Litchfield enquirer., 1879-12-25
From Blackwood's Magazine.
 A POOR DEVIL. s.

a certain humor or inoekery was trequired--a something sardonic, knowledge of the world. played the lover, too, in my day, and with some suecess--on the stage, on the stage, of course-haf ha !-not without success. Here the old gentleman pushed out his chest, and inhaled the fragrance of his glass Tom Boli- yer winked as if he. would call the attention of the company to the consummate art with which he had drawn out the old gentleman. To me it seemed that this task was as easy as to draw the cork of soda water bottle in tho sun; ; and, furthermore, that if any power had drawn the old gentleman out, 1t was whisky. He certainly paid more attention to the whis- ky than the rest of the company. He was very sociable, and liked to have friends about him but he always seemed to me to take us collectively, and barely to recognize individu- als. 1 suspect that he was very shy in his youth. Even at this time he was very silent until the labors of the day were done and he had had a glass or two. When he did begin to speak, he was apt to speak a good deal i; but he seemed to address himself to his tumb- Ter, and we might listen if we chose. al- ways chose | was a young man still, and shy man probably the shyest man in that festive club Therefore, 1 was glad when the old gentleman began to talk, for 1 could listen as well as anybody probably better than any .othermember, for most of us were wits. Sometimes 1 fancied that the old gentleman looked at me out of the corner of his eye that he came nearer to talking to me than to the others. l was almost snre that we understood each other little-that there was an uneasy, futtering sympathy between us. I used to suspect that some day,or rather some night he would ask me to lend him nancy Luckily, 1 He offered me pinch of snuff once, rather shakily. did not take it, because don't like snuff. He was not offended indeed, 1 am not sure that he meant to offer it to me ; perhaps he was only pushing the box about i; he had trick of pushing things about the ta- ble. If he was naturally say, he must have suffered much, for he was an actor all his life, and had been thrown with all sorts of people. He had had some good engagements, but, if Tom Boliver were right, they were not due to his oyn merits. Tom always declared that he neyeS Scould act. The old gentleman thought thath not only had been, but was still, an uncommonly good actor. 1 am no judge of acting .a3i1l ,l. r4 .'s.-7l sy .'s.. .. a
 .'No,' continued the old gentleman. after a pause, oddly enough 1 never did play
 Romeo --and Idare say that I never shall :" Here Tom laughed; and the old gentleman flushed little as he said, Il have good leg still"
 tsTheres no deficiency at that end," re- marked Tom, to his neighbor, in that hoarse stonetwhich he always means for whisper. Ii was held in the club that the old gentleman was deaf; hoped that he was. He was silent for a while but when the waiter unbidden, had brought fresh tumbler, the stream began toafow again.
 0sfDid you ever see my poor dear wites < NJuliet?" He appeared to.ask the question of the whisky, and he certainly expected no an swer, forfshe continued without a pause |: aShe was the best Juliet ever saw. there was a romance, a something poeucal, if l may say SO One does naf-soo- acCTng nOWa- oay,sss. rom Winked at us furiously, as if we did not all know, as well as he that when the old gentleman began to talk about his late wife he was likely to talk about her at some length. sometimes think that Tom, was meant for a snowman. Tom had often point ed out to us that it was strange in the old gen. tleman to be so fond of this subject of conver- sation, because the deceased lady had been very eccentric in her conduct, and more mo- 1notonous on the stage than off it. Now, when the old gentleman paused in his praises of his lady, Tom, with very sly look. asked if he never played Romeo to her "Juliet." ,,
 'Never," said the old gentleman, and after that he became silent He went away early ]; and then somebody raised the question wheth- CT Tom had not hurt his feelings. Tom was vastly indignant, and maintained that it was impossible that the old gentleman could have understood his nnlendo. Tom regards himself as master of delicate innuendo. and thinks that there are few people of intellect fine enough to undestand his allusions On this occasion he got rather warm, and hinted that we were unworthy of subtle humor. He spoke most disrespectfully of the old gentle man, and declared that no hint was plain enough for hls comprehension. Hurt his feelings!" cried Tom scornfully "You mil lhti talk to him under his nose for an hour, and he would not find out that you were not talking of Herr Von Bisn,ark He went about singing his wife's praises like bird with one note; and all the time everybody knew" and Tom finished his sentence with toss of the head and a contemptuous shrug of his.big shoulders. .tAnd since his wife died, is the tedious old man any better 1? Doesn't he come here night after nigh and tell us of the points she made as ''Juliet" or Beatrice, ".sor Julia" in the Haonch5ack. And if we are spared the mother for one night we have double dose of her daughter The old dotard bleats over that girl as if" Tom did not finish the sentence save with Il con- temptuous cloud of smoke; and thought might ask a question. s~'-.
 'n"He did teach her to act, didn't he?" l said. ra-us ' "He never learned to act himself" said 2Fom,o and he laughed as if he had launched an epigram. We all laughed eve were very kind to each others jokes. a za.GE t.-.-i
 Perhaps you admire the old gen't~acting, ' Tom said to me. '1f so, now's your chance he plays "Mephistopheles" next week. He fancies himself in the part. He has done it great many times in the provinces You had betterlgo and see him. dare say there will be noonl in the theatre"
 ,i We all laughed again, but I did not laugh well, for did not like having the tal'r~ u1rect- ed at him. 779s sie,1t ----- ''' -
 ssYou llnow=ti,at he is at his best where a certain humer orlnockery is required, a some- thing weird and sarGonic. We all laughed at the imitation. ef the old gentleman's voice and ...auuer. We, always laughed at Tom's limitations, which were wonderfully clever and yet Inever could see the resemblance of the old gentleman to Toms imitation of him.
 ei'tAnd the girl does Margaret said Tom, when we had done laughing; ssthere will be lots, of people to go and see her always lots of shirt-fronts where she plays. We all know her great taents-7a. plump figure and an eye She has the deuce of an eye. v +'H He looked very knowing, and so did most of us. .-.1,.. s8'i don't wish you to suppose for moment" began Tom again, That 1 would say anything against the old gent Nobody is fonder of the old gent than 1 am and, by George . his trust in women would be beautiful if he weren't so d-d idiotic.' F .t. s'.a V '
 Then we all declared, or muttered, or as- serted by a nod, that we were fond of the old gentleman. t-' = ''1 '.'s'
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 --g.ift a- H. s-.sg,4it a 5et .s9s. have said that I was young man ten years ago, when that festive club was in full swing, and the old gentleman came there every night after tie theatre,a Ilwent very often to the play at that time i; but doubt ifsI should have gone to revival of an old stage versienso of Goethe's Faast AadIT not been euri- -eas to see the old 'gentleuian asa .Mephiste- pheIes-p I was young then, aud was pleased by the Knowledge that the actor playing Den fore me was ny personal friend Ifelt that I. enjoyed certain superiority over the other young men, who did not know s'Mephis-, tophe les at home. HoweVer,i, on the night on which Invent to See the old gentleman act, there was at least one. young man over whom Il could claim no superiority. Unluckily g he sat in the next, stall, and made me feel unr C0uth. And vet there was nothinu rnmarka a.