Note 90 — THE PLAIN DEALER.
Reading edition
It is, to say the least, doubtful if Les Plaideurs were written before The Plain Dealer. The former was produced in 1668. This supposed discovery of a non-existent coincidence appears to have arisen from a misinterpretation of Voltaire's words in the French edition of his Letters concerning the English Nation: "On a encore lardé cette piece (The Plain Dealer) d'une Comtesse de Pimbesche, vieille plaideuse." But Voltaire clearly employs the title of "Comtesse de Pimbesche" only as a generic term for a litigious female.