by the most delicate; who, if they are not without feelings, may chance to find themselves touch'd by it with fuch paffions as tragedy fhould excite, that is-terror, and pity. The reader will please to obferve that all these contefted plays are in the folio, which is dedicated to the poet's patrons and friends, the earls of Pembroke and Montgomery, by editors who are feemingly honeft men, and profefs themfelves dependant upon thofe noblemen; to whom therefore they would hardly have had the confidence to prefent forgeries, and pieces fuppofititious; in which too they were liable to be detected by those identical noble perfons themselves, as well as by a very great part of their other readers and auditors: which argument, though of no little strength in itfelf, we omitted to bring before, as having better (as we thought) and more forcible to offer; but it had behov'd thofe gentlemen who have question'd the plays to have got rid of it in the first instance, as it lies full in their way in the very entrance upon this difpute.

We fhall close this part of the Introduction with fome obfervations, that were referv'd for this place, upon that paragraph of the player editors' preface which is quoted at p. 330; and then taking this further liberty with the reader,-to call back his attention to fome particulars that concern the prefent edition, difmifs him to be entertain'd (as we hope) by a fort of appendix, confifting of those notes that have been mention'd, in which the true and undoubted originals of almost all the poet's fables are clearly pointed out. But first of the preface. Befides the authenticity of all the feveral pieces that make up this collection, and their care in publishing them, both folemnly affirm'd in the paragraph refer'd to, we there find these honest

editors acknowledging in terms equally folemn the author's right in his copies, and lamenting that he had not exercis'd that right by a publication of them during his life-time; and from the manner in which they exprefs themfelves, we are ftrongly inclin❜d to think that he had really form'd fuch a defign, but towards his laft days, and too late to put it in execution: a collection of Jonfon's was at that inftant in the prefs, and upon the point of coming forth; which might probably infpire fuch a thought into him and his companions, and produce conferences between them-about a fimilar publication from him, and the pieces that fhould compofe it, which the poet might make a lift of. It is true, this is only a fuppofition; but a fuppofition arifing naturally, as we think, from the incident that has been mention'd, and the expreffions of his fellow players and editors: and, if suffer'd to pass for truth, here is a good and found reason for the exclufion of all thofe other plays that have been attributed to him upon fome grounds or other; he himself has profcrib'd them; and we cannot forbear hoping, that they will in no future time rife up against him, and be thruft into his works: a difavowal of weak and idle pieces, the productions of green years, wantonnefs, or inattention, is a right that all authors are vefted with; and fhould be exerted by all, if their reputation is dear to them; had Jonfon us'd it, his character had flood higher than it does. But, after all, they who have pay'd attention to this truth are not always fecure; the indifcreet zeal of an admirer, or avarice of a publisher, has frequently added things that dishonour them; and where realities have been wanting, forgeries fupply the place; thus has Homer his Hymns, and the poor Mantuan his Ciris VOL. I. Bb

and his Culex. Noble and great authors demand all our veneration: where their wills can be dif cover'd, they ought facredly to be comply'd with; and that editor ill difcharges his duty, who prefumes to load them with things they have renounc'd: it happens but too often, that we have other ways to fhew our regard to them; their own great want of care in their copies, and the ftill greater want of it that is commonly in their impreffions, will find fufficient exercife for any one's friendship, who may wish to fee their works fet forth in that perfection which was intended by the author. And this friendship we have endeavour'd to fhew to Shakspeare in the prefent edition: the plan of it has been lay'd before the reader; upon whom it refts to judge finally of its goodness, as well as how it is executed: but as feveral matters have interven'd that may have driven it from his memory; and we are defirous above all things to leave a ftrong impreffion upon him of one merit which it may certainly pretend to, that is-it's fidelity; we shall take leave to remind him, at parting, thatThroughout all this work, what is added without the authority of fome ancient edition, is printed in a black letter what alter'd, and what thrown out, conflantly taken notice of; fome few times in a note, where the matter was long, or of a complex nature; but, more generally, at the bottom of the

4 The particulars that could not well be pointed out below, according to the general method, or otherwife than by a note, are of three forts;-omiffions, any thing large; tranfpofitions; and fuch differences of punctuation as produce great changes in the fenfe of a paffage: inftances of the firft occur in Love's Labour's Loft; p. 54, and in Troilus and Creffida, p. 109 and 117; of the fecond, in The Comedy of Errors, p. 62, and in Richhard III. p. 92, and 102; and The Tempeft, p. 69, and King

page; where what is put out of the text, how minute and infignificant foever, is always to be met with; what alter'd, as conftantly fet down, and in the proper words of that edition upon which the alteration is form'd: and, even in authoriz'd readings, whoever is defirous of knowing further, what edition is follow'd preferably to the others, may be gratify'd too in that, by confulting the Various Readings; which are now finifh'd; and will be publifh't, together with the Notes, in fome other volumes, with all the speed that is convenient.

ORIGIN OF SHAKSPEARE'S FABLES.

All's well that ends well.

The fable of this play is taken from a novel, of which Boccace is the original author; in whose Decameron it may be seen at p. 97.6 of the Giunti edition, reprinted at London. But it is more than probable, that Shakspeare read it in a book, call'd The Palace of Pleasure: which is a collection of novels tranflated from other authors, made by one William Painter, and by him first publish'd in the years 1565 and 67, in two tomes, quarto; the novel now spoken of, is the thirty-eighth of tome the first. This novel is a meagre tranflation, not (perhaps)

Lear, p. 53, afford inftances of the laft; as may be seen by looking into any modern edition, where all thofe paffages ftand nearly as in the old ones.

[All these references are to Mr. Capell's own edition of our author.]

immediately from Boccace, but from a French tranflator of him: as the original is in every body's hands, it may there be feen-that nothing is taken from it by Shakspeare, but fome leading incidents of the ferious part of his play.

Antony and Cleopatra.

This play, together with Coriolanus, Julius Cæfar, and fome part of Timon of Athens, are form'd upon Plutarch's Lives, in the articles-Coriolanus, Brutus, Julius Cæfar, and Antony: of which lives there is a French tranflation, of great fame, made by Amiot, Bishop of Auxerre and great almoner of France; which, fome few years after it's firft appearance, was put into an English drefs by our countryman Sir Thomas North, and publifh'd in the year 1579, in folio. As the language of this tranflation is pretty good, for the time; and the fentiments, which are Plutarch's, breathe the genuine spirit of the several hiftorical perfonages; Shakspeare has, with much judgment, introduc'd no fmall number of fpeeches into thefe plays, in the very words of that translator, turning them into verse: which he has fo well wrought up, and incorporated with his plays, that, what he has introduc'd, cannot be discover'd by any reader, 'till it is pointed out for him.

As you like it.

A novel, or (rather) paftoral romance, intitl'dEuphues's Golden Legacy, written in a very fantastical style by Dr. Thomas Lodge, and by him first publish'd in the year 1590, in quarto, is the foun