The Ghetto Part 24

THE RABBI.

Are you serious?

RAFAEL.

Am I serious? He asks me if I am serious! But that was not Rebecca.

You think Rebecca is----

 

THE RABBI.

She's as honest as her father!

RAFAEL.

Ah! Two of them, as honest as each other! [_THE RABBI has growing appreciation of the irony._] H'm! But a good housewife? A good needlewoman? Sharp over the counter? My father has not slaved to feed the idleness of another man's daughter!

ESTHER.

I'll answer for that. I thought I could bake cakes, but she's coming to-morrow to teach me how! You never tasted such cakes!

THE RABBI.

Indeed, I believe I have heard them spoken of.

SACHEL.

[_Who has been musing._] Eh--cakes? You cannot expect a girl to know everything. Anyway, she's coming to-morrow; and Esther is going to----

RAFAEL.

Esther is going to learn from her. Excellent!

SACHEL.

Eh? [_He is nudged by ESTHER._] Yes, yes!

RAFAEL.

Good, good! I half suspect that--that you look with favour on Rebecca. We--we had considerable conversation this morning, we talked of money--and love--and----

SACHEL.

They talked of love! Now, what did you say of love?

RAFAEL.

And we talked of money--and of children--and of--money.

[_ESTHER looks at THE RABBI; she also now in dawning suspicion of RAFAEL'S irony._

SACHEL.

Ha, ha! They talked of love and children! Of love and children! We must have some wine, Rafael--this is the house of a friend. Esther, you go and fetch it. Now what----

ESTHER.

They charge two prices at that place around the corner.

SACHEL.

I say we will have some wine! Some good wine! Go!

ESTHER.

Very well; it is a season of denial with us.

THE RABBI.

But the extreme heat! [_Whispers._] Get some from my house.

[_Exit ESTHER._

SACHEL.

H'm! They talked of children and love! And what did you say about children, my boy? Ah, they are beautiful things; though I could not see one, I could fondle it! What about children, my boy?

RAFAEL.

We said that they should each have two cradles; one with a soft pillow of burnt wool and one with a hard pillow of burnt cotton, so that they should learn the difference before they were old enough to tell the sun from a silver coin.

[_An angry gesture from THE RABBI._

SACHEL.

Eh, what--H'm! Yes, yes, but later--later would do as well. And about love, Rafael; what did she say about love?

RAFAEL.

Oh, she is a shrinking creature--as shrinking as wool unmixed with cotton! And, at first, she would not talk of love, but at length she said that when she was married she expected to have a dozen----

SACHEL.

A dozen! That's too large a family in such times as these!

RAFAEL.

A dozen of everything.