99/421 Here I would most willingly pass my days, were I not too near Avignon, and too far from Italy. For why should I conceal this weakness of my soul? The pestilential influence of this horrid place empoisons the pure air of Vaucluse, and will compel me to quit my retirement." It is clear that he was not supremely contented in his solitude with his self-drawn mental resources. His friends at Avignon came seldom to see him. Travelling even short distances was difficult in those days. |