Juliette DROUET - Autograph letter to Victor HUGO with relic of Hugo

Juliette DROUET – Victor HUGO

Autograph letter to Victor HUGO.

Accompanied by a relic of Hugo addressed to his lover in an envelope written in his hand.

Four pages in-16°. Paris. Tuesday December 16, 1879.

Beautiful letter from Drouet, sad and suffering from his stomach cancer. She mentions and thanks Hugo for the relic offered.

We enclose this relic of Hugo: a tuft of the great man’s beard presented in an envelope written in his hand “ for JJ ”

“My stomach protests, my big busybody, both for lunch and for dinner because if one is too late, the other is too early. I don't count the other disturbances that these produce (...) fortunately without my poor little household (...) Besides, what I'm telling you is only to prevent me from telling you things that are more close to my heart than the stomach. It's not dirty and it takes up space, that's all I need to fill my restitus. Henriette has already returned from the excellent Meurices. They are better and make you both wish hello as well as me. Another guitar the door asks to speak to you on behalf of the owner; I told him that we would notify him when you have time to hear him. Speaking of weather, today's is almost as gloomy and as boring as me, which is saying something. That doesn't stop me from being very touched by your beautiful gift just now and from thanking you for it with all my heart. It will take its place in my collection of relics as soon as I have brought it all back from Guernsey. Until then I keep it in sight, wanting to always carry it on my heart. »

Provenance: Juliette Drouet, then Louis Koch by descent.