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Letter A Play in Three Acts - W Somerset Maugham · The Letter, A Play in Three Acts

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: Act one of The Letter A Play in three Acts.
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: This is a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in
• 0:08
  Speaker 1: the public domain. For more information or to volunteer, please
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: visit LibriVox dot org. The Letter A Play in three
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: Acts by W. Somerset Bomb characters.
• 0:21
  Speaker 2: Leslie Crosbie read by Jen Broda.
• 0:26
  Speaker 3: Robert Crosby read by Mark Leader.
• 0:29
  Speaker 4: Howard Joyce read by Beeswax, Candle.
• 0:33
  Speaker 5: Long Chi Sang read by Red Run, John.
• 0:38
  Speaker 6: Withers read by Todd.
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: Head Boy read by Brian Fullan. Chmie read by Brian.
• 0:47
  Speaker 7: Fullan, Dorothy Joyce read by Annie Hendron. Missus Parker read
• 0:54
  Speaker 7: by Annie Heindron a.
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: Sikh Sergeant of Police read by Brian Fullan.
• 1:01
  Speaker 8: Jeffrey Hammond read by brus Ka Chuk.
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: Narrated by Brian Fullan. Act one. The scene is the
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: sitting room of the crosbys bungalow. Along the whole back
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: of the scene runs the veranda, which is approached by
• 1:18
  Speaker 1: steps from the garden. The room is comfortably but quite
• 1:22
  Speaker 1: simply furnished with rattan chairs in which are cushions. There
• 1:27
  Speaker 1: are tables with bowls of flowers on them, and pieces
• 1:30
  Speaker 1: of malay silver on the walls are water color pictures,
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: and here and there an arrangement of creases and porags.
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: There are horns of sledang and a couple of tigers
• 1:42
  Speaker 1: heads rattan mats on the floor. On the cottage piano,
• 1:47
  Speaker 1: a piece of music stands open. The room is lit
• 1:50
  Speaker 1: by one lamp, and this stands by a little table
• 1:53
  Speaker 1: on which is Leslie's pillow lace. Another lamp hangs in
• 1:57
  Speaker 1: the center of the verandah. When the curtain rises, the
• 2:01
  Speaker 1: sound of a shot is heard and a cry from Hammond.
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: He is seen staggering towards the verandah. Leslie fires again.
• 2:11
  Speaker 8: Oh my god.
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: He falls in a heap on the ground. Leslie follows him, firing,
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: and then, standing over him, fires two or three more
• 2:22
  Speaker 1: shots in rapid succession into the prosperate body. There is
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: a little click as she mechanically pulls the trigger. The
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: six chambers are empty. She looks at the revolver and
• 2:32
  Speaker 1: lets it drop from her hand. Then her eyes fall
• 2:36
  Speaker 1: on the body. They grow enormous, as though they would
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: start out of her head, and a look of horror
• 2:42
  Speaker 1: comes into her face. She gives a shudder as she
• 2:46
  Speaker 1: looks at the dead man. And then her gaze, still
• 2:49
  Speaker 1: fixed on the dreadful sight, backs into the room. There
• 2:53
  Speaker 1: is an excited jabbering from the garden, and Leslie gives
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: a start as she hears it. It is immediately followed
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: by the appearance of the head boy and another, and
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: then while they are speaking, two or three more appear.
• 3:07
  Speaker 1: These are Chinese and wear white trousers and singlets. The
• 3:11
  Speaker 1: others are malaise in surrongs. The head boy is a small,
• 3:15
  Speaker 1: fat Chinaman of about forty mess eh mess o shimatta
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: I a canfire. He catches sight of the body. Oh,
• 3:27
  Speaker 1: the boy with him speaks to him excitedly in Chinese.
• 3:31
  Speaker 2: Is he dead?
• 3:33
  Speaker 1: Mess eh messe eh? Who kill him? He bends over
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: and looks at the corpse. Tah, mister Hammond.
• 3:41
  Speaker 2: Is he dead?
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: The head boy kneels down and feels the man's face.
• 3:47
  Speaker 1: The others stand round and chatter among themselves. Yes, I
• 3:51
  Speaker 1: think him dead. Oh my god, good boy. Getting up, Missy?
• 3:57
  Speaker 1: Why for you do that?
• 4:00
  Speaker 2: Do you know where the assistant district officer.
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: Lives, mister withers, Missy, Yes, I savvy, he lives jolly
• 4:08
  Speaker 1: long way from here.
• 4:10
  Speaker 2: Fetch him more.
• 4:11
  Speaker 1: Better we wait till daylight, Missy.
• 4:14
  Speaker 2: There's nothing to be frightened of. Hassan will drive you
• 4:17
  Speaker 2: over in the car.
• 4:19
  Speaker 1: Is Hassan there, yes, Missy. He points to one of
• 4:23
  Speaker 1: the melees.
• 4:25
  Speaker 2: Wake mister Withers and tell him to come here at once.
• 4:28
  Speaker 2: Say there's been an accident and mister Hammond's dead.
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: Yes, Missy go at once. The head boy turns to Hassan,
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: the chauffeur, and gives him instructions in Melee to get
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: the car out. Hassan goes down the veranda steps. I
• 4:46
  Speaker 1: think more better. We bring body in, Missy and put
• 4:49
  Speaker 1: him all bed in spare room. No, nor can leave
• 4:54
  Speaker 1: him here, Missy.
• 4:56
  Speaker 2: Don't touch it. When mister Withers comes, he'll say what's
• 5:00
  Speaker 2: to be done?
• 5:01
  Speaker 1: All right, Missy? I tell us sing to wait here.
• 5:05
  Speaker 1: Maybe if you like.
• 5:07
  Speaker 2: I want mister Crosby sent.
• 5:09
  Speaker 1: For post office or closed up, Missy. No, can't tell
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: a phone till tomorrow morning. What's the time, I think
• 5:18
  Speaker 1: maybe twelve o'clock.
• 5:20
  Speaker 2: You must wake the man up at the post office
• 5:22
  Speaker 2: as you go through the village, and he must get
• 5:25
  Speaker 2: on to Singapore somehow or the other, or try the
• 5:28
  Speaker 2: police station. Perhaps they can get on Oh hey, missy,
• 5:32
  Speaker 2: I try give the man two or three dollars. Whatever happens,
• 5:36
  Speaker 2: they must get on to him at once.
• 5:39
  Speaker 1: If I catch he speak a Master? What thing I say, Missy?
• 5:43
  Speaker 2: I'll write the message down for you.
• 5:45
  Speaker 1: All right, Missy?
• 5:46
  Speaker 3: You right.
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: She sits down at the table and takes a sheet
• 5:50
  Speaker 1: of paper and tries to write.
• 5:52
  Speaker 2: Oh, my hand, I can't hold the pencil.
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: She beats with her fist on the table in anger
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: with herself, and takes the pencil again. She writes a
• 6:02
  Speaker 1: few words and then gets up paper in hand.
• 6:06
  Speaker 2: Here's the message. That's the telephone number. Master is spending
• 6:10
  Speaker 2: the night at mister Joyce's house.
• 6:12
  Speaker 1: Ay savvy the wawya?
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: They must ring and ring till they get an answer.
• 6:18
  Speaker 2: They can give the message in Malay if they like,
• 6:21
  Speaker 2: read it and see if you understand.
• 6:23
  Speaker 1: Yes, Missy, I understand Leslie reading.
• 6:28
  Speaker 2: Come at once. There's been a terrible accident. Hammond is dead.
• 6:33
  Speaker 1: All right, Missy. There is the sound of a car
• 6:36
  Speaker 1: being started.
• 6:38
  Speaker 2: There's the car.
• 6:39
  Speaker 1: Be quick now, yes, missy. He goes out by the
• 6:43
  Speaker 1: verandah Leslie stands for a moment looking down at the floor.
• 6:47
  Speaker 1: One or two Melee women come softly up the steps.
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: They look at the corpse and in whispers talk excitedly
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: to one another. Leslie becomes conscious of their presence.
• 6:58
  Speaker 2: What do you want? Go away, all of you.
• 7:02
  Speaker 1: They fade away silently, and only Ah Sing, a Chinese boy,
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: is left. Leslie gives the body a long look. Then
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: she goes into a room at the side her own bedroom,
• 7:14
  Speaker 1: and you hear the door locked. Ah Sing comes into
• 7:17
  Speaker 1: the room, takes a cigarette out of a box on
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: the table and lights it. He sits down on the
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: arm chair with one leg crossed over the other, and
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: blows the smoke into the air. The curtain falls. There
• 7:31
  Speaker 1: is an interval of one minute to mark the passing
• 7:34
  Speaker 1: of three hours. The scene is the same as before.
• 7:39
  Speaker 1: When the curtain rises, John Withers is walking up and
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: down the room. The body has been removed. The head
• 7:46
  Speaker 1: boy comes in. I bewave, I hear mortal ha hall road.
• 7:52
  Speaker 1: Withers goes to the verandah and listens.
• 7:55
  Speaker 6: I don't I can't imagine why he is so long.
• 8:00
  Speaker 1: There is the faint toot of a motor horn.
• 8:03
  Speaker 6: Yes, by George, that's a car. Thank the Lord for that.
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: John Withers is a young man neatly dressed in a
• 8:13
  Speaker 1: white duck suit. His topee is on a table. He
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: goes to the door of Leslie's room and.
• 8:19
  Speaker 6: Knocks Missus Crosbie.
• 8:22
  Speaker 1: There is no answer, and he knocks again.
• 8:25
  Speaker 6: Missus Crosbie. Yes, there's a car on the road. That
• 8:31
  Speaker 6: must be your husband.
• 8:33
  Speaker 1: There is no reply to this. He listens for a moment,
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: and then, with a gesture of impatience, moves over to
• 8:40
  Speaker 1: the verandah. The sound is heard of a motor arriving.
• 8:44
  Speaker 1: It stops.
• 8:46
  Speaker 6: Is that you Crosbie? Yes, thank god, I thought you
• 8:52
  Speaker 6: were never coming.
• 8:53
  Speaker 1: Crosbie comes up the veranda steps. He is a man
• 8:56
  Speaker 1: of powerful build, forty years old, with a large, sunburned face.
• 9:02
  Speaker 1: He is dressed in khaki shorts, a shirt without a tie,
• 9:06
  Speaker 1: a khaki coat, and a broad grimmed hat.
• 9:09
  Speaker 3: Where's Leslie.
• 9:11
  Speaker 6: She's in her room. She's locked herself in. She wouldn't
• 9:16
  Speaker 6: see me till you came.
• 9:18
  Speaker 3: What's happened.
• 9:20
  Speaker 1: He goes to the door of Leslie's room and knocks urgently.
• 9:24
  Speaker 3: Leslie, Leslie.
• 9:26
  Speaker 1: There is a moment's pause. Joyce comes up the steps.
• 9:30
  Speaker 1: He is a thin, spare, clean shaven man of about
• 9:33
  Speaker 1: five and forty. He wears ducks in a toppy. He
• 9:36
  Speaker 1: holds out his hand to Withers.
• 9:39
  Speaker 3: My name is Joyce. Are you the ideo?
• 9:42
  Speaker 6: Yes?
• 9:43
  Speaker 4: Whethers Crosbie was spending the night with us.
• 9:48
  Speaker 3: I thought i'd better come along with him, Leslie, it's
• 9:52
  Speaker 3: me open the.
• 9:53
  Speaker 1: Door, Withers to Joyce.
• 9:55
  Speaker 6: Oh, are you the lawyer?
• 9:57
  Speaker 3: Yes? Joyce and Simpson, I know.
• 10:02
  Speaker 1: The door of Leslie's room is unlocked and slowly opened.
• 10:05
  Speaker 1: She comes out, and, closing it behind her, stands against it.
• 10:10
  Speaker 1: Crosbie stretching out his hands as though to take her
• 10:13
  Speaker 1: in his arms. Leslie, Leslie, warding him off with a gesture.
• 10:18
  Speaker 2: Oh, don't touch me.
• 10:19
  Speaker 3: What's happened? What happened?
• 10:21
  Speaker 2: Didn't they tell you over the telephone?
• 10:23
  Speaker 3: They said Hammond was killed?
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: Leslie looking towards the verandah, is he there still?
• 10:29
  Speaker 3: No?
• 10:30
  Speaker 6: I had the body taken away.
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: She looks at the three men with haggard eyes, and
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: then throws back her head.
• 10:37
  Speaker 2: He tried to rape me, and I shot.
• 10:40
  Speaker 3: Him, Leslie.
• 10:42
  Speaker 2: My god, Oh, Robert, I'm so glad you've come, Darling.
• 10:48
  Speaker 3: Darling.
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: She throws herself in his arms, and he clasps her
• 10:52
  Speaker 1: to his heart. Now at last, she breaks down and
• 10:55
  Speaker 1: sobs convulsively.
• 10:57
  Speaker 2: Hold me tight, don't let me go. I'm so frightened. Oh, Robert, Robert, It'll.
• 11:05
  Speaker 3: Be all right. There's nothing to be frightened about. Don't
• 11:08
  Speaker 3: let yourself go to pieces.
• 11:10
  Speaker 2: I've got you, haven't I? Oh Robert, what shall I do?
• 11:15
  Speaker 2: I'm so unhappy, sweetheart. Hold me close to you.
• 11:21
  Speaker 6: Do you think you could tell us exactly what happened?
• 11:25
  Speaker 3: Now? Common sit down, dear heart, you are all in.
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: He leads her to a chair, and she sinks into
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: it with exhaustion.
• 11:35
  Speaker 6: I'm afraid it sounds awfully brutal, but my duty is.
• 11:41
  Speaker 2: Oh, I know, of course, I'll tell you everything I can.
• 11:46
  Speaker 2: I'll try to pull myself together. To Crosbie, give me
• 11:50
  Speaker 2: your hanky.
• 11:51
  Speaker 1: She takes a handkerchief out of his pocket and dries
• 11:54
  Speaker 1: her eyes.
• 11:55
  Speaker 3: Don't hurry yourself, darling, take your.
• 11:58
  Speaker 1: Time, Leslie, forcing a smile to her lips.
• 12:02
  Speaker 2: It's so good to have you here.
• 12:05
  Speaker 3: It's lucky Howard came along.
• 12:08
  Speaker 2: Oh, mister Joyce, how nice of you.
• 12:11
  Speaker 1: She stretches out her hand.
• 12:13
  Speaker 2: Fancy you're coming all this way at this time of night.
• 12:17
  Speaker 3: Yeah, that's all right.
• 12:18
  Speaker 2: How's Dorothy.
• 12:20
  Speaker 3: Eh, she's very well. Thank you.
• 12:23
  Speaker 2: I feel so dreadfully faint.
• 12:25
  Speaker 3: Would you like a drop of whiskey?
• 12:28
  Speaker 1: Leslie, closing her eyes, HiT's on the table. Crosbie goes
• 12:34
  Speaker 1: and mixes her a small whiskey and sultz her. She
• 12:37
  Speaker 1: is lying on a long chair with her eyes closed,
• 12:41
  Speaker 1: her face pale, and wan Joyce in an undertone, too, withers.
• 12:47
  Speaker 3: How long have you been here? Oh?
• 12:49
  Speaker 6: An hour or more? I was fast asleep. My boy
• 12:54
  Speaker 6: woke me up and said the Crosbie's head boy was
• 12:57
  Speaker 6: there and wanted to see me at once. Yes, of
• 13:01
  Speaker 6: course I jumped up. He was on the verandah. He
• 13:05
  Speaker 6: told me Hammond had been shot and asked me to
• 13:08
  Speaker 6: come at once.
• 13:09
  Speaker 4: Did he tell you she'd shot him?
• 13:12
  Speaker 6: Yes? When I got here, missus Crosbie had locked herself
• 13:17
  Speaker 6: in her room and refused to come out till her
• 13:20
  Speaker 6: husband came.
• 13:22
  Speaker 4: Was Hammond dead?
• 13:24
  Speaker 6: Oh? Yes, he was just riddled with bullets.
• 13:28
  Speaker 1: Oh, withers taking it out of his pocket.
• 13:31
  Speaker 6: Here's the revolver. All six chambers are empty.
• 13:36
  Speaker 1: Leslie slowly opens her eyes and looks at the two
• 13:38
  Speaker 1: men talking. Joyce takes the revolver in his hands and
• 13:42
  Speaker 1: looks at it. Joyce to Crosbie as he comes across
• 13:45
  Speaker 1: the room with the whiskey.
• 13:48
  Speaker 4: Is this yours, Bob?
• 13:50
  Speaker 3: Yes?
• 13:51
  Speaker 1: He goes up to Leslie and supports her while she SIPs.
• 13:56
  Speaker 3: Have you questioned the boys?
• 13:58
  Speaker 6: Yes, they know nothing. They were asleep in their own quarters.
• 14:04
  Speaker 6: They were awakened by the firing, and when they came
• 14:07
  Speaker 6: here they found Hammond lying on the floor where.
• 14:11
  Speaker 1: Exactly withers pointing there.
• 14:16
  Speaker 6: On the verandah under the lamp.
• 14:19
  Speaker 2: Thank you. I shall feel better in a minute. I'm
• 14:22
  Speaker 2: sorry to be so tiresome.
• 14:25
  Speaker 4: Do you feel well enough to talk now?
• 14:28
  Speaker 2: I think so.
• 14:30
  Speaker 3: You needn't be in such a devil of a hurry.
• 14:32
  Speaker 3: She's in no condition to make a long statement now
• 14:37
  Speaker 3: you'll have to be made sooner or later.
• 14:40
  Speaker 2: It's all right, Robert, really, I feel perfectly well now.
• 14:45
  Speaker 4: I think we ought to be put in possession of
• 14:47
  Speaker 4: the facts as soon as possible.
• 14:50
  Speaker 6: Take your time, missus Crosby. After all, we're all friends here.
• 14:56
  Speaker 2: What do you want me to do? If you've got
• 14:58
  Speaker 2: any questions to ask, I'll do my best to answer them.
• 15:02
  Speaker 4: Perhaps it would be better if you told us the
• 15:04
  Speaker 4: whole story in your own way, do you think you
• 15:07
  Speaker 4: can manage that?
• 15:09
  Speaker 2: I'll try.
• 15:10
  Speaker 1: She gets up from the long chair.
• 15:13
  Speaker 3: What do you want to do?
• 15:15
  Speaker 2: I want to sit upright.
• 15:17
  Speaker 1: She sits down and for a moment hesitates. Crosbie and
• 15:21
  Speaker 1: Withers are standing up. Joyce's seated opposite to her. The
• 15:26
  Speaker 1: eyes of all of them are on her face.
• 15:29
  Speaker 2: Addressing Withers, Robert was spending the night in Singapore.
• 15:33
  Speaker 6: You know, yes, your boy told me that.
• 15:37
  Speaker 2: I was going in with him. But I wasn't feeling
• 15:40
  Speaker 2: very well, and I thought i'd stay here. I never
• 15:43
  Speaker 2: mind being alone.
• 15:45
  Speaker 1: With a half smile at Crosbie.
• 15:48
  Speaker 2: A planter's wife gets used to that.
• 15:49
  Speaker 3: You know, that's true.
• 15:52
  Speaker 2: I had dinner rather late, and then I started working
• 15:55
  Speaker 2: on my lace.
• 15:56
  Speaker 1: She points to the pillow on which a piece of
• 15:59
  Speaker 1: lace has made his pin with little pins.
• 16:03
  Speaker 6: My wife is rather adap at least making Yes, I
• 16:07
  Speaker 6: know I've heard that.
• 16:09
  Speaker 2: I don't know how long I'd been working. It fascinates me,
• 16:13
  Speaker 2: you know, and I lose all sense of time. Suddenly
• 16:17
  Speaker 2: I heard a footstep outside, and someone came up the
• 16:19
  Speaker 2: steps of the verandah and said, good evening, Can I
• 16:23
  Speaker 2: come in. I was startled because I hadn't heard a
• 16:27
  Speaker 2: car drive up.
• 16:28
  Speaker 6: Hammond left his car about a quarter of a mile
• 16:31
  Speaker 6: down the road. It's parked under the trees. Your chauffeur
• 16:36
  Speaker 6: noticed it as we were driving back.
• 16:39
  Speaker 4: I wonder why I Hammond left his car there.
• 16:42
  Speaker 6: Presumably he did not want anyone to hear him drive up.
• 16:47
  Speaker 4: Go on, missus Crosbie.
• 16:49
  Speaker 2: At first I couldn't see who it was. I work
• 16:52
  Speaker 2: in spectacles, you know, and in the half darkness of
• 16:55
  Speaker 2: the veranda, it was impossible for me to recognize anybody.
• 17:00
  Speaker 2: Who is it, I said, Jeff Hammond, Oh, of course,
• 17:05
  Speaker 2: come in and have a drink, I said, and I
• 17:08
  Speaker 2: took off my spectacles. I got up and shook hands
• 17:11
  Speaker 2: with him.
• 17:12
  Speaker 3: Were you surprised to see him?
• 17:15
  Speaker 2: I was rather. He hadn't been up to the house
• 17:18
  Speaker 2: for ages. Had he Robert.
• 17:20
  Speaker 3: Three months at least, I should think.
• 17:23
  Speaker 2: I told him Robert was away, he'd had to go
• 17:26
  Speaker 2: to Singapore on business.
• 17:28
  Speaker 6: What did you say to that?
• 17:30
  Speaker 2: He said, Oh, I'm sorry. I felt rather lonely tonight,
• 17:35
  Speaker 2: so I thought i'd just come along and see how
• 17:37
  Speaker 2: you were getting on. I asked him how he'd come
• 17:41
  Speaker 2: as I had entered a car, and he said he'd
• 17:43
  Speaker 2: left it on the road because he thought we might
• 17:46
  Speaker 2: be in bed and asleep and he didn't want to
• 17:49
  Speaker 2: wake us up.
• 17:50
  Speaker 3: Yah.
• 17:50
  Speaker 2: See, as Robert was away, there wasn't any whiskey in
• 17:54
  Speaker 2: the room. But I thought the boys would be asleep,
• 17:57
  Speaker 2: so I didn't call them. I went and vetched it myself.
• 18:02
  Speaker 2: Hammond mixed himself a drink and lit his pipe.
• 18:05
  Speaker 4: Was he quite sober?
• 18:07
  Speaker 2: I never thought about it. I suppose he had been drinking,
• 18:12
  Speaker 2: but just then it didn't occur to me. What happened, well,
• 18:17
  Speaker 2: nothing very much. I put on my spectacles again and
• 18:20
  Speaker 2: went on with my work. We chatted about one thing
• 18:24
  Speaker 2: and another. He asked me if Robert had heard that
• 18:27
  Speaker 2: a tiger had been seen on the road two or
• 18:29
  Speaker 2: three days ago. It had killed a couple of goats,
• 18:32
  Speaker 2: and the villagers were in a state about it. He
• 18:35
  Speaker 2: said he thought he'd try to get it over the weekend.
• 18:38
  Speaker 3: Oh, yes, I know about that. Don't you remember I
• 18:41
  Speaker 3: spoke to you about it at Tiffin yesterday, did.
• 18:44
  Speaker 2: You I believe you did?
• 18:47
  Speaker 6: Far away missus Crosby, Well.
• 18:50
  Speaker 2: We were just chatting. Then suddenly he said something rather silly.
• 18:55
  Speaker 2: What it's hardly worth repeating he paid me little compliment.
• 19:02
  Speaker 4: I think perhaps you'd better tell us exactly what he said.
• 19:07
  Speaker 2: He said, I don't know how you compare to disfigure
• 19:10
  Speaker 2: yourself with those horrible spectacles. You've got very pretty eyes, indeed,
• 19:15
  Speaker 2: you know, and it's too bad of you to hide them.
• 19:18
  Speaker 4: Had he ever said anything of the sort to you before?
• 19:22
  Speaker 2: No, never. I was a little taken aback, but I
• 19:26
  Speaker 2: thought it best to take it quite lightly. I make
• 19:29
  Speaker 2: no pretensions to be in a raving beauty, you know,
• 19:33
  Speaker 2: I said, But you are, he said. It sounds awfully
• 19:37
  Speaker 2: silly to repeat things like this.
• 19:40
  Speaker 4: Never mind, please let us have his exact words.
• 19:45
  Speaker 2: Well, he said, it's too bad of you to try
• 19:48
  Speaker 2: to make yourself look plain, but thank god you don't succeed.
• 19:53
  Speaker 1: She gives the two strangers a jointly deprecating look.
• 19:57
  Speaker 2: I shrugged my shoulders. I thought rather impertinent of him
• 20:01
  Speaker 2: to talk to me like that.
• 20:03
  Speaker 3: I don't wonder did you say anything.
• 20:07
  Speaker 2: Yes, I said, if you ask me point blank, I'm
• 20:11
  Speaker 2: bound to tell you that I don't care a row
• 20:13
  Speaker 2: of pins what you think about me. I was trying
• 20:16
  Speaker 2: to snub him, but he only laughed. I'm going to
• 20:19
  Speaker 2: tell you all the same, he said, I think you're
• 20:23
  Speaker 2: the prettiest thing I've seen for many a long year.
• 20:26
  Speaker 2: Sweet of you, I said, but in that case, I
• 20:30
  Speaker 2: can only think of you half witted. He laughed again.
• 20:34
  Speaker 2: He'd been sitting over there, and he got up and
• 20:37
  Speaker 2: drew up a chair near the table I was working at.
• 20:40
  Speaker 2: You're not going to have the face to deny that
• 20:42
  Speaker 2: you have the prettiest hands in the world, he said that,
• 20:46
  Speaker 2: rather put my back up. In point of fact, my
• 20:50
  Speaker 2: hands are not very good, and I just assume people
• 20:53
  Speaker 2: didn't talk about them. It's only an awful fool of
• 20:56
  Speaker 2: a woman who wants to be flattered on her worst points.
• 21:00
  Speaker 1: Leslie Darling, he takes one of her hands and kisses it.
• 21:05
  Speaker 2: Oh, Robert, you silly old thing.
• 21:08
  Speaker 4: Well when Hammond was talking in that strain, did he
• 21:11
  Speaker 4: just sit still with his arms crossed?
• 21:14
  Speaker 2: Oh? No, He tried to take one of my hands,
• 21:18
  Speaker 2: but I gave him a little tap. I wasn't particularly annoyed.
• 21:22
  Speaker 2: I merely thought he was rather silly. I said to him,
• 21:26
  Speaker 2: don't be an idiot. Sit down where you were before
• 21:29
  Speaker 2: and talk sensibly, or else I shall send you home.
• 21:34
  Speaker 6: But missus Crosbie, I wonder you didn't kick him out there,
• 21:39
  Speaker 6: and then I didn't.
• 21:41
  Speaker 2: Want to make a fuss. You know, there are men
• 21:44
  Speaker 2: who think it's their duty to flirt with a woman
• 21:46
  Speaker 2: when they get the chance. I believe they think women
• 21:49
  Speaker 2: expected of them, and for all I know, a good
• 21:53
  Speaker 2: many do. But I'm not one of them, am I Robert?
• 21:58
  Speaker 3: Far from it.
• 21:59
  Speaker 2: A woman only makes a perfect fool of herself if
• 22:02
  Speaker 2: she makes a scene every time a man pays her
• 22:04
  Speaker 2: one or two compliments. She doesn't need much experience of
• 22:08
  Speaker 2: the world to discover that it means rather less than nothing.
• 22:12
  Speaker 2: I didn't suspect for an instant that Hammond was serious.
• 22:17
  Speaker 4: When did you suspect then?
• 22:20
  Speaker 2: What he said next? You see, he didn't move. He
• 22:25
  Speaker 2: just looked at me straight in the face and said,
• 22:28
  Speaker 2: don't you know that I'm awfully in love with you
• 22:31
  Speaker 2: the cad I don't, I answered. You see, it meant
• 22:36
  Speaker 2: so little to me that I hadn't the smallest difficulty
• 22:40
  Speaker 2: in keeping perfectly cool. I don't believe it for a minute,
• 22:44
  Speaker 2: I said, And even if it were true, I don't
• 22:47
  Speaker 2: want you to say it.
• 22:49
  Speaker 4: Were you surprised?
• 22:50
  Speaker 2: Of course? I was surprised. Why we've known him for
• 22:54
  Speaker 2: seven years. Robert.
• 22:57
  Speaker 3: Yes, he came here after the war.
• 23:00
  Speaker 2: And he's never paid me the smallest attention. I didn't
• 23:04
  Speaker 2: suppose he even knew what color my eyes were. If
• 23:07
  Speaker 2: you'd asked me, I should have said I didn't begin
• 23:10
  Speaker 2: to exist for him.
• 23:12
  Speaker 1: Crosbie too, Joyce.
• 23:14
  Speaker 3: You must remember that we never saw very much of him.
• 23:17
  Speaker 2: When he first came here, he was ill, and I
• 23:19
  Speaker 2: got Robert to go over and fetch him. He was
• 23:22
  Speaker 2: all alone in his bungalow.
• 23:24
  Speaker 3: Where was his bungalow about six or seven miles from here.
• 23:29
  Speaker 2: I couldn't bear the idea of his lying there without
• 23:32
  Speaker 2: anyone to look after him, and so we brought him
• 23:35
  Speaker 2: here and took care of him till he was fit again.
• 23:38
  Speaker 2: We saw a certain amount of him after that, but
• 23:41
  Speaker 2: we had nothing much in common, and we never became
• 23:44
  Speaker 2: very intimate.
• 23:46
  Speaker 3: For the last two or three years, we've hardly seen
• 23:49
  Speaker 3: him at all, to tell you the truth, After all
• 23:52
  Speaker 3: that Leslie has done for him. When he was ill,
• 23:56
  Speaker 3: I thought he was almost too casual.
• 23:59
  Speaker 2: He used to over now and then to play tennis,
• 24:02
  Speaker 2: and we used to meet him at other people's houses
• 24:04
  Speaker 2: now and again. But I don't think i'd set eyes
• 24:07
  Speaker 2: on him for a month. I see he helped himself
• 24:11
  Speaker 2: to another whiskey and soda. I began to wonder if
• 24:15
  Speaker 2: he'd been drinking anyhow. I thought he'd had enough. I
• 24:19
  Speaker 2: wouldn't drink anymore if I were you, I said. I
• 24:23
  Speaker 2: was quite friendly about it. I wasn't the least frightened
• 24:27
  Speaker 2: or anything like that. It never occurred to me that
• 24:30
  Speaker 2: I couldn't manage him. He didn't pay any attention to
• 24:34
  Speaker 2: what I said. He emptied his glass and put it down.
• 24:38
  Speaker 2: Do you think I'm talking to you like this because
• 24:40
  Speaker 2: I'm drunk, he asked, in a funny, abrupt way. That's
• 24:44
  Speaker 2: the most obvious explanation, isn't it. I said. It's awful
• 24:49
  Speaker 2: having to tell you this. I'm so ashamed, it's so disgraceful.
• 24:54
  Speaker 4: I know it's hard, but for your own sake, I
• 24:58
  Speaker 4: beg you to tell us the whole storyory now.
• 25:01
  Speaker 6: If missus Crosbie would like to wait a little, I
• 25:04
  Speaker 6: don't see any great harm in that.
• 25:07
  Speaker 2: No, if I've got to tell it, I'll tell it now.
• 25:11
  Speaker 2: What's the good of waiting. My head's simply throbbing.
• 25:15
  Speaker 3: Don't be too hard on her, Howard.
• 25:18
  Speaker 2: He's been as kind as he can be.
• 25:21
  Speaker 4: I hope, sir, that's the most obvious explanation.
• 25:25
  Speaker 2: You said, Well, it's a lie, he said. I've loved
• 25:29
  Speaker 2: you ever since I first knew you. I've held my
• 25:32
  Speaker 2: tongue as long as I could, and now it's got
• 25:35
  Speaker 2: to come out. I love you, I love you, I
• 25:38
  Speaker 2: love you. He repeated it, just like.
• 25:41
  Speaker 1: That, Crosbie between his teeth, A swine, Leslie, rising from
• 25:49
  Speaker 1: her seat and standing.
• 25:51
  Speaker 2: I got up and I put away the pillow with
• 25:53
  Speaker 2: my lace. I held out my hand good night, I said.
• 25:58
  Speaker 2: He didn't take it. He just stood and looked at me,
• 26:02
  Speaker 2: and his eyes were all funny. I'm not going now,
• 26:06
  Speaker 2: he said. Then I began to lose my temper. I
• 26:09
  Speaker 2: think I'd kept it too long. I think I'm a
• 26:12
  Speaker 2: very even tempered woman. But when I'm roused, I don't
• 26:16
  Speaker 2: care very much what I say. But you, poor fool,
• 26:20
  Speaker 2: I cried at him. Don't you know that I've never
• 26:23
  Speaker 2: loved any one but Robert, And even if I didn't
• 26:26
  Speaker 2: love Robert, you're the last man I should care for.
• 26:30
  Speaker 2: What do I care? He said? Robert's away car, the
• 26:35
  Speaker 2: filthy car.
• 26:36
  Speaker 3: Oh my god, be quiet, Bob.
• 26:39
  Speaker 2: That was the last straw. I was beside myself even then.
• 26:44
  Speaker 2: I wasn't frightened. It never occurred to me he'd dare,
• 26:49
  Speaker 2: he'd dare. I was just angry. I thought he was
• 26:53
  Speaker 2: just a filthy swine to talk to me like that,
• 26:56
  Speaker 2: because he knew Robert was safely out of the way.
• 26:59
  Speaker 2: If you don't go away this minute, I said, I
• 27:02
  Speaker 2: shall call the boys and have you thrown out. He
• 27:06
  Speaker 2: gave a filthy look. They're out of earshot, he said.
• 27:10
  Speaker 2: I walked past him quickly. I wanted to get out
• 27:14
  Speaker 2: on the Verandah so I could give the boys a call.
• 27:17
  Speaker 2: I knew they'd hear me from there. But he took
• 27:19
  Speaker 2: hold of my arm and swung me back. Let me go,
• 27:23
  Speaker 2: I screamed. I was furious. Not much, he said, not much.
• 27:29
  Speaker 2: I've got you now. I opened my mouth and I
• 27:32
  Speaker 2: shouted as loud as I could, boy boy, but he
• 27:37
  Speaker 2: put his hand over it. Oh it's horrible. I can't
• 27:42
  Speaker 2: go on. It's asking too much of me. It's so shameful, shameful.
• 27:48
  Speaker 3: Oh, Leslie, my darling. I wish to god i'd never
• 27:52
  Speaker 3: left you.
• 27:54
  Speaker 1: Oh it was awful, she sobs, brokenheartedly.
• 27:59
  Speaker 4: I beseech you to control yourself. You've been wonderful up too.
• 28:03
  Speaker 3: Now.
• 28:04
  Speaker 4: I know it's very hard, but you must tell us everything.
• 28:09
  Speaker 2: I didn't know what he was doing. He flung his
• 28:12
  Speaker 2: arms around me. He began to kiss me. I struggled.
• 28:17
  Speaker 2: His lips were burning, and I turned my mouth away. No, no, no,
• 28:22
  Speaker 2: I screamed, leave me alone. I won't. I began to cry.
• 28:28
  Speaker 2: I tried to tear myself away from him. He seemed
• 28:32
  Speaker 2: like a madman.
• 28:34
  Speaker 3: I can't bear much more of this. Be quiet, Bob.
• 28:39
  Speaker 2: I don't know what happened. I was all confused. I
• 28:43
  Speaker 2: was so frightened. He seemed to be talking, talking. He
• 28:48
  Speaker 2: kept on saying that he loved me and wanted me.
• 28:52
  Speaker 2: Oh the misery. He held me so tight that I
• 28:56
  Speaker 2: couldn't move. I never knew how strong he was. I
• 29:00
  Speaker 2: felt as weak as a rat. It was awful to
• 29:03
  Speaker 2: feel so helpless. I'm trying to tell you everything, but
• 29:07
  Speaker 2: it's all in a blur. I felt myself growing weaker
• 29:11
  Speaker 2: and weaker, and I thought i'd faint. His breath was
• 29:15
  Speaker 2: hot on my face, and it made me feel desperately sick.
• 29:20
  Speaker 6: The brute.
• 29:22
  Speaker 2: He kissed me. He kissed my neck. Oh, the horror.
• 29:27
  Speaker 2: And he held me so tight that I felt I
• 29:29
  Speaker 2: couldn't breathe. Then he lifted me right off my feet.
• 29:33
  Speaker 2: I tried to kick him, he only held me tighter.
• 29:38
  Speaker 2: Then I felt he was carrying me. He didn't say anything.
• 29:42
  Speaker 2: I didn't look at him, but somehow I saw his
• 29:45
  Speaker 2: face and it was as white as a sheet, and
• 29:48
  Speaker 2: his eyes were burning. He wasn't a man any more.
• 29:53
  Speaker 2: He was a savage. I felt my heart pounding against
• 29:57
  Speaker 2: my rips. Don't look at me. I don't want any
• 30:00
  Speaker 2: of you to look at me. It flashed across me
• 30:04
  Speaker 2: that he was carrying me to the bedroom.
• 30:07
  Speaker 3: Oh he warn't dead. I'd strangled him with my own hands.
• 30:13
  Speaker 2: It all happened in a moment. He stumbled and fell.
• 30:17
  Speaker 2: I don't know why. I don't know if he caught
• 30:20
  Speaker 2: his foot in something, or if it was just an accident.
• 30:23
  Speaker 2: I fell with him. It gave me a chance. Somehow
• 30:27
  Speaker 2: his hold on me loosened, and I snatched myself away
• 30:30
  Speaker 2: from him. It was all instinctive. It was the affair
• 30:33
  Speaker 2: of a moment. I didn't know what I was doing.
• 30:37
  Speaker 2: I jumped up and I ran around the sofa. He
• 30:40
  Speaker 2: was a little slow at getting up.
• 30:42
  Speaker 6: He had a game leg.
• 30:44
  Speaker 3: Yes, he had his knee cap smashed in the wall.
• 30:48
  Speaker 2: Then he made a dash at me. There was a
• 30:51
  Speaker 2: revolver on the table, and I snatched it. I didn't
• 30:56
  Speaker 2: even know i'd fired. I heard a report. I I
• 31:00
  Speaker 2: saw him stagger, he cried out, he said something. I
• 31:05
  Speaker 2: don't know what it was. I was beside myself. I
• 31:08
  Speaker 2: was in a frenzy. He lurched out of the room
• 31:11
  Speaker 2: onto the verandah, and I followed him. I don't remember anything.
• 31:17
  Speaker 2: I heard the reports, one after the other. I don't
• 31:21
  Speaker 2: ask you to believe me, but I didn't even know
• 31:24
  Speaker 2: I was pulling the trigger. I saw Hammond fall down.
• 31:29
  Speaker 2: Suddenly I heard a funny little click, and it flashed
• 31:32
  Speaker 2: through my mind that I'd fired all the cartridges, and
• 31:36
  Speaker 2: the revolver was empty. It was only then that I
• 31:40
  Speaker 2: knew what i'd done. It was as if scales dropped
• 31:44
  Speaker 2: from my eyes, and all at once I caught sight
• 31:47
  Speaker 2: of Hammond, and he was lying there in.
• 31:50
  Speaker 1: A heap, Crosbie taking her in his arms.
• 31:55
  Speaker 2: My poor child, Oh Robert, what have I done?
• 32:01
  Speaker 3: You've done what any woman would have done in your place,
• 32:04
  Speaker 3: only nine tenths of them wouldn't have had the nerve.
• 32:09
  Speaker 3: How did the revolver happen to be there. I don't
• 32:12
  Speaker 3: very often leave Leslie alone for the night, but when
• 32:15
  Speaker 3: I do, I feel safer if she's got a weapon handy.
• 32:18
  Speaker 3: I thought that all the barrels were loaded before I left,
• 32:21
  Speaker 3: and thank god I did.
• 32:23
  Speaker 2: That's all. Mister Withers, you must forgive me if I
• 32:27
  Speaker 2: wouldn't see you when you came, but I wanted my husband.
• 32:32
  Speaker 6: Of course. May I say that I think you behaved magnificently.
• 32:38
  Speaker 6: I'm fearfully sorry we had to put you to the
• 32:40
  Speaker 6: ordeal of telling us all this, But I think mister
• 32:44
  Speaker 6: Joyce was right. It was much better that we should
• 32:47
  Speaker 6: be in possession of all the facts immediately. Oh, I know,
• 32:53
  Speaker 6: it's quite obvious. The man was drunk and he only
• 32:57
  Speaker 6: got what he deserved.
• 32:59
  Speaker 2: And yet I'd give almost anything if I could bring
• 33:01
  Speaker 2: him back to life. It's so awful to think that
• 33:05
  Speaker 2: I killed him.
• 33:07
  Speaker 3: It was an easy death for him, By God. If
• 33:09
  Speaker 3: ever I've wanted to torture anyone.
• 33:13
  Speaker 2: No, don't, Robert, don't. The man's dead.
• 33:17
  Speaker 4: Could I see the body for a minute.
• 33:20
  Speaker 6: Yes, I'll take you to where it.
• 33:22
  Speaker 1: Is leslie with a little shudder.
• 33:26
  Speaker 2: You don't want me to come, No, of course not.
• 33:31
  Speaker 4: You stay here with Bob. We should only be a minute.
• 33:35
  Speaker 1: Joyce and Withers go out.
• 33:37
  Speaker 2: I am so tired. I'm so desperately tired.
• 33:42
  Speaker 3: I know you are, Darling. I'll do anything to help you.
• 33:46
  Speaker 3: It doesn't seem to be a thing I can do.
• 33:48
  Speaker 2: You can love me.
• 33:50
  Speaker 3: I've always loved you with all my heart.
• 33:54
  Speaker 2: Yes, but now if I.
• 33:57
  Speaker 3: Could love you anymore I would now.
• 34:00
  Speaker 2: You don't blame me, blame you.
• 34:03
  Speaker 3: I think you've been splendid. My god, you're a plucky
• 34:08
  Speaker 3: little woman.
• 34:09
  Speaker 2: This is going to give you an awful lot of anxiety.
• 34:12
  Speaker 3: My dear, don't think about me, I don't matter. Only
• 34:17
  Speaker 3: think about yourself.
• 34:19
  Speaker 2: What will they do to me?
• 34:21
  Speaker 3: Do? I'd like to see anyone talk of doing anything
• 34:24
  Speaker 3: to you. Why there isn't a man or a woman
• 34:27
  Speaker 3: in the colony who won't be proud to know you.
• 34:31
  Speaker 2: I so hate the idea of everyone talking about me.
• 34:34
  Speaker 2: I know, Darling, whatever people say, you'll never believe anything
• 34:38
  Speaker 2: against me, will you?
• 34:40
  Speaker 3: Of course not? What should they say?
• 34:42
  Speaker 2: How can I tell people are so unkind? They might
• 34:46
  Speaker 2: easily say that he would never have made advances to
• 34:50
  Speaker 2: me if I hadn't led him on.
• 34:52
  Speaker 3: I think that's the last thing anyone who's ever seen
• 34:55
  Speaker 3: you would dream of saying.
• 34:57
  Speaker 2: Do you love me very much? Robert?
• 35:00
  Speaker 3: I can never tell you how much.
• 35:02
  Speaker 2: We have been happy together all these years, haven't we?
• 35:05
  Speaker 3: By George? Yes, we've been married for ten years and
• 35:09
  Speaker 3: it hardly seems a day.
• 35:11
  Speaker 1: Do you know that we've never even had a quarrel,
• 35:14
  Speaker 1: Leslie with a smile?
• 35:16
  Speaker 2: Who could quarrel with anyone as kind and as good
• 35:19
  Speaker 2: natured as you are?
• 35:21
  Speaker 3: You know, Leslie? It makes me feel stupid and awkward
• 35:24
  Speaker 3: to say some things. I'm not one of those fellows
• 35:27
  Speaker 3: with the gift of the gab. But I do want
• 35:30
  Speaker 3: you to know how awfully grateful I am to you
• 35:33
  Speaker 3: for all you've done for me.
• 35:35
  Speaker 2: Oh my dear, what are you talking about?
• 35:38
  Speaker 3: You see, I'm not in the least clever, and I'm
• 35:42
  Speaker 3: a great, ugly, hulking devil. I'm not fit to clean
• 35:45
  Speaker 3: your boots. Really, I never knew at the beginning why
• 35:49
  Speaker 3: you ever thought of me. You've been the best wife
• 35:52
  Speaker 3: a man ever had.
• 35:54
  Speaker 2: Oh what nonsense?
• 35:57
  Speaker 3: Oh no, it isn't because I don't say much you
• 35:59
  Speaker 3: must fancy. I don't think a lot. I don't know
• 36:03
  Speaker 3: how I've deserved all the luck I've had.
• 36:06
  Speaker 2: Darling, it's so good to hear you say that.
• 36:10
  Speaker 1: He takes her in his arms and lingeringly kisses her
• 36:13
  Speaker 1: mouth joyce, and withers return without self consciousness. Leslie releases
• 36:20
  Speaker 1: herself from her husband's embrace and turns to the two men.
• 36:25
  Speaker 2: Wouldn't you like something to eat? You must be perfectly ravenous?
• 36:30
  Speaker 6: Oh no, don't bother missus. Crosby.
• 36:33
  Speaker 2: It's no bother at all. I expect the boys are
• 36:36
  Speaker 2: still about, and if they're not, I can easily make
• 36:39
  Speaker 2: you a little something myself on the chafing dish.
• 36:43
  Speaker 3: But personally I'm not at all hungry.
• 36:46
  Speaker 2: Robert, no, dear.
• 36:49
  Speaker 4: In point of fact, I think it's about time we
• 36:51
  Speaker 4: started for.
• 36:52
  Speaker 1: Singapore, Leslie, A trifle startled.
• 36:56
  Speaker 3: Now you to be dawn when we get eh.
• 37:00
  Speaker 4: You've had a bath and some breakfast till eight o'clock,
• 37:03
  Speaker 4: boarding up the Attorney General and find out when we
• 37:05
  Speaker 4: can see him.
• 37:07
  Speaker 3: Don't you think that's the best thing we can do
• 37:08
  Speaker 3: with us? Yes?
• 37:10
  Speaker 6: I suppose, so you come with us. Of course, I
• 37:15
  Speaker 6: think i'd better don't you.
• 37:18
  Speaker 2: Shall I be arrested?
• 37:20
  Speaker 1: Joyce with a glance at Withers.
• 37:23
  Speaker 3: I think you're by way of being under arrest now.
• 37:28
  Speaker 6: It's purely a matter of form, missus Crosbie. Mister Joyce's
• 37:32
  Speaker 6: idea is that you should go to the Attorney General
• 37:35
  Speaker 6: and give yourself up. Of course, all this is entirely
• 37:40
  Speaker 6: out of my line. I don't exactly know what I
• 37:43
  Speaker 6: ought to.
• 37:43
  Speaker 2: Do, poor mister Withers. I'm so sorry to give you
• 37:47
  Speaker 2: all this trouble.
• 37:49
  Speaker 6: Oh, don't bother about me. The worst that can happen
• 37:52
  Speaker 6: to me is that I shall get hauled over the
• 37:55
  Speaker 6: coals for doing the wrong thing.
• 37:57
  Speaker 1: Leslie with a faint smile.
• 38:00
  Speaker 2: And you've lost a good night's rest too.
• 38:02
  Speaker 3: Well. We'll start when you're ready, my dear.
• 38:05
  Speaker 2: Shall I be imprisoned?
• 38:08
  Speaker 4: That is for the Attorney General to decide. I hope
• 38:11
  Speaker 4: that after you've told him your story, we shall be
• 38:13
  Speaker 4: able to get him to accept bail. It depends on
• 38:16
  Speaker 4: what the charge is.
• 38:18
  Speaker 3: He's a very good fellow. I'm sure he'll do everything
• 38:20
  Speaker 3: he can. He must do his duty. What do you
• 38:25
  Speaker 3: mean by that?
• 38:27
  Speaker 4: I think it not unlikely that he said he one
• 38:30
  Speaker 4: charge is possible, And in that case, I'm afraid that
• 38:33
  Speaker 4: an application for bail would be useless. What charge murder?
• 38:40
  Speaker 1: There is a moment's pause. The only sign that Leslie
• 38:43
  Speaker 1: gives that the word startles her is the clenching of
• 38:46
  Speaker 1: one of her hands. But it requires quite an effort
• 38:50
  Speaker 1: for her to keep her voice level and calm.
• 38:53
  Speaker 2: I'll just go and change into a jumper. I won't
• 38:56
  Speaker 2: be a minute, and I'll get a hat.
• 39:00
  Speaker 3: Well, you'd better go and give her a hand, Bob.
• 39:03
  Speaker 3: She'll want someone to do her up.
• 39:05
  Speaker 2: Oh no, don't bother. I can manage quite well by myself.
• 39:09
  Speaker 2: A jumper doesn't have to be done up my poor friend.
• 39:13
  Speaker 4: Doesn't it.
• 39:14
  Speaker 3: No, I forgot. I think you'd better go along all
• 39:17
  Speaker 3: the same, old man.
• 39:19
  Speaker 2: I'm not thinking of committing suicide.
• 39:21
  Speaker 4: You know I should hurt not. The idea never occurred
• 39:26
  Speaker 4: to me. I thought i'd like to have a word
• 39:28
  Speaker 4: or two with Withers.
• 39:30
  Speaker 2: Come along, Robert.
• 39:32
  Speaker 1: They go into her bedroom, leaving the door open. Joyce
• 39:35
  Speaker 1: goes over and closes it.
• 39:38
  Speaker 6: By George, that woman's a marble.
• 39:42
  Speaker 3: You were away.
• 39:44
  Speaker 6: I never saw anyone so calm in my life. Her
• 39:48
  Speaker 6: self control is absolutely amazing. She must have a nerve
• 39:52
  Speaker 6: of iron.
• 39:54
  Speaker 4: She has a great deal more character than I ever suspected.
• 39:59
  Speaker 6: You've known her a many years, haven't you, ever?
• 40:02
  Speaker 4: Since she married Crosbie. He's my oldest pullam the colony.
• 40:06
  Speaker 4: But I've never known her very well. She hadly ever
• 40:10
  Speaker 4: came into Singapore. Always found her very reserved, and I
• 40:13
  Speaker 4: suppose she was shy. But my wife has been down
• 40:17
  Speaker 4: here a good deal, and she raves about her. She
• 40:19
  Speaker 4: says that when you really get to know her, she's
• 40:21
  Speaker 4: a very nice woman.
• 40:23
  Speaker 6: Of course, she's a very nice woman.
• 40:26
  Speaker 4: She's certainly a very pretty one.
• 40:29
  Speaker 6: I was very much impressed by the way in which
• 40:31
  Speaker 6: she told that terrible story.
• 40:34
  Speaker 4: I wish she could have been a little more explicit
• 40:36
  Speaker 4: here and there. It was rather confused towards the end.
• 40:41
  Speaker 6: My dear fellow, what do you expect? You could see
• 40:45
  Speaker 6: that she was just holding on to herself like grim death.
• 40:48
  Speaker 6: It seemed to me a marvel that she was so coherent.
• 40:52
  Speaker 6: I say, what a swine that man was.
• 40:56
  Speaker 4: By the way, did you know Hammond?
• 40:59
  Speaker 6: Yeah, so I know him a little. I've only been
• 41:02
  Speaker 6: here three months.
• 41:03
  Speaker 3: You know, Is this your first job as ad O?
• 41:08
  Speaker 1: Yes?
• 41:09
  Speaker 3: Was Hammond a heavy drinker.
• 41:11
  Speaker 6: I don't know that he was. He could take his whack,
• 41:15
  Speaker 6: but I never saw him actually drunk.
• 41:18
  Speaker 4: Of course, I've heard of him, but I never met
• 41:20
  Speaker 4: him myself. He was, by way of being, rather a
• 41:24
  Speaker 4: favor with the ladies, wasn't he.
• 41:27
  Speaker 6: He was a very good looking chap, you know, the sort,
• 41:31
  Speaker 6: very breezy and devil may care and generous with his money.
• 41:36
  Speaker 3: Yes, that is the sort they fall for.
• 41:40
  Speaker 6: I've always understood he was one of the most popular
• 41:43
  Speaker 6: men in the colony before he hurt his leg in
• 41:46
  Speaker 6: the war. He held a tennis championship, and I believe
• 41:50
  Speaker 6: he had a reputation of being the best dancer between
• 41:53
  Speaker 6: Panagu and Singapore.
• 41:56
  Speaker 3: Did you like him?
• 41:58
  Speaker 6: He was a sort of chap help liking? I should
• 42:02
  Speaker 6: have said he was a man who hadn't an enemy
• 42:04
  Speaker 6: in the world.
• 42:06
  Speaker 4: Was he the sort of chat you'd expect to do
• 42:08
  Speaker 4: a thing like this?
• 42:10
  Speaker 6: M How should I know? How can you tell what
• 42:14
  Speaker 6: a man will do when he's drunk.
• 42:16
  Speaker 4: My own opinion is that if a man's a blagged
• 42:19
  Speaker 4: when he's drunk, he's a blagged when he's sober.
• 42:23
  Speaker 6: What are you going to do?
• 42:24
  Speaker 3: Then? That's quite evident.
• 42:27
  Speaker 4: We must find out about him.
• 42:30
  Speaker 1: Leslie comes in, followed by her husband. She carries a
• 42:34
  Speaker 1: hat in her hand.
• 42:37
  Speaker 2: Well, I haven't been long, have I.
• 42:39
  Speaker 4: I shall hold you up as an example to my Dorothy.
• 42:44
  Speaker 2: She's probably not half as slow as you are. I
• 42:47
  Speaker 2: can always dress in a quarter of the time that
• 42:49
  Speaker 2: Robert can.
• 42:51
  Speaker 3: I'll just go and start her up.
• 42:54
  Speaker 6: Is there a room for me? Or shall I come
• 42:56
  Speaker 6: along in the other car.
• 42:58
  Speaker 2: Oh, there'll be plenty of room.
• 43:01
  Speaker 1: Crosbie and Withers go out. Leslie is about to follow.
• 43:07
  Speaker 4: There's just one question I'd like to ask you.
• 43:11
  Speaker 2: Yes, what is it?
• 43:14
  Speaker 4: Just now?
• 43:14
  Speaker 3: When I was.
• 43:15
  Speaker 4: Looking at Hammond's body, it seemed to me that some
• 43:18
  Speaker 4: of the shots must have been fired when he was
• 43:20
  Speaker 4: actually lying on the ground. Gives me the impression that
• 43:25
  Speaker 4: you must have stood over him and fired and fired.
• 43:29
  Speaker 1: Leslie putting her hand wearily on her forehead.
• 43:33
  Speaker 2: I was trying to forget for a.
• 43:34
  Speaker 4: Minute, why did you do that?
• 43:37
  Speaker 2: I didn't know I did.
• 43:39
  Speaker 4: It's a question you must expect to be asked.
• 43:42
  Speaker 2: I'm afraid you think I'm more cold blooded than I am.
• 43:46
  Speaker 2: I lost my head after a certain time. Everything is
• 43:50
  Speaker 2: all blurred and confused. I'm awfully sorry.
• 43:54
  Speaker 4: Don't let it worry you. Then and his say, it's
• 43:57
  Speaker 4: very natural. I'm sorry to make a new sense of myself.
• 44:01
  Speaker 2: Shall we go?
• 44:03
  Speaker 3: Come on?
• 44:04
  Speaker 1: They go out. The head boy comes in and draws
• 44:07
  Speaker 1: down the blinds that lead on to the verandah. He
• 44:11
  Speaker 1: puts out the light and slips out. The room is
• 44:14
  Speaker 1: in darkness and of Act one, Act two of the Letter,
• 44:27
  Speaker 1: A Play in three acts. This is a LibriVox recording.
• 44:32
  Speaker 1: All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more
• 44:36
  Speaker 1: information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. The
• 44:41
  Speaker 1: Letter A Play in three acts by W. Somerset Maum
• 44:46
  Speaker 1: Act two. The scene is to visitor's room in the
• 44:50
  Speaker 1: Gale at Singapore, a bare room with whitewashed walls, on
• 44:56
  Speaker 1: one of which hangs a large map of the Melee Peninsula.
• 45:00
  Speaker 1: On another is a framed photograph of King George the Fifth.
• 45:05
  Speaker 1: The window is barred. The only furniture consists of a
• 45:08
  Speaker 1: table in polished pitch pine and half a dozen chairs.
• 45:13
  Speaker 1: There are doors right and left. Through the window you
• 45:17
  Speaker 1: see the green, luxuriant leaves of some tropical plants and
• 45:21
  Speaker 1: the blue sky. When the curtain rises, Robert Crosbie is
• 45:27
  Speaker 1: seen standing at the window. He wears an air of
• 45:30
  Speaker 1: profound dejection. He has on the clothes in which he
• 45:34
  Speaker 1: is accustomed to walk over the estate, shorts and a
• 45:38
  Speaker 1: khaki shirt. He holds his shabby old hat in his hand.
• 45:43
  Speaker 1: He sighs deeply. The door on the left is opened
• 45:47
  Speaker 1: and Joyce comes in. He is followed by Ong Chi's
• 45:50
  Speaker 1: Sen with a wallet. Ong Chi Sang is a Cantonese,
• 45:55
  Speaker 1: small but trimly built. He is very neatly dressed in
• 45:59
  Speaker 1: white ducks, patent leather shoes, and gay silk socks. He
• 46:04
  Speaker 1: wears a gold wrist watch and invisible pants. May from
• 46:09
  Speaker 1: his breast pocket protrudes a rolled gold fountain pend.
• 46:15
  Speaker 3: Howard, I heard you here. I'm waiting to see Leslie.
• 46:20
  Speaker 3: I've come to see her too. Do you want me
• 46:22
  Speaker 3: to clear out?
• 46:25
  Speaker 4: No, of course not. You go along and see her
• 46:28
  Speaker 4: when they sent for you, and then she can come here.
• 46:31
  Speaker 3: I wish they let me see her here. It's awful
• 46:34
  Speaker 3: happy to see her in a cell with that damned
• 46:36
  Speaker 3: matron always there. I thought you'd probably looking at the
• 46:40
  Speaker 3: office this morning. I couldn't get away. After all the
• 46:44
  Speaker 3: work on the estate has got to go on, and
• 46:47
  Speaker 3: if I'm not there to look after it, everything goes
• 46:50
  Speaker 3: to blazes. I came into Singapore the moment I could. Oh,
• 46:54
  Speaker 3: how I hate that damned a state.
• 46:57
  Speaker 4: In point of fact, I don't think it's been a
• 46:59
  Speaker 4: bad thing for you during these last few weeks to
• 47:01
  Speaker 4: have some work that you're obliged to do.
• 47:04
  Speaker 3: I dare say not. Sometimes I've thought I should go mad.
• 47:08
  Speaker 3: You know, you must pull yourself together, old man. You
• 47:11
  Speaker 3: mustn't let yourself go to pieces. Oh I'm all right.
• 47:16
  Speaker 4: You look as if you hadn't had a bath for
• 47:18
  Speaker 4: a week.
• 47:20
  Speaker 3: Oh I've had a bath, all right. I know my
• 47:23
  Speaker 3: kit's rather robbie, but it's all right for tramping over
• 47:27
  Speaker 3: the estate. I came just as I was. I hadn't
• 47:30
  Speaker 3: the heart to change.
• 47:32
  Speaker 4: It's funny that you should have taken it all so
• 47:34
  Speaker 4: much harder than your missus. She hasn't turned a hair.
• 47:39
  Speaker 3: She's worth ten of me. I know that. I don't
• 47:42
  Speaker 3: mind confessing it. I'm all in. I'm like a lost
• 47:46
  Speaker 3: sheep without Leslie. It's the first time we've been separated
• 47:50
  Speaker 3: for more than a day since we were married. I'm
• 47:53
  Speaker 3: so lonely without her.
• 47:56
  Speaker 1: He catches sight of umji'sn who's that, Well, that's my
• 48:02
  Speaker 1: confidential clerk. On Chi Sing, Oh, Cheese Sing gives a
• 48:06
  Speaker 1: little bow and smiles with a flash of white teeth.
• 48:10
  Speaker 3: What's he come here for?
• 48:12
  Speaker 4: I brought him with me in case I wanted him.
• 48:14
  Speaker 4: A chie Sing is as good a lawyer as I am.
• 48:17
  Speaker 4: He took his degree in the University of Hong Kong.
• 48:20
  Speaker 4: As soon as he's learnt the ins and outs of
• 48:22
  Speaker 4: my business, he's going to set up an opposition II
• 48:25
  Speaker 4: II and perhaps you'd better wait outside. On I'll call
• 48:29
  Speaker 4: you if I want you.
• 48:31
  Speaker 5: Fairly good, sir, I shall be within the eel shut.
• 48:35
  Speaker 4: You'll do if you're within call a Cheese Seng goes out.
• 48:41
  Speaker 3: Oh Howard, I wouldn't wish my worst enemy the agony
• 48:44
  Speaker 3: I've gone through during these horrible weeks.
• 48:48
  Speaker 4: You look as if you hadn't had much sleep lately,
• 48:50
  Speaker 4: old thing.
• 48:51
  Speaker 3: I haven't. I don't think I've closed my eyes the
• 48:54
  Speaker 3: last three nights. Well, thank god, it'll be over to morrow.
• 49:00
  Speaker 4: Either way. You'll clean yourself up a bit for the trial,
• 49:03
  Speaker 4: won't you.
• 49:04
  Speaker 3: Oh? Yes, Rather, I'm staying with you tonight, No, are you?
• 49:09
  Speaker 4: I'm glad, and you'll both come back to my house
• 49:11
  Speaker 4: after the trial. Dorothy's determined to celebrate.
• 49:15
  Speaker 3: I think it's monstrous that they should have kept Leslie
• 49:18
  Speaker 3: in this filthy prison. I think they had to do that.
• 49:23
  Speaker 3: Why couldn't they let her out on bail.
• 49:26
  Speaker 4: It's a very serious charge. I'm afraid, Oh this red tape.
• 49:31
  Speaker 3: She did what any decent woman would do in her place.
• 49:34
  Speaker 3: Leslie's the best girl in the world. She wouldn't hurt
• 49:38
  Speaker 3: a fly. Why hang it all, man, I've been married
• 49:41
  Speaker 3: to her for ten years. Do you think I don't
• 49:44
  Speaker 3: know her? God, if I got hold of that man,
• 49:47
  Speaker 3: I'd have wrung his neck. I'd have killed him without
• 49:50
  Speaker 3: a moment's hesitation, So would.
• 49:52
  Speaker 4: You, my dear fellow. Everybody's on your side.
• 49:57
  Speaker 3: Thank God, nobody's got a good word to say, Hammond.
• 50:01
  Speaker 4: I don't suppose a single member of the jury will
• 50:03
  Speaker 4: go into the box without having already made up his
• 50:05
  Speaker 4: mind to bring in a verdict of not guilty.
• 50:08
  Speaker 3: Then the whole things are farce. She ought never to
• 50:12
  Speaker 3: have been arrested in the first place, and that it's
• 50:14
  Speaker 3: cruel after all the poor girl's gone through to subject
• 50:18
  Speaker 3: her to the ordeal of a trial is not a
• 50:21
  Speaker 3: soul I've met in Singapore man or woman who hasn't
• 50:25
  Speaker 3: told me that Leslie was absolutely justified.
• 50:29
  Speaker 4: The law is the law. She admits that she killed
• 50:33
  Speaker 4: the man. It is terrible, and I'm dreadfully sorry, both
• 50:36
  Speaker 4: for you and for her.
• 50:38
  Speaker 3: I don't matter two straws, but.
• 50:41
  Speaker 4: The fact remains that murder has been committed, and in
• 50:45
  Speaker 4: a civilized community a trial is inevitable.
• 50:48
  Speaker 3: Is it murder to exterminate noxious vermin? She shot him
• 50:52
  Speaker 3: as she would have shot a mad dog.
• 50:55
  Speaker 4: I should be wanting in my duty as your legal
• 50:57
  Speaker 4: adviser if I didn't tell you that. There is one
• 51:00
  Speaker 4: point which causes me a little anxiety. Your wife had
• 51:04
  Speaker 4: only shot happened once, the whole thing would have been
• 51:06
  Speaker 4: absolutely plain sailing. Unfortunately she fired six times.
• 51:13
  Speaker 3: Her explanation is perfectly simple. Under the circumstances, any one
• 51:17
  Speaker 3: would have done the same.
• 51:20
  Speaker 4: I dare say, and of course I think the explanation
• 51:22
  Speaker 4: is very reasonable.
• 51:24
  Speaker 3: Then what are you making a fuss about.
• 51:27
  Speaker 4: It's no good closing our eyes to the facts. It's
• 51:31
  Speaker 4: always a good plan to put yourself in another man's place,
• 51:35
  Speaker 4: and I can't deny that. If I am a prosecuting
• 51:37
  Speaker 4: for the crown. That is the point on which I
• 51:40
  Speaker 4: would center my inquiry.
• 51:43
  Speaker 3: Why it suggests not so.
• 51:46
  Speaker 4: Much panic as uncontrollable fury. Under the circumstances which your
• 51:52
  Speaker 4: wife has described, one would expect a woman to be
• 51:54
  Speaker 4: frightened out of her wits, but hardly beside herself with rage.
• 52:01
  Speaker 3: Oh isn't that rather far fetched?
• 52:04
  Speaker 4: I daresay I just thought it was a point worth mentioning.
• 52:09
  Speaker 3: I should have thought the really important thing was Hammond's character, And,
• 52:13
  Speaker 3: by heaven, as we found out enough about him.
• 52:17
  Speaker 4: We found out that he was living with a Chinese woman.
• 52:20
  Speaker 4: If that's what you mean, well, isn't that enough? I
• 52:24
  Speaker 4: daresay it is. It was certainly an awful shock to
• 52:28
  Speaker 4: his friends. She's been actually living in his bungalow for
• 52:32
  Speaker 4: the last eight months. Strange how angry that's made people.
• 52:38
  Speaker 4: It's turned public opinion against him more than anything. I
• 52:43
  Speaker 4: can tell you this.
• 52:44
  Speaker 3: If I'd known it, I'd never have dreamed of letting
• 52:47
  Speaker 3: him come to my place. I wonder how he managed
• 52:50
  Speaker 3: to keep it so dark. Will she be one of
• 52:53
  Speaker 3: the witnesses?
• 52:55
  Speaker 1: Now?
• 52:55
  Speaker 4: I shan't call her, and I shall produce evidence that
• 52:58
  Speaker 4: he was living with her in public feeling being what
• 53:01
  Speaker 4: it is. I think that the jury will accept that
• 53:03
  Speaker 4: as proof that Hammond was a man of notorious character.
• 53:07
  Speaker 1: A Sikh sergeant of police comes into the room, is tall, bearded,
• 53:13
  Speaker 1: dark and dressed in blue. Sikh to Crosby, you'll come now, Sahib,
• 53:21
  Speaker 1: at last.
• 53:23
  Speaker 4: You haven't got very long to wait. Now another twenty
• 53:26
  Speaker 4: four hours. Should be a free woman. When did you
• 53:29
  Speaker 4: take her somewhere for a trip? Even though we're almost
• 53:33
  Speaker 4: dead certain to get an acquittal. A trial of this
• 53:35
  Speaker 4: sort is anxious work, and you'll both of you want
• 53:38
  Speaker 4: a rest.
• 53:40
  Speaker 3: I think I shall want it more than Leslie. She's
• 53:43
  Speaker 3: been a brick. Why do you know when I've been
• 53:46
  Speaker 3: to see her, it wasn't I who cheered her up.
• 53:49
  Speaker 3: It was she who cheered me up. My god, there's
• 53:52
  Speaker 3: a plucky little woman for you, Howard.
• 53:56
  Speaker 4: I agree, her self control is amazing.
• 54:01
  Speaker 3: I won't keep along. I know you're busy. Thanks.
• 54:07
  Speaker 1: Crosbee goes out with the Sikh policeman.
• 54:11
  Speaker 3: Is my clerk outside sergeant.
• 54:14
  Speaker 1: He has hardly spoken the words before un Chi sing
• 54:18
  Speaker 1: sidles in.
• 54:20
  Speaker 4: Give me those papers you've got there, will you?
• 54:23
  Speaker 1: Yes, sir, He takes a bundle of papers from his
• 54:26
  Speaker 1: wallet and gives them to Joyce. Joyce sits down with
• 54:30
  Speaker 1: them at the table.
• 54:32
  Speaker 3: That's all long.
• 54:33
  Speaker 4: If I want you, I'll call May.
• 54:36
  Speaker 5: I trouble you for a few words pliveate conversation.
• 54:41
  Speaker 1: Sal un Chie Sang expresses himself with elaborate accuracy. He
• 54:47
  Speaker 1: has learnt English as a foreign language and speaks it perfectly.
• 54:51
  Speaker 1: But he has trouble with his awrs. He always turns
• 54:55
  Speaker 1: them into elves, and this gives his careful speech every
• 54:59
  Speaker 1: now and then a faintly absurd air. Joyce with a
• 55:03
  Speaker 1: slight smile.
• 55:05
  Speaker 4: It's no trouble.
• 55:06
  Speaker 5: On the matter upon which I desire to speak to
• 55:11
  Speaker 5: yourself is delicate and confidential.
• 55:16
  Speaker 4: Missus Crosby will be here in five minutes. Don't you
• 55:20
  Speaker 4: think we might find a more suitablication for a heart
• 55:22
  Speaker 4: to heart talk.
• 55:24
  Speaker 5: The matter on which I desired to speak to yourself
• 55:28
  Speaker 5: has to do with the case of al the Clasby.
• 55:32
  Speaker 4: Oh yes, sir, I have a great regard for your intelligence.
• 55:37
  Speaker 4: All now, I am sure I can trust you not
• 55:40
  Speaker 4: to tell me anything that. As Missus Crosby's counsel, it
• 55:44
  Speaker 4: is improper that I should be advised.
• 55:46
  Speaker 5: Of I think, Sir, that you may last assured of
• 55:50
  Speaker 5: my discolession. I am a graduate of the University of
• 55:55
  Speaker 5: Hong Kong, and I've won the Chancellor's plies for English composition.
• 56:01
  Speaker 3: Fire Away.
• 56:01
  Speaker 5: Then a circumstance has come to my knowledge, Sal, which
• 56:08
  Speaker 5: seems to me to put a different complexion on this case.
• 56:13
  Speaker 5: What circumstance it has come to my knowledge, Sal, that
• 56:18
  Speaker 5: there is a letter in existence from the defendant to
• 56:23
  Speaker 5: the unfortunate victim of the tagedy.
• 56:27
  Speaker 4: I should not be at all surprised. In the course
• 56:30
  Speaker 4: of the last seven years, I have no doubt that
• 56:32
  Speaker 4: Missus Crosby often had occasion to write to mister Hammond.
• 56:36
  Speaker 5: That is very palpable, Sir. Missus Clasby must have communicated
• 56:41
  Speaker 5: with the deceased frequently, to invite him to dine with her,
• 56:46
  Speaker 5: for example, or to propose a tennis game. That was
• 56:51
  Speaker 5: my first idea when the matter was brought to my notice.
• 56:56
  Speaker 5: This letter, however, is written on the day of the
• 57:01
  Speaker 5: late miss del Hammond's death.
• 57:04
  Speaker 1: There is an instant's pause. Joyce, a faint smile of
• 57:08
  Speaker 1: amusement in his eyes, continues to look intently at Auntjie's
• 57:13
  Speaker 1: son who told you this.
• 57:16
  Speaker 5: The circumstances were brought to my notice self by a
• 57:21
  Speaker 5: friend of mine.
• 57:23
  Speaker 4: I have always known that your discretion was beyond praise,
• 57:27
  Speaker 4: aren't she saying you will?
• 57:29
  Speaker 2: No doubt?
• 57:30
  Speaker 5: Lecoll Sir that missus Clodsby has stated that until the
• 57:35
  Speaker 5: fatal night she had no communication with the deceased for
• 57:39
  Speaker 5: several weeks.
• 57:42
  Speaker 4: Yes, I do.
• 57:44
  Speaker 5: This letter indicates, in my opinion that her statement was
• 57:49
  Speaker 5: not in every respect accurate.
• 57:53
  Speaker 1: Joyce stretching out his hand as though to take it.
• 57:57
  Speaker 4: Have you got the letter? No, sir, oh, I suppose
• 58:03
  Speaker 4: you know its contents.
• 58:06
  Speaker 5: My friend very kindly gave me a copy. Would you
• 58:11
  Speaker 5: like to perlluse it? Sir?
• 58:14
  Speaker 1: As should UNCHI sing takes from an inside pockety bulky Walt.
• 58:20
  Speaker 1: It is filled with papers, Singapore dollars and cigarette cards.
• 58:26
  Speaker 4: No, I see you collect cigarette cards.
• 58:30
  Speaker 5: Yes, sir, I am happy to say that I have
• 58:33
  Speaker 5: a collection which is almost unique and very comprehensive.
• 58:38
  Speaker 1: From the confusion, he extracts a half sheet of notepaper
• 58:42
  Speaker 1: and places it before Joyce. Joyce, reading slowly as though
• 58:47
  Speaker 1: he could horridly believe his eyes.
• 58:50
  Speaker 4: Robert will be away for the night. I absolutely must
• 58:55
  Speaker 4: see you. I shall expect you at eleven and am desperation.
• 59:01
  Speaker 4: If you don't come, I won't answer for the consequences.
• 59:08
  Speaker 4: Don't drive up, Leslie. Who the devil does it mean?
• 59:15
  Speaker 5: That is for you to say, sir, what makes you think.
• 59:19
  Speaker 4: That this letter was written by missus Crosbie.
• 59:22
  Speaker 5: I have everly confidence in the velocity of my informant, sir.
• 59:29
  Speaker 3: And that's more than I have.
• 59:31
  Speaker 5: The matter can very easily be put to the proof.
• 59:35
  Speaker 5: Missus Clodsby will no doubt be able to tell you
• 59:38
  Speaker 5: at once whether she wrote such a letter or not.
• 59:43
  Speaker 1: Joyce gets up and what's once would twice up and
• 59:46
  Speaker 1: down the room, and he stops and faces on.
• 59:49
  Speaker 3: She said, it is inconceivable that missus Crosbie should have
• 59:54
  Speaker 3: written such a letter.
• 59:56
  Speaker 5: If that is your opinion, sir, the matter is of
• 59:59
  Speaker 5: course ended. My friend spoke to me on the subject
• 1:00:04
  Speaker 5: only because he thought, as I was in your office,
• 1:00:08
  Speaker 5: you might like to know of the existence of this
• 1:00:10
  Speaker 5: letter before a communication was made to the public prosecutor.
• 1:00:16
  Speaker 4: Who has the original.
• 1:00:18
  Speaker 5: You will remember, sir, no doubt that after the death
• 1:00:23
  Speaker 5: of Miss dal Hammond, it was discovered that he had
• 1:00:26
  Speaker 5: had relations with a Chinese woman. The letter is at
• 1:00:31
  Speaker 5: pleasant in her possession.
• 1:00:34
  Speaker 1: They faced each other for a moment silently.
• 1:00:37
  Speaker 4: I am obliged to you on I will give the
• 1:00:40
  Speaker 4: matter my consideration.
• 1:00:43
  Speaker 5: Very good, sir. Do you wish me to make a
• 1:00:46
  Speaker 5: communication to that effect to my friend?
• 1:00:50
  Speaker 4: I dare say it would be as well if you
• 1:00:53
  Speaker 4: kept in touch with.
• 1:00:54
  Speaker 5: Him, Yes, sir.
• 1:00:57
  Speaker 1: He leaves the room joyce read through the letter once
• 1:01:01
  Speaker 1: more with knitted brows. He hears a sound and realizes
• 1:01:05
  Speaker 1: that Leslie is coming. He places the copy of the
• 1:01:09
  Speaker 1: letter among the papers on the table. Leslie comes in
• 1:01:13
  Speaker 1: with the matron. This is a stout, little aged englishwoman
• 1:01:17
  Speaker 1: in a white dress. Leslie is very simply and neatly dressed.
• 1:01:22
  Speaker 1: Her hair is done with her habitual care. She is
• 1:01:26
  Speaker 1: cool and self possessed.
• 1:01:30
  Speaker 4: Good morning, missus Crosbie.
• 1:01:33
  Speaker 1: Leslie comes forward graciously. She holds out her hand as
• 1:01:37
  Speaker 1: calmly as though she were receiving him in her drawing room.
• 1:01:42
  Speaker 2: How do you do? I wasn't expecting you so early.
• 1:01:46
  Speaker 3: How are you to day?
• 1:01:47
  Speaker 2: I'm in the best of health. Thank you. This is
• 1:01:50
  Speaker 2: a wonderful place for a rest cure, and missus Parker
• 1:01:53
  Speaker 2: looks after me like a mother.
• 1:01:55
  Speaker 3: How do you do, Missus Parker?
• 1:01:57
  Speaker 7: Very well? Thank you, sir. This I can't help sighing,
• 1:02:02
  Speaker 7: Missus Crosbie. No one can be less trouble than what
• 1:02:05
  Speaker 7: you are. I shall be sorry to lose you, and
• 1:02:09
  Speaker 7: that's a fact.
• 1:02:11
  Speaker 1: Leslie with a gracious smile.
• 1:02:13
  Speaker 2: You've been very kind to me, Missus Parker.
• 1:02:16
  Speaker 7: Will oh, I've been company for you when you're not
• 1:02:20
  Speaker 7: used to it. It's lonely like in a place like this.
• 1:02:25
  Speaker 7: It's a shame they ever put you here. If you
• 1:02:28
  Speaker 7: want to know what I think about.
• 1:02:30
  Speaker 4: It, well, Missus Parker, I dare say you won't mind
• 1:02:34
  Speaker 4: leaving us. Missus Crosbie and I have got business to
• 1:02:37
  Speaker 4: talk about.
• 1:02:38
  Speaker 1: Very good, sir, She goes out.
• 1:02:42
  Speaker 2: Sometimes she drives me nearly mad. She's so chatty, poor dear.
• 1:02:47
  Speaker 2: Isn't it strange how few people there are who can
• 1:02:49
  Speaker 2: never realize that you may be perfectly satisfied with your
• 1:02:52
  Speaker 2: own company.
• 1:02:53
  Speaker 4: You must have had plenty of that lately.
• 1:02:56
  Speaker 2: I've read a great deal, you know, and I've worked
• 1:02:58
  Speaker 2: at my lace.
• 1:03:00
  Speaker 4: And he'd hardly ask if you've slept well.
• 1:03:02
  Speaker 2: I've slept like a top. The time has really passed
• 1:03:06
  Speaker 2: very quickly.
• 1:03:07
  Speaker 4: Evidently agreed with you. You're looking very much better and
• 1:03:10
  Speaker 4: stronger than a few weeks ago.
• 1:03:12
  Speaker 2: That's more than poor Robert is. He's a wreck, poor darling.
• 1:03:17
  Speaker 2: I'm thankful for his sake that it'll all be over tomorrow.
• 1:03:21
  Speaker 2: I think he's just about at the end of his tether.
• 1:03:24
  Speaker 4: He's very much more anxious about you than you appear
• 1:03:27
  Speaker 4: to be about yourself.
• 1:03:29
  Speaker 2: Won't you sit down?
• 1:03:31
  Speaker 3: Thank you?
• 1:03:32
  Speaker 1: They seat themselves joyce at the table with his papers
• 1:03:36
  Speaker 1: in front of him.
• 1:03:37
  Speaker 2: I'm not exactly looking forward to the trial, you know.
• 1:03:41
  Speaker 4: One of the things that has impressed me is that
• 1:03:43
  Speaker 4: each time you've told your story, you've told it in
• 1:03:47
  Speaker 4: exactly the same words.
• 1:03:49
  Speaker 1: You've never varied a hair's breadth, Leslie, gently chafing him.
• 1:03:55
  Speaker 2: What does that suggest to your legal mind?
• 1:03:58
  Speaker 5: What?
• 1:03:59
  Speaker 4: It suggests either that you have an extraordinary memory, or
• 1:04:03
  Speaker 4: that you're telling the plain, unvarnished truth.
• 1:04:07
  Speaker 2: I'm afraid I have a very poor memory.
• 1:04:10
  Speaker 4: I suppose I am right in thinking that you had
• 1:04:13
  Speaker 4: no communication with Hammond for several weeks before.
• 1:04:16
  Speaker 1: The catastrophe, Leslie with a friendly little smile.
• 1:04:21
  Speaker 2: Oh, quite, I'm positive of that. The last time we
• 1:04:25
  Speaker 2: met was at a tennis party at the McFerrin's. I
• 1:04:28
  Speaker 2: don't think I said more than two words to him.
• 1:04:31
  Speaker 2: They have two courts, you know, and we didn't happen
• 1:04:34
  Speaker 2: to be in the same sets.
• 1:04:36
  Speaker 4: And you hadn't written to him. Oh no, are you
• 1:04:40
  Speaker 4: perfectly certain of that?
• 1:04:42
  Speaker 2: Oh? Perfectly. There was nothing I should write to him
• 1:04:45
  Speaker 2: for except to ask him to die or to play tennis,
• 1:04:49
  Speaker 2: and I hadn't done either for months.
• 1:04:52
  Speaker 3: At one time.
• 1:04:53
  Speaker 4: You'd been on fairly intimate terms with him. How did
• 1:04:56
  Speaker 4: it happen that you would stop asking him to anything?
• 1:04:59
  Speaker 1: Lesli with a little shrug of the shoulders.
• 1:05:02
  Speaker 2: One gets tired of people. We hadn't anything very much
• 1:05:06
  Speaker 2: in common. Of course. When he was ill, Robert and
• 1:05:10
  Speaker 2: I did everything we could for him. But the last
• 1:05:13
  Speaker 2: year or two he's been quite well, and he's very popular.
• 1:05:17
  Speaker 2: He had a good many calls on his time, and
• 1:05:20
  Speaker 2: there didn't seem to be any need to shower invitations
• 1:05:22
  Speaker 2: upon him.
• 1:05:24
  Speaker 4: Are you quite certain that was all?
• 1:05:27
  Speaker 1: Leslie hesitates for a moment and reflectively looks down.
• 1:05:32
  Speaker 2: Well, of course I knew about the Chinese woman. I'd
• 1:05:37
  Speaker 2: actually seen her.
• 1:05:39
  Speaker 4: Oh, you never mentioned that.
• 1:05:43
  Speaker 2: It wasn't a very pleasant thing to talk about, and
• 1:05:45
  Speaker 2: I knew you'd find out for yourselves soon enough. Under
• 1:05:49
  Speaker 2: the circumstances, I didn't think it would be very nice
• 1:05:52
  Speaker 2: of me to be the first to tell you about
• 1:05:54
  Speaker 2: his private life.
• 1:05:56
  Speaker 3: What was she like?
• 1:05:58
  Speaker 1: Leslie? Is a slight story, and a hard look suddenly
• 1:06:01
  Speaker 1: crosses her face.
• 1:06:04
  Speaker 2: Oh horrible, stout and painted and powdered, covered with gold
• 1:06:10
  Speaker 2: chains and bangles and pins. Not even young. She's older
• 1:06:14
  Speaker 2: than I am.
• 1:06:16
  Speaker 4: And it was after you knew about her that you
• 1:06:18
  Speaker 4: ceased having anything to do with Hammond. Yes, but you
• 1:06:22
  Speaker 4: said nothing about it to your husband.
• 1:06:25
  Speaker 2: It wasn't the sort of thing I cared to talk
• 1:06:27
  Speaker 2: to Robert about.
• 1:06:29
  Speaker 1: Joyce watches her for a moment. Any suggestion of emotion
• 1:06:33
  Speaker 1: that showed itself on her face when she spoke of
• 1:06:36
  Speaker 1: the Chinese woman has left it, and she is now
• 1:06:40
  Speaker 1: once more cool and self possessed.
• 1:06:44
  Speaker 4: I think I should tell you that there is an
• 1:06:46
  Speaker 4: existence a letter in your handwriting from you to Jeff Hammond.
• 1:06:51
  Speaker 2: In the past, I've often sent him little notes to
• 1:06:54
  Speaker 2: ask him to something or other, or to get me something.
• 1:06:57
  Speaker 2: When I knew he was going into Singapore.
• 1:07:00
  Speaker 4: This letter asks him to come and see you, because
• 1:07:03
  Speaker 4: Robert was going to Singapore.
• 1:07:05
  Speaker 2: Leslie, smiling, that's impossible. I never did anything of the kind.
• 1:07:12
  Speaker 3: You'd better read it for yourself.
• 1:07:14
  Speaker 1: He takes it from among the papers in front of
• 1:07:17
  Speaker 1: him and hands it to her. She gives it a
• 1:07:20
  Speaker 1: moment's glance and hands it back.
• 1:07:23
  Speaker 2: That's not my handwriting.
• 1:07:26
  Speaker 4: I know it's said to be an exact copy of
• 1:07:29
  Speaker 4: the original.
• 1:07:31
  Speaker 1: She takes the letter again and now reads the words,
• 1:07:35
  Speaker 1: And as she reads, a horrible change comes over her.
• 1:07:39
  Speaker 1: Her colorless face grows dreadful to look at. The flesh
• 1:07:43
  Speaker 1: seems on a sudden to fall away, and her skin
• 1:07:47
  Speaker 1: is tightly stretched over the bones. She stares at Joyce
• 1:07:51
  Speaker 1: with eyes that start from their sockets.
• 1:07:54
  Speaker 2: What does it mean that is for you to say
• 1:07:58
  Speaker 2: I didn't write it? I swear I didn't write it.
• 1:08:02
  Speaker 4: Be very careful what you say. If the original is
• 1:08:05
  Speaker 4: in your handwriting, it would be useless to deny it.
• 1:08:09
  Speaker 2: It would be forgery.
• 1:08:11
  Speaker 4: It would be difficult to prove that.
• 1:08:13
  Speaker 3: It would be easy to prove that it was genuine.
• 1:08:16
  Speaker 1: A shiver passes through her body. She takes out a
• 1:08:20
  Speaker 1: handkerchief and wipes the palms of her hands She looks
• 1:08:24
  Speaker 1: at the letter again.
• 1:08:26
  Speaker 2: It's not dated. If I had written it and forgotten
• 1:08:29
  Speaker 2: all about it, it might have been written years ago.
• 1:08:33
  Speaker 2: If you'll give me time, I'll try to remember the circumstances.
• 1:08:37
  Speaker 4: I noticed there was no date. If this letter were
• 1:08:40
  Speaker 4: in the hands of the prosecution, they would cross examine
• 1:08:42
  Speaker 4: your houseboys. They would soon find out whether someone took
• 1:08:46
  Speaker 4: a letter to Hammond on the day of his death.
• 1:08:49
  Speaker 1: She clasps her hands violently and sways on her chair,
• 1:08:53
  Speaker 1: so that you might think she would think.
• 1:08:56
  Speaker 2: I swear to you that I did not write that letter.
• 1:08:59
  Speaker 4: In that case, we need not go into the matter further.
• 1:09:03
  Speaker 4: If the person who possesses this letter seems fit to
• 1:09:06
  Speaker 4: place it in the hands of the prosecution, you will
• 1:09:08
  Speaker 4: be prepared.
• 1:09:10
  Speaker 1: There is a long pause. Joyce waits for Leslie to speak,
• 1:09:14
  Speaker 1: but she stares straight in front of her.
• 1:09:17
  Speaker 4: If you have nothing more to say to me, I
• 1:09:20
  Speaker 4: think I'll be getting back to my office, Leslie still
• 1:09:24
  Speaker 4: not looking at him.
• 1:09:26
  Speaker 2: What would any one who read the letter be inclined
• 1:09:28
  Speaker 2: to think that it meant.
• 1:09:30
  Speaker 4: He'd know that you had told a deliberate lie, when
• 1:09:35
  Speaker 4: when you stated definitely that you had had no communication
• 1:09:39
  Speaker 4: with Hammond for at least six weeks.
• 1:09:42
  Speaker 2: The whole thing has been a terrible shock to me.
• 1:09:45
  Speaker 2: The events of that horrible night have been a nightmare.
• 1:09:48
  Speaker 2: It's not very strange if one detail has escaped my memory.
• 1:09:52
  Speaker 4: Your memory has reproduced very exactly every particular of your
• 1:09:57
  Speaker 4: interview with Hammond. Tis very strange that you should have
• 1:10:00
  Speaker 4: forgotten so important a point as that he came to
• 1:10:03
  Speaker 4: the bungalow on the night of his death at your
• 1:10:06
  Speaker 4: express desire.
• 1:10:08
  Speaker 2: I hadn't forgotten, then, Why didn't you mention it? I
• 1:10:13
  Speaker 2: was afraid to. I thought you'd none of you believe
• 1:10:16
  Speaker 2: my story. If I admitted that he'd come at my invitation,
• 1:10:20
  Speaker 2: I dare say it was very stupid of me. I
• 1:10:22
  Speaker 2: lost my head, and after I'd once said that I'd
• 1:10:25
  Speaker 2: had no communication with Hammond, I was obliged to stick
• 1:10:29
  Speaker 2: to it.
• 1:10:31
  Speaker 3: You will be required to explain, then, why you asked
• 1:10:33
  Speaker 3: Hammond to come to you and Robert was away for
• 1:10:36
  Speaker 3: the night.
• 1:10:37
  Speaker 2: It was a surprise. I was preparing for Robert's birthday.
• 1:10:41
  Speaker 2: I knew he wanted a new gun, and you know
• 1:10:44
  Speaker 2: I'm dreadfully stupid about sporting things. I wanted to talk
• 1:10:48
  Speaker 2: to Jeff about it. I thought i'd get him to
• 1:10:51
  Speaker 2: order it for me.
• 1:10:53
  Speaker 4: Perhaps the terms the letter are not very clear to
• 1:10:55
  Speaker 4: your recollection. Will you have another look at it?
• 1:10:59
  Speaker 1: There's quickly drawing back.
• 1:11:02
  Speaker 2: No, I don't want to.
• 1:11:04
  Speaker 4: Then I must read it to you. Robert will be
• 1:11:08
  Speaker 4: away for the night. I absolutely must see you. I
• 1:11:11
  Speaker 4: shall expect you at eleven. I am desperate, and if
• 1:11:15
  Speaker 4: you don't come, I won't answer for the consequences. Don't
• 1:11:19
  Speaker 4: drive up, Leslie. Does it seem to you the sort
• 1:11:23
  Speaker 4: of a letter a woman would write to a rather
• 1:11:25
  Speaker 4: distant acquaintance because she wanted to consult him about buying
• 1:11:29
  Speaker 4: a gun?
• 1:11:30
  Speaker 2: I dare say it's rather extravagant and emotional. I do
• 1:11:33
  Speaker 2: express myself like that. You know, I'm quite prepared to
• 1:11:36
  Speaker 2: admit it rather silly.
• 1:11:39
  Speaker 4: I must have been very much mistaken. I always thought
• 1:11:42
  Speaker 4: you a very reserved and self possessed woman.
• 1:11:46
  Speaker 2: And after all, Jeff Hammond wasn't quite a distant acquaintance.
• 1:11:50
  Speaker 2: When he was ill, I nursed him like a mother.
• 1:11:54
  Speaker 3: By the way, did you call him Jeff?
• 1:11:57
  Speaker 2: Everybody did. He wasn't the kind of man anyone would
• 1:12:01
  Speaker 2: think of calling mister Hammond.
• 1:12:03
  Speaker 4: Why did you ask him to come at so late,
• 1:12:06
  Speaker 4: enow Leslie recovering her self.
• 1:12:09
  Speaker 2: Possession is eleven very late. He was always dining somewhere
• 1:12:14
  Speaker 2: or other. I thought he'd look in on his way home.
• 1:12:18
  Speaker 4: And why did you ask him not to drive up?
• 1:12:21
  Speaker 1: Leslie with a shrug of the shoulder.
• 1:12:24
  Speaker 2: You know how Chinese boy's gossip. If they'd heard him come,
• 1:12:29
  Speaker 2: the last thing they'd ever have thought was that he
• 1:12:32
  Speaker 2: was there for a perfectly innocent purpose.
• 1:12:35
  Speaker 1: Joyce gets up and walks once or twice up and
• 1:12:38
  Speaker 1: down the room. Then, leaning over the back of his chair,
• 1:12:42
  Speaker 1: he speaks in a tone of deep gravity.
• 1:12:46
  Speaker 4: Missus Crosbie, I want to talk to you, very, very seriously.
• 1:12:52
  Speaker 4: This case was comparatively plain sailing. It's only one point
• 1:12:57
  Speaker 4: that seemed to me to require explanation. As far as
• 1:13:01
  Speaker 4: I could judge, you had fired no less than four
• 1:13:04
  Speaker 4: shots into Hammond when he was lying on the ground.
• 1:13:07
  Speaker 4: It was hard to accept the possibility that a delicate,
• 1:13:10
  Speaker 4: frightened woman of gentle nurture and refined instincts should have
• 1:13:14
  Speaker 4: surrendered to an absolutely uncontrollable frenzy, but of course it
• 1:13:19
  Speaker 4: was admissible. Although Jeffrey Hammond was much liked and not
• 1:13:23
  Speaker 4: the whole thought highly of. I was prepared to prove
• 1:13:26
  Speaker 4: that he was the sort of man who might be
• 1:13:28
  Speaker 4: guilty of the crime, which, in justification, if you were
• 1:13:30
  Speaker 4: act you accused him of the fact, which was discovered
• 1:13:34
  Speaker 4: after his death, that he had been living with a
• 1:13:37
  Speaker 4: Chinese woman gave us something very definite to go upon
• 1:13:41
  Speaker 4: that robbed him of any sympathy that might have been
• 1:13:43
  Speaker 4: felt for him. We made up our minds to make
• 1:13:46
  Speaker 4: every use of the odium that such a connection cast
• 1:13:49
  Speaker 4: upon him in the minds of all respectable people. I
• 1:13:53
  Speaker 4: told your husband just now that I was certain of
• 1:13:56
  Speaker 4: an acquittal, and I wasn't just telling him that to
• 1:13:59
  Speaker 4: cheer him up. I do not believe the jury would
• 1:14:02
  Speaker 4: have left the box.
• 1:14:05
  Speaker 1: They look into each other's eyes. Lesley is strangely still.
• 1:14:10
  Speaker 1: She is like a bird paralyzed by the fascination of
• 1:14:13
  Speaker 1: a snake.
• 1:14:15
  Speaker 4: But this letter has thrown an entirely different complexion on
• 1:14:19
  Speaker 4: the case. I am your legal adviser. I shall represent
• 1:14:24
  Speaker 4: you in court. I take your story as you tell
• 1:14:27
  Speaker 4: it to me, and I shall conduct your defense according
• 1:14:29
  Speaker 4: to its terms. It may be that I believe your statements,
• 1:14:33
  Speaker 4: or it may be that I doubt them. The duty
• 1:14:37
  Speaker 4: of counsel is to persuade the jury that the evidence
• 1:14:39
  Speaker 4: placed before them is not such as to justify them
• 1:14:42
  Speaker 4: in bringing in a verdict of guilty. Any private opinion
• 1:14:45
  Speaker 4: he may have of the innocence or guilt of his
• 1:14:47
  Speaker 4: client as entirely beside the point.
• 1:14:51
  Speaker 2: I don't know what you are driving at.
• 1:14:54
  Speaker 4: You are not going to deny that Hammond came to
• 1:14:56
  Speaker 4: your house at your urgent, and may I even say
• 1:14:59
  Speaker 4: his ditrical invitation?
• 1:15:02
  Speaker 1: Leslie does not answer. For a moment, she seems to
• 1:15:06
  Speaker 1: consider they.
• 1:15:08
  Speaker 2: Can prove that the letter was taken to his bungalow
• 1:15:10
  Speaker 2: by one of the houseboys. He rode over on his bicycle.
• 1:15:14
  Speaker 4: You mustn't expect other people to be stupider than you.
• 1:15:20
  Speaker 4: The letter will put them on the track of suspicions
• 1:15:22
  Speaker 4: that have entered nobody's head. I will not tell you
• 1:15:25
  Speaker 4: what I personally thought when I read it. I do
• 1:15:28
  Speaker 4: not wish you to tell me anything but what is
• 1:15:30
  Speaker 4: needed to save your neck.
• 1:15:33
  Speaker 1: Leslie crumples up. Suddenly, she falls to the floor in
• 1:15:37
  Speaker 1: a dead faint. Before Joyce can catch her. He looks
• 1:15:40
  Speaker 1: round the room for water, but confine none. He glances
• 1:15:44
  Speaker 1: at the door, but will not call for help. He
• 1:15:48
  Speaker 1: does not wish to be disturbed. He kneels down beside her,
• 1:15:52
  Speaker 1: waiting for her to recover, and at last she opens
• 1:15:56
  Speaker 1: her eyes.
• 1:15:58
  Speaker 3: Keep quite still, you'll be better in a minute.
• 1:16:01
  Speaker 2: Don't let anyone come. And no, no, mister Joyce, you
• 1:16:07
  Speaker 2: won't let them hang me.
• 1:16:10
  Speaker 1: She begins to cry hysterically. He tries in undertones to
• 1:16:14
  Speaker 1: calm her, s.
• 1:16:17
  Speaker 4: Sh, don't make a noise, it's all right, don't, don't, don't,
• 1:16:25
  Speaker 4: for goodness sake, pull yourself together.
• 1:16:28
  Speaker 2: Give me a minute.
• 1:16:30
  Speaker 1: You see the effort she makes to regain her self control,
• 1:16:34
  Speaker 1: and soon she is once more calm.
• 1:16:37
  Speaker 4: You've got pluck. I think no one could deny that.
• 1:16:42
  Speaker 2: Let me get up now. It was silly of me
• 1:16:44
  Speaker 2: to faint.
• 1:16:46
  Speaker 1: He gives her his hand and helps her to her feet.
• 1:16:49
  Speaker 1: He leads her to a chair, and she sinks down wearily.
• 1:16:53
  Speaker 1: Do you feel a little better, leslie with her eyes closed.
• 1:16:58
  Speaker 2: Don't talk to me for a moment, moment or two.
• 1:17:01
  Speaker 1: Very well, leslie at last, with a little sigh.
• 1:17:06
  Speaker 2: I'm afraid I've made rather a mess of things. I'm
• 1:17:10
  Speaker 2: sorry for Robert, not for me. You distrusted me from
• 1:17:15
  Speaker 2: the beginning.
• 1:17:17
  Speaker 3: That's neither here nor there.
• 1:17:20
  Speaker 1: She gives him a glance and then looks down.
• 1:17:23
  Speaker 2: Isn't it possible to get hold of the letter?
• 1:17:26
  Speaker 1: With a frown to conceal his embarrassment.
• 1:17:30
  Speaker 4: I don't think anything would have been said to me
• 1:17:33
  Speaker 4: about it if the person in whose possession it is
• 1:17:35
  Speaker 4: was not prepared.
• 1:17:36
  Speaker 3: To sell it.
• 1:17:37
  Speaker 2: Who's got it?
• 1:17:39
  Speaker 4: The Chinese woman who was living in Hammond's house.
• 1:17:42
  Speaker 1: Leslie instinctively clenches her hands, but again controls herself.
• 1:17:48
  Speaker 2: Does she want an awful lot for it?
• 1:17:51
  Speaker 4: I imagine she has a pretty shrewd idea of its value.
• 1:17:55
  Speaker 4: I doubt if it would be possible to get hold
• 1:17:57
  Speaker 4: of it except for a very large sum.
• 1:18:00
  Speaker 2: Are you going to let me be hanged?
• 1:18:03
  Speaker 4: Do you think it so simple as all that to
• 1:18:05
  Speaker 4: secure possession of an unwelcome piece of evidence?
• 1:18:09
  Speaker 2: You say the woman is prepared to sell it, But.
• 1:18:13
  Speaker 4: I don't know that I am prepared to buy it?
• 1:18:17
  Speaker 2: Why not?
• 1:18:19
  Speaker 4: I don't think you know what you are asking me.
• 1:18:22
  Speaker 4: Heaven knows. I don't wish to make phrases, but I've
• 1:18:25
  Speaker 4: always thought I was by way of being an honest man.
• 1:18:29
  Speaker 4: You're asking me to do something that is no difference
• 1:18:31
  Speaker 4: from suborning a witness.
• 1:18:34
  Speaker 2: Do you mean to say you can save me and
• 1:18:36
  Speaker 2: you won't? What harm have I ever done you? You
• 1:18:40
  Speaker 2: can't be so cruel.
• 1:18:42
  Speaker 4: I'm sorry it sounds cruel. I want to do my
• 1:18:46
  Speaker 4: best for you, missus Crosbie. A lawyer has a duty
• 1:18:49
  Speaker 4: not only to his client but also to his profession.
• 1:18:54
  Speaker 2: Then what is going to happen to me?
• 1:18:56
  Speaker 4: Justice must take its course.
• 1:19:00
  Speaker 1: Leslie grows very pale. A little shudder passes through her
• 1:19:04
  Speaker 1: body when she answers. Her voice is low and quiet.
• 1:19:08
  Speaker 2: I put myself in your hands. Of course, I have
• 1:19:12
  Speaker 2: no right to ask you to do anything that isn't proper.
• 1:19:16
  Speaker 2: I was asking more for Robert's sake than for mine.
• 1:19:20
  Speaker 2: But if you knew everything, I believe you'd think I
• 1:19:22
  Speaker 2: was deserving of your pity.
• 1:19:25
  Speaker 4: For our Bob, it'll nearly kill him.
• 1:19:28
  Speaker 3: He's utterly unprepared.
• 1:19:31
  Speaker 2: If I'm hanged, it certainly won't bring Jeff Hammond back
• 1:19:34
  Speaker 2: to life again.
• 1:19:35
  Speaker 1: There is a moment's silence while Joyce reflects upon the situation.
• 1:19:40
  Speaker 4: Sometimes I think that when we say our honor prevents
• 1:19:43
  Speaker 4: us from doing this, all that we deceive ourselves, and
• 1:19:48
  Speaker 4: our real motive is vanity. And I ask myself, what
• 1:19:52
  Speaker 4: really is the explanation of that letter? I daren't ask you.
• 1:19:57
  Speaker 4: It's not fair to you to conclude from it that
• 1:19:59
  Speaker 4: you kill Old Hammond without provocation.
• 1:20:03
  Speaker 3: It's absurd.
• 1:20:04
  Speaker 4: How fond I am of Bob. You see, I've known
• 1:20:07
  Speaker 4: him so long. His life may very well be ruined too.
• 1:20:13
  Speaker 2: I know I have no right to ask you to
• 1:20:15
  Speaker 2: do anything for me, but Robert is so kind and
• 1:20:19
  Speaker 2: simple and good. I think he's never done anyone any
• 1:20:23
  Speaker 2: harm in his life. Can't you save him from this
• 1:20:26
  Speaker 2: bitter pain and this disgrace?
• 1:20:29
  Speaker 4: You mean everything of the world to him, don't you.
• 1:20:33
  Speaker 2: I suppose so. I'm very grateful for the love he's
• 1:20:37
  Speaker 2: given me.
• 1:20:38
  Speaker 1: Joyce making his resolution.
• 1:20:41
  Speaker 3: I'm going to do what I can for you.
• 1:20:44
  Speaker 1: She gives a little gasp of relief.
• 1:20:47
  Speaker 4: But don't think I don't know I'm doing wrong. I
• 1:20:51
  Speaker 4: am doing it with my eyes open.
• 1:20:55
  Speaker 2: It can't be wrong to save a suffering woman. You're
• 1:20:59
  Speaker 2: doing no harm to anybody else.
• 1:21:01
  Speaker 4: You don't understand, it's only natural. Let's not discuss that.
• 1:21:08
  Speaker 4: Do you know anything about Bob's circumstances?
• 1:21:11
  Speaker 2: He has a good many ten shares and a part
• 1:21:14
  Speaker 2: interest in two or three rubber estates. I suppose he
• 1:21:17
  Speaker 2: could raise money.
• 1:21:19
  Speaker 3: He would have to be told what it was for.
• 1:21:22
  Speaker 2: Will it be necessary to show him the letter?
• 1:21:24
  Speaker 4: Don't you want him to see it?
• 1:21:27
  Speaker 2: No?
• 1:21:27
  Speaker 4: I should do everything possible to prevent him from seeing
• 1:21:30
  Speaker 4: it till after the trial. He will be an important witness.
• 1:21:35
  Speaker 4: I think it's very necessary.
• 1:21:37
  Speaker 3: That he should be as firmly convinced of your innocence.
• 1:21:40
  Speaker 2: As he is now and afterwards.
• 1:21:43
  Speaker 4: I still do my best for you.
• 1:21:46
  Speaker 2: Not for my sake, for his. If he loses his
• 1:21:50
  Speaker 2: trust in me, he loses everything.
• 1:21:53
  Speaker 4: It's strange that a man can live with a woman
• 1:21:55
  Speaker 4: for ten years and not know the first thing about her.
• 1:22:00
  Speaker 2: Frightening, he knows that he loves me. Nothing else matters.
• 1:22:05
  Speaker 1: Joyce goes to the door and opens it.
• 1:22:08
  Speaker 3: Missus Parker, I'm just going.
• 1:22:12
  Speaker 1: Missus Parker comes in again.
• 1:22:15
  Speaker 7: Racious. How ought you look, missus Crosbie. Mister Joyce hasn't
• 1:22:20
  Speaker 7: been upsetting you?
• 1:22:21
  Speaker 3: Has he?
• 1:22:22
  Speaker 7: You look like a ghost?
• 1:22:24
  Speaker 1: Leslie graciously, smiling with an instinctive resumption of her social manner.
• 1:22:30
  Speaker 2: No, he's been kindness itself. I dare say. The strain
• 1:22:35
  Speaker 2: is beginning to tell on me a little.
• 1:22:37
  Speaker 1: She holds out her hand to Joyce.
• 1:22:40
  Speaker 2: Goodbye. It's good of you to take all this trouble
• 1:22:43
  Speaker 2: for me. I can't begin to tell you how grateful
• 1:22:46
  Speaker 2: I am.
• 1:22:48
  Speaker 4: I shan't see you again till just before the trial tomorrow.
• 1:22:51
  Speaker 2: I've got a lot to do before then. I've been
• 1:22:54
  Speaker 2: making Missus Parker a lace collar, and I want to
• 1:22:57
  Speaker 2: get it done before I leave here.
• 1:23:00
  Speaker 7: It's so grand I shall never be able to bring
• 1:23:03
  Speaker 7: myself to wear it. She makes beautiful lace. You'd be surprised.
• 1:23:10
  Speaker 4: I know she does.
• 1:23:11
  Speaker 2: I'm afraid it's my only accomplishment.
• 1:23:15
  Speaker 3: Good morning, Missus Parker.
• 1:23:17
  Speaker 7: Good morning, sir.
• 1:23:19
  Speaker 1: She goes out, accompanied by Leslie. Joyce gathers his papers together.
• 1:23:24
  Speaker 1: There is a knock at the door.
• 1:23:26
  Speaker 3: Come in.
• 1:23:27
  Speaker 1: The door is opened, and on, she saying, enters.
• 1:23:31
  Speaker 5: I desire to mind you, sir, that you have an
• 1:23:34
  Speaker 5: appointment with mister Leed of Lead and Pollock at twelve thirty.
• 1:23:40
  Speaker 1: Joyce, with a glance at his watch.
• 1:23:44
  Speaker 5: He'll have to wait valley, Good sir.
• 1:23:48
  Speaker 1: He goes to the door and is about to go out. Then,
• 1:23:52
  Speaker 1: as though on an afterthought, he stops.
• 1:23:55
  Speaker 5: Is there anything further you wish me to say to
• 1:23:59
  Speaker 5: my friend, sir? What friend about the letter which missus
• 1:24:04
  Speaker 5: Closby wrote to Hammond deceased?
• 1:24:07
  Speaker 1: Sir Joyce very casually, Oh.
• 1:24:11
  Speaker 3: I'd forgotten about that.
• 1:24:13
  Speaker 4: I mentioned it to missus Crosby, and she denies having
• 1:24:15
  Speaker 4: written anything of the sort. It's evidently a forgery.
• 1:24:19
  Speaker 1: He takes out the copy from the papers in front
• 1:24:22
  Speaker 1: of him and hands it to Anji's saying, the Chinaman
• 1:24:26
  Speaker 1: ignores the gesture.
• 1:24:28
  Speaker 5: In that case, Sir, I suppose there would be no
• 1:24:33
  Speaker 5: objection if my friend delivered the letter to the public prosecutor.
• 1:24:39
  Speaker 3: None.
• 1:24:41
  Speaker 4: Don't quite see what good that would do your friend.
• 1:24:45
  Speaker 5: My friend thought it was his duty, sir, in the
• 1:24:49
  Speaker 5: interests of justice, and.
• 1:24:52
  Speaker 4: The last man in the world to interfere with anyone
• 1:24:55
  Speaker 4: who wishes to do his duty on.
• 1:24:58
  Speaker 5: I quite understand, sir. But from my study of the case, R.
• 1:25:05
  Speaker 5: The Crosby, I am of the opinion that the production
• 1:25:09
  Speaker 5: of such a letter would be damaging to our client.
• 1:25:15
  Speaker 4: I've always had a high opinion of your legal acumen,
• 1:25:18
  Speaker 4: aren't you saying?
• 1:25:20
  Speaker 5: It has occurred to me, sir that if I could
• 1:25:25
  Speaker 5: persuade my friend to induce the Chinese woman who has
• 1:25:29
  Speaker 5: the letter to deliver it into our hands. It would
• 1:25:34
  Speaker 5: save a great deal of trouble.
• 1:25:38
  Speaker 4: I suppose your friend is a business man. Under what
• 1:25:42
  Speaker 4: circumstances do you think he would be induced to part
• 1:25:45
  Speaker 4: with the letter?
• 1:25:47
  Speaker 5: He has not got the letter.
• 1:25:51
  Speaker 4: No, has he got a friend too.
• 1:25:54
  Speaker 5: The Chinese woman has got the letter. He is only
• 1:25:59
  Speaker 5: a little of the Chinese woman. She is an ignorant woman.
• 1:26:04
  Speaker 5: She did not know the value of the letter till
• 1:26:07
  Speaker 5: my friend.
• 1:26:08
  Speaker 4: Told her what value did he put on it?
• 1:26:12
  Speaker 5: Ten thousand dollars?
• 1:26:15
  Speaker 4: Sir, good God will as you suppose missus Crosbie can
• 1:26:20
  Speaker 4: get ten thousand dollars. I tell you the letters a forgery.
• 1:26:26
  Speaker 5: Mister L. Crosby owns an eighth shell of the Bekong
• 1:26:30
  Speaker 5: Lubber estate and the sixth shell of the Calanton Liver
• 1:26:35
  Speaker 5: Lubber Estate. I have a friend who will lend him
• 1:26:40
  Speaker 5: the money on the secure lty of his properties.
• 1:26:45
  Speaker 4: You have a large circle of acquaintances on yes, sal Well,
• 1:26:52
  Speaker 4: you know him all to go to hell. I would
• 1:26:55
  Speaker 4: never advise mister Crosby to give a penny more than
• 1:26:57
  Speaker 4: five thousand for a letter that can be very easily explained.
• 1:27:01
  Speaker 5: The Chinese woman does not want to sell the letter, Sir,
• 1:27:06
  Speaker 5: my friend took a long time to persuade her. It
• 1:27:10
  Speaker 5: is useless to offer her less than the sum mentioned.
• 1:27:15
  Speaker 4: Ten thousand dollars is an awful lot.
• 1:27:18
  Speaker 5: Mister Crosby will certainly pay it rather than see his
• 1:27:23
  Speaker 5: wife hanged by the neck.
• 1:27:25
  Speaker 3: Cel Why did your friend fix upon that particular amount.
• 1:27:30
  Speaker 5: I will not attempt to conceal anything from yourself. Upon
• 1:27:35
  Speaker 5: making inquiry, Seal, my friend came to the conclusion that
• 1:27:40
  Speaker 5: ten thousand dollars was the largest sum mister Crosby could
• 1:27:45
  Speaker 5: possibly get.
• 1:27:47
  Speaker 4: Yeah, that is precisely what occurred to me.
• 1:27:51
  Speaker 3: Well, I will speak to mister Crosbie.
• 1:27:53
  Speaker 5: Mister Crosby is still here, sir, No, what's he doing?
• 1:27:59
  Speaker 5: We have only a very short time sal and the matter,
• 1:28:03
  Speaker 5: in my opinion bloks of no delay.
• 1:28:07
  Speaker 4: The case be brief on.
• 1:28:10
  Speaker 5: It occurred to me that you would wish to speak
• 1:28:13
  Speaker 5: to mister Clothesby, and therefore I took the liberty of
• 1:28:17
  Speaker 5: asking him to wait. If it would be convenient for
• 1:28:21
  Speaker 5: you to speak to him now, Sir, I could impart
• 1:28:23
  Speaker 5: your decision to my friend. When I have my Tiffin.
• 1:28:28
  Speaker 4: Where is the Chinese woman now?
• 1:28:31
  Speaker 5: She is staying in the house of my friend Sal.
• 1:28:35
  Speaker 4: Would she come to my office?
• 1:28:37
  Speaker 5: I think it mul bettle for you to go to her.
• 1:28:41
  Speaker 5: Sel I can take you to the house to night
• 1:28:45
  Speaker 5: and she will give you the latter. She is a
• 1:28:48
  Speaker 5: very ignorant woman, and she does not understand checks.
• 1:28:53
  Speaker 4: I wasn't thinking of giving her a check. I should
• 1:28:56
  Speaker 4: bring banknotes with me.
• 1:28:58
  Speaker 5: It would only be a waste of time to bring
• 1:29:01
  Speaker 5: less than ten thousand.
• 1:29:02
  Speaker 4: Dollars, Sir, I quite understand.
• 1:29:06
  Speaker 5: Shall I tell mister Closby that you wish to see him?
• 1:29:09
  Speaker 8: Sir?
• 1:29:10
  Speaker 3: Won't you saying yes?
• 1:29:12
  Speaker 5: Sal?
• 1:29:13
  Speaker 4: Is there anything else you know?
• 1:29:16
  Speaker 5: No, Sir, I am of the opinion that a confidential
• 1:29:21
  Speaker 5: clerk should have no secrets from his employer. May I
• 1:29:26
  Speaker 5: ask why you make this inquiry?
• 1:29:28
  Speaker 4: Sl call mister Crosbie.
• 1:29:32
  Speaker 5: Welly, good cl.
• 1:29:34
  Speaker 1: He goes out and in a moment opens the door
• 1:29:37
  Speaker 1: once more for Crosbie.
• 1:29:39
  Speaker 4: It's good of you to have waited, old man.
• 1:29:42
  Speaker 3: Your clerk said you particularly wished me.
• 1:29:44
  Speaker 1: To joyce as casually as he can.
• 1:29:48
  Speaker 4: The rather unpleasant thing has happened, Bob. It appears that
• 1:29:51
  Speaker 4: your wife sent a letter to Hammond asking him to
• 1:29:54
  Speaker 4: come to the bungalow in the night he was killed.
• 1:29:56
  Speaker 3: But that's impossible. She's always stated she had had no
• 1:30:01
  Speaker 3: communication with Hammond. I know from my own knowledge that
• 1:30:05
  Speaker 3: she hadn't set eyes upon him for a couple of months.
• 1:30:09
  Speaker 3: The fact remains that the letter exists. It's in the
• 1:30:13
  Speaker 3: possession of the Chinese woman Hammond was living with. What
• 1:30:17
  Speaker 3: did she write to him for?
• 1:30:19
  Speaker 4: Your wife meant to give you a present on your
• 1:30:22
  Speaker 4: birthday and she wanted Hammond to help her to get it.
• 1:30:26
  Speaker 4: Your birthday was just about then, wasn't it.
• 1:30:29
  Speaker 3: Yes? In point of fact, it was a fortnight ago
• 1:30:32
  Speaker 3: to day.
• 1:30:33
  Speaker 4: In the emotional excitement that she suffered from after the tragedy,
• 1:30:36
  Speaker 4: she forgot that she'd written a letter to him, and
• 1:30:39
  Speaker 4: having once denied having any communication with Hammond, she was
• 1:30:42
  Speaker 4: afraid to say she'd made a mistake. Why, my dear fellow,
• 1:30:49
  Speaker 4: It was of course very unfortunate, But I dare say
• 1:30:52
  Speaker 4: it was not unnatural.
• 1:30:54
  Speaker 3: That's unlike Leslie. I'd never known her afraid of anything.
• 1:30:58
  Speaker 4: The circumstances exceptional.
• 1:31:01
  Speaker 3: Does it very much matter? If she's asked about it,
• 1:31:04
  Speaker 3: she can explain.
• 1:31:06
  Speaker 4: It would be very awkward. If this letter found its
• 1:31:10
  Speaker 4: way into the hands of the prosecution, your wife has lied,
• 1:31:14
  Speaker 4: she would be asked some difficult questions.
• 1:31:17
  Speaker 3: Leslie would never tell a lie intentionally.
• 1:31:20
  Speaker 1: Joyce with a shadow of impatience, My.
• 1:31:24
  Speaker 4: Dear Bob, you must try to understand. Don't you see
• 1:31:28
  Speaker 4: that it alters things a good deal of Hammond did
• 1:31:30
  Speaker 4: not intrude an unwonted guest, but came to your house
• 1:31:34
  Speaker 4: by invitation. It would be easy to arouse in the
• 1:31:38
  Speaker 4: jury a certain indecision of mind.
• 1:31:41
  Speaker 3: I may be very stupid, but I don't understand you lawyers.
• 1:31:45
  Speaker 3: You seem to take a delight in making mountains out
• 1:31:48
  Speaker 3: of mole heaps. After all, Howard, you're not only my lawyer,
• 1:31:53
  Speaker 3: you're the oldest friend I have in the world. I know.
• 1:31:57
  Speaker 4: That is why I am taking a step the gravity
• 1:31:59
  Speaker 4: of which I can never expect you to realize. I
• 1:32:03
  Speaker 4: think we must get hold of that letter and want
• 1:32:05
  Speaker 4: you to authorize me to buy it.
• 1:32:08
  Speaker 3: I'll do whatever you think is right.
• 1:32:10
  Speaker 4: I don't think it's right, but I think it's expedient.
• 1:32:15
  Speaker 4: Juries are very stupid. A thing is just as well
• 1:32:18
  Speaker 4: not to worry them with more evidence than they can
• 1:32:20
  Speaker 4: conveniently deal with.
• 1:32:22
  Speaker 3: Well. I don't pretend to understand, but I'm perfectly prepared
• 1:32:26
  Speaker 3: to leave myself in your hands. Go ahead and do
• 1:32:30
  Speaker 3: as you think fit.
• 1:32:31
  Speaker 4: I'll pay, all right, and now put the matter out
• 1:32:36
  Speaker 4: of your mind.
• 1:32:38
  Speaker 3: That's easy. I could never bring myself to believe that
• 1:32:41
  Speaker 3: Leslie had ever done anything that wasn't absolutely square and
• 1:32:45
  Speaker 3: above board.
• 1:32:47
  Speaker 4: Let's go to the club. I badly want a whiskey
• 1:32:51
  Speaker 4: and soda.
• 1:32:55
  Speaker 1: End of Act too, Act three of The Letter A
• 1:33:05
  Speaker 1: Play in three Acts, as premiered in London. This is
• 1:33:11
  Speaker 1: a LibriVox recording. All LibriVox recordings are in the public domain.
• 1:33:16
  Speaker 1: For more information or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org.
• 1:33:22
  Speaker 1: The Letter A Play in three Acts by W. Somerset AM.
• 1:33:28
  Speaker 1: Since a play is published not only to gratify an
• 1:33:31
  Speaker 1: author's vanity, but also for the convenience of amateurs, I
• 1:33:36
  Speaker 1: have thought it well to print here the version acted
• 1:33:39
  Speaker 1: at the playhouse. After two or three rehearsals. I replaced
• 1:33:44
  Speaker 1: Leslie Crosby's final confession with a throwback, because I thought
• 1:33:49
  Speaker 1: it would bore an audience to listen to two long
• 1:33:52
  Speaker 1: narratives in one play. I have a notion that an
• 1:33:56
  Speaker 1: author may prudently take a risk to avoid tediously. Act three,
• 1:34:03
  Speaker 1: Scene one. The scene is a small room in the
• 1:34:08
  Speaker 1: Chinese quarter of Singapore. The walls are whitewashed, but dirty
• 1:34:13
  Speaker 1: and bedraggled. On one of them hangs a cheap Chinese oleograph,
• 1:34:18
  Speaker 1: stained and discolored. On another, unframed and pinned up a
• 1:34:23
  Speaker 1: picture of a nude from one of the illustrated papers.
• 1:34:27
  Speaker 1: The only furniture consists of a sandal wood box and
• 1:34:30
  Speaker 1: a low Chinese pellate bed with a lacquered neck rest.
• 1:34:35
  Speaker 1: There is a closed window which is at the back,
• 1:34:38
  Speaker 1: and a door on the right. It is night and
• 1:34:41
  Speaker 1: the room is lit by one electric light, a globe
• 1:34:45
  Speaker 1: without a shade. When the curtain rises, Chunghi is lying
• 1:34:50
  Speaker 1: in the pellate bed with his opium pipe, his lamp
• 1:34:54
  Speaker 1: and the tray, on which are the little tin of
• 1:34:56
  Speaker 1: opium and a couple of long needles. He is reading
• 1:35:00
  Speaker 1: a Chinese paper. He is a fat Chinaman and white
• 1:35:04
  Speaker 1: trousers and a singlet. On his feet are Chinese slippers.
• 1:35:10
  Speaker 1: A boy dressed in the same way is seated on
• 1:35:13
  Speaker 1: the sandal wood chest idly playing a Chinese flute. He
• 1:35:17
  Speaker 1: plays a strange Chinese tune Chung. He dips his needle
• 1:35:22
  Speaker 1: in the opium and heats it over the flame of
• 1:35:24
  Speaker 1: the lamp, puts it in the pipe inhales and presently
• 1:35:29
  Speaker 1: blows out a thick cloud of smoke. There is a
• 1:35:32
  Speaker 1: scratching at the door. Chunghi speaks a few words in Chinese,
• 1:35:37
  Speaker 1: and the boy goes to it and just opens it.
• 1:35:41
  Speaker 1: The boy speaks to the person there, and still from
• 1:35:45
  Speaker 1: the door, says something to Chunghi. Chunghi makes answer and
• 1:35:50
  Speaker 1: gets up from the palate bed, putting his opium things aside.
• 1:35:55
  Speaker 1: The door is opened wire and Ong Chi Sang comes
• 1:35:59
  Speaker 1: in this way.
• 1:36:01
  Speaker 5: Sarah, please come in.
• 1:36:03
  Speaker 1: Joyce enters wearing his toppy.
• 1:36:06
  Speaker 3: Fally broke my neck on those stairs.
• 1:36:09
  Speaker 5: This is my friend, sir.
• 1:36:12
  Speaker 3: Does he speak English?
• 1:36:14
  Speaker 4: Ah?
• 1:36:15
  Speaker 9: Yes, why speaky fairy? Good? How too you too, Sir?
• 1:36:22
  Speaker 9: I are a hope you are quite well. Poez to
• 1:36:28
  Speaker 9: come in?
• 1:36:29
  Speaker 4: Good evening, I say, the errand here is awful. Couldn't
• 1:36:33
  Speaker 4: we have the window open?
• 1:36:35
  Speaker 9: My dear fairy bad sir hum a boang thief fair.
• 1:36:41
  Speaker 5: We'll risk it very good, sir, I will open the window.
• 1:36:46
  Speaker 1: He goes to it and does so, joyce, taking off
• 1:36:50
  Speaker 1: his topee and putting it down.
• 1:36:53
  Speaker 3: I see you've been smoking.
• 1:36:56
  Speaker 9: A yes, my chaffer fairy pack found my bowie. Smoky
• 1:37:03
  Speaker 9: do folly pipers make hit moa bed hair.
• 1:37:09
  Speaker 4: We'd better get to our business.
• 1:37:11
  Speaker 5: Yes, sir, business is business as we say.
• 1:37:16
  Speaker 4: What is your friend's name?
• 1:37:17
  Speaker 1: Om, I go with oh.
• 1:37:20
  Speaker 9: Shame shun Ti you'd know see him white and on
• 1:37:26
  Speaker 9: chop shug Ti gener well Tila.
• 1:37:31
  Speaker 4: I suppose you know what I've come.
• 1:37:32
  Speaker 9: For ies share I fairy plan to see you in
• 1:37:38
  Speaker 9: my house? My if you're my business card, I.
• 1:37:43
  Speaker 4: Yes, I don't think I need it.
• 1:37:47
  Speaker 9: A shell you fairy cool chinad our shames o chang
• 1:37:53
  Speaker 9: number one. Quiet tea can show more cheap than you
• 1:37:58
  Speaker 9: buy that shut doors.
• 1:38:01
  Speaker 3: I don't want any tea.
• 1:38:03
  Speaker 9: My show hu zorbaoshuka very best allada, now come yet
• 1:38:09
  Speaker 9: more bad hair in yinah make very koda zoots, I
• 1:38:15
  Speaker 9: show you jeeper.
• 1:38:17
  Speaker 3: I don't want any silk.
• 1:38:20
  Speaker 9: Very well, you're taking my business card. Shunti geno well
• 1:38:26
  Speaker 9: tia do chicks up four wicktoiast ita ma HAPPI you
• 1:38:33
  Speaker 9: want some de marwow on this day have you got
• 1:38:37
  Speaker 9: this letter, shiny shuman half a cut?
• 1:38:41
  Speaker 4: Where is she?
• 1:38:42
  Speaker 9: Che come pleasantly?
• 1:38:45
  Speaker 3: Why the devil isn't she here?
• 1:38:47
  Speaker 9: Ye hear, oh neider she come pleasant way? Gee? Way
• 1:38:52
  Speaker 9: do you come?
• 1:38:53
  Speaker 5: She more better? You tell her to come?
• 1:38:57
  Speaker 9: I think yes, I tell her camisaminata.
• 1:39:02
  Speaker 1: He speaks to the boy in Chinese, who gives a
• 1:39:05
  Speaker 1: guttural monosyllabic reply and goes out to joyce music.
• 1:39:11
  Speaker 3: I yes, I prefer to stand.
• 1:39:14
  Speaker 1: Chunghi, handing him a green tin of cigarettes.
• 1:39:18
  Speaker 9: Hush monkey, she go up, fairy corud, she go up,
• 1:39:24
  Speaker 9: Oh sham for we are shouts.
• 1:39:27
  Speaker 4: I don't want to smoke Chunghi to joyce you one
• 1:39:32
  Speaker 4: she bite China did fairly cheap number one kwahadi.
• 1:39:38
  Speaker 3: And get a help.
• 1:39:39
  Speaker 9: Oh I don't, I ain't no shokhi mab you like, yes,
• 1:39:46
  Speaker 9: I'll shook no you one shi kipi jai half caught
• 1:39:51
  Speaker 9: stewing number one Paradi. I show you one thousand dollars
• 1:39:57
  Speaker 9: fairly nice a pleasant you are a nissa? Get a hell,
• 1:40:02
  Speaker 9: oh waiter, my shoe ki shi kawata.
• 1:40:07
  Speaker 1: The door is opened and the boy comes in again
• 1:40:10
  Speaker 1: with a tray on which are bowls of tea. He
• 1:40:13
  Speaker 1: takes it to Joyce, who shakes his head and turns away.
• 1:40:17
  Speaker 1: The others helped themselves.
• 1:40:20
  Speaker 3: Why the devil doesn't this woman come?
• 1:40:23
  Speaker 5: I think she come now?
• 1:40:25
  Speaker 1: Sah, there is a scratching.
• 1:40:27
  Speaker 3: At the door, and curious to see her.
• 1:40:30
  Speaker 5: My fland say that Paul mister Hammond deceased was completely
• 1:40:36
  Speaker 5: under her thumb.
• 1:40:37
  Speaker 9: Sir Janeo speak ye enguish jik shpiki may away Anta Chinese.
• 1:40:45
  Speaker 1: Meanwhile, the boy has gone to the door and opened it.
• 1:40:49
  Speaker 1: The Chinese woman comes in. She wears a silk sarong
• 1:40:53
  Speaker 1: and a long muslin coat over a blouse. On her
• 1:40:57
  Speaker 1: arms are heavy gold bangles. She wears a gold chain
• 1:41:01
  Speaker 1: round her neck and gold pins in her shining black hair.
• 1:41:06
  Speaker 1: Her cheeks and mouth are painted, and she is heavily powdered.
• 1:41:11
  Speaker 1: Arched eyebrows make a thin dark line over her eyes.
• 1:41:15
  Speaker 1: She comes in and walks slowly to the pallet bed
• 1:41:18
  Speaker 1: and sits on the edge of it with her legs dangling.
• 1:41:22
  Speaker 1: Um Chi Sang makes an observation to her in Chinese,
• 1:41:27
  Speaker 1: and she briefly answers. She takes no notice of the
• 1:41:31
  Speaker 1: white man.
• 1:41:32
  Speaker 3: Has she got the letter yes, Sal, where is it.
• 1:41:37
  Speaker 5: She's a very ignorant woman, Sal. I think she wants
• 1:41:42
  Speaker 5: to see the money before she gives the letter.
• 1:41:46
  Speaker 1: Very well, the Chinese woman takes a cigarette from the
• 1:41:50
  Speaker 1: tin and lights it. She appears to take no notice
• 1:41:54
  Speaker 1: of what is proceeding. Joyce counts out the ten thousand
• 1:41:58
  Speaker 1: dollars and hands them to Ang Chi Sen. Am Chi
• 1:42:02
  Speaker 1: Seng counts them for himself, while Chunghi watches in. They
• 1:42:07
  Speaker 1: are all grave, business like, and the Chinese are oddly unconcerned.
• 1:42:13
  Speaker 5: The sum is quite collect Sal.
• 1:42:17
  Speaker 1: The Chinese woman takes the letter from her tunic and
• 1:42:20
  Speaker 1: hands it to Ang Chi Seng. Am Chi Seng gives
• 1:42:24
  Speaker 1: it a glance.
• 1:42:25
  Speaker 5: This is the light document, Sal.
• 1:42:28
  Speaker 1: He hands it to Joyce, who reads it silently.
• 1:42:32
  Speaker 4: Is not very much for the money.
• 1:42:34
  Speaker 5: I am sure that you will not regret it, Seal,
• 1:42:38
  Speaker 5: considering all the circumstances. It is what you call dert cheap.
• 1:42:44
  Speaker 4: I know that you have too great a regard for
• 1:42:47
  Speaker 4: me to allow me to pay more for an article
• 1:42:49
  Speaker 4: on the market price.
• 1:42:51
  Speaker 5: Shall you want me for anything else tonight, please, cell,
• 1:42:56
  Speaker 5: I don't think so. In that case, sir, if it
• 1:42:59
  Speaker 5: is convenient, I will stay here and talk to my friend.
• 1:43:04
  Speaker 4: I suppose you want to divide the swag.
• 1:43:07
  Speaker 5: I am sally, sir, that that is a word. I
• 1:43:11
  Speaker 5: have not come a class in my studies.
• 1:43:14
  Speaker 4: You'd better look it out in the dictionary.
• 1:43:17
  Speaker 5: Yes, Sal, I will do it without delay.
• 1:43:21
  Speaker 4: I have been wondering how much you were going to
• 1:43:23
  Speaker 4: get out of this on she saying.
• 1:43:26
  Speaker 5: The laborer is worthy of his hire. As our lord said, Sal.
• 1:43:32
  Speaker 4: I didn't know you were a Christian.
• 1:43:34
  Speaker 5: O I am not siral, to the best of my belief.
• 1:43:40
  Speaker 4: In that case, he certainly isn't your lord.
• 1:43:44
  Speaker 5: I was only making use of the common English idiom cirl.
• 1:43:48
  Speaker 5: In point of fact, I am a disciple of the
• 1:43:51
  Speaker 5: late Helbert Spenzel. I have also been much influenced by Nietzsche,
• 1:43:58
  Speaker 5: Shaw and Helpert G. Wells.
• 1:44:02
  Speaker 4: It is no wonder that I am no match for you.
• 1:44:06
  Speaker 1: As he goes out, the curtain falls quickly. Scene two.
• 1:44:12
  Speaker 1: The scene is the same as in Act one, the
• 1:44:16
  Speaker 1: sitting room at the Crosby's bungalow. It is about five
• 1:44:20
  Speaker 1: o'clock in the afternoon, and the light is soft and mellow.
• 1:44:25
  Speaker 1: When the curtain rises, the stage is empty, but immediately
• 1:44:29
  Speaker 1: the sound is heard of a car stopping, and Missus
• 1:44:32
  Speaker 1: Joyce and Withers come up the steps of the verandah
• 1:44:35
  Speaker 1: and enter the room. They are followed in an instant
• 1:44:39
  Speaker 1: by the head boy and another Chinese servant, one with
• 1:44:44
  Speaker 1: a suit case and the other with a large basket.
• 1:44:48
  Speaker 1: Missus Joyce is a buxom, florid, handsome woman of about forty.
• 1:44:54
  Speaker 7: Good, gracious, how desolate the place looks. You can see
• 1:44:59
  Speaker 7: in a twinkling of an eye that there hasn't been
• 1:45:01
  Speaker 7: a woman here to look after things.
• 1:45:04
  Speaker 6: I must say, it does look a bit dreary.
• 1:45:07
  Speaker 7: I knew it, I felt it in my bones. That's
• 1:45:11
  Speaker 7: why I wanted to get here before Leslie. I thought
• 1:45:14
  Speaker 7: we might have a chance to do a little something
• 1:45:17
  Speaker 7: before she came.
• 1:45:18
  Speaker 1: She goes over it to the piano, opens it and
• 1:45:22
  Speaker 1: puts a piece of music on the stand.
• 1:45:25
  Speaker 6: A few flowers would help.
• 1:45:27
  Speaker 7: I wonder if these wretched boys will have had the sense.
• 1:45:30
  Speaker 9: To pick some.
• 1:45:31
  Speaker 1: To the head boy who bears the basket, is.
• 1:45:35
  Speaker 7: The eyes all right? Boy?
• 1:45:37
  Speaker 3: Yeah?
• 1:45:37
  Speaker 7: Missy, well put it in some place where it won't melt.
• 1:45:42
  Speaker 7: Are there any flowers?
• 1:45:45
  Speaker 1: Let you see, Missus Joyce to the other boy.
• 1:45:50
  Speaker 7: Oh that's my bag, put it in the spare room.
• 1:45:54
  Speaker 1: The two servants go out.
• 1:45:57
  Speaker 6: You know, I can't help wondering how missus Crosbie can
• 1:46:01
  Speaker 6: bring herself to come back here, my poor friend.
• 1:46:05
  Speaker 7: The Crosbies haven't got half a dozen houses to choose from.
• 1:46:09
  Speaker 7: When you've only won house, I suppose you've got to
• 1:46:12
  Speaker 7: live in it, no matter what's.
• 1:46:14
  Speaker 1: Happened at all events.
• 1:46:17
  Speaker 6: I should have liked to wait a bit.
• 1:46:19
  Speaker 7: I wanted her to. I'd made all my plans for
• 1:46:22
  Speaker 7: them both to come back to my house after the trial.
• 1:46:26
  Speaker 7: I wanted them to stay with me till they were
• 1:46:28
  Speaker 7: able to get away for a holiday.
• 1:46:31
  Speaker 6: I should have thought that much the most sensible thing.
• 1:46:33
  Speaker 7: To do, but they wouldn't. Bob said he couldn't leave
• 1:46:38
  Speaker 7: the estate, and Leslie said she couldn't leave Bob. So
• 1:46:41
  Speaker 7: then I said Howard and I would come down here.
• 1:46:44
  Speaker 7: I thought it would be easier for them if they
• 1:46:46
  Speaker 7: had someone with them for a day or two.
• 1:46:49
  Speaker 1: Withers with a.
• 1:46:50
  Speaker 6: Smile, And I think you were determined not to be
• 1:46:54
  Speaker 6: robbed of your celebration.
• 1:46:57
  Speaker 7: You don't know my million dollar cocktails, do you. They're
• 1:47:00
  Speaker 7: celebrated all through the FMS. When Leslie was arrested. I
• 1:47:05
  Speaker 7: made a solemn vow that I wouldn't make another until
• 1:47:07
  Speaker 7: she was acquitted. I've been waiting for this day, and
• 1:47:11
  Speaker 7: no one is going to deprive me of my treat.
• 1:47:14
  Speaker 6: And the eyes. I suppose, hence the ice.
• 1:47:18
  Speaker 7: Wise young man. As soon as the others come, I'll
• 1:47:21
  Speaker 7: start making.
• 1:47:22
  Speaker 6: Them with your own hands, with my own hands.
• 1:47:26
  Speaker 7: I don't mind telling you I never knew anyone who
• 1:47:29
  Speaker 7: could make a better cocktail than I can.
• 1:47:32
  Speaker 1: Withers with a grin.
• 1:47:33
  Speaker 6: We all think the cocktails we make ourselves better than
• 1:47:36
  Speaker 6: anybody else's.
• 1:47:38
  Speaker 7: You know, yes, but you're all lamentably mistaken, and I
• 1:47:42
  Speaker 7: happen to be right.
• 1:47:44
  Speaker 6: Ah, a way of providence are dark.
• 1:47:47
  Speaker 1: The two boys come in with balls of flowers. They
• 1:47:51
  Speaker 1: placed them here and there so that the room looks
• 1:47:54
  Speaker 1: exactly as it did during the first act.
• 1:47:57
  Speaker 7: Oh good, that makes the room look much more habitable.
• 1:48:01
  Speaker 6: They ought to be here in a minute.
• 1:48:04
  Speaker 7: We went very fast, you know, and I dare say
• 1:48:06
  Speaker 7: a good many people wanted to say a word or
• 1:48:09
  Speaker 7: two to Leslie. I don't suppose they were able to
• 1:48:12
  Speaker 7: get away as quickly as they expected.
• 1:48:15
  Speaker 1: The boys go out.
• 1:48:17
  Speaker 6: Oh wait till they come, shall I.
• 1:48:19
  Speaker 7: Of course you must wait.
• 1:48:22
  Speaker 6: I thought the Attorney General was very decent.
• 1:48:25
  Speaker 7: I knew he would be. I know his wife, you know,
• 1:48:28
  Speaker 7: she said she thought Leslie should never be tried at all.
• 1:48:31
  Speaker 7: But of course men are so funny.
• 1:48:35
  Speaker 6: I shall never forget the shout that went up when
• 1:48:37
  Speaker 6: the jury came in and said not guilty.
• 1:48:40
  Speaker 7: It was thrilling, wasn't it. And Leslie absolutely impassive, sitting
• 1:48:45
  Speaker 7: there as though it had nothing to do with her.
• 1:48:48
  Speaker 6: I can't get over the way she gave her evidence.
• 1:48:51
  Speaker 6: By George, she's a marvel.
• 1:48:54
  Speaker 7: It was beautiful. I couldn't help crying. It was so
• 1:48:58
  Speaker 7: modest and so strained. Howard, who thinks me very hysterical
• 1:49:04
  Speaker 7: and impulsive, told me the other day he'd never known
• 1:49:07
  Speaker 7: a woman who had so much self control as Leslie.
• 1:49:11
  Speaker 7: And that's real praise, because I don't think he very
• 1:49:14
  Speaker 7: much likes her.
• 1:49:16
  Speaker 1: Why not?
• 1:49:17
  Speaker 7: Oh you know what men are. They never care very
• 1:49:20
  Speaker 7: much for the women their particular friends.
• 1:49:23
  Speaker 1: Mary the head boy comes in with a pillow covered
• 1:49:26
  Speaker 1: by a cloth.
• 1:49:28
  Speaker 6: Helloa, what's this, missy pillow?
• 1:49:32
  Speaker 1: Ways? Missus Joyce going to it and taking the cloth off.
• 1:49:38
  Speaker 7: Oh did you bring that?
• 1:49:41
  Speaker 1: I thought maybe miss watt he puts it down on
• 1:49:45
  Speaker 1: the table on which it stood in the first act.
• 1:49:48
  Speaker 7: I'm sure she will that was very thoughtful of you, boy.
• 1:49:52
  Speaker 1: To withers as the boy goes out.
• 1:49:55
  Speaker 7: You know, sometimes you could kill these Johnny's boys, and
• 1:49:59
  Speaker 7: then all of a sudden and they'll do things that
• 1:50:01
  Speaker 7: are so kind and so considerate that she forgive them everything.
• 1:50:05
  Speaker 1: Withers, looking at the lease by George.
• 1:50:09
  Speaker 6: It is beautiful, isn't it. You know, it's just the
• 1:50:13
  Speaker 6: sort of thing you'd expect her to do.
• 1:50:16
  Speaker 7: Mister Willers, I want to ask you something rather horrible
• 1:50:20
  Speaker 7: when you came that night, where exactly was Jeff Hammond's
• 1:50:24
  Speaker 7: body lying.
• 1:50:26
  Speaker 6: Out on the verandah, just under that lamp. My god,
• 1:50:30
  Speaker 6: it gave me a turn when I ran up the
• 1:50:32
  Speaker 6: steps and nearly fell over him.
• 1:50:35
  Speaker 7: Has it occurred to you that every time Leslie comes
• 1:50:38
  Speaker 7: into the house she'll have to step over the place
• 1:50:41
  Speaker 7: where the body lay. It's rather grim.
• 1:50:44
  Speaker 6: Perhaps it won't strike her.
• 1:50:46
  Speaker 7: Fortunately, she's not the sort of hysterical for that. I am,
• 1:50:50
  Speaker 7: But I, oh dear, I could never sleep again.
• 1:50:54
  Speaker 1: There is the sound of a car driving up there.
• 1:50:58
  Speaker 6: They are They haven't been so long after.
• 1:51:01
  Speaker 1: All, missus Joyce going over to the verabdah.
• 1:51:07
  Speaker 7: No, they must have started within ten minutes of us.
• 1:51:10
  Speaker 7: Leslie Leslie.
• 1:51:13
  Speaker 1: Leslie comes in, followed by Crosbie and Joyce. Crosbie is
• 1:51:17
  Speaker 1: wearing a neat suit of ducks. Leslie wears a silk
• 1:51:21
  Speaker 1: wrappidy hat.
• 1:51:23
  Speaker 2: You haven't been here long.
• 1:51:24
  Speaker 1: Have you, missus Joyce taking her in her arms.
• 1:51:30
  Speaker 7: Welcome, Welcome back to your home.
• 1:51:33
  Speaker 1: Leslie releasing herself.
• 1:51:36
  Speaker 2: Darling.
• 1:51:38
  Speaker 1: She looks round.
• 1:51:40
  Speaker 2: How nice and cozy it looks. I can hardly realize
• 1:51:44
  Speaker 2: that I've ever been away.
• 1:51:46
  Speaker 7: Are you tired? Would you like to go and lie down?
• 1:51:50
  Speaker 2: Tired?
• 1:51:51
  Speaker 3: Why?
• 1:51:51
  Speaker 2: I've been doing nothing but rest for the last six weeks.
• 1:51:55
  Speaker 7: Oh, Bob, aren't you happy to have her back again?
• 1:51:59
  Speaker 4: Now, Dorothy, don't gush. If you must gush, gush over me.
• 1:52:04
  Speaker 7: I'm not going to gush over you, you old brute.
• 1:52:07
  Speaker 7: What have you done?
• 1:52:09
  Speaker 1: Leslie holding out her hand to him with a charming smile.
• 1:52:14
  Speaker 2: He's done everything. I can never thank him enough. You
• 1:52:18
  Speaker 2: don't know what he's been to me through all this
• 1:52:20
  Speaker 2: dreary time of waiting.
• 1:52:22
  Speaker 7: I don't mind confessing that I thought you made rather
• 1:52:25
  Speaker 7: a good speech. Howard.
• 1:52:27
  Speaker 3: Thank you for those kind words.
• 1:52:30
  Speaker 7: I think perhaps you might have been a little more
• 1:52:32
  Speaker 7: impassion without hurting yourself.
• 1:52:35
  Speaker 6: I don't agree with you, missus Joyce. It's just because
• 1:52:39
  Speaker 6: it was so cold and measured in business like that,
• 1:52:42
  Speaker 6: it was so effective.
• 1:52:44
  Speaker 3: Now, let's have this drink you've been talking about, Dorothy.
• 1:52:48
  Speaker 7: Come and help me, mister Withers. When I make a cocktail,
• 1:52:51
  Speaker 7: I want a great many assistants.
• 1:52:54
  Speaker 1: Leslie taking off her hat.
• 1:52:56
  Speaker 2: I know what an elaborate business. Your million dollar cocktail is, Dorothy,
• 1:53:02
  Speaker 2: this is.
• 1:53:02
  Speaker 1: Joy says, she goes out with Withers.
• 1:53:05
  Speaker 7: Don't be impatient. I can't, Harriet. I must take my time.
• 1:53:10
  Speaker 2: I'll go and tidy myself up.
• 1:53:12
  Speaker 3: You don't need it. You look as if you just
• 1:53:15
  Speaker 3: come out of a bad box.
• 1:53:17
  Speaker 2: I shan't be a minute.
• 1:53:19
  Speaker 3: There's something I particularly want to say to you. I'll
• 1:53:23
  Speaker 3: make myself scarce. No, I want you old man, I
• 1:53:26
  Speaker 3: want your legal opinion. No, do you fire away? Well?
• 1:53:32
  Speaker 3: Look here, I want to get Leslie away from here
• 1:53:36
  Speaker 3: as quickly as possible.
• 1:53:38
  Speaker 4: I think a bit of a holiday would do you
• 1:53:40
  Speaker 4: both good.
• 1:53:41
  Speaker 2: Could you get away, Robert, even if it's only for
• 1:53:44
  Speaker 2: two or three weeks, I'd be thankful.
• 1:53:46
  Speaker 3: What's the use of two or three weeks? We must
• 1:53:49
  Speaker 3: get away for good.
• 1:53:51
  Speaker 4: But how can we You can't very well throw up
• 1:53:54
  Speaker 4: a job like this, never get such a good one again.
• 1:53:58
  Speaker 3: You know that's where you're wrong. I've got something in
• 1:54:02
  Speaker 3: you that's much better. We can neither of us live here.
• 1:54:06
  Speaker 3: It would be impossible. We've gone through too much in
• 1:54:09
  Speaker 3: this bungalow. How can we ever forget.
• 1:54:13
  Speaker 1: Leslie with a shudder?
• 1:54:15
  Speaker 2: No, don't, Bob, don't Gosby too.
• 1:54:19
  Speaker 3: Joyce, you see, Heaven knows Neslie has nerves of iron.
• 1:54:24
  Speaker 3: But there's a limit to human endurance. You know how
• 1:54:28
  Speaker 3: lonely the life is. I should never have a moment's
• 1:54:31
  Speaker 3: peace when I was out and thought of her sitting
• 1:54:34
  Speaker 3: in this room by herself. It's out of the question.
• 1:54:38
  Speaker 2: Oh don't think of me, Bob. You've made this estate.
• 1:54:42
  Speaker 2: It was nothing when you came here. Why it's like
• 1:54:45
  Speaker 2: your child, it's the apple of your eye.
• 1:54:49
  Speaker 3: I hate it now, I hate every tree on it.
• 1:54:52
  Speaker 3: I must get away, and so much you you don't
• 1:54:55
  Speaker 3: want to stay.
• 1:54:57
  Speaker 2: It's all been so miserable. I don't want to make
• 1:55:00
  Speaker 2: any more difficulties.
• 1:55:02
  Speaker 3: I know our only chance of peace is to get
• 1:55:05
  Speaker 3: someplace where we can forget.
• 1:55:08
  Speaker 4: But could you get another job?
• 1:55:11
  Speaker 3: Yes, that's just it, something suddenly cropped up. That's why
• 1:55:15
  Speaker 3: I wanted to talk to you about it. At once.
• 1:55:19
  Speaker 3: It's in Sumatra. We'd be right away from everybody, and
• 1:55:23
  Speaker 3: the only people around us would be Dutch. We'd start
• 1:55:27
  Speaker 3: a new life with new friends. The only thing is
• 1:55:30
  Speaker 3: that you'd be awfully lonely, Darling.
• 1:55:34
  Speaker 2: Oh, I wouldn't mind that. I'm used to loneliness. I'd
• 1:55:38
  Speaker 2: be glad to go, Robert, I don't want to stay here.
• 1:55:41
  Speaker 3: That settles it. Then I'll go straight ahead and we
• 1:55:44
  Speaker 3: can fix things up at once.
• 1:55:47
  Speaker 4: Is the money as good as here?
• 1:55:49
  Speaker 3: I hope it will be better at all of it.
• 1:55:51
  Speaker 3: I shall be working for myself and not for a
• 1:55:54
  Speaker 3: rotten company in London, Joyce Stirtled, What do you mean
• 1:55:58
  Speaker 3: by that? Buying the state? Yes? I am Why should
• 1:56:03
  Speaker 3: I go on sweating my life out for other people?
• 1:56:06
  Speaker 3: It's a chance in a thousand. It belongs to a
• 1:56:09
  Speaker 3: Malacca chinaman who's in financial difficulties and is willing to
• 1:56:13
  Speaker 3: let it go for thirty thousand dollars. If we can
• 1:56:17
  Speaker 3: have the money, the day after tomorrow. But how are
• 1:56:20
  Speaker 3: you going to raise thirty thousand dollars? Well, I've saved
• 1:56:24
  Speaker 3: about ten thousand since I've been in the East, and
• 1:56:26
  Speaker 3: Charlie Meadows is willing to let me have the balance
• 1:56:30
  Speaker 3: on mortgage.
• 1:56:31
  Speaker 1: Leslie and Enjoys exchange a glance of consternation.
• 1:56:35
  Speaker 4: It seems rather rash to put all your eggs in
• 1:56:38
  Speaker 4: one basket.
• 1:56:40
  Speaker 2: I shouldn't like you to take such a risk on
• 1:56:42
  Speaker 2: my account. Robert, you needn't worry about me. Really, I
• 1:56:46
  Speaker 2: shall settle down here quite comfortably.
• 1:56:49
  Speaker 3: Don't talk nonsense, darling. It's only a moment ago that
• 1:56:52
  Speaker 3: you said you'd give anything to clear out.
• 1:56:55
  Speaker 2: I spoke without thinking. I believe it would be a
• 1:56:59
  Speaker 2: mistake to run away way. The sensible thing to do
• 1:57:02
  Speaker 2: is to sit tight. Everybody's been so kind. There's no
• 1:57:06
  Speaker 2: reason to suppose they're not going to continue. I'm sure
• 1:57:10
  Speaker 2: all our friends will do all they can to make
• 1:57:12
  Speaker 2: things easy for us.
• 1:57:14
  Speaker 3: You know, dear, you mustn't be finding a little risk.
• 1:57:18
  Speaker 3: It's only if one takes risks that one can make
• 1:57:21
  Speaker 3: big money.
• 1:57:22
  Speaker 4: These Chinese estates are never any good, you know, how
• 1:57:27
  Speaker 4: haphazard and careless the Chinese.
• 1:57:28
  Speaker 3: Ah, this is not that sort of thing at all.
• 1:57:32
  Speaker 3: It belongs to a very progressive chinaman and he's having
• 1:57:35
  Speaker 3: European manager. It's not a leap in the dark. It's
• 1:57:38
  Speaker 3: a thoroughly sound proposition, and I reckon that in ten
• 1:57:43
  Speaker 3: years I can make enough money to allow us to retire,
• 1:57:46
  Speaker 3: and we'll set it down in England and live like lords.
• 1:57:51
  Speaker 2: Honestly, Robert, I'd prefer to stay here. I'm attached to
• 1:57:55
  Speaker 2: the place, and when I've had time to forget all
• 1:57:58
  Speaker 2: that has happened.
• 1:57:59
  Speaker 3: How could you get anyhow.
• 1:58:02
  Speaker 4: It's not a thing that you must enter into without
• 1:58:04
  Speaker 4: due consideration. You'd naturally want to go over to Samata
• 1:58:09
  Speaker 4: and look for yourself.
• 1:58:10
  Speaker 3: That's just it. I've got to make up my mind
• 1:58:13
  Speaker 3: at once. The offer only holes for thirty six hours.
• 1:58:18
  Speaker 4: But my dear fellow, you can't pay thirty thousand dollars
• 1:58:21
  Speaker 4: for an estate without proper investigation. None of you planters
• 1:58:25
  Speaker 4: are only too business like, but really there are limits.
• 1:58:30
  Speaker 3: Don't try to make me out the bigger fool than
• 1:58:33
  Speaker 3: I am. I had it examined, and it's worth fifty thousand.
• 1:58:36
  Speaker 3: If it's worth a dollar. I got all the papers
• 1:58:39
  Speaker 3: in my office either go and get them and you
• 1:58:42
  Speaker 3: can see for yourself. And I have a couple of
• 1:58:45
  Speaker 3: photographs of to the bungalow to show Leslie.
• 1:58:48
  Speaker 2: I don't want to see them.
• 1:58:50
  Speaker 3: Oh, come, darling, that's just nerves. That shows how necessary
• 1:58:54
  Speaker 3: it is for you to get away, Darling. In this case,
• 1:58:57
  Speaker 3: you must let me have my own way. I want
• 1:59:01
  Speaker 3: to go too. I can't stay here any more.
• 1:59:04
  Speaker 2: Oh, why are you so obstinate?
• 1:59:07
  Speaker 3: Com com dear, don't be unreasonable. Let me go and
• 1:59:11
  Speaker 3: get the papers. I sha'n't be a minute.
• 1:59:13
  Speaker 1: He goes out. There is a moment's silence. Leslie looks
• 1:59:18
  Speaker 1: at Joyce with terrified appeal. He makes a despairing gesture.
• 1:59:23
  Speaker 4: I had to pay ten thousand dollars for the letter.
• 1:59:27
  Speaker 2: What are you going to do?
• 1:59:29
  Speaker 1: Joyce miserably?
• 1:59:32
  Speaker 3: What can I do? Oh?
• 1:59:34
  Speaker 2: Don't tell him? Now, give me a little time. I'm
• 1:59:38
  Speaker 2: at the end of my strength. I can't bear anything more.
• 1:59:42
  Speaker 4: You heard what he said. He wants the money at
• 1:59:44
  Speaker 4: once to buy this estate. He can't, he hasn't got it.
• 1:59:50
  Speaker 2: Give me a little time.
• 1:59:52
  Speaker 4: I can't food to give you a sum like that.
• 1:59:55
  Speaker 2: No, I don't expect you to. Perhaps I can get
• 1:59:58
  Speaker 2: it somehow?
• 2:00:00
  Speaker 3: How you know it's impossible.
• 2:00:03
  Speaker 4: It's money I put by for the education of my boys.
• 2:00:06
  Speaker 4: I was glad to advances, and I wouldn't have minded
• 2:00:09
  Speaker 4: waiting a few weeks.
• 2:00:10
  Speaker 2: If you'd only give me a month, i'd have time
• 2:00:12
  Speaker 2: to think of something. I could prepare Robert and explain
• 2:00:16
  Speaker 2: to him by degrees, I'd watch for my opportunity.
• 2:00:20
  Speaker 4: If he buys this estate, the money will be gone. No, no, no,
• 2:00:25
  Speaker 4: I can't let him do that. I don't want to
• 2:00:27
  Speaker 4: be unkind to you, but I can't lose my money.
• 2:00:30
  Speaker 4: Where is the letter and I have it in my pocket.
• 2:00:34
  Speaker 2: Oh what shall I do?
• 2:00:37
  Speaker 4: I'm dreadfully sorry for you.
• 2:00:39
  Speaker 2: Oh don't be sorry for me. I don't matter. It's Robert.
• 2:00:44
  Speaker 2: It'll break his heart.
• 2:00:46
  Speaker 4: If there are only some other way, I don't know
• 2:00:49
  Speaker 4: what to do.
• 2:00:51
  Speaker 2: I suppose you're right. There's only one thing to do.
• 2:00:55
  Speaker 2: Tell him, tell him and have done with it. I'm broken.
• 2:01:01
  Speaker 1: Crosbie comes in again with a bundle of papers in
• 2:01:04
  Speaker 1: his hand and two large photographs.
• 2:01:07
  Speaker 3: Of course, if it hadn't been for Leslie, I should
• 2:01:09
  Speaker 3: have run over to Sumatra last week. I'd just like
• 2:01:12
  Speaker 3: you to have a look first at the report I've had.
• 2:01:15
  Speaker 4: Look here, Bob, has it struck you that your costs
• 2:01:19
  Speaker 4: over this affair will be pretty heavy?
• 2:01:21
  Speaker 3: I know all you rerrers are robbers. I daresay this
• 2:01:25
  Speaker 3: will leave me a little short of ready money. But
• 2:01:27
  Speaker 3: I don't suppose you'd mind if I keep you waiting
• 2:01:30
  Speaker 3: till I've had time to settle down. You know I
• 2:01:33
  Speaker 3: can be trusted, and if you like, I'll pay you interest.
• 2:01:37
  Speaker 4: I don't think you have any idea how large the
• 2:01:40
  Speaker 4: sum is. Of course, we don't want to press you,
• 2:01:44
  Speaker 4: but we can't be out of our money indefinitely. I
• 2:01:47
  Speaker 4: think I should warn you that when you've settled with us,
• 2:01:51
  Speaker 4: you won't have much money left over to embark in
• 2:01:53
  Speaker 4: rather hazardous speculations.
• 2:01:56
  Speaker 3: You're putting the fear of God into me? How much
• 2:01:59
  Speaker 3: with the course come to I'm not.
• 2:02:01
  Speaker 4: Going to charge you anything for my personal services. Whatever
• 2:02:05
  Speaker 4: I've done has been done out of pure friendship. But
• 2:02:08
  Speaker 4: there are certain out of pocket expenses that I'm afraid
• 2:02:11
  Speaker 4: you must pay.
• 2:02:12
  Speaker 3: Of course, it's awfully good of you not to wish
• 2:02:15
  Speaker 3: to charge me for anything else. I hardly like to accept.
• 2:02:19
  Speaker 3: What did the out of pocket expenses amount to? You?
• 2:02:22
  Speaker 4: Remember that I told you yesterday that there was a
• 2:02:25
  Speaker 4: letter of Leslie's that I thought we ought to get
• 2:02:27
  Speaker 4: hold of.
• 2:02:28
  Speaker 3: Yes, I really didn't think it mattered very much, but
• 2:02:31
  Speaker 3: of course I put myself in your hands. I thought
• 2:02:34
  Speaker 3: you were making a great deal out of something that
• 2:02:37
  Speaker 3: wasn't very important.
• 2:02:39
  Speaker 4: You told me to do what I thought fit, and
• 2:02:41
  Speaker 4: I bought the letter from the person in whose possession
• 2:02:44
  Speaker 4: it was. I had to pay a great deal of
• 2:02:46
  Speaker 4: money for it.
• 2:02:48
  Speaker 3: What a bore? Still, if you thought it necessary, I'm
• 2:02:51
  Speaker 3: not going to grasp how much was it.
• 2:02:54
  Speaker 4: I'm afraid I had to pay ten thousand.
• 2:02:56
  Speaker 3: Dollars for it. Ten thousand dollars. That's a fortune. I
• 2:03:02
  Speaker 3: thought you were going to say a couple of hundred.
• 2:03:05
  Speaker 3: You must have been mad.
• 2:03:07
  Speaker 4: You may be quite sure that I wouldn't have given
• 2:03:09
  Speaker 4: it if I could have got it for less.
• 2:03:12
  Speaker 3: But that's everything I have in the world. It reduces
• 2:03:15
  Speaker 3: me to beggary.
• 2:03:17
  Speaker 4: Not that exactly, but you must understand that you haven't
• 2:03:21
  Speaker 4: got money to buy an estate with.
• 2:03:23
  Speaker 3: Why didn't you let them bring the letter in and
• 2:03:26
  Speaker 3: tell them to do what they damned well liked?
• 2:03:29
  Speaker 1: I didn't.
• 2:03:30
  Speaker 3: Dare do you mean to say it was absolutely necessary
• 2:03:33
  Speaker 3: to suppress the letter if you wanted your wife acquitted.
• 2:03:38
  Speaker 3: But but I don't understand. They're not going to tell
• 2:03:42
  Speaker 3: me that they could have brought in a verdict of guilty.
• 2:03:45
  Speaker 3: They couldn't have hanged her for putting a noxious vermin
• 2:03:48
  Speaker 3: out of the way.
• 2:03:50
  Speaker 4: Of course they wouldn't have hanged her. They might have
• 2:03:53
  Speaker 4: found her guilty of manslaughter. I dare say she'd have
• 2:03:57
  Speaker 4: got off with two or three years.
• 2:04:00
  Speaker 3: Three years, my Leslie, my little Leslie, would have killed her.
• 2:04:05
  Speaker 3: But what was there in the letter? And I told
• 2:04:08
  Speaker 3: you yesterday it was very stupid of me. I remember now,
• 2:04:14
  Speaker 3: you wrote to Hammond to ask him to come to
• 2:04:16
  Speaker 3: the bungalow. Yes, you wanted him to get something for you,
• 2:04:20
  Speaker 3: didn't you.
• 2:04:22
  Speaker 2: Yes, I wanted to get you a present for your birthday.
• 2:04:26
  Speaker 3: Why should you have asked him?
• 2:04:28
  Speaker 2: I wanted to get you a gun. He knew all
• 2:04:31
  Speaker 2: about that sort of thing. And you know how ignorant
• 2:04:34
  Speaker 2: I am.
• 2:04:36
  Speaker 3: Bertie Cameron had a brand new gun he wanted to sell.
• 2:04:39
  Speaker 3: I went into Singapore in the night of Hammond's death
• 2:04:42
  Speaker 3: to buy it. Why should you want to make me
• 2:04:45
  Speaker 3: a present.
• 2:04:45
  Speaker 1: Of a lover?
• 2:04:47
  Speaker 2: How should I know that you were going to buy
• 2:04:49
  Speaker 2: a gun because I told you I'd forgotten. I can't
• 2:04:53
  Speaker 2: remember everything.
• 2:04:55
  Speaker 3: You hadn't forgotten that.
• 2:04:57
  Speaker 2: What do you mean, Robert? Why are you talking to
• 2:05:00
  Speaker 2: me like this?
• 2:05:01
  Speaker 1: Crosby to Joyce.
• 2:05:03
  Speaker 3: Wasn't it a criminal offense that you committed in buying
• 2:05:07
  Speaker 3: that letter?
• 2:05:08
  Speaker 4: It's not the sort of thing that a respectable lawyer
• 2:05:11
  Speaker 4: does in the ordinary way of business.
• 2:05:13
  Speaker 3: It was a criminal offense.
• 2:05:17
  Speaker 4: I've been trying to keep the fact out of my mind,
• 2:05:20
  Speaker 4: but if you insist on a straight answer, I'm afraid
• 2:05:23
  Speaker 4: I must admit it was.
• 2:05:25
  Speaker 3: Then why did you do it? You? You, of all people?
• 2:05:30
  Speaker 3: What will you trying to save me from?
• 2:05:32
  Speaker 4: Well, I've told you I felt that. No, you haven't
• 2:05:37
  Speaker 4: dumb coume, Bob, don't be a fool.
• 2:05:40
  Speaker 3: I don't know what you mean. Juries are very stupid,
• 2:05:43
  Speaker 3: and you don't want to let them get any silly
• 2:05:45
  Speaker 3: ideas in their heads. Who has the letter? Now? Have
• 2:05:49
  Speaker 3: you got it? Yes? Where is it? Why do you
• 2:05:54
  Speaker 3: want to know? God? Damn it, I want to see it.
• 2:05:57
  Speaker 3: I've got no right to show it to you. Is
• 2:06:00
  Speaker 3: it your money you bought it with? Or mine? I'd
• 2:06:03
  Speaker 3: got to pay ten thousand dollars for that letter, and
• 2:06:06
  Speaker 3: by god, I'm going to see it. At least I'd
• 2:06:09
  Speaker 3: like to know that I've had my money's worth.
• 2:06:12
  Speaker 2: Let him see it.
• 2:06:14
  Speaker 1: Without a word, Joyce takes his pocket book from his
• 2:06:17
  Speaker 1: pocket and takes out the letter. He hands it to Crosbie.
• 2:06:21
  Speaker 1: He reads it.
• 2:06:23
  Speaker 3: What does it mean?
• 2:06:25
  Speaker 2: It means that Jeff Hammond was my lover.
• 2:06:29
  Speaker 1: Crosbie, covering his face with his hands.
• 2:06:32
  Speaker 4: No, oh, no, why did you kill him?
• 2:06:37
  Speaker 2: He'd been my lover for years?
• 2:06:39
  Speaker 3: It's not true.
• 2:06:41
  Speaker 2: Four years and then he changed. I didn't know what
• 2:06:46
  Speaker 2: was the matter. I couldn't believe that he didn't care
• 2:06:49
  Speaker 2: for me any more. I loved him. I didn't want
• 2:06:53
  Speaker 2: to love him. I couldn't help myself. I hated myself
• 2:06:58
  Speaker 2: for loving him, and yet he everything in the world
• 2:07:01
  Speaker 2: to me. He was all my life. And then I
• 2:07:04
  Speaker 2: heard he was living with a Chinese woman. I couldn't
• 2:07:08
  Speaker 2: believe it. I wouldn't believe it. At last I saw her.
• 2:07:13
  Speaker 2: I saw her with my own eyes, walking in the village,
• 2:07:17
  Speaker 2: with her gold bracelets and her necklaces. A Chinese woman. Horrible.
• 2:07:23
  Speaker 2: They all knew in the compong that she was his mistress.
• 2:07:27
  Speaker 2: And when I passed her. She looked at me, and
• 2:07:30
  Speaker 2: I saw that she knew I was his mistress too.
• 2:07:34
  Speaker 2: I sent for him.
• 2:07:36
  Speaker 1: The stage torkens for a moment when the lights go
• 2:07:39
  Speaker 1: up again, Leslie, wearing the dress she wore in the
• 2:07:42
  Speaker 1: first act, is seen seated at the table, working at
• 2:07:47
  Speaker 1: her lace. Jeffrey Hammond comes in. He is a good
• 2:07:51
  Speaker 1: looking fellow in the late thirties, with a breezy manner
• 2:07:55
  Speaker 1: an abundant self confidence.
• 2:07:59
  Speaker 2: Jeff, I thought you were never coming.
• 2:08:01
  Speaker 8: What's that bald, bad husband of yours gone to Singapore for?
• 2:08:05
  Speaker 2: He's gone to buy a gun that Bertie Cameron wants
• 2:08:08
  Speaker 2: to sell.
• 2:08:09
  Speaker 8: I suppose he wants to bag that tiger the natives
• 2:08:11
  Speaker 8: are talking about. I bet I get him first. What
• 2:08:15
  Speaker 8: about a little drink?
• 2:08:16
  Speaker 2: Help yourself?
• 2:08:18
  Speaker 1: He goes to a table and pours himself out a
• 2:08:21
  Speaker 1: whiskey and soda.
• 2:08:23
  Speaker 8: I say, is that anything the matter? That note of
• 2:08:25
  Speaker 8: yours was rather hectic?
• 2:08:27
  Speaker 2: What have you done with it?
• 2:08:29
  Speaker 8: I tore it up at once? What do you take
• 2:08:31
  Speaker 8: me for?
• 2:08:32
  Speaker 2: Jeff I can't go on like this anymore. I'm at
• 2:08:35
  Speaker 2: the end of my tether.
• 2:08:37
  Speaker 8: Why what's up?
• 2:08:39
  Speaker 2: Oh, don't pretend? What's the good of that. Why have
• 2:08:43
  Speaker 2: you left me all this time without a sign?
• 2:08:46
  Speaker 8: I've had an awful lot to do.
• 2:08:48
  Speaker 2: You haven't had so much to do that you couldn't
• 2:08:50
  Speaker 2: spare a few minutes to write me.
• 2:08:53
  Speaker 8: There didn't seem to be any object in taking useless risks.
• 2:08:57
  Speaker 8: If we don't want to bust up, we must take
• 2:08:59
  Speaker 8: certain elementary for cautions. We've been very lucky so far.
• 2:09:03
  Speaker 8: It would be silly to make a mess of things now.
• 2:09:06
  Speaker 2: Don't treat me like a perfect fool.
• 2:09:09
  Speaker 8: I say, Leslie, Darling, if you send for me just
• 2:09:11
  Speaker 8: to make a scene, I'm going to take myself off.
• 2:09:14
  Speaker 8: I'm sick of these eternal rows A scene.
• 2:09:18
  Speaker 2: Don't you know how I love you?
• 2:09:21
  Speaker 8: Well, Darling, you've got a damn funny way of showing it.
• 2:09:24
  Speaker 2: You drive me to desperation.
• 2:09:28
  Speaker 1: He looks at her for a moment reflectively, then, with
• 2:09:31
  Speaker 1: his hands in his pockets, goes up to her with deliberation.
• 2:09:37
  Speaker 8: Leslie, I wonder if you've noticed that we hardly ever
• 2:09:40
  Speaker 8: meet now without having a row.
• 2:09:42
  Speaker 2: Is it my fault?
• 2:09:44
  Speaker 8: I don't say that, I dare say it's mine. But
• 2:09:47
  Speaker 8: when that happens with two people who are on the
• 2:09:49
  Speaker 8: sort of terms that we are. It looks very much
• 2:09:52
  Speaker 8: as though things were wearing a bit thin.
• 2:09:55
  Speaker 2: What do you mean by that?
• 2:09:57
  Speaker 8: Well, when that happens, I'm not sure if what's a
• 2:10:00
  Speaker 8: common sense thing is not to say we've had a
• 2:10:03
  Speaker 8: ripping time. But all good things must come to an end,
• 2:10:06
  Speaker 8: and the best thing we can do is to make
• 2:10:07
  Speaker 8: a break while we've still got the chance of keeping friends. Jeff,
• 2:10:13
  Speaker 8: I'm all for facing facts facts.
• 2:10:16
  Speaker 2: What is that China woman doing in your house?
• 2:10:20
  Speaker 6: My dear?
• 2:10:20
  Speaker 8: What are you talking about?
• 2:10:22
  Speaker 2: Do you think I don't know that you've been living
• 2:10:24
  Speaker 2: with a China woman for months?
• 2:10:27
  Speaker 8: Nonsense?
• 2:10:28
  Speaker 2: What sort of a fool do you take me for? Why?
• 2:10:32
  Speaker 2: It's the common gossip of the compong.
• 2:10:35
  Speaker 1: Hammond with a shrug of the shoulders.
• 2:10:38
  Speaker 8: My dear, If you're going to listen to the gossip
• 2:10:41
  Speaker 8: of the natives.
• 2:10:42
  Speaker 2: Then what is she doing in your bungalow?
• 2:10:44
  Speaker 8: I didn't know there was a China woman about. I
• 2:10:47
  Speaker 8: don't bother much about what goes out in my servants
• 2:10:50
  Speaker 8: quarters as long as they do their work properly.
• 2:10:52
  Speaker 2: What does that mean?
• 2:10:54
  Speaker 8: Well, I shouldn't be surprised if one of the boys
• 2:10:56
  Speaker 8: I'd got a girl there what do I care? As
• 2:10:59
  Speaker 8: long as she keeps out of my way.
• 2:11:01
  Speaker 2: I've seen her.
• 2:11:03
  Speaker 3: What is she like?
• 2:11:04
  Speaker 2: Old and fat?
• 2:11:06
  Speaker 8: You're not paying me a very pretty compliment. My head
• 2:11:09
  Speaker 8: boy's old and fat too.
• 2:11:11
  Speaker 2: Your head boy isn't going to dress a woman in
• 2:11:13
  Speaker 2: silk at five dollars a yard. She had a couple
• 2:11:17
  Speaker 2: of hundred pounds worth of jewelry on her.
• 2:11:19
  Speaker 8: It sounds as though she were of a thrifty disposition.
• 2:11:23
  Speaker 8: Perhaps she thinks that the best way to invest her savings.
• 2:11:26
  Speaker 2: Will you swear she's not your mistress? Certainly on your honor.
• 2:11:32
  Speaker 8: On my honor. It's a lie, all right, then it's
• 2:11:36
  Speaker 8: a lie. But in that case, why won't you let
• 2:11:38
  Speaker 8: me go?
• 2:11:39
  Speaker 2: Because, in spite of everything, I love you with all
• 2:11:43
  Speaker 2: my heart. I can't let you go now. You're all
• 2:11:46
  Speaker 2: I have in the world. If you have no love
• 2:11:49
  Speaker 2: for me, have pity on me. Without you, I'm lost. Oh, Jeff,
• 2:11:55
  Speaker 2: I love you. No one will ever love you as
• 2:11:59
  Speaker 2: I've loved you. I know that often I've been beastly
• 2:12:02
  Speaker 2: to you and horrible, but I've been so unhappy, my dear.
• 2:12:08
  Speaker 8: I don't want to make you unhappy, but it's no
• 2:12:10
  Speaker 8: good beating about the bush. The thing's over and done with.
• 2:12:13
  Speaker 8: You must let me go, now, you really must.
• 2:12:17
  Speaker 2: Oh, No, Jeff, you don't mean that.
• 2:12:20
  Speaker 8: You can't mean that, Leslie dear, I'm terribly sorry. But
• 2:12:25
  Speaker 8: the facts are there, and you've got to face them.
• 2:12:27
  Speaker 8: This is the end, and you've got to make the
• 2:12:29
  Speaker 8: best of it. I've made up my mind. I'm there.
• 2:12:32
  Speaker 2: It is how cruel, how monstrously cruel. You wouldn't treat
• 2:12:39
  Speaker 2: a dog as you're treating me.
• 2:12:41
  Speaker 8: Is it my fault if I don't love you? Damn it?
• 2:12:44
  Speaker 8: All one either loves or one doesn't.
• 2:12:46
  Speaker 2: Oh, you're of stone. I do anything in the world
• 2:12:50
  Speaker 2: for you, and you won't give me a chance.
• 2:12:53
  Speaker 8: Oh my god, why can't you be reasonable? I tell
• 2:12:57
  Speaker 8: you I'm sick and tired of the whole thing. Do
• 2:13:00
  Speaker 8: you want me to tell you, in so many words
• 2:13:02
  Speaker 8: that you mean nothing to me? Don't you know that?
• 2:13:05
  Speaker 8: Haven't you felt it? You must be blind?
• 2:13:09
  Speaker 2: Yes, I've known it only too well, and I felt it.
• 2:13:13
  Speaker 2: I didn't care. It's not love anymore that seethes in
• 2:13:17
  Speaker 2: my heart. It's madness. It's torture to see you, but
• 2:13:22
  Speaker 2: it's torture ten times worse not to see you. If
• 2:13:26
  Speaker 2: you leave me now, I'll kill myself.
• 2:13:30
  Speaker 1: She picks up the revolver that is lying on the table.
• 2:13:34
  Speaker 2: I swear to God, I'll kill myself.
• 2:13:37
  Speaker 8: Oh, don't talk such damned rot.
• 2:13:40
  Speaker 2: Don't you think I mean it? Don't you think I
• 2:13:42
  Speaker 2: have the courage.
• 2:13:44
  Speaker 8: I have no patience with you. You're enough to drive
• 2:13:47
  Speaker 8: anyone out of his senses. If you'd got sick of me,
• 2:13:51
  Speaker 8: would you have hesitated to send me about my business?
• 2:13:54
  Speaker 8: Not for a minute. Do you think I don't know women?
• 2:13:58
  Speaker 2: You've ruined my life, and now you're tired of me.
• 2:14:02
  Speaker 2: You want to cast me aside like a worn out coat.
• 2:14:06
  Speaker 4: No, no, no.
• 2:14:08
  Speaker 8: You can do what you like and say what you like,
• 2:14:10
  Speaker 8: but I tell you it's finished.
• 2:14:12
  Speaker 2: I'll never let you go. Never. Never.
• 2:14:17
  Speaker 1: She flings her arms round his neck, but he releases
• 2:14:21
  Speaker 1: himself roughly. The touch of her exasperates him.
• 2:14:26
  Speaker 8: I'm fed up, fed up, I'm sick of the sight
• 2:14:29
  Speaker 8: of you.
• 2:14:30
  Speaker 3: No, no, no.
• 2:14:32
  Speaker 8: If you want the truth, you must have it. Yes,
• 2:14:35
  Speaker 8: the China woman is my mistress, and I don't care
• 2:14:38
  Speaker 8: who knows it. If you ask me to choose between
• 2:14:40
  Speaker 8: you and her, I choose her every time, and now
• 2:14:44
  Speaker 8: for God's sake, leave me alone, you cur.
• 2:14:49
  Speaker 1: She seizes the revolver and fires at him. He staggers
• 2:14:54
  Speaker 1: and falls. The lights go out, and the stage is
• 2:14:58
  Speaker 1: once more in darkness.
• 2:15:00
  Speaker 2: I ran after him and fired again. He fell, and
• 2:15:05
  Speaker 2: then I stood over him, and I fired and fired
• 2:15:08
  Speaker 2: till there were no more cartridges.
• 2:15:11
  Speaker 1: The lights go up. Crosbie enjoys her listening to Leslie's story.
• 2:15:16
  Speaker 1: She is dressed as at the beginning of the scene.
• 2:15:20
  Speaker 3: Have I deserved this of you? Leslie? No, I have no.
• 2:15:24
  Speaker 2: Excuses to offer for myself. I betrayed you.
• 2:15:29
  Speaker 3: What do you want to do? Now?
• 2:15:32
  Speaker 2: It is for you to say?
• 2:15:35
  Speaker 3: How could you? Leslie? The awful part is that, notwithstanding everything,
• 2:15:41
  Speaker 3: I love you still. Oh God, how you must despise me.
• 2:15:47
  Speaker 3: I despise myself.
• 2:15:49
  Speaker 1: Leslie shakes her head slowly.
• 2:15:52
  Speaker 2: I don't know what I've done to deserve your love.
• 2:15:56
  Speaker 2: Oh if only I could blame anybody but myself. I can't.
• 2:16:01
  Speaker 2: I deserve everything I have to suffer. Oh, Robert, my dear.
• 2:16:06
  Speaker 1: He turns aside and buries his head in his hands.
• 2:16:10
  Speaker 3: Oh what shall I do? It's all gone, all gone,
• 2:16:16
  Speaker 3: o o oh.
• 2:16:19
  Speaker 1: He begins to sob with the great, painful, difficult sobs
• 2:16:23
  Speaker 1: of a man unused to tears. She sinks on her
• 2:16:27
  Speaker 1: knees beside him.
• 2:16:29
  Speaker 2: Oh, don't cry, my dear, my dear.
• 2:16:34
  Speaker 1: He springs up and pushes her on one side.
• 2:16:38
  Speaker 3: I'm a fool. There's no need for me to make
• 2:16:41
  Speaker 3: an exhibition of myself. I'm sorry.
• 2:16:46
  Speaker 1: He goes hastily out of the room. Leslie rises to
• 2:16:50
  Speaker 1: her feet.
• 2:16:52
  Speaker 3: No, and don't go to him. Give him a moment
• 2:16:55
  Speaker 3: to get hold of himself.
• 2:16:57
  Speaker 2: I am so dreadfully sorry for him.
• 2:17:00
  Speaker 4: He's going to forgive you. He can't do without you.
• 2:17:04
  Speaker 2: If he'd only give me another chance.
• 2:17:07
  Speaker 3: Don't you love him at all?
• 2:17:09
  Speaker 2: No, I wish to God I did.
• 2:17:13
  Speaker 4: Then what's to be done.
• 2:17:15
  Speaker 2: I swear to you that I'll do everything in the
• 2:17:17
  Speaker 2: world to make him happy. I'll make amends. I'll oblige
• 2:17:21
  Speaker 2: him to forget. He shall never know that I don't
• 2:17:25
  Speaker 2: love him as he wants to be loved.
• 2:17:28
  Speaker 4: It's not easy to live with a man you don't love.
• 2:17:31
  Speaker 4: But you've had the courage and the strength to do evil.
• 2:17:34
  Speaker 4: Perhaps you will have the courage and the strength to
• 2:17:37
  Speaker 4: do good. That will be your retribution.
• 2:17:43
  Speaker 2: No, that won't be my retribution. I can do that,
• 2:17:47
  Speaker 2: and do it gladly. He's so kind and good. My
• 2:17:53
  Speaker 2: retribution is greater with all my heart. I still love
• 2:17:58
  Speaker 2: the man I killed.
• 2:18:00
  Speaker 1: And of Act three, as premiered in London, and of
• 2:18:06
  Speaker 1: The Letter A Play in three Acts by W. Somerset
• 2:18:11
  Speaker 1: mom Act three of the Letter A Play in three Acts,
• 2:18:22
  Speaker 1: as opened on Broadway. This is a LibriVox recording. All
• 2:18:28
  Speaker 1: LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information
• 2:18:33
  Speaker 1: or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. The Letter
• 2:18:38
  Speaker 1: A Play in three Acts by W. Somerset m Act three,
• 2:18:44
  Speaker 1: Scene one. The scene is a small room in the
• 2:18:48
  Speaker 1: Chinese quarter of Singapore. The walls are whitewashed, but dirty
• 2:18:53
  Speaker 1: and bedraggled. On one of them hangs a cheap Chinese
• 2:18:57
  Speaker 1: oleograph stained in discot On another, unframed and pinned up,
• 2:19:03
  Speaker 1: a picture of a nude from one of the illustrated papers.
• 2:19:07
  Speaker 1: The only furniture consists of a sandalwood box in a
• 2:19:10
  Speaker 1: low Chinese palate bed with a lacquered neck rest. There
• 2:19:15
  Speaker 1: is a closed window which is at the back, and
• 2:19:19
  Speaker 1: a door on the right. It is night and the
• 2:19:21
  Speaker 1: room is lit by one electric light. A globe without
• 2:19:26
  Speaker 1: a shade. When the curtain rises, Chunghi is lying in
• 2:19:30
  Speaker 1: the palate bed with his opium pipe, his lamp and
• 2:19:34
  Speaker 1: the tray, on which are the little tin of opium
• 2:19:37
  Speaker 1: and a couple of long needles. He is reading a
• 2:19:41
  Speaker 1: Chinese paper. He is a fat chinaman and white trousers
• 2:19:45
  Speaker 1: and a singlet. On his feet are Chinese slippers. A
• 2:19:50
  Speaker 1: boy dressed in the same way is seated on the
• 2:19:53
  Speaker 1: sandal wood chest idly playing a Chinese flute. He plays
• 2:19:58
  Speaker 1: a strange Chinese tune chung. He dips his needle in
• 2:20:03
  Speaker 1: the opium and heats it over the flame of the lamp,
• 2:20:06
  Speaker 1: puts it in the pipe inhales, and presently blows out
• 2:20:09
  Speaker 1: a thick cloud of smoke. There is a scratching at
• 2:20:13
  Speaker 1: the door. Chunghi speaks a few words in Chinese, and
• 2:20:18
  Speaker 1: the boy goes to it and just opens it. The
• 2:20:22
  Speaker 1: boy speaks to the person there, and still from the door,
• 2:20:26
  Speaker 1: says something to Chunghi. Chunghi makes answer and gets up
• 2:20:31
  Speaker 1: from the palate bed, putting his opium things aside. The
• 2:20:36
  Speaker 1: door is opened wider, and Ong Chi Sang.
• 2:20:39
  Speaker 5: Comes in this way. Sarah, please come in.
• 2:20:44
  Speaker 1: Joyce enters wearing his toppy finally broke my neck on
• 2:20:48
  Speaker 1: those stairs.
• 2:20:50
  Speaker 5: This is my friend, sir.
• 2:20:53
  Speaker 4: Does he speak English?
• 2:20:55
  Speaker 3: Ah?
• 2:20:55
  Speaker 9: Yes, why speak a fairy cooor ha ha to you too, sir,
• 2:21:02
  Speaker 9: I are a hope you are quite well. Peeze to
• 2:21:08
  Speaker 9: come in good evening?
• 2:21:11
  Speaker 4: I say, the errand here is awful. Couldn't we have
• 2:21:14
  Speaker 4: the window open?
• 2:21:15
  Speaker 9: My dear fairy bad sir, hum a boyang thief air.
• 2:21:21
  Speaker 5: We'll risk it, very good, Sir, I will open the window.
• 2:21:26
  Speaker 1: He goes to it and does so, Joyce, taking off
• 2:21:30
  Speaker 1: his topee and putting it down.
• 2:21:33
  Speaker 3: I see you've been smoking.
• 2:21:36
  Speaker 9: Yes, my chaffer fairly bat far my bowie smoky do
• 2:21:44
  Speaker 9: folly pipers nick hit moa bed hair.
• 2:21:49
  Speaker 3: We'd better get to our business.
• 2:21:52
  Speaker 5: Yes, sir, business is business, as we say.
• 2:21:56
  Speaker 4: What is your friend's name on my gowe?
• 2:22:00
  Speaker 9: Oh shame shugar Ti you'd no shee him white'n on
• 2:22:06
  Speaker 9: chop shugre ti genawalatia.
• 2:22:11
  Speaker 4: I suppose you know what I've come for?
• 2:22:14
  Speaker 9: A yes, sure, my fairy plan to see you in
• 2:22:18
  Speaker 9: all my house? My if you're my business card, I.
• 2:22:23
  Speaker 4: Yes, I don't think I need it?
• 2:22:27
  Speaker 9: I shall you fairy cool chinadi all shames o chang
• 2:22:33
  Speaker 9: number one quiet tea, MI can show more cheap than
• 2:22:38
  Speaker 9: you buy that shut do us.
• 2:22:41
  Speaker 3: I don't want any tea.
• 2:22:43
  Speaker 9: My show h zadayoshuka very bascola tea. Now come yet
• 2:22:50
  Speaker 9: more bad hair in dinah make fairy kod a zoots
• 2:22:55
  Speaker 9: I show you jeeper.
• 2:22:57
  Speaker 3: I don't want any silk very well.
• 2:23:01
  Speaker 9: You're taking him my business carter shumaki janawala tioa do
• 2:23:08
  Speaker 9: chik sap foua wick kawihas to ita mahapi you wan
• 2:23:13
  Speaker 9: sam de marwa an stay have you got this letter?
• 2:23:18
  Speaker 9: Shiny suman half a cut?
• 2:23:21
  Speaker 3: Where is she chie?
• 2:23:23
  Speaker 1: Come pleasantly?
• 2:23:25
  Speaker 4: Why the devil isn't she here?
• 2:23:27
  Speaker 9: Ye hear oh neida she come pleasant way? Gee way
• 2:23:32
  Speaker 9: do you come?
• 2:23:34
  Speaker 5: She more better? You tell her to come?
• 2:23:37
  Speaker 9: I think ayes I tell her comey samnata.
• 2:23:42
  Speaker 1: He speaks to the boy in Chinese, who gives a
• 2:23:45
  Speaker 1: guttural monosyllabic reply and goes out to joyce music. I yes,
• 2:23:53
  Speaker 1: I prefer to stand Chunghi, handing him a green tin
• 2:23:57
  Speaker 1: of cigarettes.
• 2:23:59
  Speaker 9: USh monki she go up fairy cood, she go at,
• 2:24:04
  Speaker 9: Oh shame for we are shows. I don't want to
• 2:24:08
  Speaker 9: smoke CHUNGHI to Joyce you one she bite China did
• 2:24:14
  Speaker 9: fairly cheap numb awan kwahadi and get a hell oh wa,
• 2:24:21
  Speaker 9: I ain't no shot bee may be you wait ye shwa,
• 2:24:26
  Speaker 9: I'll shoot no you one shi kii je half caught
• 2:24:31
  Speaker 9: stewing number one Paladi, I show you one thousand dollars
• 2:24:37
  Speaker 9: fairly nice, a pleasant you are a nissas get a
• 2:24:41
  Speaker 9: hell oh whiter my shmuki.
• 2:24:46
  Speaker 1: She go at. The door is opened, and the boy
• 2:24:49
  Speaker 1: comes in again with a tray on which are bowls
• 2:24:52
  Speaker 1: of tea. He takes it to Joyce, who shakes his
• 2:24:56
  Speaker 1: head and turns away. The others help themselves.
• 2:25:01
  Speaker 3: Why the devil doesn't this woman come?
• 2:25:03
  Speaker 5: I think she come now sah.
• 2:25:06
  Speaker 1: There is a scratching at the door, and curious.
• 2:25:09
  Speaker 3: To see her.
• 2:25:10
  Speaker 5: My fland say that Paul mister Hammond deceased was completely
• 2:25:16
  Speaker 5: under her thumb.
• 2:25:17
  Speaker 9: Sa janoshbeki eng wish cheek spiki may away antra Chinese.
• 2:25:25
  Speaker 1: Meanwhile, the boy has gone to the door and opened it.
• 2:25:29
  Speaker 1: The Chinese woman comes in. She wears a silk sarong
• 2:25:33
  Speaker 1: in a long muslin coat over a blouse. On her
• 2:25:37
  Speaker 1: arms are heavy gold bangles. She wears a gold chain
• 2:25:41
  Speaker 1: round her neck and gold pins in her shining black hair.
• 2:25:46
  Speaker 1: Her cheeks and mouth are painted, and she is heavily powdered.
• 2:25:51
  Speaker 1: Arched eyebrows make a thin dark line over her eyes.
• 2:25:56
  Speaker 1: She comes in and walks slowly to the pallet bed
• 2:25:58
  Speaker 1: and sits on the edge with her legs dangling. Om
• 2:26:02
  Speaker 1: Chi Sang makes an observation to her in Chinese, and
• 2:26:07
  Speaker 1: she briefly answers. She takes no notice of the white man.
• 2:26:12
  Speaker 3: Has she got the letter?
• 2:26:14
  Speaker 5: Yes, Sal, where is it? She's a very ignorant woman, Sal,
• 2:26:21
  Speaker 5: I think she wants to see the money before she
• 2:26:24
  Speaker 5: gives the letter.
• 2:26:26
  Speaker 3: Very well.
• 2:26:28
  Speaker 1: The Chinese woman takes a cigarette from the tin and
• 2:26:31
  Speaker 1: lights it. She appears to take no notice of what
• 2:26:35
  Speaker 1: is proceeding. Joyce counts out the ten thousand dollars and
• 2:26:39
  Speaker 1: hands them to Ang Chi Seng. Am Chi Sang counts
• 2:26:43
  Speaker 1: them for himself, while Chunghi watches in. They are all grave,
• 2:26:49
  Speaker 1: business like, and the Chinese are oddly unconcerned.
• 2:26:54
  Speaker 5: The sum is quite collect sir.
• 2:26:57
  Speaker 1: The Chinese woman takes the letter from her two and
• 2:27:00
  Speaker 1: hands it to Amchi seen om chi Seng gives it
• 2:27:04
  Speaker 1: a glance.
• 2:27:05
  Speaker 5: This is the light document, Sal.
• 2:27:08
  Speaker 1: He hands it to Joyce, who reads it silently.
• 2:27:12
  Speaker 4: Is not very much for the money.
• 2:27:14
  Speaker 5: I am sure that you will not regret it, Sal,
• 2:27:18
  Speaker 5: considering all the circumstances. It is what you call dert cheap.
• 2:27:24
  Speaker 4: I know that you have too great a regard for
• 2:27:27
  Speaker 4: me to allow me to pay more for an article
• 2:27:29
  Speaker 4: on the market price.
• 2:27:32
  Speaker 5: Shall you want me for anything else to night, please, cell,
• 2:27:36
  Speaker 5: I don't think, sir. In that case, Sir, if it
• 2:27:40
  Speaker 5: is convenient, I will stay here and talk to my friend.
• 2:27:45
  Speaker 4: I suppose you want to divide the swag.
• 2:27:48
  Speaker 5: I am sally, Sir that that is a word. I
• 2:27:51
  Speaker 5: have not come a class in my studies.
• 2:27:54
  Speaker 4: You'd better look it out in the dictionary.
• 2:27:58
  Speaker 5: Yes, Sir, I will do it without delay.
• 2:28:01
  Speaker 4: I have been wondering how much you were going to
• 2:28:03
  Speaker 4: get out of this on she saying.
• 2:28:06
  Speaker 5: The laborer is worthy of his hire, as our lord said, Sal.
• 2:28:12
  Speaker 4: I didn't know you were a Christian, Ong.
• 2:28:15
  Speaker 5: I am not, Sal, to the best of my belief.
• 2:28:20
  Speaker 4: In that case, he certainly isn't your lord.
• 2:28:24
  Speaker 5: I was only making use of the common English idiom
• 2:28:28
  Speaker 5: cel In point of fact, I am a disciple of
• 2:28:31
  Speaker 5: the late Helbert Spenzel. I have also been much influenced
• 2:28:37
  Speaker 5: by Nietzsche, Shaw and Helbert G. Wells.
• 2:28:42
  Speaker 4: It is no wonder that I am no match for you.
• 2:28:46
  Speaker 1: As he goes out, the curtain falls quickly. Scene two.
• 2:28:53
  Speaker 1: The scene is the same as in Act one, the
• 2:28:56
  Speaker 1: sitting room at the Crosbiees Bundlone. It is about five
• 2:29:00
  Speaker 1: o'clock in the afternoon and the light is soft and mellow.
• 2:29:05
  Speaker 1: When the curtain rises, the stage is empty, but immediately
• 2:29:09
  Speaker 1: the sound is heard of a car stopping, and Missus
• 2:29:12
  Speaker 1: Joyce and Withers come up the steps of the verandah
• 2:29:16
  Speaker 1: and enter the room. They are followed in an instant
• 2:29:20
  Speaker 1: by the head boy and another Chinese servant, one with
• 2:29:24
  Speaker 1: a suit case and the other with a large basket.
• 2:29:28
  Speaker 1: Missus Joyce is a buxom, florid, handsome woman of about forty.
• 2:29:34
  Speaker 7: Good, gracious, how desolate the place looks. You can see
• 2:29:39
  Speaker 7: in the twinkling of an eye that there hasn't been
• 2:29:41
  Speaker 7: a woman here to look after things.
• 2:29:44
  Speaker 6: I must say it does look a bit dreary.
• 2:29:47
  Speaker 7: I knew it, I felt it in my bones. That's
• 2:29:51
  Speaker 7: why I wanted to get here before Leslie. I thought
• 2:29:54
  Speaker 7: we might have a chance to do a little something
• 2:29:57
  Speaker 7: before she came.
• 2:29:59
  Speaker 1: She goes over it to the piano, opens it and
• 2:30:02
  Speaker 1: puts a piece of music on the stand.
• 2:30:05
  Speaker 6: A few flowers would help.
• 2:30:07
  Speaker 7: I wonder if these wretched boys will have had the
• 2:30:10
  Speaker 7: sense to pick some.
• 2:30:12
  Speaker 1: To the head boy who bears the basket.
• 2:30:15
  Speaker 7: Is the ice? All right?
• 2:30:16
  Speaker 9: Boy?
• 2:30:17
  Speaker 3: Yes?
• 2:30:18
  Speaker 1: Missy, Well put.
• 2:30:20
  Speaker 7: It in some place where it won't melt. Are there
• 2:30:23
  Speaker 7: any flowers?
• 2:30:25
  Speaker 1: My let you see? Missus joyce to the other boy.
• 2:30:30
  Speaker 7: Oh, that's my back. Put it in the spare room.
• 2:30:34
  Speaker 1: The two servants go out.
• 2:30:37
  Speaker 6: You know, I can't help wondering how Missus Crosbie can
• 2:30:41
  Speaker 6: bring herself to come back here.
• 2:30:44
  Speaker 7: My poor friend. The Crosbies haven't got half a dozen
• 2:30:48
  Speaker 7: houses to choose from. When you've only one house, I
• 2:30:52
  Speaker 7: suppose you've got to live in it, no matter what's.
• 2:30:54
  Speaker 1: Happened at all events.
• 2:30:57
  Speaker 6: I should have liked to wait a bit.
• 2:30:59
  Speaker 7: I wanted her to. I'd made all my plans for
• 2:31:02
  Speaker 7: them both to come back to my house after the trial.
• 2:31:06
  Speaker 7: I wanted them to stay with me till they were
• 2:31:08
  Speaker 7: able to get away for a holiday.
• 2:31:11
  Speaker 6: I should have thought that much the most sensible thing.
• 2:31:14
  Speaker 7: To do, but they wouldn't. Bob said he couldn't leave
• 2:31:18
  Speaker 7: the estate, and Leslie said she couldn't leave Bob. So
• 2:31:21
  Speaker 7: then I said Howard and I would come down here.
• 2:31:24
  Speaker 7: I thought it would be easier for them if they
• 2:31:26
  Speaker 7: had someone with them for a day or.
• 2:31:28
  Speaker 1: Two, Withers with a smile.
• 2:31:31
  Speaker 6: And I think you were determined not to be robbed
• 2:31:34
  Speaker 6: of your celebration.
• 2:31:37
  Speaker 7: You don't know my million dollar cocktails, do you. They're
• 2:31:41
  Speaker 7: celebrated all through the FMS. When Leslie was arrested, I
• 2:31:45
  Speaker 7: made a solemn vow that I wouldn't make another until
• 2:31:48
  Speaker 7: she was acquitted. I've been waiting for this day, and
• 2:31:51
  Speaker 7: no one is going to deprive me of my treat.
• 2:31:55
  Speaker 6: And the ice I suppose, hence the ice wise young man.
• 2:31:59
  Speaker 7: As soon as the others come, I'll start making.
• 2:32:02
  Speaker 6: Them with your own hands, with my own hands.
• 2:32:06
  Speaker 7: I don't mind telling you. I never knew anyone who
• 2:32:09
  Speaker 7: could make a better cocktail than I can.
• 2:32:12
  Speaker 1: Withers with a grin.
• 2:32:14
  Speaker 6: We all think the cocktails we make ourselves better than
• 2:32:17
  Speaker 6: anybody else's.
• 2:32:18
  Speaker 7: You know, yes, but you're all lamentably mistaken.
• 2:32:22
  Speaker 6: And I happen to be right the way the providence
• 2:32:26
  Speaker 6: are dark.
• 2:32:28
  Speaker 1: The two boys come in with balls of flowers. They
• 2:32:31
  Speaker 1: placed them here and there so that the room looks
• 2:32:35
  Speaker 1: exactly as it did during the first act.
• 2:32:38
  Speaker 7: Oh good, that makes the room look much more habitable.
• 2:32:42
  Speaker 6: They ought to be here in a minute.
• 2:32:44
  Speaker 7: We went very fast, you know, and I dare say
• 2:32:47
  Speaker 7: a good many people wanted to say a word or
• 2:32:49
  Speaker 7: two to Leslie. I don't suppose they were able to
• 2:32:52
  Speaker 7: get away as quickly as they expected.
• 2:32:55
  Speaker 1: The boys go out.
• 2:32:57
  Speaker 6: Oh wait till they come, shall I.
• 2:33:00
  Speaker 7: Of course you must wait.
• 2:33:02
  Speaker 6: I thought the Attorney General was very decent.
• 2:33:05
  Speaker 7: I knew he would be. I know his wife, you know,
• 2:33:08
  Speaker 7: she said she thought Leslie should never be tried at all.
• 2:33:12
  Speaker 7: But of course min are so funny.
• 2:33:15
  Speaker 6: I shall never forget the shout that went up when
• 2:33:17
  Speaker 6: the jury came in and said not guilty.
• 2:33:21
  Speaker 7: It was thrilling, wasn't it. And Leslie absolutely impassive, sitting
• 2:33:25
  Speaker 7: there as though it had nothing to do with her.
• 2:33:28
  Speaker 6: I can't get over the way she gave her evidence.
• 2:33:31
  Speaker 6: By George, she's a marvel.
• 2:33:34
  Speaker 7: It was beautiful. I couldn't tell crying. It was so
• 2:33:39
  Speaker 7: modest and so restrained. Howard, who thinks me very hysterical
• 2:33:44
  Speaker 7: and impulsive, told me the other day he'd never known
• 2:33:48
  Speaker 7: a woman who had so much self control as Leslie.
• 2:33:51
  Speaker 7: And that's real praise, because I don't think he very
• 2:33:54
  Speaker 7: much likes her.
• 2:33:56
  Speaker 1: Why not?
• 2:33:57
  Speaker 7: Oh you know what men are? They know I ever
• 2:34:00
  Speaker 7: care very much for the women, their particular friends. Mary
• 2:34:04
  Speaker 7: the head.
• 2:34:04
  Speaker 1: Boy comes in with a pillow covered by a cloth.
• 2:34:08
  Speaker 6: Helloa, what's this, missy?
• 2:34:11
  Speaker 3: Pillow?
• 2:34:12
  Speaker 1: Lace? Missus Joyce going to it and taking the cloth off.
• 2:34:18
  Speaker 7: Oh did you bring that?
• 2:34:21
  Speaker 1: I thought maybe Missy launcht you. He puts it down
• 2:34:25
  Speaker 1: on the table on which it stood in the first act.
• 2:34:28
  Speaker 7: I'm sure she will. That was very thoughtful of you, boy.
• 2:34:32
  Speaker 1: To withers as the boy goes out.
• 2:34:35
  Speaker 7: You know, sometimes you could kill these Johnny's boys, and
• 2:34:39
  Speaker 7: then all of a sudden they'll do things that are
• 2:34:41
  Speaker 7: so kind and so considerate that you forgive them everything.
• 2:34:45
  Speaker 1: Withers, looking at the lease.
• 2:34:48
  Speaker 6: Hi, George, it is beautiful, isn't it. You know, it's
• 2:34:53
  Speaker 6: just the sort of thing you'd expect her to do.
• 2:34:56
  Speaker 7: Mister Witners, I want to ask you something rather horrible.
• 2:35:01
  Speaker 7: When you came that night, where exactly was Jeff Hammond's
• 2:35:05
  Speaker 7: body lying.
• 2:35:06
  Speaker 6: Out on the verandah, just under that lamp. By god,
• 2:35:11
  Speaker 6: it gave me a turn when I ran up the
• 2:35:12
  Speaker 6: steps and nearly fell over him.
• 2:35:15
  Speaker 7: Has it occurred to you that every time Leslie comes
• 2:35:18
  Speaker 7: into the house she'll have to step over the place
• 2:35:21
  Speaker 7: where the body lay. It's rather grim.
• 2:35:24
  Speaker 6: Perhaps it won't strike her.
• 2:35:27
  Speaker 7: Fortunately she's not the sort of hysterical for that. I am,
• 2:35:30
  Speaker 7: but I, oh dear, I could never sleep again.
• 2:35:34
  Speaker 1: There is the sound of a car driving up.
• 2:35:38
  Speaker 6: There they are They haven't been so long after.
• 2:35:42
  Speaker 1: All, missus Joyce going over to the verba.
• 2:35:47
  Speaker 7: No, they must have started within ten minutes of us. Leslie. Leslie.
• 2:35:53
  Speaker 1: Leslie comes in, followed by Crosbie and Joyce. Crosbie is
• 2:35:58
  Speaker 1: wearing a neat suit of ducks. Leslie wears a silk
• 2:36:01
  Speaker 1: wrapp in the hat.
• 2:36:03
  Speaker 2: You haven't been here long, have you, missus?
• 2:36:07
  Speaker 1: Joyce taking her in her arms.
• 2:36:10
  Speaker 7: Welcome, Welcome back to your.
• 2:36:12
  Speaker 1: Home, Leslie, releasing herself. Darling, she looks round.
• 2:36:20
  Speaker 2: How nice and cozy it looks. I can hardly realize
• 2:36:24
  Speaker 2: that I've ever been away.
• 2:36:26
  Speaker 7: Are you tired? Would you like to go and lie down?
• 2:36:30
  Speaker 2: Tired? Why I've been doing nothing but rest for the
• 2:36:33
  Speaker 2: last six weeks.
• 2:36:35
  Speaker 7: Oh, Bob, aren't you happy to have her back again?
• 2:36:39
  Speaker 4: Now, Dorothy, don't gush. If you must gush, gush over me.
• 2:36:44
  Speaker 7: I'm not going to gush over you, you old brute.
• 2:36:47
  Speaker 7: What have you done?
• 2:36:49
  Speaker 1: Leslie holding out her hand to him with a charming smile.
• 2:36:54
  Speaker 2: He's done everything. I can never thank him enough. You
• 2:36:58
  Speaker 2: don't know what he's been to me through all this
• 2:37:00
  Speaker 2: dreary time of waiting.
• 2:37:03
  Speaker 7: I don't mind confessing that I thought you made rather
• 2:37:05
  Speaker 7: a good speech, Howard.
• 2:37:08
  Speaker 3: Thank you for those kind words.
• 2:37:10
  Speaker 7: I think perhaps you might have been a little more
• 2:37:13
  Speaker 7: impassion without hurting yourself.
• 2:37:15
  Speaker 6: I don't agree with you, missus Joyce. It's just because
• 2:37:19
  Speaker 6: it was so cold and measured in business like that,
• 2:37:23
  Speaker 6: it was so effective.
• 2:37:24
  Speaker 3: And let's have this drink you've been talking about, Dorothy.
• 2:37:28
  Speaker 7: Come and help me, mister Withers. When I make a cocktail,
• 2:37:31
  Speaker 7: I want a great many.
• 2:37:32
  Speaker 1: Assistants, Leslie taking off her hat.
• 2:37:37
  Speaker 2: I know what an elaborate business your million dollar cocktail is, Dorothy.
• 2:37:42
  Speaker 1: This is Joyce, as she goes out with Withers.
• 2:37:46
  Speaker 7: Don't be impatient. I can't Harriet, I must take my time.
• 2:37:51
  Speaker 2: I'll go and tidy myself up.
• 2:37:53
  Speaker 3: You don't need it. You look as if you'd just
• 2:37:55
  Speaker 3: come out of a bad box.
• 2:37:58
  Speaker 2: I shan't be a minute.
• 2:38:00
  Speaker 3: There's something I particularly want to say to you. I'll
• 2:38:03
  Speaker 3: make myself scarce. No, I want you, old man, I
• 2:38:07
  Speaker 3: want your legal opinion. Do you fire away? Well? Look here,
• 2:38:13
  Speaker 3: I want to get Leslie away from here as quickly
• 2:38:17
  Speaker 3: as possible.
• 2:38:18
  Speaker 4: I think a bit of a holiday would do you
• 2:38:20
  Speaker 4: both good.
• 2:38:21
  Speaker 2: Could you get away, Robert, even if it's only for
• 2:38:24
  Speaker 2: two or three weeks, I'd be thankful.
• 2:38:26
  Speaker 3: What's the use of two or three weeks? We must
• 2:38:30
  Speaker 3: get away for good?
• 2:38:31
  Speaker 2: But how can we You.
• 2:38:33
  Speaker 4: Can't very well throw up a job like this, never
• 2:38:37
  Speaker 4: get such a good one again.
• 2:38:38
  Speaker 3: You know that's where you're wrong. I've got something new
• 2:38:42
  Speaker 3: that's much better. We can neither of us live here.
• 2:38:46
  Speaker 3: It would be impossible. We've gone through too much in
• 2:38:49
  Speaker 3: this bungalow.
• 2:38:51
  Speaker 1: How can we ever forget Leslie? With a shudder?
• 2:38:56
  Speaker 9: No, don't, Bob, don't Cosby too choice.
• 2:39:01
  Speaker 3: You see, Heaven knows Neslie has nerves of iron. But
• 2:39:05
  Speaker 3: there's a limit to human endurance, you know how lonely.
• 2:39:09
  Speaker 3: The life is I should never have a moment's peace
• 2:39:12
  Speaker 3: when I was out and thought of her sitting in
• 2:39:15
  Speaker 3: this room by herself. It's out of the question.
• 2:39:18
  Speaker 2: Oh, don't think of me, Bob. You've made this estate.
• 2:39:22
  Speaker 2: It was nothing when you came here. Why it's like
• 2:39:25
  Speaker 2: your child. It's the apple of your eye.
• 2:39:29
  Speaker 3: I hate it now, I hate every tree on it.
• 2:39:32
  Speaker 3: I must get away, and so much you you don't
• 2:39:35
  Speaker 3: want to stay.
• 2:39:37
  Speaker 2: It's all been so miserable. I don't want to make
• 2:39:40
  Speaker 2: any more difficulties.
• 2:39:42
  Speaker 3: I know our only chance of peace is to get
• 2:39:45
  Speaker 3: someplace where we can forget.
• 2:39:48
  Speaker 4: But could you get another job?
• 2:39:51
  Speaker 3: Yes, that's just it. Something suddenly cropped up. That's why
• 2:39:55
  Speaker 3: I wanted to talk to you about it. It Once
• 2:39:59
  Speaker 3: it's in smart, we'd be right away from everybody and
• 2:40:03
  Speaker 3: the only people around us would be Dutch. We'd start
• 2:40:07
  Speaker 3: a new life with new friends. The only thing is
• 2:40:10
  Speaker 3: that you'd be awfully lonely, darling.
• 2:40:14
  Speaker 2: Oh, I wouldn't mind that. I'm used to loneliness. I'd
• 2:40:18
  Speaker 2: be glad to go, Robert, I don't want to stay here.
• 2:40:21
  Speaker 3: That settles it. Then I'll go straight ahead and we
• 2:40:24
  Speaker 3: can fix things up. At once.
• 2:40:27
  Speaker 4: Is the money as good as here?
• 2:40:29
  Speaker 3: I hope it will be better at all of it.
• 2:40:31
  Speaker 3: I shall be working for myself and not for a
• 2:40:34
  Speaker 3: rotten company in London. Joey Spiritled, what do you mean
• 2:40:38
  Speaker 3: by that you're not buying in the state, Yes, I am.
• 2:40:43
  Speaker 3: Why should I go on sweating my life out for
• 2:40:45
  Speaker 3: other people? It's a chance in a thousand. It belongs
• 2:40:49
  Speaker 3: to a Malacca chinaman who's in financial difficulties and is
• 2:40:53
  Speaker 3: willington let it go for thirty thousand dollars if we
• 2:40:56
  Speaker 3: can have the money the day after tomorrow.
• 2:41:00
  Speaker 4: But how are you're going to raise thirty thousand dollars?
• 2:41:03
  Speaker 3: Well, I've saved about ten thousand since I've been in
• 2:41:06
  Speaker 3: the East, and Sharley Meadows is willing to let me
• 2:41:08
  Speaker 3: have the balance on mortgage.
• 2:41:11
  Speaker 1: Leslie enjoys exchange a glance of consternation.
• 2:41:15
  Speaker 4: It seems rather rash to put all your eggs in
• 2:41:18
  Speaker 4: one basket.
• 2:41:20
  Speaker 2: I shouldn't like you to take such a risk on
• 2:41:22
  Speaker 2: my account. Robert, you needn't worry about me. Really, I
• 2:41:26
  Speaker 2: shall settle down here quite comfortably.
• 2:41:29
  Speaker 3: Don't talk nonsense, Darling. It's only a moment ago that
• 2:41:32
  Speaker 3: you said you'd give anything to clear out.
• 2:41:35
  Speaker 2: I spoke without thinking. I believe it would be a
• 2:41:39
  Speaker 2: mistake to run away. The sensible thing to do is
• 2:41:42
  Speaker 2: to sit tight. Everybody's been so kind. There's no reason
• 2:41:47
  Speaker 2: to suppose they're not going to continue. I'm sure all
• 2:41:50
  Speaker 2: our friends will do all they can to make things
• 2:41:53
  Speaker 2: easy for us.
• 2:41:54
  Speaker 3: You know, Dear, you mustn't be fined a little risk.
• 2:41:58
  Speaker 3: It's only if one takes risks that one can make
• 2:42:01
  Speaker 3: big money.
• 2:42:02
  Speaker 4: These Chinese estates are never any good. You know how
• 2:42:07
  Speaker 4: haphazard and careless the Chinese are.
• 2:42:10
  Speaker 3: This is not that sort of thing at all. It
• 2:42:12
  Speaker 3: belongs to a very progressive chinaman, and he's had a
• 2:42:15
  Speaker 3: European manager. It's not a leap in the dark. It's
• 2:42:19
  Speaker 3: a thoroughly sound proposition, and I reckon that in ten
• 2:42:23
  Speaker 3: years I can make enough money to allow us to retire,
• 2:42:26
  Speaker 3: and we'll set it down in England and live like lords.
• 2:42:31
  Speaker 2: Honestly, Robert, I'd prefer to stay here. I'm attached to
• 2:42:35
  Speaker 2: the place, and when I've had time to forget all
• 2:42:38
  Speaker 2: that has happened.
• 2:42:39
  Speaker 3: How could you forget anyhow?
• 2:42:42
  Speaker 4: It's not a thing that you must enter into without
• 2:42:44
  Speaker 4: due consideration. You'd naturally want to go over to Samatra
• 2:42:49
  Speaker 4: and look for yourself.
• 2:42:50
  Speaker 3: That's just it. I've got to make up my mind
• 2:42:53
  Speaker 3: at once. The offer only holds for thirty six hours.
• 2:42:58
  Speaker 4: But my dear fellow, you can't pay thirty thousand dollars
• 2:43:01
  Speaker 4: for an estate without proper investigation. None of you planters
• 2:43:05
  Speaker 4: are any too business like, but really there are limits.
• 2:43:10
  Speaker 3: Don't try to make me out of big a fool
• 2:43:13
  Speaker 3: than I am. I had it examined and it's worth
• 2:43:15
  Speaker 3: fifty thousand if it's worth a dollar. I got all
• 2:43:19
  Speaker 3: the papers in my office. I'm go and get them
• 2:43:22
  Speaker 3: and you can see for yourself. And I have a
• 2:43:24
  Speaker 3: couple of photographs of the bung below to show Leslie.
• 2:43:28
  Speaker 2: I don't want to see them.
• 2:43:30
  Speaker 3: Oh, come, darling, that's just nerves. That shows how necessary
• 2:43:34
  Speaker 3: it is for you to get away, Darling. In this case,
• 2:43:37
  Speaker 3: you must let me have my own way. I want
• 2:43:41
  Speaker 3: to go too. I can't stay here anymore.
• 2:43:44
  Speaker 2: Oh why are you so obstinate?
• 2:43:47
  Speaker 3: Come, come, dear, don't be unreasonable. Let me go and
• 2:43:51
  Speaker 3: get the papers. I shan't be a minute.
• 2:43:54
  Speaker 1: He goes out. There is a moment's silence. Leslie, look
• 2:43:58
  Speaker 1: said Joyce was terrified appeal. He makes a despairing gesture.
• 2:44:04
  Speaker 4: I had to pay ten thousand dollars for the letter.
• 2:44:07
  Speaker 2: What are you going to do?
• 2:44:09
  Speaker 1: Joyce miserably.
• 2:44:12
  Speaker 3: What can I do? Oh?
• 2:44:14
  Speaker 2: Don't tell him? Now, give me a little time. I'm
• 2:44:18
  Speaker 2: at the end of my strength. I can't bear anything more.
• 2:44:22
  Speaker 3: You heard what he said.
• 2:44:23
  Speaker 4: What's the money at once to buy this estate?
• 2:44:26
  Speaker 3: He can't. He hasn't got it.
• 2:44:30
  Speaker 2: Give me a little time.
• 2:44:33
  Speaker 4: I can't ford to give you a sum like that.
• 2:44:35
  Speaker 2: No, I don't expect you to. Perhaps I can get
• 2:44:39
  Speaker 2: it somehow, How you know it's impossible.
• 2:44:43
  Speaker 4: It's money I put by for the education of my boys.
• 2:44:46
  Speaker 4: I was glad to advances, and I wouldn't have minded
• 2:44:49
  Speaker 4: waiting a few weeks.
• 2:44:50
  Speaker 2: If you'd only give me a month, i'd have time
• 2:44:52
  Speaker 2: to think of something. I could prepare Robert and explain
• 2:44:56
  Speaker 2: to him by degrees, I'd watch for my opportunity.
• 2:45:00
  Speaker 4: If he buys this estate, the money will be gone. No, no, no,
• 2:45:05
  Speaker 4: I can't let him do that. I don't want to
• 2:45:07
  Speaker 4: be unkind to you, but I can't lose my money.
• 2:45:10
  Speaker 2: Where is the letter?
• 2:45:12
  Speaker 3: I haven't in my pocket? Oh?
• 2:45:15
  Speaker 2: What shall I do?
• 2:45:17
  Speaker 4: I'm dreadfully sorry for you.
• 2:45:19
  Speaker 2: Oh, don't be sorry for me. I don't matter. It's Robert.
• 2:45:24
  Speaker 2: It'll break his heart.
• 2:45:26
  Speaker 3: If there are only some other way, I don't know
• 2:45:29
  Speaker 3: what to do.
• 2:45:31
  Speaker 2: I suppose you're right. There's only one thing to do.
• 2:45:35
  Speaker 2: Tell him, Tell him and have done with it. I'm broken.
• 2:45:41
  Speaker 1: Crosbie comes in again, with a bundle of papers in
• 2:45:44
  Speaker 1: his hand and two large photographs.
• 2:45:47
  Speaker 3: Of course, if it hadn't been for Leslie, I should
• 2:45:49
  Speaker 3: have run over to Sumatra last week. I'd just like
• 2:45:52
  Speaker 3: you to have a look first at the report I've had.
• 2:45:55
  Speaker 4: Look here, Bob, has it struck you that your costs
• 2:45:59
  Speaker 4: over this affair will be pretty heavy?
• 2:46:01
  Speaker 3: I know all your wires or robbers. I dare say
• 2:46:04
  Speaker 3: this will leave me a little sort of ready money.
• 2:46:07
  Speaker 3: But I don't suppose you'd mind if I keep you
• 2:46:10
  Speaker 3: waiting till I've had time to settle down. You know
• 2:46:13
  Speaker 3: I can be trusted, and if you like, I'll pay
• 2:46:16
  Speaker 3: you interest.
• 2:46:17
  Speaker 4: I don't think you have any idea how large the
• 2:46:20
  Speaker 4: sum is. Of course we don't want to press you,
• 2:46:24
  Speaker 4: but we can't be out of our money indefinitely. I
• 2:46:27
  Speaker 4: think I should warn you that when you've settled with us,
• 2:46:31
  Speaker 4: you won't have much money left over to embark in
• 2:46:33
  Speaker 4: rather hazardous speculations.
• 2:46:36
  Speaker 3: You're putting the fear of God into me. How much
• 2:46:39
  Speaker 3: will the costs come to?
• 2:46:41
  Speaker 4: I'm not going to charge you anything for my personal services.
• 2:46:44
  Speaker 4: Whatever I've done has been done out of pure friendship.
• 2:46:48
  Speaker 4: But there are certain out of pocket expenses that I'm
• 2:46:50
  Speaker 4: afraid you must pay.
• 2:46:52
  Speaker 3: Of course, it's awfully good of you not to wish
• 2:46:55
  Speaker 3: to charge me for anything else. I hardly like to
• 2:46:58
  Speaker 3: accept out of pocket expenses amount to you.
• 2:47:02
  Speaker 4: Remember that I told you yesterday that there was a
• 2:47:05
  Speaker 4: letter of Leslie's that I thought we ought to get
• 2:47:07
  Speaker 4: heard of.
• 2:47:08
  Speaker 3: Yes, I really didn't think it mattered very much, But
• 2:47:11
  Speaker 3: of course I put myself in your hands. I thought
• 2:47:14
  Speaker 3: you were making a great deal out of something that
• 2:47:17
  Speaker 3: wasn't very important.
• 2:47:19
  Speaker 4: You told me to do what I thought fit, and
• 2:47:22
  Speaker 4: I bought the letter from the person in whose possession
• 2:47:24
  Speaker 4: it was. I had to pay a great deal of
• 2:47:26
  Speaker 4: money for it.
• 2:47:28
  Speaker 3: What a bore? Still, if you thought it necessary, I'm
• 2:47:31
  Speaker 3: not going to grouse how much was it?
• 2:47:34
  Speaker 4: I'm afraid I had to pay ten thousand dollars for it?
• 2:47:38
  Speaker 3: Ten thousand dollars. That's a fortune. I thought you were
• 2:47:43
  Speaker 3: going to say a couple of hundred. You must have
• 2:47:46
  Speaker 3: been mad.
• 2:47:47
  Speaker 4: You may be quite sure that I wouldn't have given
• 2:47:50
  Speaker 4: it if I could have got it for less.
• 2:47:52
  Speaker 3: But that's everything I have in the world. It produces
• 2:47:55
  Speaker 3: me to beggary.
• 2:47:57
  Speaker 4: Not that exactly. Must understand that you haven't got money
• 2:48:02
  Speaker 4: to buy an estate with.
• 2:48:03
  Speaker 3: Why didn't you let them bring the letter in and
• 2:48:06
  Speaker 3: tell them to do what they damned well liked?
• 2:48:09
  Speaker 4: I didn't.
• 2:48:10
  Speaker 3: Dare do you mean to say it was absolutely necessary
• 2:48:13
  Speaker 3: to suppress the letter if you wanted your wife acquitted.
• 2:48:18
  Speaker 3: But but I don't understand. They're not going to tell
• 2:48:22
  Speaker 3: me that they could have brought in a verdict of guilty.
• 2:48:25
  Speaker 3: They couldn't have hanged her for putting a noxious vermin
• 2:48:28
  Speaker 3: out of the way.
• 2:48:30
  Speaker 4: Of course they wouldn't have hanged her. They might have
• 2:48:33
  Speaker 4: found her guilty of manslaughter. I dare say you'd have
• 2:48:37
  Speaker 4: got off with two or three years. Three years, my leslie,
• 2:48:42
  Speaker 4: my little leslie.
• 2:48:43
  Speaker 3: It would have killed her. But what was there in
• 2:48:46
  Speaker 3: the letter? I told you yesterday.
• 2:48:50
  Speaker 2: It was very stupid of me.
• 2:48:52
  Speaker 3: I I remember now you wrote to Hammond to ask
• 2:48:55
  Speaker 3: him to come to the bungalow. Yes, you wanted him
• 2:48:59
  Speaker 3: to get some for you, didn't you?
• 2:49:02
  Speaker 2: Yes, I wanted to get you a present for your birthday?
• 2:49:06
  Speaker 3: Why should you have asked him?
• 2:49:08
  Speaker 2: I wanted to get you a gun. He knew all
• 2:49:11
  Speaker 2: about that sort of thing. And you know how ignorant
• 2:49:14
  Speaker 2: I am.
• 2:49:16
  Speaker 3: Bertie Cameron had a brand new gun he wanted to sell.
• 2:49:19
  Speaker 3: I went into Singapore in the knight of Hammond's death
• 2:49:22
  Speaker 3: to buy it. Why should you want to make me
• 2:49:25
  Speaker 3: a present of a lover?
• 2:49:27
  Speaker 2: How should I know that you were going to buy
• 2:49:29
  Speaker 2: a gun because I told you I'd forgotten. I can't
• 2:49:33
  Speaker 2: remember everything.
• 2:49:35
  Speaker 3: You hadn't forgotten that?
• 2:49:37
  Speaker 2: What do you mean, Robert? Why are you talking to
• 2:49:40
  Speaker 2: me like this?
• 2:49:41
  Speaker 1: Rosby to Joyce.
• 2:49:43
  Speaker 3: Wasn't it a criminal offense that you committed in buying
• 2:49:47
  Speaker 3: that letter?
• 2:49:48
  Speaker 4: It's not the sort of thing that a respectable lawyer
• 2:49:51
  Speaker 4: does in the ordinary way of business.
• 2:49:53
  Speaker 3: It was a criminal offense.
• 2:49:57
  Speaker 4: I've been trying to keep the fact out of my mind,
• 2:50:00
  Speaker 4: but if you insist on a straight answer, I'm afraid
• 2:50:03
  Speaker 4: I must admit it was.
• 2:50:05
  Speaker 3: Then why did you do it? You? You, of all people?
• 2:50:10
  Speaker 3: What will you try to save me from But.
• 2:50:13
  Speaker 4: I've told you I felt that. No, you haven't dumb. Come, Bob,
• 2:50:18
  Speaker 4: don't be a fool.
• 2:50:20
  Speaker 3: I don't know what you mean.
• 2:50:21
  Speaker 4: Jury's are very stupid, and you don't want to let
• 2:50:24
  Speaker 4: them get any silly ideas in their heads.
• 2:50:27
  Speaker 3: Who has the letter? Now? Have you got it? Yes?
• 2:50:31
  Speaker 3: Where is it?
• 2:50:33
  Speaker 4: Why do you want to know?
• 2:50:35
  Speaker 3: God, damn it. I want to see it.
• 2:50:37
  Speaker 4: I've got no right to show it you.
• 2:50:40
  Speaker 3: Is it your money you bought it with or mine?
• 2:50:43
  Speaker 3: I've got to pay ten thousand dollars for that letter,
• 2:50:46
  Speaker 3: and by god, I'm going to see it. At least
• 2:50:49
  Speaker 3: I'd like to know that I've had my money's worth.
• 2:50:52
  Speaker 2: Let him see it.
• 2:50:54
  Speaker 1: Without a word, Joyce takes his pocket book from his
• 2:50:57
  Speaker 1: pocket and takes out the letter. He to Crosbie. He
• 2:51:02
  Speaker 1: reads it.
• 2:51:03
  Speaker 3: What does it mean?
• 2:51:06
  Speaker 2: It means that Jeff Hammond was my lover?
• 2:51:09
  Speaker 1: Crosbie covering his face with his hands.
• 2:51:13
  Speaker 4: No, oh, no, why did you kill him?
• 2:51:17
  Speaker 2: He'd been my lover for years. He'd become my lover
• 2:51:20
  Speaker 2: almost immediately after he came back from the war.
• 2:51:23
  Speaker 3: It's not true.
• 2:51:24
  Speaker 2: I used to drive out to a place we knew
• 2:51:26
  Speaker 2: and he met me two or three times a week,
• 2:51:30
  Speaker 2: and when Robert went to Singapore, he used to come
• 2:51:32
  Speaker 2: to the bungalow late when the boys had gone for
• 2:51:35
  Speaker 2: the night. We saw one another constantly all the time.
• 2:51:40
  Speaker 3: I trusted you, I loved you.
• 2:51:43
  Speaker 2: And then lately, a year ago, he began to change.
• 2:51:48
  Speaker 2: I didn't know what was the matter. I couldn't believe
• 2:51:51
  Speaker 2: that he didn't care for me any more. I was frantic. Oh,
• 2:51:56
  Speaker 2: if you knew what agonies I endured, I passed through hell.
• 2:52:00
  Speaker 2: I knew he didn't want me any more, and I
• 2:52:02
  Speaker 2: wouldn't let him go. Sometimes I thought he hated me. Misery, misery.
• 2:52:09
  Speaker 2: I loved him. I didn't want to love him. I
• 2:52:12
  Speaker 2: couldn't tell myself. I hated myself for loving him. And
• 2:52:17
  Speaker 2: yet he was everything in the world to me. He
• 2:52:21
  Speaker 2: was all my life.
• 2:52:22
  Speaker 3: Oh God, Oh God.
• 2:52:25
  Speaker 2: And then I heard he was living with a Chinese woman.
• 2:52:28
  Speaker 2: I couldn't believe it. I wouldn't believe it. At last
• 2:52:33
  Speaker 2: I saw her. I saw her with my own eyes,
• 2:52:36
  Speaker 2: walking in the village, with her gold bracelets and her necklaces,
• 2:52:41
  Speaker 2: a Chinese woman. Horrible. They all knew in the compan
• 2:52:46
  Speaker 2: that she was his mistress. And when I passed her.
• 2:52:50
  Speaker 2: She looked at me, and I saw that she knew
• 2:52:53
  Speaker 2: I was his mistress too.
• 2:52:55
  Speaker 3: Oh a shame.
• 2:52:57
  Speaker 2: I sent for him. I told him I must see him.
• 2:53:01
  Speaker 2: You've read the letter. I was mad to write it.
• 2:53:05
  Speaker 2: I didn't know what I was doing. I didn't care.
• 2:53:09
  Speaker 2: I hadn't seen him for ten days. It was a lifetime.
• 2:53:13
  Speaker 2: And when last we'd parted, he held me in his
• 2:53:16
  Speaker 2: arms and kissed me and told me not to worry,
• 2:53:20
  Speaker 2: and he went straight from my arms to hers.
• 2:53:24
  Speaker 4: He was a rotter, he always was.
• 2:53:28
  Speaker 2: That letter we'd always been so careful. He always tore
• 2:53:32
  Speaker 2: up any word I wrote to him the moment he'd
• 2:53:34
  Speaker 2: read it. How was I to know he'd leave that one?
• 2:53:39
  Speaker 3: That doesn't matter Now.
• 2:53:41
  Speaker 2: He came and I told him I knew about the Chinawoman.
• 2:53:45
  Speaker 2: He denied it. He said it was only scandal. I
• 2:53:49
  Speaker 2: was beside myself. I don't know what I said to him.
• 2:53:54
  Speaker 8: Oh.
• 2:53:54
  Speaker 2: I hated him then. I hated him because he'd made
• 2:53:58
  Speaker 2: me despise myself. I tore him limb from limb. I
• 2:54:03
  Speaker 2: said everything I could to wound him. I insulted him.
• 2:54:07
  Speaker 2: I could have spat in his face, And at last
• 2:54:10
  Speaker 2: he turned on me. He told me he was sick
• 2:54:13
  Speaker 2: and tired of me and never wanted to see me again.
• 2:54:17
  Speaker 2: He said I bored him to death. And then he
• 2:54:21
  Speaker 2: acknowledged that it was true about the China woman. He
• 2:54:24
  Speaker 2: said he'd known her for years and she was the
• 2:54:26
  Speaker 2: only woman who really meant anything to him, and the
• 2:54:29
  Speaker 2: rest was just past time. And he said he was
• 2:54:33
  Speaker 2: glad I knew, and now at last I'd leave him alone.
• 2:54:39
  Speaker 2: He said things to me that I thought it impossible
• 2:54:41
  Speaker 2: a man ever to say to a woman. He couldn't
• 2:54:44
  Speaker 2: have been more vile if I'd been a harlot on
• 2:54:46
  Speaker 2: the streets. And then I don't know what happened. I
• 2:54:51
  Speaker 2: was beside myself. I seized the revolver and fired. He
• 2:54:57
  Speaker 2: gave a cry, and I saw I'd hit him. He
• 2:55:00
  Speaker 2: staggered and rushed for the verandah I ran after him
• 2:55:04
  Speaker 2: and fired again. He fell, and then I stood over him,
• 2:55:08
  Speaker 2: and I fired and fired till there were no more cartridges.
• 2:55:13
  Speaker 1: There is a pause, and then Osbey goes up to her.
• 2:55:17
  Speaker 3: Have I deserved this of you, leslie?
• 2:55:21
  Speaker 2: No, I've been vile. I have no excuses to offer
• 2:55:25
  Speaker 2: for myself. I betrayed you.
• 2:55:29
  Speaker 3: What do you want to do now.
• 2:55:32
  Speaker 2: It is for you to say.
• 2:55:36
  Speaker 3: It was for your sake. I wanted to go away.
• 2:55:40
  Speaker 3: I only saved that money for you. I shall have
• 2:55:44
  Speaker 3: to stay here now, but I could manage to give
• 2:55:47
  Speaker 3: you enough to live on in England.
• 2:55:51
  Speaker 2: Where am I to go? I have no family left
• 2:55:54
  Speaker 2: and no friends. I'm quite alone in the world. Oh,
• 2:55:59
  Speaker 2: I'm so unhappy.
• 2:56:02
  Speaker 3: How could you, Leslie? What did I do wrong that
• 2:56:05
  Speaker 3: I couldn't win your love?
• 2:56:08
  Speaker 2: What can I say? It wasn't me that deceived you.
• 2:56:12
  Speaker 2: It wasn't me that loved that other. It was a
• 2:56:15
  Speaker 2: madness that seized me. And I was as little my
• 2:56:19
  Speaker 2: own mistress, as though I were delirious with fever. It
• 2:56:23
  Speaker 2: brought me no happiness, that love. It only brought me
• 2:56:26
  Speaker 2: shame and remorse.
• 2:56:28
  Speaker 3: The awful part is that, notwithstanding everything, I love you still.
• 2:56:36
  Speaker 3: Oh God, how you must despise me. I despise myself.
• 2:56:42
  Speaker 1: Leslie shakes her head slowly.
• 2:56:45
  Speaker 2: I don't know what I've done to deserve your love.
• 2:56:48
  Speaker 2: I'm worthless. Oh if only I could blame anybody but myself,
• 2:56:54
  Speaker 2: I can't. I deserve everything I have to suffer.
• 2:56:58
  Speaker 1: Oh, Robert, my dear, He turns aside, and buries his
• 2:57:03
  Speaker 1: head in his hands.
• 2:57:05
  Speaker 3: Oh what shall I do? It's all gone, all gone.
• 2:57:14
  Speaker 1: He begins to sob, with the great, painful, difficult sobs
• 2:57:18
  Speaker 1: of a man unused to tears. She sinks on her
• 2:57:21
  Speaker 1: knees beside him.
• 2:57:23
  Speaker 2: Oh, don't cry, darling, darling.
• 2:57:27
  Speaker 1: He springs up and pushes her on one side.
• 2:57:31
  Speaker 3: I'm a fool. There's no need for me to make
• 2:57:34
  Speaker 3: an exhibition of myself. I'm sorry.
• 2:57:39
  Speaker 1: He goes hastily out of the room. Leslie rises to
• 2:57:44
  Speaker 1: her feet.
• 2:57:45
  Speaker 4: Don't go to give him the moment to get hold
• 2:57:48
  Speaker 4: of himself.
• 2:57:50
  Speaker 2: I'm so dreadfully sorry for him.
• 2:57:54
  Speaker 3: He's going to forgive you. He can't do without you.
• 2:57:58
  Speaker 2: If he'd only give me another chance.
• 2:58:01
  Speaker 4: Don't you love him at all?
• 2:58:03
  Speaker 3: No?
• 2:58:04
  Speaker 2: I wish to God I did.
• 2:58:07
  Speaker 4: Then what's to be done.
• 2:58:09
  Speaker 2: I'll give my life such as it is to him,
• 2:58:12
  Speaker 2: to him only. I swear to you that I'll do
• 2:58:15
  Speaker 2: everything in the world to make him happy. I'll make amends.
• 2:58:19
  Speaker 2: I'll oblige him to forget. He shall never know that
• 2:58:23
  Speaker 2: I don't love him as he wants to be loved.
• 2:58:26
  Speaker 4: It's not easy to live with a man you don't love,
• 2:58:30
  Speaker 4: but you've had the courage and the strength to do evil,
• 2:58:33
  Speaker 4: perhaps you will have the courage and the strength to
• 2:58:36
  Speaker 4: do good. That will be your retribution.
• 2:58:41
  Speaker 2: No, that won't be my retribution. I can do that,
• 2:58:46
  Speaker 2: and do it gladly. He's so kind, he's so tender.
• 2:58:52
  Speaker 2: My retribution is greater.
• 2:58:55
  Speaker 3: With all my heart.
• 2:58:57
  Speaker 2: I still love the man I killed.
• 2:59:01
  Speaker 1: And of Act three, as opened on Broadway, and of
• 2:59:07
  Speaker 1: the Letter, a play in three acts by W. Somerset
• 2:59:12
  Speaker 1: Mahm