He himself, writing from Berlin in 1754, says that
he has been absent from that city _nur ein halbes Jahr_ since 1748.
There is only one letter for 1762, dated at Wittenberg, 9th June.
[152] "Ramler," writes Georg Forster, "ist die Ziererei, die
Eigenliebe die Eitelkeit in eigener Person."
[153] Lessing to Von Murr, 25th November, 1768. The whole letter is
well worth reading.
[154] A favorite phrase of his, which Egbert has preserved for us
with its Saxon accent, was, _Es kommt doch nischt dabey heraus_,
implying that one might do something better for a constancy than
shearing twine.
[155] I find surprisingly little about Lessing in such of the
contemporary correspondence of German literary men as I have read. A
letter of Boie to Merck (10 April, 1775) gives us a glimpse of him.
"Do you know that Lessing will probably marry Reiske's widow and come
to Dresden in place of Hagedorn? The restless spirit! How he will get
along with the artists, half of them, too, Italians, is to be
seen.... Liffert and he have met and parted good friends. He has worn
ever since on his finger the ring with the skeleton and butterfly
which Liffert gave him.
Pages:
470
471
472
473
474
475
476
477
478
479
480
481
482
483
484
485
486
487
488
489
490
491
492
493
494