h, he was not the pioneer, and he seems to have
spent months, and even years, in a sort of apprenticeship to two
authors who have not survived in French literature as he has. So far
as we can make out, the real creator of the maxim in French was
Jacques Esprit (1611-1678), the Abbe Esprit as he was called, although
he was never a priest, and had a legitimate wife and family. He was a
young man from Beziers in Provence, who came to Paris under the
protection of Chancellor Seguier, soon became a member of the French
Academy, and enjoyed a steady social and literary success.

There seems little doubt that Esprit was known early to La
Rochefoucauld, for he was familiar in the family of the Duke and
Duchess of Longueville, and later the governor of their children. He
enjoyed the confidence of the _salons_ from an early date. There is
some reason to suppose that Esprit had begun to write maxims before La
Rochefoucauld's return from exile, and certainly before Mme de Sable's
retreat to Port Royal in 1659. It is very noticeable in La
Rochefoucauld's letters to Esprit--most of which belong to the year
1660--that he treats the academician--who was of plebeian birth and
not many months older than himself--with extreme deference. The Duke
adopts the style of a pupil to a master, and he submits his sketches
or experiments in maxim-making to Esprit for a severe criticism, which
he accepts, and for advice, which he adopts. The probability seems to
be that Esprit introduced the fashion for writing maxims to Mme de
Sable, who was fascinated by it, recommended it to La Rochefoucauld,
and then pointed Esprit out as the acknowledged master of the art, who
could give invaluable technical advice.

There was a sort of collaboration. We find La Rochefoucauld writing to
Esprit, "I shall be much obliged if you will show _our_ last sentences
to Mme de Sable; it may perhaps induce her to write some of her own."
And to the lady he writes, "Here are all my maxims which you have not
yet seen, but as nothing is done for nothing, I beg you to send me in
return the receipt for the carrot soup which we had when Commander de
Souvre dined at your house," The three maximists consulted one
another, polished up one another's sentences, and suggested subjects
which were first discussed round the dinner-table or in the summer
parlour and then worked up, sometimes by all three conjointly, to the
highest pitch of perfection. It was probably Esprit by whom many o