Rocky Ford enterprise., 1893-09-07
DOROTHY's UNDERsTUDY.
How she Solved the Riddle of Barry
Markham's Life.

ner which used TO ruffie the manager
so afterwards. she had come walking
INTO the office leading u smaller and
much more untidy litrse girl that her
self by one grimy hand.
Here's my understudy, Mr.. Phil
lips" announced the little actress, land
her names Katherine" And, though
the manager had stormed a good deal
and declared he would not stand it.,
a'ofothy's word had stood, and Rather
Inc became her veritable shadow.
Where the small actress had found her,
no one ever discovered, but Judging
from the ragged little frock which
scarcely covered her plump body, and
the dust,filled curls. it must have been
IN some alley, far removed from the
fashionable quarter Of the city. But
between Dorthy herself and her foster
mother and dresser. they soon turned
the smaller child into II clean, sweet,
bfs-eyed girl. Inside OF q week she
knew every one in the company, in
Guiding the pets of the women; inside
of a month she could go through her
lines In "Fauntleroy" with the best of
them, and with IN astonishing grace
and ease. Undoubtedly the little rag
muffin either possessed talent herself
| ~ eAoS hau iuueTlteu II lTOtN HeT Teiu-
tivess and, having shown her talent,
she dropped into the company as natu-
rally us II she had been acting since
she wore long dresses.
When Barry Markham. that elegant
Olase young man who condescended to
grace the stage with his distinguished
presence-these were the comedians
sarcastic words concerning him--joined
the Fauntleroy company, every woman
in that aggregation said in her inner
heart she would bring him to her feet;
Tor nuded to most enchanting manner
anu bearing. there was an air Of de-
ticious mystery about him which was
really quite irresistible. No one knew
anything definite Of him, though the
old woman whispered once or twice to
to the leading lady that she knew he
must be n real swell, rnnninS away
from something; and the advance man,
VINO dropped back once Il week to have
a game of poker with the first heavy,
was half-sure he had seen him through
the window mt an "upper-ten" recep-
tion. But this was mere guessing; the
facts were only these: He never
smiled; he never gossiped with the
others; he dressed well, but tastefully-
something the others did not; he played
the earl us IL his life depended upon
his success; and he took life very, very
seriously. The one thing which made
him seem real and tangible to the other
men was that he drank n good deal
night drinking, too-though he never
got too much; but although he asked
them to join him, whenever they hap
pened In the same place, 1t was with
the nlr OF baron paying for the wine
for his tenants. All In all, he was
charming handsome and thoroughly
delightful mystery.
Until he saw Katherine the first time
Ihen he became II veritable puzzle. He
met her one afternoon as he was STUN
bling along the abominably dark and
noisome alley leading to the stage door,
and Tor a moment, the tall, serious
actor stood staring down Mt the little
girl as If he had seen a ghost To be
sure. She was anything but gliostly,
being quite us plump and rosy us when
Dorothy had brought her into COM
panyi and the yellow hair hair, which
needed no addition when she "went
on, tumbled about her pretty face in
very attractive and material man.
ner; but the actor continued to stare,
until 1t occurred to him that he was
blocking the way and that possibly the
little lady, who was waiting so patient
y with the sweetly childish smile upon
her sunny face which made every one
her friend, might want to 90 on. With
hoarse II beg your pardon" he took
on MS nat gravely and stepped aside
She looked up at him quite as grayely
and said: '"Thank you, SIR" as she
passed. After which he wandered
down street toward his hotel. and went
by three saloons without stopping in
one. Which undoubtedly proved the
disturbed condition of Mr.. Barry Mark
hams mind
Ernu, thut In,, fortI, Ia.
ent man. He drank less, he talked
more; he took to haunting back alleys
and streets-after he had learned Kath-
crimes very limited history-and he con-
versed with all the inhabitants of these
unsavory portions of the city who had
reached the middle mile-post Of life.
Every day saw him doing the slums,'' y
MS the others said; but, from his drawn,
sad face when he returned from his
trips, 1t was evidently not for the pleas
ure he found there. If what he learned
there made him sad, however, he made
up for 1t when he came back, for once
near the little girl who had interested
him so, he forgot his troubles, what
ever they were, and warmed his cold
heart In the sunshine of her happy
smiles. And it would have taken a
cold and hard heart, indeed, to with
stand the straightforward contiding lit
tie ways with which katherine went to
him. Nothing could frighten or disturb
her, seemingly; nothing seemed bad or
unpleasant TO her pure heart; and once
her faith was grounded in her new
friend, which was soon the case, nothing
on earth could have uprooted her con-
viction that he was the best and kind
est man in the world. Before he had
been with the company two weeks.
she had given him her full faith and
love; and, in turn she had crept into
his heart and filed it SO thoroughly that
all the combined charms Of the ladies
Of the company could not have usurped
Il corner of it--a fact that they soon
became aware of. The calm, self-pos-
sessed Markham loved little Katherine
us II she We're his only daughter.
"She reminds him of some One," said
the Advance, one evening during the
performance, when he had returned
from trip with the road-cOmpany
which Mr.. Phillips sent out the first of
the season, ''nnd it is either that his
lady-love married some other fellow
and this is the child, or else his sister
ran away and went on the stage and de-
serted her youngster. That is my opin-
ion, understand; I never could have
got anything out of him. Never saw
such close-mouthed man in my life;