I also remember that, on the evening to which I have alluded, you were so eloquent in praise of the Baron, that we were detained till it was too late to go to the opera,--and therefore walked up and down in the long _allée_, under the lime-trees, for nearly two hours, during which time you went on analyzing and commending every one of his numerous productions. Among these, you expressed your special admiration of his “Hero of the North,” and “Eginhard and Emma;” both of which, you insisted, were animated by the true spirit of chivalry and romance, and that in an English dress they would be excellent, either in their dramatic form, or remodelled into prose novels. But, as I expressed my dislike to dramatic poems which were unfit for the stage, you proceeded to mention the Baron’s other narrative works, such as “Waldemar the Pilgrim,” “Thiodulf’s Wanderings,” “Bertrand de Guesclin,” and many more, which, though favourites of yours, are altogether unknown in this country. At last we came to speak of the “Magic Ring,”--the only one of our author’s works which I had then seen, and which I had only glanced at very hastily;--and you naturally asked me how it happened, that although “Undina,” “Sintram,” and even the “Minstrel Love,” were translated into English, this romance had been hitherto neglected? To this I replied, that the “Sintram” and “Undina” were, even in the translation, interesting tales of wonder;--but that, on the contrary, the beauties of the “Magic Ring,” which are so much admired by a German reader, depended on certain characteristic features, which a translator could never impart, unless by means of a _remaniement_ or _rifacimento_. These peculiarities were, first, the Baron’s accurate imitation of the quaint, rude style of the old romancers; secondly, the melody of his verses, in which the thoughts are far too shadowy to be embodied in our language; thirdly, his allegorical representations and historical allusions, which no English reader could well comprehend, especially as the author has not furnished a proper key to unfold their meaning. These objections, especially the last, you treated with indifference; and although my own opinion (that a _remaniement_ would have been far better than a translation) remains unaltered,--yet, having resolved to translate the “Magic Ring” by way of experiment, I have adopted, as nearly as possible, the method you suggested for its execution.