Burlington weekly free press. [volume] (Burlington, Vt.) 1866-1928, 1902-04-24


! that was all-words out of all the
| jumblcd together, and was cross eyed
| with sitting mp all night studying I'M
der little Pickering gas jets. Yes, that's
the way she found me, and the room
, was as cold as a barn too. | had the
bed quilt wrapped around my shout
ders and my arm through hole in 1t.
"The leading lady yelled to the ju-
venile man, and he really was juvenile
about IS, as l remember. She said.
Go get glass of brandy" The jul
vcnile man went down to the bar and
came back with tumbler solid full.
He had to carry it carefully in order 10
keep from spilling any. The leading
| lady was a temperance woman. She
never touched a drop of wine, and, in
fact, she was regular straitlaced
New England pilgrim, but somebody
had told her once that brandy was
good for the thing that l had-'white
BRAIN we call it. The juvenile man
didn't know how much brandy per-
son ought to take. and well, didn't
know anything. SO 1 drank it all. and
then l lay down on the bed, and the
leading lady covered me with every
/ thing she could find, and pretty soon
the bed got up and stood on the ceiling,
| and didn't care at all.
when it came time to go to the the
alter brenda, it's disgraceful, but l
was $3.50 drunk that l couldn't walk
straight the leading lady got me up
and told the Juvenile man to walk mo
around the block, and he walked me
around about fifty times in the snow.
We were in a little Minnesota town,
and it had showed for IA week. When
he took me to the theater, | was per-
fectly sober, and l didn't care for any
thing. | had no troubles whatever. l
walked up to the stage manager, and l
said cheerfully, We'll, what do we play
tonight? He told me, and l couldn't
remember ever to have heard of it. but
| got out my part and studied it while
l was making up.
when | went on, I knew about half
of my first scene. which was the lon
gest one had in the play. But didn't
care. I'd always been troubled with
time-not a fright. When l forgot,
waited calmly for the prompter, who
was off left having a fit. BY and by
had to go across right and sit down by
table. ! knew | couldn't hear the
prompter there. so l walked over and
got the table and dragged it clear across
the stage, and the audience applauded
because | did it SO naturally.
Then l went crazy, and what bap.
pened afterward l scarcely know. But
when l came off after the thrilling eli
max of the scene l fell into the lead
ing lady's arms, and she Rugged me up
tight She said: You never played so
well as that before. You were like
Julia Marlowe.' And she kissed me on
both cheeks. Julia Marlowe was my
idol then, and l cried with heavenly
joy on the leading lady's neck. That's
all true, just as it happened, Brenda,
and l never had stage fright after
ward"
Poor little Elsiew said Brenda, kiss
ing her, at was hard school where
you were taught"
at was" said Elsie. "Yet think
wouldn't have amounted to much any
way. How could any mortal man fail
to see the difference between you and
mef'
"My child" said Brenda, "no man
can. Why, the brass knobs On the
posts of this bed know the difference be-
tween you and me-the vital, essential
difference. They love you in their lit
tie brass hearts. Every body loves you.
DR.. Kendall, for cold blooded sawyer
OF bones who could amputate my head
without trace of emotion, takes your
hand with the eternal reverence of
man for woman, and when he gives
you pain | can see his own heart
shrink. But he treats me as If l were
gentleman whom he had met at the
club"
Elsie opened her eyes so wide that
they seemed to light the room as she
stared at Brenda, whose cheeks were
flushed by her unusual earnestness.
IL am glad to hear you speak like
that" she said.
Brenda rose and walked across to
the window. Then she returned to the
bed and took Elsies hand.
II am going to open my heart to
you," she said. at was not because
Clarence Alden preferred you to me
that ! lost my self control that last
day. l cared nothing for you. despsed
you; ] admitted no comparison. 1t
was because, though the intensity of
his own nature for a time deceived
him, he never really loved me at all.
Nobody ever loved me. l am called
good looking, even beauty, in the
society columns of the papers, and
am so rich that | have attracted many
men. But not one of them was able to
present even creditable counterfeit
of love though some Of them could
| counterfeit almost anything else, from
: good breeding to the national cur
rency) until Mr.. Alden entered the
: lists. That's hardly fair to him; he
was sincere, but mistaken"
yet didn't have at all the feeling
) that l have now" she continued. 1T
was only that last day that l became
enraged, mostly at myself. 1t is since
J have come here. since ! have known
. sou, the most womanly Of Gods crea-
lures, that have had some true COM
H.. a l..