The Argosy — page 73: what you’re looking at

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

60 Ugly and Stupid. It appears that there is no one available to fill her place but me. I never have acted, but I fancy in so small a part I can scarcely do much harm. I suppose it is not very difficult ?” she added, appeal- ing to Arthur, with a quiet unconcern, in which it would have needed a very keen observer to have detected the malice. And Arthur was, as he afterwards said, too ‘“‘completely staggered ” to detect anything. ‘Oh no, it’s not very difficult,” he stammered, and muttering some- — thing about the last touches to the stage, he escaped. ‘Poor Mr. Hamilton! this sudden caprice on the part of Lady Flora is rather hard on him as stage manager,” said Miss Manners, as he left the room. “Yes,” returned Mrs. Burnes, vaguely ; ‘‘ but we must leave you in peace to learn your part. We have a final rehearsal after luncheon.” And she and Mrs. Finsbury departed, hardly less glad than Arthur to make their escape. Gertrude Manners stood for a moment, with a half bitter, half dis- dainful smile on her face, but something like tears in her eyes. Then she walked to the fire-place and took a deliberate survey of her features in the glass over the chimney-piece. She was not hand- some, but a close observer would hardly have sat beside her all through a long dinner, and decided that she was ugly. Her large hazel eyes were variable in their shades as the sea under an April sky, her whole face was expressive and mobile ; moreover, her figure was tall and graceful. Nevertheless, she did not appear conscious of these advantages ; for, after a moment of keen scrutiny, she sighed and said, half aloud, as she turned away, “‘ Well, I am plain, but—’” she glanced at the play-book in her hand, and a bright, confident smile broke over her face—‘ we shall see.” At three o’clock the Corps Dramatique assembled on the stage. It consisted of the hostess, Mrs. Burnes, a clever, piquante little woman, Mrs. Finsbury, one of the beauties of the day, Gertrude Manners, Arthur, who played the hero, besides being stage manager and general director, Mr. Finsbury, and two somewhat vapid young men, whose ideas of acting were of the most misty kind, but who took any amount of snubbing and tutoring with perfect good temper. Gertrude’s part was that of heroine, in so far as that she was the hero’s lady love ; but she had little to do, beyond standing about, per- haps the most difficult thing of all to do gracefully, and to make a few tender speeches to Arthur, which she did in much the same tone as a child learning to read. Arthur’s artistic soul was too much for him, and forgetting all awkward circumstances, he exclaimed, “‘ This will never do, Miss Manners. Can’t you be more empressée, more tender, as if you worshipped the very ground I tread on?” and, looking into her face to give emphasis to his words, he found it lit up with suppressed laughter. ‘“T am afraid I am not a good enough actress for that,” she replied quietly. EOLMIC LOOKS, (E00) m