GODLEIGH。Wouldye’aveittheoldRectorthen？Wi’’isgoutyshoe？
Rackonthemaidswidrather’twascurate；eh，Mr。Burlacombe？
BURLACOMBE。[Abruptly]Curate’sagudeman。
JARLAND。[Withthecomatoseferocityofdrink]I’llbeevenwi’un。
FREMAN。[Excitedly]Tell’eeonething——’tesnotapropermano’
Godto’aveabout，wi’’islusegoin’son。Outvrom’ereheoughtergo。
BURLACOMBE。Youmedgofurtheran’fareworse。
FREMAN。What’s’eduin’，then，lettin’’iswiferunoff？
TRUSTAFORD。[Scratchinghishead]Ifan’incase’ecan’tkape’er，’tesafunnywayo’duin’thingsnottodivorce’er，afterthat。Ifaparson’snottodutheChristianthing，whuis，then？
BURLACOMBE。’Tesabitimmoral-liketopassoverathinglikethat。
Tesfunnyifwomen’sgain’son’stobeencouraged。
FREMAN。Actofacoward，Izay。
BURLACOMBE。Thecurateain’tnocoward。
FREMAN。Hebidesinyurehouse；’tesnaturalforyutostandupforun；I’llwagerMrs。Burlacombedon’t，though。Mymissiswasfairshocked。\"Will，\"shesays，\"ifyuevermakevurtoletmegolikethat，Iwiddenneverstaywi’yu，\"shesays。
TRUSTAFORD。’Tessettin’abadexample，forzure。
BURLACOMBE。’Tesallveryairytalkin’；whatshude’edu，then？
FREMAN。[Excitedly]GoovertoDurfordandsaytothatdoctor：\"Yucomeaboutmymissis，an’zeewhatI’llduto’ee。\"An’take’er’omean’zeeshedon’tmisbe’aveagain。
CLYST。’Ecan’ttake’eref’erdon’wantt’come——I’ve’eardlawyer，thatlodgedwi’us，saythat。
FREMAN。Allrightthen，’eoughtto’avethelawof’erand’erdoctor；an’zee’ergoin’sondon’tprosper；’e’dgetdamages，tu。
Butthisway’tesaniceexamplehe’msettin’folks。Parsonindade！
Mymissisan’themaidstheywon’tgoonearthechurchto-night，an’
Iwagernooneelsewon’t，neither。
JARLAND。[LurchingwithhispewteruptoGODLEIGH]Thebeggar！I’llbeevenwi’un。
GODLEIGH。[Lookingathimindoubt]’Testhelast，then，Tam。
[Havingreceivedhisbeer，JARLANDstands，leaningagainstthebar，drinking。]
BURLACOMBE。[Suddenly]Idon’goowithwhatcurate’sduin——’testiffsoft’earted；he’mamuneykindo’manaltogether，wi’’isflutean’’ispoetry；buthe’vea-lodgedinmy’ousethisyearan’mare，andalways’adan’elpin’’andforeveryone。I’vegotalikin’forhiman’there’sanendofit。
JARLAND。Thecoward！
TRUSTAFORD。Idon’troublenothin’aboutthat，TamJarland。
[TurningtoBURLACOMBE]Whatgitsmeis’edon’tseemto’avenozenseo’what’shisownpraperty。
JARLAND。Takeotherfolk’spropertyfastenough！
[Hesawstheairwithhisempty。Theothershaveallturnedtohim，drawnbythefascinationthatamaninliquorhasforhisfellow-men。Thebellforchurchhasbeguntorang，thesunisdown，anditisgettingdusk。]
Hewantsoneonhiscrop，an’onein’isbelly；’ewantsamantotakean’gieunagudehidinzameasheoughtergive’isfly-be-nightofawife。
[STRANGWAYinhisdarkclotheshasentered，andstandsbythedoor，hislipscompressedtoacolourlessline，histhin，darkishfacegrey-white]
Zameasamanwidha’gi’enthedoctor，fortakin’whatisn’this’n。
AllbutJARLANDhaveseenSTRANGWAY。Hestepsforward，JARLAND
seeshimnow；hisjawdropsalittle，andheissilent。
STRANGWAY。Icameforalittlebrandy，Mr。Godleigh——feelingratherfaint。AfraidImightn’tgetthroughtheservice。
GODLEIGH。[Withprofessionalcomposure]Marteil’sThreeStar，zurr，or’Ennessy’s？
STRANGWAY。[LookingatJARLAND]Thankyou；IbelieveIcandowithout，now。[Heturnstogo。]
[Inthedeadlysilence，GODLEIGHtouchesthearmofJARLAND，who，leaningagainstthebarwiththepewterinhishand，isstaringwithhisstrangeloweringeyesstraightatSTRANGWAY。]
JARLAND。[Galvanizedbythetouchintodrunkenrage]Lavemebe-
I’lltalktoun-parsonorno。I’lltacheuntomeddlewi’mymaid’sbird。I’lltacheuntokape’isthievin’’andsto’imself。
[STRANGWAYturnsagain。]
CLYST。Bequiet，Tam。
JARLAND。[NeverloosingSTRANGWAYwithhiseyes——likeabull-dogwhoseesred]That’sforonechake；zeeunturnt’other，thewhite-
liveredbuty！Whuletsanotherman’ave’iswife，an’neverthesperittogovorun！
BURLACOMBE。Shame，Jarland；quiet，man！
[TheyarealllookingatSTRANGWAY，who，underJARLAND’Sdrunkeninsultsisstandingrigid，withhiseyesclosed，andhishandshardclenched。Thechurchbellhasstoppedslowringing，andbegunitsfiveminutes’hurryingnote。]
TRUSTAFORD。[Rising，andtryingtohookhisarmintoJARLAND’S]
Comeaway，Tam；yu’vea-’adtomuch，man。
JARLAND。[Shakinghimoff]Zee，’edarsen’ttouchme；Imight’ituninthevasean’’edarsen’t；’e’safraid——like’ewaso’thedoctor。
[Heraisesthepewterasthoughtoflingit，butitisseizedbyGODLEIGHfrombehind，andfallsclatteringtothefloor。
STRANGWAYhasnotmoved。]
JARLAND。[Shakinghisfistalmostinhisface]Lukeatun，Lukeatun！Amanwi’aslutforawife————
[Asheutterstheword\"wife\"STRANGWAYseizestheoutstretchedfist，andwithajujitsumovement，drawshimintohisclutch，helpless。Andastheyswayandstruggleintheopenwindow，withthefalsestrengthoffuryheforcesJARLANDthrough。
Thereisacrashofbrokenglassfromoutside。AtthesoundSTRANGWAYcomestohimself。Alookofagonypassesoverhisface。HiseyeslightonJIMBERE，whohassuddenlyrisen，andstandsfeeblyclappinghishands。STRANGWAYrushesout。]
Excitedlygatheringatthewindow，theyallspeakatonce。]
CLYST。Tam’shatchin’ofyurecucumbers，Mr。Godleigh。
TRUSTAFORD。’Edidcrash；haw，haw！
FREMAN。’Twasabravethrow，zurely。Whuwida’thoughtit？
CLYST。Tam’scrawlin’out。[Leaningthroughwindow]Hello，Tam——
’ow’st’base，oldman？
FREMAN。[Excitedly]They’mallcomin’upfromchurchyardtozee。
TRUSTAFORD。Tamdulukewonderfulaztonished；haw，haw！PooroldTam！
CLYST。Canyuzeecurate？Reckon’e’mgoneintochurch。Aw，yes；
gettin’abitdimsy-servicetime。[Amoment’shush。]
TRUSTAFORD。Well，I’mjiggered。In’alfanhourhe’mgottoprache。
GODLEIGH。’TesaChristianvillage，boys。
[Feebly，quietly，JIMBERElaughs。Thereissilence；butthebellisheardstillranging。]
CURTAIN。
SCENEII
Thesame-indaylightdyingfast。Alampisburningonthebar。
Achairhasbeenplacedinthecentreoftheroom，facingthebenchunderthewindow，onwhichareseatedfromrighttoleft，GODLEIGH，SOLPOTTERthevillageshopman，TRUSTAFORD，BURLACOMBE，FREMAN，JIMBERE，andMORSEtheblacksmith。CLYST
issquattingonastoolbythebar，andattheotherendJARLAND，soberedandlowering，leansagainstthe，linteloftheporchleadingtothedoor，roundwhicharegatheredfiveorsixsturdyfellows，dumbasfishes。Noonesitsinthechair。Intheunnaturalsilencethatreigns，thedistantsoundofthewheezychurchorganandvoicessingingcanbeheard。
TAUSTAFORD。[Afteraprolongedclearingofhisthroat]WhatImeantozayisthat’tesnoyuse，notabito’yuseintheworld，notduin’ofthingsproperly。Ifan’incasewe’mtocarryaresolutiondisapprovin’o’curate，itmustallbedonesoasnoonecan’t，zaynothin’。
SOLPOTTER。That’swhatIzay，Mr。Trustaford；efsobeas’tistobeavillagemeetin’，thenitmustbealldoneproper。
FREMAN。That’sright，SotPotter。IpurposeMr。SotPotterintothechair。Whusecondsthat？
[Asilence。Voicesfromamongthedumb-as-fishes：\"Idu。\"]
CLYST。[Excitedly]Yucan’tputtthattothemeetin’。Onlyachairmancanputtittothemeetin’。IpurposethatMr。Burlacombe——
beinashowhe’schairmano’theParishCouncil——takethechair。
FREMAN。EfsobeasIcan’tputtit，yucan’tputtthatneither。
TRUSTAFORD。’Tesnotabito’yuse；uscan’t’avenomeetin’withoutachairman。
GODLEIGH。Uscan’t’avenochairmanwithoutameetin’toelectun，that’szure。[Asilence。]
MORSE。[Heavily]Tomywayo’thinkin’，Mr。Godleighspeakszense；
usmust’aveameetin’beforeuscan’aveachairman。
CLYST。Thenwhatwegottodu’stoelectameetin’。
BURLACOMBE。[Sourly]Yu’llnotfindnoprocedurefarthat。
[Voicesfromamongthedumb-asfishes：\"Mr。Burlacombe’eoughterknow。\"]
SOLPOTTER。[Scratchinghishead——withheavysolemnity]’Tesmybeliefthere’snootherwaytodu，buttoelectachairmantocallameetin’；an’thenforthatmeetin’toelectachairman。
CLYST。IpurposeMr。Burlacombeaschairmantocallameetin’。
FREMAN。IpurposeSolPotter。
GODLEIGH。Can’t’avetupropositionstogetherbeforeameetin’；
that’sapple-piezurevurzurtain。
[Voicefromamongthedumb-asfishes：\"Thereain’tnomeetin’
yet，SolPotterzays。\"]
TRUSTAFORD。Usmustgettherightsofitzettledsome’ow。’Teslikethedarnedoldchickenan’theegg——meetin’orchairman——whichcomevirst？
SOLPOTTER。[Conciliating]Tomythinkin’thereshidbeanotherwayo’duin’it，togetrounditlikewithacircumbendibus。’T’allcomesfromtakin’differentvuse，inamannero’spakin’。
FREMAN。Vugooan’zetinthatchair。
SOLPOTTER。[WithaglanceatBURLACOMBEmodestly]Ishid’nneverlikefurtoduthat，withMr。Burlacombezettin’there。
BURLACOMBE。[Rising]’Tesalldarnedfulishness。
[Amidstanuneasyshufflementoffeethemovestothedoor，andgoesoutintothedarkness。]
CLYST。[Seeinghiscandidatethusdepart]Rackoncurate’sprettywellthrubynow，I’mgoin’tozee。[AshepassesJARLAND]’Ow’stobase，oldman？
[Hegoesout。Oneofthedumb-as-fishesmovesfromthedoorandfillstheapaceleftonthebenchbyBURLACOMBE’Sdeparture。]
JARLAND。Darnallthispuzzivantin’！[ToSOLPOTTER]Gotan’zetinthatchair。
SOLPOTTER。[Risingandgoingtothechair；therehestands，changingfromonetotheotherofhisshortbroadfeetandsweatingfrommodestyandworth]’Tesmydutynow，gentlemen，tocallameetin’oftheparishionersofthisparish。Ibegthereforetodeclarethatthisisameetin’inaccordancewithmydutyaschairmanofthismeetin’whichelectedmechairmantocallthismeetin’。AndIpurceedtovacatethechairsothatthismeetin’maynowpurceedtoelectachairman。
[Hegetsupfromthechair，andwipingthesweatfromhisbrow，goesbacktohisseat。]
FREMAN。Mr。Chairman，Iriseonapointoforder。
GODLEIGH。Thereain’tnochairman。
FREMAN。Idon’tgiveadarnforthat。Iriseonapointoforder。
GODLEIGH。’Tesachairmanthatdecidespointsoforder。’Tescertainyucan’triseonnopointswhatevertillthere’sachairman。
TRUSTAFORD。’Tesnoyuseyurerisin’，nottheleastbitintheworld，tillthere’ssomeonetosetyudownagain。Haw，haw！
[Voicefromthedumb-as-Etches：\"Mr。Trustaford’e’sright。\"]
FREMAN。WhatIzayisthechairmanoughtneverto’avevacatedthechairtillI’drisenonmypointoforder。Ipurposethathegooandzetdownagain。
GODLEIGH。Yucan’tpurposethattothismeetin’；yucanonlypurposethattotheoldmeetin’that’snotzettin’anylonger。
FREMAN。[Excitedly]Ididn’carewhatoldmeetin’’tisthat’szettin’。IpurposethatSolPottergooan’zetinthatchairagain，whileIriseonmypointoforder。
TRUSTAFORD。[Scratchinghishead]’Tesn’tregularbutIguessyu’vegottogoo，Sol，orusshan’t’avenopeace。
[SOLPOTTER，stillwipinghisbrow，goesbacktothechair。]
MORSE。[Stolidly-toFREMAN]Zetdown，WillFreman。[Hepullsathimwithablacksmith’sarm。
FREMAN。[Remainingerectwithaneffort]I’mnota-goin’tozetdowntillI’vearisen。
JARLAND。Nowthen，there’eisinthechair。What’syorepointoforder？
FREMAN。[Dartinghiseyeshereandthere，andflinginghishanduptohisgipsy-likehead]’Twas——’twas——Darnedefy’’aven’tputtitcleanouto’my’ead。
JARLAND。Wecan’twaitforyorepointsoforder。Comeouto’thatchair。SolPotter。
[SOLPOTTERrisesandisabouttovacatethechair。]
FREMAN。Iknow！Thereoughtto’abeenminutestaken。Yucan’t’avenomeetin’withoutminutes。Whenuscomestoelectin’achairmano’thenextmeetin’，’ewon’t’avenominutestoread。
SOLPOTTER。’TwasonlytoputtdownthatIwaselectedchairmantoelectameetin’toelectachairmantopresideoverameetin’topassaresolutiondalin’wi’thecurate。That’saisysetdown，thatis。
FREMAN。[Mollified]We’ll’avethatzetdown，then，whilewe’reelectin’thechairmano’thenextmeetin’。
[Asilence。]
TRUSTAFORD。Wellthen，seein’thisisthepraaperoldmeetin’forcarryin’theresolutionaboutthecurate，IpurposeMr。SolPottertakethechair。
FREMAN。IpurposeMr。Trustaford。I’aven’ta-gotnothin’againstSolPotter，butseein’thatheelectedthemeetin’that’stoelect’im，itmightbesaidthat’ewaselectin’ofhimzelfinamannerofspakin’。Usdon’twantthatsaid。
MORSE。[Amidmeditativegruntsfromthedumb-as-fishes]There’ssome-atinthat。Oneo’theytupurposalsmustbeputttothemeetin’。
FREMAN。Secondmustbeputtvirst，furzure。
TRUSTAFORD。IdunnoasIwantstozetinthatchair。Tohissthecurate，’tisaticklishsortofajobafterthat。Vurstcomesaforesecond，WillFreeman。
FREMAN。Secondisamendmenttovirst。’Testheamendmentsisputtvirst。
TRUSTAFORD。’Ow’sthat，Mr。Godleigh？I’mnotparticulareggzac’lytoadillyzortofapointlikethat。
SOLPOTTER。[Scratchinghis，head]’Tesaverynicepoint，forzure。
GODLEIGH。’Tesundoubtedlyforthechairmantodecide。
[Voicefromthedumb-asfishes：\"Butthereain’tnochairmanyet。\"]
JARLAND。SolPotter’schairman。
FREMAN。No，’eain’t。
MORSE。Yes，’eis——’e’schairmantillthissecondoldmeetin’getsonthego。
FREMAN。Idenythat。Whatduyusay，Mr。Trustaford？
TRUSTAFORD。Ican’t’ardlytell。Itduzeemadarnedlong-sufferin’
sortofabusinessaltogether。
[Asilence。]
MORSE。[Slowly]Tell’eewhat’tis，usshan’tdunogudelikethis。
GODLEIGH。’TesforMr。FremanorMr。Trustaford，oneort’othertowithdrawtheirmotions。
TRUSTAFORD。[Afterapause，withcautiousgenerosity]I’venoobjectionstowithdrawin’mine，ifWillFreman’llwithdrawhis’n。
FREMAN。Iwon’tneverbebe’indhand。IfMr。Trustafordwithdraws，I
withdrawsmine。
MORSE。[Withrelief]That’szensible。Puttthemotiontothemeetin’。
SOLPOTTER。Thereain’tnomotionlefttoputt。
[Silenceofconsternation。]
[IntheconfusionJimBEREisseentostandup。]
GODLEIGH。JimBeretospike。SilenceforJim！
VOICES。Aye！SilenceforJim！
SOLPOTTER。Well，Jim？
JIM。[Smilingandslow]Nothin’duin’。
TRUSTAFORD。Bravo，Jim！Yu’mright。Bestzenseyet！
[Applausefromthedumb-as-fishes。]
[Withhissmilebrightening，JIMresumeshisseat。]
SOLPOTTER。[Wipinghisbrow]Duseemtome，gentlemen，seem’aswe’mgotintoabitofatangleinamannerofspakin’，’twidbethemostzimplestandvairestwaytobeginallovervromthebeginnin’，so’st’aveitallvairan’squareforeveryone。
[IntheuproarOf\"Aye\"and\"No，\"itisnoticedthatTIBBY
JARLANDisstandinginfrontofherfatherwithherfinger，forwantofsomethingbetter，inhermouth。]
TIBBY。[Inherstolidvoice]Please，sisterMercysays，curate’avegotto\"Lastly。\"[JARLANDpicksherup，andthereissilence。]An’
pleasetocomequick。
JARLAND。Comeon，mates；quietlynow！
[Hegoesout，andallbegintofollowhim。]
MORSE。[Slowest，saveforSOLPOTTER]’Tesrareluckyuswasallagreedtohissthecurateaforeusbeganthebotherin’oldmeetin’，oruswidn’’ardly’ave’adtimetosettlewhattodu。
SOLPOTTER。[Scratchinghishead]Aye，’tesrarelucky；butIdunnoif’tesaltogetherreg’lar。
CURTAIN。
SCENEIII
Thevillagegreenbeforethechurchyardandtheyew-treesatthegate。Intothepitchdarkundertheyews，lightcomesoutthroughthehalf-openchurchdoor。Figuresarelurking，ormovingstealthily——peoplewaitingandlisteningtothesoundofavoicespeakinginthechurchwordsthatareinaudible。
Excitedwhisperingandfaintgigglescomefromthedeepestyew-
treeshade，madeghostlybythewhitefacesandthefrocksofyounggirlscontinuallyflittingupandbackintheblackness。
Agirl’sfigurecomesflyingoutfromtheporch，downthepathoflight，andjoinsthestealthygroup。
WHISPERINGVOICEofMERCY。Where’s’egottonow，Gladys？
WHISPERINGVOICEOFGLADYS。’E’vejustfinished。
VOICEOFCONNIE。Whupushedt’dooropen？
VOICEOFGLADYS。TimClystIgiv’italittlepush，meself。
VOICEOFCONNIE。Oh！
VOICEofGLADYS。TimClyst’sgonein！
ANOTHERVOICE。O-o-o-h！
VOICEofMERCY。Whuelseisthere，tu？
VOICEOFGLADYS。Ivy’sthere，an’OldMrs。Potter，an’tuo’themaidsfromth’Hall；that’sallasever。
VOICEofCONNIE。Nottheoldgreymare？
VOICEofGLADYS。No。Sheain’tther’。’Twilljustbeth’ymnnow，an’theBlessin’。Tibbygonefor’em？
VOICEOFMERCY。Yes。
VOICEofCONNIE。Mr。Burlacombe’sgoneinhome，Isaw’impassbyjustnow——’edon’likeit。Fatherdon’tlikeitneither。
VOICEofMERCY。Mr。Strangwayshoudn’’avetakenmyskylark，an’
thrownfatherouto’winder。’Tisgoin’tobeawfulfun！Oh！
[Shejumpsupanddawninthedarkness。Andavoicefromfarintheshadowsays：\"Hsssh！Quiet，yumaids！\"Thevoicehasceasedspeakinginthechurch。Thereisamoment’sdeadsilence。Thevoicespeaksagain；thenfromthewheezylittleorgancomethefirstfaintchordsofahymn。]
GLADYS。\"Nearer，myGod，toThee！\"
VOICEofMERCY。’Twillbefunny，withnoone’ardlysingin’。
[Thesoundoftheoldhymnsungbyjustsixvoicescomesouttothemrathersweetandclear。]
GLADYS。[Softly]’Tispretty，tu。Why！They’reonlysingin’oneverse！
[Amoment’ssilence，andthevoicespeaks，uplifted，pronouncingtheBlessing：\"ThepeaceofGod————\"Asthelastwordsdieaway，darkfiguresfromtheinnapproachoverthegrass，tillquiteacrowdseemsstandingtherewithoutawordspoken。Thenfromoutofthechurchporchcomethecongregation。TIMCLYSTfirst，hastilylostamongthewaitingfiguresinthedark；oldMrs。
Potter，ahalfblindoldladygropingherwayandperceivingnothingoutoftheordinary；thetwomaidsfromtheHall，self-
consciousandscared，scuttlingalong。Last，IVYBURLACOMBE
quickly，andstartingbackatthedim，half-hiddencrowd。
VOICEofGLADYS。[Whispering]Ivy！Here，quick！
[Ivysways，dartsofftowardsthevoice，andislostintheshadow。]
VOICEOFFREMAN。[Low]Wait，boys，tillIgivesignal。
[Twoorthreesquirksandgiggles；TimCLYST’Svoice：\"Ya-as！
Don’t’eetreadonmytoe！\"Asoft，frightened\"O-o-h！\"fromagirl。Somequick，excitedwhisperings：\"Luke！\"\"Zeethere！\"
\"He’scomin’！\"Andthenaperfectlydeadsilence。ThefigureofSTRANGWAYisseeninhisdarkclothes，passingfromthevestrytothechurchporch。Hestandsplainlyvisibleinthelightedporch，lockingthedoor，thenstepsforward。Justashereachestheedgeoftheporch，alowhissbreaksthesilence。
Itswellsverygraduallyintoalong，hissinggroan。STRANGWAY
standsmotionless，hishandoverhiseyes，staringintothedarkness。Agirl’sfigurecanbeseentobreakoutofthedarknessandrushaway。Whenatlastthegroaninghasdiedintosheerexpectancy，STRANGWAYdropshishand。
STRANGWAY。[Inalocovoice]Yes！I’mglad。IsJarlandthere？
FREMAN。He’s’ere-nothankstoyu！Hsss！
[Thehissbreaksoutagain，thendiesaway。]
JARLAND’SVOICE。[Threatening]Tryifyucanduitagain。
STRANGWAY。No，Jarland，no！Iaskyoutoforgiveme。Humbly！
[Ahesitatingsilence，brokenbymuttering。]
CLYST’SVOICE。Bravo！
AVOICE。That’svair。
AVOICE。’E’safraido’thesack——that’swhat’tis。
AVOICE。[Groaning]’E’sapraapercoward。
AVOICE。Whufunkedthedoctor？
CLYST’SVOICE。Shameon’ee，therr！
STRANGWAY。You’reright——allofyou！I’mnotfit！Anuneasyandexcitedmusteringandwhisperingdiesawayintorenewedsilence。
STRANGWAY。WhatIdidtoTamJarlandisnottherealcauseofwhatyou’redoing，isit？Iunderstand。Butdon’tbetroubled。It’sallover。I’mgoing——you’llgetsomeonebetter。Forgiveme，Jarland。
Ican’tseeyourface——it’sverydark。
FREMAN’SVoice。[Mocking]Waitforthefullmune。
GODLEIGH。[Verylow]\"My’eart’Elightednot！\"
STRANGWAY。[startingatthesoundofhisownwordsthusmysteriouslygivenhimoutofthedarkness]Whoeverfoundthat，pleasetearitup！[Afteramoment’ssilence]Manyofyouhavebeenverykindtome。Youwon’tseemeagain——Good-bye，all！
[Hestandsforasecondmotionless，thenmovesresolutelydownintothedarknesssopeopledwithshadows。]
UNCERTAINVOICESASHEPASSES。Good-bye，zurr！
Goodluck，zurr！[Hehasgone。
CLYST’SVOICE。ThreecheersforMr。Strangway！
[Andaqueer，strangledcheer，withgroansstillthreadingit，arises。]
CURTAIN。
ACTIII
SCENEI
IntheBURLACOMBES’hall-sitting-roomthecurtainsaredrawn，alampburns，andthedoorstandsopen。BURLACOMBEandhiswifearehoveringthere，listeningtothesoundofmingledcheersandgroaning。
MRS。BURLACOMBE。Aw！mygudeness——whatathingt’appen！I’dsaner’alostallmeducks。[Shemakestowardstheinnerdoor]Ican’tneverface’im。
BURLACOMBE。’Ecan’texpectnothin’else，if’eactlikethat。
MRS。BURLACOMBE。’Tesonlyduin’as’e’dbedoneby。
BURLACOMBE。Aw！Yucan’tgoonforgivin’’ere，an’forgivin’there。
’Tesn’tnat’ral。
MRS。BURLACOMBE。’Testhemischief’e’maparson。’Tes’imbein’alambo’God——or’twiddenbesoquarefor’imtobeforgivin’。
BURLACOMBE。Yugooan’makeunagude’otdrink。
MRS。BURLACOMBE。Poorsoul！What’ll’edunow，Iwonder？[Underherbreath]’E’scumin’！
[Shegoeshurriedly。BURLACOMBE，withastartledlookback，waversandmakestofollowher，butstopsundecidedintheinnerdoorway。STRANGWAYcomesinfromthedarkness。Heturnstothewindowanddropsovercoatandhatandthechurchkeyonthewindowseat，lookingabouthimasmendowhentooharddriven，andneverfixinghiseyeslongenoughonanythingtoseeit。
BURLACOMBE，closingthedoorintothehouse，advancesastep。
AtthesoundSTRANGWAYfacesround。
BURLACOMBE。Iwantedforyutoknow，zurr，thatmean’mine’adn’tnothin’toduwi’thatdarnedfulishness，justnow。
STRANGWAY。[Withaghostofasmile]Thankyou，Burlacombe。Itdoesn’tmatter。Itdoesn’tmatterabit。
BURLACOMBE。I’opeyuwon’ttakenonoticeofit。Likealoto’
sillybeestheyget。[Afteranuneasypause]Yu’llexcusemespakin’ofthismornin’，an’what’appened。’Tesabravepityitcam’onyusosudden-likebeforeyu’adtimetothink。’Tesasorto’thingamanshudezetan’chewupon。Certainly’tesnotabito’
yusegoin’againsthumannature。Efyudon’tstandupforyureselfthere’snooneelsenotgoin’to。’Tesyurenot’avin’donethat’asmade’emsorampageous。[StealinganotherlookatSTRANGWAY]Yu’llexcuseme，zurr，spakin’ofit，but’tesamazin’sadtozeeamanletgohisown，withoutawordo’darin’。’Teaasef’e’adnopassions-
like。
STRANGWAY。Lookatme，Burlacombe。
[BURLACOMBElooksup，tryinghardtokeephiseyesonSTRANGWAY’S，thatseemtoburninhisthinface。]
STRANGWAY。DoIlooklikethat？Please，please！[Hetoucheshisbreast]I’vetoomuchhere。Please！
BURLACOMBE。[Withasortofstartledrespect]Well，zurr，’tesnotformetozaynothin’，certainly。
[HeturnsandafteraslowlookbackatSTRANGWAYgoesout。]
STRANGWAY。[Tohimself]Passions！Nopassions！Ha！
[TheouterdoorisopenedandIVYBURLACOMBEappears，and，seeinghim，stops。Then，comingsoftlytowardshim，shespeakstimidly。]
IVY。Oh！Mr。Strangway，Mrs。Bradmere’scumin’fromtheRectory。I
ranan’told’em。Oh！’twasawful。
[STRANGWAYstarts，staresather，andturningonhisheel，goesintothehouse。Ivy’sfaceisallpuckered，asifshewereonthepointoftears。Thereisagentlescratchingatthedoor，whichhasnotbeenquiteclosed。]
VOICEOFGLADYS。[Whispering]Ivy！ComeonIvy。Iwon’t。
VOICEOFMERCY。Yumust。Uscan’tduwithoutYu。
Ivy。[Goingtothedoor]Idon’twantto。
VOICEofGLADYS。\"Naughtymaid，shewon’tcomeout，\"Ah！du’ee！
VOICEOFCREMER。TimClystan’Bobbie’scumin’；us’llonlybesixanyway。Uscan’tdance\"figureofeight\"withoutyu。
Ivy。[Stampingherfoot]Idon’twanttodanceatall！Idon’t。
MERCY。Aw！She’stemper。Yucanbangontambourine，then！
GLADYS。[Runningin]Quick，Ivy！Here’stheoldgreymarecumin’
downthegreen。Quick。
[Withwhisperingandscuffling；gurglingandsqueaking，thereluctantIvy’shandiscaughtandsheisjerkedaway。Intheirhastetheyhaveleftthedooropenbehindthem。]
VOICEofMRS。BRADMERE。[Outside]Who’sthat？
[Sheknocksloudly，andringsabell；then，withoutwaiting，comesinthroughtheopendoor。]
[Notingtheovercoatandhatonthewindow-sillshemovesacrosstoringthebell。Butasshedoesso，MRS。BURLACOMBE，followedbyBURLACOMBE，comesinfromthehouse。]
MRS。BRADMEREThisdisgracefulbusiness！Where’sMr。Strangway？I
seehe’sin。
MRS。BURLACOMBE。Yes，m’m，he’min——but——butBurlacombeduzayhe’mterribleupset。
MRS。BRADMERE。Ishouldthinkso。Imustseehim——atonce。
MRS。BURLACOMBE。Idoubtbed’sthebestplacefor’un，an’gude’otdrink。Burlacombezayshe’mlikeamanstandin’ontheedgeofacliff；andthelaststipsyo’windmightthrowunover。
MRS。BRADMERE。[ToBURLACOMBE]You’veseenhim，then？
BURLACOMBE。Yeas；an’Idon’tlikethelukeofun——notalittlebit，Idon’t。
MRS。BURLACOMBE。[Almosttoherself]Poorsoul；’e’vea-’adtomuchtotryunthisyerlongtimepast。I’vea-seen’tissperritcumin’thru’isbody，asyumightzay。He’storntobits，that’swhat’tis。
BURLACOMBE。’Twasapraapercowardlythingtohissamanwhenhe’sdown。But’twasnaturaltu，inamannerofspakin’。But’tesn’tthattroublin’’im。’Tesinhere[touchinghisforehead]，alongofhiswife，tomythinkin’。Theyzay’e’vea-knownabout’era-foreshewentaway。Thinkofwhat’e’ve’adtokapeinallthistime。
’Tesenoughtodriveamansillyafterthat。I’vea-lockedmygunup。Iseeamanlike——likethatoncebefore——an’sureenough’ewasdeadinthemornain’！
MRS。BRADMERE。Nonsense，Burlacombe！[ToMRS。BURLACOMBE]GoandtellhimIwanttoseehim——mustseehim。[MRS。BURLACOMBEgoesintothehouse]Andlookhere，Burlacombe；ifwecatchanyone，manorwoman，talkingofthisoutsidethevillage，it’llbetheendoftheirtenancy，whoevertheymaybe。Letthemallknowthat。I’mgladhethrewthatdrunkenfellowoutofthewindow，thoughitwasalittle————
BURLACOMBE。Aye！Thenuspaperswouldbepraapergladofthat，foratiddybito’nuse。
MRS。BRADMERE。Mygoodness！Yes！Themenareallupattheinn。
GoandtellthemwhatIsaid——it’snottogetabout。Goatonce，Burlacombe。
BURLACOMBE。Mustbeaturrablejobfor’im，everyone’sknowin’
about’iswifelikethis。He’maproudmantu，Ithink。’Tesafunnybusinessaltogether！
MRS。BRADMERE。Horrible！Poorfellow！Now，come！Doyourbest，Burlacombe！
[BURLACOMBEtoucheshisforelockandgoes。MRS。BRADMEREstandsquitestill，thinking。Thengoingtothephotograph，shestaresupatit。]
MRS。BRADMERE。Youbaggage！
[STRANGWAYhascomeinnoiselessly，andisstandingjustbehindher。Sheturns，andseeshim。Thereissomethingsostill，sostartlinglystillinhisfigureandwhiteface，thatshecannotforthemomentfondhervoice。]
MRS。BRADMERE。[Atlast]Thisismostdistressing。I’mdeeplysorry。[Then，ashedoesnotanswer，shegoesastepcloser]I’manoldwoman；andoldwomenmusttakeliberties，youknow，ortheycouldn’tgetonatall。Comenow！Let’stryandtalkitovercalmlyandseeifwecan’tputthingsright。
STRANGWAY。Youwereverygoodtocome；butIwouldrathernot。
MRS。BRADMERE。Iknowyou’reinasgrievoustroubleasamancanbe。
STRANGWAY。Yes。
MRS。BRADMERE。[Withalittlesoundofsympathy]Whatareyou——
thirty-five？I’msixty-eightifI’maday——oldenoughtobeyourmother。Icanfeelwhatyoumusthavebeenthroughallthesemonths，Icanindeed。Butyouknowyou’vegonethewrongwaytowork。Wearen’tangelsdownherebelow！AndasonoftheChurchcan’tactasifforhimselfalone。Theeyesofeveryoneareonhim。
STRANGWAY。[Takingthechurchkeyfromthewindow。]Takethis，please。
MRS。BRADMERE。No，no，no！Jarlanddeservedallhegot。Youhadgreatprovocation。
STRANGWAY。It’snotJarland。[Holdingoutthekey]PleasetakeittotheRector。Ibeghisforgiveness。[Touchinghisbreast]
There’stoomuchIcan’tspeakof——can’tmakeplain。Takeittohim，please。
MRS。BRADMERE。Mr。Strangway——Idon’tacceptthis。Iamsuremyhusband——theChurch——willneveraccept————
STRANGWAY。Takeit！
MRS。BRADMERE。[Almostunconsciouslytakingit]Mind！Wedon’tacceptit。YoumustcomeandtalktotheRectorto-morrow。You’reoverwrought。You’llseeitallinanotherlight，then。
STRANGWAY。[Withastrangesmile]Perhaps。[Liftingtheblind]
Beautifulnight！Couldn’tbemorebeautiful！
MRS。BRADMERE。[Startled-softly]Don’tturnswayfromthesewhowanttohelpyou！I’magrumpyoldwoman，butIcanfeelforyou。
Don’ttryandkeepitallback，likethis！Awomanwouldcry，anditwouldallseemcleareratonce。Nowwon’tyouletme————？
STRANGWAY。Noonecanhelp，thankyou。
MRS。BRADMERE。Come！Thingshaven’tgonebeyondmending，really，ifyou’llfacethem。[Pointingtothephotograph]YouknowwhatI
mean。Wedarenotfosterimmorality。
STRANGWAY。[Quiveringasatajabbednerve]Don’tspeakofthat！
MRS。BRADMERE。Butthinkwhatyou’vedone，Mr。Strangway！Ifyoucan’ttakeyourwifeback，surelyyoumustdivorceher。Youcanneverhelphertogoonlikethisinsecretsin。
STRANGWAY。Tortureher——onewayortheother？
MRS。BRADMERE。No，no；IwantyoutodoastheChurch——asallChristiansocietywouldwish。Come！Youcan’tletthisgoon。Mydearman，doyourdutyatallcosts！
STRANGWAY。Breakherheart？
MRS。BRADMERE。Thenyoulovethatwoman——morethanGod！
STRANGWAY。[Hisfacequivering]Love！
MRS。BRADMERE。Theytoldme————Yes，andIcanseeyou’reisabadway。Come，pullyourselftogether！Youcan’tdefendwhatyou’redoing。
STRANGWAY。Idonottry。
MRS。BRADMERE。Imustgetyoutosee！Myfatherwasaclergyman；，I’mmarriedtoone；I’vetwosonsintheChurch。IknowwhatI’mtalkingabout。It’sapriest’sbusinesstoguidethepeople’slives。
STRANGWAY。[Verylow]Butnotmine！Nomore！
MRS。BRADMERE。[Lookingathimshrewdly]There’ssomethingveryqueeraboutyouto-night。Yououghttoseedoctor。
STRANGWAY。[Asmileawningandgoingonhislips]IfIamnotbettersoon————
MRS。BRADMERE。Iknowitmustbeterribletofeelthateverybody————
[AconvulsiveshiverpassesoverSTRANGWAY，andheshrinksagainstthedoor]
Butcome！Liveitdown！
[Withangergrowingathissilence]
Liveitdown，man！Youcan’tdesertyourpost——andletthesevillagersdowhattheylikewithus？Doyourealizethatyou’relettingawoman，whohastreatedyouabominably；——yes，abominably——goscot-free，tolivecomfortablywithanotherman？Whatanexample！
STRANGWAY。Willyou，please，notspeakofthat！
MRS。BRADMERE。Imust！ThisgreatChurchofoursisbasedontherightfulcondemnationofwrongdoing。Therearetimeswhenforgivenessisasin，MichaelStrangway。Youmustkeepthewhiphand。Youmustfight！
STRANGWAY。Fight！[Touchinghisheart]Myfightishere。Haveyoueverbeeninhell？Formonthsandmonths——burnedandlonged；hopedagainsthope；killedamaninthoughtdaybyday？Neverrested，forloveandhate？I——condemn！I——judge！No！It’srestIhavetofind——somewhere——somehow-rest！Andhow——howcanIfindrest？
MRS。BRADMERE。[Whohaslistenedtohisoutburstinasoftofcoma]
Youareastrangeman！Oneofthesedaysyou’llgooffyourheadifyoudon’ttakecare。
STRANGWAY。[Smiling]Oneofthesedaystheflowerswillgrowoutofme；andIshallsleep。
[MRS。BRADMEREstaresathissmilingfacealongmomentinsilence，thenwithalittlesound，halfsniff，halfsnort，shegoestothedoor。Thereshehalts。]
MRS。BRADMERE。Andyoumeantoletallthisgoon————Yourwife————
STRANGWAY。Go！Pleasego！
MRS。BRADMERE。Menlikeyouhavebeenburiedatcross-roadsbeforenow！Takecare！Godpunishes！
STRANGWAY。IsthereaGod？
MRS。BRADMERE。Ah！[Withfinality]Youmustseeadoctor。
[Seeingthatthelookonhisfacedoesnotchange，sheopensthedoor，andhurriesawayintothemoonlight。]
[STRANGWAYcrossestheroomtowherehiswife’spicturehangs，andstandsbeforeit，hishandsgraspingtheframe。Thenhetakesitfromthewall，andlaysitfaceupwardsonthewindowseat。]
STRANGWAY。[Tohimself]Gone！Whatisthere，now？
[Thesoundofanowl’shootingisfloatingin，andofvoicesfromthegreenoutsidetheinn。]
STRANGWAY。[Tohimself]Gone！Takenfaith——hope——life！
[JIMBEREcomeswanderingintotheopendoorway。]
JIMBERE。Gudeavenin’，zurr。
[Athisslowgait，withhisfeeblesmile，hecomesin，andstandingbythewindow-seatbesidethelongdarkcoatthatstillliesthere，helooksdownatSTRANGWAYwithhislosteyes。]
JIM。Yuthrewunoutofwinder。Icud’ave，once，Icud。
[STRANGWAYneithermovesnorspeaks；andJIMBEREgoesonwithhisunimaginablyslowspeech]
They’mlaughin’atyu，zurr。An’soIcometotell’eehowtodu。
’Twasfullmune——whenIcaught’em，himan’mygirl。Icaught’em。
[Withastrangeandawfulflashoffire]Idid；an’Itukun[HetakenupSTRANGWAY’Scoatandgripsitwithhistremblinghands，asamangripsanother’sneck]likethat——Itukun。Asthecoatfalls，likeabodyoutofwhichthebreathhasbeensqueezed，STRANGWAY，rising，catchesit。
STRANGWAY。[Grippingthecoat]Andhefell！
[Heletsthecoatfallonthefloor，andputshisfootonit。
Then，staggeringback，heleansagainstthewindow。]
JIM。Yusee，Iloved’er——Idid。[Thelostlookcomesbacktohiseyes]Thensomethin’——Idunno——and——and————[Heliftshishandandpassesitupanddownhisside]Twaslikethisforever。
[Theygazeateachotherinsilence。
JIM。[Atlast]Icometotellyu。They’malllaughin’atyu。Butyu’mstrong——yugoovertoDurfordtothatdoctorman，an’takeunlikeIdid。[Hetriesagaintomakethesignofsqueezingaman’sneck]Theycan’tlaughatyunomore，then。Tha’swhatIcometotellyu。Tha’sthewayforaChristianmantodu。Gudenaight，zurr。Icometotellyee。
[STRANGWAYmotionstohiminsilence。And，veryslowly，JIM
BEREpassesout。]
[Thevoicesofmencomingdownthegreenareheard。]
VOICES。Gudenight，Tam。Glidenaight，oldJim！
VOICES。Gudemight，Mr。Trustaford。’Tesawonderfulfinemune。
VOICEOFTRUSTAFORD。Ah！’Tesabravemuneforth’pooroldcurate！
VOICE。\"My’eart’Elightednot！\"
[TRUSTAFORD’Slaugh，andtherattling，fainterandfainter，ofwheels。AspasmseizesonSTRANGWAY’Sface，ashestandstherebytheopendoor，hishandgripshisthroat；helooksfromsidetoside，asifseekingawayofescape。
CURTAIN。
SCENEII
TheBURLACOMBES’highandnearlyemptybarn。Alanternishungbyaropethatliftsthebalesofstraw，toalongladderleaningagainstarafter。Thisgivesallthelightthereis，saveforaslendertrackofmoonlight，slantinginfromtheend，wherethetwogreatdoorsarenotquiteclosed。Onarudebenchinfrontofafewremaining，stacked，square-cutbundlesoflastyear’shay，sitsTIBBYJARLAND，abitofappleinhermouth，sleepilybeatingonatambourine。WithstockingedfeetGLADYS，IVY，CONNIE，andMERCY，TIMCLYST，andBOBBIEJARLAND，aboyoffifteen，aredancingatruncated\"FigureofEight\"；andtheirshadowaredancingalongsideonthewalls。Shoesandsomeappleshavebeenthrowndownclosetothesidedoorthroughwhichtheyhavecomein。NowandthenIVY，thesmallestandbestofthedancers，ejaculateswordsofdirection，andoneoftheyouthsgruntsorbreathesloudlyoutoftheconfusionofhismind。Saveforthisandthedumbbeatandjingleofthesleepytambourine，thereisnosound。Thedancecomestoitsend，butthedrowsyTIBBYgoesonbeating。
MERCY。That’lldu，Tibby；we’refinished。Ateyoreapple。[ThestolidTIBBYeatsherapple。
CLYST。[Inhisteasing，excitablevoice]Yumaidsdon’tdance’elf’swellasusdu。Bobbie’e’sagreatdancer。’Edancevine。
I’magudedancer，meself。
GLADYS。A’n’tyuconceitedjust？
CLYST。Aw！Ah！Yu’llgivemekissforthat。[Hechases，butcannotcatchthatslipperywhitefigure]Can’tsheglimmer！
MERCY。Gladys！Upladder！
CLYST。Yugoupladder；I’llcatch’eethen。Naw，yumaids，don’tyugivehersuccour。That’snotvair（CatchingholdofMERCY，whogivesalittlesqueal。
CONNIE。Mercy，don’t！Mrs。Burlacombe’llhear。Ivy，goan’peek。
[Ivygoestofleesidedoorandpeersthrough。]
CLYST。[Abandoningthechaseandpickingupanapple——theyallhavethejoyousirresponsibilitythatattendsforbiddendoings]Ya-as，thisisagudeapple。LukeatTibby！
[TIBBY，overcomebydrowsiness，hasfallenbackintothehay，asleep。GLADYS，leaningagainstthehaybreaksintohumming：]
\"Therecam’threedukesa-ridin’，a-ridin’，a-ridin’，Therecam’threedukesaridin’
Witharansy-tansytay！\"
CLYST。Us’asgotonvine；us’llgetprizeforourdancin’。
CONNIE。Therewon’tbenoprizeifMr。Strangwaygoesaway。’Tesfunny’twasMrs。Strangwaystartus。
IVY。[Fromthedoor]’Twaswickedtohisshim。
[Amoment’shush。]
CLYST。Twasn’tI。
BOBBIE。Ineverdid。
GLADYS。Oh！Bobbie，yudid！Yublewinmyear。
CLYST。’Twasthepraaperoldwindinthetrees。Didmakeabravenoise，zurely。
MERCY。’Eshuld’n’’aletmyskylarkgo。
CLYST。[Outofsheercontradictoriness]Ya-as，’eshude，then。
Whatduyuwantwithth’birdsoftheair？They’mnogudetoyu。
IVY。[Mournfully]Andnowhe’sgoin’away。
CLYST。Ya-as；’tesapity。He’sthebestmanIeverseensinceI
wascomin’frommymother。He’sagudeman。He’emgotazadface，sureenough，though。
IVY。Gudefolkalways’avezadfaces。
CLYST。Iknuagudeman——’esoldpigs——verygudeman：’e’adabudifulbrightvaselikethemane。[Touchinghisstomach]Iwassad，meself，once。’Twasafunnyscrabblin’——likefeelin’。
GLADYS。If’egoaway，whu’sgoin’tofinishusforconfirmation？
CONNIE。TheRectorandtheoldgreymare。
MERCY。Idon’wantnomorefinishin’；I’mconfirmedenough。
CLYST。Ya-as；yu’mabuty。
GLADYS。Supposeweallwentan’asked’imnottogo？
IVY。’Twouldn’tbenogude。
CONNIE。Where’s’egoin’？
MERCY。He’llgotoLondon，ofcourse。
IVY。He’ssogentle；Ithink’e’llgotoanisland，wherethere’snothin’butbirdsandbeastsandflowers。
CLYST。Aye！He’mawfulfondo’thedumbthings。
IVY。They’rekindandpeaceful；that’swhy。
CLYST。Aw！Yuseetupraaperoldtomcats；they’mnottopeaceful，afterthat，norkindnaighther。
BOBBIE。[Surprisingly]If’e’ssad，per’aps’e’llgoto’Eaven。
IVY。Oh！notyet，Bobbie。He’stuyoung。
CLYST。[Followinghisownthoughts]Ya-as。’Tesafunnyplace，tu，nowadays，judgin’fromthepapers。
GLADYS。Wonderifthere’sdancin’in’Eaven？
IVY。There’sbeasts，andflowers，andwaters，and’etoldus。
CLYST。Naw！There’snodumbthingsin’Eaven。JimBere’esaysthereis！’Ethinks’isoldcat’sthere。
IVY。Yes。[Dreamily]There’sstars，an’owls，an’amanplayin’ontheflute。Where’tesgude，theremustbemusic。
CLYST。Oldbrassband，shuldn’wonder，liketh’SalvationArmy。
IVY。[Puttingupherhandstoanimaginarypipe]No；’tisaboythatgoesso；an’allthedumbthingsan’allthepeoplegooafter’im——likethis。
[Shemarchesslowly，playingherimaginarypipe，andonebyonetheyallfallinbehindher，paddingroundthebarnintheirstockingedfeet。Passingthebigdoors，IVYthrowsthemopen。]
An’’tesalllikethatin’Eaven。
[Shestandstheregazingout，stillplayingonherimaginarypipe。Andtheyallstandamomentsilent，staringintothemoonlight。]
CLYST。’Tesaglory-befullmuneto-night！
IVY。Agoldie-cup——abigone。An’millionso’littlegoldie-cupsonthefloorof’Eaven。
MERCY。Oh！Bother’Eaven！Let’sdance\"Clapperclaws\"！Wakeup，Tibby！
GLADYS。Clapperelaws，clapperclaws！Comeon，Bobbie——makecircle！
CLYST。Clapperclaws！Idancethatonefine。
IVY。[Takingthetambourine]See，Tibby；likethis。Shehumsandbeatsgently，thenrestoresthetambourinetothesleepyTIBBY，who，waking，hasplacedapieceofappleinhermouth。
CONNIE。’Tesawfuldifficult，thisone。
IVY。[Illustrating]No；yujustjump，an’clapyore’ands。Lovely，lovely！
CLYST。Likeringin’bells！Comeahn！
[TIBBYbeginsherdrowsybeating，IVYhumsthetune；theydance，andtheirshadowsdanceagainuponthewalls。Whenshehasbeatenbutafewmomentsonthetambourine，TIBBYisovercomeoncemorebysleepandfallsbackagainintohernestofhay，withherlittleshoedfeetjustvisibleovertheedgeofthebench。Ivycatchesupthetambourine，andtoherbeatingandhummingthedancersdanceon。]
[SuddenlyGLADYSstopslikeawildanimalsurprised，andcraneshernecktowardstheaidedoor。]
CONNIE。[Whispering]Whatisit？
GLADYS。[Whispering]Ihear——someonecomin’acrosstheyard。
[Sheleadsanoiselessscampertowardstheshoes。BOBBIE
JARLANDshinsuptheladderandseizesthelantern。Ivydropsthetambourine。Theyallflytothebigdoors，andvanishintothemoonlight，pullingthedoornearlytoagainafterthem。]
[Thereisthesoundofscrabblingatthehitchofthesidedoor，andSTRANGWAYcomesintothenearlydarkbarn。Outinthenighttheowlisstillhooting。Heclosesthedoor，andthatsoundislost。Likeamanwalkinginhissleep，hegoesuptotheladder，takestheropeinhishand，andmakesanoose。Hecanbeheardbreathing，andinthedarknessthemotionsofhishandsaredimlyseen，freeinghisthroatandputtingthenooseroundhisneck。Hestandsswayingtoandfroatthefootoftheladder；then，withasigh，setshisfootonittomount。Oneofthebigdoorscreaksandopensinthewind，lettinginabroadpathofmoonlight。]
[STRANGWAYstops；freeinghisneckfromthenoose，hewalksquicklyupthetrackofmoonlight，whitenedfromheadtofoot，toclosethedoors。]
[ThesoundofhisbootsonthebarefloorhasawakenedTIBBY
JARLAND。Strugglingoutofherhaynestshestandsstaringathiswhitenedfigure，andburstssuddenlyintoawail。
TIBBY。O-oh！Mercy！Whereareyu？I’mfrightened！I’mfrightened！O-oooo！
STRANGWAY。[Turning——startled）Who’sthat？Whoisit？
TIBBY。O-oh！Aghosty！Oo-ooo！
STRANGWAY。[Goingtoherquickly]It’sme，Tibby——Tibonlyme！
TIBBY。Iseedaghosty。
STRANGWAY。[Takingherup]No，no，mybird，youdidn’t！。Itwasme。
TIBBY。[Buryingherfaceagainsthim]I’mfrighted。Itwasabigone。[Shegivestongueagain]O-o-oh！
STRANGWAY。There，there！It’snothingbutme。Look！
TIBBY。No。[Shepeepsoutallthesame。]
STRANGWAY。See！It’sthemoonlightmademeallwhite。See！You’reabravegirlnow？
TIBBY。[Cautiously]Iwantmyapple。
[Shepointstowardshernest。STRANGWAYcarriesherthere，picksupanapple，andgivesither。TIBBYtakesabite。]
TIBBY。Iwantanytambourine。
STRANGWAY。[Givingherthetambourine，andcarryingherbackintothe’trackofmoonlight]Nowwe’rebothghosties！Isn’titfunny？
TABBY。[Doubtfully]Yes。
STRANGWAY。See！Themoon’slaughingatus！See？Laughthen！
[TABBY，tambourineinonehandandappleintheother，smilesstolidly。Hesetsherdownontheladder，andstands，holdingherlevelWithhim。]
TABBY。[Solemnly]I’sestillfrightened。
STRANGWAY。No！Fullmoon，Tibby！Shallwewishforit？
TABBY。Fullmune。
STRANGWAY。Moon！We’rewishingforyou。Moon，moon！
TIBBY。Mune，we’rewishin’foryu！
STRANGWAY。Whatdo，youwishittobe？
TIBBY。Brightnewshillin’！
STRANGWAY。Aface。
TIBBY。Shillin’，ashillin’！
STRANGWAY。[Takingoutashillingandspinningitsothatitfallsintoherpinafore]See！Yourwishcomestrue。
TIBBY。Oh！[Puttingtheshillinginhermouth]Mune’sstillthere！
STRANGWAY。Wishforme，Tibby！
TIBBY。Mune。I’mwishin’foryu！
STRANGWAY。Notyet！
TIBBY。ShallIshakemytambouline？
STRANGWAY。Yes，shakeyourtambouline。
TIBBY。[Shakinghertambourine]Mune，I’mshaken’atyu。
[STRANGWAYlayshishandsuddenlyontherope，andswingsitupontothebeam。]
TIBBY。Whatd’yuduthatfor？
STRANGWAY。Toputitoutofreach。It’sbetter————
TIBBY。Whyisitbetter？[Shestaresupathim。]
STRANGWAY。Comealong，Tibby！[Hecarrieshertothebigdoors，andsetsherdown]See！Allasleep！Thebirds，andthefields，andthemoon！
TIBBY。Mune，mune，we’rewishingforyu！
STRANGWAY。Sendheryourlove，andsaygood-night。
TIBBY。[Blowingakiss]Good-night，mune！
[Fromthebarnroofalittlewhitedove’sfeathercomesfloatingdowninthewind。TIBBYfollowsitwithherhand，catchesit，andholdsituptohim。]
TIBBY。[Chuckling]Luke。Themune’ssentabito’love！
STRANGWAY。[Takingthefeather]Thankyou，Tibby！Iwantthatbito’love。[Veryfaint，comesthesoundofmusic]Listen！
TIBBY。It’sMissWillis，playin’onthepianny！
STRANGWAY。No；it’sLove；walkingandtalkingintheworld。
TIBBY。[Dubiously]Isit？
STRANGWAY。[Pointing]See！Everythingcomingouttolisten！Seethem，Tibby！Allthelittlethingswithpointedears，children，andbirds，andflowers，andbunnies；andthebrightrocks，and——men！
Heartheirheartsbeating！Andthewindlistening！
TIBBY。Ican’thear——norIcan’tsee！
STRANGWAY。Beyond————[Tohimself]Theyare——theymustbe；Isweartheyare！[Then，catchingsightofTIBBY’Samazedeyes]Andnowsaygood-byetome。
TIBBY。Whereyugoin’？
STRANGWAY。Idon’tknow，Tibby。
VOICEOFMERCY。[Distantandcautious]Tibby！Tibby！Whereareyu？
STRANGWAY。Mercycalling；runtoher！
[TIBBYstartsoff，turnsbackandliftsherface。Hebendstokissher，andflingingherarmsroundhisneck，shegiveshimagoodhug。Then，knucklingthesleepoutofhereyes，sheruns。]
[STRANGWAYstands，uncertain。Thereisasoundofheavyfootsteps；amanclearshisthroat，closeby。]
STRANGWAY。Who’sthat？
CREMER。JackCremer。[Thebigman’sfigureappearsoutoftheshadowofthebarn]Thatyu，zurr？
STRANGWAY。Yes，Jack。Howgoesit？
CREMER。’Tesempty，zurr。ButI’llgetonsome’ow。
STRANGWAY。Youputmetoshame。
CREMER。No，zurr。I’dbekillin’meself，ifIdidn’feelImuststickit，likeyuzaid。
[Theystandgazingateachotherinthemoonlight。]
STRANGWAY。[Verylow]Ihonouryou。
CREMER。What’sthat？[Then，asSTRANGWAYdoesnotanswer]I’lljustbewalkin’——Iwon’begain’’ometo-night。，’Testhefullmune——
lucky。
STRANGWAY。[Suddenly]Waitformeatthecrossroads，Jack。I’llcomewithyou。Willyouhaveme，brother？
CREMER。Sure！
STRANGWAY。Wait，then。
CREMER。Aye，zurr。
[WithhisheavytreadCREMERpasseson。AndSTRANGWAYleansagainstthelintelofthedoor，lookingatthemoon，that，quitefullandgolden，hangsnotfarabovethestraighthorizon，wherethetreesstandsmall，inarow。]
STRANGWAY。[Liftinghishandinthegestureofprayer]God，ofthemoonandthesun；ofjoyandbeauty，oflonelinessandsorrow——givemestrengthtogoon，tillIloveeverylivingthing！
[Hemovesaway，followingJACKCREMER。Thefullmoonshines；
theowlhoots；andsomeoneisshakingTIBBY’Stambourine。]
