St. Paul daily globe. [volume] (Saint Paul, Minn.) 1884-1896, 1886-06-06
Unwritten History 1t Revealed to Igna-
titus Donnelly in the Shakespeare
Plays.
The Argument Upon Which the Francis
Bacon Supposed Authorship is
Based.
How Donnelly Discovered the Myster-
ious Cipher and Pursued His
Investigation.
His Book to be Literary Sensations
Is the SAGE OF Nininger an
IconoclaSt:
DomneiIy,s Rev Book.

lew SliulDSeS OIL HIS S5IcdJ Scclct-tHc IT.
suit Of deciphering the Baconian cryptic
gram he discovered running through the
Shakespeare plays. His work will be given
to the world this summer and the sage is
careful to reveal only what VIII intensity
interest i'll the revelations To be made with
out foreStalling the actual facts to be given.
In his lecture on Monday evening Mr..
Donnelly took popular tone and gave an
epltome of the entire anti-ShakeSpeare agi-
tations. blending his own efforts with the
close and left the audience i'll possession of
a tolerably clear though generallzed idea of
the entire subject. The fact that several
booksellers have since reported demand
for Autographed copies of the Shake
Speare folio OF 1923 is evidence that the
lecture took hold and a curious public is
interested i'll verifying the lecturers claims.
1t IS small wonder that the lconoclaStlc Mr..
Donnelly should have received severe criti
cism even i'll high literary circles. Never
yet was an idol without WOrShiperS and lit
erature, like science. must have its martyrs.
The Sage of Nininger, however. can lay
claim to nothing back Of the cipher. He
was himself a convert to the BacOnlan
theory, before the cipher idea dawned on
his mind and any revelations he may make
will be merely corroborative, though to a
convincing degree, of the arguments already
advanced by W. III. Smith, Della Bacon
and others. All previous evidence So
called, is entirely circumStantial and in
direct, but if Mr.. Donnelly can prove his
position and establish the cipher, he will
not only offer direct and conclusive proof
of the Bacon authorship but will add to
history many facts concerning the Essex
instruction and perhaps shed new light
oha of
queen, the 'termegant Elizabeth"
WHY IT WAS NOT SHAKESPEARE
1T is not at all surprising that the many
circles which have bowed so long in adora-
tiOn-nOt of the product alone, but of the
producer should stand aghast and in
horror at the rude fall from the high
pedestal which DOnnelly, ct al, would give
Shakespeare. But to the world at large.
so long as the works themselves remain,
the truth concerning the authorship will
be more acceptable and not the
less so because the mighty mind
of Bacon is universally conceded
a worthy womb from which even these
matchless works might spring. An attack
upon any long-eStabliShed prejudice OF be-
lief will stir up antagoniSm and every new
discovery or invention must battle its way
to success through the ranks of skeptcs, SO
it is net surprising that after three centu-
rieS OF placid trust the attempt to derhrOne
Shakespeare meets with armed opposition.
The Donnelly school of students presents,
first, reasons why Shakespeare could never
have written the works, and second, rea-
sons why Bacon, and Bacon alone, must
have done SO. Some of these will epito-
miZe from memory, using the arguments
quoted by Mr.. Donnelly in his lecture.
nl-f., xNf .I.-
and from a bookless neighborhood. His
father was ''hired hand" on neighboring
farm, and it is doubtful if he owned so
much as family Bible. Shakespeare was
educated i'll school where instruction in
English was not known. Latin was the
only branch taught and in majority of
the schools of the times, the only branch
thought worthy Of being taught.
At the time of the appearance of
the first of the plays he had probably
never been beyond the precincts of his own
little precinct of Stratford, and had de-
voted his time largely to the noble pursuit
OF pOachlng. Such was the man to whom
has been ascribed the authorship of the
grandeSt body of literature known to the
world. This great work was the product
of the profoundeSt mind of the world. Not
only must its author have been scholar.
but man Of the highest culture and, what
was remarkable at those times, perfect
English scholar. His acquaintance with
the classic languages must have been deep
and intimate, for the work displayed a
fluent use of new words, based upon Greek
and Latin roots and
NEVER ONCE INCORRECTLY FORMED.
Phrases and ideas were borrowed from
Italian authors never even yet translated.
Old Spanish proverbs, notably that begin
ming, who steals my purse steals trash, )"
were rec0ined for use: while the handker-
chief episode in "Othello'' was borrowed
from an ancient Italian comedy. The
author Of Shakespeare was evidently ia
miliar with the leading cities of Italy:
and ''Othello," Merchant of Venice"
Romeo and Juliet" 1.-TWO Gentle
men of Verona" and ''Pericles"
could have been written only after
personal acquaintance with the scenes.
such as Shakespeare could never have had
1t was said the poem. 'Venus and Adonis''
was the first product of Shakespeare; that
he carried it to London in his pocket. But
in spite of the fact that this was his first
visit to the metropolis, and that he came
fresh from Warwickshire, with the local
patoiS on his tongue, this magnificent pro-
duction is couched in the finest, choicest
London English, without trace of pro-
vincial dialect in it. 1t is also shown that
Shakespeare's will contained no allusion,
whatever, to his works, though every other
possession was enumerated and disposed of.
Seven of his plays were published seven
teen years after his death, yet with these
priceless manuscripts in existence, he made
not the remotest alluSion to them in his
will. One of the earlier sonnets contained
the most affectionate references to these
children of his brain, alluded to their value
and spoke of their living and talking to the
ages yet to come. The writer evidently
knew the value of the works, yet Shakes
peare died without confiding them to the
keeping or safeguard of anybody.
Another strong point is made of the fact
that the Shakespeare plays TEEN with legal
knowledge and phraseology. Ex-Gov.
Davis has written book on the Law In
Shapespeare'' and similar work was pro-
duced by Boston gentleman. 1t has been
remarked that when the laity resort to
legal phrases they commit plumbers. but an
ancient chief justice has said: ''From
Shakespeare's law there is no appeal" This
has led his commentators to the conclusion
that in early life Shakespeare read law.
But if this had been the case he would have
been in demand as q witness to various in
struments, and the fact is that his signature
in such service is not eXtant
THE EARLIEST DOUBT
cast upon the authorship was by Nash, a
contemporary, who, in 1888, complained of
certain playwrights stealing his thunder.
He says they had better stick to the trade
of lawyers, to which they were born. This
has puzzled the commentators not little.
They had agreed that Shakespeare had had
some little experience with the law, but
that it should be trade to which he was
born could not readily be explained.
This was one of the earlier circumstances
that directed attention to Francis Bacon as
the probable author of the body of plays.
Bacon left two wills, in one of which, in
directing the publication of his works, he
referred to some that would bring greater
honor than those he had published and ac-
knowledged. The later Ct the Shakespeare
plays were published at the same time Ba-
cons were given to the world. in 1928