The World’s Tragedy

I THE RED STAR SCENE. — A grove of ilex in Arcadia. The terrace is of white mar- ble. In the centre an image of the god Pan in Ivory and Gold. The pedestal is of lapis-lazuli, the space around of malachite. It is strewn with red roses. Before the image of the god stands a naked man, in whose hand is a sharp sword heavy and curved. Its blade is of blue steel, its hilt encrusted with rubies. The man is come to his full strength ; he is very dark with deep-set glittering eyes of green flecked with fire. His beard is short, square, curly, and black mingled with red. It is noon ; the sun stands sole and supreme in the abyss of azure. The grove is completely hidden from the outer world by its ilex, and by the dark fastnesses of yew and cypress about it. The man — Alexander, the great king — stands upright, facing the God, his arms raised as if to smite with the sword. ALEXANDER Naked I stand In the Garden of Pan. Bare is the brand That maketh a man. The saying is said ;