Worcester Democrat and the ledger-enterprise. (Pocomoke City, Md.) 1921-1953, 1936-07-17
SYNOPSIS

Moe Feinberg, producer of the must
cal show LADY Bird" takes Dixie
Mason out of the chorus and makes
her it's star. But Feinberg is willy
one and few of Dixie's associates car
intellectually congratulate her or
stardOm will be lasting. :. -. -.
Dixie, still elated over the promo
tiOn, hurries from rehearsal to bid
BODILY to her brother, Bud, sailing
for Rio de JaneirO to assume cOvet-
ed bank job. His cabin mate is Blinn
SaybrOOk, a persOnable youth, who
Immediately takes great interest in
the promotion. They doubt whether
Dixie.
CHAPTER 8
She was going to sing Ada's part.
Once Ada went to sleep, nothing in
the world would wake her short of
eight hours. The druggist had as
sured Dixie of that. She was
safe now. She was going to sing
Ada& part. And after the show,
Blinn would take her in his arms and
she would see to it that the date for
their marriage was set before she
left his arms.
And she would make the date soon
enough so that the very next day
she could leave the show. She would
even tell Blinn, if she had to, that
she had given her notice two weeks
ago. Even if that did make it look
as if she was pretty sure of him.
Well, she was, wasn't she? His
letters couldn't mean anything but
marriage, could they?
Resolutely she closed her mind to
any thought of what would happen
when it came out. For it would come
out. Ada's maid would come back
and they would know that the tele-
gram that called her away had been
a trick. Ada would remember the
bitter taste to her tea, and she would
know Dixie had drugged her, whether
she could prove it or not.
Icy cold fingers made a long job
of making up that night.
"I'm not nervous" Dixie told her.
self over and over. "What have I
got to be nervous about PPM up in
every song, every bit of business. My
voice is every bit as good as Ada's
And nothing can possibly happen to
spoil it. Nothing"
But she had to keep her teeth clench
ed to keep them from chattering as
she waited for something to happen.
And she had to take her makeup off
and put on new one three times
before she made decent job of it.
SO it was just as well that Dixie Mas
ON was the first girl into the chorus
room that night.
Hello! Hello! Spent the night
here?" were the greetings of the first
arrivals.
whats the matter, Dixie? Your
. eyes are big as saucers."
"N-nothing," Dixie stammered des-
perately, crimsoning beneath the
grease paint in spite of herself. "My
my boy friends going to be out
in front tonight. That's ALL"
"And an old trouper like you gets
panicked over that!" joshed someone.
"Oh, it must be love! It must be
Lowell" she sang teasingly.
"You couldn't be more excited if
Moe had popped in to tell you Ada's
sprained her voice and you had to
fill in"
And then, someone saw the sudden
start she gave at those words, and
demanded, as that it,"
"Of course not" said Dixie, try
ing to sound impatient" and only
managing to sound quavery. "No-
no such luck"
"For your. sake, I hope not" said
her tormentor thoughtfully. you're
in enough of a state without that.
You'd probably forget your lines and
go higher'n kite on the songs"
ooh, shut up!" snapped Dixie.
They did. Not because she told
them to, but because twenty girls, be-
fore twenty dressing tables, had too
much to do to bother just then. And
presently the call boy outside yelled:
Fifteen minutes!"
Fifteen minutes more until the cur
tain! And nothing had happened!
Oh, could it possibly be that Ada had
not gone to sleep? Or that the
sleeping potion hadn't worked? Or
that she hadn't drunk enough of the
tea to make it work?
Dixie Mason sat there, frantic, as
slow second after slow second licked
away. She was trying to listen, over
the noise of the now chattering girls,
for Noes heavy footsteps on the cir