All went well for a time, but, little by little, the motion became more rapid; higher and still higher went the swing! In vain Madam Cosima begged for mercy. Carried away by a kind of frenzy, the Master paid no attention, and the incident began to have a terrifying aspect.
Cosima grew white; her hold relaxed, and she was about to fall.
"Do you not see that she is fainting?" I cried, throwing myself toward Wagner.
He grew pale, in his turn, and the danger was quickly averted. But, as the poor woman continued to be dizzy and trembling, the Master concluded it would be wise to create a diversion. He ran rapidly toward the house, and by the aid of the shutters, the mouldings and projections of the stones, he climbed nimbly up the side, and reaching the balcony of the floor above, leaped over it.
He had obtained the desired effect, but in replacing one evil by another. Trembling with anxiety, Cosima turned to me, saying under her breath:
"Above all things, do not notice him; do not look surprised, or you can never tell where he will end."
XXXII
"While you are in Munich," Wagner said to me, "try to induce them to show you the model of a theatre that the great architect Semper constructed for me. I warn you that this will not be easy, even with the introductions that I shall be able to give you. They have consigned this model to some out-of-the-way corner of the palace, and they are not fond of bringing it to light. They strongly suspect that I have not altogether given up the hope that one day I may see my buried project come to life again, and this presentiment is a real nightmare for my enemies."
A little later Madam Cosima drew me to one side, and said:—