Evening star., 1918-06-09

I0IOuBu ~ A1O4 WuUhV a.
would rub against the pulley. Ana
then he waited his time.
Silver put on her swallow clothes
again with q Joy. as OF coming home.
The buttons were tight and the hooks
pulled fercely at the eyes, but she
starve OF enough surplus to make her
worthy Of her glorious career. Even
Krug was cowed. and all was we'll
She danced and sang like a forgiven
.prodigal, and when the cue came to
soar alof' she pressed sorrow back
beneath her with wings as joyous asa
skylarks Even the other swallows
felt the lilt of ecstasy.
And then, at the height of her climb.
she felt queer little jolt in the wire.
tiny slipping, and then-she was no
longer upheld. no longer a bird, just
a helpless body. falling, falling-
The audience caught a scream OF
terror. a vision of tumbling feathers. a
thud. motionless heap. panic
among the swallows still in the air. a
panic in the very curtain that ran
down its wires with a shrek, a hub
bub back of the canvas. a pale man
who stepped forward to say. rs there
a doctor in the house?"
A man rose in his place. and. edging
through the crowd. was motioned
round behind a stage box
Then the piano began to elatter. the
Ndi tdIh went up anu COINeOldn III
green whiskers. and a comedian who
wore his hat down over his ears and
said, 'Oi. OIL" dashed out and began a
duel of wits
Bruni's fat heart had almost stop
ped in his fat breast when he saw his
swallow drop from the sky He
reached the stage in an ague of terror.
He found Silver once more uncon-
scious and bruised, but her heart still
beat under his trembling hand.
The stage manager. furious at the
second mishap. was ordering the swal-
lows Ito get back in two" bowling
into the flies to send the front drop
down. and shouting into the wings for
the next team that played '-in one" to
jump in. 1t was not their turn, but at
all costs the audience must be kept at
ease.
Br"r q ,ver dreamed of questioning
this generalship. He dragged Silver
upstage a.: the drop tapped into place
When the doctor arrived they talked
in whispers while the comedians on
the other side worked like Trojans to
coerce the audience into laughter and
forgetfulness.
The doctor hoped that no bones were
fractured. She's pretty well padded
he said. "Ifer flesh was at once the
cause of her disaster and its remedy.
closer search showed that one of
her arms was snapped and the ambu-
krug heard the gong of the hospital
wagon He saw the still form carried
forth feet first. He felt himself a MUIR
derer. When Bruni came back to de-
mand the cause of the accident he
could not enact the jaunty scene he
had rehearsed for himself. He gulped
and choked and mumbled the words:
Il knew it was comm. / been
warnin' her she was eatin' too much.
She's way over de limit, and
You knew eet comes?" stormed
Rruni. Den wy do you not tell me.
huh?"
How do 1 know de wire wouldn't
hold?''
DE wire would hold two of her un-
less-give-a me de wire"
Bruni did not wait to have it
brought. He sought it himself and
examined the broken edges. AS he
dragged them into the glow of a bril-
liant box light he glanced UP at
krug, and Krug cleared his throat
and shifted to the other foot. Bruni
bevel the file had made was as dis
tinct in one-haif of the wire as the
ragged tear in the other.
Bruni thought hard a long moment
Then he called to one of his other as
sistants
"Giorgio, run get me policeman.
queeck!"
Krug beat Giorgio to the door, He
never came back.
Bruni thought that this'was best 1t
saved the swallows a scandal and
Bruni s18 of unpaid salary.
: When Silver came back from the
place where she had gone she was in
a white hotel of many beds in one
room-a hotel filled with the guests
of pain.
She suffered agonies at the surgeons
hands. but her soul had anguishes all
it's own. She was afraid to see old
Bruni but when he came he was SO
overjoyed at his diplomacy, his finan-
cial coup and the safety of his new
daughter in art that he had only
words of comfort.
She was so weak that her secret
feud with Krug escaped her close lit
tie heart
Not the way he wanted me at foiSt.
But he got me good and plenty. 1t
was me own fault, though, for toinin'
meself into a machinery buster"
"Dawn't you believe you boosta da
machine of Bruni. Krug is de ma
chinery booster. He is a-traduttore,
but he make no more trooble for you.
leetIa keed."
Silver was overjoyed to have this
"All the same, busted your show. and
I busted me arm. and you'll never
wanta see me again."
Bruni shook his black curls and
smiled. Carlo Bruni is notta de man
for leave a swallow veet a brokena
wing. We play five swallows till you
come back"
Silver squeezed his fat hand in one
of hers and chuckled. IT was in an
other horsepital once. They don't feed
you very good in horsepitals. When
get outa here I'll be a Silver for sure.