Vernon Parish Democrat. (Leesville, La.) 1917-193?, 1919-05-24

4 IL t7.9 as..elzae exennA
ingiy clean and correct. Her very
smile was neat, exactly adjusted be-
tween those of the gracious hostess
and Of the Iandlady.
Mrs. ChiYvis led the way to the room
that was for rent. 1t took Daphne at
once. Spotlessness is the first luxury
in rented room and Puritan beauty
has grace all its own. The mahog-
any bed with it's twisted posts, the ex-
cellent linen and the honesty Of ev-
erything won her completely.
She felt a sense Of relief from the
rather gaudy beauty Of Leila's apart
ment. She felt that Mrs. Chivvis, who
showed such fine restraint in her fur
niture, would be equally discreet In
Winding her own affairs.
''Tn take it." she said; ''that Is, IL
you'n take me"
Mrs. Chivvis said she would. She
said it with New Englandish parsi-
mony of enthusiasm, but her eyes were
kindly and Daphne decided that she
thought nice things but lacked the
courage to say them.
Daphne moved at once into the Chiv-
Wis apartment what belongings she had
brought on from Cleveland, and her
mother promised to dispatch the rest
of them as soon as she reached home.
Wesley could not be persuaded to
stay over an unnecessary night. His
business was in a perilous condition.
The mammoth Cowper firm had gone
into bankruptcy owing him a hand
some sum of money which he was not
likely to recover. The failure also
closed an important and profitable
market for his calculating machines.
1t frightened his banks as well, and
he had wrestled like another Jacob
with an almost invisible cashier for
money enough to meet his pay roll.
Yet he slipped a large bill into
Daphne's hand when he babe her good
by at the station late in the after
noon, and he whispered to her she
should have other re-enforcements
whenever she called on him.
Daphne reached the theater at seven
o'clock and sat in the dark on a cam
vas rock, watching the stage hands
gather and listening to their repartee.
Patterson arrived at length. He was
in one of his humane moods. He asked
Daphne If she had memorized her lines
and she said she had. He told her
that he would give her another re-
hearsal the next day after breakfast.
'After breakfast" he explained, was
one o'clock p. m.
Next morning Daphne presented her
self to Patterson and endured one of
his rehearsals, with his assistant read
ing all the cues in a lifeless voice. Bat
terson was more discouraged than she
was. He showed it for a time by a
patience that was of the sort one
shows to a shy imbecile.
He was so restrained that Daphne
broke out for him, "Do you think I am
a complete idiot, Mr.. Batterson?"
'Far from 1t, my DEAR" said Batter
son. "You are very intelligent young
woman. The trouble is that you are
too intelligent for the child's play Of
the stage. It's all a kind Of big nurs
cry and you can't forget that facts are
not facts in this toy game. If yOC
could let yourself go and be foolish
and play doll house you might sue
coed. It's hard even when you know
how. But it's impossible as long as
you try to reason 1t out. It's like
music and fiction and all the arts
You've got to pretend or you CAM
feel and you can't make anybody else
feel"
And that, indeed, was Daphne's ag
ony. She could not release her imagi
nation or command her clear vision t.
see what was not there.
Night after night she reported al
the theater and left it when the cur
tain rose. On one of these evenings
Tom Duane met her outside the stage
door. His apology was that he felt Il
his duty to look after his client.
He invited Daphne to ride home Ii
his car, which was waiting at the curb
She declined with thanks. He urged