THE MANAGER. I do not understand.
ERMYNTRUDE. You understand perfectly. How dare you offer Her Highness a room on the second floor?
THE MANAGER. But I have explained. The first floor is occupied. At least--
ERMYNTRUDE. Well? at least?
THE MANAGER. It is occupied.
ERMYNTRUDE. Don"t you dare tell Her Highness a falsehood. It is not occupied. You are saving it up for the arrival of the five-fifteen express, from which you hope to pick up some fat armaments contractor who will drink all the bad champagne in your cellar at 5 francs a bottle, and pay twice over for everything because he is in the same hotel with Her Highness, and can boast of having turned her out of the best rooms.
THE MANAGER. But Her Highness was so gracious. I did not know that Her Highness was at all particular.
ERMYNTRUDE. And you take advantage of Her Highness"s graciousness. You impose on her with your stories. You give her a room not fit for a dog.
You send cold tea to her by a decayed professional person disguised as a waiter. But don"t think you can trifle with me. I am a lady"s maid; and I know the ladies" maids and valets of all the aristocracies of Europe and all the millionaires of America. When I expose your hotel as the second-rate little hole it is, not a soul above the rank of a curate with a large family will be seen entering it. I shake its dust off my feet. Order the luggage to be taken down at once.
THE MANAGER [appealing to the Princess]. Can Your Highness believe this of me? Have I had the misfortune to offend Your Highness?
THE PRINCESS. Oh no. I am quite satisfied. Please--
ERMYNTRUDE. Is Your Highness dissatisfied with me?
THE PRINCESS [intimidated]. Oh no: please don"t think that. I only meant--
ERMYNTRUDE [to the manager]. You hear. Perhaps you think Her Highness is going to do the work of teaching you your place herself, instead of leaving it to her maid.
THE MANAGER. Oh please, mademoiselle. Believe me: our only wish is to make you perfectly comfortable. But in consequence of the war, all royal personages now practise a rigid economy, and desire us to treat them like their poorest subjects.
THE PRINCESS. Oh yes. You are quite right--
ERMYNTRUDE [interrupting]. There! Her Highness forgives you; but don"t do it again. Now go downstairs, my good man, and get that suite on the first floor ready for us. And send some proper tea. And turn on the heating apparatus until the temperature in the rooms is comfortably warm. And have hot water put in all the bedrooms--
THE MANAGER. There are basins with hot and cold taps.
ERMYNTRUDE [scornfully]. Yes: there WOULD be. Suppose we must put up with that: sinks in our rooms, and pipes that rattle and bang and guggle all over the house whenever anyone washes his hands. I know.
THE MANAGER [gallant]. You are hard to please, mademoiselle.
ERMYNTRUDE. No harder than other people. But when I"m not pleased I"m not too ladylike to say so. That"s all the difference. There is nothing more, thank you.
The Manager shrugs his shoulders resignedly; makes a deep bow to the Princess; goes to the door; wafts a kiss surrept.i.tiously to Ermyntrude; and goes out.
THE PRINCESS. It"s wonderful! How have you the courage?
ERMYNTRUDE. In Your Highness"s service I know no fear. Your Highness can leave all unpleasant people to me.
THE PRINCESS. How I wish I could! The most dreadful thing of all I have to go through myself.
ERMYNTRUDE. Dare I ask what it is, Your Highness?
THE PRINCESS. I"m going to be married. I"m to be met here and married to a man I never saw. A boy! A boy who never saw me! One of the sons of the Inca of Perusalem.
ERMYNTRUDE. Indeed? Which son?
THE PRINCESS. I don"t know. They haven"t settled which. It"s a dreadful thing to be a princess: they just marry you to anyone they like. The Inca is to come and look at me, and pick out whichever of his sons he thinks will suit. And then I shall be an alien enemy everywhere except in Perusalem, because the Inca has made war on everybody. And I shall have to pretend that everybody has made war on him. It"s too bad.
ERMYNTRUDE. Still, a husband is a husband. I wish I had one.
THE PRINCESS. Oh, how can you say that! I"m afraid you"re not a nice woman.
ERMYNTRUDE. Your Highness is provided for. I"m not.
THE PRINCESS. Even if you could bear to let a man touch you, you shouldn"t say so.
ERMYNTRUDE. I shall not say so again, Your Highness, except perhaps to the man.
THE PRINCESS. It"s too dreadful to think of. I wonder you can be so coa.r.s.e. I really don"t think you"ll suit. I feel sure now that you know more about men than you should.
ERMYNTRUDE. I am a widow, Your Highness.
THE PRINCESS [overwhelmed]. Oh, I BEG your pardon. Of course I ought to have known you would not have spoken like that if you were not married.
That makes it all right, doesn"t it? I"m so sorry.
The Manager returns, white, scared, hardly able to speak.
THE MANAGER. Your Highness, an officer asks to see you on behalf of the Inca of Perusalem.
THE PRINCESS [rising distractedly]. Oh, I can"t, really. Oh, what shall I do?
THE MANAGER. On important business, he says, Your Highness. Captain Duval.
ERMYNTRUDE. Duval! Nonsense! The usual thing. It is the Inca himself, incognito.
THE PRINCESS. Oh, send him away. Oh, I"m so afraid of the Inca. I"m not properly dressed to receive him; and he is so particular: he would order me to stay in my room for a week. Tell him to call tomorrow: say I"m ill in bed. I can"t: I won"t: I daren"t: you must get rid of him somehow.
ERMYNTRUDE. Leave him to me, Your Highness.
THE PRINCESS. You"d never dare!
ERMYNTRUDE. I am an Englishwoman, Your Highness, and perfectly capable of tackling ten Incas if necessary. I will arrange the matter. [To the Manager.] Show Her Highness to her bedroom; and then show Captain Duval in here.
THE PRINCESS. Oh, thank you so much. [She goes to the door. Ermyntrude, noticing that she has left her hat and gloves on the table, runs after her with them.] Oh, THANK you. And oh, please, if I must have one of his sons, I should like a fair one that doesn"t shave, with soft hair and a beard. I couldn"t bear being kissed by a bristly person. [She runs out, the Manager bowing as she pa.s.ses. He follows her.]
Ermyntrude whips off her waterproof; hides it; and gets herself swiftly into perfect trim at the mirror, before the Manager, with a large jewel case in his hand, returns, ushering in the Inca.
THE MANAGER. Captain Duval.
The Inca, in military uniform, advances with a marked and imposing stage walk; stops; orders the trembling Manager by a gesture to place the jewel case on the table; dismisses him with a frown; touches his helmet graciously to Ermyntrude; and takes off his cloak.