Richmond daily palladium. [volume] (Richmond, Ind.) 1876-1904, 1904-01-27
THE MAN WITH
THE PATIENT SMILE
fOriginal.l

SAID the veteran manager. lone day
was stopped on the street by cadaver-
Gus. threadbare, hungry looking chap
who asked If | was Mr.. Fuller, the
manager. | told him was, where
upon he pulled from his pocket roll
of manuscript, play, and asked me to
read 1t.
What do you call itg asked.
"A Lucky Find" The hero loses
his fortune and finds 1T again in the
third act The heroine
Yes. yes; I'll oblsge YOU
BE careful of it. It's the only copy
have, and it's not copyrighted
"tAll right. I'll take care of it.
81 had to go to several places before
returning to my office and must have
laid the manuscript down somewhere
At any rate | never thought of it
again till one day the playwright came
to my office. For my life / couldn't
remember where ! had seen him.
Have you read my playY he asked.
Your play? oh, yes; now l remem-
Der. No. | haven't had time to get at
it yet
Meanwhile / was trying to Think
what play it was and where it was.
"'All right he said, with winning,
patient smile. I'll call again.
''As soon as he had gone | hunted
high and low for his manuscript, but
it was nowhere to be found. Finally
| recalled taking it from him and going
to several places afterward, but what
places they were I-couldn't remember
l was very busy at the time, too busy
To 70 In In A.
ter. Indeed, there was no action to
take except to confess that I had lost
his play. In a week he was back.
Haven't got at your play yet I
said. Then, fearing he would ask for
it to take it away, added: I'm going
to have some time next week Could
you wait till then?'
"'Oh, yes he said, with the same
smile.
aft you need a little help, I could
let you have a flyer while we're wait
ing
''Oh. no. I've had bit of luck late
~. don't need anything
We'll, come a week from Saturday.
I'll be ready for you
"When he called again. I was ready
for him-with excuses: Couldn't more
than get through the first act. 1t
opens well. Let me see. The next few
days I'll be very busy. butt tell you
what I'll do. l don't like to work Sun
day, but in this case I'll do it. Come
in Monday week
"'All right he said. with the usual
smile Don't hurry. When | saw you
last, I'd just got 500 first payment on
a play, and today | got S40O more; so.
you see, can afford to wait
Meanwhile l was lying awake
nights worrying over the matter After
he had told me that he had sold play
| worried all the more for a claim
from him for damages would now be
good. If his play were successful, he
might make me pay large sum. There
was nothing for it but to put him off
as long as possible. He came again at
the appointed time. Fortunately had
cold.
"'Yoa see the condition I'm in,' I
said, coughing. "A mans not fit to pass
on play when he has to blow his nose
between the lines. Beastly weather
we're having. On Sunday I thought
every minute I'd surely choke. But
I've got through the third act
Climax all right?
Capital. Notwithstanding / had a
coughing spell 1 was much affected
"sCry?'
Cry? My eyes were all water
Climax or cold? He was as seri-
Gus as tombstone.
'.'Oh, both. You come in here a week
from today
Il was getting tired of that smile of
his. Such man was too angelic to
live. Instead of writing plays he should
be sitting in heaven with all the heroes
and her0ines who have died on the
stage from an excess of virtue. | de-
termined that at our next meeting I'd
sound him on the subject of buying
his play for as small a sum as he could
be prevailed upon to accept. When he
came again l said to him:
Your play viii never do in the
world. You've got an anticlimax, an
impossible situation in the second act.
and the whole scheme is undramatic.
But can use q part CT it for curtain
raiser. Would you take q hundred dol
lars for it?
There was no verbal reply-only that
COMPOUNDED smile. l drew my check
book and wrote him a check.
81 can't take this he said. Some
body has got hold of my manuscript,
and the play is to be put en- at the Ma
ional.'
Il turned pale. He smiled.
'Sey, my friend, what II you take to
let lie o.1t of this?'
elf you'll give me the hundred dol
lars for keeping me waiting I'll call it
square,
Take it and welcome
AS soon as he had gone I heaved
deep sigh of relief and congratulated
myself on having had man to deal