This letter begins with a poem which Voltaire wrote for Frederick the Great. The poem talks of Frederick's greatness- "In your achievements, in your writings; astonish the great and wise; who before you are too little." Other interesting stanzas in the poem are as follows- "I had too much hope in my youth; and in the middle age, too much trouble; but in the old age where I am; alas, I have too little wisdom....In France...we do not have too many scholars; we have too few geniuses." After the poem, Voltaire writes a short personal letter, in which he mentions how Frederick "beat us in Thuringia, and create[s] poetry better than we do!"