The Miracle Woman Page #3

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Oh, didn't my Lord

deliver Daniel?

CROWD:

Hallelujah!

Blessed are the blind

who cannot see fear.

O ye that see, have the

faith of this blind boy.

He answered

the call of his God

to come up here

among the beasts of prey,

just as he answered

the call of his country

to go among the beasts

of war in France.

Hallelujah, my people!

CROWD:
Hallelujah!

Bless you, my friends.

I thank the Lord that you are here,

for I love every one of you,

and particularly this

blind boy, who shames us all

with a shining

example of faith.

And I would take

you into my arms

and whisper in your ear

the sweet secret of salvation.

Hallelujah!

CROWD:

Hallelujah!

Outside of this temple, the pulse

of the world beats with hate.

Hate!

But here within, there

is a heartbeat of love.

I want you to join hands.

Right where you're sitting,

join hands, everybody.

That's right, brothers.

That's right, sisters.

It doesn't make any difference

whose hands you grab.

Take the nearest to you.

I want an unbroken chain

of love in this tent tonight.

I want you to be one, not many.

One with me,

and one with God.

I want you to turn to

one another and smile.

Smile and let love and

sunshine into your hearts.

There now,

don't you feel better already?

Faith.

You have shown it, brother, by

coming up here with me tonight.

And I solemnly promise

that the day will come

when your faith

will be rewarded.

The Lord will deliver you

as he delivered Daniel.

He will open up your eyes,

and you shall see again.

Sister, will you put

that in writing?

Why, it is in writing.

It's in the Holy Book. It's in

every word, in every page of it.

You have shown faith,

and you shall see again.

Hallelujah!

CROWD:

Hallelujah!

[HUMMING]

Hey, who's dead?

Nobody, but Ill bet some of

us are gonna be pretty sick

before the day's over.

Did Hornsby send for you too?

Yeah.

GUSSIE:
If he bawls me out, Ill quit.

Ill bet you will.

VIOLET:
Me too.

That ain't half of it.

Wait till he starts...

The crummiest crew

of come-ons I ever hired.

Here I am, breaking

my neck to get crowds,

and we're packing them in to the

rafters. And what good does it do?

Night after night

I keep telling you,

"Be up on your lines!

Know your stuff!

And when you get on that

platform to testify, mean it!

Mean it!"

You told me you were

an A-number-one cripple.

And when I put you on, I promised you,

you could limp yourself into a Rolls-Royce.

Boss, l...

Why, you couldn't limp yourself

into a pair of roller skates.

A week ago you slipped up on your

cue to walk into the lion's den.

Tonight you missed your cue again.

I didn't hear it!

Well, hear this:
If it

happens again, you're fired.

And you're supposed

to be a widow,

bereaved of all her loved

ones, alone in the world.

You told me you had ten years in

stock and could knock them over.

Oh, l... I can, Mr. Hornsby.

Sure you can. With your breath.

You nearly knocked

me over tonight.

You know as well as I do that

hiccups and hallelujahs won't mix.

What happened to you tonight,

Brown? You acted like a dummy.

Well, I'm supposed

to be paralyzed.

Yeah, but not from the neck up.

And you.

I suppose you're going to say

I was paralyzed too.

HORNSBY:
You can't paralyze ivory.

We cook up a sob routine for you

that would melt a mountain.

And you pull it like you're

reading out of a telephone book.

How do you expect to get the hang of

the trade with your mush full of gum?

Bernhardt couldn't do it,

and you ain't Bernhardt.

You ain't even one of

the Cherry Sisters.

I want action on that platform!

I want sincerity and pep.

How do you expect the customers

to believe it if you don't?

Sister gets them all hot and bothered,

reaching for the clouds.

Then you punks step up, and they

start grabbing for their hats.

They go to sleep on you. Now, if

you people wanna eat regularly,

you'd better digest

what I just told you.

Now evaporate, you misfits.

Get into character!

I don't know what

I'm gonna do with those mugs.

Why don't you

get rid of them.

Now, Flo, I told you

time and time again,

we can't carry on a business

like this without shills.

Sure you can.

Do you know why we always

slow up at the finish?

Because those come-ons

don't do their stuff right.

No, it's because

I don't do my stuff right.

They're fakes, Bob,

and I know they're fakes.

It makes me feel like one.

And then I'm no good.

How do you mean?

Oh, I don't know.

Well, all I know is this: When I'm

out there talking to those people,

I've got to make it seem real,

or I can't put it over.

You've got me worried.

You're beginning to fall

for your own ballyhoo.

And that's bad.

Why don't you take a tip

out of your Bible where it says:

"Don't let your left hand know

what your right hand is doing."

Do you know why we're sitting

on top of the world right now?

Because we're professionals

and not amateurs.

You can't get along

without shills.

How much did you pay that blind

man that came in the cage last week?

Oh, that guy.

Say, we'd starve to death if we

waited for people like that to come up.

It takes plenty of money

to run a tabernacle.

Do you know how much it costs

us to grease the politicians

to allow us to operate

in this old barn?

No, and I don't wanna know.

That's right.

I don't want you to worry

your head about those things.

That's my end of it.

Say, what's eating you, kid?

You've got everything

you want.

No, I haven't.

I feel like exhibit A.

I never go anyplace. I never

get a chance to meet people.

Why, you meet

thousands of people.

Oh, I don't

mean that way.

What are you watching

me for all the time?

I can't go around the corner

without somebody being with me.

That's only for your

own protection.

You've got to remember who you are.

We've worked up a trademark.

We've got to watch our step.

Well, that doesn't mean I have to

be a prisoner all the time, does it?

Oh, now, honey, you're tired.

You've got to go home

and go to bed.

I don't wanna go to bed.

I couldn't sleep anyhow.

Say, there's a carnival in town,

a lot of old pals of mine.

Ill get them together,

and we'll have a lot of laughs.

Laughs.

I've almost forgotten how.

You'll learn all over again tonight.

Say, where shall we go?

How about my apartment?

Oh, I don't care.

Anyplace, anyplace at all.

That's right.

You just leave it to

your old pal Hornsby.

Now, you've been

working too hard, honey.

You've been giving those

apple-knockers too much for their money.

Now you take a nice little nap,

and Daddy will take

off your shoes.

Ill get the clowns together...

and we'll make whoopee.

I'm crazy about you

when you're mad, baby.

You look more beautiful.

Hello, chief! Hello, Sister!

Go right ahead. Don't mind me.

No see-ee, no hear-ee

and no speak-ee.

I know what you're gonna say,

"No think-ee."

HORNSBY:
What do you want?

Just been checking over

last night's sucker list.

And folks, when

we leave this burg,

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