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larly Dares Phrygius, in another: (altho' I will not pretend to fay in what language he read them.) The modern Italian writers of novels he was mani feftly acquainted with; and we may conclude him to be no lefs converfant with the antients of his own country, from the ufe he has made of Chaucer in Troilus and Creffida, and in the Two noble Kinsmen, if that Play be his, as there goes a tradition it was (and indeed it has little refemblance of Fletcher, and more of our Author than fome of those which have been received as genuine.)

I am inclined to think this opinion proceeded originally from the zeal of the Partizans of our Author and Ben Johnson; as they endeavoured to exalt the one at the expence of the other. It is ever the nature of Parties to be in extremes; and nothing is so probable, as that because Ben Johnfon had much the more learning, it was faid on the one hand that Shakespear had none at all; and because Shakespear had much the most wit and fancy, it was retorted on the other, that Johnson wanted both. Because Shakespear borrowed nothing, it was faid that Ben Johnson borrowed every thing. Because Johnson did not write extempore, he was reproached with being a year about every piece; and because Shakespear wrote with ease and rapidity. they cried he never once made a blot. Nay the spirit of opposition ran so high that whatever

thofe of the one fide objected to the other, was taken at the rebound, and turned into praifes; as injudiciously as their antagonists before had made them objections.

Poets are always afraid of envy; but fure they have as much reafon to be afraid of admiration. They are the Scylla and Charybdis of Authors; thofe who escape one, often fall by the other. Peffimum genus inimicorum laudantes, fays Tacitus: 2nd Virgil defires to wear a charm against those who praise a poet without rule or reason.

Si ultra placitum laudârt, baccare fronten

Cingito, ne vati noceat.

But however this contention might be carried on by the Partizans on either fide, I cannot help thinking thefe two great poets were good friends, and lived on amicable terms, and in offices of fociety with each other. It is an acknowledged fact, that Ben Johnson was introduced upon the stage, and his first works encouraged by Shakespear. And after his death, that Author writes To the memory of his beloved Mr. William Shakespear, which fhews as if the friendship had continued thro' life. I cannot for my own part find any thing invidious or Sparing in thofe verses, but wonder Mr. Dryden was of that opinion. He exalts him not only above all his contemporaries, but above Chaucer and

Spenfer, whom he will not allow to be great enough to be ranked with him; and challenges the names of Sophocles, Euripides, and Æfchylus, nay all Greece and Rome at once, to equal him; and (which is very particular) exprefly vindicates him from the imputation of wanting art, onot enduring that all his excellencies should be attributed to na-. ture. It is remarkable too, that the praife he gives' him in his Discoveries feems to proceed from a perfonal kindness; he tells us that he lov'd the man, as well as honoured his memory; celebrates the honefty, openness, and franknefs of his temper; and only distinguishes, as he reafonably ought, between the real merit of the Author, and the filly and derogatory applaufes of the Players. Ben Johnson might indeed be fparing in his commendations, (tho' certainly he is not fo in this inftance) partly from his own nature, and partly from judgment. For men of judgment think they do any man more fervice in praising him juftly, than lavifhly. I fay, I would fain believe they were friends, tho' the violence and ill-breeding of their followers and flatterers were enough to give rife to the contrary report. I would hope that it may be with parties, both in wit and fate, as with those monsters defcribed by the poets; and that their heads at least may have fomething human, tho' their bodies and tails are wild beafts and ferpents.

As I believe that what I have mentioned gave rise to the opinion of Shakespear's want of learning; fo what has continued it down to us may have been the many blunders and illiteracies of the first publishers of his works. In these editions their ignorance shines in almost every page; nothing is more common than Actus tertia. Exit Omnes. Enter three witches folus. Their French is as bad as their Latin, both in conftruction and spelling: Their very Welsh is false. Nothing is more likely than that thofe palpable blunders of Hector's quoting Ariftotle, with others of that grofs kind, fprung from the fame root: it not being at all credible that these could be the errors of any man who had the leaft tincture of a school, or the least converfation with fuch as had. Ben Johnson (whom they will not think partial to him) allows him at least to have had fome Latin; which is utterly inconfiftent with miftakes like these. Nay the conftant blunders in proper names of perfons and places, are fuch as must have proceeded from a man, who had not fo much as read any hiftory, in any language: fo could not be Shakespear's.

I fhall now lay before the reader fome of thofe almoft innumerable errors, which have rifen from one fource, the ignorance of the players, both as his actors, and as his editors. When the nature and kinds of these are enumerated and confidered, I dare to fay, that not Shakespear only, but Aristotle or Cicero, had their works undergone the fame fate, might have appeared to want fenfe as well as learning.

It is not certain that any one of his plays was published by himself. During the time of his employment in the Theatre, several of his pieces were printed separately in quarto. What makes me think that most of these were not published by him, is the exceffive careleffness of the prefs: every page is fo fcandalously false spelled, and almost all the learned or unusual words fo intolerably mangled, that it's plain there either was no corrector to the press at all, or one totally illiterate. If any were supervised by himself, I fhould fancy the two parts of Henry IV. and Midfummer Night's Dream might have been fo: because I find no other printed with any exactnefs; and (contrary to the reft) there is very little variation in all the fubfequent editions of them. There are extant two prefaces to the first quarto edition of Troilus and Creffida in 1609, and to that of Othello; by which it appears, that the firft was published without his knowledge or confent, and even before it was acted, so late as seven or eight years before he died; and that the latter was not printed till after his death. The whole number of genuine plays which we have been able to find printed in his life time, amounts but to eleven. And of fome of thefe, we meet with two or more editions by different printers, each of which has whole heaps of trafh different from the other: which I should fancy was occafioned by their

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