Yorkville enquirer. [volume] (Yorkville, S.C.) 1855-2006, 1909-09-10

| Help me into my clothes!" she COM
manded. 81 shall be late for the play"
1.-The play!" echoed the old woman,
aghast. "Dieu! Mademoiselle, you
cannot mean that, after what has hap
pened, and you like ghost from the
gravel"
| With a burst of wild laughter, Pau
lette turned and surveyed herself in
mirror on the wall. A dozen years
seemed to have passed over her in the
last few hours. She hardly knew her
own face. She stared in amaze atits.
pinched, ashy outlines, wan mouth,
lack-lustre eyes.
| II look like butterfly with broken
WINGS" she said; 'but no matter-I
must act. People will flock to see me
tonight. My name by this time Is in
everybody's mouth-my reputation
gone forever. No matter; must play
my part all the same. Megrim, my
dress! Hasten! I will do my best
rouge for my cheeks-no human being
shall look on me in this plight-and
glass Of wine, or 1 shall die!"
| The old woman flew for the liquor
and held it to her colorless lips as she
gulped it down.
| "Mademoiselle, you can never reach
the play-you cannot stand. Bid me
go to monsieur the manager and tell
him you are ILL.,"
| mo, no! Be quiet! The faintness
Is going. They must see what I can
do tonight, for I shall never play be-
fore them again-no, never!"
| And then she went.
| The shooting Of Varneck had, in
deed, been noised from end to end of
had predicted, the house was densely
packed. Everybody was curious to
see the naughty little artist for whose
sweet sake one man that day had
nearly yielded his immortal soul, and
another was a fugitive flying from
outraged justice.
| Up went the curtain and in the sec.
ond scene the favorite glided out upon
the boards. Her pallor was disguised
by rouge; her yellow hair fell down
about her white shoulders; she made
a picture Of fresh, innocent, childish
beauty. At sight Of her an irrepressi-
BILE murmur of applause stirred the
body of the house. Mingling with
this-dropping from the gallery above
and stabbing her like so many darts
she heard, for the first time in her life,
hisses-long- drawn, venomous Kisses.
She grew pale. She looked wildly
around. She seemed about to faint;
but the next moment she rallied, nod
ded her bright head to the audience
and flung herself with great abandon
into her part.
| Her brain WAS on fire. The noise
of waters in her ears drowned out her
own words Nevertheless. she played
as she had never played before. The
sea Of faces before her-curious, sneer-
ing faces that struck terror and con-
fusion to her soul-she did not see.
Her eyes were fixed on one spot only,
and that was the vacant orchestra
chair occupied the night before by
Varneck. From that seat he had flung
her the bracelet; from that seat Of
ten she had seen his adoring face up
raised to hers in the gaslight. This
night 1t was filled, but not, alas; by
him. This night face fixed intent,
fascinated. looked up at her from 1t,
but it was not Varneck's. This one
was bronzed and old 1t had the beak
of an eagle, and fierce, white mus
taches overhanging the naughty, irri-
table mouth. 1t belonged to a man
with a soldierly bearing, and the aris-
tocratic air which one long used to
command unwittingly assumes. A
heavy cloak lined with fur was spread
across his knees, and he sat watching
the little actress with an amused look
which softened greatly his stern old
visage. He seemed quite alone and
spoke to no one.
She had come to play comedy with
a breaking heart, and she played 1t
well. Blue and shivering hardly able
to stand. she was helped off the stage,
at the close of the second act, to re-
ceive the compliments of the green
room.
Excellent" said the manager, "ex-
cellent. Miss Rale! You quite surpass
yourself. We hardly expected such