SCENE--The firemen's forecastle. Yank's watch has just come off duty
and had dinner. Their faces and bodies shine from a soap and water
scrubbing but around their eyes, where a hasty dousing does not touch,
the coal dust sticks like black make-up, giving them a queer, sinister
expression. Yank has not washed either face or body. He stands out in
contrast to them, a blackened, brooding figure. He is seated forward on
a bench in the exact attitude of Rodin's "The Thinker." The others,
most of them smoking pipes, are staring at Yank half-apprehensively, as
if fearing an outburst; half-amusedly, as if they saw a joke somewhere
that tickled them.
VOICES--He ain't ate nothin'.
Py golly, a fallar gat gat grub in him.
Divil a lie.
Yank feeda da fire, no feeda da face.
Ha-ha.
He ain't even washed hisself.
He's forgot.
Hey, Yank, you forgot to wash.
YANK--[_Sullenly._] Forgot nothin'! To hell wit washin'.
VOICES--It'll stick to you. It'll get under your skin. Give yer the
bleedin' itch, that's wot. It makes spots on you--like a leopard. Like
a piebald nigger, you mean. Better wash up, Yank. You sleep better.
Wash up, Yank. Wash up! Wash up!
YANK--[_Resentfully._] Aw say, youse guys. Lemme alone. Can't youse see
I'm tryin' to tink?
ALL--[_Repeating the word after him as one with cynical mockery._]
Think! [_The word has a brazen, metallic quality as if their throats
were phonograph horns. It is followed by a chorus of hard, barking
laughter._]
YANK--[_Springing to his feet and glaring at them belligerently._] Yes,
tink! Tink, dat's what I said! What about it? [_They are silent,
puzzled by his sudden resentment at what used to be one of his jokes.
Yank sits down again in the same attitude of "The Thinker."_]
VOICES--Leave him alone.
He's got a grouch on.
Why wouldn't he?
PADDY--[_With a wink at the others._] Sure I know what's the matther.
'Tis aisy to see. He's fallen in love, I'm telling you.
ALL--[_Repeating the word after him as one with cynical mockery._]
Love! [_The word has a brazen, metallic quality as if their throats
were phonograph horns. It is followed by a chorus of hard, barking
laughter._]
YANK--[_With a contemptuous snort._] Love, hell! Hate, dat's what. I've
fallen in hate, get me?
PADDY--[_Philosophically_] 'Twould take a wise man to tell one from the
other. [_With a bitter, ironical scorn, increasing as he goes on._] But
I'm telling you it's love that's in it. Sure what else but love for us
poor bastes in the stokehole would be bringing a fine lady, dressed
like a white quane, down a mile of ladders and steps to be havin' a
look at us? [_A growl of anger goes up from all sides._]
LONG--[_Jumping on a bench--hecticly_] Hinsultin' us! Hinsultin' us,
the bloody cow! And them bloody engineers! What right 'as they got to
be exhibitin' us 's if we was bleedin' monkeys in a menagerie? Did we
sign for hinsults to our dignity as 'onest workers? Is that in the
ship's articles? You kin bloody well bet it ain't! But I knows why they
done it. I arsked a deck steward 'o she was and 'e told me. 'Er old
man's a bleedin' millionaire, a bloody Capitalist! 'E's got enuf bloody
gold to sink this bleedin' ship! 'E makes arf the bloody steel in the
world! 'E owns this bloody boat! And you and me, comrades, we're 'is
slaves! And the skipper and mates and engineers, they're 'is slaves!
And she's 'is bloody daughter and we're all 'er slaves, too! And she
gives 'er orders as 'ow she wants to see the bloody animals below decks
and down they takes 'er! [_There is a roar of rage from all sides._]
YANK--[_Blinking at him bewilderedly._] Say! Wait a moment! Is all dat
straight goods?
LONG--Straight as string! The bleedin' steward as waits on 'em, 'e told
me about 'er. And what're we goin' ter do, I arsks yer? 'Ave we got ter
swaller 'er hinsults like dogs? It ain't in the ship's articles. I tell
yer we got a case. We kin go ter law--
YANK--[_With abysmal contempt._] Hell! Law!
ALL--[_Repeating the word after him as one with cynical mockery._] Law!
[_The word has a brazen metallic quality as if their throats were
phonograph horns. It is followed by a chorus of hard, barking
laughter._]
LONG--[_Feeling the ground slipping from under his feet--desperately._]
As voters and citizens we kin force the bloody governments--
YANK--[_With abysmal contempt._] Hell! Governments!
ALL--[_Repeating the word after him as one with cynical mockery._]
Governments! [_The word has a brazen metallic quality as if their
throats were phonograph horns. It is followed by a chorus of hard,
barking laughter._]
LONG--[_Hysterically._] We're free and equal in the sight of God--
YANK--[_With abysmal contempt._] Hell! God!
ALL--[_Repeating the word after him as one with cynical mockery._] God!
[_The word has a brazen metallic quality as if their throats were
phonograph horns. It is followed by a chorus of hard, barking
laughter._]
YANK--[_Witheringly._] Aw, join de Salvation Army!
ALL--Sit down! Shut up! Damn fool! Sea-lawyer! [_Long slinks back out
of sight._]
PADDY--[_Continuing the trend of his thoughts as if he had never been
interrupted--bitterly._] And there she was standing behind us, and the
Second pointing at us like a man you'd hear in a circus would be
saying: In this cage is a queerer kind of baboon than ever you'd find
in darkest Africy. We roast them in their own sweat--and be damned if
you won't hear some of thim saying they like it! [_He glances
scornfully at Yank._]
YANK--[_With a bewildered uncertain growl._] Aw!
PADDY--And there was Yank roarin' curses and turning round wid his
shovel to brain her--and she looked at him, and him at her--
YANK--[_Slowly._] She was all white. I tought she was a ghost. Sure.
PADDY--[_With heavy, biting sarcasm._] 'Twas love at first sight, divil
a doubt of it! If you'd seen the endearin' look on her pale mug when
she shrivelled away with her hands over her eyes to shut out the sight
of him! Sure, 'twas as if she'd seen a great hairy ape escaped from the
Zoo!
YANK--[_Stung--with a growl of rage._] Aw!
PADDY--And the loving way Yank heaved his shovel at the skull of her,
only she was out the door! [_A grin breaking over his face._] 'Twas
touching, I'm telling you! It put the touch of home, swate home in the
stokehole. [_There is a roar of laughter from all._]
YANK--[_Glaring at Paddy menacingly._] Aw, choke dat off, see!
PADDY--[_Not heeding him--to the others._] And her grabbin' at the
Second's arm for protection. [_With a grotesque imitation of a woman's
voice._] Kiss me, Engineer dear, for it's dark down here and me old
man's in Wall Street making money! Hug me tight, darlin', for I'm
afeerd in the dark and me mother's on deck makin' eyes at the skipper!
[_Another roar of laughter._]
YANK--[_Threateningly._] Say! What yuh tryin' to do, kid me, yuh old
Harp?
PADDY--Divil a bit! Ain't I wishin' myself you'd brained her?
YANK--[_Fiercely._] I'll brain her! I'll brain her yet, wait 'n' see!
[_Coming over to Paddy--slowly._] Say, is dat what she called me--a
hairy ape?
PADDY--She looked it at you if she didn't say the word itself.
YANK--[_Grinning horribly._] Hairy ape, huh? Sure! Dat's de way she
looked at me, aw right. Hairy ape! So dat's me, huh? [_Bursting into
rage--as if she were still in front of him._] Yuh skinny tart! Yuh
white-faced bum, yuh! I'll show yuh who's a ape! [_Turning to the
others, bewilderment seizing him again._] Say, youse guys. I was
bawlin' him out for pullin' de whistle on us. You heard me. And den I
seen youse lookin' at somep'n and I tought he'd sneaked down to come up
in back of me, and I hopped round to knock him dead wit de shovel. And
dere she was wit de light on her! Christ, yuh coulda pushed me over
with a finger! I was scared, get me? Sure! I tought she was a ghost,
see? She was all in white like dey wrap around stiffs. You seen her.
Kin yuh blame me? She didn't belong, dat's what. And den when I come to
and seen it was a real skoit and seen de way she was lookin' at
me--like Paddy said--Christ, I was sore, get me? I don't stand for dat
stuff from nobody. And I flung de shovel--on'y she'd beat it.
[_Furiously._] I wished it'd banged her! I wished it'd knocked her
block off!
LONG--And be 'anged for murder or 'lectrocuted? She ain't bleedin' well
worth it.
YANK--I don't give a damn what! I'd be square wit her, wouldn't I? Tink
I wanter let her put somep'n over on me? Tink I'm goin' to let her git
away wit dat stuff? Yuh don't know me! Noone ain't never put nothin'
over on me and got away wit it, see!--not dat kind of stuff--no guy and
no skoit neither! I'll fix her! Maybe she'll come down again--
VOICE--No chance, Yank. You scared her out of a year's growth.
YANK--I scared her? Why de hell should I scare her? Who de hell is she?
Ain't she de same as me? Hairy ape, huh? [_With his old confident
bravado._] I'll show her I'm better'n her, if she on'y knew it. I
belong and she don't, see! I move and she's dead! Twenty-five knots a
hour, dats me! Dat carries her but I make dat. She's on'y baggage.
Sure! [_Again bewilderedly._] But, Christ, she was funny lookin'! Did
yuh pipe her hands? White and skinny. Yuh could see de bones trough
'em. And her mush, dat was dead white, too. And her eyes, dey was like
dey'd seen a ghost. Me, dat was! Sure! Hairy ape! Ghost, huh? Look at
dat arm! [_He extends his right arm, swelling out the great muscles._]
I coulda took her wit dat, wit' just my little finger even, and broke
her in two. [_Again bewilderedly._] Say, who is dat skoit, huh? What is
she? What's she come from? Who made her? Who give her de noive to look
at me like dat? Dis ting's got my goat right. I don't get her. She's
new to me. What does a skoit like her mean, huh? She don't belong, get
me! I can't see her. [_With growing anger._] But one ting I'm wise to,
aw right, aw right! Youse all kin bet your shoits I'll git even wit
her. I'll show her if she tinks she--She grinds de organ and I'm on de
string, huh? I'll fix her! Let her come down again and I'll fling her
in de furnace! She'll move den! She won't shiver at nothin', den!
Speed, dat'll be her! She'll belong den! [_He grins horribly._]
PADDY--She'll never come. She's had her belly-full, I'm telling you.
She'll be in bed now, I'm thinking, wid ten doctors and nurses feedin'
her salts to clean the fear out of her.
YANK--[_Enraged._] Yuh tink I made her sick, too, do yuh? Just lookin'
at me, huh? Hairy ape, huh? [_In a frenzy of rage._] I'll fix her! I'll
tell her where to git off! She'll git down on her knees and take it
back or I'll bust de face offen her! [_Shaking one fist upward and
beating on his chest with the other._] I'll find yuh! I'm comin', d'yuh
hear? I'll fix yuh, God damn yuh! [_He makes a rush for the door._]
VOICES--Stop him!
He'll get shot!
He'll murder her!
Trip him up!
Hold him!
He's gone crazy!
Gott, he's strong!
Hold him down!
Look out for a kick!
Pin his arms!
[_They have all piled on him and, after a fierce struggle, by sheer
weight of numbers have borne him to the floor just inside the door._]
PADDY--[_Who has remained detached._] Kape him down till he's cooled
off. [_Scornfully._] Yerra, Yank, you're a great fool. Is it payin'
attention at all you are to the like of that skinny sow widout one drop
of rale blood in her?
YANK--[_Frenziedly, from the bottom of the heap._] She done me doit!
She done me doit, didn't she? I'll git square wit her! I'll get her
some way! Git offen me, youse guys! Lemme up! I'll show her who's a ape!
[_Curtain_]