These wondrous incidents, more or less correctly reported, could not fail to appear in the press. Several of the Parisian newspapers dealt with this, and then all the others. During one week Mr. Bach's spinet, with its supernatural accessories, was the great sensation of amateurs of novelties in the French city. The whole was judged as incomprehensible, all admitted the facts, classifying them as mysteries that they dared not deepen, and trusted in the existence of some natural law that would explain them; but no one doubted the facts, because of the solid reputation and integrity for which Mr. Bach was known.

After some time, this excitement was replaced by other sensational news, without that specific one having had any solution or explanation.

The song was published, and as in the original, it was only the singing part without accompaniment, Mr. Bach arranged it with great taste and insight. The lyrics were beautiful. The words were adapted to touching romance. 

Refrain

I have lost the one for which I had so much love,

She, so beautiful, had for me each day,

A new favor and new desire;

Oh! Yes! Without her I must die.

1^st verse

One day, during a distant hunt,

I saw her for the first time;

I thought I saw an angel in the plain,

Then I became the happiest of the Kings!

More! 

2^nd verse

I would certainly give my whole kingdom

To see her again for a moment,

Near the island, seated beneath a humble thatch,

To feel my heart beating, while admiring her.

More!

3rd verse

Sad and cloistered, oh! My poor beautiful

Was far from me her last days.

She no longer feels her cruel suffering,

Here below, unfortunately! ... I still suffer!

Ah! 

These verses contain two special allusions; one to its royal author, in love with a person seen on the occasion of a distant hunt, and the other to a lady who ended her days in a cloister. The publication of the above-mentioned incidents and the mysterious song gave rise to several searches in the annals of the sixteenth century in order to establish the value of Mr. Bach's story. According to the best biographers, one soon learned that the object of this great passion of Henry's life had been Princess Maria de Cleves, who seems to have died in an abbey.

There was also a passage in the work of the diligent chronicler, Abbot Lenglet Dufresnoy that says: "In 1579 Baltazzarini, famous Italian musician, came to France and lived at the court of Henry III".

I decided to get as many witnesses as possible, and I found some other important particulars. 

HENRY, THE LAST OF THE VALOIS - This favorite son of Catherine de Medicis is best known for a great crime of his life: that of having consented to the massacre of St. Bartholomew, which occurred and was instigated by his mother and ordered by his older brother, Carlos IX, in August of 1572.

Henry, however, was not devoid of other excellent qualities. At the age of nineteen, he won for his brother the battles of Jarnac and Montcontour, acquiring a military reputation that earned him the throne of Poland.

One of the most meticulous modern historians says: "Henry wished to lead a palatial life, divided between the pious exercises and the pleasures of the city, between the retreat and the ostentation of the sovereign magistracy". He was little inclined to cultivate the relations of the old generals, politicians and men of knowledge, preferring the company of cheerful and handsome young men, who imitated him in the irreproachability of the garments and the brilliance of the ornaments". (*)

But this only shows us one of the faces of his character. "His nature, says Ranke, resembled that of Sardanapalus, who, in times of prosperity, gave himself up to the enervating lust, but, in adversity, he became brave and daring ... His faults were linked to these two qualities His lack of morality, inclination to worldly pleasures, and submission to some favorites gave rise to a general and well-grounded resentment, but occasionally he rose to the height of his vocation, manifesting an intellectual capacity worthy of his elevated position; and although he was subject to many hesitations, he was a soul greatly susceptible of good deeds".

Such was the king, who, according to what was alleged in Mr. Bach's dream, composed the above-mentioned elegiac chant. The lady's name, for which he wept, was not mentioned there; but, confirmed the veracity of the song there can be no doubt about his personality. Beatriz's name is no longer intimately bound to Dante's memory, or Laura's to Petrarch's, than that of Maria de Cleves to that of Henry III. No detailed history of this time, however, and no Henry's biographer mentions her.

He met her, when he was still Duke of Anju, and intended to marry her; but she was Protestant, and he was Catholic, of the Medicis' blood. This difference of religion, insurmountable in the eyes of the Queen Mother, seems to have been the only reason for not having made such a marriage.

She married in July 1572 with the Prince of Conde, one of the Protestant leaders; in the following year of 1573, Henry left France to ascend to the throne of Poland, taking with him, according to Chateaubriand, the guilt of the massacre of St. Bartholomew, and even stronger, the pain of his defeat in love. "He wrote with blood", says this historian, "a letter to Mary of Cleves, Henry, the Prince of Conde’s first wife".

Charles IX passed away in 1574 and Henry returned soon from Poland to Paris, as heir of the throne of France. One month after his arrival, Maria died, and this death was a blow so deep that he spent many days without eating, enclosed in a room lined with black, and when he appeared, he dressed in mourning clothes, sown with figures representing skulls.

The poets of those days mention Henry's deep sorrow.

In the works of Pasquier, contemporary of Henry, there is a monody about the death of Maria de Cleves that the poet pretends was said by the King himself.

All this fits perfectly with what history tells us about this lady. 

MARIA DE CLEVES - This princess seems to have been almost as remarkable for her grace and beauty as her celebrated namesake, Mary of Scotland.

She had been admired at the court of Charles IX for her kindness and virtues. The poets of that time celebrated her with the name of - The Beautiful Maria; and the fascination which her charms exercised upon Henry was such that the credulity of time attributed it to witchcraft.

We will find a testimony about the character of this lady and the deep pain that her loss caused to the King in the following text from a manuscript dealing with the reigns of Henry III and Henry IV of Pedro l'Estoile, Lord of Grand, a nobleman of a well-known family, occupying an important place in the magistracy and the Parliament of Paris. "On Saturday, October 30, 1574, he died in Paris, in the prime of his age, leaving a daughter, Mrs. Maria de Cleves, Marquise d'Isle, wife of Henry the Bourbon, prince of Conde. Of singular kindness and beauty, reason for which the King loved her madly, to the point of Cardinal Bourbon, her political uncle, having to receive the King in his abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Pres, removed the body of the princess, and ordered the King not to enter while her body was there. On her deathbed, she said that she had married the most generous but also the most jealous prince of France, though she was aware that she had never given him the least reason for his jealousy.

I did not find positive proof that Mary spent her last days in the abbey where her body was buried; but it is very likely that this really occurred.

We know that she died in Paris, and that her husband, Prince de Conde, fearing that the Queen Mother might attempt against his life, had, a few months before, taken refuge in Germany, where he remained until the end of 1575, that is, up to one year after the death of Mary. Her father had died many years before. The prince, undoubtedly living as an expatriate, entrusted the woman to the care of his uncle, the Cardinal de Bourbon. The Cardinal, of course, resided in his abbey and it was only natural that he should receive the niece there, an orphan and deprived of her husband's company. Her life must have been sad, ignoring the fate of her husband! All this is in agreement with the lyrics of the song.

Let us now say something about the musician, the Spirit of which, as they say, manifested. 

BALTAZZARINI - This name is not found in the Biographie Generale or Biographie Universale. But after a long search, when I was desperate to find any biographical news of such a character, I was fortunate enough to discover in the Library of Athenaeum in Boston a French dictionary of remarkable musicians in eight or nine volumes; and there I found the name of Henry's favorite. It reads: "Baltazzarini, an Italian musician known in France under the name of Joyful (Beaujoyeux), was the first violinist of his time. Brissac's Marshal brought him from Piemonte in 1577 to the court of Queen Catherine Of Medicis, who made him music director and first gentleman. Henry III entrusted to him the direction of the parties of the palace, position that he always played to general contentment. He was the first one that had the idea of ​​a dramatic spectacle, combined with music and dance".

Baltazzarini, therefore, lived in the court of Henry with the nickname of Beaujoyeux (the beautiful-cheerful). This combines with the dedication of the spinet, written by the King, where he calls him the gay mucisien (the cheerful musician), and with the writing by the hand of the medium, which reads: très bon mucisien (very good musician).

It is not possible to find a stronger proof of authenticity than in these small incidents.

What shall we say about the story told to Mr. Bach? The documents I have gathered have been obtained for me by a friendly Englishman living in Paris, whom I will never have the words to express, as a wish of my gratitude for his disinterested and indefatigable benevolence and whose name I would very much like to make known. This friend, having dealt with Mr. Bach, personally obtained from him all the particulars, confirmed by the journalistic publications and by the documents that I now possess, such as photographs provided by Mr. Bach's obsequiousness, accompanied by the certificate below and the facsimile of the original music: "It is a correct facsimile of the sheet of music paper I found on my bed in the morning of May 5, 1865. The song and lyrics are exactly the ones I had heard in my dream. - NG Bach". 

In addition, Mr. Bach, answering to my suggestion, which many may find importunate, did the favor of writing me a letter dated March 23, 1867, in which he says: "I attest to the existence of the parchment which is still in my possession, containing the verse composed by the King and addressed to the celebrated musician Baltazzarini, and which was found in a secret crevice of the spinet that the King had given him, and I declare that the communication announcing the existence of this parchment and the place where it was is strictly real, as well as the reproduction of the autograph of the music and the lyrics, were executed with care and are perfectly accurate".

This is the case, with all its important details. The reader will decide whether, considering these circumstances, this is a phony.

What is the purpose? No worldly gain was there. Rather serious risk and, perhaps, injury. The risk of being deceived, suspected, accused of monomania, or perhaps of conspiring to deceive the world with a series of combined scams, involving a sacrilegious lie and aiming at sacred things, relative not only to this but to the other world too. By doing so, he runs the risk of losing a firm reputation regarding his integrity of a long and honorable life. And, moreover, he would bring to his house importunate and impertinent visitors, questioners, disturbing the quietness so dear to an enlightened and scholarly sexagenarian.

If, however, the character and all conceivable motives give rise to no suspicion, the circumstances are such that fraud could only be sustained with extreme difficulties. The friend to whom I owe my documents showed the original of the song to Mr. D., one of the greatest harmonists of our day, a perfect treasure of musical instruction. This gentleman examined it as a critic, and declared that he saw the exact style of the time, the imitation of which demanded not only a great musical genius, but also a special study of the way of life at that time. Mr. D., who does not believe in the communication of the Spirits, did not attempt to explain the mystery, and only said that, although Mr. Bach was an illustrious musician, he thought it absolutely impossible that he was the author of that song; and even if he could do it, he would not be able to do it in a single night and without recourse to the old authorities.

And what can be said about the coincidences between the words of the song and the incidents of the lives of Henry III and Mary of Cleves? All the allusions were justified, except that of the distant hunt. Let Sadducees mock the belief in the unseen; I confess I have this belief, and if I ever have the opportunity to consult the Library of the British Museum or the Imperial Library of France, I hope to check this point.

Think of the small things I mentioned. Could anyone combine a plan of falsehoods and indications in order to explain all the variations between the predicted and the original stanza? And that (ma) so well explained? - And that si so correct, although it seems a mistake? - And even the variations, in the way of writing the name of the musician? - something very natural, if we have in view the uncertain spelling of those days, but how improbable to be presented today? It was only after long meditations and, inductively, that I concluded that the words triste et cloistrèe were in perfect accord with the facts. How, then, to believe that a remote reference could, on the mysterious night, lead Mr. Bach to the same conclusion? 

Moreover, if the communication indicating the hiding place of the parchment was an invention, then Mr. Bach would have already found it, without any indication, before exposing the spinet in the Retrospective Museum.

But, is it within the limits of probable, the fact that the surprising discovery of such an interesting document having been calculatedly concealed by someone; of being the spinet, under a false pretext, exposed in the museum, and then presenting itself to the forged communication as a motive to have it fetched and to proceed to a pretended examination?

I do not think the passionless reader will accept such shocking improbabilities; and if he does not accept them, what interesting suggestions, in relation to spiritual communications and the identity of Spirits, are contained in the simple story of Mr. Bach's spinet? 

CONCLUSION – Since the personal data of the individuals was very limited, it was difficult to prove and confirm these reports.  However, as today's personal information is increasingly detailed (birth certificate, marriage certificate, diplomas of all types, newspapers, magazines and periodicals) we will have more and more instruments to prove these stories. The one, who survives, will see.

References:

OWEN, R. D. Region in Litigation between this world and the other, Rio de Janeiro: FEB, 1982.

SAMPAIO, L. F., jornal do leitor, accessed on 06/30/2006 at 2:32 p.m.