Page images
PDF
EPUB
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

Ti

Parnaffus, by the author of the Return from Parnaffus, Believe as you Lift, by Maffinger, The Pirate, by Davenport, Rofania or Love's Victory, a comedy by Shirley, (fome of whofe plays were extant in MS. in Langbaine's time,) The Twins, a tragedy, acted in 1613,-Tancredo, a tragedy, by Sir Henry Wotton, Demetrius and Marfina, or the imperial Impoftor and unhappy Heroine, a tragedy; The Tyrant, a tragedy,―The Queen of Corfica, The Bugbears, -The Second Maid's Tragedy, mon, a comedy,—Cataline's Confpiracy, a tragedy,and Captain Mario, a comedy; both by Stephen Goffon, The True Hiftorie of George Scanderbeg, as played by the right hon. the Earl of Oxenforde's fervants, Jane Shore, The Bold Beauchamps, The Second Part of Sir John Oldcastle, The General, The Toy,- The Tell-tale, a comedy,-The Woman's Plot,-The Woman's too hard for Him, [both acted at court in 1621.]-The Love-fick Maid, [acted at court in 1629.]-Fulgius and Lucrelle,―The Fool Transformed, a comedy,-The Hiftory of Lewis the Eleventh, King of France, a tragi-comedy, The Chafte woman against her Will, a comedy,-The Tooth-Drawer, a comedy,-Honour in the End, a comedy,-The Hiftory of Don Quixote, or the Knight of the ill-favoured countenance, a comedy,-The Fair Spanish Captive, a tragi-comedy,-The tragedy of Heildebrand,-Love yields to honour,-The Noble

7

7 The perfons represented in this play (which is in my poffeffion) are Duke; Fidelio; Afpero; Hortenfio; Borgias; Picentio; Count Gifmond; Fernefe; Bentivoglio; Cofmo; Julio; Captain; Lieutenant; Ancient; two Doctors; an Ambaffador; Victoria; Eleanor; Ifabel; Lefbia.-Scene, Florence.

[ocr errors]

Friend, &c. &c. Soon after the Restoration, one Kirkman, a bookfeller printed many dramatick pieces that had remained unpublished for more than fixty years; and in an advertisement fubjoined to "A true, perfect and exact catalogue of all the comedies tragedies, &c. that were ever yet printed and published, till this prefent year 1671," he fays, that although there were, at that time, but eight hundred and fix plays in print, yet many more had been written and acted, and that "he himself had some quantity in manufcript."The resemblance between Macbeth and this newly difcovered piece by Middleton, naturally fuggefts a wifh, that if any of the unpublished plays, above enumerated, be yet in being, (befide The Second Maid's Tragedy, the Tell-tale, Timon, and Sir Thomas More, which are known to be extant,) their poffeffors would condefcend to examine them with attention; as hence, perhaps, new lights might be thrown on others of our author's plays.

It has been already fuggefted that it is probable our author about the time of his compofing Cymbeline and Macbeth devoted fome part of his leisure to the reading of the lives of Cæfar and Antony in North's tranflation of Plutarch. In the play · before there are two paffages which countenance that conjecture. "Under him," fays Macbeth,

[merged small][merged small][ocr errors]

The allufion here is to a paffage in the Life of Antony; where Shakspeare alfo found an account of the infane root that takes the reafon prifoner," which he has introduced in Macbeth.

A paffage in the 8th book of Daniel's Civil Wars, feems to have been formed on one in this tragedy. The feventh and eighth books of Daniel's poem were first printed in 1609.

29. JULIUS CÆSAR, 1607.

A tragedy on the fubject, and with the title, of Julius Cæfar, written by Mr. William Alexander, who was afterwards earl of Sterline, was printed in the year 1607. This, I imagine, was prior to our author's performance, which was not entered at Stationers-hall, nor printed, till 1623. Shakfpeare, we know, formed at leaft twelve plays on fables that had been unsuccessfully managed by other poets; but no contemporary writer was daring enough to enter the lifts with him, in his life-time, or to model into a drama a subject which had already employed his pen; and it is not likely that Lord Sterline, who was then a véry young man, and had scarcely unlearned the Scottish idiom, fhould have been more hardy than any other poet

of that age.

I am aware, it may be objected, that this writer might have formed a drama on this ftory, not knowing that Shakspeare had previously compofed the tragedy of Julius Cæfar; and that, therefore, the publication of Mr. Alexander's play in 1607, is no proof that our author's performance did not then exist.—In anfwer to this objection, it may, perhaps, be fufficient to obferve, that Mr. Alexan

8 See Vol. XI. p. 61, n. 5.

See a note on Julius Cafar, A&t I. fc. i. in which they are enumerated.

der had, before that year, very wifely left the bleak fields of Menftrie in Clackmananfhire, for a warmer and more courtly refidence in London, having been appointed gentleman of the privy chamber to prince Henry: in which fituation his literary curiofity must have been gratified by the earliest notice of the productions of his brother dramatifts.

2

Lord Sterline's Julius Cæfar, though not printed till 1607, might have been written a year or two before; and perhaps its publication in that year was in confequence of our author's play on the fame fubject being then first exhibited. The fame obfervation may be made with refpect to an anonymous performance, called The Tragedie of Cafar and Pompey, or Cæfar's Revenge, of which an edition (I believe the fecond) was likewife printed in 1607. The fubject of that piece is the defeat of Pompey at Pharfalia, the death of Julius, and the final overthrow of Brutus and Caffius at Philippi. The attention of the town being, perhaps, drawn to the hiftory of the hook-nofed fellow of Rome, by the exhibition of Shakspeare's Julius Cæfar, the bookfellers, who printed these two plays, might have flattered themselves with the hope of an expeditious fale for them at that time, especially, as Shakspeare's play was not then published.

It does not appear that Lord Sterline's Julius Cafar was ever acted: neither it nor his other plays

2 There is an edition without date, which probably was the firft. This play, as appears by the title-page, was privately acted by the ftudents of Trinity College in Oxford. In the running title it is called The Tragedy of Julius Cæfar; perhaps the better to impofe it on the publick for the performance of Shakspeare.

being at all calculated for dramatick exhibition. On the other hand, Shakspeare's Julius Cafar was a very popular piece; as we learn from Digges, a contemporary writer, who in his commendatory verfes prefixed to our author's works, has alluded to it as one of his moft celebrated performances.3

We have certain proof that Antony and Cleopatra was compofed before the middle of the year 1608. An attentive review of that play and Julius Cæfar, will, I think, lead us to conclude that this latter was firft written. Not to infift on the chronology

3 "Nor fire nor cank'ring age, as Nafo faid

66

Of his, thy wit-fraught book fhall once invade: "Nor fhall I e'er believe or think thee dead,

[ocr errors]
[ocr errors]

(Though mifs'd) untill our bankrout ftage be sped
(Impoffible!) with fome new ftrain, t'out do
"Paffions of Juliet and her Romeo;

"Or till I hear a fcene more nobly take

"Than when thy half-fword parlying Romans fpake." Verfes by L. Digges, prefixed to the firft edition of our author's plays, in 1623.

The following paffages in Antony and Cleopatra, (and others of the fame kind may perhaps be found,) feem to me to difcover fuch a knowledge of the appropriated characters of the perfons exhibited in Julius Cæfar, and of the events there dilated and enlarged upon, as Shakspeare would neceffarily have acquired from having previously written a play on that fubject:

66

66

Pompey. I do not know

"Wherefore my father fhould revengers want,
Having a fon and friends, fince Julius Cæfar,
Who at Philippi the good Brutus ghofted,

"There faw you labouring for him. What was't,
"That mov'd pale Caffius to confpire? And what
"Made thee, all-honour'd, honeft, Roman Brutus,
"With the arm'd reft, courtiers of beauteous freedom,
"To drench the capitol, but that they would
"Have one man but a man?"

1

« PreviousContinue »