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The Pamphlet Collection of Sir Robert Stout: Volume 84

Act II. — Saloon in the house of Mdlle. Lange—brilliantly illuminated

Act II.

Saloon in the house of Mdlle. Langebrilliantly illuminated.

Mddles. Delaunay, Cydalise. Madame Herbelin, and others all dressed in the most exaggerated fashion of the period (Merveilleuses) and Larivaudiere.

Chorus of Merveilleuses.
No! we really cannot believe it,
Our minds will not receive it,
This story you tell is so strange;
Though we read it in the papers—
Such scandal, such dreadful capers,
Sure the world must be going to change.

Song and Chorus.

Lange.

Men were made but for woman's diverting.

Cho.

And for flirting.

page 13

Lange.

And though we are weak and they are strong

We by the nose lead them along;
For we can coax and charm them still.
And make them do just as we will.
A soldier is just like a stupid bird—
All fuss and feathers, trained and spurred;
He thinks he knows a thing or two,
We'll show him that we do.
In woman's weakness lies her power,
The weapons that we prize
They flash from out our eyes;
And 'neath that flery shower
The strong man faints and dies.
At the glance of our eyes
He faints and dies.

Cho.

Men were made but for woman's diverting,

And for flirting:
And though we're weak and they are strong
We by the nose lead them along;
For we can coax and charm them still.
And make them do just as we will.

Lange.

Our enemy, though great he be,

The conqueror of Barbary.
He shall not make us fear
Tho' he took Aboukir;
We, without danger vict'ry gaining,
Our conquests have secured
By Smile and glance and word;
Much greater end? obtaining
Than he does by the sword.

Cho.

Men are made, &c.

Romance.

Pom.

To worldly craft she's such a stranger
That she scarce knows what she should say,
And in her childish simple play
She's ignorant of ev'ry danger.
In this our Land of Liberty
She told the truth, and so you see
How very simple she must be;
Yes; she's to Liberty a stranger,
She is so innocent of evil,
That e'en the powerful she would chaff,
And meaning not to be uncivil,
'Gainst e'en the highest raise a laugh
page 14 And with a song so light and gay
She'd sing our characters away,
And all in simple childish play
She's to society a stranger.

Duet.—Clair and Lange.

Clair. & Lange.

(A due.) Oh ! happy, happy days of childhood,
When we sweetly lisped "Mamma," "Papa;"
When all our cares our mother mild would
Soothe, and teach us B A, ba.
Those days have vanished far away—
Ah! why could they no longer stay?

Lange. (solo.)

Do you remember when one summer's day

You told me all your life's strange story;
And, on the sly, we turned it to a play,
And acted it in solitary glory ?

Clair. (solo.)

And all the fishwives' polished talk

We pattered long ere we could walk,
And innocently swore and cursed,
And of market slang we used the worst.

Lange. (solo.)

That catechism I surely durst

Safely assert we learned the first.

A due.
Oh! happy, happy days, &c.

Lange. (solo.)

But now that I am rich and pretty,
What things they write and sing of me.

Clair. (solo.)

Alas! 'twas I who sang that ditty—

'Twas I who said such things of thee.

Lange.

I don't mind it now, my darling,

But in old times long ago
I'd have done a little snarling,
In the style of Ma'am Angôt.

(Sticks her arms akimbo, and, assumes the manner of a fish fag.)

Let me alone,
Ma'am'selle Suzon.
If you address me in that tone
I'll make you groan, and sigh, and moan,
For I'll demolish your chignon.

Clair.

And I, on my part, would have said—
See this pink of virtue rare,
with her arms and legs all bare;
page 15 Sure it must be Venus fair,
Dressed in nothing but her hair,
Come from ocean's ebb and flow,
Just to make a good scare-crow.

Lange.

Yes : that's the way we'd have our say.

Clair.

Yes, bet you may; that was our way.

Lange.

That's worth all formal stiff propriety,

And the tone of your so-called best society.

A due.
Ah ! at school we lasses learnt a lot
Of curious things each day;
But whether from our books or not
I'd hardly dare to say;
And indeed no girls are fools
Who have studied in good schools.

Clair.

Ha ! ha !

Lange.

Ha ! ha !

A due.
For our school days—hurrah !
Couplets.

Lange and Ange Pitou.

Lange.

The Government sometimes is wrong,
It's very best friends must allow it;
But you may find out before long
That you blame it because you don't know it.
The Republic may not have an air
So soft, so alluring as mine.

Ange Pitou.

Sure no manner on earth can compare

With the grace that distinguishes thine.

Lange.

There is nothing impossible here,

Not even to recognise merit;
And tho' you will not own it. I fear,
The Republic admires your spirit.
The Government loves a brave man
Who points out its faults without shrinking.

Ange Pitou.

No more words, strive no longer I can,

I'm of you, not of politics, thinking.

Quintette.

Lariv.

Eh !

Louch.

Eh !

Lariv.

HOW !

Louch.

How !

page 16

Lange.

Now you know it all,

'Twas tor her
This gentleman did on us call.
Ugh! you horrid bear,
How you stare,
For ladies' nerves you little care.

Clair.

No I no ! it was myself, not she,

That Pitou came in here to see;
But still the fear that he was faithless
Made me quite uneasy be.

Lange.

Yes, I tell you t'was not me.

But t'other whom he came to see;
Yes! yes! you horrid growling bear,
For ladies' nerves you little care.

Ange Pitou.

Ah! then I see it was not she

That I was hither brought to see,
So from temptation I will flee,
Or lost I'll surely be.

Lariv.

So then it was not she

That this fellow came to see.

Louch.

No ! no ! it was not she

That this fellow came to see.

Lariv.

But hold ! This Pomponnet you've given your word to marry,

And you deceive me still?

Clair.

No, no ! in verity !

Lange (to Lariv.)

Your vile doubts away your judgment carry,

Can you distrust my sincerity ?

Lariv.

Dare you now swear, this instant, on your knees,

'Tis this young man you love?

Clair.

Yes ! since needs must, before heaven which my truth sees

That I love but him.

Lange.

Poor little thing; in saying that word Love

The blush would come, but what matter!

Louch.

I'm tired of all this patter.

Lariv.

And you too. my vocal friend here,

Was it love for Clairette did you send here?

Ange Pitou.

Most solemnly I vow and own

I came for her and her alone.

Lange (aside.)

Oh ! what a lie

Oh ! Fie ! fie !
page 17

Lariv.

On your word ?

Ange Pitou.

On my word.

Louch.

Oh ! what a lie !

Clair

A story so surprising

I never heard before,
And though doubts may be rising
They'll act on them no more.

Lange.

A story so surprising

I never heard before,
And tho' doubts may be rising
They'll act on them no more.

A. Pitou

A story more surprising

I never told before,
And tho' doubt? may be rising
They'll act on them no more.

Lariv.

A story so surprising

I never heard before,
And tho' doubts may be rising
I'll act on them no more.

Louch.

A story so surprising

I never heard before,
And tho' doubts may be rising
He'll act on them no more.

Lariv.(to Louchard.)

What say you now? You old woman ! you ass ! you blind bat ! you fool !. you jackdaw !

Lough.

Excuse me, pray; to err is human I but believe what I saw,

Though to my eyes all things do change;
Yet still I think.

Lariv.

What do you think?

Lough. (recollecting himself.)

That the lovely Ma'amselle Lange

Is of virtue the pink !

Lange

E'en a policeman allows it,

I'm an angel, good as gohd,
So you see ev'ry one knows it,
And my wings I'll soon untold.

Clair.

E'en this policeman allows it,

She's an angel, good as gold.
Ye? ! indeed ev'ry one knows it,
And her wings she'll soon unfold.
page 18

A. Pitou

Yes ! indeed ev'ry one knows it,

She's an angel, good as gold.
Yes ! indeed ev'ry one knows it,
And her wings she'll soon unfold.

Lariv.

E'en this policeman allows it.

She's an angel good as gold.
Yes ! indeed ev'ry one knows it,
And her wings she'll soon untold.

Louch.

I, a policeman, allow it,

She's an angel, good as gold.
Yes I indeed ev'ry one knows it
And her wings she'll soon unfold.

Enter Trenitz and Conspirators.
Finale.
Chorus of Conspirators.
When we Conspirators would be,
And turn the world topsy-turvee,
Each one must wear beneath his hat
A fair-haired wig, and black cravat.

Lange.

As brother traitor, pray accept our greeting.

Tren.

We, ah heah, and in this place,

We ah not afwaid of meeting
A wegiment—we would not feah to face.

Ange Pitou.

Oh ! bravo !

Lange.

Pray calm these trembling fears;

I but present you a recruit,
The singer whom you've heard about;
Who, in the street, does every day
'Gainst wealth and power still raise his lay.

Tren.

But he don't weah beneath his hat,

A fair-haiwed wig and bwack cwavat.

Omnes.

No; he don't wear, beneath his hat,

A fair-haired wig and black cravat.

Clair. (enters.)

Ah ! you are here.

Omnes.

Who can this be?

Lange.

What on earth brings you back here?

Clair.

Oh! I fear

From my casement clear
Fierce soldiers do appear.
They're coming near—
Augereau's soldiers now are here.
page 19

Omnes.

The soldiers fierce are near;

Fly from here, fly from here!
The house is quite surrounded,
And we are all impounded.

Tren.

We're lost, I say.

Lange.

To save us there's one way;

To surprise these soldiers rough and hearty,
We'll improvise a wedding party.
Here's the Bridegroom and the fair Bride—
But all these wigs of yellow hair
And black cravats that you all wear—

Tren.

(throwing off wig and cravat, and showing red cravat.)

Bah! Theah goes wig and yellow haiah,
My black cwavat will follow—Theah!

Omnes.

There goes our wigs of yellow hair,

Our black cravats must follow—there!

(knocks outside.)

Lange. (speaking)

Open all the doors. Now gentlemen, Choose your partners.

Lange, presenting her hand to Trenitz and Valsing.
Dancing, glancing,
All delight enhancing.
Oh! what pleasure,
Beyond measure,
Sweeter far than power or treasure.

Chorus of Ladies.
Dancing, glancing,
All delight enhancing.
Oh ! what pleasure,
Beyond measure,
Sweeter far than gold or power.

Full Chorus.
Dancing, glancing,
All delight enhancing.
Oh ! what pleasure,
Beyond measure,
Sweeter far than gold or power. Tra, la!

(enter soldiers.)

Lange.

What would you have? Come, speak; what means this riot?

Officer.

We seek these traitors who are here.

page 20

Lange.

In my own humble home, I wish for peace and quiet.

The traitors you fear
Shall appear.
They are here.

(pointing to Clairette and Pitou.)
A wedding party is here assembled;
And tho' not invited, still welcome you'll be.
But tho' at your valour Egyptians have trembled,
You'll not find Parisians so weak in the knee.
Stay then, stay,
We heartily pray!
Mirth, feasting and pleasure's tho order of the day.
Happy we'll be,
For pleasure is free;
And you, Mister Officer, shall dance with me.
Around we'll spin.
See who will win—yes !
Dancing, &c.

Chorus. Dancing, &c.

Clair. (valsing with Pitou)

Sure, in this world there's no pleasure like dancing.

Ange Pitou.

Oh! How I wish you for ever were mine.

Clair.

Ah! do not doubt, seize this moment entrancing,

I swear that my hand shall be thine, only thine.

Lange. (overhearing.)

"Only thine!" Clairette!

Officer.

Pray don't stop yet.

Lange.

Ah! no!

Officer.

Are you ill! One word and I go.

Lange.

No, no I 'tis nothing, a slight vertigo.

(aside)

Traitors to me,

But avenged I will be.

Cho.

Dancing, &c.

End of Second Act.