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The essays of Michael Seigneur de Montaigne
The essays of Michael Seigneur de Montaigne Author:Michel de Montaigne Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: CHAP. IV. To-morrow is a new Day. OF all our French writers, James Amiot, in my opinion, deferves the palm, not only for the pro- Enety and purity of hi... more »s language, in which . . . r1 a- . r i- n. Anelogiumon e furpafles all others; nor tor his conftant the language of perfeverance info long a labour; nor for Amiot, thetranf. the depth of his knowledge, having fo latorf Plutarch' happily unravelled the intricacies of fo difficult an author (for people may fay what they pleafe, though I undcrftand nothing of Greek, yet I perceive a fenfe fo well connected and maintained throughout his whole tranflation, that furely he muft have perfectly known the author's true thoughts, or, by being long conver- fant with him, muft have had a general idea of Plutarch's mind flronly imprinted in his foul, forafmuch as he has delivered us nothing from him that in the lead clerogates from, or contradicts him); but, above all, I am pleafed with him for having fingled out a book fo proper, Ib worthy for a prefent to his country. We dunces had been funk in the mire, had not this book lifted us out of it. By this favour of his we venture now both to fpeak and vyrjte. The very ladies read it to the fchool-mafters. It is our breviary. If this good man be yet living, I would recommend him to do as much by Xenophon. Jt is a more eafy tafk than the other, and therefore more proper for a gentleman fo far advanced in years. And then I know not now it is, but methinks, though he very briikly and clearly recovers himfelf when he has made a trip, yet his ftyle is more his own, when it is not embarrafled, and runs fmopthly on. I was juit now reading that paflage in Plutarchf,where he fays of himfelf, that Rufticus, while pre- Curiofity greedy jfcnt at a declamation of his at Rome, re- alter news. ...« less