The morning call. [volume] (San Francisco [Calif.]) 1878-1895, 1892-02-07

| which fgurantes could buy their way
| Nevertheless, fer this once and to do ser
| vice-oh. simply to oblge a lady he would
! depart from the custom OF the house, he
| would accept the offer!
This is altogether entire nous! said he,
| putting his foIehnger upon his lips.
Have no fear on that scOre!
A sHORT PART
| The manager put out his hand, took the
DOte aud considered for an instant the fill
| gree work on IL.
| The visitor asked again:
| mile. Hermance's role consists of four
! lines, does it not?-fOur lines as follows:
Je suIs la petite salade,
Ceile qui reud malade --
lie ieune homme CONNIE IL faut
Qui la mango aYee du yeau,
| continued the manager. Yes, in fact,
| that's ALL"
Simple and in good taste. Your authors
| have great wiz
/" Exactly SO = they are the wtttiest
| authors in the wOrldw
Very brskly the musicians were attack
| ing the overture of the second act Of the
| " Ravut," pOtpOurri of operate airs and
| cafe concert songs, the spectators were re-
| gaining their places and IN noisy con-
| fusion were cOnfounded laughter, calls. the
| sound Of footsteps and the slamming Of
! doors.
=" Has the act begun ?" demanded Count
! Paul a Algres OF the box-Opener, who was
| helping him remove his overcoat.
| MT vet"
The Count went to his fauteuil, sat down
/ and inspected the audience through his
| Operaglass.
| After rapid glance through the audi
| forum he yaWued; then, setting back in his
| seat, he awaited the close Of the entr' acte
and the entrance on the scene OF Mile. Her
/ ~ 9upp I)pSfaIlIV To see whom he came every
| evening.
To tn the truth, the appearance of Rer-
! nance did not interest him extraordinarily.
/ She was q demi-mOndaine who did not lack
| charms, but she did not belong to that
! class Of women who make men commit
great fOllIes. She was gifted with solid,
| indes.ructible stupidity, which she inher-
! tied from her father, former gendarme
| worthy of being decorated for his cerebral
| invalsdIty. NJ. q AligreS had become smit-
| ten With her one evening, just two months
| before, at the circus. year married, he
! had, during that TerIoc, remained faithful
! TO the Countess. The need of breaking the
| bond of conjGgal fidelity had not, perhaps,
| made itself imDeTiouSly felt; but the desire
| of change which is in man had pushed the
! count toward Hermanoe and he had taken
| his place in the chorus of the demi-mOn-
! DANES friends.
LA PETITE sALADE APPEARS.
| The curtain rose on a set representing the
| HaleS at night
We'll" demanded one of the characters,
| a plump and handsome girl, whose form was
covered with some fimsy material. what is
| to be seen herep'
A man in a blue coat with gilt buttons
| cooked his hat over his right ear like a
| masher. and, lifting his cane, said:
1--WE have here all you want-tSh, Vege-
| tables, fruits, etc"
| The leader of the orchestra strnck his
/ 81. cEo5o \
! one Of the motifs Of the entr'a cte, and, to q
! gay air. entered half n dozen women in
! tights. tossing their heads, stretching out
| their threats and placing their hands upon
| their hips.
! The Count had raised himself I'D. His
| lorgnette curiously searched the stage. la
! a few instants he gave start of surprise.
wiped the glasses Of his l0rgnette and again
| gaZ4d attentively. What does it all mean2
Il am the little LOBSTER said stout girl
costumcd in bright red.
And | am the little radish," took up an
! other, dressed in pink.
But, at a sign from the orchestra leader, a
| third woman, clad in green costume, adj
! vanced to TIE pr0mpter's box and. while the
sight Of her caused a eulogistic mnrmur to
run through the house, she sang, Il am the
little salad
The Count was stupefed; he lowered his
lorgnette He had before him, not Her
nance. but his wife, Nine. d'Aligresl For
an instant he had believed in a fortultous
| resemblance a fgurante who, replacing
Hermance, had the same stature and aspect
as the Countess. But it was impossible to
deceive himSelf-his wife was imperS0nat-
ing La Petite Salade!
A DAZZLING TRIUMPH.
And in the light, beneath the gas which
| garnishly illuminated her. with her fluffy
locks, her Spirituelle pink mouth and all
| the viyacity of her spr!ghtly person, she
| appeared so pretty that the entire audience
| grew enthusiastic. There were cries OF
'BravO! brayoW She let off her cOUpleC
with the nOnchalance of shOp-grl. her
| mOcking eyes full Of roguiSh laughter, and,
| with graceful sweep Of the arm, she shot
| forth the last word like an expert barn
stormer who cOnquers the public by dint of
| cheek
astOnishment, established in his mind
comparison between his wife and Her
nance.
When the theater was letting out the
Countess found Paul waiting for her. On
seeing him she began 70 laugh.
"Ah! there YOU are!
He felt that he would be taking the wrong
road by turning the affair into drama, so
he asked:
Are you thinking of becoming a starr"
mo; ] have only tried an experiment.
When husband deceiVes his wife, the
either TO weep. which does no good, or 10
laugh, as in my case. But, above all, she
should compare her value with that of her
RIVAL"
80, that experiment"
al have Just made and it has turned out
to NY advantage. Has Mile. Hermance ever
scored as great a success as | did this even
ing? No, ell? You will admit that her
charms leave the public cold and that the
management did well TO entrust her with
the role of La Petite Salade because she
has enough vinegar In her to suitably season
itw
"What are you trying to get at?"
THE wIFE's ARGUMENT.
This. Ii you had taken a woman who
was my superior | should not have excused
your treachery, but | should have under
stood II. Unfortunately, the contrary is
true. Both IN mind and-shape / suTpaSS
Hermance. You have Inundated me too
much. 1 shall get diYnrce-adieup
She had said all this sharply and deliber-
ately.
For an instant they both remained stand
ing on the sidewalk, facing each other.
She offered him her hand, repeating:
Adieu!'
In the great cloak which enveloped her,
her chin buried in her boa, beneath the hat
so little-whieh covered her head, her
visage dimly Lighted and her eyes as brill
| liant as two diamonds she was infinitely
pretty.
My carriage is here. WIN You permit
me to take you back to the hotel ?" de-
manded the Count, who had never found
| his wife so captivating as that evening.
"As you please"
! She got into the coupe. shrank away in a