Terra tegit, popvlvs mœret, Olympvs habet."
"Stay passenger, why goest thov by so fast,
Read, if thov canst, whom envious death hath plast
Within this monument, Shakspeare; with whome
Quick natvre dide; whose name doth deck ys tombe
Far more than cost; sieth all yt. he hath writt,
Leaves living art, bvt page to serve his witt.
Obiit Ano. Doi. 1616. Ætatis 53. Die 23. Ap."
A flat stone which covers his grave, presents us with these singular lines, said to have been written by the bard himself, and which were probably suggested, as Mr. Malone has remarked, "by an apprehension that 'his' remains might share the same fate with those of the rest of his countrymen, and be added to the immense pile of human bones deposited in the charnel-house at Stratford:—[619:A]
"Good frend, for Jesvs sake forbeare