in enormous bills. But Madame Patti was not to be imposed upon, and
the result was that the amounts melted down considerably under the
gentle influence of the law. The unkindest cut of all was, however,
when a Belgian gentleman, who had amused himself at Craig-y-Nos, who had
fished, shot, and been entertained, but who always managed to be present
during discussions on business, sent in a bill of L3,000 for his
services as agent.

Under the management of Colonel Mapleson, Patti travelled in most
luxurious style. She had a special car which is said to have cost
$65,000, and a whole retinue of servants. At Cheyenne, the legislature
and assembly adjourned and chartered a special car to meet the operatic
train. A military band was at the station, and nearly the whole
population turned out to witness the arrival. Tickets to the opera were
ten dollars each, and there was an audience of 3,000 people.

California seems to have been considered doubtful territory, for Patti
left the question undecided as to whether she would go so far. When she
did arrive it was merely as a visitor, but her delight with the
"heavenly place" was so great that she declared she _must_ sing there.
The necessary delay incurred by sending to Chicago for numerous trunks
containing her wardrobe, gave sufficient time for the excitement in San
Francisco to work up to fever heat. Tickets sold at unheard-of prices,
and more or less damage to property was done in the scramble.

Adelina Patti made her first matrimonial venture in 1868, when she was
united to the Marquis de Caux, an event which did not interfere with her
operatic career, for she filled an engagement of six weeks at Paris, and
then went on to St. Petersburg, where the town opened a subscription
which amounted to 100,000 rubles, and presented her with a diamond
necklace.

In 1885 Madame Patti obtained a divorce from the Marquis de Caux, from
whom she had separated in 1877, and the following year married Ernest
Nicolini, the tenor singer. Nicolini was a man of fine stage presence,
and, for a time, after the retirement of Mario, was considered the best
tenor on the stage. His voice was of moderate power and of pleasing
quality, but his tremolo was, to say the least, extensive. For some
years Madame Patti declined every engagement in which Nicolini was not
included, until the public indignation found vent in many protests.
Signor Nicolini seems to have been a devoted and admiring husband, and
to