lmarkt, and
consisted of three elegant rooms. When his friend left, Chopin thought
the rent too high for his purse, and as an English family was willing
to pay as much as eighty florins, he sublet the rooms and removed to
the fourth story, where he found in the Baroness von Lachmanowicz an
agreeable young landlady, and had equally roomy apartments which cost
him only twenty florins and pleased him quite well. The house was
favourably situated, Mechetti being on the right, Artaria on the left,
and the opera behind; and as people were not deterred by the high stairs
from visiting him, not even old Count Hussarzewski, and a good profit
would accrue to him from those eighty florins, he could afford to laugh
at theprobable dismay of his friends picturing him as "a poor devil
living in a garret," and could do so the more heartily as there was in
reality another story between him and the roof. He gives his people a
very pretty description of his lodgings and mode of life:--

I live on the fourth story, in a fine street, but I have to
strain my eyes in looking out of the window when I wish to
see what is going on beneath. You will find my room in my new
album when I am at home again. Young Hummel [a son of the
composer] is so kind as to draw it for me. It is large and
has five windows; the bed is opposite to them. My wonderful
piano stands on the right, the sofa on the left; between the
windows there is a mirror, in the middle of the room a fine,
large, round mahogany table; the floor is polished. Hush!
"The gentleman does not receive visitors in the afternoon"--
hence I can be amongst you in my thoughts. Early in the
morning the unbearably-stupid servant wakes me; I rise, get
my coffee, and often drink it cold because I forget my
breakfast over my playing. Punctually at nine o'clock appears
my German master; then I generally write; and after that,
Hummel comes to work at my portrait, while Nidecki studies my
concerto. And all this time I remain in my comfortable
dressing-gown, which I do not take off till twelve o'clock.
At that hour a very worthy German makes his appearance, Herr
Leibenfrost, who works in the law-courts here. If the weather
is fine I take a walk with him on the Glacis, then we dine
together at a restaurant, Zur bohmischen Kochin, which is
frequented by all the university students; and finally we go
(as is the custom here) to one of the