"You will oblige me extremely."

We had to leave his room and spend two hours in the company, talking over
all sorts of things. Voltaire displayed all the resources of his
brilliant and fertile wit, and charmed everyone in spite of his sarcastic
observations which did not even spare those present, but he had an
inimitable manner of lancing a sarcasm without wounding a person's
feelings. When the great man accompanied his witticisms with a graceful
smile he could always get a laugh.

He kept up a notable establishment and an excellent table, a rare
circumstance with his poetic brothers, who are rarely favourites of
Plutus as he was. He was then sixty years old, and had a hundred and
twenty thousand francs a year. It has been said maliciously that this
great man enriched himself by cheating his publishers; whereas the fact
was that he fared no better than any other author, and instead of duping
them was often their dupe. The Cramers must be excepted, whose fortune he
made. Voltaire had other ways of making money than by his pen; and as he
was greedy of fame, he often gave his works away on the sole condition
that they were to be printed and published. During the short time I was
with him, I was a witness of such a generous action; he made a present to
his bookseller of the "Princess of Babylon," a charming story which he
had written in three days.

My epicurean syndic was exact to his appointment, and took me to a house
at a little distance where he introduced me to three young ladies, who,
without being precisely beautiful, were certainly ravishing. Two of them
were sisters. I had an easy and pleasant welcome, and from their
intellectual appearance and gay manners I anticipated a delightful
evening, and I was not disappointed. The half hour before supper was
passed in conversation, decent but without restraint, and during supper,
from the hints the syndic gave me, I guessed what would happen after
dessert.

It was a hot evening, and on the pretext of cooling ourselves, we
undressed so as to be almost in a state of nature. What an orgy we had! I
am sorry I am obliged to draw a veil over the most exciting details. In
the midst of our licentious gaiety, whilst we were heated by love,
champagne, and a discourse of an exciting nature, I proposed to recite
Grecourt's 'Y Gyec'. When I had finished the voluptuous poem, worthy of
an abbe's pen, I saw that the eyes of the three beauties were all aflame,
and said,--

"Lad