Speaker 1: Story six of Doubliners. This is a LibriVox recording. All
Speaker 1: LibriVox recordings are in the public domain. For more information
Speaker 1: or to volunteer, please visit LibriVox dot org. Dubliners by
Speaker 1: James Joyce, Story six, Two Gallants. The gray, warm evening
Speaker 1: of August had descended upon the city, and a mild,
Speaker 1: warm air, a memory of summer circulated in the streets.
Speaker 1: The streets shuttered for the repose of Sunday, swarmed with
Speaker 1: a gaily colored crowd, like illumined pearls. The lamps shone
Speaker 1: from the summits of their tall poles upon the living
Speaker 1: texture below, which changing shape and hue unceasingly sent up
Speaker 1: into the warm, gray evening air an unchanging, unceasing murmur.
Speaker 1: Two young men came down the hill of Rutland Square.
Speaker 1: One of them was just bringing a long monolog to
Speaker 1: a close. The other, who walked on the verge of
Speaker 1: the path and was at times obliged to step on
Speaker 1: to the road owing to his companion's rudeness or an
Speaker 1: amused listening face. He was squat and ruddy. A yachting
Speaker 1: cap was shoved far back from his forehead, and the
Speaker 1: narrative to which he listened made constant waves of expression
Speaker 1: break forth over his face. From the corners of his
Speaker 1: nose and eyes and mouth. Little jets of wheezing laughter
Speaker 1: followed one another out of his convulsed body. His eyes,
Speaker 1: twinkling with cunning enjoyment, glanced at every moment towards his
Speaker 1: companion's face. Once or twice he arranged the light waterproof,
Speaker 1: which he had slung over one shoulder, into rheodoor fashion.
Speaker 1: His breeches, his white rubber shoes, and his jauntily slung
Speaker 1: waterproof expressed youth, but his figure fell into rotundity at
Speaker 1: the waist. His hair was scant and gray, and his face,
Speaker 1: when the waves of expression had passed over it, had
Speaker 1: a rabbit look. When he was quite sure that the
Speaker 1: narrative had ended, he laughed noiselessly for fully half a minute.
Speaker 1: Then he said, well, that takes the biscuit. His voice
Speaker 1: seemed winnowed of vigor, and to enforce his words, he added,
Speaker 1: with humor, that takes the solitary unique end, if I
Speaker 1: may so call it rechersch biscuit. He became serious and
Speaker 1: silent when he had said this. His tongue was tired,
Speaker 1: for he had been talking all the afternoon in a
Speaker 1: public house in Dorset Street. Most people considered Lenihan a leech,
Speaker 1: but in spite of this reputation, his adroitness and eloquence
Speaker 1: had always prevented his friends from forming any general policy
Speaker 1: against him. He had a brave manner of coming up
Speaker 1: to a party of them in a bar, and of
Speaker 1: holding himself nimbly at the corners of the company until
Speaker 1: he was included in a round. He was a sporting vagrant,
Speaker 1: armed with a vast stock of stories, limericks and riddles.
Speaker 1: He was insensitive to all kinds of discourtesy. No one
Speaker 1: knew how he achieved the stern task of living, but
Speaker 1: his name was vaguely associated with racing tissues. And where
Speaker 1: did you pick her up? Corley? He asked. Corley ran
Speaker 1: his tongue swiftly along his upper lip. One night, man,
Speaker 1: he said, I was going along Dame Street and I
Speaker 1: spotted a fine tart under the water house's clock and
Speaker 1: said good night, you know. So we went for a
Speaker 1: walk round by the canal, and she told me she
Speaker 1: was a slavvy. In the house in Baggett Street. I
Speaker 1: put my arm round her and squeezed her a bit
Speaker 1: that night. Then next Sunday, man I met her by appointment.
Speaker 1: We went out to Donnybrook and I brought her into
Speaker 1: a field there. She told me she used to go
Speaker 1: with the dairyman. It was fine man cigarettes. Every night
Speaker 1: she'd bring me in, paying the tram out and back.
Speaker 1: And one night she brought me two bloody fine cigars.
Speaker 1: Oh the real cheese, you know that the old fellow
Speaker 1: used to smoke. I was afraid, man, she'd get in
Speaker 1: the family way. But she's up to the dodge. Maybe
Speaker 1: she thinks she'll marry her, said Lenehan. I told her
Speaker 1: I was out of a job, said Corley. I told
Speaker 1: her I was in Pims. She doesn't know my name.
Speaker 1: I was too hairy to tell her that. But she
Speaker 1: thinks I'm a bit of class, you know. Lenihan laughed again, noiselessly.
Speaker 1: Of all the good ones ever I heard, he said
Speaker 1: that emphatically takes the biscuit. Corley's stride acknowledged the compliment.
Speaker 1: The swing of his burly body made his friend execute
Speaker 1: a few light skips from the path to the roadway
Speaker 1: and back again. Corley was the son of an inspector
Speaker 1: of police, and he had inherited his father's frame and gut.
Speaker 1: He walked with his hands by his sides, holding himself erect,
Speaker 1: and swaying his head from side to side. His head
Speaker 1: was large, globular and oily. It sweated in all weathers,
Speaker 1: and his large round hat, set upon its sideways, looked
Speaker 1: like a bulb which had grown out of another. He
Speaker 1: always stared straight before him, as if he were on parade,
Speaker 1: and when he wished to gaze after someone in the street,
Speaker 1: it was necessary for him to move his body from
Speaker 1: the hips. At present, he was about town whenever any
Speaker 1: job was vacant, a friend was always ready to give
Speaker 1: him the hard word. He was often to be seen
Speaker 1: walking with policemen in plain clothes, talking earnestly. He knew
Speaker 1: the inner side of all affairs and was fond of
Speaker 1: delivering final judgments. He spoke without listening to the speech
Speaker 1: of his companions. His conversation was mainly about himself, what
Speaker 1: he had said to such a person, in what search
Speaker 1: a person had said to him, and what he had
Speaker 1: said to settle the matter. When he reported these dialogs,
Speaker 1: he aspirated the first letter of his name after the
Speaker 1: manner of Florentines. Lenihan offered his friend a cigarette. As
Speaker 1: the two young men walked on through the crowd. Corlie
Speaker 1: occasionally turned to smile at some of the passing girls,
Speaker 1: but Lenehan's gaze was fixed on the large, faint moon
Speaker 1: circled with a double halo. He watched earnestly the passing
Speaker 1: of the web of twilight across its face. At length,
Speaker 1: he said, well, tell me, Corley, I suppose you'll be
Speaker 1: able to pull it off, all right? Eh? Coralie closed
Speaker 1: one eye expressively as an answer. Is she game for that?
Speaker 1: Asked Lenahan dubiously. You can never know women. She's all right,
Speaker 1: said Coraly. I know the way to get around er man.
Speaker 1: She's a bit gone on me. You're what I call
Speaker 1: a gay lothario, said Lenehan, and the proper kind of lothario, too,
Speaker 1: a shade of mockery. Relieved the servility of his manner
Speaker 1: to save himself, he had the habit of leaving his
Speaker 1: flattery open to the interpretation of raillery, but Coralie had
Speaker 1: not a subtle mind. There's nothing to touch a good slavvy,
Speaker 1: he affirmed. Take my tip for it by one who
Speaker 1: has tried them all said Lenehan. First, I used to
Speaker 1: go with girls, you know, said Coralie, unbosoming girls off
Speaker 1: the South Circular. I used to take them out man
Speaker 1: on the tram somewhere and pay the train, or take
Speaker 1: them to a band or a play at the theater,
Speaker 1: or buy them chocolate and sweets or something that way.
Speaker 1: I used to spend money on them, right enough, he added,
Speaker 1: in a convincing tone, as if he was conscious of
Speaker 1: being disbelieved. But Lenahan could well believe it. He nodded gravely.
Speaker 1: I know that game, he said, And it's a mug's game.
Speaker 1: And damn the thing I ever got out of it,
Speaker 1: said Corley. Did oh here, said Lenahan. Only off of
Speaker 1: one of them, said Cory. He moistened his upper lip
Speaker 1: by running his tongue along it. The recollection brightened his eyes.
Speaker 1: He too, gazed at the pale disk of the moon,
Speaker 1: now nearly veiled, and seemed to meditate. She was a
Speaker 1: bit of all right, he said regretfully. He was silent again.
Speaker 1: Then he added, she's on the turf now. I saw
Speaker 1: her driving down Earle Street one night with two fellows
Speaker 1: with her on a car. I suppose that's your doing,
Speaker 1: said Lenahan, there was others at her before me, said Corlie, philosophically.
Speaker 1: This time, Lenehan was inclined to disbelieve. He shook his
Speaker 1: head to and fro and smiled. You know you can't
Speaker 1: kid me, Cory, he said, Honest to God, said Corley.
Speaker 1: Didn't she tell me yourself? Lenahan made a tragic gesture.
Speaker 1: Base betrayer, he said. As they passed along the railings
Speaker 1: of Trinity College, Lenahan skipped out into the road and
Speaker 1: peered up at the clock twenty after. He said, time enough,
Speaker 1: said Corley. She'll be there all right. Always let her
Speaker 1: wait a bit. Lenahan laughed quietly. Ee, Cad, Corley, you
Speaker 1: know how to take them, he said, I'm up to
Speaker 1: all their little tricks. Cory confessed. But tell me, said
Speaker 1: Lenahan again. Are you sure you can bring it off?
Speaker 1: All right? You know it's a ticklish job. They're damn
Speaker 1: close on that point, eh what His bright small eyes
Speaker 1: searched his companion's face for reassurance. Corley swung his head
Speaker 1: to and fro as if to toss aside an insistent insect,
Speaker 1: and his brow gathered. I'll pull it off, he said,
Speaker 1: Leave it to me, can't you, Lenahan said, no more.
Speaker 1: He did not wish to ruffle his friend's temper to
Speaker 1: be sent to the devil, and told that his advice
Speaker 1: was not wanted. A little tact was necessary, but Corley's
Speaker 1: brow was soon smooth again. His thoughts were running another way.
Speaker 1: She's a fine, decent tart, he said, with appreciation. That's
Speaker 1: what she is. They walked along Nassau Street and then
Speaker 1: turned into Kildare Street. Not far from the porch of
Speaker 1: the club, a harpist stood in the roadway, playing to
Speaker 1: a little ring of listeners. He plucked at the wires heedlessly,
Speaker 1: glancing quickly from time to time at the face of
Speaker 1: each newcomer, and from time to time wearily also at
Speaker 1: the sky. His harp, too, heedless that her coverings had
Speaker 1: fallen about her knees, seemed weary, alike of the eyes
Speaker 1: of strangers and of her master's hands. One hand played
Speaker 1: in the bass the melody of silent O Moyle, while
Speaker 1: the other hand careered in the treble. After each group
Speaker 1: of notes, the notes of the air sounded deep and full.
Speaker 1: The two young men walked up the street without speaking,
Speaker 1: the mournful music following them. When they reached Stephen's Green
Speaker 1: they crossed the road. Here the noise of trams, the lights,
Speaker 1: and the crowd released them from their silence. There she is,
Speaker 1: said Corli. At the corner of Hume Street, a young
Speaker 1: woman was standing. She wore a blue dress and a
Speaker 1: white sailor hat. She stood on the curbstone, swinging a
Speaker 1: sunshade in one hand. Lenehan grew lively. Let's have a
Speaker 1: look at her, Corley, he said. Corley glanced sideways at
Speaker 1: his friend, and an unpleasant grin appeared on his face.
Speaker 1: Are you trying to get inside me? He asked? Damn it,
Speaker 1: said Lenehan boldly. I don't want an introduction. All I
Speaker 1: want is to have a look at her. I'm not
Speaker 1: going to eat her. Oh a look at her, said
Speaker 1: Coralie more amiably. Well, I'll tell you what. I'll go
Speaker 1: over and talk to her and you can pass by, right,
Speaker 1: said Lenahan. Corleye had already thrown one leg over the
Speaker 1: chains when Lenahan called out and after where will we meet?
Speaker 1: Half ten, answered Coralie, bringing over his other leg. Where
Speaker 1: corner of Marion Street will be coming back? Work it
Speaker 1: all right now, said Lenahan in farewell. Corlie did not answer.
Speaker 1: He sauntered across the road, swaying his head from side
Speaker 1: to side. His bulk, his easy pace, and the solid
Speaker 1: sound of his boots had something of the conqueror in them.
Speaker 1: He approached the young woman, and, without saluting, began at
Speaker 1: once to converse with her. She swung her umbrella more
Speaker 1: quickly and executed half turns on her heels once or twice.
Speaker 1: When he spoke to her at close quarters, she laughed
Speaker 1: and bent her head. Lenahan observed them for a few minutes.
Speaker 1: Then he walked rapidly along beside the chains at some distance,
Speaker 1: and crossed the road obliquely. As he approached Hume Street corner,
Speaker 1: he found the air heavily scented, and his eyes made
Speaker 1: a swift, anxious scrutiny of the young woman's appearance. She
Speaker 1: had her Sunday finery on. Her blue serge skirt was
Speaker 1: held at the waist by a belt of black leather.
Speaker 1: The great silver buckle of her belt seemed to depress
Speaker 1: the center of her body, catching the light stuff of
Speaker 1: her white blouse like a clip. She wore a short
Speaker 1: black jacket with mother of pearl buttons and a ragged
Speaker 1: black boa. The ends of her tulle coloret had been
Speaker 1: carefully disordered, and a big bunch of red flowers was
Speaker 1: pinned in her bosom stem upwards. Lenihan's eyes noted approvingly.
Speaker 1: Her stout, short muscular body. Rank rude health glowed on
Speaker 1: her face, on her fat red cheeks, and in her
Speaker 1: unabashed blue eyes. Her features were blunt. She had broad nostrils,
Speaker 1: a straggling mouth which lay open in a contented leer,
Speaker 1: and two projecting front teeth. As he passed, Lenehan took
Speaker 1: off his cap, and after about ten seconds, Coraley returned
Speaker 1: a salute to the air. This he did by raising
Speaker 1: his hand vaguely and pensively, changing the angle of position
Speaker 1: of his hat. Lenehan walked as far as the Shelbourne Hotel,
Speaker 1: where he halted and waited. After waiting for a little time,
Speaker 1: he saw them coming towards him, and when they turned
Speaker 1: to the right, he followed them, stepping lightly in his
Speaker 1: white shoes down one side of Marian Square. As he
Speaker 1: walked on, slowly timing his pace to theirs, he watched
Speaker 1: Corley's head, which turned at every moment toward the young
Speaker 1: woman's face like a big ball revolving on a pivot.
Speaker 1: He kept the pair in view until he had seen
Speaker 1: them climbing the stairs of the Donnybrook tram. Then he
Speaker 1: turned about and went back the way he had come.
Speaker 1: Now that he was alone, his face looked older, his
Speaker 1: gaiety seemed to forsake him, and as he came by
Speaker 1: the railings of the Duke's Lawn, he allowed his hand
Speaker 1: to run along them. The air which the harpist had
Speaker 1: played began to control his movements. His softly padded feet
Speaker 1: played the melody, while his fingers swept a scale of
Speaker 1: variations idly along the railings. After each group of notes.
Speaker 1: He walked listlessly round Stephen's Green and then down Grafton Street.
Speaker 1: Though his eyes took note of many elements of the
Speaker 1: crowd through which he passed, they did so morosely. He
Speaker 1: found trivial all that was meant to charm him, and
Speaker 1: did not answer the glances which invited him to be bold.
Speaker 1: He knew that he would have to speak a great
Speaker 1: deal to invent and to amuse, and his brain and
Speaker 1: throat were too dry for such a task. The problem
Speaker 1: of how he could pass the hours till he met
Speaker 1: Corli again trouble him a little. He could think of
Speaker 1: no way of passing them, but to keep on walking.
Speaker 1: He turned to the left when he came to the
Speaker 1: corner of Rutland Square, and felt more at ease in
Speaker 1: the dark, quiet street, the somber look of which suited
Speaker 1: his mood. He paused at last before the window of
Speaker 1: a poor looking shop, over which the words refreshment bar
Speaker 1: were printed in white letters. On the glass of the
Speaker 1: window were two flying inscriptions, ginger beer and ginger ale.
Speaker 1: A cut ham was exposed on a great blue dish,
Speaker 1: while near it, on a plate, lay a segment of
Speaker 1: very light plumb pudding. He eyed this food earnestly for
Speaker 1: some time, and then, after glancing warily up and down
Speaker 1: the street, went into the shop quickly. He was hungry
Speaker 1: for except some biscuits, which he had asked to grudging
Speaker 1: curates to bring him. He had eaten nothing since breakfast time.
Speaker 1: He sat down at an uncovered wooden table opposite two
Speaker 1: wort girls and a mechanic. A slatternly girl waited on him.
Speaker 1: How much is a plate of peas, he asked? Three halfpence, sir,
Speaker 1: said the girl. Bring me a plate of peas, he said,
Speaker 1: and a bottle of ginger beer. He spoke rough in
Speaker 1: order to belie his air of gentility, For his entry
Speaker 1: had been followed by a pause of talk. His face
Speaker 1: was heated to appear natural. He pushed his cap back
Speaker 1: on his head and planted his elbows on the table.
Speaker 1: The mechanic and the two work girls examined him point
Speaker 1: by point, before resuming their conversation in a subdued voice.
Speaker 1: The girl brought him a plate of grocer's hot peas,
Speaker 1: seasoned with pepper and vinegar, a fork, and his ginger beer.
Speaker 1: He ate his food greedily, and found it so good
Speaker 1: that he made a note of the shop mentally. When
Speaker 1: he had eaten all the peas, he sipped his ginger
Speaker 1: beer and sat for some time thinking of Corley's adventure.
Speaker 1: In his imagination, he beheld the pair of lovers walking
Speaker 1: along some dark road. He heard Coraley's voice in deep
Speaker 1: energetic gallantries, and saw again the leer of the young
Speaker 1: woman's mouth. This vision made him feel keenly his own
Speaker 1: poverty of purse and spirit. He was tired of knocking
Speaker 1: about and pulling the devil by the tail of shifts
Speaker 1: and intrigues. He would be thirty one in November. Would
Speaker 1: he never get a good job. Would he never have
Speaker 1: a home of his own? He thought, how pleasant it
Speaker 1: would be to have a nice, warm fire to sit
Speaker 1: by and a good dinner to sit down to. He
Speaker 1: had walked the streets long enough, with friends and with girls.
Speaker 1: He knew what those friends were worth. He knew the
Speaker 1: girls too. Experience had embittered his heart against the world,
Speaker 1: but all hope had not left him. He felt better
Speaker 1: after having eaten than he had felt before, less weary
Speaker 1: of his life, less vanquished in spirit. He might yet
Speaker 1: be able to settle down in some snug corner and
Speaker 1: live happily, if he could only come across some good,
Speaker 1: simple minded girl with a little of the ready. He
Speaker 1: paid tuppence happenny to the slatternly girl and went out
Speaker 1: of the shop to begin his wandering again. He went
Speaker 1: into Capel Street and walked along towards the City Hall.
Speaker 1: Then he turned into Dame Street. At the corner of
Speaker 1: Georgia Street, he met two friends of his and stopped
Speaker 1: to converse with them. He was glad that he could
Speaker 1: rest from all his walking. His friends asked him had
Speaker 1: he seen Corley and what was the latest. He replied
Speaker 1: that he had spent the day with Corley. His friends
Speaker 1: talked very little. They looked vacantly after some figures in
Speaker 1: the crowd, and sometimes made a critical remark. One said
Speaker 1: that he had seen Mac an hour before in Westmoreland Street.
Speaker 1: At this Lenehan said that he had been with Mac
Speaker 1: the night before in Egan's. The young man who had
Speaker 1: seen Mac in Westmoreland Street asked, was it true that
Speaker 1: Mac had won a bit over a billiard match. Lenahan
Speaker 1: did not know. He said that Hollahan had stood them
Speaker 1: drinks in Eagans. He left his friends at a quarter
Speaker 1: to ten and went up George's Street. He turned to
Speaker 1: the left at the City Markets and walked on into
Speaker 1: Grafton Street. The crowd of girls and young men had thinned,
Speaker 1: and on his way up the street he heard many
Speaker 1: groups and couples bidding one another good night. He went
Speaker 1: as far as the clock of the College of Surgeons.
Speaker 1: It was on the stroke of ten. He set off
Speaker 1: briskly along the northern side of the Green, hurrying for
Speaker 1: fear Corley should return too soon. When he reached the
Speaker 1: corner of Marion Street, he took his stand in the
Speaker 1: shadow of a lamp and brought out one of the
Speaker 1: cigarettes which he had reserved and lit it. He leaned
Speaker 1: against the lamp post and kept his gaze fixed on
Speaker 1: the part from which he expected to see Corali and
Speaker 1: the young woman return. His mind became active again. He
Speaker 1: wondered had Corley managed it successfully. He wondered if he
Speaker 1: had asked her yet, or if he would leave it
Speaker 1: to the last. He suffered all the pangs and thrills
Speaker 1: of his friend's situation, as well as those of his own,
Speaker 1: But the memory of Coralie's slowly revolving head calmed him somewhat.
Speaker 1: He was sure Cooley would pull it off all right.
Speaker 1: All at once, the idea struck him that perhaps Corley
Speaker 1: had seen her home by another way and given him
Speaker 1: the slip. His eyes searched the street. There was no
Speaker 1: sign of them, yet it was surely half an hour
Speaker 1: since he had seen the clock of the College of Surgeons.
Speaker 1: Would Corley do a thing like that? He lit his
Speaker 1: last cigarette and began to smoke it nervously. He strained
Speaker 1: his eyes as each tram stopped at the far corner
Speaker 1: of the square. They must have gone home by another way.
Speaker 1: The paper of his cigarette broke, and he flung it
Speaker 1: into the road with a curse. Suddenly he saw them
Speaker 1: coming towards him. He started with delight, and keeping close
Speaker 1: to his lamp post, tried to read the result in
Speaker 1: their walk. They were walking quickly, the young woman taking
Speaker 1: quick short steps, while Corley kept beside her with his
Speaker 1: long stride. They did not seem to be speaking, and
Speaker 1: intimation of the result pricked him like the point of
Speaker 1: a sharp instrument. He knew Corley would fail. He knew
Speaker 1: it was no go. They turned down Baggot Street and
Speaker 1: he followed them at once, taking the other footpath. When
Speaker 1: they stopped, he stopped too. They talked for a few moments,
Speaker 1: and then the young woman went down the steps into
Speaker 1: the area of a house. Coralie remained standing at the
Speaker 1: edge of the path, a little distance from the front steps.
Speaker 1: Some minutes passed. Then the hall door was opened slowly
Speaker 1: and cautiously. A woman came running down the front steps
Speaker 1: and coughed. Coralie turned and went towards her. His broad
Speaker 1: figure hid hers from view for a few seconds, and
Speaker 1: then she reappeared running up the steps. The door closed
Speaker 1: on her, and Corley began to walk swiftly towards Stephen's
Speaker 1: Green Lenehan hurried on in the same direction. Some drops
Speaker 1: of light rain fell. He took them as a warning, and,
Speaker 1: glancing back towards the house which the young woman had entered,
Speaker 1: to see that he was not observed, he ran eagerly
Speaker 1: across the road. Anxiety and his swift run made him pay.
Speaker 1: He called out, Hallo Corley. Corley turned his head to
Speaker 1: see who had called him, and then continued walking as before.
Speaker 1: Lenahan ran after him, settling the waterproof on his shoulders
Speaker 1: with one hand. Hallo Corley, he cried again. He came
Speaker 1: level with his friend and looked keenly in his face.
Speaker 1: He could see nothing there. Well, he said, did it
Speaker 1: come off? They had reached the corner of Ely Place.
Speaker 1: Still without answering, Coralie swerved to the left and went
Speaker 1: up the side street. His features were composed in stern calm.
Speaker 1: Lenehan kept up with his friend, breathing uneasily. He was baffled,
Speaker 1: and a note of menace pierced through his voice. Can't
Speaker 1: you tell us, he said? Did you try her? Corley
Speaker 1: halted at the first lamp and stared grimly before him. Then,
Speaker 1: with a grave gesture, he extended a hand towards the light,
Speaker 1: and smiling, opened it slowly to the gaze of his disciple.
Speaker 1: A small gold coin shone in the palm end of
Speaker 1: story six two gallants, read by Richard Wallace, Liberty, Missouri,
Speaker 1: twenty six March two thousand nine.