The Emporia news. [volume] (Emporia, Kan.) 1859-1881, 1871-09-29

D ing.
9 A little way from where my horse
was to be tied was his horse and buggy.
Somehow. he expected Miss P, for
he rose up and came to meet her as soon
as had helped her to alight; and be-
fore could secure my steed Miss P
! and the stranger seemed to have got
wondrously well acquainted. did not
remember to have seen him on the
t island, and he certainly did not come in
} the boat while l was there, for the
; event of the day was to see the passen-
gers land and beside that, where would
, he go but to the Ocean House?
Miss Minnie introduced me to her
! friend as came up to them. It was
Mr.. c., the artist. He tcGs hand
some, there was no denying that, with
his broad wideawake and velvet coat
and silky mustache but would have
} much preferred to see his beauty in the
, distance, say picturesquelv half a mile
off; but he was so pleasant and gentle
manly that couldn't quarrel with him.
Presently Miss P begged him to
go on with his work; and then she
said, as she looked over his shoulder,
that he ought to put in figure or two (;
and how it came about l don't know,
of the surf Gin imminent peril of wet
feet) and pretending to throw blue
fish-line into the brakers.
1t was hardly consolation to think
of being part of a famous picture, when
that required one to stand with ones
back to all that is of immediate inter-
est. But it was much worse to be rous-
ed by shout from the wretch, and to
see my own horse walking leisurely
him securely.
1 hurried up the beach and the ruff
fain met me with a look of pretended
sympathy on his features.
"This is too bad" he said. 81 am
afraid you will have to leave Miss P
to my care. / will stay with her while
you bring her horse back. If you
shouldn't overtake him." added the
| ogre, "I will see that she gets home !;
but really 1 can't leave just yet, have
got such a splendid chance which have
been waiting for all summer; such a
surf and such light on It'll"
1t did not occur to me then, though
it did afterward, that the miscreant
might have offered me his team. In
stead of that he hurried me off, bidding
me run, which did. So did my horse,
| just quickening his pace till he got far
enough away to Craze, and then starting
on as l got near him. l had to foot it
the whole way to town. The beast
stable !; but there he pushed right into
| it, and catching the buggy against the
lintle, smashed the top completely.
Twenty dollars would not make good
| the damage, the stable folks said. I
told them to send up to the hotel at
half past nine and get their pay, after
the loss had been properly estimated.
One thing seemed little odd. had
unbuckled the check rein to use as a
hitching-strap. 1t was found buckled
all right, but not checked, which makes
me think that the horse had learned to
unharness himself. They are knowing
animals, the Nantucket horses.
Then / went TO the clerk of the hotel.
told him / thought I would give a
public reading that evening. Could I
have the use of the dining-room Il
would put the tickets at twenty-five
cents, and at that rate would probably
secure an audience. I had heard that
one of the Harvard fellows had done
the same thing in one of the rural dis
tricts, and Melted one hundred dollars.
The clerk said the dining-room could
not be well spared and would not hold
enough, but the Athenaum Hall was
the place where such things usually
were given. Would he engage it for |
me? He would send right away aud
get it, and would send the town-crier |
to announce the reading, as there was |
no time to print bills, and that was the |
usual custom, moreover.
Then went to my room to prepare
programme. It did not seem ten |
minutes before heard the voice of the |
herald proclaiming IN vocal small caps
that "There will be Dramatic Read |
ing at Ath-e-nB-um Hall. Doors open |
at seven. P'formance t. c'mence It eight |
o'clock. 'Dmittance twenty five cents"
Then the ding-dong of his bell |
died away up one street andiwas heard |
the town would be thoroughly canvass
ed. Could read? Well had tried it |
in private circles. MGlitGui non sine |
gloria, and at the public Latin School /
where graduated had won the Han
cock medal, The first thing was to |
get books. l asked the clerk, but he |
was book-keeper, not book-lender. |
However, he thought l might obtain
the loan at the AthenRum, on deposit
ting their valuation. AS I only want
ed them to go from the ibrary-room
to the hall upstairs ventured on this,
depositing with bold front but beat
ing heart my twenty dollar bill, and re-
ceiving Shakespear, Byron, and |
three volumes of Mrs. Browning. Also |
a copy of Handy Andy. This last, be-
ing doubtful of my skill in reading the /
Irish tongue, l took to my room, I'M
luckily. The others I thought could |
manage at sight, especially as meant /
to keep to the pieces knew by heart, /
and wanted the books 'more for form
than use. By this time the tea.gong
sounded, and went to the table with |
an anxious breast and a sense of being |
the observed of all observers. Miss |
P was already there, but in my
seat was the .fend, l mean the artist,
in human shape. I expected to see /
Miss Minnie look embarrassed, but she |
only looked radiantly happy, and smll- |
ed sweetly upon me as l passed by to |
take my place at the foot of the table.
1 could not eat; in fact I had doubt |
before public reading; so after bear |
ing in silent torture the spectacle of the |
vampire helping Miss P to blue-fish |
and blackberries, / retired to dress. |
That operation was limited to the put |
ting on of a cloth coat in the place of a |
tweed, my last clean collar, and taking
my last ditto handkerchief, and at seY-
en- started for the hall.
The streets were not inconyeniently
thronged, but at is early yet" I said, |
mentally. / had left Handy Andy in !
comic, but in mood to which was |
sure Othello would come in great force. |
I found the town-crier, who was also |
to be the money-taker and stage man.
ager, at the door, but no one else. He |
suggested that, as it was still daylight, |
it wasn't worth while to light up yet |
to which I agreed, and retired to the |
dressing-room with my volumns, q SOL
itary candle and a glass of water. / |
shut the door, so as not to be disturbed ]
by the noise of the assembling throngs, |
and gave myself up to study. I had |
herOically determined not to look at my |
watch lest should get nervous, and |
when eight O'Clock struck from the |
South Churce tower, I confess / started |
with surprise. Sizing my books and |
giving myself no time for stage fright, |
| walked dignifiedly on to the platform,
found my first place, and raised my |
eyes to survey my audience. There |
were two people in the hall, ghOul
and his victims mean the artist and |
Miss P. The crier, that is, the tick |
et-taker, stood by the entrance,
his hands in his pockets. My audience |
preserved q respectful silence, though |
there was a queer look on the face of
the female portion, while the monster, |
mean the male part, made a motion |
of the hands suggestive of applause. |
sank back into q seat. The crier |
walked up the hall, putting out the |
lights as he went, and saying in voice |