—“It is Adelaide’s only son,” exclaimed Gertrude, at the same time throwing herself at the feet of the Fury, whose arm was already extended towards the slumbering infant, as it lay half-concealed by its mother’s robe.—“Mercy, mercy for the poor babe; he has been guilty of no crime; be satisfied with revenging yourself on his unfortunate father!”—
A scream uttered by the little Rodolpho rouzed his mother from her insensibility; she looked up; she saw her baby in the arms of the furious queen, who childless herself and unworthy to have children, knew not and cared not, how such tender creatures should be handled.
Gertrude had quitted her kneeling attitude, to hasten to the assistance of her awakening friend, who now took the place which she had left unoccupied, and embraced in Gertrude’s stead the knees of the queen.
—“My child!” she exclaimed; “give me my child! what would you do with it? why do you grasp it so rudely? oh! it is tender, and you will kill it! you will kill it!”—
—“What would I do with it?” repeated the implacable Johanna; “I would dash the little serpent against the ground, that it may not grow up to be a regicide like its father!”—
—“Oh! mercy! mercy! what crime can the innocent babe have committed?”—
—“None, lady, none,” replied Johanna, while she cast upon the suppliant a look of mingled anger and disdain; “’tis out of mere compassion, that I use your infant thus. Had your husband the regicide been treated in his cradle as I will soon treat this screaming worm, he had not been at this moment on his road to the place of execution, where he must soon end his guilty life upon the rack.”—
—“Say you?—my husband ... the place of execution ... the rack too ... my child! oh! God, my poor child!”—thus shrieked Adelaide, who had now sprang from the earth, and was endeavouring to force her infant from the grasp of this female Dæmon; but her exertions were too feeble, and she again sank insensible upon the pavement.
—“Lady,” exclaimed one of the warriors, who seemed to be of most distinction among her attendants, “you forget your sex!”—at the same time he forcibly rescued the crying baby from her hands, and placed it on the bosom of Gertrude.
This bold protector of innocence must have possest no trifling influence with Johanna, since she dared only punish his action by an angry frown, and immediately commanded (probably through fear of his making still further use of his power over her) that the still fainting Adelaide should be removed from her presence.