Paul Thomas de Girac, Paris, 1665 (Google Books)

In early October 1664, Lister noted that he read: ‘Response de sieur de Girac à M. Costar for his O defen. de V. 4°’.

This quarto edition was author and critic Paul Thomas de Girac‘s (d. 1663) continued criticism of the letters of the poet Vincent Voiture (1597-1648); the work was written in response to Pierre Costar’s defense of Voiture’s style. Vincent Voiture was an early member of the Académie française, enjoying the patronage of Cardinal Richelieu.  Girac was a friend of Jean Guez de Balzac. The dispute reached a fever pitch and was notorious in the Republic of Letters, so much so that Peter Bayle devoted five pages to it in his Dictionary.  ¹.