[509] Private correspondence.
[510] A German critic, distinguished by his classical erudition and profound learning.
[511] In this laborious undertaking, Cowper was assisted by the following editions of that great poet.
1st. That of Clarke, 1729-1754. 4 vols. Gr. et Lat.
This is the most popular edition of Homer, and the basis of many subsequent editions. The text is formed on that of Schrevelius and of Barnes. The notes are grammatical and philological, with numerous quotations from Virgil of parallel passages. The want of the ancient Greek Scholia is the principal defect.
2ndly. That of Villoison. Venice 1788. Gr.
This edition is distinguished by a fac-simile of the text and scholia of a MS. of Homer, in the tenth century, found in the library of St. Mark, Venice. The Preface abounds in learned and interesting matter, and is in high estimation among scholars. Wolf, Heyne, and the Oxford, or Grenville edition, have profited largely by Villoison's labours. His industrious search after valuable MSS. and care in collating them with received editions; his critical acumen, sound scholarship, and profound erudition, entitle him to the gratitude and praise of the classical student. He died in 1805.
3rdly. That of Heyne. Leipsick. 1802, 8 vols. Gr. et Lat.
The text is formed on that of Wolf. The editor was assisted in this undertaking by a copy of Bentley's Homer, in which that celebrated critic restores the long-lost digamma; and by an ancient and valuable MS. belonging to Mr. Towneley.
Of this edition it has been observed that "the work of Professor Heyne will in a great measure preclude the necessity of farther collations, from which nothing of consequence can be expected. When the Greek language is better understood than it is at present, it will be resorted to as a rich repository of philological information."—Edinburgh Review, July 1803.