Bellows Falls times. [volume] (Bellows Falls, Vt.) 1856-1965, 1901-02-07

ed every lnl0ndtlOn. Nnlle the house
was applaudlng enthusiastically she
whispered to her companion, "She is
u nice girl, and she tries, but she can't
sing that and l don't believe she ever
will. Do you hear her trill wabble?
She missed two notes in one of her
runs. 1t should have gone like this"
and in brilliant, pearly little tones al
most under her breath the speaker ran
through one of the passages in which
Marguerite vents her delight.
Soft as 1t was, the young man be-
hind her heard the run. He looked at
the singers face and started. He
glanced from the face to the gray hair
and back again. He tried to remem-
Der all the things he had been saying,
and blushed deeply.
Presently Faust was singing his love.
The woman in black leaned forward,
her lips parted, her fingers uncon-
sciously marking the time; then, as the
tenor's fervor increased and his tone
grew clearer and more vibrant, flush
overspread her face. AS he ceased she
beat her gloved hands together as loud
ly as she could.
+ A sympathetic look stole into the
young mans eyes, and while the wom-
an in black was wholly occupied with
the stage he whispered softly to Mel
lie: "That woman in front of us is
Alice Titus. She Is Mitchell's wife,
and she has been blushing with pleas
ure at his singing. They sang lovers
together for years, and the company
called them the turtledoves"
Nellie awoke from her dream. She
glanced from the woman to the tenor
and exclaimed incredulously and loud
er than she knew: "She can't be Faust's
wife. Why, she is grayv
The lips of the woman in black tight
ened, and the young man regretted his
indiscretion. He tried to atone for it
in the church scene by praising the
dramatic way Alice Titus had played
that, but he knew that the singer I'M
derstood the situation, and the words
stuck in his throat.
Meanwhile the success of the per-
Torrance and of the new singer grew.
Before the end was reached the mem
bers of the company had congratulated
Miss Evans heartily upon her triumph.
The last traces Of the girls nervous
ness disappeared. She walked as on
clouds, and in the final trio she poured
forth such a flood of voice as she had
never known that she possessed. The
audience was stirred quite out of the
habit of putting on wraps during the
last scene. 1t sat delighted and called
out the singers after the final curtain
had fallen. The men called "Brava"
loudly, and the recall became an ova-
ton. Alice Titus companion leaned
forward. waved her handkerchief, cried
"Bravar' and did what she could to
stimulate the excitement. Somebody
cried: Evans! Evansw and Maras-
quin led forward the trembling but
happy Marguerite.
Then the audience began to go out,
but the woman in black sat still. Her
| lips were white, and when her COM
panion rose she did not move. The
other woman averted her face and bus
| led herself with her wrap. At last the
| passage to the stage door was cleared,
and the woman in black rose heavily
| and walked slowly toward it.
She found Faust, still in his stage
clothes, outside his dressing room. The
woman in black passed in without
word Faust dismissed his dresser,
entered and closed the door. His wife
| was leaning on the back of chair,
sobbing. He raised her to his arms,
saying softly: '"There, darling, don't
| take it so desperately. Think of all
the drudgery you escape by being out
of the harness.
She still cried. nesting on his Shout
der Presently she raised her face,
! kissed him and said: you're wonder
| fully good to me. Fred. but even your
tenderness cannot disguise the fact
| that | am gray. l was told of it to-
night by chit of a girl with pink
| cheeks
| The mans face flushed with anger,
| and his wife FASTENED to add: "She did
not mean any harm, dear, and she did
not think | could hear. She was sur
| prsed into speaking too loudly when
| was pointed out to her as your wife.
| She could not believe it, and l must
say" with rueful glance into the
large dressing mirror, that l can't
blame her."
| Nonsense. dear! OF course it was
only the make up"
"Oh, ! know all about that, and
know l could look 20 on the stage to-
morrow. But for all that l would do
every bit of my hard work over again
| for the youth of that little chit behind
me- Time is more cruel to women
than eternity can ever e.'-Brooklyn
Eagle.