Petronius, or _El Buscon_ of Quevedo; but at the end, it is
nothing.

The only writer of the pre-revolutionary period who can be read today
with any pleasure--and this, perhaps, is because he does not attempt
anything--is Chamfort. His characters and anecdotes are sufficiently
highly flavoured to defy the action of time.




THE ROMANTICISTS


_Goethe_

If a militia of genius should be formed on Parnassus, Goethe would be
the drum-major. He is so great, so majestic, so serene, so full of
talent, so abounding in virtue, and yet, so antipathetic!

_Chateaubriand_

A skin of Lacrymae Christi that has turned sour. At times the good
Viscount drops molasses into the skin to take away the taste of vinegar;
at other times, he drops in more vinegar to take away the sweet taste of
the molasses. He is both moth-eaten and sublime.

_Victor Hugo_

Victor Hugo, the most talented of rhetoricians! Victor Hugo, the most