The representative., 1899-11-23
A STRONG ENDORSEMENT
Believes Mr.. DOnncIly's Book Settles
the Question of Who Wrote the
Shakespeare Plays.

Fror The Minneapolis Tribune.)
THE CIRHER IN THE PLAYS AND ON
THE TOMBSTONES.
BY Ignatius Donnelly. Published by the
Verulam Publishing Company, Mime
apolis. Cloth. Price $1.25.
Mr.. Donneliy, in the closing paragraph
Of his book, looks forward confidently to the
time when all masks shall fall and there
shall stand forth before the world, sin
gular and luminous, the figure of the grand
est Of the sons of men-the first of poets
and the foremost of philosophers-Francis
Bacon. We wonder if, in all his struggles
for the right, in all his ransacking of dusty
tones, it ever dawned on the Sage of Min
iger that, should the world one day be
convinced that Bacon wrote those immortal
plays another name would be linked with
his, famed almost as much as the noble
bard sand that name would be Ignatius
Donnelly. For, if there is cipher In the
plays and on the tombstone, then we know
not to whom we must attribute the greater
praise: the man who conceived and worked
out this ingenious plot or the man who dis
covered it. OF course there have always
been suspicious Even Charles Dickens
confessed that "Shakespeare's life is fine
thing should turn up Sooner or later
that mystery will be solved. No man and
no nation can now prevent it. Shakespeare
or Bacon whoever wrote the plays, belongs
to the world. The world now has the dis
cussion in charge and 1t must go on until
the truth is known. 1t might be said to be
a lawsuit with the world for jury. Mr..
Donnelly is the leading counsel on Bacon's
side; and never has an advocate worked for
the life and honor of his client as our
author has to establish his cause. He has
been too often met with ridicule and abuse.
He has been sneered at more often than ap-
plauded. But the days of sneering are
gone. He has more than turned the tables.
1t is now the champions of Shakespeare who
are on the defensive, and they. must see
quickly to it or the laurels will be taken
from his brow. Donnelly has issued his
challenge. 1t cannot be ignored. He calls
upon them to open the grave Of Shakespeare
at Stratford on Avon, He defies them to
search in the tomb of Francis Bacon in the
church of St. Michael at St. Adams! These
graves may give up the secret Of 300 years.
The Great Cryptogram" served as the
foreword to the raveling of tangled mys-
terry Has The Cipher in the Plays and on
the Tombstone" forever settled the Shakes
spoken, and are we now to learn the truth?
Bacon says Donnelly. simply post
poned the revelation of his great secret
until such time as the age would give it fair
treatment and an impartial hearing. Is not
that age here now? Will anything be
gained by deferring it a few years, or a
century or two longer?
In this greatest and strongest book that
has yet been written on the Shakespeare
Bacon controversy Ignatius Donnelly most
emphatically urges that this search be made
"Our reason may be fallacious," says he
"and there may be nothing in Shakespeare's
grave but dust and ashes; but at least it
will cost little Of time or means to make
the investigation
For well-nigh three centuries the age OF
fable has outranked the age Of reason. and
the fear instilled by the warning on the un-