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he was feated among fome company, who were eating, and one of them fung a fong." See the character of Adam, in As you like it, Act II. fc. ult.

"Verfes by Ben Jonfon and Shakspeare, occafioned by the motto to the Globe Theatre-Totus mundus agit hiftrionem.

Jonfon.

If, but tage actors, all the world difplays,
Where shall we find spectators of their plays?"

Shakspeare.

Little, or much, of what we fee, we do;
We are all both actors and Spectators too."

Poetical Characteristicks, 8vo. MS. Vol. I. fome time in the Harleian Library; which volume was returned to its owner."

"Old Mr. Bowman the player reported from Sir William Bishop, that fome part of Sir John Falftaff's character was drawn from a townfman of Stratford, who either faithlefsly broke a contract, or fpitefully refused to part with fome land for a valuable confideration, adjoining to Shakspeare's, in or near that town.'

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To these anecdotes I can only add the following.

At the conclufion of the advertisement prefixed to Lintot's edition of Shakspeare's Poems, it is faid, "That most learned prince and great patron of learning, King James the Firft, was pleafed with

his own hand to write an amicable letter to Mr. Shakspeare; which letter, though now loft, remained long in the hands of Sir William D'Avenant,3 as a credible perfon now living can teftify."

Mr. Oldys, in a MS. note to his copy of Fuller's Worthies, obferves, that "the story came from the Duke of Buckingham, who had it from Sir William D'Avenant."

It appears from Rofcius Anglicanus, (commonly called Downes the prompter's book,) 1708, that Shakspeare took the pains to inftruct Jofeph Taylor in the character of Hamlet, and John Lowine in that of King Henry VIII. STEEVENS.

The late Mr. Thomas Ofborne, bookfeller, (whose exploits are celebrated by the author of the Dunciad,) being ignorant in what form or language our Paradife Loft was written, employed one of his garretteers to render it from a French tranflation into English profe. Left, hereafter, the compofitions of Shakspeare fhould be brought back into their native tongue from the verfion of Monfieur le Compte de Catuelan, le Tourneur, &c. it may be neceffary to obferve, that all the following particulars, extracted from the preface of thefe gentlemen, are as little founded in truth as their defcription of the ridiculous Jubilee at Stratford, which

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which letter, though now loft, remained long in the hands of Sir William D'Avenant,] Dr. Farmer with great probability fuppofes that this letter was written by King James in return for the compliment paid to him in Macbeth. The relater of this anecdote was Sheffield, Duke of Buckingham.

MALONE,

they have been taught to reprefent as an affair of general approbation and national concern.

They fay, that Shakspeare came to London without a plan, and finding himself at the door of a theatre, inftinctively ftopped there, and offered himself to be a holder of horfes :-that he was remarkable for his excellent performance of the Ghost in Hamlet :--that he borrowed nothing from preceding writers :-that all on a fudden he left the stage, and returned without eclat into his native country that his monument at Stratford is of copper :-that the courtiers of James I. paid feveral compliments to him which are still preserved :that he relieved a widow, who, together with her numerous family, was involved in a ruinous lawfuit:-that his editors have reftored many paffages in his plays, by the affiftance of the manuscripts he left behind him, &c. &c.

Let me not, however, forget the justice due to thefe ingenious Frenchmen, whose skill and fidelity in the execution of their very difficult undertaking, is only exceeded by fuch a difplay of candour as would ferve to cover the imperfections of much lefs elegant and judicious writers. STEEVENS.

STRATFORD REGISTER.

BAPTISMS, MARRIAGES, and BURIALS, of the Shakspeare Family; tranfcribed from the RegifterBooks of the Parish of Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire.4

JONE,5 daughter of John Shakspere, was baptized Sept. 15, 1558.

Margaret, daughter of John Shakspere, was buried April 30, 1563.

WILLIAM, Son of John Shakfpere, was baptized April 26, 1564.6

Johanna, daughter of Richard Hathaway, otherwise Gardiner, of Shottery," was baptized May 9, 1566.

An inaccurate and very imperfect lift of the baptisms, &c. of Shakspeare's family was tranfmitted by Mr. Weft about eighteen years ago to Mr. Steevens. The lift now printed I have extracted with great care from the Regifters of Stratford; and I truft, it will be found correct. MALONE.

This lady Mr. Weft supposed to have married the ancestor of the Harts of Stratford; but he was certainly mistaken. She died probably in her infancy. The wife of Mr. Hart was undoubtedly the Second Jone, mentioned below. Her fon Michael was born in the latter end of the year 1608, at which time the was above thirty-nine years old. The elder Jone would then have been near fifty. MALONE.

6 He was born three days before, April 23, 1564. MALONE. 7 This Richard Hathaway of Shottery was probably the father to Anne Hathaway, our poet's wife. There is no entry of her baptifm, the Regifter not commencing till 1558, two years after she was born. Thomas, the fon of this Richard Hathaway,

Gilbert, fon of John Shakspere, was baptized Oct. 13, 1566.

Jone, daughter of John Shakfpere, was baptized April 15, 1569.

Anne, daughter of Mr. John Shakspere, was baptized Sept. 28, 1571.

Richard, fon of Mr. John Shakspere, was baptized March 11, 1573. [1573-4.]

Anne, danghter of Mr. John Shakspere, was buried April 4, 1579.

Edmund, fon of Mr. John Shakfpere, was baptized May 3, 1580.

Sufanna, daughter of WILLIAM SHAKSPERE, was baptized May 26, 1583.

Elizabeth, daughter of Anthony Shakfpere, of Hampton, was baptized February 10, 1583. [1583-4.]

was baptized at Stratford, April 12, 1569; John, another fon, Feb. 3, 1574; and William, another fon, Nov. 30, 1578.

MALONE.

8 It was common in the age of Queen Elizabeth to give the fame christian name to two children fucceffively. (Thus, Mr. Sadler, who was godfather to Shakspeare's fon, had two fons who were baptized by the name of John. See note 1.) This was undoubtedly done in the prefent inftance. The former Jone having probably died, (though I can find no entry of her burial in the Regifter, nor indeed of many of the other children of John Shakspeare) the name of Jone, a very favourite one in those days, was transferred to another new-born child. This latter Jone married Mr. William Hart, a hatter in Stratford, fome time, as I conjecture, in the year 1599, when the was thirty years old; for her eldest fon William was baptized there, Auguft 28, 1600. There is no entry of her marriage in the Regifter. MALONE.

There was also a Mr. Henry Shakspeare fettled at HamptonLucy, as appears from the Register of that parish:

1582 Lettice, daughter of Henry Shakspeare, was baptized. 1585-James, fon of Henry Shakspeare, was baptized. 1589 James, fon of Henry Shakspeare, was buried. There was a Thomas Shakspeare fettled at Warwick; for in

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