1. Theo’s sales trip took place at the end of March. At all events, when Uncle Vincent wrote to Theo on 2 April, he referred to the trip in the past tense: ‘I’m glad your trip proved better than expected, because you certainly weren’t lucky with the weather!’ (FR b2466).

2. Charbonnage de Marcasse/Saint-Antoine (Escouffiaux no. 7) d’Hornu-Petit-Wasmes. For an illustration of this mine, see Eeckaut 1990, ‘Annexes’, p. 16. This was the second time that Van Gogh went down a mine, as indicated by ‘700 metres deep this time’ later on in the letter. He had written in January to his father about his first descent in a mine, 635 metres deep; see letter 150, n. 2.

3. The great danger of collapse was tragically demonstrated when many people lost their lives in the accident that occurred on 17 April in the L’Agrappe coal mine at Frameries, just east of Wasmes. See Eeckaut 1990, ‘Annexes’, pp. 3-9. Mr van Gogh wrote to Theo about it on 23 April: ‘We received a letter from Vincent to you and one for us. I copied ours out for you. It is indeed moving, that terrible accident. And I just read in the newspaper that it was followed by a strike. I hope that that won’t create any difficulties for Vincent. What a situation for those people to be in – buried alive like that and almost no hope of being rescued in time. It does appear from Vincent’s letters that, despite all the eccentricity that is his nature, he takes a true interest in the unfortunate, and that, too, will surely be noticed by God.’ The letter forwarded to Theo is not known (cf. FR b2469; regarding the mining accident, see also FR b2470 and b2471). Vincent had sent along reports from the newspaper (FR b2472, Mrs van Gogh to Theo, 30 April).

4. Of the painters Jacob, Matthijs and Willem Maris, it is most likely Jacob to whom Vincent is referring, considering the subject in question. Later on in the letter Vincent asks if Theo knows whether Maris has made anything recently.

5. Van Gogh’s only known watercolour from this period is Cokes factory in the Borinage (F 1040 / JH 100), but it does not match this description. Cf. cat. Amsterdam 1996, pp. 69-71, cat. no. 12.

a. Read: ‘gradins’.

6. It seems that Van Gogh had meanwhile won the confidence of the people. In any case, Mr van Gogh could report in his letter of 18 April to Theo that Vincent’s last letter contained ‘much that was truly interesting ... He also wrote that he had heard no more comments about his clothing’ (FR b2468).

7. Van Gogh had definitely written to his parents in January about this explosion and how he had nursed the injured man, as evidenced by a letter written by Mr van Gogh to Theo: ‘He devotes himself completely to his duties and is faithful in helping and comforting those people. He again had a very sick patient, burned by an explosion in the mine. Burned from head to foot. He sat up with him and helped to bandage his wounds’ (FR b2459, 29 January 1879). This matter is referred to again in letter 250.