the morning smiling and serene, with cheer for his now discouraged and
almost disgruntled colleagues.

Louise Dillon's sealskin sack rendered heroic service during these
precarious days. It was almost literally worn out as collateral. As
Gustave had predicted, it got the company out of town on more than one
occasion. A little incident will indicate some of the ordeals of that
stage of the tour. At Hempstead a "norther" struck the town and the
temperature dropped. Wesley Sisson caught a hard cold and concluded to
get what he called "a good sweat." He had scarcely made his preparations
and settled himself in bed when he heard a rap at the door and a voice
said, "Open up."

"Who's that?" asked Sisson.

"Charley," was the reply. "Let me in. There isn't a spare bed in this
house and I am freezing to death."

"All right," said Sisson, "but you don't want to come in here, because I
am trying to sweat to death."

"Great Scott!" yelled Frohman, "that's what I want to do."

Sisson let him in and he remained all night.

* * *

Everywhere Charles Frohman drew people to him. The first time he booked
Houston he made friends with Colonel McPherson, who owned the Perkins
Opera House and the inevitable saloon alongside. The old manager--a
rather rough customer who had killed his man--was a great casino-player,
and Charles beguiled several hours with him one night at a game while
waiting for a train.

In one of the company's darkest hours he said to Stoddart:

"I've got an idea. Let's play Houston."

"But we've just been there," said Stoddart.

"Never mind," said Charles. "I'll fix it."

The next day he turned up at Houston and went to Colonel McPherson.

"What, you here again?" he asked.

"We've come back," replied Charles with ready resource, "to play a
special benefit for your School Teachers' Association."

The old man chuckled. "Well, if you can get 'em in the house you are all
right."

Charles was already planning a series of benefits for volunteer firemen
and widows and orphans in future towns. It was a case of "anything to
get a crowd." He hesitated a moment, then faced the old man with his
winning smile and said:

"Colonel, I wish you would let me have fifty dollars to send back to the
company."

"All right, my boy; there's the safe. Help yourself. Hurry up. Let us
have a game of casino."

Charles wired the much-needed money to his brother, then came back and
dutifully played the game. But neither trum