Leave me a while to ponder on my sins.

OLD MAN. I go, sweet Faustus; but with heavy cheer, Fearing the ruin of thy hopeless soul.

[Exit.]

FAUSTUS. Accursed Faustus, where is mercy now?

I do repent; and yet I do despair: h.e.l.l strives with grace for conquest in my breast: What shall I do to shun the snares of death?

MEPHIST. Thou traitor, Faustus, I arrest thy soul For disobedience to my sovereign lord: Revolt, or I'll in piece-meal tear thy flesh.

FAUSTUS. Sweet Mephistophilis, entreat thy lord To pardon my unjust presumption, And with my blood again I will confirm My former vow I made to Lucifer.

MEPHIST. Do it, then, quickly,[159] with unfeigned heart, Lest greater danger do attend thy drift.

FAUSTUS. Torment, sweet friend, that base and crooked age, That durst dissuade me from thy Lucifer, With greatest torments that our h.e.l.l affords.

MEPHIST. His faith is great; I cannot touch his soul; But what I may afflict his body with I will attempt, which is but little worth.

FAUSTUS. One thing, good servant,[160] let me crave of thee, To glut the longing of my heart's desire,-- That I might have unto my paramour That heavenly Helen which I saw of late, Whose sweet embracings may extinguish clean Those[161] thoughts that do dissuade me from my vow, And keep mine oath I made to Lucifer.

MEPHIST. Faustus, this,[162] or what else thou shalt desire, Shall be perform'd in twinkling of an eye.

Re-enter HELEN.

FAUSTUS. Was this the face that launch'd a thousand ships, And burnt the topless[163] towers of Ilium-- Sweet Helen, make me immortal with a kiss.-- [Kisses her.]

Her lips suck forth my soul: see, where it flies!-- Come, Helen, come, give me my soul again.

Here will I dwell, for heaven is[164] in these lips, And all is dross that is not Helena.

I will be Paris, and for love of thee, Instead of Troy, shall Wertenberg be sack'd; And I will combat with weak Menelaus, And wear thy colours on my plumed crest; Yea, I will wound Achilles in the heel, And then return to Helen for a kiss.

O, thou art fairer than the evening air Clad in the beauty of a thousand stars; Brighter art thou than flaming Jupiter When he appear'd to hapless Semele; More lovely than the monarch of the sky In wanton Arethusa's azur'd arms; And none but thou shalt[165] be my paramour!

[Exeunt.]

Enter the OLD MAN.[166]

OLD MAN. Accursed Faustus, miserable man, That from thy soul exclud'st the grace of heaven, And fly'st the throne of his tribunal-seat!

Enter DEVILS.

Satan begins to sift me with his pride: As in this furnace G.o.d shall try my faith, My faith, vile h.e.l.l, shall triumph over thee.

Ambitious fiends, see how the heavens smile At your repulse, and laugh your state to scorn!

Hence, h.e.l.l! for hence I fly unto my G.o.d.

[Exeunt,--on one side, DEVILS, on the other, OLD MAN.]

Enter FAUSTUS,[167] with SCHOLARS.

FAUSTUS. Ah, gentlemen!

FIRST SCHOLAR. What ails Faustus?

FAUSTUS. Ah, my sweet chamber-fellow, had I lived with thee, then had I lived still! but now I die eternally. Look, comes he not? comes he not?

SECOND SCHOLAR. What means Faustus?

THIRD SCHOLAR. Belike he is grown into some sickness by being over-solitary.

FIRST SCHOLAR. If it be so, we'll have physicians to cure him.

--'Tis but a surfeit; never fear, man.

FAUSTUS. A surfeit of deadly sin, that hath d.a.m.ned both body and soul.

SECOND SCHOLAR. Yet, Faustus, look up to heaven; remember G.o.d's mercies are infinite.

FAUSTUS. But Faustus' offence can ne'er be pardoned: the serpent that tempted Eve may be saved, but not Faustus. Ah, gentlemen, hear me with patience, and tremble not at my speeches! Though my heart pants and quivers to remember that I have been a student here these thirty years, O, would I had never seen Wertenberg, never read book! and what wonders I have done, all Germany can witness, yea, all the world; for which Faustus hath lost both Germany and the world, yea, heaven itself, heaven, the seat of G.o.d, the throne of the blessed, the kingdom of joy; and must remain in h.e.l.l for ever, h.e.l.l, ah, h.e.l.l, for ever! Sweet friends, what shall become of Faustus, being in h.e.l.l for ever?

THIRD SCHOLAR. Yet, Faustus, call on G.o.d.

FAUSTUS. On G.o.d, whom Faustus hath abjured! on G.o.d, whom Faustus hath blasphemed! Ah, my G.o.d, I would weep! but the devil draws in my tears. Gush forth blood, instead of tears! yea, life and soul!

O, he stays my tongue! I would lift up my hands; but see, they hold them, they hold them!

ALL. Who, Faustus?

FAUSTUS. Lucifer and Mephistophilis. Ah, gentlemen, I gave them my soul for my cunning![168]

ALL. G.o.d forbid!

FAUSTUS. G.o.d forbade it, indeed; but Faustus hath done it: for vain pleasure of twenty-four years hath Faustus lost eternal joy and felicity. I writ them a bill with mine own blood: the date is expired; the time will come, and he will fetch me.

FIRST SCHOLAR. Why did not Faustus tell us of this before,[169]

that divines might have prayed for thee?

FAUSTUS. Oft have I thought to have done so; but the devil threatened to tear me in pieces, if I named G.o.d, to fetch both body and soul, if I once gave ear to divinity: and now 'tis too late. Gentlemen, away, lest you perish with me.

SECOND SCHOLAR. O, what shall we do to save[170] Faustus?

FAUSTUS. Talk not of me, but save yourselves, and depart.

THIRD SCHOLAR. G.o.d will strengthen me; I will stay with Faustus.

FIRST SCHOLAR. Tempt not G.o.d, sweet friend; but let us into the next room, and there pray for him.

FAUSTUS. Ay, pray for me, pray for me; and what noise soever ye hear,[171] come not unto me, for nothing can rescue me.

SECOND SCHOLAR. Pray thou, and we will pray that G.o.d may have mercy upon thee.

FAUSTUS. Gentlemen, farewell: if I live till morning, I'll visit you; if not, Faustus is gone to h.e.l.l.

ALL. Faustus, farewell.

[Exeunt SCHOLARS.--The clock strikes eleven.]

FAUSTUS. Ah, Faustus, Now hast thou but one bare hour to live, And then thou must be d.a.m.n'd perpetually!

Stand still, you ever-moving spheres of heaven, That time may cease, and midnight never come; Fair Nature's eye, rise, rise again, and make Perpetual day; or let this hour be but A year, a month, a week, a natural day, That Faustus may repent and save his soul!