My very dear Aunt,

Come, now; I return to my letter after having attended class. I received news from my aunts at St. Louis. It seems that my aunt Caroline fears going there alone; however, there is nothing to fear; I will write to them and I will do my utmost to encourage them to go see you. Ah! It is quite warm; your people of Wiesbaden should not complain any more, it is warm enough to take baths. I hope that you will take many during this good weather and that you will drink to the point of becoming drunk from the water of Schwallenbach, which is so fresh and so good. No doubt you are saying to yourself: “Has this Nicodemus , then, tasted it to speak thus about it?” 6 ” But of course I did taste it and that in thought, and what’s more, in imagination. You are asking me about the work of Father Rohrbacher7, that is to say, the history of the Catholic Church. Well, there are eight volumes in print. If you wish to subscribe to them, you have only to send me your name and then I will have you added to the list of subscribers. Then you will be sent the eight volumes and you will pay 5F for each volume, perhaps 4,50F. If a number of people subscribe, there will eventually be about 25 volumes in the total work, at a final cost of 125F.

Come now; enough of these strange matters; let us speak a bit about ourselves. Undoubtedly, my beloved Aunt, you were quite happy to see again your dear ladyfriend; but from another point of view, you must have been sad to give up your beautiful country. It is true at least that your Germany is worth our Gaul, but in Germany, you are no less at a distance from your parents. It is very pleasant to have a female friend when one is in this situation; for my part, I am being deprived here — I don’t dare speak openly to anyone. I have already been so frequently deceived in placing my friendship in someone! I have many friends — if you wish — but they are not the kind of friends I would like. From the heart, I would like to be a friend to one who is called a friend in the full meaning of the term. I dare to tell you this because you are my aunt, and because I am sure that you will understand me. I am very grateful, my dear aunt, for all the good intentions you have concerning me; I don’t believe myself to be truly worthy of them.Without a doubt, I will seek to bring total reconciliation within our family, but then I will only be doing my duty, and have no right to any expression of gratitude. You would really want to call me the replacement for my dear uncle! Ah! I would really like to beable to become that, but it would be very difficult for me. Assuredly, I will try my best to get as close as possible to that model; I hope that God will then come along to bless my efforts. Even so, they would be ineffective. I also thank you very much for all the sollicitude that you deign to have for me. As regards other matters about which you speak in your letter: — since you truly wish it, I will in no way be reluctant and when I have need of something, I will ask you for it. Ah! If only the year which is coming had already passed, and that I could already go visit you. If you only knew how I find time dragging. If only you could spend that very year with us on vacation in St. Louis. I always believe that I am fated to see you again at St. Louis; such are the dreams andillusions of my imagination. I don’t know why, but for some time now — more than ever — I dream only of the missions, foreign countries: nonetheless those are but the views of the devil. In thosetimes, when that was possible, he would dissuade me; and now that so many obligations bind me to France, to my homeland, he would distance me from them all the more. But he will not succeed, whatever he tries; I will fight him to the death . I 8 am enclosing here  a brief letter to my friend, Benjamin9 — he whom I cherish the most; take care of him, my dear aunt. In anything that he would need from you, do it as if you were doing it for me. As to the letter that I promised you I would write to the Pastor of Wiesbaden, I will wait until vacation time. Right now I don’t have the time for this; and for such a letter, a rough draft must first be written10. That does not happen as easily as when I write to you: I take my paper, then I sketch out the thoughts that come to me. Offer my respects to that venerable priest, as well as to Miss Klein. Tell her that I thank her very much for her most friendly letter and that, as she wishes, I will occasionally think of her — rather, I will even say more: it will not be sometimes, but often. Well, now — goodbye my dear Aunt; take care of your health so that we will frequently be able to spend happy days.

Schoeffler I did go to Bon-Secours11.

1 Some of the notes have been saved, rolled and sealed in the base of a reliquary of the seminary. At the time of the beatification, in 1900, the notebooks were withdrawn and deposited in the diocesan library in Nancy. They were edited by Augustine Isch, (a work not yet published). 2 The great familiarity in this expression points out the nature of the relationship with Élise. This tone is found only in the letters to his fellow students at the seminary of the Foreign Missions, especially when he addresses himself to Laigre-Filliatrais.
3 Literally, “Pull your ear.”
4 Bäsel: aunt or cousin, old maid.
5 This would mean: the king of scrawling. [A reference to his own poor handwriting. - Trans.]
6 “A simpleton,” according to Trésor de La Langue Française.
7 René-François ROHRBACHER, born at Langatte on 27 September 1789, ordained a priest on 21 September 1812; vicar and professor at Insming; vicar at Lunéville on 1 April 1813; auxiliary priest and diocesan missionary from 1 April 1822; superior of the diocesan missionaries; director of the Christian Brothers; director of the house of the Missions in Brittany; associated with Lamennais, breaks with him when he refuses to submit to Rome. In November 1835, he is appointed professor of Sacred Scripture and History at the Major Seminary of Nancy. Numerous publications; known especially for his monumental Histoire de l’Église catholique, 1842 to 1849 (1 edition – “History of the Catholic Church”), st in 29 volumes. He retires to Paris in August 1849, where he dies on 17 January 1856. See L’abbé Rohrbacher, by Father Mathieu. – Acceptance speech at the Académie de Stanislas, Nancy, 1883 (31 pages). – Father Marguet composed a long letter to the Bishops of France to denounce doctrinal errors in the Histoire del’ Église catholique (BDN, MA 63).
8 Second mention of the Missions; Augustine wants to reassure himself.
9 Lost letter. J. Benjamin, born at Arschwiller (Arzviller) on 14 October 1822; studies at La Malgrange (see Guise: Histoire de l’institution de La Malgrange, p. 300), then at the Nancy Seminary. He had Father Berman as confessor; tonsured on 17 May 1845, at the same time as L. Hoffer, F. Chevreux, and Jean- Baptiste Rolle — the day on which Augustine received minor orders, and Stricher the sub-diaconate; he will be ordained sub-deacon on 6 June 1846, on the same day that Augustine is ordained deacon, then priest on 27 February 1847, along with the cousin, Maisse. He is named assistant priest at Sarrebourg; administrator of Hoff in 1849; pastor at Obertinzel on 1 July 1866; incardinated in the diocese of Metz in1871; died on 22 November (birthdate of Augustine!) 1883. Benjamin goes to Germany in the summer of 1843, as would Augustine do in the following year. Hoffer would also be welcomed by Élise.
10 An indication of another lost letter.
11 The church of Notre-Dame-de-Bon-Secours [Our Lady of Good Help] was very close to the seminary. No doubt Augustine went there to bring the Mass intentions of his aunt. Concerning this church and this devotion [i.e., pilgrimage - Trans.], see: Mgr Léon Jérôme, L’Église et le Pèlerinage de Notre-Dame de Bon-Secours à Nancy, 2nd edition, Nancy, 1934.