To Face the First Page N° 3 of Shakespeares Will.

This Shadowe is renowned Shakespear's? Soule of th'age The applaufe delight? the wonder of the Stage. Nature her selfe, was proud of his defignes And joy'd to weare the dressing of his lines; The learned will Confefs, his works are fuch, As neither man, nor Mufe, can prayfe to much. For ever live thy fame, the world to tell, Thy like, no age, shall ever paralell.

executors to pay her confideration from my deceafe according to the rate aforefaid: and, if the die within the faid term without iffue of her body, then my will is, and I do give and bequeath one hundred pounds thereof to my niece Elizabeth Hall, and the fifty pounds to be fet forth by my executors during the life of my fifter Joan Harte, and the use and profit thereof coming, fhall be paid to my faid fifter Joan, and after her decease the faid fifty pounds thall remain amongst the children of my faid fifter, equally to be divided amongst them; but if my faid daughter Judith be living at the end of the faid three years, or any iffue of her body, then my will is, and fo I devife and bequeath the faid hundred and fifty pounds to be fet out by my executors and overfeers for the beft benefit of her and her iffue, and the ftock not to be paid unto her fo long as the fhall be married and coyert baron; but my will is, that the fhall have the confideration yearly paid unto her during her life, and after her deceafe the faid ftock and confideration to be paid to her chil dren, if fhe have any, and if not, to her executors and affigns, the living the faid term after my deceafe; provided that if fuch bufband as the fhall at the end of the faid three years be married unto, or at and after, do fufficiently affure unto her, and the iffue of her body, land anfwerable to the portion by this my will giveu unto her, and to be adjudged fo by my executors and overfeers, then my will is, that the faid hundred and fifty pounds fhall be paid to fuch husband shall make fuch affurance, to his own use.

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Item, I give and bequeath unto my faid fifter Joan twenty pounds, and all my wearing apparel, to be paid and delivered within one year after my decease; and I do will and devife unto her the houfe, with the appurtenances, in Strat-, ford, wherein the dwelleth, for her natural life, under the' yearly value of twelve pence.

Item, I give and bequeath unto her three fons, William Hart, Hart, and Michael Hart, five pounds apiece, be paid within one year after my deceafe.

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Item, I give and bequeath unto the faid Elizabeth Hall all my plate that I now have, except my broad filver and gilt boxes, at the date of this my will.

Item, I give and bequeath unto the poor of Stratford aforefaid ten pounds, to Mr. Thomas Combe my fword; to Thomas Ruffel, efq; five pounds; and to Francis Collins. of the borough of Warwick, in the county of Warwick, gent.

gent. thirteen pounds fix fhillings and eight pence, to be paid within one year after my decease.

Item, I give and bequeath to Hamlet Sadler twenty-fix fhillings eight pence to buy him a ring; to William Reynolds, gent. twenty-fix fhillings eight pence to buy him a ring; to my godfon William Walker twenty fhillings in gold; to Anthony Nafh, gent. twenty-fix fhillings eight pence; and to Mr. John Nath twenty-fix fhillings eight pence; and to my fellows John Hemynge. Richard Burbage, and Henry Cundell, twenty-fix fhillings eight pence apiece to buy them rings.

Item, I give, will, bequeath, and devife unto my daughter Sufannah Hall, for the better enabling of her to perform this my will, and towards the performance thereof, all that capital meffuage or tenement, with the appurtenances, in Stratford aforefaid, called The New Place, wherein I now. dwell, and two meffuages or tenements, with the appurtenances, fituate, lying, and being in Henley-street, within the borough of Stratford aforefaid; and all my barns, stables, orchards, gardens, lands, tenements, and hereditaments whatsoever, fituate, lying, and being, or to be had, referved, preferved, or taken within the towns, hamlets, villages, fields, and grounds of Stratford upon Avon, Old Stratford, Bufhaxton, and Welcombe, or in any of them, in the faid county of Warwick; and alfo all that meffuage or tenement, with the appurtenances, wherein one John Robinson dwelleth, fituate, lying, and being in the Black-Friers in London near the Wardrobe; and all other my lands, tenements, and hereditaments whatsoever; to have and to hold all and fin-. gular the faid premises, with their appurtenances, unto the faid Sufannah Hall, for and during the term of her natural life; and after her decease to the first son of her body lawfully iffuing, and to the heirs males of the body of the faid first fon lawfully iffuing; and for default of fuch iffue, to the fecond fon of her body lawfully iffuing, and to the heirs males of the body of the faid fecond fon lawfully issuing;

*It appears from the regiflers in Doctors' Commons, that Burbage died in 1629. The wills of Hemynge and Cundell I could not meet with, though I fought for them as low as the year 1641. Several wills indeed I found with the names of J. Hemynge and Henry Cundell annexed, but they contain nothing characteristick of Shakspeare's affociates.

STEEVENS.

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and for default of fuch heirs, to the third fon of the body of the faid Sufannah lawfully iffuing, and of the heirs males of the body of the faid third fon lawfully iffuing; and for default of fuch iffue, the fame to be and remain to the fourth, fifth, fixth, and feventh fons of her body, lawfully iffuing one after another, and to the heires males of the bodies of the faid fourth, fifth, fixth, and feventh fons lawfully iffuing, in fuch manner as it is before limited to be, and remain to the firft, fecond, and third fons of her body, and to their heirs males; and for default of fuch iffue, the faid premifes to be and remain to my faid niece Hall, and the heirs males of her body lawfully iffuing; and for default of such iffue, to my daughter Judith, and the heirs males of her body lawfully iffuing; and for default of fuch iffue, to the right heirs of me the faid William Shakespeare for ever,

Item, I give unto my wife my brown beft bed with the furniture *.

Item, I give and bequeath to my faid daughter Judith my broad filver gilt bole. All the rest of my goods, chattels, Icafes, plate, jewels, and houfhold-ftuff whatsoever, after my debts and legacies paid, and my funeral expences dif charged, I give, devife, aud bequeath to my fon-in law, John Hall, gent, and my daughter Sufannah his wife, who I ordain and make executors of this my last will and tefta'ment. And I do intreat and appoint the faid Thomas Ruf fel, efq, and Francis Collins, gent. to be overfeers hereof. And do revoke all former wills, and publifh this to be my laft will and teftament. In witnefs whereof I have hereunto put my hand, the day and year first above-written, by me

William Shakspeare.

It appears, in the original will of Shakspeare (now in the Prerogative Office Doctors' Commons) that he had forgot his wife; the legacy to her being expreffed by an interlineation, as well as thofe to Hemynge, Burbage, and Condell.

The will is written on three fheets of paper, the two last of which are undoubtedly fubfcribed with Shakspeare's own hand. The first indeed has his name in the margin, but it differs tomewhat in fpelling as well as manner from the two liguatures that Now. The reader will find a fac-fimile of all the three, as well thofe of the witneffes, over-leaf. STERVENS.

Witness