Rock Island Argus. (Rock Island, Ill.) 1893-1920, 1904-04-01
DAILY SHORT STORY
The Playwright.
tOriginal.l

4 pTISOHeT.
! "A play"
"Who are your"
| Arthur Cabot"
"YOur OccupatiOn?"
AN author"
'Was ever a play of yours produced
upon the minic stage?"
NO. your grace"
ITO what do you attribute your i'll
| success?"-
The stupidity of the readers"
Tut. man; more likely to your own
stupidity"
Il do my work conscientiously and
do not spare myself"
! "Playwriting is not work. a play
wright should be a poet. \ poet is
born. not made"
| But your grace does not understand
! what 1 mean by the stupidity of the
readers. They are too stupid to read
my plays
why so?"
They are taken up with reading
their own
You shall not find such fault with
me. l will read your play, but l warn
| you if find in it the slightest trace of
! head"
Thank heaven replied the author.
raising his hands and eyes. Il am at
last to receive Il hearing"
Take him away" said the duke
land bring him to me on the morrow -
The author was led out, dancing
along gayly as though the hope of
years had been realized.
"Methinks." remarked the duke as
he watched the retreating Cabot, play
| writing must be Il hard field TO enter.
| 1 would not wonder if this young man,
knowing of my interest in the drama,
has himself put out a suspicion that
| he is carrying messages between these
villains. who are seeking to enthrone
the pretender, TO secure my reading OF
| his play. Well, he shall receive justice
at my hands"
The next morning the playwright
was marched again into the presence
OF the duke. The young man looked
eagerly at his grace to read his fate.
| While there was no evidence of the
dukes having been delighted with the
play, there was none of his having dis
covered anything reasonable in it.
Arthur Cabot" he said, do you
mind what l said to you yesterday
about the constitutional makeup of. a
playwright
Il do. your grace. You said that q
| playwright must be born To his work,
or, rather. his play-in other words,
| that it must be all play and no work.
Very true" replied the duke, land
1 have found your production all work
and no play"
Your grace" exclaimed the young
man, starting back as though to es-
cape a blow.
And as for plot" continued the
duke, there's not a vestige of plot
in any one of the five acts
Your grace! Have mercyw
Il have a mind.' the critic went on,
ito throw you into prison for cooking
up n plot of another kinda plot to Sc
cure my reading of your manuscript"
But. your grace. will You not keep
1t till another time? I'm sure you will
see its merits on a second reading"
"A second reading cried the duke.
hurting the manuscript at the would
be playwright. "Begone. l have no
time to spend porting over your worth
| less trash. You're lucky that do not
| pay you its value-a lash for every
| line"
Cringing to the very floor. the play
wright gathered up the loose sheets
and made his exit.
Two days later, mounted on a feet
horse, booted and spurred. he rode into
u camp containing not over n dozen
men, but all of prominence.
What news?" was the cry.
THE prince is with u.s."
Have you his written agreement"
"I have"
How did you escape the vigilance
| OF the duke?"
BY this time the messenger had dis
mounted and taken a roll of manu-
script from his saddlebags.
Listen" he said. knowing of the
dukes Partially for the drama. wrote
a play or a pretense to a play in which
embodied the princes message and
the details of plan he suggests for
US. Then i attempted to pass the
lines. was arrested and carried before
the duke. He read the manuscript and
found no plot, no play. 1 will show
you more plot than is to be found in
all the plays Of Christendom."
Stepping to q fire. he seized a brand
and, selecting a certain page Of his
manuscript. held IL to the heat. Brown
letters appeared, giving plainly the
message:
We are with you heart and soul and will
accept the throne that rightfully belongs
TO US. THEEBOLD. X R.
This was not all. Every tenth word
Of the manuscript, read together. gave
minute details of a plan for overturn-
ing the existing government.
\ few weeks later, when the rising
had been successful. the duke was led
before the young man who had posed
as an author.
Your grace" he said. you were
pleased TO consider my production all
work and no Diay YOu were correct