South Bend news-times. (South Bend, Ind.) 1913-1938, 1921-05-06

worse yet. stealer OF trusting hearts.
this should be your fate"
with that out she whips. Of
course. the trusty 32-caliber.
But / Will be merciful." goes on
Helen. You shall live-that will
be your punishment. will show
you how easily l could have sent you
to the death that you deserve. There
is her picture on the mantel. / Will
send through her more beautiful
face the bullet that should have
pierced your craven heart"
And she does II. And there's no
fake blank cartridges or assistants
pulling strings. Helen fires. The
/ bullet-the actual bullet - goes
through the face OF the photograph
and then strikes the hiuden spring
I OF the sliding panel in the wall-and
| 10, the panel slides, and there is the
missing S647 900 in convincing stacks
OF currency and bags Of gold. It's
great. You know how it is. Cherry
practiced for two months at target
on the roof OF her boarding house.
II took good shooting. In the sketch
she had 10 hit n brass disk only three
inches in diameter. covered by wall
paper in the panel; and she had TO
stand in exactly the same spot every
night. and the photo had TO be in
exactly the same spot. and she had
to shoot steady and true every time.
OF course old "Arapahoe" had
tucked the funds away there in the
secret place; and, Of course, Jack
hadn't taken anything except his
salary (Which really might nave
come under the head Of obtaining
money under; but that is neither
/ here nor there); and, Of course, the
New York girl was really engaged
/ 70 a concrete house contractor in the
Bronx; and, necessarily. Jack and
/ Helen ended in a half-Nelson-and
there you are.
After Hart and Cherry had gotten
mice Will Play" flawless, they had a
/ try-out at a vaudeville house that
| accommodates. The sketch was a
/ house wrecker. II was one of those
rare strokes of talent that mandates
theater from the roof down. The
| gallery wept; and the orchestra seats,
being dressed for it, swan in tears.
After the show the booking agents
signed blank checks and pressed
fountain pens upon Hart and Cherry.
Five hundred dollars a week was
what it PANIED out.
That night at 1880 Bob Hart took
| off his hat and bade Cherry good
night at her boarding house door.
"Mr. Hart" said she thoughtfully,
come inside just a few minutes.
We've got our chance now to make
good and to make money. What we
want to do is to cut expenses every
cent we can, and save all we can"
Right" said Bob. IT'S business
with me- You've got your scheme
! for banking yours; and L dream
every night of that bungalow with
the Jap cook and nobody around
to raise trouble. Anything to en-
, large the net receipts will engage
my attention"
Come inside just a few minutes. "
repeated Cherry, deeply thoughtful.
1--WE got a proposition TO make to
you that will reduce our expenses a
lot and help you work out your own
future and help me TO work out
mine-and all on business principles. -
Mice Will Play" had a tremen-
dously successful run in New York
for 10 weeks-rather neat for a
vaudeville sketch-and then it start
ed on the circuits. Without follow
ing il. it may be said that IL was
solid drawing card for two years
without a sign of abated popularity
Sam Packard. manager Of one of
Keetor's New York houses, said OF
Hart & Cherry:
LAS square and heightened little
team as ever came over the circuit.
It's a pleasure TO read their names
on the booking list. Quiet, hard
workers. no Johnny and Mabel none
sense, on the job to the minute,
straight home after their act, and
each of 'em as gentleman-like as a
lady. / don't expect to handle any
attractions that give me less trouble
or more respect for the profession
And now, after so much cracking
of a nutshell. here is the kernel of
the story:
At the end OF it's second season
Mice Will Play" came back to
New York for another run at the
roof gardens and summer theaters.
| There was never any trouble in book
/ ing it at the tOp-notch price. Bob
Hart had his bungalow nearly paid
/ for, and Cherry had so many savings
/ deposit bank books that she had be-
gun to buy sectional bookcases on
the installment plan to hold them.
I tell you these things to assure
you, even if you can't believe 1t, that
many, very many Of the stage people
are workers with abiding ambitions
Just the same as the man who
wants to be president, or the grocery
clerk who wants a home in Flat
bush. or a lady who is anxious to
| flop out Of the Count-pan into the
! Prince-fire. And hope may be al
| lowed to say, without chipping into
| the contribution basket, that they
often move in a mysteriouc way their