han if he had been taking a normal part in
the activities of his fellowmen.

Particular attention is called to the variety of Beethoven's
correspondents and to their influential position in the artistic and
social life of that period. In the Will, number 55, a most impassioned
expression of feeling, Beethoven lays bare his inmost soul, and with an
eloquence seldom surpassed has transformed cold words into living
symbols of emotion. The immortal power contained in his music finds its
parallel in this document. He who appeals to our deepest emotions
commands for all time our reverent allegiance. In addition to the
letters there is an extensive diary and also numerous conversation
books. All these writings are valuable, not only for themselves, but
because they confirm in an unmistakable way certain of the salient
characteristics of his musical compositions. With Beethoven we find in
instrumental music, practically for the first time, a prevailing note of
sublimity. He must have been a religious man in the truest sense of the
term, with the capacity to realize the mystery and grandeur of human
destiny, and numerous passages from the letters give eloquent expression
to an analogous train of serious thought. (See letters 1017 and 1129.)
One of his favorite books was Sturm's _Betrachtungen ueber die Werke
Gottes in der Natur_ ("Contemplations upon the Works of God in Nature"),
and from his diary of 1816 we have the quotation which was the basis of
his creed--"God is immaterial, and for this reason transcends every
conception. Since he is invisible He can have no form. But from what we
observe in His work we may conclude that He is eternal, omnipotent,
omniscient, and omnipresent."

Although some modern critics have doubted whether music without the
association of words can express humor, the introduction of this element
into symphonic music is generally considered one of Beethoven's greatest
achievements. While it is true that if any one listening to the scherzos
of the Third and Eighth symphonies asserts that they mean nothing
humorous to him no one can gainsay him, we know that Beethoven intended
these movements to be expressions of his overflowing humorous spirits
and the suggestive term "scherzo" is his own invention. In music, as in
literature, much hinges upon the definition of humor, and there is the
same distinction in each art between wit--light and playful, and
humor--broad, serious, and, at times, even grim. A gen