}

IN

Preface.

N the composition of his play of "Julius Cæsar," Shakespeare built upon the records of Plutarch. Sir Thomas

"We

North's translation of Plutarch, from the French of Amyot, was, evidently, known to him, seeing that he has adopted North's historical errors, and, in several instances, has paraphrased, in verse, the exact chronicle made by North, in prose. The play was written in 1600 or 1601, and it was first published in the Folio of 1623. The text is thought to be somewhat exceptionally free from errors. know of no play of Shakespeare's," says Charles Knight, "that presents so few difficulties arising out of inaccuracies in the original edition; there are some half-dozen passages in which there are manifest typographical errors." Mr. Fleay declares that “ the present play has been greatly shortened" and that this " is shown by the singularly large number of instances in which mute characters are on the stagewhich is totally at variance with Shakespeare's usual practice." The same learned, acute, and ingenious writer remarks that “the first three acts and the last two have no characters in common, except Brutus, Cassius, Antony, and Lucius," and that “there are, in fact, two plays in one, Cæsar's Tragedy and Cæsar's Revenge." This was long ago observed by John Sheffield, Duke of Buckinghamshire, who framed two tragedies out of Shakespeare's play,-called “Julius Cæsar” and “ Marcus Brutus," 1722.

Several of the earlier Shakespeare editors refer to a similarity between lines in Antony's speech over the body of Brutus, in the last scene of the play, and a passage in

I

PREFACE.

Drayton's "Barons' War," 1603. Keightley, one of the safest guides to the study of Shakespeare, directs attention to the character of Crites, in Ben Jonson's " Cynthia's Revels," acted in 1600, and suggests that “the immediate original of the passage, in both poets," Shakespeare and Drayton, may be found in that play, act II, scene 1; and, furthermore, he refers to an earlier original, in Chaucer's "Tale of the Doctor of Physik." The fact, if fact it be, that alterations were made in the text of "Julius Cæsar," between the time of its production on the stage, 1600 or 1601, and that of its first publication, 1623, is, in part inferred from Ben Jonson's references in his "Staple of News" and his “ Timber, or Discoveries" to a line in the play, as originally given, which he calls “ ridiculous" : “ Cæsar did never wrong but with just cause." Shakespeare died in 1616. The Folio, appearing in 1623, did not contain that line, but gave the reading as it now stands. Jonson, nevertheless, is found to be gibing at this absurdity, in his “Staple of News," which was acted in 1625. Both the "Staple of News" and the Timber, however, may have been written prior to 1623 and therefore prior to the correction of the error, although, indeed, there is not much reason to think that Jonson would have been very scrupulous as to the exact propriety of a dig at another dramatist. He had participated, and so had Shakespeare, as well as Drayton, Lodge, Dekker, and others, in “ the war of the theatres," and no love appears to have been lost among those combatants; albeit, after Shakespeare's death, Jonson wrote of him with cordial kindness. Mr. Fleay notes, as an additional sign that alterations were made in “ Julius Cæsar," and that some other hand than that of Shakesbeore made them, the fact that the name of Antony, in this play, is spelled without an h; whereas, occurring in eight of Shakespeare's plays, that name is invariably spelled with an h in every instance except this one.

These details indicate the importance of a close scrutiny of the text. The errors in the Folio are considerable in number, and, precious though it be, that book cannot be implicitly trusted. Students ought to possess Keightley's

Shakespeare Expositor" and Kinnear's "Cruces Shakespeariance," and ought to consult them, as to every one of Shakespeare's plays. Much help, likewise, may be derived from J. Payne Collier's "Notes and Emendations," for Collier was thoroughly acquainted with the subject, and he had an abundance of general learning, no matter what cloud of doubt may rest on the authenticity of the MS. corrector of his Second Folio. And every student should read the writings of Edward Dowden, the most profound and sympathetic Shakespearean critic of our age. Dowden, writing of "Julius Casar," suggests that Shakespeare was, probably, acquainted with a translation (there was one published in 1578), of the account of the Civil Wars, by the Roman historian, Appian, and that he derived some hints from it for the orations of Brutus and Antony. Antony's oration over the corpse of Cæsar has always been regarded as one of the best examples of. Shakespeare's invention; it owes nothing to Plutarch except the incident of the display of the dead body; whereas the words of Brutus, spoken over the dead Cassius, in the last act, are directly taken from that original:

"The last of all the Romans, fare thee well!
It is impossible that ever Rome
Should breed thy fellow."

A play called the "History of Cæsar and Pompey" is mentioned by Stephen Gosson (1554-1623), as existent in 1579, and mention is made by Skottowe of a Latin play by Dr. Richard Eedes (died at Worcester, England, November 19, 1604), which was acted in Oxford University in 1582. Voltaire treated the Julius Cæsar story, in his tragedy called

PREFACE.

"The Death of Cæsar," and Aaron Hill founded upon Voltaire's play his "Roman Revenge," 1753. Both of these pieces adopt the tale that Brutus was Cæsar's son, by Servillia, sister of Cato-an absurdity, for Cæsar was scarcely turned fourteen when Brutus was born. Voltaire's tragedy contains no women. Hill's portraiture of Cæsar is highly colored, but not without some justification, for Cæsar, although his character had somewhat deteriorated toward the end of his life (Plutarch), was the greatest man of the actual group. Hill makes Portia and Calphurnia intimate, life-long friends. Bolingbroke admired Hill's play, and so did Pope; but Garrick would not act in it, and the public did not care for it. William Alexander, Earl of Stirling (died 1640), wrote a tragedy on Julius Cæsar, 1604 (Malone says 1607), and this, with his other works, “Darius,” “Cræsus,” “The Alexandrean Tragedy," etc., were published in folio in 1637. Sense, formality, and dullness are the chief characteristics of the Earl's style. An alteration of Shakespeare's “Julius Cæsar," made by Davenant and Dryden, and acted at Drury Lane, was published in 1719. Sheffield's Julius Cæsar plays, 1772, were never much esteemed: they are clumsy alterations of Shakespeare's tragedy. One scene represents Brutus in love! There is a chorus at the end of each act. Alexander also employs the chorus. Sheffield introduces in his "Marcus Brutus," new characters, one of them being Junia, wife of Cassius. Examination of those plays serves only to illustrate and confirm the superiority of Shakespeare. W. W.

January, 1899.