MARGARET
(As she heads towards the door with the plate in her hand) Did you like the dish?

JOHN
(Without enthusiasm) Yes, dear, it was quite good.

MARGARET
Shall I make it this way again next week?

JOHN
(Suddenly annoyed) Absolutely not. You know very well that regularity kills the taste of any dish, no matter how good it is.

MARGARET
(Wistfully) You know John, we used to have this very often in the early years of our marriage. (Pause) Do you remember?

JOHN
(Sighing) That was a long time ago. I prefer variety these days.

MARGARET
But you did enjoy it?

JOHN
(Brusquely) or course I enjoyed it. I wouldn't have finished it if I didn't like it.
(Throughout this exchange, John has kept the paper in front of his face. Margaret looks ardently at her husband, his face buried in that newspaper. Then she leaves the room, still carrying the plate.
Throughout Margaret's momentary absence, John hardly moves, except to turn to another page in a rather mechanical way. When Margaret returns, she sits down in an armchair near the fireplace, to the right of centre. She picks up some sewing and begins to chatter to John as she works.)

MARGARET
What's in today's paper, dear'?

JOHN
Oh, nothing very new. It's the same old thing again, just as it was yesterday and just as it will be tomorrow.

MARGARET
But, John, why do you keep reading it if it's all the same, one day after another?

JOHN
Oh, Margaret, don't you understand? It may be the same, but it's written in a different way.

MARGARET
Is that what they call the magic of words?

JOHN
Well, I never heard it expressed in just that way, but that's precisely what I mean. Words themselves can convey a myriad of pictures, You may read about the same old thing day after day, but there's always some new revelation in the choice of words.

MARGARET
Are those who write aware of this great power they have?

JOHN
Who knows'? (Flatly) And what does it matter'?

MARGARET
I guess not very much, as long as you read it. (She pauses, then blandly) It's too bad you don't read me the same way.

JOHN
(A little surprise in his voice) What do you mean?

MARGARET
If I said the same thing over and over again, you wouldn't listen to me, no matter how carefully I chose my words. Now would you?

JOHN
(Almost patronisingly) Of course I would, Margaret. I'd listen to you if you put it in a different way each time.

MARGARET
Well, I don't possess the magic and I don't think I really want it. Somehow it would seem like witchcraft. When I was a child, whenever I heard a fairy tale, I would fancy my being a fairy, or even a witch. I imagined how marvellous it would be to have all those magical powers at my disposal. I fancied they would bring me all the happiness I might want. But now the idea doesn't appeal to me one bit. It's interesting how our desires and attitudes change.

JOHN
(Not really understanding) Yes, I guess it is, but you're fine just as you are, my dear. You don't need any special powers.

MARGARET
But these newspapermen do have the magical power. They bewitch their readers and make them read their articles, no matter what they contain. Isn't that the truth?

JOHN
Yes, Margaret, that is exactly right. But that's the way things have always been. Writers have always had the power to cast spells over their readers. That's what has made the publishing industry so successful.

MARGARET
(Cynically) And so wealthy.

JOHN
Yes, I guess you could say that, too. (He turns to another page.)

MARGARET
(Looking up and staring for a moment at her husband, who seems so intent on his newspaper) John, what section are you reading now?

JOHN
(Matter-of-factly) I'm on the entertainment section now. That's the fourth page.

MARGARET
Do you really find that interesting?

JOHN
I wouldn't read it if I didn't find it interesting, now would I?

MARGARET
(A bit annoyed) You needn't be so sarcastic. I was only asking.

JOHN
I'm sorry, dear. It's just that you sometimes ask such obvious questions.

MARGARET
I don't think it's so obvious at all. What in the world do you care about today's entertainment and entertainers? They're all a bunch of queers.

JOHN
Oh, I don't read about them. I'm not interested in that part of the news.

MARGARET
(Angrily) Why do you read it then?

JOHN
I want to see what's happening around town. You know - the shows and things like that. That part of the entertainment page, just as much as all those other stories about the entertainers.

MARGARET
Well, I don't know why you care about all that. You know just as well as I do that we never go out any more. So what difference does it make what's playing in the theatres around town?

JOHN
(lndefiantly, but still hiding behind his newspaper) What do you mean we never go out? Of course we go out.

MARGARET
(Standing up and moving closer to him) Is that so? When was the last time we went out?

JOHN
(Calmly) A week ago.

MARGARET
(She looks surprised. but continues her questioning) And just where did we go?

JOHN
To the theatre, of course.

MARGARET
What theatre was that?

JOHN
The Old Vic.

MARGARET
And what play did we see at the Old Vic last week?

JOHN
Othello. Don't you remember, Margaret? What a poor memory you have these days.

MARGARET
(Returning to her chair and sitting down) Oh, John, poor John. It is you who have a poor memory. That night we saw Othello was fifteen years ago, my love.

JOHN
(For the first time, his voice sounds disturbed) No, it wasn't. It was last week. (Almost panicky) It's got to be last week.

MARGARET
(Sadly) Time passes very quickly,. and fifteen years can sometimes seem like a week.

JOHN
But it's all so vivid in my mind. I remember every detail - when he killed his wife, smothering her with that pillow in her bed. I can see it all so clearly.

MARGARET
He regretted it afterwards.

JOHN
Yes - Yes. I haven't forgotten. It cost him his own life in the end.

MARGARET
That was a bloody period.

JOHN
And it was last week.

MARGARET
No, dear, it was fifteen years ago.

JOHN
But we do go out. I know we do.

MARGARET
No, dear. When we go 'out', it's to the park on a sunny day, and to the church on Sunday. Those are the only places we ever go.

JOHN
I don't understand how you can say that. Why, we just recently went to a party. I remember it vividly. I wore my grey morning suit and you were dressed all in white. As I recall, there were some very important people at that party.

MARGARET
(Smiling in rel1lem.brance) Yes, I remember well. There were ministers, members of Parliament, executives, and army officers. They were of the highest ranks. And everyone was smiling at us, shaking hands with us. All the famous people came, even the film stars. That was a wonderful day.

JOHN
And there were the journalists, the famous ones. They came, and I remember the flash of their cameras. It was all so dazzling, it nearly hurt my eyes. (Nostalgia in his voice) It all seems so clear, I can't believe it happened very long ago.

MARGARET
(Ignoring John's last comment) It was reported in every paper the next day. And there was our picture - you and me. Your arm was around my shoulder. That party was considered the social event of the week. That was the headline one paper used. Oh, well I remember it.

JOHN
There was champagne. I remember that, too. There was so much of it.

MARGARET
And they quoted you in the paper as saying 'this was the happiest day of your life.'

JOHN
And the best band in town played for us. Do you remember, Margaret?

MARGARET
Oh, yes. We danced and we sang and we drank. We laughed a great deal, too. It was a lot of fun, something I shall remember for the rest of my life.

JOHN
We both enjoyed it, didn't we, dear?

MARGARET
Yes, John.

JOHN
How many days was it? Was it ten days ago - or perhaps two weeKs?

MARGARET
No, dear, it was a very long time ago - many years.

JOHN
It can't be. It happened just recently. I remember every detail of it, and so do you. It couldn't have been more than a couple of weeks ago.

MARGARET
I do remember it, John. But that was when we were married. That was our wedding party.

JOHN
That's impossible ...

MARGARET
It's possible, dear. You just have a powerful sense of the speed with which the train of time passes by.

JOHN
I don't understand any of it.

MARGARET
Don't let it worry you, John. Just carry on with your entertainment section and don't let all of this spoil your enjoyment.
(There is a long pause. John continues to read his newspaper, now turning another page. Margaret
finishes the first piece of her sewing, puts it aside and picks up another. As she begins, she glances momentarily at John, shakes her head with resignation, then returns to her mending.)

MARGARET
Tell me when you arrive at the obituary page, dear.

JOHN
It's on the sixteenth page, and I can tell you now that I shan't arrive at it in my lifetime if you keep interrupting me like this.

MARGARET
(Smiling ironically) Yes, dear. (Pause) And there isn't very much of our lives left. But I'd like to know why you want me to keep silent. Is there something you don't want me to know?

JOHN
No, Margaret, of course not.

MARGARET
Is it because I mentioned the obituary page? I just thought there must be something new there, of all places,

JOHN
Yes, dear. That's true, in a way, But it's actually the only page that's written in the same wording. It's probably the easiest page for them to write.

MARGARET
I guess it must be. But you still haven't told me why you want me to keep still. Shall I pretend we're not even seated in the same room? Or perhaps I should pretend we're strangers.

JOHN
Oh, Margaret, of course not. I don't know what's getting you so upset today, You've got me alI muddled up. I have to keep reading these columns over and over again. With all this talk, I can't grasp what the writers are getting at.

MARGARET
But if it's the same thing every day, why do you have to concentrate so much? I would think you'd know the point they're driving at almost before they do.

JOHN
(With exasperation) Oh, Margaret ... Stop this foolishness and let me get on with my reading.

MARGARET
(Still unable to see John’s  face, she looks at her sewing and she speaks.) What are you smiling at?

JOHN
(A trace of fear in his voice) I didn't smile.

MARGARET
(Insistently) Yes, you did.

JOHN
How could you possibly know? You can't see my face behind the newspaper.

MARGARET
I don't have to look at you to know whether or not you're smiling. I just know. I can tell by your voice. Besides, I've developed a kind of sixth sense about you through the years.

JOHN
Perhaps it wasn't a smile. Perhaps it was something else.

MARGARET
Well, then, if it wasn't a smile, what was it?

JOHN
(After a momentary silence) I don't know.
(Margaret looks up sympathetically towards her husband. Then she puts down her sewing, stands up, and moves towards him. When she is standing almost directly beside him, she speaks, but softly and with genuine feeling towards him. It is clear to the audience that despite some of her remarks, she is still deeply in love with the man.)

MARGARET
I am sure it was a smile, John. And I'd imagine it must have covered your entire face. (Pause) Ah, here you are. Your eyes are wet with tears. That happens to you after a big smile. Now tell me what made you smile, that way.

JOHN
(Dejectedly) I really don't know.

MARGARET
Was it ajoke in the newspaper?

JOHN
(A little afraid) I don't know.

MARGARET
Were you dreaming?

JOHN
I don't know.

MARGARET
Was it a kind of nightmare?

JOHN
(Heatedly, almost on the verge of panic) I don't know... I don't know... I keep telling you I don't know... Why do you keep badgering me this way? Leave me alone ... Just let me be ...

MARGARET
(Softly) John, I'm just trying to understand you. You shouldn't have smiled without letting me know what the big joke was. Now, why are you being so secretive? Just tell me why you smiled and that will be the end of all these questions.

JOHN
Perhaps - perhaps!

MARGARET
(Interrupting) Perhaps what?

JOHN
Perhaps I was tired.

MARGARET
Tired of what? Of reading?

JOHN
Well, yes, I guess so.

MARGARET
Then why didn't you just put down the paper? That's all you had to do if you were tired of reading it. You know, you really do make things much harder than they should be.

JOHN
I can't. (Insistently) You know perfectly well that I have to finish reading it.

MARGARET
(In an understanding way) Yes, dear, I understand. (Pause) Well, supposing I bring you your spectacles. That's really what you need.

JOHN
(Resignedly) All right.
(Margaret walks over to another table, opens a drawer and pulls out a pair of large black spectacles. She brings them over to John and hands them to him. Then she returns to her chair, sits down again and picks up her sewing. John turns another page of the paper and, without even pausing, turns over another.)

MARGARET
You skipped two pages. dear. Why did you skip them? Was there something on them you didn't like? Or perhaps it was the book reviews. Am I right?

JOHN
Yes, dear, it was the book reviews.

MARGARET
You never read that, but you never told me why you don't like them. I've always been curious about that.

JOHN
That's because they never seem to be written in English. These books reviewers are never satisfied unless they can write half of every review in FRENCH.

MARGARET
I wonder why.

JOHN
Yes, I've always wondered about that myself. It's very annoying.

MARGARET
Well. no matter, the rest of the paper is quite well written. Wouldn't you say'?

JOHN
Yes, I suppose so.

MARGARET
It really covers everything.

JOHN
Mm hm. I guess it does.
(There is a moment or two of silence, then the air is suddenly filled with Margaret's laughter. It becomes louder and louder, until it is nearly hysterical. At the sound, John moves his paper slightly but the audience is still unable to get a view of his face.)

JOHN
What is it? Why are you laughing like that?

MARGARET
It's so funny...

JOHN
What's funny?

MARGARET
(Laughing) Oh, John, I'm sorry. I just can't help myself. But it really strikes me funny.

JOHN
(Impatiently) Well, whatever it is, why don't you share it with me so I can join the laughter.

MARGARET
(Trying to regain control of herself) It was something that happened yesterday.

JOHN
And just what was that?

MARGARET
(Still giggling a little) You were holding the paper upside down.

JOHN
(His voice filled with astonishment and fear) What are you saying?

MARGARET
The paper was upside down and you were reading it as if it were in the right position.
(John suddenly throws the newspaper aside and stands up. He feels around the table and, in so doing, knocks the tea cup to the floor. Now the audience can see that he is a blind man. The whole discussion of the newspaper has been a sham, and a pretence for the world. But Margaret has just shattered his illusions and spoiled the masquerade.
John moves towards Margaret. leaning on the edge of the table. When he has gone as far as he can with assurance, he stops and faces towards the chair, where he knows she must be sitting.)

JOHN
That's a lie. The whole thing is a lie ... You're just saying that to humiliate me.

MARGARET
(Ruefully) No, John, it's true. (Suddenly aware of John's great distress she is filled with regret for having told him the truth.)

JOHN
You have deceived me. You have been deceiving me all this time. You should have told me. How could you let me go on holding the newspaper the wrong way? How could you be so cruel? How could you ... agh ... I can't breath ...
(John tries to loosen his tie. His fingers fumble with the knot unsuccessfully. Margaret gets up hurriedly and moves over to help him undo his tie. Then she leads him back to his chair and helps him to sit down. He is now a truly dejected man.)

MARGARET
John, I would have told you, but by the time I realised it, it was too late. You had almost finished reading it. (Bending down to pick up the cup, she pauses. Then she places the cup and saucer back on the table.) I'm truly sorry. I wouldn't have said .anything if I'd known you were going to get so upset. I simply thought it was rather humorous incident.

JOHN
(Strained) Maybe it didn't happen just yesterday? Maybe I've been reading the paper upside down all these years. Who knows?

MARGARET
No, John, it happened just that once. And it was my fault.

JOHN
What do you mean by that?

MARGARET
I put the paper on the door mat a different way. I always put it down the same way, but yesterday I made a mistake. When you picked it up yesterday morning, you couldn't have known. It was all my fault, John. Please forgive me.

JOHN
(Accusingly) How could you make such a dreadful mistake?

MARGARET
Every day for fifteen years, I take the newspaper after you finish reading it, and I put it on the door mat for you to pick up and read again. I do it the same way day after day without a single mistake. Just once I put it in a different position, and you call it a dreadful mistake. How can you be so unforgiving?

JOHN
(After a moment of self-reproach) Are you angry at me?

MARGARET
(Softly) No, John, I'm not. (Pause) Are you angry at me?

JOHN
No, Margaret. I'm never really angry at you. Don't you know that.

MARGARET
(Smiling happily) Yes, John, I suppose I do.
(Margaret moves over to the side of the table, bends down and picks up the newspaper. She places it gently in John's hands.)

JOHN
No, dear. I can't read anymore of it.

MARGARET
That's alright. You can finish it tomorrow.

JOHN
No, Margaret, that's not what I mean,
(Margaret frowns and looks very confused. She is obviously at a loss for words. Then she sees John slowly ripping off a page of the newspaper.)

MARGARET
(Confused) John, what are you doing?
(John doesn't answer. He just sits there, tearing the newspaper, page by page, to very small pieces.)
(Margaret watches silently. and sadly. When John has finished, she walks towards him, picks up the scattered pieces. and throws them into the fire. Then she looks over at John. who is sitting there. stone-faced, hardly moving a muscle. She begins to weep but there is no reaction ...)

CURTAIN