The Washington herald., 1913-09-28

and The Burglar%
"Some more bunk handed us from
! Broadway. But the girl in it is all to
the good. She's peeled off a three
bagger with this town"
"Sing?" quavered Mr.. Curran pal
pitatingly
Not much. No one can in these
shows"
"Act?" continued Mr.. Curran, more
palpitatingly.
Not much. She doesn't. have to,
Nobody does. But this girls got the
nerve and personality, and the dear
old pub. always falls for that. She
| just reaches out over the lights and
grabs 'em with her smile"
What" faltered Mr.. Curran, is
her name?"
"Ain't you heard? AureIie Lind
strom. She came out of your corn belt
somewhere. First season in big busi-
ness. Cohan & Snitz took her out Of
Broadway bunch green as grass, and
the first night she saved the show by
,, making faces. The leading woman blew
I.up and quit right there"
Lets go" cried Mr.. Curran.
Cant I'm on the city hall today.
! But take it in, she'll do TO pass an
hour with
Mr.. Curran hurried away He walked
four blocks and gazed into another
store front piled with If | Were the
ONLY Girl, &c. featured by Aurelie
Lindstrom in The Girl and The Burg
lar" and then another and another !!
And finally he went to the lake front
and gazed on the massive pile wherein
she lived. He had lost his nerve; he
was afraid TO go in. He forgot all
about congress and affairs OF state.
He went to see a wholesale paper
house on business. and took in the Art
Museum, resolved that he would call
on Aurelie at FIVE. Then he reasoned
! that was too close to dinner, and he'd
! probably bother her and six or seven
millionaires who'd be hanging around
| in the portieres; so he dined alone al
| the Annex and drank pint of cham
pagne as rioutouSly as country editor
can drink champagne. After dinner it
was too late to see her, so he con-
cluded it would be best to watch her
| first and make up his mind unpreJ-
udiced by personal contact. BY great
| luck he got a ticket from a speculator,
/ for the house was sold out. His ticket
was for the last row downstairs, but
he didn't care; it was enough to be
under the same roof with Aurelie; the
| orchestra squaking and the program
boys hustling over his feet: and all
about him the dinner-hlled and waddly
importance with which people go to
shows. Wiley had been long enough
away from cities to take a pleasure in
watching the mob crowd in, and hear
ing the rustic OF their gowns and hats,
| and smelling thei: perfumes. The
esthete's soul in him drew awav from
their lust of feed and spectacle. their
| exploiting banalitv, yet he knew this
repugnance had no place in a politi-
can, and he was trying TO be a poll
I tician.
Then the orchestra played that CHR
rupy. zing- zing music with which all
musical comedies begin, and the cur
tain shot up to discover that theatric
novelty which all good shows must
have-the dilemma of the Rich Young
Man This time he was in disguise
abroad, where he had followed the
Daughter of the Wall Street Operator
Then the German Inkeeper, the Eng
lish Lord, the American Aunt, the
Chauffeur, the Waiter. the girls in the
cafe. the cablegram, the ticker. and all
those novel things for which the
American people pay two dallars, and
at which they laugh delightedly. There
wasn't any burglar, but he wasn't nee
esSary.
Mr.. Curran waited feverishly. That
kid, something surely would go wrong
and spoil his delight
But-she came.
Mr.. Curran forgot to breathe. She
was beautiful. and yet not so as he
had seen her in the woods. But it
wasn't that-out of her abounding and
fun-loving health came alternately a
droll abandon and then occurrences; !;
she was apart from all the profession
al people about her because of the
delight with which she romped through
her part She hadn't a ghost of a
stage voice, or a stage look, or a
stage walk: the people were beginning
TO laugh when she came on, and she
was laughing with them; and out of
the silly dialogue OF the Rich Young
Man, who delighted everybody by steal
ing the Chauffeur's coat, she drew
more two-dollar mirth for Cohan &
Snitz.
"She can't actl' gasped Mr.. Curran,
Mortified. Its Just only Aureliep
That was it. Just Aurelie enjoying
herself immensely, laughing in Won
drous creation of a gown that wilted
Mr.. Curran even to think upon. Then
she began to sing, still in a great good
humor. that heart-throb of the Amer
lean people: IF l Were the Only Girl
in the World, Don't You Think You
Could Love Me-" and the boys in the
gallery raised tremendous racket. She
had to sing it four times and each
time Mr.. Curran rocked and moaned.
"She can't singi Oh, Aurelier
But presently, with the uproarious
pleasure of all these people, a great
rapture came to Wiley Curran's heart.
She was just Aurelie. yet magically
she won her way, all health and grace
and honest gaiety That was all she
had to give
He went out after the act and had
drink, the tears in his eyes. "The
kid-the dear kidI' he murmured, and
had another drink.
When he got back the stage was a
great splash of color, girls, hats, gowns,
arms, legs, imitation champagne, con-
versation about sugar stock and motor
cars; but Mr.. Curran waited impa-
tently for the comedienne. He couldn't
get to his seat and stood by the rail.
But when she came, this time in a
dinner gown and opera cloak and sang
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