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a letter from the president of the united states to his wife
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MERMOZ Jean L.A.S. ‘Ton Jean’, Buenos Aires, 28 June [1928], to his ‘Beloved Mum’; two and a half pages, quarto size, on Aeroposta Argentina letterhead. The hero’s doubts, as he meets his future wife. After explaining the loss of a cheque, he is delighted to hear that his mother is in Royat: ‘Get well soon. […] If your stay in Royat improves your health even further, I shall find you completely transformed. I would love to be by your side, my dear Mum. I need rest, but rest by your side, in the tranquillity of the deep affection that unites us and which is my sole comfort in the often trying times I am going through, despite the air of nonchalance I put on and the glorious satisfactions that are all too often bestowed upon me. […] It is only up there, you see, that I truly feel myself, but waking up here on earth is so often painful. My friends say I am extraordinarily lucky. But if only they knew the price I often pay for it – through sheer willpower, energy, a spirit of self-sacrifice and self-control. […] For me, it elevates me, propels me beyond myself, just as a torrent rushing down from the peaks bursts its banks and scoffs at obstacles. I possess an inner strength which I take pride in not ignoring. Through it, I feel capable of overcoming anything, of shattering everything, both in my ethereal existence, so to speak, and in my life on earth. And then my rare moments of weakness leave me battered, gasping for breath, almost miserable… Mum, why can’t I live like everyone else? Simply without passion, without drive, without those impulses of reasoned instinct that mean I am not oblivious to the petty miseries and petty meanness of our age – which make me either too kind or too ferocious, as they see fit. Why can’t I rise above all this without leaving behind, each time, a little of the very best that is in me?’ As for the ‘matter of the heart […] I have nothing but terrible stories which I would laugh at if I had no heart, but which hurt me because I don’t like to cause pain and… that’s all I do… nothing but complications, from which I extricate myself only through sheer determination, not without creating painful situations for myself. And with the life I lead, how do you expect me to do otherwise!! ’ He then confides in his mother the secret of his new ‘somewhat serious’ relationship with a young Frenchwoman [Gilberte Chazottes, whom he would marry]: ‘a proper young lady, not a snob even though she’s a university graduate, not a tomboy even though she’s modern. I love her, Mum, truly, as much as I’m capable of loving […] The worst thing is that she loves me too, and has done for longer […] At first I resisted, I tried to stop seeing her, but then I loved her too much […] She believes there is no reason to fight against our impulses, whereas I think there are many reasons, as far as I’m concerned: my independent nature, my situation, which will certainly become brilliant because I want it to, but which is often so precarious, especially with the prospect of my forthcoming raids and my upcoming travels. And so, to leave all that behind, to abandon the fruits of so much effort, and then to deprive myself of what I am, I believe, addicted to for the rest of my days – to no longer fly, no longer fight, no longer attempt, no longer take risks. Mum, you see, it’s not possible’... Enclosed is another L.A.S. ‘Your Jean’, Buenos Aires, 27 June 1928, to his mother (one and a half pages, quarto size, on Compagnie Générale Aéropostale letterhead), accompanying the dispatch of a cheque. ‘Perhaps I’ll be in Paris by October. The Director wants me to fly from Buenos Aires to Paris on behalf of the company. Don’t worry. All necessary safety precautions will be taken.’ Correspondence, nos. 142 and 141. Provenance: - Jean Mermoz (1901–1936); - Gabrielle Gillet-Mermoz (1880–1955); - Passed down within the family
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About the sale Historical Memories
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Auction time 11/03/2026 at 11:00 AM
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