COUN. DEF. They are right. They are not guilty. You must respect— COUN. PROS. I demand— COUN. DEF. Our customs are guilty, which denounce the unmarried mother! AUDIENCE. Bravo! Hear, hear! COUN. PROS. I demand that the counsel for the defence— COUN. DEF. Every woman with child should be respected, no matter what the circumstances are. [_Applause_]. PRES. Maître Verdier, by article forty-three of the regulations— COUN. DEF. Their crime is not an individual crime, it is a social crime. COUN. PROS. It is a crime against nature. COUN. DEF. It is _not_ a crime against nature. It is a revolt against nature. PRES. Police, remove the defendants. [_The police do not understand or do not hear_]. Maître Verdier, must we employ force? [_Tumult in the whole court_]. COUN. DEF [_rhetorically_] It _is_ a revolt against nature! And with all the warmth of a heart melted by pity, with all the indignation of my outraged reason, I look for that glorious hour of liberation when some master mind shall discover for us the means of having only the children we need and desire, release us for ever from the prison of hypocrisy and absolve us from the profanation of love. That would indeed be a conquest of nature—savage nature—which pours out life with culpable profusion, and sees it disappear with indifference. But, until then— _The tumult recommences._ PRES. Police, clear the court! Police—police, remove the defendants. The sitting is suspended. [_The magistrates cover their heads and rise_]. MME. THOMAS. It’s not I who massacre the innocents! _I’m_ not the guilty one! SCH. Mercy, monsieur, mercy! MME. TUPIN. _She’s_ not the guilty one! TUPIN. She’s right. She’s _not_! MME. THOMAS. It’s the men! the men! _all_ the men! _The magistrates go out by the narrow door reserved for them, the backs of their red robes disappearing slowly during the last words._ TUPIN’S BUDGET (CONDENSED). The daily food of the mother and the five children consists of a loaf of bread, soup made of dripping and vegetables, and a stew. Total cost, 3f. 75c. The husband’s expenses are: tramway fare, 30c.; tobacco, 15c.; lunch, 1f. 25c. General expenses of the family: rent, 300f.; clothing, linen, boots (sixteen pairs for the children at 4f. 50c. the pair, four for the parents at 8f.), are again 300f. Annual total, 2,600f. The Three Daughters of M. Dupont [Les Trois Filles de M. Dupont] Translated by St. John Hankin Cast of the original production before the Stage Society at the King’s Hall, London, on March 12, 13 and 14, 1905. Mme. Dupont KATE BISHOP Courthezon LEON M. LION Caroline ITALIA CONTI Julie ETHEL IRVING M. Dupont O. B. CLARENCE Justine LOIS CRAMPTON M. Mairaut ARTHUR CHESNEY Mme. Mairaut AGNES THOMAS Antonin Mairaut CHARLES V. FRANCE