William Shakespeare; poet, dramatist, and man . t ofthe sixteen quartos, which, although surreptitiouslyissued, gave the text of acting versions in use at anearlier date. The Droeshout portrait was engravedon the title-page of the First Folio, and the editionwas dedicated to William Herbert, Earl of Pem-broke, and to his brother Philip Herbert, Earl ofMontgomery. The editors declared that theirobject in issuing the plays in this form was to keepe the memory of so worthy a friend andfellow alive as was our Shakespeare. I doubt,writes Mr. Lowell, if posterity owes a greater debtto any two men li
William Shakespeare; poet, dramatist, and man . t ofthe sixteen quartos, which, although surreptitiouslyissued, gave the text of acting versions in use at anearlier date. The Droeshout portrait was engravedon the title-page of the First Folio, and the editionwas dedicated to William Herbert, Earl of Pem-broke, and to his brother Philip Herbert, Earl ofMontgomery. The editors declared that theirobject in issuing the plays in this form was to keepe the memory of so worthy a friend andfellow alive as was our Shakespeare. I doubt,writes Mr. Lowell, if posterity owes a greater debtto any two men living in 1623 than to the twoobscure actors who in that year published the firstfolio edition of Shakespeares plays. But for themit is more than likely that such of his works as hadremained to that time unprinted would have beenirrevocably lost, and among them were JuliusCaesar, The Tempest, and Macbeth. The noble eulogy with which Ben Jonson enrichedthe First Folio was in the key of the entire bodyof contemporary comment on Shakespeares nature. THE ELY HOUSE PORTRAIT OF WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE. The original, now in the possession of the Trustees of the Birthplace at Stratford, formerlybelonged to the Bishop of Ely. It is inscribed /E 39 x 1603. 406 WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE and character. The adjective sweet was com-monly appHed to him; he was described asfriendly, as having a civil demeanour and an open and free nature; and tradition lateraffirmed that he was very good company, and ofa very ready and pleasant smooth wit. The twoor three vague traditions of irregularity of life maybe dismissed as unsubstantiated. The standards ofhis time, the habits of his profession, the circum-stances of his early life, and the autobiographicnote in the Sonnets make it probable that in hisyouth, at least, he was not impeccable. That hewas essentially a sound man, living a normal, whole-some life, is rendered practically certain by hissuccess in dealing with practical affairs, and by hislong-sustained p
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Keywords: ., bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, booksubjectshakesp, bookyear1901
