Letter 518 Arles, 6 August 1888
My dear Theo,
I think you were right to go to our uncle鈥檚 funeral, since Mother seemed to be expecting you. The best way to tackle a death is to swallow the image of the illustrious dead, whatever he was, as the best man in the best of all possible worlds, where everything is always for the best. Which not being contested, and consequently incontestable, it is doubtless allowable for us to return afterwards to our own affairs. I am glad that our brother Cor has grown bigger and stronger than the rest of us. And he must be stupid if he does not get married, for he has nothing but that and his hands. With that and his hands, and that and what he knows of machinery, I for one would like to be in his shoes, if I had any desire at all to be anyone else.
And meanwhile I am in my own hide, and my hide within the cog-wheels of the Fine Arts, like corn between the mill-stones.
Did I tell you that I had sent the drawings to friend Russell? At the moment I am doing practically the same ones again for you, there will be twelve likewise. You will then see better what there is in the painted studies in the way of drawing. I have already told you that I always have to fight against the mistral, which makes it absolutely impossible to be master of your stroke. That accounts for the 鈥渉aggard鈥?look of the studies. You will tell me that instead of drawing them, I ought to paint them again on fresh canvases at home. I think so myself now and then, for it is not my fault in this case that the execution lacks a livelier touch. What would Gauguin say about it if he were here, would he advise seeking a more sheltered place?
I now have another unpleasant thing to tell you about the money, which is that I shall not manage this week, because this very day I am paying out 25 Frs.; I shall have money for five days, but not for seven.
This is Monday; if I get your next letter on Saturday morning there will be no need to increase the enclosure. Last week I did not one only but two portraits of my postman, a half-length with the hands, and a head, life size [F 1458, JH 1536; F 432, JH 1522]. The good fellow, as he would not accept money, cost more eating and drinking with me, and I gave him besides the 鈥淟antern鈥?of Rochefort. But that is a trifling and immaterial evil, considering that he posed very well, and that I expect to paint his baby very shortly,
for his wife has just been brought to bed.
I will send you, at the same time as the drawings that I have in hand, two lithographs by de Lemud, 鈥淲ine鈥?p style="line-height:25px;text-indent:32px"> and 鈥淭he Caf茅鈥? in 鈥淲ine鈥?there is a sort of Mephistopheles, rather reminiscent of C.M. when younger, and in 鈥淭he Caf茅鈥濃