I LIBRARY OF CONGRESS. I m ti UXITED STATES OF AMEKICA.| ." r ., ; fear, les$ iapi^y thaTLxenoYniBd (2_.CX/\AAJ^<vi^ ^ V>-U^ cbu THE LUSIAD OP LUIS DE CAMOENS, CLOSELY TRANSLATED. WITH A PORTRAIT OF THE POET, A COMPENDIUM OF HIS LIFE, AN INDEX TO THE PRINCIPAL PASSAGES OP HIS POEM, A VIEW OF THE " FOUNTAIN OF TEARS,' AND MARGINAL AND ANNEXED NOTES, ORIGINAL AND SELECT. BY Lt.-COLl. SIE T. LIVINGSTON MITCHELL, Kt. D.C.L. LONDON : T. k W. BOONE, NEW BOND STREET. 1854. TO THE RIGHT HONOURABLE THOMAS EARL OF DUNDONALD, G.C.B. YICE ADiriEAL OE THE BLUE, GRAND CROSS OF THE IMPERIAL BRAZILIAN ORDER OF THE CRUZERO; KNIGHT OF THE ROYAL ORDER OF THE SAVIOUR OF GRIiECE; AND OF THE ORDER OF MERIT OF CHILI, &C. &C. &C. IS DEDICATED, WITH MUCH EESPECT, BY HIS LOEDSHIP'S OBLIGED HUMBLE SEEVAIS'T, T LIVINGSTON MITCHELL. PREFACE. This translation is submitted to tlie public, as conveying- the Poet's meaning in tlie order of the versification, an undertaking of more difficulty in English, the terminations alone of verbs sufficing for good rhyme in Portuguese. In quantity the original varies as to the number of syllables—and in attempting an imitation in a different language—the employment of nearly as many cannot, he trusts, be objected to. Prom ten to twelve or even fourteen syllables occur in one line of the original, and thus, although ten syllables is the usual quantity in Ottava Rima when imitated in English—more has been required in translating here the lines of the Lusiad. By adopting a similar quantity, a tone of antiquity seems to be the result, and not unsuited, as the trans- lator imagines, to the age of the original poem, since this is not at all affected, but the result of close imitation. It will still be found that there are fewer syllables in this translation than there are in the original. In assimi- lating the English stanzas to the sound as weU as to the sense of the Portuguese; as, for instance in the cxix stanza of Canto III, the necessity for as many syllables must be obvious. The translator conceives that in the present age the original poem possesses more interest when closely trans- lated, than if it were, as has been said of other transla- tions, " rather a recomposition than a translation," al- — Yl PEEPACE. thougli it must be admitted that Mickle's translation contains much, poetry of very great original merit. The closing couplet of the stanza frequently condenses the pith of the six lines preceding it ; but the point of many proverbial reflections is lost altogether or so diluted, in the rhyme of Mickle, that many beautiful passages of the original are nowhere to be found therein, v^hile as much as "three hundred lines are introduced in Canto IX, which have not any corresponding passage in the Portu- guese." Of such liberties the Portuguese justly complain, and appeal to the translations of Homer and Virgil, in the polished languages of Europe, in support of their allegation, that the spirit of the original should be pre- served entire, without compression or extension.* Many expressions of Shaksperian vigour in the original have hitherto been lost in English ; such, for instance, as the phrase, " silent poesy," applied to painting (Stanza 76, canto YIII., &c. &c.) "When the sense of every line is translated, less is likely to be lost. An epic poem written three centuries ago, the first in any modern language, seems now interesting as charac- teristic of the age to which it belongs—exhibiting the extent of geographical knowledge in the sixteenth cen-: tury;-^the tone of chivalrous ardour with which that knowledge first took gigantic strides to encompass all that man possesses of earth and sea ; that enthusiasm which set limits to the spread of Mahometanism in the West—and interfered with its progress in the East, by leading Christianity and commerce in that direction. The historical comparisons and classical allusions, by which the poet elucidates events, and dignifies his reflections, seem not the least important features in the poem. His mythological and allegorical personages may perhaps be allowed to belong to the scenery machinery dresses and decorations, while * Aquino ao Leitoi', Obras de Camoens, 12ino 1782. Tomo I. i'.-is quoted by Mr. Adamson). ; PEEFACE. m " The poet's eye in a fine pbrenzy rolling Glances from heaven to earth, from earth to heaven :'' Never overstepping, withal, the modesty of nature in describing natural phenomena— but, on the contrary, im- parting to the most truthful descriptions of these, the grand and sublime conceptions of poetic and pictorial genius ; while he never fails to do as much justice to what is ideal immortal and invisible. The effect of contrast is also brought out with the skill of a great painter. The tale of a tournament in England, for instance, is told to beguile the dull tedium of a night- watch in an unknown sea, —a violent storm, and the loud shouts of the boatswain suddenly interrupt the narrative, and the vessels are in the greatest danger—when Venus and Nymphs come to the assistance of the Lusians, and by their influence over Boreas, and the " fierce south," allay the tempest. The bright planet rises in the east, on the dawning of a serene morning, when the Indian mountains are disclosed at length on the distant horizon. The skill of this arrangement is as remarkable as its beauty—and is alluded to here chiefly because it has not been noticed hitherto by critics. The arrangement is as artistical as poetical—shewing the intimate connexion there is between composition in poetry and painting. The author of this translation is unwilling to trespass further on the regions of criticism, especially where so much has been already said, but he cannot conclude without noticing the superiority of the subject of the Lusiad for an Epic poem, as compared with either the destruction of a city ; a navigation in the Mediterranean a Garden of Eden ; or a descent into hell. Here we have celebrated in heroic verse, the first progress to trace out, and ascertain the full extent of " man's only dwelling place,"* with brilliant descriptions of natural phenomena, * Stanza xci. Canto X, — YUl PEEFACE. gracefully combined with not only all that we believe, but with all that has been created by man's own imagination. Patriotism, heroism, and valour, in the rulers ; loyalty, zeal, and devotion in the people, are inculcated throughout the Poem, and their good effects exemplified in the glorious exploits of the Portuguese princes and people our ancient allies, who preceded us in the greatest path of commerce ; and who stood by our side, our trusty and faithful friends ; when, in the words of Canning, the " arm of Glreat Britain was the lever, and Portugal the fulcrum to wrench from its basis " the power that had subdued the rest of Europe. The translator is bound to add that besides consulting some Portuguese authorities, he has drawn largely on the erudite notes of Mr. Mickle,—and that he has also obtained much valuable information relative to the poet's history from the Memoirs by John Adamson, Esq., E.S.A, of whose courtesy and attention he is also most sensible. As some apology for the rough chisseling of the work, if he may use such an expression, he must state also under what circumstances the most of it came into shape. These were chiefly, under water, in a small clipper, during a voyage round Cape Horn. London, 2tn Dec, 1853. COMPENDIUM LIFE OF LUIS DE CAMDEN'S. Some information as to the life of Camoens seems ne- cessary even as an introduction to his poem of the Lusiad. Passages, in his history or condition, appear in various parts of the poem, and towards the conclusions of some cantos, mingle gracefully with the chivalrous sentiments inculcated therein. In this respect resembling a noble Poet of later times—this ancient Poet has a local habitation in his works. However different the tendency of the works of these poets may be, they, in this point of view at least, bear some resemblance. It is certain that the sunny land of Portugal gave Ca- moens to the world, and that his forefathers could be traced back to the year 1370, when Don Henry II. reigned in Castillo. Yasco Pirez de Camoens passed from Gal- licia over to the kingdom of Portugal in the reign of Don Ferdinand, King of Portugal, who gave him extensive lands and tenements in consideration of those he had left behind in GaUicia, the two kingdoms being then at war. Yasco Pirez de Camoens afterwards lost greater part of these lands from his adherence to the faction of the Queen Dona Leonora, against the King Don John I. He married a daughter of G-on9alo Tenreiro, Capitan Mor of the armadas of Portugal. From this marriage a 2 X compe:s"dium of the sprung GronQalo, John, and Constance. From the second son the Poet is descended—namely, John Vaz de Ca- moens —who, by his military merits in the service of the King Don Alphonso Y, acquired the title (an honour and distinction in those times) of his vassal. He built a large house in Coimbra, and in the cloisters of the ca- thedral of the same city a sumptuous monument still appears to his memory. Simon Yaz de Camoens was grandson of John Yas, and having escaped from ship- wreck on the coast of Goa in India, died in that city.