Work and Win #07: Fred Fearnot as Actor — page 16: what you’re looking at

Machine-transcribed from the original scan — historical spelling and the odd misread are preserved.

14 FRED FEARNOT AS AN ACTOR. necessary for the preservation of their beauty. ‘‘As for the boys, they can sit up as long as they please, as they have no beauty to be spoiled.” “Oh, my!’’ exclaimed one of the blondes, ‘I think they have, and they ought to be made to go to bed, too; but 1 suppose they’ve got to sit around and talk, and drink, and smoke, and have fun, while we girls are fast asleep.”’ “Oh, well, they’ll show the effect of it in the course of time,’’ replied Mrs. Hammond; ‘for they will all be old-looking in a very few years.”’ The girls went upstairs, accompanied by Mrs. Ham- ~ mond, and as soon as they were gone, Gale turned to Fred and asked : ‘‘Have you made a contract with the old man ?” ‘*No, not yet. He wanted me to, but I said I’d just try it for a week and let him know then what I would = ao.” «Well, let me give youa pointer. Don’t let him _ shove you into the play any further than you went to-night, for your songs give you a ue better show _ than anything else in the piece could.’ **Qh, I don’t care to get any farther into it than that,’ laughed Fred, ‘for I don’t know a thing about meacting. If l’m Ehoed into the play, V’ll be confined 4 to the lines. As 1b is, Terry and I can ring in any _ snap we wish to.’ __«That’s it,” returned Gale, “for you’ve got a better snap than any of the rest of us.”’ a pes Why, how is that 2??? asked Fred. ‘<I understand a you ’ve got two ped in it, and that’s the best snap in _ the whole piece.’ ¥ ae a : “Yes,” he returned, ‘‘ two roles on one salary, and Y if you call that a soft snap, you don’t know the mean- ing of the term.’’ if _ **Qh, it gives you a chance to show what you can _ do. There’s where the soft snap comes in.”’ 7 **Bah! There’s nothing in the whole piece that will _ give me a chance to show what I can do.” . Like most actors, Gale had an enormous bump of — egotism, and Fred was quick to see it. : “Well, I don’t know what you can do,”’ he replied, cs *“but I must say you play your part splendid, and so = does Miss Traynor.’’ “How about me ?”’ asked the cynic. ‘Oh, you don’t have half a show,”? laughed Fred. oo. 4’. surprised that they haven’t given you a chance in the play to ‘make cynical remarks about everybody in the audience.”’ ‘Great Scott !’? exclaimed Innes, ‘if they did that we'd be mobbed at every performance; the audience wouldn’t stand it. We have to stand the cuss’ cyni- cal remarks simply because the old man has threat- ened to discharge any member of the company who kills him; but for that we’d have made worms’ meat of him months ago.”’ ““What’s the matter with you, Sam?” the cynic asked. “Oh, there’s nothing the matter replied. with me,’’ Sam “HANDSOME HARRY.” “Say, Fearnot,”’ Gale laughed, ‘‘ what has the old man offered you in the way of pay ?”’ ‘Oh, he has offered me my own price.” ‘* Oh, well, I know better than that. I’ve been with him too long. Every dollar he pays out in the way of salary, one has to earn twice over.’’ “‘Of course, that’s what he hires us for, for no manager in the pone wants an actor who can’t put , money in his purse.’ “Well, didn’t he make you an offer ?” ‘Of course he did.”’ ‘‘ How much did he offer ?”’ “Well, [’ll be frank with you,’’ said Fred. ‘It’s simply none of your business what he offered.”’ | “Well, you needn’t get huffy about it.” ; “Oh, Pm not huffy in the least. It’s simply an impertinence for one man to make inquiries into an- other’s personal affairs.’’ | «Well, you don’t want to be too personal in your remarks about it.” | “Oh, no; but I want to be understood. Hence If speak plainly. What Mr. Hammond chooses to pay me is no concern of yours, and I certainly don’t care the snap of my finger what he pays you !”’ “©Oh, you talk like a supe with a swelled head,’’ sneered Gale, turning to leave the room. “Well, it may be that 1 am a supe,’ retorted Fred, ‘‘but if you wish to keep out of the soup, you want to go slow in talking to me, Mr. Gale.”’ Gale wheeled around and confronted him with the query : bf ‘© Do you think you can put me in the soup ?”’ “Yes; [ can do it easily, if I have occasion to.’’ ‘*¢Oh, you think so, do you? How’s that fora starter ?’’ and with that he slapped Fred a stinging blow on his left cheek. The next moment he found himself knocked clear back against the wall, where he sank down in a heap on the floor. When he rose to his feet, Fred gave him a couple of sockdolagers, full in the face, that sent him back to the floor again. Sam Innes sprang tv the door and locked it, to keep out any outsiders. When Gale rose to his feet the second time Fred let him have two more, and down he went again, with- out having given a blow in return. “Say, Fearnot,’’ said Innes, “let up on him.”’ “Keep out of the way now!” said Fred, with a fierce glitter in hiseye. ‘* He struck the first blow, and has got to say he’s in the soup, or I’ll down him every time he rises to his feet !”’ “Well, maybe some of the rest of us will have something to say about that,’ replied Innes, throw- ing’ off his coat. ‘“Now, see here, my fine fellow,’ said Terry, ad- dressing Innes, “ve got a httle gun in my pocket, and you'll hear it popif you take a hand in this thine. Just let hem alone. It’s their affair. Let the best man win.’ ‘That’s it,’? remarked the cynic; “the best man wins the world over.’’ Gomicboo ) , ‘com