Evening star., 1927-08-20
THE EVENING STORY

had had their turn. Then it was that
the banjoist entered the scene. At
tnat it wouldn't have excited Sadie
except that she played the banjo
better herself than did this girl who
sat uron the counter i'm the stc ge
flower shop 50 pertly. with her knees
crossed showing good ~ inches of
silk stockings. More than that. the
girl looked SO much like Sadie that
they might have been sisters.
And that started the whole thing
She' excused herself when the rube
comedy-farCc came on and hurried out
TO powder and use a hit of rouge stick
diScreetly. Then she made her way
back of the screen by the adroit use
of her dollar lunch money that she
had saved for the rest of the week.
Any time that girl leaves" she
was saying a moment later to tn"
man who wore the ruby ring. 81 want
a chance at her place. I play the
banjo lots better than she does
Fact snapped the man sharply,
! twitching his cigarette over to the Op-
posite side Of his lips She's leaving
us tonight TO get married. If you've
got the goodS-T'll hear YOU play now
YOU can sec Harvey before 10 in the
morning. and if you're taken on you
can leave with us at noon"
I've got the goods. all right"
snapped Sadie and proceeded to prove
it by picking mp the banjo and reeling
off a half.doZcn of the popular tunes
by really playing them instead of
fakinG off few chords as had done
the sirl on the stage
The man put his head on one side
III take the chance on YOU myself" "
he let fall finally. Twelve weeks try.
out-forty n week and travelling ex-
penses. Be ready at II tomorrow
morning right here. You gotta
decent outfit. Of course he added.
anXiOuslv.
Sadie nodded. She hadn't. but she
knew that she could borrow from her
sister what she needed Immediately.
and $40 week-Why. that was q
mint of money. And to think she'd
been Shaving away for mere $22
writing letters for that crouch at the
Office
But 1t wasn't quite so funny, she
found, when she was on the road
Forty n week went just about half as
far as she had figured it would And
even TO make it stretch that far she
had to wash out her own handker-
chiefs and paste them on the mirrors
of the hotels, on nights that they
were fortunate enough 10 he stayinc
whole company had to rise at 2 or 8
In the morning to make the only train
out OF town. She washed her hlouses
and underthinCs out at odd times and
ironed them when there was a woman
at the hotel who would let the girls
use an iron by paying 90 cents an
hour. She cleaned her silk frock that
she wore travelling one Sunday when
they struck a town that had adopted
blue laws of its own.
All of these things were bad for
her fingers
The week before they returned to
the city each act was changed slightly
and tried out, so that they might
have one more wreck at the theater
where Sadie had first seen them II
was unusual 10 end this way-as they
had beCun-but it had to be done.
according to kilograms received by
the man with the ruby ring. He
went along with the show TO manage
1t and, incidentally. to keep every one
smooth and happy with the others.
Sadie he praised extrava gantly.
Sadie had just finished her act at
the theater where Tom Carey had
taken her. She had hoped against
hope that Tom had been there. had
looked about the audience as much as
she dared. had felt her heart fiutter
in her throat when she saw a dark
head at almost the very same place
where she had sat with him on that
other evening II weeks before. She
| wasn't surprised when she saw him
come back of the scenes a few
moments later-in fact. she was
waiting near the door i'm case he did
and her heart f1uttered worse than
ever.
Like it," he said. ewes wandering
curlously here and there with the dis
illusionment of those who see back
OF the scenes for the first time
Before she could answer she heard
the man with the ruby ring talking to
some one whom she could not see:
some OF the acts are Al. some are
dead from the neck up. That Sadie
Miller, for instance, she was q whiz
when we started out. but-well.
dunno. The clutch amt working,
that's all. the clutch amt working"
Sadie's face blaZed and she looked
quickly at Tom to see if he heard.
He was looking in the direction Of
the voices. "Oh?" he said quietly.
on? The clutch, is it, that's out of
order. Well. this clutch is working
and has been aching to work ever
since you left. little girl"
And with Toms arms tight around
her and his whispered words about
hunting up that ring" the next dav
why, somehow. Sadie didn't care a
bit. You see, Sadie was no longer on
the stage.
The End