The Montgomery advertiser., 1905-01-19
THE JONAH.
HY PAuL C. wILLhRp.

BY PAUL C. wILLh RID. Copyright, 1905, by Daily Story Puo- fishing Co)
 Look where you're going, you cross teyed lobster! Do you want to poke hole in that drop?" At this polite eau Wfllowby, third assistant fyman, changed his course so as to barely avoid, puncturing a new six-hundred- dollar drop curtain with his spear-like scene brace. If we've got Jonah in tfhis outfit, you're it," the stage mana ger muttered as Steve's tall figure dis appeared in the wings. And 1t did seem as though there must De Jonah connected with Appollo. Jr." The opening performances. the night before, had not satisfied a critical metropolitan audience, and not even the constant and energetic applause of a large number of men. whom the managers with fine foresight had engaged for that purpose. could create any feal enthusiasm. Much had been expected from Nick Kingsber- ry, tall. lank actor, who had been im- ported from England to play the lead ing role, but somehow his acting seern- ed to fall nat and his jokes on deaf ears. A feeling of gloom had spread over everything and everybody con- nected with the theater. and no wonder MT. Bulger. the stage manager, was In an ugly mood. When Steve returned to the stage a few moments later he found MT. Cohen and MT. Blum, the owners of the show, conversing with Mr. Bu1ger.
 Have you seen The Herald?" MT. Blum was saying.
 Have I seen it!" exclaimed Cohen |impatiently. T have seen all the pa- pers, and they're all alike"
 "OnIy some worse than others" sug- gested Mfr. Bulger.
 But The Herald, I should say, was more malicious than the others" MT. Blum continued. "The Herald says that Kingsberry's acting was sad and his singing appropriate to the obse- quies of the piece, which will undoubt- edly soon take place. Now, say that shows malice"
 Steve fingered near by, listening keenly, while he pretended to busy him. self with some festoons of artificial flowers. Every word of the managers conversation was full of interest to him. for in his secret soul blazed the unquenchable fire of a great ambition and a determination to some time climb above his place as "fy-man" into that g1ittering other world where he should be known as stephen Willowby, the actor.
 "The Times predicts that Apollo, Jr.' will last one week." he heard MT. Cohen say in a bitter tone, land 1t says that 1t will die because Kings berry doesn't understand his part
 Mir. Bulger spoke up. Tt struck me all along that he didn't get the fat out of it, but I thought probably he was holding back to spring his ability as a surprise on the first night"
 The statement that Kingsberry did not understand his part struck a re- sponsive chord in Steves mind as he listened. During the three weeks of rehearsing he had hung around the theater watching the lank Englishman wSth secret envy and a growing belief that he, even he. the third assistant fly-man. could play the. leading role far more effectively. There was no lack of good lines and opportunities for funny "business," and night after night in his bare room. after he left the theater, he had rehearsed the part from memory and invented funny ca pers that Kingsberry never thought of. Then Tn his dreams, he saw himself
 In the scenter' of the' grand ensemble, crowned with flowers and gazing on great banks of laughing faces, while the music swelled ina grand climax for the final picture. Once, before the rehearsal began, he had made the stage hands and chorus girls roar with laugh ter by acting one of Kingsberry's best scenes as he conceived it, but the stage manager had come upon him suddenly and reminded him brutaliY that his place was behind the scenes. One of the chorus girls. Alice Leslie. had come to him afterwards and told him that ''he had a future before him." and that ha had afHnnro ahiIttrr would ever have. "N'
 Well" Mir, Cohen said, with almost a groan. ''it will mean loss of twelve thousand to us if it does fail. '' Steve must have been listening so in- tently that he forgot his string of flowers and a careless pull brought a shower of roses about MT. Cohen's head.
 You internal idiot! What are you doing now?" roared Bulger. You get out of here, you Jonah. I discharge you. Get out and don't you ever let me see you arotind here again
 Steve left the stage flushed with an- ger. To be sure the stage managers kick had not reached him, but that was not MT. Bulger's fault. But to be called a Jonah was too much. He knew MT. Bulger's temper and that to barley would be useless, so he got his hat and overcoat from the basement and start ed to leave the theater. He wondered IT he really were a Jonah and if the show would prosper when he was gone. AS he passed through the hallway lead ing to the stage door he noticed that the door of thei stars dressing room stood open a crack and he paused and peeped in. On the farther isde of the cozy little room, in chair tipped back