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“More about the Bookie of Sir Thomas Moore”
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 23 February 2021
Extract
In the introduction to his edition of The Book of Sir Thomas More (Malone Society Reprints, 1911, p. xviii) Dr. W. W.Greg makes the following statement: “He [C] revises the stage-directions throughout [the manuscript], both in the original text [written by S] and in the additions [written by A, B, D and £].” Because of this statement certain scholars, not examining the play for themselves, have looked upon the manuscript (BM. Harl. 7368) as a play-house copy or prompt-book and have regarded the presence of revised stage-directions as proof that the play—as we now have it—had actually been performed on the Elizabethan stage. That Dr. Greg's statement is incorrect and is unwarranted by the evidence, and, accordingly, affords no basis for the inferences drawn from it, is shown by the following considerations:
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- Research Article
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- Copyright © Modern Language Association of America, 1928
References
page 768 note 1 That Kyd compared Heywood's version of II.2 with Mundy's is shown by his correction of the letter's “Linco” to “Willia” at line 56.
page 770 note 2 Cf. T. S. Graves, “The Act-Time in Elizabethan Theatres,” Stud, in Philoi. (Univ. of N. C), July 1915, esp. p. 126. Incidentally I may remark that Professor Graves' essay settles the question about the act and scene division of Elizabethan plays, though some English writers are still debating the matter.
page 772 note 3 From Dr. Greg's statement that “nothing terms to be known” as to the history of the MS prior to 1753, when it was acquired by the English nation, it is evident that he was unaware of Heame's acquaintance with it. To my regret Hopkinson does not give us the source of his knowledge.
page 773 note 4 This fraudulent document was first published by Collier in 1835 in his Neu Fads Retarding the Life cf Shakespeare, pp. 12-13.
page 773 note 5 To Dr. Greg the “ane” is doubtful. I can see no certain trace (in the Farmer facsimile) of the mark of abbreviation which Dr. Greg indicates above the final a.
page 773 note 6 There is no doubt some significance—if philosophy could find it out—in the fact that in 1835 Collier said only that it “is known that he 'Baptiste Goodall, or Goodale] was an actor with Laneham”; whereas in 1841 he wrote that “Goodale” “bore a Stratford name” and “was one of the actors with Laneham, in the anonymous manuscript play of Thomas Here.”
page 774 note 7 Dr. Greg wholly ignores five of Sir Edward's points, concedes that two of the four most important points “must be abandoned as doubtful,” and that “the other two are somewhat reduced in force.”
page 775 note 8 D's es symbols descend below the line and Urounat* with a curve to the left instead of, like an e, to the right. For a striking illustration of how closely a final e may resemble an es symbol, and vice versa, see the word “meritter” in the fifth line of the tat of Shakspere's will
page 775 note 9 These textual errors occur in II, ix, 35 (multitudes). III, i, 7 (gossips), ii, 20 (puts), 99 (makes), 127 (hairs), IV, i, 35 (Jints), 55 (masters), 116 (Messengers). In three of these the Quarto differs from the Folio.
page 775 note 10 In the unique quarto of the first edition of Venus and Adonis (1593), the e-es error occurs only four times, possibly five times (lines 272, 632, 840, 988, and 1027).
page 776 note 11 An interesting instance of an initial s mistaken for a I occurs, I think, in the famous crux in The Winter's Tale (I, 2, 529, ed. Furness): “The gracious Queene, part of his Theame; but nothing of his Ul-ta'ne suspicion.” Read “shame” (written “sheame” and meaning “disgrace”) for “theme.” If it be objected to this emendation that the Folio prints the objectionable word with a capital letter, I shall reply (1) that the compositor need not have followed his manuscript as to majuscules and minuscules, and (2) that a capital 5 could also be mistaken for a capital T. Note, for example, Mr. Yeatman's mistaking the T on page 1 of Shakspere's will for an S.
page 776 note 12 See my Problems in Skakspert's Penmanship (Revolving Fund Series, MLA, N. Y., 1927).