from 'authors both sacred and profane, out of which these similitudes are for the most part gathered.' This book, Palladis Tamia: Wits Treasury, is by a certain 'Francis Meres, M.A. of both Universities.' Fluellin did not devise further fetched coincidences to prove the similarity between Monmouth and Macedon, than did this Meres to prove likenesses between famous English and celebrated Latin authors. When he could not discover any possible resemblance he appears to have invented one. Whilst giving Thomas Beard as his authority for the legend about Marlowe, he could not forego the opportunity of adapting it to his own purposes by adding the necessary embellishment. His revised account runs thus: 'So our tragical poet, Marlow, for his Epicurisme and Atheisme had a tragicall death; you may read of this Marlow more at large in The Theatre of Gods Judgements, in the 25th chapter entreating of Epicures and Atheists. 'As the poet Lycophron was shot to death by a certain rival of his, so Christofer Marlow was stabd to death by a bawdy servingman, a rival of his in his lewde love." The invention of "a rival in his lewde love" was absolutely requisite to prove the resemblance between the two tragedies : that the authority quoted did not mention the fact was of no consequence to the fantastic Francis Meres, 159 The next godly man to push onwards the snowball of slander was William Vaughan, who, in his Golden Grove, dated 1699, enlarged upon the favourite subject of atheists. Leo the Tenth, one of his examples, was punished for public confession of infidelity by dying in a fit of laughter; in another case an unnamed Italian warrior, for a similar offence, was the first slain in a battle; whilst Marlowe, 'by profession a playmaker,' was the next warning instance. This example, 'as it is reported, about 14 years ago (ie. 1585) wrote a Booke against the Trinitie; but see the effects of Gods justice. It so hapened that at Detford, a little village about three miles from London, as he meant to stab with his ponyard one named Ingram (sic) that had invited him thither to a feast, and was then playing at tables (ie. draughts), hee quickly perceiving it, so avoyded the thrust that withal drawing out his dagger for his defence, hee stabd this Marlow into the eye, in such sort, that his braines comming out at the daggers point, hee shortly after dyed. Thus did God, the true executioner of divine justice, worke the ende of impious Atheists.' 160 Vaughan, it will be noticed, has really got hold of the name of the place where the catastrophe occurred, and, amid other modifications, furnishes the name, but of course incorrectly, of the slayer. By this time the story of Marlowe's miserable end had been told so often, always with variations and additions, that by its constant repetition it obtained general credence, and was adopted as a record of fact. 'To repeat a story after another is not to confirm it,' is Gifford's expostulation when clearing Ben Jonson's memory from calumny, but still such slanders are continually heard, and as recklessly retold. Versifiers and others affect to believe in everything evil suggested about Marlowe as steadfastly as did Othello in Desdemona's falseness. The anonymous author of The Return from Parnassus (a versified drama published in 1606, but written a few years earlier), who, besides manifesting his dislike to university authors generally, had evidently read some of the libels, is supposed to fully confirm the lies of the godly about our poet (whom he did not scruple to plagiarise without the slightest acknowledgment or reference) by these lines: 'Marlowe was happy in his buskin Muse,— Pity it is, that wit so ill should dwell, Wit lent from heaven, but vices sent from hell.' 161 After that nothing more is to be said, so it is needless to continue the catalogue. The longer the date from the poet's days, the less likely were the libels upon his character to be refuted. It has been seen that his contemporaries, the men who really knew Marlowe and consorted with him, Drayton, Chapman, Shakespeare, the magnificent concourse of immortals, uttered nothing but admiring and reverential words of him, and that not one of them spoke a disparaging syllable over the dead poet's grave. The letter imputed to Kyd, even could its authenticity be proved, is tainted testimony, and would not influence any legal tribunal. No trust can be placed in the posthumous rabid ravings of either Beard or Vaughan, or the fantastic fooleries of Francis Meres, nor of their copyists. All impartial people will be prepared to agree with Dr. Grosart in entirely doubting the traditional 'tragic end'; for, as he points out, 'with one possessed of so strenuous a nostril for scenting out such carrion gossip as Gabriel Harvey, ignorant of that "tragic end," one may well question if ever it were true.' There was no contemporary statement of the poet's death, except the Deptford register, and that simple record may as well refer to one slain accidentally by relative or friend, as to one purposely killed by a foe. APPENDIX B The Baines Libel Reference has been made in this work to various MSS. of the Harleian Collection in the British Museum. A large portion of this Collection was purchased by Robert Harley, Earl of Oxford, from the well-known nonjuror, Thomas Baker, a fellow of St. John's College, Cambridge. These MSS., which are bound in several large volumes, consist of many documents of surpassing literary and political interest, documents which Baker declared in his will were 'of my own handwriting,' having been copied from originals, none of which originals are now known to be in existence. A further fifteen of these folio volumes were devised to St. John's College, Cambridge, and the MSS. in them are likewise averred by Baker, to be 'all in my writing.' When Bennet, the editor of Ascham's English works, complained that these documents 'are unskilfully transcribed,' Masters, in explanation, pointed out that this is due to 'their being copied from the Original according to the old way of spelling.'162 Surely this is sufficient evidence to prove that the MSS. in question are not original, but only copies by Baker. Having disposed of their originality, the next thing is to examine their authenticity: are they really copies of veritable old documents, or are they merely forgeries such as Collier, Ireland, and many others, have foisted on the literary world? If one MS. prove fictitious, the whole collection must be regarded with strong suspicion. Baker is known to have been an indefatigable collector of antiquities; saturated with literary lore, especially of the Elizabethan period, and always able and willing to supply historical students with just such items of information as they needed. Many of his lucky discoveries have been embodied in standard works, and may, in these days, be capable of corroboration, but whence Baker obtained them is a mystery. As is also what became of the results of his many years of seclusive study; of the wonderful works he was to produce, but which he died without accomplishing. Does not the wording of his will provide the key to the enigma? The MSS. Baker bequeathed to St. John's College, Cambridge, have been carefully catalogued: they make a marvellous collection. Many of them are by persons as unknown to history as Chatterton's 'Rowley'; several furnish particulars of celebrities nowhere else recorded; whilst others are unknown pieces by known persons. There is something strange or unique about most of them. Occasionally it is noted of a manuscript that 'Baker thinks' it is in such a person's own writing, although later on, in his will, he declared the whole contents of these large folio volumes are 'all in my own hand.' 163 It has already been remarked in connection with Kyd's alleged intimacy with Marlowe that Baker is said to have asserted he had obtained possession of some of Sir John Puckering's official papers. Besides the Kyd documents already referred to, these Puckering papers include two manuscripts still more strongly affecting the memory of Marlowe: one, first published by Ritson, the bibliographer, in his Observations on Wharton's History of English Poetry, and the other recently embodied by Professor F. S. Boas in the Introduction to his volume of the Works of Thomas Kyd. If genuine, these two documents are of intense interest, but if forgeries, they inflict cruel wrong on the memory of an already much maligned poet. Many circumstances cast doubt upon the authenticity of these two documents, even if Baker's own testamentary declaration be disregarded. The first and, until Professor Boas's recent publication, the only one generally known of these two manuscripts, appears to be the rough and original draft of the more carefully drawn document |