Milford chronicle., 1906-05-11
The Price of
A Threat
Copyright, 1901, by Alec Bruce
BY ALEC BRUCE

fran ''Mariel You are in trouble, ma'an
. ars. .,elle7 Your face, it is so white!
gORvhispered Pierrot, stepping noiseles'
STH toward her on the little sawdus
=ircle before the performers entrance
T, "Oui, ouil Liam in trouble-grav
rouble, Pierrot," she answered broken
and
eyes "Ah ma'amselle, and you know no
Worvhat to do That is it?' he questioned
anv quickly and inviting confidence witt
his earnest. searching little eyes. But
JOoMarie. ma'amselle," he nuttered, step
ping closer to her, so close that she
Felt the warmth Of his breath on her
sell check "maybe-maybe Pierrot might
.eta know-if if you would tell him, heyE
"Ah, Pierrot non,' she faltered, Gov
Dut ering her face with her hands. you
for you could not, non, you@yOu'- No
nor)ther words would come Her lips
luiyered. Her eyes filled.
ma "AIarie. Marie" he urged, maybe I
can I-ah. you think not, hey% And his
hos broad breast swelled with a smothered
love, a love that had known no utter
IS lance for he was "Pierrot, the fool
groom! And she? She was "Nla'am-
IBelle AIirabeau, premier equestnenne,"
the In Barkalow's big circus ring.
Suddenly ting-ting, ting-ting- ting!
10 'AIaamselle ma amsene," whispered
one Warninely, 1.-THE first bell! You hear?
scroT Thirty minutes and you go on. Just
thirty, Marier'
VI But still she did not answer.
and 'Ah, 1 am only Pierrot, PierrOt, the
Ter fool" he murmured, "and yOu-you
viii not tell fool, ma'amselle. No,
ASsho. Why should you?
and "PierrotP From her tear dimmed
TO feyes she dropped two small, pink star |
fish hands and faced him. "PierrOt a /
annofool? You said a foolT' she quavered /
NAh, to maamselle you must not say .
Aso once again. l know you. A fool?
;.;, Non, non! You say 1 will not tell you,
''A- 1 will not trust you, mon ami Leesten,
to theesten! That Hercules, the dead
litter, BAH" and she shuddered
II, violently. again, today, he say.
NAe, SIa'amselle, you viii marry me, QUIZ
six times he haf said so. Oh,
cess Lala, how persistent! All, PierrOt, you
~. do not know. And for answer 1 say:
'Msieur, no-no. NO-nO-nor Six
The times l say so, and Of heem l think no
iail more But today, today, it is differ
ent l am afraid. He look so black so
-" terrible when he say: 'Maamselle you
capawill marry me- No? All, no more
;ror, trifing, say, none at all Gif me your
=, answer. You hat till o'clock tonight;
'lnethat is air And Pierrot, number
,Ost eight on the programme oui, number
n e,eight, tonights! Look at it. and-and
you will understand"
cal Number eight, maamselle, number
entleight on the programme, tOnight's? L
.r,, have one somewhere" he mumbled
searching doubtfully among the frilled
'orEyards Of red, white and blue at his
pockets. "Ahw At last with trembling
A fingers he unfolded the crushed Grim
son sheet. Hercules, Hercules, Her
aVeculesl The dead weight litter! To
1opnight tonight, tonightp' it read. Head
, downward from a swinging trapeze =
twenty feet above the circus ring this
lis worldwide champion will dangle in his
ecisteeth 100 pounds Of solid steel. Is that ,
al all? MOI We tell you mol But see
for yourselves the most marvellous
u'sight ever seen. From a ring beneath
Nthe suspended weight he will hold fast
a., the added burden of our premier eques- :
trienne, and backward and forward in ;
Unlidair she will swing and hang until /,
he at length she drops, dancing and pir- !
-, ouetting on her gallOping steed below"
Mon Dieu, mon Dieu" muttered
al Pierrot when he had read the bill Il
2 understand, understand, ma 'amselle.
Tonight you must answer 'Oui,' or he .,
viii drop the dead weight from his !,
tn. teeth when you hang belowg'
,ve 'Pierrot, Pierrot," she cried, 81 can
not, I will not perform tonight! See
81 7 7 10
&C could not ride Comanche Bill. l must
nj. beg off. 1 am sick. II will tell the v
!. manager!"
iS' "Ma'amselle! No, no, ma'amselle; G
one moment one mOmentg cautioned
A Pierrot OBTAINING her and pressing his D
h hand against the crimson diamond on u
his forehead. Il
- "But, Pierrot, Pierrot," she insisted, n
oil Il must, I must, u
. @Non, non, maamselle, you must
notp he whispered. 81 have it; Pier lt
$ rot has itr' And again he glanced in lf
tently at the programme "Bien, bien. n
IL have it, In number seven you ride B
Gcmanche Bill. Ride him, ma'amseIle II
" Pirouette! Jump! Jump through the b
drum. hold it, ma'amselle Look, II
: number seven, 'Mirabeau on Conan d.
che Bah, beg off? Non, non; trust e
a Pierrot. Have no fear You will not
n swing from Hercules weightr'
"But, Pierrot, how? How9 You 81
must tell mer n
s Ting-ting, tin-ting-tingl nj
q Second bell, ma'amse1le," he inter N
rupted. second belr' and, grasping the
curtains, he peeped through the faded al
e fringe "Ah the tiers; they are black
Il with people-blaek, ma'amsellel There pl
is no time, no time to tell Trust Pier
rot, tr,ist trustl" And In a moment N
y he was gone. cl
Fifteen minutes later, with an angry y
d scowl, Hercules, the dead weight lift
sa+ ~, a,,terod s.si- >, ~ ,,na,,r,,ad nj