New-York tribune., 1907-08-18

atre and Latin secretary Good fortune brought
him in contact with Mozart, who asked him TO
make opera book of BeaumarChaiss Ma
riage de Figaro The great success of Mozarts
opera this theme led further cooperation. and
1t was on Da Ponti's suggestion that Don Clio
VanE1 was undertaken. the promptingS coming
largely from the favor enioyed the time by CTaZ
Zaniga's opera on the same subject. from which Da
Ponte made generous drafts-as a comparison of the
Hbretti Will show. Having incurred the Ill will OF
Leopold, Da Ponte was compelled to leave Vienna
on the death of Joseph II. He went to Trieste,
where Leopold was sojOurning in the hope OF ef-
fecting reconciliation, but failed but there he met
and married an Englishwoman who thenCefOrth
fated to share his checkered fortunes He obtained
letter recommending him to the interest of Marie
Antoinette but while jOurneying toward Paris
learned of the Imprisonment of the Queen, and went
TO London instead year was spent in the Brit
ish metropolis in ideness, and some time in Hol-
land In futile effort to establish an Italian the
atre there. Again he turned his face toward Lon
don. and this time secured employment as poet
TO the Italian opera and assistant to the manager
Taylor. He took a part of Domenico Corrrs shop
to sell italian books but soon ended in difficulties.
and to escape his creditors fled to America, ar
irving In New York on June 4, 1906
Da POnte lives in the respect and admiration of
Dante scholars the first of American teachers
gave himself the title, and in this case adhered to
the truth. which cannot be said of all of his
statements about himself. For instance, in let
ter to the public to be set forth presently, he calls
himself poet OF the Emperor Joseph IL" He was
In the habit of thus designating himself and it was
small wonder that his biographers almost unani-
was poet laureate, or Caesarian poet After the
mischief, small enough, except perhaps in an ehti-
cal sense had been done. he tried to correct 1t in
foot note on one of the pages of his '''Memorie,
in which he says that he not ''Poeta Cesario. -
but poet to the Imperial theatres In his ca
pacty a teacher his record seems to have been
above 'reproach and it in this capacity that
he first presented himself favorably to New York.
Within two years after his arrival he gave
a pamphlet to the public entitled Compendium of
the Life of Lorenzo Da Ponte written by Himself.
TO which is added the first Literary Conversations
held at his home in New York on the 10th Gay or
March, 1907 consisting of several Italian compost
tiOns in and prose translated into E@nSilsh
by his scholars That this little brochure was de-
signed advertisement is obvious enough; 1t
issued his ffty-eighth birthday and its
contents besides the sketch of his life which. so
it began. he had promised to give his pupils were
specimens of their literary handicraft In the bio
graphical recital echoes of the contentious IN
which he, had been engaged in London a few years
before Although only two years had elapsed since
his arrival in America, what may be called the
first of his commercial periods was already over.
He had sent his wife to New York ahead of him
with of the money which his English credl-
tors looking for. With this he promptly
embarked in business. traffcking in to-
bacco liquors. drugs, etc.-goods which prom
ised large profits In three months rear
of yellow fever drove him to EliZahethtoWn N j.,
where he remained a year, by which time he was
ruined. He came back to New York and began to
teach the italian language and literature. and the
little compendium" recorded his first successes.
He taught till 1871 by which time he had laid