Page:The history of Mendelssohn's oratorio 'Elijah'.djvu/69

 THE ENGLISH TRANSLATION.

��[Bartholomew to Mendelssohn.] " 2, Walcot Place,

" Hackney, London, June 23, 1846.

" My dear Sir, — I have at last, after toiling day and night, got through the first portion of your noble oratorio. I wish I could render words more worthy of such music. My endeavour has been to keep them as scriptural as possible ; and in order that you may be able to judge how far I have succeeded, do me the favour to refer to the verses notified in an English version of the Bible. When the second part, or the parts of that, as they are completed, are sent, I hope we shall have the words in the score written in letters which are readable to us. I know not how so bad a scribe as he who penned the libretto could have been found ; words, nay even sentences were omitted, and words changed : leben was written for beten, and there were no references to where the verses might be seen in ' The Book.' All these caused me much perplexity, trouble, and, what is worse than all, loss of time. These, too, enhanced by my journeys to Hobart Place, and the necessity of copying by my own hand all the vocal portion of the score for the engravers, and those parts which you will receive through the medium of Mr. Buxton for your perusal and decision, have rendered my toil, although a labour of love, incessant. The choral portions will this day be in the hands of the engravers ; and I trust you will send by every packet each of the pieces yet forthcoming — one at a time — ( 5x )

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