one allows the impression to dominate.

There were several young Americans with us with glorious voices,
straight from Jean de Reszke's studio. They were to sing the
_Rheintoechter_, and some of the _Walkueren_ in the "Ring." One or two
were full of ambition and thankful for the experience they were
receiving, while being paid. Some of them, however, showed a quite
extraordinary attitude, not rare among students of the moneyed class.
The air was filled with their complaints at the length of rehearsals, at
the discomfort of the swings for the _Rhinemaidens_, at anything and
everything. I was present one day when one of them called Mr. Percy Pitt
aside and gravely took him to task for not having the swings adjusted to
her comfort--thereby incidentally killing her chances with the
management, for a beginner is before anything a beginner in a great
Opera House, and is supposed to find her level and make no fuss about
it. These girls constantly spoke loftily of their displeasure at the way
things were run. When they were offered an extension of their contracts,
owing to the repetitions of the "Ring," they could hardly be brought to
consider signing on. I said to them, knowing the game, "Girls, some day
you will be on your knees to get such engagements as you now hold. You
have the chance of singing difficult parts with a great Master in a
great Opera House, and you don't seem in the least to realize what that
means."

I regret to say my prophecy was nearly correct, for I think only one, a
really serious girl, has prospered in her career. The attitude one
assumes to one's operatic work in early years is surely reflected later,
and the best advice a student can follow is that given me by
Schumann-Heink, "Sing everything, no matter what they ask you to do."

It was very amusing to hear the discussions as to what the audience
should wear. We gave the performances more or less on the Bayreuth plan,
beginning early and with one unusually long pause. As it was broad
daylight at the hour set for the curtain to go up, and as the perfect
Londoner loathes to be about after dark in anything but evening dress,
the problem bothered many. Besides, evening dress is _de rigueur_ at
Covent Garden. Some rushed home in the longest pause to dress and dine;
some frankly omitted the first acts and came late, splendidly
be-jewelled; some wore evening dresses and kept on their evening coats
till the sun was decently down; and then bared their suit