The Washington herald., 1909-07-25

performance. an anxiety which was not
iessened by the result OF a second re-
hearsal As the cast stood. we were IN
for the guying OF our lives. and il simply
had 10 be changed But as the rehearsal
had lasted until within an hour and a
half OF the time for ringing UP. the mat
ter Of rearrangement was more than
complex. Boots could not have been
particularly happy. for we had utterly
sent him to Coventry.
What sort OF a study have your" de-
manded Carson. turning on him hercely.
HUH" queried the gentle Boots. He
was blinking with distress quite like a
pet monkey
Can you memOrize quickly2"
Very" murmured Boots with added
sadness Former points Of pride were
becoming dangerous to vaunt. and he was
afraid Of nothing by now but his excel
lences
Then take this part for tonight. II is
Chapman Chuds. Do what you can with
H. When you have said all that you
can remember. don't hang around. Get
on the stage and sit down. said Carson
And those brutally brief suggestions were
all he vouchsafed.
Boots.
can I help you at aIl?" volunteered
Childs. none too geniany. Not that he
minded the loss OF his part. for 1t was a
very thankless one, nothing more than n
feeder and did not own line that
stood on its own legs Chrds by the force
OF his name and experience had merely
rescued the part from obliyiOn-nothing
more Shall I run over It for your"
Thanks" agreed Boots But don't
you think I'd better play It according to
my own Conception"
The ingrattude OF it,
III you have one. certainly" said Chap
man Childs.
You are big and fat. you see" stam
mered Boots. while 7 am small and
thin. 1t would never do for me 20 copy
fat fun; Ill have to think OF some thin
fun"
You will," assented Childs. positively.
His inference was cruelty evident. but we
could not blame him-Boots was unteach-
able. We wiped our minds Of him and
-
Boots never left the theater.
We had a packed house that night. Car
son as the minister again made a symp-
thetic hit. and everything promised to 20
on its even way. when we-who were not
on the stage-were startled by hearing
good-natured roar Of laughter where no
roar had ever come before
IT'S the beastly frefiies." guessed Ash
ley They're twinkiing in the jail again."
For that is just what they once did; the
electrician having turned them on by
mistake
NO" said Jessica, listening critically.
that's not malicious laughter. that's
bowling applause" Her verdict was con-
firmed by another hearty roar, so Up we
all hastkhed TO the wings TO watch what
was going on. Well. II was Boots He
was doing some of the funpiest stunts we
had ever seen. not doing Them inadvert-
entity but artistically, and doing them,
moreover, so quietly and easily that the
skill Of them was not Immediately ap-
parent.
or course. he was not letter-perfect In
his lines-no mere mortal could have been
on such short notice-but the very fact of
Ills idpSSS steiHtQ 10 sur MIN up 10 extra
touches Of cleverness which literally
brought down the house Not only
the audience, but we as well. were watch
ing him every minute he was on the
stage, whether he took part In the prog
ress of the scene or not. He was a born
comedian-not a low" comedian, as was
Chlds. depending upon exaggeration and
bGffoonery for his effects. but the high
est comedian It is possible to Imagine
Every move he made was convulsing il
was so earnest and natural His we'll
modulated voice was an added factor 70
the merriment, for an air Of seriousness
and refinement is the very consummatiOn
OF comedy. Once. forgetting HIS lines i'm
portant ones, too. he kept a cool appear
ance and went through an absurdly funny
pantomime Of tying refractory crRvat-
Simple as Il sounds. fl sent the audience
into shrieks and started US who We're
with him into helpless laughter. Turning
TO Carson, Boots said. engagingly and
clearly:
Wasn't that better than sitting down? ?"
This broke up Carson, and those In
front roared with him, though they did
not know why
Once or twice Boots did walk on the
stage. and bis walk alone won him
hand every tina The teetering. nervous