Tales of the Caravan, Inn, and PalaceHauff, Wilhelm
General
Tales of the Caravan, Inn, and Palace
Hauff, Wilhelm
Short stories, German -- Translations into English
The concert-hall was crowded; all Gruenwiesel and the surrounding
country were there. All the royal gamekeepers, the ministers,
officials, landlords, and others, within a circumference of ten miles,
came with their numerous families to share the rare enjoyment of the
concert with the Gruenwiesel people. The town musicians did themselves
honor. After them, the mayor appeared with his violoncello, accompanied
by the apothecary with his flute; after these, the organist sang, amid
universal applause; and the doctor, too, was cheered not a little when
he appeared with his bassoon.
The first part of the concert was over, and every one was impatiently
awaiting the second part, in which the young stranger was to sing a
duet with the mayor's daughter. The nephew was present, in a brilliant
costume, and had already attracted the attention of all present. He
had, with the greatest composure, laid himself back in an easy chair,
which had been reserved for a countess of the neighborhood, stretched
his legs out before him, and stared at everybody through a large
spyglass, stopping occasionally to play with a large mastiff which he,
in spite of the rule excluding dogs, had brought with him into this
goodly company. The countess for whom the chair had been reserved, put
in an appearance; but he showed no disposition to vacate the seat,--on
the contrary, he settled himself down in it more comfortably, and as no
one dared say any thing to the young man about it, the noble lady was
forced to take a common straw-bottomed chair in the midst of the other
ladies; a proceeding that vexed her not a little.
During the excellent playing of the mayor, during the fine singing of
the organist, yes, even while the doctor was performing some fantasias
on the bassoon, and all were breathlessly listening, the young
Englishman amused himself by having the dog fetch his handkerchief, or
chatted aloud with his neighbors, so that every one who was not
acquainted with him wondered at the extraordinary conduct of the young
man.
It was no wonder, therefore, that there was great curiosity to hear him
in the duet. The second part began; the town musicians had opened with
a short piece of music, and now the mayor, with his daughter, stepped
up to the young man, handed him a sheet of music, and said: "Mosjoh!
Will it please you to sing the duet now?" The young man laughed,
gnashed his teeth, sprang up, and the others followed him to the
music-stand, while the entire company were in full expectation. The
organist began the accompaniment and beckoned the nephew to begin. The
young Englishman looked through his goggles at the music, and broke out
into the most discordant tones. The organist called out to him, "Two
tones deeper, your honor! You must sing in C, C!"
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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