tells us in a note at the end of William of Worcester, that he had feen "a MS. in the nature of a play or interlude, intitled, The Booke of Sir Thomas Moore." 4

And in fact, there is such an old anonymous play in Mr. Pope's list. "A pleasant conceited History, called, The Taming of a Shrew-fundry times acted by the Earl of Pembroke his Servants." Which seems to have been republished by the remains of that company in 1607, when Shakspeare's copy

4 I know indeed, there is extant a very old poem, in black letter, to which it might have been supposed Sir John Harrington alluded, had he not fpoken of the discovery as a new one, and recommended it as worthy the notice of his countrymen: I am perfuaded the method in the old bard will not be thought either. At the end of the fixth volume of Leland's Itinerary, we are favoured by Mr. Hearne with a Macaronick poem on a battle at Oxford between the scholars and the townfmen: on a line of which,

" Invadunt aulas bychefon cum forth geminantes," our commentator very wifely and gravely remarks: "Bychefon, id eft, fon of a byche, ut è codice Rawlinfoniano edidi. Eo nempe modo quo et olim whorson dixerunt pro fon of a whore. Exempla habemus cum alibi tum in libello quodam lepido & antiquo (inter codices Seldenianos in Bibl. Bodl.) qui infcribitur: The Wife lapped in Morel's Skyn: or the Taming of a Shrew. Ubi pag. 36, fic legimus:

They wrestled togyther thus they two
"So long that the clothes asunder went.
"And to the ground he threwe her tho,
"That cleane from the backe her smock he rent.

"In every hand a rod he gate,

"And layd upon her a right good pace: " Afking of her what game was that,

" And she cried out, Horefon, alas, alas."

Et pag. 42:

"Come downe now in this seller so deepe,
" And morels skin there shall you fee:
"With many a rod that hath made me to weepe,
"When the blood ranne downe fast by my knee.
"The mother this beheld, and cryed out, alas :
"And ran out of the feller as she had been wood.

"She came to the table where the company was,
" And fayd out, horeson, I will fee thy harte blood."

appeared at the Black-Friars or the Globe. Nor let this feem derogatory from the character of our poet. There is no reason to believe, that he wanted to claim the play as his own; it was not even printed till fome years after his death: but he merely revived it on his stage as a manager.-Ravenfcroft affures us, that this was really the cafe with Titus Andronicus; which, it may be observed, hath not Shakspeare's name on the title-page of the only edition published in his life-time. Indeed, from every internal mark, I have not the least doubt but this horrible piece was originally written by the author of the lines thrown into the mouth of the player in Hamlet, and of the tragedy of Locrine: which likewife from fome assistance perhaps given to his friend, hath been unjustly and ignorantly charged upon Shakspeare.

But the sheet-anchor holds fast: Shakspeare himfelf hath left fome tranflations from Ovid. "The Epistles," says one, " of Paris and Helen, give a fufficient proof of his acquaintance with that poet:" "And it may be concluded," says another, "that he was a competent judge of other authors, who wrote in the fame language."

This hath been the univerfal cry, from Mr. Pope himself to the criticks of yesterday. Poffibly, however, the gentlemen will hefitate a moment, if we tell them, that Shakspeare was not the author of thefe tranflations. Let them turn to a forgotten book, by Thomas Heywood, called, Britaines Troy, printed by W. Jaggard in 1609, fol. and they will find these identical Epistles, "which being fo pertinent to our hiftorie," says Heywood, "I thought neceffarie to tranflate."-How then came they afcribed to Shakfpeare? We will tell them that likewife. The fame voluminous writer published an Apology for Altors, 4to. 1612, and in

an Appendix directed to his new printer, Nic. Okes, he accuses his old one, Jaggard, of "taking the two Epistles of Paris to Helen and Helen to Paris, and printing them in a less volume, and under the name of another: -but he was much offended with Master Jaggard, that altogether unknowne to him, he had prefumed to make fo bold with his name."s In the fame work of Heywood are all the other tranflations, which have been printed in the modern editions of the poems of Shakspeare.

You now hope for land: We have feen through little matters, but what must be done with a whole book?-In 1751, was reprinted, "A compendious or briefe Examination of certayne ordinary Complaints of diuers of our Countrymen in these our Days: which although they are in fome Parte unjust and friuolous, yet are they all by way of Dialogue throughly debated and difcuffed by William Shakspeare, Gentleman." 8vo.

This extraordinary piece was originally published in 4to. 1581, and dedicated by the author, "To the most vertuous and learned lady, his most deare and foveraigne princesse, Elizabeth; being inforced by her Majefties late and fingular clemency in pardoning certayne his unduetifull mifdemeanour." And by the modern editors, to the late King; as a treatife compofed by the most extensive and fertile genius, that ever any age or nation produced."

Here we join issue with the writers of that excellent though very unequal work, the Biographia Britannica:" "If," say they, "this piece could be written by our poet, it would be absolutely decifive in the dispute about his learning; for many

6 I must however correct a remark in the Life of Spenser, which is impotently levelled at the first criticks of the age. It is observed from the correfpondence of Spenser and Gabriel Harvey, that the plan of The Fairy Queen, was laid, and part of it executed in 1580, three years before the Gierufalemme Liberata was printed: "hence appears the impertinence of all the apologies for his choice of Ariofto's manner in preference of Taffo's!"

But the fact is not true with refpect to Tasso. Manso and Niceron inform us, that his poem was published, though imperfectly, in 1574; and I myself can affure the biographer, that I have met with at least for other editions, preceding his date for its firft publication. I suspect, that Baillet is accountable for this mistake: who in the Jugemens des Scavans, Tom. III. p. 399, mentions no edition previous to the quarto, Venice, 1583.

It is a question of long ftanding, whether a part of The Fairy Queen hath been loft, or whether the work was left unfinished: which may effectually be answered by a fingle quotation. William Browne published some Poems in fol. 1616, under the name of Britannia's Paftorals, "esteemed then," says Wood, to be written in a fublime strain, and for fubject amorous and very pleasing." In one of which, Book II. Song 1, he thus fpeaks of Spenfer :

" He sung th' heroicke knights of faiery land
" In lines so elegant, of fuch command,
"That had the Thracian plaid but halfe fo well,

"He had not left Eurydice in hell.

"But e're he ended his melodious song,

"An host of angels flew the clouds among,

"And rapt this swan from his attentive mates,
"To make him one of their affociates

"

" In heauens faire quire: where now he fings the praise "Of him that is the first and last of daies."

It appears, that Browne was intimate with Drayton, Jonfon, and Selden, by their poems prefixed to his book: he had therefore good opportunities of being acquainted with the fact abovementioned. Many of his poems remain in MS. We have in our library at Emmanuel a masque of his, presented at the Inner Temple, Jan. 13, 1614. The subject is the story of Ulyffes and Circe.

quotations appear in it from the Greek and Latin clafficks."

The concurring circumstances of the name, and the misdemeanor, which is supposed to be the old story of deer-stealing, feem fairly to challenge our poet for the author: but they hefitate.-His claim may appear to be confuted by the date 1581, when Shakspeare was only feventeen, and the long experience, which the writer talks of. But I will not keep you in fufpenfe: the book was not written by Shakspeare.

Strype, in his Annals, calls the author sOME learned man, and this gave me the first fufpicion. I knew very well, that honeft John (to use the language of Sir Thomas Bodley) did not waste his time with fuch baggage books as plays and poems; yet I must suppose, that he had heard of the name of Shakspeare. After a while I met with the original edition. Here in the title-page, and at the end of the dedication, appear only the initials, W. S. Gent. and presently I was informed by Anthony Wood, that the book in question was written, not by William Shakspeare, but by William Stafford, Gentleman:" which at once accounted for the misdemeanour in the dedication. For Stafford had been concerned at that time, and was indeed afterward, as Cainden and the other annalists inform us, with fome of the confpirators against Elizabeth; which he properly calls his unduetifull behaviour.

I hope by this time, that any one open to conviction may be nearly fatisfied; and I will promife to give you on this head very little more trouble.

1 Fafti, 2d edit. v. 1, 208.-It will be seen on turning to the former edition, that the latter part of the paragraph belongs to another Stafford. I have fince obferved, that Wood is not the first, who hath given us the true author of the pamphlet.