 He was extremely good-natured, but fond of saying very severe things, unhesitating in his acceptance of favours (he drew a regular annuity from Claude Adrien Helvétius), but exceedingly touchy if he thought himself in any way slighted.At the same time, he was a great cultivator of sensibility and unsparingly criticized the rising "philosophes".Perhaps for this reason, Voltaire became his enemy and often disparaged him.