He would not come to America to give a series of concerts because he "was not disposed to go about as a concert-pedlar, even for a fabulous sum."

The irony of all the world is epitomized in a single incident that occurred to Wagner in London. He was accused of a grave fault because he conducted Beethoven's symphonies "from memory." Therefore he announced he would thereafter conduct them from the score. He reappeared with the score very much in evidence upon his rack, and won British approval completely. Then he announced that he had conducted from "Il Barbiere de Siviglia" with the Barber's score upside down!

He wrote to his friend Roekel: "If anything could increase my scorn of the world, it would be my expedition to London."

Wagner was fiery and excessive in all his feelings and doings. He hurt his friends without malice, and made them happy for love of doing so.

His home was broken up by his own unruly disposition; and when his good, commonplace wife left him, it was said that he neglected to take care of her, but this was not true. She, herself, denied it before she died. His second marriage was a happy one--to the daughter of his friend Liszt.

When his little son was born, he named him Siegfried, after his favourite hero, and at the time of the christening he had a magnificent little orchestra hidden away, conducted by Hans Richter, which played the old German cradle-song, now woven into the third act of "Siegfried."

The manner in which the cycle of the "Nibelung Ring" was first presented was as follows: The first opera was given on a Sunday, the last on a Wednesday, and then there were three days of rest, beginning once more on a Sunday and ending as before. This order continued for three representations, and it has been followed in Bayreuth ever since.

For lack of means, Wagner saw his theatre opened only three times, but since his death there have been several performances.

THE NIBELUNG RING

FIRST DAY

TETRALOGY

THE RHEIN DAUGHTERS: Woglinde, Wellgunde, Flosshilde; guardians of the Rheingold. They appear in the "Rheingold" and in the "Dusk of the G.o.ds."

FRICKA: G.o.ddess of Marriage or domesticity, Wotan's wife; sister of Donner, Froh, and Frea. Appears in the "Rheingold" and in the "Valkyrie."

FREA: G.o.ddess of Plenty; sister to Donner, Froh, and Fricka. Appears in the "Rheingold."

ERDA: G.o.ddess of Wisdom; mother of the three Fates or Norns and of the nine Valkyries. Appears in the "Rheingold" and in "Siegfried."

SIEGLINDE: Daughter of Wotan under his name of Walse. Hunding's wife, and then Siegmund's wife. Siegfried is her son. Appears in the "Valkyrie."

BRuNNHILDE: A Valkyrie; daughter of Wotan and Erda; first Siegfried's wife, then Gunther's.

THE VALKYRIES: Helmwige, Gerhilde, Waltraute, Ortlinde, Rossweisse, Grimgerde, and Schwertleite. [Transcriber's Note: Siegrune omitted in original.] Daughters of Wotan and Erda, and sisters to Brunnhilde.

Appear in the "Valkyrie," and Waltraute also in the "Dusk of the G.o.ds."

NORNS: Earth's daughters who spin men's destinies.

GUTRUNE: Daughter of Gibich and Grimilde and Gunther's sister, Hagen's half-sister, and Siegfried's wife. Appears in the "Dusk of the G.o.ds."

WOTAN: (The Wanderer) King of the G.o.ds, and G.o.d of War, Father of the Valkyries, Father of Siegmund and Sieglinde. Appears in the "Rheingold," the "Valkyrie," and as the Wanderer, in "Siegfried."

Married to Fricka.

ALBERICH: Gnome: King of the Nibelungs, Spirit of Darkness. Appears in the "Rheingold," "Siegfried," and the "Dusk of the G.o.ds."

FASOLT: Giant and brother of Fafner; belongs to the race of mortals.

Appears in the "Rheingold."

FAFNER: Giant and brother of Fasolt, and of the race of mortals.

Appears in the "Rheingold" and "Siegfried."

FROH: G.o.d of Pleasure; brother of Donner and Frea, and Fricka.

Appears in the "Rheingold."

DONNER: G.o.d of Thunder, brother to Fricka, Frea, and Froh. Appears in the "Rheingold."

LOGE: Spirit of Fire and Flame. Belongs first to the underworld and then the G.o.ds. Appears in the "Rheingold."

MIME: Dwarf (Nibelung, foster-father of Siegfried.) Appears in the "Rheingold" and in "Siegfried."

SIEGMUND: Son of Wotan, husband to Sieglinde and Siegfried's father.

Appears in the "Valkyrie."

SIEGFRIED: Son of Siegmund and Sieglinde, and grandson of Wotan (Walse). Husband of Brunnhilde and Gutrune. Appears in "Siegfried" and the "Dusk of the G.o.ds."

HUNDING: Sieglinde's husband. Appears in the "Valkyrie."

GUNTHER: Son of Gibich and Grimhilde and brother to Gutrune and husband to Brunnhilde; half-brother to Hagen. Appears in the "Dusk of the G.o.ds."

HAGEN: Son of Alberich and Grimhilde; half-brother to Gunther and Gutrune. Appears in the "Dusk of the G.o.ds."

THE RHEINGOLD

CHARACTERS OF THE OPERA

Donner } Wotan } Froh } G.o.ds.

Loge }

Fricka } Frea } G.o.ddesses.

Erda }

Alberich } Mime } Nibelungs.

Fasolt } Fafner } Giants.

Woglinde } Wellgunde } Rhein-daughters.

Flosshilde }

Nibelungs.

ACT I

Deep down in the jagged bed of the river Rhein there lay hidden a great treasure of gold, which for ages had belonged to the Rhein-daughters--three mermaids who guarded it.

Above the gold, in and out of the shadowy fissures, the beautiful fishwomen had swum and played happily, and the years had never made them old nor weary nor sad. There they frolicked and sang and feared nothing. The golden treasure was heaped high upon the rock in the middle of the river's bed, and it shone through the waters of the stream, always to cheer and delight them.

Now, one tragic day, while the daughters of the Rhein were darting gaily about their water home, a little dark imp came from Nibelheim--the underground land of the Nibelungs--and hid himself in the dark cleft of a rock to watch the mermaids play. In all the universe there was probably not so malevolent a creature as that one.