conscientiousness with which La Mara has prepared these volumes.
In a spirit of no less reverence I have endeavored, in the
English translation, to adhere as closely as possible to all the
minute characteristics that add expression to Liszt's letters:
punctuation has, of necessity, undergone alteration, but italics,
inverted commas, dashes and other marks have been strictly
observed. It may be objected that unnecessary particularity has
been shown in the translation of various titles, names of
Societies or newspapers, quotations, etc.; but there are many
people who, while understanding French, do not read German, and
vice versa, and therefore it has seemed better to translate
everything. Where anything has been omitted in the printed
letters I have adhered to the sign .--. employed by La Mara to
indicate the hiatus. It has seemed best to preserve the spelling
of all proper names as written by Liszt, and not to Anglicise
any, as it is impossible to do all; and therefore, even at the
risk of a seeming affectation, the original form of the name has
been preserved. In the same spirit I have adhered to the correct
form of the name of our adopted composer Handel, and trust I may
be pardoned for so doing on the strength of a little joke of
Liszt's own "The English," he said, "always talk about Gluck and
Handel!"

La Mara says in her Preface that this collection can by no means
be considered a complete one, as there must exist other letters--
to Liszt's mother, to Berlioz, Tausig, etc.--which it is hoped
may yet be some day forthcoming. In like manner might there not
also be letters to his daughter Madame Ollivier (not to mention
his still-living daughter Madame Wagner)? [Another volume of
Liszt's letters, of a still more intimate character, addressed to