The Washington times., 1922-08-12

real story of the love match be-
tiosen Mccormick and Nine.
Gamma Wdlskd as told BY Nc
Cormick himself.
NarvGted by its principal figure,
IL is story Of a man Of great
,Dealth, stOayed by Love, Uho gaze
rp one of Anericu's industrial
positions and stripped himself of a
large part Of his huge fortune In
order to make net0 marriage
With the tOonsdn of his choice.
It is a remarkable narrative OF
what a man wiu do for love.
BY JOHN X. wINKLER.
(copyrirht, lsaa. by Univc rssl service.)
NEW YORK, Aug. 12.-on a
golden summer afternoon re-
Gently, man Of middle age,
ruddy, sturdy, humor and good
will overwhelming the occasional
perplexed look in his light col
ored eyes, sat in a secluded cor
ner of the st. Regis Hotel and
told me the story of his romance
with Gamma Walska Cochran, per-
haps the most widely advertised
woman in the world.
The One Only Woman.
The man was Harold F. McCQr-
mick. former president OF the Inter.
national Harvester Company. and
son-in-law OF John ID. Rockefeller.
With the simple directness OF a child
he said:
Mime. WaIska is the only woman
in the world for me. She loves me
as deeply as l love her. My mar
riage to Mrs. Mccormick was a love
match, pure and simple. Both OF us
were then In our twenties. Now we
have been separated irrevocably.
Mime. Walska. who married Alex
Cochran almost through an-accident.
also soon will be free to marry me" "
Mr.. Mccormick revealed how
chance dictated his acquaintance
with walska. and how indirectly he
was responsible for her courtship by
Cochran. He explained:
I'm the early summer Of 1920 was
at the Plaza intending to sail for
Europe shortly. One afternoon a
telephone call came to me. A
woman's voice. a voice of glorious
timbre and beauty. spoke my name.
my caller was Mrs. Gamma Walska
Fraenkel, widow OF Dr. Fraenkel.
who had died a short time before.
She told me she was a singer and
had heard Of my connection with the
Chicago Opera Company. She said
Il was the ambition of her life to do
n fy,u
Would / give her a chancef
II told her in my experience OF
many, many years with the Chicago
Opera Company / had never asked
favor OF this sort. Nevertheless, I
was so touched with the sincerity Of
her apparent ambition that l ar
ranged a meeting.
Marriage Hurts Voice.
From that meeting began my ac-
Quatntance with the woman l deter
mihed to make my wife. / found
that she was not only beautiful and
talented. but possessed spiritual
qualities such as I had never before
recognized in any human being.
Then and there decided to break
my rule: To give this beautiful young
woman the opportunity she craved.
She sang for me and for others in
whom l had confidence. Her notes
were pure and beautiful. Events
since her marriage to Cochran have
caused faulty upper register notes
due to her extreme nervousness
but European teachers have wrought
wonders.
Now / am certain she will become
one of the greatest dlvas in the his-
tory of the operate stage. II we
are ever married 1t will be the am
bition of my life to see her recog-
nized as the greatest woman singer
In the world.
Look here"-he drew the photo
graph Of a slender, blonde woman
with wide eyes and swan-like neck
from an inner pocket-"have you
ever seen a countenance so shine
with divinity as this? She is the
most marvellous woman that ever
lived!
Her marriage to Cochran was
an accident-an accident due to the
fact that he sailed on the Aqui.
tania in July, 1920. Mrs. Fraenkel,
who was very lonely and very sad,
sailed also on this ship. I was
also a passenger.
''The first day out j introduced
them. From that moment I saw
that Cochran was fascinated. Twas
even then In love with Nine,
WalslSa but 1 throttled my feel.
ings. Cochran, however. was free.
He never pursued any one as he
did Mime. Walska.
"She went to Paris. He followed.
she went in the late summer ito
Zurich. He followed. I met them
there.
mrs. Mccormick was also in
Zurich.
"I saw a great deal Of Nine,
walska, but Cochran saw her also.
was called away on business and
Cochran's friendship developed
rapidly into ardent courtship.
Rockefeller Opposition.
However. had given my
pledge to Nine. Walska to. give
her the opportunity she craved to
sing grand opera. So the follow
ing season l broke my lifelong
rule and she was given her op
portunity to sing "zaza" in Chi
cago. -,
"She did sing 'Zaza.' Many ele'
ments entered into the situation.
Mime. Walska and I had two
problems-her divorce and mine,
! Her divorce was arranged rathor
| .lI., l>,,t ,,,inn xxyaa moro diffirVlf