Summary
The next section begins with the debt collectors leaving Mrs. Johnstone's home. She goes to comfort her crying babies and begins to sing, "Easy Terms." The song describes her financial hardships and fear about having to make good on her agreement with Mrs. Lyons. She concludes with the lyrics: "Never sure / Who's at the door / Or what price I'll have to pay."
Mrs. Lyons appears at the house. She is surprised to see that the twins were born and that she was not notified. Mrs. Johnstone tries to explain that she wanted to keep them together, just for a few more days. Mrs. Lyons is wholly unsympathetic and says she is taking one of them now. She asks Mrs. Johnstone to pick which one she will take, but Mrs. Johnstone tells her to choose, as she cannot bear to be responsible for that decision. Mrs. Lyons takes one of the boys and leaves. She tells Mrs. Johnstone to take the rest of the week off.
The other children ask what has happened to one of the twins. Mrs. Johnstone lies and says he died. The following week, Mrs. Johnstone converses with Mr. Lyons. Mr. Lyons says he is very happy about having a son and proud of Mrs. Lyons for her handling of the "pregnancy." Mrs. Johnstone holds the crying baby which upsets Mrs. Lyons. Mrs. Johnstone leaves the room to continue cleaning. Mrs. Lyons asks Mr. Lyons for some money.
After Mr. Lyons leaves the house, Mrs. Lyons fires Mrs. Johnstone. Mrs. Johnstone becomes emotional and says that if she is leaving, she is taking her son with her. Mrs. Lyons says she cannot do this as they have a binding agreement. Mrs. Lyons says if she attempts to do this, she will tell everyone what she has done and that she will be jailed for giving her child. Mrs. Lyons adds that the boys have to be kept apart for their entire lives. She reminds Mrs. Johnstone that English superstition says that if twins learn that they were separated, they both immediately die. Defeated and desperate, Mrs. Johnstone leaves the house and takes the money, agreeing to never return.
The narrator sings "Shoes Upon the Table," accompanied by a lively rock rhythm section and horn chorus. He sings about how Mrs. Johnstone feels doggedly pursued by the devil, who knows she gave up her baby to Mrs. Lyons. The song ends and the musical leaps forward several years. Mrs. Johnstone's son, Mickey, is seven years old and he comes to the door, complaining about how his brother Sammy took his toy gun. Mrs. Johnstone says this only happened because he is the youngest sibling. He continues to complain but she dismisses him.
Feeling glum, Mickey goes outside to play again. He recites a short lyric about how Sammy is always getting the things that he wants and how he has had no such luck. Mickey then encounters a young boy named Eddie. They talk and Eddie tells him he is Mrs. Lyons' son. Mickey asks Eddie for a sweet and is shocked when Eddie just gives him one. They talk about their families. Mickey says his brother Sammy has a plate in his head as a result of an injury he sustained after falling out a window as a child. They take a liking to one another.
Through subsequent conversation, they discover that they share a birthday. Mickey asks Eddie if he'd like to be his "blood brother," since they have a birthday in common. They cut their hands and clasp them together, swearing an oath of brotherhood. Suddenly Sammy pops up and points his toy gun at them, demanding a candy. Sammy mocks both Mickey and Eddie, saying Eddie's accent clearly marks him as a "poshy." They return to Mickey's house and Mrs. Johnstone is shocked to see Eddie, as she quickly realizes that he is Mickey's secret twin.
Analysis
This part of the musical uses its scoring to convey Mrs. Johnstone's mounting anxiety. The song "Easy Terms" shows a distressed Mrs. Johnstone wrestling with her growing financial problems and her greater, child-shaped debt to Mrs. Lyons. The song's slow pace, and soft orchestral string and guitar accompaniment, emphasize her yearning to hold onto her son for just a little longer. In a different manner, the frenetic energy of "Shoes Upon the Table" shows the sinister enthusiasm of the devil that Mrs. Johnstone imagines pursuing her. The songs’ varying tempos reflect the characters' emotional turbulence.
Fate also plays a significant role in this second part of the musical. The boys meet despite overwhelming odds and seem to share a deep connection. They take an immediate liking to one other and use a bloody handshake to cement their shared "blood" brotherhood. Their coming together suggests that they possess a powerful bond, one that will not be severed by their class divide or the interference of their respective mothers. They are seemingly destined to be in each other's lives.
Class is another important theme in this section of the musical. After meeting, Eddie and Mickey immediately become aware of their differing circumstances. Mickey is tormented by his older brother and is never allowed to have nice things unless he is willing to battle neighborhood kids for them. In contrast, Eddie is given most of the things he wants, including toys and candy. He is an only child and receives his parents' undivided attention and affection. Interestingly, the boys still find common ground and enjoy laughing and playing with one another. The musical highlights the sharp divide between their financial situations while also showing how it does not impede their friendship, as children.
Violence is a significant theme in Sammy's storyline. Sammy is shown immediately being involved in violent acts. He bullies Mickey and enjoys threatening other children with his toy gun. He uses force to get what he wants from Mickey, continually intimidating and harassing him. While Mrs. Johnstone does little to stand in his way, this behavior clearly does not bode well for his future. Sammy's menacing presence at a young age foreshadows his eventual involvement in terrible crimes. The musical shows how Sammy's reliance on violence at an early point in his life causes him increasingly large problems.
The musical's use of rock instruments, like electric guitar, adds to the dramatic pace of the story and captures elements of the economic divide between the two boys. By blending orchestral strings with pop instruments, Russell is able to bring together two musical textures that reflect the "posh" and working-class backgrounds of Eddie and Mickey, respectively. This approach creates friction between the two types of instruments that mirrors the eventual clash between Eddie and Mickey.
