Britain ... - Blue-Lite

332 THE VARANGIAN. [Act III.
By Christian dogs, \ve to these isles o' th' sea
For refuge fled, where now th 1
all-wasting sword
for these Gentile tribes
Reapeth its harvest ;
Make war upon each other, and lie they
In wait amid the woods, and caves, and rocks,
With slaughter-weapons in their hands to smite,
And fill the land with blood.
A plenteous harvest.
TOBIAS.
And thou, too, reap^st
BEN-ZADOC.
Ay, Tobias, ay.
Many a brave reprisal do I win,
For all the sad despoiling Fve endured.
As pleasant to my heart is it to hear
The groans and wailings of those Christian slaves
By us to bondage led, as "'tis to list
The clink of gold dropped in my money-bags.
I loathe the Gentiles, who with bitter scoffs,
Fines and imprisonment, and foul robbery vex
The holy seed of Abraham. These wild bands,
Who for men-stealers I have hired, know not
Remorse or pity. And in this I act
As Moses bids, who all the heathen gave,
Wherever found, in city or in field,
To be by us and by our children held
28 From age to age in thraldom. ( ) By the horn
Of royal David
TOBIAS.
Nay, my lord and master,
Swear not by that, for David's horns, thou know'st,
Were scurvy gifts which Michal his first wife,
And Absalom his son, on him bestowed.
The first stout pair the King wore willingly ;