The Plough and the Stars (9 page)
Read The Plough and the Stars Online
Authors: Sean O'Casey
The Covey
(
frightened
) There’s no place here to lie low. Th’ Tommies ’ll be hoppin’ in here, any minute!
Peter
(
aghast
) An’ then we’d all be shanghaied!
The Covey
Be God, there’s enough afther happenin’ to us!
Fluther
(
warningly, as he listens
) Whisht, whisht, th’ whole o’ yous. I think I heard th’ clang of a rifle butt on th’ floor of th’ hall below. (
All alertness
) Here, come on with th’ cards again. I’ll deal. (
He shuffles and deals the cards to all.
) Clubs up. (
To Brennan
) Thry to keep your hands from shakin’, man. You lead, Peter.
As Peter throws out a card.
Four o’ Hearts led.
The door opens and Corporal Stoddart of the Wiltshires enters in full war kit: steel helmet, rifle and bayonet, and trench tool. He looks round the room. A pause and a palpable silence.
(
Breaking the silence
) Two tens an’ a five.
Corporal Stoddart
’Ello. (
Indicating the coffin
) This the stiff?
The Covey
Yis.
Corporal Stoddart
Who’s gowing with it? Ownly one allowed to gow with it, you know.
The Covey
I dunno.
Corporal Stoddart
You dunnow?
The Covey
I dunno.
Bessie
(
coming into the room
) She’s afther slippin’ off to sleep again, thanks be to God. I’m hardly able to keep me own eyes open. (
To the soldier
) Oh, are yous goin’ to take away poor little Mollser?
Corporal Stoddart
Ay; ’oo’s agowing with ’er?
Bessie
Oh, th’ poor mother, o’ course. God help her, it’s a terrible blow to her!
Fluther
A terrible blow? Sure, she’s in her element now, woman, mixin’ earth to earth, an’ ashes t’ ashes an’ dust to dust, an’ revellin’ in plumes an’ hearses, last days an’ judgements!
Bessie
(
falling into chair by the fire
) God bless us! I’m jaded!
Corporal Stoddart
Was she plugged?
The Covey
Ah, no; died o’ consumption.
Corporal Stoddart
Ow, is that all? Thought she moight ’ave been plugged.
The Covey
Is that all? Isn’t it enough? D’ye know, comrade, that more die o’ consumption than are killed in th’ wars? An’ it’s all because of th’ system we’re livin’ undher?
Corporal Stoddart
Ow, I know. I’m a Sowcialist moiself, but I ’as to do my dooty.
The Covey
(
ironically
) Dooty! Th’ only dooty of a Socialist is th’ emancipation of th’ workers.
Corporal Stoddart
Ow, a man’s a man, an ’e ’as to foight for ’is country, ’asn’t ’e?
Fluther
(
aggressively
) You’re not fightin’ for your counthry here, are you?
Peter
(
anxiously to Fluther
) Ay, ay, Fluther, none o’ that, none o’ that!
The Covey
Fight for your counthry! Did y’ever read, comrade, Jenersky’s
Thesis on the Origin, Development, an’ Consolidation of th’ Evolutionary Idea of the Proletariat?
Corporal Stoddart
Ow, cheese it, Paddy, cheese it!
Bessie
(
sleepily
) How is things in th’ town, Tommy?
Corporal Stoddart
Ow, I fink it’s nearly hover. We’ve got ’em surrounded, and we’re clowsing in on the bloighters. Ow, it was only a little bit of a dawg-foight.
The sharp ping of the sniper’s rifle is heard, followed by a squeal of pain.
Voices
(
to the left in a chant
) Red Cr … oss, Red Cr … oss! Ambu … lance, Ambu … lance!
Corporal Stoddart
(
excitedly
) Christ, that’s another of our men ’it by that blawsted sniper! ’E’s knocking abaht ’ere, somewheres. Gawd, when we gets th’ bloighter, we’ll give ’im the cold steel, we will. We’ll jab the belly aht of ’im, we will!
Mrs Gogan comes in tearfully, and a little proud of the importance of being directly connected with death.
Mrs Gogan
(
to Fluther
) I’ll never forget what you done for me, Fluther, goin’ around at th’ risk of your life settlin’ everything with th’ undhertaker an’ th’ cemetery people. When all me own were afraid to put their noses out, you plunged like a good one through hummin’ bullets, an’ they knockin’ fire out o’ th’ road, tinklin’ through th’ frightened windows, an’ splashin’ themselves to pieces on th’ walls! An’ you’ll find that Mollser, in th’ happy place she’s gone to, won’t forget to whisper, now an’ again, th’ name o’ Fluther.
Corporal Stoddart
Git it aht, mother, git it aht.
Bessie
(
from the chair
) It’s excusin’ me you’ll be, Mrs Gogan, for not stannin’ up, seein’ I’m shaky on me feet for want of a little sleep, an’ not desirin’ to show any disrespect to poor little Mollser.
Fluther
Sure, we all know, Bessie, that it’s vice versa with you.
Mrs Gogan
(
to Bessie
) Indeed, it’s meself that has well chronicled, Mrs Burgess, all your gentle hurryin’s to me little Mollser, when she was alive, bringin’ her somethin’ to dhrink, or somethin’ t’eat, an’ never passin’ her without liftin’ up her heart with a delicate word o’ kindness.
Corporal Stoddart
(
impatiently, but kindly
) Git it aht, git it aht, mother.
The Covey, Fluther, Brennan, and Peter carry out the coffin, followed by Mrs Gogan.
(
To Bessie, who is almost asleep
) ’Ow many men is in this ’ere ’ouse?
No answer.
(
Loudly
) ’Ow many men is in this ’ere ’ouse?
Bessie
(
waking with a start
) God, I was nearly asleep! … How many men? Didn’t you see them?
Corporal Stoddart
Are they all that are in the ’ouse?
Bessie
Oh, there’s none higher up, but there may be more lower down. Why?
Corporal Stoddart
All men in the district ’as to be rounded up. Somebody’s giving ’elp to the snipers, and we ’as to take precautions. If I ’ad my woy, I’d make ’em all join hup, and do their bit! But I suppowse they and you are all Shinners.
Bessie
(
who has been sinking into sleep, waking up to a sleepy vehemence
) Bessie Burgess is no Shinner, an’ never had no thruck with anything spotted be th’ fingers o’ th’ Fenians; but always made it her business to harness herself for Church whenever she knew that God Save the King was goin’ to be sung at t’end of th’ service; whose only son went to th’ front in th’ first contingent of the Dublin Fusiliers, an’ that’s on his way home carryin’ a shatthered arm that he got fightin’ for his King an’ counthry!
Her head sinks slowly forward again. Peter comes into the room; his body is stiffened and his face is wearing a comically indignant look. He walks to and fro at the back of the room, evidently repressing a violent desire to speak angrily. He is followed in by
Fluther, the Covey, and Brennan, who slinks into an obscure corner of the room, nervous of notice.
Fluther
(
after an embarrassing pause
) Th’ air in th’ sthreet outside’s shakin’ with the firin’ o’ rifles an’ machineguns. It must be a hot shop in th’ middle o’ th’ scrap.
Corporal Stoddart
We’re pumping lead in on ’em from every side, now; they’ll soon be shoving up th’ white flag.
Peter
(
with a shout
) I’m tellin’ you either o’ yous two lowsers ’ud make a betther hearse-man than Peter; proddin’ an’ pokin’ at me an’ I helpin’ to carry out a corpse!
Fluther
It wasn’t a very derogatory thing for th’ Covey to say that you’d make a fancy hearse-man, was it?
Peter
(
furiously
) A pair o’ redjesthered bowseys pondherin’ from mornin’ till night on how they’ll get a chance to break a gap through th’ quiet nature of a man that’s always endeavourin’ to chase out of him any sthray thought of venom against his fella-man!
The Covey
Oh, shut it, shut it, shut it!
Peter
As long as I’m a livin’ man, responsible for me thoughts, words, an’ deeds to th’ Man above, I’ll feel meself instituted to fight again’ th’ sliddherin’ ways of a pair o’ picaroons, whisperin’, concurrin’, concoctin’, an’ conspirin’ together to rendher me unconscious of th’ life I’m thryin’ to live!
Corporal Stoddart
(
dumbfounded
) What’s wrong, Daddy; wot ’ave they done to you?
Peter
(
savagely to the Corporal
) You mind your own business! What’s it got to do with you, what’s wrong with me?
Bessie
(
in a sleepy murmur
) Will yous thry to conthrol yourselves into quietness? Yous ’ll waken her … up … on … me … again. (
She sleeps.
)
Fluther
Come on, boys, to th’ cards again, an’ never mind him.
Corporal Stoddart
No use of you gowing to start cawds; you’ll be gowing out of ’ere, soon as Sergeant comes.
Fluther
Goin’ out o’ here? An’ why’re we goin’ out o’ here?
Corporal Stoddart
All men in district to be rounded up, and ’eld in till the scrap is hover.
Fluther
An’ where’re we goin’ to be held in?
Corporal Stoddart
They’re puttin ’em in a church.
The Covey
A church?
Fluther
What sort of a church? Is it a Protestan’ church?
Corporal Stoddart
I dunnow; I suppowse so.
Fluther
(
dismayed
) Be God, it’ll be a nice thing to be stuck all night in a Protestan’ church!
Corporal Stoddart
Bring the cawds; you moight get a chance of a goime.
Fluther
Ah, no, that wouldn’t do … I wondher? (
After a moment’s thought
) Ah, I don’t think we’d be doin’ anything derogatory be playin’ cards in a Protestan’ church.
Corporal Stoddart
If I was you I’d bring a little snack with me; you moight be glad of it before the mawning. (
Sings.
)
I do loike a snoice mince poy,
I do loike a snoice mince poy!
The snap of the sniper’s rifle rings out again, followed simultaneously by a scream of pain. Corporal Stoddart goes pale, and brings his rifle to the ready, listening.
Voices
(
chanting to the right
) Red Cro … ss, Red Cro … ss! Ambu … lance, Ambu … lance!
Sergeant Tinley comes in rapidly, pale, agitated, and fiercely angry.
Corporal Stoddart
(
to Sergeant
) One of hour men ’it, Sergeant?
Sergeant Tinley
Private Taylor; got ’it roight through the chest, ’e did; an ’ole in front of ’im as ’ow you could put your fist through, and ’arf ’is back blown awoy! Dum-dum bullets they’re using. Gang of hassassins potting at us from behind roofs. That’s not playing the goime: why down’t they come into the owpen and foight fair!
Fluther
(
unable to stand the slight
) Fight fair! A few hundhred scrawls o’ chaps with a couple o’ guns an’ Rosary beads, again’ a hundhred thousand thrained men with horse, fut, an’ artillery … an’ he wants us to fight fair! (
To Sergeant
) D’ye want us to come out in our skins an’ throw stones!
Sergeant Tinley
(
to Corporal
) Are these four all that are ’ere?
Corporal Stoddart
Four; that’s all, Sergeant.
Sergeant Tinley
(
vindictively
) Come on, then; get the blighters aht. (
To the men
) ’Ere, ’op it aht! Aht into the streets with you, and if a snoiper sends another of our men west, you gow with ’im! (
He catches Fluther by the shoulder.
) Gow on, git aht!
Fluther
Eh, who are you chuckin’, eh?
Sergeant Tinley
(
roughly
) Gow on, git aht, you blighter.
Fluther
Who are you callin’ a blighter to, eh? I’m a Dublin man, born an’ bred in th’ city, see?
Sergeant Tinley
I down’t care if you were Broin Buroo; git aht, git aht.
Fluther
(
halting as he is going out
) Jasus, you an’ your guns! Leave them down, an’ I’d beat th’ two o’ yous without sweatin’!
