Malone remarks; "Our author certainly took this circumstance from some translation of Boccaccio's novel; for it does not occur in the imitation printed in Westward for Smelts." Mr. Collier observes (Introd. to this play); "The materials in Holinshed for the historical portion of 'Cymbeline' are so imperfect and scanty, that a belief may be entertained that Shakespeare resorted to some other more fertile source, which the most diligent inquiries have yet failed to discover. The names of Cymbeline and of his sons, Guiderius and Arviragus, occur in the old Chronicle, and there we hear of the tribute demanded by the Roman emperor, but nothing is said of the stealing of the two young princes, nor of their residence with Belarius among the mountains, and final restoration to their father." (A particular account of the abovementioned French romances and play,-an English abridgement of Boccaccio's novel by Skottowe-and the tale from Westward for Smelts, &c.,-may be seen in Collier's Shakespeare's Library, vol. ii.)

PERICLES.

Though this play, under the title of "The booke of Pericles, Prynce of Tyre," was entered by Blount in the Stationers' Registers, May 20th, 1608, it was not first published by him, but by Gosson in 1609, 4to.— The text of Pericles is miserably corrupted and mangled throughout: the later impressions differ from the first edition only in being more incorrect. That it was first brought on the stage either in 1607 or 1608 we have evidence in the title-page of a very curious prose-tract written by George Wilkins from notes taken down during the acting of the play, and entitled The Painfull Aduentures of Pericles Prince of Tyre. Being the true History of the Play of Pericles, as it was lately presented by the worthy and ancient poet John Gower, 1608 (a tract reprinted in 1857 by Professor Tycho Mommsen from a copy in the public library of Zurich). The greater part of this play is undoubtedly by some very inferior dramatist: but here and there, more particularly towards the close, the hand of Shakespeare is plainly seen. Whether it had ever been acted before it received those vivifying touches from our poet, we cannot determine,—perhaps it was the "Pericles" in which Alleyn wore the "spangled hoes" mentioned in an inventory of his theatrical apparel (vide Collier's Memoirs of Alleyn, p. 21): we at least may be sure that it was originally composed at a period long antecedent to its appearance at the Globe in 1607 or 1608.-Pericles is mainly founded on The Patterne of painefull Aduentures: containing the most excellent, pleasant and variable Historie of the strange accidents that befell vnto Prince Apollonius, the Lady Lucina his wife, and Tharsia his daughter. Wherein the uncertaintie of this world and the fickle state of mans life are liuely de

scribed. Gathered into English by Lawrence Twine Gentleman,—first printed in 1576: the old play-wright had also an eye to that portion of Gower's Confessio Amantis, book eighth, which treats of King Appolin of Tyre. (Both Twine's novel and Gower's poetical version of the same incidents are included in Collier's Shakespeare's Library, vol. i.-On the story of King Apollonius of Tyre see Douce's Illustr. of Shakespeare, ii. 135, and Mommsen's Preface to the reprint above mentioned.)

Add: Mr. Grant White (Prefatory Letter to his Shakespeare's Scholar, &c. p. xxxii.) cites from the description of A Very Woman among Overbury's Characters; "Her lightnesse gets her to swim at top of the table, where her wrie little finger bewraies carving; her neighbors at the latter end know they are welcome, and for that purpose she quencheth her thirst:" on which he observes, “Carving, then, was a sign of intelligence, made with the little finger as the glass was raised to the mouth." Such perhaps is the meaning of the word in Overbury: but in the following passage of A Prophecie of Cadwallader, last King of the Britaines, by William Herbert, 1604 (quoted by Mr. Hunter, New Illust. of Shakespeare, i. 216), “carving" assuredly does not mean "a sign of intelligence made with the little finger as the glass was raised to the mouth;"

“Then did this Queen [i. e. Fortune] her wandering coach ascend,
Whose wheels were more inconstant than the wind;

A mighty troop this empress did attend;

There might you Caius Marius carving find,

And martial Sylla courting Venus kind:

Times alter, and in times we changed be;
Chance only constant is in levity."

P. 245. Note (63).

"See note (5) on Love's Labour's lost."

Read: "See note (6) on," &c.

VOL. II.

MUCH ADO ABOUT NOTHING.

P. 3. "Enter LEONATO, HERO, and BEATRICE, with a Messenger." The old eds. have "Enter Leonato Gouernour of Messina, Innogen his wife, Hero his daughter, and Beatrice his Neece, with a messenger” (and again at the commencement of act ii. they make his "wife" enter with Leonato). "It is therefore clear," says Mr. Collier ad l.," that the mother of Hero made her appearance before the audience, although she says nothing throughout the comedy;" and in his Notes and Emendations, &c., he remarks that "the manuscript-corrector of the folio, 1632, has expunged the words Innogen his wife, as if the practice had not then been for her to appear before the audience in this or in any other portion of the comedy." p. 66.

The great probability is, that she never appeared before any audience in any part of the play; and that Theobald was right when he conjectured that "the poet had in his first plan designed such a character, which, on a survey of it, he found would be superfluous, and therefore he left it out." One thing I hold for certain, viz. that, if she ever did figure among the dramatis personæ, it was not as a mere dummy: there are scenes in which the mother of Hero must have spoken;-she could not have stood on the stage without a word to say about the disgrace of her daughter, &c.

P. 35.

"Well, every one can master a grief but he that has it.”

The old eds. have "Well, euery one cannot master," &c.

"Constable. Come, let them be opiniond.

Couley [the folio "Sex."]. Let them be in the hands of

The "for" is a modern addition.-Mr. Halliwell (Shakespeare, i. 275, folio ed.) thinks the old reading is right, and that "came" is equivalent to -I cannot agree with him.

66 came for:"

P. 75. Note (3).

When I wrote this note, I ought to have recollected that Theobald had assigned to Balthazar the three speeches in question.

P. 177.

A MIDSUMMER-NIGHT'S DREAM.

"like to a silver bow

New-bent in heaven," &c.

The old eds. have "Now bent in heauen," &c.

P. 184.

"To the rest :-yet my chief humour," &c.

Point, with the old copies, “To the rest yet, my chief humour,” &c.

P. 192.

"The one I'll slay, the other slayeth me."

Thirlby's correction.-The old eds. have "The one Ile stay, the other stayeth me."

P. 193.

"Hast thou the flower there? Welcome, wanderer.
Puck. Ay, there it is.

Obe.

I pray thee, give it me."

Mr. W. N. Lettsom has very recently observed to me; "The first part of each of these two verses is inconsistent with the second part. Should we not read and point?

'Hast thou the flower there, welcome wanderer?
Puck. Ay, here it is.

Obe.

I pray thee, give it me.'"

P. 197.

"Nature here shows art," &c.

This is the reading of the second folio.-The quartos have "nature shewes arte," &c.—the folio has "nature her shewes art," &c.-I now prefer Malone's reading, "Nature shows her art," &c.

So Fisher's 4to ("I swoune," &c.).-The other old eds. "I swound," &c. and "I sound," &c.