was then univerfally admitted to his advantage, and was far from overburthening the credulity of his audience.

The reality of witchcraft or enchantment, which, though not ftrictly the fame, are confounded in this play, has in all ages and countries been credited by the common people, and in moft by the learned themfelves. Thefe phantoms have indeed appeared more frequently, in proportion as the darkness of ignorance has been more grofs; but it cannot be shown, that the brightelt gleams of knowledge have at any time been fufficient to drive them out of the world. The time in which this kind of credulity was at its height, feems to have been that of the holy war, in which the chriftians imputed all their defeats to enchantments or diabolical oppofition, as they afcribed their fuccefs to the affiftance of their military faints; and the learned Dr. Warburton appears to believe (Suppl. to the Introdution to Don Quixote) that the first accounts of enchantments were brought into this part of the world by thofe zuho returned from their eattern expeditions. But there is always fome distance between the birth and maturity of folly as of wickedness this opinion had long exifted, though perhaps the application of it had in no foregoing age been fo frequent, nor

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the reception fo general. Olym piodorus, in Photius's extracts, tells us of one Libanius, who practited this kind of military magic, and having promised χώρις ὁπλιτῶν κατὰ βαρβάρων ἐπερ yev, to perform great things against the barbarians without feldiers, was, at the inftances of the Emperefs Placidia, put to Death, when he was about to have given proofs of his abilities. The Emperefs fhewed fome kindness in her anger by cutting him off at a time fo convenient for his reputation.

But a more remarkable proof of the antiquity of this notion may be found in St. Chryfoftom's book de Sacerdotio, which exhibits a fcene of enchantments not exceeded by any romance of the middle age: he fuppofes a fpectator overlooking a field of battle attended by one that points out all the various objects of horror, the engines of destruction, and the arts of flaughter. Axroro ἔτι παρὰ τοῖς ἐναντίοις καὶ πετομές τες ἵππος διά τινος μαγγανείας, καὶ ὁπλίτας δι' αέρος φερομένως, καὶ πά στην γοητείας δύναμιν καὶ ἰδίαν. Let him then proceed to show bim in the oppofite armies horfes flying by enchantment, armed men tranfported through the air, and every power and form of magic. Whether St. Chryfoftom believed that fuch performances were really to be feen in a day of battle, or only endeavoured to enliven his

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defcription, by adopting the notions of the vulgar, it is equally certain, that fuch notions were in his time received, and that therefore they were not imported from the Saracens in a later age; the wars with the Saracens how ever gave occafion to their propagation, not only as bigotry naturally discovers prodigies, but as the scene of action was removed to a great distance.

The reformation did not immediately arrive at its meridian, and tho' day was gradually encreafing upon us, the goblins of witchcraft ftill continued to hover in the twilight. In the time of Queen Elizabeth was the remark able trial of the witches of Warbois, whofe conviction is ftill commemorated in an annual fermon at Huntingdon. But in the reign of King James, in which this tragedy was written, many circumstances concurred to propagate and confirm this opinion. The King, who was much celebrated for his knowledge, had, before his arrival in England, not only examined in perfon a woman accused of witchcraft, but had given a very formal account of the practices and illufions of evil fpirits, the compacts of witches, the ceremonies used by them, the manner of detecting them, and the juftice of punishing them, in his Dialogues of Damonologie, written in the Scottib dialect, and published at Edinburgh. This book was, foon

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after his acceffion, reprinted at, London, and as the ready way to gain King James's favour was to flatter his fpeculations, the system of Damonologie was immediately adopted by all who defired either to gain preferment or not to lofe it. Thus the doctrine of witchcraft was very powerfully incul cated; and as the greateft part of mankind have no other reason for their opinions than that they are in fashion, it cannot be doubted but this perfuafion made a rapid progrefs, fince vanity and credulity co-operated in its favour. The infection foon reached the parliament, who, in the first year of King J mes, made a law by which it was enacted, chap. xii. That if any perfon fhall ufe any invocation or conjuration of any evil or "wicked fpirit; 2 or fhall con"fult, covenant with, entertain, "employ, feed or reward any "evil or curfed fpirit to or for

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6. That every fuch perfon being convicted fhall fuffer "death." This law was repealed in our own time.

Thus, in the time of ShakeSpeare, was the doctrine of witchcraft at once established by law and by the fashion, and it became not only unpolite, but criminal, to doubt it; and as prodigies are always feen in proportion as they are expected, witch es were every day difcovered, and multiplied fo faft in fome places, that bishop Hall mentions a village in Lancashire, where their number was greater than that of the houfes. The jefuits and fectaries took advantage of this universal error, and endeavoured to promote the intereft of their parties by pretended cures of perfons afflicted by evil fpirits; but they were de.

tected and expofed by the clergy of the established church.

Upon this general infatuation Shakespeare might be eafily allowed to found a play, especially fince he has followed with great exactnefs fuch hiftories as were then thought true; nor can it be

doubted that the scenes of enchantment, however they may now be ridiculed, were both by himself and his audience thought awful and affecting.

2 Fair is foul, and foul is fair.] i, e. We make these fudden changes of the weather. And Macbeth, fpeaking of this day, foon after fays,

So foul and fair a day I have not feen. WARBURTON.

I believe the meaning is, that to us, perverfe and malignant as we are, fair is foul, and foul is fair.

Say