The Daily Worker Newspaper, June 13, 1925, Page 10

~ MASTERS AND SLAVES (A Sto * —— = Synopsis of Preceding Chapters. ICKLES and Joe Vavas, migratory workers, meet under a freight train while beating their way west. They get off at Colorado Springs. Joe Vavas is a barber by trade, and Nickles has no fixed trade. In Colorado Springs Vavas buys second-hand clothes for the two of them and they go to look for jobs. Vavas gets a job as a barber. Nickles manages to get work as a footman at Broadmoor, the mansion of the Broidins. His work fs constant drudgery. Vavas is class conscious, and Nickles is not, but they are staunch friends nevertheless. An attachment springs up between Nickles and Marguerite, the maid at the Broadmoor mansion. One day Joe Va- vas tells Nickles and Marguerite that a . barbers’ union: has: been formed to fight against the intoler- able conditions. Joe Vavas has formed the union with the help of William who is an American by birth and not an immigrant like Joe. The younger ele ments in the union, led by Joe and William force a strike against the bosses. The strike is won by the barbers, but the union delegate from Denver sells out at the last moment, and the strikers are deprived of most of the fruits of their victory. As @ result of the fight of the workers the ku klux klan of Colorado Springs holds an initiation ceremony. They swear to exterminate the Reds. Mr. Broidin takes part in the ceremony. He desires Marguerite the young servant, and makes love to her, which en- rages Nickles. Gradually Nickles is becoming more and more receptive to the ideas of Joe Vavas who is a Communist. The Broidins are more and more tyrannical. A Christian Science service is held at the Broadmoor mansion. At the ceremony the poet who officiates delivers an oration full of the clap- trap of the master class. AH this spiritual bunk does not prevent the guests from devouring a great quantity of food after the services are over. This means more work for the servants who are over- burdened as it is. Now go on with the story. ‘ °'"" “(Continued from fast Saturday.) J . * os * CHAPTER XIV. T was unbearably hot. The last day of August overwhelmed the poor, tired earth with fiery beams as if wanting to pour out its last remaining heat. The Brodin family arranged an outing. They invited their most intimaté acquanintances to this outing to spend the day by the cool, windy lake. For Nickles, John, and Marguerite it meant that they would have to drag the tables with all that was on them for half a mile to the lake, and then to earry them back again. The hosts as well as the guests put on bathing suits. They sat under great umbrellas. From time to, time they would jump into the water and then lie down again in the shade. John and Nickles dragged the tables in their regulation dress coats. The sweat soaked their clothing, their white collars became crumpled. ‘When they came back from waiting at table they looked as if they had taken a dip in the lake in their clothes. They almost melted in the heat of the sun. And they had to repeat this painful performance three times. Nickles’ listened to the conversation of the ladies and gentlemen: “It was really a nice day.” “For all we care, the sun can be as hot as it wants,” : “I wasn’t hot.” “It was a swell idea.” “The water is so fine and cool.” “And the shade is very inviting.” “We've fooled the sun all right.” “We ought to have this again.” Nickles thot different. Mr. Broidin contemplated his wife and the rest of the females. unis In their bathing suits they looked even more it in ‘ and} “Tl He thot that*perhaps the cold water would cool off the heat. But he found it impossible to still his desire. ‘He shut his eyes. He dreamed that he was close to Marguerite. He became enraged: “A servant girl!” Suddenly that fact calmed him completely. With a servant girl it’s all right to do anything. Again he felt the master. He was conscious of the fact that he was Mr. Broidin, Owner of a big fortune. To whom every- thing is permitted. Especially with regard to a| BR servant girl. “Tl pay her. Yes sir. . . Dll even make her happy.” He had his camera brot. He formulated a real plan of war. He took a few pictures. Photographed the bath- ing women. And then he hid the camera behind a bush. * * * * HEN Mr. and Mrs. Broidin were left alone they went to the work-room. There was such a room in the house. In fact, Mr. and Mrs. Broi- din also worked. Yes, indeed, they worked. They clipped out of the “New York Herald” and the “Springs Paper” (from the “Society” columns) all notices relating to the Broidin family as well as the list of names of those participating in the af- fairs of their acquaintances. They followed up carefully all those who performed at these:affairs, and they also clipped the speeches of the great English statesman-relative, altho they did not read them. . All this was extremely difficult and exhausting work. And that is why the holy of holies where this work was performed merited justly the name “work-room.” As we already know, the library served an en- tirely different purpose. We need only repeat that the chief thing was to keep the books from |getting dusty. The delicate work of dusting was assigned to Nickles and Marguerite. But putting the books in order wos not their affair. Nor was that considered an important matter. It didn’t bother Mr. or Mrs. Broidin that, for example,.a study on Cellini was at one end of the library, and a book on North-Italian sculpture at the other end. <A reference book on China porcelain on the top shelf, another on the same subject on the low- est shelf. There was a catalougue, it is true, but this was an inheritance from the grandfather. As no one read the books the catalogue was alto- gether superfluous. f Mrs. and Mr. Broidin were in the work-room, as mentioned above. The papers had been looked thru, and they sat opposite each other silent. “It takes a long time to get\ dark”—Broidin| said. © “Do you think so?”—asked the wife. Silence again. Mr. Broidin looked out again and again at the sky which was still light. “It was a beautiful day”—said the wife. “Yes”—the husband answered with a bored expression. ‘He waited. rey last hour of twilight seemed very long to Silence. The wife told him what the guests had said that |day. Broidin thot that it was enuf to have heard that nonsense once. He was bored to death. He waits. Waits. “Shall I put on the lights?” “As you wish.” They sit for a while longer in the dark. “It is still light outside”—Broidin observed. He waits. Waits. Waits — _ And this waiting is'terrible, = His resltess hands grow stiff, his lips dry. The wife puts on the light. pitta “Ah, the camera . + + I forgot it at the ring for Marguerite.” She presses the button three times. The girl comes in abashed. “The camera . - at the lake.) % "—Broi-] din says to the girl. ’ f He knows well enuf that’ Marguerite would not find it. Boe After a short pause, the wife: SE Sn pee wee “Go to bed . - ’'m coming directly, ’m only going out for a little walk.” The wife goes to the bed-room, the husband to the lake. : , * * * * ROIDIN comes up to the girl. All around ig black. Marguerite stares at him in horror: “T can’t find it.” “Maybe it’s over there, among the bushes”—the man says. The girl goes there. The man follows her. He ‘makes believe that he is looking for the camera. He bends over the girl. Marguerite shrinks back. How beautiful is a trembling body ofa: maiden. The man reaches for Marguerite’s breasts. The young, firm breasts. . The arms of He throws his arms around her. steel. | Marguerite is in his power. A faint ery. _ “Nickles !” “Quiet !”—comes the man’s command, harsh, short, decisive. Marguerite defends herself. | “Nickles!”—but this time it is hardly audible. “Shut up!”’—the man orders her in mnuffled, angry tone. He drags the girl along. . . To where there is little light . “Hurry, hurry !”—he commands fiercely. The man is strong . . . He is the master. Marguerite has no time for reaction . , . Broi- din’s terriffic strength weakens her, breaks her re- sistance. . . Broidin is not gentle. He bites, strikes, pinches her, like a madman. . . He is the master. She is the servant. : Broidin presses Marguerite to himself. The quivering body. Takes it. The body. Entirely. : All is black. He sees nothing, only feels the fragrant body fresh with dew. * * . * “Quick! Quick!” Oh yes, the camera. Marguerite arranges her dress, her hair. Nickles? ae She will tell him all about it. feu He had thrown himself upon her . , y He only wanted her body. He hadn’t spoken @ word to her. Hadn’t stroked her once. She won’t tell about that. ; fi * * * +«# Oppressive heat. New moon. The wife is already. snoring. The husband lies down beside her. A few min- utes pass. And he is also asleep. Deep. Healthy. In blissful satiation. — - OS ee Hg Marguerite does not sleep. She tosses on the bed. The night is deep black.. If Nickles knew it! She didn’t go to tell him. Nickles is polishing the table service. Today again the mountain won’t disappear. * * * * CHAPTER XV. LORADO SPRINGS was no longer that in. vincible citadel of the bosses which it had been only a few months before... The strike of the bar. bers let loose great discontent. The very fact ote ame {alone of a strike exercised a great influence upon all the workers in Springs, for it proved that it depended entirely upon the will of the workers themselves whether they would tolerate im silence the dictatorship of the. bosses. The barbers were followed by the automobile workers, then the street construction workers, the masons, the carpenters, the transport workers, In