He was to
experience some more of them before he left the land. Frederick bided
his time.
It was on March 26, 1753, that Voltaire left Potsdam. It was two months
afterwards before he reached Frankfort. He had tarried at Leipsic and at
Gotha, engaged in the latter place on a dry chronicle asked for by the
duchess, entitled "The Annals of the Empire." During this time also, in
direct disregard of a promise he had made Frederick, there appeared a
supplement to "Doctor Akakia," more offensive than the main text. It was
followed by a virulent correspondence with Maupertuis. Voltaire was
filling up the vials of wrath of the king.
On May 31 he reached Frankfort. Here the blow fell. There occurred an
incident which has become famous in literary history, and which, while
it had some warrant on Frederick's side, tells very poorly for that
patron of literature. No unlettered autocrat could have acted with less
regard to the rights and proprieties of citizenship.
"Here is how this fine adventure came about," writes Voltaire. "There
was at Frankfort one Freytag, who had been banished from Dresden and had
become an agent for the King of Prussia.
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