Arizona republican., 1907-11-22

1 doubt if he heard his heels down the
 crowded streets. children jeering 1 him. Passerby staring. policemen in
 two minds whether to halt him for a
 thief. Breathless, exhausted. dazed. he at last came within sight of the . great opera house. He rushed around
 to the side intending to go in by the
 stage entrance. He pushed open a
 door He found himself in brilliant
 ly lighted saloon. the reek' of liquor in his nostrils and all that he loathed
 before his eyes Men thinking him an
 itinerant beggar. as he looked asked him to gimme some rag-time on the fiddle. In an agony of humiliation
 and desperation the boy blundered , through the nearest door he came 10. He found himself in the courtyard
 back of the Cosmopolitan. His brain
 had lost all grip on everything. The one idea to get inside the building. to make good was forcing itself in on him. his lost chance goading on to madness. In the the opera house ris-
 ing into the night before him. Vaguely
 he remembered scrambling up. The
 night was humid for March. and a
 door stood open in his path. The per
 fume of women. the warm. humid air of a closely packed thearer came to
 him. With the true artistic instinct
 he sensed the proximity of the vast
 audience. At last he was on that great
 battlefield. so long dreamed of. Then
 everything suddenly became a blur. and John owen stood up under tha stars on the fire escape balcony of the
 first gallery and bowed gravely to the empty courtyard before placing his violin to his cheek.
 And all this time. Harrison. I was
 sweating by the side of Miss Sect: in lower tier box. l had come a long distance to see John OTen's first ap- pearance. reaching tine theatre at ?:45. shall always remember that night always-Miss Scott and I sitting tc- gether, impatieEtly waiting f'.- owens arrival. oblvicus t. al else: neither of us afraid for We believed m hi'f. Tn. &irl had a cOn.rT ga cl !ncll of in- tense happiness in her cy..' isut as minutes passed they grew perplexed, then troubled and finally agonized. The audience was impatient. They had
 heard much of this John owen, violin
 l1l ana ilelb pau DiB IIiftS TUT tHf opportunity of putting their opinion against the directors. And still the minutes passed. Miss Scotts face now was as white as her neck and shoul- ders, and her lip trembled. Only her
 eyes stove to be brave. And then, by love. Harrison. what happened next
 was greater than that greatest play. As we sat there, numb with misery. the house aflame with impatience and curiosity. there suddenly came from away down the aisles. from the sky. as it were. the strains of a violin-music such as no soul in that house dared hope to hear again. IL was the Mus soline Overture Harrison. and. forgive me. the Almighty those glorious. haunting chords Even I had never dreamed owen capable of such a hope lessly tender touch. For the next ten minutes the strains of that violin owned that audience body and soul. Then it broke off short life the snap
 ing of a golden chain, and the house after one long sigh. came to it's feet in pandemonium. I saw Miss Scott put a hand to her throat give chok- ing little sob. then bury her face in her hands. The house thought the drama
 tic incident a novel idea of Scott's and were shouting 'Encore,' 'Encore,' at the top of their lungs. clamoring for the new, great genius to show himself. But l knew something was wrong, and made my way quickly to the rear. And there I found him. Harrison. smile mixed with blood upon his face
 The high tension, the delirium. had suddenly snapped and he had pitched over the balcony. It's miracle he wasn't killed. I have not a very clear recollection of what happened next
 l know Scott himself made a speech to the audience. offering explanations later. Then amid the chering and the shouting the ambulance rattled up) There was almost a riot when the au- dience discovered the truth. The scene I will remember always is that of owen as he lay in the courtyard, Miss Scott's opera coat over him, and the girl. her face close to his, her eyes hungry with love and pride, the world shut out, interpreting that smile on his face
 Well. I guess that's all about. Harri , son. except-of course. I sat through the night at owens bedside at the hos pital. l had promised to bring Miss
 Scott the very earliest news. At : o'clock the doctor said he would pos itively live and I almost flew to the
 Scott's house. Miss Scott was in the drawing room, still in her last nights evening dress. She rose as I entered. Tt was not necessary for me to