composing "The Creation," Haydn
was prevailed upon to write another work, of somewhat similar
character, to words adapted from Thomson's poem, and entitled "The
Seasons." This, though containing some fine descriptive music and
several choruses of great beauty, is not at all equal to the earlier
work, though at the time its success was quite as complete. But the
exertion of writing two such great works, almost without rest between
them, was too great, and he himself said: "'The Seasons' gave me the
finishing stroke." The bombardment of Vienna by the French in 1809
greatly disturbed the poor old man. He still retained some of his old
humor, and during the thunder of the cannons called out to his
servants: "Children, don't be frightened; no harm can happen to you
while Haydn is by!" He was now no longer able to compose, and to his
last unfinished quartette he added a few bars of "Der Greis," as a
conclusion:

"Hin ist alle meine Kraft:
Alt und schwach bin ich.
--JOSEPH HAYDN."

"Gone is all my strength: old and weak am I." And these lines he
caused to be engraved, and sent on a card to the friends who visited
him. The end was indeed now near. On May 26, 1809, he had his servants
gathered round him for the last adieus; then, by his desire, he was
carried to the piano, where he played three times over the "Emperor's
Hymn," composed by him. Then he was taken to his bed, where five days
afterward he died.

BEETHOVEN

By C. E. BOURNE

(1770-1827)

[Illustration: Beethoven.]

In one of his letters to Frau von Streicher, at Baden, Beethoven
writes: "When you visit the ancient ruins, do not forget that
Beethoven has often lingered there; when you stray through the silent
pine-forests, do not forget that Beethoven often wrote poetry there,
or, as it is termed, composed." He was always fond of claiming the
title "Ton-dichter, poet in music;" and surely of all the great
geniuses who have walked the earth, to none can the glorious name of
"poet" more truly be given than to Ludwig von Beethoven.

He was born at Bonn, on December 17, 1770. His father, Johann von
Beethoven, was a tenor singer in the Electoral Chapel of the
Archbishop of Cologne, at Bonn, and his mother, Maria Magdalena, was a
daughter of the head cook at the castle of Ehrenbreitstein. The
Beethoven family originally came from Louvain, in Belgium; but the
composer's grandfather had settled in Bonn, first as a singer, and
afterward