=Hérold and Adam=.—=Louis Hérold= (1791-1833), as a pupil of Méhul, inclines to a more serious style. His _Zampa_ contains strongly romantic features which made it more successful in Germany than the melodious _Le Pré aux Clercs_ (The Clerks’ Meadow—a noted duelling ground in Paris during the 17th century), though in France this vies with _La Dame Blanche_ in the distinction of being the most popular Opéra Comique in the repertory. Though less significant than any of the foregoing, =Adolphe Adam= (1803-1856), the composer of _Le Postillon de Longjumeau_ (The Postilion of Longjumeau), deserves mention for the grace and fluency of his melodies, albeit they show a decline in character and style which prefigures the decadent school of the _Opéra Bouffe_ (burlesque opera). =Opéra Bouffe=.—The attentive observer can hardly fail to perceive that the opera as appealing to the people at large more than any other form of music is peculiarly susceptible to social and political influences. The Opéra Bouffe being a degenerate offshoot from the Opéra Comique, it is no mere accident that the period of its most extended popularity coincided with the extravagance and folly of the Second Empire. As a distinct type it is due to =Jacques Offenbach= (1819-1880), a German by birth, who took advantage of the taste of the time by turning his attention to the parody of the classical and mythological subjects which had furnished material for the early operas. Frivolous and mocking in text, sprightly and vivacious in melody and rhythm, his operettas possess undoubted piquancy and an effervescent style which for a time intoxicated the public. Their vogue was happily broken by a series of light operas of much more worth. Of these, _Les Cloches de Corneville_, known to Americans as “The Chimes of Normandy,” by =Robert Planquette= (1840-1903) is the best example.