New-York tribune., 1894-04-22

EVELYN a series Of detached bits of gossip all In
| one paragraph Did she know that Lena Wilke
| had got into Bemonts company? Didnt mat
| girl have luck? Nellie Myers had got home.
! Madge hadn't heard from her. but she had heard
| by THE Players Record" that Nellie was "at
| liberty" Poor Nellie She seemed 10 have
! awfully hard luck. They said that Tom keasby
was engaged to Sue Dnsmore Had Evelyn
heard IT.? They had been with the Curse OF
Money company for two seasons. IL was very
funny. Tom had been engaged TO four SOU
brettes two ingenucs and one leading lady.
Madge wondered If ne going to De caught at
last Sue wasn't the kind 10 be trihed with.
Old Baily found that out after he broke his con-
tract with her She had made him dance to the
| tune of six hundred dollars.
Madge filled three pages with these and many
other items OF information. She had genius
for glean ming personals" Evelyn had suspected
her Of supplying THE Record with some of us
best paragraphs; but her comments were usually
good-natured. quite unlike Mis- Gordons. on
the last page Of Madges letter was onei
postscript which read: I'VE talked you over
pretty we'll on the train going from Nonkers
Mrs. Barton just rallied about you. certain
person had been pouring his woes into her ears
and you know what her ears are; well. she said
real mean. and 1 up and defended you. and we
had Il hot and heavy till we got to One-hundrcd-
and-f -hfth-st. You know what tongue she
has. Though did stick up for you, dear.
couldn't help feeling there WAS some right on
certain persons side. | suppose We ouGhtnt
to be too hard on the dear boys They can't be
angels like We, with Evelyn Madge sometimes
made spasmodic and disastrous efforts to he
grammatical) | believe they wouldn't be half
as nice If they were for if there's anything do
like in a man it, little spice. hate these tire
some sleepy, psalm-sngng things. So dear. !
hone YOU did make up. Mrs Barton said he was
all broken up-a certain person, mean. Wasn't
he great though in the third act? lie just rattled
me- Saunderson said he wished he cold book
him for "Deception." He said he Ca certain per-
SOM could give Harry Davidson points think
so too So, don't be fool, dear.
When she had finished Madge's long letter
Evelyn sighed. She enved the girl her happy
disposition, and wished that she herself could
take life so lightly. The gossip Of the stagc-it
seemed to her to be always seething-s -sckened
her. Madge took the dislike Evelyn manifested
for it as an innocent affectation, and as she de-
lighted in retailing It, she supplied her friend
with 1t in copious draughts.
Evelyn wondered If IL We're true that those
who were most Indifferent to success were sure
to attain it. She had heard that sentiment
somewhere But it couldn't be true 1t was alb
surd She herself had lost all hope Of genuine
success in her work. she believed that she could
do certain things fairly we'll; but her limitations
were great; 10 do her best she should have 10
play a part written for her Harold Seymour
had always declared she would make 4 hit yet;
but that was said out of his gOOd-nd;ure, he
knew how slight her talent was.
Her meditations made her almost forget the
letter from her aunt. When she thought of IL
again. she hesitated about opening II. She knew
exactly what it would contain; series Of moral
zings on her carelesSncss IN losing the money.
and an assumed horror OF the vulgar publicity
ii had brought upon her. Aunt Jane, when she
was not complaining Of her business and her
boarders. was always moralizing and always be-
Ing shocked. Evelyn read the three pages II
close writing with Indignation. There wasn't
word OF sympathy on them. From the tone OF
the letter one might have imagined the money
belonged to Aunt Jane herself. When she had
finished reading. Evelyn tore up the letter into
fine bits; she would try 10 think no more of that
anyway She decided 70 answer MadGe Guern-
sey's letter at once: she had not as vet told
Madge OF her arrival al NOn'asket. When she
had finished this task and was writing Madge's
address on the envelope. one OF the servants
came up with a card. She wondered who could
be calling upon her at that time In the morning
Perhaps Oswald Webb had come with another
message from his wife. Her face grew hot at the
thought OF facing him again. When she looked
at the card, she read,