Go, dearest wife, and give this man to eat.
Spare not your bounty; for his road is long,
And one where shelter will be hard to find.
Quick—they approach!
HEDWIG.
Who is he?
TELL.
Do not ask!
And when he quits you, turn your eyes away,
So that they do not see which way he goes.
[DUKE JOHN advances hastily toward TELL, but he beckons him aside and goes out. When both have left the stage, the scene changes.]
SCENE III
The whole valley before TELL's house, the heights which inclose it occupied by peasants, grouped into tableaux. Some are seen crossing a lofty bridge, which crosses the Shechen. WALTER FÜRST with the two boys, WERNER and STAUFFACHER, come forward. Others throng after them. When TELL appears, all receive him with loud cheers.
ALL.
Long live brave Tell, our shield, our Savior!