[ THE FOURTH BOOK OF VIRGIL'S ÆNEID, ]
TO MONSIEUR DELILLE.
SIR,
After reading with infinite pleasure your masterly translations of Virgil, I have been led into a train of reflection on the mechanism of words, and on the manners, the ideas, and pursuits of Nations in as much as they frequently give rise to the difference of character which we remark in their language. Few literary discussions would I think be more curious than an impartial comparative enquiry of this kind.