Public ledger. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1865-1893, 1872-12-13
MENDELssoHN's DEATH.

The Kolnische Zeitung has been en-
abled to give the following extract from
the second volume of "Moscheles Life,
by Mr.. Moseheles, now in the press: IS
On the 18th Of September (Moscheles
writes in his journaD the Mendelssohn
family returned from Switzerland. Men
tally our delightful friend is just the
same, but physically he seems to me
changed; he has aged, he is languid and
his walk is less quick than it used to be.
And yet if one sees him at the piano,
or hears him talking about art and
artists, he is all life and fire. His friend
julius Rietz is just entering on his post
of capellmeSter at Leipsic, and that is
great delight to him. There's an
other" said Mendelssohn, "who really
loves good music, who can produce good
things himself, and can bring the pro-
ductions Of others to the highest pitch
of perfection, and now the Gewandhaus
concerts will have quite the genuine
ring about them. And then what quail
ties of music we will have at homel
Rietz plays the cello so well, it will be a
snlendid winter" On the
9th of October Mendelssohn called for
Charlotte and me to take a walk with
him; we saw him coming slowly and
languidly through the garden to the
house. When my wife aHectionately
asked him how be felt, he answered:
a" How / feel? Well, feel all gray in
gray" She tried to cheer him by say
ing that the sunny weather and the walk
would do him good. And really. dur.
ing our stroll through the Rosenthal, he
became so bright and lively that we for.
got his ndisposition. He told US about his
last stay ia London-his visit to the
Queen; how prettily she had sung to
him, when he had played to her and the
Prince how she had said in such q
kind manner, He had so o'ten given
her pleasure, was there no way of giving
him any2" how he had begged to see
the children, and she had conducted him
into the beautifully arranged nursery de-
partmcnt and shown him the little
princes and princesses, all so well
brought up aud so good that it was quite
a treat to see them. Then he spoke
about his wife's coming birthday, for
which occasion he had brought her
cloak. Another invaluable present he
had also himself prepared for her for his
birthday. On a tour that he aud Klinge-
mann had made in Scotland they kept O
journal together, Klingemann writing
verses, Meadelssohn drawing. These
hasty sketches he had now worked out,
collected, and bound together, but when
he presented this gift to his wife. hoping
to please her with it, he, was already at
deaths doorl ns rRA,
We separated CONTINUES the journal)
at about | clock, ia the best spirits.
But already that same afternoon, in the
Freges' house he became
VERY UNwELL.
He had gone there to try and again
persuade Frau Frege. that artist whom
he so highly esteemed, to sing in the
approaching performance of Elijah.
"She shrinks from appeaFipg in public 7
he had said to us few days previously,
"because sbe has been suffering great
deal from her throat but nobody can.
sing it>as she does; / must inspire her
with courage" The literal account
which here follows his visit to Frau
Frege on the 9th of October, we owe to
e personal communication. He entered
the room with these words; am com
ing to-day, aud every day till you give
me your consent, and now bring you
again the altered pieces (of 'Eljah'). |
But / feel dreadfully lov.spirited, so
much so that / actually cried the other
day over my trip. But before the Eli
iah,' you mnst to-day help me put to-
gether collection OF songs; Hartels are
pressing me so much for il" He had
brought the set, op. II, and 81 the 7th
song, the "Altedeustche Frqhiingsllea,
which he had already composed in the
snmmer Of this year, but only written |
out on the 7th of October. u knew,
said Frau Frege, "about in what order
be would arrange them, and laid them !
out on the piano one by one. When |
had sung the first he was greatly moved
aud asked for it again, and added,
That was serious birthday present |
for Scleinitz on the first Of
October; but it is just how l feel myself,
and cannot tell you how sad it made
me TO see Fanny's unaltered rooms in
Berlin. And yet l have so much to
thank God for-Cecile is so well, and
the little Felix (his youngest and deli
cate child too" had 10 sing all the
songs several times, and stuck TO the
point that the Fruhlingslied did not
seem to me to go very well with that
set So he said, Very we'll. The whole
set looks serious; let il go forth into the
world as it u.s." Though be looked very
pale, had to sing him the Hrst song for
The third time, aud he said all kinds Of
nice and affectionate things to me shout
il. Then he asked, IL you are not too
tired. couldn't we just sing the last quar-
tette ont of Elijah r l went out Of
The room TO order lights, and when !
came back he was sitting in the other
room in the sofs-ecr1sr. and said bis
hands had got quite stiff and cold, and
he thought be would rather be well-ad.
fised and just take run round the
lown, for he felt too bad to play prop
erly. When he got into the open AIR he
fell il was best to 20 straight home, and
here sat down in the sofa-eOrner. where
cepiIe found him again at seven o clock,
Bis bands sgsin quite nnnbed. .
THE SEXT pay rtf-r
.he doctor applied leeches to relieve the
severe headache from which be vas suf-
fering; he took it for disorder Of the
stomach. and il was only much later
that he declared It 10 be an excessive
irritation Of the nervous system l had
for a long time-even before Fanny