PERSPECTIVES
Page Nine
STAND FOR THE FLAG
... Don La~adie
HE WOULDN'T sit down?"
"No sir. It was last Sunday. He got
on when the car was almost empty.
I'd only been on about two hours when
this little fellow-why I could have
smashed him with my fist easy enough
-got on at Grove Street. Pretty soon
the other passengers began to notice
that he wasn't sitting down, though
there were plenty of seats. Finally
Miss Sykes-she's the librarian at the
Montclair Library-came up to me and
brought it to my attention that this
man was standing when there was plen-
ty of room for him to sit. So I left the
place where I take the tickets and went
over to him. He was just standing
therestaring up at one of the beer post-
ers.
'Thee are plenty of seats.' I said to
him.
He' looked at me and smiled. 'Yes,
there ae many seats.' he said. 'It is a
great improvement. I remember the
old cars which had only a few seats.'
'Dn't you be funny.' I said to him.
'There 'are lots of seats empty in this
car and you're standing. You're both-
ermg everyone so they can't read their
Sunday papers. Now you sit down
there.'
'Oh but' I can't.'
'You'can't?'
'It wouldn't be respectful.'
'Respectful to what?'
'Respectful to the flag.'
'To' the flag? What are you talking
about?' There's no flag on this car.'
'Butthe flags hang in many places
throughout the city. I have a flag
draped'from my window; and in many
restaurants and halls it is prominently
displayed.'
'Well there's no flag on this car, and
you stand for the flag when you're
supposed to, on special occasions and
such. Now' if you want to stay on this
car you sit down. Personally I think
you've got a screw loose else I'd call
a cop 'and'have you locked up for be-
ing disrespectful and unpatriotic.'
'I don't mean to be disrespectful, but
I can't"sit down. I've even learned to
sleep while I stand and deserting now
would be too easy.'
'Listen, I've had enough of this.' I
said tO him. 'You either sit down or
get off the car."
He said he was sorry and asked me
to stop the car. That's the last I thought
of him till the inspector on my line,
Mr. Fritz, told me all about the trouble
they've been having on the busses too.
Then I read in the paper about the
music hall and I told my wife about it
and she said to me: 'Albert, this man's
some sort of seditionist or foreign spy
trying to cause disunity. It's your duty
to report him to the Prefect.' So that's
how I came to see you, sir."
The Prefect sat quietly for a few
minutes, blowing smoke rings from his
long cigarette. The conductor stood at
attention before him, stealing a glance
occasionally at the mahogany box on
the Prefect's desk which contained the
Cuban cigars. Fritz had told him that
loyal einployes were often given these
for good service. Finally the Prefect
spoke:
"Your report is only one of many.
He's been causing disturbance every-
where in the city. This business at the
opera last night was, of course, all we
could' overlook without taking action.
Purchasing a box ticket - lord knows
where he got the money - and then
standing all the way through the per-
formance, even after they'd stopped
playing the anthem, so that he couldn't
possibl escape notice. Bellinin stopped
in the middle of the Immolation scene
and screamed at him, threw a tantrum
right in the middle of the stage. They
had to carry her off and postpone the
performance - you could identify this
man?"
"Oh yes, sir - He was very small
and wore a bowler hat -"
The Prefect pushed a button at his
desk and spoke into a little box. "Have
that man who was arrested at the
opera last night brought up to my of-
fice." He pushed the button again and
turned back to the conductor. "Now
we'll see." he said. "He's been identified
by three people so far; a waitress at
Goodman's, the priest at St. Andrew's,
and one of our bus drivers. All three
of them observed him standing at a
time and in a place where it was con-
spicuous for him to do so. We want
to make certain that he's alone, that
there's not a ring of these men trying
to undermine the general morale."
"It's a terrible thing, sir. The flag
is something to be respected. Ever since
I was a child my mother taught us we
should respect the flag. When the
other boys in the block would have an
old tattered flag after a holiday and
be spitting and stamping on it I'd say
'No, No!' and they'd say 'Why?' and
I'd say 'Because it's the flag'-"
Someone knocked on the door. "Come
in." the Prefect called. The door open-
ed and a fat officer led a small man
into the room.
"That's him, that's him!" the con-
ductor cried rushing up and pointing
in the small man's face.
"All right, Jenkins." the Prefect said.
"You may go."
"You don't want me to stay in case
he tries to contradict anything I said?"
"No, I'll call you if I want you."
Jenkins glared at the small man and
walked from the room.
"You may go too." the Prefect said
to the fat officer. When they were alone
in the room the Prefect began to sort
some papers, leaving the small man
still standing before him.
"Sit down." the Prefect said without
raising his head.
"No thank you." the small man an-
swered.
"What's your name?"
"Evans."
'What's your full name?"
"They've always just called me Evans.
I don't remember the first."
The Prefect raised his head and star-
ed directly into Evan's face. "You'll
do better to cooperate with us. These
obstructionist tactics will get you no-
where. We won't find it difficult t
learn your first name - Why are you
causing all this trouble? Why can't
you sit down like everyone else when
the occasion calls for sitting? Who's
giving you orders?"
"No one gives rme orders. It's good
to be free, to wander wherever I want
in the country. I've always had this
freedom and no one to thank, nothing
to give in return. That's why I thought
at least, I could do this so that I would
remember and others wouldn't forget.
The Prefect grunted slightly and
cynically, not quite laughing. "That's
a foolish story, Evans." he said. "Even
if you were alone and I did believe you
you'd have to stop this foolishness."
"Oh but I couldn't. I couldn't desert
the flag. I wouldn't believe in any-
thing."
"You won't leave the building until
you promise and at the first recur-
rence of this act you'll be arrested and
possibly worse."
"It wouldn't make any difference."
"Have you any idea of the effect your
act has on others? Do you know how
it makes them feel? They feel guilty as
if they were neglecting something, and
all because of your selfish little whims.
Selfish, that's what they are, Evans.
Just because people are religious do you
find them praying in the middle of the
street, on their knees wherever they
are? Of course not. There's a time and
place for everything. That's why we
have ceremonies and churches."
"But I feel the way I do all the
time."
"Then you'll remain here until you
change your mind. Maybe not seeing
the country for a while will diminish
your enthusiasm."
"I won't change my mind."
The Prefect turned angrily in his
chair to face the window. Then sudden-
ly he swung around again.
"Now listen to me. I can't afford any-
thing like this. You're practically a pub-
lic figure. Did you see the newspaper
this morning? Everyone is asking who
you are. There were four editorials on
your performance at the opera last
night. You must answer the public.
You've got to tell them it was all a
joke."
"I'm sorry. I couldn't."
The Prefect pushed the button at his
desk. "Hello." he said. "Give me the
Head at the capitol, Miss Davis - You
might as well sit down, Evans. You'll
be tired enough before this is finished.
-Oh hello - John - Yes, yes - No,
I think that's out. He's alone - Yes,
he says it's that - Oh he's sincere
enough - No, he refuses - I've tried-
I said that - Yes - Yes, yes - Yes,
that's very good - I don't know. And
if not - I don't think it's the wisest
measure. People will wonder - Yes, if
you think so. - All right - Yes'-
Goodbye." He put down the receiver
and folded his hands on the desk. Then
he leaned forward and looked decisive-
ly at Evans.
"Well," he said. "We've one last pro-
posal to make - The Flag Soiety is
making a tour of the country next
month. If you'll agree to travel with
them and to appear on the patform at
each performance you can ,- free to
stand wherever and whenever ycuW ish.
We want the public to get used to you
so that you'll be more a familar oddity
than a mystery that arouses disturbing
thoughts in their minds - I think it's
a fair proposal all the way arcund.
What do you say?" The Prefecsicame
around the desk and confronsd Evans.
"It wouldn't be the same then. There
wouldn't be any point to my standing
anymore."
"Go then."
"I may go?"
"If you wish."
"Well - Well I'm sorry if - Well,
goodbye." As Evans started t, tin the
Prefect struck him hard on the back
of the neck with his fist. "Fcr sanity
and good measure!" he cried. When
the little man fell he stared down at
him blankly, somewhat pu'zled as if
he had forgotten a detail..
HAMLET AND EXISTENTIALISM
...Continued from Page5
spearean hero; in the deepest part of
his misery, Hamlet stands apart from
society in mocking aloofness, in almost
complete alienation and aloneness. His
mother is the reverse of a comfort, in-
deed the cause of his suffering; he can-
not confide in Ophelia; the Court is
hostile or inquisitive; and, until the
mousetrap is sprung, he bears his know-
ledge alone, without any real confiding
in Horatio. Particularly in those scenes
in which he feigns madness, Hamlet
has a mocking spirit that delights to
shock-epater le bourgeois-he is lack-
ing in 1'esprit serieux; he finds a cloud
like a camel or like a whale; he polishes
off Polonius with great nonchalance,
much as Meursault shoots the Arab; his
"lug the guts into the neighbor room"
is altogether lacking in proper respect;
he sends Rosencrantz and Guilderstern
to their deaths with complete insouci-
ance and indifference; indeed, Hamlet
is a very dangerous fellow, as Claudius
realizes, not because he has killed a
doddering statesman (Polonius), but
because he refuses to accept with any
seriousness the postulates and bases of'
society. He curiously traces how a king
Prophecy
Wildgrown and winnowed
from the moon
the lands lie dipped
in solitude;
and they are hollow
with the mood of sand
and petulant forests
that command
the dipthongs of the wind;-
no men intrude . .. the trees
are reprimand;
a foot, a skull,
the palms of hands distend
within transparent
cubicles of pears and drop
and rot upon the deep
nocturnal soil.
-D. Cohen
may go a progress through the gusof
a beggar, or how the dust of Alexander
may be used to stop a beer-barel. He
exists in a proud isolation like the hero
of The Stranger, an etre in the must
of neant, and with stubborn individ, l-
ism and nonconformity finds
blest are Ihs
Whose blood and judgments n
so well commedled,
That they are not a sipe far
Fortune's finger
To sound what stop she p5l'ae.
But while Parisian audiences will c-
cept plays like Huis Clos or l.es ouches,
an Elizabethan audience would prob-
ably not stand for a play that enied
as bleakly as does the novel.The Sran-
ger or as hopelessly as No EX t. trio
Bentley has called No Exit "a p to-
sophical melodrama" and what is Hn-
let if not that? But No Exit ends v th
horrible quietness; Hamlet ends heoi
rally with the noise of a funezal mtarch,
and a stage which is a nev'cpcis of
corpses.
One reason, surely, for the f"scna-
tion of Hamlet, the man, is riJ'amb _u-
ity: he has a gentle idealistic nat re,
yet he is anything but gentae to 'is
mother and Ophelia. He is a dreamer
and an intellectual, yet on eccasin a
man of action; he is a mo-ker and no-
conformist, yet he heals himself cf :his
maladjusted and unhappy crndIor of
being ungeared to society. In the last
act he is a stoic of the order cf Marius
Aurelius. He ends by bequeathing the
state to the most extroverted aand con-
ventionally heroic man that nald be
found; Hamlet had he lived wold Lave
been an imaginative ruler, Plato's peil-
osopher-king; and perhaps Ais 'an
ironic commentary that he car find no
better to take his place than Fortin-
bras, who, being serious, finds t a sensi-
ble occupation to waste thosands of
lives in fighting for a square mile of
territory that is quite worthless.
We are living in an existentialhst era,
The world has shrunk to a narrow room;
and for nations to have nem ""uand to
be unliveable-with is to isue this
pleasant earth, look you, .ts brave
o'erhanging firmament, this majstical
pool fretted with golden fJre, t, a
claustrophobic chamber of harrora