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custom was in a manner followed. Boileau took thename of Despreaux , and his younger brother that ofPuy Morin, to distinguish themselves from the elder.People in this rank did not assume the de — distinc-tive of territorial possession. Francois-Marie Arouet thought it worth while, however, to purchase the estateof Voltaire (as Madame Searron, at Louis XIV. ’s in-stigation, had that of Maintenon ), as a means ofelevating himself to a more respectable position in theeyes of his contemporaries. He succeeded ; andthough, to our ears, Arouet had sounded as well asVoltaire , did it stand in the title-page of his works; inhis own day, in spite of various petty attacks from hisenemies, the one he assumed was regarded by hiscountrymen with greater complacency.
The heyday of youth was passing away with Vol-taire ; his vivacity was still the same: but, from theperiod of his return from his exile in England, he beganto look differently on life ; and while he still regardedliterary labour as his vocation, literary glory as the aimof his existence, he grew indifferent to the pleasures ofsociety. At one time he meditated expatriating himself;thus to acquire liberty of writing and publishing with-out fear of the Bastille. His attachment for madamedu Chatelet caused him to alter this plan. This ladywas distinguished for her learning, her love of plii-losophy, and talent for the abstruse sciences. She waswitty, and endowed with qualities attractive in society ;but she preferred study, and the acquisition of literaryrenown, in seclusion. This friend induced Voltaire toremain in France , but strengthened his purpose of re-tiring from Paris . Various persecutions were, however,in wait for him before he gained a tranquil retreat.
Voltaire wrote his tragedies as a means of gaining pub-lic favour. He knew his countrymen. As a sovereignof the French must gather popularity by leading themto victory and military glory, so must an author, whowould acquire their favour, achieve eminent success, atonce to raise their enthusiasm, and to gratify their vanity,c 3