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THE TWILIGHT OF THE GODS 
 
THE TWILIGHT 
 
 » 
 
 OF THE GODS 
 
 BY JOSEPHINE DASKAM BACON 
 
 NEW YORK 
 
 MITCHELL KENNERLEY 
 
 1915 
 
COPYRIGHT 1914 BY 
 MITCHELL KENNERLEY 
 
 .^^ 
 
 
 ^ 
 
 out 
 
 APS 12 1916 
 
THE TWILIGHT OF THE GODS 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 SCENE I 
 
 A vast indefinite vault of blue, faintly studded 
 with stars. On a lustrous cloud, firm about the 
 edge, as in ancient pictures, sit the Three Per- 
 sons of the Christian Trinity. God is repre- 
 sented as a severe, yet benignant man, on a 
 throne of sapphire, elderly, with a snowy 
 heard; Christ is a dreamy young Jew with a 
 crown of thorns; the Holy Ghost in the form 
 of a dove. 
 
 A vague, sweeping melody, as of harps, is 
 always in the air; from time to time a white, 
 swift shape, winged, shoots across the blue 
 vault. From below, as from a distant pit, comes 
 a confusion of sound, like the buzzing of bees. 
 Sometimes a groan, sometimes a laugh, some- 
 times a high note, as of a trumpet, penetrates 
 to the throne. Most often the wail of an in- 
 
 1 
 
8 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 fant or a clear bell, as it is rung before the 
 sacrament for the dying, mounts above the rest. 
 At intervals the heavy boom of a cannon shakes 
 through everything, followed by the screaming 
 shriek of shells. 
 
 The chant of priests is heard: As it was in 
 the beginning, is now and ever shall be ! 
 
 A Sharp Voice 
 Forward, march ! 
 
 The Priests 
 
 World without end, amen I 
 
 The Sharp Voice 
 Fire! 
 
 [A crashing volley of heavy artillery obliter- 
 ates all other sound for a moment, and a 
 volume of smoke rolls up to the throne. The 
 screams of horses and a thick odor of blood 
 mount sluggishly together.'\ 
 
 Children's Voices 
 
 Jesus, tender shepherd, hear me, 
 Bless thy little lamb to-night, 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 9 
 
 Through the darkness be thou near me, 
 Keep me safe till morning light! 
 
 Christ [advancing to the edge of the cloud and 
 spreading out his hands with a gesture of 
 infinite sweetness^ 
 
 It seems that I cannot hear them so well, 
 to-night. 
 
 [^There is a sudden odor of lilies, and a flock 
 of tiny cherubim flutter like nezv birds across 
 the blue vault. Behind them appears the 
 Virgin, standing upon a cloud, the crescent 
 moon under her feet. A sword is thrust 
 through her heart, which drops blood over 
 her blue robe. These drops turn to rubies as 
 they fall to the earth. Tears continually roll 
 from her eyes, and fall into the sea as pearls. 
 She approaches the throne.^ 
 
 God 
 
 Who is that? 
 
 Christ 
 
 That is Mary, my Mother. 
 
 God 
 
 I suppose she is bringing the prayers? 
 
lo The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 Christ 
 
 Without doubt. 
 
 l^Mary approaches and falls upon her knees 
 before the throne. Immediately the sounds 
 from below become louder and more dis- 
 tinct: words are plainly heard.'\ 
 
 A Rough, Drunken Voice 
 God damn your soul to hell! 
 
 A Woman's Voice 
 
 Take me — Oh, take me, God, and save the 
 child! 
 
 A Young Man's Voice 
 
 I swear to God I never promised that to any 
 other woman ! 
 
 A Child's Voice 
 
 I never stole it — ask God, and he will tell 
 you I never took the sugar I Please don't 
 beat me, mother I 
 
 A Young Girl's Voice 
 
 O God, I beg and pray thee to let me die! 
 May I not die, God? 
 
The Twilight of the Gods ii 
 
 A Boy's Voice 
 
 Dear God, when I wake up, please let me 
 find the knife with two blades by the bed! 
 If I find it in the morning, I know I shall 
 always be good! 
 
 A General's Voice 
 
 God bless you, my brave men, and bring to 
 our impious foes the annihilation they so 
 richly deserve. Animated by the pure and 
 holy courage of those who righteously defend 
 the Fatherland, I pray Almighty God that If 
 we must die, it may be only over the dead 
 bodies of our enemies. God be with us! 
 
 A Priest's Voice 
 
 From battle, murder and sudden death — 
 
 A Congregation's Voice 
 Good Lord, deliver us ! 
 
 God 
 
 Does the Queen of Heaven ask that all these 
 prayers be answered? 
 
12 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 Mary 
 
 Behold the handmaid of the Lord, be it unto 
 me according to thy word. If those that 
 seemed best might be answered . . . 
 
 God 
 
 No one seems to me better or worse than 
 another. The boy must have his knife, cer- 
 tainly . . . 
 
 [A terrific explosion is heard, shaking the 
 earth. Mary shudders and the sword in her 
 heart quivers.'] 
 
 Christ 
 
 What was that, O my father? 
 
 God 
 
 Do you mean that sparrow which has just 
 fallen to the ground, or that city which has 
 been blown up and has dropped into the sea? 
 
 A Military Band 
 God save the King! 
 
 A Mother's Voice 
 
 I am the proudest woman in France to-day — 
 I have given five sons to my country ! 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 13 
 
 A Lad's Voice 
 
 Slit the women's throats, comrades, burn the 
 ricks, tie up the gold and come on! 
 
 Children's Voices 
 
 Jesus, tender shepherd, hear me, 
 Bless thy little lamb to-night! 
 
 Christ [gleaning over the cloudy 
 I can hardly hear them, now . . . 
 [There comes a sound as of metal striking 
 on metal, and St. Peter appears before the 
 throne^ robed and with heavy keys. He 
 crosses himself haughtily.'] 
 
 Peter 
 
 In the name of the Father and of the Son 
 and of the Holy Ghost ! [Kneeling stiffly to 
 the Virgin] Hail Mary, full of Grace, the 
 Lord is with thee ! — Am I to let them all in 
 at once? 
 
 God 
 
 All! Are there more than usual, then? 
 
 Peter 
 
 More than usual? There have not been so 
 many at one time since that ship went down, 
 
14 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 a little while back. There Is no one who 
 feels for them at sea as I do : poor souls, the 
 waves are ill to walk on ! I have never been 
 easier with any . . . but this Is very differ- 
 ent. And mind you, they say they have all 
 been blessed beforehand and should be ex- 
 cused any further waiting. One would think 
 this was Valhalla, or whatever the heathen 
 place was called. I locked the gate for a 
 bit, to go Inside, and when I get In, what do 
 I find? A worse to-do than without, I give 
 you my word I There^s no holding them. 
 Michael with his sword, forsooth! And of 
 course it's no concern of mine, but you may 
 remember what I said awhile back about 
 making holy saints over night out of igno- 
 rant peasant girls! Well ... I can tell 
 you now that If she could get out she'd be 
 down there In a minute ! She says she hears 
 her voices again and that France needs her I 
 
 Christ 
 
 Simon, Simon I 
 
 Peter 
 
 Of course, I am only Peter — I am only the 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 15 
 
 Rock on which God's church is built— who 
 forsook the nets more quickly than I? 
 
 Christ 
 
 Even as she forsook the sheep. 
 
 Peter [sullenly'] 
 
 I deny that a woman can be called of God! 
 
 Mary 
 
 But I was called of God. 
 
 Peter 
 
 I deny that a woman is expected to bear a 
 
 sword ! 
 
 Mary 
 
 But I have borne a sword — [She touches her 
 heart] here— ever since I bore my son. 
 
 Peter [loudly] 
 I deny ... 
 
 [A cock crows, and he goes out, weeping bit- 
 terly.] 
 
 A Regiment's Voice 
 
 Bless our colors, Holy Father I 
 
1 6 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 A Dying Pope's Voice 
 I bless peace. 
 
 A Cathedral Choir's Voice [faintly] 
 
 Eternal rest give him, O Lord, and let per- 
 petual light shine on him. May he rest in 
 peace, Amen. 
 [Mary zceeps.] 
 
 Christ [sternly] 
 
 Woman, why weepest thou? 
 
 Mary [meekly] 
 Sir? 
 
 Christ [taking her hand as a Son] 
 
 mystical rose, tower of ivory, mother un- 
 defiled, who hath given a new grief to the 
 Queen of Heaven? 
 
 Mary [sadly] 
 
 1 weep because the shepherd of the world 
 dies, and he, whose foot the kings of the 
 earth have kissed, may not have his dying 
 prayer granted! 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 17 
 
 God [wearily'l 
 
 But I could not hear his dying prayer! I 
 would have been willing to grant it, undoubt- 
 edly, but just at that moment the cannon be- 
 gan. They should pray more loudly, or shoot 
 more softly, down there. 
 
 Mary [sobbing] 
 
 If you* could only see the faces of the poor 
 when they think of him — ah, he never forgot 
 my poor, my blessed poor I 
 
 God 
 
 If they fill the air with smoke, they cannot 
 expect me to see. With the incense it was 
 hard enough, sometimes, but I always sup- 
 posed they had their reasons for that. 
 
 Christ [in a low voice] 
 
 That was to cover the smell of the blood — 
 in the old days. 
 
 A Nun's Voice 
 
 O saving victim, 
 Slain for man — 
 
1 8 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 A Captain's Voice 
 
 Pah! There's no standing up in it, it's all 
 so slippery! Wipe out this trench, sergeant, 
 and reach me that bayonet — wrench it out 
 of his hand, then — he's dead enough for 
 that! Has he a drink on him? — For his 
 mother, he says? God! if I'm to remembe;: 
 all the messages to mothers I've had told me 
 to-day, I'd have no room in my head for 
 orders! 
 
 A Young Woman's Voice [through violins] 
 It seems hardly right to be dancing here, 
 when they're dying so fast across the 
 ocean . . . 
 
 A Trained Nurse's Voice 
 
 Ether! Where's more ether? This is hor- 
 rible ! — I can't keep him under, doctor. , . . 
 What is the matter with the Red Cross? 
 What are they for? 
 
 The Voice of a Common Soldier 
 
 Hey, comrade, can you give me a drop of 
 that water? 
 
J The Twilight of the Gods 19 
 
 The Voice of Another Common Soldier 
 I am sorry, comrade, but my back is broken; 
 It seems I can't move my arms. Help your- 
 self. 
 
 The Voice of the First 
 
 I'm bleeding too fast; I was shot through 
 the stomach. Well, It's all as God wills. 
 Wasn't I fighting against you, the last time, 
 hey? 
 
 The Voice of the Second 
 
 I believe so. It was only a few years ago 
 . . . and now we're comrades-at-arms, aren't 
 we? It seems queer . . . 
 
 The Voice of the First 
 
 What's the odds, now? It's all over with 
 us. What was the trouble, anyhow? 
 
 The Voice of the Second 
 
 We never knew. In my country. One mo- 
 ment I was holding my wife, just as her first 
 pains came, and then they hurried us Into 
 the ships. I don't mind dying for my Em- 
 peror, but It was a hard time to leave her. 
 
20 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 The other children are so small and the win- 
 ter's coming on . . . we're poor folk. They 
 had nobody but me. 
 
 The Voice of the First 
 
 That's bad. My old woman's past all that 
 trouble, Christ be praised, but it makes me 
 sick to think of the wheat — we left it full 
 stand, and the chargers tore through the best 
 of It. God pity the poor this winter — that^s 
 all I say I 
 
 The Voice of the Second 
 
 If the Gods ever pitied the poor, there would 
 be no poor. 
 
 The Voice of the First 
 
 The Gods? So you're a heathen, are you? 
 Oh yes, I remember when we fought you, ten 
 years back, they told us you worshipped your 
 ancestors, or some such wickedness. I won- 
 der at you — and as near death as you are, 
 tool 
 
 The Voice of the Second 
 You are as near. . . . 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 21 
 
 The Voice of the First 
 
 True, but I'm a Christian, you see. It's that 
 makes all the difference. I took the Com- 
 munion before we started. 
 
 The Voice of the Second [feebly] 
 
 Do you think, if I had been converted by 
 that man in the black trousers, that urged 
 me so, things would be easier now for the 
 children . . . with the winter coming 
 on ... ? 
 
 The Voice of the First 
 
 Surely. Without doubt. All heathen should 
 be converted; it is their first duty. 
 
 The Voice of the Second 
 Then I wish I had done it. 
 
 The Voice of the First 
 
 That's the way to feel I If only I could 
 move my arms, I'd baptize you, myself, com- 
 rade, but I can't feel my fingers, now. 
 
 The Voice of a Boy-choir 
 
 To be a light to lighten the Gentiles, and to 
 guide their feet into the way of peace ! 
 
22 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 The Voice of the First 
 
 What's that? Jesus Christ, it's the angels, 
 singing! Then I'm really dying ... it 
 doesn't seem possible, with the wheat left that 
 way! 
 
 The Voice of the Second 
 
 Oh, this pain ! Oh ! I'm torn to pieces in- 
 side! Water! water! They'll starve with- 
 out me — patience, patience, it will soon be 
 born, wife ! — 0-o-o-h ! 
 
 The Voice of the First 
 
 He's gone, poor fellow. Well, there's no 
 doubt as to my boys — the three of them went 
 when the first shell burst thisl morning. God 
 bless the Czar! God save Holy Russia! 
 \_He dies'] 
 
 Children's Voices [faintly] 
 
 Jesus, tender shepherd, hear 
 
 Christ [striding to the extreme edge of the 
 cloud] 
 
 Father ! my father ! I can barely hear them I 
 What does it mean? 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 23 
 
 Mary [quietly] 
 
 They have no food, and their voices are 
 weak. Then, too, the noise is growing deaf- 
 ening. 
 
 [A bomb explodes, violently, high in the air. 
 The airship that carried it is shattered and 
 scatters to the winds. Broken fragments of 
 human bodies fall into the sea. A vessel 
 filled with corn and a huge man-of-war load- 
 ed with troops break amidships, and sink 
 slowly under the waves.] 
 
 A Clergyman's Voice 
 
 But I say unto you, love your enemies, do 
 good to them which hate you, bless them that 
 curse you, and pray for them which despite- 
 fully use you. 
 
 College Students' Voices 
 
 Onward Christian soldiers, 
 Marching as to war, 
 With the cross of Jesus — 
 
 Christ [turning away weeping] 
 
 My God, My God, why hast thou forsaken 
 
 me? 
 
 [The smoke from the bomb grows so thick 
 
24 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 as to obscure the vault gradually ; the faces 
 of the Trinity can be seen but dimly. They 
 appear to flicker and grow pale. All is dark- 
 ness.^ 
 
 SCENE II 
 
 As the extreme darkness dissipates^ a grey 
 twilight takes its place, and when this has set- 
 tled itself y it is seen that there are no longer any 
 stars nor any light from the sapphire throne, 
 which is so indistinct in its outline as to resemble 
 a pillar of cloud. In the midst of this Jehovah 
 is dimly seen. He is alone. There is a great 
 silence. Then slowly, out of the shadowy 
 depths, vague forms begin to he visible, shifting 
 and changing like clouds in the windy sky. One 
 of these emerges from the rest and moves to- 
 ward Jehovah, more distinct than the others. 
 It seems to be a man of great dignity with a 
 long mantle and a patch over one eye. Another 
 with a wound turban and a curved scimitar fol- 
 lows him. A majestic Woman of unearthly 
 height, bearing a shield and draped in a classic 
 tunic, stands like a statue. Far back behind the 
 pillar a great Bull moves, rustling faintly, and 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 25 
 
 behind this again, the wavering outline of a 
 human body with the face of a Ram. A winged 
 Serpent, so dim as to be hardly seen, with a 
 Fishes head, coils and uncoils like a mist wreath. 
 The sound of the flowing of the River Nile is 
 now heard, and beneath it one can distinguish, 
 at intervals, the roar of the ocean, through 
 miles of space, 
 
 Jehovah 
 
 I am that I am. Who are here besides My- 
 self? 
 
 WOTAN 
 
 There are many of Us here — brother I Or 
 rather, thou art here with the rest of Us. 
 
 Jehovah \_severely^ 
 
 I am the Lord thy God : thou shalt have no 
 other gods before me. 
 
 WOTAN 
 
 Naturally. We have all felt that in our 
 time. But since you are here . . . 
 
26 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 Jehovah 
 
 Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven 
 image — 
 
 Pallas Athene [in a voice like a distant bell] 
 To this image, O Jove of the Hebrews, thou- 
 sands of thousands have kneeled — and I am 
 here. 
 
 Jehovah 
 
 — Or any likeness of anything that is in 
 heaven above — 
 
 A Voice [from a barely distinguishable cloud, 
 like a draped figure of darkness, with the 
 crescent moon upon Its head] 
 And yet to me, the violet, brooding Night of 
 Egypt, more tears have been wept than the 
 Nile holds drops! 
 
 WOTAN 
 
 Who art Thou, Darkness? 
 
 The Voice 
 
 I am Maut, the mother. Truly I was old 
 before thou wast born, Jahveh — and I am 
 here. 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 27 
 
 Jehovah 
 
 — Or that Is In the earth beneath — 
 
 The Bull [in a mellow rumble^ 
 
 O brother, look upon Indra the mighty I 
 They who sacrificed to me In thousands were 
 dust ere yet thou madest thy first man from 
 dust — and I am here. 
 
 Jehovah 
 
 — Or that IS In the water under the earth — 
 
 The Coiling Serpent [rustling and hissing 
 from his Fish's head] 
 
 Surely, youngest of Us, maidens were led 
 down to Dagon In sacrifice, and were for- 
 gotten of Dagon, ere Eve was made a 
 mother! And I am here. 
 
 [The air becomes thick with crowding, shad- 
 owy shapes: hideous, battered idols, rude and 
 savage sy?nbols, phallic figures, hundred- 
 breasted, bird-headed monsters, outlines of 
 pagodas, Doric pillars, great stone crom- 
 lechs and Druid altars. Clouds of old and 
 withered incense rise faintly through the dim- 
 
28 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 ness, and the wails and coughs of slaughtered 
 beasts are heard at irregular intervals 
 through all that follows, mingled with the 
 mutter of priests in all tongues, the chant of 
 choirs, the tears and groans of women.^ 
 
 Jehovah [firmly] 
 
 — For I the Lord thy God am a jealous 
 God— 
 
 Mohammed [boldly] 
 
 — Without doubt You were all jealous, al- 
 ways. Even I was jealous for Allah, who 
 will live longer than most of You, because 
 there are no images of Him to defile and no 
 pictures of Him to misunderstand. If they 
 cannot see You, they will respect You longer. 
 
 A Voice from the Gods 
 
 But if they cannot see Us they will not love 
 
 Us! 
 
 Jehovah 
 
 No man hath seen God at any time — 
 
 Mohammed [scornfully] 
 
 What! When Moses and Aaron, Nadab, 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 29 
 
 and Abihu, and seventy of the elders of Is- 
 rael went up Into the mount! 
 
 Jehovah [confusedly] 
 
 Behold, it is a stiff-necked people . . . 
 
 Mohammed [impatiently] 
 
 You are always thinking of Your Israelites — 
 You are Three how (may Allah forgive such 
 foolishness!) not One. Do you not recall 
 that You changed, a while ago? Since the 
 Nazarene, things have been very different — 
 I cracked many a skull In my day, to prove 
 him wrong, that Nazarene! I could never 
 understand how they could stomach all that 
 meekness . . . The fellow would not even 
 fight for his life. 
 
 WoTAN [growling] 
 
 It was no belief for a man. No wonder they 
 left It to the women, at the last. It Is only 
 war that keeps the world sweet — they decay 
 like ants when they cease to fight. Aye, they 
 breed and bloat and stink like maggots, and 
 eat each other. Faugh! 
 
30 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 The Singing Voice of a Missionary 
 
 The support of the audience is earnestly re- 
 quested for our final tremendous effort: The 
 World for Christ 1 Never before has the 
 growth of Christianity been so enormous, so 
 vital. Never before, since that Birth at 
 Bethlehem, have such masses of human souls, 
 spread over such stupendous areas of the 
 earth's surface, confessed their Lord and 
 Master Christ as Almighty God. 
 [There is a silence. The Gods look at one 
 another, surprised. A spear clangs on a 
 shield, and the majestic statue-woman 
 moves.~\ 
 
 Pallas Athene [coldly] 
 
 If these things are so, why are You here, 
 Jahveh? 
 
 All the Gods 
 
 Yes! Why is He here? 
 
 A Vast Figure [draped in a lion skin, with 
 an enormous club] 
 Perhaps Jahveh means Us to understand 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 31 
 
 that He Is only a tribal God, like Myself, 
 and that the One they now call God — 
 
 Jehovah [angrily] 
 
 Not at all. I am Alpha and Omega, the 
 beginning and the end — 
 
 A Congregation's Voice 
 
 Neither confounding the Persons nor divid- 
 ing the Substance. For there Is one Person 
 of the Father, another of the Son, and an- 
 other of the Holy Ghost . . . 
 
 Hercules 
 
 What! Then It Is as I said — ^You are not 
 that Son? 
 
 A Congregation's Voice 
 
 And yet they are not three eternals, but one 
 eternal . . . 
 
 Hercules 
 
 Then You are the God of Battles? 
 
 The Voice of St. John 
 God is love. 
 
32 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 The Voice of a Woman [she is long-haired, 
 upon a flying-horse, shooting like a star 
 across the gloomi 
 
 All-Father! Wotan! Wake, arise! They 
 are crowding in so fast we cannot carry 
 them ! The old days are here again ! The 
 world makes war! See — they are trooping 
 up from below and from below that, again! 
 There are the old ones, with spears, and 
 armor on the horses — look, the Kings! See 
 the Red Cross they wear — 
 
 Voices of Crusaders 
 
 On to Jerusalem ! Save the Holy Sepulchre ! 
 
 Jehovah [frowning] 
 
 Jerusalem? Jerusalem? Forty years long 
 have I suffered this generation — 
 
 Mohammed [angrily] 
 
 Always your Israelites ! It is Thy sepulchre, 
 Thine/ Oh, the dogs! At them, at them, 
 all true believers ! There is but one God and 
 Mohammed is His prophet! At them! 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 33 
 
 The Voice of Christ 
 
 O Jerusalem, thou that klllest the prophets ! 
 How often would I have gathered thy chil- 
 dren together — < 
 
 The Valkyr 
 
 There is a woman, too, with a red cross — she 
 tends them when they are wounded ... is 
 she also fighting, All-Father? 
 
 WoTAN [puzzled] 
 
 I cannot understand them nowadays. The 
 same sign serves for killing and curing. 
 
 The Valkyr [peering through the dusk] 
 There is the little man that fought there- 
 abouts, before — he that died on the island. 
 He cheers them on . . . there is the tall one 
 that wore the wreath and was stabbed — he is 
 hurrying his legions. There is the Maid that 
 rode the white horse — she is weeping be- 
 cause the angels will not bring her armor. 
 She says God wished her to wear the armor, 
 before . . . why does He dislike it now, All- 
 Father? 
 
34 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 WoTAN [with vexation] 
 
 No one knows. He Is very confusing. I be- 
 lieve myself that He cannot make up His 
 mind . . . 
 
 Mohammed [smoothly'] 
 
 He and His Son, perhaps, are not quite 
 agreed. 
 
 The Voice of Christ 
 
 Bellevest thou not that I am in the Father 
 and the Father in me? The words that I 
 speak, I speak not of myself . . . 
 
 The Valkyr 
 
 Ah! Fourscore slain at once! Truly, All- 
 Father, we were but children, in those days ! 
 See, one little round ball of Iron will travel 
 five leagues and then go through four men! 
 And the larger balls have fire in them — they 
 burst and shatter a company of fighters! 
 Their galleys fly through the air, even as we, 
 and drop death upon whole towns! 
 
 An Archbishop's Voice 
 
 George, defender of the Faith — 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 35 
 
 A Newsboy's Voice 
 
 The Emperor's son Is dead! 
 
 A Priest's Voice 
 
 Blessed are the dead that die in the Lord! 
 
 The Valkyr 
 
 Thousands — a score of thousands, All- 
 Father, in one battle! W^ill there be any 
 left upon the earth? 
 
 All the Gods [anxiously crowding together'\, 
 Will there be any left? 
 
 WoTAN 
 
 I — I cannot tell. 
 
 Mohammed 
 
 We must ask Brahm. 
 
 Jehovah [looking out from the pillar of 
 cloudy 
 Where is He ? 
 
 Mohammed 
 
 He is nowhere and everywhere . . . He is 
 the oldest — and the greatest. None has seen 
 
:^6 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 Him, which makes Him greater than You, 
 Jahveh; nor has He need of a prophet, which 
 makes Him, I must suppose, greater than 
 Allah. O Brahm, are men to vanish from 
 this Thy earth? 
 
 The Voice of Brahm 
 
 There must always be men, in order that We 
 may be. 
 
 WOTAN 
 
 But they change, Brahm, they change. We 
 are afraid . . . 
 
 The Voice of Brahm [wearily] 
 
 They never change. It is We who change — 
 they are ever the same. 
 
 WoTAN 
 
 But they die — » 
 
 The Voice of Brahm 
 
 In order that We may be sure of living. 
 
 Jehovah 
 
 And We live — ■ 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 37 
 
 The Voice of Brahm 
 
 In order that they may be sure of dying. 
 
 Mohammed [muttering'] 
 
 Then we are living to some purpose, for they 
 are dying very rapidly, it appears. And 
 Brahm Is right, when He says that they never 
 change. But We understood that You, 
 Jahveh, had agreed to change them — and 
 You are here, like the rest of Us. Who, 
 then, are We to understand, now rules the 
 world ? 
 
 \_J writing appears on the grey mist:'\ 
 AND I, IF I be lifted UP, WILL DRAW ALL 
 
 men unto me ! 
 
 Mohammed 
 
 The Nazarene? Certainly, he was lifted 
 up . . . But We know what he said — We 
 all know what he said . . . 
 
 The Voice of Christ [from a mountain\ 
 Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall 
 be called the children of God. 
 
38 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 WoTAN [solemnly~\ 
 
 Enough of this folly, Jahveh; are they Yours, 
 below there, or your Son's? 
 
 Jehovah [ahnost inaudibly^ 
 They are my Son's. 
 
 [He enters the pillar of cloud and fades hack 
 among the other Gods, who begin to grow 
 dim and shapeless.^ 
 
 Mohammed \_who is a little less shadowy than 
 the others^- 
 
 Then let the Nazarene appear! Let him join 
 Us, or explain to Us why he does not join 
 
 Us. 
 
 All the Gods [querulously^ 
 Let him appear! 
 
 Mohammed 
 
 Call him, Brahm. Call the Nazarene! 
 
 The Voice of Brahm 
 
 Carpenter, and Son of a Carpenter, appear ! 
 [There enters a Man crowned with thorns, 
 bent heavily beneath a great cross.] 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 39 
 
 The Voice of John the Baptist 
 Behold the Lamb of God I 
 
 The Voice of Pontius Pilate 
 
 Thine own nation and the chief priests have 
 delivered thee unto me; what hast thou 
 done? 
 
 The Man 
 
 My kingdom Is not of this world; if my king- 
 dom were of this world, then would my ser- 
 vants fight . . . but now is my kingdom not 
 from hence. 
 
 All the Gods 
 
 Then, where Is thy kingdom? 
 
 The Man [with infinite sorrow^ 
 
 Foxes have holes, and birds of the air have 
 nests, but the Son of Man hath not where 
 to lay his head I 
 
 The Voice of a Crowd 
 
 What need we any further witness? For we 
 ourselves have heard of his own mouth ! 
 
40 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 Mohammed [impatiently] 
 
 Then, you give them up, dowrx there? You 
 acknowledge that you are not their God? 
 
 The Voice of the Crowd 
 Crucify him! Crucify him I 
 
 The Voice of Brahm [dreamily] 
 
 This same . . . always the same . . . they 
 never change . . . 
 
 WoTAN [eagerly] 
 
 Indeed that is so, Carpenter. They never 
 change ! Give them to Us ! Give them 
 back! Myself, I should be ashamed to be 
 the God of a people that would not fight! 
 
 Mohammed 
 
 When I ceased to lead them in battle, Allah 
 ceased to conquer the world. Give them to 
 Me! 
 
 Pallas Athene 
 
 I was never pictured without my helmet — 
 when my children forgot the art of war, all 
 their arts ceased with it. Give them to Me, 
 O peasant whose body is not even beautiful! 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 41 
 
 Shiva [sadly] 
 
 Mine were never strong enough for battle, 
 and so, praying aloud to thee, with bloody 
 swords, those soldiers of thine conquered and 
 ruled My millions. 
 
 The Man gently] 
 
 Greater is he that ruleth his spirit than he 
 that taketh a city. 
 
 WOTAN [with greater impatience than before] 
 But they do not think so ! They pretended 
 to believe it, for a time, but when it comes to 
 the point, look at them! Those were only 
 words — in their hearts they have never 
 changed, Carpenter ! They move about more 
 quickly, they are very clever, and they have 
 more to eat, and they know how to talk to 
 one another from great distances; but at 
 heart they are the same as when they burned 
 themselves on My funeral pyres ! 
 
 Moloch 
 Or Mine! 
 
 The Voice of Brahm 
 
 The same . . . always the same . . . 
 
42 The Twilight of the Gods 
 
 All the Gods 
 
 Give them to Us! Give them back! 
 [The man of sorrows sinks down under the 
 Cross. The roar of the ocean becomes again 
 the thunder of heavy cannon; the incense he- 
 comes acrid smoke; the cries of the sacrificial 
 victims change to the groans and screams of 
 the dying. Sharp flashes of lurid light leap 
 across the clouds from the flying, falling 
 bombs. In these flashes the faces of the 
 Gods become brighter, their expression more 
 violent and vivid. The rattle of drums and 
 the shriek of fifes, the neighing of horses, 
 the clash of swords, increase furiously.'] 
 
 The Voices of an Army [singing] 
 A mighty fortress is our God I 
 
 WoTAN [brandishing his spear] 
 
 Come! Come! To me, my brave heroes! 
 
 The Valkyr [leaping on her horse, and shout- 
 ing] 
 Ho-yo-to-ho ! 
 
The Twilight of the Gods 43 
 
 Mohammed [wildlyl 
 
 Death ! Death and Paradise I 
 
 The Voices of the Children [dyin^ faintly'] 
 Jesus, tender . . . 
 [All is lost in the rolling smoke.]