The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1876-05-15
ELI PERKINS, TRUE STORY.
TIE IIFE AND ADVENTURE OF EN-
ma ABBOTT, THE SINGER.

IondOu-A Grcut thutchs btueNofn'''
In 1854 a poor music teacher with sad
face sat In the Peoria, Illinois, depot consolins
sick wife and group Of restless children. lho
father. hoping to better his condition. hau
left the busy city OF Chicago aud brought his
little flock of helpless children with mum
Among the children was little, bright iour-
ysar-old girl. Thcy called her Emma. inc
uttle thing. surrounded with poverty, sang ana
bummcd and prittieJ, for, Ike her iather' sho
was full Of music. MAJ,
ro,den house ON the bll, and, after Nhilc'
Providence put enough pupils in his way to Keep
poverty from bis door. At nteh; Mr.. ABBOTT
came home tired and DISCOURAGED bat the
warbllngs and happy chatter of little Emma
checrcd him 40.
From her earliest infancy the little child had
taken intense delight In music. A song or an
organ ia the street would draw the little thing
hungry from the table. tou h on a guitar
would set her In ECSTASY. At the age Of six little
Emma had dreams Of s.nging In public. Her
Ideas were very crude, TO be sure for In after
ye ,rs she told the writer that when they read TO
her the stories of actors ana singers on the stage
she Thought thcy meant a cuac anu tuen her
Inf ntile fancy wondered how they could throw
bouquets into st &C coach.
Al ak little Emma was constantly singing
about tho house, catching every tune she heard
her father Law. and at uine. to the surprise uf
every body, she began to plav the guitar herself.
khs became so proficient with the quit n. anu
created 50 much talk among tue neighUors, that
her father tnouglt he would better his cir
cumstances by bringing her out wit her little
bro her George IN a concert in Peoria. he
night came. lhe ltttle thing. not mucn taller
than her gut ~, na1ed and delighted the
audience. Her DEBUT was so successful that her
father resolved TO take her on = concert tour.
his he dil, ana the Guild singer appeared nun
dreds OF times before dcl9hted country au-
dences be ore she was thirteen years old.
AT the oge OF thirteen liit Enmu was invited
to visit some school friends at Mount Pulaski'
not great way from Peori. while there.
knowing the poverty Of her father aud wishing
10 surprise man with money earned entirely by
her,eli, she resolved 10 get w concert on her
own hook she vent To the Pulaski printing
Office In snort dresses. got trusted tor her own
handOiils. aud then went and posted them
around town herself. On one OF these hand
bill, nov before me Is printed;
s.ss AoOOtt viii sing TIA Merry Swiss Girl" a
chorus
The little thing didn't know what a chorus
meant, hut it looked nice. and 30 STE had ,t
nut on the bill. She drew quite house took
IN SO, and took s. nome TO her mother. Her
father now becoming sick ana discour ged. lit
tie Emma went down TO Lincoln, sang IN a
school house, nd then came home 10 give guitar
lessons at twenty cents per lesson 10 pay her
own tuition in select school.
AT fifteen little Emma secured class OF
mothers house. Ga sundays sue san. in the
Hebrew synlgogue--a klni Old rabOt, VI lrX
Moses, to .ching her to pronounce In Hebrew
and Gsrtnan.
THE FIRST DISTRICT SCHOOL.
The suring OF her sixteenth birthday found
Emua's iather poorer than ever before ana the
futile woman, to help her mother, tried to Sc
cure a clerksnip In store but failed. She saw
her father sick and cuuraged, her mother
sick and orotners and sisters hungry. In tho
midst OF her great distress she heard of a school
nIne miles from Peoria which needed a teacher.
1nlther sue vent ON foot through the mud and
slush. She found the principal trustee, "a KIND
old III n, at dinner.
what do you want, my little woman ?" asked
the old farmer, as he LAID uown bis KNIFE aud
fork to survey our little heroine.
~ live in Peoria, cir, and I've Walked"
~ natl walked, cnlluf Wall k-e- J. Inter
rupted the oil man In establishment"
Yes, sir and want 10 teach your school;
"M ell, 1 declare Is (, my child, there are nf-
teen applications IN ahead Of yours.
but don't think tbat my OF them need II
as bad as do" said Emma
mo, and YOU are the smartest-lookin one In
the whole lot, ana as LUCKY as Juiius Caesar.
Have you got your certificate
NJ, sir 4; flltercd Emma.
"M ell. my Girl, II you've walked nine miles
throIsn tnIs mud and slush you'ii do TO teach
sen ipl for me. sit up aud nave some dinner
En-. ma commenced the scnoOl the next week,
won the RESPECT Of the pAren.s aud tue io'e Of
to her mother In Peoria.
father, gave her first large CONFER. IL peon4.
Quite a number OF amateurs assisted her, NOu.e
Ii ia was filled, the people cneereu, ana ner poor
fatnci aud mother received $lOO. lhi- Was IL
used " uer latuer and mOtaet except ~. Nith
TINS amount III ner hand, she lett ne. i"tnei 7lcs
at nome md started Tor Rock leland, 10 v.sit a
acSucer, in Ruck l-land. sue found her young
lauy trend absent and neF money uwndied 10
"What susil do ?" she said to herself. almost
disheaTteneU. Ineu new Thought seIzeu uer
Sue remembered her father had once taught
music In family Of tue name OF Deer, VINO
lived over the hIssi ssipyl ilver Ia Moline. Mr..
Deer will surely htlp me, she SAID, land Will
get up concert there.
zen cents took Emma 10 Moline, but Mr.. Deer
was aOseut. mrs Deer, a crOtchety-faceI Old
woman, was very cross. one looked iDsinuat-
tngly at Emma, and sad:
~" don't know wnat a pretty young woman
like you wants Of NY husband guess he hint
time 10 Tool away getting concerts.
Just thcn Miss Abbott sped tue piano, aud
asAvd ii she uignt play something. Ia no-
neut she was warUling u sweet sUng. The old
woman listened, then cropped her dishes,
wiped ner hands on her apron, ana came and
looked over her glasses IN astOnisnment Just
tuen Nj. Deer entered.
" By Joye, MaIiid THAT'S nice slngin'," he ex-
claimed. WHO'S dom II =
-" ny name is Enma. Emma Abbott, sir.
batner used 20 teach"
" thunder, yes J remehb Mr.. ABBOTT, but
what re YOU d9in' hereS What"
We'll. p, aud ma are very poor now, and I've
come here TO see II you'd nelp me get up con-
"nelp your Why OF course Will. You shall
hAyf our church. You're brave girl, nj wen
AnG sac did II We II. She got her bill printed
wnt a. una ersonally and announced tne con.
eerl In tue sch YOls and tne house was cIowued.
~ ~ an awful warm ni.nt, Mr.. Perkins" SAID
Nj +u.'tt, W.cn she iaugningly tod me the
storl ESQ lot that my quit T was out Of tune,
hu4 sac -.r.ngs broke six times dunng he even
~. WLeu l meuded them, the Audience
l'u-hed aud cneercd me. lney called me Dack
d..'u times, ana when | gOt through they
Wdi.cA me u rrpedt the nexi night"
I.c Tex uisht Miss Abbot SAM az in, and,
a. 'Ne end OF week, she Returned TO Peoria
"" SlV 'h e 'ah when sne showed ner money,
Lci .uisuru mother uell ~ her hands, aud,
w." ~ and sadness IN str -nge combination,
""u, T. ma, hope you haven't been robbing
soueooul
STRUGGLES WITH POVERTY.
Little Emma was now past sixteen years old.
~ -if or father aud mother getting poorer
WV AhY size eN shs mai talents, iul she