The Topeka state journal. [volume] (Topeka, Kansas) 1892-1980, 1919-07-24
EVENING STORY
Nellie and the Clew.
BY Will T. AMEs.

II Slater and La Belle Hauttere
hadn't come from the same town they
would have gotten along all right, !
probably. But not only had Slater
known Nellie Sands-beg pardon. La
Belle Hautiere-when she worked in |
the laundry Of a shirt factory back |
home, but had the ill grace to men
ton 1T so that it came to the ears of
the other trapeze woman with the /
circus. And anybody knows what a |
handle information of that kind gives /
a, professional rival
Three years off the tubs and in
the business, and she calls herself
Performer performeri What do |
you know about thar?' scornfully ex-
claimed Miss Eustice, who had gained
three pounds in the last year ana was
none the better in disposition for it. as
she watched, from the dressing tent |
draperies. the slender figure of Nellie |
being hoisted to the gear at the center
pole. They did not synchronize SINH |
lar acts in the Great Western.
OF course Mix, the clown, fastened
to tell Nellie what Miss Eustice had
said. and Nellie had remarked: She
should worry; she can change her line,
too. She'll qualify for the elephant
act in less time than that" And the
war was on.
A feud among the performers of
a circus causes about ten times as
much interest thruout the personnel
as one in a vaudeville combination,
for circus folk are greatly given to
dwelling in amity together: So the
strained relations between the trapeze
women We're closely observed by vari-
Gus of the troupers among them, Neil
Slater whose unthinking chatter had
supplied Eustice with such ammuni-
ton as shouting across. the dressing
tent to the call man: Hey Sandy,
d'you know whether there's any mig
gers. or anybody like that, who'll do
some washing in tomorrow's town ?''-
the strained import of which query
was lost on everybody but Nellie.
The satisfaction that Slater got out
of the running battle between Miss
that in four, cases out of five the
skirmished resulted in favor of the
new girl. And Neil liked Nellie.
But from the day La Belle Hautiere
learned that slater had broadcasted
her laundry training she practically
ignored him, treatment that was in
striking contrast to the wide-eyed
eagerness with which she had recog-
nized him on the day she Joined up
with the Great Western.
Slater was a trapeze worker too;
senior member of a trio whose
brother" act was one of the features
of the show. The more he saw of
Nellie the better he liked her, in spite
finland the less he liked to think
of keeping his trio together for an
other season. Mani" he soliIouuized
as he watched Nellie's 1.-THE young
form swinging, head down. at the top
of the tent, -"but she'd make a pip of
a partner-every way!"
Between shows that afternoon Slater
found Nellie sitting outside thewomen
performers pavilion sewing a band
on q hat.
Hello, little sister," he ventured,
get a mad on at your old college
chum? w at Sal mat ~
You amt any college chum of
mine. Mr.. Slater Nellie replied with
a dignity approaching the majestic.
MY college chuns were all ladies'
wash ladies, yop know. And. more
over, when I tSke the trouble to get
mad it's either alta man or a woman,
not a sissy he-gossfp that runs around
with his mouth open trying to be first
to tell the happy, news that somebody
worked in a laundry once"
Nellie's cheeks were more than rosy, |
and If Slater could have seen the eyes
she deliberately averted he might have
beheld a tear in each of them.
Jaw, say! That's laying it on pretty
thick" protested Slater. Maybe I
did shoot off my mouth, sis; but I
didn't mean anything by it. Lots of
regular queens work in those laun-
dries"
yes, you did, too, mean it," burst
out Nellie. You're an old circus man.
You know what these people think of
anybody that butts into the game off
a washtub. If you was half man
you'd have boosted me somehow
seeing 1 was from the old town. In
stead of that you go and try to put
me on the bum And then you come
shopping around with your college
chum' stuff. You just keep away
from me or I'll tell Knowlton you're
annoying me-"
With which threat of a complaint
against the objectionable circus sin,
Nellie grabbed up her work and ,hur-
ried into the pavilion.
well, what do you know about
that" exclaimed Neil as he went his
Iugubrious way. Shed do it, too;
she's got the spunk!"
After that Nellie cut Slater cold;
but the next time Miss Eustice in
quired where an imaginary odor of
soapsuds came from, Nellie turned
on her viciously and snapped: THE
DEVILS got a kettle of it down by the
horse tent. doing scavenger/ work Go,
and get your mouth washed outi''
the part of Nellie so startled Miss
Eustica that she found no reply
whatever.
The third day the show played
Peterstown, notoriously the toughest
community on the routing of that or
any other circus. For years 1t had
been a tradition with the miners and
snaelter men of the town that to per-
nit a circus to complete its engage
ment there without wrecking its
equipment. beating up the personnel /
and liberatinE at least some of the
mena gerie animals would be a mat
ter of utter disgrace to the manhood
of Peterstown.
So ancient was the tradition that
no one pretended to know its origin,
or to account for the inhospitable at
titude of the town rougts. The cir
Gus lot however, had been the scene
of many a sanguinary conflict and
more than one man had lain dead
after one of these raids.
But Peterstown was difficult
Jump to skip and because the author
tiles promised him adequate policing
in return for the big license fee,