e of sorts. He kept the
several hundred guests, and the good dinner waiting over an hour,
because he insisted on making up the whole court himself. His wife wore
a wonderful headdress she made herself, copied from the fresco in his
music room. It was all gold beads and emeralds. Round her neck was a
huge pear-shaped green stone. I was thinking of the chrysophrases I had
seen inset in the wall of the music room, and said: "What wonderful
chrysophrases, Your Royal Highness." "Not chrysophrases, emeralds," she
gently corrected me.

The Baroness had engaged some people to entertain the Grand Duke at
supper, served in the huge new ball-room, but two days before the ball,
she telephoned she was in despair as the people had _abgesagt_, and she
could get no one else. Would I be so awfully kind as I was coming
anyway, to help her out? Every one in town knew all my intimate songs as
I had sung them at various functions where the court was invited, so
Marjorie and I had to put on our thinking caps to find a new "stunt."
Marjorie played the _Laute_, that big, graceful instrument so popular
with the love-sick girl in Germany, and I knew some old French songs
like "Claire de Lune," that I sang to her accompaniment. I went to the
theatre and borrowed the tenor's Pagliacci costume, whitened my face and
dressed Marjorie as a _Pierrette_. At a given signal I sprang from
between purple curtains, put my finger to my lips, turned and beckoned
to _Pierrette_ and led her to the little stage the Baroness had built.
The songs went off very well, and the day was saved. Later I changed to
a _Dalila_ costume, and danced with the Grand Duke, dances he invented
as we went along, a favourite amusement of his. He always held his
partner to the side, with one arm about her waist, and I must say it was
very practical and comfortable. He danced beautifully and his favourite
partner was a tall Fraeulein von B---- a friend of ours. Once returning
from a concert in a little town in the Bergstrasse where I had been
singing, and which had been attended by part of the court, this same
Hofdame and a famous violinist happened to be with us. We took
fourth-class tickets which entitle you to travel with the peasants in
large wooden box-cars, with benches running round the walls. We all
danced to the violinist's playing, while the peasants looked solemnly on
from their benches. I collected _pfennige_ in a hat which the violinist
then put on his head, _pfennigs_ and