f that
deplorable English buffoon, whom, unfortunately, he himself had been so
foolish as first to introduce to the attention of his countrymen. But it
is curious to notice how, as time went on, the force of Voltaire's
nature inevitably carried him further and further away from the central
standpoints of the English mind. The stimulus which he had received in
England only served to urge him into a path which no Englishman has ever
trod. The movement of English thought in the eighteenth century found
its perfect expression in the profound, sceptical, and yet essentially
conservative, genius of Hume. How different was the attitude of
Voltaire! With what a reckless audacity, what a fierce uncompromising
passion he charged and fought and charged again! He had no time for the
nice discriminations of an elaborate philosophy, and no desire for the
careful balance of the judicial mind; his creed was simple and explicit,
and it also possessed the supreme merit of brevity: 'Ecrasez l'infame!'
was enough for him.

1914.

NOTES:

[Footnote 3: _Correspondance de Voltaire_ (1726-1729). By Lucien Foulet.
Paris: Hachette, 1913.]

[Footnote 4: 'Il est aussi anime qu'il ait jamais ete. Il a
quatre-vingt-quatre ans, et en verite je le crois immortel; il jouit de
tous ses sens, aucun meme n'est affaibli; c'est un etre bien singulier,
et en verite fort superieur.' Madame du Deffand to Horace Walpole, 12
Avril 1778.]

A DIALOGUE

BETWEEN

MOSES, DIOGENES, AND MR. LOKE

DIOGENES

Confess, oh _Moses_! Your Miracles were but conjuring-tricks, your
Prophecies lucky Hazards, and your Laws a _Gallimaufry_ of Commonplaces
and Absurdities.

MR. LOKE

Confess that you were more skill'd in flattering the Vulgar than in
ascertaining the Truth, and that your Reputation in the World would
never have been so high, had your Lot fallen among a Nation of
Philosophers.

DIOGENES

Confess that when you taught the _Jews_ to spoil the _Egyptians_ you
were a sad rogue.

MR. LOKE

Confess that it was a Fable to give Horses to Pharaoh and an uncloven
hoof to the Hare.

DIOGENES

Confess that you did never see the _Back Parts_ of the Lord.

MR. LOKE

Confess that your style had too much Singularity and too little Taste to
be that of the Holy Ghost.

MOSES

All this may be true, my good Friends; but what are the Conclusions you
would draw from your Raillery? Do you suppose that I am ignorant of all
that a Wise