thofe who read few other books of the fame age. Addifon himfelf has been fo unsuccessful in enumerating the words with which Milton has enriched our language, as perhaps not to have named one of which Milton was the author; and Bentley has yet more unhappily praised him as the introducer of those ellifions into English poetry, which had been used from the firft effays of verfification among us, and which Milton was indeed the last that practised.

Another impediment, not the leaft vexatious to the commentator, is the exactnefs with which ShakeSpeare followed his authors. Inftead of dilating his thoughts into generalities, and expreffing incidents with poetical latitude, he often combines circumftances unneceffary to his main defign, only because he happened to find them together. Such paffages can be illuftrated only by him who has read the fame ftory in the very book which Shakespeare confulted.

He that undertakes an edition of Shakespeare, has all these difficulties to encounter, and all these obftructions to remove.

The corruptions of the text will be corrected by a careful collation of the oldeft copies, by which it i hoped that many reftorations may yet be made: at least it will be neceffary to collect and note the variation as materials for future criticks; for it very often happens that a wrong reading has affinity to the right.

In this part all the present editions are apparently and intentionally defective. The criticks did not fo much as with to facilitate the labour of those that followed them. The fame books are still to be compared;

compared; the work that has been done, is to be done again; and no fingle edition will fupply the reader with a text on which he can rely as the best copy of the works of Shakespeare.

The edition now propofed will at least have this advantage over others. It will exhibit all the obfervable varieties of all the copies that can be found; that, if the reader is not fatisfied with the editor's determination, he may have the means of choofing better for himself.

Where all the books are evidently vitiated, and collation can give no affiftance, then begins the task of critical fagacity: and fome changes may well be admitted in a text never fettled by the author, and fo long expofed to caprice and ignorance. But nothing fhall be impofed, as in the Oxford edition, without notice of the alteration; nor fhall conjecture he wantonly or unneceffarily indulged.

It has been long found, that very specious emendations, do not equally ftrike all minds with conviction, nor even the fame mind at different times; and therefore, though perhaps many alterations may be propofed as eligible, very few will be obtruded as certain. In a language fo ungrammatical as the English, and fo licentious as that of Shakespeare, emendatory criticism is always hazardous; nor can it be allowed to any man who is not particularly verfed in the writings of that age, and particularly ftudious of his author's diction.

There is danger

left peculiarities should be mistaken for corruptions, and paffages rejected as unintelligible, which a narrow mind happens not to understand.

All the former criticks have been fo much employed on the correction of the text, that they have not fufficiently attended to the elucidation of paffages obfcured by accident or time. The editor will endeavour to read the books which the author read, to trace his knowledge to its fource, and compare his copies with their originals. If in this part of his defign he hopes to attain any degree of fuperiority to his predeceffors, it must be confidered, that he has the advantage of their labours; that part of the work being already done, more care is naturally beftowed on the other part; and that, to declare the truth, Mr. Rowe and Mr. Pope were very ignorant of the ancient English literature; Dr. Warburton was detained by more important ftudies; and Mr. Theobald, if fame be just to his memory, confidered learning only as an inftrument of gain, and made no further inquiry after his author's meaning, when once he had notes fufficient to embellifh his page with the expected decorations.

With regard to obfolete or peculiar diction, the editor may perhaps claim fome degree of confidence, having had more motives to confider the whole extent of our language than any other man from its first formation. He hopes that, by comparing the works of Shakespeare with thofe of writers who lived at the fame time, immediately preceded, or immediately followed him, he fhall be able to afcertain his ambiguities, difentangle his intricacies, and recover the meaning of words now loft in the darknefs of antiquity.

When therefore any obfcurity arifes from an allufion to fome other book, the paffage will be quot

:. ed.

ed. When the diction is entangled, it will be cleared by a paraphrafe or interpretation. When the fense is broken by the fuppreffion of part of the fentiment in pleasantry or paffion, the connexion will be fupplied. When any forgotten cuftom is hinted, care will be taken to retrieve and explain it. The meaning affigned to doubtful words will be fupported by the authorities of other writers, or by parallel. paffages of Shakespeare himself.

The obfervation of faults and beauties is one of the duties of an annotator, which fome of ShakeSpeare's editors have attempted, and fome have neglected. For this part of his task, and for this only, was Mr. Pope eminently and indifputably qualified; nor has Dr. Warburton followed him with lefs diligence or lefs fuccefs. But I have never observed that mankind was much delighted or improved by their afterisks, commas, or double commas; of which the only effect is, that they preclude the pleasure of judging for ourselves, teach the young and ignorant to decide without principles; defeat curiofity and difcernment, by leaving them less to difcover; and at laft fhow the opinion of the critick, without the reafons on which it was founded, and without affording any light by which it may be

examined.

The editor, though he may lefs delight his own vanity will probably please his reader more, by fuppofing him equally able with himself to judge of beauties and faults, which require no previous acquifition of remote knowledge. A defcription of the obvious fcenes of nature, a reprefentation of general life, a fentiment of reflection or experience, a deduc

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a deduction of conclufive arguments, a forcible eruption of effervefcent paffion, are to be confidered as proportionate to common apprehenfion, unaffifted by critical officioufnefs; fince, to convince them, nothing more is requifite than acquaintance with the general ftate of the world, and those faculties which he must almoft bring with him who would read Shakespeare.

But when the beauty arises from fome adaptation of the fentiment to cuftoms worn out of ufe, to opinions not univerfally prevalent, or to any accidental or minute particularity, which cannot be fupplied by common understanding, or common obfervation, it is the duty of a commentator to lend his affiftance.

The notice of beauties and faults thus limited, will make no diftinct part of the defign, being reducible to the explanation of obfcure paffages.

The editor does not however intend to preclude himself from the comparison of Shakespeare's fentiments or expreffion with thofe of ancient or modern authors, or from the display of any beauty not obvious to the students of poetry; for as he hopes to leave his author better understood, he wishes likewife to procure him more rational approbation.

The former editors have affected to flight their predeceffors. but in this edition all that is valuable will be adopted from every commentator, that pofterity may confider it as including all the reft, and exhibiting whatever is hitherto known of the great father of the English drama.