Fugard - Statements

[ He laughs. ]

Theyre having it, boy! And Im watching it... in the paper.

[ Turning the page, another headline. ]

China: A question-mark on South West Africa. Whats China want there? Yo! They better be careful. China gets in there... ! [ Laugh. ] Ill tell you what happens....

[ Stops abruptly. Looks around as if someone might be eavesdropping on his intimacy with the audience. ]

No comment.

[ Back to his paper. ]

Whats this?... Ag! American politics. Nixon and all his votes. Means buggerall to us.

[ Another page, another headline. ]

Car plant expansion. 1-5 million rand plan. Ja. Ill tell you what that means... more machines, bigger buildings... never any expansion to the pay-packet. Makes me fed-up. I know what Im talking about. I worked at Ford one time. We used to read in the newspaper... big headlines!... So and so from America or London made a big speech:... going to see to it that the conditions of their non-white workers in Southern Africa were substantially improved. The talk ended in the bloody newspaper. Never in the pay-packet.

Another time we read: Mr Henry Ford Junior Number two or whatever the hell he is... is visiting the Ford Factories in South Africa!

[ Shakes his head ruefully at the memory. ]

Big news for us, man! When a big man like that visited the plant there was usually a few cents more in the pay-packet at the end of the week.

Ja, a Thursday morning. I walked into the plant... Hey! Whats this?... Everything was quiet! Those big bloody machines that used to make so much noise made my head go around... ? Silent! Went to the notice-board and read: Mr Fords visit today!

The one in charge of us... [ laugh ] hey! I remember him. General Foreman Mr Baas Bradley. Good man that one, if you knew how to handle him... he called us all together:

[ Styles mimics Mr Baas Bradley. A heavy Afrikaans accent. ]

Listen, boys, dont go to work on the line. There is going to be a General Cleaning first.

I used to like General Cleaning. Nothing specific, you know, little bit here, little bit there. But that day! Yessus... in came the big machines with hot water and brushessort of electric mopand God alone knows what else. We started on the floors. The oil and dirt under the machines was thick, man. All the time the bosses were walking around watching us:

[ Slapping his hands together as he urges on the boys. ]

Come on, boys! Its got to be spotless! Big day for the plant! Even the big boss, the one we only used to see lunch-times, walking to the canteen with a big cigar in his mouth and his hands in his pocket... that day? Sleeves rolled up, running around us:

Come on! Spotless, my boys! Over there, John.... I thought: What the hell is happening? It was beginning to feel like hard work, man. Im telling you we cleaned that place spot-checked after fifteen minutes!... like you would have thought it had just been built.

First stage of General Cleaning finished. We started on the second. Mr Baas Bradley came in with paint and brushes. I watched.

White line

[ Mr Baas Bradley paints a long white line on the floor. ]

Whats this? Been here five years and I never seen a white line before. Then:

[ Mr Baas Bradley at work with the paint-brush. ]

CAREFUL THIS SIDE. TOW MOTOR IN MOTION.

[ Styles laughs. ]

It was nice, man. Safety-precautions after six years. Then another gallon of paint.

Yellow line

NO SMOKING IN THIS AREA. DANGER!

Then another gallon:

Green line

I noticed that that line cut off the roughcasting section, where we worked with the rough engine blocks as we got them from Iscor. Dangerous world that. Big machines! One mistake there and youre in trouble. I watched them and thought: Whats going to happen here? When the green line was finished, down they went on the floorMr Baas Bradley, the lot!with a big green board, a little brush, and a tin of white paint. EYE PROTECTION AREA. Then my big moment:

Styles!

Yes, sir!

[ Mr Baas Bradleys heavy Afrikaans accent ] What do you say in your language for this? Eye Protection Area.

It was easy, man!

Gqokra Izi Khuselo Zamehlo Kule Ndawo.

Nobody wrote it!

Dont bloody fool me, Styles!

No, sir!

Then spell it... slowly.

[ Styles has a big laugh. ]

Hey! That was my moment, man. Kneeling there on the floor... foreman, general foreman, plant supervisor, plant manager... and Styles? Standing!

[ Folds his arms as he acts out his part to the imaginary figures crouched on the floor. ]

Gqokra ... and on I went, with Mr Baas Bradley painting and saying as he wiped away the sweat: Youre not fooling me, hey!

After that the green board went up. We all stood and admired it. Plant was looking nice, man! Colourful!

Into the third phase of General Cleaning.

Styles!

Yes, sir!

Tell all the boys they must now go to the bathroom and wash themselves clean.

We needed it! Into the bathroom, under the showers... hot water, soap... on a Thursday! Before ten? Yo! Whats happening in the plant? The other chaps asked me: Whats going on, Styles? I told them: Big-shot cunt from America coming to visit you. When we finished washing they gave us towels... [ laugh ].

Three hundred of us, man! We were so clean we felt shy! Stand there like little ladies in front of the mirror. From there to the General Store.

Handed in my dirty overall.

Throw it on the floor.

Yes, sir!

New overall comes, wrapped in plastic. Brand new, man! I normally take a thirty-eight but this one was a forty-two. Then next door to the tool room... brand new tool bag, set of spanners, shifting spanner, torque wrenchall of them brand newand because I worked in the dangerous hot test section I was also given a new asbestos apron and fire-proof gloves to replace the ones I had lost about a year ago. Im telling you I walked back heavy to my spot. Armstrong on the moon! Inside the plant it was general meeting again. General Foreman Mr Baas Bradley called me.

Styles!

Yes, sir.

Come translate.

Yes, sir!

[ Styles pulls out a chair. Mr Baas Bradley speaks on one side, Styles translates on the other. ]

Tell the boys in your language, that this is a very big day in their lives.