original Spirit, is a Decifion peculiar only to those, who can relish unaffected Grandeur and natural Sublimity, with the fame judicious Tafte, as Your Lordship.

It is needless to say any thing to Your Lordship, about the other Parts of this Performance, fince they alone can plead effectually for themfelves. I went through this Work, animated with a View of pleafing every body; and publish it, in some Fear of pleafing none. Yet I lay hold with Pleasure on this Opportunity

of paying my Refpects to Your LORDSHIP, and giving this public Proof, that I am,

My LORD,

Your Lordship's

moft obedient and

most humble Servant,

WILLIAM SMITH,

PREFACE.

I

T will, without doubt, be expected, that the Reader should be madė privy to the Reasons, upon which this Work was undertaken, and is now made public. The intrinfic Beauty of the Piece itself first allured me to the Attempt; and a regard for the Public, especially for those who might be unable to read the Original, was the

main Inducement to its Publication.

The Treatise on the SUBLIME had slept for Several Ages, covered up in the Duft of Libraries, till the middle of the fixteenth Century. The first Latin Version by Gabriel de Petra was printed at Geneva in 1612. But the first good Tranflation of it into any modern Language was the French one of the famous Boileau, which, tho' not always faithful to the Text, yet has an Elegance and a Spirit, which few will ever be able to equal, much less to furpass.

The prefent Tranflation was finished, before I knew of any prior Attempt to make Longinus Speak English. The first Translation of him I met with, was publish'd by Mr. Welfted in 1724. But I was very much furprized, upon a Perufal, to find it only Boileau's Translation mifrepresented and mangled. For every Beauty is impaired, if not totally effaced, and every Error (even down to thofe of the Printer) moft injuriously preferved.

I have fince accidentally met with two other English Verfions of this Treatife; one by J. Hall Efq; London 1652; the other without a Name, but printed at Oxford in 1698, and faid in the Title-page to have been compared with the French of Boileau. I faw nothing in either of thefe, which did not yield the greatest Encouragement to a new Attempt.

No less than nine Tears have intervened fince the finishing of this Translation, in which Space it has been frequently revifed, fubmitted to the Cenfure of Friends, and amended again and again by a more attentive study of the Original. The Defign was, if possible, to make it read like an Original: Whether I have fucceeded in this, the bulk of my Readers may judge; but whether the Tranflation be good, or come any thing near to the Life, the Spirit, the Energy of Longinus,

is a Decifion peculiar to Men of Learning and Tafte, who alone know the Difficulties which attend fuch an Undertaking, and will be impartial enough to give the Tranflator the necessary Indulgence.

Longinus himself was never accurately enough published, nor thoroughly understood, till Dr. Pearce did him justice in his late Editions at London, the Second especially. My Thanks are due to that Gentleman, not only for his correct Edition, on account of which the whole learned World is indebted to him; but for those Animadverfions and Corrections of this Tranflation, with which he fo kindly favoured me. Moft of the Remarks and Obfervations were drawn up, before I had read his Latin Notes.

I am not the least in pain, about the pertinency of thofe Inftances which I have brought from the Sacred Writers, as well as from fome of the fineft of our own Country, to illuftrate the Criticisms of Longinus. I am only fearful, left among the multiplicity of fuch as might be had, I may be thought to have omitted fome of the best. I am fenfible, that what I have done, might be done much better; but if I have the good For tune to contribute a little, towards the fixing a true judicious Tafte, and enabling my Readers to diftinguifb Senfe from Sound, Grandeur from

Pomp,