RUSS IS WORRIED
Alice was racking her brain to recall where she had seen the man
before. If he was a plumber, as he said he was, it might be that he
had been in the apartment house on other occasions to repair breaks.
But Alice was not certain.
"And yet I've seen him before, and lately, too," she thought. The
girls was in the hall, now. The man, who seemed ill at ease, had
followed and stood near.
"The leak wasn't a bad one; it is repaired now," he said.
"I--I didn't know Mrs. Dalwood was out," faltered Alice. And then, as
the man turned to go down the stairs, like a flash it came to her who
he was.
"The man Russ had the trouble with that day--Simp Wolley--who tried
to get his patent!" Alice almost spoke the words aloud.
"The--the leak is fixed," the man went on.
"You--you--" stammered Alice. But the man did not stay to hear, but
hurried downstairs.
Alice burst in on her sister and father.
"Oh!" she exclaimed. "That man--he--he was in the Dalwood kitchen!"
"What man?" asked Mr. DeVere, starting forward.
"The one who was after Russ's patent! Quick, can't you get him?"
Mr. DeVere ran into the hall, but the man had gone. The Dalwood
kitchen door was still open, and a hasty look through the apartment
showed none of the family could be at home.
"Could he have stolen the patent?" cried Alice, when the excitement
had quieted down.
"We can't tell until Russ comes home," replied her father. "I'll
leave our door ajar, and we can hear if anyone goes into the Dalwood
rooms. As soon as some of them return we will tell them what has
taken place."
Alice helped herself to the needed salt, and the meal began, with
pauses now and then to learn if there was any movement in the flat
across the hallway. Presently footsteps were heard, and proved to be
those of Russ himself.
"Plumber!" he exclaimed. "So he was masquerading as that; eh?" the
moving picture operator exclaimed when Alice told him what had
occurred. "You're right, he was after my patent," and a worried look
came over his face.
"Did he get it?" asked Ruth, anxiously.
"No, for it isn't here. The model is at a machine shop on the East
Side, and several of the attachments are being made from it to be
tested."
"Then it's all right," declared Alice, in a tone of relief.
"Yes--and no," returned Russ. "It's all right, for the time being,
but I don't like what has happened. Simp Wolley must be getting
desperate to come here in broad daylight and rummage the house under
the pretense of being a plumber. It shows, too, that he must be
watching this place, or he wouldn't have known when I went out."
"Hadn't you better notify the police?" suggested Mr. DeVere.
"I'll think about it," agreed Russ. "Of course he hasn't really done
anything yet that they could arrest him for, unless coming into our
apartment without being invited is illegal, and he could wriggle out
of a charge of that sort. No, I'll keep my eyes open. In a little
while, after I obtain my patent, and the attachment is on the
market, he can't bother me. But I don't mind admitting that I'm
worried."
"Then sit down and have something to eat with us," urged Alice, and
Ruth, with a nod and a blush, seconded the request. "You'll be eating
some of your own salt, anyhow," Alice suggested, in fun.
Russ lost a little of his apprehensive air as the meal progressed.
Perhaps it was because Ruth sat opposite. Alice said as much to her
sister afterward, when they were getting ready for bed.
"Don't be silly!" was Ruth's sole reply.
Mr. DeVere attended several rehearsals at the moving picture theater
and, one morning, said:
"Girls, how would you like to come and see me in my new rôle? We have
a dress rehearsal to-day, so to speak, and we'll "film" the play, as
they call it, to-morrow."
"Oh, let's go, Ruth!" cried Alice, clapping her hands. "I know you'll
enjoy it!"
"I'm sure I will," agreed Ruth. Her attitude toward the movies was
also changing.
Together father and daughters went. It did Alice good to see how Mr.
DeVere was welcomed by his fellow actors. He had already made himself
friendly with most of them.
As Alice and Ruth came into the big studio, where a battery of
cameras were clicking away, the two girls became aware of the looks
cast at them by those not actually engaged in some scene. And, while
most of the looks were friendly, those from two of the players were
not.
Miss Pennington and Miss Dixon, standing together at one side of a
section of a log cabin, whispered to each other.
"Ah, Mr. DeVere!" called Mr. Pertell. "Glad you're here; we were
waiting for you."
"I hope I'm not late!" replied the actor, huskily, with a proper
regard for not delaying a rehearsal.
"Oh, no. You're ahead of time if anything, and I'm glad of it. We'll
have to set the smuggling play aside for a time. One of my men isn't
here, and I can slip in your scenes now, and be that much ahead. So
if you'll get ready we'll go on with 'A Turn of the Card.'"
"Yes, Mr. Pertell--certainly. Let me present you to my daughters. I
believe you have met one."
"Yes--Miss Alice. I am glad to know the other one," and he bowed to
Ruth. Then he hurried away. Mr. Pertell always seemed to be in a
hurry.
Mr. DeVere went to his dressing room to don the costume of the
character he was to represent--a wealthy banker--and Ruth and Alice
gazed with interest at the various scenes going on about them.
While there were many persons connected with the Comet Film Company,
there were certain principals who did most of the work. Among them,
excepting Mr. DeVere, was Wellington Bunn, an old-time actor, who had
long aspired to Hamlet, but who had given it up for the more certain
income of the movies. Then there was Mrs. Margaret Maguire (on the
bills as Cora Ashleigh) who did "old women" parts, and did them
exceedingly well. She had two grandchildren, Tommy and Nellie, who
were often cast for juvenile rôles.
Carl Switzer was a joy to know. A German, with an accent that was
"t'icker dan cheese," to use his own expression, he was a fund of
happy philosophy under the most adverse circumstances. And on his
round face was always a smile. He did the "comic relief," when it was
needed, which was often.
Exactly opposite him in character was Pepper Sneed, the "grouch" of
the company. Nothing ever went the way Pepper wanted it to go, from
the depiction of a play to the meals he ate. No wonder he had
dyspepsia. He was always apprehensive of something going to happen
and when it did--well, they used to say that Pepper was the original
"I told you so!"
Pearl Pennington and Laura Dixon have already been mentioned. Paul
Ardite, who played opposite to Miss Dixon, was a good looking chap,
with considerable ability. It was rumored that he and the
ingenue--but there, I am not supposed to tell secrets.
Had it not been for "Pop" Snooks, I am sure the Comet Film Company
would never have enjoyed the success it did. For Pop was the property
man--the one of all work and little play. On him devolved the task of
manufacturing at short notice anything from a castle to a police
station.
And the best part of it was that Pop could do it. He was ingenuity
itself, and they tell the story yet of how, when on the theatrical
circuit, he made a queen's throne out of two cheese boxes and a
board, and a little later in the same play, made from the same
materials a very serviceable dog-cart.
As usual in the studio, several plays were going on at the same
time--or, rather, parts of plays.
"Come on now!" called Mr. Pertell, sharply. "Get ready for that safe
robbery scene. Pop, where's that safe?"
"It's being used as part of the wall in the dungeon in that 'Lord
Scatterwait' scene," answered the property man.
"Well, hustle it over here, and get something else for the dungeon
wall. I need that safe."
"That's the way it goes!" grumbled Pop as he scurried about. But that
was all the fault he found, and presently the hole in the dungeon
wall, caused by the removal of the safe with a painted canvas on it
to represent stones, was filled by some boards taken from a fence
used in a rural love drama.
"I say now, dot's not right!" spluttered Mr. Switzer, who as a
country boy was making love to a country lass, (Miss Dixon). "Dot's
not right, Pop. You dake our fence avay, und vat I goin' t' lean on
ven I makes eyes at Miss Dixon? Ve got t' haf dot fence, yet!"
"I'll make you another in a minute!" cried Pop. "You don't go on for
ten minutes."
"Mine gracious! Vot a business!" exclaimed the German, his round face
showing as much woe as he ever allowed it to depict. "Dot vos a fine
fence, mit der evening-glory vines trailing 'round mit it. Ach, yah!"
"Never mind," said Miss Dixon, "Pop will fix us up," and while she
was waiting she strolled over to where Paul Ardite was talking to
Alice. Russ Dalwood had come in and had greeted Ruth and Alice, and
then, in response to an unseen gesture from Paul, had introduced him.
Both girls liked the young fellow, who seemed quite interested in
Alice.
"Are you going to play parts here?" asked Miss Dixon, with the
freemasonry of the theater, speaking without being introduced.
"Oh, no!" replied Ruth, quickly. "We just came to see my father."
"Maybe they think they're too good for the movies," sneered Pearl
Pennington, but only Russ heard her, and he glanced at her sharply.
"All ready for 'A Turn of the Card' now!" called Mr. Pertell, as Mr.
DeVere came out of his dressing room. "Is your camera all ready,
Russ?" for Russ had obtained a place with the film company, and had
given up his position in the little moving picture theatre.
"All ready," was the answer. "I've got a thousand-foot reel in."
"Well, I don't want this particular scene to run more than eighty
feet. Got to save most of the film for the bigger scenes. Now, watch
yourselves, ladies and gentlemen. This is going to be one of our best
yet, or I'm mistaken. Pop--where's Pop?"
"Here I am. What is it?"
"Get me a big armchair. I want Mr. DeVere to be sitting in that when
the adventuress comes in. Miss Pennington, you're the adventuress,
and I wish you'd look the part more."
"I'm doing the best I can."
"Well, fix your hair a little differently--a little more fluffy, you
know--I don't know what you call it."
"Oh, that's easily remedied," she laughed. "I'm ready now," and with
dexterous use of a side-comb she produced the desired result.
"Got that chair, Pop?" called the manager.
"Yep. Just as soon as I fix that fence for the rural scene."
"Yah! Py gracious, ve got t' haf our fence or dot love scene mit der
evening-glory flowers vill be terrible!" insisted Mr. Switzer.
"All ready, now!" Mr. Pertell said, as the chair was placed in what
was to represent a parlor. Mr. DeVere took his seat, and the action
of the drama began. Ruth and Alice looked on with interest.