15 SEPTEMBER 1928, Page 31

More Books of the Week

(Continued from page 332) Mr. W. W. Greg's Principles of Emendation in Shakespeare (Humphrey Milford, 3s. 6d.) is a lucid and judicious lecture upon a fascinating subject. Mr. Greg wishes to place Shakespearean emendation upon a firmer and more scholarly basis by a thorough consideration of the varied textual histories of the plays : and yet he would not have it forgotten " that emendation is in its essence devoid of principle. At its finest it is an inspiration, a stirring of the spirit, which obeys no laws and cannot be produced to order." The lecture, while of major value to the student and scholar, is by no means

too abstruse for the layman.

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