The Arkansaw traveler., 1888-06-16

ahoultier, hush of awe fell upon the audience. My heart swUlled with triumph, and klt the inspiration of which my fellow actors had spoken thrilling to my very finger tlpe The lady to whom | was to address my mysterious remarks started and cringeSi aS l appeared suddenly before her, The sepulchral sentences wcrc spoken, I raised my hand wArningiy. and le- gan 10 melt away In tho twilight; but alas l had misca!culated the location Of the opening through which l was to evAporate. There was sudden crash .hs: resoaasiei through every part of the building, and tho next in- stant l was fat on my hack, wrestling with the foreground of the twilight scene, which had topplcd over upon me, while roars of laughter pcalcd from the delighted audience. To add [" tho ridiculousness of the performance. the scene shifter tried to let the cur. tain down with dispatch. hut only the eni opposite ;o fife would descend, and In doing so very uncx pcctetily. it lett one of our farm lahorers on the out side. near the iootlights. This seemed to increase the amusement of the audi ence.
 Ky the time the Shifter got my end ct the curtain down, l was so ex- hausted with my struggles and my emotions, that had to be carried bod fly Into the dressing room. Brandy and other seductive restoratlvcs wore administered, and finally camc to, sufficiently to wipe the precipitation from my brow and groan. Meanwhile the uniceiing audience was clamorlng for the play io proceed. An the mem- bers of the company gather~i around and besought me tearfuily not to give up at this important jnncturc, They assured mo that the accident was by no means an uncommon one; that the play need not be spoiled by il. if all else went we'll and they suggested that the audience would be more than willing to pardon an episode which had furnished so much innocent merrl- mant not down on tho bills Finally, when the heroine, the lovely heroine. had cast herself at my feet and claspe,i my clammy hands In her own, plead. ing with irresistible eloquenec or cye and lip, consented to struggle through the remainder of the play, and then and there close my histtionic career forever.
 Once more the curtain rose, and the play went on. Like man In dream came and went, mumbllng my lines and going through my part in a wooden manner which fairly made the audience frantic. But hisses and groans moved me not; was past caring for criticism either favorable or adverse Once only did partially wake up, when a small boy In tho audience struck me on the side of the head with hen pear of tho vintage Of 1874. At last came the stabbing scene In tho lonely dell. think l never prepared to kill a person with SO much dellr- ious pleasure AS prepared ioput that heroine out of the way, and thus hasten the cnnsnmmation of the play. The audience seemed to be slightly im- pressed once more, AS came on In my sable cloak, and soliloquized before the dreadful deed.
 The fatal moment arrived. The heroine was seen approaching through the forest, buried in the sweet thoughts of innocence and love. l hid behind the messy trunk of tree and awaited her coming. Suddenly my h,@l whirled and my mind became q total blank could not for the liie of mo recall the tragic words with which was to preface the bloody deed. The heroine approached, passed the tree. stopped for a moment In surprise. and then kept on. did not step forward. 1 still crouchei behind the tree. She passed me again, and As she did so she gave a slight ahem, to wake up her delinquent assassin. Then 1 spraDg out and graspcd her by the hair. 1 ought to have known better; but was not in condition to know any. thing or care for anything. The stage direction was: "The villain grasps the lady by the throat" To be grasp. d by the hair was evidently "A far iron, the expectation of the heroine as any thing could possibly De, for, with the most natural feminine gesture in the world, she threw back both her hands. uttered . little scream of horror, and grasped at the departing wigi Too late Too latel There stood, with my should be gory hand filled with store hair, while my right hand, clutching the bright knife, hung nerve. less at my side. There was moments awful hush, and then the pathos of the scene burst upon the audience, and the barn was filled with thundsrs Of SD. planse and demoniac yells. did not wait for the curtain to fall, in fact, ii did not fall, as the scene- -shiftsr was not in condition to perform his &C., customed functions. ! rushed for the AGJ ... .