Page:The Plays of William Shakspeare (1778).djvu/348

[ 332 ] had been originally entered in 1594, and perhaps oon afterwards printed, was republihed in 1607 by Nich. Ling. As it bore the ame title with Shakpeare’s play, (which was not printed till 1623) the hope of getting a ale for it, under the helter of a celebrated name, was probably the inducement to iSS undefinedue it out at that time: and its publication then gives weight to the uppoition that Shakpeare’s play was written and firt acted in the latter end of the year 1606. It was entered by John Smythwick, Nov. 19, 1607; from which circumtance, we may conclude, that he had procured a copy of it, and had then thoughts of publihing it. It was not, however, printed by him till 1631, eight years after it had appeared in the edition of the players in folio. In this play there eems to be an alluion to a comedy of Thomas Heywood’s, entitled a Woman Killed with Kindnes, which, though not printed till 1617, mut have been acted before 1604, being mentioned in an old tract called the Black Book, publihed in that year.

A tragedy on the ubject, and with the title, of Julius Cæsar, written by Mr. William Alexander, who was afterwards Earl of Sterline, was printed in the year 1607. This, I imagine, was prior to our author’s performance. Shakpeare, we know, formed even or eight plays on fables that had been unuccesfully managed by other poets ; but no contemporary writer was daring enough to enter the lits with him, in his life-time, or to model into a drama a ubject that had alrieady employed his pen: and it is not likely that Lord Sterline, who was then a very young man, and

had