The Benson signal., 1918-02-02

"We've been rehearsing this piece
two weeks" he said presently, looking
away from her when he began to talk,
"and I couldn't take anyone into the
chorus now whom I'd have to teach
the rudiments of dancing to. That's
why test was necessary. Also, I
couldn't take anybody who had come
down here-for lark
With that, Rose understood the
whole thing. John Galbraith had clas-
sified her, or thought he had, as a
well-bred young girl who, in a moment
of pique Or mischief, had decided it
would be fun to go on the stage. The
test he had applied wasn't, from that
point of view, unnecessarily cruel. The
girl he had taken her for would on be-
ing ordered to repeat the grotesque bit
Of vulgarity Of his, have drawn her
| dignity about her like a cloak and
gone back in a chastened spirit to the
world where she belonged.
A gorgeous apparition came sweep
ing by them just now, on line from
the dressing room to the door-a fig
ure that, with regal deliberation, was
closing blue broadclOth coat, trimmed
with sable, over an authentic Callot
frock. The georgette hat on top Of
it was one that Rose had last seen in
a Michigan avenue shop. It had found
it's proper buyer-fulfilled it's destiny.
ooh, Grant," said John Galbraith.
The Queenly creature stopped short
and Rose recognized her with a jump
as the sulky chorus girl.
Galbraith walked over to her. 'I
sha'n't need you any more, Grant"
He spoke in quiet, impersonal sort
of way, but his voice had, as always,
a good deal of carrying power. "It's
| hardly worth your while trying to
work, I suppose, when you're as pros
porous as this. And it isn't worth my
while to have you soldering. You
needn't report again."
He nodded, not unamiab1y, and
turned away. She glared after him
and called out in a hoarse, throaty
voice, "Thank my stars don't have to
work for you."
He'd come back to Rose again by
| this time, and she saw him smile.
| "When you do it," he said over his
Then to Rose: "She's a valuable girl;
I'm giving you her place because she
won't get down to business. I'd rather
| have a green recruit who will. The
next rehearsal is at quarter to eight
tonight. Give your name and address
to Mr.. Quan before you go. By the
way, what is your name?"
"Rose Stanton" she said. "But
~ She had to follow him a
step or two because he had already
turned away. "But may I give some
other name than that to Mr.. Quan?"
He frowned a little obviously and
asked her how old she was. And
even when she told him twenty-five,
he didn't look altogether reassured.
"That's the truth, is it? I mean,
there's nobody who can come down
here about three days before we open
and call me a kidnaper, and lead
you away by the ear?"
"No," said Rose gravely, "there's no
one who'll do that"
every WE'LL" he said. "Tell Quan
any name you like"
The name she did tell him was Doris
Dane.
At the appointed time for rehearsal
/ she was ON hand. She was one Of the
! first of the chorus to reach the hall,
and she had nearly finished putting on
her working clothes before the rest Of
them came pelting in. But she didn't
get out quickly enough to miss the SEN
sation that was exciting them all-the
news that Grant had been dropped. A
few were indignant; the rest merely
curious.
Before she had been working fifteen
minutes, she had forgotten all about
Grant. She'd even forgotten her reso-
luton not to let John Galbraith re-
member she was recruit.
She didn't know she was tired, pant
ing, wet all over with sweat. She
hadn't done anything SO physically ex-
acting as this for over a year. But
she had the illusion that she wasn't
doing anything now; that she was
just a passive, plastic thing tossed,
flung, swirled about by the driving
power of the directors will.
She realized, when the rehearsal was
over, that it had gone well and that it
couldn't have gone SO If her own part
had been done badly. But she didn't
understand the look which he sent
after her as she walked off-she didn't