ow, wax-colored face, the long, dark, disheveled
hair, the mysterious expression of the heavy eye, made a weirdly strange
_ensemble_. Heine tells us in "The Florentine Nights" that only one
artist had succeeded in delineating the real physiognomy of Paganini: "A
deaf and crazy painter, called Lyser, has in a sort of spiritual frenzy
so admirably portrayed by a few touches of his pencil the head of
Paganini that one is dismayed and moved to laughter at the faithfulness
of the sketch! 'The devil guided my hand,' said the deaf painter to me,
with mysterious gesticulations and a satirical yet good-natured wag of
the head, such as he was wont to indulge in when in the midst of his
genial tomfoolery."

II.

Nicolo Paganini was born at Genoa on the night of February 18, 1784,
of parents in humbly prosperous circumstances, his father being a
ship-broker, and, though illiterate in a general way, a passionate lover
of music and an amateur of some skill. The father soon perceived the
child's talent, and caused him to study so severely that it not only
affected his constitution, but actually made him a tolerable player at
the age of six years. The elder Paganini's knowledge of music was not
sufficient to carry the lad far in mastering the instrument, but the
extraordinary precocity shown so interested Signor Corvetto, the leader
at the Genoese theatre, that he undertook to instruct the gifted child.
Two years later the young Paganini was transferred to the charge of
Signor Giacomo Costa, an excellent violinist, and director of church
music at one of the cathedrals, under whom he made rapid progress in
executive skill, while he studied harmony and counterpoint under the
composer Gnecco. It was at this time, Paganini not yet being nine years
of age, that he composed his first piece, a sonata now lost. In 1793 he
made his first appearance in public at Genoa, and played variations
on the air "La Carmagnole," then so popular, with immense effect. This
_debut_ was followed by several subsequent appearances, in which he
created much enthusiasm. He also played a violin concerto every Sunday
in church, an attraction which drew great throngs. This practice was
of great use to Paganini, as it forced him continually to study fresh
music. About the year 1795 it was deemed best to place the boy under
the charge of an eminent professor, and Alessandro Rolla, of Parma, was
pitched on. When the Paganinis arrived, they found the learned professor