FLORIAN - The Most Traveled Man on Earth

Letter 11.
[Letter from Pierre Renee Le Det de Segrais in London, England, writing to his sister,
Marguerite Marie Le Det de Segrais, in New Orleans, Louisiana.]
London, August 11, 1810
[To] Madam Jolly de Pontcadeuc
I cannot describe to you, dear sister, how chagrined and surprised I was to find the other
day at the home of a respectable female dolt of this city, a thick packet of papers for
Emmanuel, and a letter for you, from your sister-in-law, while everything I had sent you
from Paris a year ago, before I had dreamed of coming here, should have reached you a
long time ago. I have just sent it off to Liverpool, and I hope that the letter will reach you
very soon.
I left home last February to come here. I passed the last days of the year at St. Malo with
La Sandre, or rather with his wife, for he was not there. He has charming children. Our
poor aunt des Jardins [probably Jeanne Morin, wife of Joseph Fichet des Jardins] is in the
most unfortunate state, having lost absolutely everything. And as neither her husband’s
family nor her own are coming to her aid, she is in a deplorable situation. I am busy
sending her several small sums. I hope that those who received so much kindness and
care from her will also come to her aid.
Since the trip I made to Lemo 87 , where I was formerly, I have never gone back. At St.
Malo I saw your sisters-in-law on my last trip, but when I found out that they and their
husbands were refusing to return to Florian what they owed, I went only one time and
treated them very coldly. Fanchon [Fauchette?] especially is much to be pitied, having a
nasty watchdog [mastif] – pardon, that is a little captain’s word – for a husband. But she
is awfully weak. He is for the rest, very rich. But they live like “grigoux” [in misery] in
our charming home town. It is just the way they live.
Madame Penelec and her daughters are nevertheless exceptions. Penelec is hobbling
around as usual. He embraced me readily, and took me in his canoe [rowboat? ship?] in
the shipyard -- all in all did the honors to an “illustrious traveler” like me. Gobarnet—
our friend Gobarnet still is the head of the canoe [shipbuilding?] factory. We were in
Salidor [a port near St. Servan, which is near St. Malo], which has become an imperial
shipbuilding port, where they are going to build in ’74. 88
I believe, however, that Holland did not salute me, which is bad. I went by Parame, and
saw your Barre. 89 It was winter, and everything was barren. Poor Barre, it looked quite
87 Probably the castle of Le Douarain de Lemo.
88 It seems more likely from the nautical context that what is meant here is that “they are going to build a
74” – meaning that the shipyard is going to build a 74 gun ship-of-the-line, a very substantial warship.
89 This means “La Barre,” in the town of Parame, the chateau where Marguerite was born and spent her
childhood.
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