Complete Works of Helvétius

for Catilina: judge if I had pleasure when I heard you say that you found the character of Catilina perhaps the most beautiful that there was in the theater. In a word, I do not claim to give my opinion for others. When a sultan is in his seraglio, does he choose the most beautiful? No: he says I love her, he takes her, etc. That is how this great personage decides. My dear Helvétius, I do not know if you are as much above others as I feel; but I feel that you are above others: and I am above you through friendship.