Year: 1875

moved, and levelled his opera glass at the
apparition which had taken his breath away.


1t was demure yet piquant little dam
sci, seemingly no further advanced in her
teens than the freshman himself, modestly
dressed as the sister he had left in his rural
home, with none of the artificial charms to
which his brief acquaintance with the stage
had already accustomed him, but with a
witchery such as he had never met in mimic
or in actual life. Eyes which danced as
naturally as her feet, veiled by long lashes
needing no circle of paint to heighten their
brilliant effect, and lips pouting with sauci-
ness and wit, but yet wonderfully suggestive
of innocence and purity, were perhaps the
soubrett's most beautiful features. But
there was no inharmonious element to mar
the symmetrical curves of her face, and in
countenance and figure and bearing there
was a nameless facination which set this
young fellows heart humping against his
waistcoat till he was fain to press his hand
upon the place to keep it quiet. Fred
watched her with thirsty eyes as she twink
led about the stage, listened with hungry
ears to her birdlike share in the dialogue,
and to her clear tones as she sung the SIM
pie ballad Give o'clock in the morning, :"
which greater songstress had made popu-
lar, but which sounded now hundred fold
more thrilling to Fred Kingston's ears than
when he had heard Parepa sing it the week
before. He wiped his swimming eyes as
''The old, old story was told again, and
in short, long before the climax of the farce
was reached and the hasty hundred hurried
from their seats ''to be out before the
crowd" the lad was deeply in love with
the girl whom he had never seen before,
and of whom he knew nothing more than
her lovely face, her dainty hand, her sweet
voice, and her rname-possibly assumed-on
a play-bill.


'By Jove!' he broke out, when the glare
of the street lamps and the cool air of the
night had dispelled the trance which had
bound him. ''She is the most beautiful
woman ever saw"


"You are not ass enough to mean that
white-washed old Juliet" cried Chester
Bennett-who never used smooth word
when rough one would answer his pur-
pose as well.


''Pshawr' said Kingston. ''Of course I
can mean nobody but Miss Grey"


'Miss Grey-oh, you mean Bessie Grey,
i,, {ba Voc chn Sc
seen across the footlights. But did you no.
tice how horribly she fatted in that song?"
sChess Bennett, would not have such
a musical ear as you have for an interest in
Oakham - said the younger collegian.-
''You would find discords in the music of
the spheres. But tell me if you know any
thing about this Bessie Grey


''To be sure do-all about her," replied
Bennett, who never confessed ignorance,
except to a professor. ''She has only been
here this season, but has played year or
two in New York. She lives with her
mother, like most actresses, and supports
the old woman and little shaver of a
brother on what she makes at the Lyceum.
She makes great play with her eyes, and
has pretty foot but she has not learned
to act yet, and as to singing, the manage
ment ought not to let her attempt it.''


81 did not ask you for criticism" said
Fred, a little sulkily; and then as they
sauntered about the square waiting for the
car, he began again in an off-hand manner
| very poorly assumed


ri wonder how fellow goes to work
when he wants to get acquainted with an
actress off the stage ?''


"Nothing is easier" said his comrade.
'They have a benefit every once in awhile.
Bessie Grey, for instance, is underlined on
| the bill for a benefit next week, after this
star engagement is over. Then the fellows
call at their house, or clearinghouse, and
the girl is dressed up to the mines, and the
callers buy tickets and pay big extra bo
nus for the sake of getting them in thai
way"


els that really SO, Chess, or are you chaff
ing again ?''


"Word and honor, my boy. In fact, ]
tried it myself once, in my first year, fo1
the lark of the thing. Called in heavy style
on that delicate creature who played Julie
tonight. Gave her five dollars for an Or
chestra chair, to see her in THE Octoroon -


Further conversation was interrup ted by
the arrival of the car, and the rush to Sc
cure places. Several scores of the young
mems fellow collegians had been in town at
the different theatres, and so our friends
considered themselves lucky to obtain ont
Or two square inches each of standing room
on the platforms, where the students thrus
their elbows into each others ribs, ant
woke the sleepers of the Port with theil
chorus of "Rolling Home" as the crowded
vehicle rumbled through.


Chester Benefits snores were soon rising
and falling with such regularity of rhythm
and profundity of bass as would have de
lighted his waking ears; but his chnm
sought slumber in vain, for the first time ir
his life, and mused of the eyes and eyelashes
which had bewitched him, for hours ant
hours of sweet unrest. At last his thought
dissolved into dreams, still of the sam,
beautiful face; but it seemed hardly mo
ment's interval before the changing of th,
prayer bell awoke him, and he caught him
self murmuring-


"And the old, old story was told again,


At five o'clock in the morning."


Next week seemed long way off to Free
Kingston, but the interval would give hin
time to perfect a plan which at first though
seemed too audacious for his courage. HI
could have Joined readily enough in an ex
pedition to visit the worn and unattractiv
leading lady of the Winthrop Lyceum; bu
to invade the privacy Of the lovely ant
modest little maiden of the afterpiece seem