Letter 4. (August 26, 1870)
Inventory number: NMI 064/IC32
| Commentary |
Transcription / Translation » |
| by Lodewijk Muns |
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| This letter is the reply to a letter by Von Schwartz (15 August 1870) published in Briefe hervorragender Zeitgenossen an Franz Liszt (BHZ). Historical background is the Franco-German War. The first battle had been fought in the beginning of August, with an outcome disastrous for France. In the next month the capture of Napoleon III led to the inglorious end of the "Second Empire"; the war was continued by the "Third Republic". Earlier the war had been cause of the political downfall of Prime Minister Émile Ollivier, Liszt's son-in-law (widower of Blandine Liszt). It has been surmised that Liszt was influential in the decision of the republican democrat Ollivier to leave the opposition and take on responsibilities of government under the emperor.[1] The war also caused the end of the worldly reign of Pius IX; after the withdrawal of the French troops de Papal States were annexed by the Kingdom of Italy. In his opening sentence Liszt corrects a reference by Von Schwartz ("There is a time to laugh and a time to cry, says I think St. Paul").[2] Her letter had been accompanied by "une toute petite brochure" for the benefit of war casualties. This publication of forty pages, rare nowadays, bears the title Von Rom nach Kreta. Reiseskizze. Liszt's compliments can be read negatively as a reflection of the shortcomings of Elpis Melena's style in general: long-winded, with exaggerated attention to details and a certain pedantry. As appears from her reply on 31 August[3] she found a generous order for one hundred copies "under her inkstand". To the depressed tone in this letter Von Schwartz answers with a "cry of indignation": "[...] Did Jupiter ever dare think like that? No, this was a ‘lapsus calami' [slip of the pen], for which reason I can only answer with all expressions of admiration and ‘cult' which for you always has felt and will ever feel your most devoted friend E.".[4] Liszt's reaction to that letter is preserved in the Weimar archive: "[...] you will soon notice that there was neither ‘lapsus calami', nor verbiage in what I said about my doleful complaints".[5] Baron Antal Augusz (1807-1878), in whose house in Szegszárd Liszt was a frequent guest, was a musically gifted politician and administrator and one of Liszt's best friends.[6] About Reményi, see letter 2. |
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| [1] | HAM p. 67, WALF p. 215 n. 7. |
| [2] |
"II y a un temps pour rire, il y en a un pour pleurer dit, je crois, St. Paul [...]" BHZ nr. 220, p. 346 |
| [3] |
BHZ nr. 221, p. 347 |
| [4] |
"[...] permettez-moi de jeter un cri d'indignation à quelques-unes de vos expressions contenues dans votre première page; est-ce que Jupiter osa jamais penser ainsi? Non, c'était un ‘lapsus calami', c'est pourquoi je n'ose y répondre qu'avec toutes les expressions d'admiration et de ‘culte' qu'a tonjours éprouvé et éprouvera toujours pour vous votre plus dévouée amie E.". BHZ nr. 221, p. 349 |
| [5] |
GSA 59/75,3 [5] (Sept. 3, 1870) "[...] vous vous appercevrez vite qu'il n'y avait ni "lapsus calami", ni phraséologie dans ce que je vous disais de mes mornes doléances." |
| [6] |
FLBU letter nr. 9 n. 2, p. 295 |
