U.S.A_ - John Dos Passos [297]
-275-Anne, I'm making indecent proposals to you," he said shril y, half laughing and half in tears. "For God's sake pay attention . . . Damn it, I'l make you pay attention, you little bitch." He dropped his blanket and ran at her. She could see he was fighting mad. He pul ed her up out of her chair and kissed her on the mouth. She had quite a tussle with him, as he was wiry and strong, but she man-aged to get her forearm under his chin and to push his face away far enough to give him a punch on the nose. His nose began to bleed. "Don't be sil y, Webb," she said, breathing hard, "I don't want that sort of thing, not yet, anyway . . . go and wash your face."
He went to the sink and began dabbling his face with water. Daughter hurried into her skirt and shoes and stock-ings and went over to the sink where he was washing his face,
"That was mean of me, Webb, I'm terribly sorry. There's something always makes me be mean to people I like." Webb wouldn't say anything for a long time. His nose was stil bleeding.
"Go along home," he said, "I'm going to stay here. . . . It's al right . . . my mistake." She put on her dripping raincoat and went out into the shiny evening streets. Al the way home on the express in the subway she was feeling warm and tender towards Webb, like towards Dad or the boys.
She didn't see him for several days, then one evening he cal ed and asked her if she wanted to go out on the picket line next morning. It was stil dark when she met him at the ferry station. They were both cold and sleepy and didn't say much going out on the train. From the train they had to run through the slippery streets to get to the mil s in time to join the picket line. Faces looked cold and pinched in the blue early light. Women had shawls over their heads, few of the men or boys had overcoats. The young girls were al shivering in their cheap fancy topcoats that had no warmth to them. The cops had already begun
-276-to break up the head of the line. Some of the strikers were singing Solidarity Forever, others were yel ing Scabs, Scabs and making funny long jeering hoots. Daughter was con-fused and excited. Suddenly everybody around her broke and ran and left her in a stretch of empty street in front of the wire fencing of the mil s. Ten feet in front of her a young woman slipped and fel . Daughter caught the scared look in her eyes that were round and black. Daughter stepped for-ward to help her up but two policemen were ahead of her swinging their nightsticks. Daughter thought they were going to help the girl up. She stood stil for a second, frozen in her tracks when she saw one of the policemen's feet shoot out. He'd kicked the girl ful in the face. Daugh-ter never remembered what happened except that she was wanting a gun and punching into the policeman's big red face and against the buttons and the thick heavy cloth of his overcoat. Something crashed down on her head from behind; dizzy and sick she was being pushed into the po-licewagon. In front of her was the girl's face al caved in and bleeding. In the darkness inside were other men and women cursing and laughing. But Daughter and the
woman opposite looked at each other dazedly and said nothing. Then the door closed behind them and they were in the dark.
When they were committed she was charged with riot-ing, felonious assault, obstructing an officer and inciting to sedition. It wasn't so bad in the county jail. The women's section was crowded with strikers, al the cel s were ful of girls laughing and talking, singing songs