ld-Theatre, upon both the shrieky and the
silent party; catcalling not fallen quite dead to this day. To Friedrich
the catcalling was not momentous (being used to such things); though to
poor Voltaire it was unlimitedly so:--and to readers interested in this
memorable Pair of Men, the rights and wrongs of the Affair ought to
be rendered authentically conceivable, now at last. Were it humanly
possible,--after so much catcalling at random! Smelfungus has a right to
say, speaking of this matter:--

"Never was such a jumble of loud-roaring ignorances, delusions and
confusions, as the current Records of it are. Editors, especially French
Editors, treating of a Hyperborean, Cimmerian subject, like this, are
easy-going creatures. And truly they have left it for us in a wonderful
state. Dateless, much of it, by nature; and, by the lazy Editors,
MISdated into very chaos; jumbling along there, in mad defiance of top
and bottom; often the very Year given wrong:--full everywhere of lazy
darkness, irradiated only by stupid rages, ill-directed mockeries:--and
for issue, cheerfully malicious hootings from the general mob of
mankind, with unbounded contempt of their betters; which is not
pleasant to see. When mobs do get together, round any signal object; and
editorial gentlemen, with talent for it, pour out from their respective
barrel-heads, in a persuasive manner, instead of knowledge, ignorance
set on fire, they are capable of carrying it far!--Will it be possible
to pick out the small glimmerings of real light, from this mad dance of
will-o'-wisps and fire-flies thrown into agitation?"

It will be very difficult, my friend;--why did not you yourself do it?
Most true, "those actual Voltaire-Friedrich LETTERS of the time are
a resource, and pretty much the sole one: Letters a good few, still
extant; which all HAD their bit of meaning; and have it still, if well
tortured till they give it out, or give some glimmer of it out:"--but
you have not tortured them; you have left it to me, if I would! As
I assuredly will not (never fear, reader!)--except in the thriftiest
degree.

DETACHED FEATURES (NOT FABULOUS) OF VOLTAIRE AND HIS BERLIN-POTSDAM
ENVIRONMENT IN 1751-1752.

To the outside crowd of observers, and to himself in good moments,
Voltaire represents his situation as the finest in the world:--

"Potsdam is Sparta and Athens joined in one; nothing but reviewing and
poetry day by day. The Algarottis, the Maupertuises, are h