People tolerated Ménage because he was extraordinarily wise, and because his sense of justice impelled him to admirably generous deeds. The Ministers, Mazarin and Colbert, always sent to him for the names of the people who were worthy of recompence, and Ménage frequently nominated the men who had most offended him. Justice was his passion. Under the vulgar motley of the pedant lay many excellent qualities, among them intense devotion to friends. Throughout his life he rendered innumerable services and was kind and helpful to many people. Ménage had a certain amount of money, nevertheless he gave himself into the hands of Retz, and Retz lodged and nourished him as he lodged and nourished his own lackey. Ménage lived with Retz, berating him as he berated every one; and Retz cared for him, endured his fits of anger, and listened to his scoldings ten years. Ménage "drew handsome pecuniary benefits from some other source," saved money, set out for himself, and founded a branch Blue Room in his own house. His receptions, which were held weekly on Wednesday, were in high esteem. The people who had free access to good society considered it an honour to be named as his guests.
Quite another story was "little Voiture," a delicate pigmy who had "passed forty years of his life at death's door." He was an invalid even in early youth. When very young he wrote to Mme. de Rambouillet from Nancy:
Since I have not had the honour of seeing you, madame, I have endured ills which cannot be described. As I traversed Epernay I visited Marechal Strozzi for your sake, and his tomb appeared so magnificent, and the place so calculated to give repose, that as I was in such condition and so fit for burial, I longed to be laid beside him; but as they found that there was still some warmth in me, they made difficulties about acceding to my wishes. Then I resolved to have my body carried as far as Nancy, where, at last, madame, it has arrived, so meagre and so wasted, that I do assure you that there will be very little for them to lay in the ground.
Ten years later he drew the following sketch of himself:
"My head is handsome enough; I have many grey hairs. My eyes are soft, but a little distraught.... My expression is stupid, but to counterbalance this discrepancy, _I am the best boy in the world_."[53]