Litchfield enquirer., 1873-05-08

but the lady had taken flight just as mat tefs seemed coming to 8 climax, which l looked very much as if she did, not ap- prove of it. She had returned; and com ments would naturally be made upon the l fact without loss of time. .T What Ogliostro' wrote were two an- l nouncements for the little 7dgesbIatt be- l fore mentioned. Thus ran the first no- 1 tice:
 ''The Herr Direktor Ogiiostro has re- covered from his intlisposition, and will receive his friends at c aaatinee musicale tomorrow morning"
 1 Thus ran the second notice:
 I 'sRumors are afoat that marriage. is arranged between the Herr Direktor Og- liostro and the Fraulein yon Kambell- Sonnenschein, and that the betrothal will ere long, be formally announced"
 ''The news will he read by all Poppen- helm tomorrow" he said to himself with a gesture of exultation, 'sand when the | Countess comes to my nsatinee I shall know at the first glance whether she wish es to marry me or no. If not, | may as we'll please the Grand Duke as go to de- structio1 in any other way"
 
 the greatest care, and proceeded to leave card for the Countess at the Burg Ho- | tel, not looking at all as if he were bent upon going to destruction, but very elate, very much in love, and very handsome, as behooved young man and a genius. | II. PIANo-FoRTE LovE-MAKING.
 It is scarcely necessary to say that Og- | Though publicly announced, no one pre- stunned to go without an invitation, firstly, because the music-room was small; sec ondly, because it was we'll known that the | Maestro loved to arrange his guests l choicely as he did his bouquets, asserting colors and perfumes as best pleased his l fancy Beyond abundance of flowers from the Palace Garden, which had almost come to be regarded by the musician as a perquisite, and coffee, there was no kind 1 of preparation. About eleven o'clock for ill Poppenheim things were called by their proper names, and a morning con- cert ended punctually at one o'clock post | meridiem-the musicians entered. A l spectators first impulse was to rub his | eyes and ask himself if there were not | four Ogiostros in the flesh instead of one | only-if the musician performed quar- l tettes by the mysterious help of three | doubles; so curiously alike at first sight seemed pianist, first violinist, second viO- linist, and violincellist. But on further | inspection this fancied resemblance be- tween the Maestro and his friends almost | vanished. It was a mere matter of imita- tion. All three men had suffered their l hair grow long, wore spectacles, dressed 1 themselves exactly like their adored mas ter, and, with a mimetic skill tkat did them credit, had caught certain Modula- tions of his voice and laugh, and even something of his smile and glance; so tha} when he was away, his image was wildly recalled by these admiring friends. In the wake of the musicians followed | two or three girls in white frocks and col ored sashes, with Inusic-books under their arms. These were the Maestro's pupils, of whom it is only necessary to particular ize one, Helena Blum, withholding creature with black eyes, tawny skin, and raven locks hanging down her back. Helena could play anything, and she was to be introduced to the public of London or Paris under her masters auspices some day, when the necessary money could be raised for the journey.
 l After the pupils came the Countess, one of those small, vivacious beauties to be seen in Vienna. and hardly anywhere else. Dressed in colors as brilliant as the plu- mage of bird, according to the fashion of her countrywomen, she made strik- ing contrast to the other ladies. Not even the Duchess, who was a kings daughter, wore costume half so gay and costly as she; and as to the two young Princesses, they happened, on this occasion, to.look particularly dowdy fh their shabby silks and faded feathers.
 After the ordinary salutations, the mu- sic began, and the Maestro, in his ardor to do justice to Q quartette of the great Spohr, all but forgot the existence of even the Countess. The masterpiece was per formed in masterly manner; and when trio had been given and one or two so- los on the violin, he sat down to impro- vise
 Now pianoforte improvisation may be, and often Is, the most commonplace per formance one can listen to, because al- most every tolerable musician can impro- vise,. and thereby make certain show of originality without being in the least de- gree original. But Ogliostro's improvi- sations were much more like himself, and had much more of himself in them, than his teaching, his conversation, or, indeed, many of his compositions. He often com posed carelessly, talked at random, and gave lessons whilst his mind was occupied with other things. He was always at his best when he improvised, which happen ct but seldom.
 Before he sat down to the piano he looked at the Countess who was standing close by, and said in low voice.
 To-day am going to play to you"
 He began by giving full vent to the mixed passions that had been secretly raging within his heart during the last few days; first, he thundered ont his in dignation at the conventionalities pro, pounded to him by his patron, the Duke, denouncing worldliness, responsibility, so called, and other names that impose upon the multitude, and vehemently pro- testing on behalf of the true, the beauti- tiful, the ideal; then he melted all hearts 1 by thrilling declaration oflove; finally, he wound up with the despairng, almost maniacal outpourings of Q soul that has sought refuge from contemptible world and contemptuous mistress, Tn thdo tude of nature. This was the story he told, as plainly as music could tell 1t.
 He rose from the piano needless of the l AOW pAuurO OA A1Ao AAoOSANAA'3 and, looking at the Countess narrowly, said that 1t was now her turn to play.
 "I will answer you" she whispered ,and he saw that there were tears on her dark eyelashes. She bent her head over the notes and played an exquisite little i'm promptu, that was only so far original as a good translation is original. She had heard the melody she knew not when ol where, and changed to the minor key, il seemed to express exactly what she want ed to say. And what did she want tc say? Ogliostro sat by with quickened pulse wildly. No note was lost upon his eager ear, no delicate gradations upon his impatient soul. As he listened, not only with the appreciation of musician bu with the suspense of the lover, he gradu ally read in that pathetic melody wha was at the same time sentence and benediction She loved him, but fo some reason, which she could not O might not make clear, must reject him a lover.
 Ansthis she said, if not with thesfre o