The Colfax chronicle., 1890-11-22
SINGLE TAX DEPARTMENT.
UNDER THE WHEEL
'A Gariand's New Play-The Single
Tax Idea In the Drama.


Reeves (tenderly. smiling)--Yes,
Thirsty for the sightof you. (Aiice goes
into the house. Reeves walks about.
glancing keenly at all points of the
piain-) So this Is the reality Of the en-
igrants dream! The homestead in the
free West, the house beside the river
emoowered In trees!
A wide dun land where the fierce suns smitc.
And the wind is q furnace breath;
Where the beautiful sky has a sinister light
And the earth lies dread and dry as death;
Where the sod lies scorching, and the wan
grass sigha
And the hot red morning has no birds
My Godl what place for my beautiful
giri-for anybody's girl--a wide-walled
grave.
tAlice enters with glass, which she
hlls and hands to him. He drinks, say
ing): In land like this the gift of
water must mean as it does with the
Arabs, the highest hospitality.
Ahce-I can't say how much 1--we
shsll---
Reeves (putting his arm about her)
Don't try. If had only known your
real feelings-but how could 1 from
those letters? (Looking off left. What
In the world is that girl doing? She's
unhitching my team! rllstop her. (Ex.
1, talking.)
Alice (walking about)-How can let
him go again? Have the strength?
But must, Imust! I can't leave father
now. at the height of his terrible strug-
gle. must stay.
Walter (re-enters with Linnie, hold
ing her by the hands,-I suppose this is
Linnie-anyhow the little witch was
unhftching my team; another minute
and she might have had runaway.
Linnie (scornfully) Runaway moth
ingl What do you take me for? Allie
and I hitch up the horses and go out in
the fields-we plow, and drive the har-
vester-and we help shock the whaat-
don't we, Allie?
Reeves (surprised)- you do that?
With this hand. that used to love to
watch on the piano? o horro.s!
STROKES it) Poor bruised little hand.
KISSES it,
Linnie (goes off in mock disgust)-
Girls like me don't count My hand can
get we'll itself f'r all you care. VAIN
so it goes. (Goes into the house)
Reeves-And you live there? point
ing at the house.)
Alice-Yes, with my people.
Reeves = Through your horrible
winters?
Alice (quietly)-Yes, and there are
days when that hut, poor as it is, seems
like palace. Last winter it seemed as
ii the snow would never tire of sliding to
and fro on the plains. Days and days
we were shut up here.
Reeves deeply Affected Heavens,
what prison! And yet saw dozens not |
SO good as 1 came along.
Alice (quietly)-We lived in that sod |
shanty year.
Reeves Clifting his head)-And this |
Is the free and glorious west! Oh, it
makes me wild to think of you living
there-it's worse than the tenement |
house.
Alice firmly but sweetly)-There was
no other way. They couldn't have lived
without me. My little teaching has
kept us in groceries, and beside, there
have been days when father was too
lame to work and have worked in the
fields, and taken care of the cattle in
the barn
Reeves (seizing her hands, s)-Don't tell
ne any more--I'll rage-rll swear.
Alice-We must bear it.
Reeves (savagely)-Bear it! I won't
bear it. I'll expose the whole internal
natter in q four column leader. I'll
mash the next boomer that says free
and to me. Free landl If this is free
and, what the devil
Alice (stopping him)-Hush, hush!
Reeves freeing himselD-I say, If
his is free land what in the devil would
'ou call high-priced land? The settler
,ays for his free land all that makes
ife worth living; these families have
purchased their bare and miserable
cres with blood and sweat and tears
'ree land! bah! For a century there
las been no free land in America. |,
Alice trying to be calm)-I know it,
ut it only makes it worse to think of it.
Reeves(quickly)-Forgetitthen for I've
ONE to take you out of it Hush. now!
Tot word. I've let you spoil five of
he best years of my life. You shan't !
ay world must be heard now.
Then follows a struggle between Alice {
nd her lover, in which she refuses to ;
cave her parents and go with him to
he East, at the end of which he retires,
ngered at her obstinacy.
The fourth scene describes the terri
lie droughts that is destroying the crops ,
nd reducing Edwards to despair, since
mother failure will insure the fore
losure Of his mortgage and leave him 4
vithcut even his miserable home. The I
torn ends with terrible tornado, ac- {
by hail, which absolutely de- '
troys the crops and wrecks the build q
lgs, Edwards himself receiving severe
,juries from which he barely escapes
18th his life to find himself, in the end,
aralyzed. Walter Reeves, who has not
1T the country, returns and successful '
! presses his suit, and the final solu- Q
ON of the uroI1lem Is that ho kakea thu 4