To Mr. Moreau.

Paris, December 9, 1818

Sir:

I should have expected, as per the promise you made to the bearer of my letters, that I would receive from you either a visit or a written reply. I have not yet enjoyed one of these two advantages, however. I am still risking the latter again, perhaps with happier results.

I still take pleasure in the confidence that, you Mr. Etienne Prieur and Mr. Papon Lomini, his cousin, have inspired in me, despite the fact that I consider you all as the principal authors of my woes, because I believe that you will, eventually, take pity on me .

I will not attempt, Sir, to give you knowledge in a subject which you are certainly better informed than I, but I am very pleased to let you know that although I am not affiliated with your diabolical society, I know the strength and composition of the infernal government, the names of some of the great men who compose this astonishing empire. I will name them for you.

(Here follows the nomenclature that I gave in my first volume, pages 3 and 4) [1]

[1] This is a somewhat reduced version of the infernal hierarchy of de Plancy’s Dictionairre Infernal. M.B. takes a great deal of pride here in having copied an encyclopedia entry…