The Pacific commercial advertiser. [volume] (Honolulu, Hawaiian Islands) 1856-1888, 1874-10-31

yQUITE RECENTLY, a discussion has been going
On in the newspapers and periodicals in the Uni
ted States over the authorship Of the plays Eon-
monty attributed to William Shakespeare ION
our last page we give an article copied from a San
Francisco journal, headed shakespeare or Ba-
CONF" which gives in brief most of the argu-
ments of the ingenious writer's who are attempt
ing to take from the Bard of Avon the credit for
the works which bear his name, and award it to
Bacon. The discussion will prove ~fruitless, and
the attempt will not succeed. The only argu-
ment deserving of much notice against the pre-
sumption of Shakspearian authorship is to the
effect that Shakespeare was not supposed to possess
the extensive historical and other information
eyinced through many of his plays. This argu-
ment however is by no means conclusive, nor is it
strong enough to hang a serious doubt upon.
Other writers who preceded Shakespeare, and who,
as far as known, enjoyed rs few opportunities as
he for becoming accomplished scholars, produced
plays Of equal merit, and showing even greater
stores of knowledge. Rare" Ben Jonson was
the founder of a style of English comedy which
has been pronounced massive, well compacted,
fitted to endure, - and his admirable Roman trag-
edies are acknowledged by critics as literal i'm
presentations Of classical antiquity; be certainly
came to his fitness as a play writer much in the
same manner as did Shakespeare. He was the son
Of 4 poor brick-layer, and his circumstances de-
barred him from going to college. 1t is generally
conceded by biographers that his academicaI in
%struction was very limited, first at n private school,
and afterwards for a short term at Westminster
school. After that, his education seems to have
been entirely IN his own hands, and was pursued
either when fighting as a common soldier in
Flanders, acting at a low theater in London, or in
prison for killing a man in a duel. Jonson and
Shakespeare were contemporaries and friends, and
everybody will remember the verses written by
Ben in memory Of " Gentle Shakespeare" The
latter, il is recorded, even personated parts in
some Of Jonson's plays, and these, though they
have not kept upon the stage so well, are consid-
cred to be even superior to Shakspeare's, as spec
linens of accomplished literary work. There
would appear to be as much reason to doubt the
of Jonson's works as those of Shaks-
peare.
John Webster, who lived between 1870 and
I64O, wrote dramas of the highest order, two of
which are declared by HazlItt as, upon the whole,
90 coming nearer to Shakespeare than anything else
we have upon record Doubt may as fttingly
exist as to the authenticity of his works as those
of Shakespeare, for, from all that can be learned
of him, he was only first a tailor, then an actor,
finally an author, and never studied at college.
Here are two men, neither of whom was more
f~avorably situated than Shakespeare, belonging to
the same period with him, who produced works
which rank as high as his and show no less a pro-
knowledge Of human nature.
The New York Herald has devoted some space
to this discussion, and having listened to every
body who had an opinion to give on the subject,
it now sits on the Judicial bench in the court of
and after a review of all the testimony,
instructs the public jury to render a verdict for