Five Mile Beach weekly journal., 1914-01-30

"But you have promised never again
to engage in a show, SO you are not a
show-girl."
What about my mother who lived
and died as a lion-tamer? What will
you do about my life-history? I'd new
err speak to a man who could feel
ashamed of my mother. What about
my father who has never publicly
acknowledged me? I'd not want to
have anything to do with a man who
who could be proud of him."
CAS- to the past, Fran, l have only
this to say Whatever hardships 1t
contained, whatever wrongs or wretch
edness-it evolved you, you. the Fran
of today-the Fran of this living
hour. And it's the Fran of this living
hour that l want to marry?"
Fran covered her face with her
hands. For a while there was silence,
then she said:
Father was there, tonight"
"At the lion-show? Impossiblei Mr..
Gregory go to a-a-to-a-"
Eyes, it is possible for him even to
go to a show. But to do him Justice,
he was forced under the tent, he had
no intention of doing an thing SO
wicked as that. he only meant to do
some little thing like running way
But no, ! can't speak of him with bit
%terness, now. Abbott. he seems all
changed"
Abbott murmured, as If stupefed:
mr.. Gregory at a showl"
Eyes, and lion-show. When it was
owe he came to me-he was so ex-
cited"
$50 was l." spoke up the other
"rather!"
you didn't show it. l thought
maybe you wouldn't care if l had been
eaten up. No, no, listen. He
wanted to claim me-he called me
daughter right there before the peo-
pie, but they thought it was just a sort
of-of church name. But he was won
derfully moved, l left the tent with
him, and we had a long talk-I came
from him to you. l never saw any
body so changed"
But why?"
you see, he thought I was going to
be killed right there before his eyes,
and seeing it with his very own eyes
made him feel responsible. He told
me, afterwards, that when he found
out who it was in the cage, he thought
of mother in a different wayne saw
how his desertion had driven her to
earning her living with showmen, so |
could be supported. All in all, he is a
changed man."
"Then will he acknowledge your
but no, nc :"
"You see? He can't, on account of
Mrs. Gregory. There's no future for
him, or for her, except to go on living
as man and wife-without the secre-
tary. He imagines it would be a sort
of reparation to present me to the
world as his daughter, he thinks it
would give him happiness-but it can't
be. Grace Noir has found 1t all out"
"Then she will tell" Abbott ex-
claimed, in dismay.
"She would have told but for one
thing. She doesn't dare. and it's on
her own account-of course. She has
been terribly-well, indiscreet. You
can't think of what lengths she was
willing to go-not from coldly making
up her mind, but because she lost grip
on herself, from always thinking she
couldn't. So she went away with Bob
| Clinton-she1l marry him, and they'll
go to Chicago, out of Littleburg his
tory-poor Boil Remember the night
he was trying to get religion? I'm
afraid he'll conclude that religion
isn't what he thought it was, living SO
close to it from now on"
"All this interests me greatly, dear,
because it interests you. Still, 1t
doesn't bear upon the main question"
abbott, you don't know why l went
TO that show to act. You thought l
was caring for a sick friend. What do
you think of such deceptions?"
81 think I understand. Simon JEFF
ferson told me of a girl falling from a
trapeze; it was possibly La Gonizetti's
daughter. Mrs. Jefferson told me that
Mrs. Gregory is nursing some one.
The same one, | imagine. And La Con-
izetti was a friend of yours, and you
took her place, so the mother could
stay with the injured daughter"
you're a wonder, yourself!" Fran
declared, dropping her hands to stare
at him. Eyes, that's it. All these
show-people are friends of mine.
When the mayor was trying to decide
what carnival comnanv thev'd have
for the street fair, l told him about
this show, and that's why it's here.
Poor La Confetti needs the money
dreadfully-for they spend 1t as fast
as it's paid in. The little darling will
have to go to a hospital, and there's
nothing laid by. The boys all threw
in, but they didn't have much, them
selves. Nobody has. Everybody's poor
in this old world-except you and me.
Two foIon To copi1oftise rIona IN tho