My Beloved Friend!
Joy and sorrow! Betrothal — and death, these are what are announced to me in your dear lines, which were here to greet me on my return from burdensome travel. — To your good daughter, I — along with my dear wife — wish the truest of all happiness, and I ask you to give my compliments to her fiancé! And the departed old friend who now has surmounted everything, may he, with me, let blessings shine upon you! — It touches me very much to have met him at your house a year ago, still so strong and robust.
I'm now in the midst of the most self-sacrificing kind of activity over my great undertaking. I am coming also to you, to Dresden: first of all, with the intention of inspecting the personnel of singers there; then also with the wish of being of some aid to my few Dresden friends in their exertions on behalf of my undertaking.
If you can turn my presence to the advantage of this latter purpose, then do so entirely according to your discretion. A meeting of the Wagner Society, before which I would appear and express myself, might really be the simplest means of enlivening things, perhaps of attracting new members to your society. If the thing were agitated somewhat, and in good time, then perhaps something tolerable might result from it. For this reason I am letting you know that I shall undertake to arrive in Dresden at the beginning of the second week of January.
However, I shall be truly and sincerely pleased, above all things, once again to find you and yours — your good Pusinellis — joyous and happy. Then we shall talk over many things, your need of rest, also, and we'll put all of that in order in a kindly and sociable way.
With the most cordial greetings from house to house, I remain
Your truly devoted
Richard Wagner
Source: The Letters of Richard Wagner to Anton Pusinelli, trans. and ed. Elbert Lenrow (Alfred A. Knopf, 1932), No. 63