his grace the duke of Buckingham was not displeased I fhould undertake the Author to whom he has given (in his excellent Effay) fo complete a praise : "Read Homer once, and you can read no more; "For all Books elfe appear, so mean, so poor, "Verfe will feem Profe; but ftill perfit to read, "And Homer will be all the Books you need." That the earl of Halifax was one of the first to favour me, of whom it is hard to fay whether the advancement of the polite arts is more owing to his generosity or his example. That fuch a genius as my lord Bolingbroke, not more diftinguished in the great fcenes of bufinefs, than in all the ufeful and entertaining parts of learning, has not refufed to be the critick of these sheets, and the patron of their writer. And that fo excellent an imitator of Homer as the noble author of the tragedy of Heroic Love has continued his partiality to me, from my writing paftorals, to my attempting the Iliad. 1 cannot deny myself the pride of confeffing, that I have had the advantage not only of their advice for the conduct in general, but their, correction of several particulars of this tranflation. I could fay a great deal of the pleasure of being diftinguished by the earl of Carnarvon; but it is almost abfurd to particularize any one generous action in a perfon whofe whole life is a continued feries of them. Mr. Stanhope, the prefent fecretary of ftate, will pardon my defire of having it known that he was pleafed to promote this affair. The particular zeal of Mr. Harcourt (the fon of the late lord chancellor) gave VOL. I. D me me a proof how much I am honoured in a fhare of his friendship. I must attribute to the fame motive that of feveral others of my friends, to whom all acknow.. ledgments are rendered unnecessary by the privileges of a familiar correfpondence: and I am fatisfied I can no way better oblige men of their turn, than by my filence. In short, I have found more patrons than ever Homer wanted. He would have thought himself happy to have met the same favour at Athens, that has been fhewn me by its learned rival, the university of Oxford. If my Author had the Wits of after-ages for his defenders, his tranflator has had the Beauties of the prefent for his advocates; a pleasure too great to be changed for any fame in reversion. And I can hardly envy him thofe pompous honours he received after death, when I reflect on the enjoyment of fo many agreeable obligations, and eafy friendships, which make the satisfaction of life. This diftinction is the more to be acknowledged, as it is fhewn to one whose pen has never gratified the prejudices of particular parties, or the vanities of particular men. Whatever the fuccefs may prove, I fhall never repent of an undertaking in which I have experienced the candour and friendship of fo many perfons of merit; and in which I hope to pass fome of those years of youth that are generally loft in a circle of follies, after a manner neither wholly unuseful to others, nor difagreeable to myself. THE The Contention of Achilles and Agamemnon. IN the war of Troy, the Greeks, having facked some of the neighbouring towns, and taken from thence two beautiful captives, Chryfeïs and Bryfeïs, allotted the first to Agamemnon, and the laft to Achilles. Chryfes, the father of Chryfeïs and priest of Apollo, comes to the Grecian camp to ranfom her; with which the action of the poem opens, in the tenth year of the fiege. The priest being refufed, and infolently difmiffed by Agamemnon, intreats for vengeance from his God, who inflicts a peftilence on the Greeks. Achilles calls a council, and encourages Chalcas to declare the cause of it, who attributes it to the refufal of Chryfeïs. The king being obliged to fend back his captive, enters into a furious conteft with Achilles, which Neftor pacifies; however, as he had the abfolute command of the army, he feizes on Brifeis in revenge. Achilles in difcontent withdraws himfelf and his forces from the rest of the Greeks; and complaining to Thetis, fhe fupplicates Jupiter to render them fenfible of the wrong done to her fon, by giving victory to the Trojans. Jupiter granting her fuit incenfes Juno, between whom the debate runs high, till they are reconciled by the addrefs of Vulcan. The time of two and twenty days is taken up in this book; nine during the plague, one in the council and quarrel of the princes, and twelve for Jupiter's ftay with the Ethiopians, at whofe return Thetis prefers her petition. The fcene lies in the Grecian camp, then changes to Chryfa, and laftly to Olympus. THE A ILIA D. BOOK I. CHILLES' wrath, to Greece the direful spring Of woes unnumber'd, heavenly Goddess fing! That wrath which hurl'd to Pluto's gloomy reign The fouls of mighty Chiefs untimely flain; Whofe limbs unbury'd on the naked shore, Devouring dogs and hungry vultures tore ; Since great Achilles and Atrides ftrove, Such was the fovereign doom, and fuch the will of Jove! Declare, O Mufe! in what ill-fated hour Sprung the fierce ftrife, from what offended power? 10 And heap'd the camp with mountains of the dead; For Chryfes fought with coftly gifts to gain He |