Croisette, of the Comedie Francaise, the Reveil, the superb full length of Mme. Pelouse on the Terrace of Chenonceau, and the head of Gounod in the Luxembourg, could not be collected into one exhibition, that lovers of art here in America might realize for themselves how this master's works are of the class that typify a school and an epoch, and engrave their author's name among those destined to become household words in the mouths of future generations.
CHAPTER 15--The Grand Opera Fad
Without being more curious than my neighbors, there are several social mysteries that I should like to fathom, among others, the real reasons that induce the different classes of people one sees at the opera to attend that form of entertainment.
A taste for the theatre is natural enough. It is also easy to understand why people who are fond of sport and animals enjoy races and dog shows. But the continued vogue of grand opera, and more especially of Wagner's long-drawn-out compositions, among our restless, unmusical compatriots, remains unexplained.
The sheeplike docility of our public is apparent in numberless ways; in none, however, more strikingly than in their choice of amusements.
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