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JADWIGA. Enough! Lord, what is the matter with me? Leon, I love you!

LEON.Oh, my dearest! (He presses her to his breast. A moment of silence.)

JADWIGA. I have found you. I loved you always. Ah! how miserable I was without you! With love for you I defended myself from all temptations. You do not know it, but I used to see you. It caused me grief and joy. I could not live any longer without you, and I asked you to come–I did it purposely. If you had not come, something dreadful would have happened. Now we shall never separate. We shall never be angry–is it not so? (A moment of silence.)

LEON(as though awakening from slumber).–Madam, you must pardon me–I mistook the present for the past, and permitted myself to be carried away by an illusion. Pardon me!

JADWIGA. Leon, what do you mean?

LEON(earnestly).–I forgot for a moment that you are the wife of another.

JADWIGA. Oh, you are always honest and loyal. No, there shall be no guilty love between us. I know you, my great, my noble Leon. The hand which I stretch out to you is pure–I swear it to you. You must also forgive me a moment of forgetfulness. Here I stand before you, and say to you: I will not be yours until I am free. But I know that my husband will consent to a divorce. I will leave him all my fortune, and because I formerly offended your pride–it was my fault–yes, my own fault–you shall take me poor, in this dress only–will it suit you? Then I will become your lawful wife. Oh, my God! and I shall be honest, loving, and loved. I have longed for it with my whole soul. I cannot think of our future without tears. God is so good! When you return from your studio at night, you will come neither to an empty room nor to grief. I will share your every joy, your every sorrow–I will divide with you the last piece of bread. Truly, I cannot speak for tears. Look, I am not so bad, but I have been so miserable. I loved you always. Ah, you bad boy, if it were not for your pride we should have been happy long ago. Tell me once more that you love me–that you consent to take me when I shall be free–is it not so, Leon?

LEON.No, madam!

JADWIGA. Leon, my dearest, wait! Perhaps I have not heard well. For I cannot comprehend that when I am hanging over a precipice of despair, when I seize the edge with my hands, you, instead of helping me–you place your feet on my fingers! No! it is impossible. You are too good for that! Do not thrust me away. My life now would be still worse. I have nothing in the world but you, and with you I lost happiness–not alone happiness but everything in me which is good–which cries for a quiet and saintly life. For now it would be forever. But you do not know how happy you yourself will be when you will have forgiven me and rescued me. You have loved me, have you not? You have said it yourself. I have heard it. Now I stretch out my hands to you like a drowning person–rescue me!

LEON.We must finish this mutual torture. Madam, I am a weak man. I would give way if–but I wish to spare you–if not for the fact that my sore and dead heart cannot give you anything but tears and pity.

JADWIGA. You do not love me!

LEON.I have no strength for happiness. I did love you. My heart throbbed for a moment with a recollection as of a dead person. But the other one is dead. I tell you this, madam, in tears and torture. I do not love you.

JADWIGA. Leon!

LEON.Have pity on me and forgive me.

JADWIGA. You do not love me!

LEON.What is dead cannot be resuscitated. Farewell.

JADWIGA(after a while).–Very well. If you think you have humiliated me enough, trampled on me, and are sufficiently avenged, leave me then (to Leon, who wishes to withdraw). No! no! Remain. Have pity on me.

LEON.May God have pity on us both. (He goes away.)

JADWIGA. It is done!

A SERVANT(entering).–Count Skorzewski!

JADWIGA. Ha! Show him in! Show him in! Ha! ha! ha!