Sunday, November 5:
Letter from Hans! He consents to my wishes, although, as he says, he hates everything German. Melancholy. From Bayreuth a very heartening reply from Herr Feustel; they are starting a Wagner Society there, too! Countless letters from Bologna about the success of Lohengrin.
R. is working, "still bloodthirstily"; recently he said to Prof. Nietzsche, "From the fact that I am now composing nothing but bloodthirstiness one can deduce whether I was in love when I wrote Tristan." Now we have too much to do; R. wants to write an open letter to Italy, and on top of that he has the essay on Auber to revise and all the frightful correspondence. I write to Grammann, to Hartel, to A. Frommann, and to Clemens. Very nice letter from Fritz Brockhaus about his uncle's first volume. In the evening Carlyle for the last time.