d had
accepted. The Direction themselves felt badly over the way they had
treated me, and the _Intendant_ telephoned to a _Hoftheater_, not far
off, where he knew there was going to be a vacancy, to recommend me to
their Director in the highest terms.

This was Darmstadt, the capital of a small principality, famous for its
opera house, which had existed for a hundred years. It is a town of
about 100,000 inhabitants, and the residence of the reigning Grand Duke,
Ernst Ludwig. His mother had been the Princess Alice of England,
daughter of Queen Victoria. He and his second wife, Eleanore, lived with
their two little sons at the palace Princess Alice's money had built for
them. It was really not a palace at all, but a large, roomy, comfortable
house. His beautiful sister, Alexandra, married the Czar of Russia;
another sister married the Kaiser's brother, Prince Henry of Prussia.

The opera house, called _Hoftheater_, stood high in the second class. In
the first class are Berlin, Vienna, Dresden and Muenich, with possibly
Hamburg. Then come Cologne, Frankfurt and Leipsic, and the _Hoftheaters_
Hanover, Stuttgart, Mannheim, Wiesbaden, Darmstadt, etc. In the third
class are the smaller _Hoftheaters_ like Coburg, and the _Stadttheaters_
like Mainz. In the fourth, are the smallest _Stadttheaters_, and last of
all come the little towns which have _Monatsoper_, or a one month season
of opera in the year, after the seven month theatres are closed. The
first class houses are open all the year, with a four or six weeks'
vacation for the singers at different times, so that they shall not all
be away together. The next class has a nine months' season, but in the
_Hoftheaters_ the salary is paid in monthly instalments for twelve
months in the year.

I took the train for the town, not caring much whether they wanted me or
not. Perhaps that was the right attitude, for after hearing one song
with piano accompaniment, the _Intendant_ offered me a five-year
contract. I asked them to make it three; the town seemed so small and
quiet that I did not like the sound of five years in it. The salary was
the highest they had ever paid a contralto. The Director said at once,
"How much did they offer you in----?" and agreed to pay me only 500
marks a year less. I arranged to _gastieren_ very soon in _Carmen_,
with _Nancy_ and one other part to follow. I sang only the _Carmen_ on
trial, however, as the Grand Duke, who had come in especially from his