an even confide in me, if you wish, all your love affairs and
disappointments."

"Agreed, all along the line! I seal that with my solemn word of
honor!" cried Glogowski.

They gravely pressed each others' hands.

"This is a union of pure souls with ideal aims!" he laughed, winking
his eyes. "Something makes me feel so merry now that I could take my
own head in my hands and kiss it heartily."

"It is a premonition of the triumph of your Churls."

"Don't remind me of that. I know what awaits me. But I must now bid
farewell to you."

"Aren't you going to escort me home?"

"No . . . Oh well, all right, but I warn you I will talk to you
about . . . love!" he cried gayly.

"Well, in that case, good-by! May God preserve you from such
falsehoods."

"Your ears must have surfeited on that rubbish, if the very mention
of it nauseates you. . . ."

"Go now if you wish . . . I will tell you about it some other
time. . . ."

Glogowski leaped into a hack and drove away in haste toward Comely
Street and Janina went home.

She tried on the peasant costume which Mme. Anna was making for her
appearance and thought with a smile of the alliance that she had
formed with Glogowski.

At the theater it was evident that a premiere was to be given. All
the members of the company appeared earlier, dressed and made up
more carefully than usual and only Krzykiewicz, as was his custom,
paraded about the dressing-room and the stage half-dressed with his
rouge pot in his hand.

Stanislawski, who when he played, usually came about two hours
before the performance, was already dressed and only now and then
added an extra touch to his make-up.

Wawrzecki, with his role in his hand paced up and down the
dressing-room rehearsing in an undertone.

The stage-director ran about more swiftly than usual and in the
ladies' dressing-room livelier quarrels were going on. Everyone was
more nervous to-day. The prompter supervised the stage arrangements
and watched the public that was beginning to fill the hall. The
chorus girls, who were to act as supers, were already dressed in
their peasant costumes and straggled all about the stage.

"Dobek!" called Majkowska. "My dear fellow, only support me
well! . . . I know my part, but in the second act slip me the words
of that monologue a little louder."

Dobek nodded his head and had not yet returned to his post when Glas
accosted him.

"Dobek! Will you have a drink of whisky, eh? Perhaps you'd l