The Worthington advance. [volume] (Worthington, Minn.) 1874-1908, 1906-10-19
asked her mother. Nine. Barili.Pat


if the little girl promised to be !. 8
singer like her sisters. and for an
swer the child. sitting on the knee
of the critic, sang little Italian all
with a naivete and charm which left
an impression he never forgot. = She
was only seven years old when, in
1850, she appeared before the public
for the first time. IA
During the last Is years Patti has
never sung in public for less than
$1,000 night, paid in advance. One
matinee concert in Boston Melted her
$685., and her share for three per-
formances in one week was $20,895.
No story of PATHS career is complete
without reference to the financial
side. Her story is one Balzac would
have delighted to have written. be-
cause it deals SO largely with vast
sums of money. But in his day it
would have been difficult for even his
lively imagination to conceive of q
singer actually acquiring by her voice
so great sum as s3,5OO,OO0. He
would have felt it an exaggeration, so
obvious as to be impossible, even to-
a fictionist. vi
First Regular Appearance.
Patti made her first regular ap-
pearance on the stage as Lucia in
Donizetti's opera, in New York, on
November "a, 1858. She was then
only 16 years old. Her voice at that
time was described as flutelike,
flexible soprano, which she delivered
with purity and managed with great
skill and taste. Her capabilities were
at once recognized and the great fu-
ture promised her by her critics has
been amply fulfilled. l.,
King Edward VII, as prince of
Wales, always one of her most de-
voted admirers, first heard her sing
in the Academy of Music, in this city
in the fall of 1860. The opera was
Martha" and the young prince was
charmed The next year she went to
England and made her London debut
as Amina in LA Sonnambula" at Con-
vent garden theater. After that met
tropolitan appearance the young So
pran's fame was assured. The next
morning all Europe rang with praises
for the9new prima donna from Amer
lea. For the next 20 years she re-
manned abroad, singing in England,
France and Russia.
Adventures in Matrimony.
While abroad Patti made her first
matrimonial venture. In 1868 she
was married to the marquis de Caux,
but continued her operate career.
She took st. Petersburg by storm and
the Russians took up subscription
and presented her with diamond
necklace. She purchased her mag
nificent estate in Wales, Craig-y-Nos
IN 1878 after she separated from the
marquis. She obtained divorce in
1885, and the following year married
Ernest Nicolini, the tenor singer,
whose very pleasant voice was much
marred by an insistent tremolo. Mic.
olini died in January, 1898, and in
January, 1899, Nine. Patti made her
third venture in matrimony, this time
being united to Baron Cederstrom, a
young Swedish nobleman who had be-
come a naturalized Englishman and
whose years at that time were exact
" half those of his bride.
PATHS castle at Craig-y-Nos is one
of the show places. in Wales. The
house and grounds were fitted without
reference to expense. A private the
alter is one Of. the interesting apart
ments in the castle, and there the
great soprano has been heard to sing
even comic songs for the entertain
ment of her guests. To see Patti at
home is to see the generous side of
her character; to see her demanding
$4,000 for public appearance is to
see her undoubted business side.
The great diva's voice has been
kindly used by time. One reason for
the fact that it has remained with her
so long is her lifelong habit-not to
sing when she is tired. Consequently,
as she has aptly put it, she is never
tired when she sings and no abnor-
NAL strain is put upon her vocal
cords. She is no believer in diet,
but never eats or drinks any food that
is either too hot or too cold and she
has always been careful to avoid in.
digestion, which, she claims, has per-
,oofuro1v r,1inod MANY sinpin0 vOicoa