diuers desperate men hang themselues with.'" Sig. D 3, ed. 1592. The truth is (and I cannot but wonder that the fact should have escaped the notice of those biographers and critics who have written concerning Greene and Harvey) that the lines which so mortally offended Gabriel were suppressed by our author: it should seem that the obnoxious page was cancelled; and perhaps not a single uncastrated copy of the Quip has descended to our times. I at first imagined that the attack on the three coxcombs had only been handed about in MS., but I have now no doubt that it formed part of the original edition of the tract: Christopher Bird expressly mentions "the publication of that vile pamphlet ;" see his letter in the note below, where the different motives that Harvey and Nash have assigned to Greene for the suppression of the passage will also be found.* In the "three brothers' legend" their various foibles were no doubt most provokingly touched on. To it Nash alludes thus; "It was not for nothing, brother Richard, that Greene told you you kist your parishioners wiues with holy kisses," &c. Strange Newes, &c. 1592, Sig. C 4. ; again, "Tubalcan, alias Tuball, first founder of Farriers Hall, heere is a great complaint made, that vtriusque academiæ Robertus Greene hath mockt thee, because hee saide that, as thou wert the first inuenter of musicke, so Gabriell Howliglasse was the first inuenter of English hexameter verses." Id. Sig. G 2.; and again; "One of the three (whom the Quip Christopher Bird writes thus from Walden, 29th August, 1592, to Emanuel Demetrius in London; "In steed of other nouels [i. e. news] I sende you my opinion, in a plaine but true sonnet, vpon the famous new worke intituled A Quippe for an upstart Courtier, or, forsooth, A quaint Dispute betweene Veluet-breeches and Cloth-breeches; as fantasticall and fond a dialogue as I haue seene, and, for some particulars, one of the most licentious and intollerable inuectiues that euer I read. Wherein the leawd fellow and impudent rayler, in an odious and desperate moode, without any other cause or reason, amongst sondry other persons notoriously deffamed, most spitefully and villanously abuseth an auncient neighbour of mine, one M. Haruey, a right honest man of good reckoninge, and one that aboue twenty yeres since bare the chiefest office in Walden with good credite; and bath mainetained foure sonnes in Cambridge and else where with great charges, all sufficiently able to aunsweare for themselues, and three (in spite of some few Greenes) vniuersally well reputed in both vniuersities and through the whole realme. Whereof one, returning sicke from Norwich to Linne, in Iuly last, was past sence of any such malicious iniury, before the publication of that vile pamphlet."-Fovre Letters and certaine Sonnets, 1592, p. 3. In the same work Gabriel Harvey says; "In his extreamest want he [Greene] offered ten or, rather then faile, twenty shillinges to the printer (a huge som with him at that instant) to leaue out the matter of the three brothers; with confession of his great feare to be called Coram for those forged imputations."-p. 5. To which Nash replies ; "Haud facile credo, I am sure the printer, beeing of that honestie that I take him for, will not affirme it. "Marry, this I must say there was a learned doctour of phisicke (to whom Greene in his sickenesse sent for counsaile) that, hauing read ouer the booke of Veluet-breeches and Cloth-breeches, and laughing merrilie at the three brothers legend, wild [i. e. wished, desired] Green in any case either to mittigate it or leaue it out; not for any extraordinarie account hee made of the fraternitie of fooles, but for one of them was proceeded in the same facultie of phisicke hee profest, and willinglie hee would haue none of that excellent calling ill spoken off. This was the cause of the altring of it, the feare of his phisitions displeasure, not any feare else." Strange Newes, &c. ed. 1592, Sig. D 4. : entitles the Physition)," &c. Id. Sig. D. Greene having died soon after he had shot this shaft of ridicule at the Harveys, Gabriel, disappointed in his hopes of punishing by a legal process the calumniator of himself and family, meanly spit his venom on the poet's grave. That his Fovre Letters, and certaine Sonnets,* &c. 1592, contain an authentic account of the last hours of Greene, I have already expressed my conviction it was derived, Harvey tells us, from the woman who attended as nurse on the dying man; and I cannot believe that he whom Spenser thought worthy of his friendship, and honoured with a noble sonnet,t would ever have stooped to falsehood. Let it not be supposed, however, that the virulence of Harvey does not fill me with disgust: every one possessed of the slightest sensibility must be shocked at his attempt to deface the monument of the dead. Several passages from the Fovre Letters, &c., have been cited in the course of this essay, see p. 55 (note), p. 57 (note), p. 63 (note), p. 66 (note); and an ampler specimen of them is now subjoined: "Whiles I was thus, or to like effecte, resoluing with myselfe, and discoursing with some speciall frendes, not onely writing vnto you, I was suddainely certified that the king of the paper stage (so the gentleman tearmed Greene) had played his last part, and was gone to Tarleton: whereof, I protest, I was nothing glad, as was expected, but vnfainedly sory; aswell because I could haue wished he had taken his leaue with a more charitable farewell, as also because I was depriued of that remedy Fovre Letters, and certaine Sonnets: Especially touching Robert Greene, and other parties, by him abused: But incidently of diuers excellent persons, and some matters of note. To all courteous mindes, that will voutchsafe the reading. London Imprinted by John Wolfe, 1592. 4to. "To the right worshipfull, my singular good frend, M. Gabriell Haruey, Doctor of the Lawes. Haruey, the[e] happy aboue happiest men I read, that, sitting like a looker-on Of this worldes stage, doest note with critique pen The sharpe dislikes of each condition; And as one carelesse of suspition, Ne fawnest for the fauour of the great, Ne fearest foolish reprehension Of faulty men, which daunger to thee threat; But freely doest, of what thee list, entreat, Like a great lord of peerelesse liberty, Your deuoted frend during life, Edmund Spencer." G. Harvey's Fovre Letters, &c. 1592, p. 75. "As Achilles tortured the deade bodie of Hector, and as Antonius and his wife Fulvia tormented the linelesse corps of Cicero, so Gabriell Harvey hath shewed the same inhumanitie to Greene that lies fall low in his graue." Meres's Palladis Tamia, Wits Treasury, 1598, fol. 286. in law that I entended against him, in the behalfe of my father, whose honest reputation I was in many dueties to tender. Yet to some conceited witt, that could take delight to discouer knaueries, or were a fitte person to augment the history of conny-catchers, O Lord, what a pregnant occasion were here presented to display leaud vanity in his liuely coullours, and to decipher the very misteries of that base arte! Petty cooseners are not woorth the naming: he, they say, was the monarch of crosbiters, and the very emperour of shifters. I was altogether vnacquainted with the man, and neuer once saluted him by name: but who in London hath not heard of his dissolute and licentious liuing; his fonde disguisinge of a Master of Arte with ruffianly haire, vnseemely apparell, and more vnseemelye company; his vaineglorious and Thrasonicall brauinge; his piperly extemporizing and Tarletonizing; his apishe counterfeiting of euery ridiculous and absurd toy; his fine coosening of iuglers, and finer iugling with cooseners; hys villainous cogging and foisting; his monstrous swearinge and horrible forswearing; his impious profaning of sacred textes; his other scandalous and blasphemous rauinge; his riotous and outragious surfeitinge ; his continuall shifting of lodginges; his plausible musteringe and banquettinge of roysterly acquaintaunce at his first comminge; his beggarly departing in euery hostisses debt; his infamous resorting to the Banckeside, Shorditch, Southwarke, and other filthy hauntes; his obscure lurkinge in basest corners; his pawning of his sword, cloake, and what not, when money came short; his impudent pamphletting, phantasticall interluding, and desperate libelling, when other coosening shiftes failed; his imployinge of Ball (surnamed Cuttinge Ball), till he was intercepted at Tiborne, to leauy a crew of his trustiest companions to guarde him in daunger of arrestes; his keping of the foresaid Balls sister, a sorry ragged queane, of whome hee had his base sonne Infortunatus Greene; his forsaking of his owne wife, too honest for such a husband;—particulars are infinite ;-his contemning of superiours, deriding of other [othes?], and defying of all good order? Compare base fellowes and noble men together, and what in a manner wanted he of the ruffianly and variable nature of Catiline or Antony, but the honourable fortunes of Catiline and Antony? They that haue seene much more then I haue heard (for so I am credibly infourmed) can relate straunge and almost incredible comedies of his monstrous disposition: wherewith I am not to infect the aire or defile this paper."-p. 9. "How he departed, his ghostly mother Isam can truliest, and will fauourabliest, report: how he liued, London remembreth. Oh, what a liuelie picture of vanity! but, oh, what a deadlie image of miserie! and, oh, what a terrible caueat for such and such! I am not to extenuate or preiudice his wit, which could not any way be great, though som way not the least of our vulgar writers, and mani-waies very vngracious but who euer esteemed him either wise, or learned, or honest, or any way credible? how many gentlemen and other say of him, 'Let the paltry fellow go. Lord, what a lewde companion was hee! what an egregious makeshift! Where should conny-catchers haue gotten such a secretarie? How shal cosenage do for a new register, or phantasticallitye for a new autor?' They wronge him much with their epitaphes and other solemne deuises, that entitle him not at the least, The Second Toy of London, The Stale of Poules, The Ape of Euphues, The Vice of the Stage, The Mocker of the Simple World, The Flowter of his Friendes, The Foe of Himselfe, and so foorth. What durst not hee vtter with his tongue, or diuulge with his penne, or countenance with his face? Or whome cared hee for, but a carelesse crewe of his own associates ? Peruse his famous bookes: and, in steede of Omne tulit punctum, qui miscuit vtile dulci (that, forsooth, was his professed poesie), loe, a wilde head, ful of mad braine and a thousand crochets, a scholler, a discourser, a courtier, a ruffian, a gamester, a louer, a souldier, a trauailer, a merchaunt, a broker, an artificer, a botcher, a petti-fogger, a player, a coosener, a rayler, a beggar, an omnigatherum, a gay nothing; a stoarehouse of bald and baggage stuffe, vnwoorth the aunswering or reading; a triuíall and triobular autor for knaues and fooles; an image of idlenes; an epitome of fantasticalitie; a mirrour of yanitie; Vanitas vanitatum, et omnia vanitas. Alasse, that anie shoulde say, as I haue heard diuers affirme, 'His witte was nothing but a minte of knauerie; himselfe a deuiser of iugling feates; a forger of couetous practises; an inuentour of monstruous oathes; a derider of all religions; a contemner of God and man; a desperate Lucianist; an abhominable Aretinist; an arch-atheist; and he arch-deserued to be well hanged seauen yeares agoe.'"-Id. p. 24. * Gabriel supposes his dead brother John Harvey to address Greene in the following powerful "SONNET. "John Harucys Welcome to Robert Greene. Thou ouer-long hast plaid the madbrain'd knaue, These hungry wormes thinke long for their repast: It was thy liuing: be not so aghast; A foole and [a] phisition may agree: And for my brothers, neuer vex thyselfe; They are not to disease a buried elfe."-Id. p. 71. To this torrent of abuse Nash replied somewhat weakly in that comparatively small portion of his Strange Newes,† &c., 1592, which is devoted to the subject of See the latter part of the quotation from Christopher Bird's letter, note, p. 66. + Strange Newes, Of the intercepting certaine Letters, and a Convoy of Verses, as they were going Priuilie to victuall the Low Countries. Unda impellitur unda. By Tho. Nashe Gentleman. Printed 1592, 4to. I believe this piece was never reprinted, but was again put forth with a new title Greene. He seems to have felt that little could be said in defence of the character of his companion, and is evidently anxious to show that no particular intimacy had existed between them. Most of what relates to Greene in the Strange Newes, &c., has been page as The Apologie of Pierce Pennilesse, or Strange Newes, Of the intercepting certaine Letters, &c. 1593. Chettle imagines the dead poet to write the following letter to Nash. "Robert Greene to Pierce Pennilesse. "Pierce, if thy carrier had beene as kinde to me as I expected, I could haue dispatched long since my letters to thee: but it is here as in the world, donum a dando deriuatur; where there is nothing to giue, there is nothing to be got. But hauing now found meanes to send to thee, I will certifie thee a little of my disquiet after death, of which I thinke thou either hast not heard or wilt not conceiue. "Hauing with humble penitence besought pardon for my infinite sinnes, and paid the due to death, euen in my graue was I scarse layde, when Enuie (no fit companion for Art) spit out her poyson, to disturbe my rest. Aduersus mortuos bellum suscipere, inhumanum est: there is no glory gained by breaking a deade mans skull. Pascitur in viuis liuor, post fata quiescit: yet it appeares contrary in some, that inueighing against my workes, my pouertie, my life, my death, my burial, haue omitted nothing that may seeme malitious. For my bookes, of what kind soeuer, I refer their commendation or dispraise to those that haue read them: onely for my last labours, affirming, my intent was to reproue vice, and lay open such villanies as had beene very necessary to be made knowne, whereof my Blacke Booke, if euer it see light, can sufficiently witnesse. "But for my pouertie, mee thinkes wisedome would haue brideled that inuectiue; for cuiuis potest accidere, quod cuiquam potest. The beginning of my dispraisers is knowne; of their end they are not sure. For my life, it was to none of them at any time hurtful; for my death, it was repentant; my buriall like a Christians. Alas that men so hastily should run, To write their own dispraise as they haue done! "For my reuenge, it suffices, that euery halfe-eyd humanitian may account it, instar belluarum immanissimarum sæuire in cadauer. For the iniurie offred thee, I know I need not bring oyle to thy fire. And albeit I would disswade thee from more inuectiues against such thy aduersaries (for peace is nowe all my plea), yet I know thou wilt returne answere, that since thou receiuedst the first wrong, thou wilt not endure the last. "My quiet ghost (vnquietly disturbed) had once intended thus to haue exclaimd; 'Pierce, more witlesse than pennilesse, more idle than thine aduersaries ill imployde, what foolish innocence hath made thee (infant like) resistlesse to beare whateuer iniurie enuie can impose? 'Once thou commendedst immediate conceit, and gauest no great praise to excellent works of twelue yeres labour: now, in the blooming of thy hopes, thou sufferest slaunder to nippe them ere they can bud: thereby approuing thy selfe to be of all other most slacke, beeing in thine owne cause so remisse. 'Colour can there be none found to shadowe thy fainting; but the longer thou deferst, the more greefe thou bringst to thy frends, and giuest the greater head to thy enemies. 'What canst thou tell if (as my selfe) thou shalt bee with death preuented? and then how can it be but thou diest disgrac'd, seeing thou hast made no reply to their twofold edition of inuectiues? 'It may bee thou thinkst they will deale well with thee in death, and so thy shame in tollerating them will be short: forge not to thyself one such conceit, but make me thy president, and remember this olde adage, Leonem mortuum mordent catuli. 'Awake, secure boy, reuenge thy wrongs; remember mine: thy aduersaries began the abuse, they continue it if thou suffer it, let thy life be short in silence and obscuritie, and thy death hastie, hated, and miserable." "All this had I intended to write; but now I wil not giue way to wrath, but returne it vnto the earth from whence I tooke it; for with happie soules it hath no harbour. Robert Greene." Kind-Harts Dreame, &c., n.d., &c. [1592] Sig. E. The "Blacke Booke" mentioned in this letter was afterwards published under the title of The |