Tuesday, June 6:
R. had a good night, and with untroubled hearts we wish our Siegfried many happy returns. R. proposes the toast at lunch, but says he cannot make a speech. The celebrations are continued at Jouk.’s in the afternoon. R. comes along, but he soon has enough of all the dancing, smoking, and shouting, and we return home with the Count, spending some time in the turret talking about great modern politicians, Thiers, Guizot, etc. R. says one glimpse from afar of this political world is enough to make him vow never again to take part in world affairs.
In the evening he plays us the Prelude to Tristan und Isolde and moves us all deeply, with the exception of our good Count, who, the minute it ends, gets up to tell R. the Swedish verb we were searching for when R. asked where the English “I am” could have come from. Much amusement over this!