Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1906-03-21

parent innocence favorably impress, not
only the mobiles, but the sovereign, who
gently questions her.
But, instead OF answering him, the
maiden wrings her hands. eXclaiming,
MY hapless brother" The king urges
| her to confde in him. Suddenly she
begins to sing, as if in a trance, of Il
vision wherein a gallant knight had
been sent by Heaven to become her
champion.
| These words and the maiden's rapt
and innocent look are SO impressive,
that the king and people utterly refuse
TO believe the maiden guilty. until
Frederick, of Telramund boldly offers
| to prove the truth of his assertion by
fighting against any champion whom
she may choose. Elsa accepts this pro-
posal gladly for she believes her cham
pion will be sent from heaven
Her prayer is answered by the APP
proach of a snowy white swan draw
ing light slliff in which stands erect
| a handsome young knight in full ar
NOR.
| Lohengrn, the swan knight. springs
| ashore, and turning to his swan, dls-
misses it in beautiful song. Ihen,
while the swan slowly sails down the
river and out of sight. the swan knight
announces to the king that he has
come as Elsa's champion, and. turning
| to her, asks whether she Will be his
wife if he proves victorious. Elsa glad
| ly. promises, nor does she even offer to
| withdraw this promise when he tells
her that she must trust him entirely,
| and never ask who he is or whence he
came.
The swan knight soon defeats his
enemy, who, tho the Judgment of Coo
| is convicted of perjury, but Lohengrin
magnanimously refuses to take his
life.
Then turning to Elsa, who thanks
| him passionately for saving her, he
clasps her in his arms, while Terra
| munf and Ortrud, his wife, bewafl
their disgrace for, according to the
| law of the land. they are doomed to
| poverty and exile.
1t is night when the curtain rises
| upon the second act. The street Is
deserted. and on the steps of the cathe-
| dral sit Frederick and Ortrud, clad as
| beggars Ortrud first persuades Fred
erick that the swan knight won his
! victory solely by magic arts, an un-
| pardonaible offense. and then declares
that If Elsa could only be prevailed
upon to disobey her champions IN
| functions and ask his name, the spell
| which protects him would be broken,
| and he could easily be overcome.
| Telramund, overjoyed at the pros
| pect of effacing his disgrace, eagerly
acquiesces, and Elsa appearing at the
| window and softly apostrophising the
| evening breeze Ortrud creeps out of
| the shadow and timidly addresses her,
| Stimulating a distress she is far from
| feeling
Moved by compassion at sight of
| this naughty woman thus, laid low, and
| touched by her supposed repentance,
Elsa, whose natural tenderness has
been increased by her happiness, in
vites Ortrud to enter, promising on the
! morrow, to intercede in her behalf.
ortrud artfully manages to make Elsa
vaguely uneasy, and to sow in her In
| nocent mind the first seeds Of suspi-
cion.
| From a niche of the cathedral, Fred
erick sees Elsa in briday array, follow
ed by her women and by Ortrud. who
is richly clad again. At the church
door Ortrud insolently presses in front
of Elsa, claiming the right of prece-
dence, and haunting her with marrying
man who has won her by magic arts,
and whose name and origin she does
not even know.
This alteration is interrupted by
the appearance of the king and his at
PENDANTS, among whom is the swan
knight. Lohengrin tenderly questions
Elsa, who tells him all. AS Ortruds
venomous insinuations have had no APP
parent effect upon her, he leads his
bride into the church.
The third act sees the ending of the
festivities, and the Wedding procession
enters the nuptial chamber to the ac
compartment of the we'll known Bridal
Chorus, The attendants withdraw,
leaving Elsa and Lohengrin to join in
a duet of happy married love. Elsa
softly chides her bridegroom for his
lack of confidence in not revealing to
her his identity.
Her husband not yielding to her
tender pleading, Elsa then redoubles
her caresses. Her faint suspicious
have taken such firm root, and grow
with such rapidity, that she is soon al
most distracted with uncertainty All
his attempts to soothe her only seem to
excite her more, and suddenly, fancy
ing that she hears the swan boat COM
ing to bear him away from her, she,
determines to break the magic spell at
amy cost, as Ortrud cunningly advised
her, and demands his name. AS
Lohengrin is gazing at her in mute re-
proach, Frederick bursts into the room
with a band of cutthroats, to take the
life of Lohengrin. A quick motion from
Elsa whose trust returns when she
sees her beloved in danger, permits
Lohengrin to parry the first blow, and
Telramund soon lies dead upon the
floor while his cringing accomplices
implore Lohengrin's pardon.
Day is dawning, and Lohengrin, af-
ter caring tenderly for the half-faint-
ing Elsa, bids the would-be assassins
bear the corpse into the presence of
the king, where he promises to meet
Elsa and satisfy all her demands.
The king is mastering his troops for
the war, when Elsa, pale and droop-
ing, seeks the royal presence. The
swan knight is cheered by his men.