More grosse in body then you are in brayne: For your grosse brayne you like J. Falstaffe graunt, The allusion no doubt is to Shakspeare's Falstaff; but probably not to his John of Gaunt, to whom "small wit" can in no sense properly apply. Possibly, W. J. refers to the John of Gaunt of an old play of "Richard II.," which preceded Shakspeare's, and where the Duke of Lancaster might be represented as a man of "small wit," or weak understanding. ("See New Particulars regarding the Works of Shakespeare," p. 68.) "The Whipping of the Satyre" produced an anonymous reply in the same year, called "The Whipper of the Satyre, his Pennance in a White Sheete," &c., which was followed by "No Whipping nor Tripping, but a kind of Snipping," also printed in 1601. WHITE, T. — A Sermon Preached at Pawles Crosse on 1578. The particular day of publication in 1578, namely," February 10," is given in the colophon, but the Sermon of course relates to the year 1576, when it was delivered at Paul's Cross. It is curious in a dramatic point of view, because it contains the earliest notice of regular theatres in London constructed for the purpose of representing plays. Looke," exclaims the vehement author, "but uppon the common playes in London, and see the multitude that flocketh to them, and followeth them: behold the sumptuous Theatre houses, a continuall monument of London's prodigalitie and folly. But I understand they are now forbidden bycause of the plague: I like the pollicye well, if it holde still, for a 1 Perhaps the writer, when he speaks of the "small wit" of John of Gaunt, had in his mind what Richard II. (Act. II. sc. 1) says of him, when he calls Gaunt "lean-witted." disease if but bodged, or patched up, that is not cured in the cause; and the cause of plagues is sinne, if you looke to it well: and the cause of sinne are playes: therefore the cause of plagues are playes." In the same strain he inveighs against "the horrible enormities and swelling sins are set out by those stages," and loudly calls upon the authorities to put them down. White's arguments happily did not prevail. The whole sermon affords an amusing, but probably not a very faithful picture of the manners of London at that date, and especially of the mode in which Sunday was spent by all ranks. It is to be borne in mind that the "sumptuous Theatre houses,” built for the performance of plays, were then open on the Sabbath day; and in 1575-76 the Theatre and Curtain had been erected in Shoreditch, and about the same date a third “playhouse" was constructed in Blackfriars. Of Sunday amusements generally, the preacher says: "Assuredly we come nothing neere the Jewes in this pointe; for on our Sabbothes all manner of games and playes, bankittings and surfettings are very rife. If any manne haue any businesse in the world, Sonday is counted an idle day. Every man followeth his owne fansie. And the wealthiest Citizens haue houses for the nonce they that have none make shift with Alehouses, Tavernes and Inns, some rowying on the water, some roving in the field, some idle at home, some worse occupied. Thus what you gette evelly all the weeke is worst spent on the Sabboth day." In Vol. III. p. 213, we have given a succinct list of the various productions between 1577 and 1587, for and against theatres and dramatic performances. Perhaps we ought to have commenced with the sermon before us, delivered in 1576, although not printed until 1578; but its general object was different, and it only touches upon the construction and employment of playhouses incidentally. It is, however, as we have said, curious as being the earliest known mention in our language of public theatres, erected in or near London for the purpose of dramatic representation. WHITE, TRISTRAM. - The Martyrdome of Saint George of Cappadocia: Titular Patron of England, and of the most Noble Order of the Garter. Printed at London for William Barley, dwelling in Bishopsgatestreete. 1614. 4to. 16 leaves. Nobody has given the name of the author of this curious tract, although it stands at the end of one of the two dedications. The first is by the publisher to "his worshipfull good friend Mr. George Shilliton, Justice of Peace," &c., and the last by Tristram White, "to all the noble honourable and worthy in Great Brittaine, bearing the name of George." White merits notice, if only because he has the good sense and good taste to quote Spenser (the earliest illustration ever drawn from our great romantic poet) in reference to St. George and his history. He does not give Spenser's name, but speaks of him as the author of "the Faerie Queene,” and cites Lib. I. Cant. 10, st. 60, but it is really stanza 66 of that Canto. "Thence she thee brought into this Faery lond," &c. He adduces four other lines on the supposed birth of St. George in England, and adds in his margin: "In S. George's English birth the Poet followes the vulgar errour, of purpose to fit his fabulous morall argument the rather." White's position, of course, is that St. George was really born in Cappadocia. Near his commencement he thus describes his hero: : "Saint George was all which Knight-hood can require: His noble birth he much more noble made By worthy deedes; the riches which he had Youth, Beautie, Grace in Court, Health, Vigor, Fame, Of humane nature may support, he had; And (which is more then mortall power can adde) A spirit, Maister of his earthly parts, Blest with high vertues, deckt with goodly Arts." No particular fault can be found with this passage; but, we apprehend, that it is the best in the whole poem, which is desul tory, and gives us no new information about St. George, not even regarding his victory over the dragon. White thus speaks of St. George's Chapel, Windsor, founded by Edward III. :— "that brave Chappell which doth lift the head With pinacles and turrets garnished, Whose rockie foote Thames overflowne doth beate, By that victorious Monarch reared was To George's name, that none in sight can passe Of Windsors Towers (our England's best-built pride) To whom this honor is not testifide." Most of White's effusion is weak and unimpressive, and when he now and then breaks out with more fire and energy, he cannot sustain his flight, and drops down into the feeble and the familiar. Thus after such lines as the following, "Come you that languish in obscure retreats, Shake off weake thoughts, and in this glasse behold, we might expect that he would continue at the same elevation; but what immediately succeeds is tame and prosaic. In truth the most interesting portion of the work, with reference to the progress of our language, comes at the end. The main subject not entirely filling the last sheet, the author added a page of what he calls "Sapphicks" in English, and another page which he heads, "A soveraigne sure Remedie against the Seaven chiefe Sinnes." The last consists of fourteen lines, not worth extraction, but more in the form of an Italian sonnet than was usual with our poets of that day. The Sapphics we take to be rather a novel experiment, but it is not a happy one, and the measure is not sapphic, or anything like it, excepting by giving weight to syllables, which they were never meant to sustain. It thus opens: : "O my deare-bought soule! to thy God Creator No rebell be thou; for alas too feeble Is thy fraile temper set against his wils force: Thunder obeyes him." This reads like mere prose, unless we give unwarrantable em phasis to the word "wils" in the third line, and the two preceding lines are a hobbling sort of measure. The same remark will apply to the conclusion, and especially to the pronoun “him” in the third line: "O my deare-bought soule! to thy God Redeemer Devels nothing hopefull: then O Soule! to him still The above might be meritorious as a first attempt of the kind, but it is anything but satisfactory, even to a moderately correct ear. The title-page contains, in a circle, an extremely good woodcut of St. George's great achievement, of which, singularly enough, White says little or nothing. WILKINS, GEORGE. The Painfull Adventures of Pericles Prince of Tyre. Being the true History of the Play of Pericles, as it was lately presented by the worthy and ancient Poet John Gower. At London Printed by T. P. for Nat. Butter, 1608. 4to. B. L. We were the first, about thirty years ago, to direct attention to this volume, as a peculiar and especial literary curiosity. In fact, it is the only known early relic of the kind in our language. It is a novel constructed out of a play, and that play by Shakspeare. We have various novels upon which dramas were founded, but this is the single specimen of a narrative founded upon a drama. But two copies of it are in existence, -the one, unfortunately imperfect, in the British Museum; the other quite complete, and preserved in the Public Library of Zurich. It was reprinted at Oldenburg, under the care of Professor Mommsen, in 1857, and so many copies of that reprint have been circulated in England that it is unnecessary for us here to dwell upon it. Our principal reason for noticing it at all is to supply from the Zurich copy what is wanting in our English one, namely, the dedication of it to a private individual. We transcribe it exactly, not from a |