No Cage For Conquerors

£

$11.95

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PERCY JANES

No Cage for Conquerors

No Cage For Conquerors

A Novel

by Percy Janes

Harry Cuff Publications Limited St. John's, Newfoundland, Canada 1984

©

1984, Percy Janes

Appreciation is expressed to the

Canada Council

for publication assis­

tance. The publisher acknowledges the financial contribution of the Cultural Affairs Division of the Department of Culture, Recreation and Youth, Government of Newfoundland and Labrador, which has helped make this publication possible.

The characters in this book are fictitious, and any resemblance to any person, living or dead, is coincidental.

Printed in Canada by CREATIVE PRINTERS & PUBLISHERS LIMITED

803-807 Water Street, St. John's, Newfoundland ISBN 0-919095-63-1

11

to The Rodgers Family Gordon, Paula & David

Ill

Books by Percy Janes House of Hate Light and Dark Newf(mndlanders Twelve Newf(lllndland Short Stories (edited jointly with Harry Cuff) EastmaH Requiem for a Faith The Rehels and The Renegades (Requiem for a Faith

II)

No Cage for Conquerors

)\'

PART ONE: The Offence

ONE

April is the springtime of nature, but for some people there is a kind of second spring that comes with the renewal of vitality in the month of September and readiness for a fresh attack on all the problems of life. Especially is this so in the northern countries of the world, w here seasons are sharply defined; more espe­ cially so in the cit ies of the north when autumn plucks away the blanket of heavy summer hea t , bri nging a time of ease and respite before winter clamps down over the world agai n . I n the city o f St . John's there is usually the mild sting of a salty breeze from the At lantic to en hance this feeling of September luxury. It flutters in through the Narrows cool and capricious, with no roaring in it, tickling the nose like an ast ringent perfume but making a person inhale and long for more i nstead of drawing back as he often will when a sharp scent cuts across his senses. Stepping out of her front door o n one of these autumn eve n ings, Marion Squires was suddenly, acutely aware of this new quickening of life. And she was certainly ready for a fresh attack on her problems, Mario.1 was still young - well, she was more or less middle-aged, though not yet officially admittin g to thirty­ n ine; she was fed up with the TV and all its raucous, bullying ads, particularly her h usband's; and so she had determined that this t ime oft he year was a really good time for her to start over. No more of those draggy, depressing evenings gaping at prog�ams that had no meaning for her and left her with a headache and an almost suicidal melancholy. This above all was her September resolut ion . A fter doing the dishes she had sat dow n for a minute all by herself in the kitchen , glancing through The Evening Telegram while wondering just what she could do that would be not only different but really interesting. Something about a Demonstration of Drawing to be given that very evening had caught her eye and roused her curiosity. Art! That would certainly be a new departure for her. It was something she had never thought of trying, either i n appreciation OJ" participation. She felt a sudden desire to go and find out all about it. But of cou r·se she couldn't go alone. Marion had shed most o f the old-time local foolishness and prejudice about what it was proper for a woman to do in public and all on her own, yet still there lingered in her mind that aversion to mixed gatherings u n less she had an escort. She always fel t self-conscious. No use asking her husband to take her to an art gro u p. Quite hopeless. That left only her son Kirk, if she were going to avoid ganging u p with the girls again . There was another and an ominous bore. Kirk was only thirteen , but already h e w a s an inch taller than she a n d neither handsome enough t o take away all attention from herself nor commonplace enough to be w hat he would cal l , i n other circumstances, a drag. Quite a n adequate companion for t h i s occasion. 2

Besides, he was just starting Art in h is first year of H igh School, so t h is would be a good chance for him to get some idea of what the subject was all about . O utside t h e house Marion became aware once again of t h e beauty o f h e r city : mou ntains to protect you on t h ree sides, shafts of golden light splitt ing the darkness above the harbor, and u p on E lizabeth Avenue w here she lived, a wonderful sense of fr·eedom in spaciousness. She decided to walk instead oft aking her car, and felt almost happy with .Kirk loping along beside her, too fast as usual but at least not so u nwillingly as to irritate her into mot herly protest. He wasn't such a bad son, really, not too hard to handle. She had called him Kirk because at the time of his birth Kirk Douglas had been her favorite actor. And he still was. Marion felt grateful to the boy for not spoiling this litt le adventure of hers with sulks or rowdiness. It was not often that she managed to gather into her days or nights a tiny bit of genuine happiness. A t the A rts & Culture Centre, w here this Demonstration was to be held, she found j ust i nside the lobby a sign saying that the guest artist this evening was Cabot Carter and that he would be starting his sketching in t he art gallery at eight o'clock. I t was t h ree minutes after eight now . Marion hurried Kirk along to the main salon, which she found surprisingly full, with nearly every chair taken except three or four in the very first row, quite near the platform where she assumed the artist would be doing his t hing. In such an unfamiliar setting she had not intended to barge right up to the front, but there was nothing else to be done now if her evening were not going to be waste d ; so, taking Kirk's arm , she marched all the way to a seat almost within touching distance of the platform's edge. Only two or three more minutes passed before the star attraction came on stage, but that was long enough for Marion Squires to reflect that the name Cabot Carter was not entirely new to her after all. She seemed to remember something about a picture of his that had caused some trouble or raised some unfavorable comment or something, because it had been thought not exactly flattering to the city of St. J oh n's or the province of Newfoundland. The Chambe r of Commerce, she recalled her husband having said, had considered it outrageous, publicity-wise - giving Newfoundland a black eye. She found now that the vague recollection of this petty fuss over a painting, which she had not followed at all closely, if only because she had not then been i n terested in art, made her all the more eager to set eyes on the artist w ho had been the centre of that storm. When he finally appeared, her very first impression was that here was a man who would be pleasing to women. Cabot Carter walked briskly across the platform and stood tensely with one arm resting in a kind of defian t way on the top edge of the easel. He was casually dressed, but without sloppiness or disharmony: the colors he wore were right for him, Marion noticed, and his slim-line cord pants and bulky-knit sweater, if not exactly lau ndry fresh, were at least not disr·eputabie. He smiled before speaking - a rather tight smile but charming too, although when it widened his slightly inward-turning front tee t h gave a suggestion of bitterness, perhaps of some har·shness as well. I n a ewfound land-I rish voice with an echo of the bay in it, he told his audience that his demonsu·at ion would take the form of choosing a subject at random and doing a sketch of him, or her, on the spot. There was a long wait while his eye moved back and forth over the crowd . 3

Silence. Expectancy. At last t hat professionally appraising eye came to rest on the end of t he fron t row, t hen began to slide across - until after a moment or two Marion became aware that t he artist was looking straight in her direction. A nervous t h rill. She had never been in a situation at all like this before. Effort not to look too self-conscious. She gave a jog of Kirk's elbow. to keep him quite still so as not to spoil the artist's concentration. At lea s t she knew how i m portan t that was. Pity this sketch would not be in coloI" ! Marion was a redhead who p1·eferred to think of her hair as bu rn ished copper; she had escaped the straw-colored eye­ brows and lashes usual in her type, and even her skin was still fresh and fine­ grained. Her special shades in clothes were lime green, hyd rangea blue, and all those pastel tones t hat made her feel soft and shimmery. Lilac was magic for her. And her features weren't all t hat bad, eit her. Wait and see what a real live artist would make of her. It was amazing how swiftly he worked . H is hand seemed t o sail through the air like a bird flying close t o t he pape1·, ca1·essing it rather than impinging on it. Deft as a woman, decisive as a man. Once he had begun t here was almost no hesitation, only a pause now and t hen wh ile he glanced at Marion's place in the row of seats and then resumed h is s t roking and t he touching-u p of his wo1·k. He had placed the sheet so that his subject could not get a direct view of it but would have to wait u ntil the job was quit e fi nished bef01·e she could see herself as another saw her. When at last she did go u p t o examine the sketch, Marion was at first fi lled with dismay. Then she burst out laughing. I t was not a drawing of her at all ! Cabot Carter had taken Kirk as his s ubjec t ; but she was i m mediately im pressed by the fact t hat his q uick d rawing had caught something in her child's face that she herself had become conscious of only rece ntly. It was not j ust. the signs of the upheaval of pubert y. t he sym ptoms of physical and mental dislocation com mon to that state ; no, this was somet hing deeper and almost spiritual in its meaning, and Marion at. once longed to talk with t h is rat her s t range-looking artist about it. B ut first she had to endure an interval during which t he d rawing was displayed for all to see and questions were asked, or comments made, wit h varying deg1·ees of knowledge, intelligence and st upid i t y. Cabot Carter did not. seem to be en joying this part of the show very much. He was certa i n l y not as fluent with his tongue as with the pencil, seeming q uite shy about. discussing his work and eager to escape his tormentors. There was an awkward momen t too when Ki1·k Sq ui1·es had t o stand u p front and cen t re to have himself compared w i t h h i s likeness, at t h e req uest of several members of t h e a u d ience; b u t t he boy took i t a s w e l l as co uld be expected, and seemed a t least. to have the sympathy of the artist in his ordeal. As soon as t he crowd had cleared away Marion went smartly u p to the plat­ form, dete rmined to have speech with the artist no matter how he or she might feel under t hese circumsta nces. Once agai n , and even with only one person to deal with , he showed reluctance l o make any kind of serious or meaningful remark about his work. She pressed him a linle, yet even then all she co u l d get. out of him was t hat t h is head of her son contained whal e\·e,· q ualities she chose to see in it. That was awfully fmst rat ing! Marion \\'anted some clarification of t he dim feeling she a l re a dy had aboul the sketch. She persisted . Surely as the subjeel's mother she was ent i t led lo more enligh1e n men1 than thar? S t i l l he was not forthcomi n g. She s tudied h is face again dt11·ing a moment of silence between them. Did that oblique 4

and see mingly permanent line running across the lower part of his forehead indicate stubbornness? Marion fancied herself an expert on faces, even if she was momentarily s t u mped by art. This man's face was rather baffling, though, like h is work; she must get to know both a little better for her· own perso nal satisfaction. All at once she t hought of a new tack with regard to the sketch. - By t he way, M r. Carter, would you consider selling it? - Yes. - (ah, t hat got you ! ) How much? - A h u n d red bucks. - I t's a deal. Marion checked her wallet, rooted around in her bag for a while but found she did not have the fu ll amount. - I'm awfully sorry. I don't have a cheque book with me, eithe r. Could I just pay you so much, and send you the rest of the money later? My nedit rating is good. - Sure. Now Marion had another im pulse. I nwardly she hoped t hat she was not being too hasty or even bold. - Better still, would you care to come t o my house one evening, soo n , and I'll pay you the balance t hen? We . . . . . we might be able to talk a little, and without all this clatter. - Okay. Than ks. They exchanged add r·esses and she gave him her phone number as well,just in case. A t this point more people came surging up toward the platform, but before they cornered him Marion managed to have t he artist do one more thing for her. - Would you mind signing you r work? Cabot Carter laid the sheet against t he easel and casually, almost carelessly, scratched two initials, interlocked and followed by t wo figures, in t he lower right-hand corner·. It came out like t h is: CC '84 - I s t hat you r usual signature as an art ist? - That's it . - Than k you. She still wished t hat t h is man wer·e more commu nicative, but perhaps whe n he was a guest i n the qu iet and privacy of her home he would show up bet te r in t hat way. For t he prese nt she would have to be conte n t w i t h waitin g. j ust now he was being badger·ed by some silly woman who wan ted him to do her as a funher demonstrat ion. Marion wa,·ed to him in sympathy as she wen t to collect Kirk and start for horue. being very careful to roll the sket ch, not to fold it - according to his instruct ions. Kirk himself. when she finally asked what he t hought of the port rait , was almost as brief and non-commit tal as t he artist: had been. - I t's okay. Mom, I guess.

5

TWO

Lower-level S t . John's, where Cabot Carter lived, was also the district for lower-income people. A place where you survived but lacked money power and aspired to no social distinction in t he city. Behind Hotel Newfoundland, in one of those rocky back streets running ultimately out to a sheer d rop at the harbor's edge , stood an old-fashioned t h ree-storey house that had escaped City Council demolition and instead had been done up i n to a boarding house where even an artist might afford to live, if t he proprietors were sympathetic to him. Het·e one day in late September came a you ng woman carrying what looked l i ke a typewriter and seeking out t he man w ho had done a pai n ting called sim ply Mullen Street, a work that had roused her i nterest to the poi n t of making her ask for the prese n t assign ment. She finally found the st reet of that name, then the right ho use, and eventually she stood in the fron t doorway facing the �nost amiably ugly woman she had evet· laid eyes o n . - Pardon me, does Cabot Carter live here? - He does. - Could I see him, please? M y name i s Roma H art, and I'm from the Daily News. I'd like to interview him about his rece n t work. - I don't know. I'll see. But come in, my dear, come in. Get ting cold already, ent it? Even though 'tis such a lovely t i me i n the fall o' the year. - Yes, it is. Thank yo u. They went into t he tall old house which was not u p to much, as Roma saw it, i n the w a y of decor. S h e w a s most defin itely unimpressed . Oddball plat.:e fot· an artist to live. How could anybody with any real taste stand it? Hunying u p the stairs i n this homely gloom was Cabot Carter, who paused w he n he saw his landlady coming i n with a su·anger. This was o ne stranger who did not look like t he kind of girl who would be looking for a room here. The i n t roductions were managed with casual haste. - I 'm Mrs. Reilly. Roma Hart, did you say? Cabot, this young lady wan ts to interview you . - My paper i s doing a series of features o n intet·esting a n d un usual local figures, and there's a spot for a n a nist . I 've been assigned to you. Can I come up to yolll· studio? Roma was qu ite at her ease, smiling with t he self-confident.:e of one who is aware of having excellent teeth, well t.:ared for. Her figll l·e was good too - rather tall but lithe; and she obviously liked to set off her d usky mloring with higher­ toned, slashing t.:olors. A striking you ng woman from any point of view. Cabot Cart e t· t.:ame down off t he stai t·s and turned not altogether grat.:i ously toward t he living-room door, but Roma did not follow him i n . 6

- Can we do t he interview in your s t udio? I 'd like just to get the feel of it. May have to describe it too. That is, if you don't mind. Or you, M rs . Reilly. - N o t a-tall . Help yourself, my dear, far's I'm concerned. But I hope you don't mind the smell of paint and turpe n tine, and God knows what else ! I had t o p u t Cabot u p o n my third floor where he's a l l b y himself, a n d c a n get a cross-draft t o blow o u t the s t i n k once in a while. Phew ! I d o n ' t know h o w h e can stand it. Well, I must get back to my dishes. I'll call you for your su pper six o'clock, Cabo t . Mind now ! - Okay. Thanks, Feem. The two younger people went u pstairs, Cabot leading the way and now and then looking back at his companion with a kind o f impatien t curiosity. A t a shabby door very h igh u p he stood aside and waved her in. - My "studio". He observed as she stood in the doorway, taking the room in, that the1·e was a fine length of leg, muscular but not masculine, showing from the top of her suede boot to the hem of her wide skirt; yet a q uite opposite effec t was made by t he long straight hair that hung almost to her shoulders and caressed her cheeks like a delicate, wavering picture frame. H alf amazon and half madonna - t ha t was t he i m pression she gave. The room was only an ordinary one, t hough it did seem to the visitor to have some t h ing of t he a tmosphere of a studio. There was a spacious wi ndow t h rough w hich the sun would come to wake Cabot Carter up in the morning and then go away during his (presumably) working hours. There seemed to be a minimum of fu rniture . In fact , bareness was the note of the w hole place, its best featu re being a small brick fireplace t ha t appeared to be in good working order. No sign of any object that could be called beautiful, but then Rom a k new that artists often tended to live in surroundings where there was not m uch that was exquisite or conformed to their inne r search for beauty. Hadn't even Beethoven lived in squalor? She took one of t he two chairs and placed her tape recorder on t he meagre little table that stood between them. - By the way, wha t was t h a t you called you r landlady? - M rs. Reilly? - No, her first name. - Oh. Feem . Euphemia. - Quite a face. - She's all right . - I didn't mean i t like that! - Okay. Skip it. - I only meant she's remarkable. Lord, I hope t o hell you're not going to be touchy, because when I interview someone I like to sock it to t hem . Now t he n , my idea is to do a fea t u re that's kind of h uman interest and also partly artistic. I don't mean a compromise. A blend . In o ther words, professional. - You1· pmfession or mine? - Bot h , for Ch rist sake. B u t I haven't got any set. questions. I like to play i t by ear and let the i nterview just grow. Of course I 'll need some illustrations of your work, and a photograph of you . But first I want to set t le something for m y own private satisfac t ion . That picture Mullen Street . I thought it was A-okay, frankly, but some 7

people claimed you showed those three little girls skipping rope in this kind of dark s treet. as if t hey were dancing around in t orture . / fel t your canvas was really a s t udy of milieu . For i n s tance, did you have the roofs of those old houses almost meet ing across the s t reet to suggest the . . . . t he overpowering influence of enviro n ment in this neighborhood? - H ave yo u got many questions l i ke that? - No. This is off t he record . Why? Do you object to making any comment or answering my questions? - Loo k : suppose you went to a concert . Would you go up to a singer after he'd finished his song and ask him t o explain it? - Of course not ! But this is entirely differe n t . I just wanted a little private comment , fmm the horse's mout h . - When anyone asks m e a question like t hat, I fee l like t he horse's ass. - I see. Well, at least it's not false modesty. Right. Now I'll push my little button and ask you some other kind of q uestions? Ready? - Shoot. - Is Cabot Carter your real name? - (Ch1·ist ! ) Yes. - A 1·e you a nat ive Newfoundlander? - Yes. - Born where? - Bonavista. - When? - J u ne 24t h . , 1 956. - J une 24t h. That's Discovery Day. I s t hat why the "Cabot?" - Oh yes. - H ow long have you been pain ting? - Few years. - Are you a free-lance? - That's right . - Success? Here Cabot made a face and kept silent. Roma stabbed at another button, saying sharply and again off t he record : - Spea k , please! This machine doesn't register expressions. There. Now we're on tape agai n. - Limited success. A re you really going to pri n t this? - Are yo u a sorehead? - No, I don't think so. - I won't necessarily print everyth ing we record . I'll cut away the fat, edit the thing, and hope for the best. B u t I need some co-operation from my interviewee, and I think my 1·eaders will be interested in t he success angle. - Okay. Well, I t h ink it's possible for a guy to survive as a pai nter and get along without. any dealers, or crit ics just saying w h a t kind of th ing they like best , and t hat kind of t h ing. - You don't think m uch of those people? - A guy is lucky if he has his subject , and enough cash t o buy materials. And free time. The rest is mostly crap. 8

- I want to mention a point that all my readers w i ll want to know about: modern art. You're making a face again . I realize it's a vague expression, especially for an artist, perhaps. O f course there are all kinds of modern art, but I mean what's called abstract art. The non-figurative or· non-representational style. H ow do you stand on that? - H ow do I stand? Jesus! All I can say is t h a t it's okay fm its purpose. - Wh ich is? - No, it's no use. I can't stand these phoney artistic discussions any more . - Well, did you ever pain t in that style? - Yes. - Where are the results? I don't see any abstracts aro u nd here. - I burnt them all, along with the sel f-portraits. - I was wondering about those too. But you still think that good work can be done in the abstract style? - Why not? - Exam ples? - What? Oh, hell, there's H ofmann, Albers, and Rothko. Mark Roth ko. He did some terrific things with just color alone. I don't see any reason why a perfectly good picture can't be made like that. - What are you working on now? - A picture. - No further com ment? - Too soon. And bad luck, i f you talk about it before it's finished. About all I can tell you is that it's a Still Life. - Coming to somebody else's com ment, M r. George West, the Director of the art gallery, said that Mullen Street was an exciting picture because it showed an artist j us t at that point where h is work is taking on its . . . its characteristic style. I think that was it. The style, or at least a manner or period, that he may come t o be known by i n the future. H e said your picture might very well become known as an "early Carter". What was your react ion to that? - I was very grateful to George West. I hope he's right. - Can I come back to abstract art for a minute? As I u nderstand it, you started out painting in the t raditional way, switched to the abst ract, and then gave it u p for a more orthodox style again . What was your reason? - I didn't exactly give u p abstraction , but I found t hat after I 'd come through the jungle of action painting, pop art, op an, and Andy Warhol . . . . . well , when I came out on t he other side of all that I realized t hat nature and people were still there, i f anybody wanted to paint the m . And I just felt that that was what I wanted to do. A fter I came back home . . . . . - When was tha t ? - Few m o n t h s ago. After I came back, I just felt t h e u rge to represent again, if you want to put it like that . Question of subject j ust as much as t reatment. - Do you feel you'll ever go abstract again ? - I m ight. - Well, that gives me a basis for the art side of my piece. What's w rong? You seem kind of i m patient. Have you got another· appointment? - Yes. 9

- I s it far off? - Right here. With my Still Life. - Can I come back another time? - Oh, sure, sure. - Don't be too pressing. Well, that's it, I guess. I 'm tryin g to get my article out in a cou ple of weeks. Goodbye, and happy pai nting. Sorry if I 've kept you . - (saucy bitch! ) S o long. *****

Downstairs Roma Hart paused to look in through the living-room door and thank M rs. Reilly for giving her the opportun it y of doing the i n terview , even though i t was a scrappy one which she herself would have to rou n d out and organize in some coherent way. She was promptly invited in to sit and have a cup of tea, along with a middle-aged man whom the landlady introduced as her husband. Roma seized this chance of getting more infonnation. - I t was a little chilly u p there, and I don't mean the temperature of the room . I s h e always l i k e that? Kind of snappy? Maybe he j ust d i d n ' t like the c u t o f my jib. - A w , you haven't got to mind yo ung Cabot. He's not so bad. - I ' m glad to hear tha t , M r . Reilly. Can we go i n to it a little more? - Be happy to . The young fel la, he just gets kind of took up with his pain ting, you see. Lost in it. A nd he's a m i te touchy in the bargain . - When he stood u p and started 1·ubbing his hands u p and dow n the sides o f his pants in that i m patient way, I thought I was going to be shown the door. - If you knew him like I do, you wouldn't let the like o' that fizz on you, not a-tal l . But h e do hate t o b e kept from h i s work. That's a fact . Why, sometimes 'tis a j o b t o . get h i m t o come clow n t o e a t , even. M01·e than once I had t o march u p there and haul him clown to his supper. - You've k nown him a long time? - Oh, over te n years now . E n t it, Feem? - Handy about. - Mr. Reilly, and M rs . , I really don't mean to pry, and I ' m not going to tape anythin g else, but would you mind telling me a little more along those lines? I ' l l just make some notes. I t's for background and h u m a n interest, mainly. And I sure need it. - Be glad to help you, M iss Hart. But you tell it, Jam ie. You're the one got the gift of gab. - Well, I can mind the very first time he came to this house. A skinny, gawky young fella st raight from the out-harbor and green as a fish in the sea. H ardly a cent to his name, the ass out of his pants - oh, excuse my language, Mi�s! - That's quite all right. And please call me Roma, will you? - The pore lad was all by his-self too. When he knocked o n me door and I went out and saw him standin' there like he had no right to be in this world a-tall, well, I knew who I had to deal with. I wasn't always a St. John's-man, you know. A n yway, he had nothin g to call his own, bar one small suitcase and one o'them big square things the art ists use for carrying their d rawings i n . - A portfolio. - That's it, a portfolio. M e and Fee m , we kind o' took pity on him, I guess, and so we took him i n and started to look after him. Feem fatte ned him u p the best she 10

could and I tried to help him to get on his fee t here in St. John's. He found a job i n Dicks & Com pany doing those advertising cards, b u t he didn't seem to like that very much. Couldn't content himself. Well, he kept on with his drawing and painting, and about a year· after he first came here, by gar, he u p and won a prize in that Arts & Letters competition they have every year. A n old dory hove over to one side on a bit o' landwash, that's all it was. Hey, Fee m ? - Nothing a n y more fancy than that. - Then the next thing we knew, he got a grant t o go away and study on the mainland. - His r·ecord doesn't seem to be so bad, _after all. - Well, no. You could say that, maybe. But things didn't go too good u p ther·e in Toronto . - I had a hint of something l i ke t hat upstairs. Didn't h e take well t o higher inst ruction or criticism? - Eh? Oh , I couldn't say on that, Roma. I don't like to go above meself. But w he n Cabot came back home again it was never t h e same . I don't mean h e w a s spoiled or . . . . . or stuck u p or anything like that. No, no. H e j ust seemed kind o' restless and out o' sorts all the time. Couldn't even settle to his work, and that's sayin' some­ thing with a man like him. He went back home to Bonavista for a spell, and that was even worse! So he told me, anyhow. Pretty soon after that he took off for E u rope and we lost touch with him, though we had a card now and then to show he wasn't forgetting us altogether. And then , about a year ago or less, I drove up to my front door one day, and there he was standin' on the step j ust like the first time I ever met him. Only he was a few years older, of course, and more experienced. So naturally we took him in again and he been with us ever since. Seems a little bit more settled now. - Oh, thank you, M r. Reilly! That's exactly the kind of thing I needed. J ust the thing. One point : I gather that those years i n Europe weren't exactly successful ones for Cabot Carter, in any sense. Do you think that that, along with the fiasco or trouble up in Ontario, might have turned h i m just a bit sour? - Maybe so, maybe so. H e barks now and then, don't he? H al Did he take a little bite out o' you too? Right now t h is is his workin' time, you see. - He should have told me that straight out! I ' m capable of appreciating a thing like that. Well, thank you ever so m uc h for all the help. And I hope we'll meet again soon. - You're kindly welcome, Roma. Come and see us again . *****

No sooner had the door closed on Roma than M rs. Reilly bmke out i n excitement: - I'm glad she said she wasn't prying, anyway. First I thought she was slumming. - What are you gettin' at? - Don't you know w ho that was? - She said she was a reporter from the Daily News . - Yes, but that's Jack Hart's girl. - John W. Hart , the big lawyer? - No less, J amie. H is one and only daughter. - I'll be buggered! That's a good family. There's money there. But what i n the II

hell is she workin' on that paper for? - Who knows? The last I heard about her, she just got back home from some finishing school or ladies' college. or whatever they call it. And then the next thing, she had her pict u re in the paper all dolled up to go to the Lie utenan t-Govemm·'s Annual Ball, if you please. - Aw. she wasn't so grand, not in her manner, anyway. - No, t hat's t rue enough . I suppose. - Maybe she's a girl with some spunk, and wants to make her own way. Not depend on her old man's pull to get ahead. Seems like she didn't get much change out o' Cabot, t hough. - She's not finished with him yet . - Now, Fee m , there you goes again. You're always com in' out with them kind o' dark statemen ts. I wish you'd come right out and say what you mean. - Never m ind what I mean . Just you wait and see.

12

THREE

Cabot got off the Elizabeth bus near Memorial U niversity and walked quickly along to number 234 Elizabeth Avenue , the address he had been given by Marion Squires. He was not feeling keen on this visit, but funds were getting low again and the•·e was some dough to be collected here, perhaps a little more to be quarried later on. H is casing of the house and double garage told him clearly that there m ust be money or sound credit behind t he layout, w h ich was one of those spreading, one-storied, ranch-style places with square yards of fron t window and also room enough on either side of the house for a wide verge of grass. I t was Marion herself who greeted him at the front door, fussing and fluttering a little as she led him into a spacious living-room that was furnished according to the full-page ads w hich the big department stores were able to take in the news­ papers or display on the TV. It was not in jarring bad taste. Just not interesting, as Cabot saw it. He was soon aware, though, of a jarring note emanating from the t hird person in t he roo m . This was a heavy man collapsed in one of his heavy armchairs directly in front of the TV set. Frederick Squires, otherwise and more notoriously known as Squires Electrical, was to h is business allies and henchmen a smart man, a real go-getter; to his competitors and his victims he was simply t he biggest crook in St. John's. He had one s):ore u p in Churchill Square as a showcase, and to i m press t he General Electric agents who came down from the mainland, and anot her place down at the shoddy end of Duckworth Street where he played the commercial H i t ler, all debt-collection campaigns being launched from there, all repossessions im plemented, and t he law systematically treated as w hat Squires could get away with. No cheques, for instance, down there. He ha•·dly bothered to get u p when introduced to Cabot and grunted acknow­ ledgment of his name - a thing that was visibly irritating to Marion right from the s tart; but she passed it off with a wobbly smile for Cabot and soon was doing her best to keep the conversation on what she clearly thought of as a high level. I n the teeth of her husband's lethargy and indifference, she clung to art. - I 've been admiring your sketch of Kirk even more since I 've had more time to study it. - Thanks. - B u t neit her Fred nor I can put our finger on its real point. I mean . . . . . well, its secret, I suppose. Can we, Fred? - Um . - Are you going to be coy, M r . Carter? You don't look coy. Or are you going to break down and tell us how you got that special effect, i f that's the right term, into Kirk's picture? - (sweet Jesus! More crap) That 's the wrong way to go at it, M rs. Squires. Too 13

easy. - Oh, let's make it Marion and Cabot, shall we? And Fred. - What I mean is, you have to realize the t h ing for yourself. Otherwise it's no good. - Do you mean memorize? Visually, of course . - N o . Realize. - I ' m not really sure I u nderstand t hat, Cabot , but I 'll have another think about it. Have you been painting very long? - (what a d rag you are ! ) Amund ten years. This seemed to rouse the interest of Fred Squ ires. He looked at Cabot in­ credulously, this thought almost visibly t u rn ing behind his eyes: ten years in a racket, and still doing one-shots in art galleries! Charity, pract ically. - Art is tough going, eh, Carter? - At times. - You ought to be in my business. Twelve t o fourteen hours a day, most days, and t he bloody phone going all t he weekend too. I'll tell you what my business is, mainly : it's taxes and parasites. Well, I figure I can handle the gover'men t , but what I really need and what this cou n t ry needs is a darn good parasite killer. A weed exterminator. I mean , like lazy salesmen, for instance, and bad debt s and all t hose kind of cop-outs and bumming bastards t hat want something for nothing. Human parasites. I had one in my office t he other day who act ually . . . . . - Oh, Fred, Cabot isn't. a business man . He won't be i n terested in all that. - Well, I 'm not inter-ested in art, goddam it. Why should I be? It was a painful moment. Fred slumped back in h is chair, suddenly resentfu l , and clearly determined not t o listen t o any art y crap hom a t wo-bit nobody whom he could buy and sell, probably, without even going to the ban k ; while this same guy was su pposed to be too high and refined to listen to him on a subject. of real i m portance to t he whole nation. Shag that . That was not. democracy as Fred Squires u nde rstood i t . Gradually t h e silence in t he room became s o dense t hat. Marion began t o fidget and show signs of panic. - Would you care for some coffee, Cabot? - Yes. Thanks. Marion felt. so nervous about leaving t he two men toge ther, with Fred in such a cantankerous mood and Cabot rather grimly silent, t hat she hu rried as m uch as she could with the coffee. Who knew but that Fred might acLUally go and t u rn on t he TV t·ight in t he face o f this special guest? In t h is mood and t i red as he was, Fred was capable of anyth ing. But at least Marion had t he compensation of feeling Cabot's eyes on her body as she moved toward t he kitche n. His glance was compensating rather than rude or embarrassing because she sensed admiration in it: he gazed on her in his calm way without impert i nence and without lust. Perhaps i t was professional appt·eciation . At any rate she took his interest as a t ribute to her smartness and femininity. This evening she was wearing a new t rouser suit. , t u rq uoise, with a beautifully flared jacket long enough to cover hips that were a problem t hough not yet an embarrassment, and t hin high heels (she had last week read an article in t he Evening Telegram in t he synd icated medical column desuib­ ing high heels as t he most powerful aphrodisiac yet known). And Fred had been 14

complaining that t hese new styles did not suit her! Tiresome. H aving brought the coffee and biscuits into a still soundless living-room and tried to start a t hree-way conversation again, Marion was spared further pain by t he u nexpected arrival of another person who was welcome if only for the distraction she brough t . A t least she was talkative. Cabot himself was not much in a talky way, Marion t hough t . Observan t , yes. Those odd blue-serge, almost opaque eyes seemed to take everything in, but whatever he might be th in king, he seldom revealed it. So Marion felt glad of another guest, even if it was her mother. This was M rs. Olive Bastow, a tall, fierce-faced old woman, perhaps seventy or more, but still aggressive in bearing and clearly not at all preoccupied with her bodily complaints. She showed a sharp interest, if not exactly admiration, when she was int roduced to Cabot and then realized who he was. - Oh yes. I saw you r drawing of my grandson. He's bet ter-looking than that. You didn't altogether flatter him. - A quick sketch. - Where is Kirk, M arion? - Doing his homework. - Cabot Carter. You the one did t hat picture called Mullen Street too? - That's right, M rs. Bastow . - Too dark and d reary to suit me. - Mother, it �as probably meant to be symbolical. - Hey? - Symbolical. - Looked like the Roman Purgatory to me. You a Catholic? - No. - Mother, you're taking i t as a literal thing, not as a1·t. - Ar t or no, I don't see t he need for anyone to go running down his ow n home with that kind of a picture. I 've lived fifty year in t h is one place now, and I don't like the idea of an artist or anyone else going around showing u p t he dark side of t h ings in this city or anywhere else in Newfoundland. No need, I say. Once again Marion fel t embarrassed, though soon relieved to notice that Cabot was not taking her mother's hedgehog remarks with any visible sensitivity. I ncredibly, he was smiling at her in an almost kindly way, taking her in too, as well as her words and t he thrusting, self-con fident gestures that rei nforced them. So interested did he seem to be that Marion suddenly fel t left out. Not jealous, b u t neglected; a n d Fred's coming t o life again did not make h e r feel a n y better. Fred spoke to his mother-in-law in an affectionate, indulge n t tone, calling her "mother" q uite naturally. - Mother, tell him about that pict u re you once saw t ha t 1·eally hit you . - Oh yes. Two or t hree great lumps it was, that were supposed to be a woman, with t h ree eyes and a nose about a yard long. I can't think who it was by - some Frenchman or other. - Picasso? - That's it! That was t he one. Now, do you paint t hat kind of stuff too? - Not yet, M rs . Bastow. It was always Picasso, and he had always emigrated from his native land.

15

The old woman went on talking copiously, stridently unaware of Cabot Car­ ter's scrutiny or, if she was aware of it, not showing any reluctance to be observed ; while the young painter j ust let her words pour over him without so much as bli n king any faster than usual, and Mario n , scrutinizing him in turn, was again struck by the aura of assurance and power that he gave out u nconsciously. She fou nd this remarkable in a man who was not physically very big (not as large as Fred, at least) and who did not seem to make any effort to impose h imself. Now she longed to talk with h im privately and at their ease, so as to have a better chance of discovering his secret. She would have no chance at all as long as he1· mother was around, riding over everybody in conversation like a bulldozer. But at least M rs. Bastow was diverted from her attack on "modern" art by the sudden appearance of her grandson, looking worried. H e greeted Cabot with an almost hippie casualness, then broke out in a wail to h is mother. - I finished m y Geometry and French, Mom, but I can't get going on my essay. I t's really bugging me. - What's the topic, dear? - A Great Newfound lander. M rs . Bastow took over again , indignant, but using a slightly softer tone than her ordinary one now that she was talking to Kirk. - Did anyone ever hear tel l o' the like! A Newfoundland boy, and he can't even think of one great Newfoundlander. - Aw, everyone will be writing about Premier Smallwood, Gran. - Who's tal king about Joe Smallwood ? - Who, then? - Who? Why, Captain Bob Bartlett, that's w ho . How many times am I after telling you about him, how he was my uncle and all? I was Olive Bartlett, you know, M r . Carter. From Brigus. A n d I was Captain Bob's favorite niece when I was a child, i f I d o say s o myself. - What was he really l ike, Gran ? - Like? He was a man . And you don't see too many of his kind, not these days. H e wasn't l i k e those young scarecrows w i t h their long hair a n d their motor cycles a n d all t h e rest of it, that's on t h e g o now. Two hundred pounds i f he w a s an ounce , a voice that could carry against a gale, and Master of h is own vessel before he was twenty. That's what he was like. And on top of that, he could run behind a team of dogs for a w hole day and not feel any the worse for it. Kirk was franticall y making notes. - Gran , tel l abo u t what his Commander said about him, w hen they were out on the ice and running for the Pole. - You young rascal ! Sleevee n . Want me to w 1·ite your essay for you, hey? Well, Commander Peary, he said that out on the ice Bob Bartlett was as good as an Eskimo any day. And that's h igh praise w hen you're farthest north; farther than any man ever got before, anyhow - at that time. - What was that funny stuff they used to eat o n the trip? - Pemmican? - Yes. What did i t taste like? - Oh, very ric h . Kind of l i ke a heavy cake cut u p i n bars, but gone stale. - Did Captain Bob plant the flag on the Pole? 16

He stayed behind. But th at was only by t he Commander's orders. He had to see? - So m e t h i n g about his young days. I'll have t o p u t t ha t i n . - H e never had t oo m uch school i n g, b u t. h e w a s a ligh t e r a l l t he w a y . Make n o m is t a ke o n t h a t . B u t look, Kirk, you come u p to my apart m e n t t o morrow a n d I 'll read what you 've got done and give you a book on Captain Bob I got from New York. Some c h ic ke n and c h i ps too, eh? - I ' l l be t he re with bells o n , Gran . - No .

look after t. he base camp,

- H a , y o u n g sca l l ywag. K i r k's boy-m a n , t ra n si t ional face had reverted t o pure c h i l d hood in a grin of delight a n d a n ticipation a t the m e n t i o n o f h i s favmi t e food, and now he we I l l off happily knowing t h a t his homework was as good a s fin ished . - Th a n ks, Gran. B ye , M r . Cart e r . - So long, K i rk . Soon a ft e r t h i s Mrs. Bastow decided t o leave Loo , as d u ri n g t he evening t he t·e had been a first s prin k l e of snow in t h e c i t y and t h e s t reet s m ight be geLLi n g slippery. Fred decided t o d rive h e r home h imself i n stead o f c a l l i n g a taxi, and Marion Sq u i res took i m me d iate advamage o f her husba n d ' s absence to give Cabot an e nv elope w i t h h i s money i n it. She t he n sat down beside him on t he chesterfield in a pose t h a t was i n t e nded t o be casual and gracefu l , not s u gge st i v e . - Poor you ! A re you floored? M o t h e t· is relen t less, isn't she? When her l as t h usband d ied she wamed to come and l i ve with us. Fred was sat i s fied, but I had to p u t my foot clown for once. She's m y own m o t h e r , but she can also be p re u y gri m . D o y o u t h i n k I was t o o hard? - Probably not.

- Yo u saw how she is. Could you stand a steady d iet o f her? I ' l l bet nobody could . Mother is a t a ke-ovet· e x pe rt . I f sh e join s a Lodge or a n y t h i n g. she's t h e Secretary w i t h i n two weeks and President in four. I f I had her he re I 'd never be able t o call m y s o u l m y own o r m y house. Did she bore y o u v e r y much? - N o , she d i d n ' t . I fo und her i n t e rest ing. Quite a head. B y t h e w a y . do you have any photos of her? - Yes, t he re a re w hole a l b u m s . But isn't it kind of corn y to show people fa m i l y

snaps? O l d - fashione d ? - I don't m i n d . Le t ' s have a loo k . H a v i n g fet c hed a t h ick albu m t h a t looked l i ke a me mot·ial vo l u m e . M a rion sat down a l it t le cl oser t o Cabot t h is t i me, so t hat she might readily identify t he pe opl e who we t·e s h o w n . A gain Cabot showed most i n t e rest in old M r s . Bastow , who a p peleased, as always, to see Roma in his home. He stayed for a few words with her while Feem went i nto the dining-room to set the table for dinner. - I ' m kind of worried, you know, Roma. Not easy in me mind. - You too! What about? - Cabot and that M rs . Bastow . She's a bad one for him to go gett in' tangled u p with . - I n what way? You mean because she's got the cash ? Feem told me Mother Bastow is loaded. - No, I don't mean that. I mean she's one that got the nature for a fight, and she generally comes out on Lop. A tough cookie, that one is. I wouldn't like to take a bite out of her. She's already after puttin' three men under the ground. Did you know that? - No, I didn't! - She's th •·ee times a widow. Oh yes. Her first h usband was a clergyman. He didn't last long. Then she married a schoolteacher. He went. And her last husband was a gove r'ment contracto r - old Sammy Bastow from ove•· on the South Side. That's where she got the cash from. She buried Sammy five or six years ago. - This is rather cold comfort, Jamie. - Hey? Oh well, you and Cabot, ye j ust got to look out. That's all I'm sayin'. With that holy terror maybe afte r him, and that fella Fred Squires behind, her too. - W hat did you think of her portrait, Jamie? - I thought it was a scream . Not bad like her either. - You saw the h umorous side of it more than the serious, did you? - Cripes, I could n't help it. I had to laugh. - But you feel Cabot is i n fo1· trouble? - Ah, that I couldn't say. I only got a feeling in the back o' me mind. But I can garantee you this: if there is any trouble, the young fella can count on me and the wife to stand by h i m . I own me own property, and long as Cabot wants to stay here, he's welcome. A nd he'll never starve either, if we got a bun o' bread in the house. - You and Feem really are good to him. And for him. - 'Cou rse I got no money, not w hat you'd call a boodle, but I'd help him any other way I could. - Why, Jamie? 93

- Why? - Yes. What is it t hat you like about Cabot? You must ad mit he's something of an oddball. - Well, he's willing t o live and let live. That's one good p'int he got. B ut right from the first go in' off I liked him for one thing, main ly: he was never out to do anyone. Cabot got his own ways, and they'1·e not everybody's ways; still and all, he was never anything but fair and square. I'm in this boarding-house racket for over twenty year now, and some of the things I 've-a had to put up with, why, wme of them would lift the hair right offa your head, if I started in t o tell them. But not a peck o' that trouble or dirty work ever came from Cabot, and he been with us a good spell altogether. Once you know him, you can trust him. Feem came in to tell them that dinner was ready, or nearly, and to fuss a little over Cabot not being back yet. - He'll be frozen to death and half starved, the poor young mortal. - That reminds me, Fee m . Is Sailor Burns still with you? - Yes. But he's getting restless w hen he's sober. We may not have the pleasure of his company much longer. At last Cabot ret u rned from his wandering and the fou r of them had a pleasant dinner before the crowd of boarders came home and Feem was swamped in the rush. A s soon as they decently could, Roma and Cabot went up to his room, w here she noticed that he was not in his usual sweat to get right down to work after his dinner. Formerly he had been so tense and almost neurotic about that. Progress? Roma hoped so, and hoped all the more that she was responsible for this change for the better on his h u man side. At one time she had o ften asked herself whether he had any h u man side. They sat on the edge of h is bed, very close, and talked about what he consi­ dered her foolish worrying. Roma found her tension eased as his fin gers lightly brushed her neck, moved lovingly down under her armpit, slid over to indent and then enclose her breast. Now she was just waiting, aching for him to thrust her back on the bed and take her. Even the chan ge in his breathing excited her. But j ust at this moment an ominous sound came, to pluck her back to reality. I t was a n u rgent step o n the stairs. Tense tapping o n Cabot's door, Feem calling to him in genuine fright. Roma sprang up from the bed, straightening her hair and clothes, and p ulled Cabot o utside with her to see what had happened. It was a police constable downstairs, asking for Cabot Carter in person. - My God, CC, maybe something has happened to Marion Squires after aU, and they're trying to pin it on you ! - I never knew you were such a worry wart. - I can't help it. Hurry up. - Relax, Rumbles, or you'll knock me down over the stairs. At the front door they found that this call from the law had nothing whatever to do with Marion Squires. The minute Cabot confirmed his identity, he was served with a writ for libel.

94

FIFTEEN

That same evening Roma persuaded her father to come to her apartment for dinner and, urgently, for a long private talk . She coddled him by taking the trouble to get some seal meat - the very first ofthe season - and baking it under a rich, browny crust such as she knew he had been used to in earlier times but seldom enjoyed in contemporary St. John's. Roma herself was not keen on it, because it was so dark and oily, but she did her best to swallow some of the pie and keep her father company in every way while they were working up to the main purpose of this meeting. She wanted nothing w hatever to strike any kind of a jarring note between them. John H art was not totahy surprised by all this thoughtfulness, not at all taken aback w hen at the coffee stage of dinner Roma began coaxing him to take Cabot's case. - Without a good lawyer he may not even have a fighting chance, Dad. He's awfully funny about things like this. Not realistic. And you know he has no money. Neither have I, and legal aid would be no use, probably. Some student just out of Law School, or some beat-up old drunk of a lawyer getting a handout from the courts. - I once served as legal aid myself. But I doubt if the courts would ever grant any aid in a case of this kind. I doubt it very m uch. - If you defended Cabot, at least it would be a fair fight. - Maybe. - Who'd have thought Mrs. Bastow would go and sue him, though ! - I would. - Really? You never said anything, until this minute. - Better to wait until something actually happens, where the law is concerned. - Would it be a very great sacrifice for you if you did act for h im ? We could probably pay you back, in time, but I couldn't say exactly w hen. - It's not fees that make me hesitate, Roma. - You're too busy. - I'm always busy, but not desperately so. Frankly, I can take the time if I want to. That's not it. It's you, and your position in all this, that I'm worried about. - You're afraid Cabot and I will get together, as a couple, and pretty soon we'll be on the rocks financially and then fall back on you. Is that it? - Not primarily. Although that has been known to happen, in situations of this kind. No. I was wondering whether there would be enough of Cabot left over for you. - You mean, from his work? - Yes. That young fellow has a rather fanatical gleam in his eye. 95

- You have a point, I 've thought about that, Dad, and the t ru t h is I ' d rather take my chances with Cabot t han be sure of some other man in every way. I . . . . . I feel committed to him now. Please help him! I'll never forget it if you do. I guess you haven't seen Cabot's two portraits . . . . . - Bu t I have. - Oh. - I'm not altogether a philistine, Roma, and there are one or two t h i ngs outside t he firm's business t h a t I take an interest in. You shouldn't assume the con t rary. - Sorry, Pops. I only meant you probably didn't have the time. - I made the time. And only just i n time. I hear M rs. Bastow has applied for an inj u nction to have her picture removed. - Can she get it at this point ? - I don't think so. - What did you think of the portraits? Now don't pull any p unches with me . - I was deeply impressed. The contrast in them is superbly effective. - H as t he old girl really got a case on t his libel t hing, do you think? - She could have. - I never thought of libel! - I doubt i f Ken Darlington would touch i t i f there weren't something solid in it. A case to answer. - So that's why he was with Fred Squires! I saw t hem together at the art gallery. - I t was no doubt Squires w ho laid the information with the police, and of course the A ttorney-General's office would take i t from t here. - Do you think Darlington himself will prosecute Cabot? - I would think so, i f he launches the case at all. - Dad, do you think Cabot is a person worth defending? Tell me the truth again. - Ah . . . . . it's too soon for me to answer that. I 'd have to know him bet ter in a personal sense. B u t I admit the case might be i n teresting in itself. A rest from cui

bono .

- What's that? - The grab for dough, roughly. - I sn't this the same t h ing, from the Squires side? Won't they be after damages? - Not mainly. - Ju s t to get Cabot? - N o t t ha t either, perhaps. You're bound to take this thing personally, of course, but there is such a thing as an infringement of the law and somebody being called t o acco u n t for i t . J us t on that basis alone. - B u t do you think Cabot has broken the law? - An irreleva n t question. What I personally think does not m a t te r i n t he slightest. And, looking at it from t he prosecution side, i t's always a good dodge for them to say they're acting on a matte r of principle. - Mrs. Bastow has the big legal eagle o n her side, hasn't she? Wouldn't you like t o have a go a t Darlington? - I had thought of t hat. - Cabot is so defenceless in every way! - Are you really gone o n this peculiar guy? - He's not peculiar! He's got . . . . . individuality. And t h e answer is yes. I a m gone 96

on him. - Why? - ( I j us t like his hands o n me ! ) Gosh , that's har·d t o answer. It happened so fast, i n o n e way. - Mmmm. - I'm still a little confused, I guess. First w h e n I m e t h i m I t hought h e was j ust another art phoney and a sorehead. Then I t hought he was a hardhead, as far as his work is concerned, and one of those men w ho are so selfish t hat other· people just don't exist for them. But t hat was wrong too. Cabot does have sympathy for other people. Look a t his port rait of Sailor Burns. I 'm not just talking about his work, though . I know he's quite human. Then lately I 've had an entirely new feeling about him, even before all t h is t rouble started. - What's t hat ? - A fun ny feeling. He's so alone within himself and so . . . so naive in some ways. Yes, he is. Sometimes I look at him and I see just a . . . . a simple-hearted boy from Bona vista who happens to have a deep talent for drawing, and a terrific eye for color. I feel so an xious to help him, Dad . You know, I often t h i n k too what i n the world would happen to him, say if Feem and Jamie Reilly were killed in an accident when t hey're out on one of their Sunday afternoon d rives. Where would he go? You're smiling. Why is that? - I was only t hinking you're growing up, and I don't mean you're getting any taller. - Thank God for double blessings! - I see w hat you're driving at abou t Cabot. A rt and sympathy. B u t he must have some will of his ow n . - You bet. B u t i t seems to be mostly absorbed i n his work. That's t h e point. And maybe that 's the thing t ha t really draws me to him. He's a truly creative person, and I feel that's important. I want to be right in there with him, because he's got the guts to do what he really wan ts to do, and what he has to do, in this world. - I s this my daughter talking? W hat about your feminism and all that? - I t 's there st ill. - But? - Well, not so urgen t . - ! must say, I 'm geu ing a rather differen t idea o f this Cabot Carter. H e looks such a quiet chap. - I told you, his feelings explode in his pict u res. - Only t he re? I thought you were tal king about sex, too. - So I was. A re you going to bawl me out ? - No. B u t I 'd like to feel sure that you' re going to look after yourself, and if a n accident should happen - no sneaking around to quacks? - Promise, Dad. - Righ t . So you'r-e happy with Cabot in t ha t way? - Oh yes! And he seems to l i ke me. - Don't be afraid to love him, my dear, if you really do care for him, and this is not just a . . . . . a casual coupling. Answer him. - I do. But you look so sad, all of a sudden , when you say that. And your tone was so diffe re n t . What is it ? I s it something to do with Mother? .

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97

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- Yes. - I could tell. How is she, by the way? - Oh, the same as usual. Pious. - What happened? I always k new there was something awfully wrong between you and her. Do you mind my asking? - No, no, I don't mind. You're of age now, and apparently you'r·e begin ning to experience these things for yourself. When your mother and I got married we felt the same as most young people do, or we thought we did. But it turned out, well, to put it quite simply, it turned out that your mother was never able to satisfy me. She just couldn't seem to let herselfgo . I don't really know the full reason . Perhaps her mother had frightened and paralyzed her with old wives' tales, and the poor girl was too ashamed even to enjoy herself, and let me do the same. - Maybe you were too much for her. You're k ind of an overwhelming person, at times. - Maybe. A nyway, you came along, and then t he boys, and soon after that your mother just seemed to lose interest in sex. A fter a while I didn't bother myself. - But that must have been awfully gri m ! - Yes. - Perhaps this explains it, about Mother. - What? - Well, ifl can put it simply, she fell out of your arms and back into the arms of t he Churc h . Compensation. - Yes, I suppose so. - Didn't you do anything about it? - M istresses? Hole-in-the-corner stuff? I grew up in a much stricter time and a tighter society than you, Rom a, and even if I didn't accept all t he ideas and rules of that time, there was still a tremendous hangover of influence and . . . . . and emotional prohibition from them. Can you understand that ? - I think so. - So I was never a man to play around in that way. - But w hat did you do, for relief? - Oh , hard work, mostly. Building up the firm . There's a great deal of satisfaction for a man in doing a decent job in his profession and having t hat recognized . - Is that enough? - No. B ut it serves. I t serves. Well, what I've been trying to tell you is that if you do love your man, don't be afraid to show him your passion . It's a mistake and a tragedy not to. - I'm glad you told me this about you and M other. It could be t hat I've been a little too hard on her. - Possibly. You're a bit overwhelming yourself, you know. - Me ! Am I really? - Cabot hasn't noticed it? - It just never came up between us. - It will. - And I sim ply haven't thought of him in that way. He seems so sure of himself. as if he had an . . . . . an inner certainty about the th ings that matter, that it's hard to imagine anyone overw helming him. 98

- And he doesn't do i t to you ? - Only w hen I want h i m to. - I see. - I j ust feel good with him, Dad. I'll tell you someth ing e lse: you know how sometimes I get all hung up and feeling wild and generally hellish. Well, when I get back to t he apartment feeling like that and t hen he comes, after he's been here for a while I begin to feel a little calmer. And reassured, as if everything was going t o be all right . I'm not talking about going to bed now. I mean h is just being here and our talking and exchanging thoughts or l istening t o some music and so on. - Do you and Cabot m ix much with other people? I have the im pression you don't . - No t yet . We don't seem t o need i t. What kind o f people did you have in mind? - Well, other artists, for instance. - There aren't all t hat many artists with Cabot's outlook. But even if he weren't a sort of Group of One, I think he m ight still be isolated. Why did you ask me about this? - I was just thinking that if it came to a question of testimony as t o Cabot's ability as a painter, i t might be a good thing to have one or two other artists who would endorse him. - You will defend Cabot, Dad? - Slow down now. I'll . . . . . I'll look i n to i t . - Oh , thank you ! Tha n k you a million t i mes. You just d o n ' t know what i t means to me to haveyou on his side. And about testimony from other people connected with the arts, t hat part of it will be okay. Cabot himself has a bug, almost a phobia, about comme n ti ng on h is own work . . . . . - Now, Roma, he won't be able to afford any nonsense like that! This i s no t i me for him to be a shrinking violet. If I am going to help him, it will be done my way and with no coyness or shyness from anybody. Cabot will have to cooperate and he'll give evidence, if t hat's t·equired, just like anyone else in the case. - He will. I was just making a point about that one t h i ng. - That one thing could be fundamental. - I know. The reason why I said that about testimony from other people is t ha t we'll have a n even bet ter witness, from t h i s point of view, t h a n other artists o r even Cabot himself. - You? - George West. - That's a thought. Man in a key position, well qualified to j udge art. - He'd be more objective than Cabot too, you see, Dad. - That's t rue. B u t don't forget what I said , all the same. Cabot had better understand the position right from the start . I'll want full co-operation and no interference. Furthermore, you can tell him that I'll be coming down to h is place and going over it with a fine-toot h com b. I want to see every picture, every draw i ng and scrap of paper, every sketch or study t hat m ight be conceivably useful in the defence. Warn him. And that goes for t his apart ment too, by the way. I intend to grill you bot h till you're blue in the face. - We can all get togethet· later on. I t's nice that you'll get to know Cabot better too. And so good to feel you taking hold! Cabot is vet·y worried about how long all this 99

will take, and the interruption to his painting. - He'll have to accept t hat for a w h ile. - Yes. What I wanted most was to talk to you alone, first, and then go to work on him. How long do you figure the w hole thing will take? - The case will probably come on in the spring session . And t he actual trial wouldn't take long. Matter of days. - You know what, Pops? You're the n icest man in the world . - Except one? - I feel much safer now. And I'll never forget w hat you're doing for us. - Well , I don't know if I evet· mentioned i t before, Roma, but I've always rather admired your generatio n . I thi n k you're m01·e honest in your approach to life t ha n we were. More rut hless t o o , perhaps, b u t I'm not sure that's a bad t h i n g . T h e state of the world could be d riving you i n to ruthlessness. - Thanks, Dad . I hope you're going to feel the same way about Cabo t . What do you thi n k his chances are in t h is libel racket? - Oh, i t 's fat· too soon to say. I don't see any great reason for optimism, though. Darlington will have a fairly strong group l i ned up behind h i m . There'll be M rs . Bastow herself, Fred Squires, h i s wife, w h e n she's located . . . . . - She's back. Didn't you know? The cops found her a t t h is remote place, way the hell o u t in the bush , t hat's called The Retreat. - W hat's that ? - I t ' s a new idea locally. A quie t place away from it all w here us cit y folks can go to recuperate from t he Rat Race and search for our Souls. Expensive too. - B u t there's been almost daily publicity about her disappearance. Surely some­ body at this place would have known her, or about her? - She was registered under the name of M ary Smith. Mary Smit h ! God, how u nimaginative can you get ? - Pictures o n TV? - There's no TV at t his place. No newspapers or anything. Maybe t hat's why it's called The Retreat . - Then how did t he police ever fi nd her? - Massive combing of t he w hole Avalon peninsula. The inside elope i s that she's still kind ofwonky and d idn't want t o come home, bu t Freel made her. He gave the Mounties authority to bring her back if they found her. - How do I translate "wonky"? - Nerves all sho t , u ptigh t , just about over the edge . The woman is a case, really. - We'll have to watch that. - Why? - As I said, she'll almost certai nly be a wit ness agai nst us, and if she's ill s he can be called almost any time - I mean at almost any point in the t rial - to t h row a spanner into the works. She can be juggled by t he other side . B u t never mind. That's something for me to worry about . And there's one other t h ing I have to tell you, and Cabot, wh ile I t h i n k of it . You k now I'm not. exactly a pauper. I 've never had to put u p t he poor 111o ut. h in t h is t own, but I 'm not a rich man either, not a mi llionaire o t· a . . . . . a philan t h ropist . And my expenses are hea vy. The boys will be staning college next fall. That's a 1·ery big item. So what I'm t rying t o tell you is that, if I do take t he case, and if' it sho uld go against Cabot, then I won't be able to 1 00

help him with any costs or damages he may have to pay. I s that clearly understood between you and me? - Certainly, Dad . Like I said . . . . . - "As I said", Roma, please. - As I said, it's wonderful of you to help Cabot at all . - As long as my position is deaL - I f we do lose, it'll have to be The Retreat for me and Cabot too, I guess. - There's no hiding-place from t he law. Not ultimately. - I was only kidding. - How d o you come to know so m uch about that place, by the way? Have you had a session t here yourself, under stress and strai n? - No. One of t he boys on the News did a fea t u re on i t once and I helped him rewrite it. Dad , how do we actually start to build u p a defence for Cabot? - First I 'll have to have a tremendous amount of information, of all kinds and concerning anything that may turn out to be relevan t . I nformation - t hat's t he raw material of evidence, you know. Then I'll have to a n t icipate the prosecution, and start shaping my own approach. Painting is not t he only art i n the wodd, no m atter what some people may think. I'll have to line u p and prepare our own w itnesses, t ry to assess w hat the poi n t of view of a jury might be here in St. John's ·

- You ought to be okay on that. - I don't know. J u ries are fan tastically u n pl-edictable. - I'm longing for the case to start, and t hen be oveL - You said George West might act as an expert wit ness. He's keen on Cabot's work? - A cham pion. - Good. And if it came to a q uestion of character, do you think the Reilly couple would be willing to s peak for Cabo t ? They would appear as witnesses? - Oh, I ' m absolutely sure about that . How will I appear? - As aid and comfort to the accuse d . Accom plice. Accessory before and after t he fact . - Serio usly, Dad . - I'm not sure yet . B u t I ' l l fit you i n . I'll fi nd a way to use you without embarrassing yo u . - Nothing to do w i t h Cabot w i l l ever embarrass me. D o y o u t h i n k h e h a s at least a fifty-fifty chance? - That's another prematlll-e q uestion. A g1-eat deal will depend on what I can get out of him. But in stead of speculating, I want to give you one or two more warnings: from now on don't talk to anybody about t he case except myself or Cabot. Don't write abo u t it , nat urally, and don't have anything a t all to do with the o t her side. I n fact, don't do a single thing t hat may have the least bearing on t he case, without checking with me first. A re we agreed on that? - Check . - Don't neglect t hat side o f t h e matter, not for a moment. I t can cause awkwaJ-dness, and I may have enough of t hat on my hands as i t is. - What will be awkwaJ-d fOJ- you ? - For one t hing, Darlington will be calling your mother to give evidence for the IOI

prosecution, I think. - How come? - Your mother was with Mrs. Bastow the first time she went to the art gallery and saw her portrait. Very material. - How will you handle it, or her? - I t will have to be a kid-glove job. I t 's one of t he big problems - my problems. Now then , Rumbles, make some more coffee, will you , and let's get down to it. Let's start. from t he very fi rst time you heard about or saw this picture that's landed Cabot in the soup. You and I have one hell of a lot of homework to do on this case before I ' m ready to stand up in court and face a judge and j u ry.

1 02

PART TWO: The Trial

1 03

ONE

Cabot's trial came on before the Supreme Court of Newfou ndland only a couple of months after the writ against him had first been issued. The Case for the crown , or on behalf of Mrs. Bastow, was presented by K. K. Darlington, Q.C. For the Defence - John W . Hart, Barrister & Solicitor. Darl i n gton had decided to handle the prosecution himself because of the i ntrinsic i nterest this case held for h im personally, as an amateur of art, and also because i t had certain points of legal interest, as being a most unusual kind of case to be heard in the Canadian or perhaps any other courts. Nobody on either side would be relying m uch on precedent as a strengthener of his argu ment . After a formal plea of Not Guilty had been entered by John Hart, and all the other time-taking preliminaries had been completed, the whole courtroom set t led i n to the q uiet of anticipation - spectators gaping and straining, j u ry solemn and self-conscious at this stage, t he press poised - and then Darlington rose to open his case. There was all the more cu riosity about this man because he was neither a Canadian nor a Newfoundlander: his origins were in Lancashire and h is heart still in England, although he had crossed the Atlantic some yea1·s previously as one of that large, sad band of modern Britons w ho have found themse lves to be strangers and DPs in t heii· own cou n t ry . As a north-cou n t ry lad Darlington had lacked bi1·th but early on showed brains, and in the years j ust after t he First World War had won a scholarship to Cambridge and began the study of the law. After graduation and some practice in the London Law Courts, he left for Canada, where he had found refuge as Head of a proposed School of Law at M e morial U n iversity i n the city of S t . John's, province of Newfoundland. There was some delay in getting the Law School started, owning to a q uarrel between Newfoundland and Ottawa over proportionate con t ribution to the cost of the new exten sion to the U n iversity; but a sho1·t time after K. K. Darlington had arrived in the city the office of Attorney-General was sudde n ly vacated and, a general election pending, he was made a member of the cabinet and offered the post o n a temporary basis. This was done by the local administration part ly as compensation for the other post he had been i nvited to, which did not yet exist, and partly on the stre n gth of recom mendations that Darlington had been able to scrape up from h is remaining friends in England. The word of any British lawyer was still pote n t i n what had been B ritain's oldest colony. Darli n gton fou nd that he liked the people of Newfoundland, the older people especially who still looked across the Atlantic to show their loyalty and devotion to the Mot her Cou ntry. To him it made no differe nce that their sentiments were now an anachronism and their picture of England a vision of the past, a mere Kipling 1 04

drea m : he fou nd their simple affection a fine thing in itself, and warming to his own heart. Darli ngton was a spare man w ho looked taller than his five-feet-eleven, by virtue of his dignified posture, and who still had lingering about him a touch of that nonchalant assurance which i n its old-world Englishness is i mpressive to Commonwealth people all over the world. He was still English-tailored too, and this added to his air· of being both different and endowed with some e xtra prestige, in the courts of t he provincial capital. Finally, h is post-Cambridge accent, com­ bined with the touch of Old Bailey stateliness in his style, was no handicap to him in the present circumstances. His opening was delayed for just a minute by an unofficial incide n t . Of course Cabot's portrait of Olive Bastow was Exhibit One and was prominently displayed on a kind of revolving stand or easel so t hat it could be clearly seen from any angle, more especially from the j u ry box at the prese n t moment; b u t before the A ttorney-General had got started, Cabot sen t a note to John Hart from the dock, as a result of which Hart rose to request t hat t he ponrait be t urned slightly so that a bet ter light would fal l on it as t he jury saw it. A fter the j udge had assented, Darlington made a token bow to the Bench and in a mome n t had taken hold of the jury w ith his authoritative gaze. - My Lord, Ladies and Gentlemen o f the J u ry : I f i t please the Cour·t, this is a suit brought by M rs. Olive Bastow for a defamatory libel on her, perpetrated and published by the defendant Cabot Carter, in the form of a portrait - this same ponrait t hat you see here before you . I need hardly say at t he outset that in its legal context the word "published" mean s simply that the ponrait was exhibited to the public view . Now, ladies and gen tlemen, in the Criminal Code of Canada t h is charge is placed under the heading of Offences against the Person and Reputation, a category in w hich , as I am sure you will all agree, the feminine half of society is both peculiarly sensitive and tragically vulnerable. I am referring here chiefly to Reputation, of course, there being no question of any attack on the actual person of Mrs. Bastow in the prese n t indictme n t. And I should like to give you as summarily as I can the story of how this suit came to be brought by Mrs. Bastow, in order to protect her reputatio n . That is her sole reason for corn ing here. She has nothing to motivate her beyond that, nor has she any t hirst for private gain or petty personal revenge. As you may all know, she is a lady of mature years, member of a historic family i n this island - the Bartlett s of Brigus - and for many, many years a prominent figure in the life of this city. M rs. Bastow is the mot her of seven children, all of whom save one have long since gone to the mainland and ar·e making their various contributions to the national life. She herself has remained in her native province and since bei n g released from maternal care and marital r·esponsibility (Mrs. Bastow is a widow ) , has offered her time and strength unstinti ngly to various works of religion , char·ity and ot her· forms of social service. Furt hermore, she has given freely where we all know it is most difficu l t to give - from the purse; but fortunately she is a lady of some means, dependent neither· on family goodwill nor government largesse nor any other sou rce t o mai n tai n her position among us and 1 05

do the good work she has felt it her d u t y to do. May I proceed by painting for you a little picture? H e t·e, t hen, we have M rs. Bastow settled in S t . J oh n's in her own apart ment , busy as I have indicated, but also of cou t·se in constant touch with her only child remai ning in the city. That is M rs . Frederick Sq uires. A t t h e home of her daughtet· M r s . Bastow meets o n e Cabot Carter, self-styled artist, in circumst ances which are not t·elevant to my immediate purpose but will be considered and examined by the prosecut ion latet· in this t rial. Then some t h ree months later she suddenly finds herself the subject , or I should perhaps say the vict i m , of the portrait that is now placed before you i n what I hope is a satisfactory and a true light. I wish to em phasize that between their first meeting and the shock of this picture there was no further direct personal contact between M rs . Bastow and the accused man. That likeness of her was painted by him, signed with his usual double C, and exhibited for some time in t he art gallery of our local A t·ts & Culture Centre . The plai ntiff had no knowledge of this bizarre proced ure , no i n kling of what was in store fot· her, u ntil, as I may put it, the bomb exploded in her face from the walls of t he art gallery. She did not com mission the portrait, did not sit or pose for it, paid no money fot· its being done, and once it was done and placed on view , repudiated it most passionately and in every possible way. That , members of the jUJ·y, is my picture : a showing forth of the relationship between these two people, plain tiff a nd defendant , which I desire to make clear to you . On the one hand we have a most worthy private citizen going about her affairs in a q uiet way; on the other, a pai n te r u nworthily attacking her by exposing this q uestionable likeness of her to public view. Did I say "u nwort hily"? Perhaps the word should have been "wantonly", for this man Carter seems to have been qu ite careless of giving offence by his strange act. Let me also make prese n t to your minds the significance and t he real consequences of that act. But first, may I j ust mention t hat, although the offending portrait was not actually labelled as a portrait of M rs . Bastow, it was generally t·ecognized as such by independent or objective viewers - as you will hear from the evidence I shall call. Evidence on t ha t poi n t w i l l come from people who are totally disinte t·ested in t his matt er. Well, the significance of Cartet·'s brazen act is that he has placed himse lf in a position where he is charged with a serious criminal offence. It is not my function or pu rpose to instruct you in the law . H is Lordship will do that in due course; but for the sake of clarity and convenience at t his point, l should like to quote briefly from Section 248 of our Criminal Code: "A defamatory libel is mat te r published, without lawfu l j ustification or excuse, that is likely to inj u re t he reputation of any person by exposing him (or her) to hatred, contempt or ridicule, or t hat is designed to insult the person of or concerning whom it is published". Further (and t his you may find most significant): "A defamatory libel may be expressed in words or by any object signifying a defamatory libel other than by words". So you will see t ha t according to the definition of libel and its mode of expression, this portrait may con s ti tu te a bt·each of the law. Can you even glance a t i t and then doubt its power t o bring the subject o f i t i n to contempt and ridic ule? I say nothing of hatred, because I do not believe that a woman of Mrs. Bastow's high prestige and honorable repute would come to be hated, actually hated, as a result o f this work. Yet you may have noticed from my stress on words while q uoting 1 06

from the Criminal Code that our law condemns the libeler on all three counts of hatred, contempt and ridicule. A conviction on any one of these would be suffi­ cient. From the prosecution standpoint we shall be dealing, however, only with the latter two : contempt and ridicule. Allow me to ask you directly, the n : if this were a portrait of one of yourselves, particularly one of you ladies, would you or would you not fee l ridiculous and also insulted by reason of its mere existence, not to speak of its exhibition to the public? W hen all your friends and acquaintances, and your enemies as well, had had a chance to see it and tal k and laugh about it, would you not feel that your reputation had been inj ured? That is what Mrs. Olive Bastow feels. I place this question before you now simply to indicate the kind of decision you will have to make in your minds and hearts when you come to your final deliberations. So much, at this time, for the significance and consequences of this act per­ formed by the accused. Now let me say just another word or two about the offence oflibel itself. I n the Section of the Code that I read to you a moment ago, there was a phrase about certain acts being designed to insult people. Further to this, may I read you Section 249? "A person publishes a libel when he (a) exhibits it in public (b) causes it to be read or seen, or (c) shows or delivers it, or causes it to be shown or delivered, with intent that it should be read or seen by the person whom it defames or by any other person." It is now with the word "intent" that I am especially concerned. Can you doubt from w hat you already know, that Carter showed this picture with the intention that it should be seen by Mrs. Bastow herself and by any other person who cared to stroll into the art gallery? For what other purpose could he have had it hung and allowed it to remain there, until the embarrassed, suffering subject of the picture took the only proper course she could take by asking the law to protect her from what she felt to be vilification? Mrs. Bastow has brought this action in spite of the continued pain she will have to endure as a result of it, and of the extra publicity her portrait will inevitably receive while the case is going forward. I mean by further reproduction in the newspapers, showing on the television, and so on. Her coming to court may therefore give you some measure of the indignation and h urt she feels, the public or social damage she believes herself to have sustained, as a result of the portrait. She is most deeply convinced that it is a libel and that it defames her. I should like you to note the excellence of that word "defame". I t is an exact and literal description of what has happened to Olive Bastow, in a social context, ever since her portrait came on view. She has had her fame reduced o r taken away in the eyes of h e r fellow citizens; a n d she considers herself t o be less than she was, both as a woman and a member of this community. With Carter's original motive in secretly executing this work and then "spr­ inging" it on Mrs. Bastow and the public, we are not primarily concerned, since the law takes notice chiefly of accomplished acts and of their consequences rather than their motives. It is sufficient for the prosecution that Carter knew what he was doing (there will be no quarrel with that, I trust) and should have known, or feared, what might follow from his doing it. But even so, it is conceivable that the defence in this case may attempt to introduce some kind ofjustifying motive on the part of the painter. So, ladies and gentlemen - a warning! I ask you before witnesses are caUed I07

and this matter is fought out on a proper basis of fact, I ask you not to be led astray by vague and inelevant claims to the effect that t h is picture standing before you was painted u nde1· t he pressure of artistic "inspiration" and the urge to produce a w01·k of a n . I would remind you in advance that the quality or otherwise of this work is not i n question here, not the bone of contention. Let me insist on it: the position would be essentially t he same whether we were dealing with a painting of genius or t he poorest daub that ever spoiled canvas. N o plausible or specious reasons given for Carter's action can alter his responsibility for it in the eyes of the law. With that small preface, and with H is Lordship's permission, I shall now call the first of those wit nesses whose collective testimony will prove the hurtful, the malign and the ridicule-breeding effect that this picture has had on the long­ suffering plaintiff in this case. I call Mrs . I rene Shaw.

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TWO

The person who stated that the evidence she would give in t he cause now pending . . . . . etc . . . . . etc. . . . . would be the t ruth . . . . . etc. . . . . and nothing but . . . . . so help her God, was a nondescript woman and a stranger to eve•·yone in the t rial, except the prosecu tion. She appeared nervous at leading off, but had some time to take hold of herself wh ile spectators and others we•·e settling back into silence afte•· the break in atten t ion that came with the end of Darlington's o pening speech. The A ttorney-General gave his wit ness all possible consideration, taking her easily, gen tly, t h rough routine mat ters of identification, status and so on, before coming to the meat of his examination-in-chief. - Mrs. Shaw, you are a long-time resident of S t . J oh n's? - Yes, sir, I am. - A housewife by occupation, I believe you said. - Yes. - Do you know the defendant Caner personally? - No, si.-. - Have you ever had any connection with him of any kind? - No. - Is he in any way acquainted with you ? - Not as far a s I know. - Very good . Now, M rs. Shaw, have you any acquaintance with the plaintiff here, M rs . Olive Bastow? - No. - Well, do you know of her? - Oh yes, si.-. - Did you know of her before there was publicity concerning this trial and before you were called here as a witness? - Yes. - How? - Why, si.-. I thought everybody knew about M rs . Bastow. - But how did you? Please tell the Court as clearly as you can, M rs. Shaw. - Oh, I saw her picture in the paper hundreds of times. Well, dozens. And I often heard her on the radio and saw her on the TV. - In what connectio n , most frequently? - I 'd say i n connection with charity. Appeals for funds and all that kind of thing. Good causes, you might say. - Name just one good cause that you personally saw and heard her speaking for, I 09

please. - There was the time just a while ago when she was on the TV for the Crippled Children's Fund. - And you saw or heard her make many appeals of that kind? - Yes. - Excellent. Now, Mrs. Shaw, to come to another matter. Are you as a citizen ofSt. John's in the habit of visiting either the Arts & Culture Centre or the art gallery in that institution? - No. - Have you ever been there? - Once. - Did you pay any admission fee ? - Why, no! 'Tis open t o the public. - Was it to the Culture Centre that you went, or to the art gallery in particular? - The art gallery. - For what purpose? - I went to see the picture of Mrs. Bastow. - How did you come to make this u nusual visit? - I heard talk about the picture. Everybody was saying . . . . . - Please, Mrs. Shaw ! Do forgive me for interrupting you, but let us pass over all rumors, and hearsay public judgments on art. You heard about a certain picture that was being shown and you went to the art gallery to see it. This portrait that I now turn towards you, is it the picture that you saw? - Yes, sir, it is. - And is it the picture that you had heard about? - Yes. - Be so good as to answer carefully now: how do you know that? - Because the people I heard about it from, they said it was a picture of Mrs. Olive Bastow. - Ah. And you yourself recognized it as such on seeing it at the gallery. - Yes, right away. - I see. I have j ust a few more questions. While you were at the art gallery and in front of this picture, did you hear any comments on it? I mean things said in your hearing though not necessarily addressed to you. - Yes. - Can you remember any of these things? - One in particular. - Tell it, please. Why do you hesitate, M rs . Shaw? - Well, sir, 'tis kind of vulgar. - Never mind. Tell us the comment as nearly as you can recall it. - Well, this man was there to one side of me. He was looking straight at the picture of Mrs. Bastow and he laughed and shook h is head and he said what . . . . . what a old bitch the woman must be, and God help the man that was married to her! - ihank you, Mrs. Shaw. That is all. In the matter of cross-examination there was not much that john Hart could do to cancel out the effect of what I rene Shaw had said, as there could be no point

1 10

in denying that Mrs. Bastow was a well-known woman and that Cabot's portrait was in fact a representation of her. The defence line was going to take a different direction , but Hart did see one way of questioning this witness that might, later on, lessen the effect of what she had said. - Mrs. Shaw, who was Toulouse-Lautrec? - Who? - Do you know the name Rembrandt? - Was he an artist, one o' them Frenchmen? - Michelangelo? - I heard the name, but I don't know who he was, no. - Cabot Carter? - Who? Oh my glory, yes! He's the one done the picture. - You mean the portrait of Olive Bastow, obviously. Had you ever heard of Mr. Carter before all this controversy? - This what? - The trouble over the portrait. - No. I never heard of him. - When you went to the gallery to see his picture, did you notice another portrait hung right beside it? - Yes. It looked like a tramp or something. - Did you even trouble to look at the signature on this second portrait? - No, I didn't. - About this man who made the rude remark containing the words "old bitch" and so on, did you know him at all? - No . - Y o u knew, a n d y o u still know, nothing about h i s standard of education or culture or anything else? - That's true. - Mrs. Shaw, did what this man said make you think any the worse of the picture of Mrs. Bastow? - I already thought it was d readful. - But did you think it was even more dreadful, after hearing those remarks? - Well, no. I guess I fel t much the same about it. - Did you think any the worse of M rs. Bastow herself on account of what the man said? Did he give you a bad opinion of her? - No . . . . no. I can't say he gave me a bad opinion of M rs. Bastow, because I kind offelt sorry for her when I saw the picture and then when I heard all the talk about it. . . - I see. I have no further questions. There was an extra stir of anticipation as the name of the next witness for the prosecution was called down the courtroom and echoed out through the main door. She took the oath with more solemnity than is usual, and with a sort o f precise nervcmsness identified herself a s Angela Mary Hart. I n approaching her, Darlington was all consideration. - Mrs. H art, you are personally well acquainted with Olive Bastow? - Yes. 111

- You have served with her on various committees and benevole n t bodies in this city? - Yes. - I n that con nection, were yo u in the company of Mrs. Bastow on t he afternoon of Febr·uary 1 9t h . last? - Yes, I was. - Would you tell the Court the circumstances, please. - Olive . . . . . I mean, M rs. Bastow and I were on a committee for orphanages t h roughout the island . This was non-denominational. I was representing the Catholic C hu rch and M r·s. Bastow t he Presbyterian. Well, the meeting ended earlier than we ex pected and a friend offered to d rive us home. M rs . Bastow accepted for t he t wo of us, but on t he way she asked t his other friend to let us off at the an gallery. - Why was that? - She had heard some rumor about a pic t u re, she told me, t hat was on show the re and was supposed to be her. - Then she had not seen t he port rait up to this time? - So I u nderstood . - And d id she invite you to go i n to the gallery with her? - Yes. - You are in terested i n painting? - No . - Then y o u are interested i n t he pai n ter Cabot Carter. - Yes. - Why is t hat? - For personal reasons. - Would you car·e to enlarge on that , M rs. H art? - Only to say that my daugh ter Roma was acquainted with this man Caner, was seeing him . . . . . - A little louder, please! - So I wanted to find out all I could about him in every way. - Of course. A mother's natural concern. So even i f you had been alone you would have gone in to see the picture i n question, knowing i t was by Cabot Carter. Well then, you and M rs. Bastow went into the art gallery and sought out this pon rait. - We didn't have to seek it out. The min ute we were i n the room, there it was staring us right in the face. - You were righ t beside Mrs. Bastow as you both walked u p to i t ? - Yes. - H ow d id she react ? - Fir·st she . . . . . she gave a gasp. - And then? - I felt M rs . Bastow kind of stagger. - What did you do? - The first t h ing I did was call out t.o a man over on t he other side of t he room . I called out for help. - Help? 1 12

- Yes. I thought Olive was going to fai nt, she turned so pale. She's a heavy woman, and I was afraid I wouldn't be able to manage. - Did she faint? - Not q uite, no. B u t she was more or less . . . . . oven;ome. The man I called out to came over, and we took her· arms and tried to steady her and comfort her. Then we helped her ove r t o a bench and I went and got her a cup of tea from the cafeteria. - You had the im pressio n , did you , that she i m mediately took the portrait to be a represen tation of her·self? - Oh yes. Certainly. - Did she say anything o n this point? - Yes. The man who helped us went away, and t he n she spoke to me. - Do you remember· her exact words? - ·No. I was too shocked myself to take anything in, exactly. - But you recall the substance of M rs . Bastow's remarks on this harrowing occasion ? - Yes. She cried out "Oh my goodness, A ngela ! Why did he do it?", or words to that effect . - How would you describe her tone? - I t was as if she had been stu nned. - Her facial expression? - She was horrified, Mr. Darl i ngton. - Direct your answers to the j ury, please. - She was absolutely horrified. - What happened after she made that (approximate) remark? - Mrs. Bastow went on trembling and she was still very pale. We j ust stayed by ourselves for a w hile, u ntil she stopped crying . . . . . - She was weeping as well? - Oh yes. - And then? - After about an hour I called a taxi and helped her i n to it, and then I took her home and stayed with her for a while longer·. This evidence, or rather the identity of the witness, put john Hart in a dilemma if only because he did not want to seem to quarrel with h is wife in public. H e could tell from the ex pectant silence behind and all around him that this was w hat most people in court were waiting for ; yet , apart from the personal angle, what could he do to refute evidence of fact to w h ich this witness had been the only complete witness? Hardly a t h ing, beyond showing prejudice against the defendant . This would mean bringing i n Roma's whole connection with the case, but since he intended to call his daughter later in the t rial a nyway, and knew that she would be literally shameless in her defence of Cabot, he decided on asking Angela three or four short, sharp questions and thus getting her off the stand in a h u rry. When he began this cross-exami nation his voice came out un natu rally loud in the sur­ rou nding silence. - Mrs. Hart, you said your daughter was acquainted with Cabot Carter and was seeing h i m . You meant dating him? - Yes. I13

- Did you approve? - No. - I pass o"er the reasons, and stick to facts. Did you and your daughter Roma quarrel over this dating? - That, and other things. - Cabot Carter was the central cause of your differences. I s the answer to that, yes or no? - Yes. I felt he was not suit . . . . . - Can we have facts, please, and not feelings? Did Roma leave home and take her own apartment as a result of your differences? - Yes, I suppose so. - Did you, and do you, blame Cabot Carter for this rift and separation between you and your daughter? Here came the first objection by counsel, as K. K . Darlington rose and spoke incisively : - My Lord, witness can't be expected to assign a single cause to an effect that may be rooted in many and complex reasons, going back to a time before Mrs . . H art even knew of such a person as Cabot Carter! That is u nreasonable. It is too heavily charged a question . - Can you rephrase it, Mr. H art? - I 'll pass it by, My Lord, and just ask this witness one or two simpler questions. Thank you . Now, Mrs. Hart, did you ever meet Cabot Carter i n person ? - Yes, once. - Did you like him? On your oath, now. - Well . . . . . no. - Did you try to keep Roma away from him? - Yes. For her own good. - Never mind value judgments. Did you succeed? - No . - You still consider Cabot Carter a bad influence on her? - Yes, I do! - No more questions. The next witness was youn g Kirk Squires, by w hom the mass of spectators as well as the jury were not only visibly but audibly impressed. Somebody behind the scenes had dressed him for this occasion in a handsome grey suit with white shirt and trendy but not vulgar tie that brought out his coloring. The boy was just a little sel f-conscious, yet clearly determined to stand u p for the truth as he saw it. Darlington too was obviously taken by the witness's manner. - Kirk, how old are you? - I'm fourtee n, sir - almost. - Of course you understand the meaning of the oath i n a courtroom. - Yes, sir. I t means I have to tell the truth when you ask me questions. - When anybody here asks you questions. A nd do you u nderstand the meaning of the word "plaintiff'? - Yes. My grandmother is the plaintiff in this case, and Cabot Carter is the defendant. 1 11

- Quite. Now, Kirk, how many times have you seen your grandmother's portrait at the art gallery? - Once. - Only once? - That was enough, sir. -Just answer my q uestions, whatever your private feelings may be . What did you think w hen you first saw the portrait? - I was sore. - Angry? - Yes. - Wh y ? - Because Gran, my grandmother, is n o t like that. I t wasn't fair! -· Tell u s more exactly what it was in the picture that made you angry. - It made Gran look ugly. - That was your own opinion. Do you k now personally of any other people's thoughts concerning the picture? - Yes, sir, I do. - Where did you experience this? - At school. - What happened, to give you this know ledge? - Two or three of the guys were talking about the picture. - I n substance, what were they saying? - That Gran was like a hag or an old witch. - And that angered and h urt you . - I n more ways than one. - How do you mean? - I got i n to a fight with one of those guys. - Oh, I see. But, Kirk, had these boys actually been at the gallery and seen the picture? - No . - Then how did t h e y know abo u t it or w hat it w a s like? - I asked one of them that. He said he heard his parents talking about it at home. - And the others? - Same th ing. - M m m m . Parents of three or four boys, from differen t parts of the city, no doubt, referring to the portrait as that of a hag or an old witch. - I don't say all the guys used those exact w01·ds, sir. - No matter. One of them did, and the others repeated offensive (bad) remarks too? - Yes. - I think t hat is all. By the way, did you win your fight? - No, sir, I lost. But it didn't change my mind abo u t anything. - That is u nderstandable. Now then, you must answer a few questions from my learned friend M r . Han, who is acting for the defendant in this trial. - Kirk, this same M r. Cabot Carter who has painted your grandmother, also did a sketch of you ? 1 15

- Yes, sir. - How d id you like that? - Not too m uch. - Did your mother have it fl-amed and placed i n the livingroom of your home? - Yes, that's t rue. - Did you like that idea? More precisely, did you ever ask your mother or father not to keep t he sketch there? - Well, no. - So you didn't feel t hat your own portrait was an insult. - No, not an insult, exactly . . . . . - Did you t h i n k it was really like you ? - No, sir, M r . H a n , I didn't! - Why not ? - That's hard t o explai n . I t was kind o f like me, and then i t was . . . . . i t was way off base. - Do you mean unreal? - Not exact ly. I mean more like . . . . . like puzzling. - Did any of your chums ever come i n to your house and see this sketch of you? - Yes. - What did t hey say ? - Not much. They just laughed. - And t hat didn't make you sore? - N aw ! They were j u s t horsing around. - I want now to come back to those boys whom you did fight and q uarrel with. And I want you to think and answer my next questions very carefully, Kirk. First, are these three boys in the same grade as yourself? - Yes, they are, sir. Grade 9 . - Do a l l of y o u study art ? - No. Only me. - H ow do the others escape i t ? - They take another subject instead . - Would you say they know anything about art? - No. - So their opinion on any pict ure wouldn't be worth much. A nother objection by Darli ngton : - M y Lord, t his line of q uestioning seems to be a waste of the Court's time. M y learned friend w a s here, and n o doubt attentive, w h e n I established a few mo­ ments ago that the opinions and sen timents t hese boys expressed were picked u p from t heir pare n ts. There w a s n o question o f t heir forming an independent j udgment on any painting. - M r. Hart, do you accept that? - With respect, My Lord, not entiJ-ely. I 'd like at least to ask a few more questions about t he so urce ol t hese opinions. - Very well. Go on fOJ- the present. - Kirk, you're not a snob, are you ? - No, sir! 1 16

- The three boys you mentioned, would you say they come from good homes? - That's a tough question to answer. I couldn't say. - All right. I 'll be more exact . Let's take the boy you had the fight with. Do you know what his father does for a living? - He's a sailor on the Merchant Marine boats. - H is mother? Does she work? - I 'm not sure , but I think she's a waitress in Bowring's cafeteria. - Did .this boy ever come to you r house? - No. We're not pals. - I mean before this t rouble over you r grandmother's port t·ait. - We weren't pals then, either. - Where does he live? ----. I think it's dow n behind Hotel Newfoundland somewhere. - So you were never at his place? - No . - Are t h e othet· t w o boys m uch l i k e you r . . . . . your opponent in theit· general backgro und? - Yes, I guess so. - You said that aftet· you had lost the fight, you had n't changed your mind about anything. Did you mean that no matter how many portraits of your grandmother were painted or how many fights you got into over them, your opinion of her would nevet· be changed? - Yes, sir, that's what I mean t . - I think those are all m y questions. Now came t he bulky, self-important figure of Fred Squires, whom Darlington approached as a more significan t witness than any w ho had yet appeared. - Mr. Squires, you are the son-in-law of the plaintiff? - That's correct. - Your age? - Forty-nine. - Profession? - I own and manage Squires Electrical. I think everybody knows what that is around t hese parts. - Did you go to t he art gallery, on your own initiative, shortly after you heard tal k conce rn ing t his portrait o f Mrs. Bastow? - I did. - W hat was yo ur reaction? - React ion? I was sore as hell, to see Mother held u p . . . . . - Mot her? O h , I see. You call M rs. Bastow "Mother" in the ordinary course, do you? - Yes. To see Mot her held u p to ridicule and have her shamed and made a public show of like ! hat .

Objeu ion by .John Hart: - M y Lord , I protesl t hat t hat's a prejudging of the issue here on the part of a witness. 1 17

- Please try to answer the q uestions factually, M r . Squires, if you can, withou t deciding issues for the jury. - Yes, M y Lord. I just feel so str . . . . . - Never mind. Go on, Mr. Darlington. - Mr. Squires, you say, then, that you personally were outraged o n seeing t h is portrait . - I sure was. - What was your very first impulse? - To go and give this guy Carter a punch in the nose. - B u t calmer counsel prevailed? - Yes, you could say that. - What steps did you take in lieu of violence? - I talked to Mothe r and I strongly advised her to take legal action. - Now, sir, we have had some evidence as to what Mrs. Bastow has endured here in St. John's in consequence o f he1· portrait being displayed. Can you add anything to that, from your personal knowledge? - I certainly can . One time that stands out in my minould Cabot ever have paid t hose costs? - I really don't know. But will you permit me one generalization? I believe that e"'Very good artist even t ually wins t h rough . - Modigliani didn't. - Possibly. I t could be argued, t hough, t h a t he had finished his work, essentially, �fore he died. Modigliani was one of the slow suicides, wasn't he? - I still have that vision of Cabot cracking u p behind bars! - I doubt if t hat would happen, w hen he has such champions. - Well, I happen to think he's okay too. - Help him all you can, my dear! H e's worth it. A nd I u nderstand he's still u nder t l-.irty. - Yes. - Splendid . - He still has some pictures not sold. Did you ever see t he one called Mullen Street? - Yes. Very dark pale t te , I seem to remember. Carter tends t h a t way. I t will be i n · teresting to see what he does when he ligh tens it. Well, I may have another gloance at Mullen Street one day. - I think that's about ali i wanted to ask you , M r. Darlington. All the main points. -- And I'm very pleased to have been of help to you, and Mr. Carter. I don ' t really feoa r for his fut u r·e, with people like you on his side. - . Thank you, sir. - . Will you keep in touch? I 'm most curious abo u t Carter's next work, about where he : will go from here. - . Yes. And give my r·egards to your fat her. - ! will. - By t he way, Miss Han, I'd also be curious to know what Carter i n tends to do w i tth this five thousand dollars I'm paying him, after· he clears away the legal costs. 212

- Me too. - Though il's none of my business, of course. - I don't imagine he'll waste it. Now, about this tape, I may offer it to t he CBC for Weekend Arts as well as use it for my column. Would there be any objection to that? Edited, of course, and subject to you r blue pencil. - No, no. Certainly not . - Than k you again, M r. Darl ingto n . Goodbye for now. - Good morning, M iss H art . I do hope we shall meet again.

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213

THIRTEEN

Roma took a taxi back to the office, to put in her material, and then back to Cabot (all on her swindle sheet) because she was much more curious than Dar­ lington to find out what he was going to do with the extra money. Still nervous about h is unpr·edictability, she had a vague dread that in some kind of reaction from his escape, or perhaps in plain disgust at what had happened to him, he m ight just pack up and leave Canada altogether. Leave her. She need not have worried. Cabot was certainly not a man to take his recent crisis lightly, but for the present he showed no signs of furthe r rebellion against h is native environment. Roma managed to get h im alone for a few minute s o f talk and sex-play before they joined t he Reillys again. - CC, what are you going to do with the left-over loot? - Pay Feem and Jamie what I owe them, first . - And? - There's your fat her. I ought to do something to . . . . . to kind of show my appreciation. - Dad doesn't want any money from you! Don't be weird. H e wouldn't take it. - I guess not. Well, some little gesture, maybe. - I know just the thing. The sketch of me that he used i n court. He really goes for that. - Right. I'll get it framed. - What about you ? - Thought I might take a litt le trip. - Away? - No. Newfie will still have the benefit of my operations, but maybe I need a change of motif. I think I'll take a trip all around the island. The coastal boats are starting soon. - I remember the very first time we met, that was what you said: that you wanted to paint New fou ndland. - Out around t he bay is still almost virgin territory. - I know. How long will you be gone? - Oh, the sum mer, I guess. - Will you go under your ow n name, after all t he publicity? - Maybe I should go as John Jones. I t's a thought . - Are y o u going t o m i s s me? - No. - !! - I want you to come with me. - Do you mean it? 214

- Of course I do. - ( I 'm still not absolu tely sure of you) I would n't bug you ? I mean about the painting? - No. I t's okay with us now. - I think I could swing it with the paper! I t's a deal, CC. But for God's sake, when we get going, don't do any portraits of scraggy old women ! - I 'll take what comes. -- Pighead . You're j ust about st ubborn enough to st