Page:Plays by Anton Tchekoff (1916).djvu/111

ACT II

you play your cards! Tell me, Paul, honestly, have you saved up a million yet?

. I don’t know. Ask Zuzu.

. [To ] And my plump little Birdie here will soon have a million too! She is getting prettier and plumper not only every day, but every hour. That means she has a nice little fortune.

. Thank you very much, your highness, but I don’t like such jokes.

. My dear little gold mine, do you call that a joke? It was a wail of the soul, a cry from the heart, that burst through my lips. My love for you and Zuzu is immense. [Gaily] Oh, rapture! Oh, bliss! I cannot look at you two without a madly beating heart!

. You are still the same, Count. [To ] Put out the candles please, George. [ ''gives a start. He puts out the candles and sits down again''] How is your wife, Nicholas?

. She is very ill. The doctor said to-day that she certainly had consumption.

. Really? Oh, how sad! [She sighs] And we are all so fond of her!

. What trash you all talk! That story was invented by that sham doctor, and is nothing but a trick of his. He wants to masquerade as an Asculapius, and so has started this consumption theory. Fortunately her husband isn’t jealous. [ makes an impatient gesture] As for Sarah, I wouldn’t trust a word or an action of hers. I have made a point all my life of mistrusting all doctors, lawyers, and women. They are shammers and deceivers.

. [To ] You are an extraordinary person, Matthew! You have mounted this misanthropic hobby of yours, and you ride it through thick and thin like a