by inferting the offered Reading in the Text; Part I have left to the Judgment of the Reader, as doubtful, though fpecious; and Part I have cenfured without Referve, but I am fure without Bitterness of Malice, and, I hope, without Wantonnefs of Infult.

It is no Pleasure to me, in revifing my Volumes, to obferve how much Paper is wasted in Confutation. Whoever confiders the Revolution of Learning, and the various Questions of greater or lefs Importance, upon which Wit and Reafon have exercifed their Powers, muft lament the Unfuccefsfulness of Enquiry, and the flow Advances of Truth, when he reflects, that great Part of the Labour of every Writer is only the Destruction of those that went before him. The firft Care of the Builder of a new System, is to demolish the Fabricks which are ftanding. The chief Defire of him that comments an Authour, is to fhew how much other Commentators have corrupted and obfcured him. The Opinions prevalent in one Age, as Truths above the Reach of Controversy, are confuted and rejected in another, and rife again to Reception in remoter Times. Thus the human Mind is kept in Motion without Progrefs. Thus fometimes Truth and Errour, and fometimes Contrarieties of Errour, take each others Place by reciprocal Invafion. The Tide of feeming Knowledge which is poured over one Generation, retires and leaves another naked and barren; the sudden Meteors of Intelligence which for a while appear to fhoot their Beams into the Regions of Obfcurity, on a Sudden withdraw their Luftre, and leave Mortals again to grope their Way.

Thefe Elevations and Depreffions of Renown, and the Contradictions to which all Improvers of Knowledge muft for ever be expofed, fince they are not escaped by the highest and brighteft of Mankind, may furely be endured with Patience by Cri

K 4

ticks

ticks and Annotators, who can rank themselves but as the Satellites of their Authours. How canft thou beg for Life, fays Achilles to his Captive, when thou knoweft that thou art now to fuffer only for what muft another Day be fuffered by Achilles?

Dr. Warburton had á Name fufficient to confer Celebrity on those who could exalt themselves into Antagonists, and his Notes have raifed a Clamour too loud to be diftinct. His chief Assailants are the Authours of The Canons of Criticism, and of The Review of Shakespeare's Text; of whom one ridicules his Errours with airy Petulance, fuitable enough to the Levity of the Controverfy; the other attacks them with gloomy Malignity, as if he were dragging to Juftice an Affaffin or Incendiary. The one ftings like a Fly, fucks a little Blood, takes a gay Flutter, and returns for more; the other bites like a Viper, and would be glad to leave Inflammations and Gangrene behind him. When I think on one, with his Confederates, I remember the Danger of Coriolanus, who was afraid that Girls with Spits, and Boys with Stones, fhould flay him in puny Battle;' when the other croffes my Imagination, I remember the Prodigy in Macbeth,

'An Eagle tow'ring in his Pride of Place,
"Was by a moufing Owl hawk'd at and kill'd.'

Let me however do them Juftice. One is a Wits and one a Scholar. They have both fhewn Acutenefs fufficient in the Discovery of Faults, and have both advanced fome probable Interpretations of obfcure Paffages; but when they afpire to Conjecture and Emendation, it appears how falfely we all eftimate our own Abilities, and the little which they have been able to perform might have taught them more Candour to the Endeavours of others.

Before Dr. Warburton's Edition, Critical Obfervations on Shakespeare had been published by Mr. Up

ton

ton, a Man skilled in Languages, and acquainted with Books, but who feems to have had no great Vigour of Genius or Nicety of Tafte. Many of his Explanations are curious and ufeful, but he likewife, though he profeffed to oppofe the licentious Confidence of Editors, and adhere to the old Copies, is unable to restrain the Rage of Emendation, though his Ardour is ill feconded by his Skill. Every cold Emperick, when his Heart is expanded by a fuccefsful Experiment, fwells into a Theorift, and the laborious Collator at fome unlucky Moment frolicks in Conjecture.

Critical, Hiftorical, and Explanatcay Notes have been likewife publifhed upon Shakespeare by Dr. Grey, whofe diligent Perufal of the old English Writers has enabled him to make fome useful Obfervations. What he undertook was well enough performed, but as he neither attempts judicial nor emendatory Criticifm, he employs rather his Memory than his Sagacity. It were to be withed that all would endeavour to imitate his Modefty who have not been able to furpafs his Knowledge.

I can fay with great Sincerity of all my Predeceffors, what I hope will hereafter be faid of me, that not one has left Shakespeare without Improvement, nor is there one to whom I have not been indebted for Affiftance and Information. Whatever I have taken from them it was my Intention to refer to its original Authour, and it is certain, that what I have not given to another, I believed when I wrote it to be my own. In fome perhaps I have been anticipated; but if I am ever found to encroach upon the Remarks of any other Commentator, I am willing that the Honour, be it more or lefs, fhould be transferred to the firft Claimant, for his Right, and his alone, ftands above Difpute; the Second can prove his Pretenfions only to himself, nor can him

felf always diftinguish Invention, with fufficient Certainty, from Recollection.

They have all been treated by me with Candour, which they have not been careful of obferving to one another. It is not eafy to discover from what Cause the Acrimony of a Scholiaft can naturally proceed. The Subjects to be difcuffed by him are of very small Importance; they involve neither Property nor Liberty; nor favour the Intereft of Sect or Party. The various Readings of Copies, and different Interpretations of a Paffage, feem to be Questions that might exercise the Wit, without engaging the Paffions. But, whether it be, that, fmall Things make mean Men proud,' and Vanity catches fmall Occafions; or that all Contrariety of Opinion, even in those that can defend it no longer, makes proud Men angry; there is often found in Commentaries a fpontaneous Train of Invective and Contempt, more eager and venomous than is vented by the most furious Controvertifi in Politicks against whom he is hired to defame.

Perhaps the Lightness of the Matter may conduce to the Vehemence of the Agency; when the Truth to be investigated is fo near to Inexiftence, as to escape Attention, its Bulk is to be enlarged by Rage and Exclamation: That to which all would be indifferent in its original State, may attract Notice when the Fate of a Name is appended to it. A Commentator has indeed great Temptations to fupply by Turbulence what he wants of Dignity, to beat his little Gold to a fpacious Surface, to work that to Foam which no Art or Diligence can exalt to Spirit.

The Notes which I have borrowed or written are either illuftrative, by which Difficulties are explained; or judicial, by which Faults and Beauties are remarked; or emendatory, by which Depravations are corrected.

The

The Explanations tranfcribed from others, if I do not fubjoin any other Interpretation, I suppose commonly to be right, at leaft I intend by Acquiefcence to confefs that I have nothing better to propofe.

After the Labours of all the Editors, I found many Paffages which appeared to me likely to obftruct the greater Number of Readers, and thought it my Duty to facilitate their Paffage. It is impoffible for an Expofitor not to write too little for fome, and too much for others. He can only judge what is neceffary by his own Experience; and how long foever he may deliberate, will at laft explain many Lines which the Learned will think impoffible to be mistaken, and omit many for which the Ignorant will want his Help. Thefe are Cenfures merely relative, and must be quietly endured. I have endeayoured to be neither fuperfluously copious, nor fcrupulously referved, and hope that I have made my Authour's Meaning acceffible to many who before were frighted from perusing him, and contributed fomething to the Publick, by diffusing innocent and rational Pleasure.

The complete Explanation of an Authour not fyftematick and confequential, but defultory and vagrant, abounding in cafual Allufions and light Hints, is not to be expected from any fingle Scholiaft. All perfonal Reflections, when Names are fuppreffed, must be in a few Years irrecoverably obliterated; and Customs, too minute to attract the Notice of Law, fuch as Modes of Drefs, Formalities of Converfation, Rules of Vifits, Difpofition of Furniture, and Practices of Ceremony, which naturally find Places in familiar Dialogue, are fo fugitive and unfubftantial, that they are not eafily retained or recovered. What can be known, will be collected by Chance, from the Receffes of obscure and obfolete Papers, perufed commonly with fome other View..

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