JACK。Haven’tyouraggedmeenough，dad？
MRS。BARTHWICK。Yes，John，letJackhavehisbreakfast。
BARTHWICK。Ifyouhadn’thadmetocometo，wherewouldyouhavebeen？It’sthemerestaccident——supposeyouhadbeenthesonofapoormanoraclerk。Obtainingmoneywithachequeyouknewyourbankcouldnotmeet。Itmighthaveruinedyouforlife。Ican’tseewhat’stobecomeofyouiftheseareyourprinciples。Ineverdidanythingofthesortmyself。
JACK。Iexpectyoualwayshadlotsofmoney。Ifyou’vegotplentyofmoney，ofcourse。
BARTHWICK。Onthecontrary，Ihadnotyouradvantages。Myfatherkeptmeveryshortofmoney。
JACK。Howmuchhadyou，dad？
BARTHWICK。It’snotmaterial。Thequestionis，doyoufeelthegravityofwhatyoudid？
JACK。Idon’tknowaboutthegravity。Ofcourse，I’mverysorryifyouthinkitwaswrong。Haven’tIsaidso！IshouldneverhavedoneitatallifIhadn’tbeensojollyhardup。
BARTHWICK。Howmuchofthatfortypoundshaveyougotleft，Jack？
JACK。[Hesitating。]Idon’tknow——notmuch。
BARTHWICK。Howmuch？
JACK。[Desperately。]Ihaven’tgotany。
BARTHWICK。What？
JACK。IknowI’vegotthemostbeastlyheadache。
[Heleanshisheadonhishand。]
MRS。BARTHWICK。Headache？Mydearboy！Can’tyoueatanybreakfast？
JACK。[Drawinginhisbreath。]Toojollybad！
MRS。BARTHWICK。I’msosorry。Comewithme;dear;I’llgiveyousomethingthatwilltakeitawayatonce。
[Theyleavetheroom;andBARTHWICK，tearinguptheletter，goestothefireplaceandputsthepiecesinthefire。WhileheisdoingthisMARLOWcomesin，andlookingroundhim，isaboutquietlytowithdraw。]
BARTHWICK。What’sthat？Whatd’youwant？
MARLOW。IwaslookingforMr。John，sir。
BARTHWICK。Whatd’youwantMr。Johnfor？
MARLOW。[Withhesitation。]IthoughtIshouldfindhimhere，sir。
BARTHWICK。[Suspiciously。]Yes，butwhatdoyouwanthimfor？
MARLOW。[Offhandedly。]There’saladycalled——askedtospeaktohimforaminute，sir。
BARTHWICK。Alady，atthistimeinthemorning。Whatsortofalady？
MARLOW。[Withoutexpressioninhisvoice。]Ican’ttell，sir;noparticularsort。Shemightbeaftercharity。ShemightbeaSisterofMercy，Ishouldthink，sir。
BARTHWICK。Isshedressedlikeone？
MARLOW。No，sir，she’sinplainclothes，sir。
BARTHWICK。Didn’tshesaywhatshewanted？
MARLOW。Nosir。
BARTHWICK。Wheredidyouleaveher？
MARLOW。Inthehall，sir。
BARTHWICK。Inthehall？Howdoyouknowshe’snotathief——notgotdesignsonthehouse？
MARLOW。No，sir，Idon’tfancyso，sir。
BARTHWICK。Well，showherinhere;I’llseehermyself。
[MARLOWgoesoutwithaprivategestureofdismay。Hesoonreturns，usheringinayoungpaleladywithdarkeyesandprettyfigure，inamodish，black，butrathershabbydress，ablackandwhitetrimmedhatwithabunchofParmavioletswronglyplaced，andfuzzy—spottedveil。AttheSightofMR。
BARTHWICKsheexhibitseverysignofnervousness。MARLOWgoesout。]
UNKNOWNLADY。Oh！but——Ibegpardonthere’ssomemistake——I[Sheturnstofly。]
BARTHWICK。Whomdidyouwanttosee，madam？
UNKNOWN。[Stoppingandlookingback。]ItwasMr。JohnBarthwickI
wantedtosee。
BARTHWICK。IamJohnBarthwick，madam。WhatcanIhavethepleasureofdoingforyou？
UNKNOWN。Oh！I——Idon’t[Shedropshereyes。BARTHWICK
scrutinisesher，andpurseshislips。]
BARTHWICK。Itwasmyson，perhaps，youwishedtosee？
UNKNOWN。[Quickly。]Yes，ofcourse，it’syourson。
BARTHWICK。MayIaskwhomIhavethepleasureofspeakingto？
UNKNOWN。[Appealandhardinessuponherface。]Mynameis。oh！
itdoesn’tmatter——Idon’twanttomakeanyfuss。Ijustwanttoseeyoursonforaminute。[Boldly。]Infact，Imustseehim。
BARTHWICK。[Controllinghisuneasiness。]Mysonisnotverywell。
Ifnecessary，nodoubtIcouldattendtothematter;besokindastoletmeknow。
UNKNOWN。Oh！butImustseehim——I’vecomeonpurpose——[Sheburstsoutnervously。]Idon’twanttomakeanyfuss，butthefactis，last——lastnightyoursontookaway——hetookawaymy[Shestops。]
BARTHWICK。[Severely。]Yes，madam，what？
UNKNOWN。Hetookawaymy——myreticule。
BARTHWICK。Yourreti。？
UNKNOWN。Idon’tcareaboutthereticule;it’snotthatIwant——I
’msureIdon’twanttomakeanyfuss——[herfaceisquivering]——but—
—but——allmymoneywasinit！
BARTHWICK。Inwhat——inwhat？
UNKNOWN。Inmypurse，inthereticule。Itwasacrimsonsilkpurse。Really，Iwouldn’thavecome——Idon’twanttomakeanyfuss。
ButImustgetmymoneyback——mustn’tI？
BARTHWICK。Doyoutellmethatmyson。？
UNKNOWN。Oh！well，yousee，hewasn’tquiteImeanhewas[Shesmilesmesmerically。]
BARTHWICK。Ibegyourpardon。
UNKNOWN。[Stampingherfoot。]Oh！don’tyousee——tipsy！Wehadaquarrel。
BARTHWICK。[Scandalised。]How？Where？
UNKNOWN。[Defiantly。]Atmyplace。We’dhadsupperatthe。andyourson。
BARTHWICK。[Pressingthebell。]MayIaskhowyouknewthishouse？
Didhegiveyouhisnameandaddress？
UNKNOWN。[Glancingsidelong。]Igotitoutofhisovercoat。
BARTHWICK。[Sardonically。]Oh！yougotitoutofhisovercoat。
AndmayIaskifmysonwillknowyoubydaylight？
UNKNOWN。Knowme？Ishouldjolly——Imean，ofcoursehewill！
[MARLOWcomesin。]
BARTHWICK。AskMr。Johntocomedown。
[MARLOWgoesout，andBARTHWICKwalksuneasilyabout。]
Andhowlonghaveyouenjoyedhisacquaintanceship？
UNKNOWN。Onlysince——onlysinceGoodFriday。
BARTHWICK。Iamataloss——IrepeatIamata。
[Heglancesatthisunknownlady，whostandswitheyescastdown，twistingherhandsAndsuddenlyJackappears。Hestopsonseeingwhoishere，andtheunknownladyhystericallygiggles。Thereisasilence。]
BARTHWICK。[Portentously。]Thisyoung——er——ladysaysthatlastnight——Ithinkyousaidlastnightmadam——youtookaway。
UNKNOWN。[Impulsively。]Myreticule，andallmymoneywasinacrimsonsilkpurse。
JACK。Reticule。[Lookingroundforanychancetogetaway。]I
don’tknowanythingaboutit。
BARTHWICK。[Sharply。]Come，doyoudenyseeingthisyoungladylastnight？
JACK。Deny？No，ofcourse。[Whispering。]Whydidyougivemeawaylikethis？Whatonearthdidyoucomeherefor？
UNKNOWN。[Tearfully。]I’msureIdidn’twantto——it’snotlikely，isit？Yousnatcheditoutofmyhand——youknowyoudid——andthepursehadallmymoneyinit。Ididn’tfollowyoulastnightbecauseIdidn’twanttomakeafussanditwassolate，andyouwereso。
BARTHWICK。Come，sir，don’tturnyourbackonme——explain！
JACK。[Desperately。]Idon’trememberanythingaboutit。[Inalowvoicetohisfriend。]Whyonearthcouldn’tyouhavewritten？
UNKNOWN。[Sullenly。]Iwantitnow;Imusthave，it——I’vegottopaymyrentto—day。[ShelooksatBARTHWICK。]They’reonlytoogladtojumponpeoplewhoarenot——notwelloff。
JACK。Idon’trememberanythingaboutit，really。Idon’trememberanythingaboutlastnightatall。[Heputshishanduptohishead。]It’sall——cloudy，andI’vegotsuchabeastlyheadache。
UNKNOWN。Butyoutookit;youknowyoudid。Yousaidyou’dscoremeoff。
JACK。Well，then，itmustbehere。Iremembernow——Iremembersomething。WhydidItakethebeastlything？
BARTHWICK。Yes，whydidyoutakethebeastly。[Heturnsabruptlytothewindow。]
UNKNOWN。[Withhermesmericsmile。]Youweren’tquitewereyou？
JACK。[Smilingpallidly。]I’mawfullysorry。Ifthere’sanythingIcando。
BARTHWICK。Do？Youcanrestorethisproperty，Isuppose。
JACK。I’llgoandhavealook，butIreallydon’tthinkI’vegotit。
[Hegoesouthurriedly。AndBARTHWICK，placingachair，motionstothevisitortosit;then，withpursedlips，hestandsandeyesherfixedly。Shesits，andstealsalookathim;thenturnsaway，and，drawingupherveil，stealthilywipeshereyes。AndJackcomesback。]
JACK。[Ruefullyholdingouttheemptyreticule。]Isthatthething？I’velookedallover——Ican’tfindthepurseanywhere。Areyousureitwasthere？
UNKNOWN。[Tearfully。]Sure？OfcourseI’msure。Acrimsonsilkpurse。ItwasallthemoneyIhad。
JACK。Ireallyamawfullysorry——myhead’ssojollybad。I’veaskedthebutler，buthehasn’tseenit。
UNKNOWN。Imusthavemymoney。
JACK。Oh！Ofcourse——that’llbeallright;I’llseethatthat’sallright。Howmuch？
UNKNOWN。，[Sullenly。]Sevenpounds—twelve——it’sallI’vegotintheworld。
JACK。That’llbeallright;I’ll——sendyouacheque。
UNKNOWN。[Eagerly。]No;now，please。Givemewhatwasinmypurse;I’vegottopaymyrentthismorning。Theywon’t’givemeanotherday;I’mafortnightbehindalready。
JACK。[Blankly。]I’mawfullysorry;Ireallyhaven’tapennyinmypocket。
[HeglancesstealthilyatBARTHWICK。]
UNKNOWN。[Excitedly。]ComeIsayyoumust——it’smymoney，andyoutookit。I’mnotgoingawaywithoutit。They’llturnmeoutofmyplace。
JACK。[Claspinghishead。]ButIcan’tgiveyouwhatIhaven’tgot。Don’tItellyouIhaven’tabeastlycent。
UNKNOWN。[Tearingatherhandkerchief。]Oh！dogiveitme！[Sheputsherhandstogetherinappeal;then，withsuddenfierceness。]
Ifyoudon’tI’llsummonsyou。It’sstealing，that’swhatitis！
BARTHWICK。[Uneasily。]Onemoment，please。Asamatterof———er—
principle，Ishallsettlethisclaim。[Heproducesmoney。]Hereiseightpounds;theextrawillcoverthevalueofthepurseandyourcabfares。Ineedmakenocomment——nothanksarenecessary。
[Touchingthebell，heholdsthedoorajarinsilence。Theunknownladystoresthemoneyinherreticule，shelooksfromJACKtoBARTHWICK，andherfaceisquiveringfaintlywithasmile。Shehidesitwithherhand，andstealsaway。BehindherBARTHWICKshutsthedoor。]
BARTHWICK。[Withsolemnity。]H’m！Thisisnicethingtohappen！
JACK。[Impersonally。]Whatawfulluck！
BARTHWICK。Sothisisthewaythatfortypoundshasgone！Onethingafteranother！OncemoreIshouldliketoknowwhereyou’dhavebeenifithadn’tbeenforme！Youdon’tseemtohaveanyprinciples。You——you’reoneofthosewhoareanuisancetosociety;
you——you’redangerous！WhatyourmotherwouldsayIdon’tknow。
Yourconduct，asfarasIcansee，isabsolutelyunjustifiable。
It’s——it’scriminal。Why，apoormanwhobehavedasyou’vedone。
d’youthinkhe’dhaveanymercyshownhim？Whatyouwantisagoodlesson。Youandyoursortare——[hespeakswithfeeling]——anuisancetothecommunity。Don’taskmetohelpyounexttime。You’renotfittobehelped。
JACK。[Turninguponhissire，withunexpectedfierceness。]Allright，Iwon’tthen，andseehowyoulikeit。Youwouldn’thavehelpedmethistime，Iknow，ifyouhadn’tbeenscaredthethingwouldgetintothepapers。Wherearethecigarettes？
BARTHWICK。[Regardinghimuneasily。]WellI’llsaynomoreaboutit。[Heringsthebell。]I’llpassitoverforthisonce，but。
[MARLOWComesin。]Youcanclearaway。
[Hehideshisfacebehindthe\"Times。\"]
JACK。[Brightening。]Isay，Marlow，wherearethecigarettes？
MARLOW。Iputtheboxoutwiththewhiskylastnight，sir，butthismorningIcan’tfinditanywhere。
JACK。Didyoulookinmyroom？
MARLOW。Yes，sir;I’velookedalloverthehouse。IfoundtwoNestorendsinthetraythismorning，soyoumusthavebeensmokin’
lastnight，sir。[Hesitating。]I’mreallyafraidsomeone’spurloinedthebox。
JACK。[Uneasily。]Stolenit！
BARTHWICK。What’sthat？Thecigarette—box！Isanythingelsemissing？
MARLOW。No，sir;I’vebeenthroughtheplate。
BARTHWICK。Wasthehouseallrightthismorning？Noneofthewindowsopen？
MARLOW。No，sir。[QuietlytoJACK。]Youleftyourlatch—keyinthedoorlastnight，sir。
[Hehandsitback，unseenbyBARTHWICK]
JACK。Tst！
BARTHWICK。Who’sbeenintheroomthismorning？
MARLOW。MeandWheeler，andMrs。Jonesisall，sir，asfarasI
know。
BARTHWICK。HaveyouaskedMrs。Barthwick？
[ToJACK。]Goandaskyourmotherifshe’shadit;askhertolookandseeifshe’smissedanythingelse。
[JACKgoesuponthismission。]
Nothingismoredisquietingthanlosingthingslikethis。
MARLOW。No，sir。
BARTHWICK。Haveyouanysuspicions？
MARLOW，No，sir。
BARTHWICK。ThisMrs。Jones——howlonghasshebeenworkinghere？
MARLOW。Onlythislastmonth，sir。
BARTHWICK。Whatsortofperson？
MARLOW。Idon’tknowmuchabouther，sir;seemsaveryquiet，respectablewoman。
BARTHWICK。Whodidtheroomthismorning？
MARLOW。WheelerandMrs。Jones，Sir。
BARTHWICK。[Withhisforefingerupraised。]Now，wasthisMrs。
Jonesintheroomaloneatanytime？
MARLOW。[Expressionless。]Yes，Sir。
BARTHWICK。Howdoyouknowthat？
MARLOW。[Reluctantly。]Ifoundherhere，sir。
BARTHWICK。AndhasWheelerbeenintheroomalone？
MARLOW。No，sir，she’snot，sir。Ishouldsay，sir，thatMrs。
Jonesseemsaveryhonest。
BARTHWICK。[Holdinguphishand。]Iwanttoknowthis:HasthisMrs。Jonesbeenherethewholemorning？
MARLOW。Yes，sir——no，sir——shesteppedovertothegreengrocer’sforcook。
BARTHWICK。H’m！Issheinthehousenow？
MARLOW。Yes，Sir。
BARTHWICK。Verygood。Ishallmakeapointofclearingthisup。
OnprincipleIshallmakeapointoffixingtheresponsibility;itgoestothefoundationsofsecurity。Inallyourinterests。
MARLOW。Yes，Sir。
BARTHWICK。WhatsortofcircumstancesisthisMrs。Jonesin？Isherhusbandinwork？
MARLOW。Ibelievenot，sir。
BARTHWICK。Verywell。Saynothingaboutittoanyone。TellWheelernottospeakofit，andaskMrs。Jonestostepuphere。
MARLOW。Verygood，sir。
[MARLOWgoesout，hisfaceconcerned;andBARTHWICKstays，hisfacejudicialandalittlepleased，asbefitsamanconductinganinquiry。MRS。BARTHWICKandheysoncomein。]
BARTHWICK。Well，mydear，you’venotseenit，Isuppose？
MRS。BARTHWICK。No。Butwhatanextraordinarything，John！
Marlow，ofcourse，isoutofthequestion。I’mcertainnoneofthemaidsasforcook！
BARTHWICK。Oh，cook！
MRS。BARTHWICK。Ofcourse！It’sperfectlydetestabletometosuspectanybody。
BARTHWICK。Itisnotaquestionofone’sfeelings。It’saquestionofjustice。Onprinciple。
MRS。BARTHWICK。Ishouldn’tbeabitsurprisedifthecharwomanknewsomethingaboutit。ItwasLaurawhorecommendedher。
BARTHWICK。[Judicially。]IamgoingtohaveMrs。Jonesup。Leaveittome;and——er——rememberthatnobodyisguiltyuntilthey’reprovedso。Ishallbecareful。Ihavenointentionoffrighteningher;Ishallgivehereverychance。Ihearshe’sinpoorcircumstances。Ifwearenotabletodomuchforthemweareboundtohavethegreatestsympathywiththepoor。[MRS。JONEScomesin。]
[Pleasantly。]Oh！goodmorning，Mrs。Jones。
MRS。JONES。[Soft，andeven，unemphatic。]Goodmorning，sir！Goodmorning，ma’am！
BARTHWICK。Aboutyourhusband——he’snotinwork，Ihear？
MRS。JONES。No，sir;ofcoursehe’snotinworkjustnow。
BARTHWICK。ThenIsupposehe’searningnothing。
MRS。JONES。No，sir，he’snotearninganythingjustnow，sir。
BARTHWICK。Andhowmanychildrenhaveyou？
MRS。JONES。Threechildren;butofcoursetheydon’teatverymuchsir。[Alittlesilence。]
BARTHWICK。Andhowoldistheeldest？
MRS。JONES。Nineyearsold，sir。
BARTHWICK。Dotheygotoschool？
MRS。JONES，Yes，sir，theyallthreegotoschooleveryday。
BARTHWICK。[Severely。]Andwhatabouttheirfoodwhenyou’reoutatwork？
MRS。JONES。Well，Sir，Ihavetogivethemtheirdinnertotakewiththem。OfcourseI’mnotalwaysabletogivethemanything;
sometimesIhavetosendthemwithout;butmyhusbandisverygoodaboutthechildrenwhenhe’sinwork。Butwhenhe’snotinworkofcoursehe’saverydifficultman。
BARTHWICK。Hedrinks，Isuppose？
MRS。JONES。Yes，Sir。OfcourseIcan’tsayhedoesn’tdrink，becausehedoes。
BARTHWICK。AndIsupposehetakesallyourmoney？
MRS。JONES。No，sir，he’sverygoodaboutmymoney，exceptwhenhe’snothimself，andthen，ofcourse，hetreatsmeverybadly。
BARTHWICK。Nowwhatishe——yourhusband？
MRS。JONES。Byprofession，sir，ofcoursehe’sagroom。
BARTHWICK。Agroom！Howcamehetolosehisplace？
MRS。JONES。Helosthisplacealongtimeago，sir，andhe’sneverhadaverylongjobsince;andnow，ofcourse，themotor—carsareagainsthim。
BARTHWICK。Whenwereyoumarriedtohim，Mrs。Jones？
MRS。JONES。Eightyearsago，sirthatwasin。
MRS。BARTHWICK。[Sharply。]Eight？Yousaidtheeldestchildwasnine。
MRS。JONES。Yes，ma’am;ofcoursethatwaswhyhelosthisplace。
Hedidn’ttreatmerightly，andofcoursehisemployersaidhecouldn’tkeephimbecauseoftheexample。
BARTHWICK。Youmeanhe——ahem。
MRS。JONES。Yes，sir;andofcourseafterhelosthisplacehemarriedme。
MRS。BARTHWICK。Youactuallymeantosayyou——youwere。
BARTHWICK。Mydear。
MRS。BARTHWICK。[Indignantly。]Howdisgraceful！
BARTHWICK。[Hurriedly。]Andwhereareyoulivingnow，Mrs。Jones？
MRS。JONES。We’venotgotahome，sir。Ofcoursewe’vebeenobligedtoputawaymostofourthings。