The Mitchell capital. (Mitchell, Dakota [S.D.]) 1879-1918, 1907-07-26
STORY OF THE
IDOL
BY GEORGE BARTON.


tack of his old enemy, rheumatic govt.
He was better now, and CLANCY called
With some papers thes needed immediate
Attention. The hug of the busy life of
New York came through the window and
made the old man long to get back into
harness again. He lolled back in his chair,
crunched an unltghted stogie between his
teeth and saEed perpleXedly at a news
paper Coping in his right hand. Clancy,
compiling departmental reports at an adj
Joining table. had one eye on his work
and the other on his chief. Ciancy's nat
ural love of adventure made him hope
that the puzzling paper might bring some
relief from the deadly monotony of rout-
Inc which had brooded over the office for
q fortnight.
Presently the perpleXity faded from the
eyes of the older man and he looked at
his assistant with an indulgent smile.
Clancy returned the smile with interest
and waited for an explanation. Barnes
silently handed him the newspaper clip
ping, which read as follows:
The larceny of an idol is the latest bit
ce sensationalism. The curious incident oc-
CURED at the Chinese exposition at Coney
Island. Ten days ago the customs officials
At this port, by authority of a special act
Of ongress, admitted into the United
States u company of Chinese players who
ere to give performances in their native
tongue during the continuance OF the eX-
<oS1sAV "*4'' tiNSi u " itboail W h1AS-A
homes in China. One of the articles in
their baggage Tas 4 Chinese idol, which,
being an article OF religious worship. was
admitted free of duty and was duly in
stalled ia q temporary Joss house erected
on the exposition grounds for the pur-
pose. Early Yesterday morning the IDOL
disappeared from it's pedestal in the Joss
house, and when this became known to
Che members Of the company they We're
tlmost frantic with grief and anger. Their
weird lamentations filled the grounds
Two hours later the idol was found UNI
harmed in its original position. The mys-
terry is whE it was taken at all. and who
was the culprit?"
The young man read the paragraph care
gully and Was about to inquire what pos
sible interest it could have for the United
States government, when his u%nspoken
question was cut off by the chief, who
had already mentally outlined his plan
Of campaign.
Con" he asked, with a smile lowering
about the corners Of his mouth, are you
. student of the Drama"
Yes" was the half heSitatinG reply.
ri enjoy a show as we'll as the next fell
low, but when 1T comes to these heather
plays"
The brisk laugh of Barnes drowned out
3he remainder of the sentence: Immediate
D after"ard he became the official, an
bouncing with curt formality his de-
Sis3on.
We'll go down this afternoon and take
3 look at this heather Show
at ? O'Clock, when the chief and his
assistant We're installed in front seats in
he little theater on the Midway of the
Exposition grounds, Barnes was his ordi-
narily agreeble self, happy to discard
temporarily the straitjlcket of Official
dom. For more than two hours the seem
hgly interminable performance went on.
For a time the noise and chatter and
FfrJn ppneSS In tpr,aStnl Ja,,o, lrt ,f+n,
that he began to tidget and glance at his
watch. Not so the chief inspector. He
looked intently at the actors and fire.
puently questioned All Sin, the obl:ging
interpreter, who had been provided for his
benefit. "A dainty Chinese girl. emerging
erom the gloom back of the stage. trotted
Gown toward the footlights to the weird
accompaniment of the tom to.as, and,
gracefully sinking to the floor, skflfuly
shot open her fan in the direction of the
audience. An instant look of recognition
everspread the face of the chief Inspector
tIe turned to the Interpreters:
who is that?"
That's Ching Moy.' was the response.
She seems to be a tavorite."
"Oh, yes" replied All Sin proudly; "shc
leading lady alice samee.'
Ihe play was a neutrality-suspicious. TIA
is Why it furnished SO much unalloyeC
10y TO the Americans in the audience. The
Cinnamon among the spectators lookec
IN IN StOllu silence and with unSinktnG
patience. During a lulu in the perfarm-
bnce the chief. With a yawn of relaxation
turncd to his assistant.
what do You think of emf"
Con glanced up gloomily.
They look like tea chests an6 smell
like the very
Barnes raised a protesting finger. Blu
Clancy was in one of his argumee1tative
moods.
"A Ch%inanan's a Chinaman. Whatta
we want with emf? They'll open laun.
Cries, ruin our shirts, put a lot Of honest
Widders out of business, live on rice .anG
barn tissue paper in the g~raveyards."
The chief, maintaining his gravity. SAID
with a sober face:
"Rut these are artists; they'll go home
af5@r the exposition.
Clancy shook his head disconsola5ely.
ooh, a China.nan's an artist, all right
But | never kneS'd any of EN- to go back
70 Ghina-anyhCw, not till they got 6. big
5u.sdie of our good money to take with
EN-
The Villain of the play-the IrishmaE tn.
sisted that they were all villains-was tat,
stern ana forbidding in appearance, and,
as Clancy described him in the vernacu-
lar. "a dead ringer for Ii Hung Chang
Lew Eang, the villainous one, was I'm
pressed with the seriousness Of his part
and Was merciless In his treatment of the
hero. q small, delicate looking Chinaman
49, A-A'S VI "WO NoI5. Dull pdyeO
tncessant court to the heroine, imperson-
ated by the fragile little maiden who was
billed as Ching Moy. She was as dainty
as a peaoalblow vase and so artless tina
lhe prosa5c Barnes ulconsciously found
himself sy1npathizing with Lew Pane
when that Oriental finally discovered,
after many wonderfully long drawn out
speeches. that his suit was hopeless.
In the last scene the playwright salts
fed poetic justice and the evident desire
of the audience by %betrothins Woo Tong
and Ching Moy. After that, of course, in
Just compliance with the eternal canons
sof romance, she ceased to be a heroine,
and with a pretty bow withdrew from the
performance. Lew Pang and Woo TONG
advanced to the footlights and engaged
in a fearfully and wonderfully construct
I'd dialogue. at the close OF which Lew
Fang steaithify pulled out a pistol look
ing like a blurd@rbuss. and. by means OF
q &slank cartridge, murdered his rival.
Woo Tong fell dead with a violence that
shooss the boards. but presently arose,
and, taking the outstretched hand OF his
slayer, the two advanced to the front. and
Sypfiirlar with joFa ,fjla iprooa,ao 11.-ol