9 September, 1899 in the life of Arthur Sullivan, from his diaries.

September 9, 1899

Cold and autumnal.
    Working at 2nd Act. Short trike ride before dinner.
Long letter from H.L. re Sopranos – production etc.

Dreyfus trial finished.

The “2nd Act” here is that of The Rose of Persia. The “trike” is what you think it is! But finally here Sullivan is spelling it with an i rather than y. The “long letter” is from Helen Carte (nee Lenoir, nee Black). I don’t have a copy of that letter, but in a previous letter (August 4), Helen tries to wrap her head around all the ladies the new opera will require:

Captain Hood has read me your letter re Miss [“Louie”] Pounds – She is a most charming girl and I have on the strength of what you have written engaged her. I had to do it at once as she had [?] to settle on [another?] engagement. I told Captain Hood we [have?] never here turned out [old?] servants hastily and I should not want that, if I engaged Miss Pounds, it meant I should be obliged to turn out anyone. He assured me this was not so – he said he had 5 girls parts [Ruth] Vincent, [Isabel] Jay, [Emmie] Owen, Pounds and [Ellen] Yaw. Now I never grudge [?] a lot of charming girls

(even though it [will] [become?] a big paysheet – Pounds has £15. Owen has now reached 20. Vincent will be about £15. [Rosina] Brandram is £20 – so [with [Henry] Lytton?] etc it will not be cheap at all) so long as there is something for them all to do.

Those payrolls were weekly. At the time, a Junior Bank Clerk might earn £50 per year. No wonder Sullivan’s diary includes so many entries of being somehow coerced into auditioning another young lady singer.

If you’ve never heard of L’affair Dreyfus, it’s worth a Google. This is one of the relatively few big historical moments noted in the diaries.