The Hickman courier. [volume] (Hickman, Ky.) 1859-current, 1878-06-07
THE RIVALS WREATH.
4 startling Scene that AOrrIned nm ItaI-
Ian Audience.


At length the night came. and all Ma
pies crowded TO the opera to hear Gam
brica, the most powerful, the most gift
ed, the most renowned and dazzling cam
tatrice that had ever ravished heart,
senses and breath from the fiery-souled
inhabitants OF that celebrated city. The
enthusiasm of the Neapolitans for music
under any circumstances is inconceiva-
bic TO the people of a colder climate, but
Gambrica had excited it beyond itself.
Her figure, large symmetrical and COM
handing, recalled Cleopatra or Juno.
Her features were sweet and noble. Her
eyes endowed with the power of music,
carried with glance the highest emotions
of poetry and music. The public wor-
/ shipped her. She was an empress--a god.
| dess. 1t was curious to witness the
/ tempest of delight which involved the
assembly and overwhelmed the perform
ances in a chaos of frantic acclamations
Gambrica was an italian. With her
first breath she had inhaled fire from the
! sun. Had she been born in Nova
! Zembia, that bosom had held s. heart of
| passion. Enthusiasm for good or evil
would have been her leading quality.
Had she been bred in the cell of a CON
vent her vestal veins would still have ruu
fire. Education might have modified
| her impetu0us disposition; it could not
have chilled it utterly. But
her education The air of the
north has never cooled her
/ blood. She knew not the awful solemnity
of solitude. She had always lived in the
glare of public observation and GuAffed
/ the Intoxicating draught of applause
| 1t had become TO her a necessary alimen.
"a vent-a demand Of her nature.
/ Without II she would have faded as
rose without light. 1t was her air-her
sunshine. For years she had been the
most potent attraction in her fairy
/ theatrical world. In infancy she danced
! like fairy or hoated "a an angel amid
murmurs of delight. AS time ripened
her form and touched it with the fasci-
mating graces of girlhOod she had daZzled
mortal eyes as sylph, naiad or princess,
/ and at length, years rolling like summer
/ hours over the rose had only expanded it
( into q greater loveliness, had only awaken
/ ed new and more dangerous power, she
/ had gueened it as If indeed veritable
/ enchantress. Aided by all the magic of
/ poetry, painting, music and romance
/ now amid the gorgeous story of Oriental
K lands, now leading on the warm dreams
of the burning south, now spell>bound in
the far-gone days OF Arabian tab!e-tO
I the sober inhabitants OF the outer earth
! she was only known rs the heOrine OF
those magnificent phautasmagoTia. AdOr-
I ing fame and dwelling amid its beams as
| the eagle near the sun, she had little
( sympathy with or knowledge of the COM
mon earth. Wealth was gathered by her
as though il Aosted in the streams. She
/ scarcely knew ambition, for she was on
| the "topmost round"
The world was below her. mankind at
| her feet, and at the sound of her voice
Z they bent, or rose like the sea beneath the
/ trident of its monarch.
She was the embodied dream Of the
/ poet she became, in turn, each passion ::
/ she was the priesteSs of nature. a creature
half earthly, half divine.
He who had not seen Gdmbrics hal
seen nothing He who had not heard
I her had not lived.
il was a bright lie that she led her
I simple appearance forever greeted by
( thousands and Thousands wish rapture.
her rising upon nations like that OF Au-
rOra, whose approach chsses the shadows
and OveTspreads the sky with rosy light
Upon this night, after a long absence,
she was to appear ia heI best part. The
Neapolitans attended, for g thousandth
time, to enjoy the wonders snd witness
the triumph of their queen OF song.
The second part of the piece was in
trusted to a young girl who had trem-
blingly venuured TO make her debut upon
this evening. Her simple and sweet
taste, the quality, extent and power of
her voice, had more than once gained a
word of condescending encouragement
from the despOtic mist ess eff song She
did not come on until after the entrance
of Gambrics, by whom, as well is by the
audience, her unpretending efforts, her
unpronouncsd name, had been unnoticed
But scarcely had she appeared when 8
murmur of applause ran through the
audience. Nothing more unlike Gam
brica could be imagined; vet so soft,
ingenious, modest and spiyItUellc were her
air, shape and cJuntenance, and so Won
deriul Vas the impression created by her
appearance, confirmed aud deepened by
her voice and grace, that, as If by pre-
concert, IN audible and universal Who
is she ?" was heard, and a general stir
from all parts of the house. As though
afraid to give utterance TO their emotions
in the usual manner, the audience
remained for some moments IN a kind of
suspense, looking 10 behold a heavenly
yisitSnt utter some tone or make
some motion 10 relink her IN
their minds with their associations OF
earth. She proceeded, however, in her
part; she gave few Introductory pass
ages In the same new and exquisite
manner, till ut the end of brilliant and
most difficult solo, executed with q taste,
ease, simplicity and power not excelled,
not equalled by Gambrica herself, a
startled I" Bravo 20 /" Bravo - uttered in
the tone of one carried away by rapture,
broke the spell of silence and shook the
house. The performance was stopped,
the audience rose in a body: handker-
chiefs, gloves, hats waved in the mir
from the high dome 10 the ieet of the
lovely being, herself sstonished at the
tumult she had raised. Gsmbrica, rom
the green room, heard these ominous
sounds and felt the boards tremble under
{ Der feet She fastened forth, and from
an uDcbaeTved retreat beheld the sight
blasting view Of a rival, potent with all
the spells OF grace. youth. beauty
genius-Taised ike Venus fuli-formed
from the deep. mounted upon her
pedestal, waving her wand, and welding.
with hand yesterday feeble and un-
known, all her thunders From the lips
of the hundreds, too, she heard undis.
guised raptures, sanctioning, leading on
the triumph of this new and all
Respondent enemy. Her ears rung with
the continual and simultaneous peals.
Each one seemed g bolt directed at her
own bead. Her breath failed, the
strength forsook her limbs, rage and
despair seized her bosom, paralyzed
her efforts and painted themselves
on her countenance. It happened that
the piece represented tale not unlike
the reality of these interests and emo
tions which were thus brought into sc.
ton, and that the two competitors before !
the audience bore roles which gave a |
fatal illustration Of the downfall of long, !
successful ambition before the rising of n 1
purer and lovelier star.
Marina gained each moment In the |
esteem of the audience. The very dissimi- |
ilitude between her and Gambrica gave an
impetus to her success. For the fret
lime the world discovered that nature
had other gems than those which they
lsd worn to the exclusion of all Others,
md, with the caprice for which they are
they were prepared in an In
tant to throw aside that of which they
became weary. After Gambrica, Marina
pleased by the force of novelty and con-
rast