Los Angeles daily herald., 1886-12-26

Emma had failures, utIer ana ulsnearu-
eninp failures, and more than once was
Obliged to pawn her few trinkets, her
concert dress and even her precious
inanimate companion
of her wanderings, which she yet loved
and fondled and talked to and lavished
tender care upon. One sad time, when
she had nothing to pledge, she cut off
her long, fair hair and sold it for food.
Here and there she was helped up the
"Hill Difficulty" and out Of the 'Slough
Despond" by generous strangers--her
earnest, frank face always inspiring con-
idence in some unspoiled nature and her
rare sympathetic voice always reaching
some good heart.
SAD JOURNEY.
All alone, Miss Abbott once sung her
way to New York to hear Parepa.
More than once she went hungry and
cold, more than once her more than
manly courage failed her, for little
while her devout faith gave way, and,
lonely and forlorn, she felt like folding
her tired hands over her poor bankrupt
heart" and sobbing herself into the long
sleep. The lowest ebb of fortune and
courage found her Toledo, o. lin, think,
the winter of 1870. So desperate were
her affairs, that for the first time the
wild thought of suicide came TO tempt
her. Looking out upon the great lake,
the struggling, never-resting, ever moan.
ing waves seemed to invite her to cease
struggling and sighing and to sink to
rest and silence in their blue depths.
T,,st thap - tho ,,iJct rs bar ,,arnlax.
tiles and her profound discouragement,
God, that God who watches over the
little wild song. bird as well as the spar
row, intervened to rescue and save her
if not by miracle, by beautiful in
spiraton, breathed into the heart of u
gifted woman. Clara Louise Kellogg,
then in the first glow of her power and
fame, heard the poor obscure wanderer
sing and decided at once to be her
sponsor and benefactress. Miss Abbott
went to New York and became the pupil
of Ernani.
sTANCH FRIENDS.
Then came piece of deserved good
fortune in the position of soprano i'll DIR.
Chapn's church and among the friends
she won while there was the great
hearted Horace Greeley, whom no bad
weather conld keep away from religious
services, for as he once said to the
young singer on rainy Sunday, 'If
DIR. Chaplin in the pulpit and you in the
choir can't make sunshine, who CAM
Here she made fine reputation and
many warm friends, among whom were
George G. Lake, Mrs. George Hoffman,
c. p. Huntington and others, who re-
cognized in the struggles and hardships
through which the young girl had
passed, in her devotion to truth and
honesty, and in her triumph over OBJ
stacles by patience and perseverance, the
same elements of character which had
formed the solid foundation of their own
success and calling her ''Honest little
Emma" gave the wheel of fortune
brisk turn in her favor. With others of
DIR. .Chapin's congregation he offered to
send her abroad to complete her musical
studies.
After brief tour through France and
Switzerland Miss Abbott hastened to
Italy and beg an her studies with great
ardor under Maestro San Giovanni.
Sleepless nights and overwork, however,
soon told upon her health to an alarm
ing extent and one morning she found
her superb voice had left her.
MELANCHOLY THOUGHTS.
Days, weeks. months rolled by with
out change. One dreary night, seated
at the window of her little room, an in
describable feeling of melancholy over
came the young girl. A year ago that
very night she remembered being pres.
ent at the last birthday celebration of
her noble friend Horace Greeley. EN-
mas thoughts dwelt on the grand old
man, who mad passed away during her
absence; and as she contrasted the bril-
liant prophecies made for her that night
with the bitter present, great tears
coursed down her cheeks, and throwing
herself on her knees, she prayed with all
the fervor of believing soul that her
voice might be given back to her. Ris-
ing more calm, she pressed her hand
against her throbbing heart, parted her
lips for one more effort, and was shaken
to the soul when she heard her voice,
pure, beautiful and powerful as ever
ring out in the notes of "Auld Lang
Syne." That night q hopeful and happy
girl slept on the shores of the Mediter-
ranean. Without losing any time, and
under the advice OF Christine Nilsson,
Emma at once proceeded to Paris and
commenced vigorous course of study
under the renowned Wartel for vocaliza-
tion, at the same time having six other
masters in the study of operas, fencing,
drumming, French and Italian, and in
acting at the Conservatoire and Opera
Comique, where she obtained the unus.
ual advantages which developed her ex-
traordinary dramatic talent. So year
went by, and in all these lessons from
expensive masters much money went
also, and just as the enthusiastic young
student was sadly feeling that art was
long and francs were fleeing, and that
she would be obliged to stop far short of
the last finishing lessons of her exacting
master, she made the acquaintance OF a
noble and generous woman, the Baron
ess Solomon de Rothschild.
A GENEROUS WOMAN.
Her introduction to this celebrated
lady is worth recording if only to show
how Emma Abbott's genuine kindness
of heart and simplicity won the great as
well as the lowly. She was invited TO
a dinner to meet party of distinguished
Americans. They were pining for a
breath from their native land, and she
was urged to sing "Home, Sweet Home, !"
which she did with that pathos and
feeling that has touched the hearts of
thousands of delighted listeners since.
Among the guests was an intimate friend
of the Baroness, who was so charmed
that she hastened to tell her of this
wonderfully gifted young girl. The Ba
roness at once invited Emma to visit her
at her princely villa. Being herself a
connoisseur in music she asked the
young girl to sing, and then, delighted
with her efforts and deeply interested in
the story of her heroic struggles, entered
into an agreement that the little strang.
er should visit her once a month and
sing, for which she would be only too
happy to pay her 1000 francs each time