357—to John Murray
November 24, 1813.
You must pardon me once more, as it is all for your good: it must be thus:
He makes a Solitude, and calls it Peace.
"
Makes
" is
to the passage of Tacitus
, from which the line is taken, and is, besides, a stronger word than "
leaves
."
Mark where his carnage and his conquests cease—
He makes a Solitude, and calls it—peace.
You will perceive that the sense is now clearer, the "
He
" refers to "
Man
" in the preceding couplet.
Yours ever,
B.
"Solitudinem faciunt—pacem appellant."
Tacitus,
Agricola
, 30.