New-York tribune., 1915-03-27

don 20 the end Of his life Shakespeare
had a career Of great literary activity
and productiveness. That is quite clear
nor IS Il lees so that he exercised much
pecuniary prudence ana attained mucn
pecuniary success; and that he aimed
AT securing and maintaining station
o. social respectablity and honor. 10
a certain extent these things may nave
been his motive IN writing, as was
ccott's. He was no crratlc, eccentric
genius. but trim, shrewd, clrcumS Spect
man of affairs. as true geniuses IN llt-
erature and art often are. He was, in
his own day. enormously popular as an
author. much loved as q social com
panion and esteemed "a an exemplary
citizen. But and this - really one OF
the most remarkable "a u "a one or
the most surely demonstrated things
about him he was phenomenalIy Shy
of publicity, non-obtrusive and non
committal on great affairs OF Cnurch
and State. Consider the time IN whlcn
he lived. one Of the most stirring IN
the worlds history. The death Of sid
nev. the execution Of Mary Stuart, the
Armada. the exploits OF Drake and
Raleigh. Essex's rebellion. all the great
doings of Elizabeth, her death. and the
accession Of James, the Gunpowder
Plot. the rise Of Puritanism, and all
that unsurpassed galaxy of great men
who participated in those events.
Shakespeare WAS not only their con
temporary. He was n keen, intelligent
and interested observer. Yet in all his
writings there is scarcely a reference
to any Of these mighty things. Il -
one Of the most monumental omissions
in all literature.
Nor was that simply because he pru-
IDENTIFY deemed il safest. in those times
not 10 NEEDLE with politics or church
craft. In no other respect was he q
poet Of occasion. His contemporaries
Spenser Jonson and the rest. were
frequently writing verse about each
other on all sorts Of pretexts. and were
celebrating all sorts OF events. But
Shakespeare did nothing Of the sort
Why? We may confidently attribute
this to his theory OF poetical art. The
poet Of occasion writes as rule for a
certain time and a certain place
Shakespeare aimed 20 write for all
time and for all places. Such occa-
siOnal poems as "LycIdas.' "AdOnals'
and the "Odc on the Death OF the Duke
Of Wellington" are the exceptions
which prove the rule. or all the great
food Of poems Of occasion OF the Eliza
bethan age, how much has won fame
compared with single one Of shake
speare's plays, or even single one OF
his sonnets?
Professor Masson's examination OF
the plays reveals much about Shake
speare's loyalty to and love for War
wickshire, about MS education and his
reading. and about his theories Of
poetic and dramatic art. Il discloses
too, what we may call the motives OF
some Of the plays. Shakespeare did
not write problem" plays. nor was i,
his aim TO preach sermons on the stage
or 10 hold moral clinics. Yet it is i'm
possible to ignore the tremendous
moral purport OF such plays as THE
Merchant Of Venice" and Measure for
Measure" As for the keenness Of his
observation Of nature and the inten-
sity of his vitality. too much could not
be said. Those characteristics stamp
almost every line he wrote
There were five acts in the drama OF
his personal development. First came
the Romeo Proteus- Byron mood of pas
( sion, impetuosity, wit, Inconsistency
| Next was the inquiSitive, meditative
J speculative mood OF Jacques and Ham