Page:The Plays of William Shakspeare (1778).djvu/57

Rh, o extenive that little can be added, and o exact, that little can be diputed, every editor has an interet to uppres, but that every reader would demand its inertion.

Pope was ucceeded by Theobald, a man of narrow comprehenion, and mall acquiitions, with no native and intrinic plendor of genius, with little of the artificial light of learning, but zealous for minute accuracy, and not negligent in puruing it. He collated the ancient copies, and rectified many errors. A man o anxiouly crupulous might have been expected to do more, but what little he did was commonly right.

In his reports of copies and editions he is not to be truted without examination. He peaks ometimes indefinitely of copies, when he has only one. In his enumeration of editions, he mentions the two firt folios as of high, and the third folio as of middle authority; but the truth is, that the firt is equivalent to all others, and that the ret only deviate from it by the printer’s negligence. Whoever has any of the folios has all, excepting thoe diverities which mere reiteration of editions will produce. I collated them all at the beginning, but afterwards ued only the firt.

Of his notes I have generally retained thoe which he retained himelf in his econd edition, except when they were conuted by ubequent annotators, or were too minute to merit preervation. I have ometimes adopted his retoration of a comma without inerting the