Fire is its chariot,

Massacre its pinions!

Already the heavens ring with terror,

The earth shakes with the stamping of the hoofs.

The Mother

[Horrified] Jeremiah!

Jeremiah

[Seizing her arm, listens] Do you hear, do you not hear, the rushing of chariots?

The Mother

I hear nothing! Day is dawning. The shepherds are piping in the valleys, and a gentle breeze blows across the roof.