"And there are a little boy and girl who do tricks and sing," added
Mary Watson. "I saw their pictures."

"Oh, it'll be lovely!" sighed Sue. "I wish it would begin!"

The boys, girls and grown folks were still coming in and taking their
seats. The curtain hid the stage. And how the children did wonder what
was going on behind that piece of painted canvas! The musicians were
just beginning to "tune up," as Uncle Tad said. The ushers were hurrying
to and fro, seating the late-comers. One of the men who worked in the
Opera House, sweeping it out, attending to the fires in winter, and
sometimes selling tickets, got a long pole to open a skylight
ventilator, to let in some fresh air.

Just how it happened no one seemed to know, but suddenly the long pole
slipped and there was a crash and tinkle of glass. Nearly every one
jumped in his or her seat, and some one cried:

"Look at the skylight! It's going to fall!"

Bunny Brown, his sister Sue, and every one else looked up. True enough,
something had gone wrong with the skylight the man had tried to open.
It seemed to have slipped from its place in the frame where it was
fastened in the roof, and the big window of metal and glass looked as
though about to fall on the heads of the audience directly under it.

"Oh, Bunny, let's run!" cried Sue. "It's going to drop right on us!"

And truly it did seem so. Slowly the big skylight was slipping from its