of
Lycomedes on the ornaments of Ulysses; every one immediately
found all he sought. Those who were at law were surprised to
see their affair decided. The king read all about the rights
of his crown. "But upon my word," he said, "I can't tell why
they spoke so ill of this book." "Do you not see, sire," said
the Duke de Nivernois, "it is because the book is so good;
people never cry out against what is mediocre or common in
anything. If women seek to throw ridicule on a new arrival,
she is sure to be prettier than they are."

All this time they kept on turning over the leaves; and the
Count de C---- said aloud--"Sire, how happy you are, that
under your reign men should be found capable of understanding
all the arts and transmitting them to posterity. Everything is
here, from the way to make a pin down to the art of casting
and pointing your guns; from the infinitely little up to the
infinitely great. Thank God for having brought into the world
in your kingdom the men who have done such good work for the
whole universe. Other nations must either buy the
Encyclopaedia, or else they must pirate it. Take all my
property if you will, but give me back my Encyclopaedia."

"Yet they say," replied the king, "that there are many faults
in this work, necessary and admirable as it is."

"Sire," said the Count de C----, "there were at your supper
two ragouts which were failures; we left them uneaten, and yet
we had excellent cheer. Would you have had them throw all the
supper out of the window because of those two ragouts?..."

Envy and Ignorance did not count themselves beaten; the two
immortal sisters continued their cries, their cabals, their
persecutions. What happened? Foreigners brought out four
editions of this French book which in France was proscribed,
and they gained about 1,800,000 crowns.[154]

In a monotonous world it is a pity to spoil a striking effect, yet one
must be vigilant. It has escaped the attention of writers who have
reproduced this lively scene, that Madame de Pompadour was dead before
the volumes containing Powder and Rouge were born. The twenty-one
volumes were not published until 1765, and she died in the spring of the
previous year. But the substance of the story is probably true, though
Voltaire has only made a slip in a name.

As to the refer