Ellsworth American. [volume] (Ellsworth, Me.) 1855-current, 1898-10-26
BEHIND THE SCENES,

Out in front the audience was stamping
and o'npping and cheering itself hoarse
She had disliked them before, but now
she hated them with a fierce and burning
hatred that was growing almost beyond
her power to hide, for though she had
lived in America for t. Il years she was as
true n Spaniard st heart rs all her ances-
tors had h,'n and would have yielded up
her fresh young life to help her country or
destroy that country's enemies.
The cheering sank moment-maybe
they were ready to go on with the play,
Ind she started to her feet, when suddenly
wave of sound came sweeping back that
nearly deafeHed hor-the strains of "The
Star Spangled Banner, - ringing out loud
and strong and true from hundreds of
stanch American hearts that thrilled with
joy and pride and tenderness as they sang
Little Juanta trembed as she heard it,
and, flinging her thin brown hands wildly
over her ears in vain attempt to shut
Out the sound, tossed her head in scorn as
she muttered, THAT is only nolse--they
are very good at noise, but my country
people, they can fight, they But the
words died on her lips and suddenly her
eyes strained wide with horror, for, creep
ing creeping toward her along piece of
drapery under which she sat was a line of
dainty, dancing red, that grew and bright
ened as she looked.
at Is fire, she murmured, fire, and
they will all be burned. Oh, l am SO
glad glad, glad! See, it will run along
the curtain, growing, growing all the
time, till it can reach that bunting there
and then it will be big, and all in front
IL 81,
oh, it will be very different from that
shouting now They will see it leapng
to them down the great long strings of
bunting and they will shrek and scream
and run, and those who are not trampled
will be burned, and the fire will dance
and it will be my turn to taunt and cheer,
for the death that comes to them will come
straight across their flags. Oh, God, but
it is glorious" And she clapped her hands
together as she watched the little flames
grow bigger.
Outside the cheering had begun again,
and suddenly above the deeper roar echoed
the half hystercal cry Of a little child.
As she heard it the girls face grew
quickly pale-she had forgotten the chill
dren. She could see men die-yes, and
women, too-and rejoice in their suffer
ing, but the children Months before a
little child had come into her life that
brought her only sorrow and disgrace. SO
her neighbors said but she thought other
wise, and for its sake loved all the babies
in the land. She could not see a baby die.
suddenly the cheering stopped again,
and America" came rolling out. 1t
seemed to .]uanita's strained senses that
hundreds of children We're singing, too;
that she could hear their voices and some
were like the voices of her sister and her
child With cry She wheeled about and
faced the flaming curtain. How terribly
the fire had grown, But she must fight it
now, and it at least should see that Span
ish folk could conquer. With one leap she
was On the highest boxes, scrambling,
catching at the slipping boards, reaching
out to grasp the curtain and pull it from
its fastenings.
But she was not tall enough, and her
brave heart sank. The flame was barely a
foot from the end of the hunting now, and
should that once catch fire it would be be-
You'd her power to stop the panic.
She must She would, and as the chill
dren's voices rang on along the grand old
tune she crouched low on her uncertain
perch gathered all her strength into one
last effort and sprang straight up into the
fingers on the burning cloth and bravely
caught and held it, while below the boxes
fell with a rafting crash
But little she cared for that, for she
could feel the curtain giving with her
weight, and in moment more she, too,
had fallen, grasping at the burning edges
ms she fell, smothering them in her arms,
rolling upon them, clapping the sparks to
death between her slender hands, just rs
the stage manager the property man and
the fireman, followed by the whole won
dering, gaping company. came rushing
back to see what the noise had meant.
One or two of the women began to shrek
as they caught sight of the bits of glow
ing edges that were left on the wall and
floor, but the men jumped at them, almost
throttling their voices in their threats,
and two seconds later the danger was all
over, the repentant fireman mourning in
the ruins, the company gathered around
.Juanita, the callboy posting for doctor,
and the stage manager addressing the au
dicnce, explaining the noise and confu-
sion, assuring them of their safety and
telling of the brave deed that had saved
them all the horrors of a panic.
And then the cheering broke out again
harder than ever, but this time it was for
the girl who had saved them, and for the
first time in her life Juanita, the chorus
girl, responded To a curtain call meant ex-
pressly for herself, her own self and no
one but herself.
But how different from the scene she
had often imagined Black and burned
and bloody. her natty skirt hanging in
tatters, her bright bodice torn and grimy,
her hair disheveled and the make up"
pushed into unsightly streaks and patches
on her thin dark face.
This is the girl, the manager was
saying in his great, important voice, this
is the little Spanish girl to whom we all
owe our lives" And the people, looking
from the dark little Spanish face to the
grand old stars and stripes that waved SO