Voltaire writes that he has been ill and could not have the honour of thanking Jacob Bouthillier de Beaumont for the offers he made. He asks him to give Gabriel Cramer the money for his bills of exchange, adding that it should arrive from Basel by courier. He asks de Beaumont to have it collected from Mr. Astruc, the directeur du coche in Switzerland.

A letter from M. Lebret to an unidentified male recipient, dated 14 April 1774. The letter discusses Voltaire and Cramer.

Voltaire begins by telling Gravelot that he is entitled to his esteem and gratitude because La Henriade would be much better off if he had painted paintings as striking as Gravelot’s. He adds that he was charmed with the two designs that Mr. Crammer had shown him and then questios the depiction of St. Barthelémy, shown holding a torch in one hand and a sword in the other, asking if it wouldn’t be more fitting for his face to be seen so that he seemed inflamed with fury. Voltaire also proposes that he is drawn with a helmet on his head rather than a hat but leaves the decisions up to Gravelot. He then discusses the fourth canot, saying that he would not hate a few monks and a few armed priests, with grief-stricken religion looking at them with indignation. He suggests that they could be depicted with discord at their head and the Duc de Mayeune and a few leaguers on a balcony laughing at the monastic milicia. Voltaire then writes that the assassination of Henry III has been engraved for the fifth canto, and discusses the depiction of Henry IV, suggesting that he could be drawn on a chariot crossing the air to the astonishment of the priests. He adds that he has nothing to say about the other designs and leaves all decisions up to Gravelot. Voltaire then states that he regards Gravelot’s attentions as ‘the most flattering rewards for my old labours which have been almost forgotten.’ He adds that he never thought he could be remembered in posterity by that Gravelot teaches him otherwise. He concludes by claiming that he has been told that Gravelot is the brother-in-law of Mr. D’anville. He writes that D’anville had been kind enough to warn him of some errors that appeared in an essay on general history and begs Gravelot to remind D’anville of the esteem in which Voltaire holds him.

Voltaire writes that he appreciates Prault’s attention. He adds that he would have liked to have given printing priviledges to Prault, but gave it to Lambert and the Crammers.

Voltaire begins by saying that Prault should know that the volume sent to him by the Crammer brothers is a delicate matter, and that Voltaire’s name should not be associated with it as it would put the bookseller at risk. He adds that he does not admit to writing any of the pieces that the book contains, and disavows almost all of them. He ends with a brief note to say that he is waiting for Tancrède.