LETTER.

to keep silence, it is enough for me
to have obeyed you, & I will
be all too well rewarded for my trouble,
if you are satisfied.
Furthermore, Monsieur, as
this Translation Translation: In the 17th and 18th centuries, translators often prioritized "elegance" and clarity over literal accuracy, a practice intended to make ancient or foreign texts more palatable to contemporary readers. is primarily
for you, I have followed in
making it the advice that you
gave me; that is to say
that I have not attached myself ser-
vilely to the expressions & to the
exact words of my Author original: "Auteur",
I have changed them when I
judged it appropriate, & I have
only attached myself to his spirit original: "esprit"; here referring to the essence or core meaning of the author's thought rather than a physical chemical spirit., & to
his intention; I have on my own au-
thority suppressed repetitions
that I believed useless & te-
dious, & I have also some-
times added of my own to e-
lucidate places that ap-
peared to me too obscure; finally I
have followed him very scrupulously