ister, by grace of Pompadour, but soon to be extinguished under
a Red Hat. Date is six days before ZORNDORF).... "I cannot imagine
how some people have gone into suspecting that my heart might have the
weakness to lean a little towards WHOM you know, towards my Ingrate that
was! One is bound to have politeness; but one has memory as well;--and
one is attached, as warmly as superfluously, to the Good Cause, which
it belongs only to you to defend. Certain it is, poor I am not like the
three-fourths of the Germans in these days [since ROSSBACH, above all]!
I have everywhere seen Ladies'-fans with the Prussian Eagle painted on
them, eating the FLEUR-DE-LIS; the Hanover Horse giving a kick to M.
de Richelieu's bottom; a Courier carrying a bottle of Queen-of-Hungary
Water to Madame de Pompadour. My Nieces shall certainly not have
that fashion of Fans, at my poor little DELICES, whither I am just
returning." [Ib. lxxvii. 35 ("Soleure, 19th August, 1758").]

TO MADAME D'ARGENTAL (on occasion of MINDEN: Kunersdorf three days ago,
but not yet heard of).... "Truly, Madame, when M. de Contades leads to
the butchery all the descendants of our ancient chevaliers, and sets
them to attack eighty pieces of cannon [not in the least, if you knew
it; the reverse, if you knew it],--as Don Quixote did the windmills!
This horrible day pierces my soul. I am French to excess, especially
since those new favors [not worth mentioning here], which I owe to my
divine Angels and to M. le Duc de Choiseul.

"Luc--you know who Luc is [as do we]--is probably giving Battle to the
Austrians and Russians [KUNERSDORF, 12th; three days ago, did it,
and was beaten to your mind], at the moment while I have the honor of
writing to you; at least, he told me such was his Royal intention. If
they beat him, as may happen, what a shame for us to have been beaten by
the Duke of Brunswick! I wish you knew this Duke [as I have done; a Duke
of no ESPRIT, no gift of tongue, in fact no talent at all that I could
discern], you would be much astonished; and would say, 'The people whom
he beats must be great blockheads.' The truth of the fact is, that all
these troops are better disciplined than ours:" [_OEuvres de Voltaire,_
lxxviii, 186, 187 ("Delices, 15th August, 1759").]--Yes indeed, my
esteemed Voltaire; and also, perhaps, that ESPRIT, or gift of tongue, is
not the sole gift for Battles and Campaigns?--

TO D'ARGENTAL (seventh day after KUNERSDORF: "mouse upon lion's n