Weekly expositor. (Brockway Centre, Mich.) 1882-1894, 1888-08-09


lesson very quietly.
Although the first nights audience
was more friendly than critical. it was
easily seen before the act drop fell for
the second time that tho now Juliet
was complete failure. Still. she was
kindly treated by the audience. there
being something wirsome about tho
girl that aroused their sympathy.
1t seems hardly necessary to write
that it was her reading that was the
most severely criticised the next morn
ing. Her action was said 10 DO bad.
her movements awkward; but no word
seemed strong enough TO use in writ
ing of her delivery. unless 1t might
have been ''elocutionary"-though ell
ocuhon Is concisely defined rs ~ prop
or delivery of words.
Besides the criticism of Marion's
work. Mark Downes had TO boar an-
other form of comment that must hive
been even more trying TO him. She
had been advertised as beauty. yet
the people to whom she PLAYED. more
accustomed 10 beautiful women than
were the prOviR cials in her native place.
found q multitude of faults in her.
Her head was said 10 be too large. her
face TO lack expression. her hair to be
a poor color. She was accused of hav-
ing big feet and hips much too broad
for her shoulders Had these remarks
reached Msrion's ears, rs they did
those of her baokor. they would have
broken her heart. for. with the power
sity of human nature, she would have
been more sensitive about her appear
ancc-which she GOULD not help-than
about her acting.
1t had been planned to play Romeo
and Juliet" the first half of the week.
aud then to put on a new emotional
drama, and duplicate Marion's success
modern society belle. So, OH Thurs
day. after two nights OF empty benches,
the new play was tried before we'll
filled house-a house consisting. like
many Western ''city," of paper.
chiefly. High hopes were entertained
that the young actress would achieve
n success in the new part less exact
ing than the Shakespearean heroine.
and with no predecessor in the role to
be compared with. But her failure
was more complete than before, if that
were possible. She had no idea of the
character of Juliet" and she was no
better now in that respect while her
artificial delivery sounded worse than
it did in the blank verse. And that's
saying n great deal.
And alas for the style and tho ele-
CANT costumes from which so much
was expected! In her personation of
! the highborn lady something was ut
once seen to be lacking. 1t was the
effort of one not born to the purple.
and not clever enough to rise to It.
The long gowns concealed her feet bet
ter than did the juliet costumes,
but under tbs influence OF tournure
and draper.es she settled into her usual
walk--not graceful one to q critical
observer. 1t was not a walk at all. but
manner of sailing along, induced by
her vanity and the attention she at
tracted Mt home.
Mark Downes paid the expenses OF
his venture to the last cent; but in that
week he got enough OF theatrical spec
ulation. He did not like losing his
money very well, either; aud. try as
hard rs he could TO avoid it, he could
not help blaming Marion to great ex-
tent for his misfortune. His eyes had
been opened. too. TO the fact that she
was not by any means the beauty he
had thought her. while her lack OF feel
ing was manifest in the way she took
the result of the week experiment.
regarding 1t simply rs 1T affected her
self. seeming 10 care nothing for his
losses. and showing no signs of graft
tude for the efforts he had made IN her
behalf.
II she had treated him differently lie
might have married her. despite of her
failure as an actress; but, confident in
the power of her beauty to make for
her an even better match, she let him
90 his way. And that way led him u
great deal into the society of Miss Dora
May. the orphaned daughter of a brew
err. Dora-I beg your pardon; on such
short acquaintan ce-Miss May was
plain, pedantic, pious and prejudiced
She regarded theaters as tho invention
of them fact. she thought they were
no better than they ought to be-and
she was worth half n million. So Mark
married Miss May.
IL Marion Taylor had been content to
begin in the ranks she would have de-
veloped into tolerable actress but
after her fiasco as star she had no
ambition left Not that she was crush
ed by her failure-her nature was not
strong enough for that-but she SIM
ply dropped the whole matter and went
home to be the bell of her circle again.
When Mark married, she did not care;
but as years passed aud no wealthy
husband came she wished him back
again. But no deeper feel ng than this
a L.. III
she married mechanic in comfortable
circumstances. She makes him n good
wife, because she is ut her proper level
and her nature is too weak for what
might-have-beens TO trouble her. She
is phlegmatic and happy aud she gets
fatter and fatter every year. -Ne10
York Clipper.