Three Lancashire Plays: The Game; The Northerners; ZackBrighouse, Harold
General
Three Lancashire Plays: The Game; The Northerners; Zack
Brighouse, Harold
English drama -- 20th century; Lancashire (England) -- Drama; Political plays
Paul. Zack? What's Zack to do with it?
Virginia. It's his marriage, you know.
Paul. Zack _'_ll do as he's told. He wasn't marrying her because he
wanted to.
Virginia. Why was he marrying?
Paul. Because I wanted it. I don't want it now.
Mrs. Munning. We're in a ticklish corner with Joe Wrigley, Paul.
Paul. Do you want me to hold my hands up to Joe Wrigley?
Mrs. Munning. You'll take care what you do? I don't want my business
damaged worse than it is.
Paul. _Your_ business?
Mrs. Munning. It is my business, I believe. You're only my manager, and
I warn you to be careful or I'll set about making a change. I've learnt
something to-night.
Virginia. So have I.
Paul. Mother, you don't believe Joe's tales of Zack!
Mrs. Munning. I'd not believe a sacked man's tales of anything, but I
believe Mowatt and Shoebridge, and I know who it is they want at the
weddings. It's been a shock to me to find they favour Zack, but it's
Zack they want and Zack they're going to get.
Paul. A nice mess he'll make of things.
Mrs. Munning. That remains to be seen. He's never had his chance till
now, but he's just as much my son as you are, Paul.
Virginia. Yes, he was just as much your son when you neglected him and
kept him down and gave Paul all your love. And just as much when you and
Paul let Zack walk into Wrigley's trap and never raised a hand to save
him, and when you schemed to send him out to Canada to save your pride
from being hurt, and when you changed your mind about him now--not from
regret or any love for Zack, but when you found your business would do
better with him here. Oh, I've been stupid too. I let myself be blinded
by the dust you both threw in my eyes, but I'm not blinded now and----
Paul. Will you be quiet, Virginia?
Mrs. Munning. If I made a mistake; Jenny, I've owned to it.
Virginia. You've owned to it! Does that make up to Zack for all the
years you've slighted him, for the chances that he might have had and
Paul has robbed him of? For----
Paul. Robbed! I think you're forgetting whose ring you're wearing on
your finger.
Virginia. Your ring? Yes. There's your ring.
(_She takes it off and throws it at him. Zack and Martha enter. Martha
is in a stupidly elaborate wedding-dress. The ring misses Paul, hits
Zack and falls._)
Zack. I think I heard something drop.
Virginia. Yes. I've dropped Paul.
Mrs. Munning. Jenny!
Paul. You might have damaged that ring badly. It cost me thirty
shillings.
Virginia. You are having an expensive time, lately.
Martha (_picking up ring_). Oh, it's a beautiful ring.
Paul. Yes. Give it to me.
Virginia. No. Put it on, Martha.
Paul. What!
Virginia. Put it on.
(_Martha puts it on._)
Do you like the look of it on your finger?
Martha It's a vision.
Virginia. Is it? Do you like the man that goes with that ring?
Paul. That's my ring, Virginia.
Virginia. I'm quite aware of that. Do you like Paul, Martha? Will you
take Paul Munning for your lawful wedded husband?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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