4)-As it is a great curiosity, and very scarce, the title is here inserted at large: and for the same reason, and also to shew the use that Shakspeare made of it, some extracts will now be added. The author of this Leir has kept him close to the chronicles; for he ends his play with the re-instating King Leir in his throne, by the aid of Cordella and her husband. But take the entire fable in his own words. Towards the end of the play, at signature H 3, you find Leir in France: upon whose coast he and his friend Perillus are landed in so necessitous a condition, that, having nothing to pay their passage, the mariners take their cloaks, leaving them their jerkins in exchange: thus attir'd, they go up further into the country; and there, when they are at the point to perish by famine, insomuch that Perillus offers Leir his arm to feed upon, they light upon Gallia and his queen, whom the author has brought down thitherward, in progress disguis'd. Their discourse is overheard by Cordella, who immediately knows them; but, at her husband's persuasion, forbears to discover herself a while, relieves them with food, and then asks their story; which Leir gives her in these words: "Leit. Then know this first, I am a Brittayne borne, "For her perfections hardly matcht could be: "And thought to try which of them lov'd me best, 66 Might do: her answere I esteem'd most vild, "And presently in an outragious mood, 66 'I turnd her from me to go sinke or swym: "And she that best deserv'd the greatest share, "She bade me pack, and harbour some where else "Unto my other daughter for reliefe, "Who gave me pleasing and most courteous words; "But in her actions shewed her selfe so sore, "To go to a thicket two miles from the court, "And now I am constraind to seeke reliefe "Cor. No doubt she will, I dare be sworne she will." Thereupon ensues her discovery; and, with it, a circumstance of some beauty, which Shakspeare has borrow'd-(v. Lear, Act VI,) their kneeling to each other, and mutually contending which should ask forgiveness. The next page presents us Gallia, and Mumford who commands under him, marching to embarque their forces, to re-instate Leir; and the next, a sea-port in Britain, and officers setting a watch, who are to fire a beacon to give notice if any ships approach, in which there is some low humour that is passable enough. Gallia and his forces arrive, and take the town by surprize: immediately upon which, they are encounter'd by the forces of the two elder sisters, and their husbands: a battle ensues; Leir conquers; he and his friends enter victorious, and the play closes thus: "Thanks (worthy Mumford) to thee last of all, "Come, sonne and daughter, who did me advance, 66 [Exeunt. Such is the Leir, now before us. Who the author of it should be, I cannot surmise; for neither in manner nor style has it the least resemblance to any of the other tragedies of that time: most of them rise now and then, and are poetical; but this creeps in one dull tenour, from beginning to end, after the specimen here inserted: it should seem he was a Latinist, by the translation following: "Feare not, my lord, the perfit good indeed, "A new fresh vessell still retaynes the taste "Of that which first is powr'd into the same:" [sign. H. But whoever he was, Shakspeare has done him the honour to follow him in a stroke or two: one has been observ'd upon above; and the reader, who is acquainted with Shakspeare's Lear, will perceive another in the second line of the concluding speech: and here is a third; "Knowest thou these letters?" says Leir to Ragan, (sign. I. 3.) shewing her hers and her sister's letters commanding his death; upon which, she snatches at the letters, and tears them: (v. Lear, Act V,) another, and that a most signal one upon one account, occurs at signature C 3b: "But he, the myrrour of mild patience, "Puts up all wrongs, and never gives reply:" Perillus says this of Leir; comprizing therein his character, as drawn by this author: how opposite to that which Shakspeare has given him, all know; and yet he has found means to put nearly the same words into the very mouth of his Lear,"No, I will be the pattern of all patience, "I will say nothing." Lastly, two of Shakspeare's personages, Kent, and the Steward, seem to owe their existence to the above-mention'd "shag. hair'd wretch," and the Perillus of this Leir. The episode of Gloster and his two sons is taken from the Arcadia: in which romance there is a chapter thus intitl'd;"The pitifull state, and storie of the Paphlagonian unkinde King, and his kind sonne, first related by the son, then by the blind father." (Arcadia, p. 142, edit. 1590, 4to.) of which episode there are no traces in either chronicle, poem, or play, wherein this history is handl'd. Love's Labour's Lost. The fable of this play does not seem to be a work entirely of invention; and I am apt to believe, that it owes its birth to some novel or other, which may one day be discover'd. The character of Armado has some resemblance to Don Quixote; but the play is older than that work of Cervantes: of Holofernes, another sin gular character, there are some faint traces in a masque of Sir Philip Sidney's that was presented before Queen Elizabeth at Wansted: this masque, call'd in catalogues-The Lady of May, is at the end of that author's works, edit. 1627, folio. Measure for Measure. In the year 1578, was publish'd in a black-letter quarto a miserable dramatick performance, in two parts, intitl❜d-Promos and Cassandra; written by one George Whetstone, author like. wise of the Heptameron, and much other poetry of the same stamp, printed about that time. These plays their author, perhaps, might form upon a novel of Cinthio's; (v. Dec. 8, Nov. 5,) which Shakspeare went not to, but took up with Whetstone's fable, as is evident from the argument of it; which, though it be some. what of the longest, yet take it in his own words. "The Argument of the whole Historye. "In the Cyttie of Julio (sometimes under the dominion of Corvinus Kinge of Hungarie and Boemia) there was a law, that what man soever committed adultery, should lose his head, & the woman offender, should weare some disguised apparel, during her life, to make her infamouslye noted. This severe lawe, by the favour of some mercifull magistrate, became little regarded, untill the time of Lord Promos auctority: who convicting, a yong gentleman named Andrugio of incontinency, condemned, both him, and his minion to the execution of this statute. Andrugio had a very vertuous, and beawtiful gentlewoman to his sister, named Cassandra: Cassandra to enlarge her bro thers life, submitted an humble petition to the Lord Promos: Promos regarding her good behaviours, and fantasying her great beawtie, was much delighted with the sweete order of her talke: and doyng good, that evill might come thereof: for a time, he repryv'd her brother: but wicked man, tourning his liking unto unlawfull lust, he set downe the spoile of her honour, raunsome of her Brothers life: Chaste Cassandra, abhorring both him and his sute, by no perswasion would yeald to this raunsome. But in fine, wonne with the importunitye of hir brother (pleading for life :) upon these conditions she agreed to Promos. First that he should pardon her brother, and after marry her. Promos as fearless in promisse, as carelesse in performance, with sollemne vowe, sygned her conditions: but worse than any Infydel, his will satisfyed, he performed neither the one nor the other: for to keepe his aucthoritye, unspotted with favour, and to prevent Cassandraes clamors, he commaunded the Gayler secretly, to present Cassandra with her brother's head. The Gayler, with the outcryes of Andrugio, (abhorryng Promos lewdnes,) by the providence of God, provided thus for his safety. He presented Cassandra with a felons head newlie executed, who, (being mangled, knew it not from her brothers, by the Gayler, who was set at libertie) was so agreeved at this trecherye, that at the pointe to kyl her selfe, she spared that stroke, to be avenged of Promos. And devysing a way, she concluded, to make her fortunes knowne unto the kinge. She (executing this resolution) was so highly favoured of the King, that forthwith he hasted to do justice on Promos: whose judgement was, to marrye Cassandra, to repaire her erased Honour: which donne, for his hainous offence he should lose his head. This maryage solempnised, Cassandra tyed in the greatest bondes of affection to her husband, became an earnest suter for his life: the Kinge (tendringe the generall benefit of the cōmon weale, before her special case, although he favoured her much) would not graunt her sute. Andrugio (disguised amonge the company) sorrowing the griefe of his sister, bewrayde his safety, and craved pardon. The Kinge, to renowne the vertues of Cassandra, pardoned both him, and Promos. The circumstances of this rare Historye, in action livelye foloweth." The play itself opens thus: "Actus I..... Scena 1. "Promos, Mayor, Shirife, Sworde bearer: One with a bunche of keyes: Phallax, Promos man. You Officers which now in Julio stape, Knowe pou our leadge, the kinge of Hungarie: Sent me Promos, to iopne with pou in swap: That still we map to Justice have an eye. And now to show, mp rule E power at lardge, Attentivelie his Letters Pattents heare: Phallax, reade out my Soveraines chardge, Phal. As you commande, I wyll: give heedful eare. "Phallax readeth the Kinges Letters Patents, which must be fayre written in parchment, with some great counterfeat zeale. Pro. Loe, here you see what is our Soveraignes wpl Loe, heare his wish, that right, not might, beare swape: Loe, heare his care. to weed from good the pll, To scourge the wights, good Lawes that dis obap." And thus it proceeds; without one word in it, that Shakspeare could make use of, or can be read with patience by any man living: and yet, besides the characters appearing in the argument, his Bawd, Clown, Lucio, Juliet, and the Provost, nay, and even his Barnardine, are created out of hints which this play gave him; and the lines too that are quoted, bad as they are, suggested to him the manner in which his own play opens. Merchant of Venice. The Jew of Venice was a story exceedingly well known in Shakspeare's time; celebrated in ballads; and taken (perhaps) originally from an Italian book intitl'd-Il Pecorone: the author of which calls himself,-Ser Giovanni Fiorentino; and writ his book, as he tells you in some humorous verses at the beginning of it, in 1378, three years after the death of Boccace: it is divided into giornata's, and the story we are speaking of is in the first novel of the giornata quarta; edit. 1565, octavo, in Vi negia. This novel Shakspeare certainly read; either in the ori VOL. I, T |