The Imp's Matinée
Imp trembled, his voice was so low and menacing.
"That's the Heavy Villain, Imp dear," said Miss Eleanor, who sat by him.
"Heavy?" said the Imp, curiously; "heavy? How much does he weigh? More than my Uncle Stanley?" Miss Eleanor laughed. "Oh, tons more!" she said.
After the man had talked a little, the people sat quite still. His big eyes burned and glowed, his hands trembled, and when he stepped out to the front and made a long, threatening speech and shook his fist and strode away muttering, they burst into applause that seemed even to the little Imp to be very enthusiastic and real. They clapped so long that he came back, and stood very straight, and bowed and smiled, and one of the ladies in the boxes threw on the stage at his feet a bunch of mountain-laurel. He bent and picked it up and walked off very proudly, and after that, whenever he came on they kept very still, and applauded loudly when he went off.
The Imp didn't know that it was a poor play, poorly staged, and except for the Heavy Villain, poorly acted. He didn't know that the city peo-
87
