PS 635 TOM QUICK, Z9 copvi 'e AVENGER; OR, One Hundred For One. AN HISTORICAL TRAGEDY IN FIVE ACTS. BY James M. Allerton, PORT JERVIS. N. Y.: Daily Union Book and Job Printing Establishment. TOM QUICK, THE AVENGER; OE, One Hundred For One. AN H18T0EICAL TRAGEDY IN FIVE ACTS. BY viAV^l]883'r^ James M. Allerton. PORT JERVIS, N. Y.: Daily Union Book and Job Printing Establishment. 1888. Entered according to Act of Congress in tlie year 1888, by JAMES M. ALLEETON, in the office of the Librarian of Congress at Washington, D. C. TMP92-008555 gtriGK THE AVENGER; OR, ONE HUNDBED FOR ONE. ACT I. SCENE l.—On Bank of River. STAGE SETTING— S%a?r?7i^ Horse— Shavings and Hoop-poles — ^QuiCK Shaving Hoop-poles. Enter Pomp. Quick. Just iu time, Pomp ; these poles are all too short. Pomp. Misses says de meat is short, and dat I must go and kill some rabbits. Quick. Eight up there the rabbits are thick. Pomp. Where, massa ? Quick. Do you see that tall tree ? {Enter Maggie, gets in harrel.) Now, Pomp, help me drive the hoops TOM QUICK. ACT 1. on this barrel, and then you can go and shoot some rabbits. (Maggie si/'ike.s Quick ofi head.) Come, Pomp, no play here ! Pomp. I no play, cept I play on dis hoop. (Mag- gie strlke.i Pomp on head, Pomp rana and beckons Quick to come to him.) Quick. Why, Pomp, you look as if you had seen a ghost. Pomp. Dere is an Injun in dat barrel. I seed him wid my own eyes. He hit me on de head. Sound like a drum. Quick. Did you strike me a moment ago '? Pomp. No. Quick. Something did. Pomp. I tell you, massa, it was an Injun. I seed liim. He after my scalp. Oh — oh. Quick. You may be right. Pomp. Run to the house and get the gun. {Exit PoMP.) Is this the natural or tlie super-natural ? Certainly, something struck me on the head. As Pomp says, it sounded like a drum. Enter Pomp with gun. Pomp. Now, massa, shoot em ! Shoot em ! Quick. Not until we have seen something to shoot. Pomp. Shoot de barrel, massa, shoot de barrel. Quick. No ! You go and upset the barrel, and I will stand on guard. Pomp. If I find an Injun dere, I'll sarve him as Jonah did de whale — I'll eat em up. (PoMP starts for the barrel, sJial-'ing vjitJi fear.) Mr. Injun — ^Mr. Injun, now I hab you. {Droiypnuj on the floor and. craivling toward the barrel ; is then seized with fear and rolls away, then cra.wls to the barrel and ujjsets it.) Dere he is, massa. Shoot'm ! Shoot'm ! (Pomp runs off vnthfear. Enter Maggie from be- hind barrel, laughittg.) SCENE 1. TOM QUICK. Quick. Maggie, you little mischief ! What are you doing in that barrel ? Mag. {running to Jr/'n}.) Only having a little fun. Grand-pa — Grand-pa, was you scared ? Pomp was. He was so scared he looked Avhite. Pomp, come here. I won't hurt you. Grand-pa (talxing hold of him), you won't be mad at me, Avill you ? I only done it for a little fun. O, I teli you it was bully fun to see Pomp. Quick. You little minx! I want to get mad, but I can't. Those eyes of yours look just as your mother's did when she was of your age. Pomp {in the distance.) Massa, liab you shooted all dem Injuns ? Hab you siiooted dem all ? [Enter Pomp.) What is dat ? Massa kill all the big Injuns and capture the pap-pooses ? Quick. Come Pomp, it was only Maggie that scared you so. Pomp — Is dat so, massa ? Is dat so ; only little Maggie (ste2)2ying up hravely, taking Maggie hy the hand.) If you had been an Injun, I'd sarved you as Jonah did de whale. O, wan't massa scared ! Sent me after de gvm. [Pomj) latighing.) Maggie. Pomp, was you scared ? Pomp. No, I wan't scared. I knew it was Maggie all de while. Quick. Now, Pomp {handing gun), you can take the gun and go after rabbits. Pomp. Up dere, by dat tree '? Quick. Yes, the one just above the spring. Pomp. Wild rabbits ? Quick. Yes. Pomp. Den I'll tame em. [Exit Pomp.] Quick. Come here, Maggie. You are a mischievous little girl, but still I love you ; your grand-ma loves you ; Uncle Tom loves you — ^we all love you. 6 TOM QUICK. ACT 1. Mag. And I love yoii all. Quick. Poor child ! It was a sad blow when your father died. Mag. But I have a good grand-pa. Quick. Yes, and a home as long as I live. Now go and help your grand-ma. Mag. Yes, I'll help her wash and churn and do lots of things. [Exit Maggie. Enter Pomp ivlth string of rahhits.) Quick. Hi, Pomp, you have been in luck to-day. Game must have been plenty . Pomp. Yes, massa, game plenty. Injuns plenty, too. Golly, massa, more dan one hundred and fifty tousand million Injuns dere. Quick. Tut — tut. Pomp, there ain't that many In- juns in the world. Pomp. Not so many as dat ? Quick. No, you exaggerate. Pomp. I zagerate. Dat's too much for dis nigger. What is zagerate ? Quick. To exaggerate is to multiply, to increase, to over-estimate the real number. > Pomp. Den you tink I lie ? Quick. No, not lie, Pomp, only mistaken. Pomp. I tell you, massa. Pomp make no mistake. Pomp know — ^counted every one of dern. Quick. Counted a hundred and fifty thousand mil- lions ! Why, Pomp, that is more than you could count in your whole life time. That is more than there are trees in the forest ! Pomp. Dat so, massa, dat so. Dats how I know how many dere was. Dere was fifty Injuns in ebery tree, and de wimins and de chilluns was a hanging on de bushes. Quick. What were they doing. Pomp ? Pomp. Looken and peeken at you wid deir knives SCENE 1. TOM QUICK. and p;nns in deir hands, jnst as I would do if I was going to shoot a deer. Enter Tom. Quick. Jnst in time, my son. Yon can go up the river with me to get some hoop-poles. Pomp, get the axe and come along. Pomp. Massa, just for dis once sense dis darkey ? Quick. Why, Pomp, what are you afraid of ? Do you think the bears will squeeze you ? Pomp. No, mass i, I tink Injuns scalp me. Tom. Nonsense, boy. nonsense ! The Indians are our friends, and, sooner than harm a hair of our heads, they would die for us. Pomp. Dat may be so, young massa ; but I tell you dey look mighty fightish. Dey peek down dis way as if dey were looken for scalps. Quick. We will excuse you. Pomp. You must have had bad dreams last night, and to-day every tree and stump is an Indian. And if they were I'd have no fear. I am the Indian's friend. My house has been their shelter, and my table bountifully spread to satisfy their wants. And my son Tom, here, has hunted over these mountains, and fished through these streams with them until he has learned their language and nearly forgotten his own. Come, boys, let us go for the poles. Pomp. Yes, massa, you go for de poles. Dis darkey go for de cellar. 'yEx'd Pomp.] Quick. My son, what could have got into Pomp's head to make him think the woods are full of Indians ? He really believes he saw thousands. Tom. It is true, father, that tlie Indians have ap- peared up the river in large numbers, and have taken some scalps ; but there is no danger here. The Indians are our friends. I love them as brothers, and would trust them as I would you, father. TOM QUICK. ACT 1. ( They start and are greeted hy a volley of rifle shots. Quick falh, mortally wounded.) Tom. You are liurt, father, let me help you. Quick. No, boy, help yourself and those that must now depend on you for protection. Pomp was right. They will soon hiive my scalp. Flee for your life, Tom, flee ! Tom. Wliat ! and leave my father to the merciless savage ? Never ! Quick. Yes, leave me. They have destroj^ed the ])ody, but my soul is in the hands of one that never deceives. (War lohoop is heard.) My son give me 3' our hand. Tom, I love you, I love you all. Will you ■grant me ono request ? Tom. Yes, father, name it [vipiurf his eyes in'itli Jiix sleeve.) Quick. Fly, then, to the opposite shore. When it is safe, return and give me Christian burial. I leave Mtiggie in your charge. You must be both uncle and father to her. Tom. It shall be as you say, father ; but I swear eternal vengeance on every cursed redskin. Quick. Swear not at all, my son, but run. The In- dians are coming down u])on us — I hear their scalping whoop. Tom. Farewell, father, farewell. (Tom springs on the ice and svyiftly rxms for the op- posite shore ; a volley of halls whiz hy him, a hall strikes his heel and he falls. The Indians cry, " Tom is dead .^" Tom rines to his feet and escapes to the Jersey shore.) {Enter Muskwink, snaps gun at Quick, gives crow call, " Kah, kah, kah /" hraves enter, execute a war dance around Quick.) SCENE 1. TOM QUICK. 9 MusKWiNK. Pale face, your time lias come and the white man's God cannot save you. Quick. The white man's God will save me and take me home in the spirit's land {pointing heavenward?^ MusKWiNK. Without your scalp ? Quick. My soul is not in my scalp. You can des- troy the body, but my soul is beyond your reach. Muskwink. Can white man stand fire ? Quick. Yes, in this world — Indian in the next. Muskwink. Dog ! Do you defy me and insult the Great Spirit ? Prepare for torture ! Quick. I am prepared to die — do your worst. I can but die — die I must. Muskwink. Where is th(i white man's God ? lur dian's God is here ! We see the Great Spirit in the lofty mountains, in the foaming streams and rustling leaves. We hear him in the whistling wind, the roar- ing cataract and belching thunder. We think we feel him here {placing hand on heart). Indian's God good, great and powerful. White man's God help white man cheat Indian. White man's God send missionary to con- vert Indian. Missionary in the cabin of the ship, fire- water in the hold. White man want all and cry, " Go West, Indian, go West !" The Delaware and Never- sink valleys were once the home and hunting ground of the Indian. We were then contented and happy. You came among us. We gave you land to live on and helped to build your house. Then the white man swarmed among us like bees from the hive. Now, the Cuddebacks and Swartwouts, the Gumaers and Van Ettens own all. From the Hudson on the East to the Delaware on the West, the ravages of Christianity are to be seen at every step. The Indian lodge is gone. The white man's house has taken its place, and your cry is still, " Go West, Indian, go West !" Yes, the white man will drive the Indian West until their bodies 10 TOM QUICK. ACT 1. waste on the Western slope and their bones are washed by the waters of the Pacific, but remember, white man, that revenge is the Indian's religion. Revenge we seek, revenge we will have. Yes, we will go West, but not until we have taken the last scalp and burned the last house in the Delaware Valley. White man, I will now speak to my braves in their own native tongue and incite them to deeds of blood and bravery — and then thou die. ^ (Muskivink addresses Ills hravesin the Delaware tongue, which, heing translated, is as folloivs : Braves ! The time has come to assert our riglits. The invader of our hunting grounds .must be driven to •the spirit's world, or we must submit like women. But a few years ago the Neversink and Delaware valleys was our home and hunting grounds. Now the white man owns all and we are driven to the mountains. Soon there will be no ground whore the Indian can build his wigwam. The white man respects neither the dead or tlio livint>. The graves of our fathers are ]jeing ploughed and their bones scattered over the fields. Thomas Quick was the first to come among us. He is the leader. He should die ! All Indians should unite. The war cry should be sounded, the hatchet should be dug up and the scalping knife unsheathed. As your chief I will set the example — kill him with my own tomahawk and scalp him with my knife. The braves will give the war-whoop, and cowards will retire to the mountains with the women. {Kills and scalps Quick amid the war-whoojJs of the Indians), saying, Die, dog, die ! Tom Quick's scalp. Uh ! Uh ! ( Tears off sleeve huttons.) Tom Quick's sleeve buttons. Hawkeye. White man come ; white man come. MusKWiNK. To the mountains, braves, to the moun- tains. {Exit Indians.) Tom Quick first to invade In- SCENE 1. TOM QUICK. 11 dian soil — first to die. {^Exit Muskwink.] Enter To^, follou-ed Inj Betsy, Maggie andVoiwv. Tom. Father ! Father ! My God ! Killed and scalped ! Betsy {falling IjesuJe Quick.) Oh, my husband! Tom. You will see that father is properly buried. I have other work to do. From this time my work will be to avenge my father's death. {Tlieu. Tom tal'es knife in rigid hand and gun in left.) By the point of the knife in my right hand and the deadly bullet in my left, I swear by Heaven and all there is in it, by earth and all there is on it, by the love I bore my father, here, by his dead body, I swear eternal vengeance on the whole Indian race. I swear to drive them from the Delaware Valley. I swear to kill all — to spare none ; the old man with silver hair, the lisping babe without teeth, the mother quick with child, and the maid in the bloom of youth shall die. A voice from mj- father cries, " Bevenge ! Revenge! Eternal — revenge!" {^Throwing himself across father s body.) END ACT I. ACT II, SCENE I.— Quick's kitchen. STAGE BWilTl^Q.—Sjniimng-wheel, sioift and reel. Betsy at spinning -u' heel, Maggie at reel, Betsy and Maggie singing. Maggie. Grandmother, why do you tie this on the reel so often ? Betsy. So as to divide the knots. By that we know when we have got a run. 12 TOM QUICK. ACT 2. Maggie. What difference does it make when you have the wool all spun ? You don't make any more ot less of it by tying it up in this way. Betsy. But we know how much we have got. Maggie. What difference does it make ? You have got it all, any way. Betsy. I will explain it to you, child. It is very important to know just how many runs we have. There are forty threads in a knot. You will notice that every little while a spring snaps on the reel. That denotes one knot, or that you have turned the reel around forty times. Then you must tie it and go on as before, and,- Avhen you have forty knots, you have one run, or six- teen huntlred threads. Maggie. But, grandmother, I fail to see where that makes any difference. You haven't got any more after all your counting. Betsy. But, child, it does makes a difference. First, one run is a day's work. Thirty knots will make a yard of cloth, nine knots a pair of stockings, and four knots a pair of mittens. Maggie. I see, grandmother, I see, now, what it is for. Betsy. I have not told you all the reasons yet. Suppose we had wool enough to make eighty runs of yarn, some to be spun for men's wear, some for women's wear, and some for sheets, stockings and mittens, how would we know how much to spin of each kind unless it was reeled and knotted ? Maggie. I see it all, now, and will try and remem- ber. Betsy. Yes, Maggie, j^ou must learn and remember all these things ; for no girl is prepared to marry until SCENE 1. TOM QUICK. 13 she can spin and weave, make and mend her husband's clothes. Maggie. Why, graud-ma, do you think that I am going to get married ? Betsy. Yes'; at least I hope so ; for a woman with- out a husband is like a house without a roof, assailed by the storms of the world from every quarter. Maggie. Then I shall be assailed ; for I shall never marry. Betsy. That is what all girls say ; but their actions speak differently. Maggie. Why, graud-ra i, have I acted that way ? Betsy. Maggie, you are in love with Abram Win- field, or you are a hypocrite Maggie. I am no hypocrite, grand-ma. Betsy. You love him, or your eyes and actions belie you. Maggie, Grandmother, neither my eyes nor actions belie me. I do love Abram, and have promised to be his wife. Betsy (taking Maggie i^. hand.) Maggie, I approve of your choice, and, were your father and grandfather living, they would, too ; but when is the wedding to take place ? Maggie. As soon as the war is over. Betsy. This is a relief, Maggie ; for Piper could have but one object in coming here. Maggie. And that object, grandmother ? Betsy. To gain your affections, child. Maggie. Don't you worry about Piper ; I hate him. I only endure his presence because Uncle Tom used to think so much of him. 14 TOM QUICK. ACT 1. Betsy. Well, we will talk of Piper, at some other time. You fiuisli winding the yarn, and I will go and get the potatoes for dinner. lExit Betsy.] Enter Vouv, singing. Hi ! ho ! rafimen dere, rioat'ii down de riber in de Delaware. De raftmen dance, De raftmen sing, De raftmen up to ebery ting. Dey dance all night Till broad day light, And go home wid de gals in de raorn'n. Mag. There, there. Pomp ! You seem to have for- gotten that our hearts are sad and our home desolate. Pomp. No, missie, Pomp no forget. Pomp know all. Pomp see old massa out dere in de woods. Mag. See what? Pomp. See old massa wid a big red spot on de top oh his head, whar de Injuns cut his scalp off. Mag. You imagined that. Pomp. Pomp. I iujuned dat ? Mag. No, not injuned — imagined. Pomp. What am magined ? Mag. That is to think you have seen something, when you have not. You think you saw my grand- father, but y-ou could not ; for he is dead and buried. Pomp. Don't git mad. Miss Maggie. I tell you I did see old massa out dere — dat is, I see his ghost- tis dere, and dat scare dis darkey so dat I got so white dat I didn't know mysef. And den I sung de raftmen to keep de ghost-tis-ses off. Mag. That is what Uncle Tom calls whistling through the grave yard for protection. Pomp. Whar am massa Tom '? Mag. I don't know. He has been gone four years. ^SGENE 1, TOM QTJTCTK:. 15 I suppose lie is hunting. He seized liis' tnife ?ind shouldered his onn at his father's gi^ave. Since that time he has not been seen or the- report of his rifle heard.* But he will return^ and bring his game. Pomp, les, Tom will return, but widout his game. Dat he wdll leab in de^wootls for de wild cats j wolves and bars to eat. Mag. Why not bring his game home ? Pomp, Tiase Miss Maggie -wouldn't ^afe ' Tom*s game. Mag. What game do jou think Tom hunts? Pomp, De Injuns am Tom's game. He takes deir gcalps and frows deir bodies to de wolves. Mag. O, Pomp, that is horrible. Mj XJiicle Tom wouldn't do that. Tom appears, lisfenmg. Pomp, Yes, he will do dat — he got to do dat. He swar to do dat. He swar by lieben,. bj arth, by all dats in it or on it,, to kill all de Injuns. De ole man wid de silber- har,. de little babe widout teef, the mud- der wid child \. and all' de scfuaw gals- sko^d die. Ehter'-'^xm., loith g^in.. Mag, Why, . ■Boiole' . Tom {rumiing- io and. kissing hi7/i), I am so. glad ta see you ! Where l^cve you been ? What have you> been doing ?. Pomp says that you are hunting Indians. Tom. Pomp- is rigiit,- Maggie ,~ t^e' Best of my life ^hall, be devoted to the eslermination. of the savage race. I have sworn it. Pomp. Yes,:massa Tom^ Pbmp am; always right ; but when I told yer. dafe dere was more, dan one hundred q,nd fifty tousand million luj^uns in de woods, you sed li graduated. Mag. You, mean:; exagerated. Tom. We will not quarrel with 1 Pomp about the 16 TOM QUICK. ACT 2. number^ There were a great many, then, more than tliere are now, audtlieir numljer will grow less from day to day, or this riHe will miss its mark {I'alaiag lih rlfie.) Bnt, Maggie, where is mother '? I wish to see you and hor alone for a few moments. Pomp, yon go and feed the chickens. Pomp. Yes, massa, I'll stuff de chickens now ; dey stuff me nex Crismas. \_Ed'it Pomp.] Enter Betsy. [Emhraces Tom.) Betsy. Welcome, Tom, to our desolate home — and made still more desolate by your absence. Sit down, my son, and let us plan for the future. Tom. Mother, my plans for the future are already f(^rmed. I proclaimed them at my father's death. I then and there made a vow. That vow is engraven on my heart and recorded in Heaven. Think not to deter me. Eevenge I seek revenge I'll have. But 1 love my mother and Maggie none the less ; and have returned for but a few moments to advise for the future. Betsy. What are your plans, Thomas ? Tom. My plan is {taVtng Maggie hy the Jiavd), i\\ixi this dear girl marry, and she and her husband take care of you and the farm. Mag. Then, I suppose, you have been so thoughtful as to select my futnre husband ? Tom. I have. Peter Piper is the man. Mag. Do vou think tliat vou would like to call me Mrs. Peter Piper V Tom. I think I would like to see you married, and Peter Piper would make you a good husband. Come, Maggie, what do you sav V Mag. Say to what?" Tom. To marrying Peter Piper. Mag. Uncle, you ain't in earnest ? Tom. I was never more so in my life. SCENE 1. TOM QUICK. 17 Mag. I don't know that Peter Piper would like to make me Mrs. Peter Piper. Tom. I know, and lie would marry you to-night. Come, Maggie, what is your answer ? MaCt. My answer is that you had better get married yoiirself, and you and your bride take care of mother and the farm. Tom. That can't be, Maggie. Hereafter I have no home. Henceforth the mountains and woods will be my home ; the cave my retreat ; th6 earth my bed ; the starry heavens my covering — -and revenge my bride. I have sworn it ! I have vowed it \ That vow I'll keep, though I lose my soul. And my cry, hereafter, will be, " Revenge ! Revenge ! ! " Back— back demons, devils and saints back! (Maggie and mother on eitJier side take hold of hhn.) Betsy. Tom, my boy, you are beside yourself. This terrible thing has driven you mad and deprived you of reason. Listen, boy, listen to your mother. Tom. Mad, eh ! Yes, mother, it may be madness ; but it is a heaven-sent madness, from which I shall never recover. Enter Piper. But here comes Piper, who will speak for himself. Good morning, Piper {s]iakef< Jianda.) I have spoken to Mag- gie about you marrying her, but she has not answered me yet. Come, Maggie, give us an answer — I must go. I saw a moccasin track in the sands this morning and must be on the trail before sun down. Mag. What do you want me to answer ? Tom. Will you marrj^ Piper ? Mag. He hasn't asked me yet. Piper. I ask you now {(jetting on knees and taking hold of Mag's hands.) Maggie, I love you a bunch — yes, a great big bunch, and want you for my wife. Mag. Get up, Pete. That ain't no place for a lover 'J8 TOM QUICK. ■ ACl'''^. or hunter. (j?(? riMS.) Nd>v. Pete, you say that yon love iue ? Piper. Yes^ Maggie, everybody says I love you. Mag. Suppose tliat some girl shovikl ask you tQ marry her, that you did not like, >vhat would yo;Ur say ? ' Piper. What would I say ? Mag. Yes, wliat would you say t PiPe£ AVhv, Maggie, you know I would say " No." Do you think I would marry a girl that I didn't love, and wouldn't be willing to, die for ? Mag. Would you die for me, Peter ? Piper. Would I iiie for you ? I giiess I would. Just give me a chance and I'll die ten times for you. ■ Mag. You needn't die ten times— ^Ojuce -^Yill do. Now, just die once, right hei'e. to; convince me that you love; me. I want to see if you would make a good looking Corpse. Piper. Oh— I see i you want nie' to i die in^ earnest,, so. that you can marry that other fellow. '■ • Tom (excitedly?) What other fellow ? Piper. I tell you, Tom, Maggie i^s^ a sly - puss. She has, been smiling arbuad Ab# Winfiekl a,t all the sapp |te\ cuts this fall. Tom. Is that so, Maggie. ?; Mag. I don't know whether it is- so- ■ o^- > not ; but I don't think I would die for hiiu. Tom. Gome, my time is precions will you m^rry Piper ? ^ Mag. Not if I am there and know myself. Tom. Why not, pray,' Miss Maggie ? ' I desire it. Mag.^ Fof the^ very reason that P«te gave why he. wouldn't marry a girl he clidn't like. ' Piper. But I. do lik e you, Miss Maggie.. Mag. But I don't like you, Peter. Piper. Why,, you know that I am, dying for ypu. Tom. I.mustlfiav(e you {plckhig' n^:g^n)^mlA■t^ trust SCENE 1. TOM QUICK. 19 that wlien I return to learn that you and Piper have come to an understanJiug. A woman's heart is some- thing I never could comprehend. (Tom .siarts to go.) Piper. O, Maggie, do*^iefore Tom goes. Tom. Maggie, I am not only your uncle but your lawful guardian, and as, such I have the right' to dis- pose of your hand. Mag. But not of my heart, uncle — that belongs to me ; and sooner than yield that to a cowardly fooldike Peter Piper, I'll remain" an old' maid until I dry up and blow away. Tom. That settles it. You had better try your suit some other day, and I hope you will be more success- ful. I will join you outside in a moment. PiPEii. Good by, Maggie. Mag. Good by, Peter ; take good care of Tom. Tom. Piper wait for me outside, [^xii Piper.] Betsy. Why, Tom, are you going to leave us so soon ? Don't let your misfortune cause you to forget your home and mother. Tom {afectionatehj.) Forget my dear mother and the home of ' my childhood ? Never ! mother, never ! It is. the love I have for my home and parents that has caused me to become the avenger of the Delaware val- ley. Good by, mother ! Good by, Maggie ! {Eni- hracing each.) [Exit Tom.] Eater Pomp. Mag. Mother, what makes Tom so anxious for me to marry Peter Piper ? Betsy. The murder of his father has turned his head and dethroned his reason. He is not responsible for what he says or does ; but I must prepare dinner. [Exit Betsy.] Pomp. Whew, missie, dat was a doxoliger ! You am a reg'lar trump — turn jack ebery time. Call Peter 20 TOM QUICK. ACT 2. Piper fool, ah — ah ! Dere you wrong, missie. Peter no fool — Pete big debbil. Pete help Injuns kill massa. Mag. Was Piper with the Jnclians when they killed and scalped my grandfather ? Pomp. Yah. Mag. You are sure of that ? Pomp. Yah. Mag. You are sure that you are not mistaken ? Pomp. Pomp knows — Pomp makes no mistake. Pomp see one hundred and fifty tousand Injuns in de woods, and Peter Piper was one ob dem. Pomp tell ole massa of dat, and massa tell me I graduate. Massa' no belieb Pomp and git scalped. Mag. Come here, Pomp, and sit beside me. Pomp {aside.) I wonder if she am going to make lub to me ! Dere am no telling what calico will do in a gale. Mag. Pomp {taking hold of his hands), now let us have a serious talk. Pomp. Serus talk ! Wot am dat ? Mag. a talk in which you mean what you say, and say what you mean. Pomp. A sort of ligious talk ? Go ahead, den ; I feel berry spirital. Mag. Pomp, do you believe that Piper is a tory ? {Looks around.) Pomp. Yah, he am bell-wether tory. Mag. Then, Pomp, we must keep an eye on him. To be forewarned is to be forearmed. Pomp. Yah, missie, I keep two eyes on him- lExit Pomp.] Mag. Let me see. I am just 19 years old to-day ; weigh 110 pounds ; pretty good looking, at least Peter SCENE 1. TOM QUICK. 21 Piper thinks so ; old enough to get married, at least uncle Tom thinks so. Well, I think so myself. I won- der why I think so ? Well, I suppose it is natural ; all girls want to get married, and half of them want the same fellow. I used to think that girls were foolish to tie themselves to any man for life, but since I became acquainted with Abe I have kinder got over that. I guess it is a good thing to have a good husband and a home of your own, but girls ain't always sure of that. Grand-ma says it is a lottery ; that sometimes you draw a prize and sometimes a blank. But what am I talking about ? Abram Winfield is no blank — he is a prize. He is noble and generous. He is a patriot and willing to lay down his life for his country, and, above all, he loves me. What more can a girl ask ? Do I love him ? That is the question ! Yes, I do — my heart tells me so, and grand-ma says that my eyes and actions speak the language of my heart. Yes, Abram, I love you and long for this cruel war to end, that you may return and make me your bride. But suppose no, I'll not think of that. Heaven could not be so cruel as to suffer him to be harmed. But I don't like that sneaking Piper coming here so often. Grand-ma says he is trying to gain my affections. Just let him press his suit, and he will have the affections of a broom-stick to take home with him. Enter Pomp. Pomp. Miss Maggie, dat oder feller am coming. Mag. What other fellow ? Who — what {confused^ Pomp. Yer beau, massa Abe. Mag. And I looking like a fright ! Pomp, you run down the lane and tell him some fish or ghost story and 22 TOM QUICK. ACT 2. keep liim out of the house until I fix my hair and brush up. \ExH Pomp.] There, I guess that will do. Now I am a real Juliet looking for her Eomeo. Here he comes ! Enter Abram Winfield. Win. Maggie ! Mag. Abram ! [Embracing each ot^ier.) AViN. Maggie, you are an angel ! Mag. Then, Abram, this must be heaven. Win. Yes, a heaven I would like to remain in — but duty calls me elsewhere. Mag. And leave me alone without a protector ? Win. For a short time only, I trust. Mag. It is hard, Abram — it is hard. One short month more and you were to have been mine ; now you leave me, perhaps never to return. [Drains her to his l)n.':Om.) Win. Maggie, this must not be. You make us both miserable. You know that you have my undivided love, but my country calls ; my comrades call ; my love for you calls and I must go. .Rely upon the honor of a soldier, that, if it is Grod's will, I will return and make Maggie my bride. ■ ..Mag. [freeing herself.) And I say, "go!" I, your affianced wife, say "go ! " I, who love you as no other can, say "go ! " And on the tented field or amid the clash and clamor of arms, I will be thy guardian angel. Yes ; go, and take with you my prayers. I am your's and Avill never be another's. Should you fall, I crave the right to bring you home and strew your grave with the choicest of fiowers and water them with my tears [falling on his breast.) Win. Well said, bravest and best of women ! [A Jlash of light ])eaet rates the house.) What is that ? Brant is upon them ; the valley is in flames and the SCENE 1. TOM QUICK. 23 Indians are at their horrid butcher3^ I must join my men. Good b}-, Mac^oie, sjood by ! \_Exit WiNFiELD. Maggie iveeping.] Enter Piper. Piper. Good evening, Maggie ! Why, what is the matter ? You look sick. You look a« though you had been kicked by a mule. Mag. It is not necessary to be kicked by a mule to produce sickness ; the presence of one is sufficient, and unless you get out of here at once your muleship will be kicked into the road. Pomp, Pomp —come here. Piper. Ha, ha ! You may call on Pomp until dooms- day. He won't come. I locked him in the chicken house to fight fleas. Now, Maggie Quick, take your choice. Go with me willingly or by force — for go you shall. Mag. I'll not go either way. I'll die first. Piper. I have no time to fool. Will you go ? Mag. NEYEE ! Piper. Never is a long time. We will see. Come ! {Seizes her.) Maggie Quick, you are in my power. Neither men nor devils can save you. Your father is dead, your grandlather is dead, and your false lover has forsaken you. Come ! Mag. {pulls loose.) Peter Piper, do you think to scare a backwoods girl by telling her that her father is dead ? Do you expect to frighten me by saying my lover is false ? You are not only a liar, but a coward. Piper. A coward ? Mag. Yes, a base coward. None but cowards would take advantage of a woman ! Leave me, beast — leave me ! Piper. When I go you will go with me. Come ! 24 TOM QUICK. ACT 3. {TaJces hold of her with left hand, holds gun in right ; a struggle ensues; she lets go ;'PiTEn falls, throwmggun over his head ; Maggie runs, calling, " Abe ! Abe ! " Piper rises, draws knife and rushes at her.) Filter WiNFiELD. Win. Here ! (Maggie throws herself on his losom. Abe iires and PiPer is wounded.) Piper. CUESE HIM ! CURSE HIM ! ! lExit Piper.] end act II. ACT III. SCENE I. — Tom's cabin in the woods. Enter Tom from a hunting expedition with a snddle of venison. Tom. This is ratlier a nice evening. Let me see — it is full moon, a good coon night. Yes, a good night for Indian coons. What say you. Long Tom ? {raises (/tin.) How would you like to drop one of the red coons before morning ? I would. That would make it just eightj^-seven red devils that I have sent to the spirit's land since Muskwink murdered my father. Tell me, oh, ye stars ! [loukhig up) for what was he murdered ? For being a good man, a kind neighbor, a God-fearing aixl God-loving man ? Father — my father — you sleep on the banks of the Delaware. No, only your body lies there ; your spirit is here, there — everywhere. It is now hovering round and about me. It is continually whispering in my ear. Revenge ! Revenge ! It is God's will that your death should be avenged. It is God's will that Tom Quick should be your avenger. For this I have left home and the comforts of civilized life and burrowed in the ground SCENE 1. TOM QUICK. 25 like a rabbit. For this I have left the mother that gave me i)irth aii-l taiier. It was he that fired the first gun. It was he that robbed my father's dead body. It was he that fired my heart and made me the avenger SCENE 1. TOJI QUICK. 35 of the Delaware Valley. It was he that made me vow at my father's ^raVv) to kill all and spare none. That vow I have kept, but still he lives. These hairs are growing white ; these limbs are growing stiff ; pay work is not yet done. Muskwink must — shall die. To-mor- row I'll go to the Neversink and at Decker's Tavern I will kill and scalp the murderer of my father. Then I will go to Rosencrause's in the Clove and die. There I will meet again, and for the last time, brothers, sis- ters and friends. In love, they Avill close my eyes and lay me away. There I shall sleep sweetly until Gabriel blows his horn and says : " Those that are in the grave, COME FORTH ! " Then Tom will come forth with a hundred Indian scalps in his crown, as evidence that he has been a true and faithtul servant. But I tire. I'll go to my couch and dream of Muskwink and to-morrow. (Tom enters cabin and goes to hed. Six I/idians approach. Tom is seized, tied and fastened to a log of the house. A keg of whiskey is found hy the In- dians, of which they drink freely. Then a drunken revelry ensues among the Indians and they all fall asleep hut one. He takes a torch in one hand and a knife in the other and starts to kill Tom. He stumhles and falls across Tom's hody and is soon in an uncon- scious drunken sluinher. Tom gets his knife, cuts his hands and escapes. The torch the Indian carried sets fire to the cahin and the Indians are consu7ned in the flames. Tom vie tos the fire from a distance.) That is a vengeance I had not planned. That is putting the shoe on the other foot. They intended to burn me, but they are now charcoal. They are out of my way and I am out of their scalps. That makes ninety-nine. Now for the Neversink, Muskwink and one hundred. {Exit Tom.] 3G TOM QUICK. ACT 5. Scene changes. SCENE II. — Exterior of Decker's Tavern on the Neversink. SwARXWOUT. I say, Gumaer, that is a mighty fast horse you have got there. Gumaer. Yes, Bob showed the colt his heels very easily. Swart. Did Cuddeback give up the stakes ? Gum. Yes. He told Van Etten to hand me the ten pounds. {Enter Muskwink, drunk. All look at him.) Musk. Ugh ! Ugh ! Here you all be. Come, let us have some fire-water. {Taking hottle from pocket.) Come and drink with the Indian that killed and scalped old Tom Quick. {Holding up bottle.) Come along, all of you. The war is over and the hatchet is buried. Gum. Don't be too sure of that. His sou Tom still lives, and with him the hatchet will never be buried until he has your scalp. Musk. Ugh ! Tom take my scalp ? (Musk, drinks again.) When he does he is welcome to it. Gum. I understand that he is in the neighborhood and is likely to drop into here at any moment. Musk. Let him drop ! I can handle him as easily as I did his father. Gum. Maybe not. You had the first shot then, he may get the first now. Musk. NEVER ! Muskwink always on guard. Gum. Hush man ! {looking ojfat a distance) There he comes ! Enter Tom. Musk. Ugh ! He looks just like his father. (Tom grits his teeth and seizes a chair.) Old man stay and die ! Tom run like a coward ! (Tom gripping chair SCENE 2. TOM QUICK. 37 in a 7Yi.ge.) Look, Tom ! I will show you wliat a pretty face the old man made when I Jerked his sclap off. (Musk, niahes hideous grimaces.) Wan't that a pretty face for an old man to make ? I wonder if his son Tom can beat it. Tom. Scoundrel ! (Tom raises the chair.) Gum. Stop, Tom ! No blood shed here. Musk. Let him come ! I can pull off his shirt as easily as I did his father's sleeve buttons. Tom ! do you know these buttons ? {Shoining them.) Do you know I tore, them from his shirt the same time I did the scalp fi'om his head. (Tom seizes gun and cocks it.) Tom. Dog, march ! Musk. Where ? Tom. • MARCH ! ! (Musk, marches off with Tom following, with gun cocked. Scene changes. Enter "Mv^k. folloived hj Tom.) Musk. Tom, would you shoot me ? Tom. Yes, you shot my father. Musk. The war is over and peace is declared. Tom. The war still rages in my breast, and peace will never be declared until you die. {Raising rifle.) Dog, you die ! (Shoots and Musk, falls dead.) An even one hundred. VENGEANCE IS SATISFIED ! I swore to drive the last redskin from the Delaware Valley.- I swore to spare none. I swore to kill the old man with silver hair, the lisping babe without teeth, the mother quick with child and the maid in the bloom of youth. I have done it. The valley is clear. The Indians have gone west or to the Spirit's land. There hes the last of the accursed race. Dog ! I will not dirty my fingers in his tuft. I'll leave his body to be cooked and dried by the sun, und his scalp to be torn from his head by the wolves. I'll now return to my father's grave and talk with his departed spirit. •^ lExit Tom.] 38 TOM QUICK. ACT 5. Scene changes. SCENE III. — Interior of Quick's liouse. Maggie sitting hy tahle holding letter. Mag. Why this letter was written more than two months ago. I wonder who it is fi'om. {Opens letter.) Oh, it's from Abe. {Kisses the letter.) Now I will read. Newbueg on the Hudson, Aug. 30th, 1783. Dear Maggie : — I have just learned that a messenger to the Minisink Country will leave in a few minutes, and I embrace the opportunity to inform^ you that I am well and doing well. The treaty of peace has been signed and the army will be disbanded about the first of November. Then I shall fly to the arms of my Maggie. You may expect me at that time. I am happy in the thought that I can then call you mine. Trusting that this letter will be received and read in the same spirit it is written, I remain your alieetionate lover, Abram Winfield. P. S. This letter may be some weeks in reaching you, as the carrier has several routes to go. I may arrive soon after the letter. A. W. Mag. Well, now, if I am a judge, that is a good let- ter — rather short, yet to the point. He is going to liy to the arms of his Maggie. Well, he will find her arms ready to receive him, and if I don't hug and kiss him, then my name ain't Maggie Quick. This hugging and kissing by letter don't amount to much. But just wait until he comes. Let me see. He leaves Newburg on the first day of November. Why, it is time he was here now ! He won't be long in coming — a hop, a skip, a jump and he is here. Pomp. Oh, Miss Maggie ! I'se drefful scared. Mag. Why, Pomp, what have you seen ? Pomp. I seed a great big blue bar comin' up de lane SCENE 3. TOM QUICK. 39 and de way he swings liis forepaws, I tink lie want to squeeze sometinf^. Mag Pomp, explain yourself ! [Knock at the door.) Pomp. Dat will explain it. Come in dar ! Come in ! Enter A. Winfield. Win. Maggie ! Mag. Abram ! [Emhixice.) Win. This pays me for fighting and striving for liberty. Mag. And me for waiting. Win. Let us wait no longer, Maggie. Let the day of our wedding be fixed at once. Mag. lou command and I'll obey. Win. Will two weeks from to-daj^ suit you ? Mag. Yes, two hours. {Aside). That is a long time to wait. Win. I thought you would require that time to get ready. Mag. Eeady ! Why, Abe, I am like souse — always ready. Win. You will require a new dress and other ♦ things. Mag. To get married in ? Win. Yes. You have \vorn that dress ever since I became acquainted with you. Mag. And a long time before. This dress was made and worn by my grandmother in Holland. She was married in it, my mother was married in it, and I will be married in it — if it holds together two weeks longer. Win. But, Maggie, I have bought you a beautiful dress right from Paris. I wish to give it to you as a present. Mag. When we are married I will accept your gift, and not before. Then you can properly give and I can 40 TOM QUICK. ACT 5. properly receive. Look out for that girl who is con- tinually receiving presents from her beau. She won't make a jewel of a wife. Win. That settles it. Mag. You must take me just as I am — poor, ignor- ant and uneducated. Win. Maggie, you are a witch — a rough diamond. Come, now, tell me what has happened since I last saw you. [Sitting dovjn.) Mag. You told me that Col. Tuston and Hawthorne were in pursuit of Brant. Win. Yes, I remember the circumstance. Mag. Brant set a trap for them at Lackawaxen and they ran into it and were slaughtered. Win. What ! all of them ? Mag. No, not exactly all, but nearly so. Since that, the boy-s have .been so scarce that there wasn't enough to go around. Win. What do you mean by that ? Mag. I mean that the boys had to do double duty and spark two girls at once. And when we went home from apple cuts, one girl had to ride before and the other behind. Of course, the head girl had all the fun, and the hind girl was left out in the cold. Win. By the way, Maggie, what has become of your T-ory lover '? (Pipek, lixteniiuj.) Mag. I don't know. I guess he has drojiped out. Enter PoMF. Pomp. Yes, I is de darkey dat dropped him out. I tole him if he eber come here agin, I'd sarve him as Jonah did de whale — dat I'd swaller him alibe. Golly, massa, jest gib dis chile de chance — I'd eat him up. Yes, chew him down — make mince-meat of him. Win. That is right. Pomp. Protect your mistress and you shall have your freedom. HCENE 3. TO.'\I QUICK. 41 Pomp. I don't want raj freedom. I don't want to be nobody's nigger. I want to stay right here wid massa and misses. [Abram rising.'] Mag. Why, Abram, must you leave me so soon ? Win. Yes, Maggie. I had imperative orders to clear up a few little matttirs as soon as I arrived, and only stole a few minutes to run in while passing. I will re- turn in the morning, and after that you will have to set the dog on me to drive me away. Pomp ! keep a sharp eye for Piper. Pomp. Yes, massa, I keep two eyes on him — and if he comes here, I swallow him. \_Exit Winmeld.] Mag. Pomp, I feel just as if somebody was coming here. I dreamed about Uncle Tom last night. Pomp. Yes, and de rooster crowed three times on de woodpile dis morn'n. And dat is a sure sign dat some- body is a comiu'. Mag. Suppose it should be Piper and he came here to take me off. What would you do ? Pomp. Jest let him come ! You'd see what Pd do. [Loud knock at door.) Golly, what's dat ? Mag. Go to the door, Pomp, and see who is there. Pomp. Come in dere ! Come in ! Mag. I told you to go to the door. [Door opens.) Pomp. De door is comiu to me. {Fnte/' Piper.) Dere— dere he is ! Dere is de debble himsef. {Knees shdke.s and hides under tahle.) Piper. Good day, miss ! {Swinging his hat, tarns.) Why, gal, what is the matter ? You treat an old friend ratlier' coolly. Turn around here and shake hands. {Takes hold' of her.) Mag. Hands off ! or I'll Piper. Call on that cowardly nigger, I suppose. Mag. No ; I'll call on the spirit of one of your mur- dered victims. Piper. Call me a murderer ? 42 TOM QUICK. ACT 5. Mag. Yes, a murderer ! A villaiu ! A traitor ! A Tory ! Piper. Pray, miss, wlio have I murdered ? Mag. My grandfather ! You were with the Indians that killed and scalped him. Piper. You speak the truth. I was there then — and for a purpose. I am here now and have an ob- ject. Mag. What is your object here ? Piper. To take you — peaceably I hope. But take you I will. Mag. Then you will take me dead. I had rather die a thousand deaths than be in the hands of such a monster. Piper. I have no time to trifle. Go with me or I will bury you by the side of your grandfather. Mag. Then I'll be buried there. Piper. Come ! {Advancing tovxirds her. Maggie steps hack.) Mag. NEVER! {An Indian approaches from he- h'lnd ; throios a hlanket over her head and carries her off.) Piper. Mine at last, or I am no Tory. SCENE. IV. Enter Tom, hairs gray, Ihnhs totter. Looks around. Tom. It is a long time since I have seen this place. It hasn't changed much — not as much as I have. I was then young and active. Now I am old and stiff and Long Tom {holds up gun) has grown old too, and a faithful companion you have been. But we must soon part. {T/iroivs gun over shoulder.) You and I are on our last hunt. There are no more Indians to SCENE 4. TOM QUICK, 43 kill or scalps to take — nothing more to do. but to view my father's grave and die. Sj^xit Tom.] Scene changes. Grave o/" Quick, sr., mcnmd and tomb- stone. Enter Tom softly and reverently, hat hi hand. Walks around the (j round. Gets down on knees and reads inscrijytion on stone. Tom. There my father sleeps. Would to God I lay by his side. Oh, that I could arouse the cold, dead clay and tell him that his death has been avenged. Ah ! his spirit is here. It is hovering round about me. He smiles approval on what I have done. Yes, father, you are avenged. {Holds up scalp.) Here are one hundred for one. But, hark ! some one approaches. I'll hide and listen. (jStej?s aside. Enter Piper draw- ing Maggie towards the grave.) Piper. Minx ! I've got you now. There is no es- cape. Promise to marry me or you die. Mag. Then I'll die — yes, a thousand deaths — before I'll go with you. Piper. Consider, girl. I am desperate. Mag. I have considered and am determined. Strike ! Piper. Then, take that ! {Rushing on her with knife.) Tom. And you take that ! {Knocks knife from his hand with gun ; seizes him hy the throat, throws him to the g'ronn,d,p>laces his left foot on his breast.) Cowardly cur ! What mean you ? Lady, go to your home ! I'll attend to this wretch. Mag. Not until I have thanked the good man that has saved me. Tom (aside.) That face ! That voice ! 44 TOM QUICK. ACT 5. Mag. Oh, p,ood old man, I thank you ! The spirit of the one that Hes in that grave will thank you. Tom. Who lies there ? Mag. My grandfather — Tom. And my father. Maggie, behold your long lost Uncle Tom ! Mag. Tom ! Uncle Tom ! is it you ? {Falling on his neck and l-hsing Jmn. Foot still on Piper's hody.) Piper. My time has come. (Shouts heard in the distance^ Enter Pomp. Pomp. Dis way, massa, dis way. Dis is de way I seed him run. Golly, I'll swaller him now — eat him alib ! Win. Magf^ie, am I in time ? [Throws his arms arotind her.) Mag. Yes, Abram, thanks to Uncle Tom. Win. What, Tom Quick, the Indian slayer, the uncle of my Maggie ? Tom. Yes, the avenger of the Delaware valley. Who are you ? Win. Abram Winfield of the Continental army and the affianced husband of Maggie Quick. [Looking dow/i, discovers Piper.) What have we here ? Tom. This is the renegade Tory, Peter Piper. Win. Then turn him over to me for ])unishment. Tom. Leave the punishment of this worse than a savage to me. [Uemoces hi^ foot.) Get up, dog ! Get up ! (Piper ri.ses.) Win. In what way do you propose to punish him ? Tom. By turning him loose for an indignant public to gaze at and for children to point at and exclaim : Traitor ! Tory ! Coward ! Long Tom would be ashamed to put a bullet through his miserable carcass. No, dog, go ! I have never stained my hands with the SCENE 4. TOM QUICK. 45 blood of a white man. (Piper meals off, Pomp after him.) Pomp. Now I'll eat liirn up. {Starts tovmrd Piper. Piper dravm knife and Pomp runs with fear.) {Exit Piper.] Tom. You told me that your name is Winfield, and that you are about to marry my niece, Maggie. When is the wedding to take place ? Mag. Two weeks from to-day. And, Uncle, you must be there. Tom. Why not to-day and here ? Mag. What, in a grave yard ? Tom. Yes, at your grandfather's grave. Win. I am willing. What do you say, Maggie ? Mag. As you and uncle say. Tom. And I say here and now. Before twelve suns have passed around my sun will have gone down — I will be in the spirit's world. Win. For a proper legal marriage we must have a preacher. Pomp. I can git you one in two jerks of a lamb's tail. I seed de Dominie at Squire Westfall's as I come along. Abe. Pomp, go for him at once. Pomp. I'll go. Dis looks like bein a cold weddin widout eny cake. \_Exit Pomp.] Tom. The last request your grandfather made was that I should be both an uncle and father to you. Enter Pomp and Dominie. Pomp. Here he is. I got him. Now, Dominie, freeze em fast. Frmt. I understand, friends, that you desire my services. Tom. Yes, we wish you to unite two loving hearts. Frmt. Who will give the bride away ? 46 TOM QUICK. ACT 5. Tom. Her uncle, Thomas Quick. Frmt, What, the Indian shiyer ? Tom. Yes, the " avenger of the Delaware valley." FiiMT. Then let us proceed. {Surround the grave.) Here we have another proof of the wisdom of the Psalmist. " God works in a mysterious way, bis won- ders to perform."" Years ago the grandfather of the lady, that is now about to take upon herself the duties of a wife, was consigned to this tomb. His body lies mouldering in this grave. His spirit has gone to the God that gave it, and we are assured that angels are the spirits of just men made perfect. If so, then the spirit of this father is hovering over and about us, and I doubt not, approving of this union. My friends, as a token that this union has the sanction of heaven, that you have given to and received each other to your- self, that each of you possesses the whole of the other's heart, " that you twain are one flesh," you will signify the same by kneeling on this grave. (Maggie and WiNFiELD kneel.) Now, here, in the presence of heaven and these witnesses, I pronounce you one and record it in heaven as husband and wife. May the same kind Providence, that has so mysteriously led you in the past, continue to watch over you. May the same love and emotion that were your polar star in the past con- tinue to shine. And when the time comes for an earthly separation may there be a reunion in heaven between father and child, amen. {All arise.) Mag. Abram, are we really married ? Win. Certainly, my dear, {kissing her) and now you will accept a present from your husband ? Mag. Yes. {Nodding her head.) Win. And wear it to please me ? Mag. Yes, to please you. {Pats Abe tinder chin.) Pomp. Where does dis chile cum in ? SCENE 4. TOM QUICK. 47 Win. You mean you're present ? Pomp. Yah ! clat's it, massa. Whah is my present ? Win. You're freedom. Now you Lave tlie right to marry and own your own wife and children. Pomp. But whah is de cake and de raisins and all de knicknaks ? Mag. We will have them when we return to the house. Pomp. Den let's go in double quick. \_Exit Pomp.] Mag. Uncle, you will go with us ? Tom. No, Maggie. Meet me at Rosencranses two weeks from to-day. {Exit Maggie and Win. lodged arms.) Alone with the dead ! Let me commune with his spirit. Here is the spirit of one of the just made perfect. The clod cannot confine him. Father ! Father ! Have I done right ? Is your death avenged ? If so, depart. My father says I am right, heaven says I am right ; my work is done, my mission is ended. Come, Tom, (Jiolds nj) gun) let us go to Rosencranses and die. To die ! is that all, or is there life beyond the grave ? But a moment since, methought I saw my father's spirit as it last appeared, to me in life. Yes, it mvM be so. There is a life beyond the grave. My father is in the Spirit's Land. I, too, shall soon be there. But I wonder if I shall there meet the hundred Indians whom I have killed and scalped. No ! no ! it can't be so, for we are assured that there all is love. There the war-whoop and the scalp dance will be changed to heaven's sweetest music, and songs sung by heaven's fairest angels. Ah me ! I have not thought of these things since I was a boy. I have faithfully avenged my father's death. That has been my re- ligion and faith — fully have I followed its rites. But, there is another spirit. Dimly in the outline I see her, as she holds my father's hand. It is she, who in days 48 TOM QUICK. ACT 5. gone by, read to me from the old iron-bound bible, of those blessed truths she died believing in. It is my mother. She is beckoning to me, come. Yes, mother, I am coming. Earth has no charms. The valley is clear, the Indians have gone, nothing more to do but die. SCENE V. — [nterior of Rosencransi^s House. {Enter Maggie and Win. locked arms. Mag. in a new dress.) Win. Maggie, this must be heaven. Mag. Then I must be an angel. Win. You are a queen ! Mag. Is it this dress that makes me a queen ? Win. No, not exactly, but you do look lovely. Mag. In my first present ? Pomp {outside). Massa ! Oh, massa ! {Enters.) Oh? massa, sumfin terrible has happened. O, O, O — drefful, massa, drefful ! Mag. Calm yourself, Pomp, what has happened ? Pomp. Tom is dying. Mag. Dying ! Pomp. Yes, jest as pale as a ghostess. Mag. Why, what ails him ? Pomp. De doctor says he's got the spinal man- eat-us. Mag. The what ? Pomp. De spinal man-eat-us. Win. He means the spinal menigitis. Pomp. Yes, the spinal maneat-us. Dar ! dar they come SCENE 5. TOM QUICK. 49 {Enter attendants, carrying Tom on a litter to center of stage. Tom revives^ Tom. Where am I ? {Lool-s aromicl.) Is this heaven ? No, it is earth. Bub I am in sight of heaven. {Rises tip, assisted hy Pomp and Win.) I see the silver lining behind the cloud. I see the portals open. I hear my father say, " Come, Tom." {Feeling for rifle.) Where is my old companion ? {Gun handed him.) Yes, faithful to the last— you shall go with me ! Where are my jewels — my crowns ? {Scalps handed him.) This is my crown of glory ! These are my passports to the spirit's world. Father, I come ! I come ! {The gun drops to the floor and scalps from his hand. Pomp and WiNFiELD lay him on the cot.) Frmt. This is death. Thomas Quick has died as he lived — in the firm belief that revenge is one of the attributes of heaven. Let us pray. {All hieel about the couch. Tableau.) FINAL. ■aiiiiiij 016 102 164 7