The Monitor. [volume] (Woodstown, N.J.) 1884-1892, 1890-07-18
MAMMA STERLING.

rider Il the htsnoao41e9t AN Ia11s mas
ever seen.
All remember Inn well, In his cog
tune Of postillion Of the Eighteenth cen
r~ury-4scarlet coat. white Wig, booted to
the lnee. spulred with siiyeF-gay, gal
liant. unconcernad! Riding that devil Of
a black horse of his without saddle or
bride ald at a pace TO make ones head
swim; driving three. four. five white
horses BEFORE him, the rains gathered
tightly in one gloyed hand. in the other
a cigar-a cigar, if you please. held now
and again TO his lips. He was an Eng
lish1aan. Sterling was his name-James
Sterling.
And Paris adored him, idolized him.
First for his beauty, then for his talent,
always for his audacity. He was at the
very height Of favor when a little Tin
CARA joined the troupe, then playing at
the Cirque dEte.
She was scarcely more than a child,
not Il, and beautiful-dear heaven. how
beautiful. Dark, ike La Caroly. the
Creole dancer. but finer, mere delicate,
with a slender, reed like body, a royal
color beneath her dusky velvet skin, ara
hair which swept the ground. Eyes,
like the eyes Of dumb things. dark, soft,
large, appealing. and 4 tender mouth.
They met-Sterling and the gypsy
sacha-and it seemed but a glance. a
clasp Of the hand, and the two loved.
They were married. for Sterling was an
honest fellow. and after that, let the
man lock 10 himself who gave a 4 glance
too long or a smile too broad or spoke
without respect of Mrs. James Sterling!
Well. it was short year of love and
happiness. and truly no lady Of the haut
monde was cherished more tenderly,
cared for more daintily. than this gypsy
Saeha, wife Of q circus rider. Then there
came a night II the Provinces while they
were on the road, when the dartE eyes
were closed, and the sweet lips silent,
and the little, firm. fearless hands folded,
and Sacha was gone. leaving a little child
for whom James Sterling must pay this
fearful price.
They thought at first that he would
kill it, the helpless little one. But there
was something in its great dark eyes
which spoke I his heart, and, looking
into them, he suddenly fell 70 weeping
and afterward cared for the child him
self and let no other go near It. Nc wo-
man could have been more tender, more
gentle or shown such maternal patience
and self abnegation, and so it came about
that his comrades spoke Ct him as
Mamma Sterling" And the little one
caught the word and gave it 70 him, TOO,
! IN innocent babv fop6ue2s
The child grew to be a fine little fell
low, with his mothers dark eyes and his
fathers golden hair, and the strength,
talent and daring Of both. He was trained
By Sterling himself for the profession,
and his debut at Franconis was the talk
OF half Paris. He was 50 beautiful. SC
erect, 50 elegant and d~elieately fashioned,
| and even then made his bow I a great
audience with q little disdainful smile
on his lips, which spoke the artist who
loved his art.
Each season brought fresh triumphs to
father and son. Sterling lived again in
his boy. He had returned 70 the ring
with him and Paris saw again the En-.
glish rider in his costume of postillion Of
the Eighteenth century. But it wax only
that he might have more to lavish on
his son. The old dash was gone-even
in the ring one saw Mamma Sterling"
Well, one night, the opening Of the
season at the Cirque dEt6, little SterI-
ing surpassed himself. And his marvel
lous performance over, he stood, his
strong young chest scarcely stirred by
the effort, not a drop Of moisture damp
ening the coronet Of golden curls on his
brow, superblv handsome in the flush of
his triumph and the glory of his even
teen years. The house shook with thrn-
derous applause, braves filed the air,
and a woman in one Of the boxes leaned
forward and threw the roses she had
worn straight at his feet. Something
white futtered ont from the flowers, a
flmy BIT Of lace and cambria, and the
lad bent swiftly andlifted both the roses
and the handkerchief 70 his lips.
After that, any who cared to take
the trouble might have seen the dark,
beautiful face each night, in the same
box, during Little Sterling's scene, and
every night she threw him hsr flowers
and gave him the same tender smiles.
And the boy had eyes for no L else.
His glance sought hers as he entered the
ring, fell on her from the dizzy heights
when he swung on his silk covered ropes,
implored her smile as he bowed before
her box, and flashed love and gratitude
in return fer the floral message sent by
her gloyed fingers. Little Sterling loved
with the terrible ardor Of his gypsy
blood, with the fierce, impetuous passion
OF youth.
She was Il woman Of the gay Partisan
world. Like Sardou's Countess Olga,
she had married before Il, been divorced
before 20, was bored before everything.
The lads infatuation amused, his beauty
charmed her. One night her carriage
waited for him, and she took him with
her to supper. She knew well how TO
manage the affair correctly. so that no
scandal should cloud her small diversion.
This was the beginning.
Then the hard earned salary was spent
for flowers, marrons, even a costly bit Of
bijouterie found its way to my lady's
boudoir, to be laughed over by my lady
and the friends who quietly shrugged
their shoulders over this questionable
preference for a circus performer. Still
she was rich, Young, beautiful, popular,
free, and there was no scandal. No, not
even when Little Sterling rode his mag
r;Gca,+ Hack horse huasiTa ba. Victoria