e following Three Facts (the SECOND of
them itself threefold), of which I will distinguish the indubitable from
the inferentially credible or as good as certain:--

"1. Indubitable, That Bonneville sold to Friedrich certain Papers,
military Plans, or the like, of the late Marechal and was paid for them;
but by no means met the recognition his genius saw itself to merit.
These things are certain, though not dated, or datable except as of
the year 1750 or 1751. After which, for above twenty years, Bonneville
entered upon a series of adventures, caliginous, underground, for most
part; 'soldiering in America,' 'writing anonymous Pamphlets or Books,'
roaming wide over the world; and led a busy but obscure and uncertain
life, hanging by Berlin as a kind of centre, or by Paris and Berlin
as his two centres; and had a miscellaneous series of adventures,
subterranean many of them, unluminous all of them, not courting
the light; which lie now in naturally a very dark condition. Dimly
discernible, however, in the general dusk of Bonneville, dim and vague
of outline, but definitely steady beyond what could have been expected,
it does appear farther,--what alone entitles Bonneville to the least
memory here, or anywhere in Nature now or henceforth,--

"2. Inferentially credible, That, shortly after that first rebuff in
Potsdam, he, not another, in 1752, was your 'DEMON NEWSWRITER,' whom
we gazed at, some time since, devoutly crossing ourselves, for a little
while!

"Likewise that, in 1759-1760, after or before his American wanderings,
he, the same Bonneville, as was suspected at the time, ["Nicolai, _Ueber
Zimmermanns Fragmente,_ i. 181, 182, ii. 253, 254. Sketch of what is
authentically known about Bonneville: 'suspected both of MATINEES and
of the Stolen EDITION.'"] stole and edited this surreptitious
mischief-making _OEuvres du Philosophe de Sans-Souci_ (Paris or
Lyon, pretending to be 'Potsdam,' January, 1760)," which we are now
considering!" Encouraged, probably enough, by Choiseul himself, who, in
any case, is now known to have been the promoter of this fine bit of
mischief, [Choiseul's own Note, "To M. de Malesherbes, DIRECTEUR DE
LA LIBRAIRE, 10th December, 1759: 'By every method screen the King's
Government from being suspected;--and get the Edition out at once.'"
(Published in the _Constitutionnel, _ 2d December, 1850, by M.
Sainte-Beuve; copied in Preuss, _OEuvres de Frederic,_ xix. 168
n.)]--and who may thereupon [or m