The San Francisco call., 1904-07-17

gramme:
THE CLEVER SKETCH ENTITLED
THEATRICAL ARISTOCRACf
The Duke Of PortHanteau. Lord Harold Gray Gray
The Duchess .-.--------.---------- lauy oi~S
No wonder Obermuller was raging. l
looked at him. You don't like to tackle
a fellow like that when he's dancing
hot. And vet you ache 10 help him
and-yes. yourself.
Lord HarcId's here yet, and the jew
els?" l asked.
lie gave a short nod. He was think
ing. But so was !.
Then all he wants is a Lady,
That's ALL he said sarcastically.
We'll. what's the matter with me?''
He gasped.
There's nothing the matter with
your nerve. OIden."
Thank you so much" 1t was the
way Gray says it when she tries to
have an English accent. Dress me up,
Fred Obermuller, in Gray's new silk
gown and the Gray jewels. and you'd
never"
I'D never set eyes on you again"
You'd never know, il you were in
the audience, that it wasn't Cray her
self. I can take her off to the life, and
if the prompter'll stand by"
He looked at me for a full minute.
Try it. Olden." he said.
I did. I few to Gray's dressing-room.
She'd gone home deathly iii, of course.
They gave me the best seamstress in
the place. She let out the waist
a bit and pulled over the lace to cover
it. 1 got into that mass Of silk and
lace-oh. silk on silk, and Nance Oh
den inside, Beryl Blackburn did my
hair, and Grace Weston put on my
slippers. Topham, himself, hung me
with those gorgeous shining diamonds
and pearls and emeralds, till l felt
like an idol loaded with booty. There
were so many standing round me, rig
ging me up, that 1 didn't get glimpse
OF the mirror till the second before
Ginger called me. But in that second
in that second. Mag Monahan, saw
4 fairy with blazing cheeks and shin
ing eyes, with q diamond coronet in
her brown hair, puffed high, and
pearls on her bare neck and arms. and
emeralds over the waist, and rubies
and pearls on her fingers. and sprays
of diamonds like frost on the lace OF
her skirt, and diamond buckles on her
very slippers, and the rose diamond
like a sun. outshining all the rest;
and-and, Mag, it was met
How did it 80? Well, wouldn't it
make you think you were a Lady, sure
enough, if you couldn't move without
that lace train billowing after you;
without being dazzled with diamond
after you?
He kept his head, Lord Harold did
even il it is q mutton-head. That
helped me at first. He was so cold,
SO stupid, so slow, so good-tempered
so just himself. And after the
first plunge
tell you, Mag Monahan, there's
one thing that's stronger than wine to
a woman-it's being beautiful. oh,
And l was beautiful. / knew il before
L got that quick hush, with the full
applause after it. And because I was
beautiful, I got saucy, and then calm,
and then I caught Fred Obermuller's
voice-he had taken the book from
the prompter and stood there himself
and after that ii was easy sailing
He was there yet when the act was
over, and l trailed out, followed by
my Lord. He let the prompt-book fall
from his hands and reached them both
out to me.
I f1irted my jeweled fan at him and
swept him a courtesy.
Cool? No, I wasn't Not bit of it.
He was daffy with the sight of me in
all that glory, and knew it,
Nance" he whispered, you won
derful girl, il didn't know about that
little thief up at the Bronsonia I'd
I'd marry you alive. just for the fun
Of piling pretty things on you"
The deuce you would" I sailed
past him, with Topham and my Lord
in my wake.
They didn't leave me till they'd
stripped me clean. 1 felt like a
Christmas tree the day after. But
somehow. didn't care.
VIII.
Is that you, Mag? Well, it's about
time you came home to look after me-
Fine chaperon you make, Miss Mona
han, Why, didn't 1 tell you the very
day we took this fat what chaperon
was. and that you'd have to be mine :?
Imagine Nancy Olden without a chap
eron. Shocking.
No, 'tisn't late. Sit down, Maggie,