Seven Short Plays Part 16

To say he himself did the robbery he is going! Before the magistrate he is going! To gaol he is going! Taking the blame on his own head!

Putting the sin on his own shoulders! Letting on to have done a robbery! Telling a lie-that it may be forgiven him-to his own injury!

Doing all that I tell you to save the character of a miserable slack lad, that rose in poverty.

(_Murmur of admiration from all._)

_Mr. Quirke:_ Now, what do you say?

_Sergeant:_ (_Pressing his hand._) Mr. Halvey, you have given us all a lesson. To please you, I will make no information against the boy.

(_Shakes him and helps him up._) I will put back the half-crown in the poor-box next Sunday. (_To Fardy._) What have you to say to your benefactor?

_Fardy:_ I'm obliged to you, Mr. Halvey. You behaved very decent to me, very decent indeed. I'll never let a word be said against you if I live to be a hundred years.

_Sergeant:_ (_Wiping eyes with a blue handkerchief._) I will tell it at the meeting. It will be a great encouragement to them to build up their character. I'll tell it to the priest and he taking the chair--

_Hyacinth:_ O stop, will you--

_Mr. Quirke:_ The chair. It's in the chair he himself should be. It's in a chair we will put him now. It's to chair him through the streets we will. Sure he'll be an example and a blessing to the whole of the town. (_Seizes Halvey and seats him in chair._) Now, Sergeant, give a hand. Here, Fardy.

(_They all lift the chair with Halvey in it, wildly protesting._)

_Mr. Quirke:_ Come along now to the Courthouse. Three cheers for Hyacinth Halvey! Hip! hip! hoora!

(_Cheers heard in the distance as the curtain drops._)

THE RISING OF THE MOON

PERSONS

_Sergeant._ _Policeman X._ _Policeman B._ _A Ragged Man._

THE RISING OF THE MOON

_Scene: Side of a quay in a seaport town. Some posts and chains. A large barrel. Enter three policemen. Moonlight._

(_Sergeant, who is older than the others, crosses the stage to right and looks down steps. The others put down a pastepot and unroll a bundle of placards._)

_Policeman B:_ I think this would be a good place to put up a notice.

(_He points to barrel._)

_Policeman X:_ Better ask him. (_Calls to Sergt._) Will this be a good place for a placard?

(_No answer._)

_Policeman B:_ Will we put up a notice here on the barrel? (_No answer._)

_Sergeant:_ There's a flight of steps here that leads to the water.

This is a place that should be minded well. If he got down here, his friends might have a boat to meet him; they might send it in here from outside.

_Policeman B:_ Would the barrel be a good place to put a notice up?

_Sergeant:_ It might; you can put it there.

(_They paste the notice up._)

_Sergeant:_ (_Reading it._) Dark hair-dark eyes, smooth face, height five feet five-there's not much to take hold of in that-It's a pity I had no chance of seeing him before he broke out of gaol. They say he's a wonder, that it's he makes all the plans for the whole organization.

There isn't another man in Ireland would have broken gaol the way he did. He must have some friends among the gaolers.

_Policeman B:_ A hundred pounds is little enough for the Government to offer for him. You may be sure any man in the force that takes him will get promotion.

_Sergeant:_ I'll mind this place myself. I wouldn't wonder at all if he came this way. He might come slipping along there (_points to side of quay_), and his friends might be waiting for him there (_points down steps_), and once he got away it's little chance we'd have of finding him; it's maybe under a load of kelp he'd be in a fis.h.i.+ng boat, and not one to help a married man that wants it to the reward.

_Policeman X:_ And if we get him itself, nothing but abuse on our heads for it from the people, and maybe from our own relations.

_Sergeant:_ Well, we have to do our duty in the force. Haven't we the whole country depending on us to keep law and order? It's those that are down would be up and those that are up would be down, if it wasn't for us. Well, hurry on, you have plenty of other places to placard yet, and come back here then to me. You can take the lantern.

Don't be too long now. It's very lonesome here with nothing but the moon.

_Policeman B:_ It's a pity we can't stop with you. The Government should have brought more police into the town, with _him_ in gaol, and at a.s.size time too. Well, good luck to your watch.

(_They go out._)

_Sergeant:_ (_Walks up and down once or twice and looks at placard._) A hundred pounds and promotion sure. There must be a great deal of spending in a hundred pounds. It's a pity some honest man not to be the better of that.

(_A ragged man appears at left and tries to slip past. Sergeant suddenly turns._)

_Sergeant:_ Where are you going?

_Man:_ I'm a poor ballad-singer, your honour. I thought to sell some of these (_holds out bundle of ballads_) to the sailors. (_He goes on._)

_Sergeant:_ Stop! Didn't I tell you to stop? You can't go on there.

_Man:_ Oh, very well. It's a hard thing to be poor. All the world's against the poor!

_Sergeant:_ Who are you?

_Man:_ You'd be as wise as myself if I told you, but I don't mind. I'm one Jimmy Walsh, a ballad-singer.

_Sergeant:_ Jimmy Walsh? I don't know that name.

_Man:_ Ah, sure, they know it well enough in Ennis. Were you ever in Ennis, sergeant?

_Sergeant:_ What brought you here?