Drumont, Édouard, French antisemitic journalist, author, and politician (1844-1917). Autograph letter signed and autograph manuscript (fragment).

€ 240.00

In his letter to the fellow antisemitic journalist André de Boisandré, Drumont advocates supporting the radical-socialist candidate René Guyot in the upcoming legislative elections, rather than the liberal politician and journalist Yves Guyot, whom he calls a renegade: "Je crois qu'en présence de la candidature d'un renégat comme Yves Guyot nous n'avons pas autre chose à faire qu'à soutenir M. Goblet qui est honnête homme. Faites le nécessaire à ce sujet". Indeed, Goblet was elected deputy for the Seine in 1893.

The manuscript entitled "Le Juif et le Science Moderne" was Drumont's editorial article for his antisemitic journal "La Libre Parole" of 2 August 1893. Departing from the public discussion of the recent publication of Henri Meige's dissertation "Le juif-errant à la Salpêtrière: étude sur certains névropathes voyageurs", Drumont propagates his antisemitic convictions, here with respect to scientific racism. Meige was a student of Jean-Martin Charcot, who had studied a possible prevalence of hereditary diseases, notably arthritis and neurological disorders, in Jewish communities and had discussed the myth of the Wandering Jew in his famous Tuesday lectures. Although Meige's arguments were not strictly rooted in scientific racism, rather considering long-term endogamy motivated by persistent persecution as a possible cause of the higher prevalence of certain conditions supposed by Charcot and Meige, they could be easily misinterpreted as a scientific corroboration of antisemitic tropes, as Drumont did in his article. Meige's conclusion that the "Wandering Jew exists today" (transl.) was bound to be picked up by antisemites like Drumont.

The letter on stationery of La Libre Parole. Somewhat stained. The manuscript with printer's marks, stronger browning and stains.