WIERZCHOWNIA, May 15, 1836.
MONSIEUR,--Having at last, after various attempts, succeeded in
procuring an inkstand in malachite, I hasten, monsieur, to send it to
you through the house of Rothschild. Have the kindness to inquire for
it and to keep it as the souvenir of a true friendship, which cannot
change, in spite of the vast distance that separates us; which thought
alone can cross, for the present.
If God wills it as I desire, perhaps some day we shall come to find
you. Meanwhile, if your literary occupations and the distractions
of the world leave you a moment at liberty, think sometimes of your
friends in the North, who, in spite of their frigid climate, know how
to feel and appreciate your sentiments and your talents.
Your works, monsieur, make us pass many agreeable moments in our
solitude. They give us even the illusion of seeing you playing with
Anna, who, day by day, grows prettier. She is already a great lady, who
begins to play the piano, and promises to have a distinguished talent
for it. She has also a taste, a decided passion for reading; I can
no longer find her books analogous to her age; we have exhausted the
book-shops of Saint Petersburg.
You could hardly believe, monsieur, the pleasure I have had in reading
"L'Interdiction." I was filled with the same sentiment I described
to you when reading for the first time at Neufchâtel "Le Médecin de
campagne." Give us as many as possible of such works; society expects
that service of you. The picture of the judge, and that of the nobleman
restoring the property which, according to his own conviction, he
illegally possessed, are of incomparable beauty and rare perfection.
They cannot but strongly influence the morals of this age. Men of
heart, of talent, of genius, it is your mission to blast vices, to give
the greatest brilliancy to virtue, and to repair the evil of which the
philosophy of the last century cast the germ.
But I perceive that I am out of my natural vocation, and becoming
diffuse. That is a defect communicated to me by the Châtelaine of
Wierzchownia and sovereign of Paulowska, who is quite enchanted to find
herself once more in her empire of flowers and verdure, who salutes
you, and is preparing to write you a long letter of I don't know how
many pages.
It can only be in two years hence that we shall propose to ourselves
to make a journey for the education of little Anna, and I have a
presentiment, monsieur, that we shall find you sitting in the Chamber,
and be present at some of your eloquent speeches. While awaiting the
realization of that dream, accept the assurance of a true and sincere
friendship.