'This is Liberty Hill, a small town,
..where streets are named for trees and heroes and a sense of life's continuity runs in the air. '
'Like a hundred other such towns it puts a special stamp on its own. '
'People born and raised here, high and low, rich and poor, are neighbours in an irrevocable way. '
'They have all been exposed at a tender, malleable age...
..to the impartial justice, inflexible regulations...
.. and the grey, calm, neutral eyes of the same teacher - the Terrible Miss Dove. '
Good morning, Miss Dove. Mr Porter. What are you using on your lilies?
Sulphate of ammonia - the best fertilizer. Except for lilies.
Particularly for lilies. They will perish.
There she goes, Jincey - 8.15 on the dot!
I wish Little Whosit would copy Miss Dove's sense of time.
Who could stand it? Imagine burping a baby that resembled Miss Dove!
Seventeen minutes past eight. Eat up. Miss Dove just went by.
You don't want to be tardy. Oh, puke! The oatmeal stinks.
Excuse yourself and get to school! Yes, sir. Excuse me.
Go on!
Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, Mr Levine. Morrie is coming home to visit. He will want to see his old teacher.
I shall be happy to see Maurice.
Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, William.
Bobsie! Mark, how's that left foot?
OK. Peggie, how's my best girl? Fine. Well, what a pretty pink dress.
It's orange, Mr Spivey. My mother made it.
She did?
Isn't he cute with the small fry? He oughtta have oodles of his own.
It's a shame such a family man never married.
Good morning, Miss Dove. John, send me a fast one!
Nice try, Mr Spivey. Let me caddy for you. Please don't bother, Miss Elwood.
Spring's in the air. Baseball games, state proficiency tests coming up...
Is Cedar Grove going for the geography pennant again? The children will try hard.
The results will reflect credit on all concerned.
I heard what you said about spring.
It makes you want to do something mad! Whooh!
Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, Perry. Good morning, Miss Dove.
Good morning, Terry. Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, Robert.
Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, Mark. I forgot my handkerchief.
First things first, Harrison. Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, Harrison. You may take a tissue from my desk.
Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, Margaret. Good morning, Miss Dove.
Attention, please.
The lesson will begin.
We will continue with our study of the dietary habits of animals.
"Bears like honey. They are also fond of red ants which have a flavour similar to that of pickles. "
Robert!
You know what to do, Robert.
You may return to your desk, Robert.
We will resume.
"The camel is not a pretty beast, but he can go days without water. "
Margaret, you will now occupy the posture correction stool.
We will resume.
You better tank up!
"The camel is not a pretty beast, but he can go days without water. "
Who's afraid of that old... stick?
Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, David.
The state proficiency tests will be held next Monday.
I think it would be advisable to utilise this period for review.
No, David. You had ample opportunity to quench your thirst before class.
Take out your books, please.
I advise that you memorise the agriculture of the Argentine pampas.
'That's strange. A sharp pain. '
'Probably a muscular spasm. '
'If I tranquillize my mind it will pass. '
'I will think about the Alps - white, clean, rising above Lake Lucerne. '
Come back, Victoria.
Hellfire and damnation!
You will remain after class, David.
Yes, Miss Dove.
Open your notebook to a blank page.
You will copy that sentence 2 times.
You will copy that sentence 20 times. Before lunch?
By the time you have finished, the cafeteria will still be open.
David...
Yes, Miss Dove?
Is your father likely to be home? But I'm doing the sentences.
Answer my question. Your father, does he come home for lunch?
Yes, Miss Dove. Daddy's home.
I am indisposed, David.
I... I am ill.
Will you go and tell your father? Ask him to call young Dr Hurley.
Mention this to no-one.
David, do not loiter.
Run.
I'll take a short cut through where the old bank used to be!
'"Where the old bank used to be. "'
Hello there! Home from school?
Good afternoon, Mrs Aldrich. I returned today. Welcome home. Nice to see you.
Thank you, Dr Hurley, nice to see you. How is young Dr Hurley? He celebrated his 45th birthday yesterday.
Look at her, John. Hasn't she something that sets her apart?
It's like the difference between fine porcelain and ordinary ware.
That school should've given her something, it cost enough. Not as much as it cost your father to send you to Harrow and Oxford.
Quality can't be purchased.
Whatever that girl becomes is certain to be remarkable.
As her father, you're biased - but you may be right.
Welcome home. Thank you, sir. It's pleasant to see you, Mr Porter.
The feeling is mutual. I hope Mrs Porter is well. Yes. She told me to find out when you both can come to dinner.
Then again, I expect you met some dashing young men while away. I met one I liked very much.
What's that? He's an archaeology major at Princeton.
Tell me later. I have a surprise.
From my London dealer, that elusive edition of Marco Polo's travels.
Oh, I know how happy you are. But you haven't opened it. So I could share it with you tonight
Let's go. Dinner can be early. May we give you a ride?
No, I have things to attend to - it's the first of the month. While you're about it, send a draft for the book - $200.
If they'd only known - I was ready to go to five!
$200!
From 13th C Venice to Old Cathay, what a time to have lived!
Next year, I've decided, we'll make the grandest of grand tours.
I'll show you every corner of the world.
Last summer, Mr Pendleton rode a bicycle through Greece. Who's Mr Pendleton?
Papa, you never listen.
He's the young man from Princeton I told you of.
Oh, yes, the archaeologist.
His name is Welford Banning Pendleton III.
Lovely, my dear.
Mr Pendleton wrote me a letter.
He asked leave to visit me this summer, here in Liberty Hill.
Papa!
Henry! Henry!
Call Dr Hurley! Something's happened to my...
It's too late for Dr Hurley, Miss Dove.
Miss Dove is here.
Have her come in, please.
Thank you for coming. Won't you please sit down?
What I must tell you is as painful to me as it will be for you.
I should like to have put it off...
Tell me, Mr Porter.
Your father availed himself of the bank's assets without first observing the conventional forms.
He stole? Are you saying that my father stole?
Let us say he "borrowed".
How much, Mr Porter?
$11,430 to be exact - in dribbles, here and there.
No more than he could have hoped to return one day. $11,430!
This must be repaid, at once.
By whom? By me, of course. There's the house, the rare editions, the paintings.
Their disposal will more than cover my father's... indebtedness.
It won't be as simple as that. I've been going over his books.
The house, everything, is mortgaged to the hilt.
Your father was one of my closest friends. Were I able, I would happily cover this "indebtedness"...
.. before there is any scandal. Scandal? There must be no scandal!
I don't see how it can be avoided.
Can't the bank make over to me this deficit as a personal loan?
But how could you repay it?
I shall secure employment.
A position. A teaching position.
A teaching position? My dear child, what are you prepared to teach?
I know a great deal about the world.
I cannot imagine a young lady who knows less.
I should have been more explicit. Not the world, the Earth.
I have read my father's books. I could find my way through Carthage.
I can point out on a map of Iowa the best cornfields.
I know every turn of the Nile and eddy of the Mississippi.
I'm not even certain that I couldn't locate the Northwest Passage.
I am superbly qualified to teach geography, and I will teach it.
There will be no scandal.
I will repay my father's debt.
You are president of this bank. You can arrange a personal loan.
I'll try, as you're so determined, but I can't guarantee anything.
Thank you. Meanwhile, I will make my application to the school board.
Good morning, Mr Porter.
Is there anything you wish, Mr Porter? Yes. Get me the Superintendent of Schools.
Yes, sir.
"Dear Mr Pendleton...
"..The news that you have been awarded a fellowship...
".. by the Carnegie Foundation...
".. is most gratifying.
"Much to my regret,...
"..the death of my father...
"..will prevent my receiving you...
"..this summer. "
Mail, Mr Pembleton.
Oh, thank you, Ames.
I... I took the liberty...
I had to express my sympathy in person. Please come in, Mr Pendleton.
Now that I'm here, there's so little I can say that... You've said it very well, Mr Pendleton.
Please sit down.
Welford is an awful name, but must you call me Mr Pendleton?
My friends call me Woof.
I don't suppose you'd care to?
No, but I should like to call you Welford.
Thank you.
What does the Carnegie Fellowship mean, Welford?
A year in Tibet with the Archer expedition. Tibet? You'll see the Himalayas.
We'll sail down the Brahmaputra, then Lhasa... Lhasa... One of the oldest cities in the history of men.
On to Shigatse and the sacred lakes. Wait! I know their names.
Manasarowar... and Rakas Tal.
Yes! Then along the ancient route to Kashmir and the Tarim Basin.
Oh, Mr Pendleton,... Welford,...
.. how I envy you.
I don't want you to envy me,...
.. I want you to come with me.
Come with you? From the moment we met at Miss Kingsley's weekly tea,...
.. I felt that our friendship might ripen into something warmer.
Remember, we left the others and strolled along the river? We sat on a marble bench and you described the misty isles of Greece.
We like the same things.
Yes, we do.
My assets are not impressive.
I have a $1,500 grant and $5,000 my grandmother left me.
But, in all modesty, I feel I have a future in my chosen field.
A bright future, Welford. An exciting future.
Share it with me. Marry me. Marry me tomorrow. Today.
Let it ring. Oh, it will only keep on ringing. I'll be but a moment.
Hello?
Oh... Good afternoon, Mr Porter.
Everything's... been arranged?
Yes, I am...fortunate indeed.
Will you thank the Superintendent of Schools? And thank you, Mr Porter.
Goodbye.
Well?
I am afraid, Welford, that we have been premature.
We've let ourselves be carried away by the spell of far-off places.
We have placed too much importance on similar interests.
But I'm asking you to marry me.
I'm sorry, Welford, but...
.. my future is here in Liberty Hill.
There is someone else? There is something else.
I, too, am about to embark on a career.
Please wish me success in mine, as I do you in yours.
I...
Good afternoon, Welford.
It was kind of you to come.
I will always be honoured by your proposal.
David said you needed help, Miss Dove, so I brought Tommy. I requested young Dr Hurley.
David told us that, but Dr Hurley is ill with his bronchitis.
The immoderate use of tobacco. An enslaving habit when formed young.
Dr Hurley is out of circulation.
I was at Sandy's when David came.
Thomas has had excellent training. I know. It's only that...
I see your point, Miss Dove.
To ask for a seasoned medical man and get me is like...
.. being sent Boy Scouts when one requested the militia. Frankly, yes, Thomas.
Since you were kind enough to come, I shall be glad of your opinion.
My symptoms are a pain at the base of my spine, sharp and spasmodic,...
..a numbness in my right limb.
That so? Was it bad?
Yes.
An absence of sensation in your leg?
My limb has gone to sleep. As soon as I move...
That's what I can't allow.
Did I understand you to say "can't allow"? That's right.
What is your diagnosis?
I haven't one yet. We have to get you to the hospital now. That is quite unnecessary. Young Dr Hurley...
.. is flat on his back. It is quite necessary. Next week, perhaps. I cannot be spared. The state...
Not next week, not tomorrow. Right away, now.
The fifth grade is weak on...
I'm afraid the decision is not yours, Miss Dove.
Yes, Thomas.
My hat, please. My gloves and my bag. They are in the closet.
I'll fetch them.
I always admired that watch. Remember? Perfectly.
I await your convenience, gentlemen.
Now... if you'll just lean forward...this way.
Support yourself on the desk.
Now, Sandy.
Sit down, put your arms around our necks...
That's right. There we are.
You may go, David.
Yes, Miss Dove!
Spine straight. Don't wobble about. It is not my custom to wobble. Low bridge. Forward march.
David, pick up my things. Yes, sir.
Watch the steps.
I'm afraid the car might jolt her. We'll have to carry her.
Can you make it? I am only three months your senior. What about Miss Dove? She must keep her spine rigid.
I am neither absent nor deaf. I am in command of my faculties.
I dislike being discussed in the third person. Our apologies. Do you object?
I defer to you.
You have defined my responsibility. I shall keep my spine rigid. Good.
Is she bad off? It's under control.
Scoot over to the hospital and tell them I want a private room. Yes, sir!
As I predicted.
What did you say? Nothing, Alexander. I am not one to gloat over an empty triumph.
Spine rigid. We're almost there.
Miss Dove'll be all right.
But it's only frightening.
Regrettable circumstances, but we are honoured. Thank you, Mr Fruitt. I'll get a "special" tonight.
A "practical" is all I have now. Mrs Green's one of our best.
I try to be. Now what, Thomas? Mrs Green knows. Keep her quiet.
I certainly will, Dr Baker. I look in on you later, Miss Dove. We're just gonna relax and we're gonna have a good time.
I'd better get you to your room. That would seem advisable.
We'll take off our clothes, then we'll feel more comfy.
The pronoun we is misleading, unless you plan to take off your clothes.
Oh!
Don't you remember me? Billie Jean McVeigh.
Yes, Mrs Green, I remember you well.
I'm older now.
If you please, I am not totally incapacitated.
You are not to exert yourself.
Do you want me to tell Dr Baker that you are a naughty girl?
Something for after the bath to keep our skin soft... Uh, your skin.
Know what this reminds me of?
No, Mrs Green. The talcum you gave me for Christmas in third grade. Second. I gave thimbles in third.
Mine had a picture of lilacs on it. I was some proud.
You said, "This is to use after you wash your neck. "
I intended no reflection upon you. I say that to all little girls.
I didn't take it personal, but I took it to heart.
I tell my little Ava that. She's crazy about my Country Garden.
If she begs for it, I say, "First you wash yourself good. "
Well. Yes, that's what I say.
What is my temperature? That's confidential. You wouldn't understand - it's in centigrade or something.
It is neither in centigrade nor in something. It is Fahrenheit.
Gee, thanks. I'll remember that.
My question was indiscreet.
Oh, no. All patients are snoopy, but, you know, rules.
Yes, Mrs Green, I know rules.
I'll stop yakking so you can take a nice little nap.
That Country Garden perfume, a gentlemen friend I was seeing until a month ago gave it to me.
He said it smelled real refined.
I was happy in his company. Seemed mutual but it came to a dead end.
I've been a widow for five lonely years, as you've heard.
I do not recall... Remember when I went to Detroit to work in factory?
Out there, I met Mr Green. He passed away... shortly after.
Hmm... When I spoke of being older, you see what I mean.
Your life must be full. You have your work and your child.
Yeah.
You know Bill Holloway. Officer Holloway, I should say.
William was one of my pupils.
I thought you might like to know how he admires you.
You're his idea of real genteel.
I value William's opinion.
Funny how he ended up the type he is.
Why do you say that? Thinking about how he started out.
Raised by his old grandmother - you know what she was - in a leaky shack by the gasworks.
William started out with a gift rarer than mathematical genius or perfect pitch.
A child in whom the ethical instinct was as innate as breathing.
Anyone who'd tell him that could drive a truck between his ears!
There is no point in apprising him.
He knows what he is. He always knew.
The last desk in the third row. Thank you.
Good morning. Our little Jackie.
Good morning, Jacqueline. I wanna go home! Her daddy all over again!
S-W-E-E-T when she wants to be, B-A-D when she doesn't. I will conduct you to your desk. Good morning, Mrs Wood.
Well, Miss Dove, if at first we don't succeed...
Good morning, Frederick.
Where'd they come from? Pepperdine's Market. But we weren't in... He picked them up as we passed - for you.
I'll pay on the way back.
Thank you, but do not make a habit of bringing me gifts.
Miss Dove doesn't want any more apples
You may take your desk from last year
It isn't that he's backward, but give him your special attention.
All my pupils receive my special attention.
Is that child entering Cedar Grove? Keep Freddie away from him.
Oh, I believe in democracy, but I don't want him to catch anything. Seating arrangements are alphabetical
But it's that Holloway child! You know his background. His grandmother...
I am not interested in my pupils' backgrounds, only in their character.
Good morning, I am Miss Dove.
I know your last name is Holloway, but I do not know your first name.
It's Bill. Can I come to school?
Most certainly, William.
This is your desk.
Good morning.
Ain't that coffee done, Billy?
I'm getting it for you now, Grandma.
It'll be a cold day when Kelly's cheap joint sees me again!
Insulting me in public just because I owe him a few lousy bucks.
Then threatening to call the cops because I gve him a piece of my mind.
I bet you could hear me in the next county!
Where'd you get that? Mrs Schultz paid me for an errand.
Ain't she got a nerve, considering we don't speak?!
Goodbye, Grandma. Where you rushing to?
If you can run errands for old lady Schultz, you can do a nice little job for me.
No, I'll be late. Don't stir. Take them beer bottles in the yard and dump them.
This is the day that nosy dame from the relief comes snooping around.
Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, William.
Attention, please.
Your lunch, William.
Thank you, Miss Dove. Drink all your milk, William.
Your work is most satisfactory.
William Holloway!
Your certificate of graduation... and the Good Attendance Medal.
This young man has a record unique in the annals of Cedar Grove.
He has not been absent one day in six years of elementary schooling.
My felicitations, William.
I came to thank you for my graduation suit.
It was my pleasure.
Well, I guess I better be going.
I shall watch where you go with interest. I have faith in you.
It was always so clean in here.
Like this was where I really lived.
That's why I never missed a day.
Goodbye, Miss Dove.
Goodbye, William.
'I do not worry about him. He will find his way. '
Poor Annie. Wonder if she ever knew it was a beer truck that hit her.
William...
May I offer my expressions of sympathy?
Thank you, Miss Dove.
She did the best she could.
She didn't have my opportunities.
Her troubles are over.
Will you be riding with me?
Yeah.
I should like to accompany you, if you wish.
Thank you, Miss Dove.
'"William Holloway, Private First Class". '
"Corporal William Holloway". Hmm. '
Hmm! Sergeant William Holloway.
Thank you, Mr O'Neil.
These sure are... They're delicious, Miss Dove. What's in them?
Only bread and butter, William. When did you return? On the 3.45.
I made a beeline straight from the station to see you.
I need your advice. I am honoured. Tomorrow, I'm out of the Marines.
What if I use my GI educational allowance for living expenses and finished school?
I should approve. And then what, William? This'll throw you... surprise you.
The field of law enforcement -
.. I'd like to be a good cop, I mean, police officer.
A worthy ambition. I shall continue to follow your career with interest.
Thank you, Miss Dove.
Miss Dove... Miss Dove?
Here's Dr Temple, Miss Dove.
I'm Dr Baker's house officer.
You may report to Dr Baker that I'm comfortable. Good. That makes my task easier.
Your task? I'm to take your history. I'll wait in the hall.
That will be quite unnecessary. Oh, it's custom.
We have your childhood records so we can get down to the immediate.
Do you suffer from headaches? No, Dr Temple. Respiratory infections? No. Nor am I prone to common colds.
Any allergies? None. I consider them affectations.
Any family history of epilepsy, night blindness or melancholy? Certainly not.
What about your emotional life?
I beg your pardon?
Well,... Iove. Any feelings of frustration, inadequacy?
I have never felt inadequate.
Suppose we call your emotional life satisfactory?
That will be correct. Are you subject to fantasy?
Does the world around you ever assume an aura of unreality?
Yes, Dr Temple. Could you say approximately when?
I can say definitely. Since around noon today.
Oh...
Thank you, Miss Dove.
Dr Baker will be in later, of course.
We're really old friends. I feel I've known you all my life.
You've known me? I'm Adams Temple. My mother was a Liberty Hill girl. Angela Adams. I should have known.
Mother moved to Maine when she was 14, but she remembers you.
I remember her. She, too, had an enquiring mind.
Still has. She boasts that she's the only kid who ever asked you a question you couldn't answer.
Indeed? She says it was in first or second grade.
You were reading a book on animals.
It said bears were fond of red ants, which taste similar to pickles.
Mother asked you how the man who wrote the book knew how ants tasted.
Did he eat an ant or did a bear tell him?
I recall the incident. I'm writing her tonight. She'll get a wallop out of this.
If there's anything I can do, just buzz.
One moment, Dr Temple. You want Dr Temple? Yes. To ask him a few questions.
He told me nothing of my physical condition.
He couldn't. You're Dr Baker's patient.
Then what is it that Dr Baker suspects?
He'll tell you.
I see no occasion for mystery. Don't try to see. Let us do the thinking.
You, Thomas Baker and Angela Adams's son will think for me?
Sure. We're experienced. Oh, look. Your first flowers.
Bill... Officer Holloway left it at the desk.
It is beautiful.
Good afternoon, Virginia. I didn't know you'd been admitted. I haven't. I came to see you. How are you?
Comfortable. And you?
The suspense is killing me.
If nothing's happened by this week, Dr Tillet's giving Nature a nudge.
He says keep walking - I'd better. If Tommy knew I was here he'd have a fit.
I just came to wish you good luck. And to you, Virginia.
Thank you.
I'll keep my fingers crossed for us.
I know you'll take care of her. I sure will.
I used to think she was the snootiest, dumbest brat here.
She's really a good kid.
In marriage and maternity, she has found her vocation,...
.. achieved her destiny.
'A year ago, I was not quite so hopeful. '
~ Dear old Cedar Grove, to thee
~ We pledge our love and loyalty
~ And though peril may beset us
~ On life's tempestuous sea
~ Your spirit still will guide us
~ To shore and victory. ~
It seems only yesterday we marched down that aisle. You too, Jincey.
Come on.
The final innings.
Let's not be downhearted. There's always new rookies coming up to bat.
'For six years, I pruned and polished them. '
'I tried to blow into them the breath of purpose. I do not wish them back. '
'I wish only to believe that they will do well without me. '
Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, Virginia.
This was my place.
You may sit there now, Virginia.
The room is different.
Empty...
Like life.
Is that the same map? Is China still orange?
It is a new map. China is purple - cartographically, of course.
I liked the old map. I liked the old world.
I felt secure in this room.
I felt that if I obeyed the law, sneezed in my handkerchief, raised my hand for permission to speak...
..that that was my oyster, that nothing could go wrong.
At first it worked. Even flunking out of university seemed like fate.
I won that talent contest and got a job in New York singing commercials.
Oh, Miss Dove, tell me what to do.
Do your duty. How, when your world has ended?
You are 19. What difference does that make?
You need to know how it was.
I met him at the Stork Club, I'd been in New York a week.
He spoke to the waiter in French.
He was everything that the papers said he was when we were engaged.
Yale, a yacht, and the skyon of a prominent family.
The word is scion. The "c" is silent.
Well, he looked like what he was. Most sky... scions don't.
Every night it was the Stork Club and El Morocco and Twenty-One.
Champagne and steaks. Did you ever drink champagne?
No.
It's like cider, but the effect is different.
And the compliments he paid my hair, my eyes and my figure.
I'm embarrassed to repeat them.
Reticence, Virginia, is the sine qua non of gentility.
Anyhow, I came home to Liberty Hill to prepare for my wedding.
I wanted to be married here so all my friends could come.
I was modelling my wedding dress when someone turned on the radio...
.. and then everything went black!
The next day I got a telegram - "Gorgeous, only you can understand".
Could you?
No. I still can't! Can you?
Certainly. Have you a handkerchief, Virginia?
My heart's broken, Miss Dove.
A broken heart is cumbersome baggage.
What can I do?
I am not undecided as to how you should be answered, but I am not convinced this is my province.
Oh, tell me, Miss Dove.
Very well. First, return to your sister's house,...
..fall on your knees and give thanks to your Heavenly Father.
For what? Preserving you from a fate worse than death.
Evidently, the young man to whom you gave your affections discovered his feelings for you had altered.
He had an honourable avenue of escape
He could have requested you to release him.
Instead, he proved himself a coward and a person of low principles.
I thought there was something wrong with me. Your fault lay in rashness of judgement. His lay in dishonour.
After thanking the Power that kept you from a disastrous alliance,...
.. consider your duty to your neighbour and yourself. Find an occupation.
Do you think I could teach? Decidedly not, but there are other ways to serve.
I might be a nurse.
You might.
Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, Thomas.
I thought I'd drop by.
Jincey, I didn't expect to find you here. Holy mackerel, you're grown!
You've done a mighty neat job of it.
Thank you.
The last time I saw her was before med school, she was graduating.
She shot my brother with a squirt gun in the... Virginia cannot enjoy being reminded. It's cute of Tommy to remember.
Does this room look different? Yes. Considerably.
The hospital must keep you busy.
It calls me now. My car's outside if I can take you someplace?
Oh, wonderful! Goodbye, Miss Dove, and thank you.
I'll think about my nursing career. Maybe Tommy can advise me.
I'll advise her very carefully.
'I am 54. '
'I won't have to retire until 67. '
'If they don't tarry, and from all indications they won't,...
.. I could take their first child straight through to graduation. '
'That child will need me. '
Oh, I'd better get you ready.
For what? For night duty - you have a special ordered.
Those dames love to throw their weight around with us practicals.
The least thing and they squawk downstairs.
A small town is not my cup of tea.
But my sister lives here and I needed a rest.
I only took your case as a favour to the superintendent.
I'm interested in nursing theory.
My training is wasted on the daily routine of the bedside.
Not very uplifting,...
.. but Mrs Green thought when you woke up you might want to read.
Everybody to his own taste.
Can you think of an eight-letter word meaning a rare, endearing quality?
I can. Humility.
Let's see. H-U...
You're 100% right!
She always is.
The latest operating wear. Did you think I'd forgotten you?
No, Thomas.
I dropped by to see you're being well-treated. Any complaints?
I am not pleased with this secrecy. I should like to ask some questions.
I'm not sure I can answer them.
What do you surmise? I don't "surmise". Tomorrow we'll do extensive tests.
By Wednesday I should know more.
Until then, you must assume the virtue of docility.
Yes, Thomas.
We're all sorry Miss Dove is in the hospital, but we won't let her down.
We'll go on with our geography. I will take her place.
Our quarterback was injured so I'll sub for her.
I'll call the plays she'd call.
I don't know these plays like you so when I'm offsides, let me know.
OK!
We're all pitching together.
Yes!
Nice of you to drop in - I was only admitted two hours ago!
I know, but I've been pretty busy. Don't let me detain you!
My physician will keep you informed.
I know, that's why I can put you out of my mind. Tommy Baker, of all the callous...
Have you forgotten that I'm here to have a baby? Our first baby!
I've thought of it all morning -
.. I'm the luckiest guy in the world but by what a narrow squeak -
and how much she had to do with it. Who?
The Terrible Miss Dove.
Without her, there'd have been no Thomas Baker and family.
What did she have to do with it?
In the South Pacific, after my ship was bombed,...
.. I floated for days on a raft. No food. No water.
She was there with me all the time.
Giving me the same fishy stare she gave me in class when I needed water
To make my supply last, I pretended I was in Cedar Grove.
When the water was gone, I'd think, "The bell will ring soon. You can last a little longer. "
Well, I lasted. They picked me up and gave me a medal.
She rated that medal.
Is anything awful the matter with Miss Dove?
I'm due back now for more tests. We won't know till tomorrow.
Don't worry about me, Tommy. I'll look after Little Whosit.
Tomorrow we'll talk. Put all this out of your mind.
Thomas... Now, we mustn't worry about tomorrow
Goodness, it's a regular greenhouse.
I am deeply appreciative, but there are far too many.
Restraint is the better part of beauty.
I will keep the white azalea. Dispose of the others.
But what'll I do with them?
The less fortunate patients would enjoy them. Shall I take them around the wards?
Please do.
I went up and down the halls giving cheer where it was needed.
I saved the cards. If you'd like me to write the thank-you notes...
That would be obliging.
Will you dictate? No, use your own discretion. Only avoid the fulsome.
I was gonna say the same thing to everyone. What do you think...?
"Dear Mr Porter,...
"..At the request of Miss Dove,...
".. I am advising you... that she is thrilled to death...
".. by your florial offering. "
"The sympathy of friends...
".. brings sunshine to lonely shut-ins. "
"I remain graciously yours,...
".. Billie Jean Green, RPN. "
What does RPN stand for?
Registered Practical Nurse - I made that up. How's the letter?
It is very...very genteel.
Oh, gee! Honest, Miss Dove?
You know, Miss Dove, I'm not really Mrs Green.
I took the name for Ava's sake.
I was way out there in Detroit.
Virtue knows no frontiers.
I was on the night shift. I'd never been anywhere before.
You remember how I wasn't very mature.
All the fellows wanted to date me. It went to my head.
There was one - I didn't know he was married - he was wonderful.
Before I knew it...
There is no need to elaborate.
He was good-looking and big, and I was so homesick.
You know how it is. I do not.
But I know that right is right and wrong is wrong.
Well, to make a long story short, little Ava came...
..way out there in Detroit.
I could have given her up for adoption, a couple offered $4,000,..
.. but, well,...
..she was mine.
Besides, how did I know strangers would raise her right?
Anyway, I brought her home and told that tale about my husband dying.
Why did you confide in me?
Because of what you said about the letter.
I'm not nearly as genteel as you think.
I couldn't deceive you or Bill.
William Holloway? He was the one who gave me the Country Garden perfume.
You and... and William Holloway?
When he bought me an engagement ring, it just all came out.
He's like you, a person you tell the truth to.
That's what stopped me just then.
He said your very words.
"Right is right. Wrong is wrong. "
He wanted me to keep the ring... as a gift.
I handed it right back.
Let him keep it for somebody more...fitting.
Well, it knocked me for a loop I won't ever recover from.
I guess I'm one of those that have to learn the hard way.
Just about time for Her Nibs...
Your special, I meant to say.
From the third grade. It's Cedar Grove!
The work is laudably neat. Place it on the dresser.
Isn't it sweet? When may we expect Dr Baker?
Now, we're not to worry. No news is good news.
Miss Dove's room, Mrs Green speaking.
Who? I will enquire.
Two out-of-towners would like to visit - one telephoned, the other's in the lobby.
Who are they? One is Mr Maurice Levine, the famous New York playwright.
The other is Fred Makepeace. I suppose you know where he resides. They are former pupils. I shall be glad to see them both.
Miss Dove will see them. Both.
What? Hmm!
Mr Makepeace was so sure of his welcome he's on his way up.
I don't hold with giving a dog a bad name, but I take no chances.
Morning, Miss Dove! How ya doin'?
I'm not over the hill, on the lam, or anything.
When I read you were sick, I said to my gang boss,
"The only teacher that learned me anything is sick. I want a day off. "
And he gave you leave? "Why sure, Fred, " he says, "I can trust you. "
I am gratified to hear that.
Maurice Levine. Come right in. How are you, darl... Miss Dove?
Quite comfortable, Maurice. These are for you. How very thoughtful. Recall the face, Rab?
Fred Makepeace!
Your fan, kid! Do I swell up when I hear you mentioned by Ed Sullivan and read it in all them papers!
Thanks, Fred. I lay it on with guys at the joint.
You made it. When I hear some commie jerk belittling this country,...
.. I say, "Look up my pal Rab Levine. Ask him if the USA isn't still the land of opportunity! "
The best. But I also found the Terrible Miss Dove.
Miss Dove, this is Maurice Levine.
I am glad to know you, Maurice. He's 11. His credentials from school in Poland would place him in 5th grade.
But he knows no English, so I'll place him in first for now.
I shall seat him in the L-section.
Thank you, Miss Dove.
The class will begin.
"The tiger belongs to the cat family. Cats are noted for cleanliness. "
Maurice,...
..this is a tiger.
T-I-G-E-R.
.. punct wie mein mama's alte katz.
Thank you, Maurice. I am sure that was most interesting.
When Maurice knows our language we will ask him to repeat it.
POLISH ACCENT "Old Mrs Rabbit vas a vidow. She made a living by knitting mittens. "
"She also sold herbs and rosemary tea and rabbit tobacco, vich we call lavender. "
"Ven no one vas looking, she would smoke a rabbit cigar. "
I have no recollection of Mrs Rabbit indulging in any such vice.
Is that on the page? No, but it seemed funny to me.
Adhere to the text. Continue.
Yes, Miss Dove. "She had four children - Flopsy, Mopsy,... "
Here comes that new kid!
Sicki wizicki boo! Sicki wizicki boo! Come on, gang!
Fred! Tom... What's up, Tommy?
Let him alone. He didn't do nothing. Come on, it's just for the ducks.
Sicki wizicki boo!
Good morning, boys. Good morning, Miss Dove.
Good morning, Maurice.
Good morning, Miss Dove.
I am slightly encumbered this morning.
Would you mind carrying my books?
ALL Good morning, Miss Dove. Good morning, boys.
In this season, people consider the country of Palestine - the original home of the Jews -
..a country we hear much about in church, but of whose children we know very little.
To study a people and their customs is valuable.
But to know a people and their ways is a privilege seldom attained, without the luxury of travel.
The fifth grade is rarely privileged.
Your parents permit me to take you to a traditional Jewish feast.
Mr and Mrs Levine have graciously invited you.
We're going to Rab Levine's house? We are visiting Maurice's parents.
May I ask, Alexander, why you refer to Maurice as "Rab"?
We all call him that.
It's short for Rabbi.
Maurice has progressed while he has been here, but not to that extent.
Rabbi means teacher.
It was so that Jesus was addressed by the multitudes.
This is a swell party.
Hey, he ate 17 of those... you know, like dumplings, only better. Matzo balls! I bring more.
For me, too!
A most successful evening.
I feel much has been accomplished.
I have neglected to thank you for the privilege of attending the opening of your new play.
Why didn't you come backstage?
I took the night plane. It was imperative I be in class the next day
Boy! Old Rab's name up there in lights. I bet you was...were proud.
As Maurice's former teacher, I was gratified by his success. Owch! You didn't like my play?
I am not a critic,...
but with more than 300,000 words at your disposal in any dictionary,...
.. it did not seem necessary to allow your characters expressions that were inelegant,...
.. often profane and - unless I misinterpreted their meaning - occasionally improper.
Next time, I'll try to be more... meticulous? Discriminating. Yes, Miss Dove.
What gives, Fred?
You don't get the "Courier". I'm on the roads. Acting? Mostly digging with a pickaxe.
You seem fit and happy. Sure. Plenty of exercise, plain food, 12 hours' sleep each night.
Frederick is paying his debt to society. Oh, I see. No big caper, Rab. I got in a jam,..
.. and if I hadn't borrowed this convertible and wrecked it... Life can be rugged.
They would have let me off with a fine and an SS - suspended sentence
.. but I didn't have the dough and probation makes me nervous.
I can imagine. Ties you down. So I decided to do the stretch.
I only got 6 months left. How come you're on the loose?
Frederick has parole today, on his own recognizance.
Then you're free for lunch. As a bird! Sandy and I are meeting at the Club.
The Club? Oh, am I living!
Sorry to intrude, but it's official.
Officer Holloway begs to intrude.
Come in, William. Miss Dove, I hope you're improved. I appreciate your concern.
Excuse me, but if you don't need me, I'd enjoy a breath of fresh air.
Hiya, Bill! Look who's here - Rab!
How are you? Say, you're looking sharp.
Don't he? Once a Marine, always a Marine.
Say, Rab, Sandy and me are having lunch together. Class reunion.
You'll have to postpone it. There's conflicting business.
Is it urgent? Why not join us? Cops eat, too!
A most practical suggestion.
You can discuss business with Fred as you drive him to his habitation.
You think it's a good idea? Yes. It will eliminate Frederick's need to seek other transportation.
Yes, Miss Dove. Phew! As usual, right on the beam, Miss Dove.
Would you go for a steak? With lobster on the side.
Goodbye, doll. Thanks for the works.
Goodbye, Maurice. Be seeing you, Miss Dove.
Hey, look at me, I almost forgot.
From the joint - homegrown, hand-picked, by me.
Then, thank you, Frederick.
William, ask the floor nurse to send Billie Jean to me.
Hey! Yes, Miss Dove. I remember! Billie Jean McVeigh!
You mean she's now a nurse? An excellent nurse, Frederick. Kind, courteous, efficient, genteel.
I have been most fortunate. Yeah, sure.
Gee! Dr Baker will be here soon.
I want things to look fine. I'll go out and get some fresh water.
"Patient is a slender, normally- developed female, aged 55, showing few of the usual senile changes,...
"lying quietly in bed, in no apparent distress. Alert and collected. "
I'm surprised. I trusted you.
I am guilty but unrepentant.
What I read has restored my sense of personal identity.
You listen to me. A chair for Mr Porter. I'm here to represent Rotary.
Indeed? The Rotary Club has voted to assume full financial responsibility.
Wherever you have this operation - Mayo's, John Hopkins - Rotary is behind you. And if I decline this offer?
Why decline it?
Who gave you this right to walk the world with this haughty spirit?
Dear sir, please adopt a civil tone.
I am not to be bullied. You talk of bullying!
She's a stiff-necked termagant.
How my pride has suffered. Seeing my best friend's daughter penniless,
..working for her bread, wearing outlandish clothes... Please, Mr Porter. You forget yourself.
I forget nothing. I made you a very civil offer once. Exactly 15 years ago.
I was a widower. Rich, but lonely.
She was an old maid. Lonely too, but far from rich. The offer was generous, but nonetheless ridiculous.
I shall ignore that final insult.
It cannot erase the memory that once, consciously or unconsciously,
..you did something which was to put me forever in your debt.
Fifty,...two hundred... fifty,...three hundred...
I don't see how Porter lasted.
My brother was out of...
..town and lost his last dollar.
I put it in only yesterday. He's run out of cash. I told you so.
Excuse me. I wish to make a deposit.
Excuse me.
Ed, we're friends. If you can wait.. Friends, nothing. I'm withdrawing every penny of my 6,572 bucks.
Your transaction will take time, Mr Prouty, while mine will be brief.
If you would extend me the courtesy. Are you nuts? Thank you.
Good afternoon, Mr Porter. Good afternoon. Good afternoon. A pleasant day. Yes. A touch of spring in the air.
Miss Dove...
May I borrow a pen? Mine is dry.
Of course.
Thank you.
I'm sorry. By a strange coincidence, your pen seems to lack ink, too.
You're looking well, Mr Porter.
I heard you have had a mild case of lumbago.
Thank you.
It's been a bad month for colds.
So much unseasonable weather might account for it.
For deposit to my account, Mr Porter. The entire amount. 98 dollars.
Thank you, Mr Porter.
Thank you, Miss Dove.
Mr Prouty! Do you expect Mr Porter to violate a Federal law?
Federal banks are compelled to close at three o'clock.
All of us here in Liberty Hill will live to see the merit of this law.
I am sure the Rotarians intend me no offence, but I am not a charity.
It isn't charity Liberty Hill offers you. It's... it's respect.
That I shall accept with unqualified pleasure.
Now, Thomas. Will you be more specific as to your findings?
Well,...
..you have a small growth on your spine...
which must, if possible, be removed.
If possible? Until we go in, we cannot be certain about the nature of any tumour.
All you have to decide is who shall remove it and where.
Aren't you competent? I think so. But other surgeons have more experience and reputation.
If you go elsewhere, I won't see it as a reflection on my ability.
There's a very famous man at the Mayo Clinic...
Allow me to deliberate.
I remember that you had very skilful fingers, Thomas.
You have very skilful fingers.
Could you put it back exactly as it was, Thomas? Yes, Miss Dove. I did it before.
Then do it again. Yes, Miss Dove.
I shall feel perfectly safe in the hands of Thomas and Billie Jean.
Now the air is clear of emotion, we can resume our discussion.
What do you propose? That it be done tomorrow. As you told us... I know what I told you.
What is the procedure? This is what will happen.
This evening at eight, you'll take a capsule. You'll sleep soundly.
The next morning, you may not even notice the hypodermic.
Well, you won't care or shouldn't.
You'll go to the operating room and have a general anaesthetic.
Due to the tumour's position, the operation may be long.
If so, the anaesthetic will be prolonged, as will its effects.
It may be Friday before you finally awake.
Where? What?
Where will I awake?
I don't know, Miss Dove.
Open the top drawer of the bureau. Give me my bag.
My father's watch.
No, Miss Dove. I should like you to take it now.
It is bequeathed to you in my will.
If... if on Friday I awaken here,...
..you may return it temporarily to my custody.
Oh, the battle I put up with this cuticle of mine.
You have the same trouble?
I always considered the care of the nails as a boudoir function...
.. and not a stimulating topic of conversation. I beg your pardon!
There have been some recognizable developments. And you?
Oh, glory! Like the night before Christmas.
Tomorrow, we'll know what it looks like... if it's a boy or a girl.
Well, I'd better go now.
Good night, Miss Dove.
Roses in your pillow. Good night, Virginia.
Hello, Miss Dove.
Dr Temple, will you write to your mother tonight? Why, yes.
Will you kindly inform her that red ants have a flavour exactly like sour pickles.
They do? Did a bear tell you?
No. I ascertained the fact for myself more than 30 years ago.
You did? How? I ate one.
Good for you! I won't wait to write her. I'll send her a wire.
I'll leave you with your pastor.
Thomas told you? Yes.
I do not wish to die.
Life, whatever others may think, has been for me...
I... I have been happy.
I know.
Thomas is not very hopeful, is he? Well, there is a hope which transcends the medical.
Perhaps if we read from this.
Will you read the general confession? Yes. Then I warn you, when I say that prayer, I do so with reservations.
Reservations?
I have made many mistakes. Perhaps even sinned.
I admit my human limitations.
But I do not, in all honesty, find the burden of my sins intolerable.
Nor, Alexander, have I strayed like a sheep.
As Frederick Makepeace might say, I have never been A-W-O-L.
I grant you the language of the confession is archaic.
But it contains a core of truth. All of us...
No. I have never spoken hypocrisy to my Maker and now is hardly a propitious moment to begin.
We can have a prayer, if you like.
Silently, but together. That I should like.
The parson and the cop are in the lobby. Potential blood donors. Good.
OK. OK, Tommy. All right.
You got the time, pal? 10 after 10. Why worry, with six months added for your "stroll" yesterday?
Would you call a friend of mine, name of Rab... Maurice Levine?
Only costs four bits. I'll pay ya.
Reverse the charges? This guy is loaded. Keep diggin'. You're outta privileges.
Am I paying my debt to society!
I'm calling a play of which our old quarterback might not approve.
Cedar Grove Elementary School is suspending classes for the day.
It's more extensive than I thought. She'll need blood and plenty of it. Yes, Doctor.
W... What are they doing up there?
You know Tommy's doing his best.
Let's stay full of fortitude. You two sit tight and I'll snoop around.
How's it going, Miss Rice? Dr Baker sent a section to the laboratory. The report isn't back.
She's had one transfusion.
Is there a chance? A nurse is permitted no opinions.
Hey! I saw you coming. Children aren't allowed. It's a matter of life or death.
I was elected spokesman. We came to give blood to Miss Dove.
Dope! They lay you down and then they give you tomato juice.
Not to folks your age!
But we're nine! ALL : Yeah!
Oh, honeys. We got these grown-ups waiting here.
Here's what you can do.
What? The State tests are coming up.
If you flunked them, she'd be good and mad. Go home and study up!
We know that old junk! ALL : Yeah!
Are you sure? ALL : Sure! What's longitude and latitude? Name the Great Lakes!
Where's the Tropic of Capricorn?
You see?
You handled that like a diplomat, Billie Jean.
She herself - Miss Dove - couldn't have handled it more genteel.
That's it. Take over.
Tommy, how did it go?
Come on, girls. Let's pull ourselves together. I can't figure out women. Yesterday they were clawing Miss Dove apart.
And now, look at them. Shut up, Joe. And you too.
She wasn't your teacher...
.. or you wouldn't chew your necktie when you're thinking.
She broke me of chewing my pigtails.
I was counting on her to stop our Susie chewing hers.
You youngsters probably don't know, but she stopped this town going bankrupt.
Can't they tell us something? We pay taxes. We got a right to know
They're waiting for a report from the laboratory. That's passing the buck.
We've heard from the laboratory, the report won't be ready till tomorrow.
Cut it out, Bert. Things are spooky enough.
No calls, no fights, no wrecks, no dogs barking. No nothing.
You're no eye-opener, neither. You don't even know her. I know her. I been here long enough.
I'll be sad to see her go. But I don't think she cares.
It wasn't much of a life. No family, no kids. Never went nowhere.
She's never been more than a few hundred miles out of here.
Sure. But she's been places we never heard of, round the world more times than you can count.
Not much of a life, huh? No family, no kids.
No kids? You're really off your rocker.
Kids? She has a thousand of 'em.
Police station. Mitchell speaking.
Hello, Warden.
Hmm?
Fred Makepeace? On the loose again?
He's heading for Liberty Hill, huh?
Sure. We'll keep a lookout.
Right. Good night.
What's the attraction in this burg for a thief like Makepeace? Well, I tell you...
I don't know.
Tell me, Thomas.
Tell me, without wasting a word.
And Virginia? Twin boys.
My felicitations, Thomas.
They're full of beans. You'll have your hands full, Miss Dove.
Bells? Why are they ringing?
Is it Sunday? Friday. But a big day for Liberty Hill. The town just heard the news.
The news? That you're gonna be all right. They've been waiting since dawn.
There are people in the streets? And more coming.
It's just like the movies when some queen or bigshot takes a bow from a balcony.
There's Mr O'Neil, the mailman...
and the station master and Dr Hurley and Ed and Pete from the gas station
.. and good night! Standing there, big as life, Fred Makepeace!
Frederick Makepeace? Don't worry, Miss Dove. My Bill's standing next to him.
Mr Spivey's carrying on like he just made a touchdown! And every kid from Cedar Grove.
What did you say? The kids, Miss Dove. Your pupils. There's no school today.
No school?
But you said to...this is Friday?
Yes, Miss Dove. The State proficiency test will take place on Monday.
Thomas, go down at once and inform Mr Spivey that the children must resume their classes.
The fifth grade will review the winds and the tides.
The fourth grade will learn the products of the Argentine pampas.
The sixth grade will study the orographic control of rainfall.
At once, Thomas.
Good morning, Miss Dove.
Good morning, Thomas.