Dear Friend!
You must have been surprised to see me suddenly disappear from Montmorency and Paris. This was connected with the most decisive catastrophe of my life. Know then that I'm leaving modern Europe for some time to visit Greece and the Orient. This is a desire I've cherished for a long time: the means with which to realize this desire have now been put at my disposal from London in a surprisingly gratifying manner. The only distressing thing for me was that it involved a temporary separation from my wife and a personal leave-taking from her. I therefore wrote to her in Zürich some time ago to let me leave without saying goodbye. It would also have been painful for me to discuss this matter with all of you, for reasons which I must prefer to keep from you even now. It will probably be very difficult for my wife—to whom I'm going to write to Zürich about it again today—to approve my decision: that's why I carried it out as soon as I had made it.
It will be hard for you to understand my innermost reluctance to continue in our modern artistic life; still less will you understand why I'm completely withdrawing from Germany and France for the time being. So I must go my way alone.
I'm in a hurry because I've just found out that the boat on which I want to go first to Malta—in order to continue my trip to Greece from there—leaves Marseilles early next week, so I'm going there today. Perhaps I would have written you more fully later on, but now I felt pressed to ask you to forward the letters which might come for me at your address to general delivery in Marseilles at once. I suppose I'll hardly be able to wait for them there, for the boat is scheduled to sail on the 7th—but in this case I'll leave word with the post office as to how they should be forwarded to me: anyhow, I don't expect much of importance.
Farewell, then, old friend! Give my best regards to Anders and my other friends. I had to undertake something special in order to cure myself in every respect. I hope that when I return I'll find you healthy and well, and that things will be better in our homeland. I'll see that you hear from me now and then! Farewell! and remain faithful to
Your
Richard W.
Source: Letters of Richard Wagner: The Burrell Collection, ed. John N. Burk (Macmillan, 1950), No. 93