ASHLEY HORACE THORNDIKE, Ph.D., L.H.D.

PROFESSOR OF ENGLISH IN COLUMBIA UNIVERSITY

New York

THE MACMILLAN COMPANY

1927

By THE MACMILLAN COMPANY.

Set up and electrotyped. Published November, 1913. Reprinted April, 1914; July, 1915; May, November, 1916; January, 1918; February, September, 1920; September, 1921; March, 1922; February, December, 1923; October, 1924; June, 1926; January, December, 1927.

PRINTED IN THE UNITED STATES OF AMERICA BY
THE BERWICK & SMITH CO.

Transcriber's Notes

Unique page headings have been retained and displayed in the left-hand margin.

Many spelling inconsistencies exist due to the historical period of the quoted sources. These, in addition to the original punctuation, have been retained.

Obvious typesetting errors have been corrected and noted in the [Transcriber's Endnotes] at the end of the text.

Some index entries have been re-sequenced to allow for clarity of sub-entries. These changes are recorded in the [Transcriber's Endnotes] along with a copy of the original text.

CHAPTER		PAGE
I.	Shakespeare's England and London	[1]
II.	Biographical Facts and Traditions	[17]
III.	Shakespeare's Reading	[50]
IV.	Chronology and Development	[67]
V.	The Elizabethan Drama	[89]
VI.	The Elizabethan Theater	[117]
VII.	The Text of Shakespeare	[131]
VIII.	Questions of Authenticity	[156]
IX.	Shakespeare since 1616	[167]
X.	Conclusion	[188]
Appendix A. Biographical Documents and Authorities		[203]
Appendix B. Index of the Characters in Shakespeare's Plays		[226]
Appendix C. Index of the Songs		[241]
Appendix D. Bibliography		[243]
INDEX		[265]

ASHLEY HORACE THORNDIKE, Ph.D., L.H.D.

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