The Democratic press. [volume] (Ravenna, O. [Ohio]) 1868-1901, 1890-08-20

crawled about the rooms and halls like
little brown mouse.
Il don't see why you can't at least
be Elaine to my Guinevere, Mrs.
Merriweather said complainingly to
the girl. Then if we could only have
had Mr.. Pallatine for Launcelot it
would have been perfect! He would
make such a handsome Launcelot! He
is so dark and knightly-looking!' Mrs.
Merriweather's blue eyes were soft.
She gave little sigh. ''But, of course,
as he is to read that portion of the
poem when the curtain rises to show
tableau of the barge and the courtiers
of Arthur assembled, he can't be
Launcelot too. But repeat that you
might be Elaine, Amina."
"Do 1 look like the Lily Maid of
Ascolat?" cried Amina, flashing sud-
denly her berry-brown face with
bitter CLEAN in the eyes on her pro-
tectress.
"a wig and blanc de theatre would
make you do" said Mrs. Merriweather.
But after all Amina held good and
another Elaine was chosen. Mrs.
Merriweather would have liked we'll
enough to be the Lily Maid herself
But she could not be that and the
beautiful, guilty Queen too. And
Guinevere, of the two roles, was the
stronger attraction.
When the great night came Mrs.
Merriweather's magnificent drawing
room was crowded to suffocation.
absurd to wear decent gown in
such crowd as thisr' buzzed one lady
to another.
But then, my dear, this is an es-
pecial occasion! A sort of public
proclamation of coming events-eh?"
The first lady Uttered behind her fan.
Actually it would seem SO! You
notice that the young man has a very
prominent place in the entire affair!
Good Heavens! how old do you think
Mrs. Merriweather really is?n
ITO be haritable-forty-five."
''Oh, my dear! Say forty-eight!
Well, he is a handsome fellow. And
romance was always her weakness"
On the improvised platform, mean
while behind the lowered curtain, a
wild scene was enacting. A rumble of
crazy conversation arose from the
ladies' dressing-room, like the tumult
of the sea when all its waves murmur
together.
''How resolutely you have kept out of
this whole thing,'' said Egbert Pallatine
abruptly to Amina. He found himself.
for the moment, standing alone with
her-both of them isolated in the vor-
tex of the confusion.
mo. But could do more by help
ing than by being in the tableaux my
away with her hands full of pins and
1oon0oont bo
turned to find the young man standing
motionless in the same place.
Mrs. Merriweather is dressed for
the first tableau and wishes you to see
whether there are any suggestions to
make"
She spoke without looking at him,
and the next instant she was bending
to adjust fold in the widows costume.
The latter stood before the young
man and challenged him to admiration
with every inch of her resplendent
presence. She was CLEAN of jewels
and priceless stuffs and red lips. She
was undeniably handsome. She looked
fifteen years younger than her age,
| and the artist in Pallatine did homage
| to the consummate cleverness of the
whole production.
Perfect" he said, bowling low. The
elaine" tableau came first. This was
really a regal Guinevere. A futter
rose in Mrs. Merriweather's throat.
The excitement half carried her a little
out of herself.
'.Had you been Launcelot," she mur-
INJURED, with softened eyes, sit might
have been perfect indeedr'
And she held out her hand toward
him.
The curtain went up in moment
and Pallatine began his reading in a
whirl. He scarcely heard his own
words. When the curtain had gone
down again amid a burst of applause,
hiding the reader and the illustrative
tableau alike from view, he withdrew
into corner and tried, with all the re-
newed confusion around him, to collect
his thoughts.
Great heaven! He did not wish to
be a coxcomb, but what was thlsP
| Could it be! Was this where he had
been drifting. with his frequent visits
to this house, his tolerance of the great
lady's patronage? 1t seemed impossi-
BILE, and yet Merciful powersi He
remembered Mrs. Merriweathrr's look,
her extended hand and a chill ran
down his spine.
Had the little italian girl seen them:
She had moved away as soon as he ap.
preached Mrs. Merriweather. And
vet, how could he tell? His cheek
tingled. If she had surmised anything
of this sort it would account for
the GOODNESS, the contempt almost, with
which she had seemed to treat him in
these weeks he had been coming here
A poverty-stricken reader ingratiating
himself into the favors of an elderly
widow of wealth and social standing
with visions of a matrimonial denoue
ment-that was how he must have ap
peared to her. Faugh! The though
slckened him.
He went through the rest of the pro
gramme automatically. He was selzee
with wild desire to get away. AnC
vet his eye watched for Amina con-
! stantly. Just before the last tableal
he caught sight of her standing on I
chair and mailing up some bit o
drapery for the scenery.
=. He found himself the next instan
beside her and looking up, with sor
of desperation, into her pale face. He
lips were tightly set. Some hidder
emotion seemed to communicate itseI
from him to her, from her to him. ID
longed to explain to her
His voice came thickly, and all h
found to say was: Pm afraid tn
} chair is not steady. You will fall. "
"Oh, no." she said in turn. But wa
J it his close presence that made he
fingers less sure? One end of tn
heavy drapery slipped from her gras
) and, as she made movement to re
: cover it, the chair tipped and her ligh
weight slid downward into his arms.
1t was tremendous revelation t
: both of them. Their faces were whit
: and their eyes glowed.
} Let me go" whispered Amini
, fighting for her self-control.
t II love you," Egbert kept repeating
3 81 love you very much, Amina. 70
4 must believe me. That is why l hav
3 been coming here-though l did ne
know it myself"
I 1t had been the affair of a moment
A high cardboard wing had screene
: them from view. But. in the interstiC
u of it Mrs. Merriweather had suddenl