A FEW of the incidents in this comedy might have been taken

from fome old tranflation of Il Pecorone by Giovanni Fiorentino. I have lately met with the fame ftory in a very contemptible performance, intitled, The fortunate, the deceived, and the unfortu nate Lover. Of this book, as I am told, there are several impreffions; but that in which I read it, was published in 1632, quarto. A fomewhat fimilar ftory occurs in Piacevoli Notti di Straparola, Nott. 43. Fav. 4a.

This comedy was first entered at Stationers' Hall, Jan. 18, 1601, by John Bufby. STEEVENS.

A paffage in the first sketch of The Merry Wives of Windfor fhews, I think, that it ought to be read between the Firft and the Second Part of King Henry IV. in the latter of which young. Henry becomes king. In the last act, Falstaff says:

"Herne the hunter, quoth you? am I a ghoft?

"'Sblood, the fairies hath made a ghoft of me.
"What, hunting at this time of night!
"I'le lay my life the mad prince of Wales
"Is ftealing his father's deare."

And in this play, as it now appears, Mr. Page difcountenances the addreffes of Fenton to his daughter, because he keeps company with the wild prince, and with Poins

The Fishwife's Tale of Brainford in WESTWARD FOR SMELTS, 2 book which Shakspeare appears to have read, (having borrowed from it part of the fable of Cymbeline,) probably led him to lay the fcene of Falstaff's love-adventures at Windjor. It begins thus:

In Windjor not long agoe dwelt a fumpterman, who had to wife a very faire but wanton creature, over whom, not without cause, he was fomething jealous; yet had he never any proof of her inconftancy." MALONE.

The adventures of Faiftaff in this play feem to have been taken from the story of The Lovers of Pifa, in an old piece called “ Tarleton's Newes out of Purgatorie."

Mr. Warton obferves, in a note to the laft Oxford edition, that the play was probably not written, as we now have it, be ore 1607, at the earliest. I agree with my very ingenious friend in this fuppofition, but yet the argument here produced for it may not be conclufive. Slender obferves to mafter Page, that his greyhound was cut-run on Cotfale; (Cotswold-Hills in Gloucestershire;) and Mr. Warton thinks, that the games established there by Captain Dover, in the beginning of K. James's reign, are alluded to-But perhaps, though the Captain be celebrated in the Annalia Dubrenfia as the founder of them, he might be the reviver only, or fome way contribute to make them more famous; for in The Second Part of Henry IV. 1600, Juftice Shallow reckons among the Swinge-buckiers Will Squeele, a Cotfole man.'

יי

In

In the first edition of the imperfect play, fir Hugh Evans is called on the title page, the Welsh Knight; and yet there are fome perfons who ftill affect to believe, that all our author's plays were originally published by himself. FARMER.

Dr. Farmer's opinion is well fupported by "An eclogue on the noble affemblies revived on Cotswold Hills, by Mr. Robert Dover." See Randolph's Poems, printed at Oxford, 4to. 1638, p. 114. The hills of Cotswold, in Gloucestershire, are mentioned in K. Richard II. Act II. fc. iii, and by Drayton, in his Polyolbion, fong 14. STEEVENS.

Queen Elizabeth was fo well pleased with the admirable character of Falstaff in The Two Parts of Henry IV. that, as Mr. Row informs us, she commanded Shakspeare to continue it for one play

more, and to fhew him in love. To this command we owe The

Merry Wives of Windfor; which, Mr. Gildon fays, (Remarks on Shakpeare's plays, 8vo. 1710,) he was very well affured our author finished in a fortnight. But this must be meant only of the first imperfect sketch of this comedy. An old quarto edition which I have feen, printed in 1602, fays, in the title page. As it bath been divers times acted before her majefty, and clfewhere. This, which we have here, was altered and improved by the author almoft in every speech. POPE. THEOBALD.

Mr. Gildon has likewife told us, "that our author's house at Stratford bordered on the Church-Yard, and that he wrote the fcene of the Ghoft in Hamlet there." But neither for this, or the affertion that the play before us was written in a fortnight, does he quote any authority. The latter circumftance was first mentioned by Mr. Dennis. "This comedy," fays he, in his Epiftle Dedicatory to The Comical Gallant, (an alteration of the prefent play,)1702, "was written at her (Queen Elizabeth's) command, and by her direction, and the was fo eager to fee it acted, that the commanded it to be finished in fourteen days; and was afterwards, as tradition tells us, very well pleafed at the reprefentation." The information, it is probable, came originally from Dryden, who, from his intimacy with Sir William Davennant, had an opportunity of learning many particulars concerning our author.

At what period Shakspeare new-modelled The Merry Wives of Windfor is unknown. I believe it was enlarged in 1603. See fome conjectures on the subject, in the Attempt to afcertain the order of his plays. MALONE.

It is not generally known, that the first edition of The Merry Wives of Windsor, in its prefent ftate, is in the valuable folio, printed 1623, from whence the quarto of the fame play, dated 1630, was evidently copied. The two earlier quartos, 1602, and 1619, only exhibit this comedy as it was originally written, and are fo far curious, as they contain Shakspeare's first conceptions in forming a drama, which is the most complete fpecimen of his comick powers. T. WARTON.

WILLIAM PAGE, a boy, son to MR. PAGE.
SIR HUGH EVANS, a Welch parson.

DR. CAIUS, a French physician.

Host of the Garter Inn.

BARDOLPH,

PISTOL,

NYM,

followers of FALSTAFF.

ROBIN, page to FALSTAFF.

SIMPLE, servant to SLENDER.

RUGBY, servant to DR. CAIUS.

MRS. FORD.

MRS. PAGE.

MRS. ANNE PAGE, her daughter, in love with FENTON. MRS. QUICKLY, servant to DR. CAIUS.

Servants to PAGE, FORD, &c.

SCENE. WINDSOR; and the parts adjacent.

MERRY WIVES OF WINDSOR.

ACT I. SCENE 1.

WINDSOR. Before PAGE's House.

Enter Justice SHALLOW, SLENDER, and Sir HUGH

EVANS.

Shallow.

SIR Hugh, persuade me not; I will make a Star-cham

ber matter of it: if he were twenty sir John Falstaffs,

he shall not abuse Robert Shallow, esquire.

Slen. In the county of Gloster, justiceof peace, and

coram.

Shal. Ay, cousin Slender, and Cust-alorum.

Slen. Ay, and ratolorum too; and a gentleman born, master parson; who writes himself armigero; in any bill, warrant, quittance, or obligation, armigero.

Shal. Ay, that we do; and have done any time these three hundred years.

Slen. All his successors, gone before him, have done't; and all his ancestors, that come after him, may: they may give the dozen white luces in their coat.

Shal. It is an old coat.

Eva. The dozen white louses do become an old coat well; it agrees well, passant: it is a familiar beast to man, and signifies-love.

B

Shal.

Shal. The luce is the fresh fish; the falt fish is an old coat.

Slen. I may quarter, coz?

Shal. You may, by marrying.

Eva. It is marring indeed, if he quarter it.

Shal. Not a whit.

Eva. Yes, py'r-lady; if he has a quarter of your coat, there is but three fkirts for yourfelf, in my fimple conjectures; but that is all one: If 'fir John Falstaff have committed difparagements unto you, I am of the church, and will be glad to do my benevolence, to make atonements and compromises between you.

Shal. The Council fhall hear it; it is a riot.

Eva. It is not meet the Council hear a riot; there is no fear of Got in a riot; the Council, look you, shall defire to hear the fear of Got, and not to hear a riot; take your.vizaments in that.

Shal. Ha! o' my life, if I were young again, the sword fhould end it.

Eva. It is petter that friends is the fword, and end it: and there is also another device in my prain, which, peradventure, prings goot difcretions with it: There is Anne Page, which is daughter to master George Page, which is pretty virginity.

Slen. Mistress Anne Page? She has brown hair, and fpeaks fmall like a woman.

Eva. It is that fery verfon for all the 'orld, as just as you will defire; and feven hundred pounds of monies, and gold, and filver, is her grandfire, upon his death'sbed (Got deliver to a joyful refurrections!) give, when fhe is able to overtake feventeen years old: it were a goot motion, if we leave our pribbles and prabbles, and desire a marriage between mafter Abraham, and mistress Anne Page.

Shal.