which the farce turns, has been unaccountably lost by Gammer Gurton. Result: great lamentation, breathless search, unjust suspicion of innocent neighbours, and an indescribable confusion, as in Kleist's Zerbrochener Krug (The broken jug)-all due to the needle that has disappeared without leaving a trace behind! A blow administered just at the right moment to a certain part of the person of Gammer Gurton's servant brings the unlucky needle to light; it had stuck in the patches of his "unmentionables," as they are called in England. This singular comedy, the charm of which lies in the contrast between the complications caused by despair and suspicion and their trivial cause, ends with general merriment, especially on the part of the delighted owner of the recovered needle.

These two oldest comedies are written in irregular rhymed verse. From a dramatic point of view they are not at all contemptible, only the language is uncouth. Clearly, neither of these pieces, which afforded much amusement to Queen Elizabeth, would have been possible in the reign of one of the classical Louises of France.

The oldest regular English tragedy is Gorboduc, performed before Queen Elizabeth in the year 1562; it is also known by the title of Ferrex and Porrex, and is the work of two authors, THOMAS SACKVILLE (1536-1608) and THOMAS NORTON (1536-83), a pair of youthful barristers of the Inner Temple. Like the two first comedies, it was intended for representation by the students at Christmas. The two young authors borrowed the subject of their tragedy from Geoffrey of Monmouth's Chronicle. Gorboduc, a legendary King of Britain, has two sons, Ferrex and Porrex, the elder of whom is murdered by the younger. His mother in revenge kills the murderer. The people revolt against the blood-stained royal house, and slay both the king and the queen; a civil war ensues, with which the piece ends.

Gorboduc is poetically and dramatically valueless; the delineation of character is poor; the language is emptily pathetic and tedious, although much more refined than that of the comedies. But in the history of the beginnings of English drama, it is of the highest importance. First, on account of its form: it is the oldest play written in blank verse, ie rhymeless iambic pentameters, the metre used by Shakespeare and his contemporaries, and, consequently, that of the German classical poetical drama. Further, it is the oldest English piece, the subject of which is taken from the legends or history of the country, and yet at the same time the first drama in the style of Seneca. In the case of Gorboduc, the unclassical taste of the English public showed itself even in the highest circles; after its first representation before an illustrious audience, it was never played

The first translations of Seneca appeared in 1560; in Gorboduc we see the primal effects of it, the first production of the pseudo-classical drama, which, running like a thin stream by the side of the romantic, continued its unsuccessful course into the seventeenth century. It vividly reminds us of the French classical drama. Except in the metre, there is complete agreement: the same interminable soliloquies, the transference of the action behind the scenes, the speeches of messengers, the stiff solemnity, the entire absence of humour. As drama, it is utterly un-English. And yet, even this dull play shows some regard for certain English customs. The choice of a patriotic subject is itself a repudiation of Seneca. In this respect the other English imitators of Seneca never bowed so slavishly under his yoke as the French classicists. Again, Sackville and Norton inserted certain interludes, dumb shows, in accordance with the practice in the English masques.

THOMAS SACKVILLE (subsequently Lord Buckhurst) was also the author of a long, cleverly-rhymed moral poem, Mirror for Magistrates, which gained him considerable reputation amongst his contemporaries. It is more poetical than his Gorboduc, but intolerably wearisome to us. Yet Sackville, the founder of the serious English drama, lived to see Shakespeare in his prime! We may judge from this of the fabulous rapidity with which the drama, from its humble beginnings, attained its highest eminence; only thirty years separate Gorboduc from Romeo and Juliet, and the interval between Gammer Gurton's Needle and Shakespeare's first comedies is no longer!

We need not say much about the older dramas in the classical style, since they are, without exception, poetically valueless, and also because they practically play no part in the development of English dramas. Locrine, the work of an unknown author, may be mentioned, since it is written in blank verse and does not conform strictly to the three "unities." There is no reason for admitting it amongst the "doubtful Shakespeare plays." It treats of the death of Brutus, a mythical King of Britain, and the fortunes of his three sons. Amongst other insipid pedantries in this piece, the characters, before committing suicide, recite Latin hexameters about themselves, and the ghosts on their appearance also contribute florid pieces of Latin eloquence. The drama of Tancred and Gismunda, also by an unknown author, is as "classical" as Gorboduc, but a little more natural in its language.

Of classical pieces belonging to a somewhat later period we need only notice those by SAMUEL DANIEL (1562-1619), a contemporary of Shakespeare: a Philotas, a Cleopatra, neither better nor worse than the contemporary French Seneca dramas, one of which (by Garnier) was translated into English by Daniel. But all such attempts were in

effectual: the romantic drama of England was victorious from the outset.

The greatest of English "classicists," Ben Jonson, will be discussed in his proper place, amongst the contemporaries of Shakespeare.

Prose very early found a place in English drama. The oldest piece written in prose was the comedy, The Supposes, by GEORGE GASCOIGNE (1538-78), a free adaptation of Ariosto's prose comedy, I Suppositi, and first produced in 1566 at Gray's Inn. It is a very free, almost elegant, translation of the original. Its only merit consists in the bold experiment of prose, whereas hitherto verse, especially rhymed verse, had been regarded as indispensable for English drama.

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CHAPTER II

SHAKESPEARE'S PREDECESSORS

'HE official recognition of favoured actors and the grant of a letter of protection promoted the development of the stage and all connected with it. To the Earl of Leicester belongs the credit of having laid the foundation of the surprisingly rapid growth of the glory of the English drama in the sixteenth century by the royal licence which he obtained for James Burbadge's troupe. Richard Burbadge, the son of the oldest theatrical manager, was a well-known actor in the time of Shakespeare. The remarkable licence of May 7th, 1574, contains permission for Burbadge's troupe to arrange performances "as well within our city of London and the liberties of the same, as also within the liberties and freedoms of any of our cities, towns, boroughs, etc." On the authority of this, frequent performances were given at the birthplace of Shakespeare, Stratford-on-Avon, e.g. in 1574. Notwithstanding the royal licence, Burbadge was compelled by the puritanical civic authorities of London, who were hostile to the stage, to set up his theatre outside the precincts of the city, on the site of a former monastery of the "Black Brothers": this was the origin of the famous Blackfriars Theatre. Soon afterwards The Curtain and The Theatre (as it was simply called) were built, both outside the city. The Globe, Shakespeare's headquarters, was not built until 1599.

Here we must give a brief account of the most important arrangements of the English stage in the sixteenth century, since it is also necessary to know the conditions under which Shakespeare's plays were represented. For more detailed information the reader is referred to special works on the subject.

Auditorium.-The boxes alone were covered; the poorer class were exposed to the open air. There were no lights; the performances commenced at three o'clock in the afternoon and went on till about five. The quality sat in boxes, partly above the stage (the few ladies wore masks), partly on the stage itself, on either side; the rest of the spectators stood "in the pit," or "in the ground" (hence the "ground

lings" in Shakespeare's Hamlet). Smoking was generally indulged in during the performance, even by the aristocrats in the seats on the stage. These haughty aristocrats and the "groundlings" sometimes quarrelled. Friendly dramatists and pretended critics, in reality shorthand writers in the pay of the booksellers, who took down successful pieces with a view to pirated editions, also occupied seats on the stage.

Price of Admission.-One penny; for the best places, anything between that sum and two shillings and sixpence.1

Authors' Fees.-Before 1600 rarely more than £5-£7 for a piece, for the adaptation of older pieces £1-£2, at the most £4, in addition a share of the takings at certain performances.

Management.-There were no general managers; the best actors owned and managed their theatre in common, and divided the net takings, which amounted on the average to forty-five shillings daily in the Globe Theatre, in various proportions (master-sharers, three-and-ahalf sharers, etc.). The inferior actors received a weekly salary.

Stage.-Painted movable scenery was unknown till after 1600; the stage was almost bare; in tragedies the sky-hangings were black, in comedies blue; change of scene was indicated by notices, such as "Venice," "A forest." The highest efforts of imagination were required from the public, who faithfully rose to the occasion. The tradesmen's play of Pyramus and Thisbe in Midsummer Night's Dream with Wall, Moonshine and Lion, fairly represented the extent of theatrical illusion in Shakespeare's time.

Actors. All parts were played by men only, or by boys with treble voices. This and the small number of female spectators explains the frequently outspoken language. Shakespeare and Aristophanes wrote only for men on the stage and in the auditorium. The costume was gorgeous to extravagance. We read of £20 (= £80) being given for an embroidered cloak.

General. In addition to the theatres already named, we may mention The Rose (built in 1587) in the south of London, and, not far from it, The Swan, which held about three thousand spectators. Performances took place every day, even on Sunday. The plays were not printed, in order not to diminish the attendance; in the sixteenth century there were hardly any but pirated editions of plays, the oldest being one of a play of Shakespeare (1597). The commencement of the performance was announced by the blast of a trumpet from the roof of the theatre; for musical interludes, pantomimes, etc., there was a good orchestra, which had places in a balcony; a prayer for the Queen, during which

1 In the sixteenth century the value of money was four or five times greater than it is to-day.