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Show JSC A RA:MXUXGHE-i wn BUB TODAT. To sseepe kstigtng s th rharg ef e-amia. e-amia. Andre-lsls ktoieaa flee from kl astir tears ef Oavrllla and ! hie r- ik Mareul 4 le Tour rr. Thr or. two mall to bohlnd th. rvetis ( Aadr-LeuU. HU root friend. Philippe Phil-ippe de Vllmorls. had been tricked lata duel and alala kr iko marquis kecsua th noble fMrtd Philippe's 'daneeroua gift of eloquence." Asdr-Lule sworn t earrr tko Ideal af his friend. Tbo second mo- mouche unfolded. If terrifying, waa also Intoxicating. "The thine remain possible." said ha then, holding hla glass to th light and spesklng casuslly, "a long aa I am with you." "Agreed, my dear Bcaramoueha agreed Our chanca meeting waa a fortunata thine (or both of ue." "I hava merely told you of my hopes." It waa hla sexr-possession that xae-pe xae-pe rated har; (or after that aha walked tha abort remainder of the way In alienee, al-ienee, and so. for tha moment, tha matter mat-ter waa left Just there But that night, after they had supped, It chanced that whan Cllmena J you would not see," aba told him next in a whiaper. And than tha door opened and M. Blnet came In to hava hla paternal eyea regaled by thla highly Indecorous behavior be-havior of hla daughter. "And what may be the meaning of thiaV demanded M. Blnet, bewildered and profoundly shocked. aflush, stretching out choicely (loved band to Bcaramoueha. "Andre-Louis!" aha called him. "AHnel" CHAPTER VIM. Tha door." Aline commanded her footman, and "Mount here bealde me." ahe commanded Andrs-Louls, In tha same breath. "A moment. Aline." Ha turned to hla companion, who waa all amassment and to Harlequin and Columbine, who had that moment coma up to ahare It- "You permit me, Cllmene?" said he. breathleaely. But It waa more a etatement than a question. "Harlequin will take care qf you. Au revolr, at dinner." With that ha spring Into the cabriolet without waiting for a reply, and tha regal equipage rolled away, leaving the three comedians atarlng after It, open mouthed. Then Harlequin Harle-quin laughed. "A prince In dtssuls. our Bcara- ulata you. Thla will certainly mean the Corned te Francalee for Cllmena. and that before long, and you ahall shin In tha glory ahe will reflect. Aa the father of 'Madame Bcaramoueha you may yet be famoua." "You're a damned corsair," he cried, thickly, banging hla hamlike (let upon the table. "A eoraalr! First you aall In and plunder me of half my legitimate legiti-mate galne; and now you want to carry off my daughter. But I'll be damned If ril give her to a graceless, nameleaa acoundred like you. (or whom the gal-lowa gal-lowa are waiting already." Bcaramoueha pulled the bell rope, not at all dlaeompoeed. He amlled. There waa a (lueh on hla eheeka and' a gleam In hla eyea. He waa very pleaaed with the world that night. He really owed a great debt to M. de Les-digulerea. Les-digulerea. "Blnet." he aald, "forget for onca that you are Pantaloon, and be hava aa a nice, amiable father-in-law ahould behave be-have when he haa secured a aon-in-law of exceptional merlta." tiro eprang from hla love for Alln do Br-eadleu. Br-eadleu. more of the Lord et Oevrtllac. who at papulsrlv believed to bo tk fatbor of Aedre-Louis. Th profligate marquis baa auod far th glrl'e fcand. Te earap detection. Aasr-tul Join a Wad ot stromas player. Ho doa aot wtak te appear ea th etas, fcutln a uddn mareener tk kd of th band. Monsieur Blnet. otate that h will lthr appear aa Scaramouch or be surrosdrd aa a fugitive fugi-tive from Juotte. ' CO ON WITH TUB "TORT. "Vow, my friend." aald M. Blnet. "will you be M. Parvlsslnus and play. Bcaramoueha tomorrow, or will you be Andre-Louie Moraau of Gavrtllac and go to Kennee to aaUafy tha king a Lieutenant V "I yield to your mort eloquent and seductive persuasiena, M. Blnet," aald Andre-Louts aweetly. CHAPTER V. Dressed In the rloaeflttlnr ault of bygone age. all black, from flat velvet cap to roeetted ahoea. hla face whitened and a alight up-curled mustache mus-tache glued to his upper lip. a amall word at hla aide and a guitar alung behind him, Bcaramoueha aurveyed . himself In a mirror, and waa disposed to be sardonic which waa tha proper mood for the part. Ha bowed to hla reflection In tha mirror, "Bufoon!" ha apostrophised It." "At last you hava found yourself." Ten minutes later the three knocked sounded, and tha curtains were drawn aide. Andre-Louie waa assailed with tiaueea In that dread moment. He attempted at-tempted to take a lightning mental review of tha first act of thla scenario "And now for the remainder of my proposal." "Ah? And the proposal?" "la that you constitute me your part-ner, part-ner, with an equal share In the profits of your company." The declelon to which f Blnet finally final-ly came was. naturally, the only one possible In the face of so firm a re-solvs re-solvs as that of Andre-Louie, who held the trumps. In the end the matter was settled, and the announcement duly made to the assembled as-sembled rompsny. There were, of courss. jealousies and resentments. But thsy were readily swallowed when It was discovered that the lot of the entire en-tire company waa to be materially Improved Im-proved from tha point of view of salaries. sal-aries. Tha one exception was Cllmene. Her failure to bring to heel thla Interesting Interest-ing young stranger had begotten In her a malice which hla persistent Ignoring of her had been steadily inflaming. Bhe had remonstrated with her father when the new partnerahlp was first formed. Bhe had lost her temper with him end called him a fool, whereupon M. Blnet In Pantaloon's best msnner had lost hla tamper In his turn and boxed her ears. One piled It up to tha account of Bcaramoueha. n trey sit tliteej hYsefin till -aa he waa leaving the theatre. - "Will you tell me what I hava dona to your" shs asked him, point-blank. "Dona to me. mademoiselle?" Hs did not understsnd. Bha msds a gesture of Impatience. "Why do you hate me? "Hate youj mademolsells ? I consider con-sider vou sdorable. I envy Leandre ". , "It amueea you te be cruel,'' said Scaramouch. I "Old not that hip you to decide thla marriage queatfoi?" "How could It I Tou don't expect me to judge betaken men in giattera such as theee V "If you cannot idge. It Is that you do not wish to Juwe." His tone be-i be-i came harsh. "WIKiiiy you sloe your i eyea to justice thv. might check the course of your uitealthy, unnatural ambition." J "I think I had letter i you alight so that you may g hart to practice virtue and honor Nth jrour theatre wench." "If you must spe of her at all," he Interrupted, hotly, toe'll speak of her aa my wife." j Amazement smohered her anger. Her pallor deepens. "My God:-' he aald, and looked at llm In horror. And In horror she aska him presently: "You are married tarried to that?" "Not yet. But I hall be. aoon. And let me tell you that hla girl whom you visit with your Irrtrant contempt la as good and purs U you are. Aline, fche haa wit an 4 talent which hava placed her where ill la and ahall carry her a deal farthtr.T And she has tha womanliness to le guided by natural Inatlncta In the e-lertlon of her mate. "You will deertid this Instant!" shs told him flercelL "That you should dare to make S comparison between me and that I " "And my wlfee5-be," he Interrupted, before ehe coult apeak the infamoua word. He opend the door for himself without waitlngfor the footman, and leaped down, 'fly compliments." said he, furiously, "t the aseassln you are " marry." la.mmd th. -t-Tn-lvs on." he isde the coachman. Hs got backfo the Inn to find the company at ble. Harlequin and Columbine hadpread the tale of thla prince In dlea-ipe caught up Into the chariot 'of a plnceae and carried off by her; and it cas a Ma that had lost nothing In thekelllng Cllmene had pen silent and thoughtful. thought-ful. Clearly he) Bcaramourhe must he vaatly other tlkn h had hitherto appeared, ap-peared, or else, that great lady and he would never he usjd such familiarity with each othrr. Imagining him no better than he was.Climene had made him her own. And jow she wss to receive re-ceive the rewtrd a disinterested affection. af-fection. Even old Slneti aerret hostility toward Andre-Louli melted before this astounding revelatin. He had pinched hla daughter'e ear qlte playfully. "Ah, ah, truat you to hve penetrated hia disguise, my child r ' Her father ofinded her. Bcaramoueha Bcara-moueha was clearl' a great gentleman, an eccentric If yen please, but a man. born. And she we; to be his lady. Her father must learnto treat her differently, differ-ently, i BheTooIfetTsTiuJ' with a new shyness shy-ness at her love when he came Into the room where tey were dining. She observed for the.'irst time that proud carriage of thehead, with the chin thruat forward, that waa a trick of his, snd she notlcd with what grace hs moved the erac of one who In vnrnh mouche!" aald he. Tha frown melted from Cllmene'a brow. Resentment changed to bewilderment. be-wilderment. "But who Is she?" "His sistsr. of course," said Harlequin, Harle-quin, quite definitely. In the carriage Atlne waa considering consid-ering Andre-Louis with grave eyes, lips slightly compressed, and a tiny frown between her finely drawn eyebrows. eye-brows. , "You hava taken to queer company, com-pany, Andre." waa the first thing she I said to him. "Or else I am mistaken in thinking that your compsnlon was yila. Rinat et th Thoaira fc'ayta " "You are not mistaken. But I had not Imagined Mile. Blnet waa ao famous fa-mous already." "Oh, as to that . . ." mademoiselle shrugged. "It is simply that 1 waa at the play laat night." "You were at the Feydau last night? And I never saw you!" "Were you there, too?" "Waa I there!" he cried. Then he checked, and abruptly changed his tone. "Oh. yes. I wss there." he said, ss commonplsce as he could, beset by a sudden reluctance to avow that he had so willingly descended to depths that she must account unworthy. "I understand." aald ahe, snd compressed com-pressed her lips a little more tightly. "But what do ybu understand?" "The rare attractions of Mile. Blnet. Naturally you would be at the theatre. CHAPTER VII. Tha Blnet troupe opened In Nantes aa you may diacover In surviving copies of the "Courier Nantaia" on the Feast of the Purification with "Lea Fourbetiea de Bcaramouche." For Bcaramouche himself tha opening open-ing suecsss waa not confined to the public. At the end of the play a great reception awaited him from hla companions com-panions assembled In tha green room of the theatre. On the following night they plsyed "The Shy Lover" to a full house, the fa.me.of thelr debut hs vln g g one , abroad, and the success of Monday was confirmed. After breakfast the following morning morn-ing Andre-Louts and Cllmene sallied forth to take the air upon the quays. Columbine taetleasly joined them as they were setting out, though matters were Improved a little when Harlequin came running after them and attached himself to Columbine. Through the bustle of traffic on the quay a cabriolet, the upper half of whlrrl waa almost entirely made of glass, had approached them. It was drawn by two magnificent bay horses and driven by a superbly liveried coachman. In the cabriolet sat a alight young girl wrapped In a lynx fur pelisse, her face of a delicate loveliness. Bhe was leaning forward, her llpe parted, her eyea devouring Bcaramouche until they I drew hla gase. When that happened the shock of It brought him abruptly to a dumbfounded halt. "What Is It. f-raramouehe?" But he made no attempt to answer her, and at that moment the coachman, to whom the little lady had already signaled, brought the carriage to a standstill- btalde them. Been in The gorgeous setting of that coach with Its escutcheoned panels. Its portly coachman coach-man and Its white stockinged footmen who swung instantly to earth as the vehicle stopped Its dainty occupant seemed to Cllmene a princess out of a . fairy tale. And this princess leaned forward, with eyes aglow and cheeks , r wnien ne was nimeeu ine euinor-tn-ehief; but found his mind a complete com-plete blank. Hla arm was clutched, and he was pulled violently toward tha wings. He had a gllmpee of Pantaloon's Pan-taloon's grotesque face, Ita ayes biasing, bias-ing, and ha caught a raueoua growl: "Cllmene has spoken your cus three times already." Before ha realised It, he had been trandled on to the stags, and stood ' there foolishly, blinking In tha glare of tha footlights, with their tin reflectors. re-flectors. Bo utterly foolish snd bewildered be-wildered did ha look thst volley upon volley of laughter welcomed him from the audience, which thla evesring packed the hall from end to end. "Name of a name." M. Blnet groaned, "what will happen when they dlseovse that ha Isn'Uactlngr. l But they never did discover it. Sesramouche's bewildered paralyale lasted but a few seconds. He realised that hs waa being laughed at and re-- re-- membered that hla Bcaramouche was a creature to be laughed with and not at. A ripple of laughter from the sudi-emce sudi-emce had been steadily enheartenlng him. It waa clear they found him I every day of my life. I have aerloualy thought of setting him to play Bcaramouche, Bcara-mouche, and playing lovers myself." "I don't think you would be a success." suc-cess." said shs. "Olven the Inspiration that Is given Leandre. It Is posslbls that I might be convincing." "Why, what Inspiration do you mean?" "The inspiration of playing to so adorabls a Cllmene." Her lair eyes were now alert to search that lean face of hla. "You are laughing at me." said she. and awept past him Into the theatre on her pretended quest. There waa nothing to be done with such a fellow. Hs waa utterly without feeling. He waa not a man at all. Yet when eha came forth aralrt at the end of soms five minutes, aha found him atlll lingering at the door. "Not gone yet?" ahe asked him, superciliously. su-perciliously. "I was waiting for you, mademoiselle. mademoi-selle. You will be walking to tha Inn. If I might eeoort you ..." 1 "But what gallantry) What eonde. waa about to retire, he and she were alone together in the room aboveetstrs that her father kept exclusively for his eompsny. As Cllmene now rose to withdraw for the night. Bcaramouche rose with her to light her candle. Holding it in her left hand, she offered him her right, a long, tapering, white hand at the end of a softly rounded arm that was bare to the elbow. Thus a moment, then he took the tips of her fingers in hts grasp, and bowing bow-ing over the hand, preesed his lips upon It. Then he looked at her again. The Intense femininity of her lured him on. Invited him, surrendered to him. By the hand he continued to hold, he drew her toward him. Bhe came unresist unre-sist ing.r Hs -took: ihcSTsjidttr Trom her, and set It down on the sideboard by which she stood. The next moment her slight, lithe body waa In his arms, and he waa kissing her. murmuring her nsma aa If It were a prayer. "Am I cruel now?" ahe aaked him. panting. He klesed her again for only anewer. "You made me cruel because "Does It require explaining?" asked Bcaramouche. "It means that Cllmene and I have taken It Into our heada to be married." "And doesn't It matter what I may take Into my bead?" "Of couree. But you could have neither the bad taste nor the bad heart to offer any obstacle." "You take that for granted? Aye, that la your way. to be stire to take things for grsnted. You have dons an unworthy thing. Bcaramoueha. You I have betrayed my trust In you. I am very angry with you." 1 He rolled forward with his ponderous ponder-ous yet curiously noiseless gait. Bcaramouche Bcara-mouche turned to Cllmene, amlllng. arui handed her tha candle. "If you will leave ua. Cllmene, I will ask your nundTX your raiherinproper form." Bhe vanished, a little fluttered, lovelier love-lier than ever in her mixture of confu-aion confu-aion and timidity. Bcaramouche closed the door and faced the enraged M. Blnet. who had flung himself Into an armchair. "Father-in-law," said he. "I rongrat- Do you know that you dlaappolnt me. Andre? I was foolish enough - to imagine you to be different; rather above such trivial pursuits, t conceived con-ceived you something of an idealist." "Sheer flattery." -8o I perceive. But you misled me. With your gift of acting I wonder won-der that you haven't joined Mile. Blnefs troupe." "I have." said he. 'He saw first Incredulity, then consternation, con-sternation, and lastly disgust over-spresd over-spresd her face. "Of course," said she. after a long pause, "that would have the advan- , tage of bringing you closer to your charmer." ( has had his daring master and fencing fenc-ing masters tTo h continued.) "That was only one of tha Inducements. Induce-ments. There was another. Finding myself forced to choose between tbe stage and the gallows, I had the Incredible In-credible weskness to prefer the former. for-mer. (Shall I stop the carriage and remove . the contsmlnatlon of my disgusting person? Or shall I tell you how It happened?" "TaU me how It happened first. Then we will decide." He told her how he met the Blnet troupe, and how the men of the marechausee forced upon him the dlacovery that In Its bosom he could He safely lost until the hue and cry had died down. The explanation dissolved dis-solved her iclness. "My poor Andre, why didn't yon tell me this at first?" "For one thing, you didn't give me time; for another. I feared to shock you wtth the spectacle of my degradation. What did you think of the play last night?" he continued. "It was amusing and well conceived." "Let me present you to the author." "You? But the company Is one of the Improvleers." " "Even Improvleers require an author to write their scenarios. Boon I shall be writing plays In the modern manner." man-ner." "Tou deceive yourself, my poor Andre. The piece lsst night would have been nothing without the players. You are-fortunate In. your Bcaramouche. "In confidence 1 present you to him." . "You SArsmouche? You?"- -Bhe turned to regard him fully. He smiled his cloea lipped smile thst made wrinkles wrin-kles like gashes In his cheek. He nodded. "And I didn't recognise you!" "I thank you" for the tribute. Tou Imagined, of course, that I waa a scene shifter. And now ths question I have been burning to ask. Why are you in Nantes, Aline?" "I am on a visit to my aunt, Mme. da Bautron. Bhs Is receiving several guests today. M. de la Tour d'Axyr Is ' to be one of them." . g Andre-Louis frowned and sighed "Did you ever hear. Aline, how poor rtillippe de Vtlmorln came by his ', end ?" ' "Yes; I was told, first by my uncle; then by M. de la Tour d'Axyr, himself." him-self." ! cwmteei. When at last tha curtain fen for the laat time It waa Bcaramoueha who shared with Cllmena the honors of tne ovenmg. his name that waa coupled with hers In ths calls that summoned them before th curtains, CHAPTER VI. It seemed to Andre-Louis In thoss slays that hs had found his real career, and not only was hs beginning to like It. but actually to look forward to a career as actor-author that might lead fcm In tho erd to that Mecca of an comedians, the Cotnedl Frsn-. Frsn-. raise. And there were other possibilities. possibil-ities. From tha writing of skeleton scenarios for Improvleers. hs might resently pass to writing playa of dialogue, dia-logue, plays In tha proper sense of the word, after the manner of Chenler Kgantlna, and Beiumarchaia. Now, dream though It waa, ha did ot neglect ths practical side of It. "Tou realise." he told M. Blnet "that I hava It la my power to make your fortune for you." H and Blnet were slttnlg alone together to-gether In the parlor of th Inn at Plprlar. drinking a very excellent bottle of Volnay. It was th night after th performance) ther of "Lea Xeourberles. "I will concede It, my dear Bear a -snouchs, so that I may hear th a-.uel." a-.uel." And Bcaramouche proceeded to unfold un-fold a schema that filled Blnet with a paralysing terror. "After Radon. Nantea." hs said. "Yfantes and th Theatre Feydau." M. Blnet choked In th act of drinking. drink-ing. Th Theatre Feydau waa a sort of provincial Comedie-Francaiae. "But why not Paris and the Cotnedl FYanealee?" wondered M. Blnet. with sarcasm, wheat at laat hs had got his breath. "That may coma later," says Impn-Oenr. Impn-Oenr. "EhT You've been drinking, my friend." But Andro-Leuls detailed th plan that had been forming In nla mmd. "We'll telk of Parte after Nantes." ha finished, supremely mstter-of-fsct. "lust as we will definitely decide on K a n tee after Radon." Th persuaaiveneas that could sway a mob ended by aweeplng M. Binet off ale feet. Th prospect which Scara- seenslon 1 ' "It amuses yew to b cruet," said Bcaramoueha. "No matter. Bhall w walk?" They set out together, stepping briskly to warm their blood againet the wintry evening air. Awhile they went In silence, yet each furtively obeerv-Ing obeerv-Ing the other. "And so, you find m cruel?" Cllmene challenged him at length. Andre-Louie looked at her with a half amll. "Tou har grown weary of your part of cruel, madam a dull part, believe me, and unworthy of your talenta. Wer I a woman and had I your loveliness love-liness and your grace, Cllmene. I should disdain to us there as weapons of offsnse. "Loveliness and grace!" she echoed, feigning amused surprise. But the vain baggag waa mollified. "When waa It that you discovered this beauty and thla grace, M. Bcaramouche T" One morning when I beheld you rehearsing re-hearsing a love scene with Leander." "Why. that waa th first Urn you saw ma." "I had no earlier occasion to remark your charms." t'Tou ask m to bellev too much." aald ahe, but her tone was softer than be had ever known It yet. "Then you'll refuse to bellev m If I confess that It was this grace and beauty that determined by destiny that day by urging m to join your father's troupe." At that shs became a little out of breath. Ther waa no longer any question ques-tion of finding sn outlet for resentment. resent-ment. Reeentment was all forgotten. "But why? With what object?" "With the object of asking you one day to be my wife." "Tou go very fast, don't you?" ahe aaked him. with heat. "I do. Haven't you observed It? I am a man of sudden Impulses. I have curbed and repressed myself not to soar you by precipitancy. I have waited ohl. ao patlsntly until you ahould tire of that mood of cruelty." Mechanically, and as If by tacit consent, con-sent, they reeumd their walk. "And I ask you to observe," he said, "when you complain that I go very fast, that, after all, I have so far asksd you for nothing." "How?" quoth she, frowning. ... w ?i l 1 .'NtA- ; "Am I anssl now?" .ah asked him, panting. J he looked shyly at har lover whe cam tnta th roiei, . : 1 |
