s anthology of
the seventeenth century, the _Epigrammatum delectus_, a Port-Royal
textbook published at Paris in 1659.[1] The essay was twice translated
into French in the same century, but the use of the text in France did
not survive, apparently, the downfall of the Port-Royal movement. It
was, however, later adopted by Eton College, where it was used in the
sixth form.[2] The text went through thirteen English editions between
1683 and 1762. The author of the essay, and a collaborator with Claude
Lancelot in making the selections for the anthology, was Pierre
Nicole, who began teaching in the Little Schools around 1646. It has
been said that the essay was written at that time.[3]

The scope of the anthology is indicated on the title page, which I
translate: _A selection of epigrams carefully chosen from the whole
range of ancient and modern poets, and so on. With an essay on true
and apparent beauty, in which from settled principles is rendered the
grounds for choosing and rejecting epigrams. There are added the best
sententiae of the ancient poets, chosen sparingly and with severe
judgement. With shorter sententiae, or proverbs, Latin, Greek,
Spanish, and Italian, drawn both from the chief authors of those
languages and from everyday speech_.

The essay is preceded by a preface in which the origin, purpose and
method of the anthology is explained. The two ends of instruction, we
are told,[4] are learning and character, and of these the latter is
the more important. But there are many books, and especially books of
epigrams, that are quite filthy and obscene. Young people are led by
curiosity to read these, and losing all chastity of mind enter upon a
progressive corruption of life. It would be best if they could be kept
wholly from such books; but there is a good deal in them of genuine
profit and literary merit, which makes it difficult to keep them
wholly out of the hands of youth. Therefore the editor undertook to
expurgate the epigrammatists, especially Catullus and Martial. He was
horrified when he read over their works, but he found some good among
the bad, as in vipers not everything is poisonous but some things even
useful to health. His primary purpose, then, was to protect the good
young man from being harmed and to leave him no excuse for wishing to
have or peruse such books since the good in them had already been
extracted for him.

The difficulty then arose of making the selection serve the purposes