Newspaper Page Text
DOROTHY'S CONCERT
l By F. Prentice.
' The wonderful afternoon had at
last arrived. Dorothy Clifford was to
make "her debut as .a pianist at Clar
. idge Hall, and E&stace, her fiance,
was to be there.
Claridge Hall was not the finest
' hall in the city. It was, however, one
, of the leading centers of music. It
contained some half dozen chambers,
in each of which a grand piano was
1 lv fwSiw irlr-T
Sat in Their Seats in Stony Silence.
, usually.to.be found; and when there
" were not enough concerts scheduled
to fill these rooms congresses met
there. The Internationa? Congress of
Applied Mathematicians hdd assem
bled there only thatyear, and the So
ciety for the Improvement of Chirop
ody; nothing came amiss to the own
1 ers. But, of course, Claridge Hall
was chiefly noted for its music, and
many famous musicians had appear
ed there.
Dorothy had been educating her
self as a pianist for seven years. She
had many teachers, too. She had
hoped to make music her life career.
But many a girl who dreams of a life
career surrenders it when the right
man comes along. And with Eustace
to care for, the piano had become a
less valued friend.
"Still, Eustace," she had said, "I
can play once in a while at first, even
after we are married, and make a few
extra dollars. Don't you think so?"
Eustace had been dubious, but
Dorothy's father was emphatically in
agreement with her.
"You're going to give that piano
recital, anyway, Dorothy," he said.
"Here I've spent nearly a thousand
dollars on your musical education,
from first to last, and talked about
you to my friends and how you are
going to take the town by storm; and
now it's up to you to make good."
"But it will cost three or four hun
dred dollars for me to' appear at
Claridge Hall," said Dorothy.
"Good," answered her father.
"That will shqw the newspaper
critics that you mean business. That
will impress them."
Dorthy's father was not very
worldly wise, but anyway he had his
will. And so the fateful afternoon
arrived.
When Dorthy arrived with her
father and Eustace and saw the pla
cards in front of the building her
heart gave little throbs of pride.
"Dorothy Clifford," they announced,
in great black letters, under her pic
ture. "Dorothy Clifford," and then,
in smaller letters, "gives her piano
forte recital in Claridge Hall" the
last words very big again "on Fri
day next at 2:30."
Eustace squeezed her hand and her
father twisted his white mustache
and strolled along as proud as a king.
"Room 4, Miss Clifford," they told
her inside. So Dorothy had to say
good-bye to her father and sweet- ,
heart and hurry round to the musi
cians' entrance. She walked.up and
down corridors for Claridge Hall is
quite a large place and at last found
room 4.
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