I beg to achknowledge with great pleasure and relief receipt of your long-waited-for letter of the 20th, ult. I am very glad indeed to hear from you direct that you are convalescent now and that your Eastern tour of lecture has been successful.

I beg to thank you cordially for your kind sympathy for our great bereavement and beg to mention that I have also sympathized with you to have been unfortunate as to be laid up in a strange hospital for two months. It is not cheery enough away from Home and family and in addition thereto, spending such a long time in a hospital must have been more that I can say herein.

I am thinking while writing this that you must be back in glorious Paris by this time and am further hoping that you found your family members and friends are very well.

I am ever thankful to you for the constant troubles you are taking on my behalf and I don’t know really how to thank you in adequate words. Please arrange with M. Denis as you kindly intend and I beg to request you to do your best regarding M. Barde as well. I am thinking that my nephew has made arrangements with M. Monet and already selected five pictures.

I am now hoping to be in New York on or about the 6th or 7th, May and to be in Paris some time early in June, when I hope to go over those all pictures and sculptures with you.

The letter from M. Durand Ruel enclosed in yours was carefully perused and I am hoping to be able to see these pictures mentioned therein. I shall also be glad if you will kindly look round in Paris for M. Renoir’s of later dates, as I am desirous of finding more of his good works.

I am now in the eve of my sailing and beg to leave over all other items until the day I shall have the pleasure of seeing you in Paris and talking over personally.

With my kindest regards to you and particularly to Miss Benedite for the meanwhile,

I remain,

Yours faithfully

Kojiro Matsukata