Louis N. Parker

“ Serah. Father, it is I! My child is dying!
Jacob. Joseph, my beloved, is dead; and Simeon is a captive in a strange land.
Serah. But we, the living, are an-hungered.
Reuben. All the seed of Israel will surely perish.
Jacob. Go again; buy us a little food.
Judah. The man did solemnly protest unto us, saying, Ye shall not see my face, except your brother, Benjamin, be with you.
Jacob.. Me have ye bereaved of my children; Joseph is not, and Simeon is not, and ye will take away Benjamin, whom his mother died in bearing: all these things are against me. ”

“ Zuleika. Come nearer. Give me thy hand.
Potiphar. [Sinking on his knees and seizing her hand] Thine is like a burning coal.
Zuleika. It is hot with shame.
Potiphar. Shame!
Zuleika. My lord hath scorned my gift.
Potiphar. What gift have I scorned?
Zuleika [Watching him keenly] I gave my lord a slave. My lord hasteneth to be rid of him.
Potiphar. Joseph—? Ah! Why speak of him now?
Zuleika. Why, truly? What is one slave more or less, even though I gave him?
Potiphar. I thought to please thee!
Zuleika. By scorning my gift? So thou wilt soon scorn all I give thee.
Potiphar. Zuleika! ”

“ JOSEPH: I'll not watch thee. I am for food and sleep.
DAN: Ay; to dream dreams of our downthrown, and thine uplifting.
JOSEPH: [Whimsically.] If I wake I am guilty, and I am guilty if I sleep!—Heigh-ho! I would Reuben were here. NAPHTALI: Reuben went to meet the wayfarers. Simeon. It is high time we spread out our wares.
Judah. Reuben having taken the slaves, we must unload the bales ourselves. To work!
[The brothers fetch the bales, etc., from where they are lying and spread the goods under the trees. Simeon places his half out of sight] Asher. Behold my rich woven-stuffs of camel-hair. ”

“ Did'st thou think a woman scorned was so easily appeased? Did'st thou think thy freedom, or thy life, was enough to atone? Thy life is nothing—thy freedom is nothing. Here thou shalt rot, knowing Asenath thinks thee a traitor, and knowing her misery. Here thou shalt eat thy heart out, knowing Asenath is the plaything of my hate! And when I choose to free thee, thou shalt come forth, a broken man, to find Asenath dead! JOSEPH: Thinkest thou the Living God hath given such power into thine hands? Thou can'st torture me today and tomorrow. Thou can'st torture Asenath today and tomorrow. ”

“ Yet thou seest them not!
Joseph. [Eagerly] I see the fairest.
Asenath. [Demurely] The Shepherd of Dothan is soft of speech.
Joseph. [Starting back] The Shepherd of Dothan—! Alas! I had forgotten.
Asenath. [Coming towards him anxiously] What had Joseph forgotten?
Joseph. I had forgotten I am a bondman to Potiphar; a stranger in Egypt; a slave; a straw, blown by the wind; a leaf floating on the water. Mine eyes are the eyes of a slave, and must see nought; my tongue is a slave's tongue, and must utter no sound [Passionately] though here—here—a man's heart be beating. ”

“ SIMEON: We are brethren, my lord: sons of one father. This morning we were eleven; but now one is not, and our hearts are heavy.
HERU: All men are mortal—save Pharaoh.
LEVI: Will not my lord sit in the shade?
JUDAH: My lord's wife, and her handmaidens must be weary.
HERU: Not my wife. We are bringing the lady Zuleikha to be the wife to the Pharaoh's general, the Lord Potiphar. ”

“ Thinkest thou the Pharaoh loveth him? Who is the king in Egypt? Not the Pharaoh, but this upstart. Do the Nobles love him, whose gold, whose cattle, whose lands and whose bodies he hath taken for a peck of corn? Strike! and Egypt shall call thee the Deliverer! [She throws off her veil]
Simeon. Woman! Thine eyes blaze through the night!
Zuleika. Strike! And thou shalt see them blaze with another flame!
Simeon. Woman! Woman! Thou pourest poison into my veins!
Zuleika. Set the Pharaoh free; redeem thy brother! Deliver Egypt; slay the man I hate——
Simeon [Quickly] Why dost thou hatest him? ”

“ Joseph. It is beating— [With intense eagerness] Asenath, Asenath, they whisper that war is at hand, that Pharaoh will send Potiphar forth to strike down rebellion. I will throw myself at my lord's feet; he shall let me fight at his side; fighting I will win freedom, and then, when I come back, a free man, mine eyes shall gaze into thine; and my tongue shall tell thee why my heart beateth so wildly.
Asenath. But in the battle thou may'st be slain. ”

“ Reuben. [To Asher, sternly] Son of Zilpah, what is thy news?
Simeon [Obsequiously, to Reuben] I will tell thee, apart.
Asher. Ay, him; but not Joseph.
Levi [To the Brothers generally] We will share with you all, if we needs must; but the dreamer shall have no part.
All. Ay! Ay! No part for the dreamer!
Reuben. I know not what new thing ye are banded in against Joseph; but I bid you beware. Our father loveth him as the apple of his eye. Today, are we go to our flocks, he is to endue him with the robe of manhood. To-night, when our labor is done, there is to be great feasting. ”

“ JOSEPH: [To the EGYPTIANS] Nay, but ye, the lords of the land, ye drink not, and your faces are dark.
TEHUTI: Our souls are heavy, my lord, for we are bondmen.
SEBNI: [Violently.] Lo! We have given our money, our cattle, our lands, and our bodies to the Pharaoh.
ATHA: There is nothing left but death!
DEDEFRE: How, then, can we be merry?
SEBNI: Shall a man laugh by his own graveside?
[Angry murmur and gestures among the EGYPTIANS. The HEBREWS are interested. ASENATH anxious]
JOSEPH: Ye mourn too soon. ”

“ Is love casting a veil over my soul's sight? What mist is this betwixt me and my beloved? I see him, but he is shrouded from me. Who was with him? There was one with him who set his soul in a storm, so that I saw his image blurred, as in troubled waters. Or is it the storm in my soul that sets the crystal a-quiver? Ay! I am taken in mine own springes! I have laughed at love, and watched, laughing, the death of lovers, and now a vulture is tearing at my heart. [She sinks back in the chair] Tomorrow, the rough warrior returneth, flushed with victory. Joseph is free, and I am a slave. ”

“ Jacob. Know ye what he dreamed?
Gad. Ay. Reuben made haste to tell us.
Levi. Is the boy to be set above us?
Judah. [Kneels] My lord, we have toiled for thee, watching thy flocks day and by night, warding off ravening beasts, and tending the young lambs. Moreover, when thy herds grew more in number than the sands of the sea, we fought for new pastures and would have laid down our lives for thee. The men of Shechem can tell of the weight of our blows. What hath Joseph done, that thou lovest him more than us?
Simeon. ”

“ PHARAOH. Forasmuch as God hath shewed thee all this, there is none so discreet and wise as thou art: Thou shalt be over my house, and according unto thy word shall all my people be ruled; only in the throne will I be greater than thou. [He rises.] Joseph art thou no more, but I will call thee Zaphenath Paneah, the prince of the days to be. [He comes down from the throne to JOSEPH, who is standing dazed. He draws off his signet-ring and places it on JOSEPH'S finger.] See! I have set thee over all the land of Egypt. ”

“ Zuleika. Were they with Joseph?
Wakara. No. They saw him not. They were deep in their plot. Where he stood he must have heard every word.
Zuleika. The plot against the Pharaoh? Ha! Now I hold him!
[Enter the six Maidens huddling through the doorway. They are half awake and frightened to death]
Mehtu. Wakara! What is it?
Anset. I am half clad!
Arilennu. I am half-awake!
Taherer. I am afeared!
Nesta. What ails thee?
Tamai. Why are we summoned?
Zuleika. [Dazed] You!—Did I summon you?—Ay! Wait! [To Wakara] Thou, seek him again. Say I command him hither by his troth to Potiphar. ”

“ To-morrow night, when Pharaoh is feasting Potiphar. Come.
[Exeunt]
Asenath. A plot against Pharaoh! It is too horrible!
Joseph. Nay—the horrible thing shall not be done. We will outwit them.
Asenath [Passionately] Swear I shall never be the murderer's wife!
Joseph. That will I readily swear! Get thee within! Gather courage for to-morrow.
Asenath. [Mastering herself] To-morrow—Lover, shall we ever meet again?
Joseph. Ay, shall we! I kiss sleep into thine eyes, and a smile into thy lips, and courage into thy heart. [He sees Wakara] Away! ”

“ Joseph. Joseph.
Zuleika [Very musically, drawing out the syllables] Joh-seph. [To Heru] Lo! I sought a gift to bring to my lord Potiphar, and I found nought. Here is what I sought. Thou, buy this lad of his brothers, and I will give him to my lord to be his slave.
Joseph. I will be no man's slave!
Zuleika [Very tenderly] Hush!—Thou shalt be my lord's slave—and mine.
[She disappears behind the curtains, which close over her] Judah [Hotly] The lad is restored to life. It is God's Hand. We cannot sell him.
Simeon. What! Shall he come home to tell Jacob?
Levi. Simeon saith well! ”

“ Joseph [Gravely] It shall be as you say. Yourselves and your lands ye shall bind to Pharaoh, and food shall be given you, and seed to sow your land. Go within. Let each man write out his account.
Tehuti. My lord is very merciful!
[They pass into the house with every token of despair. One veils his face, weeping] Sebni. He holdeth us in the hollow of his hand!
Atha. What care I? Shall I see my children starve?
[Exeunt]
[Joseph turns with a grave smile to Simeon] Joseph. Well, Simeon, my—guest—what thinkest thou of what thou seest in Egypt? ”

“ Menthu. Peace dwell in the land forever, that nought may drag thee from Zuleika's arms.
Potiphar. Great priest of Neith, the lover give thee thanks, though the soldier must upbraid thee.
Menthu. [At the door] The bride! The bride!
[Distant music coming nearer. All form up, to greet the Bride. Potiphar and Joseph are left alone.]
Potiphar [To Joseph] Thy shoulder, boy. Her beauty turneth my heart to water. I am afraid of too great joy.
Joseph. May the joy last forever, my lord.
Potiphar. Thou art too young—thou knowest not love. ”

“ Enter the four SOLDIERS and TEHUTI, supporting JOSEPH. The CROWD make way for them, falling back among the pillars of the side aisles, and an "Oh!" of amazement and pity issues from it. JOSEPH is, indeed, a pitiable figure. His camel-hair garment is in rags; his hair is long and wild; his face is pinched and drawn; his eyes are sunken. His frame is wasted away to skin and bone and he is shaken with fever and ague, so that he can hardly stand. ”

“ Gad. Oh, my elders, my elders! What worth is thine elderhood? When thou art hidden in the grave I shall be in the flower of my days.
Judah. [Furious] Accursed seed of a handmaid——
Gad [Laughing] Let not Dan hear thee.
Judah. The tents of Shechem are overrun with a base-born brood!
[Enter Simeon. He is thin, wizened, with a crafty face and a furtive eye. His dress is not so rich as that of any of his brothers] Simeon. Whither lead ye your flocks today?
Dan. What matter to thee, Simeon?
Simeon. Lest we all seek the same pasture. ”

“ Gad: This Joseph is as a nettle against our skin.
Naphtali: AS a viper in the young grass.
Zebulun: Let us take counsel against him.
Asher: Ay; but let not Reuben hear us.
[With an obeisance to Jacob they all go out. The beasts are led off. The Slaves follow. The Women and the Children go up to watch them off, Jacob, Rachel and Joseph are alone.]
Jacob: Joseph——
Joseph: Ay, Father. Jacob. Go, I pray thee. Follow thy brothers. See whether it be well with them and with the flocks, and bring me word again. ”

“ SCENE II—The Great Hall in the Pharaoh's Palace
A forest of huge columns, lotus-shaped, and towering almost out of sight, supports the roof, which is made of mighty slabs of stone laid flat from column to column. The central aisle is open at the back, and beyond it is a long avenue of sphinxes facing each other, and ending in a great temple. The side aisles seem protracted endlessly, and the light under them gets dimmer as the distance increases, until it finally becomes a greenish mystery. ”

“ Potiphar. Typho seize him!—Arouse the household. Have him hither with all homage.
[Exit Joseph. Wakara kindles the hanging lamps] Potiphar. [To Zuleika, indicating the door at the back] A plague on the marplot! Yet it were well if thou—
Zuleika. Oh, let me bide; I, too, would hear the news.
Potiphar. 'Tis nought. [Anxiously] The gods grant it be nought.
[Meanwhile the hall has filled with Potiphar's household. A trumpet sounds. Enter soldiers as the guard of honor. Joseph appears at the door] Joseph. The Lord Imhotep, Lord Chief Butler of the Pharaoh, the King of Kings! ”

“ Egyptians. Too merciful! Slay them all!
[At a sign from Joseph the Egyptians leave the hall and the curtains are closed]
[Judah brings Benjamin forward. He begins very quietly, very humbly; but as he goes on, he is carried away by the pathos of his own words. Towards the middle of his speech, Joseph veils his face. Asenath weeps silently']
Judah. Oh, my lord, let thy servant, I pray thee, speak a word in my lord's ears, and let not thine anger burn against thy servant, for thou art even as the Pharaoh.—My lord asked his servant saying, Have ye a father, or a brother? ”

“ My lord, we be the sons of a poor man. We have won these wells with much toil and battle. The wells are not free.
Heru. Must we do battle for the wells?
[The warriors in the caravan are at attention, and make ready their weapons] Heru [Haughtily] Let us drink, lest we slay you.
[The brothers are furious. Simeon appeases them with a movement of his hand. He continues, more humbly than ever, but with a veiled threat] Heru. I am Heru-Netch-Tef, the servant of Potiphar, the Egyptian.
Simeon. Were my lord Pharaoh himself, and slew us, or stole our water, my lord should surely perish. ”

“ Conscience alone can give comfort; but speak. SERSERU: I also was in my dream, and, behold, I had three white baskets on my head; and in the uppermost basket there was all manner of the bakemeats for the Pharaoh; and the birds did eat them out of the basket upon my head.
[ENENKHET is about to speak, but JOSEPH restrains him with a stern gesture.]
JOSEPH: [Gravely.] This is the interpretation thereof: The three baskets are three days. Yet within three days shall the Pharaoh lift up thine head from off thee, and he shall hang thee on a tree; and the birds shall eat thy flesh from off thee. ”

“ Joseph. Too late?
Asenath. My father is the priest of the great goddess Neith.
Joseph. Alas, I know not thy strange gods.
Asenath. Thou shalt tell me of thine in happier days. My father is a stern man. There is one man at court, a great officer in the Pharaoh's household, who standeth next to him when he breaketh bread—
Joseph. [Laughing] Of monstrous girth: I know him well—
Asenath. He seeketh me to be his wife.
Joseph. He—! That ancient mountain—!
Asenath. My father loveth him. [The Girls come down] I plead I am too young; the Chief Baker pleadeth he waxeth too old. ”

“ We have bought and sold for thee, not thinking of our own gain, but ever to strengthen thy hands. What hath Joseph done?
Gad. Set thy face towards us, as it is towards Joseph.
Dan. We weary of Joseph's name!
Rachel. [To Jacob] My lord, shall the son of my handmaid speak scornfully of my first-born?
Bilhah. Dan is the elder, my lord!
Rachel. [To her] Out on thee!
Jacob. [To Benjamin] Bid Joseph come. [Benjamin runs out] Woe upon you all, that ye speak evil of your brother in his absence. [He sees Joseph] My son, come hither.
[Enter Joseph] Joseph. ”

“ Into the darkness!
[He drags Tamai among the palms. Enter, L., Wakara, leading the Slaves, who bear a closed litter in which is Zuleika] Zuleika. Set me down. [She emerges from the litter. She is dressed in white, over which she wears a black veil.]
Zuleika. When the moon is straight above the tomb, come and bear me away. Be-gone.
[The Slaves hurry out, to the right side, bearing the litter with them] Zuleika. Thou, go spy whether Simeon cometh.
Wakara. Hast thou no dread? The ghosts of dead men are all about us.
Zuleika. I fear not the dead. Be-gone. ”

“ Asenath. We come to welcome the bride; we come to deck her bower with the lily and the lotus; with the red pomegranate, and with the purple passion flower.
[The Girls divide. Some go to the inner chamber, L. Others hang their flowers round the pillars at the back, and over the door R. Sebni and Tehuti help the latter. Tamai is one of these, and she constantly interrupts her work to gaze at Joseph] Joseph. [Gazing at Asenath] Happy the bride, with such flowers to greet her. ”

“ Simeon [Watching the basourah] Silence!
Zuleika's Voice. Heru-Netch-Tef!
Heru [With his hands uplifted; the attitude of worship] Thy slave hears.
Zuleika's Voice. Buy all their wares at their own price.
[Applause]
[Heru turns to Simeon] Heru. Thou—come apart with me, and let us reason.
Simeon. Alas! my lord will get the advantage. In my lord's hands I am but an innocent babe.
Heru. The gods shield me from many such!
[They move out of sight, bargaining]
[Slaves pack the wares] Joseph's Voice [From the pit in a sort of chant]
The Lord my God ”

“ The blessings of thy father have prevailed above the blessings of my progenitors unto the utmost bound of the everlasting hills; they shall be on the head of Joseph, and on the crown of the head of him that was separate from his brethren.
[All stretch their arms out to him in the soft afterglow of the sunset] Joseph. He raiseth the poor from the dust; from the depths He lifteth up the needy. Oh, Lord of Hosts, happy is the man who trusteth in Thee! ”

“ Tamai gives a great cry, and she sinks sobbing to her knees. Joseph stands quite passive. Zuleika watches with a smile] Potiphar. Away with the cur! Lest I defile my hands!
[Joseph is hurried out; the men in the crowd spit on him as he passes] Potiphar. [To Zuleika, but without looking at her; in a voice of horrible anticipation] Thou—thou—is there more?
Zuleika [With a magnificent gesture, displaying the dagger in her hand] Should I be on life?
Potiphar. [With a great cry of joy] Zuleika! ”

“ ASENATH and the two BOYS go behind the tables prepared for them. JOSEPH comes to the front of the platform.]
JOSEPH: [Gently.] Rise, friends. [A pause] Welcome, ye Hebrew Brethren! Is all well with you?
REUBEN: [Standing forward.] All is well with us, my lord. [He crosses and kneels at the foot of the platform.] Lo, we have brought an humble gift for my lord. Honey and spices, myrrh, nuts and almonds. It is not worth my lord's notice.
JOSEPH: The spirit of the gift is all. Is your father well? The old man of whom ye spoke? Is he yet alive?
REUBEN: Thy servant, our father, is in good health ”