I
hasten to send you only the most important news - Well, I must
tell you that during the time when I was in the country for the
sake of my health those arch-villains Artaria & Co. asked
Count Fries to lend them the quintet to copy, stating that theirs
was imperfect and that the work had already been engraved and
published here, and - they did in fact try to delight the public
with it a few days ago - Our good C[ount] F[ries] who was bewildered
and did not pause to think whether this might not be some knavish
trick, just gave it to them. He could not consult me - for I wasn't
in Vienna - Fortunately, however, I managed to hear about all
this in time; that was Tuesday of this week. Anxious to save my
honour and to avert your loss as quickly as was humanly possible,
I offered these low fellows two new works, if they would suppress
their whole edition. But a more cool-headed friend, who happened
to be with me, asked me whether I wanted to reward those scoundrels
as well? So the affair is being concluded under certain conditions;
Artaria & Co have assured me that whatever you publish they
will copy and engrave. Hence those noble scoundrels have fixed
the time-limit of three weeks, by which date your copies will
have appeared in Vienna; and they have agreed not to publish their
copies until then (although they maintained that C[ount] F[ries]
had given them the copy). The contract was to have been concluded
for this time-limit and in return I was to give them a work which
I should value at 40 ducats at least. Before the conclusions of
this contract my good brother turns up, as if sent from Heaven,
and hurries off to see C[ount] F[ries] and learns that the whole
affair is the greatest swindle in the world. In my next letter
I shall give you full details of how cleverly they succeeded in
keeping me away from C[ount] F[ries] and of all other matters
- I too am now going to see F[ries]. The enclosed declaration
may serve as proof that I have done everything to avert your loss
- And my account of the whole affair may prove to you as well
that no sacrifice has been too great to save my honour and to
protect you from any loss -
From
the declaration you will see at the same time what measures you
should adopt. I think that you should now hasten with all possible
speed to send copies to Vienna, and, if possible, at the same
price as that of those scoundrels -- Further, Sonnleithner and
I are going to take all the other steps which we consider advisable,
so that their whole edition may be suppressed. - Pray bear well
in mind that Mollo and Artaria are really only one firm, that
is to say, one whole family of scoundrels - Surely you have not
forgotten the dedication to Fries which my brother entered on
the first leaf - I myself have copied out the declaration for
you, because my poor brother has so much business to transact
and yet has done everything he possibly could to rescue you and
me. When doing so he lost in the general confusion a faithful
dog, which he called his favourite. He deserves to be thanked
by you in person, as I have already done on my own account - Just
think that from Tuesday until late yesterday evening my time was
taken up almost entirely with that business; and the very thought
of this knavish trick may make you feel how unpleasant it has
been to be obliged to deal with such low fellows -
L.
v. Beethoven
Declaration
The
undersigned hereby undertake not to dispatch under any pretext
whatsoever the quintet composed by Ludwig v. Beethoven which they
received from Count Fries, nor to sell it here or elsewhere until
the original edition has been in circulation here in Vienna for
a fortnight.
Vienna, November
12, 1820 Artaria
& Co.
This
declaration has been signed by the firm in their own hand.
Make
use of the following particulars: to be obtained in Vienna at
Artaria & Co., Munich at Fr: Halm, in Frankfurt at Gayl &
Hedler, perhaps too in Leipzig at Meysel - The price is two florins,
i.e. two gulden in Viennese currency. -
I
have succeeded in securing twelve copies, the only ones they promised
me at once, in the first instance; and I have copied all these
particulars from them -The engraving is abominable. Make use of
all these facts. You realize that in any case we have caught them
out and can take legal action against them -