ess was immediately prepossessing, the
delicacy of his constitution rendered him interesting in the
eyes of women, the full yet graceful cultivation of his mind,
the sweet and captivating originality of his conversation,
gained for him the attention of the most enlightened men. Men
less highly cultivated, liked him for his exquisite courtesy of
manner. They were so much the more pleased with this, because,
in their simplicity, they never imagined it was the graceful
fulfilment of a duty into which no real sympathy entered.

'Could such people have divined the secrets of his mystic
character, they would have said he was more amiable than
loving--and with respect to them, this would have been true.
But how could they have known that his real, though rare
attachments, were so vivid, so profound, so undying?...

'Association with him in the details of life was delightful. He
filled all the forms of friendship with an unaccustomed charm,
and when he expressed his gratitude, it was with that deep
emotion which recompenses kindness with usury. He willingly
imagined that he felt himself every day dying; he accepted the
cares of a friend, hiding from him, lest it should render him
unhappy, the little time he expected to profit by them. He
possessed great physical courage, and if he did not accept with
the heroic recklessness of youth the idea of approaching death,
at least he cherished the expectation of it with a kind of
bitter pleasure.'...

'After completing his studies in harmony with a celebrated master, he
complied with the wishes of his parents, who desired that he should
travel, in order that he should become familiar with the best musical
productions under the advantage of their perfect execution. For this
purpose he visited many of the German cities, and was absent from Warsaw
on one of his excursions when the revolution broke out in the autumn of
1830. He was thus forced to remain in Vienna, and was heard there in
some concerts, but failed to receive the appreciation from the artistic
public of that city which he had a right to anticipate. Leaving Vienna,
he repaired to Paris, which was henceforth to be the scene of his
brilliant triumphs. His constitution, being frail and delicate, could
not long sustain the rude shocks of life unscathed, and we accordingly
find Chopin at the age of thirty with r