My uncle subsequently exercised no small influence on my
development; we shall meet him again at a critical turning-point
in the story of my youth.

My father, whom I had lost so early, was, as I discovered
afterwards, a great lover of poetry and literature in general, and
possessed in particular an almost passionate affection for the
drama, which was at that time much in vogue among the educated
classes. My mother told me, among other things, that he took her to
Lauchstadt for the first performance of the Braut von Messina, and
that on the promenade he pointed out Schiller and Goethe to her,
and reproved her warmly for never having heard of these great men.
He is said to have been not altogether free from a gallant interest
in actresses. My mother used to complain jokingly that she often
had to keep lunch waiting for him while he was paying court to a
certain famous actress of the day [FOOTNOTE: Madame Hartwig]. When
she scolded him, he vowed that he had been delayed by papers that
had to be attended to, and as a proof of his assertion pointed to
his fingers, which were supposed to be stained with ink, but on
closer inspection were found to be quite clean. His great fondness
for the theatre was further shown by his choice of the actor,
Ludwig Geyer, as one of his intimate friends. Although his choice
of this friend was no doubt mainly due to his love for the theatre,
he at the same time introduced into his family the noblest of
benefactors; for this modest artist, prompted by a warm interest in
the lot of his friend's large family, so unexpectedly left
destitute, devoted the remainder of his life to making strenuous
efforts to maintain and educate the orphans. Even when the police
official was spending his evenings at the theatre, the worthy actor