Page:Blackwood's Magazine volume 074.djvu/478

474 is undoubted; and his judgment, if not very acute, is sound, if he will but allow it fair play, and obey its behests as faithfully as he formerly did, when he adhered with the tenacity of a man of sense to the authorised and undoubted text. This now appears to us, and, we should imagine, to every one else who has attended to the new readings, as greatly less corrupt than, on a slighter inspection, we have been in the habit of supposing. We can only answer for ourselves; but this we can say, that the ineffectual operations of the old MS. corrector have opened our eyes to a depth of purity and correctness in the received text of Shakespeare, of which we had formerly no suspicion; and that is the true good which the proceedings of this old bungler have effected—they have settled for ever the question as to the purity and trustworthiness of the ordinary editions of Shakespeare. We now believe that the text of no author in the world is so immaculate as that of our great national poet, or stands in less need of emendation, or departs so little from the words of its original composer. Mr Collier, too, thought so once—let him think so again, and his authority will instantly recover: this transient cloud will pass away.

In regard to his edition of Shakespeare, which, we believe, is by this time published with the MS. corrector's perversions inserted in the text, that is now a blunder past all mending. We can only say this of it, that effectual precautions having been now taken by others, and by us, to prevent this publication from ever becoming the standard edition of Shakespeare, we do not grudge it any amount of success which may fall to its share. We are rather desirous to promote its interests, knowing that it can now do no harm, and will not speedily come to a reprint. Even now it must be a very singular book. Hereafter it will be an exceedingly remarkable book—one entitled to take high rank among the morbid curiosities of literature, and to stand on the same shelf—fit companion—with Bentley's edition of Milton. The serious truth is, that no Shakesperian collection can be complete without it. Every Shakesperian collector ought, beyond a doubt, to provide himself with a copy. People who intend to be satisfied with only one Shakespeare, ought certainly not to take up with this edition; but those who can indulge themselves with several copies, ought unquestionably to purchase it. We say this in all seriousness and gravity, notwithstanding the riddling which we have thought it incumbent on us to inflict on the old MS. corrector.