H i s T o R r. 79 



reduce them to a regular chronology, by making 

 a rough draft of the hiftory he propcfes to write, 

 by carefully cbkiv.ng tiie leverai epochs, by 

 never lofing fight of the fynchronifms, and by 

 raking fp .ution to avoid all anachronifms, 



which are ii;e molt unpardonable faults in 

 hiftory. 



X. 4. Particular anecdotes are of the higheft 

 ufe in ornamenting a hiRory, but we Ihould take 

 care not to be too lavifh in thefe ornaments, 

 by that mean, they become infipid. The hifto- 

 rian fhould therefore be moderate in the ufe cf 

 thefe, and have conftantly before his eyes the 

 gravity and majefty of hiftory. 5. We have fa 

 often laid that an hiftorian (hould be impartial, 

 that he fhould have neither country, nor particu- 

 lar religion, and the obfervarion is itlelf fo ma- 

 nifdt, that it may feem al;r,oft fu ? e.0nous in 

 e. An excefllve pre liiecl-Mi, notwitli- 

 it.incl ;i fault with which the generality of 



d\ hiltorians may be ju Illy reproached. '] 

 rear, l)ut what is to be found an 

 thcmfclves. They are fo much porTcflcd with 

 prejudice, ti:at, in an univcrfM hiflory, tliey 

 fix the periods by the annals of their own mo- 

 'iy, and make, for exan^pK-, an epoch of 

 the time that Le\\i; XIV. alter the death of his 

 folvcd togovernby himfclf. \\'c 

 .id to know or what importance this 

 ! 'ic r-ft ot the world. It appears to us 

 to be a . ulous piece of llattcry. 



XI. 



