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94 A Theatrical Boarding-House in Sydneythe end she fairly loved him to completerecovery.He was then given a benefit performance,where he took the same jumpthrough the trap-door, and was receivedwith tremendous applause. Mrs. Roycealways had the press notices to show, describingthis great occasion. But thevogue of the male dancer had passed andTeddy Royce turned to comedy. WhenI met them he was a small, slender manwith the light, graceful step of the dancer,and though his hair was gray he had ayouthful, almost boyish, face. Mrs.Royce was a sweet, matronly-lookingwoman who filled in her spare time embroideringflannel petticoats in floss silk.Her clothes were plain and neat, butsadly dowdy in style, and she wore herblack hair severely smooth. I noticedcasually that she always left the housepromptly at three o'clock every afternoon,and asked Miss Leaney about it." She is ballet-mistress at the Majestic,"she explained, "and is training her youngladies for the Christmas pantomime."I looked my astonishment as MissLeaney went on: "She not only teachesdancing—she dances herself. You'll seeher in the pantomime. She runs abouton the tips of her toes something wonderful."It is the regret of my life that I didn'tsee Mrs. Royce on the stage, but I wasill during the holidays and missed thatwonderful performance and TeddyRoyce's song that became so famousthat it was called "The Australian Anthem."I remember the heated discussionsthat went on about it at our littlesuppers after the theatre. It was a convictsong about Botany Bay. I only recallone verse:" Now all you young dookes and duchesses,Take warning by what I now say—Be sure all's your own what you touchesesOr you'll join us in Botany Bay."There was a dance that went with this,suggesting the lock-step. Teddy's friendswere afraid to have him sing that particularsong in the city of Sydney, sayingthat many people in the audience wouldtake it as a personal affront to their ancestors.But Teddy's argument was,"The ones who are not descended fromconvicts will applaud loudly to prove thefact before the world—and the ones whoare descended from convicts will applaudlouder still for fear people will guess it,and between the two the song will makea hit"—and it did.Mr. H. was a good-looking young manwho played the lead in melodrama. Onthe stage his entrance was always precededby bursts of praise and "Ah, herecomes the dear lad now." He wore softwhite shirts open at the neck; the villagechildren clustered about him, and he wasalways good to his mother. That wasthe heyday of melodrama, and oh, whatperils surrounded Mr. H.! I have seenhim climb up the very wabbly side of aprison-cell, pull out the iron bars of hiswindow, and let himself out over—he wascareful to inform us—a frightful precipice.I have seen him chased by bloodhounds—at least chased off stage, coming onbreathless and gasping, to tell us about itin beautiful language. I have seen himunder London Bridge among cutthroatsand thieves, and welcomed in red-velvetsalons among dukes and earls, always thecentre of tragedy, love, and romance. Inprivate life he was a wholesome, friendlysoul whose heart was wrapped up in alittle son. He always had one of hisletters to read aloud, and every chancehe got he paid him a visit at a boardingschoolnear Sydney.Mr. Diver was a thin, earnest youth,pale and hollow-eyed, with long blackhair that tossed off his forehead like amane. He was playing the part of thebrother in "La Tosca" in the Mrs. Brown-Potter and Kyrle Bellew Company.Through him I learned for the first timehow cruel great actresses could be. Mrs.Potter was annoyed with Mr. Diver becausehe asked her for his cue before thecompany, and after that made it a pointto change it continually. For instance,if he had learned these words for his entrance,"More of this anon," she wouldsay: "We will speak of this to-morrow."Poor Mr. Diver grew thinner and palerevery day during the engagement of Mrs.Potter and Kyrle Bellew, for, strangelyenough, though the lady badgered himnearly to death, she kept him in thecompany during the whole season.Mr. Royce had been engaged as stage-