PERRAUD, Adolphe - Lot 164

PERRAUD, Adolphe Adolphe Perraud L.A.S., Autun, January 25, 1893, 4 pages in-8 on embossed paper with ecclesiastical coat of arms. Interesting letter to an ecclesiastical friend, mixing personal news, academic reflections and missionary concerns. Perraud first mentions the illness of "M. l'abbé De Bovis", suffering from typhoid, whose condition he is following with concern. He goes on to explain that he had to forego a trip to Rome despite an invitation from the "African bishops" who wanted him to take part in their work: "I needed time to prepare". He explains that he obtained authorization to postpone this "ad limina" trip. The letter also contains valuable considerations on ecclesiastical and university teaching. Perraud speaks with a certain irony of his "École Normale notes on the Punic Wars" and his memories of his agrégation, before evoking his former colleagues: "the good equal and infinite intellectual superiority of M. l'abbé Hogan" as well as "a certain number of S. Augustin's pupils". The tone becomes more personal on the last page, when he confides his attachment to his professorial duties: "my classes at the lycée [...] I couldn't do without this excellent college", adding humorously that he was once nicknamed "the young professor". A fine letter from a great intellectual prelate of the late 19th century, revealing French ecclesiastical life, Catholic university networks and the African missions on the eve of his cardinalate (created cardinal the same year, 1893). Very well preserved.