114 - MERMOZ, Jean

MERMOZ, Jean L.A.S. “Jean,” Cap-Juby, February 18, 1927, to his grandparents, the GILLETs; 2 pages in-4 and 2 pages in-8. In Cap-Juby, he dreams of America. “Right now in Cap-Juby, where I am, it’s not warm at all. A sweater is no luxury here with the trade winds blowing in from Greenland, which rage like a storm for six or seven months of the year. In Casablanca, the weather is very mild, and in Dakar it’s pleasant, certainly, but I don’t set foot there very often. Rest assured, I’m doing perfectly well; I’m not getting into any trouble, I’m leading an absolutely normal and steady life, and I plan to keep it up for a long time. Ins’allah! […] It would be impossible for me right now to waste away on a quiet coast in France. And besides, the prospect of new horizons isn’t something I’m inclined to dwell on. Life is so brief, and so few are fortunate enough to live it according to their own tastes and nature, that I appreciate mine for what it’s worth and cannot resist its charm. Tirelessly, I want to see everything, to constantly discover what is, for me, the unknown in people and things—and there is so much to see, so much to discover, so much to appreciate, so much to admire that everything I’ve experienced so far seems so insignificant! […] I’d like to see South America, take another little trip to Syria, catch a glimpse of Persia, set foot in India and China, and then, well, finally, France. Don’t be alarmed! 40,000 km is really nothing, and it’s a quick trip these days. I’ve traveled five or six times that much in the last two years! ” He misses the good cider from Mainbressy... “I’ve been here for seven days now, and I assure you it’s hardly any fun. The days drag by at a frustratingly slow pace, especially since we’re no longer allowed to set foot outside more than fifty meters from the fort—ever since the Moors have already tried several times to capture us and some Spaniards. […] I sleep about 14 hours. I handle the cooking since we bring our supplies from Casa with us by plane. […] I have a cookbook, and I’ve become an unparalleled master chef […] In the meantime, I play bridge with the fort’s Spanish doctor or poker with the officers (I speak Spanish like a true hidalgo). I give the Moors a run for their money when they venture up into the air with me during aircraft test flights”… Correspondence, No. 106. Provenance: - Jean Mermoz (1901–1936); - Gabrielle Gillet-Mermoz (1880–1955); - Then passed down through the family