Wheeling Sunday register. [volume] (Wheeling, W. Va.) 1882-1934, 1901-06-09
NEW GAME IN MUSIC.

\ nave Just witnessed an amazing ex-1
ample OF Western push she said.
About half In hour ago the maid
brought up the card Of a woman whol
was a total stranger to me. / was busy
at the time, but thinking her errand
might be important. | went down to see
her. She was a nice looking girl, with
Energy written in capital letters from
the topmost flower in her new spring
hat to the tips OF her shoes. No sooner
had 1 said How do than she sailed
into me. full tilt.
II see by the papers, she said, that
you are advertised to sing at the ben
eht concert tomorrow night, and I
would like to know if anything has
come up. or is likely to come up, that
will prevent you from filling your en-.
gagement.
Her virile attack nearly fioored me
No. said /. with some asperity. I am
perfectly well and apparently in good
voice, and | expect to sing according
to programme
The girl sighed. Il didn't know
she said, but what you might be in
disposed. OF course. I'm glad you're
all right, and | hope you will pardon
my ~audaeity in asking such personal
questions, but there was no other way
Of finding out
why did you want to know
Well said the girl, If there had
been anything the matter with you I
was going to ask you to let me act as
your substitute. You know yourself,
being in the business, that popular
singers are given to taking sick at a
minutes notice, and / didn't know
whether you We're an exception or not.
Under these circumstances the manage
ment is otter hard put to it to find an
acceptable substitutes. Not but what
there are plenty of good singers who
are capable of filling the vacant places.
The difficulty is that those singers are
all unknown, and nobody ever thinks
of giving them a trial.
when | came on here early in the
season 1 sized up that phase OF the sit
uation at a glance. d saw scores OF
girls eating their very hearts out-and
it was about all they had to eat. poor
things-waiting for appreciation from
audiences they never got a chance to
sing before, and made up my mind
that il Western grit was worth any
thing at all 1t was worth enough to
keep me from becoming such a nom
entity. So | just mustered up all my
pluck and commenced a campaign OF
my own.
".All winter | have been watching
musical programmes, big and little, like
a hawk, and / have visited all the con-
troltos just as I have come to you, and
asked to be allowed to Sub for them
in case they should be suddenly inca
pacitated for duty
"'Have you profted by you novel
scheme?' r asked.
ITO he sure 4 have said the girl.
I've sung IS times this winter, count
ing in church soeials and all. Some
times | got paid for my work, but more
often | did not. But ] didn't worry
much about the financial end of the
arrangement, for | was making myself
known to musicians generally, and
expect to reap my reward hereafter
not in the remote hereafter twenty or
thirty years away, but next season.
There were several factors that worked
together to bring about my success as
a substitute.
Sometimes they took me because
they couldn't pick up anybody else on
such short notice; again, the ailing
singer insisted upon me as a substitute
because she could thus prevent a pro-
fessional enemy from filing her place.
Again. Il have served as understudy Tor
people who accepted engagements after
noon. but having started out on that
task last fall, / thought I'd continue
TO .he end of the season."