28 Life and Writings 
now and then retrenching a few lines, or an 
epithet which seemed to recur too frequently ; 
and, in a few instances, of omitting or para- 
phrasing an image which appeared obscure, or 
too revolting to European taste. He is not 
so vain as to suppose that he has never mista- 
ken the meaning of his author; those who 
best know the difficulties of Persian transla- 
tion will the most readily excuse occa- 
sional errors of this nature: but he hopes 
that, on the whole, his copy, though not 
servilely literal, expresses sufficiently closely 
the sense and spirit of the original. He 
would have wished to have made a few 
observations on the nature and use of oriental 
figures, on the proper understanding of 
which, the beauty of Persian writings ma- 
terially depends; but this is hardly the pro- 
per place to enter on an enquiry, which, 
treated fully, would extend this paper to an 
undue length. (14) 
(14) As it may however throw light on some of the following pas- 
sages, it may perhaps be well briefly to observe, that a great and 
essential difference between our writers and those of Persia, in the 
use of comparisons and similitudes, arises from this; that we require 
the thing compared to agree with the object of comparison in the major 
part, or at least in a considerable number, of its cirsumstances; whereas 
the Persian poet seeks only for a single point of resemblance.—For ex- 
ample: no comparison occurs more frequently in Persian poetry than. 
that between a beautiful woman and the moon ;—a comparison which, 
with our ideas, is apt to excite some ludicrous associations. Yet it is 
