Spray.

Lake Wakatip Mail, Issue 2280, 29 September 1899, Page 6

Spray.

Some Famous Strads. Dr. Joachim possesses four Strads. "no. which cast £12(11), was presented to him on his artistic jubilee. Sanitate has two Strads. one of them has an especial value through belonging to I'aganini, who had another wliit'll came to him in a curious way. It wins lent hii" by a French merchant to play on ;n :l concert at Leghorn. When I'aganini \\<>ul<l have returned it the merchant *aid, "Never more will I profane the strings which your lingers have touched ; that instrument i's yours.", I'aganini left it to the city of Genoa, which has been offered as much as £IO.OOO for it Lady Hallo plays on a Ntrad dated 1700, worth about £looo. li was [(resented to |n>r by the Duke of Kdinburgh. the late Karl of Dudley, and 'ale Lord llardwiek. Signor I'iatli is another player who has been presented with a Strad. Carrodus played on a Guarnerius. The Moonlight Sonata. HeiT 1- riedrich Bodenmuller, the battle painter, according to the " Musi-! cal News," is now exhibiting at the: Academy of Fine Arts at Munich a ! triptych, intended to illustrate the socalled " Moonlight" sonata of Beethoven. The first picture shows Beethoven play- j ing before a young blind girl ; the con-! tral panel is allegorical, the moon shining across the sea, and showing marine! monsters and angels : while the third is! a party of children playing in a meadow j on a spring evening. Beethoven him- j self was, of course, innocent, of the title Moonlight. In Vienna, indeed, the work is called the " Laubeivsonate," and the title by which it is known in England and France was due to Rellstab. who. in a criticism, compared the first movement to a boat placidly moving by moonlight across the Lake of Lucerne. Marx, on the other hand, thinks the movement is a song of renunciation, a mingling of bitter pain with quiet submission to the inevitable ; while Lixst described it as an abyss ; facts which indicate how varied are the fancies of programmemakers. France and Germany. A cable special to a New York paper from Berlin says: The Kmperor has been shown a number of the " Figaro" with General Munier's letter accusing German officials of thefts during the last war. 11 is Majesty was indignant, and called Mttnier a cowardly liar. If Cioncral Mtinier is on the active list the Berlin Chancellory will demand satisfaction. Berlin. 27th August.—A committee of German Generals will demand disclosures of name and place from the French General. Munier. in respect to the accusations in his letter to the Paris " Figaro." If these particulars are not forthcoming the committee will denounce him as a liar. Patti's Jewels. It was stated the other day that in one of her American tours Mdme. Adeiina Patti once wore on the stage a dress adorned with jewels worth £2tio.oOO. That Mdme. Patti wore a robe decked with gems of the value mentioned, is quite true, but the occasion was not in America, but in London. when she appeared as La Traviata at Covent Garden Theatre on tlie lltli June of this year. Her corsage was studded with brilliants and other jewels representing the sum mentioned, and the arranging and setting of them in the dross by jewellers cost the sum of £BOO. This was, in all probability, the most costly robe Covent Garden stage has ever soon. It may be mentioned that the groat "songstress is the possessor of jewels which are valued at £400.000. and that her earnings on the opera stage have amounted to at least £1.000.000. Greek Art. The history of Greek art begins, as some have fancied general history to begin, in a golden age, but in an ago, so to speak, of real gold, the period of those first twisters and hammerers of the precious metals —men who had already discovered the flexibility of silver and the ductility of gold, the capacity of both for infinite delicacy of handling, and who enjoyed, with complete freshness, a sense of beauty and fitness in their work. The heroic age of Greek art is the ago of the hero as smith. For the Browning Society. Some of the verses in Robert Browning's poetry are very deep, and in many cases difficult to understand. The following joke occurred on account of this : -A friend of Browning, on reading some verses of his, canto across a certain passage which, notwithstanding tnue'h thought over it, he could not unravel. He then went to Browning, and asked liini to make it clear to him. Browning. with bowed head, thought for a long time, and then looking up. said solemnly. " When I wrote that passage God and 1 knew what I meant, but now Cod otilv knows."

Each to His Trade. Kullack, the famous (Jernnin pianist, was once invited to dinner by a wealthy Berliner, who was t'lie owner of a large boot manufactory, and had been a shoemaker in liis time. After the repast Kul lack was requested to play something, and gracefully consented Not long afterwards the virtuoso invited the boot manufacturer to his house, and after dinner handed him a pair of old boots. • wiiat am Ito do with these inquired ill.- rich man. W"i"h ;i gonial smile Kul lark replied, •' Why. the other day \<m asked mr alter dinner to make a little niii-ir for you. and now I ask you to in,.ml i !ir-e bonis for me. I\;tch to his i radc." A Boon for Babies. ,\ baby alarm, or means by which the , r\ iug of an infant wliirli lias been left isleep in a distant room ma,\ be sig J,;l 11,-, |. i- of the reeelit b .oils oft, Me.l |,\ -,,-irliee. \ scn-ithe 1 11 i crop no; le, roil nr. led to a batten and to the primarv of an indu.iion roil, is plare>l 1- the child's rot. I'he -ecul,l.l r\ of ! | |( . ~,,11 j s , olilirrlrd by tWo w ires to .1 small electro magnet at the place u here 111,■ alarm is to be given, and on the cry •im ,if thr rli 1■ I the microphone -el- up in undula'oi \ current in this circuit, reusing the electro magnet to deflect .1 delicate steel balance and close .'III elec I rir bell circuit. An Early-closing Plan. I'lie propriiMors of a large retail estab I lislillleut ill I.i\ et p.x'l. ill order to get 1 their customers in -hop within ro.i-ci able hour-, ha \ e adopted the nov I plan of announcing that all purchase- made after a c.-rlam tunc in the evening will not lie executed at their "sale prices." The plan is said in work very well, and the col i sc. | lie lice is t.liat the employees also m't home i.■ ih-ir fmnilies earlier than Would . >i:herw ise be the case.