The Montgomery advertiser. [volume] (Montgomery, Ala.) 1885-1982, 1902-02-27
THE ADVERTISERS
DAILY SHORT STORY

Being young and healthy, the under'
graduates Of Bingham College had W
t tas,s ana this i brutality caused them to
forget the discomforts Of others in re
garding their own divertisement. True
enough. the Professor OF English Later
ature had shrunk. In Indignation. lnts
the darkness Of his box. the members o.
the Shakespeare Tragedy Company were
having their nerves painfully runled.
Hut what Of that? Wasn't 1t fun to run
the old bows fur backward, and WASH
It highly amusing to scare the actors hall
to death? While the retainers of the
Montagues and the Capulets fought tnelr
famous battle their wooden swords trem-
hIed in their hands. They feared the
ancient e s and the siiurian eabDaEe-
Then came the mob of citizenship,
ers." all of them, clumsy, scared ana
laundering There was Henson, the town
telegraph operator, who had histriemc
ambitions and struggled pitifully IN :,
shirt of chain mall seven sizes 100 p s,ns,i
the clerk Of the leading grocery. who
FELL as he reached the stage, over the
dragging sword of Spike" Nevis. Jan.
itor of the town hall To all OF these
aspiring Thespians the boys gave enthu-
stastic welcomes. Two hundred and seven
iusty pairs of lungs added to the EFFORTS
of the "buzzers," and Ave score whistles
played the mipor notes In the unmeio-
dlouS symphony. WneH hoHeo eiterou
Shorty" arose. and after the manner Of
band-ma ster. directed the work of his
cohorts. Throughout the balance of the
first scene and all OF the next they
yelled and sang and shouted and ap-
plauded in unison. The Bingham Opera
stration. Half OF town people who had
bought seats down stairs, left in dis
gust. The others protested feebly. and
with indignation inquired for the police:
1lt- .f hA
Bingham. at that moment, was at home
eating his supper, and 50 the moral ef-
feet of his badge and presence was lack
ing.
Soon the footlights went down and in
the semi-darkness the audience saw the
stage hands shift the scenery for the
Now for Juliet" shouted shorty"
in a stage whisper, And the footngnts
hared up and Lady Capuiet and Juhets
their lines the orchestra began the slow
music which herald's Juliet's entrance.
Shorty" Ferguson, standing in the aisle.
raised his hand to give the signal for
overture" but just as he was about to
shout "Go." the. daughter of the house
of Capulet entered from the wings. and
his hand dropped Imply to his side. The
others. unled. started to perform m ina ind Ie
stood still. and stared blankly at the
stage.
The Juliet Of the Shakespeare Tragedy
Company was a slight, dark-haired girl,
graceful as to figure and soft as to voice.
frayed canvas trees, Shorty" somehow
lost all recollection Of his position and
Of those around him. His thoughts
strayed from Bingham and the Opera
and went back. over long days. to the
place that he called his home. There
was a girl in his town who was also
dark-haired and dark-eyed and graceful
and soft-voiced. Shorty" cared very
and as he looked at Juliet, he thought Of
things that had not presented them
selves to his mind when he was planning
the theater party. He knew that he
would willingly and single-handed attack
thousand ruffians who dared offer in
suit to the girl whose image was before
him. NervousIy he twitched his watch
chain, and his fingers touched a ring
that this girl had given him as keep
sake when the last vacation had come
to an end.
At first the girl on the stage seemed
undismayed by the din from above, but
as shorty" looked at her more closely;
he saw tears in her sad. dark eyes. and
a badly-concealed twitching about the
corners of her mouth. She spoke the
lines of the old. old play with an effort,
and turned her head away from the foot
lights as if
Just as a particularly loud chorus Of
"buzzers'' began, Shorty" saw a sist-
ening drop upon her cheek.
Stop" he shouted. turning around and
facing his fellows. Hold up, tell your!
Those before him stared in wonder.
"Thisll have to be cut OUT" he ex-
claimed. u won't stand for 1t! Guy the
jays in the show all you want, but let
the women alone!
whats eatin' your" shouted a spec
tacled Young man nearby. What did we
come here for?'
Another seconded this protest, but
Shorty" paid no heed to either.
Keep it up. then" he said. sarcastic
ally. Go ahead. Insult women. boot
'em. mob EN-. Keep ii up-if all your
decency's gone! I'm out Of It,"
"Aw, hold on protested the specialized
youth. Keep cool, old chap! Stay and
see it through
mo. I'm done with it, replied
Shorty forcing his way up the aisle
steps to the door. If you fellows want
to- be beastly cads go ahead! It's none
of my business. You have the privilege.
I'm on the move
Grab him. shouted a cadaverous
youth near the door, but nobody offered
to perform this service. and Shorty"
in n moment was gone.
And soon. one after the other, the re-
theater party sneaked out in silence, ur-
til the gallery was empty and the
Shakespeare Tragedy Company played in
peace.
NfrC