New-York tribune., 1883-03-11
JV4GNER'S ODD WAYS.
I,.o,,, fhe London Times.


tn call npon Richard Wagner for the hrst time
without having been informed OF MS peculi"i @
was to experience mild shock Enterlne tno roTi
whore his visitor was seated he would throw tue
6Dor wide open before him, as If IT were t tha MS
approach should be heralded like ;hat OF "a hlhs'
and he wonld stand for moment on inc thIe III
n cnrlous mediRvai figure IN frame. II ne INV SUI
fed visitor, rising from his seat, w6uld nehoiu
man richly clad in d costume OF velVet anu s saVIn,
like those of the early Tudor perlon, anu & vi
bonnet such are seeu IN portiaits Vi i.nii -
and his three successors. Bullion useu ~ PuU ou
lace ruies ami cuffs when he wrole; anu maemu,
had his composing costuDe-that ol aI6 arv Gis
or rather several costumes foI no "oulu 'aiy n
attr, not only according to his own mouus, oue az
cordinp to the faces OF people VINO cauie W oeG
lie would not commit tho incongrnity Ot slt,lns
down in scarlet to con verse with man whose iea-
lures denoted that he has In " brown stunE, as as
say he would prefer to lsavo suon In ooo o some
ARaonjlck while he hurried out TO slip on soli,9
rran cement in subfusc hUes. Dless was VI ie1i
help to W agncr in composition. Oehlus oltIn @ na.
recourse to mechanical aprranceS IoI s,'h,,,Ia m
tbOugbt and there was nothing more lhusnauio III w
the German musicians slashed douDe's lnah t'lcio
was IN the monks robe and cowl when iohoro u9
Balzac ALWAYS sported when he sat down ioI spei
of hard work Alexandre Dumas, Gazing upon niln @
made some good humored remark ABOUT nls u"n
ignorance OF n,usic-whlch ne hau once ueuIou 90
the most extensive OF noises ; but MS pcasdnl,o
were listened to with such n smlIeless stoliuItf
that he went home in n hun; ana wtote MS ms con u;
temptuOus protest against " WagherIssn s .p III" drL
spired Nv the riot of eats scamperlng IN tne uaIs
about an irOnmOngers shop" On the day oeIoIo
this protect was printed IN the OpiHGH, NaaoHoiu.'
Wapner returned Dumass VISIT ana was ksPt Maito at
ing Tor half an hour III an antetooMl' lhSh .hc
author of the TIOls MousqnetalTes ina1cheu III
superbly att.red in pinned helmet cork ne
belt and lowered dressing gowni .a,d majcst' "io
icaly " Half my ideas are lodged In tnls neiluet
and the other half in a pair of Jhek-DoOts whcn
nut on to compose Ove-scenes. SnuDS OF lnls soi =
of which Wagner encountered many-rankled
deep in his mind and made him say that the fIench
we're Vandals whereas. in truth, their quarttl was
not so much with his music AS with him personally
and win bis uncI, III followers. lie WAS not rapid
or regular worker though ne used 10 SAY that ho
was always cOmUosing. MOST OF MS poen,yI U Wv ~
those of his late VI operas had been rtten when ne
was young which accounts for the r0ugh hewlhg
of the verses, and he was wont 70 tecite passages
of them TO himself as he went out LOT MS altoi-
moons walk accompanied by his TWO NeWIounu-
land dogs Walking, he would seize times noa'lnS
through the air, "now like mis's' now IKE sWArhs
of bees bnZzinp on the WING now like leglous oi
singing unats this is what he writes In ms unpup
llshed autobiography and try TO make theih sctte
on his verses as on mirror When ne was at
Ravreutb he had q favorite walk. leading 10 the
Hermitooe-the bOudOir OF SulkIng- house OF the
Electors OF Bavaria in Olden times, wien theiI
Serene Hghnesses tired Of beer and polltlcs' "ouiu
take to metaphysics ana fTench Wlnes loi
Over the two miles of road lyln6 between pa'rtu'n
and this retreat Wagner could roam uhuIst1' % oeu
foi the little Franconian peasant boys anu gtis gn
who saw h m from a ar would nimhlv skipout OF MS
way having heard from their parents that tne
affairs of Germany would somehow get out oi Joi mt
il they DISTURBED the great man In DIS
One dsy a small maiden was 80 hardy AS 10 iOile-
IN his path and beg for sllher-groschen W ith
smile of surprise Wagner lifted the child. kissed sea
her and presented her with golden tenthaIer
piece for though keen to make money ne was Tree
in expenditure when he bad any Wnim 10 eIa'Lll
IN the moIrow the Lows OF his Nberality ha1
brought out "a troop of Franconian brggars oil al
sizes: hut this time the composer WAS ~ no noou
for favurs md piled upon the backs OF hls torment
ors the famous ebony and gold staff given To him 10y
the Mannergesangveren OF Vienna. Inc BuigG- go
master OF Bayrcuth vas much agitaiei over tnis
affair and had serious thoughts of providing tne
composer with an escort OF policemen so that MS
path might he kept clear every day. FOR whoIe
fortnlpLt Wagner did not put in an appearance at
Angrrmanu's Brauerei where he had been accus-
toned to spend an hour or two every afternoon
and il vas rumol ed tnat he Intended to leave the
city But he had only secluded himself Tor one oi
| bis periodical paroxysms Of composition during
which he was 80 unapproacbable that be would re-
| fuse to letters or kilograms ana wouiu souo- %
| times have his meals passed To him through trap
| m the door. When he had scored OIL his ideas be
| returned to his usual hauuts. and magnaniInOusy
| forgaye the beggars whom lie had Deaten.