Evening capital and Maryland gazette., 1913-02-19


suggestion insulting. sir
But stammered the other
IT Is not our custom. sir to place
the portraits OF our daughters upon
cigar boxes for the inspection Of the
world However / think you are sin
ceres and. as happen 70 know where
you can find the Senorita Dolores. i
will tel you Co to number 19s
Avenida otranta at nine o'clock this
evening and You Will assuredly meet
her there
He bowed and. with a cynical smile.
passed into his Office. Struggling his
shoulders. He was a very busy man.
and whatever Of sentiment there had
once been in his nature had long ago
been driven out b. Americanization.
sim, Il was droll. very dronl He
wished he could spare the time TO so
20 the AYenida that evening In order
% witness their meeting. However
he shrugged his shoulders again and
speedily forgot the matter
In Bulls cabaret, No. 19s Avenida
otranta, the usual thrcng was assem-
bled at nine o'clock that evening
Senior Bull, an enterprislng Yankee
from Philadelphia. certainly knew how
10 cater 10 the tastes of his patrons
Senor Bulls wines. for example. had
never seen any but European suns;
they We're not doctored. homegrown
admixtures. And Senor Bulls singing
and dancing ladies were no fifth-rate
cafe chantaat entertainers. but cele-
brities from New York and Havana
As for Senorita Dolores. he had picked
her up IN an obscure music hall, and
i was shrewdly said that the ten
days scandal which had brought her
into the limelight had been actually
engineered, if not invented. by Senior
Bull himself Certainly The senorita.
whose portrait adorned cigar boxes,
bill posters, and other such places,
justified her fame, for few could dance
more divinely or set the hearts Of
Tampa's youths beating more wildly
When she came forward on the
stage that night the audience at the Ii
tie tables broke into a storm of braves
Attired as a matador. in short scarlet
skirts, holding her dart with It's flut.
tering banderole, she bowed and
kissed her hands to the audience and
capered forward and began her song
It was a fine song and it went to the
hearts of the Cubans who heard her
II told of wine and love and battle,
so rousing their spirits that they saw
la the senorita the vertiable incarna-
tion of these things They stood up
on the floor. upon the chairs waving
their hats, shouting for an encore.
And. whirling in the play OF colored
lights. until she seemed like sea fairy
entangled in masses of flmy drapery,
the senorita spun
Then, all of a sudden. she stopped
She stopped and stood perfectly still
her eyes fixed@on the audience-no
on one OF the audience; on a man who
came forward clbowing his way
through 'he crowds and pushing for
ward toward the stuge He tossed
aside the men who stood IN sis way.
flung the ushers aside as though the,
were puppets; tables went crashing
down. with their assembled glasses, 4
and chairs sent spinning among the
audience And still he pressed for
ward; he gained the stage, leaping up
on it over the foothghts Still the sen
orita stood dumb and motionless. but
there was a look of horror in her eyes.
and now she put up her hands as
though to hide her face That was
all that the audience saw. for the cur
tain fell and hid them, and in front of
Ii a heaving multitude OF men ragged
and shouted and demanded the SEN
orita; while some, suspecting trag-
edy. began crowding toward the exit,
TO intercept the senorita at the stage
door
But Murdoch knew nothing save
that he had found her again. He
drew her into the wings, and, holding
her hands. stood gazing at her trium-
phantly
"Comelr he said.
Come? Where" echoed the SEN
orita. for the first time finding her
voice. But it was broken with tears
and filed with shame. The band
erole. futtering from the lance which
she still held, the spangled dress with
its abbreviated. scarlet skirt. looked
pitifully tawdry now
why did you come here?" she sob
bed Indignantly why couldn't YOU
have forgotten me? You have no
right to Judge me because am just
dancing girl
II haven't judged you said Muir
doch quietly. i want you to come
with me. Answer me one question.
Dolores DO you love me-or rather
did YOU love me that day when
asked you to be my wife?'
yes. loved you" she said But
how could tell you what | was-you
oho would never have understood :
Won have never met women like me
M YOU want 10 know Why | went to
| Bir cypress? / hated my life. wanted
to he free. wanted to forget myself
| md never remember what was But
chen I met you ] saw how deep gulf
lav between. knew then that ] never
| oould escape my destiny. was just
cuban dancing girl. making spec
tacle OF myself night after night for
,oonav and If ! had married you and
,ot told YOU that was the notorious
Dolores Gracia some day you would
i nave discovered ii I couldn't bring
that dishonor upon you. So | came
,,-ol- Vow leave me