the organ, and the stately rhythms of the great Coronation March.  It is a splendid prelude to the dramatic scene which follows.  In the midst of the gorgeous spectacle, the voice of Fides is heard claiming the Prophet as her son.  John boldly disavows her, and tells his followers to kill him if she does not confirm the disavowal.  The feelings of the mother predominate, and she declares that she is mistaken.  The multitude proclaim it a miracle, and Fides is removed as a prisoner.  The dramatic situation in this finale is one of great strength, and its musical treatment has hardly been excelled.

The last act opens with a trio by the Anabaptist leaders, who, learning that the enemy is approaching in force, determine to save themselves by betraying John.  In the third scene Fides in prison, learning that John is coming to see her, invokes the punishment of Heaven upon him in the passionate aria, “Spirto superno.”  A duet ("Tu che del cielo”) of great power follows, in which Fides convinces him of the errors of his course.  As they are about to leave, Bertha enters, bent upon the destruction of the palace, and in the trio which ensues learns that John and the Prophet are one.  She stabs herself, and dying in the arms of Fides curses him.  The last scene opens in a banqueting-hall of the palace, where John is revelling, with the Anabaptists around him.  He sings a bacchanalian song of a wild description ("Beviam e intorno"), and, as it closes, the Bishop of Munster, the Elector, Count Oberthal, and the three Anabaptists who have betrayed him, enter the apartment.  The revenge which John has planned is now consummated.  An explosion is heard.  Flames break out on all sides.  Fides rushes in and forgives her son, and the Prophet, his mother, and his enemies perish together.

Although “The Prophet” did not meet with the popularity of some of his other operas, it contains some of the most vigorous and dramatic music Meyerbeer has written,—­notably the arias of Zacarie and Fides, the skating-ballet, the Coronation March, and the drinking-song.  As a pageant, “The Prophet” has never been surpassed.

THE AFRICAN.

“L’Africaine,” a grand opera in five acts, words by Scribe, was first produced at the Academie, Paris, April 28, 1865, with the following cast:—­

SELIKA            Mme. MARIE SAXE. 
INEZ              Mlle. MARIE BATTEO. 
VASCO DI GAMA     M. NAUDIN. 
NELUSKO           M. FAURE. 
DON PEDRO         M. BELVAL. 
HIGH PRIEST       M. OBIN.

The libretto of the opera was first given to Meyerbeer by Scribe in 1838; but such were the alterations demanded by the composer, that at last Scribe withdrew it altogether, although the music was already set.  In 1852 he furnished a revised libretto, and the music was revised to suit it.  The work was not finished until 1860, and owing to the difficulty of filling the cast satisfactorily, was not brought to rehearsal until the fall of 1863.  While still correcting and improving it, Meyerbeer died, and it was not produced until two years later.  Shortly after the Paris performance it was brought out in London, with Mlle. Lucca in the part of Selika.  Mme. Zucchi was one of the earliest representatives of the slave in this country.