he provinces, but in the capital
an amount of infidelity obtains which is perfectly frightful; and even
among those who frequent the church, and sometimes ostentatiously parade
an affection for it, this skepticism fills the intellects. No one writer
of past years unsettled the already shallow-rooted faith of the people
to such an extent as Voltaire. Yet he was by no means the man many of
his enemies suppose him to have been. No mere scoffer or reviler of the
bible could have obtained such an influence in France as Voltaire did.
He was really a great man, and gained the affections of the people by
his advocacy of liberty. It is more than probable that under a system of
religion as pure as now exists in America, Voltaire would never have
been an infidel. The condition of the Catholic church in France, in his
time, was sufficiently shocking to have startled every intelligent mind
into skepticism. It was filled with hypocrites and knaves, who professed
to be filled with the spirit of God, but who in reality were very
sensual and wicked men. The slightest independence in religious opinions
was punished by exile or imprisonment. How could a man with an
independent intellect succumb to such a church? And was it not very
natural for it to jump from belief to infidelity? This should be borne
in mind when we estimate the character of Voltaire.

Voltaire's real name was Francois-Marie Arouet, and he was born at
Chatenay, on the 20th of February, 1694. His father was a notary, and
had a lucrative situation. His mother was of noble extraction. When a
babe, he was so feeble that it was not expected he would live. An abbe
in the family educated him, and it is a singular fact, that when he was
a boy, a deistical ode was put into his hands. He entered the college of
Louis-le-Grand, and his, talents rendered him a general favorite with
the teachers. One of his tutors, however, in a religious argument found
himself so incompetent to defend the Catholic church, that in his anger
he exclaimed, "You will become the Coryphaeus of Deism."

On leaving college the young man entered into Paris society. Louis XIV.
was in his dotage, and at this time paid little attention to men of
genius. Arouet soon became popular in the highest circles for his wit
and genius. He resolved, much against his father's will, to devote
himself to a literary life. One of the first acts of the young man was
to fall in love with a rich but desperate woman's daughter, and