‎PATRU, (O.)‎
‎Les oeuvres diverses de Mr. Patru de l'Académie Françoise. Contenant Ses Plaidoyers, Harangues, Lettres, Vies de quelques-uns de ses Amis, & des remarques sur la Langue Françoise, qui n'ont paru que dans cette nouvelle Édition, ainsi que plusieurs Pièces qui ont été trouvées parmi les papiers de l'Auteur après sa mort. Tome Premier [-Tome Second].‎

‎A Paris, Chez Sebastien Marbre-Cramoisy, 1692. Titles printed in red and black, engraved frontispiece in both volumes. Two volumes. (20), 523, (3) pp.; (8), 3-453, (1) pp. 12mo. Contemporary vellum, labels to spine, red edges. Camus 1341; Cioranescu 53628-31 (various editions but not this one); Graesse v, p. 170 (various editions but not this one); BMSTC, French Books 1601-1700, P673. Rare edition, not in the mentioned works, and only found at the British Library and Harvard Law. There were earlier editions in 1670 and 1681 making this the third edition. Olivier Patru (1604-81), a lawyer and lexicographer, is best remembered as one of the first polishers and refiners of the French language. He was received into the French Academy in 1640 on instigation of Richelieu (and was the last academic to be elected under the protection of Richelieu), and upon his acceptance he gave a speech so fine that the Academy insisted that every new member henceforth should make such an speech; new members still do to the present day. Patru had a special interest in further elaborating the rules of the language, he took an active part in the editing of the Dictionnaire de l'Académie and worked with Richelet on the famous Dictionnaire françois.He is praised for his eloquence and style: "ses plaidoyers n'offrent presque aucune trace du mauvais gout qui defigurent ceux des avocats de son temps" (Camus). The second volume seems to lack leaf A1: no text is missing however: this may have been a blank. Slightly browned, somewhat heavier in places. ‎

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