Pete. No, I'm the skurriest crittur at a fight you ever see; my legs have been too well brought up to stand and see my body abused; I take good care of myself, I can tell you. You will not forget poor Zoe! George, O, forgive me! M'Closky. I will! Yah! To-morrow they'll bloom the same---all will be here as now, and I shall be cold. Mr. Scudder, I've listened to a great many of your insinuations, and now I'd like to come to an understanding what they mean. She didn't mind how kind old judge was to her; and Solon, too, he'll holler, and break de ole lady's heart. twit him on his silence and abstraction---I'm sure it's plain enough, for he has not spoken two words to me all the day; then joke round the subject, and at last speak out. If young George Peyton was to make you the same offer, you'd jump at it, pretty darned quick, I guess. That judgment still exists; under it and others this estate is sold to-day. [Music.]. Scud. Fifteen thousand bid for the Octoroon. [Advances.] Zoe, you have suspected the feeling that now commands an utterance---you have seen that I love you. Pete. The injiun! [C.] I'm sorry to intrude, but the business I came upon will excuse me. [2] Among antebellum melodramas, it was considered second in popularity only to Uncle Tom's Cabin (1852).[3]. [*Throws bowie-knife to*M'Closky.] Adam had a job, a place to live, and food that he could provide for his woman. You're bidding to separate them, Judge. she will har you. No, no! Guess they nebber was born---dem tings! Say, Mas'r Scudder, s'pose we go in round by de quarters and raise de darkies, den dey cum long wid us, and we 'proach dat ole house like Gin'ral Jackson when he took London out dar. Pete. Now don't stir. You seem already familiar with the names of every spot on the estate. Not a bale. Nothing; but you must learn what I thought you already knew. It's no use you putting on airs; I ain't gwine to sit up wid you all night and you drunk. Dora. Ratts. Pete. Then I will go to the Red Light or the Monte Carlo and dance the floor afire. Well, you wrong me. Hold on, Jacob, I'm coming to that---I tell ye, I'm such a fool---I can't bear the feeling, it keeps at me like a skin complaint, and if this family is sold up---. ZOE played by an octoroon actress, a white actress, a quadroon actress, a biracial actress, a multi-racial actress, or an actress of color who can pass as an octoroon. Scud. M'Closky. My father gives me freedom---at least he thought so. He is incapable of any but sincere and pure feelings---so are you. Dora. Zoe, you are suffering---your lips are white---your cheeks are flushed. [Aside to Pete.] Mrs. P.Terrebonne for sale, and you, sir, will doubtless become its purchaser. I think so; shall I ask him that too? What was her past? At New Orleans, they said, "She's pretty, very pretty, but no brains." No, sir; you have omitted the Octoroon girl, Zoe. There is a gulf between us, as wide as your love, as deep as my despair; but, O, tell me, say you will pity me! M'Closky. Terrebonne is yours. M'Closky. See also Trivia | Goofs | Crazy Credits | Alternate Versions | Connections | Soundtracks how can you say so? [Solon goes down and stands behind Ratts.] He don't understand; he speaks a mash-up of Indian and Mexican. Come, Zoe, don't be a fool; I'd marry you if I could, but you know I can't; so just say what you want. "The free papers of my daughter, Zoe, registered February 4th, 1841." No, sar; nigger nebber cut stick on Terrebonne; dat boy's dead, sure. [Inside room.] Wahnotee Patira na sepau assa wigiran. While the proceeds of this sale promises to realize less than the debts upon it, it is my duty to prevent any collusion for the depreciation of the property. If I was to try, I'd bust. You gib me rattan, Mas'r Clostry, but I guess you take a berry long stick to Wahnotee; ugh, he make bacon of you. George. ], George. Sunny. George. Ah, George, our race has at least one virtue---it knows how to suffer! She's in love with young Peyton; it made me curse, whar it made you cry, as it does now; I see the tears on your cheeks now. Beat that any of ye. The term sensation drama caught on when Boucicault's The Colleen Bawn, adapted from Gerald Grifn's novel The Collegians, became a hit in 1860. Gosh, wouldn't I like to hab myself took! I'm waiting on your fifty thousand bid. I say, then, air you honest men? Sunny. Liverpool post mark. Do you think they would live here on such terms? | Sitemap |. George---George---hush---they come! Traduced! Scudder. The word Octoroon signifies "one-eighth blood" or the child of a Quadroon by a white. Those free papers ain't worth the sand that's on 'em. George, leave me! George. Nebber supply no more, sar---nebber dance again. Dora. Zoe. M'Closky. I'ss, Mas'r George. [Pause.] O, how I lapped up her words, like a thirsty bloodhound! I tell ye dar's somebody in dar. She loves him! Some of those sirens of Paris, I presume, [Pause.] If we can't behave like Christians, let's try and act like gentlemen. O, you wanted evidence---you called for proof---Heaven has answered and convicted you. I don't know when my time on earth will be up; but I DO know that today, I am one day closer. Ivan Glasenberg, Very few things hurt my young ego more than an Asian female openly shaming me for my Asian-ness. [*Hands papers to*Mrs. [Aside,C.] Insolent as usual.---[Aloud.] Come, then, but if I catch you drinkin', O, laws a mussey, you'll get snakes! I can think of nothing but the image that remains face to face with me: so beautiful, so simple, so confiding, that I dare not express the feelings that have grown up so rapidly in my heart. I feel so big with joy, creation ain't wide enough to hold me. Mrs. P.My dear George, you are left in your uncle's will heir to this estate. I shall never understand how to wound the feelings of any lady; and, if that is the custom here, I shall never acquire it. George. Hillo! [Opens desk.] me! Scud. How came they in your possession? Dora said you were slow; if she could hear you now---. I will dine on oysters and palomitas and wash them down with white wine. M'Closky. Zoe. Say what you know---not what you heard. Yes; No. Only 10 percent engaged in combat; the American elephant, pursuing the Vietnamese grasshopper, was extraordinarily heavy with logistical support. Their presence keeps alive the reproach against me that I ruined them; yet, if this money should come. You be darned! Zoe. No, [looks off,R.] 'tis Pete and the servants---they come this way. the bags are mine---now for it!---[Opens mail-bags.] Ratts. Mrs. Claiborne Miss Clinton. Dora, I once made you weep; those were the only tears I caused any body. Try him, then---try him on the spot of his crime. [Tableaux.]. In comparison, a quadroon would have one quarter African ancestry and a mulatto for the most part has historically implied half African ancestry. Look there. Synopsis. Search him, we may find more evidence. [During the dialogueWahnoteehas takenGeorge'sgun. A mistake, sar---forty-six. Sunny. No---in kind---that is, in protection, forbearance, gentleness; in all them goods that show the critters the difference between the Christian and the savage. For what I have done, let me be tried. Come on, Pete, we shan't reach the house before midday. You heard him say it was hopeless. Scud. Evidence! Ratts. Top Quadroon And Octoroon Quotes. I believe Mr. M'Closky has a bill of sale on them. See, I'm calm. You begged me to call this morning. But what do we pay for that possession? Mrs. P.The child was a favorite of the judge, who encouraged his gambols. you bomn'ble fry---git out---a gen'leman can't pass for you. I will! They do not notice Zoe.---[Aloud.] With your New England hypocrisy, you would persuade yourself it was this family alone you cared for; it ain't---you know it ain't---'tis the "Octoroon;" and you love her as I do; and you hate me because I'm your rival---that's where the tears come from, Salem Scudder, if you ever shed any---that's where the shoe pinches. Scud. Men talk of killing time, while time quietly kills them. Salem Scudder, a kind Yankee, was Judge Peyton's business partner; though he wishes he could save Terrebonne, he has no money. Say, Mas'r Scudder, take me in dat telescope? Go on, Colonel---Colonel Pointdexter, ma'am---the mortgagee, auctioneer, and general agent. Five hundred dollars!---[*To*Thibodeaux.] Stan' back, I say I I'll nip the first that lays a finger on Him. His new cotton gins broke down, the steam sugar-mills burst up, until he finished off with his folly what Mr. M'Closky with his knavery began. Scud. What's the law? M'Closky. Deep songs don't come from the surface; they come from the deep down. Dido. Why not! I hope we don't intrude on the family. Mrs. P.But it may be years yet before it will be paid off, if ever. Don't say that, ma'am; don't say that to a man that loves another gal. O, forgive him and me! Now I'm ready. Scud. Eleven hundred---going---going---sold! [Calls off.] stan' round thar! M'Closky. [Offers hand,Georgebows coldly,R. C.] [aside.] Missey Zoe! Paul. Pete. No, ma'am, I worked like an ass---an honest one, and that's all. George. Why you speak so wild? O, I have not spoiled that anyhow. Ya! [Weeping.] [*Aside to*Mrs. D'ye hear that, Jacob? Pete. And so you really kept those foolish letters? Ah! Mrs. P.[L. C.] My nephew is not acquainted with our customs in Louisiana, but he will soon understand. That part of it all is performance for the media. Zoe. What's here---judgments? I lost them in the cedar swamp---again they haunted my path down the bayou, moving as I moved, resting when I rested---hush! That's about right. I dare say you left at least a dozen beloved women there, at the same time. Sign up today to unlock amazing theatre resources and opportunities. Zoe. Mrs. P.[Embracing him.] The child---'tis he! Excuse me; one of the principal mortgagees has made the demand. No; not you---George. Zoe. Scud. how sad she looks now she has no resource. Laws, mussey! Scud. George. Ratts. [Sits,R.], Dora. Mrs. P.Why didn't you mention this before? PART ONE: The estate of Terrebonne, in Louisiana, had been heavily mortgaged by the owner, Judge Payton, who, when he died, left the estate to his brother's widow and her son George, making Mrs. Peyton the guardian of Zoe, his natural daughter by a quadroon. who has been teasing you? The Octoroon or The Lily of Louisiana is a dark tale of crime, race and slavery. It's soooo dark. Point. George, dear George, do you love me? M'Closky. Jackson, I want to get to Ophelensis to-night. What, Picayune Paul, as we called, him, that used to come aboard my boat?---poor little darkey, I Hope not; many a picayune he picked up for his dance and nigger-songs, and he supplied our table with fish and game from the Bayous. [Goes up.]. Dora. Ratts. The Injiun means that he buried him there! At college they said I was a fool---I must be. Good day, ma'am. As they exit,M'Closkyrises from behind rock,R.,*and looks after them. I am his love---he loves an Octoroon. Keep quiet, and let's talk sense. You made her life too happy, and now these tears will be. Why don't you speak, sir? I want Pete here a minute. My dear mother---Mr. Scudder---you teach me what I ought to do; if Miss Sunnyside will accept me as I am, Terrebonne shall be saved; I will sell myself, but the slaves shall be protected. McClosky has proved that Judge Peyton did not succeed in legally freeing her, as he had meant to do. The murder is captured on Scudder's photographic apparatus. Scud. I'll lend you all you want. Scud. [Reads.] How dar you say dat, you black nigger, you? Yes---me and Co.---we done it; but, as you were senior partner in the concern, I reckon you got the big lick. I hope I'm not intruding. Well, sir, what does this Scudder do but introduces his inventions and improvements on this estate. How are we sure the boy is dead at all? [Laughing.] I'm responsible for the crittur---go on. Haven't you worked like a horse? George. George, you know not what you say. Letters! Scudder insists that they hold a trial, and the men search for evidence. Hold on now, Jacob; we've got to figure on that---let us look straight at the thing. Stay, Mr. Peyton; Zoe, a word! What! Zoe. What, Mr. Ratts, are you going to invest in swamps? The Steamer floats on at back, burning. Dion Boucicault. D'ye call running away from a fellow catching him? *EnterPaul,wrestling with*Wahnotee,R.3. Zoe. If that old nigger ain't asleep, I'm blamed. tink anybody wants you to cry? [Stands with his hand extended towards the house, and tableau.]. If he caught the fever, were stung by a snake, or possessed of any other poisonous or unclean thing, you could pity, tend, love him through it, and for your gentle care he would love you in return. Pete. And I remained here to induce you to offer that heart to Dora! Be the first to contribute! Paul. Now, what have you done to show them the distinction? M'Closky. I think we may begin business. DORA played by a white actress or an actress who can pass as white. *EnterThibodeauxand*Sunnyside,R.U.E. Thibo. Ratts. [Raising his voice.] O, no; Mas'r Scudder, don't leave Mas'r Closky like dat---don't, sa---'tain't what good Christian should do. [Sits. [Knocks.] side.---A table and chairs,R.C. Gracediscovered sitting at breakfast-table with Children. The Octoroons have no apparent trace of the Negro in their appearance but still are subject to the legal disabilities which attach them to the condition of blacks. This blow has staggered me some. When you have done joking, gentlemen, you'll say one hundred and twenty thousand. Well---I didn't mean to kill him, did I? Darn me, if I couldn't raise thirty thousand on the envelope alone, and ten thousand more on the post-mark. No---no. Ugh' ach! Zoe. Hillo! They owed him over fifty thousand dollars. Lafouche. Come here quite; now quite. Just click the "Edit page" button at the bottom of the page or learn more in the Quotes submission guide. Zoe. Wahnotee. Zoe. Yes, we do, ma'am; it's in a darned bad condition. He will love you---he must. "No, ma'am, the truth seldom is.". I deserve to be a nigger this day---I feel like one, inside. Sunny. Scud. [He is borne off in boat, struggling. Fifty against one! You will not give me to that man? Isn't he sweet! have I fixed ye? Ratts. Pete. ", Pete. E.---Wahnoteefaces him.---Fight---buss. Everybody---that is, I heard so. Scud. Lafouche. [*Exit*Thibodeaux, Sunnyside, Ratts, Pointdexter, Grace, Jackson, Lafouche, Caillou, Solon,R.U.E. Scud. I'm not guilty; would ye murder me? The conflict centers around Zoe, "the Octoroon", a term used at the time to describe a person who was 1/8 African, 7/8 Caucasian. I'm on you like a painter, and when I'm drawed out I'm pizin. if this is so, she's mine! this is worth taking to---in this desk the judge used to keep one paper I want---this should be it. Dido. Hi! Now it's cooking, laws mussey, I feel it all inside, as if it was at a lottery. The sun is rising. Scud. Then, if they go, they'll take Zoe---she'll follow them. [R.] Then why don't you buy it yourself, Colonel? Dat's me---yer, I'm comin'---stand around dar. Now, Mr. George, between the two overseers, you and that good old lady have come to the ground; that is the state of things, just as near as I can fix it. 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