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his written over it; and over anteceffors the word grandfather is written. The draughtfman however forgot to draw a line through the word for which grandfather was to be fubftituted. He evidently was in doubt which of the two expreffions he fhould retain; but we may prefume he meant to reject the words "—whose parents and late anteceffors," and to fubftitute inftead of them, "—whose grandfather for his," &c.

In the grant of 1599, we have feen, the words originally flood, "whofe parent and anteceffor was," and the words great grandfather and late are interlineations. The writer forgot to erafe the original words, but undoubtedly he did not mean that both those and the fubftituted words fhould be retained, but that the paragraph fhould ftand thus: " whofe great grandfather for his faithful and approved fervice," &c. and, inftead of "great grandfather," the earlier inftrument induces me to think that he ought to have written, "-whose late grandfather."

A minute examination of these inftruments led me to inquire what grounds the heralds had for their affertion that our poet's ancestor had been rewarded by a grant of lands from King Henry the Seventh. But it should seem they were fatisfied with very flight evidence of this fact; for after a very careful examination in the chapel of the Rolls, from the beginning to the end of that reign, it appears, that no fuch grant was made. If any fuch had been made by that king, out of the

8

I cannot omit this opportunity of acknowledging the politeness of Mr. Kipling of the Rolls-office, who permitted every examination which I defired, to be made in the venerable repofitory under his care; and, with a liberality feldom found in publick offices, would not accept of the accustomed fee, for any fearch which tended to throw a light on the history of our great dramatick poet.

forfeited eftates of the adherents of King Richard the Third, or otherwife, it must have paffed the great feal, and would have been on record. As therefore it is not found on the rolls, we may be affured that no fuch grant was made. However, from the words of the early inftruments in the herald's office, which have been already quoted, "-for his faithful and valiant fervice," &c. it is highly probable, that our poet's great grandfather diftinguithed himself in Bofworth field on the fide of King Henry, and that he was rewarded for his military fervices by the bounty of that parfimonious prince, though not with a grant of lands.

Mr. Rowe in his account of our poet's father has faid that he had ten children. From the Register of the parish of Stratford-upon-Avon it appears, that ten children of John Shak fpeare were baptized there between the year 1558, when the register commenced, and the year 1591. If therefore they were all the children of our poet's father, Mr. Rowe's account is inaccurate; for our poet had a fifter named Margaret, born before the commencement of the Regifter. It is, however, extremely improbable, that in fo numerous a family not one of the fons fhould have been baptized by the christian name of old Mr. Shakspeare. I now therefore believe (though I was formerly of a different opinion) that our poet's eldest brother bore his father's chriftian name, John; and that, like their eldest fifter, Margaret, he was born before the register commenced. If this was the cafe, then without doubt the three children who were born between March 1588 and September 1591, Urfula, Humphrey, and Philip, were the iffue of this younger John, by his fecond wife, whose chriftian name was Mary; and the real number of

the children of our poet's father was nine. This Mary Shakspeare died in 1608, and is described as a widow. If therefore she was the wife of John Shakspeare the younger, then muft he have died before that year.

About twenty years ago, one Mosely, a masterbricklayer, who ufually worked with his men, being employed by Mr. Thomas Hart, the fifth defcendant in a direct line from our poet's fifter, Joan Hart, to new-tile the old houfe at Stratford, in which Mr. Hart lives, and in which our poet was born, found a very extraordinary manufcript between the rafters and the tiling of the houfe. It is a fmall paperbook confifting of five leaves ftitched together. It had originally confifted of fix leaves, but unluckily the firft was wanting when the book was found. I have taken fome pains to afcertain the authenticity of this manufcript, and after a very careful inquiry am perfectly fatisfied that it is genuine.

The writer, John Shakspeare, calls it his Will; but it is rather a declaration of his faith and pious refolutions. Whether it contains the religious fentiments of our poet's father or elder brother, I am unable to determine. The handwriting is undoubtedly not fo ancient as that ufually written about the year 1600; but I have now before me a manuscript written by Alleyn the player at various times between 1599 and 1614, and another by Forde, the dramatick poet, in 1606, in nearly the fame handwriting as that of the manufcript in question. The Rev. Mr. Davenport, Vicar of Stratford-upon-Avon, at my request endeavoured to find out Mr. Mofely, to examine more particularly concerning this manufcript; but he died about two years ago. His daughter, however, who is now living, and Mr. Hart, who is alfo living, and now fixty years old, perfectly well re

member the finding of this paper. Mofely fome time after he found it, gave it to Mr. Peyton, an alderman of Stratford, who obligingly tranfmitted it to me through the hands of Mr. Davenport. It is proper to obferve that the finder of this relique bore the character of a very honeft, fober, induftrious man, and that he neither afked nor received any price for it; and I may alfo add that its contents are fuch as no one could have thought of inventing with a view to literary imposition.

If the injunction contained in the latter part of it (that it should be buried with the writer) was obferved, then must the paper which has thus fortuitoufly been recovered, have been a copy, made from the original, previous to the burial of John Shakspeare.

This extraordinary will confifted originally of fourteen articles, but the first leaf being unluckily wanting, I am unable to ascertain either its date or the particular occafion on which it was written; both of which probably the first article would have furnished us with. If it was written by our poet's father, John Shakspeare, then it was probably drawn up about the year 1600; if by his brother, it perhaps was dated fome time between that year and 1608, when the younger John fhould feem to have been dead.

[Since the fheet which contains the will of John Shakspeare was printed, I have learned that it was originally perfect, when found by Jofeph Mofely, though the firft leaf has fince been loft. Mofely

tranfcribed a large portion of it, and from his copy I have been furnished with the introductory articles, from the want of which I was obliged to

9 The loft articles, &c. (here inclofed in crotchets) are fupplied from Mr. Malone's Emendations and Additions in his Vol. I. Part II. P. 330,-31.

print this will in an imperfect ftate. They are as follows:

I.

"In the name of God, the father, fonne, and holy ghost, the moít holy and bleffed Virgin Mary, mother of God, the holy hoft of archangels, angels, patriarchs, prophets, evangelifts, apoftles, faints, martyrs, and all the celeftial court and company of heaven, I John Shakspear, an unworthy member of the holy Catholick religion, being at this my prefent writing in perfect health of body, and found mind, memory, and understanding, but calling to mind the uncertainty of life and certainty of death, and that I may be poffibly cut off in the bloffome of my fins, and called to render an account of all my tranfgreffions externally and internally, and that I may be unprepared for the dreadful trial either by facrament, pennance, fafting, or prayer, or any other purgation whatever, do in the holy prefence above fpecified, of my own free and voluntary accord, make and ordaine this my laft fpiritual will, teftament, confeffion, proteftation, and confeffion of faith, hopinge hereby to receive pardon for all my finnes and offences, and thereby to be made partaker of life everlasting, through the only merits of Jefus Chrift my faviour and redeemer, who took upon himself the likeness of man, fuffered death, and was crucified upon the croffe, for the redemption of finners.

II.

"Item. I John Shakspear doe by this prefent proteft, acknowledge, and confefs, that in my paft life I have been a moft abominable and grievous finner, and therefore unworthy to be forgiven without a true and fincere repentance for the fame. But trufting in the manifold mercies of my bleffed Saviour and Redeemer, I am encouraged by relying

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