Endeavouring to resemble _Virgil_ as much as possible, I have imitated him in his _Breaks_. For tho' I am satisfied he never intended to leave those Verses unfinished, and therefore he is in that Particular absurdly mimicked by some Moderns in their Original Writings; yet _unfinished they are_: And this Imitation is not (with Mr. _Dryden_'s Leave) "like the Affectation of _Alexander_'s Courtiers, who held their Necks awry, because He could not help it." For besides that a _wry Neck_ is one thing, and a _Scar_ is another; _Apelles_ in a _Picture_ ought to have imitated his Master's Imperfection, if he intended to draw an exact Likeness, tho' his _Courtiers_ were ridiculous Flatterers for doing the Same in their _Gestures_. A Work of This Nature is to be regarded in Two different Views; both as a _Poem_, and as a _Translated Poem_. In the one, all Persons of good Sense, and a true Taste of Poetry, are Judges of it; tho' they are skilled in no Language, but their Own. In the other, Those only are so; who besides the Qualification just mentioned, are familiarly acquainted with the Original. And it may well admit of a Question, to which of these Species of Readers a good Translation is the more agreeable Entertainment. The Unlearned are affected like Those, who see the Picture of One whose Character they admire; but whose Person they never saw: The Learned, like Those who see the Picture of one whom they love, and admire; and with whom they are intimately acquainted. The Reason of the first Pleasure is clear; but That of the last requires a little more Consideration. It may all, be resolved into the Love of Imitation, Comparison, and Variety; which arises from the Imperfection of human Happiness; for a Reason which I have elsewhere[20] assigned. Delightful therefore it is to compare the Version with the Original: Through the whole Course of which Comparison, we discover many retired Beauties in the Author himself, which we never before observed. Delightful it must be to have the same Ideas started in our Minds, different ways; and the more agreeable those Ideas are in themselves, the more agreeable is this Variety. Therefore, the better we understand a Poet, the more we love and admire him; the more Pleasure we conceive in reading him well translated: As we most delight to see the Pictures of Those whom we best love; and to see the Persons themselves in Variety of Dresses. Upon which Account, I will be bold to affirm; that he who says he values no Translation of this, or that Poem, because he understands the Original, has indeed no true Relish, that is, in effect, no _true Understanding_ of _Either_.