Page:Castelvines y Monteses Translated.pdf/17

vi translator, "To render his work more familiar to the English reader, has printed it under the title of the English Play, from which it scarcely differs in anything except the catastrophe and some scenes that have no manner of connection with the main subject; these scenes indeed occur frequently, and for that reason the editor has not translated the Spanish comedy from beginning to end, but contented himself with giving a general plan of Lopez de Vega's piece and a translation of such scenes only as answer to others in Shakespeare's tragedy."

Here follows a specimen of the "general plan":—

"These two old gentlemen, the heads of the Capulet faction, come forward and declare they should both be charmed to see their children smitten with each other, because they propose to make a match between them. Things don't succeed quite to their mind; Octavio falls in love with Juliet, but Juliet does not like Octavio, and contents herself with returning him a polite answer."

Lope's poetry is thus treated:—

"Did you remark that young gentleman who talked to me? What a charming youth, my dear Celia, and how happy must the woman be who attaches him to her?"

Such appearing to me eminently unsatisfactory,