Harold Brighouse

“ MARY
A dream?
ELLEN
Aye. A dream’t A wis gaun in a field an’ the grass wis green, greener than life, an’ there wis coos in it and sheep-no’ dirty, blackened beasts like whit’s here, bit whit ye wid fancy they wid be some place whaur there isnae always smoke. An’ A walked in the field an’ the sun wis shinin’ an’ it cam’ dark suddent an’ A couldnae see the coos nae mair. There wis thunder an’ it frichtened me an’ whin A cam’ tae look up again, it wis rainin’ bluid on ma heid, naethin’ bit bluid, an’ the field ran rid wi’ it. ”

“ Thrift, when any day’s work may be your last, seems a misplaced virtue. Lean fare approaches as pay day recedes, and illness, meagrely provided for by membership of a “sick” society, is tided over in the main by the unfailing generosity of neighbours whose own table suffers by the charity. ”

“ Ye’ll hardly mind an accident here will ye, Mary?
MARY
Naw.
ELLEN
Naw, A thocht no’. (She has now come to the fireplace, where she sits in an arm-chair.) It’s mony a year sin’ we hud yin tae speak o’. A don’t mind o’ hearin’ the alarm bell ringin’ mair than yince, or mebbe twict since yer uncle wis kill’t. That wis somethin’ like a do. There wis mair than twinty kill’t that time an’ mebbe forty or mair that wis hurt. A’ve heard folks say there his been bigger accidents in America, but A don’t tak’ ower much notice o’ they newspaper tales masel’. ”

“ Ye never ken, Mary, what’ll happen doon a pit. Jist think. A micht never come up again and ye’d be sick and sorry if A wis blown tae kingdom come an’ no’ huv the consolation o’ kennin’ that ye meant tae huv me.
MARY
It’s nae use, ma boy. Ye’ll no’ frichten me that wey. A’m no’ pit born like you, but A’ve stayed aside pits a bit ower lang fur that. An’ ye ken weel anough it’s no’ richt tae talk aboot they things. A tell’t ye A’d gie ye yer answer the nicht an’ ye’ll huv tae wait till the nicht fur it. A’m no’ gaun back on ma word. ”

“ Aye. A body likes tae dae fur her ain. Whaur’s the lass? Awa’ tae the piti.
ELLEN
Makin’ his bed in case its needet.
POLLY
That’s richt. Don’t let her oot.
ELLEN
No’ if A can help it. She wantet tae go, but A widnae huv it. Ye’ll see things at a pit-heid efter an accident that’s no fit fur a young yin. Waste her life fur her to be there whin they’re brung up.
POLLY
Aye. A’m no’ gaun back. A’ve seen anough, never nae mair if A can help it. ”

“ JOCK
Rats wur busy at it yesterday whin A cam’ to pit my pick doon an look fur ma dinner. Bit ye cannae help rats in a pit an mebbe they’re as hungry as A am.
MARY
Weel, its tied as ticht as A can mak’ it. Noo look sherp or ye’ll be late. Ye’re forgettin’ yer lamp. Dear kens whit a fix ye’d be in if A wisnae up tae look efter ye. ”

“ A wis jist askin’. Ye never can ken wi’ a coal-pit whin its gaun tae git nesty an’ a man cannae ay mind whaur he is whin he’s doon.
ELLEN
They’re watched shairper gaun doon nooadays an the men ken better nor tae take risks theirsel’s, the way they use’t tae in the auld days.
MARY
Aye, but a man that forgets yinst ’ll forget yinst too often. ”

“ A’ve dream’t yon dream afore, an’ the last time A dream’t it wis the nicht afore the big fire in the pit whin Jock’s faither got ‘imself kill’t. A’ve niver dream’t it since that nicht an’ noo it’s come again an’ ma boy’s gaun oot tae his work an’ me too late to stop ‘im. ”

“ He works hard under ground and plays hard above ground. Constrained attitude is so much his second nature that he sits in perfect comfort on his haunches, in the pictured pose of the mild Hindoo, his back to a wall, discussing, amongst expectoration—a long row of him—, football, dogs, his last spree and his next, the police reports, women. ”

“ MARY
We dinnae ken whit tae get ready fur.
ELLEN
We ken anough.
MARY
Jock ‘ll mebbe no’ be hurt.
ELLEN
Then we’ll hae wastet oor wark.
MARY
Whit’ll A dae i
ELLEN
A donno that there’s sae much when aw’s dune. We’ll mebbe need hot watter.
MARY
Fur——
ELLEN
Hoo dae A ken whit fur? Yon kettleful ‘ll dae an’ oor tea will huv tae wait.
MARY
Bit whit can we dae? Gie me somethin’ tae dae fur mercy’s sake. A’ll go mad if A don’t dae somethin’. A cannae sit still and wait, and wait, and wait. ”

“ ELLEN
Aye. They cannae sit quiet when they’re young.
POLLY
That’s a fact. A mind the day when the pit wis on fire. A wis only a wee lassie then, bit ma mither had nae mair sense nor tae let me oot tae the pit—heid tae see the bodies brung up. A’ll never forget that sicht. A dream aboot it tae this day. ”

“ MARY
Aw, but ye dae. Don’t be a silly. Ye ken ye’ve never missed bein’ in the first cage doon since ye startet workin’ an’ A ’ll no’ hae folk saying ye startet missin’ it ower me. Hae ye finished yer cocoa? ”

“ It wis only a fancy. A thocht A micht catch ‘im, but A widnae chance makin’ ‘im late. He tak’s a pride in bein’ at the pithead regular for the first cage gaun doon; he’d be rare an’ mad wi’ me if A brung him back fur naethin’. ”