Upon returning from exile, Emile ZOLA receives his Dreyfusard friend Gabriel Monod.

Émile ZOLA (1840.1902)

Autographed letter signed to the historian Gabriel Monod.

One page in-8°. Paris. June 7, 1899.

"I will be waiting for you, deeply touched by the visit of such an honest and valiant spirit as yourself."

An interesting testimony to the friendship between these two great supporters of Captain Dreyfus, three days after Zola's return from exile.

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"Dear Mr. Monod, I would be very happy to see you, and the kind sympathy you send me is very precious to me. But I will be busy on Thursday at five o'clock. Could you not come the same day at two o'clock? I will be waiting for you, very touched by the visit of such an honest and valiant spirit as yourself. Yours sincerely, Emile Zola."

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Sued for libel following the publication of his " J'accuse ," Zola was sentenced in the summer of 1898 to one year in prison and a fine of 3,000 francs, the maximum penalty. Despite appealing to the Court of Cassation, and on the advice of his lawyer Labori, Zola, having been convicted, immediately left France for exile in England before the verdict could be officially served and become enforceable. On July 18, 1898, Zola, alone, took the 9:00 p.m. train to Calais, without any luggage. Reclusive in London, he remained attentive to the progress of the proceedings.

On June 3, 1899, the Court of Cassation unanimously overturned the judgment condemning Dreyfus. Zola decided to return to France immediately: " Nothing in the world will keep me here for another hour ."