Sacramento daily record-union. [volume] (Sacramento [Calif.]) 1875-1891, 1882-10-28
KESIREL: A CASTAWAY.

The yesterday will be t,-day
KESIREL: A CASTAWAY.
Tdey were about to put up my fairy ex.
travaganza of 1.-The QGeen of the Wood.
land Glades at the Levity Theater. All
the roles had been distributed, except that
| OF Kestrel, the Castaway, in the tableau OF
the brides ball. As the kestrel is small
bird of the hawk species, / was anxious to
have it represented by small woman, with
an aquiliIe profile, piercing eyes, and slen-
der, sinewy lower limbs in short, woman
who would realize the notion Of bird Of
prey.
On the afternoon Of the first rehearsal
the manager took me by the arm, and said,
az we paced the boards, 81 imagine have
caught your kestrel. An unfortunate little
woman came here month ago to look for
an engagement, and | sent her away, as
feared she was too skinny. But she has
| superb peppers, the proper nose, with de.
sirable hook IN it, sympathetic voice, and
bronze hair; her leg, it is true, may be too
like reed for my taste; but her foot must
be all there. GsIibert THAT was our regis
seur) took her address on chance. Go and
see her after rehearsal, and if that's your
bird, don'5 mind taking her ON for a
tweivemonth."
l sought out GaEbert, who gave me lot
only the name and address OF the poor girl,
but pienary powers to treat with her. l
might even go so far as TO offer her fifty
francs month-thas is to say, about 10
shiilings per week
1t was a nasty day the snow fell softly
in large flakes, which melted as they
reached the sloppy asphalt. There was
moist cold in the air which searched out
the marrow In my bones so l took vol.
ture, and ordered the coachman to drive to
Rue Monsieur lie Prince.
Mile. Eva lodged in one of those cd
students hotels which are still numerous
In the Latin quarter of Paris.
| pushed IL a bTesst-hi2h door, which
set bell jingling as it opened, and at the
end OF somber passage l found az antique
staircase, with thick carved oaken balus-
tiers.
Az was prying about for the porter's
lodge glass easement in the passage was
drawn back aud a coffee house waiter,
popping cut his head, asked whom l
wanted.
:. Nile. Eva"
She's al home. Fourth floor, to the
left"
| afGerwsrd learned that the landlord o.
the hotel kept cafe on the ground-hoor,
and made one OF his walters do extra duty
% concierge.
assembled the ba3ly-lis nusty. smelling
stairs till | reached a. door with EVA Z"
on a card pinned outside it, and gently
tapped twice
Come 10, was TIE answer, after a NO.
ment's waiting.
The key was in the lock-a massive old
fashioned key, key that would make a
capital weapon In case of need.
l walked in, and saw, right in front, the
lilac towering of bed.curtain. and, be.
tween the pillow and the white coverlet,
two large eyes, which shone like beads of
black onyx-the very pupils had dreamed
| of for my kestrel.
Mile. Eva, curled up under the quilt,
half bashiully, hall reproachfully asked
me VINO | was and what was my business
answered that l was the author of an
extravaganza in rehearsal, and that had
| come to offer her an engagement.
Al the word g. engagement she gave a
bound as if stirred by an electric shock
Sac raised herself on her elbows on the
| pillow, ana pointed, with a tiny, white,
ineagre hand to an arm chair in the corner
OF the chimney place, graciously praying
me to be seated. As the arm. chair was
occupied by robe of black silk, a velvet
| jacket, a hat, bodice, two petticoats, and
dainty pair of bottines, she asked me to
| throw them on the bed. | sat down at a
respectful distance.
Excuse me, sir" she said, in a shame
| faced way, 'if am obliged to receive you
thus. | came home very late, and as |
feel rather i'll this morning, had not the
courage to get up. The waiter was here a
while ago to light my fire, and am sorry
l did not let him. It must be very cold
for you. 1 only took this wretched room
for month, but mean to remove to the
apartment Of a lady friend of mine in the
Caaussee d'Aatin shortly. So you have
ceme to offer me al engagement"
While she was speaking l scrutinized
her attentively.
Those superb eyes, of which they had
spoken to me at the theater, were of that
orange-tinted brown Titan loved to paint
nm Ter the lashes of his Venetian beauties.
They seemed TO have the singular power of
following laterally the object fixed with a
mobile and searching gaze, which gave
them weird, almos. supernatural expires.
sion. Her nose, long aud centrally raised,
as in the Jewish race, was of an ire
proachaole purity of design; her small
mouth, heart shaped like her oval face,
smiled when her lips parted TO speak. Her
hair, luxuriant dusky blonde, tumbled in
fiossy masses over her shoulders, and wound
round her throat. Her skin, delicate and
| transparent, was of a clear, dead. brown
| toae.
As looked at her, forgetting to frame
an answer, she questioned me anew as to
the engagement which / had brought her
n my quality of pienipotentiary.
explained briefly how embarrassed l
had been to discover anybody fis for the
role OF Kestrel, and, after having described
all the tiae points in the character, l dilased
on the advantages She might derive fer her
future on the stage from this engagement
! Of 200 crowns a year.
| | did not dare to ssy 80 frsucs month ;
and il she had asked me kindly TO inform
her how much per diem 200 crowns year
meant, really believe L should have run
away like detected thief.
| But she was disinterested creature,
who loveda : ror its own sake and rot for
the money it brought
With brusque turn OF her head she
tossed back to her shoulders the wsyward
tresses concealing her forehead and encom-
pass:ag her throat, and clapped her hands
with babyish joy.
My dear sir, she said in a low, caress.
| ing voice, "since l become an artistic once
more, real artistic this time, permit me to
treat you as if you came to pay me visit
in my room behind the scenes Set !, match
under the fagots in the fireplace, and go to
the window TO investigate the signs of the
weather. l only beg the grace of three
minutes, TO put on a dress and pair of
| slippers"
So spesking. she let the bed curtains fall.
and l could hear the rustic OF silk behind
the lilac Towering.
l was enchanted at the welcome manner
in which my offer had been received, and,
anxious to see my kestrel on her feet, l
found the matches on q shelf by the chin.
ney, between pin cushion and volume
Of Alfred de Musset, which served az Pc
destsl to an instrument OF cedar and ivory
not unlike miniature clarionet.
1t was stethoscops
=" It seems cur artist has friend Of the
medical persuasion" soliloquized /, as /
kindled the logs on the hearth.
The fire alight, went to the window and
surveyed the Landscape OF roofs of worn
tiles, vanished by the .haw.