r pretty women of the company; he did
not know them, nor did he make any effort to know them, and it was not
until they inquired concerning him outside of the theatre that they
learned what a figure in the social life of the city he really was. He
spent most of his time in Lester's dressing-room smoking, listening to
the reminiscences of Lester's dresser when Lester was on the stage; and
this seclusion and his clerical attire of evening dress led the second
comedian to call him Lester's father confessor, and to suggest that he
came to the theatre only to take the star to task for his sins. And in
this the second comedian was unknowingly not so very far wrong.
Lester, the comedian, and young Van Bibber had known each other at the
university, when Lester's voice and gift of mimicry had made him the
leader in the college theatricals; and later, when he had gone upon the
stage, and had been cut off by his family even after he had become
famous, or on account of it, Van Bibber had gone to visit him, and had
found him as simple and sincere and boyish as he had been in the days
of his Hasty-Pudding successes. And Lester, for his part, had found
Van Bibber as likable as did every one else, and welcomed his quiet
voice and youthful knowledge of the world as a grateful relief to the
boisterous camaraderie of his professional acquaintances. And he
allowed Van Bibber to scold him, and to remind him of what he owed to
himself, and to touch, even whether it hurt or not, upon his better
side. And in time he admitted to finding his friend's occasional
comments on stage matters of value as coming from the point of view of
those who look on at the game; and even Kripps, the veteran, regarded
him with respect after he had told him that he could turn a set of
purple costumes black by throwing a red light on them. To the company,
after he came to know them, he was gravely polite, and, to those who
knew him if they had overheard, amusingly commonplace in his
conversation. He understood them better than they did themselves, and
made no mistakes. The women smiled on him, but the men were suspicious
and shy of him until they saw that he was quite as shy of the women;
and then they made him a confidant, and told him all their woes and
troubles, and exhibited all their little jealousies and ambitions, in
the innocent hope that he would repeat what they said to Lester. They
were simple, unconventional, light-hearted folk, and Van Bibber fou