A Canterbury Tale Page #8

I'm sure you've got a first-class farm

and run it well.

Yet the first chance you get, you're off

climbing mountains or digging up stuff...

which 600 years ago

was thrown out as junk.

No bee in your bonnet.

No. I've got my job -

30 a week.

I've got my flat. I meet my friends

when I want to meet them.

That's good enough for me.

Don't you want a bigger flat,

better job - 40 a week?

I've got the best job

a man in my business can have.

May I ask, what is your job?

I'm an organist.

In St. Paul's Cathedral?

No, in a cinema. West End.

I'm a cinema organist.

A good one.

I'm sure you are.

Have you always wanted

to be a cinema organist?

Not when I was a kid.

I wanted to be a church organist.

I studied for nine years.

Then, luckily for me, I met

a chap who told me about a job -

a new theater,

brand-new organ.

You see, I never really had the chance

to play on any big organ...

except the one at the academy.

- You never played a church organ?

- Not a big one.

It seems to me, Sergeant,

there are two kinds of men -

one who learns to play

Bach and Handel...

only to play

"I Kiss Your Little Hand, Madame"...

and the man who learns

to walk step by step...

so that one day

he might climb Mount Everest.

Perhaps another convert

to the study of ancient Kent.

- I'm afraid I have gone rather off the rails.

- Never mind. There's plenty of time.

Not much to do in Chillingbourne.

How do you find it?

- I haven't seen much of it.

- Oh, how's that?

- I only arrived on Friday night.

- Oh, yes.

I remember seeing you at my lecture with

Miss Smith and our American ally, Sgt. Johnson.

- Did you walk in together from the station?

- Yes.

I was with them

when the attack took place.

This fellow must be a tough sort of customer.

About your height.

As a matter of fact,

I had some excitement myself that night.

- They searched the town hall. I was on fire guard.

- Do you have to do fire-watching?

- Oh, yes.

- As well as Home Guard?

Twice a week Home Guard,

and fire-watching every eighth day.

- Tom?

- Yes, Mother?

The salvage boys are here again.

- Why, they were here last week.

- Well, they say it's a paper drive.

But maybe it's my homemade toffee.

There are six boys

and Ovendon's donkey.

I'll go and talk to them.

Excuse me.

- Hello. Salvage again?

- Yes, sir. Wastepaper.

We've got a lot of sacks, sir.

- Did you go round

to the old scullery last time?

- No, sir.

You'd better go round by the back way.

Emma will show you.

Round the back way.

- How's your father's lumbago, Terry?

- Awful, sir.

Oh, too bad.

- Well, I'm afraid I must be going now, sir.

- Nonsense.

I'm enjoying our talk.

Let's have another mug.

Hello?

Coming, ma'am.

Four and five and six and seven.

Two shillings and seven pence.

That okay, ma'am?

Now what?

Press button "A." Okay.

Looks like I hit the jackpot.

- Pressed the wrong button.

- What's that, ma'am?

I pressed button "B"?

Check.

Reinsert coins and press button "A."

Check again.

"A" buttons, "B" buttons...

mirrors, tea drinking...

left-hand driving...

stripes upside down.

Yes, ma'am. It sure is difficult.

And hot.

Here I come, button "A."

Made it.

Hello?

Sergeant Michael Roczinsky, please.

R-O-C-Z-I-

That's correct.

U.S. Army.

He said what?

Now see here, ma'am.

I don't care what Mickey Roczinsky told you.

He's a buddy of mine.

We come from the same company.

Wake him up. It's 4:00.

He can't sleep out

his whole leave in London.

You can't? You won't?

Say, you give good service

in your hotel.

Well, tell him Bob Johnson rang.

Bob. B-O-B. Bob.

Call it what you like.

Tell him I can't get to London.

He's to meet me in Canterbury.

I'm not in Canterbury now,

but I'll be in Canterbury tomorrow.

Where will he meet me?

Holy cats! I don't know where.

I've never even seen the place.

Where can he meet me

in Canterbury?

- Cathedral.

- That's right.

Tell him to meet me

in Canterbury Cathedral at 11:00.

Thanks.

Whew!

These London dames

have plenty on the ball.

Now, look, forget sex

for a little while, will you?

I've either solved the whole thing

or wasted a perfectly good Sunday.

What about me

and my whole furlough?

- See that?

- Without difficulty.

Now where's that list you made today

of the dates of the crimes?

- Right here, but -

- Now I'll tell you when the crimes were committed.

- Why tell me? I have them here.

- Yes, but I haven't.

Now check.

The last one was Friday, August 27.

Considering we were both there -

Before that,

Thursday the 19th.

- Unproven.

- Well, take it from me, it's right.

- Shandy?

- No, thanks.

Before that, Wednesday the 11th.

Tuesday, 3rd of August.

Say, that's right.

July 26, a Monday.

July 18, a Sunday.

Tenth of July, a Saturday.

Second of July, a Friday.

- All correct.

- Twenty-fourth of June, a Thursday.

Then one on Wednesday, the 16th of June

and Tuesday, the eighth of June.

Altogether, 11.

Say, what have you got there?

This, my fine feathered friend, is the

fire guard rota from Mr. Colpeper's house...

and the dates that I've quoted to you

are the nights that he was on duty.

- Every eighth day.

- Gee!

Then Ernie Brooks clinches it.

- What does he say?

- Same as me.

He saw the light in Mr. Colpeper's office

around midnight, but not before.

Halt! Who goes there?

Friend or foe?

Friend.

Sentry, let him come up!

- Hello.

- Hello.

- How are you doing, General?

- Okay. Four up to now.

Well, here is something.

The name of a firm - Rymans Limited.

Who are they?

They're a London firm. Lot of branches.

They sell office accessories.

Paper, ink...

and gum.

Well, that's that.

The rest is just routine.

Yes, we've got him cold.

Let's see now.

It was a new football we agreed on, wasn't it?

You sure that's enough?

You've earned it.

Thank you very much.

The pleasure, General,

is entirely mine.

Hey! Catch!

Glorious, isn't it?

Is anybody there?

It's a real voice you heard.

You're not dreaming.

You know, just now I -

I heard sounds.

What sounds did you hear?

Horses' hooves, voices...

and a lute.

Or an instrument like a lute.

Did you hear anything?

Those sounds come from inside,

not outside.

Then only when you're concentrating,

when you believe strongly in something.

Just now I was concentrating on

who was coming up the hill to disturb me.

Disturb you? At what?

Breathing the air, smelling the earth,

watching the clouds.

Why don't you sit down?

You know,

I was very mistaken about you.

I'm sorry.

I was mistaken about you too.

You have to dig to find out

about people, as well as roads.

Do you know

why I wanted to stay so much?

- I wanted to be here again.

- You've been here before?

Do you see that clump of trees?

I spent 13 perfect days there

in a caravan.

Your caravan?

- It belongs to me now.

- And the owner?

If there's such a thing as a soul,

he must be here somewhere.

He loved this hill so much.

I love it too.

May I ask, were you engaged?

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