I don't pretend the following Remarks contain All the Faults They have been guilty of in tranflating the Miser. Far from it. But tho' I don't make a clear riddance of all their Errors, I'll make clear work of thofe that come in my way. The Reader is not to expect much order in my Notes. I fhall e'en take things rough, as they run, and clear away the Scum as it rifes.

I wou'd fain know how long un Cachet de Rubis has fignify'd a Cafket of Rubies, as they English it, p. 205. 1. 14. I fay, un Cachet de Rubis fignifies a Ruby Seal. Une Caffette does indeed fignify a Cafket, but un Cachet as furely fignifies a Seal. The Similitude of the Names was what deceiv'd thefe Gentlemen. Again, in the fame place, on the English fide, to spell the English word Cafket, Cafquet, is, befides being wrong, an intolerable Affectation. I own we Spell Paquet with a q, u, becaufe 'tis fo in French, tho fome fpell it Packet for all that: But why Casket hou'd be fo fpelt, when there's no q nor u in the Original, I know not; for 'tis Caffette in French, not Cafquet. I own, in fome places even of this Play, they spell the English word Cafket as it fhou'd be. Which fhews they don't know when they're right, nor when they're wrong.

Again, Who told them that Amorce fignifies a Morfel? P. 29. 1. 6. They took it for Morceau.

Again, how long has craindre fignify'd to believe, as they tranflate it, p. 114. 1.2? In my old Tranflation I had indeed fo tranflated it, because the Original I then went by had it craire, which fignifies to believe; and thefe Tranflators have copy'd it accordingly into theirs. Mine is p. 74. 1. 32. which I defire the Reader will alter.

Again, p. 60. 1. 4. Au denier dix-huit, they tranflate (because by mistake I had fo done in my former Translation) eighteen per Cent. whereas it means five and a half per Cent. A little lower, (because I had so done it) denier cinq, they Jay five per Cent. whereas it means twenty per Cent. Again, a little lower, (because I had fo done it) au denier quatre, they fay twenty per Cent. inftead of five and twenty.

Again, in p. 24. 1. 15. the French Proverb, Qui fe fent morveux, qu'il fe mouche, they tranflate (because I had

fo done it) If the Cap fits any body, let 'em put it on.. Whereas the true meaning is, as I have Now tranflated it literally, and fhall do all the French Proverbs hereafter, If any body's Nofe wants wiping, let 'em wipe it.

Again, p. 13. 1.3. Croire there don't fignify to believe, (which is Nonfenfe) but to trust to.

P. 88. 1. 17. Un corps TAILLE', they tranflate it a Body TALL, instead of WELL-SHAP'D, WELL-PROPORTION'D; for that's the meaning of TAILLE', not TALL. GRAND, HAUT, &c. is French for TALL.

P. 82. 1.3. They fay, I TELL YOU AGAIN, nobody marries a Girl except the brings fomething with her. I fay, IN SHORT, nobody, &c. The other turn of telling again, is wrong, unless he had told her fo before, which he had not. They mistook the meaning of encore there.

P. 66. 1. 1. Vilenie they tranflate Villany, inftead of Avarice; which is what Moliere means there, if we reflect by and to whom 'tis fpoken.

P. 65. 1.11. Four thousand, hou'd be MORE than four thousand, PLUS de quatre mille.

I don't know in the whole French Tongue a more whimfical, and yet a more frequent Phrafe, than Avoir Beau. The Word Beau, in this cafe, always fignifies that a Man does a thing in vain; nor is there any one inftance in Moliere, or any other French Author, wherein thofe Words mean any thing elfe; and yet thefe Tranflators have almoft always mistaken'em, not only in this Play of the Mifer, to which I confine my Remarks at prefent, but in the reft likewife. Turn to p. 52. 1.12. of this Play, you'll fee they tranflate Oui, tu as beau fuïr; Yes, you do well to run away, inftead of, Yes, you may run away as fast as you pleafe. Had the Original been Oüi, tu fais bien de fuïr, their Tranflation had been right; but as it is, it's abfolutely wrong. 'Tis plain they took beau to mean bien. Again, P.9. 1. 18. la maniere dont on les jouë, a beau être vifible, &c. they tranflate thus, the manner in which we play upon them, MAY VERY WELL BE VISIBLE, inftead of MAY BE AS VISIBLE AS YOU WILL, &c. Had thefe Gentlemen vouchfafed to confult Father Pomey's,

or any other Dictionary, they wou'd have found Tu as beau faire, tu as beau dire, je l'emporteray: Do what thou wilt, fay what thou wilt, I will take it away: Fruftrà vociferaris, Incafsùm contrà eniteris, Auferam. J'ay beau me tuer de peine pour fon fervice, il ne m'en fçait point de gré: Tho' I deftroy myself to ferve him, he does not own himself in the leaft beholden to me: Ut laboribus vel me conficiam ejus nomine, tamen gratiæ omninò habet nihil. On a beau chaffer le chagrin, il revient toûjours: Drive away Sorrow never fo much, it will return again: Mœftitiam expellas furcâ licèt, ufque recurret.

I doubt not but the English Reader has now a true Notion of this Phrafe, which I have dwelt the longer upon, becaufe he'll often meet with it in French Books, efpecially in Moliere; and I only defire thofe who have the other Gentlemens Tranflation of Moliere, to apply my Conftruction of thofe Words wherever they find a different one, and make That the Teft of the Truth of my Obfervation, by feeing how the. Senfe will turn out then. I was faying what an unaccountable thing it is that this Adjective (Beau) which originally had but one Senfe, viz. handfome, fhou'd now be often used inftead of the Adverb inutilement, to no purpose, in vain.. But fuch is the Force of CUSTOM! more powerful than King, Lords, and Commons! A late ingenious French Critick fancies this word (Beau) in the cafe before us, might have been firft introduced by way of Irony, and I am inclin'd to think the fame. Let us try it a little by an Example. Vous avez BEAU faire tous vos efforts, vous n'en viendrez pas à bout: You may endeavour as much as you please, you'll not gain your point: as much as to fay, You have free or FAIR leave, or a FAIR field to use all your endeavours, but yet you'll not gain your point.

A&t V. Scene III. That whole Scene is quite disfigur'd, by their fuppreffing a great many things, and altering others, as they orun they have done, not knowing what turn to give it. For my part, I have not omitted nor alter'd a fingle word of that whole Scene, and yet have made it intelligible to the meaneft Capacity, whereas theirs is full of I know not what. Where, for instance, is the Senfe of I wou'd

much

A

much rather have died, than have discover'd the leaft Thought that cou'd have fhock'd. Shock'd, whom? Where's the Accufative Cafe to the Verb fhock'd?

P. 204. 1.17. à vos paroles, is a Phrafe by itself, and does not depend (as They make it) upon the Verb repondre, which governs a fubfequent Matter.

P.205. laft Line but one. Gave us our Liberty, fou'd be Reftor'd us our Liberty: Nous rendit notre Liberté. Their French is full of Errors, fuch as one Word for another. Thus, p. 168. 1. 12. Savons-nous, for fauvons-nous. P. 18. laft Line, N'ai foupçonné, for n'ait foupçonné. P.214. 1. 2. On me veux pendre, for on me veut pendre. P. 18%. 1. ro. a vu, for ay vũ.

Sometimes one Gender for another, as, p. 46. 1. 11. fon premiere marriage, instead of fon premier marriage.

P.42. 1.13. depoufer, one Word, inftead of d'epoufer, two. P. 50. 1. 16. Two Words inftead of one, qu'elle for quelle. P. 49. In one and the fame Page they have it (in Capitals too) Valerius and Valere, as if two Men. I always call him Valerio.

P. 6. 1.8. Qui commença de nous offrir aux regards l'un de l'autre. They turn thus: Which FIRST GAVE RISE TO OUR MUTUAL REGARD. They mistake the Word Regards, as if it meant Respect, whereas it means the Look, the Sight. I fay, Which firft gave OCCASION

TO OUR SEEING ONE ANOTHER.

Inftead of enumerating the various fingle Words, fuch as Adverbs, &c. which They have omitted to tranflate, Ifhall take notice of fome Omiffions, which are of no fmall importance. P. 28. 1.11. They make the Mifer Jay to himself, Ten thoufand Crowns in Gold is a Sum confiderable, &c.. It shou'd be Ten thousand Crowns in Gold, AT HOME, IN ONE'S HOUSE, is a Sum confiderable, &c. For he was afraid of being robb'd. Thefe Tranflators have left out the material Word of all, chez foy, at home, in one's houfe.

Again, thofe who are Mafters of the French Tongue, know very well the importance of the Particle en, which often fands for a whole Phrafe, and yet thefe Tranflators have omitted to tranflate it twice in one Sentence. P. 8. 1. 2 & 3. J'EN attens des nouvelles avec impatience; & j'EN iray

chercher moy-même, fi elles tardent à venir. They make Valerio fay, I expect fome Tidings with great Impatience, &c. Tidings of what? of whom? Why, of his Father and Mother, for fo that word en, means, it being the Relative to the Antecedent Parens. But they have amitted it twice here, and often elsewhere. But if in many places they have omitted to tranflate fingle Words, all of'em of more or less importance, they have fometimes added Words, which have totally spoil'd the Author's Senfe, and have made it no Senfe at all, as the Reader will fee, if he will turn to p. 32. 1.7. of their Tranflation, and p. 23. laft Line of mine. Cleanthes fays to his Father, Eft-ce être votre ennemi que dire que vous avez du bien? They tranflate it, Is this to be your Enemy, to tell you that you have Means? What the deuce has that firft you to do there? 'Tis not in the Original. Indeed it was impossible it fhou'd. For there had been na Senfe in that Period then. Inftead of tell you, it shou'd be tell ABROAD, tell OTHERS.

It is always my Cuftom, before I fit down to tranflate any Book, to fee if there are any Errata of the Prefs taken notice of in the Original. Had thefe Gentlemen taken the fame pains, they wou'd have found at the beginning of that Paris Edition, which they as well as myself tranflate from, that (among other things) APPEL fhou'd have been APPELLE, (p.188. 1. 5.) A vaft difference: one is a Verb, t'other a Noun Subftantive, and abfolutely unintelligible there; which made the French Editors note it among other Slips of the Prefs, but our Editors continue it.

Thefe Gentlemen, inftead of being more correct in their French, than the Paris Edition, as they pretend, are indeed ten times more uncorrect, both as to Words and Points, as well as things of the utmost moment.

P. 176. 1.7. Theirs has it, Voilà, Monfieur, &c. with a Comma after Voilà, which fhou'd have no Stop at all after it. The Word Monfieur is there meant to be in the Accufative, not Vocative Cafe, Ecce Dominum, not Ecce, Domine. It is indeed wrong pointed in the Original, as any one will allow, that weighs the Senfe ever fo little. The Italian Translation has it right, Ecco là IL Signor,

not