{"id":"jw/letters/1779/01-to-mr---","corpus":"jw-letters","type":"letter","author":"john-wesley","title":"01 To Mr   ","title_alt":[],"text_basis":null,"date_composed":null,"date_precision":"unknown","date_note":null,"numbering":{"bicentennial":null,"jackson_running":null,"sugden":null},"source_edition":{"editor":null,"title":null,"edition":null,"place":null,"publisher":null,"year":null,"volume":null,"pages":null,"scan_url":null,"scan_page_ids":null},"transcription":{"derived_from":null,"corrected_against_scan":false,"corrector":null,"corrected_on":null},"modernization":"none","license_text":"Public Domain Mark 1.0","license_apparatus":"CC BY 4.0","wikidata":null,"prev":null,"next":null,"part_of":"jw-letters","editorial_note":null,"source_id":"jw-letter-1779-01-to-mr---","passage_ids":["jw-letter-1779-01-to-mr----000"],"word_count":206,"themes_auto":["free-will","reign-of-god","works-piety"],"open":true,"closed_reason":null,"legacy_ids":["jw-letter-1779-01-to-mr----000"],"passages":[{"id":"jw-letter-1779-01-to-mr----000","author":"john-wesley","source_id":"jw-letter-1779-01-to-mr---","source_title":"01 To Mr   ","source_type":"letter","year":null,"chunk_index":0,"text":"To Mr. Date: LONDON, January 4, 1779. SIR, - In September last a gentleman near Bristol showed me a letter which he had received from the Rev. Mr. Fletcher at Paris. I desired him to give a transcript of one part of it, which he immediately did. It was as follows: Mr. Voltaire sent for Mons. Tonchin, first physician to the Duke of Orleans (one of his converts to infidelity), and said to him, 'Sir, I desire you will save my life. I will give you half my fortune if you will lengthen out my days only six months. If not, I shall go to the devil and carry you with me.' This is the man to whom a crowned head pays such a violent compliment! Nay, this is the man whose works are now publishing by a divine of our own Church; yea, a chaplain to His Majesty! Pity but the King should know it! I set my name at length on purpose; and if the publisher of that poor wretch's works writes a panegyric upon him or them, I shall think it my duty to go a little farther and show the real value of those writings. - I am, sir, Your humble servant.","word_count":206,"source_url":null,"themes":["free-will","reign-of-god","works-piety"],"created_at":"2026-01-30T05:14:34.857323"}]}