The History of the Grecian War Author:Thucydides Purchase of this book includes free trial access to www.million-books.com where you can read more than a million books for free. This is an OCR edition with typos. Excerpt from book: SURVEY Of The HISTORY; From Smith's Trans. Of Thucydides. In the preceding Discourse we have examined into the capacity and qualifications of our author fo... more »r writing history, and settled his character. Let us now take a view of the work itself j first easting our eyes upon and noting the general disposition of the whole 3 and then surveying it more distinctly in its parts. The disposition of the whole is most eleborately exact. Order is scrupulously observed; and every incident so faithfully arranged in its proper time, that some have doubted whether annals were not a more proper title for it than history. If we should call it annals, it must be owned at the same time that annals were never composed with so much majesty and spirit; and never was history more accurately distinguished by the punctuality of dates so nicely interwove. Thucydides states every occurrence in just place and time. But he is forced for this purpose to make frequent transitions, and to drop a particular narration, perhaps the very moment a reader's attention may be most fixed upon and most eager for the event. If they cannot bear a disappointment here, the remedy is ready at hand. By turning over a few leaves, they will find it regularly resumed in due place and time: and they at once may satisfy their own curiosity, without disarranging the author's scheme, or perplexing that work which he was determined to keep quite dear and unembarrassed. They will afterwards forgive, perhaps applaud him, for his great care to prevent confusion, and to give a neat and precise conception of all that passeth. He constantly gives notice, when he is necessitated, by the method he laid down for himself, to make such transitions : and, when we have been amused with what looks like a ramble from an engaging part of hist...« less