familiar; that it was the disgraceful desertion of his French auxiliaries which finally compelled Morosini, the Venetian governor, to capitulate.

Throughout the long struggle between Venice and the Porte, which, after the first Mussulman invasion and conquest of proper Greece, continued, at intervals, for above two centuries and a half, the Greeks themselves appear only as alternately the slaves of the contending powers. Equally oppressed by the party which prevailed, they detested equally the Latin Christians and the Moslems. The Venetians and, the Turks emulated each other in the ruin of the country, the debasement of its natives, and the destruction of its beauteous monuments, its sole remaining glory. The fate of the Parthenon, which, at the siege of Athens in 1687, was converted, by the Turks, into a powder-magazine, and blown up by the Venetians, is one gloomy memorial, among a thousand, of these wars, which M. VILLEMAIN has identified with the history of a people, who had no other share in them than to witness and to suffer.

As a people, the modern Greeks will appear only in history from the epoch of the war of 1770-1774, between Russia and the Porte, when they first began to aspire to that independence for which they have since made so desperate and glorious a struggle, a struggle which, too deeply stained as it has been by their atrocious vengeance against their sanguinary oppressors, we yet sincerely trust is not fated to prove ineffectual.

ART. VII. Mémoires sur Voltaire, et sur ses Ouvrages. Par LONGCHAMP et WAGNIÈRE, Ses Secrétaires; suivis de divers Ecrits inedits de la Marquise du Châtelet, du Président Hénault, de Piron, &c. tous relatifs à Voltaire. 2 Vols. 8vo. Paris. 1826.

THIS

HIS is really a publication of some value; for it illustrates the life and writings of "the philosopher of Ferney," and so far, therefore, contributes to the literary history of the last century. As faithful records, however, of facts and opinions, these volumes are not to be received without caution; for they abound in party-statements and prejudices, and are principally the composition of two men, whose relation, as we shall presently show, is not in every case entitled to implicit confidence. Nor have we, indeed, afforded to us, in the work, the guarantee of any living name of literary respect

ability

ability to vouch even for the genuineness of the papers them selves; and we are, of course, therefore, on this side of the Channel, left absolutely without any other means of forming a conclusion upon this necessary point than from that which appears upon the face of the publication. But the internal evidence contained in the papers themselves is, we think, sufficiently strong to determine the mere question of authenticity; and we have little hesitation in receiving the book for as much as it professes to be, various memoirs relating to Voltaire, by two of his secretaries, and several of his friends. The pieces in the collection are as follows:

1. Additions to the "Historical Commentary on the Works of the Author of the Henriade."

2. An Account of M. Voltaire's Journey to Paris in 1778, and of his Death.

3. An Examination of the "Secret Memoirs of Bachaumont, and others, as far as regards M. Voltaire.

4. An Examination of another Work, entitled "Memoirs for the History of M. Voltaire," published at Amsterdam, 1785. 2 Vols. 12mo.

All these four pieces being by WAGNIERE, Voltaire's secretary.

5. Memoirs by LONGCHAMP, (who had also formerly been his secretary,) extending from 1745 to 1753.

6. A mass of various and hitherto unpublished Writings by the Marchioness of Châtelet, the President Hénault, Piron, Darnaud, Baculard, Thiriot, &c. all relating to Voltaire.

Of the pieces in this enumeration, we shall proceed successively to give such account as our space will afford. The first of them, the additions to the "Historical Commentary" on Voltaire's writings, will be found to contain some interesting anecdotes and particulars on the literary habits and private character of that extraordinary man. There is every reason to believe that the Historical Commentary on his works, written in 1776, was by his own hand; although, as he did not care to avow it, he suffered it to pass for the production of WAGNIERE and others. Indeed WAGNIERE expressly declares in his preface to the additions, that the original work was composed by Voltaire himself, and afterwards given to him; but it does not increase our reliance upon the scrupulous veracity of the worthy secretary to find, from the present editor, (p. 6.) that WAGNIERE had long continued, after his mas'ter's death, to claim the work as his own. However, we learn further from the editor this account of the history of the pre

sent

sent additions to Voltaire's own work, that WAGNIERE, in his own copy of it, had entered from time to time such remarks and explanations as he derived from the conversation and confidence of his master; and that the present paper is the sum of these remarks, given to us with extracts from the original text to which they relate. Closely attached as he was to the person of Voltaire, during the last twenty years of the philosopher's life, and constantly writing from his dictation, WAGNIERE certainly must have possessed peculiar advantages for acquiring an intimate acquaintance with his master's opinions, and many curious transactions of his life. The additions appear to have been written in 1781, soon after Voltaire's death; WAGNIÈRE is now no more; and it is not explained, as fully as might have been satisfactory, how these papers became the property of the present publishers.

The principal value of these Additions' is the light which they throw upon the private life of Voltaire at Ferney, Strangely constituted as the philosopher appears to have been of a medley of conflicting qualities, one of the most interesting circumstances in his character was his extensive benevolence to his dependants and vassals of his signiory of Ferney. Under his zealous and liberal protection his domain became quite a colony of his creation, industrious, thriving, populous and wealthy. His charities to the surrounding neighbourhood are described as most active and persevering. Thus, also, we find him establishing schools, increasing the stipend of the curé of Ferney, assisting indigent men of letters; and upon one occasion, in a season of scarcity in the province of Gex, even importing corn from Sicily at his own cost, and distributing it among the inhabitants. In the same active and praiseworthy spirit it was that he had put himself forward as the eloquent advocate of the unfortunate and injured Lalli; and that he now, at later epochs, distinguished himself by his zeal in vindicating the innocence of the unhappy families of Calas and Sirven againt sentences of condemnation which he conceived to have been unfounded and iniquitous.

ΣΑ

In this piece, however, there are many notices which exhibit the conduct and character of Voltaire in far less agreeable and even in revolting colours. We refer not merely to his unhappy opinions on matters of faith, but to the shocking impiety and the virulent hostility against religion in which it seemed his delight to indulge. The secret opinions of any man are a matter of concern only between his Maker and his conscience; and the deist, who, like Franklin, avoids the proclaiming of his principles, or seeks not to gain proselytes

for

for his opinions, does not offend at least against the happiness and welfare of society. But Voltaire, like Gibbon, appears to have cherished a rancorous, and, as it were, personal hatred against both Revelation and its professors. Such men outrage decency, who point their sneers openly at all that is holy and sacred, and audaciously declare their contempt for the divine évidences of truth. But let them be encountered only in selfdefence by the bounden champions of the Gospel, and they at once raise the cry of persecution and martyrdom. Voltaire's whole life was a studied insult against Christianity; and yet because his profanations were exposed and held up to merited execration by a Christian priesthood, his disciples have not we have evidence in the volumes before us — to yet ceased keep alive their outcry against the bigotry and intolerance of the French clergy towards him.

There never was a more audacious or disgusting profanation, committed by man, than his contrivance for entrapping a poor priest to administer the sacrament to him at Ferney, in mere wantonness of spirit, because the Bishop of Annecy bad interdicted its administration to him. This well known and scandalous incident is here coolly repeated as an excellent jest; and the account is terminated by the following memorial of cold-blooded blasphemy:

Dès l'instant que le curé eut donné l'hostie à M. de Voltaire, celui-ci, élevant la voix, prononça ces paroles : "AYANT MON DIEU DANS MA BOUCHE, je déclare que je pardonne sincèrement à ceux qui ont écrit au Roi des calomnies contre moi, et qui n'ont pas réussi dans leurs mauvais desseins; et je demande acte de ma déclaration à Raffo, notaire." (Vol. i. p. 82.)

The next piece by WAGNIERE, his account of Voltaire's last journey to Paris, and death in 1778, is by far the most interesting paper in these volumes; and we regret that we cannot copy many of its details. It may be regarded, as the editor observes, as a supplement to the Historical Commentary, and is full of curious matter; though open to one serious objection, as the whole account is evidently distorted by violent animosity against Madame Denis, the niece of Voltaire, and his other friends, by whose persuasion he was induced to quit Ferney. Indeed the whole of WAGNIÈRE's narrative is discoloured and tediously interrupted by his perpetual reference to the petty cabals and intrigues of his master's household; and, with mean and grovelling spirit, he dwells much more on these contemptible squabbles, and the destruction of his own selfish prospects, than on matters in which the world would

be

be inclined to take a far deeper interest. He was purposely sent away to Ferney by the domestic faction, to remove him from his master's person, and was not therefore with him in the closing scene of his long and remarkable life; but, notwithstanding all his efforts to dignify the conclusion of the philosopher's career, he betrays enough to confirm our impression of the miserable, hopeless vacillation of spirit, which marked the last illness of the aged deist. He, who had passed an octogenarian life in heaping blasphemy and ridicule on revelation and its ministers, he

"Who for the bane of thousands born,

Built God a church and laughed his word to scorn,
Skilful alike to seem devout and just,

And stab religion with a sly side thrust ;"

he no sooner found his life in danger, than he demanded the presence of an ecclesiastic; "not choosing," such was his pretext," that his remains should be cast out on the highway." But it is evident from the sequel that there was some deeper impression lurking under this poor weakness of our nature; and that superstitious fears had a power over his spirit, in the agony of impending dissolution, which salutary conviction had never exercised upon his life. A scene which followed is too remarkable to be omitted.

Fort peu de temps après, l'Abbé Gautier vint chez M. de Vilette. On l'introduisit auprès de M. de Voltaire, qui lui dit : Il y a quelques jours que je vous ai fait prier de venir me voir pour ce que vous savez. Si vous voulez nous ferons tout-à-l'heure cette petite affaire. "Très-volontiers," répondit l'Abbé. Il n'y avait alors dans la chambre que M. l'Abbé Mignot, M. le Marquis de Villevieille et moi. Le malade nous dit de rester, mais l'Abbé Gautier ne le voulut pas. Nous sortîmes; je me tins à la porte, qui ne consistait qu'en un cadre revétu de papier des deux côtés, et n'avait point de loquet. J'entendis M. de Voltaire et l'Abbé causer un moment ensemble, et celui-ci finit par demander à mon maître une déclaration de sa main, à quoi il consentit.

'Je soupçonnai alors que le confesseur était un émissaire du clergé. J'étais au désespoir de la démarche qu'on exigeait de M. de Voltaire; je m' agitais prés de la porte, et faisais beacuoup de bruit. MM. Mignot et de Villevieille, qui l'entendirent, accoururent à moi et me demandérent si je devenais fou. Je leur répondis que j'étais au désespoir, non de ce que mon maître se confessait, mais de ce qu'on voulait lui faire signer un écrit qui le déshonorerait peut-être.

• M. de Voltaire m' appela pour lui donner de quoi écrire. Il s'aperçut de mon agitation, m'en demanda avec etonnement la cause. Je ne pus lui répondre.

" Il