The Lake County star., 1876-06-15
LEGEND OF ALBERT BURER.

1t was q pleasant day in October, in
the year 1898, when a large group of
strangers, idlers and quidnuncs were
gathered together near one Of the pill
lars of the City Hotel, in Nuremburg.
The pillar was almost entirely covered
by an enormous notice, of which the
following is copy:
joseph Durer, silversmith, of this city,
informs his ellow.citisens that he intends
to make this evening, at his shop, in Clock
Place, a general sale of his stocks in the
silversmith line, consisting of articles too
numerous to be here mentioned. The sale
will commence at four o'clock.
"What! suddenly exclaimed one of
| the bystanders, with little surprise,
who might easily have been taken for a
foreign nobleman from the rich style
and magni6cence of his dress, the rich
silversmith of Durer going to sell his
wonderful productions at auction! What
fatality can have reduced him to SO cruel
an extremity
"Probably you don't know, sir" re-
piled a mechanic, "that Joseph Durer
has made an immense sacrifice to sustain
the house of his son-in-law, who not long
since was one of the first merchants in
Lubbock. This son-in-law has abscended,
leaving many large debts unpaid; and
it is to repair this misfortune, it is to
preserve the honor of his grandchildren,
It is to maintain pure and unsullied
character, that the good man parts with
his precious productions, which are the
pride and joy of his old age, and which
are in a manner identified with his very
existence. This noble and honorable
conduct is very worthy of loyal citizen
of Nuremburg, and serves very much to
conciliate public esteem in his favor;
but why must a sad remembrance inter-
rupt this general appreciation, as if to
prevent this unanimous sympathy"
"Can I dare, without indiscretion,"
inquired the stranger, "to ask an ex-
PLANTATION of these last wordsT'
Willingly, sir. Joseph Durer had
three sons and one daughter. His
daughter he married, giving her at the
same time large dOwry, to a merchant
of Lubbock, who has just failed. His two
eldest sons, by means of enormous sacri-
fees. were placed, one at the court of
the Elector of Bavaria, and the other at
the court of the Grand Duke of Weimar.
They have both run, so far, a rapid and
brilliant career, forgetting their old
father, and exchanging the simple name
of citizens for the more pOmpous titles
of count and baron"
"And the third son, what is become
of him?"'
"Albertw replied the mechanic. cal
bert wished to be an artist; but Joseph
Durer was opposed to it. You must be
silversmith, as 1 am, replied his father,
as Albert begged him for crayons, canvas,
and pencils, or else you must leave my
! house."
"And what became of him? ?" inquired
the stranger.
"One day he disappeared, and has not
been heard of since. Whether he is
dead or alive, or whether he has become
soldier, no one knows" I"
At that moment the clock struck four,
the silversmith's shop was opened, and a
crowd of virtuosos and idlers entered,
when the public crier also began to give
notice of the sale.
Plates, dishes, ewers, and pitchers, of
gold, silver, and silver gilt, were first
disposed OF. Then came the precious
productions, the masterpieces OF the sill
versmith. These were splendid taber-
nacles, elaborated with the greatest
ingenuity; Gothic edifces, Saracen
chapels, which had the appearance of
being made of lace, immense silver ba-
sins, which represented, in relief, sub
iects from the Old Testament, and then
came figures, half as natural as nature
herself, copied from the antiquities with
} great perfection. So long as the auc-
tioneers were selling the common articles
/. of his trade, the silversmith remained
calm and quiet in the back part of the
shop, but when he heard the names OF
his masterpieces mentioned-as soon as
he heard the auctioneers praising, In
D their low style, the merit and beauty OF
0 those works which had rendered his rep
!. utation so great and 80 general, he was
, no longer able to preserve his calm ap
pearance. He started up hastily, as il
under the influence of some invisible
3 power, and began to walk around the
+ different articles which were about Il
I be sold. lust as q mother would wall
: around the cradle of her sick child.
"Six small statues" cried the auc
tioneer, I" from antiquity"
:. @A thousand ducats," cried one.
Gone thousand and fifty" said an
e other. :,
n "One thousand one hundred" sai'
4 the first. -.
No one bid any higher, and the arti
cles were declared his.
The old silversmith scarcely breathed
It His face was almost az white as his locks
r and a convulsive shudder ran through
J: his limbs. He continued, however, Il
40 stand by the side of the public Office
n who was recording the purchases. Whei
" all was sold the old man cast his eye
N about him with an inexpressible look o
J; grief. The most terrible moment wa
d approaching. The highest bidder wa
n going before leng to carry away all tn
wealth which the silversmith had grow
: old-his priced productions. which h
n had looked upon as household gods, an
e which were, so TO speak, part OF hi
3, very existence. ,.,
IF "Let the highest bidder upon the las
r twenty-three articles step forward" sal
- the registrar. =,
y "T6ere is only one bidder" cried tn
lc same mechanic, whose conversation wit
}; the noble stranger we have already mer
re toned.
y. "Iet him come forward, then, pay
"A and give me his namc," added the regii
= trar.
IS At this a handsome young man, VIII
IN might be twenty six or twenty.sever
}; approached. He was superbly dresse
in the French style, with the exceptio