صور الصفحة
PDF
النشر الإلكتروني

feems pretty certain, that the author of The Taming of the Shrew, had at leaft read Ovid; from whofe Epiftles we find thefe lines:

Hac ibat Simois; hic eft Sigeia tellus ;

Hic fleterat Priami regia celfa fenis.

And what does Dr. Johnfon fay on this occafion? Nothing. And what does Mr. Farmer fay on this occafion? Nothing.

In Love's Labour Loft, which, bad as it is, is afcribed by Dr. Johnson himself to Shakespeare, there occurs the word thrafonical; another argument which feems to fhew that he was not unacquainted with the comedies of Terence; not to mention, that the character of the schoolmaster in the fame play could not poffibly be written by a man who had travelled no further in Latin than hic, hæc, hoc.

In Henry the Sixth we meet with a quotation from Virgil,

Tantane animis cæleftibus ira?

But this, it feems, proves nothing, any more than the lines from Terence and Ovid, in the Taming of the Shrew; for Mr. Farmer looks on Shakespeare's property in the comedy to be extremely difputable; and he has no doubt but Henry the Sixth had the fame author with Edward the Third, which hath been recovered to the world in Mr. Capeil's Prolufions. If any play in the collection bears internal evidence of Shakespeare's hand, we may fairly give him Timon of Athens. In this play we have a familiar quotation from Horace,

Ira furor brevis eft.

I will not maintain but this hemiftich may be found in Lilly or Udall; or that it is not in the Palace of Pleasure, or the English Plutarch; or that it was not originally foifted in by the players: It ftands, however, in the play of Timon of

Athens.

The world in general, and thofe who purpofe to comment on Shakespeare in particular, will owe much to Mr. Farmer, whofe refearches into our old authors throw a luftre on many paffages, the obfcurity of which must elfe have been impenetrable. No future Upton or Gildon will go further than North's tranflation for Shakespeare's acquaintance with Plutarch, or balance between Dares Phrygius, and the Troye

[G4]

booke

booke of Lydgate. The Hyftorie of Hamblet, in black letter, will for ever fuperfede Saxo Grammaticus; tranflated novels and ballads will, perhaps, be allowed the fources of Romeo, Lear, and the Merchant of Venice; and Shakespeare himfelf, however unlike Bayes in other particulars, will stand convicted of having tranfverfed the profe of Holingshead; and at the fame time, to prove "that his ftudies lay in his "own language," the tranflations of Ovid are determined to be the production of Heywood.

[ocr errors]

"That his ftudies were moft demonstratively confined to "nature, and his own language," I readily allow: but does it hence follow that he was fo deplorably ignorant of every other tongue, living or dead, that he only "remembered, "perhaps, enough of his fchoolboy learning to put the big, hag, hag, into the mouth of Sir H, Evans; and might pick 66 up in the writers of the time, or the courfe of his conver"fation, a familiar phrafe or two of French or Italian ?" In Shakespeare's plays both these last languages are plentifully fcattered; but then, we are told, they might be impertinent additions of the players. Undoubtedly they might: but there they are, and, perhaps, few of the players had much more learning than Shakefpeare.

Mr. Farmer himself will allow that Shakespeare began to learn Latin: I will allow that his ftudies lay in English: but why infift that he neither made any progrefs at fchool; nor improved his acquifitions there? The general encomiums of Suckling, Denham, Milton, &c. on his native genius, prove nothing; and Ben Jonfon's celebrated charge of Shakespeare's fmall Latin, and lejs Greek†, seems abfolutely to decide that he

had

Mr. Farmer clofes thefe general teftimonies of Shakespeare's having been only indebted to nature, by faying, "He came out "of her hand, as fome one elfe expreffes it, like Pallas out of Jove's "head, at full growth and mature." It is whimfical enough, that this fome one elfe, whofe expreffion is here quoted to countenance the general notion of Shakespeare's want of literature, fhould be no other than myself. Mr. Farmer does not chufe to mention where he met with this exprellion of fome one else; and jome one elfe does not chufe to mention where he dropt it.

In defence of the various reading of this paffage, given in the preface to the last edition of Shakespeare, "finall Latin, and o Greek," Mr. Farmer tells us, that it was adopted above a century ago by W. Towers, in a panegyrick on Cartwright."

66

Surely

had fome knowledge of both; and if we may judge by our own time, a man, who has any Greek, is feldom without a very competent fhare of Latin; and yet such a man is very likely to ftudy Plutarch in English, and to read tranflations of Ovid.

See Dr. Farmer's reply to these remarks by Mr. Colman, in a note on LOVE'S LABOUR'S LOST, Aa IV. Sc. ii. p. 435.

Surely, Towers having faid that Cartwright had no Greek, is no proof that Ben Jonfon faid fo of Shakespeare.

THE

[blocks in formation]

Earle of PEMBROKE, &c. Lord Chamberlaine to the Kings moft Excellent Majeftie;

AND

PHILIP

Earle of MONTGOMERY, &c. Gentleman of his Majesties Bed-chamber.

Both Knights of the Moft Noble Order of the Garter, and our fingular good LORD S.

RIGHT HONOURABLE,

WH

HILST we ftudie to be thankfull in our particular, for the many favors we have received from your L. L. we are falne upon the ill fortune, to mingle two the most diverse things that can be, feare, and rafhneffe; rafhneffe in the enterprize, and feare of the fucceffe. For, when we value the places your H. H. fuftaine, wee cannot but know the dignity greater, than to defcend to the reading of thefe trifles: and, while we name them trifles, we have deprived ourselves of the defence of our dedication. But fince your L. L. have been pleased to thinke thefe trifles fomething, heeretofore; and have profequuted both them, and their authour living, with fo much favour: we hope (that they out-living him, and he not having the fate, common with fome, to be exequutor to his owne writings) you will ufe the fame indulgence toward them, you have done unto their parent. There is a great difference, whether any

booke

booke choose his patrones, or finde them: this hath done both. For, fo much were your L. L. likings of the severall parts, when they were acted, as before they were published, the volume asked to be yours. We have but collected them, and done an office to the dead, to procure his orphanes, guardians; without ambition either of felfe-profit, or fame: onely to keepe the memory of fo worthy a friend, and fellow alive, as was our SHAKESPEARE, by humble offer of his playes, to your most noble patronage. Wherein, as we have justly obferved, no man to come neere your L. L. but with a kind of religious addreffe; it hath bin the height of our care, who are the prefenters, to make the prefent worthy of your H. H. by the perfection. But, there we muft alfo crave our abilities to be confiderd, my Lords. We cannot goe beyond our owne powers. Country hands reach forth milke, creame, fruits, or what they have: and many nations (we have heard) that had not gummes and incenfe, obtained their requests with a leavened cake. It was no fault to approch their gods by what meanes they could: and the most, though meaneft, of things are made more precious, when they are dedicated to temples. In that name therefore, we moft humbly confecrate to your H. H. these remaines of your fervant SHAKESPEARE; that what delight is in them may be ever your L. L. the reputation his, and the faults ours, if any be committed, by a paire fo carefull to fhew their gratitude both to the living, and the dead, as is

Your Lordfoippes moft bounden,

JOHN HEMINGE,

HENRY CONDELL

THE

« السابقةمتابعة »