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LITERARY AND SCIENTIFIC MEN.

says even more than me, — in a word, this is good taste;let us preserve it.” If, therefore, Corneille had ceasedto write, if he had let his nobler tragedies remain astrophies of past victory, and not aimed at new, he mighthave held a proud position, guarded by numerous par-tisans, who exalted him far above his rival. But hecontinued to write, and he was unsuccessful — thus itbecame a living struggle, in which he had the worst.He did not like to appear envious : he felt what hesaid, and he said justly, that Racine ’s Greek or Ma-hometan heroes were but Frenchmen with ancient orTurkish names; but he was aware that this remarkmight be considered invidious. Yet he could not con-ceal his opinion, nor the offence he took, when Racine transplanted a verse from the Cid into his comedy ofThe “ Plaideurs ”—

Ses rides sur son front ont graves ses exploits.”

“ It ill becomes a young man,” he said, “ to make gameof other people’s verses.” It was still worse when hewas seduced into what the French have named a duelwith Racine. Henrietta, daughter of our Charles I. , wifeof the brother of Louis XIV. , was a principal patronessof men of genius ; — her talents, her taste, her accom-plishments; the generosity and kindness of her dis-position, made her respected and loved. Louis and shehad been attached to one another; their mutual positionforced them to subdue the passion ; but their triumphover it was not achieved without struggles, which, nodoubt, appeared romantic and even tragical to the poorprincess. She wished this combat to be immortalised;and, finding in the loves and separation of Titus andBerenice a similarity with her own fate, she deputed themarquis de Dangeau to engage Corneille and Racine ,unknown to one another, each to write a tragedy on thissubject — not a very promising one at best — and stillmore difficult on the French stage, where the catastrophealone forms the piece. But Racine conquered these diffi -culties; — tenderness and truth of passion interested in