The evening world., 1911-03-08

than they need ave been, that Is 20
say, more excited than any one need be
by the announcement OF the suicide
of "A chief s~cene-shlfter. They looke at
each other. They Lad both turneo
winter han the table cloth. AT last. De-
blenne made "A sign TO NM. Richard and
Moncharlm; Pollgny muttersd a few
words OF excuse to the guests. and all
four went into the managers office.
| leave NJ. Moncharmin TO complete
the story. In his Memoirs" he says:
MN. Dob.eune and Pol!gny seemed
10 grow more and more excited, and
they appeared to have something very
difficult 70 tell US. First. they asked us
II Ne knew the man.. sitting at the end
of the table. who had told them of the
death OF Joseph Buquet; ana. when we
answered in the negative, they looked
s,ill more concerned.
They took the master keys from our
hands. stared at then for a moment and
advised us II have new locks made,
with the greatest secrecy, FOR the rooms,
closets and presses that we might wish
10 have hermCtlcaliy closed. They said
this so fuunily that we began to laugh
and 10 ask II there were thieves at the
Opera. They replied that there was
something worse, which was the ghost.
I'VE began to laugh agl.n. feeling sure
that they were hdulging IN some joke
that was intended to crown our l!ttle en-
.ertainment. Then, at thcsT request. we
| became serious resolving TO hunor
| hem and to enter into the spirit of the
| game. they told. US taat they never
would have suokon - us of the Ehost. II
they had not received formal orders
from the ghost himself 20 ask us to he
pleasant 10 him and to grant any re-
quest that he might make.
However, in their relief AZ leaving y
domain where that %tyrannical shade neIu
| sway. they had hesitatod until the IiS'
! moment to tell us this curious story.
| when our skcptical minds we're Ger
tainly not prepared to entertain. bnt
he announcement of tho death OF
Joseph Buquet had served them as a
brutal reminder that. whenever they had
disregardcd the ghosts wishes. some
fantastic or disastrous event h'd
! brought them 70 Il sense OF taelr de-
! penGcH"c.
"During those unexpected ~uttcranre'.
made IN "A tone Of the most secret ana
important confidence, | looked 100 l'.'h,
ard. Richard, In his student days ma
ACQUIRED a great reputation Tor p'A'Il'a'
'okinE, "a ne seemed to relish On" u.S'
which was being served NJ to MN IN MS
turn. lie did not Miss a Worsel Of w.
] 'hnN4H lll| F|HNn'AH'iA1 W. "
some because Of the death ~ Buquct'
'Iic nodded his head sadly, while the
others spoke, and hls features asndil"l
he air OF a man who bitterly regretted
having taken over the opera. no" t''i
he knew that there was a ghost mlAel
IN IN the business. ! could MINK ~
nothing better than 20 give him n servllo
Imitation o: this attitude OF despair.
However, in spite OF all our "rorts' we
could not. at the finish, help huitilli
out laughing In the faces OF MN
Dobiennc and Pollgny. who, scolng ps
pass straight from the rloom'"si state OF
mind 10 one OF tho most lus''out merri-
ment, acted as though they thought ina
we had gone a
THE Joke became n little tedious, and
Richard asked half-serlOusly and halc IN
Jest;
BUT, after all. what does this ghos'
Of yours WANT
IN. poliguy went 20 his desk and re.
turned with a copy % the memoraudln
book. The memorandum book begins
with the we'll known words, saying tat'
the MANAGEMENT OF the opera ShAl. give
10 the performance OF 'ha >ationa
Academy % Music the spIrudor that he
comes the first lyric stage IN France
and ends with clause 9,, va.rh says TIA
tine privilege can be withdrawn II th'
manager intriuses the conditions st..u
lated IN The memorandum book. IT.. a.
followed by tho conditions. which ar,
four IN number.
The copy produced by NJ Polign,
was written IN black Ink and eNactll
similar TO TINT IN or pos. as".ou, eX
cept t.lt O., Tine o.d 2, contained tIa'l,
graph DO red lrE and IA a queer, IA
bored handwriting. aH though II Ia.
Lee. -.|L t-. .I -