Twice-a-week plain dealer. (Cresco, Howard County, Iowa) 1895-1913, 1899-06-27
THE IRREGULARITIES or LIST
HOW HE MADE HIS SCHOLARS
REMEMBER TERMS.
His Amusing Experiences With Wagner
and Bulow and How Their Scant
Store of Furniture Was
Used For Fire.


and Bulow and How Their scsnt
Store of Furniture Was
Used For Fire.
IF you only heard List play, and
didn't See him, you lost half the pleas
ure," so wonderful was his PERSONAL
ity.
A young Magyar tried to play
sonata Of Beethoven before him one
day.
piano, piano." cried List piano,
softly! Let it sing-let 1t sing! Can't
you see piano written there?" cried he,
still more sharply, but the young pa
triot, only grew more nervous. and
played the harder.
At last List took his hands from
the keys, saying half-angrily, half
laughingly:
DO you know, my young friend,
what the field sergeant does when
the recruits can not tell the difference
between right and left? He ties a
bundle Of straw on their right arms
and bundle Of hay on their left, and
then gives the command, Hay, straw!
We shall have to try this plan with
you for plano and forte! Now, then,
give old Beethoven a chance. Hay!
hay! hay! we'll! Now, straw, straw!
plenty of straw-still more straw and
List laughed till the tears came.
STRAW, straw, nothing but straw"
Here Is On anecdote of his early life
as related by List himself: Richard
Wagner, Bulow, and were all quite
young when we lived together in Leip-
zig, and had good time. That is,
enjoyed myself, but Wagner was al
ready fermenting with his political
and philosophical ideas, and our pro-
sale circumstances offered little
ground for the idealists Of the future.
We called Bulow 'Kritikus,' and We
especially always feared his sharp
tongue little. OF course, all of US
had little money, but Wagner put our
slender purse to great strains. He
could not bear money worries, and we
let him feel them as little as possible.
"Once, after long autumn, it BE-
came cold suddenly, and Wagner with
his nerves suffered from the sudden
change in the temperature. He de-
manded heated room at once. For
two whole days the debate ragged be-
tween him and Bulow as to the i'm
mediate purchase of wood with our re.
duced purse.
II was not asked, because Bulow
knew that I would yield, but he, as
treasurer contended that it was ridic-
ulous to buy wood in the month Of
September. But 1 am freezing, said
Wagner. In a rage, to which the mex
orable Bulow suggested that he go out
and get warm by running or warm
himself by his muse. Laughing at his
cheap, spiteful advice, Bulow and 1
went out.
But when we returned, after two
hours, we We're tlrunderstruck to find
Wagner in the room, heated to suffo-
cation. He sat at his writing table,
deep in his work. His face was red.
Where? began Bulow, but the
words stuck in his throat, for glance
around the room showed him how
Wagner mad helped himself. Several
chairs and our work tables lay on the
floor. permanently crippled; Wagner
had cut off their legs and made the
fire with them. Bulow was speeches.
with rage, But I stood at the door
and laughed till the tears came at this
ingenious way of helping oneself Blu
low lamented that we would have to
replace the lanHady's chairs and
tables, and that he could not sit down
or work.
wagner answered, spitefully: 4
have what needed! Fellows like
you, who do nothing but go walking
need neither chairs nor tnbles. If you
had given me the money right off,
your valuable furniture would still
be in existence-you wished 1t SO!
Firewood would have been cheaper!
Next day received little money
and bought firewood and new chairs
and tables. Wagner picked out the
best for himself, and I said to him.
laughingly: Say, you, listen! am
going to insure this new furniture
against loss by fire Immediately. y
Boston Globe.