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438 [Doc. 255.
TESTIMONY OF CONTEMPORARIES.
played upon it. I told him, we were all lovers of it, and that
my wife in her youth had practised it, since she had a fine
voice, perhaps better than any in Denmark, as several persons
of distinction who had heard the best singers in France, Eng
land, and Italy, had assured her; and that my daughter also
played with pretty good taste. On this Swedenborg begged
her to play. She then performed a difficult and celebrated
sonata, of which he beat the measure with his foot as he sat
on the sofa; and when finished, he said, "Brava ! very fine."
She then played another by Ruttini ; and when she had played
a few minutes, he said, "this is by an Italian, but the first
was not." This finished, he said, "Brava, you play very well.
Do you not sing also ?" She answered, "I sing, but have not
a very good voice, though I am fond of singing, and would
sing, if my mother would accompany me." He requested my
wife to join; to which she assented, and they sang a few Italian
duets, and some French airs, each according to her respective
taste, to which he beat time, afterwards paying many com
pliments to my wife, on account of her taste, and fine voice,
which she had preserved notwithstanding so long an illness.
20. I took the liberty of saying to him, that since in his
writings he always declared, that at all times good and evil
spirits of the other world were present with every man, I would
make bold to ask, whether now, while my wife and daughter
were singing, there were any from the other world present with
us? To this he answered, "Yes, certainly." And on my in
quiring who they were, and whether I had known them, he said,
that it was the Danish Royal Family, and he mentioned
Christian VI, Sophia Magdalena, and Frederic V, who through
his eyes and ears had seen and heard it. I do not positively
recollect whether he also mentioned the late beloved Queen
Louisa among them.
21. After this he retired, and while preparing for rest, I
took occasion when we were alone to ask him whether there
were any in Sweden who approved and took delight in his
system of theology, and whether he could mention any such to
me. To this he answered, Yes, but few; and he would willingly
mention them to me, but that probably I did not know them.
I replied, It might happen that I knew some one or other. He
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