282, 
pee or poems, which are univerfally read 
and admired. But itis to his incompa- 
rable tranflations of. Homer and Virgil, 
that he ftands indebted for that high hte- 
rary fame, which he fo defervedly enjoys. 
Without the flichteft with to-detract from 
the merits of our countrymen, Pope and 
Dryden, it is but juftice to acknowledge, 
that their verfions of Homer and Virgil de- 
ferve rather the title of a parapbrate than 
utranflation. Wereada fine poem, but 
we do not recognize the exatt fpirit of 
the original... Voss, on the other hand, 
without degenerating into infipidity and 
fervile imitation, has fo fcrupulouily ad- 
hered to the fenfe of his author, that he 
has preferved the exaét metre, and even 
the very number of verfes of the original. 
And yet, incredible as it may appear to 
thofe,-who.are not acquainted with the 
German language, the writer of this ar- 
ticle knows of no-one inftance, in which 
Voss. has. detraéted from the fire, the 
brilliancy, the fpirit of the Greek and 
Roman ‘bards. 
entered. the lifts in a literary conteft with. 
Profeffor Hryner, of Géttingen, whofe 
edition of Virgil has rendered his name fa- 
miliar to. the “iterati of this country. This 
conteft has’ been.maintained with confide- 
rable acrimony on both fides, and gave 
occafionto a very cutting épigram, by” 
SCHILLER, in which Voss, having ‘been 
formerly one of Heyne’s pupils, is-very 
feverely treated: The epigram in queftion 
is inferted in vhe ** Xenia,” a work which 
Is entitled to’ particular notice, as it has 
given birth toa paper wat in Germany. 
The authors of thefe bitter epigrams have 
nobly difdained to flab in the dark, and con- 
ceal themfelves under the fafeguard of an 
anonymous publication. .'Their names are 
polted and prefixed to their produ&tions— 
names of no lefs celebrity and formidable 
import thanGorTuHeE and SCHILLER. The 
eftablithed: reputation of thefe two literary 
champions well warrants the daring confi- 
dence with which they hurl the gauntlet 
of defiance, and brandifh che lath of fatire 
in the open face of day. The wounds 
they infict are deep, and rankle forely, 
infomuch, that the “* Xexia’” have called 
forth’no lef than thirteen combatants into 
the feld, But fo far from being able to 
and’ their ground, and to foil the adven- 
turous duumeuiri, they haye only éxpofed 


tains, notwithitanding, no contemptible rank 
in the republic of letters. Amony otheremi- 
nent literary characters, it boafts the names of 
Busch, Esrrinc, GersTeEnrers, REi- 
MARUS, GC. 0,59 8? Saab? ay 
x , r 
ven. 3 tae ve 
Voss, fome time fince, 
" ceafed friend, whom he extok as a, fecond 
Seale Ae ORS ei ee 
. Living German Literati... -- 
their owh ‘imbecility, ‘and: provoked fe- 
verer ufage; whilft the merited ‘ridicule 
they have entatled upon themfelves, by 
their futile attempts, ferves toexhibit the - 
fuperiority of their antagonifts in a more 
confpicuous light. It is, however, to-be - 
regretted, that feveral worthy characters: © 
have been wantonly attacked by thefe keen ~ 
fatirifts ; a line of conduét whic} certainly: 
cannot add to their reputation in the ¢yes 
of men of cool, deliberate-judgment. 
Voss has lately publithed fome excellent 
Idylls or Paftorals; and likewife a beau- 
tiful poem, in feveral cantos, entitled, 
“© Louifa.” 
NICOLAI. 
THIS veteran in literature is a -native 
of Berlin, where he {till refides. He is: 
a f{cholar, an author, and a bookfeller- 
‘of the firft eminence; and perhaps no 
man living can boaft fuch extenfive literary” ~ 
connexions which are not confined to his 
own country. Nicotat has lived-from 
his very youth in the ftri€teft habits of in- 
timacy with all the great German writers, 
among whom the names of Lessine, ~ 
MosrEs MENDELSOEN”*, ESCHENBURG, 
ABBT, PLATNER, &c. &c. juftly claim 
our veneration and efteem. In conjunétion’ 
with thefe luminaries-of fcience, Nrco- 
Lar publifhed his celebrated ‘* Letters on 
Literature,” 
will render his reputation refpectable, as 
long as the German language fhall conti- 
nue to be fpoken or read. From this 
publication the Germans date the im- 
provement of their national tafte. His 
© Univerjal German Hiflory’ ( Allgemeine 
Deut{che Biblwthek) is a work of ftill 
greater merit and celebrity, and has given 
birth to a new epocha in the annals of 
German literature. It confifts now of a 
great number of volumes,.and affords a 
convincing proof of the inexhauftible.. 
refources of German {cience. His cele- 
brated fatirical romance of “* Sebaldus 
Nothanker,’’ is a {pirited and fuccefsful 
attack upon the ramparts of fuperttition, « 
ecclefiaftical tyranny, the exploded fy!- 
tems of falfe philofophy, and the meta- 
phyfical jargon of {chool divinity, 

* This truly learned and excellent Jew. 
has rendered his name immortal by his 
..§& Phedon,” which is not a mere tranflation 
from Plato, but is enriched with.a number of 
additional arguments’ by MENDELSOHY,) 
which evince. a juftnefs and profundity of | 
thought, that cannot fail to.delight and fur- 
prife the metaphyfical reader, “Nrcoraten- 
(Litteratur-briefe,) which? 
tertained an “extraordinary affeftion for Men- 
delfohn, and delights in fpeaking of his de- 
Hie 
ia 
