The Ant and the Grasshopper W.S.

Maugham When I was a small boy I was made to learn by heart some fables of La Fontaine and the moral of each was carefully explained to me. Among them was "The Ant and the Grasshopper". In spite of the moral of this fable my sympathies were with the grasshopper and for some time I ne er saw an ant without putting my foot on it. I couldn!t help thin"ing of this fable when the other day I saw George #amsay lunching in a restaurant. I ne er saw an expression of such deep gloom. $e wras staring into space. I was sorry for him% I suspected at once that his unfortunate brother had been causing trouble again. I went up to him. "$ow are you&" I as"ed. "Is it Tom again&" $e sighed. "'es( it!s Tom again." I suppose e ery family has a blac" sheep. In this family it had been Tom. $e had begun life decently enough% he went into business( married and had two children. The #amsays were respectable people and e erybody supposed that Tom would ha e a good carrier. )ut one day he announced that he didn!t li"e wor" and that he wasn!t suited for marriage. $e wanted to en*oy himself. $e left his wife and his office. $e spent two happy years in the arious capitals of +urope. $is relations were shoc"ed and wondered what would happen when his money was spent. They soon found out% he borrowed. $e was so charming that nobody could refuse him. ,ery often he turned to George. -nce or twice he ga e Tom considerable sums so that he could ma"e a fresh start. -n these Tom bought a motor.car and some *ewellery. )ut when George washed his hands of him( Tom began to blac"mail him. It was not nice for a respectable lawyer to find his brother sha"ing coc"tails behind the bar of his fa ourite restaurant or dri ing a taxi. /o George paid again. For twenty years Tom gambled( danced( ate in the most expensi e restaurants and dressed beautifully. Though he was forty.six he loo"ed not more than thirty.fi e. $e had high spirits and incredible charm. Tom #amsay "new e eryone and e eryone "new him. 'ou couldn!t help li"ing him. 0oor George( only a year older than his brother( loo"ed sixty. $e had ne er ta"en more than a fortnight!s holiday in the year. $e was in his office e ery morning at nine.thirty and ne er left it till six. $e was honest and industrious. $e had a good wife and four daughters to whom he was the best of fathers. $is plan was to retire at fifty.fi e to a little house in the country. $is life was blameless. $e was glad that he was growing old because Tom was growing old( too. $e used to say% "It was all well when Tom was young and good.loo"ing. In four years he!ll be fifty. $e won!t find life so easy then. I shall ha e thirty thousand pounds by the time I!m fifty. We shall see what is really best to wor" or to be idle." 0oor George1 I sympathi2ed with him. I wondered now what else Tom had done. George was ery much upset. I was prepared for the worst. George could hardly spea". "A few wee"s ago(" he said( "Tom became engaged to a woman old enough to be his mother. And now she has died and left him e erything she had% half a million pounds( a yacht( a house in London and a house in the country. It is not fair( I tell you( it isn!t fair1" I couldn!t help it. I burst into laughter as I loo"ed at George!s face( I nearly fell on the floor. George ne er forga e me. )ut Tom often as"s me to dinners in his charming house and if he sometimes borrows money from me( it is simply from force of habit.

BRAVE MOTHER (from Uncle Toms Cabin) by H. Beecher-Stowe Part I Mr. Shelby had a large plantation and many slaves in the South of America. He never had enough money. He borrowed large sums from a man named Haley, whose business was to buy and sell slaves. Mr. Shelby could not pay the money bac , and Haley said be would ta e Shelby!s house or some slaves. Mr. Shelby decided to sell "om, who helped him to loo after the farm. "Tom is a good man(" said 3r. /helby4 "he helps me on the farm and I trust him." "Well( I!ll ta"e your Tom if you add a boy or a girl to him(" answered $aley. "I don!t thin" I ha e a boy or a girl that I could sell. If I could pay the money bac" I wouldn!t sell sla es at all." $ere the door opened and a small 5egro boy( between four and fi e years of age( entered the room. 3r. /helby ga e him some fruit and said( "5ow( $arry( show this gentleman how you can dance and sing." The boy began to sing one of the most popular 5egro songs in a clear oice. ")ra o1" said $aley( throwing the boy a piece of an orange. "5ow( boy( wal" li"e an old man1" said 3r. /helby. The boy began wal"ing about the room( his master!s stic" in his hand( in imitation of an old man. "$urrah1 )ra o1 What a boy1" said $aley. "/helby( I li"e that boy( if you add him( the business is done." At this moment the door opened and a young 5egro woman about twenty.fi e entered the room. 'ou could tell immediately( that she was the mother of the boy. The same beautiful dar" eyes and sil"y blac" hair. "Well( +lisa&" as"ed her master as she stopped and loo"ed at him. "I was loo"ing for $arry( please( /ir." The boy ran to his mother showing her the nice things which he had got from the men for his performance. "Well( ta"e him away( then(" said 3r. /helby4 and she 6uic"ly left the room( carrying the child in her arms. "I say( /helby(" said the trader( "that is a fine woman. 'ou could get much money for her in 5ew -rleans( any day. I! e seen a thousand dollars paid for a girl li"e that." "I don!t want any money for her. 3y wife li"es her and wouldn!t part with her. I don!t want to spea" about it." "Well( you!ll let me ha e the boy( won!t you&" said the trader. "What do you want the boy for&" as"ed /helby. "I ha e a friend who sells good boys in the mar"et. $e sells them to rich people. )oys can be waiters( open doors and help in the house." "I don!t want to ta"e the boy from his mother(" said 3r. /helby. "-h( you can send the woman away for a day or a wee"4 then your wife can gi e her a new dress or some other thing to ma"e it up with her." "I!ll thin" it o er and tal" to my wife(" said 3r. /helby. ")ut I want to "now the result as soon as possible(" said $aley( rising and putting on his coat. "Well( come this e ening between six and se en( and you shall ha e my answer(" said 3r. /helby( and the trader left the house.

Part II #n the evening Mr. Shelby told his wife that he had sold "om and little Harry to Haley. $lisa was in the ne%t room and heard the conversation. She decided to ta e her boy and run away to &anada, where 'egroes were free. She pac ed some of her things, too the boy in her arms and (uietly )eft the house. To get to 7anada +lisa had to cross the -hio #i er. /he "new the road to the ri er( as she had of ten gone with her mistress to isit some friends in the little illage near the -hio #i er. +lisa wal"ed all the night. In the morning( when people and horses began to mo e along the road( she sat down behind the trees and ga e little $arry something to eat. After a short rest they continued their way. In the afternoon she stopped at a small farm.house to rest and buy some dinner for the boy and herself. When the sun was already low( they came to the -hio #i er. +lisa was tired but strong in heart. /he loo"ed at the ri er that was on her way to freedom. It was spring and the ri er was swollen( large pieces of ice were floating in the water. /he understood that it would be difficult to get a boat and cross the ri er at such a time. At a small inn she as"ed about the boats. The woman there told +lisa that the boats had stopped running( and she loo"ed with curiosity at the woman and her child. "3y boy is dangerously ill( I wal"ed the whole day in the hope to get to the boat(" said +lisa. The woman was sorry for the poor mother and as"ed her husband for ad ice. "$e said he would try. There is a man who crosses the ri er ery of ten. $e will be here to supper in the e ening( so you may stay here and wait(" said the woman. "Ta"e the child into this room" continued she( opening the door into a. small bedroom( where stood a comfortable bed. +lisa put the tired boy upon the bed( and held his hands in hers till he was asleep. There was no rest for her. /he was afraid that the trader and her master would follow her and ta"e little $arry away from her. +lisa stood at the window loo"ing at the ri er. "$ow can I get to the other side&" she thought. "I must get o er the ri er with my child( then no one will be able to catch us." /uddenly she heard men!s oices and saw $aley. $er room had a door opening to the ri er. /he caught up the boy and ran down to the ri er. The men saw her and started running after her. /he heard their shouts. In a moment she *umped onto a large piece of ice in the ri er. It was a dangerous *ump. $aley and the men cried something to her and lifted their hands. The piece of ice crea"ed as +lisa *umped onto it( but she did not stay there. /he *umped to another and still another piece( falling and *umping again. /he lost her shoes( her stoc"ing were cut from her feet( blood mar"ed her e ery step on the ice4 but +lisa saw nothing( felt nothing( till( as in a dream( she saw the other ban" of the -hio( and a man helping her up the ban".

HOME by $. Hughes This is a story about a young Negro musician, who returns to the USA after the years that he had spent abroad learning to play the violin and giving concerts in different European cities. The action of the story takes place in !"# in the USA. This was the time of the world economic crisis. Roy Williams had come home from abroad to visit his mother and sister and brothers who still remained in his native town, Hopkinsville. Roy had been away seven or eight years, travelling all over the world. He came back very well dressed, but very thin. He wasn't well. It was this illness that made Roy come home. He had a feeling that he was going to die, and he wanted to see his mother again. This feeling about death started in ienna, where so many people were hungry, while other people spent so much money in the night clubs where Roy's orchestra played. In ienna Roy had a room to himself because he wanted to study music. He studied under one of the best violin teachers. !It's bad in "urope,! Roy thought. !I never saw people as hungry as this.! #ut it was even worse when the orchestra went back to #erlin. Hunger and misery were terrible there. $nd the police were beating people who protested, or stole, or begged. It was in #erlin that Roy began to cough. When he got to %aris his friend took care of him, and he got better. #ut all the time he had the feeling that he was going to die. &o he came home to see his mother. He landed in 'ew (ork and stayed two or three days in Harlem. )ost of his old friends there, musicians and actors, were hungry and out of work. When they saw Roy dressed so well, they asked him for money. !It's bad everywhere,! Roy thought. !I want to go home.! That last night in Harlem he could not sleep. He thought of his mother. In the morning he sent her a telegram that he was coming home to Hopkinsville, )issouri. !*ook at that nigger,! said the white boys, when they saw him standing on the station platform in the &eptember sunlight, surrounded by his bags with the bright foreign labels. Roy had got off a %ullman + something unusual for a 'egro in that part of the country. !,od damn-! said one of the white boys. &uddenly Roy recognised one of them. It was .harlie )umford, an old playmate + a tall red/headed boy. Roy took off his glove and held out his hand. The white boy took it but did not shake it long. Roy had forgotten he wasn't in "urope, wearing gloves and shaking hands with a white man!Where have you been, boy0! .harlie asked. !In %aris,! said Roy. !Why have you come back0! someone asked. !I wanted to come and see my mother.! !I hope she is happier to see you than we are,! another white boy said. Roy picked up his bags, there were no porters on the platform, and carried them to an old 1ord car that looked like a ta2i. He felt weak and frightened. The eyes of the white men at the station were not kind. He heard someone say behind him3 !'igger.! His skin was very hot. 1or the first time in the last seven or eight years he felt his colour. He was home. Roy's home/coming concert at the 'egro church was a success. The 'egroes sold a lot of tickets to the white people for whom they worked. The front rows cost fifty cents and were filled with white people. The rest of the seats cost twenty/five cents and were filled with 'egroes. There was much noise as the little old church filled. %eople walked up and down, looking for their seats. While he was playing #rahms on a violin from ienna in a 'egro church in Hopkinsville, )issouri, for listeners who were poor white people and even poorer 'egroes, the sick young man thought of his old dream. This dream could not come true now. It was a dream of a great stage in a large concert hall where thousands of people looked up at him as they listened to his music. 'ow he was giving his first concert in $merica for his mother in the 'egro church, for his white and black listeners. $nd they were looking at him. They were all looking at him. The white people in the front rows and the 'egroes in the back. He was thinking of the past, of his childhood. He remembered the old 4reisler record they had at home. 'obody liked it but Roy, and he played it again and again. Then his mother got a violin for him, but half the time she didn't have the money to pay old man )iller for his violin lessons every week. Roy remembered how his

mother had cried when he went away with a group of 'egro/musicians, who played 'egro songs all over the &outh. Then he had a 5ob with a night/club 5a66/band in .hicago. $fter that he got a contract to go to #erlin and play in an orchestra there. &uddenly he noticed a thin white woman in a cheap coat and red hat, who was looking at him from the first row. !What does the music give you0 What do you want from me0! Roy thought about her. He looked at all those dark girls back there in the crowd. )ost of them had never heard good classical music. 'ow for the first time in their life they saw a 'egro, who had come home from abroad, playing a violin. They were looking proudly at him over the heads of the white people in the first rows, over the head of the white woman in the cheap coat and red hat.... !Who are you, lady0! he thought. When the concert was over, even some of the white people shook hands with Roy and said it was wonderful. The 'egroes said, !#oy, you really can play-! Roy was trembling a little and his eyes burnt and he wanted very much to cough. #ut he smiled and he held out his hot hand to everybody. The woman in the red hat waited at the end of the room. $fter many of the people had gone away, she cameup to Roy and shook hands with him. &he spoke of symphony concerts in other cities of )issouri7 she said she was a teacher of music, of piano and violin, but she had no pupils like Roy, that never in the town of Hopkinsville had anyone else played so beautifully. Roy looked into her thin, white face and was glad that she loved music. !That's )iss Reese,! his mother told him after she had gone. !$n old music teacher at the white high school.! !(es, )other,! said Roy. !&he understands music. 'e2t time he saw )iss Reese at the white high school. 8ne morning a note came asking him if he would play for her music class some day. &he would accompany him if he brought his music. &he had told her students about #ach and )o6art, and she would be very grateful if Roy visited the school and played those two great masters for her young people. &he wrote him a nice note on clean white paper. !That )iss Reese is a very nice woman,! )rs. Williams said to her boy. !&he sends for you to play at the school. I have never heard of a 'egro who was invited there for anything but cleaning up, and I have been in Hopkinsville a long time. ,o and play for them, son.! Roy played. #ut it was one of those days when his throat was hot and dry and his eyes burnt. He had been coughing all morning and as he played he breathed with great difficulty. He played badly. #ut )iss Reese was more than kind to him. &he accompanied him on the piano. $nd when he had finished, she turned to the class of white children and said, !This is art, my dear young people, this is true art-! The pupils went home that afternoon and told their parents that a dressed/up nigger had come to school with a violin and played a lot of funny music which nobody but )iss Reese liked. They also said that )iss Reese had smiled and said, !Wonderful-! and had even shaken hands with the nigger, when he went out. Roy went home. He was very ill these days, getting thinner and thinner all the time, weaker and weaker. &ometimes he did not play at all. 8ften he did not eat the food his mother cooked for him, or that his sister brought from the place where she worked. &ometimes he was so restless and hot in the night that he got up and dressed and then walked the streets of the little town at ten and eleven o'clock after nearly every one else had gone to bed. )idnight was late in Hopkinsville. #ut for years Roy had worked at night. It was hard f or him to sleep before midnight now. #ut one night he walked out of the house for the last time. In the street it was very 9uiet. The trees stood silent in the moonlight. Roy walked under the dry falling leaves towards the centre of the town, breathing in the night air. 'ight and the streets always made him f eel better. He remembered the streets of %aris and #erlin. He remembered ienna. 'ow like a dream that he had ever been in "urope at all, he thought. )a never had any money. With the greatest difficulty her children were able to finish the grade school. There was no high school for 'egroes in Hopkinsville. In order to get further education he had to run away from home with a 'egro show. Then that chance of going to #erlin with a 5a66/ band. $nd his violin had been his best friend all the time. :a66 at night and the classics in the morning at his lessons with the best teachers that his earnings could pay. It was hard work and hard practice. )usic, real music- Then he began to cough in #erlin.

Roy was passing lots of people now in the bright lights of )ain &treet, but he saw none of them. He saw only dreams and memories, and heard music. &uddenly a thin woman in a cheap coat and red hat, a white woman, stepping out of a store 5ust as Roy passed, said pleasantly to him, !,ood evening.! Roy stopped, also said, !,ood evening, )iss Reese,! and was glad to see her. 1orgetting he wasn't in "urope, he took off his hat and gloves, and held out his hand to this lady who understood music. They smiled at each other, the sick young 'egro and the middleaged music teacher in the light of )ain &treet. Then she asked him if he was still working on the &arasate. Roy opened his mouth to answer when he saw the woman's face suddenly grow pale with horror. #efore he could turn round to see what her eyes had seen, he felt a heavy fist strike his face. There was a flash of lightning in his head as he f ell down. )iss Reese screamed. The street near them filled with white young men with red necks, open shirts and fists ready to strike. They had seen a 'egro talking to a white woman + insulting a White Woman + attacking a White Woman- They had seen Roy take off his gloves and when )iss Reese screamed when Roy whs struck, they wee sure he had insulted her. (es, he had. (es, sir&o they knocked Roy down. They trampled on his hat and cane and gloves, and all of them tried to pick him up + so that someone else could have the pleasure of knocking him down again. They struggled over the privilege of knocking him down. Roy looked up from the ground at the white men around him. His mouth was full of blood and his eyes burnt. His clothes were dirty. He was wondering why )iss Reese had stopped him to ask about the &arasate. He knew he would never get home to his mother now. The young 'egro whose name was Roy Williams began to choke from the blood in his mouth. He didn't hear the sound of their voices or the trampling of their feet any longer. He saw only the moonlight, and his ears were filled with a thousand notes, like a #eethoven sonata; NOTES <. nigger + =>?@ABCDEF7 G. ,od dawn- + H>?I JADKBL7 4reisler + M?>FNO>?, JE