here, out of refpect to the judgment of thofe who had omitted them before It is to be wifhed, that fome method of publication most favourable to the character of an author were once established; whether we are to fend into the world all his works without diftinction, or arbitrarily to leave out what may be thought a disgrace to him. The first editors, who rejected PERICLES, retained TITUS ANDRONICUs; and Mr. POPE, without any reafon, named THE WINTER'S TALE, a play that bears the strongest marks of the hand of SHAKESPEARE, among those which he fuppofed to be fpurious. Dr. WARBURTON has fixed a ftigma on the three parts of HENRY THE SIXTH, and some others; Inde DOLABELLA eft, atq; hinc ANTONIUS, and all have been willing to plunder SHAKESPEARE, or mix up A BREED OF BARREN METAL with his pureft ore. JOSHUA BARNES, the editor of EURIPIDES, thought every scrap of his author fo facred, that he has preferved with the name of one of his plays, the only remaining word of it. The fame reason indeed might be given in his favour, which caused the preservation of that valuable trifyllable; which is, that it cannot be found in any other place in the GREEK language. But this does not feem to have been his only motive, as we find he has to the full as carefully published feveral detached and broken fentences, the gleanings from scholiasts, which have no claim to merit of that kind; and yet the author's works might be reckoned by fome to be incomplete without them. If then this duty is expected from every editor of a GREEK or ROMAN poet, why is not the fame infifted on in refpect of an ENGLISH claffic? But if the cuftom of preferving all, whether worthy of it or not, be MORE HONOURED IN THE BREACH THAN THE OBSERVANCE, the fuppreffion at least should not be confidered as a fault. The publication of fuch things as SwIFT had written merely to raise a laugh among his friends, has added fomething, to the bulk of his works, but very little to his character as a writer. The four volumes that came out fince Dr. HAWKESWORTH'S edition, not to look on them as a tax levied on the public (which I think one might without injustice) contain not more than fufficient to have made one of real value; and there is a kind of difingenuity, not to give it a harfher title, in exhibiting what the author never meant should see the light; for no motive, but a fordid one, can betray the furvivors to make that public, which they themselves must be of opinion will be unfavourable to the memory of the dead. LIFE does not often receive good unmixed with evil. The benefits of the art of printing are depraved by the facility with which scandal may be diffufed, diffufed, and fecrets revealed; and by the temptation by which traffic folicits avarice to betray the weakneffes of paffion, or the confidence of friendship. I CANNOT forbear to think these pofthumous publications injurious to fociety. A man conscious of literary reputation will grow in time afraid to write with tenderness to his fifter, or with fondness to his child; or to remit on the flightest occafion, or moft preffing exigence, the rigour of critical choice, and grammatical severity. That esteem which preserves his letters, will at laft produce his disgrace; when that which he wrote only to his friend or his daughter shall be laid open to the public. THERE is perhaps fufficient evidence, that the plays in queftion, unequal as they may be to the reft, were written by SHAKESPEARE; but the reafon generally given for publishing the lefs correct pieces of an author, that it affords a more impartial view of a man's talents or way of thinking, than when we only fee him in form, and prepared for our reception, is not enough to condemn an editor who thinks and practifes otherwife. For what is all this to fhew, but that every man is more dull at one time than another; a fact which the world would have easily admitted, without asking any proofs in its fupport that might be deftructive to an author's reputation, To conclude; if the work which this publication was meant to facilitate, has been already performed, the the fatisfaction of knowing it to be fo, may be obtained from hence; if otherwife, let those who raised expectations of correctness, and through negligence defeated them, be justly expofed by future editors, who will now be in poffeffion of by far the greatest part of what they might have enquired after for years to no purpose; for in respect of fuch a number of the old Quarto's as are here exhibited, the first Folio is a common book. This advantage will at leaft arife, that future editors having equally. recourse to the fame copies, can challenge diftinction and preference only by genius, capacity, industry, and learning. As I have only collected materials for future artifts, I confider what I have been doing as no more than an apparatus for their ufe. If the public is inclined to receive it as fuch, I am amply rewarded for my trouble; if otherwife, I fhall fubmit with chearfulness to the cenfure which fhould equitably fall on an injudicious attempt; having this confolation, however, that my defign amounted to no more than a defire to encourage others to think of preferving the oldest editions of the ENGLISH writers, which are growing fcarcer every day; and to afford the world all the affiftance or pleasure it can receive from the most authentic copies extant of its NOBLEST POET, A LIST OF THE OLD EDITIONS O F SHAKESPEARE'S PLAY S. Those in Quarto marked with Asterisks are in no for'mer tables. I know no one who has feen those in the Italic Characters, but find them in Mr. Pope's and Mr. Theobald's Lifts, and in Dr. Warburton's, which is compiled from them. I. II. III. IV. 1. Midfummer Night's Dream, William Shakefpeare, 1600. 2. Do. William Shakespeare, 1600, James Roberts. 1. Merry Wives of Windfor, William Shakespeare, 2. Do. William Shakespeare, 1619, for Do. Much ado about Nothing, William Shakespeare, 1. Merchant of Venice, William Shakespeare, 1600. 2. W. Shakespeare, 1600, T. Roberts. 4. Do. William Shakespeare, 1652, for William Leake. 1. Love's |