PAULA—I must pretend to be working. If he comes in and finds me just
talking to you, he’ll be unhappy again.
COUNT—No fear of that now.... He is a long way from here.
PAULA—As if that mattered! He divines the fact that we are together. And
he can find me with his eyes shut. [_Taps once or twice on the machine._]
Please don’t let him catch us like this.
COUNT—This is intolerable, Paula. It can’t go on. One of the reasons I
sent for you was to tell you that I mean to get rid of Juhasz to-day.
PAULA—[_Sorrowfully._] Your excellency....
COUNT—There is a dairyman named Mate, a wholly untrustworthy fellow,
whom he won’t dismiss. That gives me a perfect excuse, and I intend to
make use of it. For I can’t let this sort of thing go on indefinitely.
He’s always on your heels like a watch-dog, and I’m sick of it.... It
isn’t enough that he’s practically useless around the place ... but he
demoralizes everything with that benevolence of his ... my dignity ...
even my cheese.... And to crown it all he makes me play the comedian in
my own house. In order to be alone with you I must give you dictation.
And in order to give you dictation I must make political speeches....
And I detest political speeches....
PAULA—[_Listening._] Wasn’t that the door? He’s just come in the
anteroom. Dictate to me! Hurry!
COUNT—It’s enough to drive a man to despair. [_Loudly, as PAULA types._]
“If the Minister of Agriculture supposes ... that the farmers of the
country will tolerate ... such a thing, he is gravely mistaken.” I’ll
discharge him. I’ll discharge him this very day.... No.... Don’t write
that ... I don’t mean the minister.
PAULA—[_As she writes._] Don’t be unkind to him.... He’s such a dear,
gentle soul.
COUNT—[_Loudly._] The tiller of the soil asks little of his Government....
PAULA—[_As she writes._] It’s sheer gratitude that makes him guard me so
faithfully, gratitude to me for having come here with him.
COUNT—I’ve put up with his gratitude until I’m weary of it. It’s four
months since you came here. Do you realize it? Four months you have
tormented me ... on his account. Four months you have been postponing my
happiness from day to day ... on his account.
PAULA—You must be patient a little longer. He’ll go of his own accord ...
as soon as he gets his fifty-one thousand kronen from Berlin. Meantime,
I can’t let you be unkind to him ... no ... not on my account.
COUNT—He’ll never get the money. And I can’t wait. I am fifty-six, Paula,
and desperately in love ... in love, do you hear.... [_Comes nearer to
her._] You beautiful ... young ... thing! [_JUHASZ enters at left with a
big ledger under his arm._]
JUHASZ—I beg pardon. Shall I check up the live-stock too?
COUNT—[_Crossly._] Yes. [_To PAULA._] “The deplorable policies
inaugurated by the Minister of Agriculture....” [_PAULA types._] By the
way, Miss, is that detailed statement finished?
PAULA—Your excellency, my eyes have been troubling me ... and ... I have
only finished with the summaries. [_Hands him a sheaf of closely written
documents._]
COUNT—[_Affecting severity._] You must manage to get more work done, Miss
Paula. Please be sure to have the detailed statements ready for me by
this evening. [_JUHASZ exits at left._]
PAULA—He heard you as he came in. I’m sure he heard you!... Oh, I’m so
sorry!
COUNT—You needn’t be. It doesn’t matter any more. I shan’t let him hinder
me any longer. I can’t afford to. I’m too old. The only thing left to do
is pay the fifty-one thousand kronen, give him back his shop and be rid
of him.
PAULA—He won’t accept it. He’d rather starve.
COUNT—[_With a touch of exasperation._] Curious that your friends never
have such scruples, only your enemies.
PAULA—Have you noticed how badly he looks? That’s from worrying about me.
COUNT—It’s from staying up nights, pacing to and fro beneath my window.
He has the bad taste to suppose that I would seduce one of my employees
in my own house.... But ... sunbeam ... our love deserves a worthier
setting ... doesn’t it?... A flight to Paris by the swiftest motor we can
find ... and from there southward to the sea ... under the skies of Spain
that God only made for people to love under.... [_Comes nearer to her.
JUHASZ enters at left._]
JUHASZ—I beg pardon. I only wanted to give Miss Paula these.
COUNT—[_Crossly._] Certainly. Certainly.
JUHASZ—[_Gives PAULA a bundle of closely written pages._] Here are the
detailed statements his excellency wants. Mr. Santha was kind enough to
get them up last night.
PAULA—He did them for me? [_Looks at the pages; smiles; to the COUNT._]
Forty pages, all closely written. Oh, that dear Mr. Santha! I don’t know
how to thank him. [_Gives the pages to the COUNT._]
COUNT—[_Looks at them._] Mr. Santha wrote these?
PAULA—Wasn’t it darling of him? Think of it! He must have worked all
night, the poor——
COUNT—[_Comparing them with the summaries._] Curious how like these are
the ones you wrote yourself.
PAULA—Oh, I may as well confess it, your excellency. I didn’t write those
either. Mr. Juhasz did.
COUNT—Oh? Juhasz did?
JUHASZ—It was only three pages ... and Miss Paula’s eyes bothered her.
COUNT—[_With a sheaf of pages in each hand._] So, then, Juhasz wrote
these three pages, and Santha wrote these forty?
PAULA—Yes.
COUNT—[_He rings. SANTHA enters._] Wait a moment, Santha. [_To JUHASZ._]
There was a light in your room until four this morning. What were you
doing up so late?
JUHASZ—I’m not a very successful liar, excellency. I wrote the detailed
statements too....
COUNT—Thank you, Santha. You may go. [_He throws the statements on the
table. SANTHA exits at left._]
PAULA—I am very grateful to you, Mr. Juhasz.