COUNT OF NOAILLES:

Counselor to His Most Christian Majesty A title for the King of France : Knight

of the Order of the Holy Spirit A prestigious French order of knighthood : Marshal of his

Camps & Armies : Seneschal & Governor of

Rouergue, & Lieutenant for His Majesty in Auvergne:

My Most Worshipful Lord & Patron.

Most Illustrious Lord,

An ornate woodcut initial letter 'R' decorated with foliate scrolls and a human face within the upper loop.
I recognize as an effect of the mag-
nanimity of Your Most Illustrious Lordship, how
it has pleased you to dispose of this work of
mine; notwithstanding that (as you know) I was
confused & dismayed by the ill-for-
tunate outcomes of my other works, having deter-
mined with myself, never again to expose to the public,
any of my labors, but only, so that they would not be
entirely buried, having persuaded myself to leave
a handwritten copy of them, in a conspicuous place, at least for
many intellectuals, of the subjects treated by me: & for
this, having made the choice, for the first, & most Il-
lustrious place, to deposit them in the hand of Your Most Illustrious Lordship, secure, that out of your particular affection towards
me, you would have taken to heart, the preservation
of my studies, & labors. And for this, during your passage
through here, returning from your Embassy in Rome, I was