The Paradoxe of M. T. Cicero, &c. by Rob. Whyttington, Poet Laureat. Printed in Southwarke, 12 mo. 1540 Webbe translated all the fixteen Books of Cicero's Epistles, but probably they were not printed to gether in Shakspeare's Life-time. I suppose this, from a Paffage in his Dedication. BOETHIUS. Boethius, by Chaucer. Printed by Caxton, fol. Boethius in English Verse, by Tho. Rychard. Imprinted in the exempt monastery of Tavistock, 4to. 1525 Eng. and Lat. by Geo. Colville, 4to. 15567 APULEIUS. Apuleius's Golden Affe, tranflated into Eng. by Wm. Adlington, 4to. Lond. 1566 and 1571* FRONTINUS. Stratagemes, Sleightes, and Policies of Warre, gathered by S. Julius Frontinus. Translated by Richard Morisine, 8vo. Printed by Tho. Berthelet. 1539 In the Stationers' books, Jan. 13th, 1608, Matthew Lownes entered "Anitius Manlius Torquatus Severinus Boethius, a Chriftian Conful of Rome, newly translated out of Latin, together with original Notes explaining the obfcurest Places." Printed 8vo. 1609. * There is an entry of this tranflation in the books at Stationers hall in 1595. Valentine Simes is the name of the printer who entered it. It is again entered by Clement Knight in 1600. PLINY JUN. Some select Epistles of Pliny the Younger into Eng. by Abr. Flemming, 4to. Lond. POMPONIUS MELA. Pomponius Mela, by A. Golding, 4to. PLINY. 1576 1590 Pliny's Nat. Hist. by Dr. Phil. Holland, fol. 1601 SOLINUS. Julius Solinus Polyhistor, by A. Golding, 4to. 1587 VEGETIUS. The four Bookes of Flavius Vegetius, concerning martial Policye, by John Sadler, 4to. RUTILIUS RUFUS. 1572 A View of Valiaunce, translated from Rutilius Rufus, by Tho. Newton, 8vo. DARES Phryg. and DICTYS Cret. Dares and Dictys's Trojan War, in Verfe. CATO, and P. SYRUS. 1580 1555 Caton, translated into Englyshe by Mayster Benet Burgh, &c. mentioned by Caxton. 9 On the books of the Stationers' company is this entry: "Adam Ilip, 1600.] The xxxvii bookes of C. Plinius Secundus his Historie of the Worlde. To be translated out of Latin into Englyshe and so printed." * Probably this was never printed. Cathon [Parvus and Magnus] tranfl. &c. by Caxton 1483 Preceptes of Cato, with Annotations of Erafmus, 1560 and 1562 &c. 24mo. Lond. Catonis Disticha, Latin and English, small 8vo. Lond. 1553 Ames mentions a Discourse of Human Nature, tranflated from Hippocrates, p. 428; an Extract from Pliny, translated from the French, p. 312; Æfop, &c. by Caxton and others; and there is no doubt, but many Translations at present unknown, may be gradually recovered, either by industry or accident. There is an entry of Caton at Stationers' hall in 1591 by Adams, in Eng. and Lat. Again, in the year 1591 by Tho. Orwin. Again, in 1605, "Four Bookes of morall Sentences, entitled Cato, tranflated out of Latin into English by J. M. Master of Arts." 4 "Æsop's Fables in Englyshe" were entered May 7th, 1590, on the books of the Stationers' company. Again, Oct. 1591. Again, Esop's Fables in Meter, Nov. 1598. Some few of them had been paraphrased by Lydgate, and I believe are still unpublished. See the Brit. Muf. MSS. Harl. 2251. It is much to be lamented that Andrew Maunfell, a bookseller in Lothbury, who published two parts of a catalogue of English printed books, fol. 1595, did not proceed to his third collection. This according to his own account of it, would have confifted of "Grammar, Logick, and Rhetoricke, Lawe, Historie, Poetrie, Policie," &c. which, as he tells us, " for the most part concerne matters of delight and pleasure." AN HISTORICAL ACCOUNT OF THE RISE AND PROGRESS OF THE ENGLISH STAGE, AND OF THE ECONOMY AND USAGES OF OUR ANCIENT THEATRES. THE HE drama before the time of Shakspeare was so little cultivated, or fo ill understood, that to many it may appear unnecessary to carry our theatrical researches higher than that period. Dryden has truly observed, that he "found not, but created first the stage;" of which no one can doubt, who confiders, that of all the plays issued from the prefs antecedent to the year 1592, when there is reason to believe he commenced a dramatick writer, the titles are scarcely known, except to antiquaries; nor is there one of them that will bear a second perufal. Yet these, contemptible and few as they are, we may suppose to have been the most popular productions of the time, and the best that had been exhibited before the appearance of Shakspeare.s There are but thirty-eight plays, (exclufive of mysteries, mo ralities, interludes, and tranflated pieces,) now extant, written antecedent to, or in, the year 1592. Their titles are as follows: A minute investigation, therefore, of the origin and progress of the drama in England, will scarcely repay the labour of the inquiry. However, as the Between the years 1592 and 1600, the following plays were printed or exhibited; the greater part of which, probably, were written before our author commenced play-wright. Cleopatra Edward I. Battle of Alcazar Turks Cornelia } Selymus, Emperor of the Mother Bombie The Cobler's Prophecy Taming of a Shrew Maid's Metamorphofes Edward IIІ. |