The Birmingham age-herald., 1921-08-03

| thinner, doffed his hat in acknowl- edgement of the greetings of the crowd.
 Police reserves and dock guards had great difficulty in holding in check a great crowd of admirers as i they greeted Caruso when he went | aboard the steamship, where his most intimate friends bade him and Mrs. Caruso farewell.
 Planned Return in Fall ! When Caruso left for Italy he ap- , peared confident that he would re- | turn to America next fall and again take his place with the Metropolitan l Opera company.
 l Shortly, however, after the tenor had arrived in Italy reports began to | drift back to this country that he would not sing again before the 1 American public in his old voice. Caruso, however. immediately cabled denial of these reports, declaring that when I want to show l have not lost my voice, I will do so at the proper time and place.
 Early this month word came from | Italy that Caruso was not recovering as rapidly as had been expected, and | seemed depressed, but friends de- clared his voice was returning ana | that he sang a snort tune CdSu oaJ
 Reports reaching Rome at this ] time stated that Caruso would be able to sing in New York by next winter, though friends reluctantly admitted it will never be quite the same again" Caruso was also reported to | be living a secluded life in a hotel near Naples, never mixing with the | other hotel guests and taking his meals in his private suite.
 | News of Caruso's death on the | heels of continued reassuring reports | from Italy came as stunning shock to the music loving world. Only last i Sunday photographs of the singer in Italy were published here and they showed him cheerful and apparently l in robust health.
 His friends here recalled today that l when he was seriously ilI~Iast win ter, he often expressed the wish that if he had to die he would prefer to die in his own sunny Italy for which he always held a deep affection.
 Series of Mishaps
 The breakdown in the tenor s i health last winter followed a series of mishaps to Caruso which culmi- when he burst a blood vessel while | Academy of Music.
 His performance on that occasion was gallant, he struggled through the whole first act, although time i and again blood choked his voice and every now and then he was forced to | change a reddened handkerchief for another deftly slipped to him by some 1 member of the chorus.
 Those in the front rows soon be- | came aware of the singers danger and applauded the daring fight in which time after time the golden voice rose superior to the obstacle that threatened to muffle It. It was not until the combined demands of his wife, almost frantic in the wings and the pleas of his physician had been joined. that Caruso finally con sented to abandon the stage.
 A few days before the mishap in Brooklyn Caruso slightly strained a muscle when he stumbled and plunged into part of the stage set tings at the Metropolitan Opera house during a performance of "Il Pagliacci.' There was long delay between the first and second scenes during which Caruso rested and re- gained composure
 After his accident in Brooklyn ev- cry effort was made to minimize that 1 mishap and to assure the public that Caruso soon would sing again. He did sing again his last public appear | ance being at the Metropolitan on | Christmas Eve last in the role of Elcazar ip La Juive.'' He was wei l comed back with an ovation such as only an enthusiastic Metropolitan | audience could make.
 Operagoers that night felt reas- sured that all was well with the ] glorious voice of their favorite. but on the day after Christmas came the announcement that Caruso had been stricken with pleurisy.