d
with a salt herring by the property man, which he would suspend solemnly
out of sight of the audience for a while, then slowly draw up, and
proceed to eat. A clean picked spine was all that remained by the end of
the act, and he had had his supper.

Often the performances supplied me with welcome comic relief behind the
scenes. I learned for instance, that the text of the Anvil chorus sung
round me, as I lay on the canvas rock couch of _Azucena_, in
"Trovatore," was: "_Ich habe Dir schon laengst gesagt, die Wurst sie
schmeckt nach Seife_"--"I told you long ago, the sausage tastes of
soap." Also the soldiers in "Faust" made their rollicking return from
the wars to the words: "_He--ring und Apfel--Kartoffelnsalat._" "Herring
and apple--potato salad." _Siegmund_ grows woefully vulgar, and the
opening bars of his love song to his sister always say now to me:
"_Winter Struempfe riechen im Monat Mai._"

Once in "Tiefland" the old man in the first act was presented with a
large lump of Limburger cheese, which he had to sniff and hold
gratefully for a long time, while his rejoicing colleagues slapped their
knees with glee in the wings. Sometimes the humour was replaced by other
less agreeable emotions. For my _Benefiz_, the last year of my
engagement, I was to sing _Carmen_. I wanted a popular guest tenor from
a neighbouring _Hoftheater_ to be my _Jose_, and he finally agreed to
come. He would not come in time for rehearsal and I did not see him
until I turn my head in the first recitative and see him making his
sword chain. From then on, he directed me in lordly tones throughout the
first act. I had often sung _Carmen_ in Metz and the audience knew most
of my business and expected it; also as I had prepared the role in Paris
and spent months of study on it I did not see why all of my business
should be changed on my own festive night. Therefore in our short talk
before the second act, I told him my positions as nicely as I could, he
saying to everything, "_Aber warum? Warum?_" (But why, why?). I stood
this as long as I could and told him all the warums, till finally I said
"Because I want to!" At this he lost his temper and left the stage. I
was surprised, but supposed he was nervous. From then on, things went
from bad to worse. Everything _Carmen_ said to _Jose_, he thought Howard
was saying to him. I tried to whisper that I meant nothing by it--that
that was the way I played it, but he grew blacker and blacker. Finally
i