The Fargo forum and daily republican. [volume] (Fargo, N.D.) 1894-1957, 1912-02-17


Forum: The Gamut club is Los An
geles exclusive musical, artistic and
literary organization and 1t numbers
several hundred of the w~orshipers at
the shrine of the muses. out in this
borderland of the southwestern United
States. 1t, has a rather pretentious
club ediice. with spacious and richly
furnished and ornamented reception
rooms, parlors, banquet hall and audi
%toriunn, and best of all, its membership
is rich with that spirit of kindness.
cleverness and good fellowship that
shall eventually redeem the world.
Every month the club holds an ,,open
session and banquet, at which aistin-
guished visitors are entertained and
there is a programme following the
banquet OF the best each one has to
offer. Necessarily it is a delightful
function, bringing out the personal
side Of ali kinds Of artistry and round
ing out a programme that would be inn
possible under any other circum-
stances.
Last night, through the kindly in
vitation of President blanchard OF the
club and Miss Elizabeth Waggoner,
who numbers many friends among its
membership, we were invited to be of
the honored guests at the monthly
meeting, and were especially fortunate
in being present at perhaps the most
unusual and delightful gatherings that
has been held by the club in many
months. First, Madame Schuman-
Heinik was among the guests and
graced the table at which the guests
of honor were seated, radiant with that
wholesouled and womanIy smile that
has earned her such a high place in
the affections of the people of the
country for her genuine womanliness
in addition to her remarkable artistry
She beams with kindness and good
nature, and above all her wonderful
singing she carries with her a message
of love and humanity that enobles and
beauties her work with the spirit OF
b~enevolence and human charity. We
met her in the paflors before the BAN
quet was spread, and her greeting vas
kind and friendly as the heart of the
woman is. She has a winter place in
California and is popular here person
ally, as was evident from the ovation
of applause when she led the march
4 " ooC2NS INV NAS OGIAAQ0ON Au~AA 49,
after the banquet when she was called
upon for a bit OF talk, the ~benevolence
that fairly beamed from her counte-
nance when, in her quaint broken
English she said, rising and smiling
over the banquet tables: Zach, my
English is so bad, but / mean it SO
goot!'. What a round of laughter and
applause there was, and how every
diner seemed to read what was in her
mind, and what she would have said,
had she had the words to express the
meaing Of that sweet and benevolent
smile. And then she sang a little
German melody that fairly dripped
with sweetness and restfulness, and
made you wonder what a heavenly
gift is that voice of hers, that flows
out so full and sweet and round, and
lifts you way above the things that
are commonplace.
And Cissie Lotus was there, too, a
few chairs from Madame Schuman-
Heink, and when she was called upon
to say a few words, she was perhaps
the victim of an embarrassment that
never touches her when she is doing
her wonderfully clever limitations on
the stage. For she looked about in a
frightened way, looked appealingly at
the master of the ceremonies who sat
by her side, and the said: Speech!
My gracious, l e. made a speech in
my life And / am inclined to think
she never did make one that was not a
part of her studied performances. But
she did an imitation of Caruso and
one Of Bernhard, both ~undeniaoly
clever, and indicated her mastery Of
the art of mimicry. In her Bernhardt,
ane might believe It vas the divine
Sarah herself, for she has he voice,
her gestures, her language, all her
little tricks Of expression, and her
figure and bearing. Mimicry is a
wonderful thing, but after all, it isn't
creation-as you would understand
had you seen how helpless Cissie was
when she was called Upon for a few
words OF original speech. She simply
didn't have 1t in her-that is all. But
she gets a thousand a week-easily
that and maybe more-for acting like
other distinguished p~eople-and prob
ably that's art, after all. It's art TO
get a thousand a week, anyway,
Well, in addition to us other dis
tinguished guests-~they didn't have to
prove my Distinction admitted IT.
there was about Twenty-Five grand
opera stars of a French grand opera
company that has been waking the
echoes about here for q week, and they
did songs singly, in pairs, trios, quar-
tettes and ensembles. ] v was
much for the undfluted grand opera
stuff myself, but there are those who
love it. or say they do. and their en-
thusiasm ran riot while the silences
were broken, never to be repaired, II
seemed to me. There were sopranos,
tenors, ~contraltos. mezzos, baritones,
Ibassos, and all the various tones and
saadings that are accomplished by the
human voice, and with the oldest and
weirdest personalities thrown In that
YOU ever looked upon in n aggrega-
ton. They talked little English. and
AZ I understood no French, the words
were wasted on me, but the noise was
understandable IN any language. II
war splendid-if you liked the grand
opera stuff. Occasionally n OF them
hit upon a fragment Of q tune. but not