Touch and Go: A Play in Three ActsLawrence, D. H. (David Herbert)
General
Touch and Go: A Play in Three Acts
Lawrence, D. H. (David Herbert)
English drama
GERALD. What? What?--By God! I'll kick you out of this park like a
rotten bundle if you don't get up and go.
ANABEL. No, Gerald, no. Don't forget yourself. It's enough now. It's
enough now.--Come away. Do come away. Come away--leave him---
JOB ARTHUR (still on the ground). It's your turn to go. It's you as'll
go, this time.
GERALD (looking at him). One can't even tread on you.
ANABEL. Don't, Gerald, don't--don't look at him.--Don't say any more,
you, Job Arthur.--Come away, Gerald. Come away--come--do come.
GERALD (turning). THAT a human being! My God!--But he's right--it's
I who go. It's we who go, Anabel. He's still there.--My God! a human
being!
(Curtain.)
SCENE II
Market-place as in Act I. WILLIE HOUGHTON, addressing a large
crowd of men from the foot of the obelisk.
WILLIE. And now you're out on strike--now you've been out for a week
pretty nearly, what further are you? I heard a great deal of talk about
what you were going to do. Well, what ARE you going to do? You don't
know. You've not the smallest idea. You haven't any idea whatsoever.
You've got your leaders. Now then, Job Arthur, throw a little light
on the way in front, will you: for it seems to me we're lost in a bog.
Which way are we to steer? Come--give the word, and let's gee-up.
JOB ARTHUR. You ask me which way we are to go. I say we can't go our own
way, because of the obstacles that lie in front. You've got to remove
the obstacles from the way.
WILLIE. So said Balaam's ass. But you're not an ass--beg pardon; and
you're not Balaam--you're Job. And we've all got to be little Jobs,
learning how to spell patience backwards. We've lost our jobs and we've
found a Job. It's picking up a scorpion when you're looking for an
egg.--Tell us what you propose doing.... Remove an obstacle from the
way! What obstacle? And whose way?
JOB ARTHUR. I think it's pretty plain what the obstacle is.
WILLIE. Oh, ay. Tell us then.
JOB ARTHUR. The obstacle to Labour is Capital.
WILLIE. And how are we going to put salt on Capital's tail?
JOB ARTHUR. By Labour we mean us working men; and by Capital we mean
those that derive benefit from us, take the cream off us and leave us
the skim.
WILLIE. Oh, yes.
JOB ARTHUR. So that, if you're going to remove the obstacle, you've
got to remove the masters, and all that belongs to them. Does everybody
agree with me?
VOICES (loud). Ah, we do--yes--we do that--we do an' a'--yi--yi--that's
it!
WILLIE. Agreed unanimously. But how are we going to do it? Do you
propose to send for Williamson's furniture van, to pack them in? I
should think one pantechnicon would do, just for this parish. I'll
drive. Who'll be the vanmen to list and carry?
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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