  Scene: The great reception hall in the Egerton mansion. One sees at a glance that this is the original of the shadow hall shown in the Dream-Vision in the First Act. The carved mountain lion crouches upon the newel-post, and upon the walls the figures of men at work among the pines are identical with those of the Vision. But here, seen under a natural light, the grotesque grandeur of it all stands out in clear relief. Forward, left and right, just where the great arch separating the main hall comes down, groups of little pines in tubs lend a freshness to the scene. A brilliant company is gathered. Everywhere, from gestures and lifted eyes, it is evident that the mansion, especially the strange scene upon the walls, is the chief topic of talk among the guests. Centre right, about the piano, a number of young people are watching a couple that is out upon the floor, apparently practising a new step. Near the pines, forward left, General Chadbourne turns from the butler, with whom he has been speaking, to shake hands with some ladies. Later, Ralph Ardsley appears just inside the door, forward right, and holds up a glass of wine. Two or three Time: The same afternoon about five o'clock. Ralph Ardsley. Get me the eye of Chadbourne. First Man. General! (Out on the floor the couple that is waltzing jostles an elderly lady) Lady in Black. Why can't they wait until—— Elderly Lady. Now run away. You've got all night for this tomfoolery. Mrs. Egerton. George! (The young people gradually drift out into the conservatory) Chadbourne. (Rejoining the Butler) For it's something that concerns the strike. Butler. Yes, sir. Chadbourne. And it's important. Butler. Yes, sir. Second Man. General! Chadbourne. And I'll be right out—— (Sees the lifted hand) I'll be right in here. (Joins the Second Man, and the two, with Ardsley, disappear into the side room) Young Matron. Why do you men keep going out that way? Third Man. (With a wink) The Governor wants to see us. (They go into the room, forward right) Lady With Conspicuous Coiffure. (Entering forward left with Pale Lady) Indeed it would; To just have all the money that you want. Pale Lady. And her new necklace, did you notice it? Lady with Conspicuous Coiffure. Her mother's plain enough. Pale Lady. There she goes now. (They pass rear and mingle with the throng) First Man. (Appearing forward right with a glass of wine) You ladies, I presume, are temperance workers. ('The punch! The punch!' is whispered about, and the people begin to pass out centre and forward right) Fat Lady. I mean to just taste everything there is. (Goes out) Lady in Black. Isn't it just too grand for anything! Pale Lady. At night, though, I should think 'twould scare a body With all those horrid things upon the walls. (They go out. A moment later Mrs. Egerton comes in and looks about as though she were seeking some one) Mrs. Egerton. (To her daughter, who passes toward the conservatory) Please don't keep showing it, Gladys. Gladys Egerton. Marjorie! (She enters the conservatory) Mrs. Egerton. (Beckons to some one in the room forward left. The Butler appears) Has no word come? Butler. Jack says that Mr. George inquired And they've seen nothing of him. (He goes back into the room, forward left. Mrs. Egerton lingers a while, then returns to the room, forward right. Here, a moment later Ralph Ardsley appears) Ralph Ardsley. (Calls to a group of four men back near the stairs) Laggards! laggards! (Bishop Hardbrooke and a fellow-townsman, each with a man who is evidently a stranger, come slowly forward) Bishop Hardbrooke. Isn't there aspiration in all this, (Indicating the house) A reaching out toward God, and a love, too, Of all that God hath made? Fellow-Townsman. The river there. Ralph Ardsley. The walls will be here when the wine is gone. First Stranger. But public sentiment. Bishop Hardbrooke. Vox populi. Fellow-Townsman. People don't stop to think of what he's done. Bishop Hardbrooke. Exactly. When an axe falls on one's toes, The service that it's been, that's out of mind. In one side, and in the other a cleared land With homes and fields—— Second Stranger. That's true. Bishop Hardbrooke. And populous towns. The balance will be struck up yonder, brother. Ralph Ardsley. Show me one man that's in the public eye Because he stands for something, towers above them, That hasn't had them yelping at his heels. Bishop Hardbrooke. You know the Editor of the Courier? (The Strangers shake hands with Ardsley) Second Stranger. You didn't come back. Ralph Ardsley. I've troubles of my own. (Walks back in the hall) Second Stranger. We were together in the Legislature. Bishop Hardbrooke. (Stopping near the door, forward right, as if for a final word) Speaking of Egerton, some years ago I saw that statue in the New York harbor, The sea mists blown about it, now the head And now an outflash of tremendous bronze About the waist. 'Is that the thing,' said I, 'They talk so much about?' Next day 'twas clear. First Stranger. Looked very different. Bishop Hardbrooke. It's the same with men. (They go out) Second Stranger. You going in? Ralph Ardsley. I've got to find a man. (The stranger goes out) (Ardsley calls toward the room, forward left) What's the news from the mill, Charles? Butler. (Appears at the door) I haven't heard, sir. You reckon they'll go back, sir? Ralph Ardsley. Sure. Where's Gladys? (The Butler walks back toward the conservatory) Just tell her I asked about her. Butler. Yes, sir. Ralph Ardsley. Thank you. (He goes into the room, forward right. The Butler returns to the opposite room. All the people have now withdrawn with the exception of Mrs. Orr, who has come in, centre right, and who lingers about as though she were listening to the upper part of the walls. Later, Mrs. Egerton re-enters, forward right, and glances back into the room from which she has come, to satisfy herself that her guests are occupied. Seeing her, Mrs. Orr comes forward, shaking her head) Mrs. Egerton. No? Mrs. Orr. No. Mrs. Egerton. Nothing at all? Mrs. Orr. Nothing at all. Mrs. Egerton. I never have been sure myself. Sometimes I've thought I heard it. Mrs. Orr. I can understand How one could easily imagine it. Mrs. Egerton. If you could be here when the house is still, Alone—— Mrs. Orr. In certain moods, perhaps I should. For certainly the trees seem most alive. I never would have thought it possible To make a forest live and life go on In wood as it does here. 'Tis wonderful. (Mrs. Egerton glances across into the room, forward right, from which comes a sound of merriment) Mrs. Orr. The very squirrels upon the limbs—see there, The young one with the pine cone in its mouth. And the faint far-awayness of the wood. Mrs. Egerton. (Confidentially) Sylvia—— Mrs. Orr. Just now as the couple passed Practising, I overheard the girl, 'It almost seems the real pines are here Dropping their needles on us while we dance. As Lillian says, you feel them in your hair.' Now, to my way of thinking, it would be Far easier to hear the pine trees sigh Than feel the needles. Mrs. Egerton. It was not the pines. Mrs. Orr. You said a sighing. (Mrs. Egerton says something to her) Why, Mary Egerton! How horrible! Mrs. Egerton. It worries me at times. Mrs. Orr. You do not mean it! And the house just built! You foolish dear. Mrs. Egerton. I know. Mrs. Orr. (Aside) How horrible! Mrs. Egerton. Harry has always been a strange, strange boy; So different from the rest. What is it you hear? Mrs. Orr. Why, nothing, nothing at all. My dear, this is Really ridiculous. If it were old And there were cobwebs here and musty walls And rumors had come down of some old crime But with the timber, every stick of it Fresh from the forest, you might almost say Picked from your very garden, a pure bloom, Fashioned and shaped by your own husband's hand: How any one could fancy such a thing Is past my comprehension. (A medley of voices is heard, forward right) Mrs. Egerton. Here they come. A Voice. Cover his eyes, some of you. Mrs. Egerton. Let's not be seen. (She starts back for the door, centre right) Mrs. Orr. But we can't talk in there. Mrs. Egerton. I'll slip away. (They go out centre right. Amid laughter and a confusion of voices Ralph Ardsley and a fellow-townsman enter forward right leading Governor Braddock, whose eyes are blindfolded. Following these come Donald Egerton, General Chadbourne, Bishop Hardbrooke, members of the Governor's staff in uniform, and other guests) Governor Braddock. You'll pay for this, gentlemen, you'll pay for this. Ralph Ardsley. Further, Great Master? (Egerton points back toward the centre of the hall. Himself and the group about him remain more in the foreground) Egerton. That will do. (They remove the handkerchief from the Governor's eyes) Governor Braddock. Hi yi! Ralph Ardsley. You see you wake in Paradise. First Guest. Didn't expect it? (Laughter) Bishop Hardbrooke. Your incorruptible administration. First Staff Member. You mean to tell us that you planned all this? Egerton. No, I conceived it, Weston; it's alive As I hope to show you. But more of that anon. (Calls back to the Governor) Does it meet your expectations? Staff Members. (Who have gone rear) Splendid! Splendid! Fellow-Townsman. And in the second story he's got his mill. Second Staff Member. (To Egerton) You don't have strikes up there? Governor Braddock. Well, Egerton, This is the grandest thing I ever saw. Egerton. I made my mind up, Braddock, years ago That when I'd sawed my fortune out of lumber I'd build a mansion where a man could see Just how I'd done it, starting with the raw, The standing timber, every phase of it; A sort of record of these busy times: For they won't last forever, these great days. General Chadbourne. We never see the giants till they're gone. Bishop Hardbrooke. The day will come when we'll appreciate them. Ralph Ardsley. Three cheers for one of them. Guests. Hurrah! Hurrah! Egerton. (Goes back a little, the group following him, and points right rear) Back there you see the swamper clearing brush, Man's first assault upon primeval forests. And then the feller with his broader stroke Hewing a way for apple trees and cities, And incidentally moving on himself. And here you see my teams. And, by the way, They talk of how the horse has followed man In his march across the ages, but the tree That sheltered the lost saurian, think of that! Governor Braddock. You must have been a tree in some past life; You seem to love them so and understand them. Egerton. There's nothing in this world so beautiful As a pine forest, gentlemen, just at dawn; The infant breathing of a million needles. It's like our organ, Bishop, those soft tones. (Comes forward) Bishop Hardbrooke. He ought to have lived in old cathedral days. Egerton. And here the rising rollways; then the drive, The river man. (Points across left) Governor Braddock. Come out to get a view, A broader view. Third Staff Member. You had men pose for this? Egerton. I'm following the tree. Fourth Staff Member. That fellow's face. Egerton. These 'broader views' don't interest me much. Governor Braddock. And you think this idea's capable of extension? Egerton. How do you mean? General Chadbourne. (Returning from a word with the Butler, to Ardsley who comes to meet him) I don't see what's the matter. Governor Braddock. A while ago you said—— Ralph Ardsley. O it's all right. Governor Braddock. You were the first Captain of Industry In all America to build a house. That has a meaning in it. Egerton. That's what I said; That has the least relation to the land. Ralph Ardsley. This snow you'll see will bring them to their senses. Governor Braddock. Suppose you'd made your fortune out of copper? First Staff Member. Yes, we all build our houses out of timber. Second Staff Member. Or cotton? Guests. Ha, ha, ha! Ralph Ardsley. Or oil? Several. Yes. Ralph Ardsley. How would you spiritualize the oil business? Egerton. Ardsley here wants to quote me in his paper. General Chadbourne. The Lumber King upon the late decision. Egerton. It's Art, not rebates, that I'm speaking of. Couldn't I show my derricks on the walls? And back there red-skins striking fire from flint? Then our forefathers with their tallow-dips Watching the easy drills slip up and down? The tanks here—Ah, you laugh, you dilettanti. You're frightened by our natural resources, And you despise the life of your own land, The crude, tremendous life we're living here. The force is too much for you. You want polish. O I can prove it to you. Ralph Ardsley. Now you'll get it. Egerton. Yes, Braddock, there's that Capitol Commission. I'd be ashamed. Governor Braddock. I knew 'twould come. Egerton. And we Breathing the electric air of this great West, As rich in life as timber, herds and hops, Wheat fields and mines, and all these things to be Raised and translated by the brains of men. Think of a State dotted with lumber camps And buzzing day and night with saws and saws, And as far as the North Pole from old world customs, Wearing a capitol with Grecian columns With an old Roman Justice on her comb! Made by some dago in the days of Pompey. And yet you dress the State up in these things. No independence. Ralph Ardsley. Governor? First Staff Member. Call the troops! Egerton. I'd rather cut the timber of this land And coin its spirit in a thing like this Than be a Roman CÆsar. Ralph Ardsley. Hip hurrah! That's what I call a fellow countryman. Bishop Hardbrooke. You see we're all Americans down here. Second Staff Member. Now, Governor Braddock, show your stars and stripes. Governor Braddock. Yet you don't seem to dwell in unity. Receiving a petition, and a large one— Some six or seven thousand? Third Staff Member. About that. Governor Braddock. Demanding a withdrawal of some troops. Bishop Hardbrooke. We're not responsible for our lower classes. Egerton. (Significantly) You didn't withdraw them. (An embarrassing silence) Ralph Ardsley. (Slaps the Governor on the shoulder) Good American! Fourth Staff Member. (To Bishop Hardbrooke) Jesus of Nazareth was a foreigner. Governor Braddock. The Bishop would hardly say so though. Bishop Hardbrooke. And you, You, Governor, do you go before the people With all you know? No secrets, not a one? Governor Braddock. Egerton. Editor Ardsley? Ralph Ardsley. Here. Bishop Hardbrooke. It eases the heart, brother, to confess. Ralph Ardsley. It's my stockholders, Bishop. (Points to Egerton) Egerton. General Chadbourne? General Chadbourne. I, Colonel, get my orders from above. (Points to the Governor) Governor Braddock. We all do. (Points to Egerton) Ralph Ardsley. Egerton? Egerton. Then come along. I've got some good Americans up here Who don't send in petitions. Governor Braddock. A model mill. First Staff Member. Non-Union? Ralph Ardsley. They're united in the walls. (Laughter) Egerton. (As they start for the stairs) Never you mind, gentlemen, 'twill not be long Until the model that I've built up here Will be the model everywhere. Guests. (Led by Ralph Ardsley) Hurray! (Attracted by the shouting, some ladies look in, forward right) A Lady. They do have such good times. (They withdraw) General Chadbourne. (From the steps to the Butler) I'll be upstairs. (Seeing the hall empty, the young people who have looked in occasionally from the conservatory, enter and take possession) Ralph Ardsley. (From the landing) Hello, Gladys! Gladys Egerton. Hello, Ardsley! Ralph Ardsley. (Touching his throat) Stunning. Gladys Egerton. Thank you. (Ardsley disappears after the others. Mrs. Orr enters, forward right, and is later joined by Mrs. Egerton) Mrs. Orr. You surely have not spoken of this to him? Mrs. Egerton. The other night I started to. Mrs. Orr. How could you! (Mrs. Egerton glances back uneasily into the room) Mrs. Orr. They're all right. Let's go here behind the pines. Mrs. Egerton (Beckons to the Butler) Serve them the lunch now, Charles. (The Butler goes into the room, forward right. The two women pass left, where they are somewhat shut in by the pines) Mrs. Orr. What did he say? Mrs. Egerton And then—I don't know—something in his face— Perhaps the wonder that I knew would come That such a thing—If people only knew— Donald is not the hard unfeeling man— And knowing this—— (She hesitates) Mrs. Orr. And knowing what, my dear? Mrs. Egerton. My heart rose up and I—I simply said That Harry had heard a sighing from the walls. I told him so much, for it's worried me. And he at once—— Mrs. Orr. (With spirit) I know. 'The pines!' Mrs. Egerton. 'The pines!' Mrs. Orr. I knew it! Mrs. Egerton. 'The pines!' And walked the floor and laughed; And such a heart-free laugh I have not heard In twenty years. 'The pines!' Mrs. Orr. 'The pines!' Of course. Mrs. Egerton. Feeling—— Mrs. Orr. Yes, yes! Mrs. Egerton. He had caught the very soul Of the forest. Mrs. Orr. And the triumph of it all! Mrs. Egerton. Ah, no one knows how many, many years Donald has dreamed of this, how all his thought And all his—— (Stands regarding the young people dancing) Mrs. Orr. One has but to look at it. Mrs. Egerton. Yet not for it as his, not that at all, But for the building of it. Mrs. Orr. Of course. Mrs. Egerton. And now How like a boy he is, how eagerly He flees here from the business of the day And how he walks about enjoying it. 'Tis like the sea. When he is here alone The burden of his great business falls away And he is young again. I sometimes feel, Lying in bed at night and knowing he Is walking here alone, the lights turned low, And listening for the sighing of the pines, That somehow 'tis a woman he has made And that she whispers to him in these hours, Comes to him beautiful from out the pines After his long, long wooing of her—— Mrs. Orr. I see! Beautiful, beautiful! I see! I see! It needed that one breath to make it live. Mrs. Egerton. To Donald, yes. Mrs. Orr. Before it was a house, And now a living thing. I see! I see! (Kisses the little pines) Mrs. Egerton. If one could only know it is not God Whispering through the walls of our new home Some dreadful word, and yet with voice so low. Mrs. Orr. My dear, your words are perfect Greek to me. Mrs. Egerton. You know they say the men are suffering so. And Donald does not seem to see. Mrs. Orr. (Vaguely) The men? Mrs. Egerton. Yes; Harry says that some are without bread. And we here—and the music and the lights. Mrs. Orr. (In utter astonishment) Why, Mary Egerton! You do not mean— You cannot mean that that suggested this, That vulgar thing, this beautiful idea! Mrs. Egerton. If one could only help them, only help them! Mrs. Orr. The hunger of a lot of stupid men Who wish to tell your husband what to do, And he with a brain like this, and they with claws! Mrs. Egerton. It all depends upon such little things, Things that we've never earned—— Mrs. Orr. (Mysteriously) Harry, you say? Mrs. Egerton. That fall right at our feet we don't know how. The chance of birth! What right have I to this Who've never done one thing to help the world, While they who work their lives out—— Mrs. Orr. 'Help the world!' Mrs. Egerton. Can't even have the food and clothes they need. People have asked me why—that's why it is I've done my shopping in the city lately. You meet them in the stores and on the streets. And they're so thin, so worn with the long strike. Just think of children crying for mere bread! It's horrible. I thought this afternoon Through the first snow the motor cars came up. I don't believe they even noticed it. It means so little to them. It's just snow. But in the workers' homes—I just can't think Of God as looking down with unconcern. I couldn't love Him if I thought He could. Mrs. Orr. I don't know what we're ever going to do. Mrs. Egerton. If only some strong, gifted man would come And show us how, show us all how to live. We'd all be so much happier than we are. Mrs. Orr. I wish to goodness I could shut my ears And never hear that 'Help the world' again. You can't pick up a book or magazine, Even a fashion journal, or go out To see your friends, it seems—— (The men are seen coming down the stairs, the Governor and the Bishop on either side of Egerton. They are all laughing and having a good time) Mrs. Egerton. I'm very sorry. Let us go in and put it all away. And you must never mention it. I can't bear To think of people talking. Mrs. Orr. Hear them laugh! I wouldn't live with such a wicked man. Mrs. Egerton. That isn't kind in you. Mrs. Orr. In twenty years We'll all be wearing grave-clothes. Mrs. Egerton. Sylvia! Mrs. Orr. There'll not be one retreat where we can go, We ladies of the ancien rÉgime; We'll all be out, with not a single place Where we can make the tables ring with cards And laugh and just be gay. Even the pines, The beautiful pines, are tainted, and the snow. The winter long I'll never dare go out. I'll be afraid I'll catch this 'Help the world' You just shan't give way to this silly mood. And at the moment when you have about you The money and the best names in the State; Just everything that mortal heart can wish. (They watch the men coming down the steps) You ought to be so proud. Mrs. Egerton. I am. (The piano stops) A Girl. (Who has been waltzing) O pshaw! Mrs. Orr. Even the Governor—don't you see, when he's with Donald And when his wife's with you, how they both show How all they are and all they hope to be They owe to Donald? Mrs. Egerton. I know, I know. A Young Man. Come on! Mrs. Egerton. And he's so good, so good in many ways. (The young people make for the conservatory) Mrs. Orr. And yet so gay, so sensible with it all. Mrs. Egerton. It isn't that I'm ungrateful, Sylvia. I'm never done with thanking God for all The blessings that I have. Mrs. Orr. Children and wealth. Mrs. Egerton. And Donald, too. Mrs. Orr. O really! A Young Man. Bring the score! Mrs. Egerton. I can't help wishing, though, that he would see And do for others as he does for us. (They stand listening) Egerton. Just let your minds go out about the mountains. (A pause) Have you had too much punch, or what's the trouble? (Laughter) Mrs. Orr. Just hear how joyous hearted! Promise me—— Mrs. Egerton. (In alarm) He's telling them of the pines! Mrs. Orr. What would you do? Mrs. Egerton. (Beckons to the Butler, who is passing) Tell Donald that I wish to speak with—— Mrs. Orr. Stop! Egerton. It's something, gentlemen, that we all have need of. Mrs. Orr. Dear, if you ever dare tell Donald this And pass this ghastly whisper to his heart, I'll be the Secret Lady of the Pines; I'll whisper something. What if Donald knew Who's kept the strike afoot? The great unknown Contributor to the Citizens' Relief? Who had twelve hundred dollars in the bank, A present from a Christmas long ago? Twelve hundred and twelve hundred——! Mrs. Egerton. It can't be! Mrs. Orr. We bankers' wives—— Mrs. Egerton. A mere coincidence. Mrs. Orr. It's not; he's checked it out. So! If you care Nothing for Donald's happiness, I do. (She leaves Mrs. Egerton standing near the pines. Other ladies have begun to come in) Ralph Ardsley. What's underneath the forest? Mrs. Orr. (With a strange smile, calling back) I really will. Egerton. You give it up? Mrs. Egerton. My noble, noble son! General Chadbourne. He's waiting, gentlemen, till he finds the mine. Egerton. The man of parts! Several. Of course. Egerton. That's why I can't Take you down now. But when I find the mine And get the gold to puddling in the pots, If I can find me plastic metal workers That I can mould and hammer while they mould And hammer out my vision on the walls, I'll show you through some subterranean chambers Will set your eyes a-dazzle. In the dark, Lit by the torches in the miners' caps, You'll see the world of metals moving up Through human hands as here you see the tree. That's why my basement isn't finished yet. Cries. Good luck! Good luck! Egerton. I hope you'll be alive. (He leaves the group and comes forward) Governor Braddock. Magnificent conception. Bishop Hardbrooke. A great man. Egerton. (To the Butler) Call them in, Charles. Have all of them come in. Governor Braddock. Metals, then trees, then mills, then books and pictures. Bishop Hardbrooke. Raw matter on its spiral up to spirit. Egerton. While we're at riddles, gentlemen—— (Ladies come in, centre and forward right) Egerton. Come right in. If you'll allow me, friends, suppose you stand Where you can have my forest in your eye. (He arranges them to face right) I don't see, ladies, how you ever endure The dulness of these males. We've been at riddles. Come in. I've kept my best wine for the last. (He steps back near the door, centre right) Suppose you'd made an Adam out of clay, And now you're looking at it, hands all washed And mind confronting, weighing what's been done. Suddenly you're aware of something standing by you That whispers in your left ear: 'Make a wish Within the power of God.' What would it be? Bishop Hardbrooke. To see it walk about the garden, brother. Egerton. Suppose your Adam was a pine-wood, Bishop, That couldn't walk. Mrs. Orr. (Ardently) Then just to hear it breathe. Egerton. A woman's intuition! (Looks to see who it is) Sylvia Orr! Bishop Hardbrooke. Sylva a forest. Egerton. An old friend of mine. (He gives a signal to some one) A clear day in the pine-wood. (Suddenly the hall is beautifully illuminated) Guests. Ah! Egerton. With clouds, The dawn just breaking. (The hall becomes gray and shadowy) Ancient silence. Mrs. Egerton. (Half in terror) Donald! Egerton. Let us be quiet now. (The silence is broken by the ringing of a telephone bell in the room forward left) General Chadbourne. Ah! Mrs. Orr. (Across to Mrs. Egerton) Don't you dare! (The Butler goes out to answer the telephone) Governor Braddock. This age of bells and whistles. General Chadbourne. (Comes forward and takes his stand near the door forward left) Just in time! Egerton. They don't concern me. We are far away With quiet all about us and the woods. (The silence is intense) General Chadbourne. (Rehearsing his speech) ... And it gives me pleasure to announce to you Upon the occasion of the opening Of your new mansion, Colonel Egerton, This bit of news, sir, from the military; And I offer it with our congratulations: The strike is over; The men have yielded and have gone to work. And all's been done without one—— (Enter the Butler hurriedly) General Chadbourne. Here I am. Butler. (Passing him) For Mr. Egerton. General Chadbourne. No! Butler. (In a low voice over the crowd) Mr. Egerton! General Chadbourne. Isn't that Captain Haskell? Butler. Mr. Jergens. (Egerton comes forward, making his way through the crowd) General Chadbourne. Butler! (The Butler goes to him and they talk) Ralph Ardsley. (Calls after Egerton as he goes out left) Good luck! (Calls to Chadbourne) This probably ends it. Governor Braddock. What's your opinion of these mysteries, Bishop? Bishop Hardbrooke. I'm one of those that simply stand and wait. Governor Braddock. You don't believe in modern miracles. Bishop Hardbrooke. There are miracles and miracles, Governor Braddock. I try to keep elastic in these things, Steering a middle course with open mind. Ralph Ardsley. (Calls to Chadbourne) Needed just this to crown the time we're having. Bishop Hardbrooke. We are living in an age in many ways Without a parallel. I sometimes think— If I may say it not too seriously— Of those last days we read of when the world Goes on its way unconscious of the end. We give and take in marriage, eat and drink, And meet our friends in social intercourse, And all the while a Spirit walks beside us, Enters our homes and writes upon our walls. There are whispers everywhere if we could hear them; And some of them grow louder with the days; And pools of quiet ruffle and show storms. You, Governor, feel the popular unrest The shift of parties and of principles, Rocks that we used to think would never change. And brother Egerton in industry; He feels it. Egerton. (Appearing at the door, excited, and keeping back so as not to be seen by the people) (The General joins him and they disappear) Bishop Hardbrooke. I sincerely hope We're on the eve, however, of a day When trouble-makers in the ranks of Labor, Not only here in Foreston but elsewhere, May find it to their interest to respect, Nay, reverence as a thing ordained by God, The right of men to earn their daily bread, As well as profitable to obey the laws Without the unseemly presence of armed men. (There is a clapping of hands. General Chadbourne appears just inside the door and beckons to Ardsley, who goes in to him) Bishop Hardbrooke. And I will take occasion here and now To say what you've been thinking all this while, And in the presence of the man himself: We are fortunate, my friends—— Ralph Ardsley. (Appears and calls to one of the guests farther back) The Governor. Bishop Hardbrooke. In having at the helm of our great State One who loves order more than he loves votes. (General clapping of hands) Several. Good! Guest. (In a low voice over the crowd) Governor! Several. That's good! (The Governor bows) Cries. Speech! Speech! Governor Braddock. My friends, I quite agree with the Bishop. Several. Ha, ha, ha! Governor Braddock. I don't mean in his estimate of me. (More laughter. The Governor catches sight of the guest beckoning to him) Governor Braddock. But here's my better half. You might ask her. Pardon me till I see—— Ralph Ardsley. (Calls urgently to the Bishop in a voice that is barely heard) Go on! Go on! Bishop Hardbrooke. Society, my friends, is like this house, This mansion that we all so much admire. (Ardsley stands impassive till the Governor has gone out and the Bishop has again got the attention of the people, then goes quickly into the side room) Bishop Hardbrooke. Imagine what a state of things we'd have If every wooden fellow in these walls, Not only here but in the mill upstairs, Should lend his heart to tongues of discontent Until his very tools became a burden. A Voice. Anarchy. Bishop Hardbrooke. Very true. Where would this be, This beautiful thing that Colonel Egerton Has built with so much labor and so much taste? And out there in the world where we all dwell, Where all of us have places in the walls, Some working with their hands on farms, in mines; Some building; some at forges; at machines Weaving our garments; others more endowed Loaned to us from the higher planes of being, Men of the Over-Soul, inventors, dreamers, Planners of longer railroads, bigger mills, The great preparers for the finer souls That build the dome, the finishers of things, Prophets of God, musicians, artists, poets, As we've all seen how Colonel Egerton In his third story has his books and pictures— Suppose a bitter wind of discontent Should shake the great walls of this social order, Set the first story men against the second, The second against the third, until the mass, Throwing their tools down on the world's great floor, Should clamor up the dome for pens and brushes, Shutting their eyes to the cold facts of life That we climb up Life's ladder by degrees— (His attention is attracted for a moment to a group of men that has been collecting forward centre, evidently concerned with whatever it is that is going on in the side room) Bishop Hardbrooke. (Recovering himself quickly) But I'm afraid, my friends—— Several. Go on! Go on! Bishop Hardbrooke. I'm wasting good material for a sermon. A Man's Voice. Pearls before swine. Bishop Hardbrooke. I started to say brethren. (Laughter) A Lady. (In the foreground) Isn't he just too bright for anything! Bishop Hardbrooke. But now—— A Man. (Joining the group) What's up? Bishop Hardbrooke. To come home to the task That brother Egerton lays upon our ears. We have all of us read stories and seen things. (Laughter) A Voice. But ghosts of trees? (General laughter) Bishop Hardbrooke. That, I admit, is rare. (Mrs. Egerton, who, since the ringing of the telephone bell, has shown an increasing anxiety as to the message that has come, unable longer to contain herself, comes hurriedly forward through the people) Bishop Hardbrooke. Don't let us scare you, sister Egerton. (Laughter. The people turn just in time to see Governor Braddock, General Chadbourne, and Ralph Ardsley with overcoats on and hats in their hands, stealing across to get out forward right. Mrs. Egerton hurries into the room from which they came) Ralph Ardsley. It's nothing. (The three go out) Voices. What's the matter? What's the matter? Pale Lady. It's something terrible, I know it is. Lady in Black. We always have to pay for our good times. (George Egerton and Gladys Egerton come quickly from the conservatory and enter the side room) Elderly Lady. I shouldn't wonder if those horrid strikers Were burning the mill. Lady in Black. Or may be some one's hurt. Lady With the Conspicuous Coiffure. Provoking, isn't it? Fat Lady. What would we better do? Young Matron. (Calling out) Please tell us what's the trouble. (A silence) Pale Lady. I shall faint. Bishop Hardbrooke. (Coming forward) It has been suggested, friends, in view of this Personal something that has happened here— I don't know what it is, but we all know In trouble how we like to be alone. Later I'll call them up and for us all Extend our sympathy when we know the cause. (There is a movement of people departing) Pink Lady. I wonder who it is? Fat Lady. They've shut the door. Lady With the Conspicuous Coiffure. 'Twas more like anger; didn't you see his face? Lady in Black. When everything was so, so beautiful! (They vanish with the other guests. A minute or so later the Butler enters, right rear, and walks as though dazed through the empty hall) A Maid. (Appearing right rear) Charlie! Second Maid. (Appears beside her) What is it? Butler. (Without turning) Trouble at the mill. First Maid. Charlie! Butler. That's all I know. Second Maid. A riot? Gladys Egerton. (Appearing forward left) Gone! Father, they've gone! George Egerton. (Comes in quickly) Look in the rooms. (Goes rear) Gladys Egerton. (Looks in the room forward right) They've gone! George Egerton. (Calls into the conservatory) Chester! Marjorie! Well, I'll be damned! Gladys Egerton. I hate him, O I hate him! George Egerton. That's what comes! Gladys Egerton. What will we ever do! Just think of it! George Egerton. (To the Butler) Why do you stand that way? (Comes to the door forward left) O do shut up, Mother. (Donald Egerton comes in, putting on his overcoat) Mrs. Egerton. (Following him) Remember, Donald, he's our son. George Egerton. Always defending him! You make me sick. Mrs. Egerton. You've always said you never in your life Lost hold upon yourself. Gladys Egerton. No dance to-night. Egerton. (To the Butler) Tell Jack to bring the car to the front door. (The Butler goes out centre right) George Egerton. Wait, father, till I get my—— (Starts for the room forward left) Mrs. Egerton. If he's done it— He has some reason, Donald. And you know Jergens has never liked him. (Harry Egerton comes in right rear, his hat and shoulders covered with snow) Mrs. Egerton. Harry! Harry! (She hurries to him and embraces him) Harry Egerton. Mother! Mrs. Egerton. My son! Harry Egerton. I'm sorry. (George Egerton reappears) Gladys Egerton. I just hate you! You selfish thing! See what you've done! Harry Egerton. I'm sorry. George Egerton. (With a sneer) He's very sorry, sister. Egerton. A pretty son! Harry Egerton. I hadn't the least intention, father—— George Egerton. Damn you! Harry Egerton. Who 'phoned it in? Mrs. Egerton. What is it you've done, Harry? George Egerton. (To the Butler and the Maids who have appeared at the doors) Get away from there! Harry Egerton. Father—— (Egerton Tosses His Overcoat Into the Side Room) Mrs. Egerton. Harry, is it true You kept the men from going back to work? Harry Egerton. I wanted to have a talk with father first. Egerton. Um! George Egerton. (To his mother) There! Mrs. Egerton. But hear him, Donald. Harry Egerton. All my life I've wanted to say something to you, father; Especially since I went to work. You once, When I came home from college, you remember, And hadn't made my mind up what to do, What my life work should be—— Egerton. A pretty son! Harry Egerton. We talked together and you said that now Three things lay open to me, that I could choose And that you'd back me up. First, there was Art. And though you didn't say so, I could see You'd have been glad if I had chosen that. I had a talent for it, so you said, And I could study with the best of them. You'd set aside a hundred thousand dollars; And I could finish up by travelling, Seeing the beautiful buildings of the world; That I could take my time, then settle down And glorify my land: that's what you said. By giving me the Courier. That, you said, Would give me at once a standing among men And training in political affairs. And that if I made good you'd see to it I had a seat in Congress, and in the end That probably I'd be Governor of the State. And then you paused. You didn't like the third. Business, you said, was an unpleasant life. 'Twas all right as you'd used it, as a means, But as an end—And then you used words, father, That changed my life although you didn't know it— 'Business, my son, is war; needful at times, But as a life,—you shook your head and sighed. With that we ended it, for some one came And I went out. Six years ago last June, The seventh of June; I can't forget the day. The sun was shining but a strange new light Lay over everything. All of a sudden It dawned upon my mind that I'd been reared Inside a garden full of flowers and trees, And only now had chanced upon the gate And stepped out. There was smoke upon the skies And a rumbling of strange wagons in the street. I was afraid. For every man I met Seemed just about to ask, 'What side are you on?' And I was twenty-one and didn't know. Egerton. You seem to have found out since you've been away. Harry Egerton. I'd always thought 'twas garden everywhere. I walked on up the river and sat down Upon the logs up there, and night came on. And in the waters flowing at my feet The lighted land went by, cities and towns And the vast murmur and the daily life Of those that toil, the hunger and the care. And in my heart I knew that it was true, That what you said was true. And I came back Filled with such peace as I had never known. 'I'll enter business, father.' And I did. I started at the bottom in the mill Helping the engineer, and from the saws Carried the lumber with the other men. Then in the yard. You always praised my work. I'm in the office now at twenty-seven, And Secretary of the Company. I think I know the business pretty well. You've said so. But somehow—— (He pauses) Mrs. Egerton. What is it, Harry? Harry Egerton. In Public Life, if I had chosen that, And after six years' work that you approved, If one day I had come—— Egerton. You want the mill. Harry Egerton. 'Father, I can't go on; my way is blocked And all my hopes are falling to the ground.' There's nothing, not one thing you wouldn't have done. Or if I had a building half way up, My masterpiece, a mighty capitol That finished would be known throughout the land, And I had met with interference, men Who had no vision—you know what I mean— And I had come to you, 'Father, I'm thwarted,' O I can see with one sweep of your hand How you would clear the skies. Egerton. You want the mill. Harry Egerton. Yes, father. Egerton. I thought so. Harry Egerton. I want the mill. George Egerton. And thought you'd blackmail father. Harry Egerton. Listen to me! For probably in all my life I'll never Speak to you as I'm speaking now, my father. Mrs. Egerton. Donald, I beg of you—— George Egerton. Well, I'll be—— Mrs. Egerton. George! Harry Egerton. In these six years for one cause or another There've been three strikes that have cost the Company thousands In money, to say nothing of those things That all the money in the world can't buy. Now let me ask, my father, if this loss, Instead of springing from these strikes, had come Through breakdowns of the machinery, or in the camps Through failure to get the timber out in time, Then why do you let Jergens run the mill? Hasn't he failed, and miserably, with the men? George Egerton. What have you to do with it? Egerton. I'll attend to this. (George Egerton walks away and stands by the pine trees, picking off and biting the needles) Harry Egerton. Is it because the earnings have increased? Think what it's cost you, father. In every mill Jergens has touched he's left a cursing there That's all come back on us. Why, my father, Our name's become a by-word through the State, 'As hard as Egerton.' And when I think Of what might be, the good-will and the peace, The happiness! There's not the least excuse For this cut in wages, father, and you know it. Egerton. Um! Harry Egerton. You can't help but know it. You've the books; To come to what I would say: You've won this strike. You have the men in your power and you can say, 'Go back,' and they'll go back. But you won't do it. Egerton. Won't I? Harry Egerton. Will you, when you know you're wrong? When you know you're losing friends who love what's right? Think of the sentiment against you, father. No, father, you don't know what's going on. Egerton. It seems I don't. Harry Egerton. If you knew how they live And the hard time they have to get along. It isn't fair, my father, it isn't fair. Gladys Egerton. (In tears, to her mother) Yes, you don't care. Harry Egerton. Father, you love this land. There's never been a day in all your life, If there'd been war, you wouldn't have closed the mill And gone and died upon the field of battle If the country had called to you in her need. And I can see you how you'd scorn the man, If he were serving as a General, Who'd keep his rank and file as poorly fed And ragged as he could. (The telephone bell rings) Gladys Egerton. They're calling up To know about it! George Egerton. (Starts for the room, then stops) What shall I tell them, father? Gladys Egerton. O have them come back, papa, have them come back! Egerton. (Keeping his eye on Harry) Tell them what you please. (George goes out) Harry Egerton. Father, buy Jergens out. Gladys Egerton. (Calling into the room) Tell them it's all right, brother, that it's nothing. Harry Egerton. Give him his price and let him go his way—— Egerton. (Calling toward the room) A misunderstanding. Harry Egerton. And let me run the mill. And let us see, my father, you and I, If we can't make that place of work down there As famous for its harmony as this house. A land is not its timber but its people, And not its Art, my father, but its men. Let's try to make this town a place of peace And helpfulness. What do you say, my father? Egerton. And that's your life work! (Gladys goes into the room) Mrs. Egerton. (Approaching him) Donald—— Egerton. Go away. Mrs. Egerton. You've asked me why it is I cannot sleep. It's that, Donald, it's that! Give him the mill. They're human beings, Donald, like ourselves. Egerton. And you've been planning this! Harry Egerton. Mrs. Egerton. Donald, it's your nobler self you hear. Egerton. (Looks at him a long time) What a fool—— (Turns away) what a fool I've been! (Walks about) Voices of George and Gladys. The mine! Father! (They come running in) The mine! A rumor that the mine's been found! Egerton. Who is it? George Egerton. I don't know. They're on the wire. (Egerton goes out) George Egerton. All over town, they say. (Brother and sister wait near the door, tense, listening) Mrs. Egerton. (With a sigh) Everything! Gladys Egerton. (Under her breath) George, Think of the things we'll have! George Egerton. Be still! Mrs. Egerton. (Turns and looks at Harry, whose face shows the sadness he feels at his father's refusal) Harry. Harry, are you well? Harry Egerton. Yes, mother. (A pause) Mother—— (Distant cannon are heard) George Egerton. Hark! Gladys Egerton. (Starting back through the house) The mine! the mine! (The servants appear) Father has found the mine! (Further booming is heard) George Egerton. There go the guns! They're celebrating, father! (He starts for the stairs and goes bounding up three steps at a time) Gladys Egerton. (Calling after him) We'll have them back and announce it! We'll have them back! Harry Egerton. Mother, I've found the mine. Gladys Egerton. (Whirling round on her toe) Now, now you see! Harry Egerton. This morning on the mountains. Mrs. Egerton. Can it be! Gladys Egerton. (Comes running forward) I'll have my car now, won't I, daddy, daddy? (She disappears into the room, forward left) Mrs. Egerton. (Strangely) I knew it! O I knew that He would come! (Turns upon her son a look of awe) Harry! Harry! Harry Egerton. Father must do what's right. Mrs. Egerton. You'll build a mill. Harry Egerton. The ground is white with snow. (Egerton appears in the doorway and stands looking at his son) Gladys Egerton. (Clinging to his hand) What is it, papa? What's the matter, daddy? George Egerton. (Appearing upon the stairs) They've run the flag up on the Court House, father! Egerton. That's what it means! Harry Egerton. Father, I'll buy the mill. Egerton. That's what it means! Gladys Egerton. What, daddy? Egerton. You'll hold my men! Harry Egerton. I'll mortgage the mine and pay you, father. Gladys Egerton. Oh! Egerton. And if I don't you'll back the men, eh? Gladys Egerton. Oh! (She backs toward George, who has come down the stairs) Harry Egerton. I'll pay you twice its value, father. George Egerton. (At a word from Gladys) What! (Egerton drops his eyes for a moment and stands as though in deep thought) Mrs. Egerton. Be careful, Donald! Gladys Egerton. (To Harry) I hate you! George Egerton. (With a sneer) Big man! Egerton. George, Get Jergens. George Egerton. (To Harry) Mill-hand! (Goes out left) Egerton. Tell him to lock the mill And have this notice tacked up on the gate, 'Closed for a year.' Voice of George. Good! Gladys Egerton. Good! Egerton. I'll let her rot. Harry Egerton. And winter coming on! Gladys Egerton. I'm glad! I'm glad! Egerton. War or submission, eh? Harry Egerton. (Goes to his mother) Mother. (Kisses her) Egerton. I'll show you—— Harry Egerton. (Starting for the door) Father, you'll remember in the years to be How I came to you one November day And asked your help to give this country peace. Egerton. Go to your rabble! Gladys Egerton. (Breaks out crying) Think of it! Egerton. I'll show you How you can buy me and my property! Harry Egerton. (From back in the hall) Property was made for men. Egerton. And don't you ever Darken that door! Harry Egerton. And you can't keep it idle While men depend upon it for their bread. (He goes out) Egerton. (Roaring after him) You dare to lay your hands upon that mill! (He stands staring at the door) Mrs. Egerton. (Wonderingly) It wasn't our son! It wasn't our son! (The cannon are heard in volley upon volley as of a town giving itself up to celebration) Egerton. (Calls into the room, left) Tell him to go right down, that probably There'll be an attack upon it. Gladys Egerton. (Shaken with sobs) Think of it! Mrs. Egerton. (As before) That gleam about his brow! And now he's gone! (She wanders back in the hall as in a dream) Egerton. And to see Chadbourne——Are you listening? Voice of George. Yes. Egerton. To Chadbourne that he has authority from me— From Egerton, to treat them all alike. Mrs. Egerton. (Vacantly, to her husband) What have you done, Donald! Egerton. That I expect The mill defended, let it cost what may. Gladys Egerton. I hate him, O I hate him! Mrs. Egerton. (Who has come forward and stands facing him) What have you done! |
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