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DEALING IN FUTURES

A Play In Three Acts

By Harold Brighouse

New York: Samuel French Publisher

1913

[Illustration: 0005]




DEALING IN FUTURES

A PLAY IN THREE ACTS

CHARACTERS

Jabez Thompson....................A Chemical Manufacturer.

Rosie Thompson....................His Daughter.

John Bunting......................A Master Dyer.

Charlie Bunting...................His Son.

Walter Clavering..................A Young Doctor.

The Scene is laid in an outlying Lancashire village and the action of
the play takes place within a space of twenty-six hours.




ACT I

_The dining-room of Jabez Thompson's; the room is luxuriously furnished
and combines comfort with ostentation; the door is left, and at the back
a large doorway curtained off leads to the billiard-room. (A plan of
this and the other scenes in the play will be found at the end of the
book.) The table is littered with the debris of dinner, and at it sit
Jabez Thompson (l.), and Rosie his daughter (l.), facing each other.
Jabez is elderly, corpulent, bearded, of florid face and general
prosperous appearance; he wears a frock coat, light grey trousers, and
has a heavy gold watch chain. He speaks with all the assertiveness of
life-long success._

Rosie _is dark and highly coloured, her face strong rather than
beautiful. She dresses with taste, avoiding her fathers scarcely veiled
vulgarity, and wears a high dress of some amber material. She inherits
her father's strength of will, and though outwardly cultured, has not
been able to subdue entirely a naturally violent temper. Her voice is
a little shrill and shrewish, and Jabez is obviously rather afraid of
her._

Mallinson, _the butler, enters with coffee, which he places on the table
by Rosie. Rosie pours coffee. Butler puts cup by Jabez._

*****

Butler. Mr. Lomax, from the works, has arrived, sir.

Jabez. Very well, put him in the library. I'll be there in a moment to
sign the letters.

Butler. Yes, sir.

Jabez. Oh, give him this and tell him to look through it. (_Gives folded
paper from his pocket._)

Butler. Yes, sir. (_Takes paper and exit._)

Jabez (_Sips coffee, lights cigar, and turns chair to face audience_).
By the way, Rosie, I asked Charlie to come round after dinner and to
bring his father.

Rosie (_Interested_). Oh! Why?

Jabez. I'm not satisfied with him. I want to have a chat with the pair
of them to see if we can't get things on a better basis.

Rosie. What's the matter with Charlie?

Jabez. Oh, you wouldn't understand. It's a business question.

Rosie. I see. You'd rather I wasn't here?

Jabez. Yes. If you don't mind. We can't do better than stick to the rule
even where Charlie's concerned, eh?

Rosie. Oh, I shan't intrude on a business talk.

Jabez. Thanks, my dear, thanks. (_Encouraged to go on._) Do you know,
Rosie, I'm not a bit happy over this engagement of yours to Charlie.

Rosie (_Curtly_). Why?

Jabez (_Apologetically_). He's a queer fellow. I can't size him up. I
can't think why on earth you got engaged to him.

Rosie. That's my business, isn't it?

Jabez Yes, my dear. I suppose it is. But that doesn't stop me from
wishing you'd taken a fancy to some one else.

Rosie. I've told you before I won't have you interfering in my affairs,
father. I'm quite capable of managing them myself.

Jabez (_Meekly_). I try not to, my dear. I do try not to. Only this
matter--it's not as if you had a mother, is it now?

Rosie. Oh, you can trust me to judge whether a man comes because he
wants me or whether he's only a vulgar fortune-hunter. Whatever Charlie
is or isn't, he's not after my money.

Jabez. No, Charlie never is after money. You're easily the better
business man. He's always got his head full of ideas about pampering the
men instead of thinking of the welfare of the firm.

Rosie (_Snappishly_). You needn't think you can get me to break it off,
so don't try. You can say what you like to him so long as you remember
I'm going to marry him.

Jabez. Well, well, I must see what I can make of Charlie. (_Drinks._)
I'll tell you one thing, my dear, you're a good deal more eager about it
than he is.

Rosie. Possibly. You needn't worry about that.

Jabez. But I do worry, my dear. How can I help it? (_Rosie moves
impatiently._) Now don't fly in a temper. He _is_ taking his time in
coming up to scratch. Let me