Louis N. Parker

“ 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. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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! ”

“ 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. ”

“ In the valley, dimly seen, are the groups of tents, from which, when the sun has risen, thin threads of smoke rise straight into the air.
It is the moment just before dawn. The snowy caps of the distant mountains glow with a rosy light which slowly creeps down their sides until the whole landscape is baking in the glare of the sun. ”

“ 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. ”

“ 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 ”

“ 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. ”

“ Men. How long must I wait for thy love?
Maids. As Jacob waited for Rachel!
[Jacob has watched the dancers with increasing excitement. He has seized Rachel's hand. He has been remembering his youth. Now he suddenly snatches a harp from the player nearest to him, and, rising to his full height and striking a great chord, cries aloud] Jacob. As Jacob waited for Rachel!—
Issachar [Stopping the dancers.] Peace! Peace! Hear Israel speak!
[Sudden hush. Jacob proceeds in a sort of inspiration, accompanying his speech with the chords on the harp.] Jacob—
For, lo! ”

“ The scene remains in cool shade.
Before the rise of the curtain a long, melodious horn-call has sounded. As the curtain rises, a Slave standing near the tent L. is seen blowing on a ram's horn. Gradually the scene comes to life. ”

“ Bring no sorrow into our father's house to-day. Moreover, Joseph hath dreamed a dream——
Gad [With a mocking laugh] That is no new thing!
Reuben [Sternly] Bridle thy tongue—for when did Joseph's dreams not come true? And now he dreamed we were binding corn in the fields, and, lo, his sheaf arose and stood upright, and, behold, our sheaves stood round about, and made obeisance to his sheaf.
Simeon [Surlily] What is the interpretation thereof?
Judah [Hotly] Shall he reign over us?
Dan. Shall he, indeed, have authority over us?
Gad. [To brothers] Why are ye affrighted by a dream? ”

“ Jacob: Now the day's labor summoneth us. What new thing is there, Reuben?
Reuben: Asher telleth of a strange woman from Nineveh, journeying with a great following into Egypt. They will reach our wells in Dothan anon.
Jacob: Go thither. Take the fruits and the rich woven stuffs and whatsoever the wayfarers need, and barter with them.
Gad: [Laughing.] The strangers are hard to deal with: Simeon shall do the bartering.
Jacob: [With a smile.] That will be to our increase. And to-night we will have feasting and song and merrymaking in Joseph's honor ”

“ While the dance is in progress, the SLAVES hand round the food and the drink to JACOB and his group, to the brothers, who stand together on the opposite side of the stage, and to the non-dancers. The non-dancers, not otherwise occupied, clap their hands rhythmically to the dance.]
[First, the men unwind from the crowd where they appear to have been standing in no particular order, and dance down, forming graceful figures, and singing as they dance.]
ISSACHAR: First come the camel drivers, with their song.
MEN: [Singing and dancing:] (Solo) Wide and waste is the wilderness ”

“ It increses rapidly. Prsently a gorgeous caravan heaves in sight. First a runner on foot, showing the nay; then the slaves bearing heavy burdens, and tents, etc. Then the warriors mounted on their horses or camels, and armed to the teeth. [Spears, swords, bows and arrows, etc.] Then camels with women closely veiled; then another camel magnificently caparisoned, with a curtained basourah on its back, in which the figure of a woman is dimly perceptible. Lastly, more mounted and unmounted warriors. The caravan halts, and all but the women dismount ”