The Iceman Cometh (20 page)

HOPE

Bejees, you’ve hit it, Larry! I’ve noticed he hasn’t shown her picture around this time!

MOSHKER

He hasn’t got it! The iceman took it away from him!

MARGIE

Jees, look at him! Who could blame her?

PEARL

She must be hard up to fall for an iceman!

CORA

Imagine a sap like him advisin’ me and Chuck to git married!

CHUCK

Yeah! He done so good wid it!

JIMMY

At least I can say Marjorie chose an officer and a gentleman.

LEWIS

Come to look at you, Hickey, old chap, you’ve sprouted horns like a bloody antelope!

WETJOEN

Pigger, py Gott! Like a water buffalo’s!

WILLIE

Sings to his Sailor Lad tune
.

“Come up,” she cried, “my iceman lad,

And you and I’ll agree—”

They all join in a jeering chorus, rapping with knuckles or glasses on the table at the indicated spot in the lyric
.

“And I’ll show you the prettiest

Rap, rap, rap
.

That ever you did see!”

A roar of derisive, dirty laughter. But
HICKEY
has remained unmoved by all this taunting. He grins good-naturedly, as if he enjoyed the joke at his expense, and joins in the laughter
.

HICKEY

Well, boys and girls, I’m glad to see you getting in good spirits for Harry’s party, even if the joke is on me. I admit I asked for it by always pulling that iceman gag in the old days. So laugh all you like.
He pauses. They do not laugh now. They are again staring at him with baffled uneasiness. He goes on thoughtfully
.

Well, this forces my hand, I guess, your bringing up the subject of Evelyn. I didn’t want to tell you yet. It’s hardly an appropriate time. I meant to wait until the party was over. But you’re getting the wrong idea about poor Evelyn, and I’ve got to stop that.

He pauses again. There is a tense stillness in the room. He bows his head a little and says quietly
.

I’m sorry to tell you my dearly beloved wife is dead.

A gasp comes from the stunned company. They look away from him, shocked and miserably ashamed of themselves, except
LARRY
who continues to stare at him
.

LARRY

Aloud to himself with a superstitious shrinking
.

Be God, I felt he’d brought the touch of death on him!

Then suddenly he is even more ashamed of himself than the others and stammers
.

Forgive me, Hickey! I’d like to cut my dirty tongue out!

This releases a chorus of shamefaced mumbles from the crowd
. “
Sorry
,
Hickey
.” “
I’m sorry, Hickey
.” “
We’re sorry, Hickey
.”

HICKEY

Looking around at them
—
in a kindly, reassuring tone
.

Now look here, everybody. You mustn’t let this be a wet blanket on Harry’s party. You’re still getting me all wrong. There’s no reason—You see, I don’t feel any grief.

They gaze at him startledly. He goes on with convincing sincerity
. I’ve got to feel glad, for her sake. Because she’s at peace. She’s rid of me at last. Hell, I don’t have to tell you—you all know what I was like. You can imagine what she went through, married to a no-good cheater and drunk like I was. And there was no way out of it for her. Because she loved me. But now she is at peace like she always longed to be. So why should I feel sad? She wouldn’t want me to feel sad. Why, all that Evelyn ever wanted out of life was to make me happy.
He stops, looking around at them with a simple, gent
le
frankness. They stare at him in bewildered, incredulous confusion
.

CURTAIN

SCENE

Barroom of
HARRY HOPE
’s,
including apart of what had been the back room in Acts One and Two. In the right wall are two big windows, with the swinging doors to the street between them. The bar itself is at rear. Behind it is a mirror, covered with white mosquito netting to keep off the flies, anda shelf on which are barrels of cheap whiskey with spiggots and a small show case of bottled goods. At left of the bar is the doorway to the hall. There is a table at left, front, of barroom proper, with four chairs. At right, front, is a small free-lunch counter, facing left, with a space between it and the window for the dea
le
r to stand when he dishes out soup at the noon hour. Over the mirror behind the bar are framed photographs of Richard Croker and Big Tim Sullivan, flanked by framed lithographs of John L. Sullivan and Gentleman Jim Corbett in ring costume
.

At left, in what had been the back room, with the dividing curtain drawn, the banquet table of Act Two has been broken up, and the tables are again in the crowded arrangement of Act One. Of these, we see one in the front row with five chairs at left of the barroom table, another with five chairs at left-rear of it, a third back by the rear wall with five chairs, and finally, at extreme left-front, one with four chairs, partly on and partly off stage, left
.

It is around the middle of the morning of
HOPE
’s
birthday, a hot summer day. There is sunlight in the street outside, but it does not hit the windows and the light in the back-room section is dim
.

JOE MOTTIS
moving around, a box of sawdust under his arm, strewing it over the floor. His manner is sullen, his face set in gloom. He ignores everyone. As the scene progresses, he finishes his sawdusting job, goes behind the lunch counter and cuts loaves of bread
.
ROCKY
is behind the bar, wiping it, washing glasses, etc. He wears his working clothes, sleeves rolled up. He looks sleepy, irritable and worried. At the barroom table, front
,
LARRY
sits in a chair, facing right-front. He has no drink in font of him. He stares ahead, deep in harried thought. On his right, in a chair facing right
,
HUGO
sits sprawled forward, arms and head on the table as usual, a whiskey glass beside his limp hand. At rear of the front table at left of them, in a chair facing left
,
PARRITT
is sitting. He is staring in front of him in a tense, strained immobility
.

As the curtain rises
,
ROCKY
finishes his work behind the bar. He comes forward and drops wearily in the chair at right of
LARRY
’s
table, facing left
.

ROCKY

Nuttin’ now till de noon rush from de Market. I’m goin’ to rest my fanny.

Irritably
.

If I ain’t a sap to let
CHUCK
kid me into workin’ his time so’s he can take de mornin’ off. But I got sick of arguin’ wid ’im. I says, “Aw right, git married! What’s it to me?” Hickey’s got de bot’ of dem bugs.

Bitterly
.

Some party last night, huh? Jees, what a funeral! It was jinxed from de start, but his tellin’ about his wife croakin’ put de K.O. on it.

LARRY

Yes, it turned out it wasn’t a birthday feast but a wake!

ROCKY

Him promisin’ he’d cut out de bughouse bull about peace—and den he went on talkin’ and talkin’ like he couldn’t stop! And all de gang sneakin’ upstairs, leavin’ free booze and eats like dey was poison! It didn’t do dem no good if dey thought dey’d shake him. He’s been hoppin’ from room to room all night. Yuh can’t stop him. He’s got his Reform Wave goin’ strong dis mornin’! Did yuh notice him drag
JIMMY
out de foist ting to get his laundry and his clothes pressed so he wouldn’t have no excuse? And he give Willie de dough to buy his stuff back from Solly’s. And all de rest been brushin’ and shavin’ demselves wid de shakes—

LARRY

Defiantly
.

He didn’t come to my room! He’s afraid I might ask him a few questions.

ROCKY

Scornfully
.

Yeah? It don’t look to me he’s scared of yuh. I’d say you was scared of him.

LARRY

Stung
.

You’d lie, then!

PARRITT

Jerks round to look at
LARRY
—
sneeringly
.

Don’t let him kid you, Rocky. He had his door locked. I couldn’t get in, either.

ROCKY

Yeah, who d’yuh tinkyuh’re kiddin’, Larry? He’s showed you up, aw right. Like he says, if yuh was so anxious to croak, why wouldn’t yuh hop off your fire escape long ago?

LARRY

Defiantly
.

Because it’d be a coward’s quitting, that’s why!

PARRITT

He’s all quitter, Rocky. He’s a yellow old faker!

LARRY

Turns on him
.

You lying punk! Remember what I warned you—!

ROCKY

Scowls at
PARRITT
.

Yeah, keep outta dis, you! Where d’yuh get license to butt in? Shall I give him de bum’s rush, Larry? If you don’t want him around, nobody else don’t.

LARRY

Forcing an indifferent tone
.

No. Let him stay. I don’t mind him. He’s nothing to me.

ROCKY
shrugs his shoulders and yawns sleepily
.

PARRITT

You’re right, I have nowhere to go now. You’re the only one in the world I can turn to.

ROCKY

Drowsily
.

Yuh’re a soft old sap, Larry. He’s a no-good louse like Hickey. He don’t belong.

He yawns
.

I’m all in. Not a wink of sleep. Can’t keep my peepers open.

His eyes close and his head nods
.
PARRITT
gives him a glance and then gets up and slinks over to slide into the chair on
LARRY’S
left, between him
and
ROCKY
.
LARRY
shrinks away, but determinedly ignores him
.

PARRITT

Bending toward him
—
in a low, ingratiating, apologetic voice
. I’m sorry for riding you, Larry. But you get my goat when you act as if you didn’t care a damn what happened to me, and keep you door locked so I can’t talk to you.

Then hopefully
.

But that was to keep Hickey out, wasn’t it? I don’t blame you. I’m getting to hate him. I’m getting more and more scared of him. Especially since he told us his wife was dead. It’s that queer feeling he gives me that I’m mixed up with him some way. I don’t know why, but it started me thinking about Mother—as if she was dead.

With a strange undercurrent of something like satisfaction in his pitying tone
.

I suppose she might as well be. Inside herself, I mean. It must kill her when she thinks of me—I know she doesn’t want to, but she can’t help it. After all, I’m her only kid. She used to spoil me and made a pet of me. Once in a great while, I mean. When she remembered me. As if she wanted to make up for something. As if she felt guilty. So she must have loved me a little, even if she never let it interfere with her freedom.

With a strange pathetic wistfulness
.

Do you know, Larry, I once had a sneaking suspicion that maybe, if the truth was known, you were my father.

LARRY

Violently
.

You damned fool! Who put that insane idea in your head? You know it’s a lie! Anyone in the Coast crowd could tell you I never laid eyes on your mother till after you were born.

PARRITT

Well, I’d hardly ask them, would I? I know you’re right, though, because I asked her. She brought me up to be frank and ask her anything, and she’d always tell me the truth.

Abruptly
.

But I was talking about how she must feel now about me. My getting through with the Movement. She’ll never forgive that. The Movement is her life. And it must be the final knockout for her if she knows I was the one who sold—

LARRY

Shut up, damn you!

PARRITT

It’ll kill her. And I’m sure she knows it must have been me.

Suddenly with desperate urgency
.

But I never thought the cops would get her! You’ve got to believe that! You’ve got to see what my only reason was! I’ll admit what I told you last night was a lie—that bunk about getting patriotic and my duty to my country. But here’s the true reason, Larry—the only reason! It was just for money! I got stuck on a whore and wanted dough to blow in on her and have a good time! That’s all I did it for! Just money! Honest.

He has the terrible grotesque air, in confessing his sordid baseness, of one who gives an excuse which exonerates him from any real guilt
.

LARRY