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S H A 
the accomplished Lord Southampton^ That nobleman’s 
father-in-law, Sir Thomas Heminge, was treasurer of the 
queen’s chamber, in which capacity it was his duty to reward 
the actors employed at court; thus plays and players were 
almost forced upon the notice of Lord Southampton, and the 
hold theatrical amusements had on his mind, is evident, 
even at a late period of his life, from his shunning the court 
for a diurnal attendance at the Globe; his entertainment of 
Cecil with “plaies;” and his ordering Richard the Second 
to be performed on the night previous to the rebellion of the 
Earl of Essex. Shakspeare’s intimacy with Southampton 
commenced when the latter was about twenty years of age, 
and from the dedication prefixed to Venus and Adonis in 1593, 
it is apparent that their friendship was cemented by great liber¬ 
ality on the part of the patron; for Rowe tells us, on the 
authority of Davenant, that in order to enable Shakspeare 
to complete a purchase, Southampton at one time presented 
him with a thousand pounds, a gift very exorbitant. The 
tradition derives credit from the wealth which the dramatist 
is known to have possessed in a few years subsequently to 
his arrival in London; for it is contrary to probability, that 
his opulence could have arisen from his emoluments either 
as actor or author, since all his original productions were 
sold absolutely to the theatre, and lie did not publish his 
plays; for though some of his dramas were printed in his 
life-time, this was done surreptitiously, and was at once a 
fraud on the author and the reader. Of Shakspeare’s com¬ 
parative opulence, however, there can be no doubt: in 1597, 
he purchased the most respectable mansion in his native 
Stratford, and went to considerable expence in alterations and 
repairs. 
Several of the nobility, particularly the Earls of Pembroke 
and Montgomery, vied with Southampton in conferring fa¬ 
vours on Shakspeare, and he was distinguished in a most 
flattering manner by the favour of two successive sovereigns. 
We are told that the Merry Wives of Windsor (the first 
draught of which was finished in a fortnight) was written 
expressly at the command of the Virgin Sueen, who being 
highly delighted with FallstafPs humour in Henry the 
Fourth, wished him to be exhibited under the influence of 
love. The author’s reputation was no doubt increased by the 
approbation of his royal mistress, which in all likelihood 
was the only advantage he obtained from her notice. Rovye 
celebrates “the many gracious marks of her favour” which 
Shakspeare received ; but no traces of any pecuniary reward 
from her munificence is to be found. In James the First 
the stage found a warm and generous supporter. In 1599 
he gave protection to a company of English comedians in 
his Scottish capital; and he had no sooner ascended the 
British throne, than he effected an absolute change in the 
theatrical world. In the first year of his reign an act of Parlia¬ 
ment passed, which took from the nobility the privilege of li¬ 
censing comedians, and all the smaller companiesthen existing 
were immediately united into three regular establishments pa¬ 
tronized by the royal family. Though Elizabeth and James 
were particularly fond of dramatic representations, it does 
not appear that they ever visited the public theatres; they 
gratified their taste by commanding the comedians to per¬ 
form plays at court. These entertainments were usually 
given at night, an arrangement which suited the actors, as 
the theatres were generally open in the morning. The ordi¬ 
nary fee for such a performance in London was 61. 13s. Ad., 
and an additional 3/. 6s. §d. was sometimes added by the 
royal bounty. 
In 1603 Shakspeare, together with Fletcher, Burley and 
others obtained a licence for the enacting of plays at the 
Globe Theatre, and he soon became important in the manage¬ 
ment. It is impossible to estimate his income from this 
source : we are ignorant into how many shares this theatrical 
property was divided, nor can we tell what portion was 
enjoyed by the poet. If, however, he was equal with 
Hemings, who is joined with him in the licence, we are 
authorized by his partner to assert that it produced “ a good 
yearly income.” This worldly elevation soon induced him 
to quit the drudgery of an actor, an employment which he 
mentions in his sonnets with disgust, and henceforth he 
seems to have yielded all the powers of his comprehensive 
mind to the improvement of dramatic literature. The 
affectiouate wish which Shakspeare formed in early life, to 
return after his brilliant career, to his native Strattord, and 
die at home, induced him to purchase New Place in 1597. In 
the pleasure ground of that unassuming mansion, he planted, 
with his own hand, a mulberry tree, which flourished for 
many years, and was regarded with reverence. To this 
favourite spot, in 1613 or 14, he retired from the applauses 
and the bustle of the world, to the genuine repose and 
unsophisticated pleasures of a country life. Aubrey informs 
us that it was our bard’s custom to visit Stratford yearly; 
but, previous to 1596, the place of his residence in London 
has not been discovered. He then lodged near the Bear 
Garden in Southwark, and it is not improbable that he 
remained there till his final retirement from the metropolis. 
Shakspeare retired from the metropolis at a period a little 
past the prime of life. He executed his will, yet extant iD the 
Prerogative Office, on the 25th of March, 1616, and died on 
the 23d of April, being the 52d anniversary of his birth. 
His body was buried on the north of the chancel of the 
great .church at Stratford, and over his remains was erected a 
flat stone bearing this inscription, supposed, on account of 
the my in the last line, to have been written by himself 
“ Good friend, for Jesus’ sake forbeare 
To dig the dust enclosed here! 
Blest be the man that spares these stones. 
And curst be he that moves my bones.” 
Many anecdotes of the drunken frolics, and the witticisms 
of Shakspeare have been handed down by loose tradition. 
As they are not entertaining, and the evidence they rest on. 
unsufficient, we have abstained from inserting them. Our 
remarks on the general merits of Shakspeare, and on his 
particular works, are contained in the article Poetrv. 
It would occupy some pages to give even a list of the 
editions that have been published of this author. His plays 
have probably had a larger circulation than any book in the 
world, if we except the Bible, and the demand progressively 
increases. Yet it is remarkable that we still want a good 
edition of his works. There are certainly many things 
in Shakspeare, that require clearing up and explaining* 
and many others which give scope for interesting and 
amusing remarks. So that mere reprints of the text, (of 
which so many have lately been produced) is obviously 
not enough for enlightened readers. On tho other hand the 
bulky accumulations of the commentators aro tedious to all 
readers, and are too expensive for many. It is astonishing 
what a deal of obscurity has been created by making diffi¬ 
culties of very obvious things. A printer of the name of 
Zackariah Jackson, published in 1818, proposals for pub¬ 
lishing Seven hundred -Errors in Shakspeare, and it is really 
amusing to see how often by transposing a letter, and dividing 
two words differently (matters that his business naturally 
rendered him expert at), he clears up in the simplest manner* 
points long disputed, or quite unsettled; and there is no doubt 
that a man of plain sense, proceeding in this way and selecting 
also from Johnson, Pope, &c., their best remarks, might edite 
a very desirable edition of Shakspeare at-a cheap rate. 
SHA'KY, adj. An appellation given by builders to 
timber, which is- cracked either with the heat of the sun or 
the drought of the wind. Chambers. 
SHAL, a district of Balochistan, in Persia, to the south 
of Kelat. It is remarkable for its fruits, which are very 
fine, and sold amazingly cheap. The climate is warmer, 
and the soil more sandy than that of Kelat. 
SHALBOURN, a parish of England, in Berkshire; 4 
miles south-by-west of Hungerford. Population 807. 
SHALBOURN, West, a hamlet of England, in Berk¬ 
shire; within half a mile of the foregoing. 
SHALDEN, a parish of England, in Southamptonshire ; 
2J miles north-west of Alton. 
SHALE, j. [Sax. feala, gluma.]—A husk ; the case of 
seeds in siliquous plants. 
Behold 
