Jenny Lind - Victorian Personage

[Ray Dean]

Swedish soprano, Jenny Lind, was a sensation in America. When tickets to her concerts and appearances were sold there were stories of ungentlemanly scuffles and upset. In 1850, when she arrived in New York on the ship 'The Atlantic,' there was an estimated 30,000+ in the crowd on the pier. The ensuing crush of the crowd included bruises and blood.

She greeted the crowd and acknowledged the American flag with the words, "There is the beautiful standard of freedom, which is worshipped by the oppressed of all nations."

Brought to America by P.T.Barnum, Miss Lind was a shrewd businesswoman as well as a skilled performer. During the time she traversed the United States to sold-out houses she had managed to renegotiate her terms, adding extra money to her fee from the ticket sales.

While some looked upon that as the worst kind of profiteering, some would admire her contributions to charity and were assured that the money she earned would go to noble purposes.

She toured the United States for two years and then returned to England, where she began her voyage to America.

 

From Godey's Lady's Book 1864 p.485 -

Jenny Lind's Pudding -

Grate the crums of half a loaf, butter and dish well, and lay in a thick layer of the crums; pare ten or twelve apples, cut them down, and put a layer of them and sugar; then crums alternately, until the dish is full; put a bit of butter on the top, and bake it in an oven or American reflector. An excellent and economical pudding.