And there is just the same difference of opinion about THEODORE THOMAS'S
merits as a conductor. On this occasion there were two aged and indigent
musicians in the audience, who knew more about orchestral music than
even the present President of the Philharmonic Society, and to each of
them did I propound the question, "Is THOMAS a good conductor?"
FIRST AGED PERSON. "My dear sir, he doesn't conduct at all. His
orchestra pays no attention to him, and plays in spite of the absurd and
meaningless passes which he makes with his _baton_."
SECOND A. P. "My dear sir, he is the best conductor of the day. He has
made his orchestra the best in the country,--in fact, the only one. No
man has done more for our musical public than has THEODORE THOMAS."
And as I ordered eleemosynary beer for these Aged Persons, and pondered
their slightly contradictory utterances in my mind, I heard a fair young
creature in a scarlet plimpton and a fleezy robe of Axminster remark,
"O! that dear delightful Mr.
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