same author with Edward the Third, which had been recovered to the world in Mr. Capell's Prolufions. If any play in the collection bears internal evidence of Shakspeare's hand, we may fairly give him Timon of Athens. In this play we have a familiar quotation from Horace: "Ira furor brevis eft." I will not maintain but this hemistich may be found in Lilly or Udall; or that it is not in the Palace of Pleasure, or the English Plutarch; or that it was not originally fosted in by the players: it stands, however, in the play of Timon of Athens. The world in general, and those who purpose to comment on Shakspeare in particular, will owe much to Mr. Farmer, whose researches into our old authors throw a luftre on many passages, the obfcurity of which must else have been impenetrable. No future Upton or Gildon will go further than North's tranflation for Shakspeare's acquaintance with Plutarch, or balance between Dares Phrygius, and The Troye Booke of Lydgate. The Hystorie of Hamblet, in black letter, will for ever fuperfede Saxo Grammaticus; tranflated novels and ballads will, perhaps, be allowed the fources of Romeo, Lear, and The Merchant of Venice; and Shakspeare himself, however unlike Bayes in other particulars, will stand convicted of having transversed the profe of Holinshed; and, at the fame time, to prove "that his ftudies lay in his own language," the tranflations of Ovid are determined to be the production of Heywood. "That his studies were most demonftratively confined to nature, and his own language," I readily allow: but does it hence follow that he was fo deplorably ignorant of every other tongue, living or dead, that he only "remembered, perhaps, enough of his school-boy learning to put the big, bag, bog, into the mouth of Sir H. Evans; and might pick up in the writers of the time, or the course of his conversation, a familiar phrase or two of French or Italian." In Shakspeare's plays both these last languages are plentifully scattered; but, then we are told, they might be impertinent additions of the players. Undoubtedly they might: but there they are, and, perhaps, few of the players had much more learning than Shakspeare. Mr. Farmer himself will allow that Shakspeare began to learn Latin: I will allow that his studies lay in English: but why insist that he neither made any progrefs at school; nor improved his acquifitions there? The general encomiums of Suckling, Denham, Milton, &c. on his native genius, prove nothing; and Ben Jonfon's celebrated charge of Shakspeare's Small Latin, and lefs Greek, seems absolutely to decide that he had some knowledge of both; and if we may judge by our own time, a man, who has any Greek, is feldom without a very competent share of Latin; and yet such a man is very likely to study Plutarch in English, and to read tranflations of Ovid. 9 Mr. Farmer closes the general teftimonies of Shakspeare's having been only indebted to nature, by saying, "He came out of her hand, as fome one else expresses it, like Pallas out of Jove's head, at full growth and mature." It is whimsical enough, that this fome one else, whose expreffion is here quoted to countenance the general notion of Shakfpeare's want of literature, should be no other than myself. Mr. Farmer does not choose to mention where he met with the expreffion of fome one elfe; and fome one elfe does not choose to mention where he dropt it.* * In defence of the various reading of this passage, given in the Preface to the last edition of Shakspeare, "fmall Latin and no Greek," Mr. Farmer tells us, that " it was adopted above a century * It will appear ftill more whimsical that this fome one else whose expression is here quoted, may have his claim to it fuperfeded by that of the late Dr. Young, who in his Conjectures on Original Composition, (p. 100, Vol. V. edit. 1773,) has the following sentence: "An adult genius comes out of nature's hands, as Pallas out of Jove's head, at full growth and mature. Shakspeare's genius was of this kind." Where fome one e fe the first may have intermediately dropped the contested expreffion I cannot afcertain; but fome one else the fecond transcribed it from the author already mentioned. ANON. See Dr. Farmer's reply to these remarks by Mr. Colman, in a note on Love's LABOUR'S LOST, A& IV. fc. ii. p. 258. ago by W. Towers, in a panegyrick on Cartwright." Surely, Towers having faid that Cartwright had no Greek, is no proof that Ben Jonfon faid so of Shakspeare," ANCIENT TRANSLATIONS FROM CLASSICK AUTHORS. T HOME R. EN Bookes of Homer's Iliades translated out of French, by Arthur Hall, Esquire. At London. Imprinted by Ralph Newberie, 4to.3 1581 The Shield of Achilles from the 18th Book of Homer, by Geo. Chapman, 4to. Lond. 1596 Seven Books of the Iliades, by ditto, 4to. Lond. Do. 1596 1598 Homer Prince of Poets: translated according to the Greeke in Twelve Bookes of his Iliads: By Geo. Chapman; small folio. Lond. printed for Samuel Macham. No date. * This Lift was drawn up by Mr. Steevens. I have made a few inconfiderable additions to it, which are diftinguished by this mark. MALONE. 3 In the first vol. of the books of entries belonging to the Stationers' Company, is the following: " Henry Bynneman.] Nov. 1580, lycensed unto him under the wardens' handes ten bookes of the Iliades of Homer." Again, Samuel Macham.] Nov. 14, 1608. "Seven bookes of Homer's Iliades tranflated into English by Geo. Chapman.-[By affignment from Mr. Windett.) Again, Nathaniel Butter] April 8, 1611, "A booke called Homer's Iliades in Englishe, containing 24 Bookes. Again, Nov. 2, 1614, " Homer's Odisses 24 bookes, translated by George Chapman." 4 Meres, in his Second Part of Wits Commonwealth, fays that Chapman is " of good note for his inchoate Homer." [This, I believe, was published in 1609. There are feveral Sonnets at the end, addressed to different noblemen; among them one, "to the Lord Treasurer, the Earle of Salisbury." See also the entry below.] Fifteen Books of Do. thin folio 1600 The whole Works of Homer, by d°. printed for Nath. Butter; no date, but probably printed in 1611 The Crowne of all Homer's Works, Batrachomy machia, &c. The strange wonderfull and bloudy Battel between liam Fowldes,) 4to. HESIO D. The Georgicks of Hefiod, by George Chapman; Translated elaborately out of the Greek: Containing Doctrine of Husbandrie, Moralitie, and Pietie; with a perpetual Calendar of Good and Bad Daies; Not fuperftitious, but neceffarie (as farre as naturall Causes compell) for all men to observe, and difference in following their affaires. Nec caret umbra Deo. London, Printed by H. L. for Miles Partrich, and are to be folde at his Shop neare Saint Dunstans Church in Fleetstreet. 1618 [This title-page is given at full length, because the existence of the book it belongs to (which 5 In the first volume of the Entries of the Stationers' Company is the following: "T. Purfoote.] The Battel of the Frogges and Myce, and certain orations of Ifocrates." Jan. 4, 1579. |