fair to translate, that the lover eats a morfel of hope, and the warrior defires to drink a draught of glory? If such translations are allowed, the works of the most correct author may be rendered ridiculous. It is apparent, that Mr. de Voltaire depended entirely on the affiftance of a dictionary, to enable him to give the most faithful tranflation that can be, and the only faithful one, in the French language, of any author, ancient or modern.

It is neceffary to present to those readers, who do not understand French, the miferable mistakes and galimathias of this dictionary work. Brutus, in his foliloquy, meditating on what Caffius had been urging concerning Cæfar, thus expresses his apprehenfion, that imperial power may change the conduct of

the man.

BRUTUS.

'Tis a common proof,

That lowlinefs is young ambition's ladder,
Whereto the climber upward turns his face;
But when he once attains the upmost round,

He

He then unto the ladder turns his back,
Looks in the clouds, fcorning the bafe degrees
By which he did afcend. So Cæfar may,
Thus Mr. Voltaire tranflates it:
BRUTUS.

-On fait affez quelle eft l'ambition.
L'échelle des grandeurs à fes yeux fe présente;
Elle y monte en cachant fon front aux fpectateurs ;
Et quand elle eft haut, alors elle se montre;
Alors jufques au ciel élevant fes regards,

D'un coup d'œil meprisant sa vanité dédaigne
Les premiers échelons qui firent fa grandeur.
C'eft ce que peut Cefar.

"One knows what ambition is: the ladder of grandeurs presents itself to her; in going up she hides her face from the fpectators; when she is at the top then she shews herfelf; then raising her view to the heavens, with a scornful look her vanity disdains the steps of the ladder that made her greatness. This it is that Cæfar may do."

In the original, Lowliness is young ambition's ladder: the man who by feign'd humi

04

lity

lity and courtesy, has attained the power to which he afpired, turns his back on those humble means by which he afcended to it; the metaphor agreeing both to the man, who has gained the top of the ladder, or to him who has rifen to the fummit of power. In the tranflation, ambition ascends by steps of grandeurs, hiding her face from the spectators, when the is at the top, with a look or glance of her eye her vanity difdains the first fteps fhe took; which steps, observe, were grandeurs; fo the allegory is vanity and ambition difdaining grandeur; and the image prefented is a woman climbing up a ladder, which is not a very common object, but more fo than Vanity's difdaining grandeurs.

I am forry the tranflator had not a better English dictionary, for on that, not on his own knowledge of our tongue, it is plain he depended. In another instance it misleads him. After Portia had importuned Brutus, to communicate to her the fecret caufe of his perturbation, he fays to her,

BRUTUS.

BRUTUS.

Portia, go in a while,

And, by and by, thy bofom fhall partake

The fecrets of my heart.

All my engagements I will conftrue to thee,
All the charactery of my fad brows.-
Leave me with hafte,

The dictionary was confulted for the word conftrue; and thus, according to the usual form, one may suppose it to have stood: To conftrue, to interpret. This not ferving the purpose, to interpret was next fought; there he finds, to interpret or to explain; again with indefatigable industry, excited by a defire to excel all tranflators and tranflations, he has recourfe to the article to explain; under this head he finds, to unfold or clear up; fo away goes the tranflator to clear up

the countenance of Brutus.

Va, mes fourcils froncés prennent un air plus doux. "Go;" fays he; " my frowning brow shall

take a fofter air."

There are so many grofs blunders in this

work,

work, that itwould be tedious to point them out; but it is to be hoped, they will deter other beaux efprits from attempting to hurt works of genius, by the masked battery of an unfair translation. Mr. Voltaire defires, that by his tranflation all Europe will compare the thoughts, the stile, and the judgment of Shakespear, with the thoughts, the ftile, and the judgment of Corneille. It is difficult, perhaps impoffible, to make the graces of ftyle pafs from one language to another; and our blank verfe cannot be equalled by French blank verfe. The thoughts might in some measure have been given, if the translator had understood the words, in which Shakespear hath expreffed them. Upon the judgment of both the authors in the choice of the story, in the conduct of it, in exciting the fympathies belonging to it, in the fashioning of the characters, in the nobleness of fentiment, and the reprefentation of Roman manners, we shall upon close examination of the Cinna and Julius Cæfar be able to pronounce.

As