New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1914-08-09
Composers Sojourn
an Gneixendorf-
Daily Life, Con-
verSationS and
Quarrels.
BY II. 4. KREHRIEL.

pron advance sheets of '.rhsysEs LIE u,
& Charles Scribner's Sons)
TIT MUST be assumed that the Mon
day referred 70 in Johsnn's letter
- urging his brother to send Karl
about his business was Monday, No
vember q, but several days must have
elapsed between this and the time when
Beethoven and his nephew set out on
7 the fateful journey TO Vienna. A de-
Termination seems TO have been reached
when Conversation Book shows Jo-
ham as saying: IF you are to start on
Monday the carriage must be ordered
on Sunday" There is no recorded con-
versation touching the use Of Johann's
carriage, which, so far as anything IS
known to the contrary, may have stu
been in Vienna, whittier it is safe to
assume it had carried Johann's wife
and whittier II was 70 carry It's owner
as soon as he could make satisfactory
adjustment Of his business affairs.
That means of conveyance were DIS
cussed is proved by Johann's remark
and also BY report made by Karl TO
the composer: There is no post-chalse
Ito Vienna, but only TO st. Polten. From
here there is no opportunity except by
a stage coach" Exactly when and how
{ the travellers set out it is not possible
10 determine. SCHNEIDER says that ow.
ing to Johann's refusal to let hls
brother use his closed carriage Beetho-
ven was obliged to make the journey IN
! an "open calash" This is his state
ment in the first edition Of his biogra-
phy, but in the third, for an uneN-
planned reason, the "open calash' IS the
fvehicle used from Gneixendorf TO krems
only, a distance which was easily trav-
sersed on foot inside Of an hour.
THE FATAL TRIP TO VIENNA.
II DR.. Wawruch, the physician who
attended Beethoven during the sickness
which ended in his death, Is correct
Beethoven told him that he made the
Journey from Gneixendorf "in the
worst Of the DEVILS vehicles, milk
wagon" Later DR.. Wawruch calls the
vehicle in which his patient arrived IN
Vienna "Leiterwagen," from which
we might gather, though 1t would be
utterly preposterous, that 1t was a
rack on wheels. Beethoven arrived IN
4Vienna on Saturday, December 2, 1870,
and as there is reference to only one
night spent on the road there mad
been one on the journey from vienna
to Gneixendorf) it is likely that he
left Gneixendorf early in the morning
of Friday, December l. december
saws DIR. Wawruch, "was raw, wet and
frosty; Beethoven's clothing was any
thing but adapted TO the unfriendly
,.eeason of the year, and yet he was
urged on by an internal unrest and a
1. 0loorny foreboding of misfortune. He
was compelled to spend a night IN
village tavern where, besides wretched
shelter. he found an unwarmed room
without window shutters. Toward MD
night he experienced his first fever
irchill, a dry, hacking cough, accom-
panied by violent thirst and cutting
mains in the sides. When seized with
me fever he drank a few measures OF
3 ice cold water and longed helplessly 1or
= the first rays of the morning light. weak
and i'll he permitted himself to be
lifted into the Leiterwagen' and ar.
rived at last, weak, exhausted and
without strength, in Vienna" Waw-
,ruch derived his information IRON
J. Beethoven, possibly in part also iron
:, Karl. the only witness from whom I
succinct and absolutely correct account
was TO have been expected; unhappily
the tale which Karl must have beer
called upon TO tell many times was
never reported. The untrustworthines'
of Sehindler's account of the incidents
OF which he had personal knowledge is
emphasized by obvious efforts made tc
fals;fy and emaseulate the record in
Yhe Conversation Books, Of which il
Will soon be necessary to speak.