The New York herald., 1874-09-19
SHAKE sPEARE's AUTHORSHIP.
Views or Henry Ward Beecher the
New Crtttcisms OF the Bacontan
RAhnnI

School.
TWIN MOUNTAIN HOUSE. Sept. II, 1874.
The Rev. Henry Ward Beecher, being asked to
give his opinion Of the article entitled "who
Wrote Shakespeare S'' published 10 The HERALD OF
Sunday. the 9th inst, said:-
am interested IN such discussion as this not
because regard II as sound and not because am
Interested IN Its ingenuity alone but because It
shaEespeare's WORK and geniur. He IS 'a passing n
through the same process that some years
Admnr se aSms
extent the lmprooao'n'y Of shakespeare's
dreams pr oceedng irom man who had had no
known education IN the various departments OF
learning, from whose stores his works are made
to be so rich, yet feel that the improhablity OF
Bacons being such dramatic geniusis far greater.
the fundamental error Ia this whole criticism
se nsure enara sen Is so,
sary that man should know from personal ex
perlence. or even from observation, those things
ike an alphabet. The dramatic ~ genius
Ii III he Know here and there, Single single fragments
and elements he can recreate them, recom6ine
village and the PRESCRIPTIONS OF q country doc.
tor are material enough for the dramatic genius
10 create whole realm OF medical practice
street brawl IN village, or in ward OF city,
becomes the eaven OF riots and revolutions In the
Imagination Of the dramatist We lind, therefore.
very little difficulty IN imagining how Shakespeare,
from the most slender resources, could produce
the wonderful results which appear IN his works.
Now Bacon, although he had iancy and magma
tiOn, was eiephanune IN his nature essentially.
II almost strikes one with dlsmay to attempt TO
imagine how this broad, philosophical. lactual
man could set himself to the creation oil "Tne
Tempest" and all its airy contents. The predomi.
nant quality OF his mind. pure and simple, Is In
The structure OF his mind and the method OF It's
operation are such us, to me, make It absolutely
II seems to me very much as II one Should attempt
TO show that Frederick the Great was the author
81 u,o as ssa ,a.s He the
and It would require only laborious
ingenuity to collect hundreds and hundreds Of
that In the end Bacon Will carry of the spoils OF
speare with the cross lights thrown upon him from
such an investigation, may seem even more Won
derlul than he has been esteemed hitherto.
MRS. BEECHER sTOwE's OPINION.
Mrs. Harriet Beecher stowe, also being asked TO
give her opinion OF this article, said:-
The theory does not properly belong to Mr..
Holmes. The real author OF It was an American
lady, Miss Della Bacon, sister OF Dr. Bacon, OF New
Haven, who, some twenty-five years ago, elab-
GRATED the theory with great research and great
brilliancy Of genius. Miss Bacon visited England
AMI made his acquaintance, and in his "Engisli
Note Book there re- Is s passage % VI which does justice
nre a sSs public 90 or s
pointment ad led 10 the weight OF very Lecuhar
q
! could wish that this subject might so interest
the Amencan peonle that some publisher would
lected work or their own cOuntrywoman and give
II to the public IN readable form. Having heard
o. MSS Ssn sG SAY as
with great beauty and lucldtty OF style. and wor.
thy Of attention as an interesting literary curl.
osity.
Shakespeare and HIS Contemporaries.
TO THE EDITOR OF THE HERALD
regard Ben Jonson's testimony In prose and
verse as the Gibraltar on which the Baconan
bombshel harmessly rebound Jonson's cele.
brated verses to the memory OF Shakespeare are
well known. They are just, generous and noble,
worthy Of his brave. honest, manly heart and
brain. In his prose he has the following :-"For
loved the man and do honor his memory on this
side OF idolatry as much rs any. He was, indeed,
honest and II an open and Tree nature, had an ex.
cellent fancy brave notions aud gentle express
sions, wherein he flowed with such facility that
sometimes 1t was necessary he should be stopped"
This unquestonably refers to Shakespcare's won.
derlul command Of language and brilliant sparks
OF genius orally delivered as well as to his written
works. No doubt oricElaying Ben often thought
be "should be stopped;" even Ben's remai liable
abilities could not keep up with Shakespeare's-
he was too last for him. Thoroughly appreclative
or Shakespeare's genius and excellences, he was
not. however. blind to MS defects, and ne mas not
JAILED to state them with manly freedom.
Now, we have also from Jonson positive in!or.
nation that Shakespeare had "small Latin aud
assurance and certainty, we may well believe he
thoroughly knew the extent OF Shakespcare's &C.
testimony 70 his trnnscendent merits. He calls
nlm:-
The soul of the agel
Tn applause, delig mt and wonder OF our stagei
h Me was vas not 10 si OF an ase but for al ame
He challenges all ancient and modern times to
produce any one comparable 70 him.
But as Don Adrlanu de Armada says. "More au.
men 81 good repute ana carriage" Here they
are. Edmund Spenser, the world renowned poet,
who has left on record these lines:-
nd he the man Whom :s has made
Our pleasant Willy
sonally and well. in their preface 10 the plays
edition OF 1923, are almost as laudatory OF him.
no IN Ss Tom ron ~
attests the intellectual power OF Shakespeare. In
his account OF the "wlt combats'' between him
and Jonson, and Meres also bears wttness, and
many others.
These endorsements Of Jonson, Heminge
Condell Spenser. &C., are to me perfectly conclu.
surmises and conjectures OF Fraser and all the
other magazines IN existence.
Now, Ia 1t possible, that the man who was so ad.
mired by Spenser anu adored oy J0nson; who
could in repartee and Wit successfully enter the
blocKhead or mere 1gurehead for the produC.
tion Oi another mans works ls " pro0able. Is 1t
even pOsSlOle tnat tuey WOulu nave eul0GlZeQ
"dead.nead" In the whole. sOued enthusiastic
manner they have done
But, as this seems to be the age Of doubts, con.
lectures and quibbes. permit ME TO conjecture
little also.
Bacon died In 1926 Jonson in 1887. Now would
not Bacon's riend at least, at before or alter his
decease, have claimed the authorship OF these I'm.
mortal WORKS. which we know positively to have
been the
Wonder Of the stages
That so did take Eliza and our James,
At what time Sir Tobie snunied OF this mortal
con know not Inc date, no DOUBT can easily be
determined But judging from his great regard
ana tenderness or the illusrious philosopher Is II
not nlghly probable tnat he would have endeav-
ored to ''save his Bacon" and insist that the
laurels, with all the trophies OF triumphant
song" should have been placed on the brow
where they rghtiully Belonged
Palmam qui meruit ferst.
Bacon's Sir Tooe was not half As adroit as
Sir Toby If he did not.
Jonson himself, his great rival when In bad
humor, was always ready las the evidence OF
OF hawthornden, fully provesj to
censure and undervaue all the dramatic authors
OF his time, even Shakespeare. as Is instanced by