"J'ai été informé par mon propre commandant que le ministère, sur la foi de mon premier livre, supposait que l'opium ne m'était pas étranger.

Long autograph letter signed by Claude Farrère, approximately 160 lines in blue ink (8 pages on two double leaves), to his friend Pierre Louÿs thanking him notably for his thoughtfulness.
Traces of folds inherent to being placed in an envelope, envelope included.
Claude Farrère praises his friend's thoughtfulness towards him: "Thank you for your letter... not only because it is exquisite, - six times more than you can believe, - but much more because I know very well that you told it to me so as 'not to worry me...' as you say." and is amazed by the problems raised by these recent articles: "Said in parentheses, I am quite stunned by the one relating to controversial articles. Not only have I not written any."
He is more concerned about the suspicions he arouses regarding his alleged opium consumption:  "I was informed by my own commander that the ministry, based on my first book, supposed that opium was not foreign to me. The same commander protested, arguing that, for so many months that I had served under his orders, he had absolute certainty that I had not committed the slightest sin! But I doubt that his word is very appreciated in Paris..." and about the hatred that an officer bears him.
Despite these problems, Claude Farrère wants to reassure his friend: "I want, my dear friend, for you to be absolutely at peace about me. I absolutely don't care myself." while lamenting that the latter is abandoning the south of France this year: "Tamaris without you, how do you expect the celestial mechanism to continue turning? And me (?) You would systematically push me to suicide. Don't forget that I'm writing a quite bloody book, and that I live in the iniquitous society of people who, for a half-yes or a quarter-no, disembowel themselves!"
He concludes his letter with new rumors concerning him: "Of course, Madame de X has gratuitously supposed horrible things: I am not the lover of the other lady from the milliner's. Come now! how could a young man such as myself, decent, and too well brought up (cf. Madame P.L.'s opinion) etc..."