Rivers, del. Timon of Athens, Act. 2. Scene.4. Ridley, sculp Published Aug. 5 31.1800, by Vernor & Hood, Poultry. BY WILLIAM SHAKSP ACCURATELY PRINTE FROM THE TEXT OF Mr. STEEVENS's LAST ED Denamented with plates. London: PUBLISHED BY E. HARDING, NO. 98, 1 J. WRIGHT, PICCADILLY; G. SAEL, 1799. OBSERVATIONS. THE ftory of the Misanthrope is told in almost every collection of the time, and particularly in two books, with which Shakspeare was intimately acquainted; the Palace of Pleasure, and the English Plutarch. Indeed, from a paffage in an old play, called Jack Drum's Entertainment, I conjecture that he had before made his appearance on the ftage. FARMER. The paffage in Jack Drum's Entertainment or Pafquil and Katharine, 1601, is this: "Come, I'll be as fociable as Timon of Athens." But the allufion is fo flight, that it might as well have been borrowed from Plutarch or the novel. Mr. Strutt the engraver, to whom our antiquaries are under no inconfiderable obligations, has in his poffeffion a MS. play on this fub. ject. It appears to have been written, or tranfcribed, about the year 1600. There is a fcene in it refembling Shakspeare's banquet given by Timon to his flatterers. Inftead of warm water he sets before them ftones painted like artichokes, and afterwards beats them out of the room. He then retires to the woods, attended by his faithful fteward, who (like Kent in King Lear) has difguifed himself to continue his fervices to his mafter. Timon, in the last act, is followed by his fickle mistress, &c. after he was reported to have discovered a hidden treasure by digging. The piece itself (though it appears to be the work of an academick) is a wretched one. The perfonæ dramatis are as follows: "Timon. "The actors names. "Laches, his faithful servant. "Futrapelus, a diffolute young man. "Gelafimus, a cittie heyre. 7 "Pfeudocheus, "Pfeudocheus, a lying travailer.. "Demeas, an orator. "Philargurus, a covetous churlish ould man. "Abyffus, a usurer. "Lollio, a cuntrey clowne, Philargurus fonne. "Stilpo, "Speulippus, Two lying philofophers. "Grunnio, a lean fervant of Philargurus. "Obba, Tymon's butler. "Podio, Gelafimus page. "Two ferjeants. "A failor. "Callimela, Philargurus daughter. "SCENE, Athens." STEEVENS. Shakspeare undoubtedly formed this play on the paffage in Plutarch's Life of Antony relative to Timon, and not on the twenty-eighth novel of the first volume of Painter's Palace of Pleasure; because he is there merely defcribed as "a man-hater, of a strange and beaftly nature," without any cause affigned; whereas Plutarch furnished our author with the following hint to work upon. "Antonius forfook the citie, and companie of his friendes,-faying, that he would lead Timon's life, because he had the like wrong offered him, that was offered unto Timon; and for the unthankfulness of thofe he had done good unto, and whom he tooke to be his friendes, he was angry with all and would truft no man." men, To the manuscript play mentioned by Mr. Steevens, our author, I have no doubt, was alfo indebted for fome other circumstances. Here he found the faithful steward, the banquet-scene, and the story of Timon's being poffeffed of great fums of gold which he had dug up in the woods: a circumftance which he could not have had from Lucian,` there being then no translation of the dialogue that relates to this fubject. Spon fays, there is a building near Athens, yet remaining, called Timon's Tower. Timon of Athens was written, I imagine, in the year 1610. MALONE. |