A SCENE FROM GEORGE M. BAKER'S NEW PLAY (FOR FEMALE CHARACTERS ONLY) IN THREE ACTS, ENTITLED "REBECCA'S TRIUMPH."
Characters:Katy,an Irish servant,Gyp,a colored girl;Dora,a young lady.
(EnterKaty,with a letter in her hand.)
Katy(turning letter over and over). An' sure I got a love-lether frum Patsy; an' phat will I do wid it I dunno. I can't rade, and the misthress is away wid the company girls. How will I find out phat's inside it? It's bothered I am intirely.
(Enter fromL.,throughC.door,Dora.)
Dora.Ah, Katy! Is it ther yees are? Where's Mrs. Delaine's shawl? I see it. (Goes towards windowR.)
Katy.If yees plase, Miss Dora, might I be after troubling yees?
Dora(comes down). Certainly, Katy. What's the trouble?
Katy.If yees plase, I have a lether.
Dora.From the ould counthry?
Katy.No, indade: it's from—it's from—sure you'll be afther laughin' if I tole yees.
Dora.Then you needn't tell me, Katy; I can guess. It's a love-letter.
Katy.An' who towld yees that?
Dora.Yourself, Katy, by the blushes on your cheeks and the sparkle in your eyes. You want me to read it for you?
Katy.If yees plase, Miss Dora. (Hands letter.)
Dora(opening letter). I shall learn all your secrets, Katy. Perhaps the young man would not like that.
Katy.Thin yees moight shkip the sacrets.
Dora(laughs). All right, Katy. (Reads.) "Lovely Katy."
Katy.That's me. Sure that's no sacret.
Dora(reads). "I take me pin in hand wid a bating heart, to till yees uv the sthrong wakeniss I have for yees."
Katy.Yees moight shkip that.
Dora(reads). "I have nather ate, dhrunk, nor slipt, for a wake."
Katy.Will, that jist accounts for the wakeniss.
Dora(reads). "Barrin' my thray males a day, an 'me pipe an' tobacyer."
Katy.An' he wid the hearty appetite!
Dora(reads). "An' all me slapeliss nights are fill wid drames of yees, Katy mavourneen."
Katy.Sure he's the darlin'.
Dora(reads). "I have yees phortygraff nailed to the hid uv me bid; and ivery night, afther I've blown out the candle wid me fingers, I tak a good look at it, an' if ye'll belave me, there's not a dry thread in me eyes."
Katy.Sure he was alwus tinder-hearted.
Dora(reads). "If yees don't belave me, tak a good look at yees own face before yees open the lether, and see if I have not cause to wape."
Katy.Sure I ought to have known that before the lether came.
Dora(reads). "If yees foind these tinder loins blotted wid tears, it's all owing to the bad quality uv the ink, which has compilled me to pin this wid a pincil."
Katy.That's no mather.
Dora(reads). "If yees don't recave this lether, or can't rade it, niver moind: ye'll know that all that's in it is the truth, an' nades nather radin' or writin' to till the same. So name the day, Katy darlin', whin me single blissidniss is to exphire, an' the mathrimoonial noose shlipped over the hid of yees lovin' and consolin'
Patsy Dolan.
"P.S.—These last lines are the poethry uv love.
"SecondP.S.—To be rid fhirst. I inclose a ring for yees finger, which same yees will find in me nixt lether." That's all, Katy. (Hands back letter.)
Katy.It's jist illigant. I'm obleeged to yees.
Dora(takes shawl from chair). Quite welcome, Katy. When you get ready to name the day, I'll answer it for you. But be quick, Katy; for the poor fellow will not live long on "only his thray males a day, an' his pipe an' tobacyer." (Runs offC.toL.)
Katy(looks at letter). Sure it's a darlin' lether, an' Patsy Dolan's a broth uv a bye.
EnterR., Gyp.
Gyp.Ah, dar you is, Katy! Whar's de misses? Whar's Miss Becky? Whar's eberybody?
Katy.In the garden, sure. Yees may coom in, if yees wipe yers fate.
Gyp.Yas, indeed! How yer was? And how's Patsy Dolan?
Katy.He's will. I've jist recaved a lether from him.
Gyp.Dat so? Dat's good! Lub-letters am bery consolin' to de flutterin' heart. Got a letter, hab you? S'pose you red it frough and frough.
Katy.Sure I can't rade at all, at all.
Gyp.Dat so? Well, well! De ignoramance ob de foreign poperlation am distressin'.
Katy.Can you rade?
Gyp.Read? What you take me for? How else could I debour de heaps and heaps ob lub-letters dat I constantly receibe from my adorers?
Katy(Aside.) Faith, I'd loike to hear Patsy's lether again. (Aloud.) Thin plase rade this for me. (Hands letter.)
Gyp(confused). Wh-wh-what you take me fur? (Aside.) Golly! she cotch me den. (Aloud.) No, chile: dose tender confections am fur you alone, and dey shouldn't be composed to de world.
Katy.An' sure yees can't rade.
Gyp.What's that? Can't read? (Takes letter, and turns it round several times.) Berry long letter. Want to hear it all?
Katy.Ivery word.
Gyp(Aside.) Mussn't gib in. Spec dase all alike.(Aloud.) Ob course, ob course. (Pretends to read.) "Lubliest ob your sexes."
Katy.Sure that's not there.
Gyp(shows letter). See fur yerself, see fur yerself.
Katy.Go on wid the lether.
Gyp."Sublimest ob de fair sexes, dis am a whale ob tears. Dar ain't no sunshine of moonshine widout you."
Katy.That's not thrue at all, at all.
Gyp(shows letter). Read it yerself, read yerself.
Katy.Go on wid the lether.
Gyp."De moon on de lake am beamin', de lubly sunflower perfumeries in de garden, de tuneful frogs meliferously warble in de riber, an' de breezes blow fro' de treeses; but my lub, my lub, whar, oh, whar am she?"
Katy.I don't belave—
Gyp(as before). See fur yerself, see fur yerself!
Katy.Oh, quit yees talkin' an' talkin'. Go on wid the lether.
Gyp."My lub she isn't hansum,My lub she isn't fair;But to cook de beef and 'tatersCan't beat her anywhar."
Gyp."My lub she isn't hansum,My lub she isn't fair;But to cook de beef and 'tatersCan't beat her anywhar."
Dat's potry, Katy, dat is; alwus find lots ob dat in lub-letters: it gibs dem a flabor.
Katy.I don't belave it's there.
Gyp(as before). See fur yerself, see fur yerself!
Katy.Go on wid the lether.
Gyp.Luf me see, wha was I? "Come rest on dis yere head your aching breast." Dey all got dat, Katy, an'—an' (aside), well, I'se jest puzzled fur more: guess we'll hab some more poetry (aloud) an'—an'—
"We'll dance all night till broad daylight,An' go home with de girls in de morning."
"We'll dance all night till broad daylight,An' go home with de girls in de morning."
Katy.It's no such thing! Yer desavin' me, so yees are! Me Patsy wouldn't go home wid the girls at all, at all.
Gyp.See fur yerself, see fur yerself!
Katy(snatching letter). So I will. It's false and desateful yees are, for Miss Dora rid the lether, an'—an'—it was jist illegant, so it was an' it's yersilf.—bad luck to theloikes ov yees, whin yees can't rade! an' it's the blissid troth I'm tillin',—invintin' a bit uv blarney to make trouble betwane a poor girl an' her Patsy. Away wid yees!
[Exit doorR.
Gyp.Well, I guess she fooled me dat time. No use. Dar's alwus trubble interferin' in lub affairs, jest like domestic affairs: when man and wife am fighting, ef you try to be a messenger ob peace, ef you don't look out, you'll git de broomstick onto yer own head.
[Exit.
YANKEE DIALECT RECITATIONS.
Edited by GEORGE M. BAKER.
BOARDS 50 CENTS PAPER 30 CENTS.
LEE & SHEPARD, Publishers, Boston.
CONTENTS.PAGEGoin' SomewhereM. Quod5Old Farmer Grey Gets PhotographedJohn H. Yates8Speech of the Hon. Perverse Peabody on the Acquisition of Cuba10Widder Green's Last Words13Widow Stebbins on HomœopathyC. F. Adams14Farmer Bent's Sheep-Washing16The Little Peach17Mr. Pickwick's Romantic Adventure with a Middle-aged Lady in Yellow Curl-PapersDickens18Goin' Home To-dayW. M. Carleton24Jakie on Watermelon Pickle25Putty and VarnishJosh Billings26London Zoölogical Gardens28Aurelia's Unfortunate Young ManMark Twain29The Old Ways and the NewJohn H. Yates31The Bumpkin's Courtship33The Ballad of the OystermanOliver Wendell Holmes35The Deck Hand and the Mule36A Lay of Real LifeThomas Hood37Middlerib's Rheumatic CureR. J. Burdette39Two FishersHarper's Weekly43Jim Wolfe and the CatsMark Twain44Mr. Stiver's HorseJ. M. Bailey46MosquitoesKaleb Keating50The City Man and the Setting Hen51The Owl CriticJames T. Fields53The Man with a Cold in His Head54Forcible EntryJ. M. Bailey5?The Village Sewing Society57Yankee Courtship59The Patter of the Shingle63The Paper Don't Say64The Jonesville Singin' QuireBetsey Bobbitt65The Knife-GrinderGeorge Canning69Malaria70The Story of the Bad Little Boy who Didn't Come to GriefMark Twain72Mr. Caudle and His Second WifeDouglas Jerrold75Mollie or Sadie78The Baffled Book Agent79She Would Be a MasonJames C. Leighton80The Loves of LucindaMark Melville83Something Split87From the Sublime to the Ridiculous88A Howl in RomeBill Nye89Butterwick's Weakness93The Old Man Goes to TownJ. G. Swinnerton95Mr. Watkins CelebratesDetroit Press98The Squire's StoryJohn Phœnix99The Conversion of Colonel QuaggGeorge Augustus Sala100In the Surf105Variegated DogsPeck107Judge Pitman's WatchMax Adeler110An Æsthetic Housekeeper111"Mebbe" Joe's True Fish Story112Aunt Sophronia Tabor at the Opera114The Village ChoirAndre's Journal117The Light From Over the Range118The ChristeningE. T. Corbett121Mr. Covill Proves MathematicsJ. M. Bailey123Mary's Lamb on a New Principle124Address of Spottycus125Our Visitor, and What He Came For128In the CatacombsH. H. Ballard130The Showman's CourtshipA. Ward132Clerical Wit134Greely's RideMark Twain135No Yearning for the BeautifulMax Adeler138A Very Naughty Little Girl's View of Life141Burdock's Goat142Awfully Lovely Philosophy145Aunt Parsons' StoryPresbyterian Journal146The National Game151A Disturbance in ChurchMax Adeler153The Engineer's StoryEugene J. Hall155The Judge's Search for a WaterfallHarper's Magazine156The Railroad Crossing158Asking the Gov'nor159Intensely UtterAlbany Chronicle162The Way Astors Are MadeJ. M. Bailey164A Mysterious DisappearanceDickens166
THE GRAND ARMY SPEAKER.
Edited by GEORGE M. BAKER.
BOARDS 50 CENTSPAPER 30 CENTS.
LEE & SHEPARD, Publishers, Boston.
CONTENTS.PAGEThe RescueJohn Brownjohn5DecorationT. W. Higginson8The Little Black-eyed RebelWill Carleton9The Palmetto and the PineMrs. Virginia L. French11Battle HymnKorner13The Song of the Dying14By the Alma RiverMiss Mulock15At the Soldiers' GravesRobert Collyer17The Sergeant of the Fiftieth18The Minute-men of '75George William Curtis19Blue and Gray21Custer's Last ChargeFrederick Whittaker23The Pride of Battery BF. H. Gassaway25The Cavalry ChargeF. A. Durivage27The Last Redoubt28Kelly's FerryBenjamin F. Taylor30Noble Revenge34Civil WarAnonymous35"Dashing Rod," TrooperS. Conant Foster36The Tramp of ShilohJoaquin Miller38The Sharpshooter's MissFrank H. Gassaway40The Fight at LookoutR. L. Cary, jun.44The Countersign was "Mary"Margaret Eytinge46A Second Review of the Grand ArmyBret Harte47The Bivouac of the Dead49The TrampGeorge M. Baker52The Canteen55The Charge by the Ford56Harry BrandonEdmund E. Price58Post Number ThreeSherman D. Richardson59The Patriot SpyF. M. Finch62The Dandy FifthFrank H. Gassaway63The American FlagJoseph Rodman Drake66Somebody's DarlingAnonymous68"Little Potter's" Story69The Bravest Boy in TownEmma Huntington Nason71Our FolksEthel Lynn74"Picciola"76"Fall in"Mary Clemmer78"The Boys who Never Got Home"George W. Peck79Abraham Lincoln and the Poor Woman80Elizabeth ZaneJohn S. Adams82Keenan's Charge84The Old Canteen86Mobile Bay88Ravenswood's OathA. Wallace Thaxter90The Story of the SwordsAdelaide Cilley Waldron91"Only a Crippled Soldier!"J. Russell Fisher93Somebody's PrideClement Scott97My Wife and ChildHenry Rootes Jackson98The Song of the DrumI. E. Diekenga99"Bay Billy"Frank H. Gassaway102Sheridan's Ride106"Them Yankee Blankits"Samuel W. Small108The Soldiers' MonumentJohn L. Swift110The Crutch in the CornerJohn McIntosh112Roll-call113The Cruise of the MonitorGeorge M. Baker115Missing117Decoration DayMary Bassett Hussey118Back from the WarT. De Witt Talmage120A Piece of BuntingHon. F. W. Palmer121Grant's StrategyJudge Veazey123The Charge at Valley Maloy124The Hero-womanGeorge Lippard126Union of Blue and GrayPaul H. Hayne130After "Taps"Horace Binney Sargent131The Soldier's ReprieveRosa Hartwick Thorpe133At ArlingtonJames R. Randall135The Man with the MusketH. S. Taylor137A Baby PeacemakerHerbert W. Collingwood138The VeteransGeneral Sherman141Barbara FrietchieWhittier142What Saved the Union144Re-enlistedLucy Larcom145The Soldier's DreamC. G. Fall147
IRISH DIALECT RECITATIONS.
Edited by GEORGE M. BAKER.
BOARDS 50 CENTSPAPER 30 CENTS.
LEE & SHEPARD, Publishers, Boston.
CONTENTS.PAGEHow Teddy Saved His Bacon5Mr. O'Hoolahan's Mistake7The Last of the Sarpints9The Irish Boy and the Priest11An Irish Wake12Biddy's PhilosophyR. H. Stoddard14Reflections on the NeedleCormac O'Leary15The Red O'NeilThomas S. Collier16Deaf and DumbAnna F. Burnham20Mr. Murphy Explains His Son's Conduct21A Ram for Ould Oireland22The GridironWilliam B. Fowle23The "O'Meara Consolidated"Va. City Enterprise26Paddy's MetamorphosisMoore28The Widow O'Shane's Rent29Why Biddy and Pat Got Married30Don Squixet's GhostHarry Bolingbroke31Mr. O'Gallagher's Three Roads to LearningCaptain Marryat33Two Irish IdylsAlfred Perceval Graves37The Broken Pitcher39Paddy's ExcelsiorHarper's Magazine40The Irish Philosopher41Mary Maloney's PhilosophyPhiladelphia Bulletin42Bridget McRae's Wedding AnniversaryNina Gray44Paddy O'RaftherSamuel Lover45Pat's Reason47O'Branigan's DrillW. W. Fink47Pat and the Pig48Pat and the Oysters50A PenitentMargaret Eytinge51Mike McGaffaty's DogMark Melville51Jimmy Butler and the Owl53Tipperary56Pat's Dream of Heaven58Biddy's Troubles61Make It Four, Yer Honor62The Post-BoyMrs C. J. Despard64That Fire at the Nolans'Life67Ninety-Eight70Pat's BondsmanLilian A. Moulton71Washee, WasheeJoaquin Miller73Annie's Ticket74O'ThelloHarper's Magazine76Lanty LearySamuel Lover77Katie's Answer78Paddy's Dream79Lessons in CookeryDetroit Free Press80The Irish Traveller82Teddy's Six Bulls82A MiracleCharles H. Webber84Pat and Miss SkittyBessie Bently84At the Rising of the MoonLeo Casey86The Irish Schoolmaster87How Dennis Took the Pledge89When McGue Puts the Baby to Sleep90The ConfessionSamuel Lover91Father Phil's CollectionSamuel Lover92St. Patrick's Martyrs100Pat's CorrespondenceW. M. Giffin102Little Pat and the Parson104Patrick O'Rouke and the FrogsGeorge W. Bungay105Widow MaloneCharles Lever108The Birth of St. PatrickSamuel Lover109Murphy's Mystery of the Pork Barrel110Paddy Blake's EchoSamuel Lover111A Cook of the Period112Larry's on the ForceIrwin Russell113Pat and the FrogsR. M. T.114Paddy's CourtingW. A. Eaton116A Bit of GossipJosephine Pollard118Paddy and His Pig120Teddy McGuire and Paddy O'FlynnAmanda T. Jones121Paudeen O'Rafferty's Say-Voyage125Irish AstronomyCharles G. Halpine128Paddy McGrath's Introduction to Mr. Bruin129Larrie O'DeeW. W. Fink131Irish Coquetry132