"Лорд Дансени. The Glittering Gate (Блистающие врата) (англ.)" - читать интересную книгу автора

Lord Dunsany.

The Glittering Gate




Persons
, lately a burglar \_ Both dead, " " " /

Scene: A Lonely Place.
Time: The present.




{The Lonely Place is strewn with large black rocks andbeer-bottles, the
latter in great profusion. Atis a wall of granite built of great slabs, and
in itGate of Heaven. The door is of gold.
Below the Lonely Place is an abyss hung with stars.
The rising curtain reveals Jim wearily uncorking abottle. Then he tilts
it slowly and with infinite. It proves to be empty. Faint and unpleasant
laughterheard off. This action and accompanying far laughter arecontinually
throughout the play. Corked bottlesdiscovered lying behind rocks, and more
descendthrough the air, within reach of Jim. All provebe empty.
Jim uncorks a few bottles.}
: {weighing one carefully}
That's a full one. {It is empty, like all}

{Singing is heard off left.}
: {enters from left with a bullet-hole over his eye,
singing} Rule Britannia, Britannia rule the waves.
{Breaking off his song} Why, 'ullo. 'Ere's a bottle
of beer. {Finds it empty; looking off and downward}
I'm getting a bit tired of those blooming great stars
down there and this rocky ledge. I've been walking
along under this wall ever since. Why, it must be
twenty-four hours since that householder shot me. And
he need n't have done it, either, *I* was n't going to
hurt the bloke. I only wanted a bit of his silver
stuff. It felt funny, that did. Hullo, a gate. Why,
that's the Gate of Heaven. Well, well. So that's all
right. {Looks up and up for some time} No. I can't
climb *that* wall. Why, it's got no top to it. Up and
up it goes. {Knocks at the door and waits}
:
That is n't for the likes of us.
:
Why, hullo, there's another bloke. Why, somebody's
been hanging him. Why, if it is n't old Jim! Jim!