ACT I

       Table of Contents

      (SCENE.—The breakfast-room at the EVJES' house. A glass-cupboard, in two partitions, stands against the left-hand wall, well forward. On the top of it stand a variety of objects. Beyond it, a stove. At the back of the room, a sideboard. In the middle of the room a small round folding table, laid for four persons. There is an armchair by the stove; a sofa on the right; chairs, etc. A door at the back of the room, and another in the left-hand wall. There are paintings on the walls, and the general impression of the room is one of snug comfort. EVJE, MRS. EVJE, and GERTRUD are seated at the table. INGEBORG is standing by the sideboard. Breakfast is proceeding in silence as the curtain rises. INGEBORG takes away EVJE'S cup and re-fills it. As she brings it back to him, a ring is heard at the bell. GERTRUD gets up.)

      Evje. Sit still; John will go to the door. (GERTRUD sits down again. Directly afterwards, another ring is heard.)

      Mrs. Evje. What can John be doing?

      Ingeborg. I will go. (Goes out. She comes back, showing in HARALD REJN, who hangs up his hat and coat in the hall before coming in.)

      Harald. Good morning!

      Evje and Mrs. Evje. Good morning! (HARALD shakes hands with them.)

      Harald (to GERTRUD, who is sitting on the right). Good morning, Gertrud! Am I a bit late to-day? (GERTRUD, who has taken his hand, looks lovingly at him but says nothing.)

      Mrs. Evje. Yes, I suppose you have been for a long constitutional, although the weather is none of the best.

      Harald. It is not; I expect we shall have a thick fog by the afternoon.

      Evje. Did you have breakfast before you went out?

      Harald. I did, thanks. (To INGEBORG, who has come forward with a cup of coffee.) No, thank you. I will sit down here while you are finishing. (Sits down on the sofa behind GERTRUD.)

      Mrs. Evje. How is your brother Halvdan?

      Harald. A little better to-day, thanks—but of course we cannot build on that.

      Evje. Is your eldest brother coming to see him?

      Harald. Yes, we expect him every day. Probably his wife has come with him, and that has been the reason of the delay; she finds it difficult to get away.

      Mrs. Evje. Halvdan so often talks of her.

      Harald. Yes, I believe she is the best friend he has.

      Evje. No wonder, then, that she wants to come and say good-bye to him. By the way, have you seen how the paper bids him good-bye to-day?

      Harald. Yes, I have seen it.

      Mrs. Evje (hurriedly). I hope Halvdan has not seen it?

      Harald (smiling). No, it is a long time now since Halvdan read a newspaper. (A pause.)

      Evje. Then I suppose you have read what they say about you too?

      Harald. Naturally.

      Mrs. Evje. It is worse than anything they have said about you before.

      Harald. Well—of course, you know, my election meeting comes on this evening.

      Evje. I can tell you it has upset us.

      Mrs. Evje. Day after day we wake up to find our house invaded by these abominations. That is a nice thought to begin your day's work with!

      Harald. Is it so indispensable, then, to educated people to begin their day by reading such things?

      Mrs. Evje. Well—one must have a paper.

      Evje. And most people read it. Besides, one can't deny that a lot of what is in it is true, although its general tendency is to run everyone down.

      Harald (getting up). Quite so, yes. (Leans over GERTRUD'S shoulder.) Gertrud, have you read it?

      Gertrud (does not look at him, and hesitates for a moment; then says gently): Yes.

      Harald (under his breath). So that is it! (Walks away from her.)

      Evje. We have had a little bit of a scene here, I must tell you.

      Harald (walking up and down). Yes, I can understand that.

      Evje. I will repeat what I have said already: they write about you, and we have to suffer for it.

      Mrs. Evje. Yes, and Gertrud especially.

      Gertrud. No—I don't want anyone to consider me in the matter at all. Besides, it is not what they say of you in the paper that hurts me—. (Stops abruptly.)

      Harald (who has come up to her). But what your parents are feeling about it? Is that it? (GERTRUD does not answer.)

      Evje (pushing back his plate). There, I have finished! (They rise from the table. MRS. EVJE helps INGEBORG to clear away the things, which INGEBORG carries out of the room.)

      Mrs. Evje. Couldn't you wash your hands of politics, Harald? (GERTRUD goes out to the left.)

      Evje (who has followed GERTRUD with his eyes). We cannot deny that it pains us considerably that in our old age our peaceful home should be invaded by all this squabbling and abomination.

      Mrs. Evje (who rung for INGEBORG to move the table). You have no need to do it, either, Harald! You are a grown man, and your own master. (INGEBORG comes in. HARALD helps her to move the table.)

      Evje