CURTAIN

INHERITORS

Inheritors was first performed at the Provincetown Playhouse on April 27, 1921.

SMITH (a young business man)

GRANDMOTHER (SILAS MORTON’S mother)

SILAS MORTON (a pioneer farmer)

FELIX FEJEVARY, the First (an exiled Hungarian nobleman)

FELIX FEJEVARY, the Second (his son, a Harvard student)

FELIX FEJEVARY, the Second (a banker)

SENATOR LEWIS (a State Senator)

HORACE FEJEVARY (son of FELIX FEJEVARY, the Second)

DORIS (a student at Morton College)

FUSSIE (another college girl)

MADELINE FEJEVARY MORTON (daughter of IRA MORTON, and granddaughter of
SILAS MORTON)

ISABEL FEJEVARY (wife of FELIX FEJEVARY, the Second, and MADELINE’S aunt)

HARRY (a student clerk)

HOLDEN (Professor at Morton College)

IRA MORTON (son of SILAS MORTON, and MADELINE’S father)

EMIL JOHNSON (an Americanized Swede)

ACT I

SCENE:  Sitting-room of the Mortons’ farmhouse in the Middle West—­on the rolling prairie just back from the Mississippi.  A room that has been long and comfortably lived in, and showing that first-hand contact with materials which was pioneer life.  The hospitable table was made on the place—­well and strongly made; there are braided rugs, and the wooden chairs have patchwork cushions.  There is a corner closet—­left rear.  A picture of Abraham Lincoln.  On the floor a home-made toy boat.  At rise of curtain there are on the stage an old woman and a young man. GRANDMOTHER MORTON is in her rocking-chair near the open door, facing left.  On both sides of door are windows, looking out on a generous land.  She has a sewing basket and is patching a boy’s pants.  She is very old.  Her hands tremble.  Her spirit remembers the days of her strength.

SMITH has just come in and, hat in hand, is standing by the table.  This was lived in the year 1879, afternoon of Fourth of July.

SMITH:  But the celebration was over two hours ago.

GRANDMOTHER:  Oh, celebration, that’s just the beginning of it.  Might as well set down.  When them boys that fought together all get in one square—­they have to swap stories all over again.  That’s the worst of a war—­you have to go on hearing about it so long.  Here it is—­1879—­and we haven’t taken Gettysburg yet.  Well, it was the same way with the war of 1832.

SMITH:  (who is now seated at the table) The war of 1832?

GRANDMOTHER:  News to you that we had a war with the Indians?

SMITH:  That’s right—­the Blackhawk war.  I’ve heard of it.

GRANDMOTHER:  Heard of it!

SMITH:  Were your men in that war?

GRANDMOTHER:  I was in that war.  I threw an Indian in the cellar and stood on the door.  I was heavier then.