troducing many spurious Stainer violins, which gradually brought
down the market value. Nevertheless, genuine Stainer violins are
recognizable, and still retain a fancy price. Mozart possessed one
which he greatly prized, using it as his solo quartette instrument.
It belongs now to a professor in the Mozarteum at Salzburg, and was
played upon at the Mozart festival in 1856.

"But a violin with a still more remarkable history figured during the
festivities attending the marriage of the present emperor of Austria.
During the visit of the emperor Charles VI., King Friedrich Wilhelm
of Prussia and other princes to the great nobleman Count Wenzel von
Trautmannsdorf, the generous and lavish host became sorely perplexed
how to provide George Stezitzky, a splendid violinist, with a suitable
instrument. At this point he opportunely heard that there was an old
fiddler in the court who begged permission to play before the august
company. The request being granted, the musician commenced playing,
and immediately sent princes and nobles into raptures over the tones
of his violin. The count therefore stopped him, and offered to buy it.
This quite threw the old man into despair. 'It was a Stainer violin,'
he replied, 'and his whole livelihood was bound up in it.' The count,
however, was not to be thwarted: he gave him fifty ducats for the
piece he had played, and then concluded the bargain on the following
conditions: three hundred gulden for the violin, besides a house
to live in, food and a quart of wine daily; ten gulden monthly, two
barrels of beer and one suit of clothes yearly, fruit and as many
hares as he needed for his kitchen. The agreement having been
concluded, George Stezitzky played a solo on the violin: then received
it as a present from the count. The man who had parted with it lived
sixteen years more, thus costing the count in actual money 8733
florins 20 kreuzers, equal to 10,380 florins 24 kreuzers of the
present currency. A large sum to give for a violin."

"Yes," replied Joergel, who appeared to have been much interested
by the whole history; "but what puzzles me is, how a poor devil who
worked so slow could be a genius. I thought sharp people took more
after the Almighty, and hurried up their work in the twinkling of an
eye."

"Do the trees which you look after shoot up in the twinkling of an
eye?"

"Why, no. Good, stout wood, with strength enough to resist storms and
to cleave to the rocks of these mountai