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February 2, 1951

Dear Mr. Block:

To my very great disappointment I was unable to follow your kind suggestion of calling up Mrs. Block when I was in your city last Monday.

As I think I told you over the telephone I had a dinner appointment in Cleveland, and when I called the airport they advised me, in view of weather conditions, to advance my flight. This unfortunately further curtailed my visit.

On my next trip I shall communicate with you ahead of time and arrange for calling on you and seeing at last your collection of which I hear so much.

In view of our conversation I have air-expressed today to Mr. Carl O. Schniewind, c/o of the museum, the two watercolors I told you about, namely: 

"The Two Lawyers" by DAUMIER
"Musicians and Arabs" by DELACROIX

As you will be able to judge, these two watercolors are of the highest quality, in a remarkable state of preservation and so fresh in color, and among the rarest works to be found in this medium.

I am not using these superlatives lightly, but in my long business experience I can but say that I have never owned before two watercolors by Daumier and by Delacroix in any way comparable to these.

The Daumier comes from one of the best known Paris private collections. It came directly from Mr. Robert Esnault-Pelterie, who inherited it from his mother, Madame Albert Esnault-Pelterie, who, I would say, probably purchased it at the beginning of the century, for she died around 1936 and her son is quite along in age.

Furthermore ^[[from]] the pedigree and date you will find on the appended sheets you will notice that it has been exhibited in the two most important Daumier exhibitions that have taken place within the last thirty or forty years.

As regards the Delacroix, may I say that aside from it obvious intrinsic merit, it has been generally recognized as the most important, physically speaking, watercolor by the artist and it combines most happily his remarkable knowledge of the human figure as well as revealing his mastery as a landscape painter.

The impressive number....