yet continue to be made upon them-attacks which ought not to be made at any time nor from any place, but least of all from that place where Christian Charity ought more powerfully to have prevailed. From those attacks the cause has nothing to fear; and for ourselves we have this consolation, that if the ghost of Shakespeare could revisit this earth, and was now to come into this room, in one respect he would not be like the ghost of Hamlet's father, for I think he would not frown upon us."

The Town and Trade of Sheffield; and may no Craft but Handicraft ever gain a footing within it.

The Vice Presidents,-proposed by James Rimington, Esq.

Mr. Wake, for himself and Mr. Sorby, returned thanks, and requested leave of the Chairman to make a few observations, which he trusted would be thought pertinent to the subject, and impertinent to no man." Gentlemen," said Mr. Wake, "this day is to us a day of jubilee, intended to commemorate the genius and transcendant talents of a man, whose dramatic productions have contributed an inexhaustible and imperishable fund of amusement, information, and moral lessons to all the world. Gentlemen, he held up the mirror to Nature to teach the proud and rich to be humble, and the humble and poor to be content: in every page of his writings this assertion is exemplified, but more especially in those where he has given utterance to the contemplations of Kings.Witness, for instance, the beautiful soliloquy of Henry the Sixth:

"Gives not the hawthorn bush a sweeter shade

To shepherds looking on their silly sheep,

Than doth a rich embroider'd canopy
To Kings, that fear their subjects' treachery?

O yes, it doth; a thousand fold it doth,

And to conclude, the shepherd's homely curds,
His cold thin drink out of his leathern bottle,
His wonted sleep under a fresh tree's shade,
All which secure and sweetly he enjoys,

Is far beyond a prince's delicates;
His viands sparkling in a golden cup,

His body couched in a curious bed,

When care, mistrust, and treason wait on him."

Witness, again, the sublime apostrophe of Henry the

Nature's soft nurse, how have I frighted thee,

That thou no more wilt weigh mine eyelids down

And steep my senses in forgetfulness!

Why rather, sleep, liest thou in smoky cribs,

Upon uneasy pallets stretching thee,

And hush'd with buzzing night-flies to thy slumber;

Than in the perfum'd chambers of the great,

Under the canopies of costly state,

And lull'd with sounds of sweetest melody;

O thou dull God! why liest thou with the vile,

In loathsome beds, and leav'st the kingly couch
A watch-case or a common larum bell?

Wilt thou upon the high and giddy mast
Seal up the ship-boy's eyes, and rock his brains
In cradle of the rude imperious surge;

And in the visitation of the winds

Who take the ruffian billows by the top,

Curling their monstrous heads, and hanging them
With deafening clamours in the slippery shrouds,

That, with the hurly, death itself awakes?
Can'st thou, O partial sleep! give thy repose

To the wet sea-boy in an hour so rude!
And in the calmest and the stillest night,
With all appliances and means to boot,
Deny it to a King?"

Where, Gentlemen, can there be found language so simple, so beautiful, so powerfully calculated to impress upon the mind of man resignation to the will of God?

G

Where, Gentlemen, are there expressions, coming from the mouths of Kings, so emphatically telling every monarch that he is but a man, and every man that he has 66 MEASURE FOR MEASURE” of the bounties of his Creator?"

The Land we live in-" This little World, this precious Stone, set in the silver sea!"

The Master-Cutler and Company.

A free Press, without which we should not have had the benefit of Shakespeare handed down to us.

The Duke of Norfolk :

"A nobleman," said the Chairman, " of the highest rank and consideration in the country, and who has very recently honoured us with his company on two public occasions; the good effects of which, he hoped, would be shewn in a more liberal and tolerant line of conduct in all matters of religion."

The Town Trustees.

The Duke of Devonshire.

Earl Fitzwilliam

Whom the Chairman spoke of as a nobleman for whose enjoyment of health and life every man in the country must feel a warm interest. He has now borne a conspicuous part for a number of years on the great theatre of life, and in all that period has filled every character he has undertaken, with honour to his country, with kindness to his neighbours, and with credit to himself.

The Stewards-by Mr. Brownell.

The County Members:-May they continue to be just and fear not, and let all the ends they aim at be their Country's.

James Rimington, Esq. in a very handsome manner, complimented Mr. Wake for his happy quotations from

Shakespeare, and proposed his good health as Chairman

for the next year.

The Chairman for the next Shakespeare Dinner.

Mr. Wake returned thanks as follows:

"So many minutes make the hour complete :
So many hours bring about the day;

So many days will finish up the year.'"

And, then, Gentlemen, I hope to have the honour and gratification of meeting you all again in the same good health and spirits as I find you now.

The Magistrates for this district.

The Chairman, in giving this toast, remarked, that they were gentlemen who gave up much of their time to the public without any remuneration, and who, in settling the disputes of their neighbours and preserving the peace of the country, always let mercy lean to justice.

The Twelve Capital Church Burgesses.

The Memory of the late Rev. James Wilkinson.

Immediately on the Chairman retiring, Dr. Younge supplied his place, and said:-"I take this favourable opportunity, Gentlemen, to acquaint you with the compliment paid to this Society by a friend personally unknown to us. I have received a dramatic publication of very superior excellence, "CATILINE, a Tragedy," a present to the Shakespeare Club from the author, the Rev. George Croly, A. M. I have read it over and over with increasing admiration of its merits, and I promise you all a high treat, as it will be circulated among the members, who will find in it pages of beauties which our Shakespeare himself might have been proud to have written. I propose the health of—

Mr. Croly, with our warmest thanks.

Dr. Corbett.

Mr. Rimington, the First President of the Club.

The Army and Navy, with thanks to Lieutenant Seaton, of the 7th Royal Fusileers, for his company.

Lieutenant Seaton acknowledged the compliment.

The Secretary, Mr. Brammall, with thanks to him for his Services rendered to the Club.

Mr. Brammall said-For the honour the Club had done him, he begged most respectfully to thank them. The Club was under no obligation to him, being himself a person obliged by having the post, which, however humble it might be, 66 was a post of honour" in so noble a cause— the cause of Shakespeare and the legitimate drama of our country against illiberality and fanaticism.

Dr. Younge favoured the company with many observations, which were highly interesting, applicable, and entertaining, and tended exceedingly to enliven the company; but being obliged to retire, Mr. Wake was called to fill the Chair by the unanimous voice of the company, who gave

The Treasurer, Mr. William Smith.

Mr. Smith paid a handsome compliment to his predecessor, Mr. T. Pearson, trusting that he might be able to follow the example of that gentleman, to the satisfaction of the Society.

The Rev. Charles Steade Hope.

The conviviality of the day was kept up till a late hour, and the company expressed themselves highly gratified, and particularly so by the very gentlemanly conduct of the Chairman, and the appropriate manner in which he introduced his toasts.

The play bespoken this year was King John. Neither in this nor any other country has a writer ever appeared, whose works have occasioned a greater variety of com