The National tribune. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1877-1917, 1894-05-03
A THEATER vIGNET.
Some Things that Happened in the Inter-
iudes of q Grand Concert.


iudes of a Grand Concert.
1t was the night of the last Thomas con-
cert and she and her mother had arrived
early. She was not at all in the mood for
it, but la petite mere must have the music
or she wouldn't be happy at all, and Ia petite
mere must be kept happy at any cost.
She-the daughter-had never before no
ticed that the Auditorium could look COM
mon, and she felt that somebody was wo-
fully neglectfui about the dusty draperies
around the stage. She usually rather en-
joyed watching the musicians come in, all
so exactly alike in the conventional black
and white of their dress suits, but tonight
they looked more foreign than ever. Some
men can afford to look as though some
other land than the United States had given
them birth, and musicians usually come
under this head. But tonight they were
almost ludicrous with their long, pale hair
and their weak mouths.
The terrible din of two score of violins in
the process of tuning was nearly over and
the restless scraping of the performers
wooden chairs along the uneven stage had
almost subsided, while the boxes had begun
to fill. In the body OF the house nearly all
the seats were taken-the smaller ticket
holders are rarely unpunctual. A woman
had just come in and taken the seat beside
her, tanning constant wave of musk into
her face with a hand whose wrist bore a
hideous, clanking linked bracelet. Already
the ominous sound of rustling programs had
begun and the ushers were gasping from
haste.
All at once she caught Whit Of violet,
even above the odious perfume of her
hamiDgly-gowned neighbor, and man and
young lady took the two vacant seats be-
fore her. La petite mere didn't see them,
she was already absorbed in study of the
numbers which were to delight her later on,
and the daughter was glad that the young
man hadn't noticed them. The girl she
did not know, although she noted that she
was what the general man would call
pretty, and he In front of her belonged to
that class.
The newcomers settled themselves noisily,
and the young girl let her escort relieve her
of her heavy wrap and button trouble
some glove She-the heroine of the tale
sat behind, with a white ring slowly creep
ing about her lips and pitiful, hurt look
rising into her eyes. How she wanted TO
escape! Was there q possibility that he
might see her after all? She could not en-
dure having him discovering her and speak
ing to her in that dear old way again-nOt
when that girl was with him. She was
amazed with herself to find that she cared
after all-she thought that she had long ago
vanquished any feeling which she may have
had for him one day.
Well, if la petite mere could be kept from
recognizing him fortunately, la petite mere
was near sighted) and she herself could keep
still, and they could leave the instant the
last note was played discovery might be
ayerted. And yet-there, so near she might
put out her hand and touch the fine blonde
hair she used to be so fond of! But never
mind, for the first crash of music had silenced
even the laughing, devoted pair in front of
her.
The program must have been miserably
arranged and every instrument seemed
more noisy than its neighbOr. There was
q preponderance of harsh climaxes, and yet
every number was desperately long. Finally
the first half was ended, and she shuddered
She could not hope to escape detection dur
ing the painful intermission.
But she had not entirely understood the
case. for the instant the players had low
cred their violins from beneath their chins
the young man in front slipped lazily down
in his seat, rested his head on the back of
his chair, and proceeded to chatter away
with his companion. The girls lips were
set in an endless smile, except when she
stopped long enough to MUNICH chocolate
creams. What must be the makeup of a
young woman who could eat sweets in the
Auditorium between one of Mendelssohn's
wordless songs and Beethoven symphony
as complacently as though she were devour-
ing peanuts at a circus and tossing the
shells to the monkeys? The girl wore too
many hat-pins, too, and her shoes were so
tight that she beat a constant tattoo on the
floor with the toes Of her left foot.
The tardy musicians, after ages of SEEM
ingiy useless waiting, at last filed back, and
he had neither discovered her nor had la
petite mere noticed him. Just as Thomas
raised his baton for the first note the girl
gave her heavy cape an extra push, so that
its deep fur collar hung just before tie
heroine's eyes, and there, down III its soft,
coZy nest of brown, was the source of IL e
delicate Odor which had caught her notice
at the entrance of the couple-a shy, warm
little knot of violets, not the double ones
affected by fashionable florists, but the tiny,
single wood violets, the same kind he used
to bring her, too. As she watched them she
thought that the pin which held them looked
loose, but when tears are lying in ones eyes
one often sees incorrectly.
However, she must have been right, after
all, for a sudden little restless move on the
part of the young lady in front shook the
poor nosegay from its place and it fell
straight down at the feet of the watching
girl. La petite mere hadn't noticed it, for
the first violin's wonderful solo had lifted
her far from the plane of ordinary things.
Slowly the daughter bent down and lifted
the limp flowers to her lap. They were not
hers; he had not brought them to her and
she never before had broken the eighth COM
mandment, yet when the last wave of melody
had risen in divine beauty to the very dome
of the magnificent temple she hurried out TO
the foyer as though she had been guilty of a
crime worse than theft.
"Why do you 60 so fast?" gasped poor
petite mere, as she struggled to fasten her
wrap in the midst Of the jostling crowd,
through which her tall daughter was hurry
ing her.
Didn't you enjoy itP"
And the girl replied, as she clutched
tighter the dear blue blossoms hid away in
her muff:
Enjoy it? oh-h, yes; but I'm tired
let's go home"