Voltaire tells Jeanne Louise de Rochefort d’Ally not to have a hepatic colic, if she does not wish for Voltaire to travel to Burgundy in a frenzy to see one of the two people to whom he is equally attached. He confirms that he received a visit from Attorney General Séguier and d’Alembert on the same day, adding that if the two had met it would have been a much more pleasant scenario, though his meetings with each were charming. He goes on to note that the recipient has, like himself, been touched by the scissors of Abbé Terret, stating that they must both thank him for it. Voltaire speaks with regret of the disturbance Terret has brought to Ferney, noting that it had been progressing well, with foreigners populating the desert, houses being built, trade thriving and abundance beginning to vivify the region. He then says that one word has lost all of this and concludes by saying that the catastrophe poisons his final days, though he must not submit to this. He adds that he will send the recipient a little amusement in a few days time.

~With thanks to Rumi Kitahara for her assistance in identifying this manuscript.

Notes for the Siècle de Louis XIV said to pertain to ‘page 184’ and ‘page 187’ (See OCV, vol.13C, ch.29, p.131, l.657-64, and ch.30, p.138-40, l.102-46). Voltaire writes that they are emigrants who prefer the religion of their country and who go elsewhere to seek misery or fortune, following the example of their fathers driven from France by the fatal insult done to Henry IV in the destruction of his law called the Edict of Nantes. He then turns to officers dissatisfied with the ministry, accused persons who have escaped rigorous forms of sometimes badly administered justice, and states that this is what happens in all of the countries of the earth. The second section of the text then considers wheat. The parliament of Paris, Voltaire notes, issued a disastrous decree which forbade merchants from contracting any association for this trade and all individuals from making a heap of grain. This discouraged farmers and Monsieur [Jean-Baptiste] Colbert had no option but to buy from foreign merchants at high prices. Voltaire notes that the people were fed but the cost to the State was high. The fear of scarcity prevented the export of wheat and some intendants also boasted of inhibiting trade with neighbouring provinces. In good years, grain could only be sold by petition to the council and labourers turned away from growing corn as they knew they could not expect a great profit from it. Voltaire claims that this was the only stain on Colbert’s ministry. The issue was not rectified until 1764 when trade in grain was made free, with only a few restrictions, similar to those used in England.

An almanac of particular use to those in the maritime trade. Also included in the almanac is a list of the ‘Kalendar of Months, Sabbaths, and Holidays, which the Hebrews or Jews observe and keep, for the Years 5557 and 5558 of the Creation’. The almanac was presumably intended to serve the many Jewish residents of Jamaica who required information about the Jewish calendar to plan their business voyages. Numerous handwritten notes have been added to the printed text, including a quote from Voltaire.

Almanacs issued in Jamaica included a page of the Jewish calendar as early as 1776, which “would seem to be an indication of the importance of Jewish residents in the eyes of Christian Jamaicans.” (See B. W. Korn, “The Haham DeCordova of Jamaica,” in: American Jewish Archives 18.2 (Nov. 1966), p. 141 n.2). These Jamaican calendars therefore, represent the very earliest appearances of Hebrew font in the Western Hemisphere, in a publication intended specifically for Jews. Earlier works with Hebrew type, such as Judah Monis’s Hebrew Grammar, were intended for a Gentile audience. The first Hebrew calendar on the American continent was not printed until 1851 (Singerman S463). — Kestenbaum & Company Catalogue, Auction 62: June 26th, 2014.

Yorke encloses two essays. One refers to the merchants trading in the East, and their decision to petition the King regarding the Turkish taxes, ‘avanias’, which have been imposed upon them. The second praises recent British naval operations. Also enclosed is a copy of his letter to Hockersan, in which he requests information regarding an adultery case, between a merchant and his wife. He asks the Academy’s impression of the inscription when they publish a new book of their memoirs, and if Hockersan has access to ‘any manuscripts of note’, particularly a copy of the essays of Voltaire.

Choiseul writes that he has heard from the Pays de Gex that the King has chosen to form a trading establishment in Nerroy in the hopes of revitalising the province. Nerroy will be given the same advantages as the city of Geneva which gives the city a great superiority over Versailles. The way to establish equality between these two places would be to separate Gex from the five large farms and to declare it to the General Farm to be a foreign country. This project, Choiseul writes, was proposed several years ago and had been approved of by Jean Charles Philibert de Trudaine de Montigny. Choiseul states that he has sent a copy of the draft letters patent and thinks it favourable to renew the proposal. He asks for Jean Charles Philibert de Trudaine de Montigny’s opinion and asks for advice on how the project could be made a success that is visibly advantageous for both the Kingdom and the Pays de Gex since it would provide a considerable amount of foreign trade.

Voltaire writes that he is touched by de Laurencin’s letter. He notes that he has been in the Pays de Gex for thirteen years and, whilst he has his fortune, his age, the snow that surrounds him eight months a year, the disturbances of Geneva, and the interruption of trade has made him think of acquiring somewhere in a milder climate. He adds that he was offered twenty houses near Lyon. Voltaire then notes that he would like to live with de Laurencin but there are too many people that depend on him for him to leave Ferney. He notes that he gave his niece the land he lives on, and married a descendant of Corneille to a gentleman from the neighbourhood, with the couple and their children staying in his château. He adds that he also has to attend to two other households, an impotent parent, a chaplain that was previously a Jesuit, a young man whom Richelieu entrusted to him, and numerous servants, and that he must govern the Pays de Gex because the cessation of trade with Geneva prevents farmers from being found. He concludes that he must stay at Ferney, whatever the weather, and adds that his disadvantages are compensated for because he pays nothing to the King and is perfectly free except in the jurisdiction of justice. He thanks de Laurencin again and notes that he would like to send him some books, beginning with a small writing that he has given to Mr. Tabarau to give to him as it is difficult to pass books from Geneva to Lyon.