Balfe's 'The Rose of Castile,' Auber's _La Fiancée_, Eichberg's 'Doctor of Alcantara,' Wallace's 'Maritana,' and other works were given in English by Ritching's troupe in 1866 and 1867. Indeed, opera in English persisted in Philadelphia as it has done nowhere else in America. Italian opera continued on its usual course from year to year without any achievements of special note. In 1868 and again in 1873, 1875, and 1879 there was an epidemic of _opéra comique_ during which Philadelphia heard _La Grande Duchesse_, _La Belle Hélène_, _Barbe-Bleue_, _La Périchole_, _Orphée aux Enfers_, _Les Bavards_, _Monsieur Chaufleuri_, _Géneviève de Brabant_, _L'Œil Crève_, _Fleur de Thé_, _La Vie Parisienne_, _Le Petit Faust_, _Les Cent Vierges_, _La Fille de Madame Angot_, and other works of that type. The first performance of Gounod's _Romeo et Juliette_ in 1868, _Le Prophète_ in 1869, Bristow's 'Rip Van Winkle' in 1870, Thomas's _Mignon_ and _Hamlet_ in 1872, Verdi's _Aïda_ in 1873, _Lohengrin_ in 1874, _Der fliegende Holländer_ in 1877, _Rienzi_ and _Carmen_ in 1878, and Boïto's _Mefistofele_ in 1881 may also be worthy of notice. During those years Strakosch and Mapleson were the chief purveyors of opera to Philadelphia, excepting, of course, the French troupes who were so generous of _opéra comique_ novelties. In 1882 the Boston Ideal Opera Company, of which we shall have something to say later, appeared at the Walnut Street Theatre presenting _Fatinitza_, 'The Pirates of Penzance,' 'The Mascot,' _Olivette_, 'Czar and Carpenter,' 'H. M. S. Pinafore,' and 'The Chimes of Normandy.' The Emma Abbott Grand English Opera Company appeared in the same year, as did Maurice Grau's French Opera Company. From this time on Philadelphia was supplied with opera chiefly from the Metropolitan in New York until Mr. Hammerstein built his Philadelphia Opera House there in 1908 and presented the same attractions as were heard at the Manhattan. After he sold out to the Metropolitan interests the Chicago-Philadelphia Opera Company, of which we shall speak later, catered to the operatic demands of the Quaker city. IV Chicago, in spite of--or perhaps because of--its phenomenally rapid growth, has only recently become an operatic city of any importance. But one must not conclude that opera was unknown there before the unlucky Mr. Hammerstein was compelled to forego the organization which his genius had created and which formed the nucleus of the Chicago Opera Company. Chicago, indeed, became acquainted with opera while yet it was a city only _in futuro_, and it continued to enjoy opera with more or less regularity during all the succeeding years, though it lacked a permanent organization of its own until fate and Mr. Hammerstein conspired to supply one.