“You watch the tunny fishers? And then?
“You envy young English heiresses? And then?
“You envy still more the idiots without ideas or feelings who understand nothing and love nothing? And then?...
“Why, bless you, I can give you all that!
“We have terraces and trees in Paris. There are sunsets, English heiresses, idiots (they are even more plentiful than at Nice for the population is larger), and gudgeon to be caught with a line. One can be quite as extensively bored as at Nice. It is the same thing everywhere.
“Yesterday I had a delightful letter from some unknown man about The Trojans. He tells me that the Parisians are used to more indulgent music than mine.
“Is not that an admirable epithet?
“The Viennese telegraph that they celebrated my birthday by giving Faust, and that the double chorus was an immense success. I did not even know I had a birthday!”
To H. Ferrand.
“Paris, 8th February 1864.