’Tisdoneandpast;’twasright,myinstinctsaid;
Toolivethelifegrew,goldenandnotgray:
AndI’mtheweak-eyedbatnosunshouldtemptOutofthegrangewhosefourwallsmakehisworld。[170]
Howcoulditendinanyotherway?
Youcalledme,andIcamehometoyourheart。
Thetriumphwas,tohaveendedthere;then,ifIreachediterethetriumph,whatislost?
Letmyhandsframeyourfaceinyourhair’sgold,YoubeautifulLucreziathataremine!”Rafaeldidthis,Andreapaintedthat;
TheRoman’sisthebetterwhenyoupray,Butstilltheother’sVirginwashiswife”——
Menwillexcuseme。Iamgladtojudge[180]
Bothpicturesinyourpresence;clearergrowsMybetterfortune,Iresolvetothink。
For,doyouknow,Lucrezia,asGodlives,SaidonedayAgnolo,hisveryself,ToRafael……Ihaveknownitalltheseyears……
WhentheyoungmanwasflamingouthisthoughtsUponapalace-wallforRometosee,Tooliftedupinheartbecauseofit”Friend,there’sacertainsorrylittlescrubGoesupanddownourFlorence,nonecareshow,[190]
Who,werehesettoplanandexecuteAsyouare,prickedonbyyourpopesandkings,Wouldbringthesweatintothatbrowofyours!”
ToRafael’s!——Andindeedthearmiswrong。
Ihardlydare……yet,onlyyoutosee,Givethechalkhere——quick,thusthelineshouldgo!
Ay,butthesoul!he’sRafael!rubitout!
Still,allIcarefor,ifhespokethetruth,Whathe?why,whobutMichelAgnolo?
Doyouforgetalreadywordslikethose?[200]
Ifreallytherewassuchachancesolost,——
Is,whetheryou’re——notgrateful——butmorepleased。
Well,letmethinkso。Andyousmileindeed!
Thishourhasbeenanhour!Anothersmile?
IfyouwouldsitthusbymeeverynightIshouldworkbetter,doyoucomprehend?
ImeanthatIshouldearnmore,giveyoumore。
See,itissettleddusknow;there’sastar;
Morello’sgone,thewatch-lightsshowthewall,Thecue-owlsspeakthenamewecallthemby。[210]
Comefromthewindow,love,——comein,atlast,InsidethemelancholylittlehouseWebuilttobesogaywith。Godisjust。
KingFrancismayforgiveme:oftatnightsWhenIlookupfrompainting,eyestiredout,Thewallsbecomeillumined,brickfrombrickDistinct,insteadofmortar,fiercebrightgold,ThatgoldofhisIdidcementthemwith!
Letusbutloveeachother。Mustyougo?
Thatcousinhereagain?hewaitsoutside?[220]
Mustseeyou——you,andnotwithme?Thoseloans?
Moregamingdebtstopay?yousmiledforthat?
Well,letsmilesbuyme!haveyoumoretospend?
WhilehandandeyeandsomethingofaheartAreleftme,work’smyware,andwhat’sitworth?
I’llpaymyfancy。OnlyletmesitThegrayremainderoftheeveningout,Idle,youcallit,andmuseperfectlyHowIcouldpaint,wereIbutbackinFrance,Onepicture,justonemore——theVirgin’sface,[230]
Notyour’sthistime!IwantyouatmysideTohearthem——thatis,MichelAgnolo——
JudgeallIdoandtellyouofitsworth。
Willyou?To-morrow,satisfyyourfriend。
Itakethesubjectsforhiscorridor,Finishthepotraitoutofhand——there,there,AndthrowhiminanotherthingortwoIfhedemurs;thewholeshouldproveenoughTopayforthissamecousin’sfreak。Beside,What’sbetterandwhat’sallIcareabout,[240]
Getyouthethirteenscudifortheruff!
Love,doesthatpleaseyou?Ah,butwhatdoeshe,Thecousin!whatdoeshetopleaseyoumore?
Iamgrownpeacefulasoldageto-night。
Iregretlittle,Iwouldchangestillless。
Sincetheremypastlifelies,whyalterit?
TheverywrongtoFrancis!——itistrueItookhiscoin,wastemptedandcomplied,Andbuiltthishouseandsinned,andallissaid。
Myfatherandmymotherdiedofwant。[250]
Well,hadIrichesofmyown?youseeHowonegetsrich!Leteachonebearhislot。
Theywerebornpoor,livedpoor,andpoortheydied:
AndIhavelaboredsomewhatinmytimeAndnotbeenpaidprofusely。SomegoodsonPaintmytwohundredpictures——lethimtry!
Nodoubt,there’ssomethingstrikesabalance。Yes,Youlovedmequiteenough,itseemsto-night。
Thismustsufficemehere。Whatwouldonehave?
Inheaven,perhaps,newchances,onemorechance——[260]
FourgreatwallsintheNewJerusalem,Metedoneachsidebytheangel’sreed,ForLeonard,Rafael,Agnolo,andmeTocover——thethreefirstwithoutawife,WhileIhavemine!So——stilltheyovercomeBecausethere’sstillLucrezia,——asIchoose。
Againthecousin’swhistle!Go,mylove——
29。Myface,mymoon:”Once,likethemoon,ImadeTheever-shiftingcurrentsofthebloodAccordingtomyhumorebbandflow。”——
Cleopatra,inTennyson’s`ADreamofFairWomen’。”Youarethepowerfulmoonofmyblood’ssea,TomakeitebborflowintomyfaceAsyourlookschange。”——
FordandDecker’s`WitchofEdmonton’。
35。Acommongrayness:AndreadelSartowasdistinguishedforhisskillinchiaro-oscuro。
82。low-pulsedforthrightcraftsman’shand:”AndreadelSarto’swas,afterall,butthe`low-pulsedforthrightcraftsman’shand’,andthereforehisperfectartdoesnottouchourheartslikethatofFraBartolommeo,whooccupiesaboutthesamepositionwithregardtothegreatmastersofthecenturyasAndreadelSarto。FraBartolommeospokefromhisheart。Hewasmovedbythespirit,sotospeak,toexpresshispureandholythoughtsinbeautifullanguage,andtheidealthatpresenteditselftohismind,andfromwhichhe,equallywithRaphael,worked,approachedalmostascloselyasRaphael’stothatabstractbeautyafterwhichtheybothlonged。AndreadelSartohadnosuchlonging:hewascontentwiththelovelinessofearth。
Thishecouldunderstandandimitateinitsfullestperfection,andthereforehetroubledhimselfbutlittleaboutthe`wondrouspaterne’laidupinheaven。ManyofhisMadonnashavegreaterbeauty,strictlyspeaking,thanthoseofBartolommeo,orevenofRaphael;butwemissinthemthatmysteriousspirituallovelinessthatgivesthelattertheirchiefcharm。”——
Heaton’sHistoryofPainting。
93。Morello:thehighestofthespursoftheApenninestothenorthofFlorence。
96。Speakastheyplease,whatdoesthemountaincare?:it’sbeyondtheircriticism。
105。TheUrbinate:RaphaelSanti,born1483,inUrbino。
AndreaseesinRaphael,whosetechniquewasinferiortohisown,hissuperior,ashereachedaboveandthroughhisart——
foritgivesway。
106。GeorgeVasari:seenoteunderSt。9of`OldPicturesinFlorence’。
120。Nay,Love,youdidgiveallIasked:itmustbeunderstoodthathiswifehasrepliedwithpique,towhathesaidinthetwoprecedinglines。
129。bythefuture:whenplacedby,incomparisonwith,thefuture。
130。Agnolo:MichaelAngelomorecorrectly,AgnoloBuonarotti。
SeenoteunderSt。30of`OldPicturesinFlorence’。
146。ForfearofchancingontheParislords:byreasonofhisbreakingthefaithhehadpledgedtoFrancisI。ofFrance,andusingforhisownpurposes,orhiswife’s,themoneywithwhichthekinghadentrustedhimtopurchaseworksofartinItaly。
149-165。ThatFrancis,thatfirsttime:hethinkswithregretofthekingandofhishonoredandinspiringstayathiscourt。
161。bythosehearts:alongwith,bytheaidof。
173。Thetriumphwas……there:i。e。,inyourheart。
174。erethetriumph:inFrance。
177。Rafaeldidthis,……washiswife:aremarkascribedtosomecritic。
198。Ifhespokethetruth:i。e。,abouthimself。
199。Whathe:doyouask?
202。allIcarefor……iswhetheryou’re。
209。Morello’sgone:itsoutlinesarelostinthedusk。Seev。93。
218。Thatgoldofhis:seenotetov。146。
220。Thatcousinhereagain?:oneofLucrezia’sgallantsisreferredto,topaywhosegamingdebts,itappears,shehasobtainedmoneyofherhusband。Itmustbeunderstoodthatthisgallantwhistleshere。Seelastverseofthemonologue。
263。Leonard:LeonardodaVinci。
FraLippoLippi。
IampoorbrotherLippo,byyourleave!
Youneednotclapyourtorchestomyface。
Zooks,what’stoblame?youthinkyouseeamonk!
What,’tispastmidnight,andyougotherounds,Andhereyoucatchmeatanalley’sendWheresportiveladiesleavetheirdoorsajar?
TheCarmine’smycloister:huntitup,Do,——harryout,ifyoumustshowyourzeal,Whateverrat,there,hapsonhiswronghole,Andnipeachsoftlingofaweewhitemouse,[10]
`Weke,weke’,that’screpttokeephimcompany!
Aha!youknowyourbetters?Then,you’lltakeYourhandawaythat’sfiddlingonmythroat,Andpleasetoknowmelikewise。WhoamI?
Why,one,sir,whoislodgingwithafriendThreestreetsoff——he’sacertain……howd’yecall?
Master——a……CosimooftheMedici,I’thehousethatcapsthecorner。Boh!youwerebest!
Rememberandtellme,thedayyou’rehanged,Howyouaffectedsuchagullet’s-gripe![20]
Butyou,sir,itconcernsyouthatyourknavesPickupamanner,nordiscredityou:
Zooks,arewepilchards,thattheysweepthestreetsAndcountfairprizewhatcomesintotheirnet?
He’sJudastoatittle,thatmanis!
Justsuchaface!Why,sir,youmakeamends。
Lord,I’mnotangry!BidyourhangdogsgoDrinkoutthisquarter-florintothehealthOfthemunificentHousethatharborsmeAndmanymorebeside,lads!morebeside![30]
Andall’scomesquareagain。I’dlikehisface——
His,elbowingonhiscomradeinthedoorWiththepikeandlantern,——fortheslavethatholdsJohnBaptist’sheada-danglebythehairWithonehand”Lookyou,now”,aswhoshouldsay
Andhisweaponintheother,yetunwiped!
It’snotyourchancetohaveabitofchalk,Awood-coalorthelike?oryoushouldsee!
Yes,I’mthepainter,sinceyoustylemeso。
What,brotherLippo’sdoings,upanddown,[40]
Youknowthem,andtheytakeyou?likeenough!
Isawthepropertwinkleinyoureye——
’Tellyou,Ilikedyourlooksatveryfirst。
Let’ssitandsetthingsstraightnow,hiptohaunch。
Here’sspringcome,andthenightsonemakesupbandsToroamthetownandsingoutcarnival,AndI’vebeenthreeweeksshutwithinmymew,A-paintingforthegreatman,saintsandsaintsAndsaintsagain。Icouldnotpaintallnight——
Ouf!Ileanedoutofwindowforfreshair。[50]
Therecameahurryoffeetandlittlefeet,Asweepoflute-strings,laughs,andwhiftsofsong——
`Flowero’thebroom,Takeawaylove,andourearthisatomb!
Flowero’thequince,IletLisago,andwhatgoodinlifesince?
Flowero’thethyme’——andsoon。Roundtheywent。
ScarcehadtheyturnedthecornerwhenatitterLiketheskippingofrabbitsbymoonlight,——threeslimshapes,Andafacethatlookedup……zooks,sir,fleshandblood,[60]
That’sallI’mmadeof!Intoshredsitwent,Curtainandcounterpaneandcoverlet,Allthebed-furniture——adozenknots,Therewasaladder!DownIletmyself,Handsandfeet,scramblingsomehow,andsodropped,Andafterthem。IcameupwiththefunHardbySaintLawrence,hailfellow,wellmet,——
`Flowero’therose,IfI’vebeenmerry,whatmatterwhoknows?’
Andso,asIwasstealingbackagain,[70]
TogettobedandhaveabitofsleepEreIriseupto-morrowandgoworkOnJeromeknockingathispooroldbreastWithhisgreatroundstonetosubduetheflesh,Yousnapmeofthesudden。Ah,Isee!
Thoughyoureyetwinklesstill,youshakeyourhead——
Mine’sshaved——amonk,yousay——thesting’sinthat!
IfMasterCosimoannouncedhimself,Mum’sthewordnaturally;butamonk!
Come,whatamIabeastfor?tellus,now![80]
IwasababywhenmymotherdiedAndfatherdiedandleftmeinthestreet。
Istarvedthere,Godknowshow,ayearortwoOnfig-skins,melon-parings,rindsandshucks,Refuseandrubbish。Onefinefrostyday,Mystomachbeingemptyasyourhat,ThewinddoubledmeupanddownIwent。
OldauntLapacciatrussedmewithonehandItsfellowwasastinger,asIknew,Andsoalongthewall,overthebridge,[90]
Bythestraightcuttotheconvent。Sixwordsthere,WhileIstoodmunchingmyfirstbreadthatmonth:”So,boy,you’reminded,”quoththegoodfatfatherWipinghisownmouth,’twasrefection-time,——”Toquitthisverymiserableworld?
Willyourenounce”……”themouthfulofbread?”thoughtI;
Bynomeans!Brief,theymadeamonkofme;
Ididrenouncetheworld,itsprideandgreed,Palace,farm,villa,shop,andbanking-house,Trash,suchasthesepoordevilsofMedici[100]
Havegiventheirheartsto——allateightyearsold。
Well,sir,Ifoundintime,youmaybesure,’Twasnotfornothing——thegoodbellyful,Thewarmsergeandtheropethatgoesallround,Andday-longblessedidlenessbeside!”Let’sseewhattheurchin’sfitfor”——thatcamenext。
Notovermuchtheirway,Imustconfess。
Suchato-do!Theytriedmewiththeirbooks:
Lord,they’dhavetaughtmeLatininpurewaste!
`Flowero’theclove,[110]
AlltheLatinIconstrueis,”Amo”Ilove!’