_Lord Darlington._ You have _Mrs. Erlynne._ (_C._) How do dropped your fan, Lady you do again, Lord Windermere? Windermere. (_Picks it up and hands it _Lord Darlington._ You have to her_.) dropped your fan, Lady Windermere.
_Mrs. Erlynne._ (_C._) How do (_Picks it up and hands it you do again, Lord Windermere? to her._) How charming your sweet wife looks! Quite a picture!
_Lord Windermere._ (_In a low _Lord Windermere._ (_In a low voice._) It was terribly voice._) It was terribly rash of you to come! rash of you to come!
_Mrs. Erlynne._ (_Smiling._) _Mrs. Erlynne._ (_Smiling._) The wisest thing I ever did in my The wisest thing I ever did in my life. And, by the way, you must life. How charming your sweet pay me a good deal of attention wife looks! Quite a picture! And, this evening. by the way, you must pay me a good deal of attention this evening.[63]
In the next extract, note that omission of "I want to live childless still" and shifting the position of the words "For twenty years, as you say, I have lived childless" permit an actress to work up to the strongest climax of the speech, when spoken, "They made me suffer too much." Miss Anglin, trained by years of experience to great sensitiveness to the emotional values of words, has here arranged the sentences better than the author himself.
_Lord Windermere._ What do _Lord Windermere._ What do you mean by coming here this you mean by coming here this morning? What is your object? morning? What is your object?
(_Crossing L.C. and sitting._) _(Crossing L.C. and sitting._)
_Mrs. Erlynne._ (_With a note of _Mrs. Erlynne._ (_With a note of irony in her voice._) To bid good- irony in her voice._) To bid bye to my dear daughter, of good-bye to my dear daughter, of course. (_Lord Windermere bites course. (_Lord Windermere bites his underlip in anger. Mrs. Erlynne his underlip in anger. Mrs. Erlynne looks at him, and her voice looks at him, and her voice and manner become serious. In and manner become serious. In her accents as she talks there her accents as she talks there is a note of deep tragedy. For a is a note of deep tragedy. For a moment she reveals herself._) Oh, moment she reveals herself._) Oh, don't imagine I am going to have don't imagine I am going to a pathetic scene with her, weep have a pathetic scene with her, on her neck and tell her who I weep on her neck and tell her am, and all that kind of thing. who I am, and all that kind of I have no ambition to play the thing. I have no ambition to part of mother. Only once in my play the part of mother. For life have I known a mother's twenty years, as you say, I have feelings. That was last night. lived childless. Only once in my They were terrible--they made life have I known a mother's me suffer--they made me suffer feelings. That was last night. too much. For twenty years, They were terrible--they made as you say, I have lived me suffer--they made me suffer childless--I want to live too much.[64] childless still.