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in printing, there are others which are sometimes purposely committed, in order to have an opportunity of introducing into the Errata, what could not have been permitted in the body of the work. In those countries, for instance, where the Inquisition exists, and particularly in Rome, the use of the word Fatum, or Fata, in any printed work, is forbidden. An author who wished to make use of the latter, adopted this scheme.-He printed the word, throughout his book, Facta; and then, in the Errata, he placed a notice, For Facta, read Fata. A similar expedient was resorted to by Scarron. He had composed some verses, to which he had prefixed a dedication, in these words:" A Guillemette, chienne de ma soeur." Sometime after, having quarrelled with his sister, just as he was preparing for the press a collection of his poems, he maliciously printed among the Errata of the Book, For "Chienne de ma soeur," read, “Ma chienne de soeur."

XXIII. DOMESTIC ECONOMY.

Some courtiers were talking of their household affairs, and in particular of the wages they gave their servants. One of them observed that he gave his maître d'hotel a hundred pistoles; a second, that he allowed his six hundred; "And I,” said one, "I go far beyond either of you, for I allow mine four thousand francs per annum." At first the whole party were astonished at this exorbitant allowance. At last one of them thought of putting the question, "But, do you pay him ?" "Oh, no," said he.

XXIV. CARDINAL RICHELIEU.

A gentleman was once talking very loudly to the Prince de Guémene against the Cardinal de

Richelieu. "Speak lower," said he; "there are some of his creatures who may overhear you." They were poor people who came to receive their usual alms.

XXV. CARDINAL RICHELIEU.

Amidst the important occupations of the Cardinal Richelieu, he generally found time to unbend a little from the fatigue attendant on the ministry. He was fond of violent exercises, particularly after meals, but did not like to be surprised in these moments of amusement and pleasure. M. de Boisrobert, who was constantly with him, told me that one day M. de Grammont, who, at the Palais Royal, was considered as one of the family, (having espoused one of the Cardinal's nieces,) and who, of course, possessed the liberty of free entry at all times, broke in upon the Cardinal after dinner, while amusing himself with leaping in the great gallery. M. de Grammont, like an able courtier, told the Cardinal he could leap much better than he, and immediately began leaping five or six times. The Cardinal, who was as accomplished a courtier as himself, perfectly understood his meaning, and afterwards distinguished him more than ever by his favour.

XXVI. CARDINAL RICHELIEU.

Richelieu was extremely suspicious. Desnoyers, his valet-de-chambre, was the only person allowed to sleep in his apartment, or to awaken him. Before lying down, he was in the custom of inspecting every corner of the room. One day, while searching under the bed of his valet-dechambre, he found two bottles of wine, which the servant had placed there in order to quench his thirst during the night. He immediately concei

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ved they were poison, and forced him to drink off both in his presence.

XXVII. M. SACHOT.

M. Sachot was pleading for a baker, whose nose, or part of it, had been pulled off by a neighbour in a quarrel in the street. The advocate on the other side, who scarcely possessed a nose at all, in the course of his speech, attempted to turn the whole matter into ridicule. "My brother," said Sachot, in his reply," seems to treat the matter lightly Very probably he thinks a nose is of no consequence."

XXVIII. THE ARCHBISHOP OF LYONS.

The Archbishop of Lyons had his hands completely distorted and disfigured by the gout. He was once engaged in play at cards, and had gained a thousand pistoles. "I should not mind it," said the losing party," if my money had not got into the ugliest hand in the kingdom." "That is

false," said the Archbishop; "I know one that is still uglier." "I'll wager thirty pistoles you don't," said the other. The Archbishop immediately drew off the glove which covered his left hand, and the gamester acknowledged he had lost his wager.*

XXIX. MADAME DE BOURDONNE.

Madame de Bourdonne, Canoness of Remiremont, had been present at a discourse full of fire and eloquence, but deficient in solidity and arrangement. One of her friends, who felt an interest in the preacher, asked her, as she came out of church,

A similar story is related of Quevedo, by his biogra pher, Don Pablo Antonio de Tarsia, p. 106. Vida Madrid, 1683.

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how she liked it? "Is it not full of spirit ?" said she. "So full," replied Madame de Bourdonne, "that I could not perceive any body."

XXX. WHERE TO LIVE AND DIE.

If we were allowed to choose our birth-place, Italy should be our choice, on account of the mildness of the climate. After being born there, we must come to France to live, for there alone is the science of good eating fully understood. And when we have enjoyed enough of life, were we to choose a spot to die in, it should be in Spain, which is a gloomy and dreary country, peculiarly fitted to inspire us with reflections suitable to such an event. The Spaniards themselves express this sentiment thus: "Italia para nacer, Francia para vivir, Espana para morir."

XXXI.

To mark the character of the Italians, Spaniards, and Greeks, it has been said, That one ought to write in Italian, boast in Spanish, and cheat in Greek.

XXXII. RETURNING THANKS.

Nothing is more difficult than to return thanks neatly.

XXXIII. JULIUS CÆSAR.

John of Salisbury, Polydore Virgil, and Lipsius, believed that Julius Cæsar was not the author of the Commentaries which bear his name, and have attributed them to Julius Celsus, who lived about eight hundred years ago. The cause of this error was, that Julius Celsus was the author of the Life of Julius Cæsar, which is prefixed to some copies of the Commentaries.

XXXIV. CICERO.

We have great reason to regret the loss of the

Treatises of Cicero, De Gloria, and De Legibus. What we do possess of that great man, only serves to convince us of the extent of our loss. The fragments of the last Treatise which remain, leave no doubt that the work must have been excellent.

The Treatise De Gloria was found entire by Philelphus. He considered this fortunate discovery only as a means of gaining credit in the world, and acquiring reputation. With this view, he first contemplated publishing it as his own work; but, apprehensive that this imposture would in time be discovered, he wrote a Treatise, De Contemptu Mundi,* composed entirely of fragments from the work of Cicero, patched together as he could, and then threw the original into the fire; thus depriving the republic of letters, by this odious action, of a work, where there is every reason to conclude that Cicero was not less eloquent or admirable than in his other productions.

Raimond Soranzo, a celebrated Jurisconsult at the Papal Court at Avignon, about the middle of the fourteenth century, was in possession of the two books of Cicero de Gloria. He presented them to Petrarch, who valued them highly, and perused them with care. Unfortunately, a countryman of his own, an old man, in very poor cumstances, who had formerly been his preceptor, having borrowed them of him, pledged them, and having left the country without redeeming them, died shortly afterwards, without giving Petrarch any in

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The whole of this story is proved to be a mistake by Bayle; Article Alcyonius. Varillas, in his Louis XI., was the author of this calumny. Philelphus never wrote a Treatise De Contemptu Mundi.

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