The Bolivar bulletin. [volume] (Bolivar, Hardeman County, Tenn.) 1865-1888, 1886-07-30

I
Messrs. Sweet q Sawder received fifty
pounds ION account toward diminish
/ ing many hundreds. This was very
unexpected favor" and also puzzled
! Mr.. McKilligin considerably. Appar-
emily his son-in-law had made hit
somewhere. One wintry day this gen
tleman met his daughter in the Strand.
| She got into an omnibus carrying a
parcel of books, and did not perceive
! him. He had time to see that Margery
was rather thin and more than little
shabby, but smiling and prettier than
| ever. Something that does duty for a
| heart in a city mans breast gave e
little throb in Mr.. McKilligin's inte-
rior. just such another girl, twenty
years ago, had been Margery's mother.
! She, too, had gone about in omnibuses,
and had been very shabby oftentimes.
/ In earlier years Mr.. McKilligin had
not been an authority on the Stock EX-
change or the director of railway COM
| panies.
Early in the spring following Mr..
! DAVE unexpected payment, sandwich
men perambulated the streets adver-
Using a new play to appear shortly at
the Star Theater. In due course 1t was
put on the boards, and most of the crit
| les combined to damn the new author
with their faint praise. But the venom
of unbribed pens was insufficient to
| poison its popularity. By Easter time
! London was aware that there was a
capital thing running at the little
theater, where a plucky manager had
ventured to place the work of an I'M
tried writer. "A Flat Proceeding"
proved itself to be a sparkling little
! play of two acts, full of charming dia-
! logue and pretty scenes. Strange bits
/ of pathos alternated with comic situa-
! tiOns; but people had not time to cry
before they were laughing again. 1t
was the style of piece that pays to the
manager, having no elaborate settings;
aud also the style of play always pop
ular with that large section of society
/ that likes to dine at leisure and give
couple of hours flip to digestion
| later on. Crowds flocked nightly to
| see the brilliant little comedy and the
Bond street theatrical agents booked
! places at the Star weeks before.
| The plot was of the simplest cOnstruc-
/ ton, and hinged on the difficulties of
rash young couple who had entered on
| housekeeping on a flat without ade-
quate means. At the lofty altitude OF
| the sixth story, without a lift, it was
| impossible to escape duns or visitors
! through any back door. There was a
| flavor of reality about the incidents
| that occurred which tickled the fancy
/ of theater-gOers and made it a signal
| success. The embarrassments of Mr..
/ Simon Buttercup and Mrs. Daisy But
/ tercup were matters of absorbing in
| terest and amusement. The present
ment of a stern and tyrannical parent
was also touched with the hand of
! IL T,-rv
/ elled at parental ambitions were hailed
with applause. The author of the
| comedy was spoken of as q coming
| power. Who was he? Hitherto the
manager had maintained his incognito.
Naturally, when the new thing at the
! Star was talked of at every dinner
table, it soon came to Mr.. McKilligin's
ears that it was worth seeing. He
booked three stalls three weeks in adj
vance, and in due course of time APP
peared at the theater with his meek
wife. This lady, who was tender
hearted, wept furtively in the love-
scenes between the young couple, but
Mr.. McKilligin only writhed uneasily
at the just irOnies aimed at the merce-
nary moods and inclinatiOns of parents
He recognized a strange similarity of
circumstances between the performance
and his own experiences. His OwR
sentiments, almost his own words,
were faithfully re-echOed from the
stage. His counsels to his daughter
sounded from other lips very materi
alistic doctrine.
BY and by, between the acts, Mr..
McKilligin began to look about the
theater. To his surprise, Margery and
her husband were located in the stage
IL
comfortable about it all. MargerY's
saucy eyes were fixed upon him, ana
she was smiling in her most radianl
mood. He leTeled his glass at the next
box as though he had not seen her.
Presently the play was resumed, and
came to happy termination with
benignant and repentant father giving
advice to his younger children to follow
the dictates of their hearts. One by
one the actors were recalled, a storm
of applause following. Finally some
one set up shout for ''authOr," a shout
that had on other occasions been in
vain. There was a rustling in the
stage-bOX, and Margery and her hus-
band disappeared. The manager came
forward, announced that the joint
authors were in the house, and would
be happy to acknowledge the warm
reception their play had received. In
q moment the curtain was pulled back,
and Mr.. McKilligin perceived his SON
in-law. Russell Dave did not appear
alone, but led by the hand the half
reluctant Margery, who blushed and
smiled in the most bewitching way
Such a partnership of wits was nov
city, and deafening cheers resounded
as Margery curtseyed repeatedly Mr..
McKilligin turned very pale, and under
cover of the applause commanded his
wife's instant departure. He could
never now enjoy the exquisite satisfac-
ton of playing the benignant father
and paying his son-in-law's debts.
Mr.. Russell Dave continues to write
plays conformity with his wife, and de-
rives no small advantage from them
He is held in high repute by managers
in these days. Messrs. Sweet & Saw
der were duly paid in full, but did not
receive Mr.. Dawes patronage for the
fitting-up of his beautiful new residence
in the Addison road. To please her
husband, Margery ravishes the public
eye in charming eccentric garments,
but for some reason of her own is never
witty or brilliant in general society.
1t is the common opinion of her ac-
quain5nce that Mrs. Russell Dawes
pretty head has not much inside it.
The world whispers that she has very
small share in the production of the
popular plays. OF course her worship
ing husband-for Russell is known to
be still a devoted Observation-Disclosures his
utmost to reflect the aureOle of his
talent upon her. But it will not do,
and you can not deceive US!
Mrs. Margery smiles and is well
pleased when such remarks are report
ed to her ears, or critics insinuate dis
paragement of her pretensions to
authorship. But Russell is much more
humble regarding his own powers in