Gounod, in 1859, made his most remarkable success with his greatest opera, “Faust,” which, after the subject had been treated by Spohr, Lindpainter, Schumann, Berlioz, and other distinguished composers, has remained the only completely successful opera on the subject, although Boito’s “Mefistofile” (another version of the subject) achieved a marked success in Italy in 1868, and placed Boito among the remarkable composers of the day. As for Gounod, his other operas never equaled his “Faust.” Next in merit comes “Roméo et Juliette” (produced in Paris in 1867) and then his “Mireille,” which appeared in 1864, and “Philémon et Baucis,” an exquisite little comic opera produced in 1860. His last opera, “Le Tribut de Zamora,” was given at the Grand Opera, Paris, in 1881, and failed. [Illustration: GIUSEPPE VERDI.] Donizetti, who died in Bergamo in 1848, was for many years one of the most popular operatic composers. He possessed undoubted ability, but wrote carelessly, as the Italians did in that day. But his operas contain much that is beautiful, and often show fine dramatic power. His “Lucia” contains inspired pages, while other portions are inexcusably commonplace. The same remark applies to his “Lucrezia Borgia,” “La Favorita,” and “Maria di Rohan;” while in his comic operas, such as “Don Pasquale” (which was composed in three weeks), his “L’Elisire d’Amore” and “La Fille du Régiment,” Donizetti appears to better advantage. They are melodious and very agreeably written. His fertility may be imagined when you are told that he composed over sixty operas during his career, as well as other compositions. Bellini, whose career was a short one, as he was born in 1802 and died in 1835, was badly trained and could not be called a well-schooled musician, being rather a musician by instinct. But he possessed remarkable ability, and, perceiving that the persistently florid style of Rossini (which all the composers of that time blindly imitated) was approaching an end, treated his melodies with a simplicity and directness that at once attracted attention and met with approval. Bellini’s knowledge of instrumentation was childish, but his intimacy with Rubini, the famous tenor, aided him in achieving an admirable treatment of the voice. His operas were very sweet and melodious. The two operas by which he will be remembered are “La Sonnambula” and “Norma,” the latter being, with all its faults, a great opera. Another talented and prolific operatic composer was Mercadante, whose “Il Giuramento” (produced in 1837) achieved considerable popularity. But Mercadante’s successes were generally confined to Italy. He composed sixty operas, and died in 1870 in Naples.