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+*** START OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 14602 ***
+
+[Illustration: Good-by! good-by!]
+
+
+
+
+WAR BRIDES
+
+_A Play in One Act_
+
+BY
+
+MARION CRAIG WENTWORTH
+
+ILLUSTRATED WITH PHOTOGRAPHS FROM THE
+PLAY AS PRESENTED BY MME. NAZIMOVA
+
+
+NEW YORK
+
+THE CENTURY CO.
+
+1915
+
+
+
+
+Copyright, 1915, by
+
+THE CENTURY CO.
+
+
+Acting rights controlled by
+
+DRAMATISTS' PLAY AGENCY,
+
+145 West 45th Street,
+
+NEW YORK CITY
+
+
+_Published, February 1915_
+
+
+
+
+TO
+MY LITTLE BOY
+BRANDON
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+
+LIST OF ILLUSTRATIONS
+
+            Good-by! good-by!       _Frontispiece_
+                                       FACING PAGE
+    Arno:   You are wanted                      42
+
+    Hedwig: Franz?     }
+    Amelia: Franz, too }                        62
+
+    Amelia: No, you must not! You have too
+            much to live for                    66
+
+
+
+
+This play was first produced
+on January 25, 1915, at
+B.F. KEITH'S PALACE THEATRE,
+NEW YORK CITY,
+with the following cast:
+
+    Hedwig (Joan)                  Mme. Nazimova
+    Amelia (Amy)                      Mary Alden
+    Mother                     Gertrude Berkeley
+    Hoffman (Joseph Kerman)       Charles Bryant
+    Minna                           Edith Speare
+    Arno                                C. Brown
+    Hertz (Captain Bragg)         William Hasson
+
+    Peasants, Women and Soldiers.
+
+    Time--Present.    Place--A War-Ridden Country.
+
+    Personal Manager for Madame Nazimova
+    William F. Muenster
+
+
+
+
+
+WAR BRIDES
+
+    The war brides were cheered with enthusiasm and the churches were
+    crowded when the wedding parties spoke the ceremony in
+    concert.--PRESS CLIPPING.
+
+
+SCENE: _A room in a peasant's cottage in a war-ridden country. A large
+fireplace at the right. Near it a high-backed settle. On the left a
+heavy oak table and benches. Woven mats on the floor. A door at left
+leads into a bedroom. In the corner a cupboard. At the back a wide
+window with scarlet geraniums and an open door. A few firearms are
+stacked near the fireplace. There is an air of homely color and neatness
+about the room._
+
+_Through the open door may be seen women stacking grain. Others go by
+carrying huge baskets of grapes or loads of wood, and gradually it
+penetrates the mind that all these workers are women, aristocrats and
+peasants side by side. Now and then a bugle blows or a drum beats in the
+distance. A squad of soldiers marches quickly by. There is everywhere
+the tense atmosphere of unusual circumstance, the anxiety and excitement
+of war._
+
+_Amelia, a slight, flaxen-haired girl of nineteen, comes in. She brushes
+off the hay with which she is covered, and goes to packing a bag with a
+secret, but determined, air. The Mother passes the window and appears in
+the doorway. She is old and work-worn, but sturdy and stoical. Now she
+carries a heavy load of wood, and is weary. She casts a sharp eye at
+Amelia._
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+What are you doing, girl? [_Amelia starts and puts the bag in the
+cupboard._] Who's going away? They haven't sent for Arno?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+No.
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Sighs, and drops her load on the hearth._]
+
+Is the hay all in?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Yes. I put in the last load. All the big work on our place is done, and
+so--[_Looks at her mother and hesitates. Her mother begins to chop the
+wood into kindling._] I'll do that, Mother.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Let be, girl. It keeps me from worrying. Get a bite to eat. What were
+you doing with that bag? Who were you packing it for?
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_With downcast eyes._]
+
+Myself.
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Anxious._]
+
+What for?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Sit down, Mother, and be still while I tell you--
+
+[_Pushes her mother into a chair._]
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Starts._]
+
+Is there any news? Quick! Tell me!
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Not since yesterday. Only they say Franz is at the front. We don't know
+where Emil and Otto are, and there's been a battle; but--
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Murmurs, with closed eyes._]
+
+My boys! my boys!
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Don't, Mother! They may come back. [_A cheer is heard._]
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Starting._]
+
+What's that?
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Running to the door and looking out._]
+
+They are cheering the war brides, that's all.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Aye. There's been another wedding ceremony.
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Yes.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+How many war brides to-day?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Ten, they said.
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Nodding._]
+
+Aye, that is good. Has any one asked you, Amelia? [_Amelia looks
+embarrassed._] Some one should ask you. You are a good-looking girl.
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_In a low voice._]
+
+Hans Hoffman asked me last night.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+The young and handsome lieutenant? You are lucky. You said yes?
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Shakes her head._]
+
+No.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Ah, well.
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+I hardly know him. I've only spoken to him once before. O Mother--that
+isn't what I want to do.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+What did you tell him?
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Timidly._]
+
+That I was going away to join the Red Cross.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Amelia!
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+He didn't believe me. He kissed me--and I ran away.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+The Red Cross!
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Eagerly._]
+
+Yes; that is what I was going to tell you just now. That is why I was
+packing the bag. [_Gets it._] I--I want to go. I want to go to-night. I
+can't stand this waiting.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+You leave me, too?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+I want to go to the front with Franz and Otto and Emil, to nurse them,
+to take care of them if they are wounded--and all the others. Let me,
+Mother! I, too, must do something for my country. The grapes are
+plucked, and the hay is stacked. Hedwig is gathering the wheat. You can
+spare me. I have been dreaming of it night and day.
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Setting her lips decisively._]
+
+No, Amelia!
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+O Mother, why?
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+You must help me with Hedwig. I can't manage her alone.
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Hedwig!
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+She is strange; she broods. Hadn't you noticed?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Why, yes; but I thought she was worrying about Franz. She adores him,
+and any day she may hear that he is killed. It's the waiting that's so
+awful.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+But it's more than the waiting with Hedwig. Aye, you will help Franz
+more by staying home to take care of his wife, Amelia, especially now.
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Puzzled._]
+
+_Now?_
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Goes to her work-basket._]
+
+Hedwig has told you nothing?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+No.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Ah, she is a strange girl! She asked me to keep it a secret,--I don't
+know why,--but now I think you should know. See! [_Very proudly she
+holds up the tiny baby garments she is knitting._]
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Pleased and astonished._]
+
+So Franz and Hedwig--
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Nods._]
+
+For their child. In six months now. My first grandchild, Amelia. Franz's
+boy, perhaps. I shall hear a little one's voice in this house again.
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Uncertainly, as she looks at the little things._]
+
+Still--I want to go.
+
+
+_Mother_: [_Firmly._]
+
+We must take care of Hedwig, Amelia. She is to be a mother. That is our
+first duty. It is our only hope of an heir if you won't marry soon--and
+if--if the boys don't come back.
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Arno is left.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Ah, but they'll be calling him next. It is his birthday to-day, too,
+poor lad. He's on the jump to be off. I see him gone, too. God knows I
+may never see one of them again. I sit here in the long evenings and
+think how death may take my boys,--even this minute they may be
+breathing their last,--and then I knit this baby sock and think of the
+precious little life that's coming. It's my one comfort, Amelia. Nothing
+must happen now.
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_With a touch of impatience._]
+
+What's the matter with Hedwig?
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+I don't know what it is. She acts as if she didn't want to bring her
+child into the world. She talks wild. I tell you I must have that child,
+Amelia! I cannot live else. Hedwig frightens me. The other night I found
+her sitting on the edge of her bed staring,--when she should have been
+asleep,--as if she saw visions, and whispering, "I will send a message
+to the emperor." What message? I had to shake her out of it. She refuses
+to make a thing for her baby. Says, "Wait till I see what they do to
+Franz." It's unnatural.
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+I can't understand her. I never could. I always thought it was because
+she was a factory-town girl.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+If anything should happen to Franz in the state she's in now, Hedwig
+might go out of her mind entirely. So you had best stay by, Amelia. We
+must keep a close eye on her.
+
+[_There is a knock at the door._]
+
+Who's that?
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Looks out of the windows, and then whispers._]
+
+It's Hans Hoffman.
+
+[_The knock is repeated._]
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Open, girl! Don't stand there!
+
+[_Enter Hoffman, gay, familiar, inclined to stoutness, but
+good-looking. Accustomed to having the women bow down to him._]
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+[_To Amelia._] Ah, ha! You gave me the slip yesterday!
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+My mother.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_ [_Nodding._]
+
+Good day, Mother. [_She curtsies._]
+
+[_Coming closer to Amelia._]
+
+Where did you run to? Here she as good as promised me she would wed me
+to-day, Mother, and then--
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Oh, no!
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+Yes, you did. You let me kiss you.
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Taken aback._]
+
+Oh, sir!
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+And when I got to the church square to-day, no bride for Hans Hoffman.
+Well, I must say, they had the laugh on me; for I had told them I had
+found the girl for me--the prettiest bride of the lot. But to-morrow--
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+I can't.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_ [_Taking hold of her._]
+
+Oh, yes, you can. I won't bother you long. I'm off to the front any day
+now. Come, promise me! What do you say, Mother?
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Slowly._]
+
+I should like to see her wed.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+There!
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Shrinking from both him and the idea._]
+
+But I don't know you well enough yet.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+Well, look me over. Don't you think I am good enough for her, Mother?
+Besides, we can't stop to think of such things now, Amelia. It is
+war-time. This is an emergency measure. And, then, I'm a soldier--like
+to die for my country. That ought to count for something--a good deal, I
+should say--if you love your country, and you do, don't you, Amelia?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Oh, yes!
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+Well, then, we can get married and get acquainted afterward.
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Faintly._]
+
+I wanted to be a nurse.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+Nonsense! Pretty girls like you should marry. The priests and the
+generals have commanded it. It's for the fatherland. Ought she not to
+wed me, Mother?
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Nodding impersonally._]
+
+Aye, it is for the fatherland they ask it.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+Of course. It is your patriotic duty, Amelia. You're funny. All the
+young women are tickled at the chance. But you are the one I have picked
+out, and I am going to have you. Now, there's a good girl--promise!
+
+[_A hubbub of voices and a cheer are heard outside side. Enter Minna,
+flushed, pretty, light headed._]
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Minna!
+
+
+_Minna:_ [_Holding out her hand._]
+
+Amelia, see! My wedding-ring!
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Iron!
+
+
+_Minna:_ [_Triumphantly._]
+
+Yes; a war bride!
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+You?
+
+
+_Minna:_
+
+That's what I am. [_Whirling gaily about._]
+
+
+_Hoffman:_ [_Shaking her hand._]
+
+Good for you! Congratulations!
+
+
+_Minna:_
+
+Didn't you hear them cheer? That was for me!
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+There's patriotism for you, Amelia!
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+When were you married, Minna?
+
+
+_Minna:_
+
+Just now. There were ten of us. We all answered in chorus. It was
+fun--just like a theater. Then the priest made a speech, and the
+burgomaster and the captain. The people cheered, and then our husbands
+had to go to drill for an hour. Oh, I never was so thrilled! It was
+grand! They told us we were the true patriots.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+Hurrah! And so you are.
+
+
+_Minna:_
+
+Our names will go down in history, honored by a whole people, they said.
+
+[_They are all carried away by Minna's enthusiasm; even Amelia warms
+up._]
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+But whom did you marry, Minna?
+
+
+_Minna:_
+
+Heinrich Berg.
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Dubious._]
+
+That loafer!
+
+
+_Minna:_
+
+He's all right. He's a soldier now. Why, he may be a hero, fighting for
+the fatherland; and that makes a lot of difference, Amelia.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+What did I tell you?
+
+
+_Minna:_
+
+I probably wouldn't have picked him out in peace-times, but it is
+different now. He only asked me last night. Of course he may get killed.
+They said we'd have a widow's pension fund,--us and our
+children,--forever and ever, if the boys didn't come back. So, you see,
+I won't be out anything. Anyway, it's for the country. We'll be famous,
+as war brides. Even the name sounds glorious, doesn't it? War bride!
+Isn't that fine?
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+Here's a little lady who will hear herself called that to-morrow.
+[_Takes Amelia's hand._]
+
+
+_Minna:_ [_Clapping her hands._]
+
+Amelia a war bride, too! Good!
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+You'll be proud to hear her called that, won't you, Mother? Give us your
+blessing.
+
+
+_Minna:_
+
+I'd rather be a wife or a widow any day than be an old maid; and to be a
+war bride--oh!
+
+[_Amelia is blushing and tremulous._]
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_With a far-away look._]
+
+It is for the fatherland, Amelia. Aye, aye, the masters have said so. It
+is the will and judgment of those higher than us. They are wise. Our
+country will need children. Aye. Say yes, my daughter. You will not say
+no when your country bids you! It is your emperor, your country, who
+asks, more than Hans Hoffman.
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Impressed, and questions herself to see if her patriotism
+is strong enough to stand the test, while Hoffman, charmed by Amelia's
+gentleness, is moved by more personal feeling._]
+
+
+_Hoffman:_ [_Kissing Amelia on both cheeks._]
+
+There, it's all settled. [_A faint cheer is heard without._] To-morrow
+they will cheer you like that; and when I go, I shall have a bride to
+wave me good-by instead of--
+
+[_Enter Hedwig._
+
+_She stands in the doorway, looking out on the distant crowds. She is
+tall, well built, and carries herself proudly. Strong, intelligent
+features, but pale. Her eyes are large with anxiety. She has soft, wavy
+black hair. An inward flame seems to be consuming her.
+
+The sounds continue in the distance, cheering, disputing mingled with
+far bugle-calls and marching feet._]
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Contemptuously._]
+
+Ha!
+
+[_The sound startles the others. They turn._]
+
+
+_All:_
+
+Hedwig!
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+[_Still in the doorway, looking out._]
+
+War brides!
+
+
+_Minna:_ [_Pertly._]
+
+You're a war bride yourself, Hedwig.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Turns quickly, locates Minna, almost springs at her._]
+
+Don't you dare to call me a war bride! My ring is gold. See. [_Seizes
+Minna's hand, and then throws it from her._] Not iron, like yours.
+
+
+_Minna:_
+
+[_Boldly taunting._]
+
+They even call you the first war bride.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Furious, towering over her, her hand on her shoulder._]
+
+Say why, why?
+
+
+_Minna:_ [_Weakening._]
+
+Because you were the first one to be married when the war broke out.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Both hands on her shoulders._]
+
+Because the Government commanded? Because they bribed me with the
+promise of a widow's pension? Tell the truth.
+
+
+_Minna:_ [_Faintly._]
+
+No. Let me go.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+So! And how long had Franz and I been engaged? Now say.
+
+
+_Minna:_ [_Beginning to be frightened._]
+
+Two years.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Flinging her off._]
+
+Of course. Everybody knows it. Every village this side the river knew we
+were to be married this summer. We've dreamed and worked for nothing
+else all these months. It had nothing to do with the war--our love, our
+marriage. So, you see, I am no war bride. [_Walks scornfully away._] Not
+like you, anyway.
+
+[_They all stare at her._]
+
+
+_Hoffman:_ [_Stepping forward indignantly._]
+
+I don't know why you should have this contempt for our war brides, and
+speak like that.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Sits down, half turned away. She shrugs her shoulders, and
+her lips curl in a little smile._]
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+They are coming to the rescue of their country. Saving it; else it will
+perish.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Bitterly._]
+
+Ha!
+
+
+_Hoffman:_ [_Waxing warmer._]
+
+They are the saviors of the future.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Sadly._]
+
+The future!
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Softly, laying her hand on Hedwig's shoulder._]
+
+Hedwig, be more respectful. Herr Hoffman is a lieutenant.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+When we are gone,--the best of us,--what will the country do if it has
+no children?
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Why didn't you think of that before--before you started this wicked war?
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+I tell you it is a glory to be a war bride. There!
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_With a shrug._]
+
+A breeding-machine! [_They all draw back._] Why not call it what it is?
+Speak the naked truth for once.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+You'll take that back to-morrow, when your sister stands up in the
+church with me.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Starting up._]
+
+Amelia? Marry you? No! Amelia, is this true?
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Hesitating, troubled, and uncertain._]
+
+They tell me I must--for the fatherland.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Marry this man, whom you scarcely know, whom surely you cannot love!
+Why, you make a mock of marriage! It isn't that they have tempted you
+with the widow's pension? It is so tiny; it's next to nothing. Surely
+you wouldn't yield to that?
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Frightened._]
+
+I did want to go as a nurse, but the priests and the generals--they say
+we must marry--to--for the fatherland, Hedwig.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_ [_To Hedwig._]
+
+I command you to be silent!
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Not when my sister's happiness is at stake. If you come back, she will
+have to live with you the rest of her life.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+That isn't the question now. We are going away--the best of us--to be
+shot, most likely. Don't you suppose we want to send some part of
+ourselves into the future, since we can't live ourselves? There, that's
+straight; and right, too.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Nodding slowly._]
+
+What I said--to breed a soldier for the empire; to restock the land.
+[_Fiercely._] And for what? For food for the next generation's cannon.
+Oh, it is an insult to our womanhood! You violate all that makes
+marriage sacred! [_Agitated, she walks about the room._] Are we women
+never to get up out of the dust? You never asked us if we wanted this
+war, yet you ask us to gather in the crops, cut the wood, keep the world
+going, drudge and slave, and wait, and agonize, lose our all, and go on
+bearing more men--and more--to be shot down! If we breed the men for
+you, why don't you let us say what is to become of them? Do we want them
+shot--the very breath of our life?
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+It is for the fatherland.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+You use us, and use us--dolls, beasts of burden, and you expect us to
+bear it forever dumbly; but I won't! I shall cry out till I die. And now
+you say it almost out loud, "Go and breed for the empire." War brides!
+Pah! [_Minna gasps, beginning to be terrified. Hoffman rages. Mother
+gazes with anxious concern. Amelia turns pale._]
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+I never would dream of speaking of Amelia like that. She is the sweetest
+girl I have seen for many a day.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+What will happen to Amelia? Have you thought of that? No; I warrant you
+haven't. Well, look. A few kisses and sweet words, the excitement of
+the ceremony, the cheers of the crowd, some days of living together,--I
+won't call it marriage, for Franz and I are the ones who know what real
+marriage is, and how sacred it is,--then what? Before you know it, an
+order to march. Amelia left to wait for her child. No husband to wait
+with her, to watch over her. Think of her anxiety, if she learns to love
+you! What kind of child will it be? Look at me. What kind of child would
+_I_ have, do you think? I can hardly breathe for thinking of my Franz,
+waiting, never knowing from minute to minute. From the way I feel, I
+should think my child would be born mad, I'm that wild with worrying.
+And then for Amelia to go through the agony alone! No husband to help
+her through the terrible hour. What solace can the state give then? And
+after that, if you don't come back, who is going to earn the bread for
+her child? Struggle and struggle to feed herself and her child; and the
+fine-sounding name you trick us with--war bride! Humph! that will all be
+forgotten then. Only one thing can make it worth while, and do you know
+what that is? Love. We'll struggle through fire and water for that; but
+without it--[_Gesture._]
+
+
+_Hoffman:_ [_Drawing Amelia to him._]
+
+Don't listen to her, Amelia.
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Pushing Hoffman violently from her, runs from the room._]
+
+No, no, I can't marry you! I won't! I won't!
+
+[_She shuts the door in his face._]
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Triumphantly._]
+
+She will never be your war bride, Hans Hoffman!
+
+
+_Hoffman:_ [_Suddenly, angrily._]
+
+By thunder! I've made a discovery. You're the woman! You're the woman!
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+What woman?
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+Yesterday there were twenty war brides. The day before there were nearly
+thirty. To-day there were only ten. There are rumors--[_Excitedly._]
+I'll report you. They'll find you guilty. I myself can prove it.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Well?
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+I heard them say at the barracks that some one was talking the women out
+of marrying. They didn't know who; but they said if they caught
+her--caught any one talking as you have just now, daring to question the
+wisdom of the emperor and his generals, the church, too,--she'd be
+guilty of treason. You are working against the emperor, against the
+fatherland. Here you have done it right before my very eyes; you have
+taken Amelia right out of my arms. You're the woman who's been upsetting
+the others, and don't you deny it.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Deny it? I am proud of it.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+Then the place for you is in jail. Do you know what will be the end of
+you?
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Suddenly far away._]
+
+Yes, I know, if Franz does not come back. I know; but first [_Clenching
+her hands_] I must get my message to the emperor.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_ [_Very angry._]
+
+You will be shot for treason.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Coming back, laughing slightly._]
+
+Shot? Oh, no, Herr Hans, you'd never shoot me!
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+Why not?
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Do I have to tell you, stupid? I am a woman: I can get in the crops; I
+can keep the country going while you are away fighting, and, most
+important, I might give you a soldier for your next army--for the
+kingdom. Don't you see my value? [_Laughs strangely._] Oh, no, you'd
+never shoot me!
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+There, there, don't excite her, sir.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Her head in her hands, on the table._]
+
+God! I wish you would shoot me! If you don't give me back my Franz! I've
+no mind to bring a son into the world for this bloody thing you call
+war.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+I am going straight to headquarters to report you.
+
+[_Starts to go.
+
+Enter Arno excitedly. He is boyish and fair, in his early twenties, and
+looks even younger than he really is._]
+
+
+_Arno:_ [_To Hoffman._]
+
+There's an order to march at once--your regiment.
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+Now?
+
+
+_Arno:_
+
+At once. You are wanted. They told me to tell you.
+
+[Illustration: ARNO: You are wanted.]
+
+[_Hoffman moves with military precision to the door; then turns to
+Hedwig._]
+
+
+_Hoffman:_
+
+I shall take the time to report you.
+
+[_Goes._]
+
+
+_Minna:_ [_To Arno._]
+
+Does Heinrich's regiment go, too?
+
+
+_Arno:_
+
+Heinrich who?
+
+
+_Minna:_
+
+Heinrich Berg.
+
+
+_Arno:_
+
+No. To-morrow.
+
+[_Minna, now thoroughly scared, is slinking to the door when Hedwig
+stops her._]
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Ha! little Minna, why do you run so fast? Heinrich does not go until
+to-morrow. [_Looks at her thoughtfully._] Are you going to be able to
+fight it through, little Minna, when the hard days come? If you do give
+the empire a soldier, will it be any comfort to know you are helping the
+falling birth-rate?
+
+
+_Minna:_ [_Shivering._]
+
+Oh, I am afraid of you!
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Afraid of the truth, you mean. You see it at last in all its brutal
+bareness. Poor little Minna! [_She puts her arm around Minna with
+sudden tenderness._] But you need not be afraid of me, little Minna. Oh,
+no. The trouble with me is I want no more war. Franz is at the war. I'm
+half mad with dreaming they have killed him. Any moment I may hear. If
+you loved your man as I do mine, little Minna, you'd understand.' Well,
+go now, and to-morrow say good-by to your husband--of a day.
+
+[_Minna, with a frightened backward glance, runs out the door.
+
+Arno, who has been talking in low tones to his mother, now rises._]
+
+
+_Arno:_
+
+Well, Mother, I haven't much time.
+
+[_She clings to his hand._]
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Starting._]
+
+Arno!
+
+
+_Arno:_
+
+I am going, too. Get those little things for me, Mother, will you?
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Goes to door and calls._]
+
+Amelia! Come. Arno has been called. [_Amelia comes in. Each in turn
+embraces him, sadly, but bravely. Then the mother and sister gather
+together handkerchiefs, linen, writing-pad and pencil, and small
+necessaries._]
+
+
+_Arno:_
+
+I have only a few minutes.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Tenderly._]
+
+Arno, my little brother, oh, why--why must you go? You seem so young.
+
+
+_Arno:_
+
+I'm a man, like the others; don't forget that, Hedwig. Be brave--to
+help me to be brave.
+
+[_They sit on the settle._]
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Sighing._]
+
+Yes, it cannot be helped. Will you see my Franz, Arno? You look so like
+him to-day--the day I first saw him in the fields, the day of the
+factory picnic. It seems long ago. Tell him how happy he made me, and
+how I loved him. He didn't believe in this war no more than I, yet he
+had to go. He dreaded lest he meet his friends on the other side. You
+remember those two young men from across the border? They worked all one
+winter side by side in the factory with Franz. They went home to join
+their regiments when the war was let loose on us. He never could stand
+it, Franz couldn't, if he were ordered to drive his bayonet into them.
+[_Gets up, full of emotion that is past expression._] Oh, it is too
+monstrous! And for what--for what?
+
+
+_Arno:_
+
+It is our duty. We belong to the fatherland. I would willingly give my
+life for my country.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+I would willingly give mine for peace.
+
+
+_Arno:_
+
+I must go. Good-by, Hedwig.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Controlling her emotion as she kisses him._]
+
+Good-by, my brave, splendid little brother.
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+I may come to the front, too.
+
+[_They embrace tenderly._]
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Strong and quiet, unable to speak, holds his head against
+her breast for a moment._]
+
+Fight well, my son.
+
+
+_Arno:_
+
+Yes, Mother.
+
+[_He tears himself away. The silent suffering of the mother is pitiful.
+Her hands are crossed on her breast, her lips are seen to move in
+prayer. It is Hedwig who takes her in her arms and comforts her._]
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+And this is war--to tear our hearts out like this! Make mother some tea,
+Amelia, can't you?
+
+[_Amelia prepares the cup of tea for her mother._]
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_After a few moments composes herself._]
+
+There, I am right now. I must remember--and you must help me, my
+daughters--it is for the fatherland.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_On her knees by the fire, shakes her head slowly._]
+
+I wonder, I wonder. O Mother, I'm not patient like you. I couldn't stand
+it. To have a darling little baby and see him grow into a man, and then
+lose him like this! I'd rather never see the face of my child.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+We have them for a little while. I am thankful to God for what I have
+had.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Then I must be very wicked.
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Are you sleeping better now, child?
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+
+No; I am thinking of Franz. He may be lying there alone on the
+battle-field, with none to help, and I here longing to put my arms
+around him.
+
+[_Buries her face on the mother's knees and sobs._]
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Hush, Hedwig! Be brave! Take care of yourself! We must see that Franz's
+child is well born.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+If Franz returns, yes; if not--I--
+
+[_Gets up impulsively, as if to run out of the house._]
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Don't you want your tea, Hedwig?
+
+[_Hedwig throws open the door, and suddenly confronts a man who
+apparently was about to enter the house. He is an official, the military
+head of the town, known as Captain Hertz. He is well along in years,
+rheumatic, but tremendously self-important._]
+
+
+_Hertz:_ [_Stopping Hedwig._]
+
+Wait one moment. You are the young woman I wish to see. You don't get
+away from me like that.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Drawing herself up, moves back a step or two._]
+
+What is it?
+
+
+_Hertz:_ [_Turning to the old mother._]
+
+Well, Maria, another son must go--Arno. You are an honored woman, a
+noble example to the state. [_Turns to Amelia._] You have lost a very
+good husband, I understand. Well, you are a foolish girl. As for you
+[_Turning to Hedwig, and eyeing her critically and severely_], I hear
+pretty bad things. Yes, you have been talking to the women--telling them
+not to marry, not to multiply. In so doing you are working directly
+against the Government. It is the express request and command that our
+soldiers about to be called to the front and our young women should
+marry. You deliberately set yourself in opposition to that command. Are
+you aware that that is treason?
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Why are they asking this, Herr Captain?
+
+
+_Hertz:_
+
+Our statesmen are wise. They are thinking of the future state. The
+nation is fast being depopulated. We must take precautionary measures.
+We must have men for the future. I warn you, that to do or say anything
+which subverts the plan of the empire for its own welfare, especially at
+a time when our national existence is in peril--well, it is treason.
+Were it not that you are the daughter-in-law of my old friend
+[_Indicating the Mother_], I should not take the trouble to warn you,
+but pack you off to jail at once. Not another word from you, you
+understand?
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Calmly, even sweetly, but with fire in her eye._]
+
+If I say I will keep quiet, will you promise me something in return?
+
+
+_Hertz:_
+
+What do you mean? Quiet? Of course you'll keep quiet. Quiet as a
+tombstone, if I have anything to say about it.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Calm and tense._]
+
+I mean what I say. Promise to see to it that if we bear you the men for
+your nation, there shall be no more war. See to it that they shall not
+go forth to murder and be murdered. That is fair. We will do our
+part,--we always have,--will you do yours? Promise.
+
+
+_Hertz:_
+
+I--I--ridiculous! There will always be war.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Then one day we will stop giving you men. Look at mother. Four sons torn
+from her in one month, and none of you ever asked her if she wanted
+war. You keep us here helpless. We don't want dreadnoughts and armies
+and fighting, we women. You tear our husbands, our sons, from us,--you
+never ask us to help you find a better way,--and haven't we anything to
+say?
+
+
+_Hertz:_
+
+No. War is man's business.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Who gives you the men? We women. We bear and rear and agonize. Well, if
+we are fit for that, we are fit to have a voice in the fate of the men
+we bear. If we can bring forth the men for the nation, we can sit with
+you in your councils and shape the destiny of the nation, and say
+whether it is to war or peace we give the sons we bear.
+
+
+_Hertz:_ [_Chuckling._]
+
+Sit in the councils? That would be a joke. I see. Mother, she's a
+little--[_Touches his forehead suggestively._] Sit in the councils with
+the men and shape the destiny of the nation! Ha! ha!
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Laugh, Herr Captain, but the day will come; and then there will be no
+more war. No, you will not always keep us here, dumb, silent drudges. We
+will find a way.
+
+
+_Hertz:_ [_Turning to the mother._]
+
+That is what comes of letting Franz go to a factory town, Maria. That is
+where he met this girl. Factory towns breed these ideas. [_To Hedwig._]
+Well, we'll have none of that here. [_Authoritatively._] Another word
+of this kind of insurrection, another word to the women of your
+treason, and you will be locked up and take your just punishment. You
+remember I had to look out for you in the beginning when you talked
+against this war. You're a firebrand, and you know how we handle the
+like of you. [_Goes to door, turns to the mother._] I am sorry you have
+to have this trouble, Maria, on top of everything else. You don't
+deserve it. [_To Hedwig._] You have been warned. Look out for yourself.
+
+[_Hedwig is standing rigid, with difficulty repressing the torrent of
+her feelings. Drums are heard coming nearer, and singing voices of men._]
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_At door._]
+
+They are passing this way.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Wave to Arno. Come, Mother. Ah, how quickly they go!
+
+[_The official steps out of the door. There is quick rhythm of marching
+feet as the departing regiment passes not very far from the house._]
+
+There he is! Wave, Mother. Good-by! good-by!
+
+[_The women stand in the doorway, waving their sad farewells, smiling
+bravely. The sounds grow less and less, until there is the usual
+silence._]
+
+In another month, in another week, perhaps, all the men will be gone. We
+will be a village of women. Not a man left.
+
+[_She leads the old mother into the house once more._]
+
+
+_Hertz:_ [_In the door._]
+
+What did you say?
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Not a man left, I said.
+
+
+_Hertz:_
+
+You forget. _I_ shall be here.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+You are old. You don't count. They think you are only a woman, Herr
+Captain.
+
+
+_Hertz:_ [_Insulted._]
+
+You--you--
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Oh, don't take it badly, sir. You are honored. Is the name of woman
+always to be despised? Look out in those fields. Who cleared them, and
+plucked the vineyards clean? You think we are left at home because we
+are weak. Ah, no; we are strong. That is why. Strong to keep the world
+going, to keep sacred the greatest things in life--love and home and
+work. To remind men of--peace. [_With a quick change._] If only you
+really were a woman, Herr Captain, that you might breed soldiers for the
+empire, your glory would be complete.
+
+[_The old captain is about to make an angry reply when there is a
+commotion outside. The words "News from the front" are distinguished,
+growing more distinct. The captain rushes out. The women are paralyzed
+with apprehension for a moment._]
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Amelia, go and see. Hedwig, come here.
+
+[_Hedwig crouches on the floor close to the mother, her eyes wide with
+dread. In a few moments Amelia returns, dragging her feet, woe in her
+face, and unable to deal the blow which must fall on the two women, who
+stare at her with blanched faces._]
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Falling at her mother's knee._]
+
+Mother!
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Scarcely breathing._]
+
+Which one?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+All of them.
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Dazed._]
+
+All? All my boys?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Emil, Otto--be thankful Arno is left.
+
+[_The Mother drops her head back against the chair and silently prays.
+Hedwig creeps nearer Amelia and holds her face between her hands,
+looking into her eyes._]
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Whispering._]
+
+Franz?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Franz, too.
+
+[Illustration: HEDWIG: Franz?
+
+AMELIA: Franz, too.]
+
+[_Hedwig lies prostrate on the floor. Their grief is very silent;
+terrible because it is so dumb and stoical. The Mother is the first to
+rouse herself. She bends over Hedwig._]
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Hedwig. [_Hedwig sobs convulsively._] Don't, child. Be careful for the
+little one's sake. [_Hedwig sits up._] For your child be quiet, be
+brave.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+I loved him so, Mother!
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Yes, he was my boy--my first-born.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Your first-born, and this is the end.
+
+[_She rises up in unutterable wrath and despair._]
+
+O God!
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Anxious for her._]
+
+Promise me you will be careful, Hedwig. For the sake of your child,
+_your_ first-born, that is to be--
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+_My child_? For this end? For the empire--the war that is to be? No!
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Half to herself._]
+
+He may look like Franz.
+
+[_Hedwig quickly seizes the pistol from the mantel-shelf and moves to
+the bedroom door._
+
+_Amelia, watching her, sees her do it, and cries out in alarm and
+rushes to take it from her._]
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_In horror._]
+
+Hedwig! What are you doing? Give it to me! No, you must not! You have
+too much to live for.
+
+[Illustration: AMELIA: No, you must not! You have too much to live for.]
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Dazed._]
+
+To live for? Me?
+
+
+_Amelia:_
+
+Why, yes, you are going to be a mother.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+A mother? Like her? [_Looks sadly at the bereaved old mother._] Look at
+her! Poor Mother! And they never asked her if she wanted this thing to
+be! Oh, no! I shall never take it like that--never! But you are right,
+Amelia. I have something to do first.
+
+[_Lets Amelia put the pistol away in the cupboard._] I must send a
+message to the emperor. [_The others are more alarmed for her in this
+mood than in her grief._]
+
+You said you were going to the front to be a nurse, Amelia. Can you take
+this message for me? I might take it myself, perhaps.
+
+
+_Amelia:_ [_Hesitating, not knowing what to say or do._]
+
+Let me give you some tea, Hedwig.
+
+[_Voices are heard outside, and the sounds of sorrow. Some one near the
+house is weeping. A wild look and a fierce resolve light Hedwig's
+face._]
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Rushing from the house._]
+
+They have taken my Franz!
+
+
+_Mother:_
+
+Get her back! I feared it. Grief has made her mad.
+
+[_Amelia runs out. A clamor of voices outside. Hedwig can be heard
+indistinctly speaking to the women. Finally her voice alone is heard,
+and in a moment she appears, backing into the doorway, still talking to
+the women._]
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_A tragic light in her face, and hand uplifted._]
+
+I shall send a message to the emperor. If ten thousand women send one
+like it, there will be peace and no more war. Then they will hear our
+tears.
+
+
+_A Voice:_
+
+What is the message? Tell us!
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Soon you will know. [_Loudly._] But I tell you now, _don't bear any more
+children_ until they promise you there will be no more war.
+
+
+_Hertz:_ [_Suddenly appearing. Amelia follows._]
+
+I heard you. I declare you under arrest. Come with me. You will be shot
+for treason.
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Fearfully, drawing him aside._]
+
+Don't say that, sir. Wait. Oh, no, you can't do that!
+
+[_She gets out her work-basket, and shows him the baby things she has
+been knitting, and glances significantly at Hedwig. A horrid smile comes
+into the man's face. Hedwig, snatches the things and crushes them to her
+breast as if sacrilege had been committed._]
+
+
+_Hertz:_
+
+Is this true? You expect--
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Proudly, scornfully._]
+
+You will not shoot me if I give you a soldier for your empire and your
+armies and your guns, will you, Herr Captain?
+
+
+_Hertz:_
+
+Why--eh, no. Every child counts these times. But we will put you under
+lock and key. You are a firebrand. I warned you. Come along.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+You want my child, but still you will not promise me what I asked you.
+Well, we shall see.
+
+
+_Hertz:_
+
+Come along.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_
+
+Give me just a moment. I want to send a message to the emperor. Will you
+take it for me, Herr Captain?
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Signing._]
+
+Humor her.
+
+
+_Hertz:_
+
+Well, well, hurry up!
+
+[_Hedwig sits at table and writes a brief note._]
+
+
+_Mother:_ [_Whispering._]
+
+She has lost Franz. She is crazed.
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Rising._]
+
+There. See that it is placed in the hands of the emperor. [_Gives him
+the note._] Good-by, Amelia! Never be a war bride, Amelia.
+
+[_Kisses her three times_,] Good-by, Mother.
+
+[_Embraces her tenderly._] Thank you for these.
+
+[_She gathers the baby things in her hands, crosses the room, pressing a
+little sock to her lips. As she passes the cupboard she deftly seizes
+the pistol, and moves into the bedroom. On the threshold she looks over
+her shoulder._]
+
+
+_Hedwig:_ [_Firmly._]
+
+You may read the message out loud.
+
+[_She disappears into the room, still pressing the little sock to her
+lips._]
+
+
+_Hertz:_ [_Reading the note._]
+
+"A Message to the Emperor: I refuse to bear my child until you promise
+there shall be no more war."
+
+[_A shot is fired in the bedroom. They rush into the room. The Mother
+stands trembling by the table._]
+
+
+_Hertz:_ [_Awed, coming out of the room with the baby things, which he
+places on the table._]
+
+Dead! Tcha! tcha! she was mad. I will hush it up, Maria.
+
+[_He tears up Hedwig's message to the emperor, and goes out of the
+house, shaking his head. Amelia is kneeling in the doorway of the
+bedroom, bending over something, and softly crying. The Mother slowly
+gathers up the pieces of Hedwig's message and the baby garments, now
+dashed with blood, and, sitting on the bench, holds them tight against
+her breast, staring straight in front of her, her lips moving
+inaudibly. She closes her eyes and rocks to and fro, still muttering and
+praying._]
+
+
+
+
+CURTAIN
+
+
+
+
+
+End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of War Brides: A Play in One Act
+by Marion Craig Wentworth
+
+*** END OF THE PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK 14602 ***