ranslation; that he
who intends to translate him, should endeavour to understand him; that
perspicuity should be studied, and unusual or uncouth names, sparingly
inserted; and that the stile of the original should be copied in its
elevation and depression. These are the common-place rules delivered
without elegance, or energy, which have been so much celebrated, but
how deservedly, let our unprepossess'd readers judge.

Roscommon was not without his merit; he was always chaste, and
sometimes harmonious; but the grand requisites of a poet, elevation,
fire, and invention, were not given him, and for want of these,
however pure his thoughts, he is a languid unentertaining writer.

Besides this essay on translated verse, he is the author of a
translation of Horace's Art of poetry; with some other little poems,
and translations published in a volume of the minor poets.

Amongst the MSS. of Mr. Coxeter, we found lord Roscommon's translation
of Horace's Art of Poetry, with some sketches of alterations he
intended to make; but they are not great improvements; and this
translation, of all his lordship's pieces, is the most unpoetical.

Footnote:
1. Fenton.

END of the SECOND VOLUME.

End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Lives of the Poets of Great
Britain and Ireland (1753), by Theophilus Cibber

*** END OF THIS PROJECT GUTENBERG EBOOK THE LIVES OF THE POETS OF ***

***** This file should be named 16469.txt or 16469.zip *****
This and all associated files of various formats will be found in:
http://www.gutenberg.org/1/6/4/6/16469/

Produced by Jonathan Ingram, Fred Robinson and the Online
Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net

Updated editions will replace the previous one--the old editions
will be renamed.

Creating the works from public domain print editions means that no
one owns a United States copyright in these works, so the Foundation
(and you!) can copy and distribute it in the United States without
permission and without paying copyright royalties. Special rules,
set forth in the General Terms of Use part of this license, apply to
copying and distributing Project Gutenberg-tm electronic works to
protect the PROJECT GUTENBERG-tm concept and trademark. Project
Gutenberg is a registered trademark, and may not be used if you
charge for the eBooks, unless you receive specific permission. If you
do not charge anything for copies of this eBook