pected his principles because he had contributed to the Guardian, which was carried on by Steele. To those who cenfured his politicks were added enemies yet more dangerous, who called in question his knowledge of Greek, and his qualifications for a tranflator of Homer. To these he made no publick oppofition; but in one of his Letters escapes from them as well as he can. At an age like his, for he was not more than twenty-five, with an irregular education, and a course of life of which much seems to have paffed in converfation, it is not very likely that he overflowed with Greek. But when he felt himself deficient he fought affiftance; and what man of learning would refufe to help him? Minute enquiries into the force of words are lefs neceffary in tranflating Homer than other poets, because his pofitions are general, and his representations natural, with very little dependence on local or temporary customs, on thofe changeable fcenes of artificial life, which, by mingling original with accidental notions, and crowding the mind with images which time effaces, produce ambiguity in diction, any other poet diction, and obfcurity in books. To this open difplay of unadulterated 'nature it must be afcribed, that Homer has fewer paffages of doubtful meaning than poet either in the learned or in modern languages. I have read of a man, who being, by his ignorance of Greek, compelled to gratify his curiofity with the Latin printed on the oppofite page, declared that from the rude fimplicity of the lines literally rendered, he formed nobler ideas of the Homeric majefty than from the laboured elegance of polifhed verfions, Those literal tranflations were always at hand, and from them he could always obtain his author's fenfe with fufficient certainty; and among the readers of Homer the number is very small of those who find much in the Greek more than in the Latin, except the mufick of the numbers. If more help was wanting, he had the poetical translation of Eobanus Heffus, an unwearied writer of Latin verses; he had the French Homers of La Valterie and Dacier, and the English of Chapman, Hobbes, and Ogylby. Ogylby. With Chapman, whose work, though now totally neglected, feems to have been popular almost to the end of the laft century, he had very frequent confultations, and perhaps never tranflated any paffage till he had read his verfion, which indeed he has been sometimes fufpected of using instead of the original. Notes were likewife to be provided; for the fix volumes would have been very little more than fix pamphlets without them. What the mere perusal of the text could suggest, Pope wanted no affistance to collect or methodize; but more was neceffary; many pages were to be filled, and learning must supply materials to wit and judgment. Something might be gathered from Dacier; but no man loves to be indebted to his contemporaries, and Dacier was acceffible to common readers. Euftathius was therefore neceffarily confulted. To read Euftathius, of whose work there was then no Latin verfion, I fufpect Pope, if he had been willing, not to have been able; fome other was therefore to be found, who had leifure as well as abilities, and he was doubtless most readi ly ly employed who would do much work for little money. The history of the notes has never been traced. Broome, in his preface to his poems, declares himself the commentator in part upon the Iliad; and it appears from Fenton's Letter, preserved in the Museum, that Broome was at first engaged in confulting Euftathius; but that after a time, whatever was the reafon, he defifted: another man of Cambridge was then employed, who foon grew weary of the work; and a third was recommended by Thirlby, who is now discovered to have been fortin, a man fince well known to the learned world, who complained that Pope, having accepted and approved his performance, never teftified any curiofity to fee him. The terms which Fenton uses are very mercantile: I think at first fight that his performance is very commendable, and have fent word for him to finish the 17th book, and to fend it with his demands for his trouble. I have here enclosed the Specimen; if the reft come before the return, I will keep them till I receive your order. Broome then offered his fervice a fecond time, which was probably accepted, as they had had afterwards a clofer correfpondence. Parnell contributed the Life of Homer, which Pope found fo harsh, that he took great pains in correcting it; and by his own diligence, with fuch help as kindness or money could procure him, in fomewhat more than five years he completed his verfion of the Iliad, with the notes. He began it in 1712, his twenty-fifth year, and concluded it in 1718, his thirtieth year. When we find him translating fifty lines a day, it is natural to fuppofe that he would have brought his work to a more speedy conclufion. The Iliad, containing less than fixteen thousand verfes, might have been despatched in less than three hundred and twenty days by fifty verfes in a day. The notes, compiled with the affistance of his mercenaries, could not be fuppofed to require more time than the text. According to this calculation, the progrefs of Pope may seem to have been flow; but the distance is commonly very great between actual performances and fpeculative poffibility. It is natural to fuppofe, that as much as has been done to-day may be done to-morrow; but on the morrow fome |