Iowa voter. [volume] (Knoxville, Iowa) 1867-1874, 1870-11-17

finished the overture ana stopped. liner
4 was no bell for tho curtdny md the az
dicnce waited with some impdtience. Il
few moments tho leader began to dis
3 tribute music to his musicians, and sup
plemSntary piece of lively dance musi
was plsyed to keep the house IN good hu
NOR. 6till no curtain. The parquctt
began to get somewhat noisy, and th
dress circle murmured its disapprobatio,
of the delay. Thus, at quarter past tb
hour, stood matters before the curtain. B
hind it somewhat different scene wa
presented.
The greenroom was filled with peopl.
dressed ready for their parts; some rush
ing about with an appearance OF considera
Bile excitement, some conversing earnestl.
together, some laughing at Maries unhaPp.
predicament The manager wss nearly II
i state of apoplexy. The overture wa
done. The impatience manifested by tn
audience was becoming OILY too audible
Still Harcourt did not make his appear
ance Marie, in her dressing room, sa
trembling with excitement and roug I'M
To extremes to hide the ashy pallor OF he
cheeks. Steele, who had made his appear
ance in the grcenroom much earlier thar
necessary, as he was only cast in the panto
I mime, sat in one corner porting over tn
leaves Of his yellow book. Twenty min
utes past, and still no Melnotte.
"What the deuce's to be doney criet
Beamish, Tuning in desperation. ~!
give him ten minutes more, AMI II he don
come then, shall have TO set the stage fol
the pantomime Too bad, too bad!'
He drew on pair of white kids and
went before the curtain to pacify the PEG
pie, explaining the cause OF delay, and
asking their kind consideration for few
minutes longer. When he returned to the
grecnroom he found Marie there. Har-
court had not come. The clown put his
yellow book in his pocket, and came fol-
ward from his corner.
! II will undertake to play Claude" he
said, quietly, "since Harcourt Ia delin-
quent"
your exclaimed the manager, in as
constituent Why why II bless my
soul y
marie must not fail" said Steele. "For
her sake will DO the best | can. There
are but two acts. think I can command
my voice for an hour at least If you are
disposed to take the risk"
But you--you aren't up in 1t, are
your"
II played the part once or twice some
years ago" replied the clown. "If I'm
well followed, think can do it."
God bless you, my dear fellow" cried
Beamish, taking his hand impulsively. IF
you succeed will be your debtor for life.
Go on and try"
During the few moments occupied by
Steele in dressing the part, Bcamish again
went before the curtain, partly to occupy
the attention Of the people, partly TO re-
quest their indulgence for the performer,
who had undertaken the role on SO short
notice. Then the stage was cleared, the
bell rung, and, to the satisfaction of every
body, the play commenced.
1t will hardly be necessary to rccite the
details of that wonderful performance. Ev-
erybody said that such a rendition of the
parts Of Claude and Pauline had not been
given upon those boards for very many
long year. Steele gaining confidence as
he warmed to the work before him, threw
into the character all the earnestness and
fervor Of which he was capable His love
for Pauline was not the love of Melnotte ; it
was the love of Edward Steele for Marie
Frondat His very soul seemed to look
out of his eyes as he repeated the tender,
wellworn passages, and gave new mean
ing to their hackneyed intonations. His
lost voice returned TO him, and rang out
clear and sonorous, or anon fell into sweet
cadences Of exquisite tenderness. Mane,
stimulated, encouraged, sustained by his
example, more than fulfilled the expecta-
tons of her friends. The whole house
rang with plaudits. Beamish, standing
anxiously in the wings, was beside himself
with delight. Three times was the fair
debutantc called before the curtain, each
time TO be pclted with bouquets which
moro than filled the arms of the happy
Claude, who came forward with her to re-
ceive his share of the general appreciation.
The sustained excitement was too much
| for Marie When all was done she tainted
away In the arms of the faithful Steele, on
her way to her dressing room. 1t was,
perhaps, well for him that she should be
taken home in carriage as soon as she re-
covered hor senses. He could hardly have
donc justice to his nonsense in the pantt-
mime, had she remained In the theatre TINT
night. Ninette, in bewildering dem
costume of gauze and spangles, made her
| .rr>-saao~~ altar Marie had gone
home
"rll be even with you for this" she
Kissed In Edwards ear YOU'D better
| iiItISu yVuI Jcu INV ny gCtsiuS ii"iSoui'
sober again. He's at my house, drunk III
a fiddler" .i.. res 49,
She turned away and was lost in the
harlequin crowd upon the stage-a fairy
queen with all the ancestral malignancy 81
her sistcrhood in her blue veins.
1 ACT Iii. #
The next morning Edward called upor
Marie. He found her at her lodgings, 9
poorly furnished apartment off one Of the
upper floors of house in retired part Of
the city.
She lay upon lounge at the farther side
of the room "A he entered, but rose i'm
stantly to meet him Before he could pre-
vent her, she had twined her arms abou,
his neck and kissed him. II was little
thing which would have been scandalous
In some women. Somehow it did not seen
bold in Marie.
1T Is you who have saved me, she cried
impulsively "Ninctte has been here, ant
l know everything thought you were
good last night Now l know that 20,
are NOBLE"
i He smiled and unwound her arms ten
derby. esfs IL
I 1T was nothing" he said. II could no
bear that my pupil should fail when hat
4 L. -. 4