Bidspirit auction | MONET CLAUDE: (1840-1926) Monet complains

MONET CLAUDE: (1840-1926) Monet complains of pains in his legs ´ from sitting by the window where I have been painting for over a month´ - MONET CLAUDE: (1840-1926) French Impressionist painter. The substantial surviving portion of an Autograph Letter (missing the final pages and signature), four pages, 8vo, Embankment Gardens, London, 11th March 1901, to his second wife, Alice Hoschedé (´Ma bonne chèrie ´) , on the printed stationery of the Savoy Hotel, in French. Monet commences his letter by providing the address of Auguste Brunet, the secretary of [Léon?] Bourgeois, explaining ´Je t´en donne l´adresse en cas d´urgence pour ne pas perdre de temps´ (Translation: ´I am giving you the address in case of an emergency, so as not to waste any time´ ) and continues to add that he had received Alice´s two letters, remarking ´l´une de vendredi me fait de la peine, tes regrets de ne m´avoir pas caché la maladie de J.P. ta volonté d´être plus forte à l´avenir. Non, ne dis pas cela, et pardonne-moi d´avoir assombri pour toi de meilleurs moments. Nous devons toujours nous tout dire, mais ne pas voir les choses au pire´ (Translation: ´the one from Friday pains me—your regret at not having concealed J.P.’s illness from me, your resolve to be stronger in future. No, do not say that, and forgive me for having cast a shadow over your happier moments. We must always tell each other everything, but not look at things from the worst possible angle´ ). Monet then proceeds to be open with his wife regarding the present state of his health, ´Ainsi, je te le dis, je ne suis pas très bien, mais cependant mieux qu´hier soir et cette nuit agitée de fièvre et de frissons. Ne va pas t´alarmer surtout puisque ce ne sera rien, mais, hier, après avoir fait cette promenade que je te disais, j´ai, malgré le bien-être du grand air, j´ai constaté que je n´étais pas tout à fait d´aplomb. Mes jambes douloureuses, surtout les mollets, ce qui me faisait croire à des varices, enfin, étourdissements; aussi suis-je bien vite rentré écrire a Mme. Hunter que, n´étant pas très bien, je la priais de m´excuser, et bien m´en a pris, car la fièvre m´a pris très fort et des frissons à ne pouvoir me réchauffer. L´inquiétude de tomber malade ici, de t´inquiéter plus encore, m´obsédait, si bien que je n´ai pu dormir qu´au matin après avoir pris aconit et arsenic, dormant alors jusqu´à 10 heures par le courrier qu´on m´apportait puis cette dépêche de Madame Hunter; enfin me levant, me croyant remis, j´ai senti que ça ne marchait pas et, pour être tranquille, j´ai fait demander le docteur qui m´assure qu´un repos de 3 à 4 jours à la chambre, me couchant à 6 heures, et qu´il n´y paraîtra plus. Ce n´est selon lui que fatigue et rhumatismes, causés par un courant d´air, sans doute au club, mais, pour mes mollets, sûrement le long de la fenêtre d´où je peins depuis plus d´un mois; mais d´influenza, pas trace´ (Translation: ´So, I’ll tell you this: I’m not feeling very well, but I’m better than I was last night and during that restless night of fever and chills. Don’t worry, especially as it will be nothing, but yesterday, after taking that walk I told you about, I realised, despite the benefits of the fresh air, that I wasn’t quite on my feet. My legs were aching, especially my calves, which made me think I might have varicose veins; and I felt dizzy; so I hurried home to write to Mrs Hunter that, as I wasn’t feeling very well, I begged her to excuse me, and I was right to do so, for I came down with a very high fever and chills so severe I couldn’t get warm. The worry of falling ill here, and of worrying you even more, was haunting me, so much so that I could not sleep until the morning after taking aconite and arsenic, sleeping then until 10 o’clock when the post was brought to me, followed by this dispatch from Mrs Hunter; finally getting up, thinking I had recovered, I felt that something was wrong and, to put my mind at rest, I sent for the doctor, who assured me that three to four days’ rest in my room, going to bed at 6 o’clock, would see to it that it did not return. According to him, it is merely fatigue and rheumatism, caused by a draught, no doubt at the club, but, as for my calves, surely from sitting by the window where I have been painting for over a month; but as for influenza, not a trace´ ). Tantalizingly, the letter trails off in mid-sentence, with another reference to Mrs. Hunter, ´A 1 heure, on m´annonce la visite de Madame Hunter venant me prier d´user d´elle, puis un instant après, un superbe...´ (Translation: ´At 1 o’clock, I am told that Mrs Hunter has come to ask me to make use of her services, and a moment later, a superb...´ ). A couple of small, minor neat splits to the edges of two folds, VG Alice Hoschedé Monet (1844-1911) French artists' model, wife of the art collector Ernest Hoschedé and later of the Impressionist painter Claude Monet (from 1892). Jean-Pierre Hoschedé (1877-1961), referred to by his initials ´J.P.