davidaulloa/AmericanStories huggingface dataset:
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-06

his farm pay that at the time of the
murder he was behind in rent, and
being behind in rent with Edmund
Lascelles, as everybody knew, was try
ing on the nerves Also this farmer,
Charles Parker, had temper of his
own.
Now the two men from London be-
gan to keep late hours for a quiet
town like Beckfeld. Not that this at
tracted any ones notice; the two visi-
tors were careful not to attract atten-
ton whenever they came back to the
inn toward dawn. Least of all did the
farmer, Charles Parker, suspect that 1t
was on his farm the visitors spent their
nocturnal hours.
For they had become interested, in
deed, in Charles Parker. They had
struck up an acquaintance with him
and James Crosby; but their talk was
of farming, the weather and like topics.
Occasionally Crosby would make them
listen to his oft-repeated dramatic eX-
perience on the night Of the murder.
Parker seldom alluded to it.
He was morOSe man and once or
twice said something about giving up
the struggle and trying again in the
wheatfields of Canada. For the rest,
he avoided even casual chat and moped
about his farm.
The two Londoners watched from
the corners of their eyes the places
Parker seemed to avoid, as we'll as those
that attracted him. Finally he be-
came irritated at the frequent visits Of
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-06

munity Players had attempted thus far.
Mrs. Chudwell had secured the co-opera-
| ton of the window trimmer at the Busy
| Bee department store. and he had con-
structed high garden wall of lath and
plasterboard, decorated with clinging
vines and rambler roses from the mil
| linery department. Above this was a
sky of Maxheld Parrish blue, covered
with stars and wrinkles.
Pierrot sang a very sad song, in which
he compared Columbine to the tickle
stars, while an Off-stage monograph
played Drdla'S Souvenir" AS he sang,
the head and shoulders of Daphne
Schwartzberger rose from behind the
wall. The effect was startling, for it
gave the audience the impression that
she was at least eight feet tall. Ac-
tually, however, she was standing on a
ladder.
"Ah. Columbinel" cried Pierrot, leap
ing to his feet. rs it really you?"
"Y-es Pierrot," replied Columbine,
bit unsteadily in the direction of the
prompter in the wings "Methought me
|heard-methough I heard a nightin-
gale caroling in the garden. Was 1t a
dream, Pierrot?"
Nay" Pierrot neighed, "twas not a
dream"
IneTc SEEMED I'd DS IlU IlOlC dASu-
ment about that. An awkward pause
followed, in which Mrs. Chudwell could
be heard rustling paper and kissing
frantically, where's the placer" and
than hoarse whisper. "Methought he
sang as if his heart"
"Methought he sang as if his heart
we're breaking" announced Columbine
suddenly.
AYE" replied Pierrot. His heart
was breaking. For 1t was 1 who sang,
Columbine. My heart is faint with UNI
requited love. I love thee, Columbine.
and I am dying"
The face of Daphne SchwartZberger
beamed upon him like harvest moon.
Poor Pierrot! You know love an
other.'
"Oh, Columbine!" cried Pierrot (and
by closing his eyes so that he could not
see Daphne, Mr.. Lacey managed to put
great deal of feeling into the line) ;
''let me but kiss thy flngertipS. Then
will / die content"
Columbine leaned over the garden
wall and extended plump hand to
Pierrot The latter, standing on tiptoe,
calamity pressed 1t to his lips and muir
INJURED, "Oh. bliss! Oh, heavenly rap
ture!"
AS he spoke, there was a clatter
backstage. Columbine's smile froze on
her face and she clutched convulsively
at Pierrot's ruff1ed collar. The STEP
ladder upon which she had been stand
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-06
5 Missteps Of Justice-The Case of the Human Hand

searched his house as thoroughly as
they had his farm.
In one of Parker's pillows trained
fingers encountered small hard OBJ
ject. 1t was a ring with large sap
phire set in 1t, known to have belonged
to Edmund Lascelles.
When this discovery was put before
Parker. the Stolid silence with which
he had met all questions up to then
came to an end. Despair. such as
George Manners must have felt, broke
up the farmers resistance, and he con-
feSSed.
Sick cattle, poor crops and the ever
lasting nagging and bullying of Las
celles had done little to improve
Parker's temper. On the night Of the
murder his landlord came to see him,
and Parker got the benefit of the tenn
per in which LascelleS had come away
from his last interview with Manners.
Parker finally forgot that Lascelles
was his landlord. He told Lascelles for
the first time what he really thought
of him. Whereupon LascelleS gave the
farmer a good taste of his riding crop.
Then the landlord strobe out of the
farmhouse.
For some minutes the farmer re-
manned where he was. smoldering. The
welts raised on his face by the riding
crop burned his flesh as If with fire.
Then, rushing out into the kitchen,
the farmer snatched up a knife and
set out on the dark road after Las
celles. Before he overlook him Las
celles heard him approach and turned.
Again the farmer got the riding crop
across his face. This time, however, he
had an adequate retort.
Madly he stabbed LaScelles again
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-06

| not concern him-at least not at that
| time.
II must see Miss Eva" he began
| The bell had already brought Eva
Lascelles out on the stairs. She heard
her lovers voice and Mrs. Marshs eX-
clamation. His appearance. even be-
fore he could say word, already cried
| out disaster; and his words were no less
! appalling.
"Eva~bear up, my dearI Edmund
has been-murdered!"
| For while she stared at him, her
eyes distended with horror. Then she
| fell to the floor.
Manners started forward to raise her
but realized that he was mired from
head to foot
Mrs. Marsh, please tend her!"
The housekeeper drew back from him
as if there were something leprous in
his very speaking to her.
81 don't need you to tell me my
duty!" she snapped.
The two maids came running with
cold water and helped Mrs. Marsh in
her efforts to revive the girl. To Man.
ners it seemed an endless time before
Eva showed signs of animation; and in
| deed it did take a long time to bring
her back to consciousness. The brutal
blow of the news and the sight of her
| lover as he told it we're terrible enough
in themselves. But what had struck
| hardest was the thought that scared her
like bolt of lightning.
Her lover had killed her brother!
The moment she came back to con-
seriousness she slipped off again, and
none of the household remedies the
servants tried availed. Manners in his
fear for her ran to call doctor.
While he was still away the battered
and mutilated body of Edmund Las
celles was brought home. In it's train
was an increasing crowd of farmer
neighbors In undertoneS but agitated-
ly news and comment flew from lip to
lip.
Manners hands and face were adrip
with blood" James Crosby reported.
"And Mr.. Lascelles's right hand has
been hacked off! What says is"
Mrs Marsh, hurrying in and out Of
Eva's room, stopped to contribute her
bit. And indeed it was an important
contribution.
mo more than a couple of hours
ago." she said to those who had brought
the body, IT heard and saw Manners
and Mr.. Lascelles quarrel in that very
doorway And Manners last words
NS1c, ny NJOQ, 1IdoCC1ICos Al yph WOAA U
shake hands with me now I'll take your
right hand from you whether you like
it or MOI And that's how he's done
It'll"
II knew he must done It'll" Crosby
exclaimed.
Are you sure O. what yer saying. Mrs
Marsh?" asked substantial farmer,
seriously Because. you know, it's a
serious thing yer telling us!"
The two maids Of the house pushed
forward.
I'VE heard i'm too! Word fer word,
as Mrs Marsh tells yer!'
BY the time Manners came back
with the doctor a committee of farm
ers had left for the nearest police
station.
George Manners was too distraugh
with the events of the night-espe-
cially because of the alarming way in
which his beloved went from one faint
ing fit into another-to give thought to
his own situation. He stayed on at the
Lascelles house, outside of Eva's room
trying to read Mrs. Marsh's face for
news of the stricken girl Then the
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-06

what they may say next, and one can
only hope for the best.
X u X
Tor those whose sensibilities are not
l. sufficiently insulated to Withstand
contact with so-called Legitimate"
drama. the talking movies are the safest
bet. The lines uttered by the shouting
shadows could never offend Aunt Hat
tie. Every epithet has been censored,
and even intense and tragic moments
the invective is softened by childish
lisp. "Tho!" the heroine ululateS in a
rain-barrel voice, at it'll you who have
contheeved thith dathtardly plot, you
thcoundrel!" They thunder like giants
but harmless, baby giants, each with
lollipop in his mouth.
Many of our out-of-town visitors,
however are playgoers with a purpose,
and they refuse to waste their evenings
on the "talkies." Mrs. Chudwell is one
of these purposeful playgoers. AS preSi-
dent of the East Teabone Community
Players it is her duty to study trends"
in the theater, and at least once each
season she spends a week in the metropo-
lis Then she returns to East Teabone
and tells the Community Players all
about the trendS-atter which the re-
hearsals for Green Stockings" are re-
Sumed.
During the War the Community
Players presented Green Stockings"
for the relief of the Belgians. The play
was such a success that they repeated
the performance for the relief OF the
Armenians and again for the relief OF
the Chilean earthquake survivors. BY
this time the audience knew most OF the
lines by heart, and it was decided not to
give Green Stockings" again-for the
relief of the residents of East Teabone.
So the organization disbanded.
But Winter before last Mrs. Chudwell
revived the Community Players with
quantities of water cress sandwiches and
tea, and put them to work on group
of one-act plays. The advantage Of a
group of one-act plays is that 1t requires
more people than one full-length play,
and-as every one who has engineered
amateur theatricalS knoWs-the bigger
the cast the bigger the audience. Three
| one-act plays offer three times as many
! leading parts as one three-act play, a
fact which eliminates a great deal OF
dissatisfaction among the players.
For instance, by giving Lulu Mae
Lundquist the lead in the first play on
the program, Mrs. Chudwell was able
to leave her out of the two succeeding
plays without hurting her feelings. Not
hurting Lulu Macs feelings was an
achievement Ia ITSELF she rEas diMc1t
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-06

simply tried to keep them apart. But
Manners determined to solve the myS-
terry of LaScelleS' antagonism-and now
he thought he knew the answer. It had
taken some quiet investigation. Man.
ners even engaged London detective
and put several of his Office staff on the
job, with the result that this time
when he came to call on Eva Lascelles
there was something in his manner she
had never seen before.
The moment they we're alone he said
Eva, your brother has stood between
us and marriage long enough. Today
I'm not going to avoid him. will wait
till he comes back. I shall ask for his
consent to our marriage. If he gives
it-fine! If he does not, you and I will
marry just the Same!"
She sensed the beginning of threat
in his words; but he ended, land that's
that"
T ASCELLES returned from his round
- of landlord visits in none too good
a temper. AS he came into the house
he saw from the way the domeStics lin
gered on the staircase that something
more engroSsing than houSework was
keeping them there.
Where is Miss Eva?" he demanded.
I'm the living room"
Mrs. Marsh, the houSekeeper, was the
only one who dared to tell him; and
her manner held him more than her
words.
He strobe to the living room and
threw open the door. His sister was so
startled that she seemed to her brother
the embodiment of guilt. Whereas her
lover faced him with a self-possession
that made LascelleS lose his own.
He had left the door open through
impetuoSity. Now he went to it by
design. He wanted the servants on the
staircase to hear.
You are a filthy fortune-hunter, sir!
I have forbidden you the house! You
have chosen to come here in spite of
me. Your choice now is-get out or be
thrown out!"
Edmund" pleaded his sister.
Please
George Manners had just managed
to put curb on himself at Lascelles'
words; but now the mans complete
disregard of Eva was too much for the
man who loved her. He went to the
open door but he stopped in front OF
LascelleS.
you've just said something about
fortune hunting" His elaboration af-
fected the other man worse than a
blow. For once I will admit that I
have been hunting for Eva's fortune.
Something told me that it was going
fast and that you had much to do
with its going. have tried to keep
the news from her-just as you have.
Though for somewhat different rea-
sons. Now I'll be interested to know
Eva, you may want to hear 1t, too
what have you to say to my charge
that you have been converting much
of her share to yourself!"
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-06
East Teabone Where Home Thepan Disregard
Metropolitan Trends and Create One All Their Own-Weak
Language and Still Weaker Scenery

to manage. In her third year in high
school she had won beauty contest,
and she had never quite got over it.
Neither had the mothers of the several
hundred girls who didn't win the beauty
contest. Lulu Mae Lundquist was not
popular in East Teabone. But there she
was.
So Mrs. Chudwell assigned her the
title role in THE Quasheen" because
there were no other women in the cast
and nobody knew what the play was
about, anyway 1.-THE QuaSheen" was
based on Irish folklore and had been
translated from the Gaelic without re-
moving the buttons It was full of
chauns and banSheeS, and there was
rumor that when it had been produced
In Dublin the audience had rioted and
hurled things at the actors. Of course.
one couldn't expect anything like that
to happen in East Teabone, but when
Mrs. Chudweil cast Lulu Mae Lundquist
as the Quasheen she couldn't help hop
ing little.
The problem of disposing of Daphne
SchwartZberger was more perpleXing.
Daphne crashed the scales at 1870, and
her father owned the hall in which the
plays were to be given. Had Mrs. Chud
well been attempting dramatlZatlon OF
THE Weigh of All Flesh" Daphne
would have been just the type. But
there seemed to be no place for her in
Midsummer Madness" or Poor Pier
rot" 1t was suggested that the Com
munity Players put on six Who Pass
While the Lentils Boil" with Daphne as
three of the six.
Mrs. Chudwell finally compromised by
letting her play the Second Mummer in
Midsummer Madness" She was also
allowed to act as understudy for Jessie
Quillip, who was to impersonate Column
bine in Poor Pierrot"; this was con-
sidered safe enough, for Miss Quillip's
health was good.
But on the evening of the perform
ance, as luck would have it, Miss Quillip
sprained her ankle and there was moth
ing to do but to let Daphne play Column
bine. You know the old story of how
the humble upderstudy pinch hitting
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-06

and again, exultant whenever his blad
sank into flesh. The struggle ended
abruptly.
With resistance gone, the farmer.
rage went Realization of what he
had done held him rooted to the spot
Fumbling for a match he struck 1t,
lost it, tried a second and a third
, time; then saw that his landlord would
trouble him no more-except as
corpse.
Utter fear and misery now possessed
Parker. What was he to do when the
crime should be discovered? Flight
was his only hope America-AuStralia
the farther the better! But how was
he to get there, he who could not even
pay rental on his farm?
The sapphire ring on LascelleS's
right hand was part Of the unforget-
table picture his match showed. Here
was his one hope for his escape-thc
ring! STOPPING, he took up the hand
and tried to pull the ring off.
The hand resisted the effort
though the dead man still ha,
that ring. And down the road some
one was coming. In desperation as
savage as had been his attack, Parker
used the knife again. OF went the
hand!
X X X
DARKER was tried, found guilty and
executed.
George Manners was released, but
had to wait weary months before the
woman he loved recovered sufficiently
to marry.
And Justice. whom the ironic gods
had for the time pushed of her ped
estal, somewhat unsteadly regained it.
THE END.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-06

voice a last desperate effort to make
peace for the sake of their mistress.
"Iacelles," they heard George Man.
ners saw. II am holding out to you the
hand of friendship. VIII you give me
| yourS?"
they heard their master cry out with
I'm 10 seconds you'll get not my
| hand but my boot!"
George Manners laughed softly.
IT think you would find it an in
| teresting adventure" Then his tone
| changed II am serving you notice that
| Eva and I are to be married within
the month. 1 still ask your hand in
amity. But If you don't give me your
| hand-by God. before I get through
with you, you'll give it to me whether
you want to or not!"
There was such passion In him
now that the servants on the stairs
thrilled with the drama of it. But for
the time their show was over. Appar-
emily afraid to trust himself any fur
Their George Manners rushed out OF the
house.
A little later the servants saw their
master leave the house, too. His face
was livid. In his hand was riding
crop and in the failing twilight he
looked an ugly figure to encounter, as
he hurried out of the grounds:
X X X X
RY nightfan rain set in. James
Crosby, a farmland working for
a small cultivator whose farm ran up
to the highroad out of Beckfield, was
preparing his evening meal in the small
clubhouse where he slept.
The lin drumming on the roof :
he did not hear it. so used he had be-
come to its sound in the last half hour.
But it kept him from hearing some
thing else at first. Gradually, however,
he became aware of some repeated
sound-a human voice calling.
He put down his cooking utensils and
went to the door.
From up the road, now drenched with
rain and darkness. came the call.
"HelpI Help! Help!"
Crosby Shrank back into the house
and locked his door. If that was an
assault on the highway he wanted to
have nothing to do with it. He listened.
The cry was repeated regularly. It
could not be an assault, Crosby finally
decided. In that case it would be too
craven not to answer the cry of some
one hurt and probably abandoned.
Lighting lantern, Crosby took up a
cudgal in his other hand and set out.
AS he came near the still repeated call
for help he thought he recognized the
voice. He came up cautiously as his
lantern showed him man standing in
the road.
Crosby held up the lantern to the
mans face and recognized George Man.
ners, the young attorney.
Did you call, sir? Lawd, how mired
you look!"
Then his lantern showed body lying
in the road.
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-06
BY WEARE HOLBROOK.

~ ECIDING what books to take
with you if you were to be cast
away on a desert island is a
H. cinch. 1t has been done SO
often that the list is stereo-
typed. Probably by this time most of
the desert islands are already equipped
with copies of the Bible, Shakespeare
and the heavier classics which one was
supposed to read in high school, It is a
Hypothetical problem anyway and de-
serves a hypothetical answer. You can
even put Browning'S "Sordello" on the
list, with the comfortable assurance
that your bluff will never be called. Be
sides, if the island is really desert
Island as stipulated, you can chuck
~Sordello" at the caSSowarieS and no
one will be the wiser-leaSt OF all, the
waSSowaries)
But deciding what aunts to take with
Fou If you were going to the theater is
not so easy. And not so hypothetical,
either. This is the time of year when
Out-of-toWn relatives come to the city
for their annual orgy of playgoing, and
most of the current plays contain an
embarrassing amount of "chalk-talK.
Il. e.-quotations from anonymous
writers whose work is displayed on box
cars and back fenCeS.)
11onored explosives of the red plush era
have lost their vitality since the war.
Our pIaywrights are undertaking TO give
us faithful transcripts of everyday con-
yersation-or Saturday night CONVEX
6ation. at least. Like the little artists
that they are, they hold the mirror up
to nature-nature apparently being a
couple of taxi-drivers arguing over
Crumpled fender. They have taken stage
dialogue out of the drawing room and
transferred it to the lunch-wagon. They
have given us a slice Of life, with
onions on the side.
Their characters are no Pinero pup
pets, eXhaling gentle epigrams and nib
bling macarOonS; their language, We
are told, is the language of the man
In the street incidentally, have
and even intense and tragic moments
in the street incidentally, have never
been able to discover who this man Is
little man who chopped hole in the
pavement in front of our house and
laid a pipe or something last Summer
But he spoke Italian.)
{ A person seeking to entertain out-of-
Town relatives who are not Broadway
minded finds the theater an uncom-
PORTABLE place. He feels toward the &C
Aors on the stage as an anxious mother
&Qels toward her unruly children Wher
Re zAsaister ea<l&f there is ne $ellins
Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1929-01-06
BY JOSEPH GOLLOMB.

~ LINDFOLDED stands the god
dess man has chosen as symbo
for legal Observation-Disclosures Il
show that in Judging she knows
neither favorite, friend or foe
pnly Justice. Such is mans proud con-
ception of his courts of law. But II
believed there were ironic gods playing
cruel Jokes on man, it would seem to
me that in the MannerS-LaScelles case
these gods pushed Justice off her ped
e<tal and made her play blind mans
buff, a cropping and somewhat ludicrous
figure. to remind man that after all he
is not a maker of gods or goddeSses,
but only a puppet himself.
Near Beckfield, in England, lived Ed
fmund LascelleS, who jointly with his
sister Eva inherited a considerable for
tune in farm lands all about them.
They occupied an old Georgian mansion
outside of Beckfield. just where town
meets country The household con-
sisted of Lascelles, his sister Eva, their
housekeeper. Mrs. Marsh, and two other
women servants.
The brother and sister were a strong
" contrasted pair. He was dark, she
was fair; he had rugged body, she
was fragile. Her nature was given to
love, while his was sullen, Snoldering
anger which broke out on the least
provocation and had something con-
tagiouS about it.
He was away one day visiting some
of his farmer tenants-viSitS they little
relished-when one of the LaScelleS
servants announced that Mr.. George
Manners was downstairs to see Miss
Eva.
The announcement was superfiuous,
because Miss Eva had been watching
the driveway ever since her brother
had left. It was not accident that
George Manners came to call in her
brothers absence. The two men did
not get along together very well and
the temper between them was fast ap-
preaching a climax.
Manners was determined to marry
Eva Lascelles and her brother was de-
f6rmined that he should not. Eva was
in anguish She loved George Manners
as the man to whom all her nature
turned. 1t was also her nature. how
ever to love her brother because he
was her brother. The antagonism be-
tween these two men tore at her heart.
She tried to make peace, but while
The man she wanted to marry was more
than eager to help, she could do little
with her brother. The very mention Of
George Manners seemed to be enough.
X x x x
MANNERS had inherited considerable
@'A money and land and he had
added to his wealth by his success as a
3awyer in Beckfield He was robust,
and himself possessed Of a temper. But
his intelligence and his love for Eva
Lascelles helped him put a curb on the
things he wanted to say and do to that
brother of hers, who for some mysteri-
Gus reason opposed his marriage to his
sister.
For a long time he tried to win Las
telleS' friendship. Failing that, he
Bought to avoid increasing his enmity.
But nothing that he did or left undone
helped matters. Eva and George Man
pers tried to understand her brother in
this matter.
Then she gave up the effort and