nothing then to fupport him, it is no wonder he wrote fo far beneath himself. But Shakespeare, indebted more largely to nature, than the other to acquired talents, in his moft negligent hours could never fo totally diveft himself of his genius, but that it would frequently break out with aftonishing force and splendor. As I have never propofed to dilate farther on the character of my Author, than was necessary to explain the nature and use of this edition, I shall proceed to confider him as a genius in poffeffion of an everlasting name. And how great that merit must be, which could gain it against all the disadvantages of the horrid condition in which he has hitherto appeared! Had Homer, or any other admired author, firft ftarted into publick fo maimed and deformed, we cannot determine whether they had not funk for ever under the ignominy of fuch an ill appearance. The mangled condition of Shakespeare has been acknowledged by Mr. Rowe, who published him indeed, but neither corrected his text, nor collated the old copies. This Gentleman had abilities, and a fufficient knowledge of his author, had but his industry been equal to his talents. The same mangled condition has been acknowledged too by Mr. Pope, who published him likewise, pretended to have collated the old copies, and yet feldom has corrected the text but to its injury. I congratu late with the Manes of our Poet, that this Gentleman has been sparing in indulging his private fense; fenfe; for he, who tampers with an author whom he does not understand, muft do it at the expence of his fubject. I have made it evident throughout my remarks, that he has frequently inflicted a wound where he intended a cure. He has acted with regard to our author, as an editor, whom LIPSIUS mentions, did with regard to MARTIAL; Inventus eft nefcio quis Popa, qui non vitia ejus, fed ipfum, excidit. He has attacked him like an unhandy flaughterman; and not lopped off the errors, but the Poet. When this is found to be the fact, how abfurd muft appear the praises of fuch an Editor? It feems a moot point, whether Mr. Pope has done moft injury to Shakespeare as his Editor and Encomiaft; or Mr. Rymer done him fervice as his Rival and Cenfurer. Were it every where the true text, which that Editor in his late pompous edition gave us, the Poet deserved not the large encomiums beftowed by him: nor, in that cafe, is Rymer's cenfure of the barbarity of his thoughts, and the impropriety of his expreffions, groundlefs. They have both fhown themselves in an equal impuiffance of fufpecting or amending the corrupted paffages: and tho' it be neither prudence to cenfure, or commend, what one does not understand; yet if a man muft do one when he plays the critick, the latter is the more ridiculous office. And by that Shakespeare fuffers moft. For the natural veneration, which we have for him, makes us apt to swallow whatever is given us as his, and fet off with encomiums; and hence we quit all fufpicions of depravity: On the contrary, the cenfure of fo divine an author fets us upon his defence; and this produces an exact fcrutiny and examination, which ends in finding out and difcriminating the true from the fpurious. It is not with any fecret pleasure, that I fo frequently animadvert, on Mr. Pope as a critick; but there are provocations, which a man can never quite forget. His libels have been thrown out with fo much inveteracy, that not to dispute whether they should come from a Christian, they leave it a queftion whether they could come from a man. I should be loth to doubt, as Quintus Serenus did in a likę case, Sive homo, feu fimilis turpissima bestia nobis, The indignation, perhaps, for being represented a blockhead, may be as ftrong in us as it is in the ladies for a reflection on their beauties. It is certain, I am indebted to him for some flagrant civilities; and I fhall willingly devote a part of my life to the honeft endeavour of quitting scores: with this exception however, that I will not return those civilities in his peculiar ftrain, but confine myself, at leaft, to the limits of common decency. I fhall ever think it better to want wit than to want humanity and impartial pofterity may, perhaps, be of my opinion. But But to return to my fubject; which now calls upon me to inquire into thofe caufes, to which the depravations of my author originally may be affigned. We are to confider him as a writer, of whom no authentic manufcript was extant; as a writer, whofe pieces were difperfedly performed on the several stages then in being. And it was the custom of those days for the poets to take a price of the players for the pieces they from time to time furnifhed; and thereupon it was fuppofed, they had no farther right to print them without the confent of the players. As it was the intereft of the companies to keep their plays unpublished, when any one fucceeded, there was a conteft betwixt the curiofity of the town, who demanded to fee it in print, and the policy of the ftagers, who wifhed to fecrete it within. their own walls. Hence, many pieces were taken down in fhort-hand, and imperfectly copied by ear, from a reprefentation: Others were printed from piece-meal parts furreptitiously obtained from the theatres, uncorrect, and without the Poet's knowledge. To fome of these causes we owe the train of blemishes, that deform those pieces which stole fingly into the world in our author's life-time. There are ftill other reafons, which may be fuppofed to have affected the whole fet. When the players took upon them to publish his works entire, every theatre was ranfacked to fupply the copy and parts collected which had gone thro' as many changes changes as performers, either from mutilations or additions made to them. Hence we derive many chasms and incoherences in the fenfe and matter. Scenes were frequently transposed, and fhuffled out of their true place, to humour the caprice or fuppofed convenience of fome particular actor. Hence much confufion and impropriety has attended, and embarraffed, the business and fable. For there ever have been, and ever will be in playhouses, a set of affuming directors, who know better than the poet himself the connection and dependance of his fcenes; where matter is defective, or fuperfluities to be retrenched; perfons, that have the fountain of infpiration as peremptorily in them, as Kings have that of honour. To these obvious caufes of corruption it must be added, that our author has lain under the disadvantage of having his errors propagated and multiplied by time: becaufe, for near a century, his works were republished from the faulty copies without the affiftance of any intelligent editor: which has been the cafe likewife of many a claffic writer. The nature of any diftemper once found has generally been the immediate step to a cure. Shakespeare's cafe has in a great measure resembled that of a corrupt claffic; and, confequently, the method of cure was likewise to bear a refemblance. By what means, and with what fuccefs, this cure has been effected on ancient writers, is too well known, and needs no formal illuftration. The |