The courtroom was hardly less cheerless than the street outside. The same dull light streamed through the windows, giving the room a curiously one-dimensional appearance, negating perspective, dulling all reflecting surfaces. He led Ebie to the empty jury box, and then went to sit beside Willow at the defense table, shaking hands with him, and listening to his own words of encouragement while his eyes roamed the courtroom. Brackman was in whispered consultation with his partner at the plaintiffs table. Constantine sat at the far end of the table, reading the paperback edition of Lord of the Flies. The court clerk was waiting near the door to the judge's chambers, watching the big wall clock over the bench. The spectators' benches were empty. Even the Columbia student had abandoned the proceedings.
At ten o'clock sharp, the clerk called "All rise!" and the judge entered and went directly to the bench and then gave a peremptory nod, the signal for everyone in the courtroom to sit again. Driscoll heard Willow call his name, and then rose with the dread of Thursday looming huge within him, and walked slowly and self-consciously toward the witness stand. He felt suddenly that he had dressed wrongly, that his dark blue suit looked too much like a confirmation garment, that his simple blue tie was not bright enough, that he gave an impression of someone drab and hardly inventive, barely intelligent, certainly uncreative, "truth and nothing but the truth, so help you God?" the clerk said.
"I do," he answered, and sat.
Willow rose from the defense table in sections, unfolding his length, walking loosely and easily toward the witness chair, and then smiling up briefly at Driscoll, and very quietly and calmly asking, "Are you the author of The Paper Dragon?" as if that were not the prime issue before this court.
"I am," Driscoll answered.
"Did you write it independently and of your own creation, without reference to any other work of fiction?"
"I did."
"What is the date of your birth?"
"March 12, 1929."
"How old were you in October of 1947, when the play Catchpole was produced?"
"Eighteen."
"Were you a theatergoer at that time?"
"Yes, sir. I began going regularly to the theater when I was twelve years old."
"Did you attend any performances of the play Catchpole?"
"No, sir."
"Had you, before this action began, ever read the play Catchpole?"
"Never."
"Or heard of the plaintiff, Arthur Constantine?"
"No."
"What high school did you attend?"
"The High School of Music and Art."
"Which is where?"
"It's on 135th Street and Convent Avenue."
"Where were you living at that time?"
"In Manhattan. On West End Avenue."
"Did you go to Music and Art for the full four years?"
"No, sir. I began as a sophomore, coming directly from a junior high school, and I remained until graduation. Three years."
"When was this?"
"From 1944 to 1947."
"Were you graduated from Music and Art in 1947?"
"Yes, sir. January of 1947."
"Did you then continue your schooling elsewhere?"
"I won an art scholarship to the Art Students League, and I went there for approximately six months, I forget the exact length of time, the duration of the scholarship."
"To study art?"
"Yes, sir. I was studying drawing and painting — oil painting."
"Were you an art major in high school?"
"Yes, sir."
"What happened after you left the Art Students League?"
"I began studying art at Pratt Institute in the fall of that year, 1947."
"For how long?"
"Until June of 1950."
"What happened then?"
"I graduated and was drafted into the Army."
"Until you were drafted into the Army, would it be correct to say that you were training to become an artist?"
"A painter, yes, sir."
"In 1947, did you receive complimentary tickets to a preview performance of the play Catchpole?"
"I did not."
"Do you remember a distribution of free tickets?"
"I do not."
"Were you advised of such a distribution?"
"I was not."
"Did you see the play in any preview performance?"
"I never saw the play in any performance."
"You were graduated from Pratt in June of 1950?"
"That's right."
"And went directly into the Army?"
"Yes, sir, almost immediately after graduation."
"Which would be?"
"I went into the Army on June 21, 1950."
"And when were you discharged?"
"August 11, 1953."
"Honorably?"
"What?"
"Were you honorably discharged?"
"Yes, sir."
"What did you do after your discharge?"
"In September of 1953 I began attending New York University."
"To study art?"
"No, sir. I was an English major."
"Why did you choose this major?"
"While I was in the Army, I decided that I would like to try writing."
"Did you receive a degree from N.Y.U.?"
"Yes, sir, I did. A Bachelor of Arts in June of 1957."
"And after you were graduated, did you begin writing?"
"No, sir."
"What did you do?"
"I held a series of jobs."
"Like what? Would you list them, please?"
"I worked for the telephone company, and I worked for an import-export firm, and an advertising agency for a little while. Things like that."
"Did any of these jobs entail writing?"
"No, sir."
"Art work?"
"No, sir. For the most part, they were stopgap jobs."
"When did you begin writing The Paper Dragon?"
"In 1961."
"Do you remember exactly when in 1961?"
"October."
"In other words, you began writing The Paper Dragon eleven years after the actual events it portrays."
"Yes, sir."
"The Chinese offensive across the Ch'ongch'on River was in November of 1950, isn't that correct?"
"That's correct."
"Why did you wait eleven years?"
"I wasn't sure I would write it at all."
"Why did you write it?"
"I had to."
"Why?"
"For my own peace of mind."
"You felt you had to put the events on paper for your own peace of mind?"
"Yes."
"Your Honor," Brackman said, "I do not see where these questions…"
"Yes, Mr. Willow, where are you heading?"
"Your Honor, I am attempting to trace the creative process."
"Very well, go ahead."
"Mr. Driscoll, how tall are you?"
"I'm six feet tall."
"What color are your eyes?"
"Blue."
"Would you say that your hair is light or dark?"
"Dark."
"How old were you in 1950 when you were drafted into the Army?"
"I was just twenty-one."
"And you went into the Army directly from Pratt Institute?"
"I did."
"Did you go into basic training?"
"Yes, sir, at Fort Dix."
"Did you then go to Officer Candidate School?"