The Birmingham age-herald., 1912-05-29

Why Fadettes?" I asked Mrs. Caroline R Nichols, the clever Conductor of the womans Orchestra which is playing an engagement this week round at the Or pheum, when she answered with a merry twinkle in her bright eyes
 ITO make people ask questions"
 "Then I'm IT." confessed. and waited for her explanation. which was very sim pie and easy and quite to the point, name ly. that the organization had taken it's name from the title character of one of George Sands novels. who was spright- ly. music loving young girl, who brought
 light and gladness into the hearts of all with whom she came in contact
 Now. then. I've told it all I do wish could learn how to write a story with out the end coming In the middle. but I just don't seem to know how.
 Of course. always know the story be- fore the paper comes out, and I just nat urally think everybody else does, and then I just go and blurt it out, just like that, and there you are
 | But maybe I'll learn some of these days,
 and that's hoping some" A bit of history:
 In the city of Boston some years ago. or to be more exact. in 1888. a young woman sat breeding over d shattered Idyi. What it was Is not important t was one that comes to many at some time or another, and if the shattering of this particular dream has become com ! monplace, it loses none of its heart- break. Different natures approach difficult problems in various ways.
 Some go around or crawl under, while some stop short and others simply climb over. and once on the other side. never halt.
 With Mrs. Nichols the latter seemed the true method. and she still believes it was the only way.
 The problem of making a living was nat urally the first to be considered. She was far from being i'll equipped for the battle.
 With fund of wit and ability, a nat urally optimistic disposition and pleas ing manner. Mrs. Nichols found herself ready to start out, but what to start on that was the question.
 She could cook, could make a Cherry
  sew and rip and hem, but none of these accomplishments seemed exactly what siie wished to adopt as a profession. She liked music. and was violinst of
 no mean ability, but not sufficiently adept to occupy the center of the stage in that capacity, and she didn't want to teach who does? But she knew a great deal about music 1 Finally 1t dawned upon her that to be fi,e laa6 of ar, orc ,, field for women. one Ettle invaded, and she took to the proposition like wildfre Tie first thing that was to be, done was to organize the Orchestra, and Mrs. Nich- ols decided that it was to be composed en- tirely of women-again an unusual thing. She had many musical girl friends. and it required little time for her to com municate her enthusiasm to them, and the consequence was that an orchestra of six young women was organized and the clear headed young Leader arranged the details started the practicing and soon had the whole thing on a supporting basis. Tn enext thing was to select ia name and The Fadettes were christened With many good wishes from a sympa- thetie number of friends whose name was iegion--and the first engagements began Since then the orchestra has at various times numbered as hish as 50 members oftener 40-and now there are 20 young women. all bright, intelligent. clever and inusicanly. who compose the organiza tion. which is one of the most popular Tn the entire country.
 Mrs Nichols is a very unusual woman in many respects; she is very human a:ove all things; even with her artistic temperament she Is very normal and ve~y much like folks She has keen sense of humor and expresses her ideas quite originally
 She enjoys life to the fullest extent and talks very interestingly on any subject that is suggested.
 These are some of her philosophical iieas on certain Interview questions that Dolly propounded to her: Says Mrs. Nichols: 'I think that every woman, artist or otherwise, should marry if she can SC, tl.e right person and live happily ever afterwards What's the use of women working if they can get somebody to dc it for them?
 T think the most musical instrument.
  Charles street. They will be among the out-of-town guests attending the Weems- Brooks wedding June 9.