New-York daily tribune. [volume] (New-York [N.Y.]) 1842-1866, 1859-08-22

,ls, far the psnto,nime Can IL not en,er INTO
,bsr hearts 10 conceive that their readers may not
be- greater blochteads ths0 themselves oia'' VIZ
still be trrsted as idiots We suppose we ihu'''
Until the rsce is eIterrninated BY general rising
of the common people OF the RePnOhc OF Le''ef'
One of the cbieftst oftb-se SINGERS ct our eontcn-
porar,s hath come to grief OF some OF Tue Parucu
lar. reof We enle htened our readers awhile ago.
Dir. J. Payne Collier, I. S. a., has oeen H'ho"s
the most edscious of tie moths that have lea tne'n
selves fat on the vesture Of SbskesPea'es genus
Ard be seems to be likely to receive MS descl's'
even in the life that now is. The Kew. AeAau'or
p,ce. another of the tribe, is down upon n'in'
TIE London Times ard Saturday Reritr and guam
titles more Of metropolitan journals are squeezing
him fat with the pane forte Ct dn,e OF their seam
presses. The readers Of Shakespeare may r'Jo'ce
70 look on at the condigu punishment OF az least
ore Of their tormentors. We said IN Inc atucio
heretofore vented on the subject, that We believed
that 10 one charged Mr.. Collier with the forgery
of the suno,ations Of the folio of 1892 with which
he bath afflicted mankind for the last hall dozen
wears. We DO not know that the speclf, charge
has been made against him of having been the
author of those peryersOns, but there are certainly
very decided squintiDes in that direction on inc
part OF bis critics. But whether or not this DO 3d.
there is scarcely any severity Of condemnation he
does not merit for having so assduousiy strave %
corrupt the divine speech of the dear law oil
Memory, crest heir of fame" by means of SO
shallow and uncertain al authority, even had 1t
been sll that be supposed or pretended, 1t to Do.
We have some personal feeling in this matter,
iDasmuch as we could scarcely see at the time the
Notes and Emendations we're published, no"
the editor could escape the strong suspicion OF being
also the Noter and Emendator. Nothing, we
imse CINE, but previous good character and respecta
bic standing served to save him from the strongest
kid Of suspicion. The stories Of Chatterton and
Ireland, as 10 the way in which they caue by their
spurious manuscripts We're not more improbable
ard open to exception. Look at the circumstances
of Mr. Golfers acquisition his treasure He WAS,
one day in lo49 in the shop of Mr. Rodd in Great
Newport street, when package OF books from the
country rived, of which this folio was one He
buys il for the purpose of taking some OF It's leaves
to mend another imperfect copy OF the same
edition. He takes it home, and, looking 1t oSer,
finds that the two leaves he wants missing
or spoiled, and throws it aside for nearly two
Years In the meantime Mr.. R0dd, tho book
seller, the only person who could contradict or
confirm this statement, died and was buried.
Mr.. Collier, acting on the safe maxim OF John
Randolph, Pay as you 60, had paid the money
for it on the spot so record OF the transaction
was left on Mr.. Rodo's books. After good while
has gone by he takes his new folio with him to the
country, ana there, for the first time, discovers,
q" to bis SURPRISE that there was hardly page
without emerdations, while most Of them they
were frequent, and on many numerous. WhereUpon
he framed his theory and published his book
Now, on the hypothesis that Mr. Collier was the
fabiicator of these annotations, he would have
been obliged TO frame a story of this sort to &C
count for his having it. 1t must be made to come
into his possession naturally but yet without a
clue TO trace its previous waDderings. This was
provided for by the death Of Mr.. Rodd, in whose
memory alone the source whence it came reposed.
But if it had come in this way to Mr.. Rodd's pos.
session. is il credible that, after the public atten
ton had been so strongly excited to the question of
its history and authenticity that its former owner
would not have came forward with the necessary
explanations 1t is scarcely possible man could
have sent such book to be sold without knowing
what it was and there i. no imaginable reason why
he should not have he ped to elucdate the mystery
and every reason why be should. Then it requires
the brass of q Shakespearean commentator to ask
US to believe that Shakespearolstor, like Mr.
Collier, could have looked through tbs volume
in search Of what he wanted, and not have
noticed the cancellations, when they were,
on an average, thirty to a page or there
abou.s. And, then, that he should have
discovered them, for the first time, after the only
witness of the way how he got the book bad gOue
t. his last account These are the imprObabilities
which Mr.. Collier has to overcome before he can
clear himselfirom the suspicious inevitably attend.
ant on his story. 1t did not need the microscopic
eyes of the photographers Of the British Museum
to discern these patent objections to the veracity
of the Perkins folio. Their explorations, however,
have put the fact of the forgery Of the notes
beyond peradyenture, and obliged Mr. Collier to
elect between the suspicion of having made this
elaborate forgery for the purpose of palming OF his
own theories Of text on this pretext of cotempO-
rary emendation, and the acknowledgment of hav-
ing been the ready dupe of this laborOus hoax,
such as its operose inventor could hardly have
should toss bin on the latter of its horns But
whether the ShakespesreAn public will accept this
a. a sufficient psnacea for the pestilent confusion