thy head.

He

wept and threatened, soothed me, and commanded. Per. And you complied, most duteously complied! Elw. I could withstand his fury; but his tears,

Ah, they undid me!

Percy, dost thou know

The cruel tyranny of tenderness?

Hast thou e'er felt a father's warm embrace?

Hast thou e'er seen a father's flowing tears,

And known that thou couldst wipe those tears away?
If thou hast felt, and and hast resisted these,
Then thou mayst curse my weakness; but if not,
Thou canst not pity, for thou canst not judge.
Per. Let me not hear the music of thy voice,

Or I shall love thee still; I shall forget
Thy fatal marriage and my savage wrongs.
Elw. Dost thou not hate me, Percy?

Per. Hate thee? Yes,

As dying martyrs hate the righteous cause

Of that blest power for whom they bleed-I hate thee. [They look at each other with silent agony.

Enter HARCourt.

Har. Forgive, my lord, your faithful knight

Per. Come, Harcourt,

Come, and behold the wretch who once was Percy.
Har. With grief I've learned the whole unhappy tale.

Earl Douglas, whose suspicion never sleeps

Per. What, is the tyrant jealous?

Elw. Hear him, Percy.

Per. I will command my rage.

Har. Earl Douglas

-Go on.

Knew, by my arms and my accoutrements,