176 THE WONDERFUL HOUSE THAT JACK HAS 



apparatus. . . . Plenty of fresh air, plain food, 

 a reasonable amount of exercise, and eight or nine 

 hours' sleep are all necessary to the young singer, 

 whose larynx is quick to reflect the general physical 

 condition. 



"At the same time common sense and individual 

 temperament should be the best of all health rules. 

 I myself always suffer in a steam-heated apartment; 

 I consider the general overheating in America a menace, 

 and never allow the temperature of my rooms to rise 

 above sixty degrees ; while at the same time the whole 

 range of my apartments is continually freshened with 

 pure air. 



"The singer should aim at becoming a hardy plant 

 rather than a hot-house plant. I know that a girl 

 with a voice receives a painful revelation of the deli- 

 cacy of her vocal organs when she passes from a super- 

 heated room to the low temperature of a winter's 

 day outside. But I consider dry feet far more im- 

 portant than the wrapping up of the throat on raw, 

 slushy days." 



