SETH [_calmly; philosophically again_]. Maybe yer right, Lon, when yuh
say I ought t' have a roof. I'll tell yuh what I'll do, seein' as how
yer my brother. Yuh give me the ground an' the house on it, an' I'll
make yuh a present o' twenty-five dollars.
LON. That's a lie! Yuh ain't got twenty-five dollars t' yer name.
SETH. Yuh think so.
LON. Every one in these parts knows yuh owes Hawkins forty-three dollars
an twenty-nine cents he kin't collect. Give me the house an' ground, an'
I'll give yuh my own house an' my note fur twenty-five dollars.
SETH. Yer note! I'm a goin' t' heve Pa's old place.
LON. An' I say that yuh or no swindler like yuh is a goin' t' cheat me
out o' it.
SETH. I ain't a swindler, yuh wall-eyed son--
LON [_advancing_]. Take it back. Don't yuh call me dissipated names.
SETH. I'll never take it back!
[_Lon doubles his fists and strikes; but the blow lands in the air
as Seth grabs Lon. They fight furiously and in dead earnest,
though there is no ethics to the struggle. The rickety furniture
trembles as they advance and retreat. Seth is quicker and lighter
and less easily winded; but Lon's bulk is not readily moved, and,
despite his "weak back," he can still wield his arms. It looks
like a fight to the finish. Isn't their future at stake? And they
are giving vent to a hatred bred by their father. But suddenly
Pa's voice is heard, calling wildly to Seth. The men do not move:
the voice seems to have paralyzed their muscles. For a moment they
stand dazed. Then consciousness comes to them: they realize that
the waiting is over. They tear to the bedroom. A silence follows.
They must be fascinated by the ghost of the old man._]
SETH [_in the bedroom; quietly_]. He's gone, Lon.
LON [_in the bedroom_]. Yer right, Seth.
[_Then their voices rise in dispute._]
Don't yuh take it!
SETH. I've got it!
LON. It's mine!
SETH. It ain't!
LON. Yuh kin't--
SETH. Shut up!
[_They rush into the kitchen, Seth in advance, Lon close on his
heels. The younger throws the cooking-dish to the floor, grabs the
box, and hurries to the table. As though they were about to
discover a world's secret, they unlock the box, each as near to it
as possible, his arms tense, fingers itching, ready to ward off a
blow or seize the treasure. From the box, Seth takes an old
tobacco-pouch, a jack-knife, a bit of heavy cord, a couple of
letters. These are contemptuously thrown on the table. The will
lies at the bottom of the box. Lon snatches it. Seth would take it
from him._]
LON. Hold off! I'm jest a goin' t' read it.
[_Seth curbs his impatience. Lon opens the document and reads,
slowly and haltingly._]
"I, Nathaniel Polland, o' Sandy Point in the County o' Rhodes an' State
o' Michigan, bein' o' sound mind an' memory, do make, publish, an'
declare this t' be my last Will an' Testament in manner followin',
viz--." What does "viz" mean?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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