Show Aged Parents f Find Stage Is v f. f Not Degrading J r rt t Dy lly KATE MUNROE j v. v rg r r rr i 1114 New Newspaper p fw f 4 Tim TILT lights went down clown a h hush s l lof AS of ex expectancy settled nettled over oter the audience nl nt at the theater r. r Mo t Mo t of the faces lace were there alight With but hut the old man IOnn and woman In the hack back seats seat of the first hale natron looked very cry gone grue They were country peo pee people pie Ille mid and they had hUrl nc never er been to n a theater the the- titer ater before clod It Isn't true tnie Mary Maryi I Isaid said mid the old tild man lib Ills wife pressed pressel his hand gently She he knew how hol deeply he felt upon the II subject u It ens 1111 for those simple minds n n a tragic situation Their dall daughter Lucy had left the farm three years Sears before i And souse some meddlesome ome busybody had lind told the old people that she ille was ac- ac lually-an lually an sl I To their simple minds there could rould I ha have ha e been nothing more The stage was Willi the acme arme of nil that was vilest t In ln the tIe world They Thay had up 1111 to tow town 11 without announcing their Intentions and 1111 were wert now lilt await In ns the rising rising- of or the curtain upon U il the i first act of or The Merchant of or Yen Ven 1 ice does not appear at the beginning begin lIin ning of that play And before she site had hOll come ome on the stage e the old people were stating staring In won wonder er nt at the of the setting More than that In place of or the which they had expected to find Ihl they found II I story so sn gripping fco so pathetic Hint flint they were wre spellbound tut when Portia appeared they le leaned forward with a re of their old terror Was wan Lucy 1 1 Miss Margaret Lake Illk Us lis she she was MUM hilled It was tru true then Th There rc almost most nn an expression of ot II pride e but but there Vas bewilder bewilder- ment Ills Lucy Iury I l Their little girl girls I slow How could this be he Sll she ISo I So the fhe be play went nt on toward Its dramatic dray dra made matic mule And now William Mill Mill- tins ins and his wife were following the de developments with hated bated breath And the long life-long horror of the stage was forgotten An And 11 when the great t trial scene came on and Shylock sharpened d his Ills Knife and things looked bad for hi hl his enemy tears tars came Into their eyes eel Hell get him Mary I whispered her husband Sh Sit I rang out the angry ry whispers whis whis- whispers pers and he liE subsided Into his Ms seat sent In dismay at the storm he had raised But Hut when Portia lime came In attired ns as th the doctor of laws William Mullins knew her Immediately tel Y yI I ho he whispered Mother 1 I That's our girl I Look at nt ather ather her 1 l llie I tie lie sat nt now like n a man entranced staring at lit her And when she con con- conI confounded I fm founded Shylock with her learning when hn lien after lifter appealing to lit his I humanity in vain she ruthlessly unmasked the I laws has drove e him suppliant before the Judges Judge's ell sent the father could restrain restrain restrain re re- strain himself no longer lie HE tone stood up tip In his sent SPlit nn and wa waved ed his hand Band fly Iy Crl Crack IQ Lucy jou e ou got cot ot him I 1 he yelled jelled 1111 Good rood girl I That's the tho way Teach the rogue roue n lessons lesson 1 Tell rIll hi his honor not to let hint him get gt away ny with his life I No n mercy l 1 There were wre no l n. I longer ner lr w whit whispers ll pers of remonstrance Instead there therl t wa ni nn an uproarious outburst of laughter with witha n II salvo sal of hearty hurty to tn follow fol fol- low Ina And the old parents shrinking back bark Into their seats sat th the observed of every ery yer eye eje Ill I'll sow saw w that Lucy hud hal seen them they sift sat still till In their seats sats l bewildered bevil dered and dazed long loni after the curtain had lind fallen nn nail Ih the theater hail had begun un unto to empty An Au u usher her came toward tOl then theta Mr r. r antI and Mrs lire 2 he Ill Inquired blandly cutting casting curious glances at ut the theold theold old old couple Nisi Miss lIsl Margaret Lake would like to tn 1 see you jou In her dressing room Will 1111 you jou Oll step tp this way please Their daughter was waiting She Rhe was nt attired tired in lit her street gown and she had carefully washed tr I every ry trace of paint from front h her r tUl free As the lie old 11 couple lI halted rather sheepishly nt at door doer Lucy ran toward toward to to- ward them thew and ped In III their arms i Tather slip she crl cried d So Sn you jou ou have ha found 1 m rte outs out I mother anther too ton Why didn't yon jou 1111 let m me I no and I would hn hove bine hail had a II tiny box for ter you jou 1 My lIy gum guilt Iuey what would we WI do with n a I box m ejaculated her hr father Why Lucy we WI wanted 1 to h be he somewhere sonic some I a where here vi here where w we ve could see ee ou you Ve Vl couldn't have p seen you jou ou In a n hov Lucy The TIlt wily you jou OU IU did up that fellow fel fel- low was scrumptious I. Some I old told IH ai you jou oU were were on Oil the I stage stige anti nn we WI come O 11 down rI here to save SIl you rOil front from ruin I III guts guess s I we WI dont don't mind now now II ns as nult h ns as WI we do did do we I mother mothr I And II i Lucy I. ln insisted Ned on nn Introducing In ing them to her friends to friends to fir Mr Gros- Gros nor enor the tar stile and to various arlous sat members of the company n jf together It was n II night of surprises for fill tint old people nut Hut as liS they went event out together I Luc Lucy made mati nn an e e to run back for something and she he caught I Mr Ir Oros- Oros t enor nor b bj- bj th the armI arm non I wish had hart told tolt them we e everything every every- err ery- thing thIn I she Shall I L I. Phillip I lie HI le nodded d and I she hl went on Did you jou ou ex eve stop to think my dear Its It's Just jut old people like these these these- cold c- c old fathers and mothers In far far auay villages villages that that make the stage ns as good goods liS s It U is today an- an ana an ank k keep Ep so ninny many of ot us tin better th than n we would be perhaps I |