life. I refused it. It
was foolish of me. I will offer him mine now. I will give him
mine. I will go to him! [Puts on cloak and goes to the door,
then turns back. Sits down at table and writes a letter, puts it
into an envelope, and leaves it on table.] Arthur has never
understood me. When he reads this, he will. He may do as he
chooses now with his life. I have done with mine as I think
best, as I think right. It is he who has broken the bond of

marriage- not I. I only break its bondage. [Exit.]

   [Parker enters L., and crosses towards the ball-room R.

Enter Mrs. Erlynne.]

MRS. ERL. Is Lady Windermere in the ball-room?
PAR. Her ladyship has just gone out.
MRS. ERL. Gone out? She's not on the terrace?
PAR. No, madam. Her ladyship has just gone out of the house.
MRS. ERL. [Starts, and looks at the servant with a puzzled
 expression on her face.] Out of the house?
PAR. Yes, madam- her ladyship told me she had left a letter for his
 lordship on the table.
MRS. ERL. A letter for Lord Windermere?
PAR. Yes, madam.
MRS. ERL. Thank you.
           [Exit Parker. The music in the ball-room stops.]
 Gone out of her house! A letter addressed to her husband! [Goes
 over to bureau and looks at letter. Takes it up and lays it down
 again with a shudder of fear.] No, no! It would be impossible!
 Life doesn't repeat its tragedies like that! Oh, why does this
 horrible fancy come across me? Why do I remember now the one
 moment of my life I most wish to forget? Does life repeat its
 tragedies? [Tears letter open and reads it, then sinks down
 into a chair with a gesture of anguish.] Oh, how terrible! The
 same words that twenty years ago I wrote to her father! and how
 bitterly I have been punished for it! No; my punishment, my real

 punishment is to-night, is now! [Still seated R.]

[Enter Lord Windermere L. U. E.]

LORD WIN. Have you said good-night to my wife? [Comes C.]
MRS. ERL. [Crushing letter in her hand.] Yes.
LORD WIN. Where is she?
MRS. ERL. She is very tired. She has gone to bed. She said she had
  a headache.
LORD WIN. I must go to her. You'll excuse me?
MRS. ERL. [Rising hurriedly.] Oh, no! It's nothing serious. She's
  only very tired, that is all. Besides, there are people still in
  the supper-room. She wants you to make her apologies to them.
  She said she didn't wish to be disturbed. [Drops letter.] She
  asked me to tell you.
LORD WIN. [Picks up letter.] You have dropped something.
MRS. ERL. Oh yes, thank you, that is mine. [Puts out her hand to
  take it.]
LORD WIN. [Still looking at letter.] But it's my wife's
  handwriting, isn't it?
MRS. ERL. [Takes letter quickly.] Yes, it's- an address. Will you
  ask them to call my carriage, please?
LORD WIN. Certainly.                        [Goes L. and exit.]
MRS. ERL. Thanks. What can I do? What can I do? I feel a passion
  awakening within me that I never felt before. What can it mean?
  The daughter must not be like the mother- that would be
  terrible. How can I save her? How can I save my child? A moment
  may ruin a life. Who knows that better than I? Windermere must
  be got out of the house; that is absolutely necessary. [Goes L.]

But how shall I do it? It must be done somehow. Ah!

[Enter Lord Augustus R. U. E. carrying bouquet.]

LORD AUG. Dear lady, I am in such suspense! May I not have an
  answer to my request?

 MRS. ERL. Lord Augustus, listen to me. You are to take Lord
Windermere down to the club at once, and keep him there as long
as possible. You understand?
LORD AUG. But you said you wished me to keep early hours!
MRS. ERL. [Nervously.] Do what I tell you. Do what I tell you.
LORD AUG. And my reward?
MRS. ERL. Your reward? Your reward? Oh! ask me that to-morrow. But
don’t let Windermere out of your sight to-night. If you do I
will never forgive you. I will never speak to you again. I’ll
have nothing to do with you. Remember you are to keep Windermere
at your club, and don’t let him come back to-night. [Exit L.]
LORD AUG. Well, really, I might be her husband already. Positively

I might. [Follows her in a bewildered manner.]

                  ACT-DROP

THIRD_ACT

THIRD ACT

   SCENE- Lord Darlington's Rooms. A large sofa is in front
 of fire-place R. At the back of the stage a curtain is
 drawn across the window. Doors L. and R. Table R. with
 writing materials. Table C. with syphons, glasses, and
 Tantalus frame. Table L. with cigar and cigarette box.

Lamps lit.

LADY WIN. [Standing by the fire-place.] Why doesn't he come? This
 waiting is horrible. He should be here. Why is he not here, to
 wake by passionate words some fire within me? I am cold- cold as
 a loveless thing. Arthur must have read my letter by this time.
 If he cared for me, he would have come after me, would have
 taken me back by force. But he doesn't care. He's entrammelled
 by this woman- fascinated by her- dominated by her. If a woman
 wants to hold a man, she has merely to appeal to what is worst
 in him. We make gods of men, and they leave us. Others make

 brutes of them and they fawn and are faithful. How hideous life
is!… Oh! it was mad of me to come here, horribly mad. And yet
which is the worst, I wonder, to be at the mercy of a man who
loves me, or the wife of a man who in one’s own house dishonours
one? What woman knows? What woman in the whole world? But will
he love me always, this man to whom I am giving my life? What do
I bring him? Lips that have lost the note of joy, eyes that are
blighted by tears, chill hands and icy heart. I bring him
nothing. I must go back- no: I can’t go back, my letter has put
me in their power- Arthur would not take me back! That fatal
letter! No! Lord Darlington leaves England to-morrow. I will go
with him- I have no choice. [Sits down for a few moments. Then
starts up and puts on her cloak.] No, no! I will go back, let
Arthur do with me what he pleases. I can’t wait here. It has
been madness my coming. I must go at once. As for Lord
Darlington- Oh! here he is! What shall I do? What can I say to
him? Will he let me go away at all? I have heard that men are

brutal, horrible…. Oh! [Hides her face in her hands.]

[Enters Mrs. Erlynne L.]

MRS. ERL. Lady Windermere! [Lady Windermere starts and looks up.
 Then recoils in contempt.] Thank Heaven I am in time. You must
 go back to your husband's house immediately.
LADY WIN. Must?
MRS. ERL. [Authoritatively.] Yes, you must! There is not a second
 to be lost. Lord Darlington may return at any moment.
LADY WIN. Don't come near me!
MRS. ERL. Oh! You are on the brink of ruin; you are on the brink of
 a hideous precipice. You must leave this place at once, my
 carriage is waiting at the corner of the street. You must come
 with me and drive straight home. [Lady Windermere throws off her
 cloak and flings it on the sofa.] What are you doing?
LADY WIN. Mrs. Erlynne- if you had not come here, I would have gone
 back. But now that I see you, I feel that nothing in the whole

 world would induce me to live under the same roof as Lord
Windermere. You fill me with horror. There is something about
you that stirs the wildest rage within me. And I know why you
are here. My husband sent you to lure me back that I might serve
as a blind to whatever relations exist between you and him.
MRS. ERL. Oh! You don’t think that- you can’t.
LADY WIN. Go back to my husband, Mrs. Erlynne. He belongs to you
and not to me. I suppose he is afraid of a scandal. Men are such
cowards. They outrage every law of the world, and are afraid of
the world’s tongue. But he had better prepare himself. He shall
have a scandal. He shall have the worst scandal there has been
in London for years. He shall see his name in every vile paper,
mine on every hideous placard.
MRS. ERL. No- no-
LADY WIN. Yes! he shall. Had he come himself, I admit I would have
gone back to the life of degradation you and he had prepared for
me- I was going back- but to stay himself at home, and to send
you as his messenger- oh! it was infamous- infamous.
MRS. ERL. [C.] Lady Windermere, you wrong me horribly- you wrong
your husband horribly. He doesn’t know you are here- he thinks
you are safe in your own house. He thinks you are asleep in your
own room. He never read the mad letter you wrote to him.
LADY WIN. [R.] Never read it!
MRS. ERL. No- he knows nothing about it.
LADY WIN. How simple you think me! [Going to her.] You are lying to
me!
MRS. ERL. [Restraining herself.] I am not. I am telling you the
truth.
LADY WIN. If my husband