Rossini's Laziness

Rossini was one of the most indolen' of nieii, and in his younger days usec to do most of his composing in bed. Once he had almost completed a trio wheu the sheet feil out of his hand anc went under the bed. He could not reach it, and, rather thau get up, he wrote another. The lazy man, if he works ai all, does so by spurts, and Rossini, working against time, wrote "The Barber 01 Seville" iu 13 days. When Donizetti was told of this, he remarked, "It is verypossible - he is solazy!" The. overture to the "Gazza Ladra" was written under curious circumstances. On the very day of the first performance of the opera not a note of the overturé was Written, and the manager, getting hold of Rossini, confined him in the upper loft of La Scala, setting fourscene shifters on guard over him. These took the sheets as they were filled and threw thein out of the Windows to copyists beueath.