Note 146 — LECTURE X. FRENCH ART IN THE SEVENTEENTH CENTURY.
O. W. (Orlando Williams) Wight translation
Well appreciated by Richelieu, he preferred his esteem to his benefits. One day when an envoy of Richelieu said to him that he had only to ask freely what he wished for the advancement of his fortune, Champagne responded that if M. the Cardinal could make him a more skilful painter than he was, it was the only thing that he asked of his Eminence; but that being impossible, he only desired the honor of his good graces. Félibien, Entretiens, 1st edition, 4to., part v., p. 171; and de Piles, Abrégé de la Vie des Peintres, 2d edition, p. 500.—"As he had much love for justice and truth, provided he satisfied what they both demanded, he easily passed over all the rest."—Nécrologe de Port-Royal, p. 336.