The Savannah morning news. (Savannah, Ga.) 1900-current, 1902-12-21

the young woman. typical variety
hall singer, and said.
Perhaps 1 can assist you. I am
PI CfCssor Stevens, of Boston. If 1t
Will If AXE an orchestration for you.'
''The girl almost Rugged me in her
delight, for rehearsal hour was at
hand.
&" oh. that will be lovely she cried.
The song is dead easy. How quick
can you do it? IN give you three
dollars if you'll have 1t ready for the
REHEARSAL
II glanced through the song with
eyes that saw not, stole some sheets
of blank music paper from a nearby
music stand and asked for twenty
minutes in private. Then / shot out
to a chop-house and scattered notes
over that paper-helteI-sk SHELTER, any
old way, and on any old line or
space. What was the use. l knew
no more about orchestration than
does our hostess japanese spaniel,
But I got the three dollars per agree
ment and escaping the profuse thanks
of the singer, slipped back into the
street. There would be no rehearsal
for me. Three dollars in the hand
was worth two prospective variety en-
gagements, and besides I did not
think 1t would be healthy for me when
music.
"a little later I slipped around to the
front of the house, passed the scrub
women and secreted myself in the
darkest corner of the auditorium.
will never again hear such discord as
when the orchestra started in upon
that singers turn; and the memory of
the profanity which rent the air when
the leader realized the true state of
ffof,~ ,.oI1 Id ,~,1
history.
Later. when good fortune came my
way, / sent the young woman her
three dollars and explained my deS-
perate need at the time. She's on
Broadway now in a musical comedy.
I dined with her the other night and
we made merry over the day when she
had money and 1 had none"
actor whose name appears in large
type on the play-bills.
1T, too. was once stranded in San
Francisco and had to choose between
clean linen and a square meal. The
latter 1 had not dared to take for more
hours than / cared to mention here.
because I was down to just seventy
spend it.
"But 1 also realized that my soiled
linen advertised my dire straits to
any manager 1 approached, so at last
the scales tipped in the direction of
a clean shirt. But how was l to get
it, a collar and pair of cuffs, for sew
enty-five cents? YEARLY 1 walked the
streets and at last found a shirt in
vivid red polka dots the size of a sill
var fI1 af.fa nj ri hat
/ was enabled to invest in collar and
cuffs. 1 cannot tell you of the joy
of laying aside my collar which had
been turned twice already and my shirt
which looked as If 1t belonged to a
Weary Willy.
"Then supperless, but clean, I drift
ed into a group of newspaper men,
who, with characteristic open-handed-
ness. invited me to have lunch with
them. Among them was a serious
minded chap who had written a play,
but could secure no hearing for it.
offered to read it. and, as an actor,
give him a few friendly tips. From
that instant he took me unto his boS-
ON, so to speak. Half of what he had
was mine, including his hall bedroom,
for which was most grateful.
NOW, the funny part Of it was that
the play proved really good, and, by
dint of hard work. we secured AN
angle and I got together a company,
most of them caught like myself on the
coast, and we toured the state. The
angel never got back his money, but
the playwright received his royalties
and some local fame, while and my
fellow players STAYED off starvation I'M
til. one by one. we found berths in
good companies that were going back
to New York.
The woman on the right of the host
asked for the fioor-and got it, of
course.
II know a woman now prosperous
who once turned her thoughts to
suicide and was saved by the infec-
tious comedy of dear little come
dienne long since gone to her last
reward.
"This woman had written on small
papers in a Western state, and. full
of ambition and really capable, she
made her way to Denver. But in
stead of securing a place on daily
paper she found herself each day
nearer the penniless condition. In
those times free lancing was unknown
in Denver, and she was desperate.
At last she was down to two dollars.
Moody almost distraught, in a whin1-
steal moment, she rushed off to the
theater, spending seventy-f1ve cents
for a rear balcony seat. Patti Rosa
was the attraction and Jolly Joe Cav
thorn was her support The woman
who had felt that she must go to the
theater and forget, or throw herself
into Cherry creek laughed until she
cried and went home with sense of
cheer and determination that was not
to be depressed by an empty stomach.
1.-THE next morning she bought
good breakfast and went to an office
known as the Helping Hand, where
strange women could secure positions
presumably on their personal word
and honor. The only thing offered
was a post as houSekeeper and the
woman of pen and pencil jumped at
it, Fortunately, her prospective EN-
ployer was a semi-invalid, and was
as ready to jump at help as the wom-
an was at work.
"She began her duties that same
afternoon, and here was where the
American woman's adaptability shone
forth She had not done homework
for years, but she studied her cook
book into the small hours of the night,
devised means, superintended the
cooking, catered TO the whirns Of the
seni-invalId, kept a comfy corner
for the head OF the house when he
came home tired. and, by her tact,
hid the fact that housekeeping was
not her long suit.
TT was the husband who first sus-
pected that she was a bit out OF her
sphere. The wife was too wrapped
up IN herself 10 notice anything. One
day the man biuntiy a3ked the house,
keeper 20 tell him the truth about
herself. and she did frankly.
Now, / hold that that man deserves