Retro/peet of French Litevature.— Uifcellanies, 
poffeffes the neceflary conditions for fucha 
tiation. 
2. Tothe having compared the words 
of different languages, without a previous 
comparifon of the pronunciation of the 
fame words, or without a previous ana- 
lyfis of the letters which are the figns of 
pronunciation; and 
3. To the reception of feveral of the 
communications from the bands of perfons 
utterly incompetent to the tafk. 
M. Volney concludes by afferting that 
it is impoflible a work of this kind thould- 
ever be finifhed by a fingle perfon, what- 
ever may be his talents or his experience. 
To completea literary monument, fo mag- 
nificently and fo fortunately commenced, 
he intimates a different mode of execution, 
and thinks that a polyglot commiffion, 
eonfifting of members felected from an 
academy folely devoted to enquiry into 
languages, would be belt. calculated to 
fulfil the withes of the learned in refpect 
toa fubject of this kind. Its relations 
and correfsondence would extend to all 
well] inftrugied perfons, both natives and 
foreigners 3 alphabets and vocabularies of 
all languages might alfo be collected, and 
printed in a feries of fucceflive publica- 
tions, after having been previoufly exa- 
mined and difcuffed. In the mean time, 
until a project fo ufeful is execuied, M. 
Volney invites the Celtic Academy to of- 
fer a prize for the converfion of the Ruffian 
into Roman letters. 
“© Memoires de Louis XIV. €crits par, 
Iui-méme, compofés pour le Grand Dau- 
phin, fon Fils, et addreffés a ce Prince ; 
fuivis de plufieurs Fragmens de Memoires 
Militaires de Inftru&iion donnée a Phi- 
lippe V. de dix-fept Lettres addrefiges a 
ce Monarque fur le Gouvernement ¢e fes 
Etats, et de diverfes autres Piéces inédites. 
Mis en ordre et publiés par J. L. M. de 
Gain-MontTaGNac.”-- Memoirs of Louis 
XIV., written by himfelf, compofed for 
the Great Dauphin, his Son, and addreff- 
ed tothat Prince, &c. 
It is obferved in the advertifement pre- 
fixed to this work, “* that Voltaire had 
announced in his (Siecle de Louis XIV.) 
Age of Louis XIV., that certain writings 
of this Prince were in exiftence. He has 
even quoted,”” we are told, ‘‘ the Inftruc- 
tions given to Philip V. on his departure 
for Spain, as well as a fragment ((ur le 
Metier du Roi) on the Trade of a King ; 
adding, that there were feveral other me- 
moirs, written in the fame manner, either 
with a view of rendering an account of 
fis conduct to himfelf, or for the initruc- 
2 
631 
tion of the Dauphin, and Duke of Burs 
gundy.” 
““ Tt is precifely thefe very Memoirs,”* 
fays the editor, ** compofed by Louis 
XIV. for, and addrefled to, his fon, which 
I now prefent to the public, together with 
other papers written by the hand of the 
fame prince, and depofited by the Marfhal 
de Neailles in the Imperial library. The 
collection of the works of Louis XIV., 
which are {till there, is compofed of three 
volumes bound in folio, together with 
three large portfolios. The originals, as 
wellas the copies made by order of M. 
de Noailles, were placed by him in the 
library, on the 3d of December, 1749. 
‘> OF thefe three volumes,” continues 
the editor, “* the two thirds, at leaf, 
contain only infenificant particulars, fuch 
as the orders of the day, the fiate of the 
troops, the lift of officers, &c. The re- 
mainder comprehends the details of three’ 
“campaigns, and fome detached fragments, 
fuch as the inftrudctions to Philip V., the 
refleCtions on the trade of a king, a project 
of an harangue to his Maje(fty’s fubjects, 
&c.: and they are all taithfully copied 
here after the originals.” 
M.de Gain-Montagnac then proceeds 
to ftate, that the fummaries of the in- 
ftru€tions to the Dauphin are written with 
the King’s own hand; and that Louis 
XIV. has made many correStions and ad- 
ditions in the different copies. 
it as his own opinion, that thefe inftruc- 
tions have been revifed, either by Peliffon 
or Racine. He is even certain, from fome 
notes found in the portfolios, that in pro- 
portion as the King compoled thera they 
paffed into the poffeffion of fome perfon, 
who was inftru@ed to make correét co- 
pies, and perhaps to give to the ityle a 
certain degree of harmony. They aiter- 
wards experienced new changes under his 
Majefty’s own eye, as well as confiderable 
alterations. 2 : 
The literary labours of the Prince in 
queftion commence in 1661, on the death 
ot Cardinal Mazarin, at which period the 
King formed the refolution of governing 
by himfeif. Of the letters addreffed to 
Philip V. the laf only is original; the 
copies of the others were prefented to the 
library, by M. Seguier, advecate-general 
to the parliament. 
After thefe preliminary obfervations, 
the editor concludes as follows: *¢ It now 
only remains to fay a few words concern- 
ing my own intervention. Having learn- 
ed, fome years fince, that certain writ- 
ings of Louis XLV. were preferved in the 
Imperial 
He gives. 
