Access Online - The European Library
Access Online - The European Library Access Online - The European Library
158 ARIADNE.She sat downby the zacchus of the statue, onthe great lion's head, that bore, with threeothers like it, the burden of the oval jasperbasin.She waslost in thought. Idid not speak toher. The early light of morning streamedthrough the length of the gaUery. Her face hadthe pained bewilderment of one who, after longunconsciousness and exhaustion, recovers littlebylittle the memories and the forces of life.Here,if "— " anywhere in the divine city of theVatican for in truth a city and divine it is,and well hasit been called so — here,if anywhere,will wake the soul of the artist;here, where thevery pavement bears the story of Odyssus, andeach passage-wayis a Via Sacra, and everystoneis old with years whose tale is told by hundredsor by thousands, and the wounded Adonis canbe adored beside the tempted Christ of Sistine,and the seriousbeauty of theErythean Sybil,livesbeside the laughing grace of ivy-crowned Thalia,and the Jupiter Maximus frowns on the mortalsmade of earth's dust, and the Jehovah who hascalled forth womanmeets the first smile of Eve.
ARIADNE. 159A Divine City indeed, holding in its innumerablechambers and its courts of granite andof porphyry aU that man has ever dreamed of,in his hope and in his terror, of the UnknownGod.She sat quite stUl along whde,while the sunbeamscame hi from on high, and the graveguardians of the place pacedbehind the grating.There was no sound at all anywhere,except thesound of the distant water fallingin the gardenswithout,farther away beyond the home of theMuses and of the ApoUo Musagetes.Then suddenly she rose and looked again atthe statue." This has hved two thousand years and more,and menstUl sayitis beautiful.Itried to makesuch a statue of him, so that his beauty shouldlive always. Iwill try once more. Otherwomen could not do that. Perhaps the worldwill praise it, and he wiU see it, and then he"wiU knowKnow how weU she loved him still! Ah, thathe knew too well! Men like Hilarion neverdistrust then- own power to keep what once
- Page 115 and 116: ARIADNE. 107and the naked there wer
- Page 117 and 118: ARIADNE. 109saw them. He had been,
- Page 119 and 120: ARIADNE. 111their goodnight's sleep
- Page 121 and 122: ARIADNE. 113her feel she wasliving
- Page 123 and 124: ARIADNE. 115Spring had come,Isay, a
- Page 125 and 126: ARIADNE. 117nightingales, and so pi
- Page 127 and 128: ARIADNE. 119foul patrician jade wru
- Page 129 and 130: ARIADNE. 121aburied village when th
- Page 131 and 132: ARIADNE. 123But for mypromise to he
- Page 133 and 134: ARIADNE. 125parts of Rome; a turn o
- Page 135 and 136: ARIADNE. 127seek to go away. He sto
- Page 137 and 138: ARIADNE. 129speak the truth. Yetit
- Page 139 and 140: ARIADNE. 131seems to me that you ar
- Page 141 and 142: ARIADNE. 133beauty against the gran
- Page 143 and 144: ARIADNE. 135Hilarion laughed ahttle
- Page 145 and 146: ARIADNE. 137that mirroredhim." That
- Page 147 and 148: ARIADNE. 139to be always seeing hea
- Page 149 and 150: ARIADNE. 141He laughed a httle, par
- Page 151 and 152: ARIADNE. 143ThenIturned,and woulcl
- Page 153 and 154: ARIADNE. 145other gain from her a m
- Page 155 and 156: ARIADNE. 147dead things none are so
- Page 157 and 158: ARIADNE. 149sometimes, and knew tho
- Page 159 and 160: ARIADNE. 151her; she was vaguely op
- Page 161 and 162: ARIADNE. 153She stayed aU the summe
- Page 163 and 164: ARIADNE. 155of tlie Nonii, to the s
- Page 165: ARIADNE. 157Then hot tears filled h
- Page 169 and 170: ARIADNE. 161open air of the gardens
- Page 171 and 172: CHAPTER XThat verynightImade a scul
- Page 173 and 174: ARIADNE. 165silent andlookinginto v
- Page 175 and 176: ARIADNE. 167never touched Maryx onc
- Page 177 and 178: ARIADNE. 169coidd not end the phras
- Page 179 and 180: ARIADNE. 171" Iwoulcl notpromise,"
- Page 181 and 182: ARIADNE. 173that are vile canbe fai
- Page 183 and 184: CHAPTER XLThe months went on, and s
- Page 185 and 186: ARIADNE. 177Hilarion: the man made
- Page 187 and 188: ARIADNE. 179" Is that aU that you k
- Page 189 and 190: ARIADNE. 181and the apes away. IfIc
- Page 191 and 192: ARIADNE. 183would change places wit
- Page 193 and 194: ARIADNE. 185to her. Youlook strange
- Page 195 and 196: CHAPTER XII.AVhex he had goneaway t
- Page 197 and 198: ARIADNE. 189you ? Imean simply and
- Page 199 and 200: ARIADNE. 191AlmostIlonged to teU he
- Page 201 and 202: ARIADNE. 193the ways of the world a
- Page 203 and 204: ARIADNE. 195" Take my life away wit
- Page 205 and 206: ARIADNE. 197talked of; it took a ti
- Page 207 and 208: ARIADNE. 199pale Carrara marble, an
- Page 209 and 210: ARIADNE. 201bit his tired senses in
- Page 211 and 212: ARIADNE. 203pure a breath of heaven
- Page 213 and 214: ARIADNE. 205before the world, and h
- Page 215 and 216: ARIADNE. 207— for her sake. He kn
158 ARIADNE.She sat downby the zacchus of the statue, onthe great lion's head, that bore, with threeothers like it, the burden of the oval jasperbasin.She waslost in thought. Idid not speak toher. <strong>The</strong> early light of morning streamedthrough the length of the gaUery. Her face hadthe pained bewilderment of one who, after longunconsciousness and exhaustion, recovers littlebylittle the memories and the forces of life.Here,if "— " anywhere in the divine city of theVatican for in truth a city and divine it is,and well hasit been called so — here,if anywhere,will wake the soul of the artist;here, where thevery pavement bears the story of Odyssus, andeach passage-wayis a Via Sacra, and everystoneis old with years whose tale is told by hundredsor by thousands, and the wounded Adonis canbe adored beside the tempted Christ of Sistine,and the seriousbeauty of theErythean Sybil,livesbeside the laughing grace of ivy-crowned Thalia,and the Jupiter Maximus frowns on the mortalsmade of earth's dust, and the Jehovah who hascalled forth womanmeets the first smile of Eve.
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