211 - ÉTIENNE Victor (1902–1934)

ÉTIENNE Victor (1902–1934) 2 letters, 1930–1931, to Jean MERMOZ; 5 pages in-4 and 2 pages petit in-4. Beautiful and rare letters from the Aéropostale pilot to his friend Mermoz. Rio, May 11, 1930. [Before the flight from Saint-Louis-du-Sénégal to Natal (May 12–13), where Mermoz would break the record for the longest straight-line distance in a seaplane.] He is awaiting the arrival in Rio of his “dear old ‘lilac’ branch”! […] The outcome of this attempt leaves me in no doubt, and you cannot imagine the inner joy I’m already deriving from this fine work—I’m not involved in it at all, but isn’t this, for us, the crowning achievement of this sustained effort through all the trials we’ve faced over these two years? That this task rightfully fell to you is only fair, but I’m even happier that it went to this ‘old buddy’”… The day before, “the Montevideo accident involving Négrin-Pranville” occurred. It’s a severe blow to the company as a whole, and especially painful for those who remain, the indirect victims of this accident.” Étienne laments the decline in morale, which “was no longer what it had been in America. Of our once-beautiful collective spirit, only a shadow remained; we no longer had confidence in ourselves; if we spoke of certain difficulties, we were almost passed off as bluffers; fines were raining down everywhere, and general discontent was erupting. So much so that even I was disgusted; I had made up my mind to leave America as soon as possible; Négrin assisted Pranville admirably; I did not think such a narrow-minded spirit reigned within that boy […] I had a sort of foreboding about this accident, which I attributed to Pranville’s excess of zeal or ambition and recklessness”… He makes no secret of his grief and anger: “Even if death is merely a detail to us, the consequences are always painful”… He adds that he recently lost his brother… He is waiting for “the car that is to take me to the camp to deliver this final mail until I meet up with St. Ex [Saint-Exupéry], who is coming up from B-Aires”… He concludes by mentioning Mermoz’s fiancée, Gilberte Chazottes: “Lucky guy—you can say you’re loved, have hope, and who knows what else!”… He’ll soon be leaving for Jamaica with “that old Pauvert”… Toulouse, October 24, 1931. He gives news of his wife Clotilde, who had been ill and hospitalized. They’ve settled into their apartment in Toulouse, but Clotilde “must still stay in bed for a while; it’s an illness that doesn’t weaken her but takes a long time to heal; I’m thinking, by the way, of you, Madame Mermoz, who have also been significantly afflicted by the same ailment; how unpleasant bed rest is, and how rest becomes almost a penance when one logically doesn’t feel physically ill; well, just a little while longer, and I believe everything will be back to normal. So, my old friend Jean, how much must you be struggling and fretting over this long delay in your project? I follow your efforts daily—your trials and also your dealings with the minister, which, I assure you, are the most utter nonsense our aeronautics has ever had to endure—but from what I read, there is still hope by the end of this month”… Attached are two documents concerning Étienne’s appointment as a Knight of the Legion of Honor, to be presented to him by Mermoz (December 3, 1931). Source: - Jean Mermoz (1901–1936); - Gabrielle Gillet-Mermoz (1880–1955); - Then passed down through the family