The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1906-10-19
Madame Patti.


made that Patti, whom her admirers
acclaim 1.-THE diva of the world" is
about to retire, to take her farewell
of the concert room. it is instantly
met with an incredulous smile. There
Is an inclination also to illustrate the
smile by retelling the fable of the
boy and the wolf. But this time, as
surance comes from England, the
great soprano really intends to retire
from public life. No day has been de-
cided upon, but the present pro-
gramme names December as the
month and London as the place
where one of the greatest sonstresses
Of her time will be heard-at fab
the last time by generous public.
Now, this allusion to generous
public is not sentimental common
place or a trite bit of persifage.
Thousands of persons in both hemis-
pheres have heard the diva sing and
they have paid millions of dollars for
the privilege. A rough and perhaps
inadequate estimate of PATHS earn
ings during the last half century cred
its her with having realized about
3,50O,OO0. In this connection it is
significant 10 note that the soprano
has not been heard in public every
year and in the United States not at
all during one stretch of two decades.
In her school OF singing Patti con-
cededly takes first place, however
critics may re gard that school as CON-
pared with the German. AS profit
her. The money, jewels, presents and
honors showered upon her in three
continents have been prodigious. No
singer has, like Patti, ever magne-
tized, as it were, whole communities
unless Jenny Lind be. the exception
for one or two brief whirlwind pas
sages through this country and Eu-
rope. But when the homage paid the
Swedish nightingale and that paid
Patti are compared in the box office,
the little Italian girl, born in Spain
reared in the United States, and
to have surpassed all records.
Daughter Of Fine Singers.
Adelina Patti was the daughter OF
two excellent singers, the tenor Pat
ii and Catarina Barili, whom Richard
Grant White characterized as prima
donna of the old school and one of
the finest singers in the grand style
in her day in southern Europe. The
same critic remarks that Patti is the
musical daughter of her father rath'
er than of her mother. In other
words, she lacked the large manner,
just as her father did. "Her method"
White says in. his History of the
Opera in New York" lis perfect al
most beyond criticism; she is bril-
liant, she is exquisitely delicate in
finish, but she is little. 1t may be
said of her as Pasta said Of Sontag:
She is the best of her school, but her
school is not the best" He also
found her voice lacking largeness,
power, nobility and sympathy. But
this was his opinion after having
heard Patti in 1s59-60, although it was
written in 1881. AS matter of fact,
the diva had in the intervening two
decades improved and mellowed. At
that time she excelled In quality,
range, purity of tone and in execution,
and as an actress was probably
unequaled on the operate stage. .
sympathies Cosmopolitan.
81, Although she was born in Madpfd
and raised in New York, Patti has al
ways been an Italian. She speaks
Italian, French, Spanish, German,
Russian and English-no small &C
complishment in itself. The Italian
tongue is her favorite. Once In de-
scribing her cosmopolitan sympathies
she remarked: Il love the Italian
language, the American people, the
English country and my Welsh home"
Born in 1S43, Patti came with her
parents, her half-brothers and her
sisters to New York while she was
still a very little girl. Even then she
had a remarkable voice. 1t was
about this time Richard Grant White
first saw her. He described her as
"a slender, swarthy, bright-eyed little
girl in short skirts, who ran into the
room and chirped at her mother,
and ran out Of IT, ccrcliag as she
wont through the passageWay." He