opinions prevalent in one age, as truths above the reach of controverfy, are confuted and rejected in another, and rife again to reception in remoter times. Thus the human mind is kept in motion without progrefs. Thus fometimes truth and error, and fometimes contrarieties of error, take each other's place by reciprocal invafion. The tide of feeming knowledge which is poured over one generation, retires and leaves another naked and barren; the fudden meteors of intelligence, which for a while appear to fhoot their beams into the regions of obfcurity, on a fudden withdraw their luftre, and leave mortals again to grope their

way.

These elevations and depreffions of renown, and the contradictions to which all improvers of knowledge muft for ever be expofed, fince they are not escaped by the higheft and brightest of mankind, may furely be endured with patience by criticks and annotators, who can rank themselves but as the fatellites of their authors. How canft thou beg for life, fays Homer's hero to his captive, when thou knoweft that thou art now to fuffer only what muft another day be fuffered by Achilles?

Dr. Warburton had a name fufficient to confer celebrity on those who could exalt themfelves into antagonists, and his notes have raifed a clamour too loud to be diftin&t. His chief affailants are the authors of The canons of criticism, and of The revifal of Shakspeare's text; of whom one ridicules. his errors with airy petulance, fuitable enough to the levity of the controverfy; the other attacks them with gloomy malignity, as if he were dragging

to juftice an affaffin or incendiary. The one flings like a fly, fucks a little blood, takes a gay flutter, and returns for more; the other bites like a viper, and would be glad to leave inflammations and gangrene behind him. When I think on one, with his confederates, I remember the danger of Coriolanus, who was afraid that girls with fpits, and boys with ftones, fhould pay him in puny battle; when the other croffes my imagination, I remember the prodigy in Macbeth:

"A falcon tow'ring in his pride of place,

"Was by a moufing owl hawk'd at and kill'd.”

Let me however do them juftice. One is a wit, and one a scholar. They have both fhewn acutenefs fufficient in the difcovery of faults, and have both advanced fome probable interpretations of obfcure paffages; but when they. afpire to conjecture and emendation, it appears how falfely we all estimate our own abilities, and the little which they have been able to perform might have taught them more candour to the endeavours of others.

Before Dr. Warburton's edition, Critical Obfervations on Shakspeare had been published by Mr. Upton,' a man skilled in languages, and acquainted with books, but who feems to have had no great

2 It is extraordinary that this gentleman fhould attempt fa voluminous a work, as the Revifal of Shakspeare's text, when he tells us in his preface, "he was not fo fortunate as to be furnished with either of the folio editions, much lefs any of the ancient quartos: and even Sir Thomas Hanmer's performance was known to him only by Dr. Warburton's representation." FARMER

3 Republished by him in 1748, after Dr. Warburton's edition, with alterations, &c. STEEVENS.

vigour of genius or nicety of tafte. Many of his explanations are curious and useful, but he likewife, though he profeffed to oppofe the licentious confidence of editors, and adhere to the old copies, is unable to refrain the rage of emendation, though his ardour is ill feconded by his skill. Every cold empirick, when his heart is expanded by a fuccefsful experiment, fwells into a theorist, and the laborious collator at fome unlucky moment frolicks in conjecture.

Critical, hiftorical, and explanatory notes have been likewife publifhed upon Shakspeare by Dr. Grey, whofe diligent perufal of the old Englifh writers has enabled him to make fome useful obfervations. What he undertook he has well enough performed, but as he neither attempts judicial nor emendatory criticifm, he employs rather his memory than his fagacity. It were to be wifhed that all would endeavour to imitate his modefty, who have not been able to furpafs his knowledge.

I can fay with great fincerity of all my predeceffors what I hope will hereafter be faid of me, that not one has left Shakspeare without improvement, nor is there one to whom I have not been indebted for affiftance and information. Whatever I have taken from them, it was my intention to refer to its original author, and it is certain, that what I have not given to another, I believed when I wrote it to be my own. In fome perhaps I have been anticipated; but if I am ever found to encroach upon the remarks of any other commentator, I am willing that the honour, be it more or lefs, fhould be transferred to the firft claimant, for

his right, and his alone, ftands above dispute; the fecond can prove his pretenfions only to himself, nor can himself always diftinguish invention, with fufficient certainty, from recollection.

They have all been treated by me with candour, which they have not been careful of observing to one another. It is not easy to discover from what cause the acrimony of a fcholiaft can naturally proceed. The fubjects to be difcuffed by him arc of very fmall importance; they involve neither property nor liberty; nor favour the intereft of fect or party. The various readings of copies, and different interpretations of a paffage, seem to be queftions that might exercise the wit, without engaging the paffions. But whether it be, that fmall things make mean men proud, and vanity catches fmall occafions; or that all contrariety of opinion, even in those that can defend it no longer, makes proud men angry; there is often found in commentaries a fpontaneous ftrain of invective and contempt, more eager and venomous than is vented by the most furious controvertift in politicks against those whom he is hired to defame.

Perhaps the lightness of the matter may conduce to the vehemence of the agency; when the truth to be investigated is fo near to inexistence, as to escape attention, its bulk is to be enlarged by rage and exclamation: that to which all would be indifferent in its original ftate, may attract notice when the fate of a name is appended to it. A commentator has indeed great temptations to fupply by turbulence what he wants of dignity, to beat his little gold to a fpacious furface, to work that to foam which no art or diligence can exalt to fpirit

The notes which I have borrowed or written are either illuftrative, by which difficulties are explained; or judicial, by which faults and beauties are remarked; or emendatory, by which depravations are corrected.

The explanations transcribed from others, if I do not fubjoin any other interpretation, I suppose commonly to be right, at least I intend by acquiefcence to confefs, that I have nothing better to propofe.

After the labours of all the editors, I found many paffages which appeared to me likely to obftruct the greater number of readers, and thought it my duty to facilitate their paffage. It is impoffible for an expofitor not to write too little for fome, and too much for others. He can only judge 'what is neceffary by his own experience; and how long foever he may deliberate, will at laft explain many lines which the learned will think impoffible to be mistaken, and omit many for which the ignorant will want his help. These are cenfures merely relative, and must be quietly endured. I have endeavoured to be neither fuperfluously copious, nor fcrupulously referved, and hope that I have made my author's meaning acceffible to many, who before were frighted from perufing, him, and contributed fomething to the publick, by diffufing innocent and rational pleasure.

The complete explanation of an author not fyftematick and confequential, but defultory and vagrant, abounding in cafual állufions and light hints, is not to be expected from any fingle scholiaft. All perfonal reflections, when names are suppressed, must be in a few years irrecoverably obliterated;