See what information he possesses; and
see that book written by himself in the court language of Serendib.
This is the only man to send there. What a glory, what a triumph
it would be to Britain, to send out a man so deeply versed in the
mysterious lore of--as our illustrious countryman; a person who
with his knowledge could beat with their own weapons the wise men
of-- Is such an opportunity to be lost? Oh, no! surely not; if it
is, it will be an eternal disgrace to England, and the world will
see that Whigs are no better than Tories."
Let no one think the writer uncharitable in these suppositions.
The writer is only too well acquainted with the antecedents of the
individual, to entertain much doubt that he would shrink from any
such conduct, provided he thought that his temporal interest would
be forwarded by it. The writer is aware of more than one instance
in which he has passed off the literature of friendless young men
for his own, after making them a slight pecuniary compensation and
deforming what was originally excellent by interpolations of his
own. This was his especial practice with regard to translation, of
which he would fain be esteemed the king. This Radical literato is
slightly acquainted with four or five of the easier dialects of
Europe, on the strength of which knowledge be would fain pass for a
universal linguist, publishing translations of pieces originally
written in various difficult languages; which translations,
however, were either made by himself from literal renderings done
for him into French or German, or had been made from the originals
into English, by friendless young men, and then deformed by his
alterations.
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