To Ye. M. Shavrova, 24–25 February 1892. Moscow.

the dateline, a short-form repeat of the date, two short business items, a closing wish, the signature (split across two sections, "Devoted," then "A. Chekhov."), and the envelope inscription broken into its three conventional lines (delivery note, address, name). Dated 24 or 25 February 1892, from Moscow Note that the short-form date repeated in, "23 Feb.," does not match the dateline’s "24 or 25 February"; this discrepancy is present in the source itself and is preserved as-is rather than silently corrected.

The letter continues directly from (22 February), in which Chekhov had recommended Elena Mikhailovna Shavrova for membership in a "Musical-Dramatic Society" whose exact name he admitted he did not know. Here he corrects himself: the society in question was not the Society of Arts and Literature after all, but some other, unnamed society Prince Urusov had told him about, whose charter he still does not know – he directs her to get the particulars from Urusov directly. A second, unrelated item turns sharply personal: regarding a servant girl named Shura, Chekhov tells Shavrova to be merciless and dismiss her outright, doubling the imperative ("Out with her! Completely out!"). The letter closes with a brief good wish, the signature, and an envelope address for local delivery to the Lachinova house on Bolshoy Afanasyevsky Lane, where had also addressed her.