Unhappily for him, the imprudence of early marriage entailing upon him the charge of a family, he is precluded from the indulgence in fresh meat, except as an occasional treat. Cheese and bacon, however, are still within his reach. The improvidence of early marriage rarely occurred in former days, and palpably, if our Kentish labourers lived entirely on oats and rye, it was not of necessity that they did so. I am inclined to think that, in many of the instances given above, especially in haying and harvest, provisions of some sort were found by the employer, over and above the wages. When I have more leisure, I will endeavour to obtain correct information on this point; and meanwhile, send you the entries just as I find them. I observe an entry of “peas to boil for the men.” They had porridge then, at all events, in addition to their wages; and these wages, if they had so chosen, could further have purchased them meat, quite as well as at the present day; though, alas for our poor peasantry, this is not saying much for them; and even of that little smack of meat they will soon be debarred, if the present system—but I am intruding on sacred ground, and must leave the poor fellows to their hard work and scanty meals.
LAMBERT B. LARKING.
MARLOWE AND THE OLD “TAMING OF A SHREW.”
I regret that my communication (No. 13. p. 194.), on the subject of the authorship of The Taming of a Shrew, was too late to be of any avail for the already-published new edition of Marlowe’s works; and, had I been aware of such being the case, I should have waited until I had had an opportunity of seeing a work whose editor may entertain views in ignorance of which, to my disadvantage, I am still writing. It is, perhaps, a still greater disadvantage that I should appear to depend for proofs upon a bare enumeration of parallel passages; when I know that the space I should require for the purposes of stating the case fully and fairly, and, as I think, conclusively, would be utterly inconsistent with that brevity which must be with you an essential condition; while, at the same time, I know of no medium through which I am so likely to enlist the attention of a “fit audience” as your publication. Premising that my references are to The Taming of a Shrew in “Six Old Plays,” 1799, and to Marlowe’s Works, edit. 1826, I proceed to indicate such passages as a rapid glance through the respective works, aided by some previous acquaintance with the subject, and a not very bad memory, furnished. Some of the parallels will be found identical; in others, the metaphors will be found to be the same, with the expression more or less varied; and in others, again, particular expressions are the same, though the tenor of the phrase be different. It will be observed that the quotations of Marlowe are exclusively from Dr. Faustus and Tamburlaine. Of the longer passages I have given merely the first line for reference; and I have numbered them for the convenience of comparison:—
THE TAMING OF A SHREW.
(1) “Now that the gloomy shadow of the night,” &c. p. 161.
(2) “But stay, what dames are these, so bright of hue,” &c. p. 167.
(3) “ O, might I see the censer of my soule.” &c. p.169.
(4) “ Come, fair Emelia, my lovely love,” &c. p. 180. “Valeria, attend, I have a lovely love,” &c. p. 191. “And all that pierceth Phœbus’ silver eye,” &c. p. 181. “Fair Emelia, summer’s bright sun queen,” &c. p.199.
(5) “I fill’d my coffers of the wealthy mines,” &c. p.181.
(6) “As richly wrought As was the massy robe that late adorn’d The stately legate of the Persian king,” p.183.
(7) “Boy. Come hither, sirha boy. Sander. Boy, O, disgrace to my person!” &c. p.184.
MARLOWE.
(1) “Now that the gloomy shadow of the night,” &c. —Faustus, vol. ii. p.127.
(2) “Zenocrate, the loveliest maid alive,” &c.—Tamb. vol. i. p.46.
(3) “Whose darts do pierce the centre of my soul,” &c. —Tamb. vol. i. p.120. “Was this the face that launch’d a thousand ships,” &c. —Faustus, vol. ii. p.192.
(4) “Now bright Zenocrate, the world’s fair eye,” &c. —Tamb. vol. i. p.102 “Batter the shining palace of the sun,” &c. —Tamb. vol. i. p.120 “A greater lamp than that bright eye of heaven,” &c. —Tamb. vol. i. p.154. ——“the golden eye of heaven.”—Tamb. vol. i. p.155. “Wherein are rocks of pearl that shine as bright,” &c.—Tamb. vol. i. p.177.
(5) “I’ll have them fly to India for gold,” &c. —Faustus, vol. ii. p. 123.
(6) “And show your pleasure to the Persian As fits the legate of the stately Turk.” —Tamb. vol. i. p.87.
(7) “Wagner. Come hither, sirha! Boy! Clown. Boy! O disgrace to my person!” &c. —Faustus, vol. ii, p. 131.