Preface.

with the original text, would have an uncommonly great value. But where is it? And will we ever have such a translation to hope for? Cannot faithful translations, which say exactly what the author of the original thought—even granting that they do not say it, neither in the brevity and simplicity, nor in the splendor and beauty of their original—have a utility on the other hand, which one has perhaps too much misjudged until now? If they can serve to facilitate the reading and understanding of an original for beginners, will that not be a utility?

No one but a schoolman a professional educator or teacher can know how difficult it often becomes for youths, especially those who have not yet sufficiently practiced themselves in reflection, to read an ancient writer on their own without the guidance of a teacher, and to properly develop their thoughts, even in the easiest periods sentences or clauses. Many lack the tools for this; or if they have them, they do not know how to use them. They therefore become weary in their private study, prefer to read comic operas that they can understand, easily wean themselves off of what is serious, and acquire a disgust not only toward the languages of the ancients but also toward these