1 Ulysses
(The virgins Nurse Callan and Nurse Quigley burst
through the ringkeepers and the ropes and mob him with
open arms.)
THE VIRGINS: (Gushingly) Big Ben! Ben my Chree!
A VOICE: Hold that fellow with the bad breeches.
BEN DOLLARD: (Smites his thigh in abundant laughter)
Hold him now.
HENRY: (Caressing on his breast a severed female head,
murmurs) Thine heart, mine love. (He plucks his lutestrings)
When first I saw ...
VIRAG: (Sloughing his skins, his multitudinous plumage
moulting) Rats! (He yawns, showing a coalblack throat, and
closes his jaws by an upward push of his parchmentroll) After
having said which I took my departure. Farewell. Fare thee
well. Dreck!
(Henry Flower combs his moustache and beard rapidly
with a pocketcomb and gives a cow’s lick to his hair. Steered
by his rapier, he glides to the door, his wild harp slung behind
him. Virag reaches the door in two ungainly stilthops, his tail
cocked, and deftly claps sideways on the wall a pusyellow fly-
bill, butting it with his head.)
THE FLYBILL: K. II. Post No Bills. Strictly confidential.
Dr Hy Franks.
HENRY: All is lost now.
(Virag unscrews his head in a trice and holds it under his
arm.)
VIRAG’S HEAD: Quack!
(Exeunt severally.)
STEPHEN: (Over his shoulder to zoe) You would have