, 1874-03-29


would believe it y heavy and coarse in comedy;
for the wicked 1uan ia never comic For the
same reason, le could never make IN epigram,
tho smallest effusion Of his gall never filling
less then hundred verses II he attempts
satire, he slips into libel he is insupportable in
history, in spite of his art, his elegance, and the
graces Of his style.-no quality sufdcing to re-
place those which he lacks, and which are the
life Of history gravity, good faith, and dignity.
"As to his epic poem, I have no right to speak
Of it for, to Judge OF I. book, one should have
read it, and to read it ons should keep awake.
drowBy monotony charscterizee the majority
Of his writings. which have but two subjects, the
Bible and its enemies: he blasphemes, or he in
suits. His hoasted pleasantly, however, is far
from being irreproachable. The laughter which
it e1cites is not legitimate it is grinace.
"Have you never remarked that the Divine
anathema Was written on his face? After 30
many years, it is time again to test the obserVa-
ton Co, contemplate his figure in the palace OF
| the Hermitage: never do look upon it without
coneratu]ating myself that it has not been trans
mitted to us BY some chisel that Was heir to tho
| Greeks, which would have known, perhaps ho"
| to shed over it certain ideal beauty. Here all
| is natural, There is as much truth ia his head
| as there would hare been in plaster~cass
| takan from the dead body. Sea that ab-
| iecs brow which shame never colored! Those
two extinct CRITTERS, where sensuatty and hate
| eeam still to boil! That molth,-l speak III,
| perhaps but it is not my fault that fr1ghtfn4
| ,ictus. running from ear to ear; and those lips
frightened by cruel malice, like a spring ready to
fly back and hurl forth the blasphemy OF tho sa1-
casm. Do not speak to me OF that man can
not bear to think Of him. All! how much ms
chief hes lie done us! Like that insect. tho
scouree of the gardens, which bites only the
roots of the most precious plants, Voitalre with
his sting ceases not to wound the Two roofs OF
society; women and young people; he 1moues
thcmswith his posons. which he thus nansn1ss
from one generation to another.
ain vain, to veil his upatterable designs, do hif
stupid admirers deafen US with sounding TRADES
in which he has spoken finely Of objects the nos'
venerated. These eelf-blinded men do not get
that they thus complete the condemnation o
that guilty writer. II Fenelon, with the samt
nan that painted the joys OF E1ysium, had writ
ten the book Of the Prince, hewould have been
thousand times yilcr and g11iltier than Machiavel
The great crime Of Voltaire is the abuse
talent. and the deliberate prostitution OF
l | genius created to celebrate God and virtue d
could not allege, like many other persons, youth
reconsideration, the fury OF the passions, and
to conclude, last OF all, the sad weaknoss OF on
nature. Nothing abso1ves him; his corruptlo
. | ia OF kind which belongs only to him It
rooted in the last fbres Of his heart, and lori
fed by all the forces Of his understanding. a.
ways allied to sacrilege, it dehes God while of
:. trayine men. With fury that has no example
! this inBolent blosphemer comes at last to decia1
. himself the personal enemy OF the savior
! men be dares, from the depths OF his 0otnlns
! mesa. to give him ridiculous nauie; and th'
= | adorable law which the Man-G introduced an1
the world. he calls THE INFAMOUS. Abandone
= Of God, who punished him by withdrawn
- Himself. he henceforth knew nc restraint. otn
cyoics have astonished virtue; 'oltaire asso
>, isnes vice. He plunges into the mud, no rois
4 it. he drinks of it, he surrenders bis imas1n
:, t;on tn The enthusiasm Of He'll, which lends hl
- all it's forces to hurry him to the very limits
~ evil. He invents prodigies, monsters "hf
= mike one pale. Paris crowned him sodo
=, vonld have banished him. Shameless pro1an
"a of the universal language and OF lts create
NJ names,--the last Of men after those VINO 10
~ him how shall paint to you the feelings
i. o1cites in mel When see what he could ha
"a done, and what be has done, his 1nlmlsaose :
10 ents inspire me only with kind Of holy IA
"A that has no name Suspended between adn1l
~ tion and horror, could wish sometimes to ha
reared to him statue,-by the hand OF Inc O.
IA cutioner."