ledge their constant indebtedness to Mr Lee's work. A detailed collation of the Folio is given by Lowndes (Bibliographers' Manual, ed. 1863, part viii., pp. 2254-5). It is sufficient here to refer to these authorities. Our copy has been in the Society's possession for 121 years. The minutes of a meeting held on 2nd November 1784 bear: "There was also presented from Miss Clark of Dunbar Mr William Shakespeare's Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies, published according to the true original copies by John Heminge and Henrie Condell, small folio, the first edition." There is no other record of its history. It has been bound in dark brown morocco, with gilt edges, by Messrs Orrock & Son of Edinburgh, apparently about thirty-five years ago. Mr A. Orrock, the present head of that firm, has been good enough to search their books for any entries relating to it, but without success. Although not perfect, it is in fairly good condition as First Folios go. It measures 12 inches in height by 7 inches in width. (The largest known copy measures 13 by 83 in.) The title-page has been re-backed and mended; the first three letters of Shakespeare's name and the imprint at the foot of the page are torn off and have been supplied by the pen. The Droeshout portrait is in fair condition. The lower righthand corner has been slightly torn, and an injury to the left eye of the portrait has been mended, apparently at an early date-not very skilfully. The fly-leaf has also been re-backed, apparently early; its margins are entirely gone, but the printed portion, facing the portrait, is complete, with Ben Jonson's well-known lines: TO THE READER. This Figure, that thou here seest put, O, could he but have drawne his wit As well in brasse, as he hath hit His face; the Print would then surpasse All that was ever writ in brasse. But, since he cannot, Reader, looke Not on his Picture, but his Booke. The leaf with the dedication to the Earls of Pembroke and Montgomery is missing, also the first set of memorial verses, "To the Memorie of the deceased Authour, Maister W. Shakespeare," and the List of Actors. The rest of the preliminary matter is complete, namely, the address "To the great Variety of Readers," Ben Jonson's verses "To the memory of my beloved, the Author Mr William Shakespeare, and what he hath left us," the verses by Hugh Holland, and the "Catalogue." Of the text four leaves are missing, the two first of "Romeo and Juliet" (pp. 53 to 56 of the Tragedies) and the two last of "Cymbeline" (pp. 397-399). These, the end pages of the book, are often missing. A leaf of the "Comedy of Errors" (Comedies, p. 85) has been somewhat badly torn across the lower corner, and a leaf of "Macbeth" (Tragedies, p. 133), one of "Hamlet" (p. 155), and two of "King Lear" (pp. 287, 289), have the margins considerably torn and soiled. There are a few slight tears on other pages, generally affecting the margin only; I have noted them as affecting the letterpress on the following pages: "Tempest," p. 3, "King John," p. 19, "Henry V.," p. 70, "Julius Cæsar," p. 111, "Lear," p. 283, "Antony and Cleopatra," p. 355, and "Cymbeline," pp. 393, 395. In "2 Henry VI.," at p. 137, there are some very old ink-stains, which look as if an attempt had been made to wash them out with water immediately after they were made. The margins, as usual in the case of old books which have been re-bound, have suffered from the binder's plough; one or two of the running titles have been slightly cut into. The First Folio was printed with a curious carelessness; it swarms with misprints. The Comedies, Histories, and Tragedies are separately paged, and there are numerous errors in pagination and in the signatures. These are of considerable bibliographical interest, as many of them were corrected while the book was being printed off, and they help us to place any particular copy in the edition. For example, in some of the earlier copies the following misprints occur:-In "The Taming of the Shrew," p. 214 is misprinted 212; in "All's Well," p. 237 was mis printed 233; and in "Richard II.," p. 37 was misprinted 39. All these mistakes are corrected in our copy. On the other hand, our copy contains the misprinted signatures Vv instead of V in the Comedies, and 1 3 instead of m3 in the Histories, which were afterwards corrected. It has to be kept in mind that sheets which had been worked off before a correction was made were not destroyed; in making up a copy of the book they were bound up indifferently with others which had been corrected. Thus our copy contains, and the Chatsworth copy does not, the misprint in "King Lear" of p. 307 for 309, and the Chatsworth copy contains, and ours does not, the well-known misprint in "Othello,” by which the words "And hell gnaw his bones" are grotesquely misplaced in the dialogue between Roderigo and Iago (Act iv. sc. 2). The torn leaves which I have mentioned have been carefully repaired. There has, however, been no attempt at restoration or at the insertion of facsimile pages. So far as I can judge, the book, though imperfect, is entirely genuine. The Society is fortunate in its possession, and it is matter for satisfaction that so good a copy is permanently preserved in Edinburgh. MONDAY, 12th March 1906. DAVID CHRISTISON, M.D., Vice-President, in the Chair. A Ballot having been taken, the following were duly elected Fellows: ALEXANDER M. BISSET, Bertha Cottage, Bathgate. HENRY B. MARSHALL, of Rachan, Peeblesshire. Dr E. M. MODI, Sleater Road, Bombay, India. The following Donations to the Museum and Library were laid on the table, and thanks voted to the Donors: (1) Bequeathed by the late HUGH J. ROLLO, W.S. Chessboard, folding in two leaves, and elaborately inlaid in ivory with portraits and scenes from Esop's Fables. Table-Clock, in shape of a large watch, the cases ornamented in open work of brass gilt. [See the subsequent communication by Mr A. J. S. Brook.] Conical Bottle of Clear Glass, 4 inches diameter at the bottom and 7 inches high, with a crowned monogram cut on one side, and floral scrolls. (2) By SPENCER G. PERCEVAL, Esq. Two Perforated Discs of Stone, 3 inches in diameter and 14 inches in thickness, and 3 inches diameter and 1 inch in thickness, the perforations about 1 inches in diameter, and made from both sides ; probably weights for digging sticks, from South Africa. (3) By Rev. ANGUS MACKAY, Westerdale, Caithness, through JAMES MACDONALD, W.S, F.S.A. Scot. Half of a Stone Mould for casting Bronze Spear-heads, found at Langdale, Strathnaver, Sutherlandshire. [See the previous communication by Rev. Angus Mackay.] (4) By ROBERT H. PATERSON, S.S.C. Axe of Indurated Sandstone, 6 inches in length and 2 inches in greatest breadth, polished towards the cutting-edge, found near Dulnain. Bridge, Strathspey. (5) By C. W. DYMOND, Hon. F.S.A. Scot. De Danske Runemindesmaerker, af P. G. Thorsen. Runemindesmaerker i Slesvig. 8vo. Kjobenhavn, 1864. (6) By the FRANCO-SCOTTISH SOCIETY. Forste Afdeling. Transactions of the Franco-Scottish Society. Vol. iv. Part 1. (7) By RALPH RICHARDSON, F.S.A. Scot., the Author. Scottish Place-names and Scottish Saints. Reprint, pp. 9. (8) By Rev. WILLIAM BLAIR, D.D., F.S.A. Scot. The Tea-Table Miscellany. By Allan Ramsay. Two vols. (four parts) in one. 12mo. (9) By J. J. MACLEHOSE & Co., the Publishers. Old Glasgow Essays. By J. O. Mitchell. 8vo. 1905. The Scottish Parliament. By C. S. Terry. 8vo. 1905. (10) By Professor G. BALDWIN BROWN, the Author. The Care of Ancient Monuments. 8vo. Cambridge, 1905. (11) By JOHN EDWARDS, F.S.A. Duns Scotus: His Life and Times. Scot., the Author. |