George Bernard Shaw a penn State Electronic Classics Series Publication

castic tone and facing him suddenly and seriously) Do you at
all realize, sir, that we have nothing standing between us and
destruction but our own bluff and the sheepishness of these
colonists? They are men of the same English stock as our-
selves: six to one of us (repeating it emphatically), six to one,
sir; and nearly half our troops are Hessians, Brunswickers,
German dragoons, and Indians with scalping knives. These
are the countrymen on whose devotion you rely! Suppose
the colonists find a leader! Suppose the news from Springtown
should turn out to mean that they have already found a leader!

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51
GB Shaw
What shall we do then? Eh?
SWINDON 
(sullenly). Our duty, sir, I presume.
BURGOYNE 
(again sarcastic—giving him up as a fool). Quite
so, quite so. Thank you, Major Swindon, thank you. Now
you’ve settled the question, sir—thrown a flood of light on
the situation. What a comfort to me to feel that I have at my
side so devoted and able an officer to support me in this
emergency! I think, sir, it will probably relieve both our feel-
ings if we proceed to hang this dissenter without further de-
lay (he strikes the bell), especially as I am debarred by my
principles from the customary military vent for my feelings.
(The sergeant appears.) Bring your man in.
SERGEANT
. Yes, sir.
BURGOYNE
. And mention to any officer you may meet
that the court cannot wait any longer for him.
SWINDON 
(keeping his temper with difficulty). The staff is
perfectly ready, sir. They have been waiting your convenience
for fully half an hour. Perfectly ready, sir.
BURGOYNE 
(blandly). So am I. (Several officers come in
and take their seats. One of them sits at the end of the table
furthest from the door, and acts throughout as clerk to the court,
making notes of the proceedings. The uniforms are those of the
9th, 2Oth, 21st, 24th, 47th, 53rd, and 62nd British Infantry.
One officer is a Major General of the Royal Artillery. There are
also German officers of the Hessian Rifles, and of German dra-
goon and Brunswicker regiments.) Oh, good morning, gentle-
men. Sorry to disturb you, I am sure. Very good of you to
spare us a few moments.
SWINDON
. Will you preside, sir?
BURGOYNE 
(becoming additionally, polished, lofty, sarcastic
and urbane now that he is in public). No, sir: I feel my own
deficiencies too keenly to presume so far. If you will kindly
allow me, I will sit at the feet of Gamaliel. (He takes the chair
at the end of the table next the door, and motions Swindon to
the chair of state, waiting for him to be seated before sitting
himself.)
SWINDON 
(greatly annoyed). As you please, sir. I am only
trying to do my duty under excessively trying circumstances.
(He takes his place in the chair of state.)
Burgoyne, relaxing his studied demeanor for the moment, sits
down and begins to read the report with knitted brows and
careworn looks, reflecting on his desperate situation and Swindon’s
uselessness. Richard is brought in. Judith walks beside him. Two
soldiers precede and two follow him, with the sergeant in com-

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52
The Devil’s Disciple
mand. They cross the room to the wall opposite the door; but
when Richard has just passed before the chair of state the ser-
geant stops him with a touch on the arm, and posts himself