The San Francisco Call. Newspaper, January 10, 1904, Page 19

THE = SAN FRANCISCO CALL, SUNDAY, JANUARY 10, 1904. THLE BITQNT CaNDESCENDS AEZPoRTERS . . STEE ERO AND THE My ‘ BY BLANCHE- PARTINGTON 2) == \ vy V(A , \9 ey 75 19 ELPII G AL A FArER OF ALY FLOWERS. e and art, ere busily en- end of other t my accus- unaccus- Patti’s train < n. Patti! There 1 the name. Patti! s gleam at the word and v s are reverent. Patti! who f rt of song from its } s to see her. That we sa-ing. 1 wo.ld ask this, nutes I hoped I would ask her pinion, there were no & the youthful generation wou 1 #sk if she thought usic-drama would in the next ng to What she ascribed the preservation of her own I would agk if the present sys- hing was the system likely 2 Patti. I would ask if the Patti were herself as sacri- est in her devotion to t s the older artists. I would plunged heavily train ) 1d almost before its 1do had ceased, I was g-¥-nos. the Baron Cederstrom?” f a quite baronial looking slim and distinguished, stood on the steps of the adjoin- Or perhaps you P N the baronial person smiled . mistaken to ascribe gre Yet, I thought, “I I never yet saw ed like one, but Lau- have known."” k aronial person courteously then to a gentleman standing in the door of Craig-y-nos. !” 1 thought, as the »nially rotund “baron” er of introduction. derstrom?” I asked. bowed, “I will tell him you and vanished into the inner e car. by this time several barons on the steps. I Anton Hegner, the 'cell- frid Virgo, the temor; Signor Sapio, the conductor; Claude A. Cun- ningham, the barytone, and others— all of the little queen's suite, At last T other possible ed were are dark and anxious 1 set a little ,too closely over the thin, hooked nose, his slender figure tall, straight and lithe as becomes his supposed athlc tendencies. His simple traveling suit of gray and a Scotch cap sat easily and becomingly upon him. He looked less “difficile” sitting down. “Where’s Cunningham?” some.one ked here. The train was out from Sacramento a few moments. Then amid a chorus of laughter, it devei- oped that the adventurous Mr. Cun- ningham, barytone of the company. had been” left to the delights of S ramento. The baron was probably too busy to smile at this. He didn’t, at any rate, but began gravely: “What do you wish to ask ?” I should like to know,” I began, ‘just to what madame attributes the extraordinary preservation of her voice? To regular habits of living and——" “Yes,"” the baron replied. He evi- dently thought the reply sufficient. “Is it because of fatiguing the voice that she refuses to be interviewed?"” “Yes,” said Baron Cederstrom. “Entirely ?"” “No—she has been made to say absurd things in the papers and so de- clines to say anything.” “Does she not find all this traveling very tiring?” he is very well.” This is almost the tour?” “No, only the tenth concert.” “There are fifty?” “Forty."” “There will be a very large Rouse to greet her in San Francisco.” “Ah!” the baron looked faintly in- terested. “I should very much like to know the baroness’ opinion of the modern school of singing,” I ventured then. “Ah, that I can say nothing of. She has naturally her opinion, but does not care to be quoted. Fine weather,” he volunteered politely, looking out on the green and gold flelds spinning by, the circlet of «pal hills surrounding them. “Slightly different from your Eng- lish winter weather? But you are not English? You speak English so well —pardon me.” “No, I am a Swede.” “You may go, Baron,” I said thenm, after a little more desultory -ossip. The idea had occurred to me that other less responsible members of the party end of your importantly. No tea or coffee, no——" “On, ves, she takes both. Cham- pagne, too. Not much of anything, though. At breakfast only tea and a couple of eggs—very simply she lives.” “I wonder,” 1 began—a brilliant idea having arrived—"I wonder if she would answer a question or two for me on paper?” “Possibly,” he said, doubtfully. “Could you, would you ask for-me?"” With gravity befitting the occasion he consulted another Patti subject and decided to prefer by request. On tip- toes he returned with my note a mo- ment later to say that madame was lying down and must not be disturbed. But I saved the note, 2d at Benicia Madame read and “approved” it. “And to whom am I indebted?” I madame read and “approved” is. “T.e baren's valet, mademoiselle.” 1 hope my return bow iwas as splen- did as this gentleman’s. We returned then to the inside of the car, and there met the long-time triend and conductor of Patti—Signor Sapio. Miss Zamels, the violinist, square and intense of face, and most tuminously eyed, was in the next seat. &he divided her glances between Miss Margolies—whose piquant French lilted across the way—her violin and the golden country flying past. Anton Hegner, the ’cellist, nearby smiled sympathy for our troubles and affec- tion for the khaki-covered ’'cello in front of him. The tenor, Wilfrid Virgo, drolly remembered every now and then the dropped barytone, “who had ieft his ‘cowt,’ you know.” Signor Sapio, keen and thoughtful of face and one of the best conductors we have, was in front of us with cour- teous intent looking from his quiet eves. Altogether it was like getting home again. We chatted awhile of various things, of the Moody-Manners English grand opera company for one. The conductor for a while led the company, during ‘the time when Stan- ford's opera, “Much Ado About Noth- ing” was produced. He had many good words for the opera. The inter- national prize recently offered by the Moody-Manners people for a grand opera he told me was won by a young Englishman, one Lester, with an opera entitled “The Cross and the Crescent” —*scholarly, but without much purity musical value. Still, promising, as the author is young.” Signor Saplo was much interested in the De Lussan en- gagement at the Tivoll last year. Also singing with her throat. “Still, it seems to me from my read- ing that vocal study was a very differ- ent thing in Patti's day “No doubt, no doubt, ted. I myself have had some little experience of that.” He was for four years head of the New York National Conservatory vocal departiment. “‘Stu- dents now desire to get through six years’ work in two. They make their, debut unprepared, the voice is ruined, et voila! failure all round. I think madame would subscribe to that statement.” d 1 sent in again my note to madame then, and heard of her smiling over it and my friend’s “interview” at Beni- ci It came out later “approved,” which means that Patti believes the few following things. 1. That any singer, with reasonable care, may preserve her voice as the Pattl voice has been preserved. 2. That regular habits of eating, drinking, sleeping and so on, are the first essentials. 3. That freedom from worry is also imperative to the preservation of the voice. 4. That the older Ttalian opera is more grateful to the voice than either the newer Italian school or the Wag- ner music-drama. P 5. That the modern fashion of vocal teaching is as good as in Patti’s vocal school days. She would not say why there were no more Pattis, if throats, or students were at fault, but acknowledged deep pleasure in coming again to San Fran- cisco, “the scene of some of my pleas- antest associations.” At last the train swept into the Oakland mole, and there I caught my first glimpse of the little lady. Three or four porters, the hackman and a few newspaper folk shared it with me. With a pathetically regal air—for the tiny audience—she put one hand upon her husband’s arm, the other upon her manager’s, as she left the car, and swept into the hack awaiting her, leaving behind an impression of dark, bright eyes, an extraordinary aureole of auburn locks, and sables. On the boat I asked a large, inno- cent, pink policeman the reason for the unusual crowd—a racing one, I found. p “Do ye see that hack?” he said. 1 did. **Well, there’s a woman in there they call—Patti—I think 'tis. They say she's a great singer, That's what the husband she justly despis in line with the Parson Mande ogy, has become mother of his child. The problem posed is self-evident, and though Ibsen avoids answer his moral is not to be evaded. Alberta Gallatin, of whom one hears good things, is to interpret the difficuit part of Mrs. Alving. Claus Boyd, who did leading roles with Mrs. Fiske, is to have the role of Oswald. The others of the company are John Ravold, Allen Davenport and Rose Curry. There will be only one performance. g ot Very different will the Columbia’s biil on Monday evening be, when Mrs. Langtry, the ever-famous Jersey Lily, will present a new comedy, “Mrs. Deer- ing’s Divorce.” The actress is said to have an uncommonly good medium in her new D»lay. that depends neither upon the apotheosizeu gown nor the social prestige of its wearer, for its success. Mrs. Langtry s last local ap- pearance was in 1886, and, then only an indifferent actress, she has since be- come an accomplished comedienne She is still. beautiful, and her coming will doubtless be of conspicuous interest to theatergoers. She will be supported by members of the Imperial Theater (her own) of London, and it goes without saying will have a galaxy of gowns. . - . Next comes the Tivoli, with the first production of light opera in the new house, the Stange and Edwardes opera, “When Johnny Comes March- ing Home.” The occasion will be ‘the local premiere of the work, and will doubtless be of considerable attract- ive power. The story is military, and the opera is said to afford the ex- cellent company the Tivoli has gath- ered together a good opportunity. * . . Next - Fischer’s, with a new bur- lesque, entitled ‘“The Beauty Shop.” Again the patriotic proprietors have gone in for encouraging local geénius, The Beauty Shop” being from the pen of a local newspaper man, Mr. J. C. Crawford, the music by a San Franciscan composer. The thing promises to be very funny, and has been amply rehearsed and lavishly mounted by the management. Miss Helen Russell, the new leading woman, and John Peachey, who sue- ceeds Winfield Blake, will both make their first bow at Fischer’s in the new show. . . . The Alcazar will have “The Moth and protest: “The laws governing the construc- tion of theaters in the State of New York are most stringent and adequate for the safety of the theater-going public, provided that the theater is of recent date, but there are at least eight prominent theaters in active operation to-day in New York City, to say nothing of Brooklyn, which are nightly a menace to the public and the licensing of which must take some ex- traordinary political ‘pull’ to secure. One of these has a stage entrance down a flight of cellar stairs from an adjoining street with all the dressing rooms for the actors underground. The place has one stairway to the bal- cony and the ‘gallery gods’ take wing down a side entrance to- the building from Broadway. Another theater which adjoins a prominent hotel is practically - upstairs and the aisles barely accommodate one person to pass at a time. The rows of seats are g0 shockingly close together that as the auditor sits in his place, his knees and his nose are in such close proxim- ity to each other that he has the back- ache if not the stomachache, before the end of the first act of any play. Should a panig occur in this theater only a footbul‘( player could get out alive. Still another theater is upstairs and has one solitary flight of winding * stairs down which the entire audience must plunge in time of panic, to meet another flight of steps before reaching the street. It is well known that winding stairways are a deadly source of danger in time of panic. One more theater, originally built as a music hall, has a stage which is below the level of the street, to reach which the actor descends what is called a stair- way, but which is nothing short of a narrow steep ladder. What the pow- ers that be had on their minds when they passed this construction, would furnish an interesting item to the cause of ‘graft uprooting’ and munic- ipal reform. Iowever, herg the au- dience is reasonably safe, so the poor sactor and the stage hands ‘be damned.’ A popular theater, facing on Broadway, has a rotten wooden stairway in an old building by which these whose income admits of 50 cents for a seat must enter from the street. Other theaters are overcrowded as to seating capacity. Nothing is of more vital importance in a theater than wide aisles, stairways, roomy seating arrangements, numerous exits, fire ex- tinguishers, hose lines, sprinklers over ) LZAVIHG PEX TR VATE ey pim 5 NG 7o mor e~ w2 s re . oLk, TS ¥ <! = 5 i 3 PATT ‘ TTI FINDS SECLUSION IN A CLOSED CARRIAGE ON THE FERRY-BOAT, WHILE HER HUSBAND, BARON CEDERSTROM, MAKES MEANINGLESS REPLIES TO UESTIONS. % A . F e Ve R S S G S I O i o PN i YR - S5 1T it} Lol . 3 :”, her,” my cm'!: 1':]»:9:",'.]»&1‘1’,‘:;‘1”?“ ;\Irp]nnrl:;iiwlth md) mifihl be more imeresnng'.m in the new Tivoli. “Zaza,” of course, the ¢rowd’'s about. Ye can see the the Flame” for the week’s bill. It is the stage, asbestos curtains, and also efully suggested Patt i “Rigfoh i«fl}gl h'~ ooked worried. ‘_1\'}‘“;4‘ is nothing: else? was mentioned—the signor shook his old lady if ye step up here.” an attractive medium for the local Ly- a system of separate lighfing for the as f my chat for the week TR with- > he barsu Nothing, thank you. head over the theme. And so Patti came to San Francisco. ceum and will doubtless find a hearty fire escapes and lobbies entirely de- Il not see her,” ¥ saisutar enicith the baron- He bowed as he left and went sol- “Why add music when the dramatic S patronage tached from the lights on the stage or = ¢ ess, if T may?” emnly to his duties at Craig-y-nos. interest ls so vivid as to destroy all D S ; ¢ \ s tti's urbane repre- { 4 3 the body of the house. Nothing adds - i s M} confreres preferred hastily a Almost then I had begun to feel the consciousness of the music?” the con- MANY NEW ACTORS “The Moonshiners” at the Central to panic so much as the sudden col- 2 similar request. : tremendous importance of traveling ductor asked. “You never, I am sure,’” AND NEW PLAYS ARE promises a thrilling fare of the Kind lapse of lights and continued darkness who— Impossible,” the baron said with with a prima donna, particularly as had ‘Tosca?-—you never, I am sure, SOON TO BE SEEN the Central serves up nobly. Thereare in the auditorium, yet in some thea- a pri \i . . & her husband. Later I was to realize it have heard the music at the end of moonshiners, whisky stills, revenue of- ters in New York there are no such fall! Mr thought she might give more strongly. However slender the second act.” AT fi v tin- s> 2 e P 5 ¥ . # 4 ROXS. ] A week of exceptional interest at the ficers and the' whole fascinating contin- extra lights and if the electric lights here is the baron”— ™ J‘:.l five minutes = Patti’s hold upon the imagination of 1 was obliged to confess T could mot o vt % 0 Fil “"’_;“;;‘m at the Colum. ®ent of the Virginian smuggling tribe. suddenly failed the house would be 1 . Wi, \”_]l”u:h her husband an \‘)n ).res .).() day x.m‘y b_ ‘hvr‘ sf)‘\c-r rvcyplfl\ll. . 3 bia with the first local production of Thomas Shearer, a new comedian, will plunged into absolute darkness, mak- was baron, not : : eignty in her own small circle is abso- he old and new Italian opera then p,co..o gy " h ost make his debut with the Central com- ing egress almost impossible. A panic He i€ very seriot I never met . : St ¢ : _ o 3 sen’s “Ghosts,” among the m L us never met lute. Much of charm and reason came up, and with it Patti again, any in the play. under such conditions isiawful to con- ne SONE. T, ‘et R A< - Todk ND = b : dis 7 2 . . powerful work of the author. As in Pany in play. r > iy 1 E us. Sven Edwin there must be in it, too. Her com- Does she like the new Italian “The Pill ;0 e Doll" » o template.” , 1ful Swede Stevens himself must give place here panion, Miss Karoline Burmeister, has school? kbt ",r ?‘fie‘g' SEhe ’] O, Vaudeville will be well represented at i ni, and the Mar- to the Baron Rnlr_ \'f.in-rslrmn_ I-,\'}» been with the diva for thirty years, “Oh, yes. And the baroness is also laka: ‘eur- ”“l‘l ! l;]:{sflq"w"‘m the local temple this afternocon. Half VICEROY OF IRELAND x 1 so, armed with @ently the responsibilities of his posi- her secretary, Signor Marini, for fif- very fond of Wagner. We often spend ., mg gxisting soclal conditions the bill is new. PLAYS SANTA CLAUS . o the baron, oD are of the serious sort and thé teen. The haron? OB, for four. whole evenings. over the Operas.” o Sl iy PR e AT 2 SR slender, frigid, worried gentleman “Well?” I said to the artist. He The baron had told me that he and WIS Sha% Gesetic WROT the chil-rpere are some interesting babies in pigiinguished Official Contributes to that faced us as evidently takes them also had his five minutes with ‘the the baroness went every season to ren.” Purely pathological as is the tne Chutes incubator and some good et S Py ey { very seriousl: baron, from across the aisle. Bayreuth, though he wotld not say ‘Deme, its déyelopnient is highly dra- (yrng in the big theater. MG o I was not as yet suiciently under “Scared,” my experienced friend de- whether or ‘not she considered the matic. The drama is in the hands of i i 68 s __of Dublin. 5 the superstition of the situation, and cided. He added a slight touch of Wagner music-drama a grateful vo- 1V People only: Mrs. Alving, the mAy RS OF DANGERS DIERLIG Jaa - Kordene . MEviy g f sked again: “Not even for a mo- hawkiness to the baron's nose as he cal field. Signor Saplo, owever, in- MOther of the idiot son of a degener- for Rockingham, his place in County d : i said: “These soft snaps are not all formed me that Patti herself sings :flehhua]banq;,fm\m?},‘ Kh\; snn‘.1 (lonr‘n:d IN MANY OF NEW ‘l}_olcomn;:;)né‘ to spend ngr\:lm;‘!. fr makes no exceptions,” the they're painted.” much of the "“Tannhauser’ music. o hopeless idiocy—the play shows him s iceroy Dudley, accompanied by the e kg e id then, frigidly final. We went then to_the rear platform “Does she ever practice?” I ven- In the shadow and clutch of it—for the YORK'S THEATERS Countess, went on an extended tour i St “Then, baron, may I have a little to thaw out and were immediately be- tured then. sins of his father; Hegina Engatrand, et ity dorein 2 g g o N i 1 of the lady who ta]k with you?” I asked. friended by first one and then another , “Hardly ever. For ten minutes Jllegitimate daughter of Alving, as-ls A suggestive coincidence in con- and distributed right and left good- 1 have said the I wondered afterward. at my cour- member of the company. The ro- sometimes. She sings almost every later shown, with whom Oswald is in nection with the terrible theater fire sized parcels of tea, plum pudding, ned. There was Perhaps it w induced by the tund person whom I had mistaken for day though.” love, a woman of splendid physique in Chicago is the appearance of an turkeys, beef and tobacco. In cases tive of the capi- congruity of the baron’s the baron was admiring the scenery “I wonder—perhaps you can teil me and uncertain morality; Jacob Eng- article in this month’'s Theater Mag- where people were behindhand in arently neg- ! the Craig-y-nos coal-box from Craig-y-nos back door. —if she would be willing to answer a Strand, her supposed father. and Par- azine, entitled “Are Our Theaters their rent Lord Dudley presented gold himself with ope 204 kindling—even as thine and mine! “Very like Rome,” he said hand- few questions. ’ son Manders, who suggests a combined gafe?” Written before the colossal Pieces to help make good the de- - i ates Ay, Certainly,” he bowed, and stood at somely. Then asked: “You saw the “For example?” Pecksniff and Uria Heeb. disaster in Chlcago, the paper deals ficiency. S — tention aron?"” “As to whethér she corialdera ths . The scenes'take place within the nar- syith the safety of the actors and the- ., 1% 00® ivstance & poor waman sob- - AN SctaReate: . TRerity N Yes, but not the baroness. But I present system of teaching singing as Tow walls of a Norwegian cottage, the ater goers in New York in case of fire bingly admitted that the reason she ¢ nterest in the diva’s Then I led the way into the other suppose no one sces hel Pood as it was in her day? Why there Dlay depending wholly for its Interest or panic, the writer's (Harry P. Maw. Dad little or no furniture was that . mine. For ten min- car, my ingenious confrere meantime “No—not I even, sometimes.” ire no more Pattis, Sembrichs, among .upon the somber drama Involving these son) conclusions being the reverse of Picc® DY piece it had gone . to the X sunned her auburn heaq informing the baron of his written-to- “This must be Signor Marini or per- the young singers? five people. Problem play it IS, itS reassuring to the playgoer. Mr. Maw- PAWRehop.-owing to want of work. of Craig-y-nos with fit interview haps Signor Sapio,” I said to myself. “Voices are born,” the signor began. gloom wholly unrelieved, its thrill of gon's facts are startling and grewsome Lord Dudley induced her to show him 8 raken sty I should give Baron Cederstrom Then aloud, er - one talked “And made, too,” I ventured. Dure pain, its people almost wholly re- and before we can thank God our lo- the pawntickets and gave her enough é o e 8 Sele 24" quite the thirty-two years he has been of ‘she'—'she careful of her- “Jenny Lind— " pulsive, yet with a lesson unescapable cal theaters are not ‘as these much MONEY to redeem them. : o 3 credited with. Not more. His thin- self, of cours J=Oh, ves, the brain is a big motive and making powerfully for righteous- i have to- be done: 3 The Earl and the Countess, who maware that nish oval face is dark and smooth but ‘Oh, yes, one must not do this, one : 2 av s v ke Nora 5 2 i ere ' 20 were unknown to the recipients of = 4 > 3 force, but you must have the throat, ness. Mrs. Alving, not like Nora in extract from Mr. Mawson's most timely : s Patti for a small curled must he, his eyes must not do that to sing,” he put it, too. Madame Patti could not help *“The Doll's House,” has stayed with G it their bounty, were both deeply moved by the wretchedness brought under their notice. ——— O —— ' WILL MAKE CORDIALS IN SPAIN Plans Already on Foot to Establish Distilleries for Making Chartreuse. ROME, Jan. 9—As a result of the expulsion of the religious orders from France, the Carthusian menks, whose principal industry at Grenoble was the making of the famous cordial called chartreuse, which brought them an income of nearly, $500,000 a year, have recently bought for $300,000 the an- cient monastery of Farneta, near Lu- cia, including 400 acres of ground. It is their intention to establish t:e head- quarters of the order in this monas- MONKS tery and extensive rep: s and new buildings are contemplated. The manufacture of the famous liqueur, however, which is at present suspended, will be re-established if Spain, where the only Carthusini- monk who is now in possession of? a secret of fabrication has been d&ry with six others to continue the mar facture of the same liqueurs under aut other name, as the old label is the property of the French Government. —_————————— New Crown for the Pope. ROME, Jan. 9.—The Pope has re- ceived the committee organized for the celebration of the jubilee of the immaculate conception and has ex- pressed his gratification at being in- formed that Catholics all over the world will join in the celebration. The Osservatore Romano states that on the occasion of the jubilee a crown of diamonds, obtained by public sub- scription, will be presented to the Pope for the purpose of solemnly crowning the statue of the immacu- late virgin in St. Peter’s. The cost of the crown will be at least $100,000. —_——— Prince Orders Army Disbanded. MONTE CARLO, ' Jan. 9.—The Prince of Monaco is setting an ex- ample in disarmament to Europe. He has ordered that his army of eighty men be disbanded permanently. Their only duties have been to drill once a week and to present arms whenever the Prince happened to come to Mon- aco, and such honors proved too cost- ly. The Prince will allow the men to be employed as crouplers and occupy themselves with roulette balls instead of rifle balls,