ity on me when He looks down upon you and me and sees what you have
made of me! For how _could_ I do it, when I never, never _should_ have
done it?--One thing more: My father knows nothing, he does not even
suspect anything! And that he may never find out I shall quit the world
this very day! If I thought for one moment that you [_she takes a step,
wildly, toward him_]--oh, but that is foolishness! You would be only all
the better pleased to see them all stand and shake their heads and
inquire in vain of one another why it happened!

LEONARD.

Things will happen--what is one to do, Clara?

CLARA.

Away from here! The man can talk!

[_She starts to go._]

LEONARD.

Do you think that I believe you?

CLARA.

No!

LEONARD.

Thank God, you cannot be a suicide without being an infanticide as well!

CLARA.

Better both than a parricide! Oh, I know that one cannot atone for one
sin with another! But what I now do affects me alone! If I hand the
knife to my father the blow strikes him as well as me! It strikes me in
any case! That gives me courage and strength in all my distress! Things
will go well with you on earth!

[_Exit._]

SCENE V

LEONARD (_alone_).

"I must, I must marry her!" And why must I? She is going to do a crazy
thing in order to keep her father from doing one. Where lies the
necessity of my doing a still crazier thing in order to ward off hers? I
cannot admit the necessity--at least not until I see before me the man
who wants to get ahead of me with the most insane act of all! And if he
thinks as I do about it there will be no end! That sounds quite
sensible, and yet--I must follow her! Here comes somebody! Thank
God!--Nothing is more ignominious than to have to be at variance with
one's own thoughts! A rebellion in the head, in which one brings forth
viper after viper and each one tries to eat the other or bite his tail,
is the worst of all!

SCENE VI

_Enter the SECRETARY._

SECRETARY.

Good evening!

LEONARD.

Mr. Secretary? To what do I owe the honor--

SECRETARY.

Leonard, you will see at once!

LEONARD.

You say Leonard to me?--To be sure, we used to be schoolmates!

SECRETARY.

And we may perhaps be death-mates too!

[_He draws forth two pistols._]

Do you know how to handle these?

LEONARD.

I do not understand you!

SECRETARY (_cocks one of them_).

Do you see?--This is how it is done! Then you aim at me, as I am now
doing at you, and pull t