97 - MERMOZ, Jean

MERMOZ, Jean 5 letters “Jean,” Casablanca, March–April 1926, to his “Dearest Mom”; 9 pages in-8 and 3 pages in-4. Stationed in Casablanca, he dreams of traveling the world. March 8. “So here I am, finally settled in Casablanca—at least for as long as I see fit. Needless to say, I’m happy about it. It’s just like life in France, much freer and less expensive. I’m not suffering from the gradual loss due to the exchange rate—in short, it’s better in every way”… – He urges his mother to go for a health cure at Mont-Dore. He’s waiting to receive his March paycheck to send her “probably 11,000 or 12,000 francs. […] I’ll probably buy a car in France to make the most of my vacation”… He mocks an article about him: “Damn it! There’s nothing more stupid than a journalist! I don’t understand all the fuss that’s been made over this story… What we do for our correspondents is often far more impressive than this grandiose adventure—it’s just that nobody knows about it, and besides, nobody cares. On the other hand, publicity never hurts”… – April 1: “Since I’ve been in Casablanca, I assure you I haven’t been idle. There have only been the two of us handling the service for about twenty days now, which means I’ve barely been here a total of five days since I arrived. Fortunately, reinforcements are on their way, and I’ll have a little more free time. […] You know very well that despite the hard times I’ve been through—and still go through sometimes—I have the courage to face things head-on, especially when they concern the one person in the world who means everything to me: my mother. […] We’ve just gone through fifteen very tough days of storms. Yesterday, I arrived in the middle of the night and was still able to land with the runway lights on after a 7-hour flight. […] I may be heading to South America—Argentina and Brazil—to launch a route there operated by our airline. If I didn’t go there, I would certainly leave this route for the months of June and July, probably to join Air-Union on the Paris–Marseille–Genoa–Naples–Athens–Cairo route. The little attention I’ve received has served me well despite everything, and I know I have every chance of success. In short, you see, I’m the eternal malcontent. My dream is to travel the world, and I don’t want to stay in one place too long so as not to get tied down. Since I have to give up, for the time being, on making a name for myself through something exceptional (my expedition being, I believe, at the bottom of the Atlantic by now!), I want to make the most of it while waiting for the moment… the opportunity to fly in other skies”… – April 13. He’d been feeling a bit tired: “A slight fever—probably due to the change in climate—and then a lot of work in bad weather. As a result, I’m not feeling very energetic, especially since I’ve had no appetite for a few days. Now things are moving along: just a change of scenery. […] I have my apartment in town, which I’ve decorated with Moroccan rugs; I bought a sofa and feel right at home when I’m there—though right now, I’m hardly ever there. I ride horses, go to the beach, do track and field—in short, I’m not worrying too much. […] I’m still in talks with the Franco. I could join right away on the Paris–Strasbourg route. But that leg is already oversubscribed. There are a lot of pilots hoping for the route’s extension, and right now they’re making barely 2,000 francs a month; I’d rather wait a little longer and see what happens with the opening of the Angora–Tehran route.”… – 23. “I’ve just been told that I’m heading to Dakar tomorrow morning. It’s 10 p.m. and I’m leaving at 4 a.m.”… Correspondence, Nos. 81, 82, 83, 85, 86. Source: - Jean Mermoz (1901–1936); - Gabrielle Gillet-Mermoz (1880–1955); - Then passed down through the family