The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1916-05-01

i q DeeH Wfttcned, Mary, he Sdlu. L
think | must have been crazy that
night at the blue Feather" | was jeal-
Gus and angry and hurt besides, and
lost my head. Won't you forgive me?
Im not going to bother you any more.
hut | can't live without your forgive
ness BY that time Mary had got the
power of speech back and she jerked
her hand away from his as If it burnt.
u am perfectly willing to forgive you
she said and accept your apology, but
| do not care 10 continue any acquaint-
ance with you.
did you and Miss Page secure posi-
lions in that new company
Yes. The minute the manager spot.
ted Mary, he picked her for the lead
because she was the proper type, and
Mary, the darling. said she couldn't
take the job unless | went along too.
SO he handed me an ingenue role with
about ten sides and twenty-five beans
as salary. MaIy's was to be featured
In the play which had the giddy mont
ker Of A Woman's Pledge
MAY it please the court" broke in
the prosecutor, getting lazily to his feet,
''all this is no doubt very interesting
delightful, in fact, and might prove of
| great help TO US if we had stage aspi-
ratons, But with a sudden change
of tone) 1--WE are here TO decide the
guilt or innocence Of Mary Page, whom
the State declares to have murdered
| James Pollock. i fail to see, your Hon
or, where the somewhat rambling fable
| In slang which the witness is telling
has any bearing upon this case"
Your Honor, and gentlemen of the
| jury" Langdons voice rose before the
| words of the prosecutor had died away,
"the story which the witness IS telling
| has everything to do with the question
| OF the murder of James Pollock. 1t
| will show how again and again he
| forced his attentions upon Miss Page,
| and of the horror in which she held
him; and of the almost inevitable men
| tai collapse that followed his brutal eff
| forts to make her marry him. If have
| allowed the witness to tell the story in
her own way, it is simply that | wish
to bring before you the picture of these
| two young girls, so brave and hopeful.
| and hard working, whose positions and
| good character were attacked by James
| Pollock"
| For a moment the judge hesitated,
| and the court held its breath-aggres-
sive, even antagonistic at the mere
thought of losing the gay little witness
| who was looking from the judge to
Langdon with such childishly startled
eyes Then his Honor said slowly:
IL cannot sustain your objection TO
the testimony as irrelevant, sir ! con
slider all that has bearing upon the
curious relations existing between Mr..
Pollock and Miss Page as OF paramount
Importance. At the same time he
added, turning TO Langdon, Il would
suggest that you instruct your witness
to confine her testimony to mere state
ments of fact
The entire courtroom, not excepting
the jury, heaved sigh of relief, and
Langdons face showed q flush of tri
umph as he asked:
How long did your engagement in
a Woman's Pledge last, Miss Bar
TONI"
six weeks, but we only got salary
for four"
where did the tour end?"
at didn't end 1t blew up in n one
tank rube town called Prindleville II
was one of those towns that have the
railroad station on one side of Main
Street, the hotel and 'Opry house al
the other and the rest of the buildings
scattered about wherever they happen
ed to drop"
Again gust of laughter liltet
through the dingy room. but Lang
don frowned and shook his head a
Amy.
Never mind descriptions he sale
more sharply than he had spoken Sc
far. Amy, far from being awed b!
his sternness, pouted at him with {
gay little moue and went on with he
story in her own fashion.
1--WE We're all feeling pretty crouch.
when we hit Prindleville. because tn,
ghost hadn't walked for a month, an,
nobody knew whether we'd ever sc
back to New York or not
Did you give the performance tina
night?" broke in Langdon impa
tiently.
"Well, we started to, but it never 90
, beyond the ticket.taliing stage, for iii
sheriff blew In with badge as big II
saucer and said that he'd been oil
dered to hold all our trunks ami prop
for unpaid board bills in the last fou
towns, and that meant that we wer
stranded with Broadway doing tn
Sheridan act many miles away. W