William D Howells

The Sleeping-Car, and Other Farces, by William D Howells

The Sleeping Car is a farce play in three parts by William Dean Howells, first published in the United States in 1883. This play takes place entirely within a 24-hour period on a railway sleeping car, and revolves around a woman's late night confusion regarding the premature appearance of her husband and brother. This work is one of Howells' minor works, but reflects the same tendencies towards literary realism as many of Howells' more famous works, including The Rise of Silas Lapham and A Modern Instance. This play is not well-read amongst modern readers, and is often overlooked in literary discussion due to its relative contemporary obscurity Currently, this work is not being published by any publishing houses, but is available free through Project Gutenberg or other websites. *Plot* This story begins with Mrs. Roberts, her baby son, and her Aunt Mary headed Westbound on the Boston and Albany Railroad. They are on their way to meet Mrs. Roberts' husband and brother in Boston. Mrs. Roberts has not seen her brother in twelve years, and is nervous about how he will react to seeing her. In the time since they last saw each other, she has married and birthed a child, and has heard little from her brother except for infrequent telegraphs. The porter informs Mrs. Roberts and her aunt that the berths are now ready for them to sleep in, but the conversation continues. Mrs. Roberts worries that her husband Edward will not receive Willis well, or vice versa, because Willis is a Californian and Edward has never encountered one before. Mrs. Roberts laments that her life would be a wreck if her husband and brother do not get along nicely, and states "I do hope they're sitting down to a hot supper." A voice from an adjacent berth interjects and sarcastically tells Mrs. Roberts to be quiet. She acquiesces for a moment, but then reverts to conversation, stating how they must go to bed. Aunt Mary insists that Mrs. Roberts and the child take the bottom bunk, because she is afraid that the child will roll off of the top bunk and injure himself. She calls the porter over to help her into the upper berth, and after successfully entering the berth, exchanges "good-night" with Mrs. Roberts. After a few minutes, Mrs. Roberts rekindles the conversation, and expresses her concern regarding the safety of the train on which they're riding. Her aunt reassures her that the road is safe, and that the train has implemented safety measures to prevent accidents. Mrs. Roberts then goes on to discuss where her Aunt left the drinking glass in their luggage, until she is interrupted by a man from the next berth. This man politely requests silence from Mrs. Roberts, citing that he has come straight through from San Francisco and would very much like some rest. Mrs. Roberts responds apologetically, but starts conversing with this man, inquiring about California, her brother Willis, and if he has ever met his acquaintance. Midway through their conversation, a man in the upper berth sarcastically interjects and asks for quiet. The Californian takes offense to the man's tone towards Mrs. Roberts, and the two get into a verbal argument over it. Eventually, the Californian gets the man in the upper berth to back down ("You beg that lady's pardon, or I'll have you out of there before you know yourself!"). Part I ends with the Californian and Mrs. Roberts finally going to bed, with only the sounds of Aunt Mary's snoring audible.... William Dean Howells (March 1, 1837 - May 11, 1920) was an American realist novelist, literary critic, and playwright. Nicknamed "The Dean of American Letters," he was particularly known for his tenure as editor of The Atlantic Monthly as well as his own prolific writings, including the Christmas story "Christmas Every Day," and the novels The Rise of Silas Lapham and A Traveler from Altruria.