A PRODUCTION OF R. C.

SHERRIFF'S
JOURNEY*S END
by
Samuel Denver Cornelius, B.A.
A THESIS
IN
THEATRE ARTS
Submitted to the Graduate Faculty
of Texas Tech University in
Partial Fulfillment of
the Requirements for
the Degree of
MASTER OF ARTS
Approved

August, 1977

Cc>p>^

PREFCE

I first became acquainted with R. C. Sherriff's Journey's End through undergraduate coursework in scenery design at Texas Tech University.

From my interest in this

play there evolved a full production of Journey's End at

the Texas Tech University Laboratory Theatre in the spring
cf 1976.

Performances were given 2 7 February through 3

March.
Journey's End deals with World War I.

It is often

considered dated because of World War II and later conflicts

in Korea and Viet Nam.

However, I felt that it made a val-

id statement on men's reactions under stress to each other

and to the situation itself and that a production was justified.
The document that follows is a record of the production.

It consists of six chapters, containing (1) the

director's preparationresearch and analysis of the play

done prior to the productlon, (2) a description and explanation of the various design aspects, (3) the record of
auditions, rehearsals and performances, (4) the prompt
book, (5) some production photographs and (6) an evaluation of the production.

A bibliography and an appGndix

*

11

..., 1L_

oontaining a copy of the program and review follow the

text of this document.

111

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I am deeply indebted to Professors Ronald Schulz
andRichard Weaver for their helpful criticism, advice
and direction in the preparation of this thesis, both in
the prduction and the recording stages.

I would also

like to acknowledge the cast and production personnel foi

their dedication to this production of Journoy's End.

IV

II, ,1.!

TABLE OF CONTENTS
PREFACE

ii

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

iv

LIST OF TABLES

vii

LIST OF FIGURES

viii

CHAPTER
I,

DIRECTOR'S PREPARATION
Research

1
1

R. C. Sherriff

History of the Play

10

Wor Id War 1

17

History

17

Weapons

30

Trench Life

41

Analysis of Journey's End

45

Synopsis

45

Main Action

62

Structure

62

Characters

63

Language

67

Setting

76

Theme, . . . ,
Production Idea
v

76
77

II.

DESIGN

78

Scenery

78

Lighting

81

Properties

92

Costumes

94

Sound Effects

96

III. AUDITIONS, REHEARSALS AND

PERFORMANCES

107

IV.

PROMPT BOOK

118

V.

PRODUCTION PHOTOGRAPHS

549

VI.

EVALUATION

562

BIBLIOGRAPHY

564

APPENDIX

567

A.

NEWSPAPER REVIEW

569

B.

PROGRAM

571

C.

POSTER

574

VI

LIST OF TABLES
1.

Roscolar Color Chart

86

2.

Lighting Instrument Schedule

89

3.

Property List

91

4.

Schedule of Units

114

5.

Synopsis of Units

114

6.

Rehearsal Schedule

115

vii

LIST OF FIGURES
1.

Groundplan

2.

Set Rendering

85

3.

Placement of Lighting Instruments

88

4.

Colonel's Uniforra

98

5.

Captain's Uniform

100

6.

Lieutenant' s Unif orm

102

7.

Enlisted Man' s Unif onn

104

8.

German Soldier's Uniform

106

9.

Raleigh's and Stanhope's Fitst Encounter

551

10.

Confrontation between Stanhope and Hibbert

553

11.

Intarrogation of the German Soldier.

12.

The Celebration Meal

557

13.

Raleigh's Death

559

14.

Stanhope's Final Exit

561

Vlll

83

,..555

CHAPTER I
DIRECTOR'S PREPARATION
Research
R. C. Sherriff
Robert Cedric Sherriff was born on 6 June 1896 at
Kingston-on-Thames near London, the son of Herbert and Constance (Winder) Sherriff.

On finishing grammar school at

seventeen, he became a clerk in the insurianoe office where

his father worked.

The next year, with the outbreak of

World War I, Sherriff joined the Ninth East Surrey Regiment

in the infantry.

Sherriff was wounded in the battle of Y-

pres and spent six months in an army hospital.

With the

signing of the Treaty of Versailles and the War's end,

Sherriff was demobilized after having advanced to the rank
of captain.
Upon his return to England, Robert Sherriff rejoined
the insurance office and became a ciaims adjustor.

Until

this tirae Sherriff had had no interest in theatre, his spare

R. C. Sherriff, No Leading Lady (London:

Gollancz Ltd, 1968), p. 104.
2
Ibid., p. 11.

Victor

time being spent with sports.

It was through the Kingston

Rowing Club, which Sherriff captained, that he first became involved in any way with theatre.

In the winter of

1921, needing raoney to buy new boats, the club decided to

put on a variety show, one part of which was to be a oneact play which Sherriff was drafted to write and direct.
Sherriff had never written or even read a play prior to the
atterapt to write one for this prograra.

He had to teach

himself how by reading other plays and William Archer's

3
text, Play-Making.
Thereafter Sherriff wrote full-length
plays for the club's annual show.
After the fifth play, Sherriff resigned as captain
and took a passive role in the club.

In his spare time he

wrote two more plays which he sent, along with the first
five, to the Curtis Brown Publishing Company. All were
4
rejected.
The next play that Sherriff wrote, however,
broke this pattern.

That play was Journey's End.

The suc-

cess of Journey's End brought fame to Sherriff, the director, and several of the actors,
As the London run of Journey's End was beginning to
falter, Sherriff found himself expected to produce more
dramatic successes.

3
Ibid., p. 26.
Ibid., p. 32.

In response to this challenge, he

wrote Badger's Green, a play that turned out to be a failure.

According to one critic, Badger's Green would have

succeeded if it had been allowed to stand on its own merits

rather than under the "shadow of Journey's End."^

With

this failure Sherriff became disheartened and decided to

give up writing altogether, to go to college and prepare
to teach history.

Sherriff was eventually accepted by the

New College, one of the Oxford colleges, and upon his acceptance tried writing again.
which was another failure.

He wrote the play Windfall,

Sherriff felt that the reason

this play did not succeed V7as that it was not a war play
and that was what the public expected of him.

Because of

this second dramatic failure, Sherriff turned away from

drama and to fill his spare time, wrote a novel.
novel was The Portnight in September.

This

It became as great

a success as Journey's End had been and soon was translated

into several languages and became popular around the world.
After the publication of his first novel, Sherriff
started his college work.

While still in his first year,

in 1931, he received a cable from Rollywood asking him to

do the screenplay for the film The Invisible Man.

On com-

pletion of his first year, during summer vacation, Sherriff

^lbid., p. 209.
^lbid., p. 225.

made the trip to California.

In Kollywood Sherriff managed

to do what is seldora done in the raovie business, that

being to write a screenplay of a novel without significantly altering the story.

With the completion of the screen-

play, Sherriff's contract was completed and he returned to

England and to Oxford.
Returning, Sherriff was to run into several disheartening failures.

He began trying out for the main row-

ing teara and was doing well until he developed a case of

pleurisy and had to drop out.

After this disappointraent,

Sherriff then had to recover frora the verdict of his tutor

that there was no hope of Sherriff's graduating from Oxford
at all, rauch less with the honors to which he aspired.
Sherriff withdrew frora college at the end of the fall terra
of 1932-33, thus ending all hopes of fulfilling two boyhood dreams:

one of winning a racing blue and the other

of graduating from Oxford.

After his withdrawal from Oxford, Sherriff started
writing screenplays again.

Now, however, instead of going

to California to live while writing the script he would

write the script in England and go to Hollywood only on
its completion.

This formula proved to be unsatisfactory

both for Sherriff and for the movie industry.

In an at-

tempt to get Sherriff to move to California, the movie industry began giving him only inferior novels to work with.

Sherriff resigned and began to look for work as a screenwriter for the young British film companies.

In this

search he was disappointed because most of the British companies were patterning themselves after the Araerican filra
companies.

This attempt to be like the American corapanies

disgusted Sherriff.

It was not until he met Alexander Kor-

da, a Hungarian producing in England, that Sherriff found

what he wanted in way of an English producer.

Soon Sher-

riff was working for Korda and consequently for the movie
industry of California which was renting some of Korda's
facilities in England.
Whether Sherriff would ever have returned to playwriting is doubtful had it not been for Jeanne de Casalis.
She approached Sherriff with a topic that she wanted to see
in play form but which she felt she could not write herself.

Sherriff had raet Miss Casalis during the West End's

production of Journey's End.

She had been engaged to Colin

Clive who had played Stanhope.

The topic of the proposed

play was Napoleon's final years at Helena.

Miss Casalis

had spent several years collecting all that had been written about Napoleon and this period, and presented the raaterial to Sherriff along with some scenes she had written
herself.

When the play v/as completed, it had a life simi-

lar to that of Journey's End in that it was rejected by all

the regular theatre producers and was destined to obscurity

had it not been for Lilian Bayliss, the manager of the

Old Vic.

Miss Bayliss broke with tradition of the Old

Vic in doing a new play and staked her reputation and the
precarious resources of the Old Vic on the play.

After

the critics' review of the play it appeared that Miss Bayliss's reputation and career would be in danger.

It was

not until Winston Churchill published a letter praising

the play that it became a success.

St. Helena continued

to play at the Old Vic for two months before it was transferred to a regular theatre in the West End, where it soon
failed.

It had becorae associated with the Old Vic and was

not accepted away frora those surroundings, for the historic

site was an added attraction that apparently was neccessary
7
to draw patrons.
After the close of St. Helena, Sherriff went back to
screenwriting with the intention of using the proceeds to
finance an archaeological dig at the Roraan villa at Angmering in the south of England.

When he was not writing

screenplays Sherriff spent his tirae digging at this site.

This continued for the next three years until World War II
started and the site had to be closed.

Sherriff would re-

raeraber these three years and in future writing would use

the people that he imagined had once lived in the villa.

^lbid., pp. 300-303.

With the outbreak of World War II, Sherriff was

hired to return to California and write what were essentially propaganda screenplays.

The first was about Lord

Nelson, who was played by Laurence Olivier.

During this

period Sherriff also wrote the script Mrs. Minivier for

M.G.M. and the script This Above All

for Walt Disney.

Soon after writing these screenplays, Sherriff returned to

England, and it was not until the War was over that he again did any significant writing.
After the War was over and the English studios were
back in operation, Sherriff went back to the old routine
but soon came to the conclusion that as a screenwriter he
was beginning to wear out.

In 19 47, after reaching this

decision, Sherriff decided to return to the theatre after

an absence of twelve years.

During this absence, a new

movement had taken place in the theatre that probably would

have kept Sherriff out had it not been for a few producers
that still preferred the old style of plays.

Sherriff got

five new plays on the boards and one revision, and then he
began to rotate what he wrote:

first a play, then a novel,

then a screenplay, and then soraething for television.

In

recent years Sherriff has spent only four months in the

p

year writing; the rest of the year is spent in farming.

^Stanley J. Kunitz, ed., Twentieth Century Authors
(New York: H.W. Wilson Co., 1955), p. 904.

8
The following is a list of R. C. Sherriff's major
works.

Where pcssible, they have been listed chronologi-

cally.
Plays
1923Profit and Loss
Cornlow-in-the-Downs
1926Mr. Bridie's Finger
1929Journey's End
1930^Badger ' s Green
1933Windfall
1935St. Helena
1949Miss Mabel
1953The White Carnation
1954The Long Sunset
1956Telescope
1960A Shred of Evidence
1960Johnny the Priest
Screenplays
1933The Invisible Man
1937- -The Road Back
1938- -One More River
1939- -Goodbye, Mr, Ch;ips
1940- -Lady' Hamilton
1942- -Mrs. Minivier

1942This Above All

1947Odd Man Out
1949Quartette
1950Trio
1954The Dam Busters
Novels
1931The Fortnight in Septeraber
1936Greengates
1939The Hopkins Manuscript
1944Chedworth
1948Another Year
1954King John's Treasure
Others
Cards with Uncle Tom
1968No Leading Lady

(Television)

(Autobiography)

The critique that best describes most of Sherriff's

works is found in Crowell's Handbook of Contemporary Drama:
Sherriff is "fond of celebrating the quiet value of suburban England, he must be judged a dramatist of competence
9
rather than original.i ty. "

Michael Anderson, Crowell's Handbook of Contemporary Drama (New York: H-W. Wilson Co., 1971), p. 408.

10
History of the Play
The story for Journey's End started as an idea for
a novel.

The idea was about two men who had graduated

frora the sarae school.

One was several years older than

the other and was the younger man's hero.

They were sup-

posed to raeet again several years after graduation, with

the younger man being very successful and the older, who
had been successful at school, being a failure.

The novel

was to reveal the attempts of the younger man to pull the

older man up and the older's resulting hatred of the younger one.

In the process of trying to write the novel Sher-

riff found that he had neither the vocabulary nor the literary ability to do justice to the subject in novel form,
so he put the story aside.

The basic idea, however, kept

haunting Sherriff until he picked it up again and tried to

write it as a play.

Sherriff decided that, for a play,

he must use a specific period of the two men's lifetimes

and condense the story without losing the impact of the
idea.
Looking for che proper time and locale in which to
place the story was the major problera that Sherriff faced
until he came acrcss sorae letters he had written home from
the trenches while he was serving in the War.

These let-

ters were very descriptive and led Sherriff to the decision that a war-time bunker would be the perfect setting

11
for the story as a play.

Using a bunker would confine

the action to one area and would add the atmosphere of

war-tirae life in craraped quarters.

Sherriff placed the

play in the time period that he was most familiar with

and soon was writing in earnest.

Whereas his earlier

plays had all been about iraaginary people, this play

centered on people whora Sherriff had known and on incidents to which he had been close.

Several tiraes Sher-

riff put the play aside because of sorae difficulty in the

sequence in which events should occur, but each time he
felt that the characters kept pushing him to continue.
It took a year to complete the play.
When it was finished, Sherriff had grave misgivings.

He felt that it raight not sell because the out-

corae became evident too soon.

Despite these raisgivings,

he sent theraanuscripton to the publisher with whora he

had been in contact.

Sherriff soon received a letter

frora the publisher both praising the play and promising

to see that it got produced.

The summer passed with no

further interest being shown in the play.

At the end of

the summer, Sherriff was notified that the Incorporated

Stage Society was interested in putting on the play.
This society was a group of intellectuals who, at each
meeting, produced a play that was of intellectual interest

12

and probably would not be produced by professional groups.

In an attempt to influence merabers of the Society to decide definitely to put the play on, oneraerabersuggested
that Sherriff get George Bernard Shaw's opinion, so a
copy of Journey's End was sent to Shaw.

This was his re-

ply:
This play is, properly speaking, a docuraent,
not a drama. The war produced several of them.
They require a good descriptive reporter with the
knack of dialogue. They are accounts of catastrophies, and sketches of trench life, useful as correctives to the romantic conceptions of war; and
they are usually gcod of their kind because those
who cannot do them well do not do them at all.
They seem to me useless as dramatists' credentials. The best of them cannot prove that the writer could produce a comedy or tragedy with ordinary
materials. Having read Journey's End, and found it
as interesting as any other vivid description of a
horrible experience, I could give the author a testiraonial as a journalist; but I am as completely
in the dark as before concerning his qualification
for the ordinary professional work of a playwright,
which does not admit of burning the house to roast
the pig.
As a "slice of life"horribly abnormal life
I should say let it be performed by all means, even
at the disadvantage of being the newspaper of the
day before yesterday. But if I am asked to express
an opinion as to whether the author could make his
living as a playwright, I can only say that I don't^
know. I can neither encourage nor discourage him.
As it turned out, the play selection committee had come to
the decision to put on the play before receiving Shaw's
letter.

Quoted in Sherriff, No Leading Lady, p. 45.

13
When the play was offered to the leading West End
directors, as was the practice, it was turned down and so
was given to James Whale, a young man who was an "unknown"
as far as directing was concerned.

In selecting Whale,

the Incorporated Stage Society could not have done better:

besides being a director he was also a set designer and
designed the set for the play.

In casting Journey's End,

Whale decided to use actors who were not well-known but

whom he knew were good.

The part of Captain Stanhope was

given to an obscure actor who was then acting in his first

West End production.

This actor was Laurence Olivier.

Years later, Olivier wrote that his -favorite role was

Stanhope in Journey's End.
The play was first performed in the Apollo Theatre
on Sunday, 9 December 1928.

The cast had its first re-

hearsal that raorning and gave its first performance that

evening.

The second performance was Monday afternoon;

then the set was dismounted so that a new production could

begin that night.

The notices that these perforraances re-

ceived were very good.

Swaffer of the Daily Express

stated that it was "the greatest of all war plays," and

James Agate of the Sunday Times said:

"I have never been

so deeply moved, so enthralled, so exalted.""^

^^Sherriff, No Leading Lady, p. 65.

Quoted

in Sherriff, No Leading Lady, p. 64

14
Most of the other critics said much the same thing,
but even these glowing reviews did not persuade the West
End raanagers to bring the play into their theatres.

The

managers claimed that the play would not attract audiences

since there was no leading lady to draw women to see it.
After this set-back, the actors forraed a small syndicate
in an attempt to raise cash enough to hire a theatre.
Even this atterapt fell through.

With this failure it

looked as though Journey's End was to becorae a dust collector on sorae forgotten shelf.
Then Maurice Browne contacted Sherriff's agents to
obtain a copy of the play.

Maurice Browne had just re-

turned frora the United States where he had tried, unsuccessfully, to interest Americans in his production of
a series of classical plays.

On his return to England,

Browne decided to produce Journey's End on the West End.

The director and the original cast, with the exception of
Olivier who was in another play and unavailable, were
hired.

The part of Stanhope was filled by another un-

known actor who v/as to make his name through this play.
This actor was Colin Clive.

Journey's End was performed

at the Savoy Theatre on 21 January 1929 with the following

cast of characters:
13
R. C. Sherriff, Journey's End (London: Butler
and Tanner, Ltd, 1929) , p. i. '

15
Captain Hardy
Lieutenant Osborne
Private Mason
Lance-Corporal Broughton
2nd Lieutenant Trotter
2nd Lieutenant Kibbert
Company Sergeant-Major
The Colonel
2nd Lieutenant Raleigh
Captain Stanhope
A Gerraan Soldier

Reginald Smith
George Zucco
Alexander Field
Richard Caldicott
Melville Cooper
Robert Speaight
Tristan Rawson
H. G. Stoker
Maurice Evans
Colin Clive
Geoffrey Wincott

The play was soon assured success.

It was custora

for ticket agencies to buy tickets for select custoraers.

The ticket agencies did not buy tickets for Journey's End
before it opened because they were certain it would not
sell.

When the play opened and started selling, the agen-

cies were caught without any tickets and before Browne

would sell thera tickets, they had to guarantee they would
buy tickets totalling ten thousand pounds worth during the
first three raonths of the play's run.

Also, this was the

first play the King had attended since he had suffered

frora an illness.

The play went on to have a run of 594

performances in London.
In 1929, the play was taken to America and was
first produced there in the Henry Miller Theatre in New
York.

It had a cast coraposed of all English actors and

the premiere night was almost a fiasco because the English

accent was difficult to understand.

However, the play

14Sherriff, No Leaaing Lady.. p. 110.

16
was a "smashing hit" on Broadway.

Critics hailed it as

"The finest play to reach Broadway ever . . . The best

ambassador ever sent to America by Britain."15
At one time there were four corapanies in England
and five companies in the United States producing Journey's End.

The play was booked in twenty-one European

countries and translated into twenty-seven languages including Afrikaans, Hindustani, Siamese, and Japanese.
Journey* s End was also made into araoviewith Colin Clive
in the part of Stanhope.

The filra was released in 1930

by Tiffany.
While the critics of the tirae acclaimed Journey's
End as one of the best dramas of the English stage, in
later times the critics have been more objective in their
reviews of the play.

Anita Block stated that production

of the play left the audience weeping for the dead heroes
but without a single provocative thought on the subject
of war.

Mrs. Block emphasized that the audience should

not weep at the death of the raen but that they should die
without vision or understanding the truth of their futile

"^^lbid., p. 151.
^^A. G. S. Enser, ed., Filmed Books and Plays
1928-1969 (London: Grafton, I n c , 1975), p. 429.

17
heroism.

17

Stark Young comraented that the "picture of

dug-out life you get in Journey's End has the sentiraental

value of sorae types of fiction," and pointed out that the
raost dorainant quality of the play is the underlying poetry
of huraan concern.
World War I
History
World War I was the first of the so-called raodern
wars.

This war saw the introduction of raany new devices

for the self-destruction of man.

Among the new devices

were the aeroplane, machine guns, poison gas, tanks, and

cannon of previously unimagined power and range.
Unlike World War II, World War I was not totally
a war of aggression.

There were many factors that con-

tributed to this war.

The basic one, however, was the

struggle for predominance between nations:

Great Britain, and the younger Germany.

the older

Prussia, Bavaria

and several other German states had only recently unified

into the Empire of Germany.

This unification had been de-

layed for several years by interference from outside nations.

One of these nations was Great Britain.

Even after

^"^Anita Block, The Changing World in Plays and

Theatre (Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1939), p. 304.
^^Stark Young, Immortal Shadows (New York:
Scribner's Sons, 1948)', p- 112.

Charles

18
Germany's unification in 1871, Great Britain had tried to
hold the country down.

It was this continuing struggle

that eventually led to World War I, with Germany always

looking for ways to advance and Great Britain always looking for ways to foil Germany.

The silent struggle between

Great Britian and Germany led to an arms race and also to

a search for allies.

Because each of these countries

made allies with countries with other allies the conflict

was world-wide.19 In 1914, the world was on the brink of
war.

Alraost anything could set it off; as it was, it was

an assassination that started the war.

The Austro-Hungarian Empire was a dual monarchy
consisting of Austria, Hungary and several substates.
Emperor Francis Joseph was norainally over all the Erapire;
but, in fact, because of his advanced age, and other political reasons, he had very little power.

In 1914, the

heir to the throne, Archduke Francis Ferdinand, and his

wife, Sophie Chotek, were raaking a tour of the Empire.
One of the stops in this tour was at Sarajevo, the capital of Bosnia, a substate in the Empire.

Throughout Ser-

bia, Bosnia and some other parts of the Balkans there was
a "greater Serbia" moveraent which saw the Archduke as a

H. Stuart Hughes, Contemporary Europe: A History,

2nd. ed. (Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall,
I n c , 1961) , p. 30.

19
threat.

Plans for the assassination of Ferdinand were

laid by Colonel Dinitrizevich, the Chief of Intelligence

of the Serbian General Staff.

Three young Bosnians

volunteered and were srauggled with weapons into Sarajevo.

On 28 June 1914 there were two assassination attempts.
The first one failed, but later, when the Archduke was returning to his quarters, Gavrilo Princip jumped to the
running board of Francis Ferdinand's car and fatally shot
both the Archduke and his wife.^"*"
This assassination led the Austro-Hungarian governraent to raake a list of deraands on Serbia in the way of reparations.

These deraands were:

(1) that the Serbian gov-

ernraent officially conderan the anti-Austrian propaganda

perpetrated by its citizens, (2) that it suppress all publications, organizations and societies which incited hatred
and contempt of the Dual Monarchy, (3) that all antiAustrian teachers and books be eliminated from the public
schools, (4) that the public officials iraplicated in the
anti-Austrian propaganda be disraissed, (5) that the Serbian officer, naraed in the ultimatum, be arrested at once.

20
F. Lee Benns and Mary Elizabeth Seldon, Europe:
1914-1939 (New York: Appleton-Century Crofts, 1965), p. 24
21
Wallace Ferguson and Geoffrey Bruun, A Survey of
European Civilization, 4th ed., (New York: Houghton Mifflin Co., 1969), p."774.

20
(6) that Serbia accept the collaboration of Austrian officials in the suppression of the anti-Austrian propaganda within her borders, and (7) that Serbia accept the
help of Austrian officials in the investigation of those
22
implicated in the Sarajevo crime.
On 23 July 1914 the
ultimatura, with a deraand for an answer within fortyeight hours, was presented to Serbia.

Serbia offered to

accept all the deraands except the ones calling for participation of Austro-Hungarian officials in the suppression
of propaganda and the investigation of the crirae, holding
that these would be a violation of her rights as a sove*eign. power,

Austria-Hungary rejected the partial accep23

tance and on 28 July 1914 declared war on Serbia.
This declaration of war caused Russia, an ally of
Serbia, to mobilize and declare war on Austria-Hungary.
With the Russian declaration, Germany was obliged to corae
to the aid of Austria and thus declared war on Russia.
This declaration caused France to declare war on Austria
and Gerraany.

With the declaration of war that France de-

livered, the Gerraan General Staff was free to put into

effect an invasion plan that had been developed much

^^Benns and Seldon, Europe: 1914-1939, p. 25.

^^lbid., p- 41

21
earlier by Count Alfred von Schlieffen, Chief of the
24
General Staff.
This plan called for the German arraies
to raarch through Belgiura into France and on to Paris, bypassing the raain French defenses, thus ending the war
quickly and decisively.
in

Up unto this point Great Brit-

had managed to stay out of the conflict, but with

the invasion of Belgium, England was brought into the war

because of its alliance with Belgium.
The Germans marched into Belgiura on 4 August 1914
expecting little or no opposition.

However, the raarch

2S
was halted for ten days at the fortress at Liege.
It
took a total of eighteen days for the Gerraan army to
reach the borders of France, and this delay gave the
French and British arraies an opportunity toraovesorae
troops to the Gerraan break-through point.

The first bat-

tles took place at Charleroi with the French and at Mons

with the British.

These battles failed to stop the Ger-

raans and thus started a series of strategic retreats on

26
the part of the French and the British.
By 3 Septera-

S. L. A. Marshall, The Araerican Heritage History

of World War I (New York: Dell Pub. Co., I n c , 1966),
p. 62.
^^lbid., p. 68.
^^Benns and Seldon, Europe:

1914-1939, p. 41

j|

22
ber 1914 the Gerraan array was nearly at the gates of Paris
and decisive victory.

But it was here that Joffre, the

French Coraraander-in-Chief, changed tactics.

On 6 Septera-

ber 1914 a battle began that was to be the turning point

27
of the war.
This battle becarae known as the "Miracle
of the Marne."

While the Gerraans were not defeated in

this battle, the moraentura of attack had dissipated.

By

the end of the battle at Marne the Germans had lost alraost half of the personnel of their field arraies, including two-thirds of their field officers.

Of their

1,300,000raenraorethan 600,000 had been killed, wounded,

or captured. 28
After the battle of the Marne, both sides pulled
back to consolidate their holdings and began digging rifle pits for their protection.
trench warfare.

This was the beginning of

These pits were gradually expanded into

systeras that stretched for miles.

The Marne battle was followed by four years of
struggle in which millions of lives were lost.

The next

four years also brought the loss of Russia to the Allies

because of the Bolshevik revolution.

This loss was off-

^"^Alan Moorehead, "The Anzac Beachhead," In Combat: World War I, ed. Don Congon (New York: Dell Pub
Co. , Inc , 1964) , p. 36.
^^lbid., p. 37.

23
set by the entrance of the United States.^^

In Germany

and Austria there was a growing dissatisfaction with the

government and arraies for not ending the war.

The en-

trance of the United States brought a fresh hope to the

alliance and a fresh fear to the entente.
It was this fear of Araerican reinforceraents that
lead Germany to instigate its raost powerful offensive.
This offensive was given two names:

(1) the Kaiser Bat-

tle and (2) the Friedenstrum or "peace offensive;"^^

This offensive was urged onto the General Staff by General Ludendorff.

At this time in the war the moderates

in the German government realized that there was little

or no chance to win the war, but they also realized that
their position was strong enough so that a compromise
peace could be reached.

Ludendorff, however, was a gam-

bler and gambled for a final victory.

This was an all-

or-nothing gamble that was to prove disastrous to the

German Erapire as well as the army.

After being converted

to this plan, Kaiser V7ilhelra issed the following orders:

1. The Michael attack will take place on the 21.3.
The first attack on the enemy's lines is fixed for
9.40 A.M.
'

Benns and Seldon, Europe:

1914-1939, p. 95.

Official report. Quoted in The Great Events of

The Great War, ed. Charles F. Horne, 8 vols. (U. S. A.:
National Alumi, 1923), 6:50.

24
2. The first great tactical objective of the
Crown Prince Rupprecht's Army Group is to cut off
the English in the Cambrai salient and reach the
line Croisilles (southeast of Arras)--BapauraePeronne. If the attack of the right wing (Seventeenth Array) proceeds favorably, this array is to
press on beyoiid Croisilles.
3. The Gerraan Crown Prince's Array Group will
first gain the line of the Somme south of the 0mignon stream (this flows into the Somrae south of
Peronne) and the Crozat Canal (west of La Fere).
By pushing on rapidly the Eighteenth Array (right
wing of the Crown Prince's Array Group) is to secure the crossing of the Sorame and the Canal.31
The Gerraans had been gradually strengthening their
lines with troops taken frora the Russian front.

This as

well as a general build-up in preparation for the attack

had becprae apparent to the Allies through intelligence
32
reports by 19 March 1918.
However, little was done
because of rivalry between the French and the British and
also because of shortage of tirae. Facing the Gerraan
build-up was the British Fifth Array under the coraraand of
General Sir Hubert de la P. Gough.33 Gough's array was
stretched thinly over a forty-two raile front, but to his
pleas for raore troops he received only three additional
34
divisions, raaking a total of eleven.
Against the elev-

Ibid., 6:52.
-^^lbid., 6:56.
Ibid.,

6:57.

^ M a r s h a l l , The Araerican H e r i t a g e H i s t o r y of World

War I , p . 309.

25
en divisions would come Hutliser's Eighteenth Array with
twenty-one divisions, Marwitz's Second Anay with sixteen
divisions, and one four-division corps out of Boehn's Seventh Army.

The odds against Gough's array were rated at

four to one.

When Gough called in his division coraraand-

ers, so that through thera they could tell the men what
to expect, the General began the briefing with a quote
from Abrahara Lincoln:

"We accepted this war for one ob-

ject, a worthy object, and the war will end when that object is obtained.

Under God, I hope it will never end un-

til that tira.e." Gough probably used this quote frora Lincoln in deference to the Sixth, Twelfth, and Fourteenth
United States Engineer Regiments that were part of his
comraand.

These regiments were to be the first United

States troops to know full-scale battle since the Civil

War.35
At 4:50 A.M. on 21 March 1918, the Gerraan artillery
eraplaceraents opened fire, thus beginning one of the greatest artillery duels in the entire war.

On the Gerraan

side sorae 6,100 cannon were used and the British answered
36
with approximately 2,500 cannon.
Most of the German

^^lbid., pp. 310-11.

^^lbid., p. 311.

26
guns, however, were being used for launching gas shells.
When the sun rose that day there was a fog cover that extended from the coast to Aisne.

Despite this fog, which

became thicker as the day progressed, at 9:40 A.M. the

German storm troops began their advance and soon overran
many positions before these positions were even aware of
the Germans' position.
The Gerraan troops had been taught to forget all
they had so painfully learned about trench warfare and to
adapt themselves to mobility.

Short intensive artillery

preparations, a creeping barrage, bypassing of strong

points, massive infiltration, and corabined forward movements were the earmarks of the new tactics.37 By the
end of the first day, the Germans had made gains of several milesin the process destroying a large portion of
Gough's Fifth Array.

The offensive was to continue until

18 July 1918, ending in the Second Battle of the Marne.

Thus ended Ludendorff's garable and with it all chances
for Germany to have a negotiated peace.

Also as a result

of this offensive, the Allies corabined forces under a

suprerae coraraander for the first time.
Ferdinand Foch.
the loss.

This commander was

Another result of this offensive was

There were a million casualties on the Allies'

07

Hansor Baldwin, World War I (New York:

& Row, 1962), p. 140.

Harper

27
side and a raatching loss of araillionon the Germans'
. , 38
side.
After the losses which were sustained in this
Kaiser Battle, Germany was never able to do raore than
raaintain her lines.

A series of Allied offensives rolled

back the Geirraan arraies without cessation until, on 29

Septeraber 1918, Ludendorff's nerve was broken and he told
the Kaiser that only an iraraediate arraistice could save
Germany.39 During October, the Allied troops completed
the smashing of the Hindenburg Line, which forced Gerraany
alraost corapletely out of France. On .8 Noveraber 1918 a
delegation headed by Matthias Eryberger received terras
for an Arraistice which they could accept or reject within seventy-two hours.

There were thirty-five terms.

These terms called for Gerraany to evacuate Belgium, Luxemburg, France, and Alsace-Lorraine within two weeks and
all the territory on the left bank of the Rhine within
one month.

Allied troops were to occupy the bridgeheads

of the Rhine at Mainz, Coblentz, and Cologne to a depth

"^^D. F. Fleming, The Origins and Legacies of World

War I (Greenwich, Conn.:" Fawcett Pub., I n c , 1968), p.

2837"
^^Hughes, Conteraporary Europe:
^^Benns and Seldon, Europe:

A History, p. 75.

1914-1939, p. 104.

28
of thirty kiloraeters.

A neutral zone, ten kiloraeters

wide, was to extend frora Holland to Switzerland.

All

Gerraan troops in Russia, Ruraania, and Turkey were to be

withdrawn.

Five thousand locoraotives, 150,000 railway

cars, and five thousand trucks were to be delivered to

the Allies within two weeks.

A specified nuraber of sub-

marines and warships were to be surrendered and the rest

disarmed.

All Allied prisoners were to be repatriated

and the naval blockade of Germany was to continue.

At

5:00 A.M., on 11 Noveraber 1918, the Gerraan delegation

signed the Arraistice that took effect at 11:00 A.M.^"*"
On 28 June 1919 the Treaty of Versailles was signed,
thus ending World War I.
In Western Europe, the losses and casualties of
World War I were considerably greater than those suffered
by the sarae states in World War II.

Altogether, be-

tween ten and fourteenraillionraenwere killed in the

four and one-quarter years of this war.

Germany lost

about two million, France one and one-half million, the

British Empire just under one million, Italy just under
one-half raillion, and the United States just over one

41
Ibid., pp. 105-6.
42
Felix Gilbert et al., The Norton History of
Modern Europe (New York: W. W. Norton & Co. , 1971),' p.
1360.

29
hundred thousand.

About twenty million men were

wcunded, many of them maimed for life.

The total num-

ber of casualties, including killed, wounded, and missing are numbered at thirty-seven and one-half million.^^
Included in this figure are those casualties attributed
directly to the use of gas.

The total number of cas-

ualties resulting frora the use of gas was 1,296,853.

Deaths attributed to gas were:

Germany, 9,000; France,

8,000; the British Erapire, 8,109; Austria-Hungary, 3,000;

Italy, 4,627; Russia, 56,000; the United States, 1,462;
and other, 1,100; reaching a total of 91,198. There
was a total of 150,000 tons of different kinds of gases
45
used in World War I.
The non-fatal injuries were:

Germany, 191,000;

France, 182,000; the British Empire, 180,597; AustriaHungary, 97,000; Italy, 55,373; Russia, 419,340; the
United States, 71,345; and others, 9,000.
fatal injuries was 1,205,655.

The total non-

In addition to the losses

suffered by the armies, the losses in civilian life were

43

Hughes, Conteraporary Europe: A History, p. 76.

44
Gilbert, et. al., The Norton History of Modern
Europe, p. 1361.
45
Bernard Fitzsiraons, ed., Tanks and Weapons of
World War I, The Beekraan History of the World Wars Library
(New York: Eeekman House, 1973), p. 21.

'-S

30
approxim.ately nine million.^^

The financial costs to

the principal belligerents carae to about $185 million.

When the costs due to property destruction, depreciation
of capital, loss of production, interruption of trade,
e t c were added, the real econoraic cost carae to about
$270

raillion.

The real cost of the war was not to be

realized until later, however.

governraents of the world.

The real cost was to

The raen who would have been

leaders in those governments in the following years for

the raost part had died in battle.

Europe had been bled

white with no definite solution having been reached.

Because of this and the harshness of the Versailles
Treaty, the world was conderaned to go through another
bath of fire twenty years later.
Weapons
The raajor weapon in the arraies of the belligerents was the bolt-action rifle.

The raajor rifle used by

the British was the Lee-Enfield no. 1 Mk. III, .303 in.
short raagazine rifle.

This rifle was developed by a

Scottish immigrant to the United States.

The cartridge

used in this rifle was a rimraed, bottle-necked cartridge.

46
Benns and Seldon, Europe:

1914-1939, p. 106.

31
The action was a Lee turn-bolt rear-locking lug.

The ri-

fle was fed by the Lee reraovable box magazine that had a
ten-round capacity.

One weakness of this rifle came to

light in wet weather.

A wet cartridge and/or wet barrel

caused the rifle to shoot high.'^^

The British also used

another rifle known as the .303 in. Pattern 14. This rifle was based on a different systera than the Lee-Enfield.
It was based on the Mauser and used the Mauser action and
loading systera.
the Lee-Enfield.

It did use the sarae cartridge systera as

49

The Gerraans, early in the war, used the 7.97 ram

Mauser Gwehr 88.

This rifle was developed in 1888 by the

Mauser Corapany in collaboration with a government designer.

Paul Mauser had been commissioned to develop and

design the rifle but was already working on a design for

Turkey so the government supplied the designer.

The

Gewehr 88 used raany design features of both the Mauser

and the Mannlicher Carcano. 50 This rifle used a riraless;
bottle-necked cartridge, a Mauser turn-bolt front-locking
48
Major E. G. G. Reynolds, "Lee-Enfield Makes a
Comeback as a Commonwealth Target Rifle," The American
Rifleman, January 1974, p. 27.
49
Ludwig Olson, "Wilhelm and Paul: Rx for Success
in Rifle Making," The American Rifleman, March 1975, p.
25.
50
Ashley Halsey, Jr., "Four Great Guns," The i^jnerican Rifleman, January 1974, p. 77.

32
lug^

and the Mauser built-in box magazine with a five-^

round capacity.

The Gewehr 88 was soon replaced by the

7.92 mm Mauser Gewehr 98 which was developed by Paul Mauser in 1898.

"The Mauser Gewehr 98 was probably the most

successful rifle of its kind ever designed."^

This ri-

fle was so successful that it was reproduced in some forra

by raost of the other belligerents.

The Turkish 7.65 mm

Mauser M18 93, the United States .30 in. Springfield 1903,
the British .3 03 in. Pattern 14, and the Japanese 6.5 mm
Arisaka Type 3 8 were all based on the Mauser Gewehr 98.
The Austrian contribution to military rifles came
with the 8 mm Mannlicher M9 5.

Also used by the Austrians

were the Carbine M90 and the Carbine M88/90.

Several

other countries used the M95 as a basis for rifles during

this war.

Among these adaptations were the Italian 6.5

Mannlicher-Carcano M1891, the French 8 mm Mannlicher-Berthier fusil 07/15 and the 8 mm Mannlicher-Berthier fusil
1916, and the Rumanian 6.5 mm Mannlicher M1893.

The oth-

fer

rifles used to any extent were the French 8 mm Lebel

. .
53
M1886/1893, and the Russian 7.62 mm. Moism-Nagent M1891.
^'"Ludwig Olson, "Mauser: The Rifle that Made
Good," The American Rifleman, April 1975, p. 75.
^^Fitzsimons,- Tanks and Weapons of World War I,
p. 51.
^-^lbid. , p. 52.

33
Instead of carrying rifles, :fficers generally
carried pistols.

In the United Staties and German arraies

the official side arm was an automatic

The British

army's official side arm was the hinged-frarae .455 caliber Webley revolver.

There were several raodels in ser-

vice including the Mark V, the Webley-Fosbery autoraatic

revolver, the Webley-Green .455 revolver, and the Mark
VI No. 1.

Also seeing sorae action was the Webley auto54

matic .455 Mark I No. 2.
Later in the war, England was
unable to supply enough Webleys so some British officers
were issued revolvers by Colt and revolvers by Sraith &
Wesson which were iraported frora the United States.
All the pistols used by the British forces had one
thing in coiranona lanyard ring on the bottom of the grip.
This ring was used for attaching a lanyard that went around the neck of the officer.

With this lanyard at-

tached, an officer could always keep track of the weapon

55
without reholstering it and would not lose it if he fell.
In Germany, there were two official pistols:

the

first was the Mauser military model automatic and the

second was the Luger automatic pistol.

The Mauser mili-

^^lbid., p. 77.
W. H. B. Smith, Small Arras of the World
burg, Penn.: The Stack Pole Co., 1960), p. 182.

(Harris-

34
tary raodel was designed by Paul Mauser in 1898.

The Mau-

ser was charabered 'for a 7.63 mm cartridge that was fed

from a ten-shot clip that fit in front of the trigger
guard.

During the war,

the Mauser was also chambered

for a 9 mm Luger cartridge.^^

The Luger, or Parabellum

autoraatic pistol, was designed by George Luger in 19 00.

This pistol was chambered for a 7.65 mm cartridge.
Luger was raodified in 1902, 1904, and 1908.

The

It was the

1908 raodel, charabered for a 9 mra cartridge, that was the

official railitary pistol in Gerraany until 1938. The clip
for this pistol held eight cartridges and was loaded
through the grip.

The Luger is perhaps the raost famous

of all railitary side arras. 57
The Colt governraent model

..45L.

caliber automatic

pistol, model 1911, was the official side arm for the
United States.

However, this pistol was in short supply

so revolvers by Colt and revolvers by Sraith & Wesson,

along with several European pistols, were used by most
American officers. 58

Melvin M. Johnson, Jr., and Charles T. Havern,

Automatic Arras: Their History, Development and Use
(New York: wTllim Marrow & Co., 1942), p. 32.
57
John Quick, ed., Dictionary of Weapons and Military Terras (New York: McGraw-Hill Book Co., 1973), p.
283.
co

Sraith, Sraall Arras of the World, p. 133.

35
Another major weapon was the machine gun.
Britain used three machine guns:
Hotchkiss, and the Lewis.

Great

the Vickers Maxim, the

The Vickers Maxim was a recoil-

operated, belt-fed, water cooled gun that weighed eightyfive pounds, including its tripod.

The Hotchkiss was a

gas-operated gun that weighed twenty-eight pounds and was

fed from raetal strips.

The Lewis was a light v/eapon,

gas-operated, and was fed frora a drum of forty-seven

cartridges mounted on top of the action.

It had a tubu-

lar air-cooling arrangeraent and a light bipod mounting.

The Lewis was used on aeroplanes as well as by the infantry. 59
Germany used two heavy guns and three light guns.
The two heavy guns were the Spandu Maxira and the Erfurt.
The Spandu Maxim was a water-cooled, recoil-operated, beltfed gun that weighed one hundred to 125 pounds with
varying tripods.

The Erfurt Maxira was sirailar to the

Spandu but weighed eighty-five pounds.

The three light

guns were the Bergraann, the Parabellum, and the Madsen.

The Bergmann was recoil-operated, belt-fed, and weighed
twenty-six pounds; the Parabellum was recoil-operated
and weighed twenty-two pounds; and the Madsen was recoiloperated, box-magazine-fed and weighed twenty pounds.

Johnson and Havern, Autoraatic Arras, p. 22.

ibid.

36
The United States used three raachine guns:

the

Benet Mercie, the Keavy Browning Machine Gun, and the

Browning Autoraatic Rifle.

The Benet Mercie was a gas-op-

erated, air-cooled, cartridge-fed gun.

The Heavy Browning

was a belt-fed, water-cooled, recoil/locked-breech action

gun that weighed about ninety pounds-

The Browning Auto-

raatic Rifle was a gas-operated, box-magazine fed, fullor semi-autoraatic gun that weighed fifteen pounds.^
Another weapon that was used by the infantry soldier was the grenade.
nades:

There are two categories of gre--

the hand grenade and the rifle grenade.

Within

the category of hand grenades there are two major styles:

those that are stick mounted and those that are self-contained.

The raost common of the stick grenades were the

British No. 2 Mark I; No. I Mark II; and No. 2 Mark II,
62
known as the "hair brush."
Of the hand-held grenades
there were several styles from every nation.

Some of the

styles used were the British No. 5 Mark I oval grenades

known as "egg," and the assault grenade that looked like
the grenade used by the United States during World War II.
Germany had the Ball grenade and the "oyster" grenade.

Fitzsiraions., Tanks and Weapons of World War I,

pp. 47, 54, 77.
62
Fitzsimons, Tanks and Weapons of World War I,
p. 77.

37
The main rifle grenades used were the British No. 3 Mark
I, the Newton, and two styles of the Hales grenade.
63
Germans also had a Model 1914 rifle grenade.

The

The piece of artillery dreaded raost by the raen in

the trenches was the raortar. The Gerraan word "Minenwerfer"
literally translates as "raine thrower" or "trench raortar."
The principal Minenwerfers were the 76 mra Leichter, or
light raortar; the 170raraMittlerer, or mediuraraortar;and
64
The Schweren carae
the 250raraSchweren, or heavy raortar.
with two raountings: a flat trenchraountingand a flat trajectory raounting for mobile use.

Since the principal

purpose of the mortars was to destroy the wire barricades

along the trenches, a heavy or mediura raortarwould be
positioned for each twenty-eight to fifty-five yards of
front. 66

The Schweren had a maxiraura range of 1,422 yards

on trench raounts and 955 yards when raounted in the trajectory carriage.

It weighed 312 pounds on trenchraountsand

67
550 pounds on the carriage raounts. At the opening of

^^lbid.
^^Williara G. Dooly, Jr. Great Weapons of World War
I^ (New York: Walkora Co. , 1969), p. 69.
^^Fitzsiraons,

Tanks and Weapons of World War I, p

39.
^^Dooly, Great Weapons of World War I, p. 39.
^^lbid., p. 96.

38
the Kaiser Battle, the Gerraans had 825 raortars spaced along a twelve and one-half mile front.
mortars wereraediurato heavy types- 68

Two thirds of these

While the Gerraans seeraed to have an endless supply

of raartars, the Allies had only an antiquated raortar and
69
horae-raade raortars. The British mortar used in 1914 was
the Cohorn.

It was raade of brass with a wooden base and

had been used since the Battle of Culloden in 1746.

It

was not until the early raonths of 1915 that the West bomb
thrower was developed.

Although the West was accurate

and silent, the spherical borabs were difficult toraakeand

production was erratic
cocking lever.

Another fault of the West was the

It protruded above the trench, thus betray-

ing the location. On 16 March 1917 the General headquarters

in France ordered the destruction of all catapults in the
71
British array.
It was not until World War II that Eng72
land contributed to new designs in raortars.
The major artillery cannon used by the Germans were:

^^lbid., p. 97.
^^Charles Messenger, Trench Fighting: 1914-1918,
Ballantine's Illustrated History of the Violent Century,
no. 28 (New York: Ballatines Books I n c , 1972), p. 35.
"^^Fitzsiraons,. Tanks nd Weapons of World War I, p
39.
^'Ibid., p .

35.

72Messenger, Trench Fiqhting:

1914-1918, p. 97.

39
the 7.7 cra field gun M1896; the 10.5 cra 1913 raodel howitzer;
the 42 cm howitzer; the 21 cm Morser; the 15 cm L/40 navy
gun; the 105 howitzer; the 5.9 cm howitzer; the 13 cra field
gun; the 10 cra M1890; the 7.7 cra M1916 field gun; the 15 cra
M1913 long howitzer; and the 3.7 cra Gerraan anti-tank gun.
Those used by the British include:

the eighteen-pound MKl;

the 4.5 inch howitzer; the 1886 6 inch howitzer; the Cohorn
raortar; the 8 inch Mark VI; the 6 inch 26 cwt howitzer; the
sixty-pound Markl; the Mark II naval gun; and the Mark I
9.2 inch howitzer.

These are the artillery pieces that the

soldiers in the trenches contended with, priraarily, and do

not include the larger artillery cannon. 7 3
Gas was introduced by the Gerraans in 1915 and was
soon in use by all the belligerents.
of releasing the gas:

There were two raethods

frora cylinders and frora projectiles.

The first raethod involved bringing large nurabers of cylinders of gas into the trenches and laying pipes far out into
"No-Man's Land."

The weaknesses of this systera were: a

dependency on a wind frora the right direction, the labor

involved, and the susceptibility of the cylinders to eneray
fire.

The second raethod was.by use of projectile-firing

rifles, cannon, or raortars. The disadvantage of this method was the need for windless conditions so the gas would
73
Fitzsimons',, Tanks and Weapons of World War I,
pp. 12, 36-39, 62, 73-77, 102-5, 119.

40
not be dispersed.
With the introduction of gas, the soldiers on both
sides came to depend on gas masks.

Several styles were

tried with varying degrees of success.

The earliest raasks

consisted priraarily of a cloth hood with goggle eye-openings and a filter.

This filter was generally a wad of raa-

terial irapregnated with chemicals.

only partially effective.

The early raasks were

The raost effective of the gas

raasks used was the British 1917 Pattern Sraall Box Respirator.

This raask had splinterless eye pieces and had a

breath outlet valve.

The mask itself consisted of a close-

fitting, rubberized hood connected to a canister of chemicals by a rubber hose.

The whole assembly was carried in

a square canvas satchel which was generally suspended by a

strap around the neck.
The German Model 1917 gas mask was made of heavily
oiled leather with a cheraical drum attached to the mask,
The wearer had to breath in and out through this drum,
causing stuffiness.

This asserably was carried in a raetal

container suspended frora the belt.

These were the best masks used, but even these were
not entirely successful.

The British mask did not protect

against mustard gas, and the German mask was susceptible

41
to heavy concentrations of gas.74
Trench Life
"Life in the trenches is made up of 'cootis,'
rats,' 'mud,' and 'gasraasks,'"^^ This is a fairly accurate description of trench life. What sleeping facilities
were available were alraost always infested with "cooties,"
which was the array slang for lice during Wcrld War I.

The

front-line soldiers in the trenches had to wear the sarae

clothes for several days.

The lice would lay their eggs

in the clothes, the raen's body heat would hatch the eggs,
and the soldiers would be "crawling" with lice.

Bath

houses were set up behind the lines and the soldiers coraing
in frora the trenches would get a hot bath and clean clothes
There was "trench fever," which was a disease that
began with a headache, developed syraptoras of influenza or
of typhoid, and generally ended in either paralysis or
death.

It was not until 1918 that it was discovered that

trench fever was transraitted by the excreta of the louse 76

In the trenches around Gallipoli there were additional trials for the infantry soldiers in the trenches

^^lbid., pp. 19-20.

'^^Frank Seats, "Life in the Trenches," in W iat the
Boys Did Overthere, ed. Kenry L. Fox (New York: The Allied
Overseas Veterans Stories C c , I n c , 1918), p. 45.
^^Messenger, Trench Fighting: 1914-1918, p. 36.

42
because of heatstroke and of malaria infection that raged
77
throughout that area.
Rats were very bad in the trenches and were reported
78
to be the size of cats.
Rats were known to crawl over
the faces and bodies of sleeping soldiers.

The legs of

soldiers were soraetimes scarred to the knees by the bites

79
of rats.
There was no systera of drainage in the trenches so
when it rained, the raud would often reach up to the level
80
of the raen's knees.
Early in the war (August-October,
1914), the Allied arraies considered the raany ditches intersecting the countryside to be obvious places for defensive
positions.

It was not until the winter rains that the Al-

lies realized that they were in the intricate drainage

systera designed to counteract the heavy rainfalls that oc81
curred annually in the Flanders.
By 1915 trench systeras v/ere fairly well set up and
had a definite pattern.

No-Man's Land was an area about

77Francis A. March, History of the World War (Philadelphia: The United Publishers of the U.S. and Canada,
1918), p. 20.
^^Hector Macquarrie, How to Live at the Front (Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott Co., 1917), p. 101.
^^Alexander McClintock, Best 0' Luck CNew York:
George H. Doran C c , 1917), p. 59.
SOMacquarrie, How to Live at the Front, p. 104.
^^Messenger, Trench Fighting:

1914-1918, p. 36,

43
two to three hundred yards across between the combatants'
trenches.

Barbed wire was strung out along the trenches

and cans were tied to these wires.

This prevented the en-

emy throwing grenades into the forward trenches and also

gave warning of enemy approach at night.

The trenches were

built in a series of traverses to prevent enfilade fire.

In the northern part of the line it was necessary to build
up the trenches by building breastwork rather than digging
down.

Because of the darap conditions, digging down even

a few feet produced water or sluggish soil.82
Behind the front trenches were the coraraunication
trenches.

These trenches were also built in a ziz-zag

pattern.

Theoretically, these ran back frora the front

trenches to support trenches and on back to a reserve line.

This was very rarely the case, however, because of the

>

shortage of available raen for the labor of constructing

the trenches.

Coramunication in the trenches, therefore,

was a problem in that the traditionalraethodsof signallingrunner, flag, and heliographwere not suitable for
trench warfare.

By 1915, the British and French had in-

stalled telephones and wires to the batallion headquarters.

The Gerraans had telephones and wires in 1914 since they
had laid down wire before the war.
82Ibid.

By the end of 1914

44
there were three types of air-ground coramunications:
lcoap, and wireless. 83

flare,

Duties of the infantry soldier included construction

and maintenance of wire entanglements and of the earthworks, acting as sentries, carrying up rations and other
stores, repair work, patrolling of No-Man's Land, and keeping the weapons ready for use.

The troops would do repair

work at night, and when a corapany raoved it generally raoved

at night.

One of the raajor coraplaints of the troops was

that troops supposedly at rest had to do this repair work.

84

Of major concern to the soldiers as well as the officers was the supply of food.

The food consisted mainly

of bacon, beans, beef, bully beef, hard tack, and tea.

casionally there were also eggs and potatoes.85 Also,

Oc-

each man carried a reserve field ration which consisted

mainly of canned bully beef, canned corned beef, hard tack,
86
jara and tea. These were called "iron rations."
With
the entrance of the United States into the war, the field
rations of the Allies iraproved and consisted of tinned beef,

^-^lbid., p. 39.
^^lbid., p. 37.
^^McClintock, Best O' Luck, p. 54.
^Bernard Fitzsiraons, Heraldry and Regalia of War,
The Beekman History of the World Wars Library (New York:
Beekman House, 1973), p. 38.

45
tinned beans, hard tack, sweet chocolate, soluble coffee
(tea for the English), and sugar.87 The reserve field rations could be opened only on the order of an officer.

As

a general rule, these rations were not touched until the

men had been forty-eight hours without food. 38
Provisions were carried to the front in erapty sandbags and were raingled together in the sarae sack.

The food

thus had the flavor of sand-bags as well as of the other

foods.

Not only did the foods taste of sand-bags, but the

dug-outs sraelled of thera because of their prevalence in

89
the trenches.
Analysis of "Journey's End"
Synopsis
The following is for the purpose of summarizing and
explaining the action of the play and for helping the director and actors to understand the play on a deeper level.
The play has been divided into twenty-five units.

These

divisions are for the purpose of defining the units of action that go together to build the play. CUnit page numbers
refer to the Samuel French 1929 copy of Journey's End.)
^"^Walter R. Wheeler, The Infantry Battalion in War
(Washington: The Infantry Journal, I n c , 936) , p. 47.
^^McClintock, Best 0' Luck, p. 56.
^^Siegfried Sassoon, Maraoirs of an Infantry Officer
(London: Faber & Faber Ltd., no date), p. 31.

46
CAct I)
Unit One CPP 1-7)
The play opens with Captain Hardy singing to himself and drying a sock.

Lieutenant Osborne enters to be-

gin the process of change of comraand to Captain Stanhope's

company.

Hardy and Osborne discuss much of the equipment

used in the trenches as well as sorae of the things indigenous to trench life, such as rats, trench fever, etc

Also

in the course of this wait for Stanhope to arrive Hardy gives

a rather unsavory description of him, as a man who drinks
incessantly and who has become, to some extent, a freak on
exhibit for many of the corapany officers.

Also discussed

are Stanhope's qualifications as a coramanding officer.

It

is felt by both officers that Stanhope is one of the best.

This is adraitted grudgingly by Hardy and with a great deal
of adrairation by Osborne.

The unit ends with Hardy's exit.

The action of this unit is that of one corapany relieving another corapany of the coraraand of a section of
front-line trenchesEstablishing background inforraation is the function
of this expository unit.
Unit Two (pp. 7-8)
Unit Two begins with the entrance of Private Mason
who requests to set the table.

While setting the table

Mason tries to describe to Osborne what is being served

47
for supper.

The unit ends with Mason's exit.

Mason's preparing for supper is the action of this

unit.
Unit Two is a short, transitional unit joining Units
One and Three.

It is also expository, giving the audience

an idea of what type of food was served to the officers at

the front.
Unit Three (pp. 8-11)
Unit Three begins with the entrance of 2nd Lieutenant Raleigh who has been assigned to Stanhope's corapany
upon arrival from Englnad.

Osborne learns that Raleigh has

known Stanhope before his arrival in France, that Stanhope

went to school with Raleigh and is engaged to Raleigh's
sister.

Stanhope's prowess at sports is also revealed in

this unit.

This unit ends with a warning from Osborne to

Raleigh that he should not expect Stanhope to be the same

as he was at horae. The physical action of this unit is
Raleigh's arrival and immediate setting in.

The main ac-

tion is Osborne and Raleigh's getting to know each other,

This unit is expository and provides additional
background.
Unit Four (pp. 11-13)
This unit returns the attention to the war.

Raleigh

and Osborne discuss the sleeping conditions, the noises.

48
the trenches and other aspects of war.

The unit ends with

the entrance of Mason.

The raain action of this unit is the preparing of the
new officer for the realities of war.
The function of this unit is transitional, taking
the audience's attention frora the background to the iramediate fact of the war.
Unit Five (p. 13)
Unit Five begins with the entrance of Private Mason.
Mason comes in to inforra Osborne that some of the supply
tins have been mislabeled.

He asks Osborne to explain to

Stanhope so he will not get upset.

The unit ends with

Mason's exit.
Mason's protecting himself from Stanhope's possible
anger by acquainting Osborne with theraislabelingis the
main action of this unit.
The function of this unit is to reveal Stanhope's
somewhat unstable condition due to the trying effects of
war.
Unit Six (pp. 14-19)
This unit begins with the entrance of Captain Stanhope and 2nd Lieutenant Trotter.

On entering, Stanhope

asks to speak with Captain Hardy about the conditions of

the trenches which he describes to Osborne.

At this point

49
Stanhope is introduced to the naw officer whom he instantly
recognizes.

Stanhope then becomes very tense.

Although

Osborne and Trotter attempt to relieve the tension, it remains.

At this time, supper is served.

The discussion

fluctuates between the meal and the terrain.

At the end

of the raeal, Trotter and Raleigh go on duty, leaving Stanhope and Osborne alone, thus ending the unit.
Osborne's atterapt to relieve the tenseness which
has resulted frora Stanhope's uneasiness at having Raleigh
in his coraraand is the raain action of this unit.
The function is to indicate further Stanhope's
condition, which is alraost at the breaking point, and to
establish Osborne's loyalty to Stanhope.
Unit Seven (pp. 20-21)
This unit begins with the entrance of 2nd Lieutenant Hibbert after being relieved of duty.

Hibbert re~

fuses to eat, coraplaining that he is in pain because of

neuralgia.

Hibbert soon exits into the adjoining dug-out,

again leaving Stanhope and Osborne alone.

Stanhope states

that he feels that Hibbert's pain is all an act so that he

can return to England.

The unit ends when the conversation

turns to Raleigh.
Hibbert's atterapt to evade battle and Stanhope's
deraanding no cowardice araong his officers is theraainac-

TEXAS T^CH L

PPAD\

50
tion of this unit.
This unit foreshadows the upcoraing run-in between
Stanhope and Hibbert and establishes Stanhope as an uncoraproraising comraander who deraands total efforts frora his
raen.
Unit Eight (pp. 21-26)
Unit Eight begins with the discussion of Raleigh
by Stanhope and Osborne.

Stanhope reveals the fear he has

of not living up to Raleigh's expectations and idealism

and the fear that Raleigh will write to his sister informing her of Stanhope's condition.

All through this unit

Stanhope drinks steadily and heavily, finally working himself up to a pitch in which he decides to censor all of
Raleigh's letters.

Soon after this, he begins to get

sleepy and Osborne gets him to bed.

The unit closes with

Stanhope asleep on his bed and Osborne informing Mason as

to when to arouse each of the officers for duty.
Stanhope's attempt to find a way to protect hiraself frora the threat which he feels Raleigh represents
and Osborne's atterapt to free Stanhope of the fears constitute the raain action of this unit.
The function is to foreshadow the upcoraing conflict with Raleigh and to reveal the one vulnerable spot
of Captain Stanhope.

51
GAct XII
Unit Nine Cpp. 27-30)
This unit begins early the next morning as Mason is
serving breakfast.

The conversation deals mainly with

food, with Trotter rerainiscing about earlier cooks he had

known.

Raleigh is present but is withdrawn.

This unit

ends with the exit of Trotter to go on duty.

The physical action of this unit is the serving and
consuraption of breakfast.

The raain action is Trotter's

continual satisfaction with everything in life, especially

food.
This unit is expository, presenting Trotter's past
and additional background of life in the trenches.

It

also provides sorae coraic relief, as do all the units that

Mason is in.
Unit Ten (pp. 30-33)
Unit Ten begins with Trotter's exit, leaving Raleigh and Osborne alone.

Osborne inforras Raleigh that he

will be allowed to go on duty by himself.

tion cheers Raleigh.

This informa-

He and Osborne begin discussing the

war and then rerainisce of school days before the war.

During this unit, Raleigh regains the enthusiasra that he
was lacking in the preceding unit.

The unit ends with

Raleigh's exit to finish writing a letter.

52
The action of this unit is the developraent of the
close relationship between.Raleigh and Osborne.
Unit Ten is expository and reveals some of Osborne's past.

The function of this unit is to establish

a mood that contrasts with the upcoming unit.

Unit Eleven (pp. 33-36)
This unit begins with Stanhope's entrance form the
trenches.

With him coraes the' v/ar.

He discusses with Os-

borne the preparations that have to be made for the expected Gerraan offensive.

Throguh all of this, Mason peri-

odically enters, trying to get Stanhope to eat.

The

conversation gradually works around to a discussion of

horae as the men attempt to escape the war.

The conver-

sation turns to Raleigh and thus ends the unit.

The main action of this unit is Stanhope's driving
hiraself to live up to his own ideals and expectations of
what a raan should be.
The function of this unit is to show how deeply
Stanhope has been affected by the war and to reveal the
driving force of his character.

This unit foreshadows

and begins the developraent of what is to corae in the

play, both with the war and with Raleigh.
Unit T\>yelve (pp. 36-39)
This unit begins with a discussion of Raleigh by

53
Stanhope and Osborne.

In this conversation, Stanhope

states that he is serious about the censorship and that

Raleigh had seen him the night before in a drunken state
and had reacted with disgust.

During this discussion

Raleigh enters to go on duty and to post a letter.

Stan-

hope informs Raleigh of the censorship and when Raleigh

tries to keep the letter, Stanhope takes it.

It is here

that the tension between Stanhope and Raleigh reaches its

highest point.

Stanhope instantly regrets the action and

cannot bring hiraself to read the letter.

Osborne reads

the letter only to find that none of Stanhope's fears is

valid.

The unit ends with the diraraing of the lights to

indicate the passage of tirae.

The raain action of this unit is the conflict between Stanhope and Raleigh.
The function of this unit is to present the first
real conflict in the play and to further reveal how much
the war has affected Stanhope.
Unit Thirteen (pp. 39-41)
Unit Thirteen begins later that day with Stanhope
I

and the Sergeant-Major discussing plans for the strengthening of their position.

During this discussion, Stan-

hope reveals that the company has been ordered to hold

its position and that because of this order, no plans

54
for retreat are to be made.

The unit ends with the

Sergeant-Major's exit.
The preparations for the upcoraing battle are the
raain action of this unit.
The function of this unit is to foreshadow the
upcoming attack and to show a contrast between Stanhope
as the almost broken raan seen earlier and Stanhope as the
efficient and capable coraraander.
Unit Fourteen (pp. 41-44)
Unit Fourteen begins with the entrance of the Colo-nei..

The Colonel inforras Stanhope of the need for a

raid on the German positions to capture a prisoner for

information.

The Colonel suggests that Osborne and

Raleigh be the officers to lead the raid.

The unit ends

with the Colonel inviting Stanhope to dinner to make

final preparations.

The Colonel then exits.

The main action of this unit is the introduction

of the events that will lead to the cliraax of the play.
The function of this unit is to foreshadow the
upcoraing events and to present Stanhope as a part of the
military hierarchy.
Unit Fifteen (pp. 44-48)
This unit is a scene between Stanhope and Hibbert.
It presents a confrontation between an officer who plans

55
to be sick and thus raiss the opening battle and his coramanding officer who refuses to allow that officer to
shirk his responsibilities by going to the infirmary.
To keep Hibbert frora deserting, Stanhope first threatens
to shoot hira and then in a final attempt, Stanhope informs Hibbert that he too is frightened to go into the
trenches.

After Hibbert agrees to stay, he exits into

his dug-out to rest before going on duty.

The main action of this unit is Stanhope's uncoraproraising deraand that all his junior officers fulfill
their duties as expected of the English raan of that day.
This unit reeraphasizes what war can do to raen and
it shows the understanding and compassionate side of
Stanhope.
Unit Sixteen (pp. 48-53)
Mason enters at this point to offer tea.
closely followed by Osborne.

He is

During the ensuing conver-

sation, Osborne is inforraed of the raid.

After this is

done, Stanhope exits to inforra the Sergeant-Major, and

Mason exits, leaving Osborne alone.
and he and Osborne discuss the raid.

Trotter soon enters

After this short

discussion, Osborne starts to read frora Alice-in-Wonderland in an atterapt to get his raind off the raid.

Trotter

cannot understand why a grown raan would read a "kid's

56
book."
raid.

He keeps interrupting Osborne to talk about the

The unit ends with Raleigh entering full of excite-

ment about the raid.

The various reactions to the upcoming raid comprise
the action of the unit.
The function of this unit is to foreshadow the raid
and to present the vast difference of reaction to danger
by those men who have been in the trenches for some time
and by those who have only recently arrived.
(Act III)
Unit Seventeen (pp. 54-57)
Unit Seventeen begins the next day just prior to the
raid.

Stanhope is still trying to convince the Colonel

that the raid should not be held because the Germans are
expecting it.
be done.
tions.

However, the Colonel insists that it must

Osborne and Raleigh enter to raake final prpara-

The Colonel gives thera some encouraging advice and

then he and Stanhope exit to talk to the enlisted men going

on the raid.
The raain action of this unit is the last-rainute
check on final details.
The function of this unit is to further foreshadow
and to build the suspense of the play.

57
Unit Eighteen Cpp. 57-61)
This unit begins with Stanhope's exit, leaving Osborne and Raleigh alone.

The two raake final checks on the

route they will take and then atterapt to get their rainds
off the raid by quoting frora Alice-in-Wonderland and then
by talking of horae.

Raleigh finds it irapossible to forget,

so he brings up the topic of the raid again.

Osborne and

Raleigh also discuss the planned success celebration.

Just as the two are about to leave, Mason coraes in to wish
thera luck.

The unit ends as Osborne and Raleigh exit into

the trenches.
The raain action of this unit is the mental attempt
to escape the raid.
The function of this unit is to heighthen the suspense and to show how the two raen react to the pre-action
tenseness.
Unit Nineteen (pp. 62-63)
In this unit the action begins offstage with the
sounds of fighting.

The Colonel and Stanhope soon enter,

followed by the Sergeant-Major and a Gerraan prisoner.

Stanhope exits to check on the raiding party and the Colonel interrogates the prisoner.

During this interrogation

the soldier's regiments is learned and letters and a paybook are taken from hira. The unit ends with the exit of

58
the Sergeant-Major and the prisoner.
The action of this unit is the obtaining of inforraation to help the coraraanding officers plan the strategy
for the upcoming battle.
The function of this unit is to show the universality of the soldier and that all sides in a military conflict share the comraon factor of huraanity.
Unit Twenty (p. 64)
This unit begins with Stanhope's entrance.

In the

exchange between Stanhope and the Colonel it is learned

that six of the raen and Osborne were killed in the raid.
Both raen are caught up in their own thoughts as Raleigh
enters.

The Colonel congratulates Raleigh on a job well

done, then exits, ending the unit.

The action of this unit is the raen's reaction to
the result of the raid.
The function of this unit is expository in giving
the outcorae of offstage action:

the raid and Osborne's

death.
Unit Twenty-One (p. 65)
This unit begins with the Colonel's exit.

Raleigh

is sitting on Osborne's bed alraost in shock over Osborne's

death and his own first confrontation with the war.

Stan-

hope is alraost broken by the death of his closest friend

59
and second-in-coramand.

The unit ends with Stanhope de-

manding that Raleigh sit anywhere but on Osborne's bed.

The main action of this unit is the atterapting of
the two men to adjust to the hard blow that war has dealt
to them.
The function of this unit is to begin the build-up
to the climax of the play and to show how rauch Stanhope
has relied on Osborne.
Unit Twenty-Two (pp. 66-71)
Unit Twenty-Two begins that evening at the celebration over the success of the raid.

Stanhope, Trotter and

Hibbert are in attendance but Raleigh is conspicuous by his

absence.

On the surface the party is gay but underneath

there is tension.

This tension first surfaces in a clash

between Stanhope and Hibbert.

After this conflict the

party breaks-up and Hibbert goes to bed.

Stanhope rerainds

Trotter that he is now second-in-coraraand, and then Trotter

leaves to relieve Raleigh.
The action of this unit is the conscious atterapt by
the raen to forget the realities of war.
The function of this unit is to show that no raatter
what the raen do to forget war, the results are still there.
Another function of this unit is to establish a light raood
that is in contrast with the preceding and upcoraing units.

60
Unit Twenty-Three Cpp. 71-74)
This unit begins with the entrance of Raleigh.
Stanhope and Raleigh argue because Raleigh had stayed up
in the trenches eating with the raen instead of joining the
officers for the celebration dinner.

Stanhope raaintains

that Raleigh had been a fool, had insulted Trotter and

Hibbert and had becorae the butt of a joke by the raen.
During the process of this arguraent, it coraes out that Raleigh feels that Stanhope does not care that Osborne and
the raen are dead.

This revelation drives Stanhope into a

frenzy of rage and despair, during which he all but throws

Raleigh out of the dug-out.
The action of this unit is the eraotional outburst
by Stanhope.
The function of this unit is to provide the climax
of the play and to enforce the idea that Stanhope is totally alone.
Unit Twenty-Four (pp. 74-80)
Unit Twenty-Four begins early the next morning
just prior to sunrise.

The officers arise and go, one-

by-one, into the trench to prepare for the expected attack.

Mason gives the officers tea to wake them and sand-

wiches to eat later.

He then changes clothes and goes

into the trenches with Hibbert.

Stanhope, as commander.

61
is left to make fina

plans.

The Sergeant-Major and Cor-

poral Broughton enter periodically to give progress reports.

This unit ends with the Sergeant-Major's exit.

The final preparations, exodus of the men and the

beginning of the attack constitute the raain action.

The function of this unit is to build suspense and
to bring the war closer to the audience.
Unit Twenty-Five Cpp. 80-83)
This unit begins with the Sergeant-Major entering
and informing Stanhope that Raleigh has been wounded.
leigh is brought in and placed on one of the beds.

Ra-

It is

t this' point that Stanhope becoraes a friend again to Raleigh and does his best to raake Raleigh comfortable and
to cheer hira.

Raleigh dies just before Corporal Broughton

enters to inform Stanhope that he is needed.

After Stan-

hope re3.uctantly leaves, there is a direct hit on the dugout, causing it to collapse.
The main action of this final unit is the reestablishment of the friendship between Raleigh and Stanhope
prior to Raleigh's death.
ing unit of the play.

This is probably the most mov-

It is in this unit that the two

men, es protagonists join together to counteract the coramon antagonistwar.

The function of this unit is to provide the denouement of the play.

62
Main Action
The raain action of Journey's End results frora the
psychological conflict between Stanhope and Raleigh.

This

conflict steras frora the reaction these two raen have to

war.

In this play, war is the antagonist and both Stan-

hope and Raleigh are protagonists.

Both raen share coraraon

ideas of heroisra and ideals of what a raan should be.

Since Stanhope has been in contact with the antagonist for
three years he shows evidence of a wearing down of those
ideals.

However, Raleigh, having just corae into contact

with the antagonist, still has a high level of the ideals

but no experience of the realities of war.

Stanhope fears

that Raleigh will not understand and will hold Stanhope in

conterapt.

This fear is the driving force of theraainac-

tion of the play: raen trying to live up to the ideals of

heroisra.
Structure
The first act is expository.

The raain function

is to establish characters, mood, locale, and earlier action.

The inciting incident for the play is in Unit Six.

The cliraax for this act coraes in Unit Eight when Stanhope's fears drive him to try to find sorae way to protect
himself frora threats he feels Raleigh presents.
two units in Act Two are expository.

The first

Unit Eleven begins

63
development and foreshadowing of what is to come both in
the war and with Raleigh.
for Act Two.

Unit Twelve contains the climax

This action coraes from the confrontation be-

tween Stanhope and Raleigh over the letter.

The rest of :.

the act returns to the war, foreshadowing the events coming up:

the raid and the battle.

Act Three brings the

war back again and the last unit presents a reconciliation

between Stanhope and Raleigh and provides the denoueraent
of the play.
Characters
Stanhope
Stanhope, the protagonist of the play, is a raan who
has been in- the trenches for three years.

He has won the

Military Cross and has been raade a Captain in charge of a

corapany.

In the process of getting to this point, however,

his nerve has begun to crurable.

Because of this and be-

cause of fear of being thought a coward, Stanhope has be- .

corae a heavy drinker.

Even though he drinks heavily,

Stanhope is still one of the best company coraraanders on

the front.

Stanhope is a raan of deep pride and it is this

pride which is the driving force for Stanhope.

His raajor

objective is to live up to his own ideals of heroisra.

He

has been unable to do this and this failure causes him to

act as he does.

64
Osborne
Osborne is an older man who has taught school. He
is one of those people whom other people always feel they
can talk to and confide in.

He is called "uncle" and is

both a father figure and a syrabol of intellect for the

play.

He is not, however, a leader.

Osborne's calra ac-

ceptance of the realities of war balances Stanhope's

wracked nerves and short temper.
Osborne as he does Raleigh.

Stanhope does not fear

To Raleigh, Osborne is the

father figure with whom he can discuss the England he has

just left.

Osborne does not like Trotter because Trotter

is an unimaginative person Cwith whom Osborne is soraetiraes

quite sarcastic).

Osborne's strength is in his acceptance

of the realities of war.

He retains his sanity through

reading Alice-in-Wonderland.
Raleigh
Raleigh is a young raan whose idealization of Stanhope had led hira to go to his uncle (a general) to get
into Stanhope's corapany.

Raleigh, as well as Stanhope,

can be considered a protagonist.

nist.

The war is the antago-

Raleigh is just in from England and to him the war

is a glorious adventure.
forward to the raid.
trenches.

He is the only person that looks

He is a breath of fresh air in the

It is doubtful that Raleigh would have been

65
able to survive the war psychologically for he is a very
sensitive person whose sensitivity would probably have destroyed him.
Trotter
2nd Lieutenant Trotter is an officer who has worked
his way up from the ranks and has neither the education nor
the breeding of the others.

Trotter also lacks the imagi-

nation present in the other officers and so is immune to

some of their fears.

Food is Trotter's main interest and

is what he talks of most.

to the play:

Trotter provides three things

(1) a contrast to the other officers, (2) a

sounding board for talk and C3) some of the humor in the
play.
Hibbert
Hibbert is another man who has lost his nerve.

In-

stead of fighting his fear, however, he tries any excuse

to escape his duty.
force.

To Hibbert, fear is the major driving

It forces him to lie and even to contemplate de-

sertion.
Mason
Mason is the cook and the servant.
character of the play.
other characters.

He is the coraic

Mason is less educated than the

Mason is neither afraid of the war nor

66
excited about it.

In the final act when he goes out to

fight, it is simply another of his duties to him.

Sergeant-Major
The Sergeant-Major is in the position that sorae sergeants have attained throughout historythat of being on
soraewhat personal terras with their officers.

This sergeant

is probably a career soldier and so aware of proprieties in

dealing with officers, but because of his position he can
step away frora those proprieties at tiraes. He is a raan who
has no doubt about his position or his ability.
Broughton
Corporal Broughton is a coraraon soldier, one who acts
as the corapany message bearer.

His function is to bring

information about offstage happenings.

Hardy
Hardy is a middle-aged officer who is being relieved
and consequently is very cheerful.
nor a bad officer.

He is neither a good

Hardy's function is in starting the

play and in presenting background information.

Hardy is

very concerned about position, as is shown when he says

that Osborne should be in command instead of Stanhope, simply because Osborne is the older.

67
Colonel
The Colonel is another career soldier, probably from
a family of soldiers.

He has little real interest in the

men who actually do the fighting.

He is interested in

strategy to the exclusion of all else.

He presents most

clearly the separation between officers and raen and the official irapersonality of warfare.
Gerraan Soldier
The Gerraan Soldier is a very young raan. At this
tirae in the war, Gerraanraanpowerwas pitifully low and raany
boys were used.

This is probably the first action the boy

has seen and he is terrified by the Englishraen who abducted

him.

In the unit he is in, it is this fear that is his

major driving force.

He shows to the audience that huraan

probleras of warfare are universal.

Language
The langauge of Journey's End is, for the raost part,
that of England at the turn of the century and the early
1900s.

It is English as spoken by subjects of the Crown

rather than the English as spoken by the Araericans. Sherriff used language to reflect the status of the various
men, to reflect personality, to reflect the various professions of the raen and to reflect their coramon tie:
war.

the

68
Words characteristic of the British speaking habit
are an outstanding feature, and a stylistic device, of the
language in Journey's End.

Some of these words are:

bloody, beastly, jolly, tin, cheek, old chap, garden, tuppence, potty, righto, topping and blightly.

These words

are characteristically used by the officers throughout the

play.

Hardy uses the word "bloody" when speaking of arma-

ments:

"Thenallof a sudden'over she comes!'rifle

grenadesMinniesand those bloody little things like

90
pineapplesyou know."
The use of the word "bloody" is
generally used by all classes of English people.

Trotter,

though less educated than Kardy, uses the word in the same
meaning while talking about the need for pepper:

"War's

bad enough with pepperbut war without pepperit's bloody

awful."^"*In these two instances of the use of "bloody" the
word carries with it the connotation of an alraost light
moodbeing applied to something that is just a nuisance.
Hov/ever, it is also used with raore intensity as when Stanhope and Hibbert have their confrontation:
bloody little swine.

"Godlyou

You know what this raeansdon't you?

90
R. C. Sherriff, Journey' s End (.London: Sarauel
French Ltd., 1929). Contained within this work: A Production of R. C. Sherriff's "Journey's End", p. 125.
^^lbid. p. 205.

69
Striking a superior Officer!"92
Another word in addition to ^hloody" which the
British use in reference to unpleasant happenings is "beastly."

Hibbert uses it in reference to his illness:

"I don't

think I can raanage any supper tonight, Stanhope. It's this

beastly neuralgia." 93 Stanhope later uses it when speaking
of Raleigh to Osborne:
I heard you go on duty last night. After you'd gone,
I got up. I was feeling bad. I forgot Raleigh was
out there with Trotter. I'd forgotten all about hira.
I was sleepy. I just knew soraething beastly had
happened.^^
While the words "bloody" and "beastly" are used in
reference to ideas that are unpleasant, the British use the
word "jolly" in reference to pleasant or happy events.

Ra-

leigh uses it in reference to Stanhope's ability at sports:

"He was skipper of Rugger at Barford, and kept wicket for
the eleven. A jolly good bat, too."95 Trotter uses it in
reference to the celebration raeal: "Any'ow, it was a jolly
fine bit o' chickenand I'd go a raile any day for a chunk
o' that jara pudding."^^

92Ibid.

93Ibid.

/ p . 223

94Ibid.

/ p . 317

95Ibid.

/ p . 167

96 Ibid.

/ p . 477

p.

The British use "jolly" in in-

362

70
stances in which Araericans would use such words as "very,"
"fantastic," etc.
TVhere the Americans would say "fellow," "person,"
or "guy," the British would use either "chap" or "old chap."
With the British, this phrase carries a certain araount of
affection, as when Stanhope is coraforting Raleigh:

"It's
all right, old chap; it's just the shocknurabed thera.""97
It is also used almost with respect when Osborne says of
Trotter: "He's a genuine sort of chap." 98
One of the words comraon to both America and England
that has a different meaning to the English is the word
"garden."

To Americans it usually has the liraited raeaning

of an area where vegetables are grown.

The British use the

word to indicate any plot of land in conjuction with their

horae, whether it be planted in vegetables, flowers or simply grass.

The American words "garden," "flower garden"

and "yard" are all synonymous with the one British word
"garden."

An exaraple is in Osborne's and Trotter's dis-

cussion:
TROTTER. Funny about that bird. Made rae feel quite
braced up. Sort ofraaderaethink about my garden of an
eveningwalking round in me slippers after supper,
sraoking rae pipe.
OSBORNE. You keen on gardening?

^^lbid., p. 544.
^^lbid., p. 287.

71
TROTTER. Oh, I used to do a bit of an evening. I
'ad a decent little grass plot in front, with flowerbordersgeraniums, lobelia, and calceolariayou know,
red, white, and blue. Lovely.^"
Osborne later speaks of his garden to Stanhope:

"I spent

all the time in the garden,raakinga rockery."

Another word which is characteristic of the British
idiom is the word "tin."
use "can."

It is used where Americans would

Mason, as cook, uses this word when speaking to

Osborne about supper:

"You knov/ that tin o' pineapple

chunks I got, sir?"-'-^-^

Unique to the British is the use of "tuppence."
tuppence is a coin of two pennies value.

The tuppence, as

a coin, has not been coined since 1662 except for the exclusive use as church raonies. Osborne uses it teasingly
when Raleigh is speaking to hira in adrairation of Osborne's
having played for the English Rugger team.
102
"Tuppence to talk to me nowl"

Osborne states:

"Cheek" is used by the British in instances in which

Americans might use "gall" or "nerve."

Osborne first uses

it as he speaks to Stanhope about Stanhope's taking leave.

Osborne explains:

"Look here, old man, I've meant to say

99
Ibid., p. 269.
^Ibid., p. 313.
"'^'Ibid., p. 189.
"^^lbid., p. 283.

72
it, for a long time, but it sounds damned cheek. . . . It's
time you went away for a rest."

103

In the same unit Stan-

hope uses it in reference to Raleigh's getting into his

company:
No!

"Did I^ ask him to force his way into ray corapany?

I didn't.

Very well, he'll pay for his daran cheek."^

Two words readily associated with the British are

"righto" and "topping."

"Righto" is used much as Americans

would use "of course," "yes," or "certainly."

When Osborne

asks to have a certain corporal for the raid, Stanhope

replies:

"Righto."

"Smashing" and "topping" are two

words that are used interchangably.

While "smashing"

has

carried over into the American language, "topping" has not.

Raleigh uses it when speaking of the hope for the outcorae
106
of the raid: "How topping if we both get the M.C.l"
While "righto" and "topping" are readily associated
with the British, the use of the word "potty" is not.

Al-

though it is a word coramonly used araong the British, Americans do not generally recognize it, nor do they associate
it with the words "batty," "loony," or "crazy," although
that is the British meaning of "potty."

"^^"^lbid., p. 235.
^^lbid., p. 247.
^^lbid., p. 105.
^^lbid., p. 434.

It is used in the

73
conversation between Stanhope and Osborne as they discuss
their iraaginations:
OSBORNE. I suppose everybody out herefeels raore
keenly.
STANHOPE. I hope so. I wondered if there was anything wrong v/ith rae. D'you ever get the feeling that
everything is going farther and farther awaytill
you're the only thing in the universeand you struggle
to get backand can't?
OSBORNE. Bit of nerve strain, that's all.
STANHOPE. You don't think I'ra going potty?
OSBORNE. Oh, Lord, no! . . . When people are going
potty they never talk about it; they keep it to themselves.107
"Cheero" is as readily recognized and accepted as
being typically British as "potty" is obscure.

"Cheero"

is used throughout the play in place of "good-bye" and as

a toast whenever anyone takes a drink.
It is through the abundance of words tb^t are associated with the British that the language establishes that
the characters are Englishmen.
Another function of the language is to reflect the
status of the characters.

The officers (except Trotter)

all speak very correct, proper, well-enunciated English.

The less educated men do not.

This is evident with the

dropping of the letter "h" by these men.

Some specific

words also indicate the difference in education. Mason's

108
109
use of "sarabridges"
and his use of "lorst"
indicates
107
'lbid., p. 307.
'^^lbid., p. 522.
"^^^lbid., p. 530.

74
his lack of education.

Another example of this is Trotter's

use of "dooty."-^-'-^
Another function of the language is to reflect the
individual character's personality.

Since Trotter is a

jovial fellow whose raain interest is food, raost of his lines

center on food:
TROTTER. What a lovely smell of baconl
MASON. Yes, sir. I reckon there's enough smell of
bacon in 'ere to last for dinner.
TROTTER. Well, there's nothing like a good fat bacon rasher when you're as empty as I ara.Hl
Language in Journey's End also reflects the raen's
professions.

Osborne's profession as a schoolraaster is

revealed as Osborne and Raleigh discuss Ruger and Osborne

states: " . . . raostly reffing at school in the last few
years." 112 The coraraon profession of all the characters
is that of soldier.

Military terras such as "rifle gre-

nades," "Minnies," "trenches," "ration," "battalion,"

"front line," "support line," "gas raask," "gun position,"
"attack," "Platoons," "wiring parties," "regiraents," "NoMan's Land," "smoke bombs," "sentry post," and "tochemmas" are used throughout the play by all the characters
for they all have one thing in common:

"^'^lbid., p . 213.
'"'''Ibid.,

p.

255.

^^^lbid., p. 281.

the war.

75
The language of Journey's End is proper English and
is military language.

While it is not actually roraantic,

it almost gives the atraosphere of poetic, roraantic language.

This feeling is due to the treatment that Sherriff gives
the characters.

An example of this coraes frora the conver-

sation between Raleigh and Osboirne

RALEIGH. I knew they fired lights. I didn't expect
so manyand to see thera so far away.
OSBORNE. I know. There's something rather roraantic
about it all.
RALEIGH. Yes I thought that too.
OSBORNE. You raust always think of it like that if
you can. Think of it all asroraantic.H^
Another reason that the language of Journey's End alraost
seems to be romantic is the theme itself.

Journey's End

deals with raen who are trying to live up to the roraantic

ideals of heroisra.

This is most evident when Stanhope talks

to Hibbert about deserting:

If you wentand left Osborne and Trotter and Raleigh
and all those men up there to do your workcould you
ever look a man straight in the face againin all your
life? . . . Take the chance, old chap, and stand in with
Osborne and Trotter and Raleigh. Don't you think it
worth standing in with men like that?when you know
they all feel like you doin their heartsand just go
on sticking it because thev know it'sit's the only
decent thing a man can do.^l^
It is this roraantic ideal that was prevalent during World
(

War I that distracts frora the realism of the horrors of war

^"^lbid., p. 187.
'^'^lbid., p. 370.

76
and distracts frora the realisra that is required to effectively apply these horrors in a production of Journey's
End.
Setting
The setting of Journey's End is in France in the
trenches closie to Cambrai.

The action takes place in a dug-

out just off the main trenches.

and the company headquarters.
ing* off frora the raain roora.

It is an officers' dug-out

There are two tunnels lead-

One leads to the servants'

quarters and kitchen and the other leads to sleeping quarters for the officers.
pressive.
The

This dug-out is dark, darap and op-

A claustrophobic-like atraosphere is called for.

squalidness of the dug-out is a reflection of the leg-

acy of war, both to the raen and to what was once farra land.
Therae
The therae of Journey's End is twofold:

it deals with

the effects of war on man and it deals with the effects on

man of failing to live up to his ideals of heroism.
Stanhope represents the results of v/ar, its fears and destruction, while Raleigh represents the idealization of
leaders and the glorification that those not directly involved with war often develop.

Stanhope and Raleigh are

the characters who emphasize both aspects of the theme in

this play.

77
Production rdea
In the production of Sherriff's Journey's End,
there shall be an atterapt to emphasize the horrors of war
and what war can do to raan. The shattering of nerves, the
loss of life and the hardening of the soldiers to the loss
of life are sorae of the horrors presented in this play.
To achieve the eraphasis of these horrors, the total
effect of the play should be as realistic as possible.
The acting style should be realistic, and there should be
realisra in scenery, lighting and costuraes.
might border on naturalism.
and solid.

This realism

The set should appear heavy

The lights should give the impression of

coraing from candles and a lantern.

Also there should be

some realistic effects from the exterior.

The costuraes

should appear worn, with the exception of Raleigh's

fresh uniforra.

l.

CHAPTER II
DESIGN
Scenery
The scenery for Journey's End was designed by Stuart
John who was also in charge of construction at the Laboratory Theatre.

In the early raeetings it was decided that the

set would have to be designed in a realistic rather than a

naturalistic style.

Because of a liraited budget and of a

shortage of crewraerabersavailable it was felt that the

technical probleras presented by a naturalistic style could
not adequately be overcorae in the time available.

Since

the choice of naturalism over realisra was one of degree

rather than of fundaraental effect, the second choice was
originally felt to be only a rainor coraproraise.

It was felt

that a realistic design would make much the same statement

as a naturalistic one.

On further consideration, it seemed

to have the added benefit of not drawing so much attention

to the physical aspects of production to the detriment of
the verbal.
Also decided at theseraeetingswere iteras of basic
requirements and shape.

These requirements were:

a single

room with two beds, a table and chairs; two exits to other
78

79
rooms in the dug-out; and one exit leading upstage into an
access trench.
The scenery was designed to enhance the oppressive
atmosphere that the play required and which was inherent in
a dug-out of the time,

This effect was achieved through

the use of heavy bearas and tirabers, low door openings, and
blacks and shades of brown exclusively for coloration.
Stuart John extensively researched the construction
and layout of the dug-outs used during World War I.

He dis-

covered that these dug-outs were basically just holes dug

into the ground with boards laid across the top and covered
with dirt.

Within these holes room divisions were achieved

by nailing board partitions to the existing support systems.

The script specifically called for a dug-out that
had been divided into three rooras: one for the corapany
headquarters, one offstage for the junior officers' quarters, and another offstage for the servants.

For the pur-

pose of blocking, the roora containing the corapany headquarters was placed between the servants' quarters and the
junior officers' quarters.

This positioning necessitated

an exit in each of the visible walls.

Because of this configuration the side walls of the
set represented boards attached to vertical tirabers. These
boards and tirabers were made from styrofoara that had been
painted and textured to resemble wood.

The back wall of

80
the dug-out and the trench wall beyond represented dirt
walls.

This effect was achieved by stretching burlap over

premolded chicken wire and painting it to reserable dirt.

The trench seen through the upstage exit consisted
of a platforra eighteen inches high, upstage of which was
placed a flat to represent the trench wall.

To get to the

trench frora the dug-out, a rarap was constructed.

It proved

to be too steep to negotiate conveniently; however, the

rarap was raore pleasing in appearance than stairs would have
been.

It was therefore decided to add three wedges to the

surface of the rarap large enough to step on but not large

enough to destroy the overall effect of the ramp.

After

the platform and rarap were constructed they were covered

with burlap which was painted to look like dirt.

Along the

top of the trench wall a coil of barbed wire was strung.

In addition, cutouts of grass were added along the top of
the trench wall to help give the appearance of depth.
Three vertical timbers, constructed of styrofoam, were
placed on each side of the ramp leading to the trench.
These gave the effect of a tunnel leading frora the dug-out
to the trench outside.
feeling of enclosure.

The set was roofed to aid in the

The roof was raade of two-inch styro-

foam and was textured and painted to give the appearance of

boards.
The set was placed at an angle on the stage to ira-

81
prove blocking patterns and also to enhance the stage picture by providing an additional angle to the series of lines
and angles of which the set consisted.

Through the use of

the dark colors, rough texturing and corapactness, the design achieved a grave-like quality and a feeling of doora
that was very advantageous to this production of Journey's
End.
Lighting
The lighting for Journey's End was in pools and was
very low-keyed.

Theraotivationfor lights in the dug-out

itself was provided by either candles or lantern.

were candles by each bed and one on the table.

There was

a lantern hung on a pillar upstage of the table.

were pooled into five areas.

There

The lights

The only additional interior

lighting carae frora the servants' quarters.

Since this

light reflected off the backing of the upright entrance

and into the raain room, it was indirect.
In addition to the interior lighting there was some
exterior lighting.

This consisted of tv/o types.

was directional to simulate sunlight.

The first

Morning lighting was

positioned so that the light shone directly into the dugout through the upstage entrance, creating very effective
shadows.

Evening lighting was positioned so that it shone

down into the trench frora the opposite direction.

The

82

A^.

Fig. 1.

Groundplan

, 83

^ *

84

F i g . 2.

Set Rendering

85

"'

^^.tftt. 4.J1

86
second type of exterior lighting was that used on the cyclorama.

From a portion of the seats in the auditorium

there was a square of cyclorama visible above the trench

wall through the upstage exit.

This area of the cycloraraa

was lit to siraulate sky and, through the variance of intensity, to indicate the tirae of day and the passage of
time.

A bright flash to simulate the explosion of a bomb

was used at the end of the play.

The functions of the lighting were to light the
stage, to contribute to realism, and to aid in the creation
of the mood and atmosphere.

Through use of low-key light-

ing a feeling of gloom was maintained that was advantageous

to this production.

The fact that interior lighting re-

mained almost constant while the exterior lighting changed

to represent the passage of time intensified the feeling
of aloneness that was faced by the men in the trenches.
TABLE 1
ROSCOLAR COLOR CHART
Color Number

Color

906

Light Straw

914

Light Amber

915

Golden Amber

942

Suprise Pink

953

Pale Green-blue

87

Fig. 3.

Placement of Lighting Instruraents

83

89
TABLE 2
LIGHTING INSTRUMENT SCHEDULE
No. Instruraent

Wattage

Color

6" Fresnel

500

906

2P-10

Barndoor

6" Fresnel

500

906

2P-8

Barndoor

6" Fresnel

500

906

2P-6

Barndoor

6" Fresnel

500

942

2P-5

Barndoor

6" Fresnel

500

942

2P-3

Barndoor

6" Fresnel

500

942

2P-1

Barndoor

6" Fresnel

500

942

lP-8

Barndoor

6" Fresnel

500

906

SL 2

lP-4

6" Fresnel

500

906

lP-7

10

6" Fresnel

500

906

lP-6

11

6" Fresnel

500

906

SR 2

lP-4

12

6" Fresnel

500

942

lP-5

13

6" Fresnel

500

906

SR
lP-9
backing

14

6" Fresnel

500

915

lP-1
US
backing

Sunset
special
patch-in

15

6" Fresnel

500

906

lP-1
US
backing

Sunset
special
patch-in

16

6" Fresnel

500

953

SR
rarap
wall

lP-1

Explosion
special
patch-in

17

6" Fresnel

500

Cyc

lP-10

10

18

6" Fresnel

500

Cyc

lP-10

10

Remove
lens
Remove
lens

Area

Plug

Diramer

Reraarks

Top Hat

Top Hat

90
TABLE 2Continued
No. Instruraent
19

6" Fresnel

20 Kerosene
lantern

Wattage

Color

Area

Plug

500

914

SR
cot

lP-2

7.5

Raw

lP-3

Dimraer
13

Remarks
Morning
light
Araber
larap
Practical

Candle

Properties
The following is a list of properties used in the
production of Journey's End.

For the most part there was

no difficulty in obtaining the items.

The raajor exceptions

to this were the helraets and pistols.

Because of the dif-

ficulty in locating helraets some were made out of plaster.

However, at the last moraent, enough raetal ones were located
and were used in the perforraances.
presented another problera.

Pistols of the period

Since only two pistols were

available, rather than having each man wear an authentic

pistol, most wore fake pistols.

The authentic period pis-

tols were worn by characters required to draw them on stage

Some of the properties became very important for
personal characterization.

These included Osborne's pipe,

the Colonel's swagger stick, Mason's tray, and whiskey and

cigarettes for Stanhope.

91

TABLE 3
PROPERTY LIST
Preset
Onstage:
Set properties:
six boxes, one under table, two left of table, and
three by DL exit
one table
two beds
Hand properties:
log-book on table
pen in log-book
maps on table
miscellaneous papers on table
whiskey bottle on table
water bottle on table
matches on table
magazines in box under table
six candles, four in box under table and one by each
bed
Hardy's personal properties:
tin mug on table
pack on DR bed
gas mask on DR bed
book on DR bed
clothes on DR bed
blanket on DR bed
flapped holster on DR bed
pistol on DR bed
Offstage:
two .303 Lee-Enfield rifles
five helraets
five packs
five blankets
newspapers
tin raugs
tin plates
tin soup bowls
knives

92
TABLE 3^^Continued
forks
spoons
bottle of whiskey
serving spoon
dish towel
platter with cutlets
serving tray
pot of coffee
pot of porridge
pan with bacon
tin of jara
tin of butter
pot of tea
salt and pepper shakers
bread (horaeraade)
two bottles of charapagne
three cigars
plate with chicken bones
twelve sandwiches
bottle of rura
Personal Properties
Stanhope:
wrist watch
wallet
wallet-size photo
flapped holster
pistol
cigarette tin
cigarettes
gas raask
coin
Osborne;
pocket watch
flapped holster
pistol
cigarette tin
cigarettes
gas raask
leather-bound Alice in Wonderland
pipe
pipe tobacco
tobacco pouch
wedding ring

93

TABLE 3Continued
Raleigh:
wrist watch
flapped holster
pistol
gas raask
walking stick
letter and envelope
Trotter:
pocket watch
wallet
wallet-size photo
flapped holster
pistol
gas raask
wedding ring
Hibbert:
flapped holster
pistol
gas raask
eyeglasses
post cards
Sergeant-Major:
gas raask
pencils
notebook
Colonel:
pocket watch
flapped holster
pistol
pipe
pipe tobacco
tobacco pouch
matches
gas raask
wedding ring
swagger stick

94
TABLE 3^^Continued
notebook
pencil
Hardy:
flapped holster
pistol
pack
blanket
clothes
wrist watch
mug
book
sock
German:
paybook
string
pocket knife
chocolate bar
packet of letters
pencil
tin of fruit drops

Costumes
The costumes for Journey's End were designed by
Steve Bartell.

They were designed and raade in an atterapt

to match the British uniforra of World War I.

This atterapt

was not completely successful, however, due largely to a

limited budget.

Since it was financially irapossible to

95
rent the necessary uniforras, old U.S. army uniforms were
altered.

The major problera arose in connection with the

uniform jackets.

It was impossible to obtain enough wool

jackets and consequently it was necessary to use some raade

of synthetic fibers.

It was difficult to remove color from

these, and they would not accept dye so that the proper
colors could be obtained.
the wool jackets.

This probleiti did not occur with

There was also a problem of shrinkage

in connection with color removal.

The basic uniforra consisted of:

a jacket, pants,

shirt, tie, puttees, trench coat and gloves.

The jackets

and pants were brown forz'il'jcharctexs exQeptjthe'jeQlo.nel

and the German.

The shirts were khaki; the ties were black;

the puttees, gloves and trench coats were olive green.

Osborne and Mason wore sweaters rather than the uniform jacket when they were in the dug-out.

Osborne wore a

sweater to enhance his father-iraage and to give hira an appearance of being relaxed and at horae even in the trenches.
His sweater was a light brown in color.

Since raost of

>>

Mason's tirae was spent in the dug-out, either cooking or

cleaning, it was felt that it would be in character for
him to be as corafortable as possible and to take sorae liberties not available to the other soldiers.

His sweater was

black.
The Colonel's uniforra was olive green and consisted

I (

96
of jodhpurs instead of regular pants, and black riding boots
rather than short, brown boots and puttees which the others
wore.

Instead of wearing a helraet he wore a uniforra cap.

He also wore an old Marine great coat.

The Gerraan's uniforra was grey with grey piping.

He

wore black raid-calf boots and an original Gerraan great

coat of field grey.
Sound Effects
The only sound effects used were those of the battle
outside.

These were used to open and close each act.

They

were also used at various points throughout the play, particularly in the third act during the Gerraan attack.

These

sound effects were recorded for convnience'ialnd wer itaken

frora various sound effect records, some owned by the University Theatre and some by Stuart John.

The resulting

tape contained a variety of explosions, sounds of ricochets;

rifle shots and machine-gun fire.
There were two speakers:

one located on either side

of the ramp behind the back wall.

The purpose of these sound effects was to remind
the audience of the war in progress outside the dug-out and
to add reality to certain scenes, particularly the final
scene.

97

Fig. 4.

Colonel's Uniform

98

|i

n
fy

99

m.

F i g . 5.

U
^

C a p t a i n ' s Uniforra

100

"^

101
V''.

'

Fig. 6.

Lieutenant's Uniform

102

m-r

f...

103

Fig. 7.

Enlisted Man's Uniform

104

105

4"i'

# '

Fig. 8.

Geiman Soldier's Uniforra

106

CHAPTER III
AUDITIONS, REHEARSALS, AND PERFORMANCES
Auditions
Auditions for Journey's End began on Wednesday, 14
January, and continued through Saturday, 17 January.

Audi-

tions for all productions being done by the University

Theatre during the seraester were conducted at the sarae time,
ff-'

V^onsequently, Journey' s End was corapeting for actors with

two large-cast productions as well as another Laboratoryoriented minor production.

Student turnout for the audi-

tions for the Laboratory plays was light.

Since only fourteen raen attended tryouts for Journey's End it was fortunate that the script called for a
cast of only eleven.

Of the fourteen raen who attended try-

outs, two were needed for other plays and one did not respond to call-backs.
needed.

This left eleven, the exact number

Fortunately, these eleven men were suitable for

the roles.
Cast in the part of Captain Stanhope was Mark Walters.

In his readings he showed that he could assume the

Posture and attitude of a battle-weary leader.

for the part of Osborne was Patrick Donnelly.
107

Selected
His earlier

108
performances in the department indicated that he had a
certain control necessary for the part.

Raleigh was played

by Matthew Masek, a freshman who had the youthful appearance, bearing and enthusiasra that was iraportant for this
character.

Michael Roe, III, was cast as the Colonel be-

cause of his ability to play the "stuffed-shirt" type of

character.

Frederick Christoffel was cast as Trotter main-

ly because of his large size.

Warren Dayton was cast as

Hibbert because of his somewhat sickly appearance which

was advantageous for the part.

The other cast merabers

were: James Odom as Mason, Byron Shaw as the SergeantMajor, Carl Lynn as Lance-Corporal Broughton, Brian Sullivan as Captain Hardy, and Carl Kaufman as the German
soldier.
The tryout information material for Journey's End,
a copy of which follows, was designed to give the actors
scrae idea about the play and about the individual characters. Unfortunately, few of the people read this information so it was of little real value.
Rehearsals
Rehearsals for Journey's End began 2 0 January.

Dur-

ing the firstraeeting,cast and crew assignments were given. Also discussed at this firstraeetingwere the period
and the consequences of World War I.

The first two re-

109
hearsals were read-throughs of the play itself^ and a deeper study of war and its effects was initiated.
these two read-throughs, blocking began.

Follov/ing

To facilitate

blocking rehearsals, the play was broken into rehearsal

units consisting generally of raore than oneraotivationalor
structural unit.

This break-up was done for two reasons:

(1) to have units that were a convenient size, neither too

large nor too sraall; and (2) to raake the raost effective use
of the actors' tirae.
The first two and one-half weeks were spent in blocking rehearsals.

The next week was spent in run-throughs

during which the different units began to be pulled together into what was to be their final forra. The next week
was devoted to technical and dress rehearsals.

Of this

week, the first three nights were spent integrating all the
technical aspects with the acting, a process which can often be a trying experience for the actors, resulting in
some loss of the finished acting.

However, technical re-

hearsals for Journey's End went very sraoothly and this problera was not encountered.

The next three nights were spent

in dress rehearsals so that the actors could become accustomed to their costumes and could achieve the final objective of the rehearsals:

to make their characters believ-

able. The fourth and final dress rehearsal was conducted

as a performance with a small audience in attendance.

110
It was felt that for this play a realistic style of
acting should beraaintainedfor optiraura effect.

Several

things were done throughout rehearsals to strengthen the

realism of the acting.

Each rehearsal was opened with a

group exercise consisting of both physical and vocal warmups. Among the vocal exercises attention was given to the
dialects used by the different characters.

As rehearsals

progressed, some psychological exercises were employed.

These consisted priraarily of discussions with the actors
about the lives of their characters both during the war and
prior to it. Another device, in an atterapt to strengthen
the realisra, was the early use of specific items that each
character would use during the play.

Jackets and helmets

were added early so the actors could get used to the garments worn by the railitary. The exercises and early use of
personal and railitary iteras were eraployed so the actors
could obtain the realisra necessary toraakethe war real to
the audience.
Perforraances
Perforraances for Journey's End began 27 February and
ran through 3 March.

There were two perforraances on the

first two nights and one perforraance on each of the other

nights. Because of conflicts with other theatrical performances in town, including those of the University Thea-

111
tre, Lubbock Theatre Centre,, the German Club, Lubbock
Christian College, and various high schools, the attendance
at Journey's End was very light.

At no tirae was there a

full house and seldora was it even half full.

This could

have been dangerous to the actors' perforraance, espcially

when cast/audience interaction was needed.

The sraaller the

reaction an actor has, the raore difficult it is for hira to

maintain the level of his perforraance.

This danger had

been anticipated, however, and early in the rehearsals the

actors discussed the probability of small houses. These
discussions were continued as the play moved into production. As a result of extremely good audience response, a
very high level of perforraance was maintained.

112
TRYOUTS FOR JOURNEY'S END BY R. C. SHERRIFF
Directed By Sara Cornelius
Tryouts: Wed., Thurs., Fri. , and Sat., Jan. 14, 15, 16,.'
and 17, 7:00-10:00 P.M., FL&M 2.
Call-backs: Sun., Jan. 18, 2:00-4:00 P.M.; and Mon., Jan.
19, 7:00-10:00 P.M.
Technical and Dress Rehearsals: Fri., Sat., Sun., Mon.,
Tues., Wed., and Thurs., Feb. 13, 14, 15, 16, 17,
18, and 19, 8:15 P.M.
Performances: Fri. and Sat., Feb. 20 and 21, 7:00 and 9:30
P.M.; Sun., Mon., Tues., and Wed., Feb. 22, 23,
24, and 25, 8:15 P.M.
The Play
Journey's End is a subtle, anti-war play that deals
with the effects of war on men. Sherriff chose a moraent
that portrays the raost tense portion of war, that being of
waiting before an expected attack.
The tirae is early March, 1918, just prior to and
during the first hours of Gerraany's final raajor offensive
effort. The setting is an officers' dug-out just off an
access trench leading to the major firing trench near Cambrai in FranceThe play opens with Captain Stanhope's men taking
over command of an area of the trenches. Lieutenant
Raleigh, a newly commissioned officer who has known Stanhope at school, enters. The play goes on to contrast
Lieutenant Raleigh with the rest of the men, thus contrasting civilian thinking withrailitarythinking. The
play ends with the beginning of the expected attack during
which Raleigh is wounded and dies.
The Roles
Captain Stanhope: Commanding officer of the company
A young man whose three years in the trenches have caused
him to become a heavy drinker.
Lieutenant Osborne: Second-in-command. He is a
middle-aged man who is easy to get along with. He is Stanhope's best friend.
2nd Lieutenant Raleigh: A new officer just over
from England and just out of school. He is very excited

113
about the war and has idealized Stanhope for years.
2nd Lieutenant Trotter: A jovial officer who has
worked his way up frora the ranks. He is less educated
than the other officers and his main interest is food.
2nd Lieutenant Hibbert: Has been in the trenches
for three months, has lost his nerve and is always trying
to find a way to go home.
Sergeant-Major: Very railitary but on soraewhat familiar terms with Stanhope. Not well educated and at times,
somewhat dense.
Lance-Corporal Broughton: A messenger who brings
in news and takes messages. He is not very well educated
but is militarily correct.
Private Mason: The servant and cook for the officers. He is not well educated and has sorae fears about
losing his position.
Captain Hardy: The corapany commander who is being
relieved at the opening of the play. Because of this, he
is quite happy.
The Colonel: Stanhope's superior officer. He is
very military but has little real interest in the raen or
their problems.
The German: A very young, frightened boy. He
speaks English hesitantly. This battle is probably his
first encounter with the war.

114
TABLE 4
SCHEDULE OF UNITS
Unit
Characters

Captain Hardy

Lt. O s b o r n e

P r i v a t e Mason

Lt.

Raleigh

Captain

Stanhope

Trotter

Lt. H i b b e r t

Lt.

Sergeant-Major

Colonel

10

X
X

Gerraan
Corp.

Broughton

TABLE 5
SYNOPSIS OF UNITS
Act
One
One
One
Two
Two
Two
Two
Three
Three
Three

Unit
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Pages (Script)
1-7

7-13
14-27
27-33
33-39
39-44
44-53
54-65
65-74
74-83

Pages (Prompt Book)

118-155
155-193
193-253
254-291
291-328
329-354
354-406
407-464
465-512
512-548

115

TABLE 6
REHEARSAL SCHEDULE
Date & Tirae

Event

Characters

Jan. 20, 7:00 P.M,

First raeeting

Cast and Crews

Jan. 25, 7:30 P.M,

Read-throuah

Cast

Jan. 26, 7:30 P.M,

Read-through

Cast

Jan. 28, 5:00 P.M,

Act One (block)

Cast (except Gerraan and Colonel)

Jan. 29, 7:30 P.M.

Act One (block)

Cast (except German and Colonel)

Jan. 30, 7:30 P.M.

Act One (run)

Cast (except Gerraan and Colonel)

Jan. 31, 5:00 P.M.

Act One (run)

Cast (except Gerraan and Colonel)

Feb. 2, 7:30 P.M.

Unit four (block)

Osborne, Mason,
Raleigh, Trotter

8:00 P.M.

Unit five (block)

Osborne, Mason,
Raleigh, Stanhope

8:30 P.M.

Unit six (block)

Osborne, Stanhope,
Sergeant-Major,
Colonel

9:00 P.M,

Unit seven
(block)

Osborne, Mason,
Raleigh, Stanhope,
Trotter, Hibbert

Feb. 4, 7:30 P.M,

Unit four (block)

Osborne, Mason,
Raleigh, Trotter

8:00 P.M.

Unit five (block)

Osborne, Mason,
Raleigh, Stanhope

8:30 P,M.

Unit six (block)

Osborne, Stanhope,
Sergeant-Major,
Colonel

116
TABLE 6Continued
Date & Time

Event

Characters

9:00 P.M.

Unit seven
(block)

Osborne, Mason,
Raleigh, Stanhope,
Trotter, Hibbert

7:30 P.M.

Acts One and Two

(run, V7ith Act
One off books)

Cast (except German and Colonel)

8:00 P.M.

Unit nine
(block)

Mason, Raleigh,
Stanhope, Trotter, Hibbert

8:30 P.M.

Unit ten (block)

Stanhope, Mason,
Raleigh, Trotter,
Hibbert, SergeantMajor, German

Feb. 7,

5:00 P.M,

Run-through

Cast

Feb. 8,

5:00 P.M,

Work problems

Cast (except Osborne)

Feb. 9,

7:00 P.M

Unit eight
(block)

Osborne, Mason,
Raleigh, Stanhope,

8:00 P.M,

Unit nine
(block)

Mason, Raleigh,
Stanhope, Trotter

8:30 P.M,

Unit ten (block)

Stanhope, Mason,
Raleigh, Trotter,
Sergeant-Major,
Hibbert, German

Feb. 11, 7:30 P.M.

Run-through
(Act Two off
books)

Cast

Peb. 12, 7:30 P.M.

Run-through

Cast

Peb. 13, 7:30 P.M.

Run-through

Cast

Feb. 14, 5:00 P.M.

Run-through
(Act Three off
books)

Cast

Feb. 5,

117
TABLE 6 C o n t i n u e d

Date & Time

Event

Characters

Feb. 15, 6:30 P.M.

Run-through

Cast

Run-through
Feb. 16, 7:30 P.M.
(set raoves into lab)

Cast

Feb. 18, 7:30 P.M.

Run-through

Cast

Feb. 19, 7:30 P.M.

Run-through

Cast

Feb. 2 0 , 7:30 P.M.

First

Cast and Crews

Feb. 2 1 , 7 : 3 0 P.M.

Second

Feb. 2 2 , 1:00 P.M.

(Rose T a t o o c a s t
as a u d i e n c e )

Third t e c h n i c a l
Cwith c o s t u m e s )

Cast and Crews

Feb. 2 3 , 8:15 P.M,

(curtain)

First

Cast and Crews

Feb. 24, 8:15 P.M,

(curtain)

Second dress

Cast and Crews

Feb. 2 5 , 8:15 P.M,

(curtain)

Third dress

Cast and Crews

Feb. 26, 8:15 P.M.

(curtain)

Fourth dress
(with invited
audience)

Cast and Crews

Feb. 27, 7:00 P.M,

9:30 P.M,

First performance
Second performance

Cast and Crews

Cast and Crews

Feb. 28, 7:00 P.M,

9:30 P.M.

Third performance
Fourth performance

Cast and Crews

Cast and Crews

Feb. 29, 8:15 P.M,

Fifth perforraance

Cast and Crews

March 1, 8:15 P.M,

Sixth perforraance

Cast and Crews

March 2, 8:15 P.M,

Seventh perforraance

Cast and Crews

March 3 , 8:15 P.M.

10:30 P.M.

Eight perforraance
Strike

Cast and Crews

Cast and Crews

technical
technical

dress

Cast and Crews

CHAPTER IV
PROMPT BOOK

118

r.TAGE SYMBOLS
UL:

Up Left

DL: Do\/n Left

UR: Up Right

DR:

Down Riqht

UC:

DC:

Down Center

Up Center

CHAR/iCTE R S YMBOLS
H',

Hardy

T:

Trotter

0:

Osbonie

Hb;

Hibbert

M:

Msson

SM:

Sergeant-Major

B:

Broughton

Cl:

ColDnel

Rl:

Raieigh

G:

Geiman

S!

S tanhope

x:

-indicates a cross

''EC.-LMICAL

SYMBOLS

(^.r) Liqht cue, idcntified ry ni-T.hei:

(8.,,) Gound c'ue, id'utifcd ^y :iii-.bcr
Cartain cui, id^rtifi^-i ::y nurber

120

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

Cl) H is sitting on DR bed

drying a sock.

(Ll) House lights are up full

when the house opens.

(2) 0 enters from the trench,

UR, X to UL bed, drops
his pack, and takes off
his coat.

(L2) House lights dim on cue

frora the house raanager.
(51) Battle sounds fade in as
the lights dim cut.
(Cl) The curtain opens medium
slow as the lights dim
out.
(L3) General illumination is
up three-fourths, UR
backing light is up
one-half and area two
is up full as the curtain opens.
(52) Sounds of battle fade
out.

121

ACT ONE
Scne One
(Ll)
{L2)
(Sl)
(Cl)
(L3)
HARDY:
"One and Two, its Maud and Lou;
Three and Four, two girls more;
(S2)
' F i v e and S i x ,

it's

withhmhmhm-

Seven, E i g h t , Clara and C a r o l i n e

Tickl Tockwind up t h e c l o c k ,
(2)
And w e ' l l s t a r t t h e day o v e r a g a i n . ' " ' '
Hullo, Osbornel

Your f e l l o w s

OSBORNE:
Yes.

They're j u s t coming i n .
HARDY:

Splendid:

Have a d r i n k .

OSBORNE:
Thanks.

arriving?

122

'1

MOVI-::-lENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

0 X to table, sits on
DL box and pours a
drink.

(2)

0 drinks.'

(3)

H drys a sock.

TECHNICAL CUES

__J

123
HARDY:
Use my mug if you like.

Don't have too much water.

It's

rather strong today.

OSBORNE:
^ 'l wonder what it. is they put in the water.
HARDY:
Some sort of disinfectant, I suppose.
OSBORNE:
I'd rather have theraicrobes,wouldn't you?
HARDY:
I wouldyes
OSBORNE:
(2)

Well, cheero. ^ '

HARDY:
Cheero. (3)
'Excuse ray sock, won't you?
OSBORNE:
Certainly.

It's a nice looking sock.

HARDY:
It is rather, isn't it?

Guaranteed to keep the feet dry.

Trouble is, it gets so wet doing it.

124

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

125
OSBORNE:
Stanhope asked rae to corae and take over.

He' s looking af -

ter the relief coraing in.

HARDY:
Splendidl

You know, I'ra awfully glad you've corae.

OSBORNE:
I heard it was a quiet bit of line up here.
HARDY:
Well, yesin a way.

But you never know.

Soraetiraes nothing

happens for hours on end; thenall of a sudden"over she

comes!"rifle grenades--Minniesand those bloody little
things like pineapplesyou know.
OSBORNE:
I know.
HARDY:
SwishswishswishswishBANG.'
OSBORNE:
All rightall right~I know.
HARDY:
They simply blew us to bits yesterday.
ones; about twenty.

Minnies"-enormous

Three bang in the trench.

I really

126

MOVEMENT AND BU3INESS

(1) 0 X DL and inspects
three boxes.

TECHNICAL CUES

127
am glad you've come; I'ra not simply being polite.
OSBORNE:
Do much damage?
HARDY:
Awful.

A dug-out got blown up and carae dov/n in the raen's

tea. Daraned annoying.

OSBORNE:
'l know.

There's nothing worse than dirt in your tea.

HARDY:
By the way, you know the big Gerraan attack's expected any
day now?
OSBORNE:
It's been expected for the last raonth.
HARDY:
Yes, but it's very near now; there's funny things happening
over in the Boche country.
night when it's quiet.

I've been out listening at

There's more transport than usual

coming upyou can hear it rattling over the pave all

night; more trains in the distancepuffing up and going
away again, one after another bringing up loads and loads
of men

128

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

H puts on the sock.

(2)

O X back to the table

and sits down.

(3)

H gets a map out cf a box

from under the table.

(4)

H points toward UR
doorway.

(5)

H nods toward DL exit.

129
OSBORNE:
Yes.

It's comingpretty soon now.

HARDY:

Are you here for six days?

OSBORNE:
Yes.
HARDY:
Then I should think you'll get itright in the neck.
OSBORNE:
(2)

Well, you w o n ' t be f a r away.

handing o v e r . Where's t h e raap?

Come a l o n g , l e t ' s do t h i s

HARDY:
(3)
Here we are.

We hold about two hundred yards of front

line. We've got a Lewis gunjust hereand one here, in

this little sap.

Sentry posts where the crosses are

OSBORNE:
Where do the raen sleep?
KARDY:
I. don't know.

The sergeant-raajor sees to that.

servants and signallers in there.

and three in there. ^ '
ficers.

(4)The

Two officers in here,

That is, if you've got five of-

130

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

H puts on leggings.

(2)

0 points toward DR bed.

C3)

H points toward UL bed.

(4)

H hangs his arms in air

TECHNICAL CUES

131
OSBORNE:
We've only got four at present, but a new man's coming up
tonight.

He arrived at transport lines a day or two ago.

HARDY:
I hope you get better luck than I did with my last officer.
He got lurabago the first night and went horae. Now he' s
got a job lecturing young officers on "Life in the Front
Line."
OSBORNE:
Yes, they do send funny people over here nowadays.

I hope

we're lucky and get a youngster straight frora school.

They're the kind that do best.
HARDY:
I suppose they are really.
OSBORNE:
Five beds, you say?

(2)

^ 'Is that the best one?

HARDY:
Oh, no.

^^^That's raine over there.

The ones in the other

dug-out haven't got any bottoras to them.

You keep yourself

in by hanging your arms and legs over the sides. (4) Mustn't

hang your legs too low, or the rats gnaw your boots.

132

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

CD

H finds a list under

the papers on the
table.

TECHNICAL CUES

133
OSBORNE:
You gotraanyrats here?
HARDY:
I should sayroughlyabout tworaillion;but then, of
course, I don't see thera all.

Well, there's nothing else

you want to know, is there?

OSBORNE:
You haven't told rae anything yet.
HARDY:
What else you want to know?
OSBORNE:
Well, what about trench stores?
HARDY:
'YOU are a fussy old raan. Anybody'd think you were in
the Army.

Here you are:

hundred and fifteen rifle gre-

nadesI shouldn't use them if I were you; they upset

Jerry and make hira offensive.

Besides, they are rusty, in

any case. Then there's five hundred Mills borabs, thirtyfour gum boots
OSBORNE:
That's soventeen pairs

134

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

H hands the list to O.

(2)

0 checks the list.

TECHNICAL CUES

135
HARDY:
Oh/ no; twenty-five right leg and nine left leg.

But

everything's down here.

OSBORNE:
(2)
^ ' Did you check it when you took over?
HARDY:
No.

I think the Sergeant-Major did.

It's quite all right.

OSBORNE:
I expect Stanhope would like to see you before you go. He
always likes a word with the company comraander he's relieving.
HARDY:
How i the dear young boy?

Drinking like a fish, as usual?

OSBORNE:
Why do you say that?
HARDY:
Well, daran it, it's just a natural thing to ask about
Stanhope.

Poor old raan. It raust be pretty rotten for you,

being his second in coraraand, and you such a quiet, sober

old thing.

13 6

nOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl) 0 lights his pipe and
places theraatcheson
the table.

TECHNICAL CUES

137
OSBORNE:
He's a long way the best corapany coramander we've got.
HARDY:
Oh, he's a good chap, I know.

But I never did see a young-

ster put away the whiskey he does.

D'you know, the last

time we were out resting at Valennes he came to supper with

us and drank a whole bottle in one hour fourteen rainutes
we timed hira.
OSBORNE:
I suppose it araused everybody; I suppose everybody
cheered hira on, and said what a splendid achieveraent it
was.
HARDY:
He didn't want any "cheering" o n
OSBORNE:
No, but everybody thought it was a big thing to do.

Didn't

they?
HARDY:
Well, you can't help soraehow adrairing a fellow who can do
thatand then pick out his own hat all by hiraself and walk
home

138

MOVEMENT AND BUSI^TESS

(1)

0 X to UL bed, sits, and

begins to unpack.

TECHNICAL CUES

139
OSBORNE:
^ 'When a boy like Stanhope gets a reputation out here for
drinking, he turns into a kind of freak sho>2 exhibit.
People pay with a bottle of whiskey for theraorbidcuriosity
of seeing hira drink it.
HARDY:
Well, naturally, you're biased.

You have to put hira to

bed when he gets horae.

OSBORNE:
It rather rerainds you of bear-baitingor cock fighting
to sit and watch a boy drink hiraself unconscious.
HARDY:
Well, daran it, it's pretty dull without soraething to liven
people up.

Iraean,after allStanhope really i a sort of

freak; Iraeanit i^ jolly fascinating to see a fellow drink

like he doesglass after glass.

He didn't go horae on his

last leave, did he?

OSBORNE:
No.
HARDY:
I suppose he d i d n ' t t h i n k he was f i t

t o raeet p a p a .

know h i s f a t h e r ' s v i c a r of a c o u n t r y

village?

You

140

MOVEMENT AND BUSINE3S

Cl)

H begins to pack rolls

up a blanket. H puts a
book, then clothes into
his pack. H ties a
blanket to the pack.

TECHNICAL CUES

141
OSBORNE:
I know.
HARDY:
^ ' Imagine Stanhope spending his leave in a country vicarage
sipping teal

He spent his last leave in Paris, didn't he?

OSBORNE:
Yes.
HARDY:
I bet it was sorae leavel
OSBORNE:
Do you know how long he's been out here?
HARDY:
A good tirae, I know.
OSBORNE:
Nearly three years.

He carae straight out frora school

when he was eighteen.

He' s commanded this company for a

yearin and out of the front line.

He's never had a rest.

Other men come over here and go home again ill, and young
Stanhope goes on sticking it, raonth in,raonthout.
HARDY:
Oh, I know he's a jolly good fellow

142

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

CD

0 lights his pipe.

TECHNICAL CUES

143
OSBORNE:
I've seen hira on his back all day with trench feverthen
on duty all night
HARDY:
Oh, I know; he's a splendid chapl
OSBORNE:
And because he's stuck it till his nerves have got battered
to bits, he's called a drunkard.
BIARDY:
Not a drunkard; just ajust a hard drinker; but you're
quite right about his nerves.

They are all to blazes.

Last tirae out resting we were playing bridge and soraething

happenedI don't reraeraber what it was; sorae silly little
argumentand all of a sudden he jumped up and knocked all
the glasses off the tablel

Lost control of himself, and

then hesort ofcame toand cried

OSBORNE:
Yes, I know.
HARDY:
You heard about it?
OSBORNE:
He told me.

144

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

145
HARDY:
Did he?

We tried to hush it up.

he's in.

It just shows the state

You know, Osborne, you ought to be comraanding

this corapany.
OSBORNE:
Rats.
HARDY:
Of course you ought.

It sticks out a raile. I know he's

got pluck and all that, but, daran it, raan you're twice his
ageand think what a dear, level-headed ld thing you are.
OSBORNE:
He was out here before I joined up.

His experience alone

raakes hira worth a dozen people like m.e.

HARDY:
You know as well as I do, you ought to be in coraraand.
OSBORNE:
There isn't a raan to touch hira as coraraander of raen. He'll
command the battalion one day i f
HARDY:
Yes, ifl

146

M0V:-1ENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 X to the table and sits

(2)

H finds the log-book

under the papers on the
table.

(3)

H stands, pushing the

bed back against the wall
puts on his coat, pack
and helmet.

TECHNICAL CUES

147
OSBORNE:
You don't know him as I do; I love that fellow.

I'd go to

hell with hira.

HARDY:
Oh, you sweet, sentiraental old darlingl
OSBORNE:
Come along.

Finish handing over and stop blithering,

HARDY:
There's nothing else to do.
OSBORNE:
What about the log-book?
HARDY:
(2)
Godl you are a worker. Oh, well. Here we are. Written right up to date in my own fairy handwriting: "5 p.ra.
to 8 p.m.

All quiet.

German airraan flew over trenches.

Shot a rat."
OSBORNE:
Did he?
HARDY:
(3)
No, I shot the rat, you ass. Well, finish up your whis^ey. I want to pack ray mug. I'll leave you that drop in

148

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 finishes his drink and

hands the mug to H.

(2)

H X to UR of the table.

TECHNICAL CUES

149
the b o t t l e .
OSBORNE:
^^^Thanks.
HARDY:

I ' l l be

off.
OSBORNE:

Aren't you g o i n g t o w a i t and s e e Stanhope?

HARDY:
Well, no, I d o n ' t e s p e c i a l l y want t o s e e him.

H e ' s so

fussy about t h e t r e n c h e s .

I expect they are rather d i r t y .

(2)
He'll t a l k f o r hours i f he c a t c h e s
rae.
Vlell, I hope
you have a n i c e s i x d a y s .

D o n ' t f o r g e t t o change your

c l o t h e s i f you g e t w e t .
OSBORNE:
No, papa.
HARDY:

And d o n ' t f o r g e t a b o u t t h e b i g

attack.

OSBOR E:
Oh, Lord, n o , I
diary.

raustn't

raiss

t h a t ; I ' 1 1 raake a n o t e i n ray

150

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

K strikes a pose.

(2)

H X to the table.

(3)

H points out the earwig

and 0 pokes at it with
a match.

TECHNICAL CUES

151
HARDY:
^^There we arel

Do I look every inch a soldier?

OSBORE:
Yes.

I should get quite a fright if I were a German and

met you coming round a corner.

HARDY:
I should bloody well hope you would.
OSBORNE:
Shouldn't be able to run away for laughing.
HARDY:
Now don't be rude.

^^^Well, I'm daraned.

Still at itl

OSBORNE:
What is?
HARDY:
Why, that earwig.

It's been running round and round

that candle since tea-tirae;rausthave done a raile.

OSBORNE:
I shouldn't hang about here if I were an earwig.
HARDY:
Nor should I.

I'd go horae. Ever had earwig races?

152

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

153
OSBORNE:
No.
HARDY:
Great fun.

We've had 'era every evening.

OSBORNE:
What are the rules?
HARDY:
Oh, you each have an earwig, and start 'era in a line. On
the word "Go" you dig your earwig in the ribs and steer hira
with a match across the table.
nighthad a splendid earwig.
somewhere.

I won ten francs last

You'll find him about here

I'll give you a tip.

OSBORNE:
Yes?
HARDY:
Promise not to let it go any further?
OSBORNE:
Yes.
HARDY:
Well, if you want the best pace out of an earwig, dip it
in whiskeymakes ' em go like helll

154

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

H starts up to the
trench exit.

(2)

H exits to trench.

(3)

0 inspects the map.

(4)

M enters UR carrying
papers, four plates,
four mugs, and four
forks. M X to table.

(5)

0 pushes away frora the

table, keeping the raap.

(6)

M sets the table with

settings he has brought

TECHICAL CUES
CS31

Machine guns fade in on

a f ive count, then fade
out.

155
OSBORNE:
Right.

Thanks a w f u l l y .
HARDY:

^^^Well, I raust be o f f .

Cheerol

OSBORNE:
CheeroI
HARDY:
(2)
One and Two, it's with Maud and Lou;
Three and Four, two girls raore"(S3)
i' (3)
^ >
MASON:
(4)
Excuse rae, sir.

Can I lay supper?

OSBORNE:
Yes, do. (5)
MASON:
Thank you, sir. ^^^
OSBORNE:
What are you going to tempt us with tonight, Mason?
MASON:
Soup, sircutletsand pineapple.

156

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

M exits UR.

C2)

Rl and B enter from the

trench and stand at the
tunnel opening.

C3)

B exits off right. Rl

enters and stands at
attention, places his
walking stick against
the wall, then x to
DR bed.

TECHNICAL CUES

157
OSBORNE:
What s o r t of

cutlets?

MASON:
Now, s i r , y o u ' v e g o t me.

I s h o u l d n ' t l i k e t o corarait rae-

s e l f t o o deep s i r .
OSBORNE:
Ordinary r a t i o n

raeat?

MASON:
Yes, s i r .

Ordinary r a t i o n m e a t , b u t a noo s h a p e ,

Smells l i k e l i v e r ,

sir,

but i t

' a s n ' t g o t t h a t sraooth, wet

look what l i v e r ' s g o t . ^'^^ ' ^^^

BROUGHTON:
This i s "C" Corapany ' E a d q u a r t e r s ,
RALEIGH:
Oh, thanks.
BROUGHTON:
Better go down,

sir.

RALEIGH:
Rightthanks. ^^^
OSBORNE:
Hullol

sir.

sir.

158

MO7EME:;T AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Rl sits on DR bed.

C2) Rl takes'off his coat,

pack and helmet.

TECHNICAL CUES

159
RALEIGH:
Good evening, sir.
OSBORNE:
You the new off icer?
RALEIGH:
Eryes, I've been to Battalion Headquarters.

They told

me to report here.
OSBORNE:
Good.

We've been expecting you.

RALEIGH:

Thanks.
OSBORNE:
I should take your pack off.
RALEIGH:
^^^Oh, right.
OSBORNE:
Will you have a drink?
RALEIGH:
Erwell

Sit down, won't you?

160

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

0 pours a drink and

gives it to Rl. Then
0 pours hiraself a drink

C2)

Rl drinks.

(3)

0 drinks.

(4)

0 offers a cigarette
to Rl.

TECHNICAL CUES

161
OSBORNE:
You don't drink whiskey?
RALEIGH:
Oh, yeserjust a sraall one, sir.
OSBORNE:
^ Whiskey takes away the taste of the water
RALEIGH:
Oh, yes?
OSBORNE:
And the water takes away the tast>e of the whiskey.
out from England?
RALEIGH:
Yes, I landed a week ago.
OSBORNE:
Boulogne?
RALEIGH:
Well, h e r e ' s l u c k ,

sir.

(2)

OSBORNE:
Good l u c k .

^^^Cigarette?

Just

162

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Rl takes the cigarette

(2)

0 lights Rl cigarette
with the candle.

(3)

Rl stands and the two

men shake hands.

(4)

Rl sits down.

TECHNICAL CUES

163
RALEIGH:
^^^Thanks.
OSBORNE:
(7)

^ 'Ever

been up in the line before?

RALEIGH:

Oh, no.

You see, I only left school at the end of last

summer term.
OSBORNE:
I expect you find it a bit strange.
RALEIGH:
YesI d o a b i t
OSBORNE:
My name's O s b o r n e .

I'ra s e c o n d i n command of t h e corapany. (3)

You o n l y c a l l rae " s i r "

in front

of t h e

raen.

RALEIGH:
I see.

Thanks.

OSBORNE:
You'll f i n d t h e o t h e r o f f i c e r s
RALEIGH:
Oh, yes?

c a l l rae " U n c l e . "

164

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

165
OSBORNE:
What's your narae?
RALEIGH:
Raleigh.
OSBORNE:
I knew a Raleigh.

A raaster at Rugby.

RALEIGH:
Oh? He raay be a relation.

I don't know.

I've gots lots

of uncles andand things like that.

OSBORNE:
We've only just raoved into these trenches.

Captain Stan-

hope commands the corapany.

RALEIGH:
I know.

It's a frightful bit of luck.

OSBORNE:
Why? Do you know hira?
RALEIGH:
Yes, ratherl

We were at school togetherat leastof

courseI was only a kid and he was one of the big fellows;
he's three years older than I am.

166

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

167
OSBORNE:
He's up in the front line at present,
relief.

looking after the

He's a splendid chap.

RALEIGH:
Isn't he?

He was skipper of Rugger at Barford, and kept

wicket for the eleven.

A jolly good bat, too.

OSBORNE:
Did you play Ruggerand cricket?
RALEIGH:
Oh, yes. Of course, I wasn't in the sarae class as Dennis
I say, I suppose I ought to call hira Captain Stanhope?
OSBORNE:
Just "Stanhope."
RALEIGH:
I see. Thanks.
OSBORNE:
Did you get your colours?
RALEIGH:
I did for Rugger.

Not cricket.

OSBORNE:
Rugger and cricket seera a long way frora here.

168

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 iights his pipe.

TECHNICAL CUES

169
RALEIGH:
They do, rather.
OSBORNE:
We play a bit of soccer when we're out of the line.
RALEIGH:
Goodl
OSBORNE:
So you were at school with Stanhope.
remember you?

I wonder if he'll

I expect you've grown in the last three

years.
RALEIGH:
Oh, I think he'll remeraber rae. You see, it wasn't only
that we were just at school together; our fathers were
friends, and Dennis used to corae and stay with us in the
holidays.

Of course, at school I didn't see rauch of hira,

but in the holidays we were terrific pals.

OSBORNE:
He's a fine corapany coraraander.
RALEIGH:
I bet he is.

Last tirae he was on leave he carae down to the

school; he'd just got his M.C. and been raade a captain.
"~sort ofraade rae feel

It

170

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

171
OSBORNE:
keen?
RALEIGH:
Yes. Keen to get out here.
into Dennis's regiraent.

I was frightfully keen to get

I thought, perhaps, with a bit of

luck Iraightget to the same battalion.

OSBORNE:
It's a big fluke to have got to the sarae corapany.
RALEIGH:
I know.

It's an araazing bit of luck.

base I did an awful thing.

When I was at the

You see,rayuncle's at the base

he has to detail officers to regiraents

OSBORNE:
General Raleigh?
RALEIGH:
Yes. I went to see hira on the quiet and asked hira if he
could get rae into this battalion.

He bit ray head off, and

said I'd got to be treated like everybody else

OSBORNE:
Yes?

172

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

173
RALEIGH:
emd next day I was told I was coming to this battalion.
Funny, wasn't it?
OSBORNE:
Extraordinary coincidencel
RALEIGH:
And when I got to Battalion Headquarters, and the Colonel
told me to report to "C" Company, I could have cheered.
expect Dennis'll be frightfully surprised to see me.

I've

got a message for him.

OSBORNE:
From the Colonel?
RALEIGH:
No. From my sister.
OSBORNE:
Your sister?
RALEIGH:
Yes. You see, Dennis used to stay with us, and naturally
ly sisterwellperhaps I ought not
OSBOR E:
That's all right.

I didn't actually know that Stanhope

174

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 begins looking at a
raap.

TECHNICAL CUES

175
RALEIGH:
They're n o t e r o f f i c i a l l y

engaged

OSBORNE:
No?

RALEIGH:
She'll be awfully glad I'ra here with hira; I can write and
tell her all about hira.

He doesn't say rauch in his letters;

can we write often?

OSBORNE:
Oh, yes.

Letters are collected every day.

RALEIGH:
I see, thanksl

^You don't think Dennis'11 raind raysort

offorcing rayself into his corapany?

I never thought of

that; I was so keen.

OSBORNE:
No, of course he won't.

You say it'sit's a good tirae

since you last saw hira?

RALEIGH:
Let's see.
ago.

It was in the suraraer last yearnearly a year

176

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Rl drops his cigarette

and stomps it out.

TECHNICAL CUES

177
OSBORNE:
You know, R a l e i g h , you m u s t n ' t e x p e c t t o f i n d

himquite

the same.
RALEIGH:
Oh?
OSBORNE:
You see, he's been out here a long tirae.

I t i t tells on

a manrather badly
RALEIGH:
Yes, of course, I suppose it does.
OSBORNE:
You may find he'she's a little bit quick-tempered.
RALEIGH:
Oh, I know old Dennis's teraperl

I reraeraber once at school

he caught sorae chaps in a study with a bottle of whiskey.

Lordl the roof nearly blew off.
with a cricket-sturap.

He gave thera a dozen each

He was so keen on the fellows in

the house keeping fit. He was frightfully down on sraok(1)

ing 'and that sort of thing.
OSBORNE:
You must reraeraber he's coraraanded this corapany for a long
timethrough all sorts of rotten tiraes.

It'sit's a

178

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 X to DL dug-out then
turns to face Rl.

(2)

0 points to the beds.

(3)

Rl stands up.

TECHNICAL CUES

179
big strain on a raan.
RALEIGH:
Oh, itraustbe.
OSBORNE:
If you notice adifference in Stanhopeyou'll know it's
only the strain.
RALEIGH:
Oh, yes.
OSBORNE:
'NOW, lets see.

'We've got five beds hereone each.

Two in here and three in that dug-out there.

I'ra afraid

you'll have to wait until the others corae in and pick the
beds they want.
RALEIGH:
RightoI
OSBORNE:
Have you got a blanket?
RALEIGH:
Yes, in my pack. ^ '
OSBORNE:
Better wait and unpack when you know where you are sleeping

180

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 X to table and sits on

box DL.

TECHNICAL CUES

181
RALEIGH:
Rightol
OSBORNE:
We never undress when we're in the line.

You can take off

your boots now and then in the daytirae, but it's better to
keep pretty well dressed always.
RALEIGH:
I see.

Thanks.
OSBORNE:

I expect we shall each do about three hours on duty at a

time and then six off.

We all go on duty at stand-to.

That's at dawn and at dusk.

RALEIGH:
Yes.
OSBORNE:
I expect Stanhope'll send you on duty with one of us at
firsttill you get used to it.
RALEIGH:
Are we in the front line here?
OSBORNE:
No. That's the support line outside.
about fifty yards farther on.

The front line's

182

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

CD

Rl X UL of bed.

C2)

Rl X to trench door.

TECHNICAL CUES

183
RALEIGH:
(1) How frightfully quiet it isl

OSBORNE:
It's often quietlike this.
RALEIGH:
I thought there would be an awful row hereall the tirae.
OSBORNE:
Most people think that.
RALEIGH:
I've never known anything so quiet as those trenches we
came by; just now and then I heard the rifle firing, like
the range at Bisley, and a sort of rurable in the distance.
OSBORNE:
Those are the guns up northup Wipers way.

The guns are

always going up there; it's never quiet like this.

I ex-

pect it's all very strange to you?

RALEIGH:
(2)
It'sit's not exactly what I thought.
this quiet that seeras so funny.

It's just this

OSBORNE:
A hundred yards frora here the Gerraans are sitting in their
dug-outs, thinking how quiet it is.

184

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1) Rl X to UR corner of
the table.

TECHNICAL CUES

185
RALEIGH:
Are they as near as that?
OSBORNE:
About a hundred yards.
RALEIGH:
It seemsuncanny.

Itraakesraefeel we'rewe're all just

waiting for soraething.

OSBORNE:
We are, generally, just waiting for soraething.
thing happens, it happens quickly.

When any-

Then we just start

waiting again.
RALEIGH:
I never thought it was like that.
OSBORNE:
You thought it was fighting all the tirae?
RALEIGH:
Well, yes, in a way.
OSBORNE:
Did you corae up by trench tonightor over the top?
RALEIGH:
By trench.

An araazing trenchturning and twisting for

niiles, over a sort of plain.

186

MOVZMENT AriD BUSINESS

Cl)

Rl sits on DR bed.

(2)

M enters UR and begins

setting the table.

TECHNICAL CUES

187
OSBORNE:
Lancer's Alley, it's called.
RALEIGH:
Is it?

It's funny the way it beginsin that ruined vil-

lage, a few steps down in the cellar of a housethen right

under the house and through a little gardenand then under
the garden wallthen alongside an enorraous ruined factory
placethen railes and railes of plains, with those green
lights bobbing up and down aheadall along the front as
far as you can see.
OSBORNE:
Those are the "Verey" lights.

Both sides fire them over

No-Man's Landto watch for raids and patrols.

RALEIGH:
T knew they fired lights.

I didn't expect so manyand to

see them so far away.

OSBORNE:
I know.

There's soraething rather roraantic about it all.

RALEIGH:
Yes.

I thought that, too. ^ '

OSBORNE:
You must always think of it like that if you can.
of it all asroraantic.

Think

188

V".

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

CD

Rl stands

C2) Rl sits.

TECHNICAL CUES

189
MASON:
D'you expect the captain soon, sir?

the soup*s 't.

OSBORNE:
He ought to be here very soon now.

^ ^This is Mr. Raleigh,

flson.
MASON:
Good evening, sir.
RALEIGH:
^

(2)

Good e v e n i n g .
MASON:
I've 'ad r a t h e r a u n p l e a s a n t s u r p r i s e ,

sir.

OSBORNE:
What's happened?
MASON:
You know t h a t t i n o ' p i n e a p p l e chunks I g o t ,

sir?

OSBORNE:
Yes?
MASON:

Well, s i r , l'ra s o r r y t o s a y i t ' s

apricots.

OSBORNE:
Good Heavensl

I t raust have g i v e n you a t u r n .

MASON:
I i s t i n c t l y s a i d " P i n e a p p l e chunks" a t t h e c a n t e e n .

190

191
OSBORNE:
Wasn't there a label on the tin?
MASON:
No, sir.

I pointed that out to the raan. I said was 'e cer-

tain it was pineapple chunks?

OSBORNE:
I suppose he said he was.
MASON:
Yes, sir.

'E said a leopard can't change its spots, sir.

OSBORNE:
What have leopards got to do with pineapple?
MASON:
That's just what I^ thought, sir.
something fishy about it.

Made rae think there was

You see, sir, I know the Captain

can't stand the sight of apricots.

'E said next tirae we

'ad thera 'e'd wring ray neck.

OSBORNE:
Haven't you anything else?
MASON:
There's a pink blancmange I've made, sir.
anywhere near stiff yet.

But it ain't

192

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

M exits to UR dug-out.

(2)

Rl X to UR of the DR
bed and 0 x to the
boxes DL.

(3)

S enters frora the

trench, x DL and puts
down his pack.

(4)

T enters from the

trench, x to bed UL,
sits, and puts down
two packs.

(5)

0 points to UR dug-out

TECHNICAL CUES

193
OSBORNE:
Never mind.

We must have the apricots and chance it.

MASON:
Only I thought I'd tell you, sir, so as the captain wouldn't
blame me.
OSBORNE:
All right, Mason.

That sounds like the captain now.

MASON:
I'll go and dish out the soup, sir.^ '

^'

STANHOPE:
^"^^Has Hardy gone?^"*^
OSBORNE:
Yes.

He cleared off a few rainutes ago.

STANHOPE:

Lucky for hira he did.

Hardy.

I had a few words to say to Master

You never saw the blasted raess those fellows left

the trenches in.

Dug-outs sraell like cess-pits; rusty

bombs; darap rifle grenades; its perfectly foul.

the servants?
OSBORNE:
in there.

Where are

194

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

U)

S X to table and lights

a cigarette-

(2)

0 points toward Rl.

(3)

Rl steps forward as S
X to Rl. S stops.

TECHNICAL CUES

195
STANHOPE:
^^^Hi

Masonl
MASON:

Coming, sirl

Just bringing the soup, sir.

STANHOPE:
Damn the soupl

Bring sorae whiskeyl

OSBORNE:
(2)
^ 'Here's a new officer, Stanhopejust arrived.
STANHOPE:
(3)
Oh, sorry.

I didn't see you in this raiserable light,

RALEIGH:
Hullo, Stanhopel
STANHOPE:
How did youget here?
RALEIGH:
I was told to report to your corapany, Stanhope.
STANHOPE:
Oh, I see.

Rather a coincidence.

RALEIGH:
Yes.

196

^ ^

MOVEMENT A>JD BUSINESS

Cl)

S X to table and sits on

UC box.

(2)

0 X to table and sits on

DL box.

(3)

S points to DR bed.

(4)

Rl X to table.

(5)

T pulls bed to the table, seats Rl, then

seats himself.

TECHNICAL CUIJS

197
OSBORNE:
I say, Stanhope, it's a terrible business.

We thought we'd

got a tin of pineapple chunks; it turns out to be apricots.

TROTTER:
Hal

Give rae apricots every timel

I 'ate chunks; too bloom-

in' sticky for rael

RALEIGH:
I'm awfully glad I got to your corapany, Stanhope.
STANHOPE:
When did you get here?
OSBORNE:
He came up with the transport while you were taking over.
STANHOPE:
I see. ^

^ 'Come along, Unclel

You better sit there, Raleigh.

RALEIGH:
(4)
^^Rightl
TROTTER:
You Raleigh?
RALEIGH
Yes.

Corae and sit here.

198

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

M enters UR with whiskey

raugs, then exits UR.

(2)

M enters UR with soup

bowels,x to table and
serves S, Rl, and T.
Then M x to left of the
table and serves 0.

TECHNICAL CUES

199
TROTTER:
I'm Trotter.
RALEIGH:
Oh, yes?
TROTTER:
How are you?
RALEIGH:
Oh, all right, thanks.
TROTTER:
Been out 'ere before?
RALEIGH:
No.
TROTTER:
Feel a b i t odd,

s'pose?

RALEIGH:
Yes.

A bit.

TROTTER:
Oh, well, you'll soon get used to it; you'll feel you've
been 'ere a year in about an hour's tirae.
OSBORNE:
What kind of soup is this, Mason?

200

MOVEMENT AND BUSIMESS

TECHNICAL CUES

201
MASON:
It's yellow soup, sir.
OSBORNE:
It's got a very deep yellow flavour.
TROTTER:
It wants sorae pepper; bring sorae pepper, Mason.
MASON:
I'm very sorry, sir.

When the raess box was packed the pep-

per was oraitted, sir.

TROTTER:
Oh, I say, but daran itl
OSBORNE:
We must have pepper.

It's a disinfectant.

TROTTER:
You must have pepper in soupl
STANKOPE:
Why wasn't it packed, Mason?
MASON:
It it was missed, sir.
STANHOPE:
Why?

202

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

M X to UR dug-out entrance.

(2)

Soldier enters, x to
UR of table and stands
at attention.

(3)

Soldier x to trench
door.

TECHNICAL CUES

203
MASON:
Well, sir, I left it t o
STANHOPE:
Then I advise you never to leave it to anyone else again
unless you want to rejoin your platoon out there.
MASON:
I'mI'm very sorry, sir.
STANHOPE:
Send one of the signallers.
MASON:
Yes, sir.

Bert, you're wanted.

STANHOPE:
Do you know "A" Company Headquarters?
SOLDIER:
Yes, sir.
STANHOPE:
Go there at once and ask Captain Willis, with my corapliments, if he can lend rae a little pepper.
SOLDIER:
^3)
Very good, sir.

204

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

M X to soldier.

(2)

M exits to UR dug-out
and the soldier exits
to the trench.

(3)

M enters UR and begins

serving the cutlets.

TECHNICAL CUES

205
MASON:
^^A screw of p e p p e r , you a s k f o r .
OSBORNE:
We raust have pepper
TROTTER:
I meanafter a l l w a r ' s bad enough w i t h p e p p e r b u t war
without p e p p e r i t ' s i t ' s b l o o d y a w f u l l
OSBORNE:
What's i t l i k e

outside?

TROTTER:
(Juiet as an empty h o u s e .

T h e r e ' s a n a s t y n o i s e g o i n g on

up north.
OSBORNE:
Wipers, I e x p e c t .

I b e l i e v e t h e r e ' s t r o u b l e up t h e r e .

wish we knew raore o f w h a t ' s g o i n g o n .

TROTTER:
So do I .

S t i l l , ray w i f e r e a d s t h e p a p e r s e v e r y

raorning

and w r i t e s and t e l l s rae t h e news.

OSBORNE:
Hardy says t h e y had a l i v e l y tirae y e s t e r d a y .
Minnies r i g h t i n t h e t r e n c h .

^^^Vhat's t h i s ?

Three b i g

206

1 n T n

:iovE>!ENT

A^:D

TECKNICAL CUHS

3:;SINTE.::S

Cl)

M X t o UL o f

table.

(2)

M exits

(3)

0 s t u d i e s t h e raap.

t o UR d u g - o u t .

JL

207
MASON:
Meat, sir. ^ ^
TROTTER:
I know that.

What sort?

MASON:
Sort of cutlet, sir.
TROTTER:
Sort of cutlet, is it?

You know, Mason, there's cutlets

and cutlets.
MASON:
I know, sir; that one's a cutlet.
TROTTER:
Well, it won't let rae cut it.
MASON:
No, sir?
TROTTER:
That's a j o k e .
MASON:
Ohl

Right,

sir.^^^

OSBORNE:

There's a s o r t of r u i n raarked on t h i s raapjust in front

208

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

209
of here, in No-Man's Landcalled Beauvais Farm.
TROTTER:
That's what we saw sticking up, skipper.

I wondered what

it was.
STANHOPE:
Better go out and look at it tonight.
TROTTER:
I expect a nasty Gerraan'll 'op out of it and say "Ock der
Kaiser."

I 'ate ruins in No-Man's Land.

OSBORNE:
There's only about sixty yards of No-Man's Land, according
to this mapnarrower on the left, from the head of this
sap; only about fifty.
TROTTER:
Cheer up, skipper.

You do look glural

STANHOPE:
I'm tired.
OSBORNE:
I should turn in and get sorae sleep after supper.
STANHOPE:
I've got hours of work before I sleep.

210

MOVEME::T AND BUSIMESS

TECHNICAL CUES

211
OSBORNE:
I'll do the duty roll and see the sergeant-raajorand all
that.
STANHOPE:
That's all right, Uncle.

I'll see to it.

duty directly he's had supper.

Trotter goes on

You better go with hirato

learn.
RALEIGH:
Oh, right.
TROTTER:
Look ' e r e , s k i p p e r , i t ' s n e a r l y e i g h t now; c o u l d n ' t you
make i t

'alf-past?
STANHOPE:

No.

I t o l d H i b b e r t h e ' d be r e l i e v e d a t e i g h t .

take from e l e v e n t i l l

W i l l you

two, Uncle?

OSBORNE:
Right.
STANHOPE:
Hibbert can do frora two t i l l
till stand-to.

T h a t ' l l be a t

f o u r , and I ' l l go on frora t h e n

six.

TROTTER:
Well, boysl

'Ere we a r e f o r s i x d a y s a g a i n .

S i x bloorain'

212

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

213
eternal days.

That's a hundred and forty^four^hours; eight

thousand six 'undred and forty rainutes. That doesn't sound

so bad; we've done twenty of 'era already.

I've got an ideal

I'm going to draw a hundred and forty-four little circles

on a bit o' paper, and every hour I'ra going to black one
in; that'll raake the tirae go all right.
STANHOPE:
It's five to eight now.

You better go and relieve Hibbert.

Then you can corae back at eleven o'clock and black in three
of your bloody little circles.
TROTTER:
I 'aven't 'ad ray apricots yetl
STANHOPE:
We'll keep your apricots till you corae back.
TROTTER:
I never knew anything like a war for upsetting raeals. I'ra
always down for dooty in the raiddle of one.
STANHOPE:
That's because you never stop eating.
TROTTER:
Any'ow, let's 'ave sorae coffee.

Hil

Masonl

Coffeel

214

I I I

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

T rises, pushes the bed

back, X to UL bed, puts
on his belt.

(2)

Rl X UL. 0 X to DL bed
and sits.

(3)

T heips Rl dress.

(4)

Rl picks up his v/alking

stick, X to UL bed.

(5)

Rl puts the stick down.

215
MASON:
Coming, sirl
TROTTER:
' 'Well, I'll get dressed.

Come on Raleigh.

RALEIGH:
^^^Right.
TROTTER:

C3) Just wear your belt witb revolver case on it.

your revolver to shoot rats.
I'll show you.

Must have

And your gas maskcorae here

You wear it sort of tucked up under your

chin like a serviette.

RALEIGH:
Yes.

I was shown the way at horae.

TROTTER:

Now your hat.

stick.

That's right.

'You don't want a walking-

It gets in your way if you have to run fast.

RALEIGH:

Whyerdo you have to run fast?

TROTTER:
Oh, Lord, yes, oftenl

If you see a Minnie coraingthat's

^ big trench-raortar shell, you knowshort for Minnywefer

you see 'era corae right out of the Boche trenches, right up

216

MOVEMENT AND EUSINESS

(1)

M enters UR with pot

of coffee and pours
two cups.

(2)

M X to T and gives hira

a cup.

C3)

M gives the other cup

to Rl.

(4)

T gives the cup to M .

then Rl gives his cup
to M.

(5)

M exits UR dug-out and

Rl X to DL.

(6)

T X to UL corner of the
table.

TECHNICAL CUES

217
in the air, then down, down, down; and you have to judge it
and run like stink soraetimes.
MASON:
^^^Coffee, sir?
TROTTER:
^^'Thanks.
RALEIGH:
^^^Thanks.
TROTTER:
You might leave my apricots out, Mason.

Put 'era on a sepa-

rate plate and keep 'era in there.

MASON:
Very good, sir.
TROTTER:
If you bring 'era in "ere you never know what raight 'appen
to 'em.^^
MASON:
No, sir. ^^^
TROTTER:
'B" Company on our right, aren't they, skipper"

218

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

T and Rl exit to trench

(2)

M enters UR and x to
table.

TECHNICAL CUES

219
STANHOPE:
Yes.

There's fifty yards of undefended area between.

You

better patrol that a good deal.

TROTTER:
Aye, aye, sir.
STANHOPE:
Have a look at that Lewis gun position on the left.

See

what field of fire they've got.

TROTTER:
Right, sir.

By the way.

You don't want rae to go out and

look at that blinkin' ruin?

STANHOPE:
I'll see to that.
TROTTER:
Good.

I don't fancy crawling about on ray belly after that

cutlet.

Well, corae on, ray lad, let's go and see about this

'ere war.^^^
MASON:
(2) .
Will you t a k e a p r i c o t s ,
STANHOPE:
No, thanks.

sir?

220

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

M exits to UR dug-out.

C2)

0 X to UL bed and sits

C3)

S X to DR bed and sits

TECHNICAL CUES

221
MASON:
Mr. Osborne?
OSBORNE:
No, thanks.
MASON:
I'm sorry about thera being apricots, sir.

I explained to

Mr. Osborne
STANHOPE:
That's all right, Masonthank you.
MASON:
Very good, sir.
OSBORNE:
(2)
Will you sleep here?

This was Hardy's bed.

STANHOPE:
No.

You sleep there.

I'd rather sleep by the table here.

I can get up and work without disturbing you.

C3)

OSBORNE:
This is a better one.

STANHOPE:
You take it.
Uncle.

Must have a little corafort in your old age,

222

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl) Hb enters frora trench
and X to DL of the
table.
(2) Hb rubs his forehead.

TECHNICAL CUES

223
OSBORNE:
I wish you'd turn in and sleep for a bit.
STANHOPE:
Sleep?I can't sleep.

^^Well, Hibbert?

HIBBERT:
Everything's fairly quiet.

Bit of sniping soraewhere to our

left; sorae rifle grenades coraing just over on our right.

STANHOPE:
I see. Mason's got your supper.
HIBBERT:
I don't think I can raanage any supper tonight, Stanhope.
'lt's this beastly neuralgia.
side this eye.

It seeras to be right in-

The beastly pain gets worse every day.

STANHOPE:
Some hot soup and a good tough chop'll put that right.
HIBBERT:
I'm afraid the pain rather takes ray appetite away.

I'ra

damn sorry to keep on talking about it, Stanhope, only I

thought you'd wonder why I don't eat anything rauch.
STANHOPE:
Try and forget about it.

224

MOVEiMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

S points to DL dug-out

(2)

S stands and gives Hb

his pack.

(3)

Hb X to DL dug-out entrance, then x back to

the table.

(4)

S kicks a box out frora

under the table.

(5)

Hb gets a candle, then

exits to DL duQ-out.

TECHNICAL CUES

225
HIBBERT:
WellI wish I could.
STANHOPE:
Get tight.
HIBBERT:
I think I'll turn in for a restand try and get some sleep.
STANHOPE:
All right.

Turn in.

Here's your pack.

you at four.

'You're in that dug-out there.

You go on duty at two.

I'll tell Mason to call you.

HIBBERT:
Oh, r i g h t t h a n k s ,

S t a n h o p e c h e e r o . (3)

STANHOPE:
Cheero.
HIBBERT:
Can I have a c a n d l e ?
STANHOPE:
Here you a r e . ^^^
HIBBERT:
Thanks.^^

I take over from

226

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl) S X to table and sits
on UC box.

TECHNICAL CUES

227
STANHOPE:
^ 'Another little worra trying to wriggle home.
OSBORNE:
I wonder if he really is bad.

He looks rotten.

STANHOPE:
Pure bloody funk, that's all.

He could eat if he wanted

to; he's starving hiraself purposely.

Neuralgia's a splendid idea.

Artful little swinel

No proof, as far as I can

see.
OSBORNE:
You can't help feeling sorry for hira.

I think he's tried

hard.
STANHOPE:
How long's he been out here?

Three raonths, I suppose.

Now he's decided he's done his bit.

He's decided to go horae

and spend the rest of the war in corafortable nerve hospitals.

Well, he's raistaken. I let Warren get away like

that, but no raore.

OSBORNE:
I don't see how you can prevent a fellow going sick.
STANHOPE:
I'll have a quiet word with the doctor before he does.

He

228

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

229
thinks he's going to wriggle off before the attack.
just see about that.
the attack.

We'll

No raan of raine's going sick before

They're going to take an equal chanceto-

gether.
OSBORNE:
Raleigh looks a nice chap.
STANHOPE:
Yes.
OSBORNE:
Good-looking youngster.

At school with you, wasn't he?

STANHOPE:
Has he been talking already?
OSBORNE:
He just raentioned it.

It was a natural thing to tell rae

when he knew you were in coraraand.

get into your corapany.
STANHOPE:
Yes, i'm his hero.
OSBORNE:
It's quite natural.

He's awfully pleased to

He seeras to think a lot of you.

230

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECNICAL CUES

231
STANHOPE:
You think so?
OSBORNE:
Small boys at school generally have their heroes.
STANHOPE:
Yes.

Small boys at school do.

OSBORNE:

Often it goes on as long a s

STANHOPE:
as long as the hero's a hero.
OSBORNE:
It often goes on all through life.
STANHOPE:
I wonder.

How many battalions are there in France?

OSBORNE:
Why?
STANHOPE:
We'll say fifty divisions.

That's a hundred and fifty bri-

gadesfour hundred and fifty battalions.

sand eight hundred corapanies.

That's one thou-

There are over one thousand

sight hundred corapanies in France, Uncle.

Raleigh raight

232

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S takes his wallet frora

his breast pocket and
hands a photo to 0.

TECHNICAL CUES

233
have been sent to any one of those, and, my God he coraes
to mine.
OSBORNE:
You ought to be glad.

He's a good-looking youngster.

like him.
STANHOPE:
I knew you'd like him.

Personality, isn't it?

never shown you that, have I?

OSBORNE:
No.

Raleigh's sister, isn't it?

STANHOPE:

How did you know?

OSBORNE:
There's a strong likeness.
STANHOPE:
I suppose there is.
OSBORNE:
She's an awfully nice-looking girl.
STANHOPE:
A photo doesn't show much, really.

Just a face.

I've

234

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 hands photo to S.

(2)

S points to trench exit

TECHNICAL CUES

235
OSBORNE:
She looks awfully nice.

You're a lucky chap.

STANHOPE:
I don't know why I keep it, really.
OSBORNE:
Why?

Isn't sheI thought

STANHOPE:

What did you think?

OSBORNE:
Well, I thought perhaps she was waiting for you.
STANHOPE:
Yes.

She is waiting for raeand she doesn't know.

thinks I'ra a wonderful chapcoramanding a corapany.

She
'2)she

doesn't know that if I went up those steps into the front

linewithout being doped with whiskeyI'd go raad with
fright.
OSBORNE:
Look here, old raan. I've raeant to say it, for a long tirae,
but it sounds daraned cheek.

You've done longer out here

than any man in the battalion.

for a rest.

It's due to you.

It's tirae you went away

236

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S pours hiraself a drink

TECHNICAL CUES

237
STANHOPE:
You suggest that I go sick, like that little worm in there-neuralgia in the eye?
OSBORNE:
No. Not that.

The Colonel would have sent you down long

ago, only
STANHOPE:
Onlywhat?
OSBORNE:
Only he can't spare you.
STANHOPE:
Oh, rotl
OSBORNE:
He told me.
STANHOPE:
He thinks I'ra in such a state I want a rest, is that it?
OSBORNE:
No. He thinks it's due to you.

STANHOPE:
It's all right, Uncle.

I'll stick it out now.

But it's

rather damnable for that boyof all the boys in the world-

238

ii!

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

CD

S X two steps UR of
table.

(2)

S X back to UC box and

sits.

TECHNIC.^L CUES

239
-to have come to me.

I might at least have been spared

that.
OSBORNE:
You're taking rather a dull view of things.
STANHOPE:
I've just told you.

That boy's a hero-worshipper.

three years older than he is.

school.

I'm

You know what that raeans at

I was skipper of Rugger and all that sort of thing

It doesn't sound rauch out herebut it does with a kid of

fourteen.

Daran it, Uncle, you're a schoolraaster; you

know.
OSBORNE:
I've just told you what I think of hero-worship.
STANHOPE:
Raleigh's father knew raine, and I was told to keep an eye
on the kid.
that.

I raade him keen on the right thingsand all

His people asked rae to stay with thera one suraraer.

I met his sister then

OSBORNE:
Yes?
STANHOPE:
(2)
At f i r s t I t h o u g h t of her a s a n o t h e r k i d l i k e

Raleigh.

240

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S lights a cigarette.

C2)

S holds up his drink.

(3)

S finishes his drink

and pours another.

TECHNICAL CUES

241
It was just before I came out here for the first time that
I realized what a topping girl she was.
realize it suddenly.

Funny how you

I just prayed to come through the

warandand do thingsand keep absolutely fit for her.

OSBORNE:
You've done pretty well.

An M.C. and a corapany.

STANHOPE:
It was all right at first.

When I went home on leave after

six months it was jolly fine to feel I'd done a little to

make her pleased.

It was after I carae back herein that

awful affair on Viray Ridge.

break the strain.

I knew I'd go raad if I didn't

I couldn't bear being fully conscious

all the timeyou've felt that, Uncle, haven't you?

OSBORNE:
Yes, often.
STANHOPE:
There were two ways o f b r e a k i n g t h e s t r a i n .

One was p r e (2)

tending I was i l l a n d g o i n g home; t h e o t h e r was t h i s .

Which would you p i c k ,

Uncle?

OSBORNE:
I haven't been t h r o u g h a s much a s y o u .

I d o n ' t know y e t .

STANHOPE:
(3)
Well, t h e n .

C h e e r o , and l o n g l i v e t h e raen who go horae

242

A<^,

M0VEI4ENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

243
with neuralgia.

I didn't go home on my last leave.

couldn't bear to meet her, in case she realized

OSBORNE:
When the war's overand the strain's goneyou'll soon be
as fit as ever, at your age.
STANHOPE:
I've hoped that all the time.

I'd go away for raonths and

live in the open airand get fitand then go back to her,

OSBORNE:
And so you can.
STANHOPE:
If Raleigh had gone to one of those other one thousand
eight hundred corapanies.
OSBORNE:
I don't see why you should think
STANHOPE:
Oh, for Lord's sake don't be a daran fool.

You knowl

You

know he'll write and tell her I reek of whiskey all day.
OSBORNE:
Why should he?

He's not a

244

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

245
STANHOPE:
Exactly.

H e ' s n o t a damned l i t t l e

s w i n e who'd d e c e i v e h i s

sister.
OSBORNE:
He's very young; h e ' s g o t hundreds of s t r a n g e t h i n g s
learn; h e ' l l r e a l i z e t h a t men a r e d i f f e r e n t o u t

to

here.

STANHOPE:
I t ' s no good, U n c l e .

D i d n ' t you s e e him s i t t i n g t h e r e a t

supper?staring a t rae?and wondering?

H e ' s up i n t h o s e

trenches n o w s t i l l w o n d e r i n g a n d b e g i n n i n g t o understand.
And a l l t h o s e raonths h e ' s wanted t o be w i t h rae o u t h e r e .
Poor l i t t l e

devill

OSBORNE:
I b e l i e v e R a l e i g h w i l l go on l i k i n g youand l o o k i n g up t o
youthrough e v e r y t h i n g .

T h e r e ' s soraething v e r y d e e p , and

rather f i n e , about h e r o - w o r s h i p .
STANHOPE:
Hero-worship be daranedl
fool.

You know, U n c l e , I'ra an awful

im c a p t a i n of t h i s company.

that bloody l i t t l e p r i g o f a boy

3 l i t t l e prig.

What t h e

raatter?

D'you s e e ?

He's

Wants t o w r i t e home and t e l l Madge a l l

about rae. W e l l , he w o n ' t ; d ' y o u s e e , U n c l e ?

write.

hell's

Censorshipl

He w o n ' t

I censor h i s letterscross .out-all

246

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 stands.

(2)

0 X to DR bed, begins
to unpack S's pack.

(3)

0 X to S.

C4)

S shrugs away from 0.

(5)

0 again tries to lead

S.

(6)

S X to trench door.

TECHNICAL CUES

247
he says about me.
OSBORNE:
^ ' Y O U can't read his letters.
STANHOPE:
Cross out all he says about rae. Then we all go west in
the big attackand she goes on thinking I'ra a fine fellow
for everand e v e r a n d ever.
OSBORNE:
(2)
It's not as bad as all that.

Turn in and have a sleep.

STANHOPE:
Sleepl

Catch me wasting my time with sleep.

OSBORNE:
Come along, old chap.

You come and lie down here.

(3)

STANHOPE:
Little prigthat's what he is.
force his way into my company?
he'll pay for his damn cheek.

Did I ask for him to

Nol

I didn't.

^^^Go awayl

Very well,

What the hell

are you trying to do?

OSBORNE:
(5)
Come and l i e down and go t o

sleep.

STANHOPE:
(6)
Go s l e e p y ' s e l f .

I censor h i s l e t t e r s , d'you

see,

248

249
Uncle?

You watch. and see he doesn't smuggle any letters

away.
OSBORNE:
Righto.

' N O W come and lie down.

You've had a hard day

of it.
STANHOPE:

Where's Hardy?

D'you say he's gone?

OSBORNE:
Yes.

He's gone.
STANHOPE:

^^^Gone, had he?^^^

Hardy.

Y'know, I had a word to say to Master

He would go, the swinel

Dirty trencheseverything

dirtyI wanner tell him to keep his trenches clean.

OSBORNE:
We'll clean thera up toraorrow.
STANHOPE:
(4)
Dear old Unclel Clean up trencheswith a little dustpan and brush. Make you little apronwith lace on it.
OSBORNE:
That'll be fine.

Now then, corae along, old chap.

you get called at two o'clock.

You raust be tired.

I'll see

250

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

S lies down.

C2)

0 covers S with a blanket.

(3)

0 puts a pack under

S's head.

(4)

0 pulls blanket up under

S's chin.

(5)

0 X to UR dug-out.

(6)

M enters from UR dugout.

TECHNICAL CUES

251
STANHOPE:
^^^God, I'm bloody tired; acheall overfeel sick.
OSBORNE:
^^You'll feel all right in a minute.

^ ' H O W ' S that?

Cora-

fortable?
STANHOPE:

Yes.

Comfortable.

Dear old Uncle.

Tuck me up.

OSBORNE:
(4)
^ 'There we are.
STANHOPE:
Kiss me, Uncle.
OSBORNE:
Kiss you be blowedl

You go to sleep.

STANHOPE:
YesI go sleep.
OSBORNE:
^^^Masoni
MASON:
^^^Yessir?
OSBORNE:
Will you call me at ten rainutes to elevenand Mr. Hibbert

252

MOVEMENT AND BUSINES3

(1)

0 X to UL bed.

C2)

M X to UL bed, picks up
packs and takes thera
to the DL dug-out;
returns, x to the
table and blows out the
candle.

(3)

M exits UR dug-out.

TECHNICAL CUES
CS4)

War sounds fade in

slowly.

(L4)

Lights dira.

(C2)

Curtain closes raediura

slow.

(L5)

House lights up.

(S5)

War sounds fade out.

253
at ten m i n u t e s t o two?

Im g o i n g t o t u r n i n f o r a

while.
MASON:
Very good, s i r .

The p e p p e r ' s come,

sir.

OSBORNE:
Oh, good.
MASON:
I'm very s o r r y about t h e p e p p e r ,
OSBORNE:
' h a t ' s a l l r i g h t , Mason.
MASON:
Good n i g h t , s i r . ^^^
OSBORNE:
(3)

Good n i g h t .

(34)
(L4)
(C2)
(L5)
(S5)

sir.

little

254

MOVEENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

M places piates on the

table, starts to exit.
0 sits on UC box and
Rl sits on box DL of
table. T enters from
trench. o and Rl are
eating. There is jara
and bread on the table

TECHNICAL CUES
(L6)

House lights dim.

(S6)

War sounds fade in as

house iights dira.

(C3)

Curtain opens raedium

slow.

(L7)

General illumination
fades in.

CS7)

Battle sounds fade out.

255

ACT TWO
Scene One

(L6)
(S6)
(C3)
CL7)
(S7)
TROTTER:
'What a lovely sraell of baconl

MASON:
Yes, sir.

I reckon there's enough sraell of bacon in ' ere

to last for dinner.

TROTTER:
Well, there's nothing like a good fat bacon rasher when
you're as erapty as I ara.

MASON:
I'm glad you like it fat, sir.

TROTTER:
Well, I like a bit o' lean, too.

MASON:
There was a bit of lean in the raiddle of yours, sir, but

256

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl) T X to table, pulls
up the bed, sits and
takes off his gun belt
(2) M exits to UR dug-out.

TECHNICAL CUES

257
it's kind of shrunk up in the cooking.

TROTTER:
^ 'Bad cooking, that's all.

Any porridge?

MASON:
Oh, yes, sir.

There's porridge.

TROTTER:
Lumpy, I s'pose?
MASON:
Yes, sir.

Quite nice and lumpy.

TROTTER:
Well, take the luraps out o' raine.
MASON:
And just bring you the gravy, sir?

Very good, sir.

TROTTER:
You know, that raan's getting familiar.

OSBORNE:
He's not a bad cook.

TROTTER:
I say, d'you realize he's washed his dish-cloth?

(2)

258

MOVEMENT AND BoSI^IESS

(1)

M enters UR and puts

porridge into T's bowl

(2)

M exits UR dug-out.

TECHNICAL CUES

259
OSBORNE:
I know.

I told him about it.

TROTTER:
Did you really?

You've got sorae pluck.

'Ow did you go

about it?
OSBORNE:
I wrote and asked ray wife for a packet of Lux.

Then I

gave it to Mason and suggested he tried it on soraething.

TROTTER:
Good man.

No, he's not a bad cook as cooks go.

a lot worse.

Might be

When I was in the ranks we 'ad a prize cook-

-used to be a pluraber before the war.

the stew 'e raade. Thinl

Ought to 'ave seen

Thin wasn't the word.

Put a

bucketful of ' is stew in a bath and pull the plug, and the
whole lot would go down in a couple of gurgles.
MASON:
I've took the lumps out.
TROTTER:
Good.

Keep 'em and use 'era for duraplings next time we

'ave boiled beef.

MASON:
Very good, sir.^^^

260

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

261
TROTTER:
Yes.

That plumber was a prize cook, 'e was.

Lucky for us,

one day 'e set 'imself on fire making the tea.

properly fried.

'E went 'ome

Did Mason get the pepper?

OSBORNE:
Yes.
TROTTER:
Good.

Must 'ave pepper.

OSBORNE:

I thought you were on duty now.

TROTTER:
I'm supposed to be.
fast.

Stanhope sent rae down to get ray break-

He's looking after things till I finish.

OSBORNE:

He's got a long job, then.

TROTTER:
Oh, no.

I'm a quick eater.

MASON:
Coming, sirl
OSBORNE:
It's a wonderful morning.

Hil

Masonl

Baconl

262

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

M enters UR and gives

T some bacon.

C2)

T pokes at the bacon.

C3)

T again pokes at the

bacon.

(4)

M exits UR dug-out.

(5)

0 cuts the bread and

gives a piece to T.

TECHNICAL CUES

263
TROTTER:
Isn't it lovely?

Makes you feel sort of young and 'opeful

I was up in that old trench under the brick wall just now,
and damned if a blocMnin' little bird didn't start singingl
^^Didn't 'arf sound funny.

Sign of spring, I s'pose.

That looks all right.

MASON:
If you look down straight on it frora above, sir, you can
see the bit o' lean quite clear.
TROTTER:
Good Lord, yes.

^^^That's it, isn't it?

MASON:
No, sir; that's a bit o' rust off the pan.
TROTTER:
Ahl

^-^^That's it, thenl

MASON:

You've got it, sir. ^^^

TROTTER:
Cut us a chunk of bread, Uncle.
OSBORNE:
5)u
now are thmgs going up there?

264

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 passes the jara to T.

TECHNICAL CUES

265
TROTTER:
I don't like the look of things a bit.
OSBORNE:
You meanthe quiet?
TROTTER:
Yes.

Standing up there in the dark last night there didn't

seem a thing in the world aliveexcept the rats squeaking

and my stomach grumbling about that cutlet.
OSBORNE:
It's quiet even now.
TROTTER:
Too damn quiet.

You can bet your boots the Boche is up to

something.

The big attack soon, I reckon.

it, Uncle.

Pass the jara.

I don't like

OSBORNE:
It's strawberry.
TROTTER:
Is it?

I'ra glad we've got rid o' that raspberry jara.

Can't stand raspberry jara.

Pips get behind your plate.

OSBORNE:
Did Stanhope tell you he wants two wiring parties out tonight?

266

MOVEMENT AND BUSiyESS

TECIi\'ICAL CUES

267
TROTTER:
Yes.

He's fixing it up now.

My goodness, Uncle, doesn't

he look illl
OSBORNE:
I'm afraid he's not well.
TROTTER:
Nobody'd be well who went on like he does.

You know when

you came up to relieve rae last night?

OSBORNE:
Yes?
TROTTER:
Well, Raleigh and rae carae back here, and tbere was Stanhope
sitting on that bed drinking a whiskey.
as a sheet.

God, he looked awful; he'd drunk the bottle

since dinner.
who I was.

He looked as white

I said "'UlloI" and he didn't seera to know

Uncanny, wasn't it, Raleigh?

RALEIGH:
Yes.
TROTTER:
He j u s t s a i d ,

" B e t t e r go t o b e d , R a l e i g h " j u s t a s i f Ra-

leigh'd been a s c h o o l

kid.

268

MCVE:-IE::T AND B U S I M E S S

(1)

TECHNICAL CUES

0 X to trench door.

269
OSBORNE:
^^^Did he?

Look at the sun.

It'll be quite warra soon.

TROTTER:
It's warra now.

You can feel it on your face outside if

you stand in it.

First time this year.

'Ope we 'ave an

'ot suramer.
OSBORNE:
So do I.
TROTTER:
Funny about that bird.

Made rae feel quite braced up.

Sort of raade rae think about ray garden of an eveningwalking round in rae slippers after supper, sraoking rae pipe.
OSBORNE:
You keen on gardening?
TROTTER:
Oh, I used to do a bit of an evening.

I 'ad a decent lit-

tle grass plot in front, with flower-bordersgeraniuras,

lobelia, and calceolariayou know, red, white, and blue.
Lovely.

OSBORNE:
Yes.

270

MOVEMENT AMD BUSINESS

Cl)

T takes out his wallet

and takes a photo out.

(2)

0 X to table and sits

on UC box.

(3)

T x to O and points at
photo.

TECHNICAL CUES

271
TROTTER:
'Ad some fine 'olly'ocks out the back.
eight feet 'igh.

Took a photer of it.

One year I 'ad one

'Like to look

at it?
OSBORNE:
(2)I would.

By Jove, it's a beauty.

TROTTER:
'Ere.

Raleigh, 'olly'ock.

(3)
You see that, just there?

OSBORNE:
Yes?
TROTTER:
That's the roof of the sumraer-'ouse.
OSBORNE:
Is it really?
TROTTER:
Just shows the ' ite of the 'olly'ock
OSBORNE:
It does.
RALEIGH:
Ratherl

272

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

T X back
sits.

to

DR b e d

and

'ECHNICAL CUES

273
TROTTER:
It never wanted no stick to keep it straight, neether. ^ '
You keen on gardening?
OSBORNE:
Yes.

A bit.

I raade a rockery when I was horae on leave.

I used to cycle out to the woods and get prirarose and

things like that, and try to get ' era to grow in ray garden.
TROTTER:
I don't suppose they would!
OSBORNE:
They would if you pressed a bit of raoss round them
TROTTER:
to make 'era feel at 'orae, eh.?
OSBORNE:
They'll be coraing out again soon if they've got this sun
at home.
TROTTER:
I reckon they will.

I reraeraber one raorning last spring

we was coraing out of the salient.

Just when it was getting

light in the raorningit was the tirae when the Boche was
sending over a lot of that gas that srae-lls like pear-drops,
you know?

274

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cll

T stands, pushes the

bed back and buttons
his coat.

(2)

T puts on his gas mask

and helmet and gun.

(3)

T exits into the trench

TECHNICAL CUES

275
OSBORNE:
I know.

Phosgene.

TROTTER:
That's it.

We were scared to hell of it.

All of a sudden

we smelt that funny sweet smell, and a fellow shouted "Gasl"

~and we put on our masks; and then I spotted what it was.
OSBORNE:
What was it?
TROTTER:
Why, a blinkin' raay-treel All out in bloora, growing beside
the pathl

We did feel a lot of silly poopsputting on

gas masks because of a damn may-treel

go and relieve Stanhope.

Well, I better

He'll curse like hell if I don't.

I bet he's got a red-hot liver this morning.

OSBORNE:
I relieve you at eleven.
TROTTER:
That's right.

^^^I don't like this time of day in the line.

The old Boche 'as just 'ad 'is breakfast, and sends over a
few whiz-bangs and rifle grenades to show 'e ain't forgotten us.
damn quiet.

Still, I'd rather 'ave a bang or two than this

Cheerol^^^

276

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

277
OSBORNE:
CheeroI
RALEIGH:
CheeroI
OSBORNE:
I expect Stanhope'll let you go on duty alone now.
RALEIGH:
Will he?

About what tirae?

OSBORNE:
Well, after rae, I expect.

From about two till four.

RALEIGH:
I see.
OSBORNE:
What do you think about it all?
RALEIGH:
Oh, all right, thanks.

I feel I've been here ages.

OSBORNE:
I expect you do.

The tirae passes, though.

RALEIGH:
Are we here for six days?

278

:>^.GVEMENT AND B U S I N E S S
Cl)

0 fills his pipe.

TECHNICAL CUES

279
OSBORNE:
Yes.

Seems a long time, doesn't it?

RALEIGH:

It does rather.

I can't imaginethe end of six days here

OSBORNE:
' Anyhow, we've done twelve hours already.

It's fine when

you are relieved and go down the line to the billets, and
have a good hot bath, and sit and read under the trees.
RALEIGH:
Good Lord, I feel I haven't seen a tree for agesnot a
real tree, with leaves and branchesand yet I've only been
here twelve hours.
OSBORNE:
How did you feelin the front line?
RALEIGH:
Oh, all right.

It seemed so frightfully quiet and uncanny-

-everybody creeping about and talking in low voices.

suppose you've got to talk quietly when you're so near the

German front lineonly about seventy yards, isn't it?
OSBORNE:
Yes. About the breadth of a Rugger field.

280

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

281
RALEIGH:
It's funny to think of it like that.
OSBORNE:
I always measure distances like that out here.

Keeps thera

in proportion.
RALEIGH:
Did you play Rugger?
OSBORNE:
Yes.

But raostly reffing at school in the last few years.

RALEIGH:

Are you a schoolmaster, then?

OSBORNE:
Yes.

I must apologize.
RALEIGH:

Oh, I don't raind schoolraasters.

one outside a school.
OSBORNE:
They do get out soraetiraes.
RALEIGH:
Who did you play for?

I I raean, I never raet

282

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

0 lights his pipe.

TECHNICAL CUES

283
OSBORNE:
The H a r l e q u i n s .
RALEIGH:
Did you?
OSBORNE:
^ ' l played f o r t h e E n g l i s h team on one g r e a t o c c a s i o n .
RALEIGH:
Whatl

For Englandl
OSBORNE:

I was a w f u l l y l u c k y t o g e t th.e c h a n c e .

I t ' s a long tirae

ago now.
RALEIGH:
Oh, but, good Lordl

t h a t must have been s i m p l y t o p p i n g .

Where did you p l a y ?

OSBORNE:
Wing t h r e e .
RALEIGH:
I say, I I n e v e r r e a l i z e d y o u ' d p l a y e d f o r England.
OSBORNE:
Tuppence t o t a l k t o rae nowl

Anyhow, d o n ' t b r e e z e i t

about

284

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

0 relights his pipe.

TECHNICAL CUES

285
RALEIGE:
Don't the others know?
OSBORNE:
We never talk about Rugger.
RALEIGH:
They ought to know.

It'd make them feel jolly bucked.

OSBORNE:
' It doesn't make much difference out herel
RALEIGH:
It must be awfully thrilling, playing in front of a huge
crowdall shouting and cheering
OSBORNE:
You don't notice it when the game begins.
RALEIGH:
You're too taken up with the game?
OSBORNE:
Yes.
RALEIGH:
I used t o g e t wind up p l a y i n g a t s c h o o l w i t h o n l y a few
kids looking o n .

286

MOVEMENT Ai^'D BUSINESS

Cl)

O picks up a piece of
paper.

(2)

Rl lights a cigarette

TECHNICAL CUES

287
OSBORNE:
You n o t i c e i t raore when t h e r e a r e o n l y a few.

^^Look a t

thisl
RALEIGH:
What i s

it?
OSBORNE:

T r o t t e r ' s p l a n t o raake t h e t i m e p a s s q u i c k l y .

One hundred

and f o r t y - f o u r l i t t l e c i r c l e s o n e f o r each hour o f

days.

He's b l a c k e d i n s i x a l r e a d y .

six

H e ' s s i x hours behind

RALEIGH:
I t ' s r a t b e r a good i d e a .

I like

Trotter.

OSBORNE:
He's a good c h a p .
RALEIGH:
He makes t h i n g s

feelnatural.

OSBORNE:
He's a genuine s o r t of chapRALEIGH:
That's i t .
for Englandl

He's genuine.

^^^How t o p p i n g t o have played

288

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

289
OSBORNE:
It was rather fun.
RALEIGH:
The Germans are really quite decent, aren't they?

I mean,

outside the newspapers?

OSBORNE:
Yes.

I remember up at Wipers we had a man shot down when

he was out on patrol.

in that night.

Just at dawn.

We couldn't get hira

He lay out there groaning all day.

night three of our raen crawled out to get hira in.

Next
It was

so near the Gerraan trenches they could have shot our fellows one by one.

But, when our raen began dragging the

wounded raan back over the rough ground, a big Geinnan officer stood up in their trenches and called out:

"Carry

himl"and our fellows stood up and carried the raan back,

and the Gerraan officer fired sorae lights for thera to see
by.
RALEIGH:
Reallyl
OSBORNE:
Next day we blew e a c h o t h e r ' s t r e n c h e s t o b l a z e s .
RALEIGH:
It a l l seeras r a t h e r s i l l y ,

doesn't

it?

290

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Rl exits DL dug-out as
S enters frora the
trench.

(2)

S takes off his helraet,

TECHNICAL CUES

291
OSBORNE:
It does, rather.
RALEIGH:
I started a letter when I came off duty last night.

How

do we send letters?
OSBORNE:
The Quarterraaster-Sergeant takes them down after he brings
rations up in the evenings.
RALEIGH:
I think I'll go and finish it nowif I go on duty soon.
OSBORNE:
Come and write it in here.

It's raore cheery.

RALEIGH:
It's all right, thanks; I'ra quite corafortable in there.
I've rigged up a sort of little table beside ray bed.
OSBORNE:
Righto. ^^^
STANHOPE:
(2)
What a f o u l sraell o f b a c o n .
OSBORNE:
Yes.

We've g o t bacon f o r

breakfast.

292

MOVEMENT AND BU3INESS

Cl)

S X to table.

(2)

S X to DL dug-out.

(3)

Rl enters.

(4)

Rl exits to DL dug-out.

(5)

S X to the table, pulls

up the DR bed and sits
down.

TECHNICAL CUES

293
STANHOPE:
^''So I g a t h e r .

Have you t o l d R a l e i g b about r i f l e

inspec-

tion?
OSBORNE:
No.
STANHOPE:
^^^Raleighl
RALEIGH:

STANHOPE:
You i n s p e c t your p l a t o o n ' s r i f l e s a t n i n e

o'clock.

RALEIGH:
Oh, r i g h t o , S t a n h o p e . ^ '
STANHOPE:
I've arranged two w i r i n g p a r t i e s t o b e g i n a t e i g h t

o'-

clock t o n i g h t C o r p o r a l Burt w i t h two raen and Sergeant

Smith with two.

I want t o s t r e n g t h e n t h e w i r e a l l

the f r o n t .
OSBORNE:
I t ' s very weak a t

present.

along

294

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

M enters UR and x to
table.

(2)

M exits UR dug-out.

TECHNICAL CUES

295
STANHOPE:
Every company l e a v e s i t f o r t h e n e x t one t o d o .

There's

great h o l e s blown o u t weeks a g o .

OSBORNE:
I know.
STANHOPE:

Next n i g h t w e ' l l s t a r t p u t t i n g a b e l t of w i r e down both

flanks.
OSBORNE:
Down the f l a n k s l
STANHOPE:
Yes.

We'll wire o u r s e l v e s i n .

I f t h i s a t t a c k coraes I'm

not going t o t r u s t t h e corapanies on our s i d e s t o h o l d

their ground.
MASON:
Would you l i k e a n i c e b i t o ' b a c o n ,
STANHOPE:
No, thanks.

I'll

MASON:
Right, s i r . ^ 2 )

have a cup of

tea.

sir?

296

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

297
STANHOPE:
I've been having a good look around.

We've got a strong

position hereif we wire ourselves in.

The Colonel's

been talking to me up there.

OSBORNE:
Oh. Has he been round?
STANHOPE:
Yes.

He says a German prisoner gave the day of attack as

the twenty-first.
OSBORNE:
That's Thursday?
STANHOPE:
Yes. Today's Tuesday.
OSBORNE:
That means about dawn the day after toraorrow.
STANHOPE:
The second dawn frora now.
OSBORNE:
Then it'll corae while we're here.
STANHOPE:
Yes.

it'll corae while we're here.

And we shall be in the

298

MOVEMENT A^:D B U S I N E S S
(1)

M enters UR with tea.

(2)

M exits UR dug-out.

TECKNICAL CUES

299
front row of t h e

stalls.

OSBORNE:
Oh, w e l l
MASON:
^ ^Would you l i k e a n i c e p l a t e o f s a r d i n e s ,

sir?

STANHOPE:
I should l o a t h e

it.

MASON:
2)

Very good, s i r . ^ '

OSBORNE:
Did the C o l o n e l have rauch t o say?
STANHOPE:
Only t h a t when t h e a t t a c k coraes we c a n ' t e x p e c t any h e l p
from behind.

We're n o t t o raove frora h e r e .

We've g o t t o

stick i t .
OSBORNE:
I see.
STANHOPE:
We'll wire o u r s e l v e s i n as s t r o n g l y as p o s s i b l e .

I've

got to arrange b a t t l e p o s i t i o n s for each platoon and

section t h i s

afternoon.

300

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S picks up a piece of
paper.

(2)

S starts to write on
the paper.

TECHNICAL CUES

301
OSBORNE:
Well, I'm glad it's coming at last.

I'm sick of waiting.

STANHOPE:
^ 'Good Lordl

What on earth's this extraordinary affair?

OSBORNE:
Trotter's plan to raake the time pass by.

A hundred and

forty-four circlesone for each hour of six days.

STANHOPE:
How many hours are there till dawn on the twenty-f irst?
OSBORNE:
Goodness knows.

Not many, I hope.

STANHOPE:
Nearly nine o'clock now.

Twenty-four till nine tomorrow;

twelve till nine at nightthat's thirty-six; nine till

six next raorning; that's forty-five altogether.

(2)

OSBORNE:
What are you going to do?

STANHOPE:
At the end of the forty-fifth circle I'ra going to draw a
Picture of Trotter being blown up in four pieces.

OSBORNE:
^n't spoil his chart.

It took him an hour to raake that.

302

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

303
STANHOPE:
He won't see the point.

He's no imagination.

OSBORNE:
I don't suppose he has.
STANHOPE:
Funny not to have any imagination.

Must be rather nice.

OSBORNE:
A bit dull, I should think.
STANHOPE:
It must be, rather.

I suppose all his life Trotter feels

like you and I do when we're drowsily drunk.

OSBORNE:
Poor chapl
STANHOPE:
I suppose if Trotter looks at that wall he just sees a
brown surface.

He doesn't see into the earth beyondthe

worms wandering about the stones and roots of trees.

wonder how a worra knows when its going up or down.

OSBORNE:
When it's going down I suppose the blood runs into its
head and makes it throb.

304

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

305
STANHOPE:
Worms h a v e n ' t g o t any b l o o d .
OSBORNE:
Then I d o n ' t s u p p o s e i t e v e r d o e s know.
STANHOPE:
Rotten i f i t d i d n ' t a n d went on down when i t thought

it

was coming u p .
OSBORNE:
Yes.

I e x p e c t t h a t ' s t h e one t h i n g worms d r e a d .

STANHOPE:

D'you think t h i s l i f e s h a r p e n s t h e

imagination.

OSBORNE:
It must.
STANHOPE:
Whenever I look a t a n y t h i n g nowadays I s e e r i g h t through
it.

Looking a t you now, t h e r e ' s your uniforra--your

jer-

s e y s h i r t v e s t t h e n beyond t h a t
OSBORNE:
Let's t a l k about soraething

else

STANHOPE:
Sorryl

I t ' s a h a b i t t h a t ' s grown on rae l a t e l y t o

look

306

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

307
right through t h i n g s , and on and o n t i l l I g e t

frightened

and s t o p .
OSBORNE:
I suppose everybody o u t h e r e f e e l s raore k e e n l y .
STANHOPE:
I hope s o .

I wondered i f t h e r e was a n y t h i n g wrong w i t h rae.

D'you ever g e t a sudden f e e l i n g t h a t e v e r y t h i n g ' s g o i n g

farther and f a r t h e r a w a y t i l l y o u ' r e t h e o n l y t h i n g i n
in the u n i v e r s e a n d you s t r u g g l e t o g e t backand c a n ' t ?
OSBORNE:
Bit of nerve s t r a i n , t h a t ' s

all.

STANHOPE:
You don't t h i n k I'ra g o i n g p o t t y ?
OSBORNE:
Oh, Lord, no
STANHOPE:
Dear old Unclel

you d o n ' t r e a l l y know, do you?

Pretend you d o , t o make me f e e l a l l

You j u s t

right.

OSBORNE:

When people are going p o t t y they never t a l k about i t ; they

'^eep i t to theraselves.

308

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

309
STANHOPE:
Oh, well, that's all right, then.

I had that feeling this

morning, standing out there in the line while the sun was
rising.

By the way, did you see the sunrise?

Wasn't it

gorgeous?
OSBORNE:
Splendidthis raorning.
STANHOPE:
I was looking across at the Boche trenches and right beyondnot a sound or a soul; just an enorraous plain, all
churned up like a sea that's got rauddier and rauddier till
it's so stiff that it can't raove. You could have heard a
pin drop in the quiet; yet you knew thousands of guns were
hidden there, all ready cleaned and oiledraillions of
bullets lying in pouchesthousands of Germans, waiting
and thinking.

Then, gradually, that feeling came

OSBORNE:
I never knew the sun could rise in so raany ways till I
came out here.
grey.

Green, and pink, and red, and blue, and

Extraordinary, isn't it?

STANHOPE:

Yes. Hil

Masonl

310

MOVE-IENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 looks at a

raagazine.

(2)

M e n t e r s UR, p u t s w h i s k e ^
a n d raugs o n t h e t a b l e
t h e n e x i t s UR d u g - o u t .

TECHNICAL CUES

311
MASON:
Yessir
STANHOPE:
Bring sorae raugs and a b o t t l e o f

whiskey.

MASON:
Yessir.
OSBORNE:
So early i n t h e

raorning?

STANHOPE:
Just a s p o t .

I t ' s s o damn c o l d i n h e r e .

OSBORNE:
This show a t t h e Hippodrome h a s been running a long tirae.
STANHOPE:
What?

Zig-zag?
OSBORNE:

Yes.

George Robey's i n

it.

STANHOPE:
Harper saw i t on l e a v e .

Says i t s damn g o o d .

P r i c e l e s s l y funny. ^^^
OSBORNE:
Wish l ' d seen a show on l e a v e .

Robey's

312

MOVEMENT AND BUSIIIESS

(1)

S pours hiraself

drink,

TECHNICAL CUES

313
STANHOPE:
D'you mean to say you didn't go to any shows?
OSBORNE:
No.

I spent all the time in the garden, making a rockery.

In the evenings I used to sit and smoke and readand my

wife used to knit socks and play the pianc a bit.

We pre-

tended there wasn't any war at alltill my two youngsters

made me help in a tin-soldier battle on the floor.
STANHOPE:
Poor old Unclel

You can't get away from it, can you?

OSBORNE:
I wish I knew how to f ight a battle like those boys of
mine. You ought to have seen the way they luredrayraen
under the sofa and raowed thera down.
STANHOPE:
You going to have one?
OSBORNE:
Not now, thanks.
STANHOPE:
You go on duty at eleven, don't you?
OSBORNE:
Ves.

I relieve Trotter.

314

315
STANHOPE:
Raleigh b e t t e r go on a t one o ' c l o c k and s t a y w i t h you f o r
an hour.

Then he can s t a y on a l o n e t i l l

r e l i e v e s him a t

four.

OSBORNE:
Righto.
STANHOPE:
What's R a l e i g h d o i n g now?
OSBORNE:
Finishing a l e t t e r .
STANHOPE:
Did you t e l l hira?
OSBORNE:
About what?
STANHOPE:
Censorship.
OSBORNE:
You don't raean t h a t

seriously?

STANHOPE:
Mean i t ?

of c o u r s e I raeant i t .

four.

Hibbert

316

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

317
OSBORNE:
You can't read his letters.
STANHOPE:
Officially I'ra supposed to read all your lettersall, Unclel

Damn it

Imagine yourself in my placea letter going

away from herefrora that b o y

OSBORNE:
He'll say nothingrottenabout you.
STANHOPE:
You think so?

I heard you go on duty last night.

you'd gone, I got up.

I was feeling bad.

leigh was out there with Trotter.

him.

I was sleepy.

happened.

After

I forgot Ra-

I'd forgotten all about

I just knew soraething beastly had

Then he carae in with Trotterand looked at m.e.

After coming in out the night air, this place must have
reeked of candle grease, and ratsand whiskey.

He looked

at me as if l'd hit hira between the eyesas if I'd spat

on him
OSBORNE:
You imagine things.
STAI4H0PE:
Imagine thingsl

No need to imagine.

318

MOVE^ENT AMD BUSINESS

Cl) Rl enters frora DL dugout.
(2)

Rl starts to exit, turns

and faces the table.
Rl pulls a letter out
of his right coat pocket,

TECHNICAL CUES

319
OSBORNE:
Why can't you treat him like any other youngster?
RALEIGH:
^ 'l'ra sorry.
OSBORNE:
It's all right, Raleigh.

Going to inspect rifles?

RALEIGH:
Yes.

OSBORNE:
You n e e d n ' t b o t h e r i f t h e w o o d ' s a b i t d i r t y j u s t

the

barrels and m a g a z i n e s and a l l t h e m e t a l p a r t s .

RALEIGH:
Righto.
OSBORNE:
See t h e r e ' s p l e n t y o f o i l on i t .

And l o o k a t t h e ararauni-

tion in t h e raen's p o u c h e s .
RALEIGH:
Righto.

^^^Where do we p u t t h e l e t t e r s t o be c o l l e c t e d ?
OSBORNE:

Oh, j u s t on t h e

table.

320

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

Rl starts to seal the

envelope.

(2)

Rl starts to put the

letter av/ay.

C3)

S X to Rl.

(4)

Rl backs up.

TECHNICAL CUES

321
RALEIGH:
Thanks.
STANHOPE:
You leave it open.
RALEIGH:
Open?
STANHOPE:
Yes.

I have to censor all letters.

RALEIGH:

Oh, butI haven't said anything aboutwhere we a r e

STANHOPE:
It's the rule that letters raust be read.
RALEIGH:
Oh, II didn't realize that.
it, then.^^^
STANHOPE:
Give rae that letterl
RALEIGH:
ButDennis
STANHOPE:
Give me that letterl

I I thinkI'll just leave

322

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

S and Rl scuffle.

(2)

S starts away then turns

back.

(3)

Rl exits to the trench.

(4)

S turns to 0.

(5)

S throws the letter on

the table.

0 stands.

TECHNICAL CUES

323
RALEIGH:
But i t ' s i t ' s p r i v a t e .

I d i d n ' t know

STANHOPE:
D'you understand an o r d e r ?

Give me t h a t

letterl

RALEIGH:
But I t e l l y o u t h e r e ' s n o t h i n g

Dennis I'm

STANHOPE:
Don't "Dennis"
schooll

rael

S t a n h o p e ' s ray narael

Go and i n s p e c t your r i f l e s l

(2)

You're not a t
D'you understand

an order?
RALEIGH:
Right. (3)
OSBORNE:
Good heavens,

Stanhopel

STANHOPE:
(4)
Look h e r e , Osborne, I'ra coramanding t h i s company.
for advice when I want i t i
OSBORNE:
Very w e l l .

STANHOPE:

Oh, Godl

I d o n ' t want t o read the b l a s t e d thingl

I ask

324

MOVF^ENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

S X siowly DL.

(2)

0 reads the letter.

TECHNICAL CUES

325
OSBORNE:
You'll let it go, then?
STANHOPE:
I don't care.
OSBORNE:
Shall I glance through itfor you?
STANHOPE:
If you like.
OSBORNE:
I don't want to.
STANHOPE:
You better.

I can't.

OSBORNE:
D'you want to hear?
STANHOPE:
I suppose I better know.
OSBORNE:
(2)
He b e g i n s w i t h a d e s c r i p t i o n of h i s g e t t i n g
aoesn't mention t h e naraes of any p l a c e s .
STANHOPE:
What does he say t h e n ?

herehe

326

MOVEMENT AND BuSINESS

Cl)

0 pats his hair.

TECHNICAL CUES

327
OSBORNE:
The last piece is about you.
STANHOPE:
Go on.
OSBORNE:
He s a y s :

"And now I corae t o t h e g r e a t news.

I reported

at B a t t a l i o n H e a d q u a r t e r s , and t h e C o l o n e l looked i n a
l i t t l e book, and s a i d ,
Stanhope. '

'You r e p o r t t o "C" CorapanyCaptain

C a n ' t you iraagine what I f e l t ?

along sorae t r e n c h e s and shown a d u g - o u t .

I was taken
There was an

awfully n i c e o f f i c e r t h e r e q u i t e o l d w i t h grey h a i r "

^"and t h e n l a t e r Dennis carae i n .

He looked t i r e d ,

but t h a t ' s b e c a u s e he works so f r i g h t f u l l y hard, and b e cause of t h e r e s p o n s i b i l i t y .

Then I went on duty i n t h e

front l i n e , and a s e r g e a n t t o l d rae a l l about D e n n i s .

said t h a t Dennis i s t h e f i n e s t o f f i c e r
and the men siraply l o v e hira.

He

in the b a t t a l i o n ,

He h a r d l y e v e r s l e e p s

in

the dug-out; h e ' s a l w a y s up i n t h e f r o n t l i n e w i t h t h e

n^en, c h e e r i n g thera on w i t h j o k e s , and raaking thera keen
about t h i n g s , l i k e he d i d t h e k i d s a t s c h o o l .
Proud to t h i n k h e ' s ray f r i e n d . "
stick i t down?
STANHOPE:

^es, please.

That's a l l .

I'ra a w f u l l y
Shall I

ibte^'-

328

MOVFMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES
CL8)

Lights fade out.

(C4)

Curtain closes raediura

slow.

329

MOVEMENT AND 3USINESS

(1)

S is laying on the bed

as SM enters frora the
trench.

(2)

S sits up on the bed.

(3)

SM X to table and sits

on DL box.

(4)

SM pours hiraself a
drink.

(5)

S pours more for the

SM, then pours himself
a drink-.

TECHICAL CUES
(C5)

Curtain opens medium

slow.

(L9)

Lights fade in.

330
(L8)
(C4)
Scene Two
(C5)
(L9)
(1)
STANHOPE:
(2)
^ 'l want to talk with you, Sergeant-Major.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Yes, sir?
STANHOPE:
(3)
Sit down. ' Have a w h i s k e y ?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Thank you, s i r . ^^^
STANHOPE:
I say.

You w o n ' t t a s t e t h a t .

Take a proper o n e .

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
WellsirTurning c h i l l i n g a g a i n , s i r .
evening.
STANHOPE:
Ves.

Quite wam\ t h i s

331

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

SM drinks.

(2)

S drinks, stands and

pulls the bed to the
table, then sits.

C3)

SM takes out a notebook and begins to

write.

(4)

SM writes.

TECHNICAL CUES

332
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Well, here's to your health, sir.

'

STANHOPE:
Cheero.

(2)

Now l o o k h e r e S e r g e a n t - M a j o r .

t h i s a t t a c k on Thursday

raorning,

a t dawn.

We raust e x p e c t
That's the s e c -

ond dawn frora now.

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
3)

'Thursday

raorning.

Very g o o d ,

sir.

STANHOPE:
We're t o h o l d t h e s e t r e n c h e s , and no raan's t o raove frora
here.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Right,

sir.
STANHOPE:

It may happen t h a t corapanies on our s i d e s w i l l g i v e way,

leaving our f l a n k s e x p o s e d ; so I want a s c r e e n of w i r e put
down both f l a n k s t i l l

i t raeets t h e w i r e i n t h e support

line.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
(4)
Both flanksyes, sir.
STANHOPE:
When the attack begins, I shall take charge of the left,

333

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S points to a spot on
the raap.

(2)

SM w r i t e s .

TECHNICAL CUES

334
and Mr. Osborne the right.

You will be with Mr. Osbome,

and Sergeant Baker with rae; Nine and Ten Platoons will
raove over here;

Eleven and Twelve Platoons to the left.

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
(2)

^ 'Nine, Ten, Eleven, and Twelve.

I see, sirl

STANHOPE:
Is there anything you're not clear about?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Seems all clear, sir.
STANHOPE:
Anything you want to know?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Well, sirwhen the attack coraes, of course we beat 'era
offbut what if they keep on attacking?
STANHOPE:
Then we keep on beating thera off.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Yes, sir.

But what I raean isthey're bound to raake a

big thing of it.

STANHOPE:
Oh, I think they willl

335

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

336
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Well, t h e n , s i r .

I f t h e y d o n ' t g e t thxough t h e f i r s t

day,

t h e y ' l l a t t a c k t h e n e x t day and t h e n e x t

STANHOPE:
They're bound t o .
SERGEA.^T-MAJOR:
Then o u g h t n ' t we t o f i x up soraething a b o u t ,

weller

f a l l i n g back?
STANHOPE:
There's no need t o y o u s e e , t h i s corapany's s t r o n g e r than
"A" and "B" Corapanies on e i t h e r s i d e o f u s .
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Quite, s i r .
STANHOPE:
Well, t h e n , i f anyone b r e a k s ,
fore we d o .

"A" and "B" w i l l break b e -

As l o n g a s we s t i c k h e r e when t h e o t h e r cora-

panies have g i v e n way, we can f i r e i n t o t h e Boche a s they

try and g e t through t h e g a p s on our s i d e s w e ' l l raake a
hell of a raess of thera.

We raight d e l a y t h e advance a

whole day.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
^es, s i r , but what 'appens when t h e Boche ' a s a l l

got

337

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

SM writes.

(2)

0 and Cl appear in the

trench doorway.

(3)

S and SM rise.

TECHNICAL CUES

338
round the back of us?
STANHOPE:
Then we advance and win the war.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Win the war.

Very good sir.

STANHOPE:
But you understand exactly what I raean, Sergeant-Major,
Our orders are to stick here.

If you're told to stick

where you are you don't raake plans to retire.

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
No, sir.
OSBORNE:
(2)
Are you t h e r e ,

Stanhope?

STANHOPE:
Yes.

What's t h e

raatter?

OSBORNE:
The C o l o n e l ' s up h e r e .

Wants t o s e e you

STANHOPE:
Oh, r i g h t , I ' l l corae u
upp . ^"^^
COLONEL:
All r i g h t , S t a n h o p e I ' l l corae down

339

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

SM puts away his notebook.

(2)

SM starts to exit.

(3)

S points to drink.

C4)

SM X back to table
and finishes his drink

(5)

SM starts to exit,
stops and salutes as
Cl enters, 0 exit off.

(6)

SM exits. Cl X to UL
bed, takes off his
coat and cap then x
to the table.

TECHNICAL CUES

340
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
^^'Anything raore, sir?
STANHOPE:
I don't think so.

I'll

s e e you a t

stand-to this

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Very g o o d ,

sir.

(2)

STANHOPE:
Hoyl

What a b o u t

that?^"^^

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Thank y o u ,

sir.

(4)
'

COLONEL:
(5)
Good

raorning,

Sergeant-Major

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Good m o r n i n g ,

sir. ^ '

STANHOPE:
Hullo,

sirl
COLONEL:

Hullo, S t a n h o p e l

S t r o n g s m e l l of

bacon.

STANHOPE:
Yes, s i r .

We h a d sorae b a c o n f o r

breakfast

evening.

341

MOVE-IENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S pours d r i n k s for
hiraself and t h e Cl.

(2)

Cl drinks.

(3)

S drinks.

(4)

Cl sits on box UC of
the table.

C5)

S sits on DR bed.

TECHNICAL CUES

342
COLONEL:
Hangs about d o e s n ' t

it?

STANHOPE:
Yes, s i r .

Clings t o the w a l l s .

COLONEL:
Lovely day.
STANHOPE:
Splendid,

sir.

COLONEL:
Spring's coraing.

I'ra g l a d y o u ' r e a l o n e .

I ' v e g o t sorae

rather s e r i o u s news.
STANHOPE:
I'm sorry t o hear t h a t ,

sir.

W i l l you have a drink?

COLONEL:
Well, t h a n k s j u s t a s p o t . ^"^^
STANHOPE:
Cheero, s i r . ^ ^ ^

S i t down,

COLONEL:
Thanks.^^^
STANHOPE:
What's the news,

sir?^^^

sir.

Here's luck. ^

343

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S lights a cigarette.

TECHNICAL CUES

344
COLONEL:
The Brigadier carae to see me this raorning. it seeras almost certain the attack's to come on Thursday morning.
They've got inforraation from more than one sourcebut
they don't know where it's going to fall the hardest.

The

Boche began relieving his front-line troops yesterday.

They're bound to put in certain regiraents where they intend to make the hardest p u s h
STANHOPE:
Naturally sir.
COLONEL:
And the General wants us to make a raid to find out who's
come into the line opposite here.
STANHOPE:
I see.^^^

When?

COLONEL:
As soon as possible.

He said tonight.

STANHOPE:
Oh, but that's absurd, sirl
COLONEL:
I told him so.
afternoon.

I said that the earliest would be tomorrow

A surprise daytime raid under a sraoke-screen

345

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

C]) Cl points at a spot on
the raap.

TECHNTCAL CUES

346
from the trench-mortar people.

I think daylight best.

There's not much raoon now, and it's vitally important to

get a Boche or two.
STANHOPE:
Quite, sir.
COLONEL:
I suggest two officers and ten men.
purpose.

Quite enough for the

Just opposite here there's only seventy yards

of No-Man's Land.

Tonight the trench-mortars can blow a

hole in the Boche wire and you can cut a hole in yours.
Harrison of the trench-raortars is coraing in to dinner with
rae this evening to discuss everything.
come too.

I'd like you to

Eight o'clock suit you?

STANHOPE:
Very good, sir.
COLONEL:
I'll leave you to select the raen.
STANHOPE:
You want rae to go with thera, sir?
COLONEL:
Oh, no, Stanhope.

No.

I I can't let you go.

No.

want one officer to direct the raid and one to raake the

347

MOVEMENT A'^ID BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

348
dash in and c o l l a r sorae Boche.
STANHOPE:
Who do you s u g g e s t ,

sir?

COLONEL:
Well, I s u g g e s t Osborne, f o r o n e .
chap.

He can d i r e c t

He's a very

level-headed

it.

STANHOPE:
And who e l s e ,

sir?

COLONEL:
Well, t h e r e ' s T r o t t e r b u t h e ' s a b i t f a t ,
Not much good a t d a s h i n g i n ?
STANHOPE:
No.

D'you s u g g e s t H i b b e r t ?
COLONEL:

Well, what do you t h i n k of

Hibbert?

STANHOPE:
I don't think s o .
COLONEL:
No.

STANHOPE:
Why not send a good s e r g e a n t ,

sir?

i s n ' t he?

349

MOVEMENT /VND BUSINESS

Cl)

Cl lights his pipe.

TECHNICAL CUES

350
^^"

COLONEL:
No.^^^

I don't think a sergeant.

The men expect officers

to lead a raid.
STANHOPE:
Yes. There is that.
COLONEL:
As a matter of fact, Stanhope, I'm thinking of that youngster I sent up to you last night.
STANHOPE:
Raleigh, sir?
COLONEL:
Yes. Just the type.

Plenty of g u t s

STANHOPE:
He's awfully new to it a l l
COLONEL:
All to the good.

His nerves are sound.

STANHOPE:
Isn't it rather rotten to send a fellow who's only just
arrived.
COLONEL:
^ell, who else is there?
ther.campany

I could send an officer from an-

351

^.s-'

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

Cl rises and picks up

his cap.

(2)

Cl X to UL bed and gets

his coat.

TECHNICAL CUES

STANHOPE:
Oh, Lord, n o , s i r .

^^^
W e ' l l do i t .

COLONEL:
Then I s u g g e s t Osborne t o d i r e c t t h e r a i d and R a l e i g h t o
make the d a s h w i t h t e n good

raen.

W e ' l l raeet Harrison a t

supper and a r r a n g e t h e sraoke-bombsand blowing a h o l e i n

the w i r e .

You s e l e c t t h e raen and t a l k t o Osborne and Ra-

leigh about i t i n t h e

raeantime.

STANHOPE:
Very w e l l ,

sir.

COLONEL:
Better send Osborne and R a l e i g h down t o me i n t h e raorning
to talk t h i n g s o v e r .

Or, b e t t e r s t i l l l I ' l l corae up here

first thing toraorrow

raorning.

STANHOPE:
Right, s i r .
COLONEL:
It's a l l a daran n u i s a n c e ; but a f t e r a l l i t ' s

necessary.

STANHOPE:
I suppose i t i s .
COLONEL:
Well, so l o n g , S t a n h o p e . ^^^
^ you l i k e

fish?

I ' H s e e you a t e i g h t

o'clock.

353

MOVE.ME:JT ?^D BUSIMESS

(.1)

Cl exits into the

trench.

(2)

Hb enters frora DL
and X to the table.

TECHNICAL CUES

354

STANHOPE:
Pish,

sir?
COLONEL:

Yes.

We've had sorae f r e s h f i s h s e n t up from r a i l h e a d f o r

supper t o n i g h t .
STANHOPE:
Splendid,

sirl

COLONEL:

Whiting, I think i t

is.

STANHOPE:
Goodl
COLONEL:
Well, b y e - b y e . ^'^^
STANHOPE:
(2)
Hullol

I thought you were asleep.

HIBBERT:
I just wanted a word with you Stanhope.
STANHOPE:
Fire away.
HIBBERT:
This neuralgia of raine. I'ra awfully sorry.

I'ra afraid I

355

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

Hb turns left then x a

few feet.

(2)

Hb turn right then x

to the tabie.

TECHNICAL CUES

356
can't stick it any longer
STANHOPE:
I know.

It's rotten, isn't it?

I've got it like hell

HIBBERT:
You have?
STANHOPE:
Had it for weeks.

Aches all day and night.

HIBEERT:
Well, I'ra sorry, Stanhope.

It's no good.

I've tried

damned hard; but I raust go down

STANHOPE:
Go downwhere?
HIBBERT:
Why, go sickgo down the line.
and have sorae kind of treatment.
longer.

I raust go into hospital

I can't bear it any

I'll go right along now, I think1^

STANHOPE:
You're going to stay here.
HIBBERT:
I'm going down to the doctor.^^^
^al when he understands

He'll send me to hospi-

357

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S rises, pushing the

bed back.

(2)

Hb exits DL dug-out.

(3)

S X to UL bed and
takes out his revolver

(4)

Hb enters carrying his

pack and x to S.

TECHNICAL CUES

358
STANHOPE:
I've seen t h e d o c t o r .

I saw him t h i s

raorning.

He won't

send you t o t h e h o s p i t a l , H i b b e r t ; h e ' l l send you back here

He promised me he w o u l d .

So you can s a v e y o u r s e l f a walk.

HIBBERT:
What the h e l l I
STANHOPE:
^^^Stop t h a t l
HIBBERT:
I've got a p e r f e c t r i g h t t o go s i c k i f

I want t o .

The men

canwhy c a n ' t an o f f i c e r ?
STANHOPE:
No man's s e n t down u n l e s s b e ' s v e r y i l l .
wrong with y o u , H i b b e r t .
almost for c e r t a i n .

There's nothing

The Gerraan a t t a c k ' s on Thursday;

Y o u ' r e g o i n g t o s t a y here and s e e

it

through w i t h t h e r e s t o f u s .
HIBBERT:
Haven't I t o l d y o u , I c a n ' t t h e p a i n ' s n e a r l y s e n d i n g rae
n^ad.

i'in g o i n g l

I ' v e g o t a l l ray s t u f f packed.

nowyou c a n ' t s t o p rael ^^^ ' ^^^

HIBBERT:
(4)Let's g e t b y ,

Stanhope.

I'ra g o i n g

359

MOVSMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

360
STANHOPE:
You're g o i n g t o s t a y h e r e and do your j o b .
HIBBERT:
Haven't I t o l d you?

I can't.

D o n ' t you understand?

Let

let me g e t b y .
STANHOPE:
Now look h e r e , H i b b e r t .
no time t o w a s t e .

I ' v e g o t a l o t of work t o do and

Once and f o r a l l , y o u ' r e g o i n g t o s t a y

here and s e e i t t h r o u g h w i t h t h e r e s t of u s .
HIBBERT:
I shall d i e of t h e p a i n i f

I d o n ' t gol

STANHOPE:
Better d i e of t h e p a i n t h a n be s h o t f o r d e s e r t i n g .
HIBBERT:
What do you mean?
STANHOPE:
You know what I raean
HIBBERT:
I've a r i g h t t o s e e t h e d o c t o r l
STANHOPE:
Good Godl

Don't you u n d e r s t a n d l h e ' 1 1 send you back h e r e .

361

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Hb pushes S.

(2)

S shoves Hb- Hb falls

DL, drops his pack.

(3)

S levels gun on Hb.

362
Dr. P r e s t o n ' s n e v e r l e t a s h i r k e r p a s s him y e t a n d h e ' s
not going t o s t a r t nowtwo d a y s b e f o r e t h e a t t a c k
HIBBERT:
Stanhopeif you o n l y knew how awful I f e e l ^ ^ P l e a s e

let

me go by
STANHOPE:
^ 'Godlyou b l o o d y l i t t l e
don't you?
though.

swine.

You know what t h a t raeans

Striking a superior officerl

I w o n ' t have you s h o t f o r

Never raind,

that

HIBBERT:
Let me go
STANHOPE:
If you went, I ' d have you s h o t f o r d e s e r t i n g .
of a d i s g r a c e t o d i e l i k e t h a t .
disgrace.

It's a hell

I ' d r a t h e r spare you t h e

I g i v e you h a l f a rainute t o t h i n k .

You e i t h e r

stay here and t r y be a raanor you t r y t o g e t out t h a t

doorto d e s e r t .
accident. ^'^^

I f you do t h a t ,

D'you u n d e r s t a n d ?

t h e r e ' s g o i n g t o be an
I'ra f i d d l i n g w i t h ray r e -

volver, d'you s e e ? c l e a n i n g i t a n d i t ' s g o i n g o f f by

accident.

I t o f t e n happens o u t h e r e .

I t ' s going off,

i t ' s going t o s h o o t you between t h e e y e s .

HIBBERT:
^ou daren't

and

363

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S looks at his watch.

(2)

Hb turns, rises to his

knees.

(3)

S X to Hb, helps hira

up.

TECHNICAL CUES
(S8)

Sounds of distant ex'

plosions.

364
STANHOPE:
You d o n ' t d e s e r v e t o be s h o t by a c c i d e n t b u t I ' d s a v e you
the d i s g r a c e of t h e o t h e r wayI g i v e you h a l f a rainute t o
decide.

Half a rainute from now

HIBBERT:

^^Go on t h e n , s h o o t l

You w o n ' t l e t rae go t o t h e h o s p i t a l .

I swear I ' l l n e v e r go i n t o t h o s e t r e n c h e s a g a i n .

Shootl

and thank God

STANHOPE:
Fifteen raore s e c o n d s
HIBBERT:
Go onl

I'ra r e a d y
STANHOPE:

Ten.^^^^

Five.

^^^Good man, H i b b e r t .

I l i k e d t h e way

you stuck t h a t .
HIBBERT:
Why d i d n ' t you s h o o t ?
STANHOPE:
Stay here, o l d chapand s e e i t t h r o u g h w i t h t h e r e s t of
us.
HIBBERT:
Stanhopel

I've tried like h e l l - - I

swear I h a v e .

Ever

365

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

S X to table and pours

a drink.

(2)

Hb X to table, takes
the drinks and sits
on DL box.

(3)

S X to DR bed and sits

TCHNICAL CUES

366
since I came o u t h e r e I ' v e h a t e d and l o a t h e d i t .
sound up t h e r e makes me a l l c o l d and s i c k .
toto t h e o t h e r s y o u d o n ' t u n d e r s t a n d .

Every

I'm d i f f e r e n t

I t ' s g o t worse

and worse, and now I c a n ' t bear i t any l o n g e r .

I'll

never

go up t h o s e s t e p s a g a i n i n t o t h e l i n e w i t h t h e raen l o o k i n g
at meand k n o w i n g I ' d r a t h e r d i e h e r e .
STANHOPE:
^^^Try a drop of t h i s , o l d chap
HIBBERT:
No, thanks.
STANHOPE:
Go on.^^^

Drink i t .

I've known a l l

^"^^I know what you f e e l ,

Hibbert.

along

HIBBERT:
How can you know?
STANHOPE:
Because I f e e l t h e s a m e e x a c t l y t h e same

Every

little

noise up t h e r e makes rae f e e l j u s t a s you f e e l .

Why d i d n ' t

you t e l l rae i n s t e a d of t a l k i n g about n e u r a l g i a ?

We a n

feel l i k e you do soraetiraes, i f you o n l y knew.

loathe i t a l l .

I h a t e and

Soraetimes I f e e l I c o u l d l i e down on t h i s

bed and p r e t e n d I was p a r a l y z e d or somethingand

^veand j u s t l i e t h e r e t i l l

couldn't

I d i e d o r was dragged away.

367

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

368
HIBBERT:
I can't bear to go up into those awful trenches again
STANHOPE:
When are you due to go on?
HIBBERT:
Quite soon.

At four.

STANHOPE:
Shall we go on together?

We know how we both feel now.

Shall we see if we can stick it together?

HIBBERT:
I can't
STANHOPE:
Supposing I s a i d I c a n ' t s u p p o s i n g we a l l say we c a n ' t
what would happen t h e n ?
HIBBERT:
I don't c a r e .

What d o e s i t m a t t e r ?

beastlynothing

It's all

soso

raatters

STANHOPE:
Supposing t h e w o r s t h a p p e n e d s u p p o s i n g we were knocked
right o u t .

Think o f a l l t h e c h a p s who've gone a l r e a d y .

It can't be v e r y l o n e l y t h e r e w i t h a l l t h o s e
Sometimes I t h i n k i t s l o n e l i e r h e r e .

fellows.

J u s t go and have a

369

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

370
quiet rest.

Then we'll go out together.

HIBBERT:
Do please let me go, Stanhope
STANHOPE:
If you wentand l e f t Osborne and T r o t t e r and R a l e i g h and
a l l t h o s e raen up t h e r e t o do your workcould you e v e r look
a man s t r a i g h t i n t h e f a c e a g a i n i n a l l your l i f e ?
may be wounded.

Then you can g o home and f e e l

proudand

if you're k i l l e d y o u y o u w o n ' t have t o stand t h i s

anymore.

I raight have f i r e d you j u s t now.

would have been dead now.

You

hell

I f l had you

But y o u ' r e s t i l l a l i v e w i t h a

straight f i g h t i n g c h a n c e of coming t h r o u g h .

Take t h e

chance, o l d c h a p , and s t a n d i n w i t h Osborne and T r o t t e r and

Raleigh.

D o n ' t you t h i n k i t worth s t a n d i n g i n w i t h men

like that?when you know t h e y a l l f e e l l i k e you d o i n

their h e a r t s a n d j u s t go on s t i c k i n g i t b e c a u s e
the only t h i n g a d e c e n t raan can d o .

Welll

it'sit's

What about

HIBBERT:
I'llI'll

try

STANHOPE:
^od man
HIBBERT:
Youyou w o n ' t s a y a n y t h i n g , S t a n h o p e a b o u t

this2

it?

371

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Hb stands, x DL and
gets his pack.

(2)

Hb X to DL dug-out,
stops at the door,
then exits.

(3)

M enters UR and x to
the table.

TECHNICAL CUES

372
STANHOPE:
If you promise n o t t o t e l l anyone what a b l a s t e d funk I cira.
HIBBERT:
No.
STANHOPE:
Splendidl

Now go and have t e n

rainutes'

r e s t and a sraoke

Then w e ' l l go up t o g e t h e r and h o l d each o t h e r ' s handsand

jump every tirae a r a t s q u e a k s .
ing chance.

We've a l l g o t a good f i g h t -

I^ raean t o come t h r o u g h d o n ' t you?

HIBBERT:
Yes.

Rather..

^ ' l t ' s a w f u l l y d e c e n t of y o u , Stanhope

and thanks a w f u l l y

for

STANHOPE:
That's a l l r i g h t . ^^^
MASON:
(3)
Will you have a nice cup of tea, sir?
STANHOPE:
Can you guarantee it's nice?
MASON:
Well, sirit's a bit oniony, but that's only because of
the saucepan.

373

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

M starts to exit.

(2)

0 enters frora the

trench.

(3)

M exits UR dug-out.

(4)

0 X to table, sits UC

TECHNICAL CUES

374
STA^IHOPE:
In other w o r d s , i t ' s o n i o n soup w i t h t e a - l e a v e s i n

it.

MASON:
Not t i l l d i n n e r - t i r a e ,

sir.

STANHOPE:
All r i g h t , Mason.

B r i n g two c u p s of o n i o n t e a .

One f o r

Mr. Hibbert.
MASON:
^ 'Very good, s i r .

' w i l l you have a n i c e cup of t e a ,

OSBORNE:
Please, Masonand p l e n t y o f bread and b u t t e r and s t r a w berry jara.
MASON:
Very good, s i r . ^^^
STANHOPE:
Well, Unclehow a r e t h i n g s g o i n g on up t h e r e ?
OSBORNE:
(4)
Two l o n e l y r i f l e g r e n a d e s carae o v e r j u s t now.
STANHOPE:
I heard thera.

Where d i d t h e y

pitch?

sir?

375

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S lights a cigarette.

TECHNICAL CUES

376
OSBORNE:
Just over t h e f r o n t l i n e on t h e l e f t .

Otherwise n o t h i n g

doing.
STANHOPE:
The C o l o n e l ' s been t a l k i n g t o me.
OSBORNE:
About t h e a t t a c k ?
STANHOPE:
Partly.

We've g o t t o raake a r a i d ,

Uncle.

OSBORNE:
Oh? When?
STANHOPE:
Tomorrow a f t e r n o o n .
and ten men.
OSBORNE:
Who's going?
STANHOPE:
You and R a l e i g h .
OSBORNE:
Oh.

Raleigh?

Under a s m o k e - s c r e e n .

Two o f f i c e r s

377

MOVEMENT Ai^D BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

378
STANHOPE:
Yes.

The Colonel picked you to direct and Raleigh to dash

in.
OSBORNE:
I see.
STANHOPE:
The brigade wants t o know w h o ' s o p p o s i t e h e r e .
OSBORNE:
Tomorrow?

What tirae?

STANHOPE:
I suggest f i v e o ' c l o c k .

A l i t t l e b e f o r e dusk

OSBORNE:
I see.
STANHOPE:
I'm damned s o r r y .
OSBORNE:
That's a l l r i g h t , o l d c h a p .
STANHOPE:
I'm dining w i t h t h e C o l o n e l t o a r r a n g e e v e r y t h i n g .
I ' i l come back and go t h r o u g h i t w i t h y o u .

Then

379

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S gets the raap and

gives it to O.

TECHNICAL CUES

380

OSBORNE:
Where do we r a i d from?
STANHOPE:
Out of t h e s a p on our l e f t .

Straight across.

OSBORNE:
Where's t h e map?
STANHOPE:
Here we a r e .
of the Boche.

Look.

S t r a i g h t a c r o s s t o t h i s s e n t r y pot

Sixty yards.

tape as f a r a s p o s s i b l e .

Tonight w e ' l l lay out a guiding

A f t e r dark t h e toch-emraas a r e

going t o break t h e Boche w i r e and w e ' l l c u t a p a s s a g e i n

ours.
OSBORNE:
Will you f i x up t h e raen who a r e t o go?
STANHOPE:
Are you keen on any s p e c i a l men?
OSBORNE:
Can I take a c o r p o r a l ?
STANHOPE:
Sure.

381

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S stands, puts on his

coat.

(2)

M enters UR with tea,

X to the table.

(3)

M gives a cup to 0.

(4)

S points to DL dug-out

(5)

M exits DL dug-out.

TECHNICAL CUES

382
OSBORNE:
May I have young Crooks?
STANHOPE:
Righto.
OSBORNE:
You'll ask for volunteers, I suppose?
STANHOPE:
Yes. ^

I'll see the Sergeant-Major and get him to go

round for names.

MASON:
'Your tea, sirl
STANHOPE:
Keep it hot, Mason.
MASON:
Will you take this cup, Mr. Osborne?^ '
STANHOPE:
Take the other in to Mr. Hibbert, in there.^^^
MASON:
Very good, sir. ^^^
STANHOPE:
Shan't be long, Uncle.

383

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S exits to the trench

(2)

M enters DL, x to the

table.

(3)

M exits UR dug-out.

(4)

T enters DL and
stretches.

(5)

T x to the table.

TECHNICAL CUES

384
OSBORNE:
Righto.^^^

MASON:
^ 'Will you have cut bread and butteror shall l bring
the loaf, sir?
OSBORNE:
Cut it, Mason, please.
MASON:
Just bringing the jam separately?
OSBORNE:
Yes.
MASON:
Very good,

sir.^^^

TROTTER:
(4)
'Tea ready?
OSBORNE:
Yes.
TROTTER:
Why's Hibbert g o t h i s t e a i n there?^^^
OSBORNE:
^ <ion't know.

385

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

CD

T sits on DL box.

(2)

M enters UR with jara

(3)

M exits UR dug-out.

TECHNICAL CUES

386
TROTTER:
Oh, Lord, I do feel frowsy.

'Ad a f ine sleep, though.

MASON:
^^'Bread just coming, sir.

'Ere's the strawberry jara, sir.

TROTTER:
"Tell rae, mother what is that
That looks like strawberry jara?
'Hush, hush, ray dear; 'tis only Pa
Run over by a tram' "
OSBORNE:
^ 'The Colonel came here while you were asleep.
TROTTER:
Oh?
OSBORNE:
We've got to make a raid tomorrow afternoon.
TROTTER:
Oh, Lordl

Whatall of us?

OSBORNE:
Two officers and ten raen.
TROTTER:
Who's got to do it?

387

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

O gets book frora UL

bed.

TECHNIC2VL CUES

388

OSBORNE:
Raleigh and I .
TROTTER:
Raleighl
OSBORNE:
Yes.
TROTTER:
But ' e ' s o n l y j u s t corael
OSBORNE:
Apparently t h a t ' s t h e r e a s o n .
TROTTER:
And y o u ' r e g o i n g t o o ?
OSBORNE:
Yes.
TROTTER:
Let's hear about

it.

OSBORNE:
I know n o t h i n g y e t . ^"^^
TROTTER:
^ a t a daran n u i s a n c e l

E x c e p t t h a t i t ' s g o t t o be done

389

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

CD

T drinks his tea.

TECHNICAL CUES

390

OSBORNE:
It is, ratber.

TROTTER:
I reckon the Boche will know all about it.

Did you 'ear

about the raid just south of 'ere the other night?

OSBORNE:
Nothing rauch.

TROTTER:
The trench-raortars go and knock an 'ole in the Boche wire
to let our fellows throughand in the night the Boche
went out and tied bits o' red rag on each side of the 'olel

OSBORNE:
Yes, I heard about that.

TROTTER:
And even then our fellows 'ad to make the raid.
murder.

This tea taste of onions?^ '

OSBORNE:
It does a bit.

It was

391

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

CD

M enters UR, x to the

table, bringing bread.

(2)

M straightens R bed.

(3)

M exits UR dug~out.

TECHNICAL CUES

392
TROTTER:
Pity Mason d o n ' t c l e a n

' i s pots better.

'This tea

taste

of o n i o n s .
MASON:
(2)
I'm very s o r r y , s i r . ^ '

Onions do ' a v e such a way of

cropping up a g a i n .
TROTTER:
Yes, but we ' a v e n ' t

'ad o n i o n s f o r d a y s l

MASON:
I know, s i r .

T h a t ' s what raakes i t s o funny.

TROTTER:
Well, you b e t t e r do soraething about

it.

MASON:
Very good, s i r ,

I'll

look i n t o

it.

(3)

TROTTER:
Joking a p a r t .

I t ' s daran r i d i c u l o u s raaking a r a i d w i t h t h e

Boche knowing a l l about

it.

OSBORNE:
We're not d o i n g i t f o r
TROTTER:
I know.

fun.

393

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

0 begins reading.

(2)

0 hold book up for T

to see.

TECHNICAL CUES

394
OSBORNE:
You might a v o i d t a l k i n g t o R a l e i g h about

it.

TROTTER:
Why?

How do you mean?

OSBORNE:

There's no need t o t e l l him i t ' s murder

TROTTER:
Oh, Lordl n o .

I'm s o r r y

young f e l l e r

' e ' s got to go.

'E's a nice

What a r e you r e a d i n g ?

OSBORNE:
Oh, j u s t a book.
TROTTER:
What's t h e

title?

OSBORNE:
(2)
Ever read

it?

TROTTER:
Alice's Adventures i n Wonderlandwhy, t h a t ' s a k i d ' s book
OSBORNE:
Yes.
TROTTER:
You a r e n ' t r e a d i n g

it?

395

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

396
OSBOPJ^E:
Yes.
TROTTER:
Whata k i d ' s book?
0S30RNE:
Haven't you r e a d

it?

TROTTER:
Nol

OSBORNE:
You ought to.
"How doth the little crocodile
Improve his shining tail,
And pour the waters of the Nile
On every golden scale?
How cheerfully he seems to grin
And neatly spread his claws,
And welcoraes little fishes in
With gently srailing jawsl"
TROTTER:
I don't see no point in that.
OSBORNE:
Exactly.

That's just the point.

TROTTER:
You are a funny chapl

397

MOVEMENT AND BUSINSSS

Cl)

S enters from the trench,

X DR of table.

C2)

T looks at his pocket

watch.

C3)

M enters UR bringing in
tea, S ta es a raug, M
exits UR.

C4)

S X to DL dug-out.

(5)

Hb enters frora DL dugout.

TECHNICAL CUES

398
STANHOPE:
' 'The Sergeant-Major's getting volunteers
OSBORNE:
Goodl
TROTTER:
Sorry to 'ear about the raid, skipper.
STANHOPE:
So am I.

What do you make the time?

TROTTER:
^^^Just on four. ^^^
STANHOPE:
Was Hibbert asleep when you carae out of there?
TROTTER:
No.

'E was just lying on 'is bed, sraoking.

STANHOPE:

C4)
^Hibbertl
HIBBERT:
I m ready, Stanhope
STANHOPE:
Had some tea?

399

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S and Hb exit to the

trench.

TECHNICAL CUES

400
HIBBERT:
Yes, thanks.
TROTTER:
I reckon Raleigh'll be glad to be relieved.

Rotten being

on dooty for the first time alone.

OSBORNE:
I don't think he minds.
STANHOPE:
I shall be up there sorae tirae, Uncle.
OSBORNE:
I say, why d o n ' t you have a r e s t y o u ' v e been on t h e go a l l
day.
STANHOPE:
There's t o o rauch t o d o .

This r a i d ' s going to upset the

arrangements o f t h e w i r i n g p a r t y t o n i g h t .

Can't have men

out there w h i l e t h e toch-eraraas a r e blowing h o l e s i n t h e

Boche w i r e .

Ready, H i b b e r t ?

Corae on ray l a d . ^ '

TROTTER:
Can't q u i t e raake t h a t l i t t l e b l i g h t e r o u t , can y o u ,
Uncle?
OSBORNE:
Who?

401

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 gets paper frora a box

under the table.

(2)

T stands.

(3)

T X toward DL dug-out.

TECHNICAL CUES

402
TROTTER:
Why, 'lbbert.

D'you see 'is eyes?

All red.

'E told rae

in there 'e'd got 'ay-fever.

OSBORNE:
Rotten thing, hay-fever.
TROTTER:
If you ask rae, 'e's been crying
OSBORNE:
Maybe. (1)
TROTTER:
Funny little bloke, isn't 'e?
OSBORNE:
Yes.

I sayd'you raind? I just want to get a letter off.

TROTTER:
(2)
Oh, sorry.^ ' They ' a v e n ' t c o l l e c t e d the l e t t e r s

yet,

then?
OSBORNE:
Not y e t .
TROTTER:
I ' l l g e t one o f f
if I've got

t o ray o l d l a d y . ^"^^

fleas.

S h e ' s wrote and asked

403

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

T scratches.

C2) T exits DL dug-out.

(3)

Rl enters frora the

trench, x to DR bed

TECHNICAL CUES

404
OSBORNE:
Have you?
TROTTER:
^^h wish it was fleas. ^^^
RALEIGH:
3)

^ 'I say, Stanhope's t o l d rae about the r a i d ,

OSBORNE:
Has he?
RALEIGH:
Just you and rae, i s n ' t i t a n d t e n raen?
OSBORNE:
Yes, tomorrow.

J u s t b e f o r e dusk.

Under a smoke c l o u d .

RALEIGH:
I s a y i t ' s raost f r i g h t f u l l y

exciting.

OSBORNE:
We s h a l l know raore about i t a f t e r Stanhope s e e s t h e
Colonel t o n i g h t .
RALEIGH:
Were you and I
OSBORNE:
Yes.

pickedspecially?

405

MOVEMENT AJD BUSINESS

(1)

Rl sits on DR bed.

TECHNICAL CUES
(S9)

Battle sounds fade in.

(LIO)

General illuraination
fades out.

(C6)

Curtain closes mediura

slow.

(SIO)

Battle sounds fade out

(Lll)

House lights corae up.

406
RALEIGH:
^^^I s a y '
CS9)
CUO)
(C6)
(SIO)
(Lll)

407

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1}

S stands at DL corner
of the table.

TECHNICAL CUES
CL12) House lights dim.
(511) Battle sounds fade in.

(2) M enters UR.

CC7)
C3) M exits UR dug-out.

Curtain opens raediura

slow.

CL13) General illuraination

up full.
(512) Battle sounds fade out

.08

ACT THREE
Scene One
(L12)
CSll)
(C7)
(L13)
(S12)
STANHOPE:
^"Wsonl
MASON:
Yessirl
STANHOPE:
Are you raaking c o f f e e ?
MASON:
^^^Yessirl
STANHOPE:
Make i t h o t and s t r o n g .
when i t ' s w a n t e d .
MASON:
Very good,

sir.^^^

Ready i n f i v e

rainutes.

I'll

call

409

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

S X to boxes DL/then
Cl enters frora the
trench, x DL.

TECHNICAL CUES

410
COLONEL:
^ 'Everything ready?
STANHOPE:
Yes, sir.

You've no news, then?

COLONEL:
I'm afraid not.

It's got to be done.

STANHOPE:
I see.
COLONEL:
The Brigadier says the Boche did the same thing just south
of here the other day.
STANHOPE:
I know? but didn't you suggest we altered our plans and
made a surprise raid farther up the line after dark?
COLONEL:
Yes.

I suggested that.
STANHOPE:

What did he say?

COLONEL:
He said the present arrangeraents have got to stand.

411

MOVEMENT AND EUSINESS

(1)

3 X to DR corner of the
table.

(2)

S lights a cigarette.

TECHNICAL CUSS

412
STANHOPE:
But surely he must realize?
COLONEL:
Look here, Stanhope, I've done all I can, but my report's
got to be at headquarters by seven this evening.

If we

wait till it's dark we shall be too late.

STANHOPE:
'Why seven?
COLONEL:
They've g o t sorae c o n f e r e n c e t o a r r a n g e t h e p l a c i n g of

re-

serves.
STANHOPE:
They c a n ' t have i t l a t e r b e c a u s e o f d i n n e r , I s u p p o s e .
COLONEL:
Nonsensel

With t h e a t t a c k toraorrow

raorning,

headquarters

naturally want a l l t h e i n f o r r a a t i o n t h e y can g e t a s e a r l y

as p o s s i b l e .
STANHOPE:
(2)
Meanwhile the Boche are sitting over there with a dozen
nachine guns trained on that holewaiting for our fellows
to come.

413

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Cl X to table and sits

on UC box.

C2)

S X to DR bed and sits.

C3)

S checks his v/atch.

C4)

Cl checks his pocket

watch.

TECHNICAL CUES

414
COLONEL:
^ 'Well, I can't disobey orders.
STANHOPE:
Why didn't the trench-mortars blow a dozen holes in different placesso that the Boche wouldn't know which we were
going to use?
COLONEL:
It took three hours to blow that one.
a dozen in that time?
now. It's too late.

How could they blow

It' s no good wotying about that

Where's Osborne and Raleigh?

STANHOPE:
(2)

C3)

They're up i n t h e s a p , h a v i n g a l a s t look around.

What d'you make t h e t i m e , s i r ?
COLONEL:
(4)
Exactly n i n e t e e n m i n u t e s t o .
STANHOPE:
I'm t h i r t y s e c o n d s behind y o u .
COLONEL:
Funny.

We checked t h i s

raorning.

STANHOPE:
S t i l l , i t ' s near enough.
blows a c r o s s .

We s h a n ' t go up t i l l

t h e sraoke

I I

flij

415

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

416
COLONEL:
The smoke ought t o blow a c r o s s n i c e l y .
right.

The w i n d ' s

just

I c a l l e d on t h e t r e n c h - r a o r t a r s on t h e way u p .

Everything's r e a d y .

T h e y ' l l drop t h e borabs t h i r t y y a r d s t o

the r i g h t .
STANHOPE:
Are you g o i n g t o s t a y h e r e ?
COLONEL:
I ' l l watch frora t h e t r e n c h j u s t a b o v e , I t h i n k .
prisoners s t r a i g h t back h e r e .

Bring t h e

W e ' l l q u e s t i o n thera r i g h t

away.
STANHOPE:
Why not t a k e thera s t r a i g h t down t o your h e a d q u a r t e r s ,

sir?

COLONEL:
Well, t h e Boche a r e bound t o s h e l l p r e t t y h e a v i l y .

I don't

want t h e r i s k o f t h e p r i s o n e r s b e i n g knocked o u t b e f o r e
we've t a l k e d t o them.
STANHOPE:
All r i g h t .

I'll

have them brought back h e r e .

COLONEL:
It's no good g e t t i n g d e p r e s s e d .
yards.

The B o c h e ' l l be f i r i n g

After a l l ,

i t ' s only

i n t o a blank f o g .

sixty

Osborne's

417

MOra^ENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

Cl fills and lights his

pipe.

(2)

0 and Rl enter frora the

trench.

(3)

0 x to UL bed, takes off

his hat and coat.

TECHNICAL CUES

418
a cool, level-headed chap, and Raleigh's the very man to
dash in.

You've picked good raen to follow them?^"'"^

STANHOPE:
The best.

All youngsters.

Strong, keen chaps.

COLONEL:
Good.

You know qoite well I'd give anything to cancel the

beastly affair.
STANHOPE:
I know you would, sir.
COLONEL:
Have these red rags on the wire upset the men at all?
STANHOPE:
It's hard to tell.

They naturally take it as a joke.

They

say the rags are just what they want to show thera the way
through the gap.
COLONEL:
That's the spirit, Stanhope.^^^

Well, Osborne.

Everything

ready?

OSBORNE:
(3)

Yes, I think w e ' r e a l l ready, s i r .

^arter t o .

-^

i.

I raake i t j u s t a

419

MO^TEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Rl X to UL bed, takes
off his coat and sits.

(2)

Cl stands, takes two

steps toward the trench
door.

(3)

0 X to the table, sits

on UC box.

TECHNICAL CUES

420
COLONEL:
That's r i g h t .
OSBORNE:
The men a r e g o i n g t o s t a n d by a t t h r e e m i n u t e s t o . ^^^
COLONEL:
The smoke-bombs drop e x a c t l y on t h e hour.

'

You'll

give

the word t o go when t h e smoke's t h i c k enough?

OSBORNE:
That's r i g h t ,

sir.

STANHOPE:
NasonI
MASON:
Coming, s i r l
STANHOPE:
Were the men h a v i n g t h e i r rura, Uncle?
OSBORNE:
Yes. ""^' J u s t a s we l e f t .

I t g i v e s a q u a r t e r of an hour t o

soak i n .
COLONEL:
That's r i g h t .

Are t h e y

cheerful?

421

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(JL) M enters UR with coffee,
places the coffee and
raugs on the table, exits.
C2) Cl X to trench door.
(3)

S rises, puts on his coat

C4) Cl X to O.
C5)

0 rises and shakes hands

with the Cl; then 0 sits.

TECHNICAL CUES

422

OSBORNE:
Yes.

Quite.
STANHOPE:

Would you l i k e t o go up and speak t o thera,

sir?

COLONEL:
Well, d o n ' t you t h i n k t h e y ' d r a t h e r be l e f t

alone?

STANHOPE:
I think t h e y would a p p r e c i a t e a word or two.
COLONEL:
All r i g h t .

I f you t h i n k t h e y w o u l d .

OSBORNE:
They're a l l i n t h e c e n t r e d u g - o u t ,

sir.

COLONEL:
Right. ^ '

You coraing,

Stanhope?

STANHOPE:
Yes. ^-^^

i'ii corae, sir.

COLONEL:
Well, good l u c k , Osborne. ^^^
good show.
OSBORNE:
Thank you, s i r . ^^^

I'ra c e r t a i n y o u ' l l put up a

423

424
COLONEL:
^^^And, Raleigh, just go in like blazes.

Grab hold of the

first Boche you see and bundle hira across here.

One'll do,

but bring more if you see any handy.

RALEIGH:
Right, sir.
COLONEL:
And, if you succeed, I'll recommend you both for the M.C.
Remember, a great deal raay depend on bringing in a German.
It may mean the winning of the whole war.
Well, good luck to you both.

(2)
'

your pockets of paper and t h m g s .

You never know.

Don't forget to empty

(3)

RALEIGH:
Oh, no C4)

OSBORNE:
(5)
ErStanhopejust a ro.oraent
STANHOPE:
^^^Hullo

OSBORNE:
I say, don't think I'ra being raorbid, or anything like that,
hut would you raind taking care of these for rae?

(7)

425

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 points to ring and

watch.

C2)

S and O shake hands.

(3)

S exits to trench.

C4)

Rl enters DL.

(5)

0 lights his pipe.

TECHNICAL CUES

426
STANHOPE:
Sure.

U n t i l you corae b a c k , o l d raan.

OSBORNE:

I t ' s only j u s t i n c a s e I f a n y t h i n g s h o u l d happen, would

you send t h e s e a l o n g t o ray w i f e? ^ '
STANHOPE:
You're coraing back, o l d

raan.

Daran i t l

What on e a r t h ^ <>

should I do w i t h o u t you?
OSBORNE:
Goodness knowsl
STANHOPE:
Must have soraebody t o t u c k rae up i n bed.
you in t h e s a p , b e f o r e you g o .

see

J u s t have a s p o t of rura i n

that c o f f e e .
OSBORNE:
Righto. ^^^
STANHOPE:
Cheerol^^^' ^^^
OSBORNE:
Just time f o r a s m a l l p i p e . ^^^
RALEIGH:

Good.

Well, I ' l l

i ' i i have a c i g a r e t t e , I t h i n k .

427

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

Rl X to table and sits

on DL box, accepts a
cigarette frora 0, lights
it.

(2)

Rl drinks his coffee.

TECHNICAL CUES

428

OSBORNE:
Have one of m i n e .
RALEIGH:
I say, I'ra a l w a y s sraoking y o u r s . ^ '
OSBORNE:
That's a l l r i g h t .

What a b o u t t h i s

coffee?

RALEIGH:
Sure.
OSBORNE:
Are you g o i n g t o have a drop o f rum i n

it?

RALEIGH:
Don't you t h i n k i t raight make u s aa b i t rauzzy?
OSBORNE:
I'm j u s t h a v i n g t h e c o f f e e a s i t

is.

RALEIGH:
I think I w i l l ,

too.

OSBORNE:
We'll have t h e rum a f t e r w a r d s t o
RALEIGH:
That's a rauch b e t t e r i d e a . ^^^

celebrate.

429

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Rl rises, x DL.

(2)

O looks at the watch

on the table.

TECHNICAL CUES

430
OSBORNE:
How d'you feel?
RALEIGH:
All right.
OSBORNE:
I've got a sort of empty feeling inside.
RALEIGH:
That's just what I've gotl
OSBORNE:
Wind upl
RALEIGH:
I keep wanting to yawn.
OSBORNE:
That's it.

Wind up.

I keep wanting to yawn too.

pass off directly we start.

RALEIGH:
I wish we could go now.
OSBORNE:
(2)
We've g o t e i g h t
RALEIGH:
Oh, Lordl

rainutes

yet

It'll

431

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

0 gets the

raap.

C2)

Rl X back to table and

sits on box DL.

TECHNICAL CUES

432

OSBORNE:
Let's j u s t h v e a l a s t l o o k a t t h e raap. ^ '
smoke's t h i c k e n o u g h , I ' l l g i v e t h e word.

Directly

the

You run s t r a i g h t

for t h i s p o i n t h e r e
RALEIGH:
When I g e t t o t h e Boche w i r e I l i e down and w a i t f o r y o u .
OSBORNE:
Don*t f o r g e t t o throw your bombs.
RALEIGH:
(2)
No. ^ '

I ' v e g o t them h e r e .
OSBORNE:

When I s h o u t " R i g h t o l " i n you go w i t h your e i g h t men.

shall l i e on t h e Boche p a r a p e t , and blow ray w h i s t l e now

and then t o show you where I ara.

Pounce on t h e f i r s t

you s e e and b u n d l e him o u t t o rae.

RALEIGH:
Righto.
OSBORNE:
Then we corae back l i k e

blazes.

RALEIGH:
The whole t h i n g ' l l be o v e r q u i t e

quickly?

Boche

433

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

0 checks the watch.

TECHNICAL CUES

434
OSBORNE:
I reckon with luck we shall be back in three minutes.
RALEIGH:
As quick as that?
OSBORNE:
I think so.

And now let's forget about it for^^^for

six min tes.

RALEIGH:
Oh, Lord, I can'tl
OSBORNE:
You must.
RALEIGH:
How topping if we both get the M.C.I
OSBORNE:
Yes. Your coffee sweet enough?
RALEIGH:
Yes, thanks.

It's jolly good coffee.

I wonder what the

Boche are doing over there now?

OSBORNE:
I don't know.

D'you like coffee better than tea?

435

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

436
RALEIGH:
I do for breakfast.

Do those smoke-bombs make much row

when they burst?

OSBORNE:
Not much.

Personally, l like cocoa for breakfast.

RALEIGH:
I'm sorryl
OSBORNE:
Why sorry?

Why shouldn't I have cocoa for breakfast?

RALEIGH:
I don't mean that.
bout the raid.
thing else.

ImeanI'm sorry to keep talking a-

It's so difficult toto talk about any-

I was just wonderingwill the Boche retaliate

in any way after the raid?

OSBORNE:
Bound toa bit.
RALEIGH:
Shelling?
OSBORNE:
"The time has corae," the Walrus said,
"To talk of raany things:
Of shoesand shipsand sealing wax
Of cabbagesand kings."

437

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

438
RALEIGH:
"And why the sea is boiling hotAnd whether pigs have wings."
OSBORNE:
Now we're o f f I

Quick, l e t ' s t a l k about p i g s !

Black p i g s

or white p i g s ?
RALEIGH:
Black p i g s .

In t h e New F o r r e s t you f i n d them, q u i t e w i l d .

OSBORNE:
You know t h e New F o r r e s t ?
RALEIGH:
Ratherl

My home's down t h e r e .

lum Green, j u s t o u t s i d e

A l i t t l e place c a l l e d Al-

Lyndhurst.

OSBORNE:
I know Lyndhurst w e l l .
RALEIGH:
I t ' s n i c e down t h e r e .
4

OSBORNE:
I l i k e i t more t h a n any p l a c e I know.
RALEIGH:
I think I d o , t o o .

Of c o u r s e ,

i t ' s d i f f e r e n t when y o u ' v e

439

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

440
always lived in a place.
OSBORNE:
You like it in a different way.
RALEIGH:
Yes.

Just behind our house there's a streara called the

Highland; it runs for milesright through the raiddle of

the forrest.

Dennis and I followed it once as far as we

could.
OSBORNE:
I used to walk a lot round Lyndhurst.
RALEIGH:
I wish we'd known each other then.

You could have corae

with Dennis and rae.

OSBORNE:
I wish I had.

I used to walk alone.

RALEIGH:
You must corae and stay with us one day.
OSBORNE:
I should like toawfully.
RALEIGH:
I can show you places in the forrest that nobody knows a-

441

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

442
bout except Dennis and me.

It gets thicker and darker and

cooler, and you stir up all kinds of funny wild animals.

OSBORNE:
They say there are ruins, soraewhere in the forrest, of
villages that Williara the Conqueror pulled down to let the
forrest grow.
RALEIGH:
I know.

We often used to look for thera, but we haven't

found them yet.

You raust corae and help look one day.

OSBORNE:
I'll find thera all right.
RALEIGH:
Then you can write to the papers.

"Draraatic Discovery of

Professor Osbornel"
OSBORNE:
I did go exploring oncedigging up Roraan reraains.
RALEIGH:
Did you find anything?
OSBORNE:
We found a horseshoeand a Roraan penny.

443

M0VEI4ENT AND BUSINESS

(1) 0 checks the watch.

TECHNICAL CUES

444
RALEIGH:
Splendidl
OSBORNE:
It's awfully fascinating, digging like that.
RALEIGH:
It must be.

Is is time yet?

OSBORNE:
'Two minutes.

Then we must go up.

I wish we had a good

hot bath waiting for us when we get back.

RALEIGH:
So do I. We're having something special for dinner, aren't
we?
OSBORNE:
How did you know?

It's suppose to be a secret.

RALEIGH:
Mason dropped a hint.
OSBORNE:
Well, we've had a fresh chicken sent up frora Noyelle Farra.
RALEIGH:
I sayl

445

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cll

Rl picks up O's ring.

C2)

0 rises.

C3)

Rl rises, x to UL bed,
straps on revolver and
gas-raask.

(4)

0 X to UL bed, gets
revolver and gas-mask.

TECHNICAL CUES

446
OSBORNE:
And a most awful luxurytwo bottles of champagne and half
a dozen cigarsl

One each, and one spare in case one ex-

plodes.
RALEIGH:
I've never smoked a cigar.
OSBORNE:
It's bound to make you sick.
RALEIGH:
I say, here's your ring.^ '
OSBORNE:
Yes. I'mI'm leaving it here.

I don't want the risk of

losing it.
RALEIGH:
Ohl
OSBORNE:
(2)
Well, I think perhaps we ought to get ready.
RALEIGH:
Yes.^^) Righto.
OSBORNE:
(4)
I'm not going to wear a beltjust my revolver, with

447

448
the lanyard round my neck.
RALEIGH:
I see. ^

I feel better with this in my hand, don't you?

OSBORNE:
Yes. Something to hold.

Loaded all right?

RALEIGH:
Yes.
OSBORNE:
(2)
I do hate leaving a pipe when it's got a nice glow on
the top like that.
RALEIGH:
What a pityl
OSBORNE:
Three minutes to.

I think we'd better go up.

RALEIGH:
Righto.^^^

OSBORNE:
(4)
I'm glad it's you and Itogether, Raleigh.
RALEIGH:
Are you really?

449

450

OSBORNE:
Yes.
RALEIGHl:
So am I ~ ^ a w f u l l y .
OSBORNE:
We must put up a good show.
RALEIGR:
Yes.

Rather 1
OSBORNE:

L e t ' s go a l o n g , s h a l l we?
RALEIGH:
Righto.^^^
MASON:
(3)
'Good l u c k ,

sir.

OSBORNE:
Thanks, Mason.
MASON:
(4)
Good luck, Mr. Raleigh^
RALEIGH:
Thanks.^^^' ^^^

451

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

Cl) M exits into UR dug-out

(S13)

Sounds of gunfire

C21

S enters, x to right
of table.

CS14)

Sounds of shells.

C3)

Cl enters, x to UL bed,
removes his hat and coat.

452
CS13), C D
STANHOPE:
^ 'All right, sir.

Come down quicklyl

COLONEL:
How many?
STANHOPE:
Only o n e .

CS14)

^
Hurt,

sir?

COLONEL:
No.

It's all right. ^^^

STANHOPE:

Bring him down,

Sergeant-Major.

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Coming, s i r .
STANHOPE:
You w o n ' t want me, w i l l

you?

COLONEL:
Well~er
STANHOPE:
I want t o go and s e e t h o s e raen.

453

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Cl X to table, sits on
UC hox, S exits to th.e
trench.

(2)

SM enters frora the

trench with G, x to
left of the table.
Guards enter and stand
at the door.

C3)

G falls to his knees.

C4)

SM puts G on Dl box-,.

(5)

Cl writes in a notebook.

(6)

Cl writes.

TECHNICAL CUES

454
COLONEL:
Oh, all righ-t. Cl)
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
(2)
All right, sonny, we ain't going to 'urt you.
GERMAN:
(3)
'Mercymistermercyl
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Come on l a d , g e t u p . ^ '
COLONEL:
Was i s t s e i n Regiment?
GERMAN:
Wurtembergisches.^^^
COLONEL:
Was i s t d e r nuraraer von s e i n Regiraent?
GERMAN:
Zwanzig.
COLONEL:
(6)^
T w e n t i e t h Wurtembergers.
GERMAN:
Gestern Abend.

Wann kommen s i e h i e r ?

455

MOVEMENT AND 3USINESS

(1)

SM puts the G's hands on

his head, searches a
pocket, and pulls out
a pay-book.

C2)

SM finds letters; G
tries to get them back.

TECHNICAL CUES

456
COLONEL:
Wo kommen sie hier?
GERMAN:
Mein Geburtsort?
COLONEL:
What's that?
GERMAN:
Youwishtoknowwhere I wasborn?
COLONEL:
Nol What town did you come up to the line from?
GERMAN:
Ido not tell you.
COLONEL:
Oh, well, that's all right.

Search him.

SERGEANT-MAJOR
Looks like 'is pay-book, sir.
COLONEL:
Good.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
C2),
Ere, stop that.

457

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

G tugs for the letters

C2)

SM gives the letters

to Ci.

(3)

SM goes through the

other pockets, laying
the contents on the
table.

(4)

SM returns the articles

to the G except the
pocketknife which
the SM keeps.

(5)

G stsnds, clicks his

heels, and bows.

C6)

SM, G and two guards

exit to the trench.

TECHNICAL CUES

458
GERMAN:
^ 'Lassen s i e

raichl

Letmepleasekeepthat.

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
(2)
You l e t g o l ^ ^ '
COLONEL:
Look like letters.

May be useful.

Is that all, Sergeant-

Major?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
(3)
''Ere's a few oddraents, sirbit o' string, sir; little
box o' fruit drops; pocket-knife, sir; bit o' cedar pencil
and a stick o' chocolate, sir.
COLONEL:
Let hira have those back, except the pocket-knife.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Very good, sir.^ '

'Ere you are, sonny.

COLONEL:
All right,'Sergeant-Major.
headquarters.

Send him straight back to my

I'11 question hira again there.

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
u
Very good, sir.

C5)
Come on, sonny, up you go.

C6)
^'

459

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

S enters, x to DR bed
and sits.

TECHNICAL CUES

460
COLONEL:
^ ^Splendid, Stanhopel

We've got all we wanted20th

Wurtembergers I His regiment came into the line last night.

I must go right away and 'phone the Brigadier.
very pleased about it.

He'll be

It's a feather in our cap, Stanhope

STANHOPE:
How awfully niceif the Brigadier's pleased.
COLONEL:
Oherwhat about the raiding partyare they all safely
back?
STANHOPE:
Did you expect them to be all safely back, sir?
COLONEL:
Oherwhater
STANHOPE:
Pour men and Raleigh came safely back, sir.
COLONEL:
Oh, I say, I'ra sorryl
borne?
STANHOPE:
Yes, sir.

That'sersix raen anderOs-

461

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl) Rl enters, x to UL bed
C2) Cl X to Rl.
C3)

Cl seats Rl on the bed

(4)

Cl exits to the trench

C5)

S rises ,

TECHNICAL CUES

462
COLONEL:
I'm very sorry.

Poor Osbornel

STANHOPE:
Still, it'll be awfully nice if the Brigadier's pleased.
COLONEL:
Don't be silly, Stanhope.

Do you k n o w e r w h a t

happened

to Osborne?
STANHOPE:
A hand grenadewhile be was waiting for Raleigh.

COLONEL:
I'm very sorry.

And the six men?

STANHOPE:
Machine-gun bullets, I suppose.

COLONEL:
Yes.

I was a f r a i d e r ^ ^ V e r y well done, Raleigh.

done, my boy.
Splendidl

Well

I'll get you a Military Cross for thisl

^"^^Sit down here, my boy.

Well, I must be off.

Very well done.

STANHOPE:
(5)
Must you sit on Oshorne's bed?

Have a good rest.

(4)

463

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

Rl rises.

TECHNICAL CUES
CL14)

General illuraination
fades out slowly.

(C8)

Curtain closes raedium

slow.

464

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

T, S, and Hb are seated

at the table after
having just dined.
There are plates and
raugs on the tabie.

(2)

S stands.

C3)

S sits down.

TECHNICAL CUES
CC9)

Curtain opens raedium

slow.

(L15) General illumination

up three fourths.

465
RALEIGH;

Sorry

CD

(L14)
CC8)

Scene Two
CC9)

CL151

TROTTER:
'And what did she say to that?
STANHOPE:
She said, "Not in these trousers"in French.
TROTTER:
Ohdear-o-dear I
STANHOPE:
(2)
I simply drew

rayself

up and s a i d ,

have i t your own way ,"^^'

TROTTER:
And she d i d ?
STANHOPE:
No.

She d i d n ' t .

"Very W e l l ,

raara'sel,

466

MOVE^ENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

467
TROTTER:
Oh, skipper, you are a screamand make no mistakel
HIBBERT:
I never forget picking up a couple of tarts one night and
taking 'em out to dinner.
TROTTER:
'E's off again.
HIBBERT:
We drank enough bubbly to sink a battleship
STANHOPE:
To float a battleship.
HIBBERT:
Well^to float a battleship.

Then I took 'era for a joy-

ride out to Maidenheaddid sixty all the way.

a bit at Skindles, and drank

We danced

a lot of port and rauck.

Then daraned if I didn't lose the way coraing backgot landed miles frora anywhere.
like hellsaid

I'd

And those tarts began cursing rae

done it on purpose.

I said if they

didn't daran well shut up, I'd chuck 'era both out in the
road and leave 'era.
STANHOPE:
Hurrahl

That's the stuff

Treat 'era roughl

468

M0VE*4ENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

T, S , a n d Hb r a i s e
t h e i r raugs i n a t o a s t

TECHNICAL CUES

469
HIBBERT:
That shut 'era up all rightl

Then I started doing sixty

down all sorts of roadsI went round a corner on two

wheels with those girls' hair on enddidn't have any raore
trouble from theml
STANHOPE:
You're the sort of man who makes girls hard to please.
TROTTER:
Well, I never 'ad no motor-car; my old lady and rae used to
walk; legs is good enough for rae.
STANHOPE:
You satisfied with legs?
TROTTER:
1 amyesl
STANHOPE:
Much cheaper.
HIBBERT:
That's daran goodl
STANHOPE:
Well, here's a toast to legs^"''^God bless 'eral
HIBBERT:
Good old legsl

470

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl) Hb pulls post-cards frora
one of his pockets.
C2) Hb hands a post-card to
S.

TECHNICAL CUES

471
TROTTER:
Shanks's mare.
STANKOPE:
Shanks's what?
TROTTER:
Shanks's raare they call 'era.
STANHOPE:
Call what?
TROTTER:
Whylegs.
HIBBERT:
Oh, Trotterl

you're a drearal

TROTTER:
You've had too rauch charapagne, you've 'ave.
HIBBERT:
I say, I've never shown you these, have I?
STANHOPE:
Where did you get these frora?
HIBBERT:

In Bethune.

(2)
She's a l l r i g h t , i s n ' t she?'

472

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S hands post-card to T

C2)

Hb hands a second card

to S.

(3)

S hands card to T.

C4)

Hb hands a third card

to S.

TECHNICAL CUES

473
STANEOPE:
Too fat.
HIBBERT:
Oh, I don't know.
STANHOPE:
Much too fat.

^What do you think, Trotter?

HIBBERT:
All right, isn't she?
TROTTER:
Well, I don't know.

If you ask rae, I'd just as soon see

a decent picture of Margate Pier.

HIBBERT:
Oh, you d o n ' t u n d e r s t a n d a r t .

(2)
' T h e r e ' s a n i c e p a i r of

legs f o r y o u .
STANHOPE:
3)

Too t h i n a r e n ' t t h e y , T r o t t e r ? ^ '

TROTTER:
Scraggy, i c a l l

'era.

HIBBERT:
(4)
T h a t ' s t h e one I l i k e

best.

474

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Ci)

S hands card to T.

(2)

M enters UR, x to
table.

(3)

M exits UR dug-out.

TECHNICAL CUES

475
STANHOPE:
Not bad.
HIBBERT:
Glorious bedroom eyes.
STANHOPE:
She's all right. ^^^
HIBBERT:
Ever see that show Zip at the Hippodrorae?
fine girls in thattwins.

Couple of daran

Did you see 'era, skipper?

STANHOPE:
I don't knowseen stacks of shows^can't remember them
all. Now then, swallow up that bubblyl
MASON:
^^^Yessirl
STANHOPE:
Bring some whiskey.
MASON:
Yessir. ^^^
TROTTER:
What?

Whiskey OB top of champagne?

Hil

Masonl

476

M0VE4ENT AND BUSIMESS

Cl)

M enters UR bringing
a whiskey bottle.

TECHNICAL CUES

477
STANKOPE:
Hhy not?

It's all right.

TROTTER:
Well, I don't know; doesn't sound right to me.

I feel as

if somebody's blown rae up with a bicycle purap.

STANHOPE:
You look it, too.
TROTTER:
Any'ow, it was a jolly fine bit o' chickenand I'd go a
mile any day for a chunk o' that jara pudding.
STANHOPE:
Your pudding's made Mr. Trotter feel all blown out, Mason.
MASON:
I'm sorry, sir; it wasn't raeant, sir.
TROTTER:
It was all right, Mason, take it frora rae. I know a decent
bit o' pudden when I see it.
MASON:
It was only boiled ration biscuits and jara, sir.
I better tell you, sirthis is the last bottle.

I thought

478

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl) M exits UR dug-out.

TECHNICAL CUES

479
STANHOPE:
The last bottlel

Why, damn it, we brought sixl

MASON:
I know, sir.

But five's gone.

STANHOPE:
Where the devil's it gone to?
MASON:
Well, sir, you remember there was one on the first night
and then one
STANHOPE:
Oh, for Lord's sake don't go through them one by one;
this'll last till sunrise.

Sunrise toraorrow, ray ladsl

TROTTER:
Oh, forget that.
STANHOPE:
You bet we willl

Now then

Who's for a spot of whiskey?

TROTTER:
I reckon I'm about full up.
Mason.
MASON:
Very good, sir.^^^

I'd like a nice cup o' tea,

480

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S pours some whlskey

for T.

C2)

S pours whiskey for Hb.

C3)

S pours himself a drink.

TECHNICAL CUES

481
STANHOPE:
Teal
TROTTER:
Yes.

That's what I want.

Decent cup o' tea.

just 'ave about a spoonful o' whiskey.

vittals.

Still, I'll

Just to settle the

Got a touch of pulpitations.

STANHOPE:
'Here you aresay whenl
TROTTER:
Wol

That's enoughl
STANHOPE:

You'll have a decent spot, won't you, Hibbert?^^^

HIBBERT:
Yes.

I'm gamel
TROTTER:

Just a cup o' teathen I'll go and relieve young Raleigh.

Pity 'e didn't corae down to supper.
STANHOPE:
(3)
I told hira to. I told hira to corae down for an hour and
let the Sergeant-Major take over.

482

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl) Hb points to DL dug-out.

TECHNICAL CUES

483
TROTTER:
I wonder why 'e didn't come.
HIBBERT:
That lad's too keen on his "duty."

He told me he liked

being up there with the raen better than down here with us.
STANHOPE:
He said that?
HIBBERT:
Yes.

I told hira about the chicken and champagne and cigars

and he stared at rae and said, "You're not having that,

are you?"just as if he thought we were going to chuck it
awayl
TROTTER:
I reckon that raid shook ' im upraore'nwe thought.
that youngster.

'E's got pluck.

I like

Strong lad, toothe

way he carae back through the smoke after that raid, carrying that Boche under 'is arra like a baby.
HIBBERT:
Did you see hira afterwards, though?

He carae into that

dug-out there, ^ ' staring straight in front of hira, and

never said a worddidn't seem to know where he was.

484

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

485
TROTTER:
Well, 'e's only a lad.
STANHOPE:
He actually told you he preferred being up with the raen
better than down here?
HIBBERT:
That's what he said.
TROTTER:
Well, I 'ope 'e gets the M.C., that's all; 'e's just the
kid I'd like if I ever 'ave a kidstrong and plucky.
STANHOPE:
Oh, for God's sake forget that bloody raidl

Think I want

to talk about it?

TROTTER:
Nobut, after all
STANHOPE:
Wellshut upl
TROTTER:
All rightall right.
STANHOPE:
We were having a jolly decent evening till you started

486

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

487
blabbing about the war.
TROTTER:
1 didn't start it.
STANHOPE:
You did.
TROTTER:
You began it about
STANHOPE:
Well, for God's sake stop it, then!
TROTTER:
All rightall right.
HIBBERT:
Did I ever tell you the story about the girl I raet in Soho?
STANHOPE:
I don't knowI expect you did.
HIBBERT:
It'll arause you.

I'd been to a dance, and I was coraing

home quite late

STANHOPE:
^es, and it's late now.

You go on duty at eleven.

hetter go and get sorae sleep.

You

488

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

489
HIBBERT:
It's all right.

I'm as fresh as a daisy.

STANHOPE:
You may be.

But go to bed.

HIBBERT:
What?
STANHOPE:
I said, "Go to bedl"
HIBBERT:
I say, that's a nice end to a jolly evening
STANHOPE:
I'm sorry.

I'ra tired.

HIBBERT:
Well, you better go to bedl
STANHOPE:
What was that you said?
HIBBERT:
I was only joking.
STANHOPE:
I asked you what you said.

490

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Hb rises, backs up a
few steps.

C2)

Hb exits to DL dug-out

C3)

M enters UR with T's

tea.

TECHNICAL CUES

491
HIBBERT:
I said, "You better go to bed."
STANHOPE:
Clear out of herel
HIBBERT:
^ Whatwhat d'you mean?
STANHOPE:
Get out of here, for God's sake!
HIBBERT:
I saylook here
STANHOPE:
Get out of my sightl (2)

Little worm gets on my nerves.

TROTTER:
Poor little bloke.

Never seen 'im so cheerful before out

'ere.
STANHOPE:
Doesn't he nearly drive you mad?
TROTTER:
I reckon 'e only wanted to keep cheerful.
STANHOPE:
^esn't his repulsive little mind raake you sick?

492

MOVEMENT AtD BUSINESS

CD

M exits UR dug-out.

(2)

T picks up Hb's postcards. S lights a

cigarette.

(3)

T rises, pushes the bed

back, X to trench door,
turns back when S speaks

TECHNICAL CUES

493
envy you, Trotter.

Nothing upsets you does it. ^"^^

You're

always the sarae.

TROTTER:
Always the same, am I?

Little you know

STANHOPE:
You never get sick to death of everything, or so happy you
want to sing.
TROTTER:
I don't knowI whistle soraetiraes.
STANHOPE:
But you always f eel the sarae.
TROTTER:
I f e e l a l l blown o u t now.

(2)
^ ''Ere's

'lbbert's

post-cards.

Funny a b l o k e c a r r y i n g p i c t u r e s l i k e t h i s a b o u t .
'is l u s t ,

I s'posepoor l i t t l e blighter.

and r e l i e v e young R a l e i g h .
supper.

^^^Well,

Pity

Satiafies

Well, I ' l l

go

' e d i d n ' t corae down t o

cheerol

STANHOPE:
You r e a l i z e y o u ' r e ray second-in-comraand, now, d o n ' t you?
TROTTER:
Well you ' a d n ' t s a i d n o t h i n g a b o u t i t ,

but

494

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

T X to table.

C21

T starts up trench
exit.

(3)

T exits.

(4)

S rises, x to DR bed,
then sits.

TECHNICAL CUES

495

STANHOPE:
Well, you a r e .
TROTTER:
Righto, s k i p p e r .

Thanks. ^

I w o n ' t l e t you down.

STANHOPE:
After your d u t y , have a d e c e n t s l e e p .
half-past

We raust be ready a t

five.

TROTTER:
Righto, s k i p p e r .

W e l l , I ' l l be g o i n g u p .

to c o o l o f f up t h e r e .
a l l them damn c a n d l e s

Give rae a chance

I t ' s as ' o t as ' e l l in ' e r e ,

burning.

STANHOPE:
I suppose i t i s .

My h e a d ' s n e a r l y

splitting.

TROTTER:
' T h e r e ' s a b i t of a raist r i s i n g .
STANHOPE:
Is there? ^"^' Masonl
MASON:
Yessirl

STANHOPE:
(4)
You can bring Mr. Raleigh's dinner

with

496

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl) M enters, laying Rl's
dinner and reraoving the
other plates, then
exits UR.
(2)

Rl enters, x DL, turns

to face S.

TECHNICAL CUES

497
MASON:
Very good, sir.

'

STANHOPE:
(2)
'l thought I told you to come down to dinner at eight
o'clock?
RALEIGH:
Oh, I'ra sorry.

I didn't think y o u e r

STANHOPE:
Well?

You didn't think

Ierwhat?

RALEIGH:
I didn't think you'dyou'd raindif I didn't.
STANHOPE:
I see.

And why do you think I asked youif I didn't raind?

RALEIGH:

I'm sorry.
STANHOPE:
Well, we've kept your dinner.

It's ready for you here.

RALEIGH:
Oh, it's awfully good of you to have kept it for rae, b u t
^ I had soraething to eat up there.

498

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

499
STANHOPE:
Youhad something to eat up there?

What do you raean ex-

actly?
RALEIGH:
They brought the tea round while I was on duty.

I had a

cup, and sorae bread and cheese.

STANHOPE:
Are you telling raeyou've been feeding with the raen?
RALEIGH:
Well, Sergeant Baker suggested
STANHOPE:
So you take your orders frora Sergeant Baker, do you?
RALEIGH:
No, but
STANHOPE:
You e a t t h e raen's r a t i o n s when t h e r e ' s b a r e l y enough f o r
each raan?
RALEIGH:
They asked rae t o s h a r e .
STANHOPE:
Now, look h e r e .

I know y o u ' r e new t o t h i s , but I t h o u g h t

500

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl) Rl X to table, sits on
the box left of the
table.

TECHNICAL CUES

501
you'd have the common sense to leave the men alone to their
meals.

Do you think they want an officer prowling round

eating their rations, and sucking up to them like that?

My officers are here to be respectednot laughed at.
RALEIGH:
Why did they ask raeif they didn't mean it?
STANHOPE:
Don't you realize they were making a fool of you?
RALEIGH:
Why should they?
STANHOPE:
So you know more about my men than I do?
RALEIGH:
I'm sorry thenif I was wrong.
STANHOPE:
Sit down.
RALEIGH:
It's all right, thanks.
STANHOPE:
Sit downl ^^^

I understand you prefer being up there with

the men than down here with us?

502

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S rises, takes two

steps DC.

C2)

Rl rises, backs up
three steps.

TECHNICAL CUES

503
RALEIGH:
I don't see what you mean.
STANHOPE:
What did you tell Hibbert?
RALSIGH:
Hibbert?

I~I didn't say

STANHOPE:
^'^Don't l i e .

RALEIGH:
(2)

I'm not lyingl ^ '

why should Ilie?

STANHOPE:
Then why didn't you corae down to supper when I told you to?
RALEIGH:
I I wasn't hungry.

I had rather a headache.

It's cooler

up there.
STANHOPE:
You insulted Trotter and Hibbert by not coming.
that, I suppose?
RALEIGH:
I didn't raean to do anything like that.

You realize

504

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S turns right, x two

steps DR.

C2)

Rl turns left, x two

steps DL.

TECHNICAL CUES

505
STANHOPE:
Well you did.

You know nowdon't you?

I sayyou know

now, don't you?

RALEIGH:
Yes, I'm sorry.
STANHOPE:
My officers work together.

I'll have no daran prigs.

RALEIGH:
I'll speak to Trotter and Hibbert.

I didn't realize

STANHOPE:
I'm glad you didn't realize

What are you looking at?

RALEIGH:
Nothing.
STANHOPE:
Anythingfunny about rae?
RALEIGH:
(2)
No.^'''

Iin a w f u l l y s o r r y , Dennis, i f i f

I annoyed you by

coming to your corapany.

STANHOPE:
What on earth are you t a l k i n g about?

What do you raean?

506

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

507
RALEIGH:
You resent my being here.
STANHOPE:
Resent you being here?
RALEIGH:
Ever since I carae
STANHOPE:
I don't know what you raean. I resent you being a daran fool,
that's all.

Better eat your dinner before it's cold.

RALEIGH:
I'm not hungry, thanks.
STANHOPE:
Oh, for God's sake, sit down and eat it like a raanl
RALEIGH:
I can't eat it, thanks.
STANHOPE:
Are you going to eat your dinner?
RALEIGH:
(ood Godl

Don't you understand?

How can I sit down and

eat thatwhenwhen Osborne'slyingout there

508

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

CD

S turns DR.

TECHNICAL CUES

509
STANHOPE:
My Godl

You bloody little swinel

You think I don't care

you think you're the only soul that cares.

RALEIGH:
And yet you can sit there and drink champagneand sraoke
cigars
STANHOPE:
The one raan I could trustray best friendthe one raan I
could talk to as raan to raanwho understood everything
and you think I don't c a r e
RALEIGH:
But how can you w h e n
STANHOPE:
To forget, you little foolto forgetl
To forgetl

D'you understand?

You think there's no limit to what a raan can

bearl^^^
RALEIGH:
I'm awfully sorry, Dennis.

I I didn't understand.

<ion't know h o w I
STANHOPE:
Go away, pleaseleave rae alone.

You

510

MOVEI^ENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

Rl exits DL dug-out.

TECHNICAL CUES
CL16)

General illuraination
fades out slowly.

CCIO)

Curtain closes raedium

slow.

511

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl) M enters UR, x to the
table, lights the
candle, turns to DR b.ed
to waken S.

TECHNICAL CUES

CCll)

Curtain opens raediura

slow.

CL17)

Lights fade in dira

Carea t w o ) .

CL18)

Lights in area two

corae up as the candle
is l i t .

512
RALEIGH:
Can't I
STANHOPE:
Oh, get out.

For God's sake, get outl^^^

(L16)
(CIO)
Scene Three
(Cll)
(L17)
(L18)
MASON:
^^^SirSir
STANHOPE:
Yes? That you, Mason?
MASON:
'Arf-past five, sir.
STANHOPE:
(5h, right.

I was only half asleep.

It's so frightfully cold in here.

I keep on waking up.

513

MO^' MENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

S s i t s u p , raoves b e d .

C2)

M X to lantern, turns
it up.

(3)

M exits UR dug-out.

(4)

T enters frora DL dugout, raoves a few steps

right.

TECHNICAL CUES
CL191

General illuraination
fades in full.

514
MASON:
It's a cold dug-out, this one, sir.

i've made sorae 'ot

tea.
STANHOPE:
Good.

You might bring me some.

MASON:
Right you are, sir.
STANHOPE:
And take sorae to the officers in thereand wake thera up
MASON:
Very good, sir.^^^' ^ ^ ^ ^ ) ' ^3)
TRCXTTER:
(4)
Wash and b r u s h - u p ,

tuppence!

STANHOPE:
Hullol

I t h o u g h t you were a s l e e p .
TROTTER:

I 'ad a decent sleep when I came off dooty.

What's the

time?
STANHOPE:
Half-past f i v e .
buck up.

I t ' l l be g e t t i n g l i g h t soon.

You b e t t e r

515

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

M enters UR, x to the

table with tea.

(2)

T X to the table and

gets a mug of tea.

(3)

M exits DL dug-out.

(4)

T exits DL dug-out
carrying his raug of
tea with him.

(5)

M enters DL with T's

raug, X to the tabie
and picks up the tea
iteras.

TECHNICAL CUES

516
TROTTER:
All right.

1_ shan't be long.

Sounds quiet enough out

there.
STANHOPE:
Yes.
THOTTER:
^Ahl that's what I want.

A decent cup of tea.^^^

MASON:
Nice and 'ot, sir.

I've cut a packet of sarabridges for

each gentleraan, sir.

STANHOPE:
Good.

You raight give Hibbert and Raleigh a call. ^ '

TROTTER:

I woke 'era up, skipper.

They're getting their things on.^ '

STANHOPE:
(5)
When you've cleaned up your kitchen, you raust dress and
join your platoon in the line.
MASON:
Very good, sir.
STANHOPE:
If things are going well at eleven o'clock, corae down here
and do your best to get sorae lunch for us.

We shall corae

517

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

k. ^

(1)

M exits UR dug-out.

(2)

A soldier enters UR, x

to the table and waits
while S writes a message. The soldier takes
the raessage then exits
to the trench.

(3)

S throws a coin to T.

(4)

SM enters from the

trench, x DL of the
table.

^.

TECHNICAL CUES

518
down in turn as we can.
MASON:
Very good, sir.^ ^
STANHOPE:
(2)
Runnerl
Take t h i s t o B a t t a l i o n Headquarters.

There's

no r e p l y .
SOLDIER:
Yessir.
TROTTER:
"K-K-K-Katey, K-K-K-Katey.

You're the only girl that I a-

dore. When the raoon shines o're the trenches, " ^"^^Thank
you kindly, gov'norl
STANHOPE:
(4)
Morning, Sergeant-Major.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Morning, sir.

Wiring parties just in, sir.

Made a decent

job of itright down to the support line.

STANHOPE:
(5ood. Everything quiet?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
It's all right opposite 'ere, sir, but the guns are goin'

519

 OVEiMENT AND

BUSIMESS

TECHNICAL CUES

520
'ard down south.

'Eavy bomhardment.

Not sure if it ain't

spreading up this way, sir.

STANHOPE:
Very likely it is.

The officers are coming up in a rainute.

They'll stand by with their platoons.

I raust stay here a-

while in case of raessages. I shall corae up directly things

begin to happen.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Very good, sir.
STANHOPE:
Are the raen having their tea?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Yessir.
STANHOPE:
Let 'era have a decent drop of rura.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
About 'arf again, sir?
STANHOPE:
Yes.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
If the attack don't corae, sir, 'ow long are we to stand-to?

521

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

SM exits to the trench.

(2)

M enters UR with sandwiches, X to the table,

522
STANHOPE:
We must expect the attack any time till midday.

After then

I don't think it'll come till tomorrow.

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Very good, sir.
STANHOPE:
We must naturally make our plans to meet things as they
happen.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
(uite, sir.
STANHOPE:
All right, Sergeant-Major.

I'll see you up there soon.

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Y e s s i r . (1)
MASON:
(2)
Your s a m b r i d g e s , s i r .
Sardine on t o p ,

'Arf b u l l y b e e f and ' a r f

sir.

STANHOPE:
How delicious.
MASON:
No what, sir?

No pate de fois gras?

sardine

523

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

M exits DL dug-out with

sandwiches then returns

(2)

M exits UR dug-out.

(3)

T enters DL, x to the

table.

(4)

T X to pillar UC of the
table.

(5)

S X to trench door.

TECHNICAL CUES
CS15)

Sounds of an explosion

CS16)

Louder explosion, gunfire begins, continues

to the end of the show

524
STANHOPE:
No pate de fois gras?
MASON:
No, sir.

The milkman 'asn't been yet.^^

STANHOPE:
Get dressed as soon as you can.
MASON:
Yessir. (2)
TROTTER:
(3)
All ready, skipper.

Want rae to go up?

STANHOPE:
Yes.

I think so.

thing's all right.

Go right round the line and see everyI'll be up soon.

(S15)
TROTTER:
'Ullo, 'ullo.^^^
STANHOPE:
C5)
Over on Lancer's Alleysoraewhere by the r e s e r v e l i n e
(S16)

525

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

S X to the table and

sits.

(2)

T exits to the trench.

C3)

Rl enters DL, x to the

table.

(4)

Rl exits to the trench,

(5)

Hb enters DL.

TECHNICAL CUES

526
TROTTER:
That's nearer.
STANHOPE:
Better go up, Trotter. ^"^^

Call the others.

TROTTER:
Ibbertl

Raleighl corae onl

Cheero, Skipper.

See you

later.^^^
RALEIGH:
(3)
'Do you want rae to go up?
STANHOPE:
Yes.

Trotter's gone.
RALEIGH:

Right.

CheeroStanhope.^^
STANHOPE:

Cheero, Raleigh.
HibbertlI

I shall be coraing up soon.

What are you doing?

Corae along, raanl

HIBBERT:
You want rae to go up now?
STANHOPE:
Of course I do.

Hibbertl

The others have gone.

527

MOVEMENT
(1)

A:;D B U S I N E S S

S pours sorae water, hands

it to Hb, and Hb drinks.

TECHNICAL CUES

528
HIBBERT:
Got a drop of water?
STANHOPE:
What d'you want water for?
HIBBERT:
I'm so frightfully thirsty.

All that champagne and stuff

driedrayraouthup.
STANHOPE:
Here you are.

Didn't you have any tea?

HIBBERT:
Yes.

It was a bit sweet, though.

STANHOPE:

Come on.

Buck up.

HIBBERT:
There's no appalling hurry, is there?
STANHOPE:
No hurryl

Why d'you think the others have gone up?

HIBBERT:
What?

Trotter and Raleigh?

STANHOPE:

Wake up, raanl What the devil's the raatter with you?

529

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

Hb pours hiraself sorae

raore water.

(2) M enters UR, x to table

TECHNICAL CUES

530

HIBBERT:

Champagne dries the mouth up so. Makes the tongue feel

like a bit of paper.
STANHOPE:
The longer you stay here, the harder it'll he to go up.
HIBBERT:
Good Lordl

You don't think I'm

STANHOPE:
You're just wasting as rauch as you can.
HIBBERT:
Well, daran it, it's no good going up till I feel fit.
Let's just have another spot of water.^ '
MASON:
(2) .
I'll go right along, now, sir.

I've made up the fire

to last a good three hoursif you don't mind rae popping

down about nine o'clock to 'ave a look at it.
STANHOPE:
All right, Mason.

Mr. Hibbert's coming up now.

You can

90 along with hira.

MASON:
I'd like to corae along with you if you don't mind, sir.
ain't bin up in this part of the front line.
to get lorst.

Don't want

531

532
STANHOPE:
Mr. Hibbert'll show you the way up.

Keep your men against

the back wall of the trench as long as the shells are dropping behind.

Cheerol ^''^ Yes?^^^

SOLDIER:
Message from Mr. Trotter, sir.
hind support line.

Shells falling mostly be-

Minnies along front line.

STANHOPE:
Who's been hit?
SOLDIER:
Corporal R o s s , I t h i n k i t w a s , s i r .

Minnie dropped i n t h e
(3)
trench a t t h e c o r n e r 3 u s t I carae away.
STANHOPE:

All r i g h t ,

thanks.^^^

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Beginning t o g e t

'ot,

STANHOPE:
Corporal Ross h i t ?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Yessir.
STANHOPE:
Badly?

sir.

533

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

534
SERGEA^ T-MAJOR:
Pretty badly, sir.
STANHOPE:
Most of the shelling's going over, isn't it?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Most of the shells is be'ind, sir, but there's Minnies and
the rifle grenades along the front line.
getting, sir.

Pretty 'ot it's

They're attacking down souththere's rifle

fire.
STANHOPE:
All right, Sergeant-Major, thanks.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
What I corae to ask, sirwhat about the woundedgetting
'em down, sir?

The shelling's pretty thick over Lancer's

Alley.
STANHOPE:
Don't try then.

Take anyone badly hit down into the big

dug-out on the right.

they can there.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Very good, sir.

Let the stretcher bearers do what

535

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

CD

SM exits to the trench.

C2)

SM enters from the

trench, x to the table.

TECHNICAL CUES

536
STANHOPE:
Only Corporal Ross hit?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
That's all, sir^"'^
OFFSTAGE:
"Stretcher bear-ersl"^^^
STANHOPE:
What is it, Sergeant-Major?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Mr. Raleigh, sir
STANHOPE:
Whatl
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Mr. Raleigh's been 'it, sir.

Bit of shell's got 'ira in

the back.
STANHOPE:
Badly?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
'Praid it's broke 'is spine, sir; can't raove 'is legs.
STANHOPE:
Bring hira down here.

537

MOVEMENT AID BUSINESS

(1)

SM exits to the trench.

(2)

S raoves the table and

boxes UL, moves bed
against the wall.

13)

SM enters frora the

trench, carrying Rl,
X to DR bed and lays
Rl down.

(4)

S'l exits tc the trench,.

S X to DR bed and sits
beside Rl.

TECHNICAL CUES

538
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
Down 'ere, sir?
STANHOPE:
Yesl

Down herequicklyl^ ^' > '

STANHOPE:

3)

Lay him down there.

SERGEANT-MAJOR:
^E's fainted, sir.

'E was conscious when I picked ' ira up

STANHOPE:
Have they dressed the wound?
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
They've just put a pad on it, sir.

Can't do no raore.

STANHOPE:
Go at once and bring two raen with a stretcher.
SERGEANT-MAJOR:
We'll never get 'ira down, sir, with thera shells falling
on Lancer's Alley.
STANHOPE:
Did you hear what I said?
stretcher. ^^^

Go and get two raen with a

539

''lt

540
RALEIGH:
HulloDennis
STANHOPE:
Well, Jimmyyou got one quickly.
RALEIGH:
Whyhow did I get down here?
STANHOPE:
Sergeant-Major brought you down.
RALEIGH:
Somethinghit rae in the backknocked rae clean over
sort ofwinded raeI'ra all right now.
STANHOPE:
Steady, old boy.

Just lie there quietly for a bit.

RALEIGH:
I'll be better if I get up and walk about.

It happened

once beforeI got kicked in just the sarae place at Rugger;

itit soon wore off.

Itit just numbs you for a bit.

What's that rumbling noise?

STANHOPE:
The guns are making a bit of a row.
RALEIGH:
Our guns?

i !
\

541

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

TECHNICAL CUES

542
STANHOPE:
No. Mostly theirs.
RALEIGH:
I sayDennis
STANHOPE:
Yes, old boy?
RALEIGH:
Itit hasn't gone through, has it?

It only just hit rae?

and knocked rae down?

STANHOPE:
It's just gone through a bit, Jimmy.
RALEIGH:
I won't have to go on lying here?
STANHOPE:
I'm going to have you taken away.
RALEIGH:
Away?

Where?
STANHOPE:

Down to the dressing-stationthen hospitalthen horae.

RALEIGH:
But II can't go horae just forfor a knock in the back.

543

lli

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

Rl tries to rise, falls

back.

(2)

S X to the table, gets

soroe water, x back to
DR bed.

(3)

S gives the water to

Rl.

TECHNICAL CUES

544
I'm certain I'll be better i f i f i get up. ^"''^ OhGodl
It does hurtl
STANHOPE:
It's bound to hurt, Jimmy.
RALEIGH:
What'son my legs?

Something holding them down

STANHOPE:
It's all right, old chap; it's just the shocknurabed thera,
RALEIGH:
It's awfully decent of you to bother, Dennis.

I feel rot-

ten lying hereeverybody elseup there.

STANHOPE:
It's not your fault, Jiraray.
RALEIGH:
Sodamnsillygetting hit.

Is therejust a drop of

water?
STANHOPE:
(2)
Sure.^ ' I ' v e g o t sorae h e r e .

Got sorae t e a - l e a v e s in i t .

D'you raind?
RALEIGH:
No.. That's all right^ 'thanksI say, Dennis, don't you

'"1

545

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

(1)

S X to UL bed, gets a
blanket, x to DR bed and
covers Rl. Then S x to
the table, gets a candle,
X to DR bed, sets the
candle on the bed,
kneels beside the bed.

(2)

B enters from the trench,

X down to the UL corner
of the bed.

TECHNICAL CUES

546
w a i t i f i f you want to be getting on.
STANHOPE:
It's quite all right, Jimmy.
RALEIGH:
Can you stay for a bit?
STANHOPE:
Of course I can.
RALEIGH:
Thanks awfully.

Dennis

STANHOPE:
Yes, old boy?

RALEIGH:
Could we have a light?

It'sit's so frightfully dark and

cold.

STANHOPE:
Surel

I'll bring a candle and get another blanket.

Is that better, Jiramy?

Jiraray

(2)

o..
SOLDIER:
Message frora Mr. Trotter, s i r w i l l you corae at once.
Trotter, s i r s a y s will you corae at oncel

Mr.

547

MOVEMENT AND BUSINESS

Cl)

B exits to the trench

(2)

S rises, x UC to the
pillar, turns off the
lantern, exits to the
trench.

TECHNICAL CUES
(X20)

Lights dira, leaving

only the candle on Rl.

CS17)

Sounds of an explosion
and then the wall
falls.

CL21)

A bright, short flash

of light with the
explosion.

(Cll)

Curtain closes.

(L21)

House lights corae up.

(S18)

Battle sounds fade out

548
STANHOPE:
All right, Broughton, l'm coming. ^^^' ^^^
(L20)
CS17)
(L21)
CC19)
(L22)
CS18)

,h
550

F i g . 9.
R a l e i g h ' s and Stanhope's F i r s t Encounter
Cp. 195)

552

Fig. 10.
Confrontation between Stanhope and Hibbert
Cp. 362)

554

Fig. 11.
Interrogation of the German Soldier
(p. 454)

556

Fig. 12.
The Celebration Meal
(p. 465)

558

Fig. 13.
Raleigh's Death
Cp. 548)

559

560

Fig. 14
Stanhope's Final Exit
(p. 548)

r
CHAPTER VI
EVALUATION
This production of Journey's End was, on the whole,
quite successful.

It was well received by the audiences.

Despite the fact that the audienceraembersseemed not to be

so deeply affected by the play as was hoped, they did seem
to leave moved by the play.
The production was reviewed by Pat Henry of the
Avalanche Journal (see Appendix A).

Since her review raore

closely resembled a publicity release than a theatrical critique it is of little use in evaluating the production or
the reaction of the Lubbock theatre patrons to it.
The most constructive reactions came from the Theatre
Arts faculty merabers.

Shortly following the close of Jour-

ney' s End an evaluationraeetingwas held at which the production and its effectiveness was discussed.

members were pleased with the production.

The faculty

They seemed es-

pecially pleased with the actors' ability to cope with the

small audiences.

It was also felt that the sound and light-

ing effects were successful in enhancing the reality desired.

It was felt that the set was successful both in

aiding the actors in their characterization and in pro562

563
ducing a mood that was very desirable.
There were two areas which the faculty raembers felt
could have been improved.
ing.

The first of these was the block-

In general, the set was well used and the use of the

area around the table was natural and raotivated. However,

several opportunities to add variety by the use of the
down stage left area were overlooked.
A second criticisra was the inability to obtain the
best performance possible frora sorae of the actors.

This

was, however, offset by the excellant performances given by

the other actors.

Several of the actors gave better per-

formances than they had previously done at Texas Tech.

One surprising coraraent offered was that the perforraance had alraost a reader's theatre quality that was found
to be interesting and pleasing because it gaveraaxirauraeffectiveness to Sherriff's exceptionally fine use of language.
While there were sorae imperfections, in general the
production seeraed to have raade the audience aware of
Sherriff's coraraent on raen's reaction under stress.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
Books
Anderson, Michael. Crowell's Handbook of Conteraporary
Draraa.
New York: H. W. Wilson, Co., 1971.
Baldwin, Hanson.
1962.

World War I.

New York:

Harper & Row,

BennSr F. Lee, and Seldon, Mary Elizabeth. Europe: 19141939. New York: Appleton-Cestury Cr l i T T M T
Block, Anita. The Changing World in Plays and Theatre.
Boston: Little, Brown & Co., 1939.
Congon, Don., ed. Corabat: World War I.
Pub. Co., I n c , 1964.

New York:

Dell

Dooly, Williara G., Jr. Great Weapons of World War I.

York: Walkora Co., 1969.

New

Enser, A. G. S., ed. Filraed Books and Plays: 1928-1969.

London: Grafton, I n c , 1975.
Ferguson, Wallace, and Bruun, Geoffrey. A Survey of
European Civilization. 4th ed. New York: Houghton Mifflin C c , 1969.
Fitzsiraons, Bernard., ed. Tanks and Weapons of World War I.
New York: Beekraan House, 1973.
. Heraldry & Regalia of War.
House, 1973.

New York:

Beekman

Fleming, D- F. The Origins and Legacies of World War I.

Greenwich, Conn.: Fawcett Publications, Inc., 1968.
Fox, Henry L., ed. What the Boys Did Overthere. New York:
The Allied Overseas Veterans Stories Co., Inc., 1918.
Gilbert, Felix, et. al. The Norton History of Modern Europe
New York: W. W. Norton & Co., 1971.
564

565
Home, Charles F., ed. The Great Events of the Great War.
U. S. A.: National Alumi, 1923.
'
Hughes, H. Stuart. Contemporary Europe: A History. 2nd
ed. Englewood Cliffs, New Jersey: Prentice Hall,
Inc., 1961.
Johnson, Melvin M. Jr. , and Havern, Charles T. Autoraatic
Arms: Their History, Developraent and Use. New York
Williara Marrow & Co., 1942.
Kunitz, Stanley J., ed. Twentieth Century.Authors.
York: H. W. Wilson Cto., 1955.
McClintock, Alexander.
C c , 1917.

Best O' Luck.

New York:

New

H. Doran

Macquarrie, Hector. How to Live at the Front. Philadelphia: J. B. Lippincott C c , 1917.

March, Francis A. History of the World War. Philadelphia:
The United Publishers of the U. S. and Canada, 1918.
Marshall, S. L. A. The Araerican Heritage History of World
War I. New York: Dell Pub. C c , Inc. , 1966.
Messenger, Charles. Trench Fighting: 1914-1918. Ballantine's Illustrated History of the Violent Century,
n c 28. New York: Ballatine Books, Inc., 1972.
Quick, John, ed.
New York:

Dictionary of Weapons and Military Terras.

McGraw-Hill Book C c , 1973.

Sasson, Siegfried. Meraoirs of an Infantry Officer.

Faber & Faber Ltd., no date.

London

Seats, Frank. "Life in the Trenches". VJhat the Boys Did

Overthere. ed. Henry L. Fox. New York: The
Allied Overseas Veterans Stories C c , Inc. , 1918.
Sherriff, R. C. Journey's End.
Ltd., 1929^
No Leading Lady.
1968.

London:

London:

Sarauel French,

Victor Gollancz, Ltd.,

Smith, W. H. B. Sraall Arras of the World.

The Stack Pole Co., 1960.

Harrisburg, Penn.

f
566
Wheeler, Walter R. The Infantry Battalion in War. Washington: The Infantry Journal, I n c , 1936.
Young, Stark. Immortal Shadows.
ner's Sons, 1948.

New York:

Charles Scrib-

Priodicals
Halsey, Ashley, Jr. "Four Great Guns."
raan, January 1974, p. 77.

The American Rifle-

Olson, Ludwig. "Mauser: The Rifle that Made Good."

Araerican Rifleraan, April 1975, pp. 29-31.

The

. "Wilhelra and Paul: Rx for Success in Rifle Making." The Araerican Rifleraan, March 1975, pp. 24-26.
Reynolds, E. G. B. "Lee-Enfield Makes a Comeback as a
Coramonwealth Target Rifle." The Araerican Rifleraan,
January 1974, pp. 2 7-32.

APPENDIX
A. Newspaper Review
B. Program
C. Poster

567

Appendix A
Newspaper Review

568

569
r i~

" j r

__.

Signs Of Spring
Sprout In Play
r BYTHENRV
Xi^iuemeDts Editor
Quite m contrast with "Rose
Tattoo" is the drama about
yocng Englishmen at war,
"Joumey's End." The Lab
crew, directed by Sam Cornelius, puts up a jolly good show.
Concentrated into one small
bunker, with an invisibie enemy only a rugby field distant, :
are the terror and fnistration of
World War I trench warfare.
As the youthful leader Stanhope, Mark Walters is brittle
and nerve-wraciied. In his first
scene he picks neurotically

Lubbock A v a l a n c h e Journal.
Tuesday
(morning), March
2, 1976. S e c t . A,

about the filth on the floor and

the lack of pepper on the table.
These are wrongs he can rght;
he cannot change orders that
send his men into the line.
Stanhope is heroic, but he
sees himself as a coward
"doped by whiskey." He is like
the earwig that the men dip in
whiskey and race for sport.
The second-in-command Osbome, as portrayed by Patrdc
C. Donneliy, claims the center
of attention in the bunker from
his first mild complaint that
shelling jars dirt into his tea.
The actor's demeanor consist-<
ently marks Osbome as a teach-'
er, putting the madness of war
into some sort of perspective.
Matthew Masek is the newly
arrived oficer Raleigh, who
has worshipped Stanhope since
school days. It is immediately
obvious that Raleigh is too
clean, too keen for war games.
Frederick Byron Christoffel
fills the bunker with the huge
presence of 2nd. Lt. Trotter,
whose common sense and comic exchanges wilh the cook
(James Odom are another
steadymg inluence. Warren
Dav'.on portrays the of ficer who
cannot hide his cowardice.

7.

Appendix B
Program

570

571

R. C. Sherriffs

Journey's End
February 27-March 3

CAST
Captain Hardy

BRIAN J. SULLIVAN

Lieutenant Osborne . . . PATRICK C. DONNELLY

Private Mason

JAMES ODOM

2nd Lieutenant Raleigh . . . MATTHEW MASEK

Captain Stanhope

MARK L. WALTERS

2nd Lieutenant
Trotter . . FREDERICK BYRON CHRISTOFFEL
2nd Lieutenant Hibbert . . .

WARREN DAYTON

Company Sergeant-Major

BYRON SHAW

The Colonel

MICHAEL A. ROE III

The German

GARI W. KAUFMAN

Lance-Corporal Broughton
There will he two ten-minute

CARL P. LYNN
intermissions.

Photographs must not be taken during the performance.

LABORATORY J

v:

THEATRE _

A production of
the University
Theatre
Texas Tech
University

572

PROGRAM NOTES
R. C. Sherrifr began his playwrighting career as a
tund-raismg project for the rowing club of which he
was captam. Journey's End was SherrifTs second
attempt at writmg for the professional stage. This
^^^o^n""^".'" '^28, was first produced in London
m 1929; it brought fame to Sherriflf and several of
the actors. Eventually Journey's End toured most of
r;"'^Pfo*"'' "^^'^' *"'v companies of it toured the
United States.
The play takes place in March of 1917, just prior to
and during the last major offensive of the Imperial
Oerman troops. The action occurs in an officers'
dugout just behind the main fring trench. This particular area isjust west of Cambri in northern France
Trenches were squalid aflfairs infested with rats
lice, and disease, and filled with mud. While the
play deals with the men's existence in the trenches
and is subtly antiwar, it is more concerned with the
reactions of the men involved, both to the war and
to each other.
-^C

PRODUCTION STAFF
Directed by Samuel Denver Cornelius*
Assistant to the Director . . Deborah Suzanne Morton
Costume Design
Steve Bartell
Set Design . . .
Henry S. John*
Lighting Design
Henry S. John*
Poster Design
Bob Perkins
Production Stage Manager . . . Deborah Suzanne
Morton
Scenery
Kevin Jones, Nancy Parks,
Judy Scotts, Carl P. Lynn
Lights and Sound
James Zeeck, Helen Whitmil!
Costumes
Rhonda Toth, crew head;
James Odom. Gari W. Kaufman
Makeup
Rhonda Toth
Publicity
Cindy Collins, Chuck Darden,
Kelli McDonald, Brian J. Sullivan, W. Joseph Sammons
LABORATORY THEATRE STAFF
Faculty Supervisor
Dr. Joseph B. Kaough
Technical Coordinator
Henry S. John*
Business Manager
. . . Lynn Young
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS
Huber's Pawn Shop and Western Wear
*Member of Alpha Psi Omega, National Honorary
Dramatic Fraternity

Appendix C
Poster

573

574

JOURNEY S

LABORATORY THEATRE

Texas Tech Lab Theatre

February 27,28 - 7:00 & 9:00
February 29 -March 3 - 8:15
Tckets - University Theatre
Tcket Office

CHAPTER V
PRODUCTION PHOTOGRAPHS

549