The New York herald. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1840-1920, 1863-02-01
Manager Grau - an Example 70 Presi.
dent Linoola.

dent LimOolns
Tomorrow evening Manager Grau again
opens the doors of the Academy'of Music 70 an
expectan, and impatient public. The opera Is
the favorite "Martha,n and Kellogg Morensl,
Brignoli and Susini are the singers. oishor
Muzio resumes his baton and directs the per-
formances. The season will be short ana
sweet. On Wednesday Lorini sings in ives
pres Sicilielnes," and on Friday "Don Giovah-
nj" will be produced. A matinee On Saturday
closes this brief, eventful history; for on The
9th of.February Grau is obliged by contract 10
give opera In Boston. There seems but litt'e
doubt that the season will be most briiiisht
one. Opera Is necessity with our best score
ty, and as The hart panteih after the water
brook 50 do our fashionables long for the de-
lights Of Irving place. Even those who care
nothing for the music find great qualification N
the display of their toilets, and in beholdns
admiring and envying the toilets OF other
people Next 10 purchasing dry goods at
Stewards. there isno feminine pleasure equal to
the exhibition Of dry goods at the Academy q
Music. ...4a<s ~.
Our readers viii remember with what grand
flourish Of trutnpets Manager Grau began his
Season few weeks ago. We were to have
plenty OF splendid revivals, and the new opera,
"Joan OF Arc" was to be produced in advance
Of the Paris and London seasons. This mag
niacehf 6f3gfa5fffSis has mol been carried ont;
but the fault, we are bound to say, does not
rcst at the door of Manager Grau. Brignoli
our favorite tenor, was taken ill, and opera
without Briguoli would be like the play Of
"Hamlet' without the melancholy Dane For
a few nights Manager Grau persisted in at
tempting to please the public without Brignoli;
but failures, substitutions and general dissp-
pointment were the consequence. In fine, Grau,
deprived of his Mcclellan, had met his Frede.
ricksburg, and was forced 10 succumb to ad-
verse circumstances What did he do them
Did he insist upon retaining Maccafelri in Brig
nol's roles? Did he rush fgantcally around
among artists and amateurs, and by changing
his tenor every night endeavor TO find some one
competent to take Brignoli's place? Did he
imperil his reputation and his treasury by at
tempting TO push matters ahead without a
skiiAi leadoal Did he call Lis failure an dc
cident,' and argue that anybody could be
great tenor On the contrary, Grau ceased
Operations entirely until he could recall Brig
noli to the field. The result is, that instead OF
making dismal .fasco Grau will now more
than compensate the public for all previous
disappointment.
In this regard Manager Grau is certainly an
example worthy OF President Lincoln's imita-
ton. Nor is he otherwise in regard to the de-
tails Of his management. Grau has had difficult
ties in his cabinet, as has President lincoln
Grau, like the President, sometimes 1inds some
one of his provinces inclined to be rebellious.
But Grau's policy is frnness and Cancellation.
If one Of his prime donnc refuses to sing the
part he wishes, he either dismisses her or gently
compels her to obey. II Brooklyn or Philadel-
phia demands too much, he puts his foot down
firmly and dsprives the revolutionary city Of
opera until II accepts his terms. All, If Presi-
dent Lincoln had but conducted the war on
these principles, how much trouble and loss of
life and waste of money we should have been
spared But the Presidents Cabinet disagrces
with and revslts against him. and he does not
change it. The abolition States demand eman-
cipation as the price of their loyalty, and the
President reluctantly submits to them. The
army is almost useless without its best general,
and the President refuses to recall him. In
stead Of maintaining The dignity of his high po-
sition the President thus becomes the mere. ser
want Of party of insane fanatics. Suppose
Grau gave opera TO please Greeley and his
gang, and vowed that the general public might
80 to the dogs, how long would Grau be an
inpyessorioy And yet the President i guilty
of tic same error and the most Of tho many
blunders of this war can be traced to this sads
mistake. 1t il question of the greatest inte-
rest TO all concerned whether this sad mistake
is ever to be corrected.
In order to do something towards the solution
OF this question, we propose to the President to
come on to New York this week and take few
lessons in government at the Opera. We will
receive and entertain him most handsomely.
procure him private box, and relieve him Of
the necessity Of 'browsing around" for dinner
by making him welcome at our residence. II
must be plain TO the President, as it is to every
body else, that the country cannot 20 on in this
way much longer. Even poor Greeley, lunatc
as lie is, has sense enough TO see that grand
smash up IL near at hand, and therefore bowls
pteously for peace on the ISL Of May. The
President will find Grau not unlike himself in
amiability, affability and soc liability, and quite
as ready TO enjoy good joke or funny story
though, Of course, not SO capital hand at get
ting of the one or narrating the other. In
short, President Lincoln and Manager Gran
are in many respects kindred spirits, and will
be sure to like each other vastly. We can
imagine their good humored faces beaming
with delighted smiles as they exchange the
compliments Of the season and gradually and
gently glide into the topics of the war and the
Opera. The President will discover that Grau
has in him the elements Of great general, and
Gran will soon be CONVINCED that the President