1. Two days before, Jo had written about Theo to her sister Mien: ‘he has been to see Gruby and has yet another remedy for his cough, but he looks very bad, shivers constantly and has little appetite. The business affairs he was so deeply involved in have almost all gone badly, that’s one of the main reasons, and then still no letter from Vincent’ (FR b4303, 21 April 1890).
2. It is not known how often Peyron wrote to Theo to inform him of Vincent’s condition. In any case, he had reported on 1 April 1890: ‘This attack is taking longer to abate than the previous one. At times, he seems almost himself again; he understands what he is feeling, only for the situation to change again a few hours later, when the patient once more becomes sorrowful and troubled, and no longer answers the questions put to him. I am confident that he will regain his reason as he did on the previous occasions, but it is taking much longer this time’ (Cet accès met plus longtemps à disparaître que les précédents, par moments, on dirait qu’il va revenir à lui; il rend compte des sensations qu’il éprouve, puis quelques heures après la scène change, le malade redevient triste et soucieux et ne répond plus aux questions qu’on lui adresse. J’ai confiance qu’il reviendra à la raison comme les autres fois, mais c’est beaucoup plus long à venir). See FR b1063; Hulsker 1971, pp. 43-44.
On 15 April Theo had written the following to his mother and his sister Willemien: ‘It is now more than a month since I received a letter from Vincent’s own hand. The doctor wrote the last time that it is still very rare for him to be his old self. He usually sits with his head in his hands, and if someone speaks to him, it is as though it hurts him, and he gestures for them to leave him alone. How sad that condition is, and Dr Peyron says that although he has hope that the crisis will soon be over, it will leave its mark on his constitution. If only we could do something for him, but having him come here would be irresponsible unless one were sure that there is not one moment of danger that the crisis will return during the journey or while here. It is such a pity, just now when he is having such success with his work. Many people have taken notice of his work, including Obreen, the writer of the article in the N. Rotter. Nice of those people in Nuenen to send it to you’ (FR b928). Regarding this article, see letter 860, n. 4.
a. Read: ‘tout de suite’.
3. Theo and Jo had married on 18 April 1889.
4. In the end, Theo and Jo did not spend Whit Sunday – 25 May – at the Pissarro’s in Eragny, because Camille Pissarro and his son Lucien had already gone to London. They arrived there around 23 May for a stay of about a month. See Correspondance Pissarro 1980-1991, vol. 2, pp. 352 (n. 3), 354 (n. 1).
5. In January Lauzet had travelled from Paris to Marseille, and he had planned to visit Vincent in Saint-Rémy on his return trip. See letter 843. He lived in Paris at 29 boulevard Pereire. Cf. exhib. cat. Paris 1988, p. 363. No information on Lauzet’s mother and sister has been found in the Paris archives.
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