THE LADY OF THE LAMP A PLAY

Characters:

    Florence Nightingale, the nurse
    Frances, her sister
    Flossie, her doll
    Harry¹ Miller², Doctor Make-believe
    Old Roger, the shepherd
    Captain, the hurt dog
    Mr. Vicar, the minister
    Soldiers, doctors, and other nurses

Act I. The Sick Doll

Scene. In an English Garden.

Frances. Come on! Let’s play tag, Florence.

Florence. I can’t, Frances. Flossie is too sick. Won’t you play you are the doctor, and come see her?

Frances. Oh, no; you always want to play the same thing! Your dolls are always sick! I believe you love the broken ones better than the others.

Florence. Yes, I do. I’m going to be a nurse when I grow up. Well, if you don’t want to[225] play that you are the doctor, I am going to ask Harry Miller to play that he is. (Goes to the hedge and calls.) Oh, Harry, come on over, and play you are the doctor for my sick dolls.

Frances. Come on, Harry, I am going to be the druggist.

Harry. All right, girls; I’ll be over in a minute.

Florence. Don’t forget your medicine case.

Harry (entering). Good morning, madam. Is your little child ill?

Act the rest of the story yourselves.
Act II. Good Old Cap

Scene. In an English Village Street.

(Florence is riding on her little pony³. With her on horseback is Mr. Vicar, the minister of the village church.)

Mr. Vicar. What a lovely day, Florence.

Florence. It is a beautiful day, Mr. Vicar. I am so glad we are going to call to see old Mrs. Williams. I hope she is better than when mother last saw her.

[226]

Mr. Vicar. I have not heard from her for some days.

Florence (looking off in the distance). Oh, there is old Roger trying to gather his sheep together. Why, I wonder where his dog is. (They ride up.)

Mr. Vicar. Good morning, Roger. You seem to be having trouble.

Roger. That I am, sir. Good morning, miss.

Florence. Why, where is your good dog, Cap?

Roger. Some boys threw stones at him and broke his leg. I am afraid he will never be able to run again.

Florence. Oh, how dreadful⁴!

Roger. Yes, I miss him so much. He was such a help.

Florence (to Mr. Vicar, in a whisper). I wonder if we could see the dog. We might be able to do something for him.

Mr. Vicar. Where is your dog; Roger?

Roger. At home, beside the fire.

(Mr. Vicar and Florence ride to the cottage. They find that Cap’s leg is not broken, but is sprained⁵. Florence asks for hot water, and bathes and bandages the leg. In a few days the dog recovers and helps Roger with the sheep.)

Act out the rest of the story yourselves.

[227]
Act III. The Lady of the Lamp

Scene. In a hospital. Soldiers are lying on cots and chairs. Florence Nightingale comes in with a lamp in her hand.

First Soldier. Hush⁶, here comes the Angel of Mercy to look after us poor fellows. How tired she must be after working all day.

Second Soldier. Yes, the Lady of the Lamp.

Third Soldier. She has done more for our country than all the soldiers during this terrible war.

All the Soldiers. That she has. May Heaven bless her brave heart!
America! America!
Thy loyal children we!
Dear Mother Land, our lives we pledge⁷
In service unto thee.

[228]
YOU and I
And ALL of US TOGETHER
Will make this WORLD of OURS
Sorry and Sad—
Sad, crying world
IF
YOU and I
And ALL of US TOGETHER
Do not
DO RIGHT.
BUT
YOU and I
And ALL of US TOGETHER
Will make THIS WORLD of OURS
HAPPY and GLAD—
smiling world
BECAUSE
YOU and I
And ALL of US TOGETHER
WILL
DO RIGHT!
We Will Be
GOOD CITIZENS, FOR WE LOVE OUR
COUNTRY AND OUR FLAG.

The End

1 harry   

vt.掠夺，蹂躏，使苦恼

参考例句：

• Today,people feel more hurried and harried.今天，人们感到更加忙碌和苦恼。
• Obama harried business by Healthcare Reform plan.奥巴马用医改掠夺了商界。

2 miller   

n.磨坊主

参考例句：

• Every miller draws water to his own mill.磨坊主都往自己磨里注水。
• The skilful miller killed millions of lions with his ski.技术娴熟的磨坊主用雪橇杀死了上百万头狮子。

3 pony   

adj.小型的；n.小马

参考例句：

• His father gave him a pony as a Christmas present.他父亲给了他一匹小马驹作为圣诞礼物。
• They made him pony up the money he owed.他们逼他还债。

4 dreadful   

adj.糟透了的，极端的，可怕的，令人畏惧的

参考例句：

• I cannot imagine what to do in this dreadful situation.我不能想像在这么糟的情况下该怎么办。
• I must apologize for the dreadful mistake I made.我为我所犯的严重错误深表歉意。

5 sprained   

v.&n. 扭伤

参考例句：

• I stumbled and sprained my ankle. 我摔了一跤，把脚脖子扭了。
• When Mary sprained her ankles, John carried her piggyback to the doctors. 玛丽扭伤了足踝，约翰驮她去看医生。

6 hush   

int.嘘，别出声；n.沉默，静寂；v.使安静

参考例句：

• A hush fell over the onlookers.旁观者们突然静了下来。
• Do hush up the scandal!不要把这丑事声张出去！

7 pledge   

n.保证，誓言，抵押，抵押品；vt.保证，誓言，举杯祝...健康

参考例句：

• Take this ring as a pledge of our friendship.收下这枚戒指当作我们友谊的信物。
• The old man is willing to pledge for him.那位老人愿意为他担保。