Montana oil and mining journal. [volume] (Great Falls, Mont.) 1931-1953, 1936-12-05

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effectiveness. Sometimes these Sug-
geStions we're accepted, and sometimes
they were ignored. Few Of those who
doubted his judgment appeared in the
/ Court the following autumn, however
Rehearsals over. the playlet took its
place on the Beau BoSquet program
1 One Of the other performers, a torch
4 singer who called herself Louella Lee,
/ caught Sallie in her arms when the
] folds of curtain fell that first night.
God kid. you got 'em all cryin' inta
! their caviar" she said huskily with
not little envy IN her voice. To Lou
I Lee this was heart throb stuff. Her
{ own makeup had TO be hastily remade
souris which had made channels on
her cheeks.
Lou was SaIlie's only friend out at
! Beau Bosquet. She feared King VIII
Hams and his perpetual scoWl. Her
knees trembled, and she had panicky
urge to run and hide behind a piano
when he came to offer corrections, or
place her differently on the stage at
one moment or another.
But Lou adored King, who had
fancied her eccentric mannerisnls If
not especially her voice, and had lifted
her out of a third rate Greenwich VII
lage spaghetti den. When her week was
out she came to Sallie, tears In her
eyes, and embraced the younger girl.
I'm sold for the winter she
breathed. King says he'll change my
songs and use me. I'll be seein' you,
honey-'cause you'll be there, too. Wen
make EN- laugh an cry. They'll laugh
tn me, an cry tn you"
20 I hope so!'' cried Sallie, but she
had her doubts. King Williams had
been exceedingly strange in his man
ner toward her. Cross, frowning, fault
finding-and then wheedling, as II
she we're a 12-year-old at an amateur
radio addition. She could not under
stand him.
In all truth King Williams had spent
a good fortnight understanding him.
self From junior year in college, right
on through the fight and gamble OF his
revues, he had looked upon pretty girls
as commodities. nothing more. They
were the plastic materials he nodded TO
make shows; a little more important,
perhaps, than the gags, though much
easier to obtain than catchy tunes.
His personal life had been a blank
domino without one feminine spot on
it. just a little prudish personally as
a result of strict early training ne
was an ideal judge of the risque and
the sensational. He had not suffered
one outright failure though the 1888
"a Court made him only enough to
pay the rent on his Park avenue apart
ment for another year. Before and
after that he had done better, especial
ly since buying the bankrupt Beau
Bosquet.
Specializing both summer and winter
on smiles. sex, and song for the t. b. m.
had wearied him, though he did not
realize it. His crouch, so celebrated on
Broadway, was not basic. Most OF the
time It was lust a poker face. He had
learned from sad experience that even
revue performers viii get tempera-
mental and demand impossibihties, II
you smile and coddle them. SO he
drowned and growled, and had less
trouble per hundredwe1ght OF stars than
any other New York producer.
Sallie was as refreshing to King
Williams as a midsummer beach breeze.
There was q nostalgia deep In him,
a want of quiet, peace-and love. He
made up his mind about that and her, /.
and then acted as directly as If he
had been asking her signature on a
contract for his winter Court
Il love you. Sallie,' he told her. i
the sort who needs me to protect and 4
help. III be good to you, sweet, all my /
life VIII you marry me. and make /
me home way out somewhere-just :
us two2"
Just a moment before he had put his 4
arm around her shoulders, and Sallie .
had nearly jumped out of the car from
sheer terror Not that she did not know /
her way around; Smith college teaches
the theory rather well, and modelling
for advertising artists gives a pretty
~ rhnnno of1FtIu that
1t was Just that Sallie had accepted
The legend of the Great Crouch. King
williams was the only thing walking
he globe in trousers whom she feared
and respected. Yes, and admired.
There had been no slightest thought
If any warmer emotion. Why, the man
must have worked up problem Of
spherical trigonometry, IN his brain!
kissing her IN q startlingly human
'aShion-that Is, remembering this was
King Wtiliams-he repeated his ques-
don In a thrilling, husky voice. Be
ween his succeeding kisses SaIlie man
ICED to gather breath enough to gasp
yes" In another five minutes he had
all arranged for their marriage the
lext afternoon, and a two week honey
noon touring slowly through the White
Mountains and other parts Of New Eng
and.
saIlie made no excuses to herself.
This was a lightning bolt Of sheer luck
Vas she going places2 Ask herl She
lid not love King Williams, but he
vas far and away the most interesting
nan she ever had met. When she
ound out that he was Just as fiercely
lungry for her as any ordinary man
night have been, sine laughed little
o herself and felt a warm glow OF
ondneas IN her heart on course she
Id not really love him, but she'd be
good wife and true to him He'd
lever have a reason to complain.
All was confusion and excitement
nd delIri0usneGs that first week. Saliie
lnaost forgot the revue, and her part
q It, OF course she'd have 10 now
u@k As a. starter, Or maybe there
I'LL XFa@ following winter. naturally
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