The Portland daily press., 1883-03-16
Recollections of Wagner.

To call upon Richard Wagner for the frs
time without having been informed of hi
peculiarities (says an article in the Times
was to experience mild shock. Enterin
the room where the visitor was seated, b
would throw the doors wide open befol
him as if it were fit that his approach shoul
be heralded like that of a king, and he woul
stand for moment on the threshold, a cur
Gus medieval figure i'll a frame. The my
titled visitor, rising from his seat, would b
hold man richly clad in a, costume of We
| vet and satin, like those of the early TudC
| period, and wearing bonnet such as al
seen in portraits Of Henry vi. and his thrt
Successors. Wagner had several costume
for he would vary his attire not only acco4
ing to his own moods, but accordinr17S ta'
faces of people who came to segg,[ Hs
would not commit 'i = MI 'i0'in
whose features denoted pat he was in b
"brown study as we ST; he would nraf Il
| to leave such one foran "AugenblicI 81
while he hurried out tflip on some q q
rangement'' in subfug hues. p
Wagner could roarhndisturbed aboug Il
road leading from p'reuth to the He- W
tage, for the little 1ahconlan peasant Is u
and girls who say him from afar vid Ell
nimbly skip out aus way, having ird hi
from their pareI tnae the affairs Of err pl
thew disturbedle great man in his Alta pl
lions. One 4 email maiden s SO or
hardy as to lolr on his path and be. for -
siIber-grosch. With smile 4 siprise. :
Wagner lifte ne child, kisse he, and
presented + with colder teLthaler
piece. for. tdgh keen to makemoIey he
was free Expenditure when } lad any
whim to g.lfy. On the morrg The news
of his libby hau brought o. a troop of
FranconI beggars of all siz: but this q,
time n 1mposer was in no nod for fav. :
onrs arlied upon the backs his tormen-
tors tbamous ebony and col, staff given =
to biw the Mannergesangvein of Wen
ma "a whole fortnight Wner did not
nut in appearance in the eli: and II was
RIM d that he Intended toleye. But he
badly secluded himself fr me of LIS ne
rioal paroxysms OF composition, DUNG
VIII he was so unapproacha,le that hel
wd refuse to zee levers or kilograms, ~
aiwould sometimes haVs his meals passed ~
fim through trap N the door. When
slad scored OF his leeas he burned to his
jual haunts, and mtgnanimonsly foresve
Q beggars whom b had beaten,
Even at home i, his Villa Watlfried,
agner would nesr quite unbena. He exs
cted every visi,r to offer hiEn tribute of
slI-coined continents; he would, indeed,
9igh the wordcounted out to him, and
YOU know ira tone of gentle reproof if
thought thu the tribute fell short of
hat was his lue But once you had
i'd up in fl he could, while doing
e honours his house, make himself
nv gracious He was a magnificent host,
r he loved dazzle, and saw no reason
by his tabJshould not be as sumptuously
rived as a ng's. When he travelled, the
'srier whpreceded him engaged, if posi-
e, those sites of apartments in first-rate
tells wlch are generally reserved for
owned pads. Some years ago, intending
settle Vienna, Wagner rented a palace,
! orderd it to be furnished in such costly
lie thathe found himself unable to pay
uphosterer, and had to depart from the
he strangely exceptional patronage with
nh Wagner was favored by King Louis
ras not quite so gratifying to Wagner !