this is a
mere surmise, or rather an inference from indirect proofs, for, strange
to say, although Chopin mentions Hummel frequently in his letters, he
does not write a syllable that gives a clue to his sentiments regarding
him. The older master, on the other hand, shows by his inquiries after
his younger brother in art and the visits he pays him that he had a real
regard and affection for him.

It is also to be regretted that Chopin says in his letters nothing of
Paganini's appearance in Warsaw. The great Italian violinist, who made
so deep an impression on, and exercised so great an influence over,
Liszt, cannot have passed by without producing some effect on Chopin.
That the latter had a high opinion of Paganini may be gathered from
later utterances, but what one would like is a description of his
feelings and thoughts when he first heard him. Paganini came to Warsaw
in 1829, after his visit to Berlin. In the Polish capital he was
worshipped with the same ardour as elsewhere, and also received the
customary tributes of applause, gold, and gifts. From Oreste Bruni's
Niccolo Paganini, celebre violinista Genovese, we learn that his
Warsaw worshippers presented him with a gold snuff-box, which bore the
following inscription:--Al Cav. Niccolo Paganini. Gli ammiratori del suo
talento. Varsovia 19 Luglio 1829.

Some months after this break in what he, no doubt, considered the
monotonous routine of Warsaw life, our friend made another excursion,
one of far greater importance in more than one respect than that to
Berlin. Vienna had long attracted him like a powerful magnet, the
obstacles to his going thither were now removed, and he was to see that
glorious art-city in which Gluck, Haydn, Mozart, Beethoven, Schubert,
and many lesser but still illustrious men had lived and worked.

CHAPTER VII

CHOPIN JOURNEYS TO VIENNA BY WAY OF CRACOW AND OJCOW.--STAYS THERE
FOR SOME WEEKS, PLAYING TWICE IN PUBLIC.--RETURNS TO WARSAW BY WAY OF
PRAGUE, DRESDEN, AND BRESLAU.

IT was about the middle of July, 1829, that Chopin, accompanied by his
friends Celinski, Hube, and Francis Maciejowski, set out on his journey
to Vienna. They made a week's halt at the ancient capital of the Polish
Republic, the many-towered Cracow, which rises picturesquely in a
landscape of great loveliness. There they explored the town and its
neighbourhood, both of which are rich in secular and ecclesiastical
buildings, venerable by age and historic