The Story of William Shakspere

I

1. In the year 1564 Stratford-on-Avon, in Warwickshire, was a quiet little village that differed in no way from hundreds of others scattered over England at that time. In these little villages the houses were built commonly of wood, with the upper stories overhanging the lower, and with windows of latticework or horn, as glass was then seldom used except in the houses of the wealthy.

2. Each cottage had its garden wherein grew rosemary and fennel and all kinds of herbs, in closest neighborhood to the roses and daffodils and violets, which were the pride of the cottagers. In the fields beyond, the paths led through scarlet poppies and golden primroses to the great forests, which were then found all over England.

3. Quite outside the villages, and often far removed from them, were the manor houses of the wealthy squires, the castles of the great nobles, and the abbeys and cathedrals whose fine architecture so beautified the country.

4. But in Stratford itself the beauty consisted mainly in the prettily kept gardens; the beautiful river Avon, which flows past the village on its way to join the Severn; in the graceful yew, elm, and lime trees which shaded the cottage roofs; and in

the old church, built possibly in the days when the Normans were still trying to make the English nation become French.

5. In one of these cottages, which was richer than many of its neighbors, since it possessed two stories instead of one, and had, furthermore, some dormer windows in its roof, was born, in 1564, William Shakspere, whose name stands far above every other in the story of English literature, and whose genius has made the village of Stratford immortal.

6. Very little is known of Shakspere's childhood and boyhood, except that they were spent at Stratford. But we know that his father was a man of some importance in the village, and that the boy's early days must have been comfortable and happy.

7 When he was seven years of age, he entered the free grammar school of the village, where pupils were admitted as soon as they knew how to read. Here, for seven years, he learned from books the things that were then taught in the grammar schools, including no doubt some Latin and Greek and as much English as was considered necessary. In those days English was thought of little importance, and to be a scholar meant to know certain languages and sciences which the learner would probably never use.

8. Out of school Shakspere learned much, and stored the knowledge well in his mind. He knew all the flowers, plants, and trees which were to be

found in the fields and meadows and woods for miles around. He spent hours in poring over the history of Stratford Church, where he had been christened, and to which he went regularly every Sunday. It joined the England of his day with a past that was full of the glorious and stirring history of the English nation.

9. Shakspere learned much from the traffic which constantly passed through the village, for Stratford was cut into four sections by the two great public highways, which ran through the place from the great neighboring cities, and over which went all the traffic of that part of the kingdom.

10. In this way he heard of the great world beyond Stratford. He learned of those heroes of the sea, Frobisher and Hawkins and Gilbert and Drake, and followed them in imagination in their voyages across the ocean to the unknown continents and islands of the New World. And he heard in the same way of the affairs of London-what the queen and the great nobles were about, and what was thought to be fine in the sight of London folk, and what they despised as poor and mean.

11. A few miles away from Stratford were the great castles of Warwick and Kenilworth. The former was rich in memories of the War of the Roses, when England was a great battlefield from end to end, and second in interest only to Kenilworth, where Queen

Elizabeth came from time to time, with her train of lords and ladies, to be entertained by Lord Leicester.

12. Most interesting of all the events connected with her visit were the shows and plays, which were given at the castle in her honor. One of the royal progresses to Kenilworth occurred when Shakspere was about twelve years of age, and very likely the boy was present at the entertainments given there, and watched with eager eyes the scene before him.

13. Besides these entertainments in honor of the queen, Shakspere saw from time to time the companies of regular players who traveled from London throughout the country, frequently stopping at Stratford, where they gave their performances, as was usual at a time when there were no theaters, in the courtyard of the inn.

14. In this way the boy Shakspere became familiar with the best plays and players of the day, and this, joined with visits to Coventry, where great religious plays were given, must have given him many a glimpse of the life beyond his native village.

Amid such scenes and impressions Shakspere grew to manhood, and it is easy to trace their influence in his works.

II

15. When Shakspere was twenty-one, he went to London to try his fortunes in that great city; and a very interesting place was the London of his day.