The Norfolk post. [volume] (Norfolk, Va.) 1865-1866, 1866-03-23

tor has murdered the song most out
rageously: ~.
Goddess chaste, whose silver beams
Clothe these sacred, ancient trees,
'N Turn on us thy radiant face,
Free from clouds and quite unveiled.
| OH calm thou of burning hearts,
| Oh calm thou the audacious ZEAL I
Shed on earth that gentle peace
| That in heaven thou caus'st to reign.
! AL Turn on us thy radiant face
| Free from clouds and quite unveiled
4 NsR. Cease the rite-the sacred grove
| Must be cleared Of all profane.
| When the wrathful, gloomy god
A. Shall demand the fall of Rome
| From the altar of the Druids
| viii my voice like thunder sound.
| All. Let 1t southland may not one
OF the foes escape rage.
Struck by our revengeful weapons
The Proconsul first shall fall.
| Nor. Yes; he SHALL can him punish
| a5s Out my heart still feels too weak
= (Ah true to me return.
As when We first did love;
| And against all tho world
| viii stand in thy defence)
! Il (Ah! sweet to me return
| With thy serene regards,
| Hl And heaven and Iife and country
| I'll fnd In thy dear presence.
Chorus. Re not so late to come
Oh, moment Of revenge!
Thou hast it. Godi
| Who has signed the fall of Rome.
Under the pleasing influences of this
sweet song, we fell into O dreamful
slumber, and imagined ourself the man
in the moon,--to whom this plaintive
invocation was addressed-only we knew
that We were not chaste goddess
and it was not at all probable we ever
would be one of those heavenly beings.
1t is difficult to say how long we con-
tinued in this trance, with our soul filed
by the concord of sweetest and most
harmonious sounds, but when we recov-
cred and came dow, from the moon, the
stage was full of strange beings, and our
friend Informed lis that there had been
some dreadful work going on. They had
slain Bellini outright, and were about
to burn Norma, who, out of revenge for
Pollio's having deserted her, and gone
after strange sort of woman named
Adelgisa, had concluded to sacrifice her
self, to spite that rascally young Roman
adventurer. We knew by this that
the climax was reached and rejoiced that
we should soon be relieved from the dis
cordant sounds which had disturbed our
dreams. Norma, however, finds that in
her direst extremity her noble Roman
shows some of the stern, historic virtues
of his race, and determines to be So
crificed with her. He was a good fell
low after all to return to his first love,
and tell her she had come home to die"
She is condemned to be burnt alive on
a brush heap--and as she prepares for
death all the "sap-head" Druids, the
herd who compose the mob, and are re-
presented by the cracked voice chorus,
exclaim, ITO the pile to the pile %
But as this is the closing scene for which
we had waited long and patiently, and
as the poetry was consequently the most
pleasing to our ears, we will give it en-
tire, especially as we only have to clip
it from the libretto, and our compositors
are fond of poetry with short lines
coro. Pange!-prega-chs mia spsrsi .r
Qpi respnta la preghierd. @ -lga
iaI lie 81 spogli II erin del serto;
81 a coperta--di sqHaiior
(IDraidi eoprono d Ya vslo nero Ia Saeersolsss,)
vanne al rogo ed II tho scempIo /
i1l Purgh Para lavi IL TEMPO. 7a /
.I.h haiedetta all ultim' ora .Ji1I
Maledetta estnta ane0rt rl ,rtH
ORo. ~ Va, Intellect q. #=a r11
Non. (hcamminandos) Padrei-addio |
Pol II tue rogo, o Norma, ef milo.
Non. La pu pnro, Ia piu santo go ID
Pol Incomincia etsrno amor. '-
ORG. sgorga alfn, prorompi o pianto,
Bei perinesso un genitor |
Is not that sweet? But here it is In |
English. We thought it the blacklist
deed that e'er was done when the Choir
isters covered up fair Norma's face with
that black veil; y
Cho. She eepsI-praysl-rwhata are her hopesI
.sr. Here repulsed shall be her prayers |
OF that crown divest her head, SCI
l-IE And be it covered with a black veil.
'n Tine Druids thro,v black ucit orey Noa) Ht
To the pile; may thy destruction
20 Purify The temple and altar.
.fl Be she cursed in her last hour |
- De she cursed still after death. |
Ono. Co. unfortunate. ' |
MOB. loaiking TO hepile.) Father FAREWELL
Pol. Norma, alasi thy pile is mine.
Nor. There more pure and there more holy
Poi. Does begin eternal love-
Ono Out at last; come forth, tears:
To father you're permitted
So ends the story of the loves of Norma