Thirty Pieces of Silver: A Play in Three Acts Read Free Page A

no.
    JANE ( pausing as she turns to leave ) Nothing? Well, won’t you sit down? What did you say your name was?
    FULLER Fuller. F-U-L-L-E-R. Mr. Fuller.
    JANE I see. Thank you, Mr.… Fuller. I’ll call my husband.
    ( JANE goes out. Fuller stands there, turning his hat in his hands. ),
    HILDA May I take your hat?
    FULLER You’re the maid?
    HILDA You guessed that, didn’t you? I’m the maid. How did you guess?
    FULLER I’ll hold the hat, if you don’t mind. This is fine weather, isn’t it? I mean, for June, it’s cool.
    ( His speech is precise and emotionless. He ignores HILDA’S sarcasm. Now DAVID GRAHAM enters , JANE after him. LORRY trails them with a piece of bread. )
    JANE Take her inside, will you, Hilda? David, this is Mr. Fuller.
    FULLER How do you do, Mr.Graham.
    LORRY How old are you, Mr. Fuller?
    JANE Will you finish your supper, Lorry—please.
    ( HILDA leads LORRY out. JANE picks up her drink now, and DAVID looks at FULLER inquiringly. )
    FULLER This is a very nice house—nice family, too, Mr. Graham. Nice little girl. You got a lot to be thankful for.
    DAVID What can I do for you, Mr. Fuller?
    FULLER ( There is a fussy, almost womanish quality in his speech. ) I will sit down, thank you. I come into a fine, nice American home like this—I will say it always makes me a little uneasy.
    JANE Would you like me to go?
    DAVID ( with some annoyance ) Why should it make you uneasy? You’ll have to forgive me, Mr. Fuller—but we have an appointment this evening and dinner before then, so I wish you’d get down to what you have to say, whatever it is.
    FULLER ( to JANE ) Please don’t go, Mrs. Graham. I’d like to talk to both of you, if you’ll permit me.
    ( He is very polite, somewhat abashed. )
    This is a routine matter. I’m from the Department, and I have a few questions. It won’t take long.
    JANE ( standing to one side, sipping at her drink. DAVID and FULLER are sitting. ) What department?
    FULLER The Department of Justice, Mrs. Graham.
    JANE You mean you’re a G-man? Why didn’t you say so?
    FULLER ( taking out his wallet and extracting a Jew cards ) We don’t like the term. It has melodramatic connotations which are hardly grounded in reality. Here are my credentials, Mr. Graham.
    DAVID ( taking the credentials and scanning them uneasily ) Yes—well, we’ll be happy to co-operate with you—in any way, Mr. Fuller. I don’t know how we can help you—I mean, I can’t think of anything——
    FULLER It’s just a regular routine matter. We’re checking on someone else, a man by the name of Leonard Agronsky, and we were referred to you as friends of his. That’s all. It’s just as simple as that and I’m sorry that it has to break into your evening this way, but I thought it would be the best time to find both of you home.
    DAVID We know Agronsky. That’s right. Is he in some kind of trouble?
    FULLER I hope not—but then that’s not properly my affair. I’m simply given the routine matter of investigation. My guess would be that it’s simply the routine check we are taking of any government employees about whom there might be any doubt at all.
    ( He takes out a small book and opens it. )
    My own information has him as an under-secretary in the Department of Commerce. That’s a pretty important job, so it’s only natural that he would be investigated.
    JANE He’s been in government a long time, hasn’t he?
    FULLER ( shrugging ) I don’t make the policy. Is there anything you’d like to tell me about him, Mr. Graham?
    DAVID What sort of thing? I guess there’s a lot I could tell you about him, but I don’t know what I could tell you that would help you. I haven’t seen as much of him as I might have since the war. That’s where I met him—in the army. Since then, well, I guess we’ve seen Agronsky about every