Crebillon. I. Prosper Jolyot De, a French tragic poet, born at Dijon early in 1674, died in Paris, June 17, 1762. His father placed him in the office of an attorney who was fond of the drama and encouraged his clerk to devote himself to dramatic literature. His first tragedy, Idomenee, was performed in 1705. Atree, in 1707, produced an impression by its gloomy plot and energetic style. Electre succeeded in 1709; and two years later Rhada-miste et Zenobie, which is still considered his best production. His next tragedy, Xerxes, was a failure; and Semiramis, performed in 1717, and Pyrrhus, in 1726, were little more successful. He now kept aloof from the stage for 22 years. Having squandered his large earnings and lost his father and his wife, he retired to a miserable garret, where his sole companions were dogs, cats, and ravens, and where he lived neglected by all his friends, except his son. In 1731 the French academy elected him one of their number; and he wrote a poem as his reception discourse. Some 14 years later Mme. de Pompadour, who was dissatisfied with Voltaire, thought of bringing Crebillon into competition with him. The old dramatist received a pension of 1,000 livres, and was encouraged to resume his former calling.

He now completed his tragedy of Cati-lina, which was performed Dec. 12, 1748, in a style of unusual splendor, at the king's expense, and warmly applauded by the court party, while his superiority over Voltaire as a tragic poet was loudly proclaimed. His last effort was his Triumvirat, which he wrote when over 81. Among French tragic poets Crebillon ranks next to Comeille, Racine, and Voltaire. II Clande Prosper Jolyot de, a French novelist, son of the preceding, born in Paris, Feb. 14, 1707, died there, April 12, 1777. He was a gay companion, full of wit and humor, and he wrote a series of licentious novels which pleased Miss Stafford, a young, handsome, and rich English woman, so much that she came to France and married him. The least objectionable of these novels is Les egarements du cceur et de l'esprit. He was also a song maker, and aided in the establishment of the lyric society-known as Le caveau.