Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1885-03-01

49,
from his suite. where Mrs. D. and Mary and
| himself were discussing ct one and the same
time q little supper aDi the merits OF Msry's
first appearance. Then arose CONSERVATION
when Annie, the maid, told OF madame.s
loss. Search was instituted at once. but 1t
is a difficult thing to hunt about q theater's
stage after midnight All the lights were
Lit again, and every possible nookand corner
was yisited, but without success Poor Annie,
| she cried so that her usually bright eyes
were of no use in the search. She felt
| chiefly to blame herself, for in the present
| instance she had been careless. Contrary
to her habit she had left madame's dressing
room for Just q moment to hear Mary 8 sing,
ing. Then was the only time q thief could
have entered the room. 1t was not . happy
night after all a it had promised to be.
| Dennis couldn't sleep. Mrs. Duffy was
equally worried and Wakeful and Mary
seemed to have caught the same complaint,
| Whom to suspect-4that was the question,
and il remained unanswered. As soon as
daylight came the three were again about
to search, and madame herself caue early
TO the theatre to Join in the effort. When
| Mary saw the madame she ran to her n
told how sorry she felt, and then with more
than common keeness said:
Madame, 1 have boon thinking all night
about your loss; will you do me the honor
| TO listen to a suggestion I'd like 10 maker
go on, my child-go on" -,
MADAME, no one, but You, your maid,
daddy, mother and myself knows of your
| loss-that is, unless you have told others.
81 have told no one whom cannot trust,
interrupted madame.
We'll" continued Mary, there is one
person besides these who knows all about
The matter. That person is the thief. Now,
If Won return to your hotel and remain there
I think I can find that thief. / can do 30
better than any one else, for l suspect some
one and he will never suspect me OF watch
ing him"
my child, l believe you are right Atany
rate IN trust to YOU for halt of this day ana
no one shall interfere with you" and she
Immediately departed for her hotel.
go about you work daddy and mother.
and leave me alone, please" said Mary, and
then set about her plans. She went sing
ing about the stage, up stairs, down STAIRS,
behind the great file of fats hat restsd
AGAINST the wall at the back of the theater-
| in short everywhere where she thought any
| one could hide-until she knew tor certain
that there was no one about the place.
Then she went up the stage into q corner,
| quiet and dark, and seating herself on q
green bank" ESQ it would read in the scene
plot) waited. 1t seemed q long time, but at
last she heard the back door shut with
its familiar slam. Then she heard a whistle.
and soon saw Joe, the darby who helped
about the stage, carried out the dirt and
was a hard worker about the place. She
wa in the shadow and Joe did not see her.
He kept on whiStling a merry tune, out his
| face was eager with a watchful, suspicious
look. He wandered here and there sull
whistling, and finally seemed satisfied that
be was alone. Then very quickly he passed
| down the stairs leading beneath the stage.
Quick as a bird, and with no more
noise than the swallow makes in its
fight, Mary followed him. She
saw him go to the ash heap beneath
| the stairs, and, after a pause to listen once
again, he pulled a small stick from the heap
and then began to scrape among the ashes
| His lob was a light one, for he soon drew
| from its concealment something done up
in what appeared to be an old, soiled hand
kerchief. For Just q second he opened the
parcel, and even in the half darkness some
| thing cleaned bright in his hand. Then
he thrust the little parcel into the pocket OF
his Jacket. Like a cat Springing upon .
mouse, not waiting to think what she was
| doing, Mary sprang upon him an6 grabbed
him by the collar of that jacket, crying out
wildly:
"Oh, you mean thief, you villain! Give
me that cross-give it to me!
For a second the black rascal was dumb
| and m~otionless, and then-curse him!-he
| struck her fair face and beat at her shame
| fully, showering the blows upon her quick,
| fast and furious. But she held on like grim
death and, as he dragged her with him up
| he narrow stairs, she cried out aloud tor
help.
Dennis came rushing down stairs at her
cry, and just as they all reached the stage
| Joe struck the brave girl a blow which
| stunned her and she fell to the floor, her
sweet face all bloody and battered.
Dennis caught the black hearted thief,
and it was Gods mercy that he did
not then and there kill him. The
first blow from Dennis fist, old as he was,
| settle Master Joe for n while, and he lay
in a heap upon the stage. Poor Dennis and
Molly were nearly crazy with fright over
| Mary's condition. They cried to her to
speak to them once more. Molly tenderly
wiped the blood from her face, and both OF
them were all the while wondering why that
cruel "nagur" could have struck their dear
girl. 1t seemed an age before Mary opened
her eyes, but she did at last, and her first
words were, Observation-Disclosures
- the cross - Joe -had-it-in-his-
pocket" The words came out slowly,
but none too slowly for them
to understand. Then the gas
man happened in, and he sat upon Joe, and
Annie arriving too was sent for a police
man. Soon Joe was handcuffed, and the
very proof of his guilt, the diamond cross,
was taken from him. 1t seemed the whole
town knew the story in ten minutes. There
a talk of lynching the thief-there always
is talk OF that kind, but it is seldom more
than talk. Hundreds came toinquire about
| Mary, and she was a double heroine. Jack
Severn sent a note to the Chief Of Police
asking what the fine was for kicking a man,
for he intended to have one kick at that
Joe, and he'd like to pay the fine in ad-
vance. You may be sure that madame was
soon at Mary's bedside and to her credit she
said-and meant it, too-that she would
rather have never found the cross again
| than that the brave Mary should have been
50 beaten. But the doctor said Mary would
be all right in a few days, and he did not
think her face would be long disfgured.
Mary, herself, was simply glad to have
found the cross, and the loving caress ofthe
great actress more than paid her, she said,
for all the pain she was undergoing. Ma
dame would hardly leave Mary's bedside,
and Molly began to be a triae jealous, but
soon recovered after the most illigant pair
iv di'mind earrings mortal man liver saw"
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