many odd works. His volumes were
richly bound, and freely distributed, but they found no readers! In a
"Discours pour servir de Preface sur les Poetes, traduits par Michel de
Marolles," he has given an imposing list of "illustrious persons and
contemporary authors who were his friends," and has preserved many
singular facts concerning them. He was indeed for so long a time
convinced that he had struck off the true spirit of his fine originals,
that I find he at several times printed some critical treatise to back
his last, or usher in his new version; giving the world reasons why the
versions which had been given of that particular author, "soit en prose,
soit en vers, ont ete si pen approuvees jusqu'ici." Among these numerous
translations he was the first who ventured on the Deipnosophists of
Athenaeus, which still bears an excessive price. He entitles his work,
"Les quinze Livres de Deipnosophists d'Athenee, Ouvrage delicieux,
agreablement diversifie et rempli de Narrations, scavantes sur toutes
Sortes de Matieres et de Sujets." He has prefixed various preliminary
dissertations; yet, not satisfied with having performed this great
labour, it was followed by a small quarto of forty pages, which might
now be considered curious; "Analyse, en Description succincte des Choses
contenues dans les quinzes Livres de Deipnosophistes." He wrote,
"Quatrains sur les Personnes de la Cour et les Gens de Lettres," which
the curious would now be glad to find. After having plundered the
classical geniuses of antiquity by his barbarous style, when he had
nothing more left to do, he committed sacrilege in translating the
Bible; but, in the midst of printing, he was suddenly stopped by
authority, for having inserted in his notes the reveries of the
Pre-Adamite Isaac Peyrere. He had already revelled on the New Testament,
to his version of which he had prefixed so sensible an introduction,
that it was afterwards translated into Latin. Translation was the mania
of the Abbe de Marolles. I doubt whether he ever fairly awoke out of the
heavy dream of the felicity of his translations; for late in life I find
him observing, "I have employed much time in study, and I have
translated many books; considering this rather as an innocent amusement
which I have chosen for my private life, than as things very necessary,
although they are not entirely useless. Some have valued them, and
others have cared little about them; but however it may be, I see
nothi