The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1870-02-05
S0MI NEW moons.


poets Of the New World have done signal reverence
to the great poets Of the Old World. Mr. Jongfol-
low has produced q translation Of Dante which re-
fleets more remarkably the story Of tho "DiNlno
Comedy" than any other yet made; and now Mr..
Bryant brings all tho experiences Of long lite ~
study and culture to the final tack OF giving to
English readers version Of that greatest OF oil the
poems Of the elder time tic Had, and links his
name fnperishaby with that OF the Old Tonsn btri.
or this version the first volume II now published
(Filds. osgood & Coz; and the SECOND, Witch will
conclude tho WORK. Ia to APPEAR IN May.
This certainly was an unexpected labor for Mr.
BRYANT TO undertake, for lis life has been
that OF an active journalist meeting and
dealing with tho qucsuous Of tho day ms
they arose. lie las been no closet scholar.
The active duties Of his editorial NE have not per-
mittcd him TO five much in tho past, That he was n
man OF general scholarship we knew; but that his
studies had carried him deeply enough into Creek
literature TO enable him TO wnturo on this great un.
dcrtakinr was to some extent n surprise. Nor has
his poetry been OF turh chPracor NJ to lead one TO
suppose that Homer would l. been the poet 10
whom he would have allied hiniscf ns o translator.
Homer Ia the poet Of war. Bryant has been esoen-
tally the roe. OF peace. Kyory page Of the former
breathes challenge and slaughter; every line OF the
latter repeats the stories that the winds telling
babOle az they murmur along the meadows.
Homer becomes most graphic when be has
rayed the "brass-clad Greeks " against tho men of
Troy and the air is cloudy with the ashen s~cars
that nv their crrands Of death, aud heads sew
cred, ana the iron blrbs crash trouEh tho skullb
Of warriors and the limbs u heroes are "slaeked
In death" Bryant u most iccitous when In close
communion with nature, when writing Of the sweet
violet that heralds 10 the spring OF walks at fun-
set OF tummcr rambles, aud Of autumn
woods, or when chanting a Hymn TO the North Star
it Is little curious then, TO ind THIS lucia exponent
OF our modern thought this poot OF nature and OF
the refined civilization OF our age, turning back
twenty seven centuries to tho brotherhood OF that
old poet whose very and place Of rcsidenec are
only matter Of conjecture. not Of knowledge; who
lived in the very childhood of ctters and in ago
81 barbarsm; who had not even the art to write OF
| what he sang, but wandered about from place TO
place recitng his tales Of herosm and valor leaving
IL for an after generation to collect and I'M crbc
them but reciting them in language 20 noble, so
graphic go simple, so perfect, that tho world still
mhrvels At n, ind pores over IT, and feels its utts
incompeteney ever to renew its magic dow.
How many men have set themselves this task OF
transferring the thought OF Homer from that
| rous and flexible Greek tongue TO our own noble
but unyielding language. And OF those who have
| met with suecossi Here the names Of some OF
| those who have made tie attempt. Chapman, the
| dramatst OF the Elizabethan age; Hobbs, the 20
hieal economist: osilby, Pope, Cowpcr, sotheby,
| Wright the translator also Of Dante, Buckley,
Worsley, Munford, an American, Newman, a Pro-
| fessOr IN the London University, Derby, the Eng
lish statesman, Mcrivslc, suhor Of the History OF
| Rome under the Empire, aud 1uAliy, latesi and
beet among them all our own poet, Mr.. BrJ ant.
One would think that among all these authors there
might be found good and readable translation, and
Jet II In perhaps not too much sAy that with tile
Exception Of Lord Derby's work and that OF Mr..
Bryant, none Of them satisfactory. In tho flrs,
| pace. many OF those we have naued have made
| their whole work useless from the outset by the
selection Of q wrong metre. There Is no point
| shout which the trans aiors have been In
such complete antn=onisu rs this. Each has thought
| tdat his predecessors had bundc cd into the wrong
character Of verse. and that Ind at last
found the exact line that would convey the Homorc
eIpresson. The deulty tia, lay at toe root of the
| matter was In tho flct that VIC lave no metre IN
our language that corresponds prctiroly With tie
| metre OF uuucr-for the reason that Greek box
| amet,r IL not an English hcIamctcr Tie accent OF
| Tr'scdy Of tie language forb.ds. Accordingly a
substitute was to be found and each translator went
in search Of Il aftor his own sLicn Fret aud last
| "e'S N'N'' N'N'''"'N "'" Wv b'eHhb thyme ~
scott TO inc dreary AcHandnne limo OF DR.
uen reso'ed 10, Pope selected the heroic c'rT'
| "'' N'"' 'Hou-h 'ole was e'lh'l p''i he was
| Wv f'' SN''n' NN i'c'oh'e ioi
hi- author and hrs lleity TO hri
| wore not rrc,t III. rr., u,,.h,
| '' 'u-" 49,
| 10 produce poem that rhOuld rcal NCu
ana give scope TO ms own rocneal genius aud
smooth NefsihoAton' lie hal an immense facility al
rhyhhs a'so' IL was nut natural therefore, that he
snouu resort I" Tue u'ioic rhNmrd measure
Inc o'heu'V Win MS translation was that
| Lie gave MS own genius too free rtins, and
| fhtaphtased Hs hu'hof' I,nuy the great
| critic, sunni cd tie matter no wien 10 sid
! "u WAS au very fnc nm, a w. ,o, t,,,,- -
| So. ,.t, ,.,,- 49,, ~ 0'4'''
| So'peuS ohih-y loh""'i VAN inetrch version
| tt,r.u, 80, -, q, L., IT,
flow Of ,ers,6eation Pom. sp,rcr,'.v .,i, -,
manned uuriyalled. for Char man ,l,hop,b 600, 49,,
orous and forclble haI c.oua,d IN. .lr,,i,.-,,. ~
Homer witn thousand eop,eit. of bis o,,n c,rci.,
10 III. tc,t and as for HobL,s ,,d oc,.h, 49, -,
try was heavier tpap the b,l,r.t 100
| Coyber made n poetc,l tran.l,,ion and . ,,t,,.nL
LINT il laels uomor's ranid ,poy,,,o,, -,