Operas Every Child Should Know

"What?" shouted the wretched Nibelung, "Well, then, since love has forsworn me, I shall lose nothing by forswearing love. I need not hesitate to use thy gold." Springing and clinging to the rock the Nibelung tore the gold from its resting place, dived deep into the river-bed and disappeared into the fissures of the earth. The mermaids followed frantically, but he was quite gone, and with him the beautiful gold, which till then had given only innocent pleasure to the Rhein-daughters. As soon as the gold vanished, the sun was hid, and the waters turned dark and gloomy. The waves began to grow black, rough, and high, while the water sank, sank, sank, till only darkness and a rushing sound could be seen or heard.

As the waves disappeared, a thick mist took their place, and soon separating, became detached clouds, till at last the sun shone forth again. As the cloudlets floated quite away a great mountain was revealed. The water had given place to the surface of the earth, and there, in the early morning light, lay Fricka, the Goddess of home and domesticity, and Wotan, the God of War, who was Fricka's husband. Behind them rose a great cliff and as the sun shone more and more brightly a splendid palace could be seen rising into the clouds. All its pinnacles sparkled in the sun's rays, while the river Rhein flowed peacefully between the mountain peak whereon the palace rose, and the hills where Wotan and his Goddess lay.

Scene II

Just as the sun arose, the Goddess Fricka lifted her head, and, looking behind her, saw the palace. It gave her a terrible fright, because it had not been there when she fell asleep.

"Look, Wotan!" she called loudly. "What do I see?" Wotan raised himself at her call. He gazed and was spellbound with delight.

"Walhall, the home of the Gods; the home of the Eternals!" he cried. "It appears as it did in my dreams."

"That which enraptures thee fills me with fear," Fricka replied sadly. "Hast thou not promised to give my sister Freïa to the Giants who builded it for thee? Their task is done, and now they will claim their reward. Hast thou no feeling? Thou art cold and cruel, knowing nothing of tenderness and love!"

"How falsely thou accusest me," Wotan answered. "Did I not give an eye to win thee, Fricka?" He looked tenderly at her with his single, brilliant eye. "True, I have promised Freïa to the Giants when they should have finished the palace, but I do not mean to keep that promise."

"How wilt thou evade it?" Fricka asked scornfully.

"Loge, the Spirit of Flame, shall prepare the way. He agreed to help me satisfy them in some other way and he will do it."

"Loge?" Fricka cried, still more scornfully. "That trickster! He is a fine one to look to. It was a sad day for us when thou didst rescue him from the underworld, where even his own did not trust him."

"He will keep his word," Wotan answered, confidently.

"Then it is time he appeared," the Goddess cried, "since here comes Freïa, the giants after her, to demand the reward." At that moment, Freïa, their Goddess sister, ran crying to Wotan to save her from Fasolt and Fafner, the Giants, who followed her with great strides.

"Save me, save me, brother," Freïa cried.

"I shall save thee," Wotan answered, reassuringly. "Did not Loge promise to ransom thee? He will be here presently. Have no fear." Nevertheless Wotan, himself, was not too confident, and he looked anxiously for the Spirit of Flame. Meantime the Giants were striding over the mountain.

"Come now," they shouted, "while we wrought, ye slept. Give us our reward as promised and we shall be off."

"Well, what do ye want? Name a suitable reward and I shall give it to ye." Wotan answered, trying to pacify them.

"We want only what is promised, and we shall have it. We shall take the Goddess Freïa." They struck the earth with their staves and roared loudly.

"Donner! Froh!" Freïa shrieked to her brothers, and immediately they rushed upon the scene. Donner, the God of Thunder, carried a great hammer with which he woke the thunders. "Save me from Fasolt and Fafner," Freïa cried.

"We'll save thee, sister," Froh answered, facing the Giants, while Donner menaced them with his thunders.

"You know the weight of my hammer's blow," he threatened, while the Giants laughed a horrible, rumbling laugh and Donner swung his hammer. Wotan feared the strife that would surely follow, and being a god of war, understood the value of diplomacy, as well as of force, so he interposed his spear between the Giants and Donner.

"Thy thunder is powerless against my spear, Donner. The whole world is shattered if only I interpose thus; so hold thy peace."

"Even Wotan abandons us," Fricka cried in despair. "Where is now thy fine Loge?"

"I can quench thy accursed Loge with only one blow of my hammer, which shall make the mists collect and the waters descend upon the earth till his fires are put out," Donner answered bitterly.

"Hold thy peace," Wotan commanded. "His cunning is worth all thy force and here he comes to straighten out this coil. Come, Loge," Wotan demanded, "thou hast promised to free us from this bargain; get thy wits to work."

"Alas, Wotan!" the tricky fellow replied, coming into their midst, "I have wandered everywhere for a substitute for the Goddess Freïa, and have found none; but I have brought news of great misfortune, which thou art called upon to set right," he said, watching the Giants craftily out of the corner of his eye. "The Rhein-daughters have lost their gold. It has been stolen by a Nibelung, and with the golden treasure he can rule the world. The bargain with the Fates was: he who should forswear love forever would be able to make of the Rheingold a magic ring which would give him power over all the earth and over the Eternals as well. Alberich has done this and has stolen the gold."

Now, while the cunning Loge spoke, the Giants had been listening, and exchanging glances. When Loge had finished, Fafner spoke up:

"I would not mind having that gold for myself."

"How? Wouldst thou take it in exchange for Freïa?" Wotan instantly asked.

"Have a care, brother," Fasolt interposed; "after all, a woman's love – "

"It will not gain for us what the Rheingold will gain," Fafner answered determinedly. "Wilt give us the gold for Freïa?" he asked Wotan.

All the Gods fell to talking among themselves. Freïa pleaded with Wotan, and Wotan reflected: the word "gold" made even the Gods tremble with pleasure. Why should Wotan not have the treasure for himself?

"Well, answer us!" Fafner shouted, making a motion to take the Goddess and flee. Fricka and Freïa shrieked with fright. "What is the secret of this ring?" Fafner asked again.

"That whoever shall make a ring out of the Rheingold shall rule the universe. Alberich has already forsworn love, and is already having the ring made."

"We shall take the Goddess Freïa," Fafner cried, "and give ye till evening to decide among yourselves. If ye have not the gold by that time the Goddess is ours forever." So saying he leaped toward Freïa, grasped her and fled over mountain and valley, while the Goddess Fricka cried out wildly, and Freïa echoed her shrieks. All looked anxiously toward Wotan.

"How darkly Wotan broods," Loge thought, while a great gloom settled upon all. A pale mist gradually enfolded all the Gods, as they stood uncertain and troubled. Until that moment they had appeared young and handsome, but now they looked at each other in fright.

"What aileth thee?" each asked of the other. "Do the mists trick us?" Each stared at the other in horror, because all were growing old, suddenly.

"My hammer drops from my hand," Donner muttered, weakly.

"My heart stands still," Froh sighed faintly.

"Ah! Know ye not the fate that has overtaken you?" cried Loge. "Ye have not to-day eaten of Freïa's magic apples; the Apples of Life. Without them ye must grow old and die, ye well know. Without Freïa to tend the fruit, it must wither."

Reminded of what they had forgotten, the Gods started up in terror.

"'Tis true, 'tis true! We are fainting, dying! What is to be done?"

"Get the gold quickly from Alberich, and redeem the Goddess," the tricky Spirit of Flame answered with decision. "That is why they have taken Freïa. Well those Giants know that without her and her apples ye must die; thus they will overcome the good of the Gods. Ye must redeem her before the evening comes, or ye all must die."

"Up, Loge!" Wotan cried desperately. "Down to Nibelheim with me. The gold must be ours. Oh, death! stay thy hand an hour till We can buy back our youth and everlasting life!" Loge interrupted him, narrowly eyeing him:

"The gold belongs to the Rhein-daughters. It should be returned to them."

"Cease thy babbling," Wotan shouted, "and get thee down to Nibelheim."

"Shall we not go through the river Rhein?" Loge craftily asked.

"Get thee through that sulphurous cleft," Wotan answered, pointing to the deep fissure in the rock. "Swing thyself down and I will follow thee." He no sooner ceased to speak than Loge swung himself into the black abyss, and a frightful, sulphurous vapour arose from the opening.

"Await us here till evening," Wotan charged the Gods and Fricka, and he in turn disappeared.

As Wotan followed Loge into the abyss, such clouds of vapour arose as to hide the Gods completely, and as Fricka called "farewell" through the mist the earth began slowly to rise, showing the descent of Wotan and Loge. Their passage through the earth was long and filled with astounding sights. It grew blacker and blacker, but after a time they saw the far-off glow of forge-fires, and heard the sound of hammers ringing upon anvils. These things, too, passed them by, and on a sudden, they found themselves in the midst of a large open space, formed by a cavern in the rock.