Her celebrity was unmistakably shown by the wild stories which began to be told about her. She was said to have thrown a live kitten on to a fire; to have poisoned with her own fair hands two monkeys which had ceased to please her; to have cut off a dog’s head with a view to solving the question whether life continues after decapitation; the skeleton in her bedroom was all that remained of one of her victims, etc. As a matter of fact, she was then keeping two Russian greyhounds, a poodle, a bulldog, a terrier, a leveret, a parrot, three cats, and several birds. Afterwards she kept lions! Could a woman who was so fond of animals torture them as she was said to have done? At Bressant’s benefit performance, February 27, 1878, she played two acts from Jean Aicard’s _Othello_ with M. Mounet-Sully, who failed completely. M. Sarcey says-- As for Mlle. Sarah Bernhardt, she simply rescued the piece. Her attitude in the death-agony, her head and arms hanging over the side of the bed, was so fine, graceful, and tragic, that enthusiastic applause came from every part of the house. M. Auguste Vitu summed up his opinion as follows-- Mlle. Sarah Bernhardt was very fine as Desdemona. It is one of her best creations. I say nothing of M. Mounet-Sully, whose efforts were not a success. On April 2 she appeared for the first time as Alcmène in _Amphitryon_. No notice was taken of this in the newspapers. She again played in _Zaïre_ (May 30), and _Le Sphinx_ (October 28), with continued success. In the meantime she made several ascents in Giffard’s captive balloon at the Exhibition, to the great scandal of the Boulevards. An article published by Albert Millaud in the _Figaro_ gives a very good idea of the spirit of gossip then prevailing. Sarah Bernhardt replied to his article in the following letter--