[...] When Herr von Holtei discharged Herr Musikdirector Lobmann, although I was exceedingly sorry and had made several vain attempts to prevent it, I felt I ought to use the occasion to relieve my own far from flourishing pecuniary situation, and consequently suggested to Herr von Holtei [...] that I should take on Herr Lobmann's duties—the rehearsal and conducting of lesser operas and vaudeville—till the end of my contract, and that with a good conscience as regards the interests of the establishment for which he was responsible, he for his part might remit the rest of the deductions on account of the advance made to me, to the great betterment of my very straitened finances. However, Herr von Holtei replied that he could not accept this proposal (to work off my overdraft) and on the contrary thought it necessary to engage someone at once to take up Herr Lobmann's duties. He thanked me for my offer but would have the operas and vaudeville in question conducted by the leader of the orchestra until the appointment of a new director of music. You will at once perceive from this refusal of my offer that the management held me in no sense bound to these subordinate functions. Furthermore, at the signing of the contract with me in Berlin, Herr von Holtei, disclosing as part of the conditions the lines on which his theatre was run, told me that he had already engaged a music director in the person of Herr Lobmann for rehearsing and conducting lesser operas and vaudeville, and gave the higher salary assigned to the music director for this very purpose as the reason why he was unable to pay me the salary of 1000 roubles formerly allotted by the committee for the post of kapellmeister. The music director engaged with me did, in fact, rehearse and conduct operettas such as Ochsenmenuett, Schwestern von Prag, and Rochus Pumpernickel, and I was actually superior to him in function. However, the music director expected after the above-mentioned correspondence with Herr Holtei failed to appear, and seriously I can hardly think it necessary or desirable for you to engage anyone for the job now, before September of this year, which, I take it, will probably be your opinion too. The duties of the post have meanwhile naturally fallen to me and I now ask you to be so kind as to agree to the proposal formerly made to Herr von Holtei and herewith renewed. If it were simply a question of a favour which I could render personally to you I should naturally not hesitate to do so, the more so that you have been so consistently kind, but since I know that I cannot serve you or your personal interests (which I hold not to be entirely bound up with those of the present management) by the performance of these duties outside my contract, I hope that you will not take it ill of me if I do as anyone else would certainly do in my place, and bear my own interests in mind. But please do not mistake me [...] I do not wish to appear unaccommodating or lacking in zeal, for indeed no one could reproach me on that score. On the contrary I here offer to do all that is within my power. I will cheerfully work day and night for the theatre, I will undertake every duty I can possibly cope with, I will orchestrate whole scores and anything else that may be asked of me, but I want to be assured that I am to be remunerated for it. I owe that to myself and to my position. Once more then in short—I herewith request from you a total remittance of my advance (of course with the exception of the thirty roubles which I recently received from you and which I am to pay off by five roubles each pay-day) and in return I offer to undertake anything you like to heap upon my shoulders, with the sole exception of boot-cleaning and water-carrying, which last my heart is not equal to at the moment. But I really would copy scores if I had not good grounds to fear the result of this melancholy employment in overclouding my temperament. The chance to help me is there and I am convinced you will acclaim it with joy, even if only that posterity may say of you, "He was the man who, etc., etc."
Source: Letters of Richard Wagner, Vol. 1, selected and ed. Wilhelm Altmann, trans. M. M. Bozman (J. M. Dent & Sons, 1927), No. 44