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Homer not only appears the Inventor of poetry, but excels all the inventors of other arts in this, that he has fwallowed up the honour of those who fucceeded him. What he has done admitted no increase, it only left room for contraction or regulation. He fhewed all the ftretch of fancy at once; and if he has failed in fome of his flights, it was but because he attempted every thing. A work of this kind seems like a mighty tree which rifes from the most vigorous feed, is improved with induftry, flourishes, and produces the finest fruit; Nature and Art confpire to raise it; pleasure and profit join to make it valuable: and they who find the jufteft faults, have only faid, that a few branches (which run luxuriant through a richness of nature) might be lopped into form to give it a more regular appearance.

Having now fpoken of the beauties and defects of the original, it remains to treat of the tranflation, with the fame view to the chief characteristic. As far as that is feen in the main parts of the poem, fuch as the Fable, Manners, and Sentiments, no translator can prejudice it but by wilful omiffions or contractions. As it alfo breaks out in every particular image, defcription, and fimile; whoever leffens or too much foftens those, takes off from this chief character. It is the first grand duty of an interpreter to give his author entire and unmaimed; and for the reft, the diction and verfification only are his proper province; fince these must be his own; but the others he is to take as he finds them.

It should then be confidered what methods may afford fome equivalent in our language for the graces of thefe

in the Greek. It is certain no literal tranflation can be just to an excellent original in a fuperior language: but it is a great mistake to imagine (as many have done) that a rash paraphrafe can make amends for this general defect; which is no lefs in danger to lose the spirit of an ancient, by deviating into the modern manners of expreffion. If there be fometimes a darkness, there is often a light in antiquity, which nothing better preferves than a verfion almoft literal. I know no liberties one ought to take, but those which are neceffary for transfusing the spirit of the original, and supporting the poetical style of the translation: and I will venture to fay, there have not been more men misled in former times by a fervile dull adherence to the latter, than have been deluded in ours by a chimerical infolent hope of raifing and improving their author. It is not to be doubted that the Fire of the poem is what a tranflator should principally regard, as it is most likely to expire in his managing: however it is his safest way to be content with preserving this to his utmost in the whole, without endeavouring to be more than he finds his author is in any particular place. It is a great fecret in writing, to know when to be plain, and when poetical and figurative; and it is what Homer will teach us, if we will but follow modeftly in his footsteps. Where his diction is bold and lofty, let us raife ours as high as we can ; but where his is plain and humble, we ought not to be deterred from imitating him by the fear of incurring the cenfure of a mere English critick. Nothing that belongs to Homer feems to have been more commonly mistaken than

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than the juft pitch of his ftyle; fome of his tranflators having fwelled into fuftian, in a proud confidence of the fublime; others funk into flatnefs, in a cold and timorous notion of fimplicity. Methinks I see these different followers of Homer, fome sweating and straining after him by violent leaps and bounds (the certain figns of false mettle); others flowly and fervilely creeping in his train, while the poet himself is all the time proceeding with an unaffected and equal majefty before them. However, of the two extremes, one could sooner pardon frenzy than frigidity: no author is to be envied for fuch commendations as he may gain by that character of style, which his friends must agree together to call fimplicity, and the rest of the world will call dullness. There is a graceful and dignified fimplicity, as well as a bold and fordid one, which differ as much from each other as the air of a plain man from that of a floven: it is one thing to be tricked up, and another not to be dreffed at all. Simplicity is the mean between oftentation and rufticity.

This pure and noble fimplicity is no where in fuch perfection as in the Scripture and our Author. One may affirm, with all respect to the infpired Writings, that the Divine Spirit made ufe of no other words but what were intelligible and common to men at that time, and in that part of the world; and as Homer is the author neareft to thofe, his ftyle muft of course bear a greater refemblance to the facred books than that of any other writer. This confideration (together with what has been obferved of the parity of fome of his thoughts)

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may methinks induce a translator on the one hand to give into several of those general phrases and manners of expreffion, which have attained a veneration even in our language from being used in the Old Teftament; as on the other, to avoid those which have been appropriated to the Divinity, and in a manner configned to myftery and religion.

For a farther preservation of this air of fimplicity, a particular care fhould be taken to exprefs with all plainnefs thofe moral fentences and proverbial speeches which are so numerous in this poet. They have fomething venerable, and as I may fay oracular, in that unadorned gravity and fhortnefs with which they are delivered: a grace which would be utterly loft by endeavouring to give them what we call a more ingenious (that is, a more modern) turn in the paraphrase.

Perhaps the mixture of fome Græcifms and old words after the manner of Milton, if done without too much affectation, might not have an ill effect in a verfion of this particular work, which moft of any other feems to require a venerable antique cast. But certainly the use of modern terms of war and government, fuch as platoon, campaign, junto, or the like (into which some of his tranflators have fallen) cannot be allowable; those only excepted, without which it is impoffible to treat the fubjects in any living language.

There are two peculiarities in Homer's diction which are a fort of marks, or moles, by which every common eye distinguishes him at first fight: those who are not his greatest admirers look upon them as defects, and

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those who are seem pleased with them as beauties. I fpeak of his compound epithets, and of his repetitions. Many of the former cannot be done literally into English without deftroying the purity of our language. I believe fuch fhould be retained as flide eafily of themselves into an English compound, without violence to the ear or to the received rules of compofition ; as well as thofe which have received a fanction from the authority of our beft poets, and are become familiar through their use of them; such as the cloudcompelling Jove, &c. As for the reft, whenever any can be as fully and fignificantly expreft in a fingle word as in a compound one, the course to be taken is obvious.

Some that cannot be fo turned as to preserve their full image by one or two words, may have justice done them by circumlocution; as the epithet eivocipuanos to a mountain, would appear little or ridiculous tranflated literally "leaf-shaking," but affords a majestic idea in the periphrafis: "The lofty mountain fhakes his waving woods." Others that admit of differing fignifications, may receive an advantage by a judicious variation according to the occafions on which they are introduced. For example, the epithet of Apollo, unbónos, or "far-fhooting," is capable of two explications; one literal, in respect to the darts and bow, the enfigns of that God; the other allegorical, with regard to the rays of the fun : therefore, in fuch places where Apollo is reprefented as a God in perfon, I would ufe the former interpretation; and where the effects of the

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