Much Ado About SomethingLawrence, C. E. (Charles Edward)
Science
Much Ado About Something
Lawrence, C. E. (Charles Edward)
England -- Social life and customs -- 20th century -- Fiction; Fairies -- Fiction
"That wath a great evenin’ at the Mansion ’Outh," he declared. "I shall
never forget it; and, Mithter Archdeacon, nothing throughout the
proceedings imprethed me like your appeal for charity among workerth for
the cauth of right. I thaid to mythelf, ’That’th a man’--I thaid--’and
thith ith a lethon! If that dignitary of the Church ith brave enough to
thay thith, there’s ’ope.’ I altho thaid to mythelf, ’It ithn’t many
parsons with the pluck to make such an appeal to people who would most
thertainly take ’em at their word.’ But you did it, Mithter Pryde! you
did it! At my synagogue at all events your words ’ave been acthepted."
"Yes?" This tribute to his influence was delightful, flattering. It
compensated for the interruption of speech.
"Yeth! Our pastor went out of ’is way to order some coals from the
local churchwarden last week, and expressed the ’ope that before long
some prayer said in churches against Turks, Jews and Infidels might be
left unthaid!"
"Ah!"
The Archdeacon sat in his chair, and hid his face in his hands,
thinking.
"Make your appeal again, Mithter Pryde; and again and again. It ith, I
assure you, very poor fun being the under dog, as we Jews ’ave been for
ages! Even nowadays it ith only necessary to be a Jew to know what it
ith to be despithed. Not that thome of uth mayn’t detherve to be
despithed. We ’ave black sheep among us, as you ’ave, and it’th easy to
be ’orrid when you’re ’ated. I’ve been ’ated and struck"--there was
fire in Oldstein’s glance--"and I’ve ’it back, and taken good care to
’urt. Well, I’m sorry for many things. I wath a ’ard master. I worked
’ard mythelf, and worked others to the uttermost. I took all the
shekels that were due to me, and would have taken more if I could ’ave
got ’em--yeth, I would. People theemed to expect me to plunder ’em; I
did my best not to dithappoint ’em. And why was I so ’ard? Why did I
’ate all Gentiles? Why was my ’eart full of bitter malice to all exthept
my own people?"
"Ah, who knows? who knows?" the Archdeacon said to the ceiling.
Oldstein, carried away by the passion of his own words, glared at the
questioner.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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