Iron County register. [volume] (Ironton, Iron County, Mo.) 1867-1965, 1882-08-31
UGLY AND STUPID.

UGLY AND STUPID.
"Lady Flora has q headache, anG
can not act tonight Gracious good
ness! What are we to doP The airs these
fine ladies give themselves is simply
-abominable.''
The energy with which these words
were uttered would have led listener
to suppose that the speaker was a radi.
cal merchant from one of the manufac-
turing towns in the north, instead OF
being one of the richest, handsomest,
idlest and most universally-petted young
men in London, who generally assumed
blase air of liking nothing, though &C.
casionally, as at the present moment,
the natural excitability of his nature
would assert itself.
elf you are so severe" said one OF
the two pretty women he addressed,
who was his hostess, 1--WE won't any OF
Us act, and then where will you bep''
"Freed from dilemma. If none of
you acted, the thing would have to be
thrown up. You would really obige me
by carrying out that threat
GAS we don't wish to oblige you,"
she retorted, laughing, tive won't carry
it out, though am afraid after so much
unusual excitement on your part you
will be too exhausted to act yourself. 1t
was so unnecessary, too, as we have
found substitute for Lady Flora. Miss
Manners will take the part"
"Miss Manners?" he said inquir-
ingiy.
"Yes. Now don't pretend you don't
know who l mean. You took her in to
dinner last night"
"Ol That girl. My dear Mrs. Burnes,
she is SO ugly and so stupidi And though
it is small part, that any fool could
take, stu it does require a certain
amount of intelligence"
"As you hardly uttered word to her
the while," began the other lady, but
broke off abruptly; for on the utterance
of his paradoxical statement the young
man turned round to find the object of
it close behind him; so close that it was
impossible to hope she had not heard
every word. Ell.
Arthur Hamilton was not given to
embarrassment, but at this moment he
was absolutely speeches.. Miss Man
ners was not handsome, perhaps, but
her dignified self-possession under these
trying circumstances proved her to be a
woman of character, if not of brilliant
intellect, and slight flush on her sal
lowface showed that her self-possession
was not the result of stolid stupidity.
With scarcely pause she took up the
thread of the conversation.
Lady Flora seems certain that she
will not be able to act tonight. 1t APP
pears that there is no one available to
fill her place but me. l never have
acted, but I fancy in so small a part l
can scarcely do much harm. l suppose
it is not very difficult" she added, ap-
pealing to Arthur, with quiet uncon-
Germ, in which it would have needed
very keen observer to have detected the
malice. And Arthur was, as he after
ward said, too completely staggered"
to detect anything. go, no, it's not very
difficult" he stammered, and muttering
something about the last touches to the
stage, he escaped.
"Poor Mr.. Hamiltoni this sudden
caprice on the part of Lady Flora is
rather hard on him as stage Manager"
said Miss Manners, as he left the room.
eyes," returned Mrs. Burnes, vague
ly; s'but we must leave you in peace to
learn your part. We have final re-
hearsal after luncheon" And she and
Mrs. Finsbury departed, hardly less glad
than Arthur to make their escape.
GortruUo manners $1,000 lot d IuOIu0nC,
with half bitter, half disdainful smile
on her face, but something like tears in
her eyes. Then she walked to the fire.
place and took q deliberate survey of
her features in the glass over the Chin
ney-piece. She was not handsome, but
a close observer would hardly have sat
beside her all through a long dinner
and decided that she was ugly. Her
large hazel eyes were variable in their
shades as the sea under an April sky, her
whole face was expressive and mobile;
moreover, her figure was tall and grace
full. Nevertheless; she did not appear
conscious of these advantages: for, after
a moment of keen scrutiny, she sighed
and said, half aloud, as she turned
away: swell, am plain, but'-she
glanced at the play-book in her hand,
and a bright, confident smile broke over
her face-sswe shall see."
Atthree o'clock the corps dramatique
assembled on the stage. 1t consisted of
the hostess. Mrs. Burnes, clever,
piouante little woman; Mrs. Finsbury,
one of the beauties of the day; Gertrude |
Manners; Arthur, who played the hero,
besides being stage manager and gen.
eraI director; Mr.. Finsbury, and two !
somewhat vapid young men, whose |
ideas of acting were of the most misty |
kind. but who took any amount OF snub->
bling and tutoring with perfect good |
temper. Gertrude's part was that of
heroine in so far as that she was the |
hero's lady love; but she had little to !