Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1890-09-27
ANNAPoLIs SATURDAY, EvENING sEPTEMBER p. 1880.

new I9stf( HlAUc titc iiitStaAS oi ESiiN-
ing To certain orders in a manner that
was evidently out Of place and not in
keeping with my assumed character.
One of the men called to me;
@This way, Fouinard" (that was my
nom de guerre), lend a hand
replied: Certainly, with pleasure,
sir. He seemed surprised; it was
mistake ON my part.
~Catch hold OF that, he said again,
pointing to a piece of scenery.
did catch hold, and though l held ON
with all my strength, if some one had
not come to my assistance it would have
fallen and half a dozen persons received
severe injuries. 1t was decided that
was not yet strong enough to be a stage
carpenter. but that / would make a cap
i5al assistant to the property man. Some
hundred scarfs were handed 20 me.
"The ballet viii defile before you,
was told; 10 each girl as she passes you
must give a scarf.
My Joy at this announcement may be
imagined She was actually going to
pass before me. / should not, il was
true, have time to say much, but could
whisper short sentence and bestow a
loving glance-certainly enough 60 COM
mence with.
The distribution began-a scarf to each
young lady of the ballet as she passed.
All at once my heart began executing a
pas seul of the most eccentric character.
Some distance along the line of charm
ing fair ones l deserted Vittoria. Her
turn would soon come. Only ten menu
bers of the ballet separated us. Very
soon the number had been reduced to
five-then to four-then to three-theu
TO two-then only one.
At that critical moment was knocked
down by tremendous blow in the side.
1t was my friend, the carpenter, who, in
trying to save himself from falling off
ladder, had thrown all his weight upon
unfortunate me. He at once came to
my assistance, however, and made many
apologies l ran to pick up my scarf,
but to no purpose. Vittoria had taken
one for herself and was already on the
stage. had failed to deliver my short
sentence and to bestow my loving glance,
and should have to wait until the meet
entr'acte.
The overture was commencing and
"Silencel" was called. Not knowing
what to do with myself took refuge in
a corner. My friend seemed to take pity
on my loneliness. He again begged par
don for having upset me and then COM
menced a conversation:
"What is your name?" he asked.
Francois.
"Francois what?"
Francois Corfu"
"What do your parents do?"
II have lost them.
"But what did they do?"
began a story, but soon finding that
was becoming gentangIed, Istopped short,
and without any transition began to talk
about the theater. / declared that for a
carpenter there could be no greater hap
piness than to be employed at the Eden.
"Because?"
Because there are so many dancers,
of course.
"You don't mean anything wrong?"
"Don't mean what?"
Anything improper?"
Whereupon he began, and about all
the dancers, great and SMALL and all the
pretty girls whose names ended in 20"
or "a" or 81, he narrated the greatest
number of scandals one can imagine.
hasten to add that since my marriage /
have discovered that there was not
shred of truth in anything he told me,
but at the time ! took it all for law and
gospel, and he did notspare the resources
Of very fertile imagination, / can as
sure you. He heaped anecdote upon an
ecdote, gave names and every moment
trembled lest tlat of my adored one
should be mixed up in his scandalous
narratives. He did not, however, mem
ton her. But by this time my curiosity
had become excited, and / could not
bear to remain in suspense. At last
put the fatal interrogatory:
And about her, asked /, pointing her
out; "did you ever hear anything out Of
the way about her?
~Who, that thing?'
@At the back on the left; the one with
great dreamy eyes and the sweet smile.
The Cascarina!
"Yes.
"Oh, she's no good.
@How? No good?"
My cicerone had nothing to allege
against the fair fame of my adored one,
but referred to her in the most contempt
uous terms, ridiculed her mode of dane
ing, her poses, her simper, her great gog-
gle eyes. He asserted that her compan-
ions looked down upon her as unworthy
of notice-that she was, in fact, the most
Insignificant chit in the ballet
l was about getting into passion
when the stage manager passed.
You're nice kind of stage carpen-
ter, said he, looking at me. Here,
somebody. put him out.
My indignation now knew no bouRds,
but was given no time for its express
sion. asseized. raised up, and thrown
without ceremony into the court leading
into the Rue Caumartin.
The next day returned to the Eden.