"Shakespeare" Identified in Edward de Vere the
Seventeenth Earl of Oxford The transference of
the honour of writing the immortal Shakespeare dramas
from one man to another, if definitely effected, becomes
not merely a national or contemporary event, but a world
event of permanent importance, destined to leave a mark
as enduring as human literature and the human race
itself. No one, therefore, who has a due sense of these
things is likely to embark upon an enterprise of this
kind in a spirit of levity or adventure ; nor will he
feel entitled to urge convictions tending to bring about
so momentous a change as if he were merely proposing
some interesting thesis. However much the writer of a
work like the present might wish to keep himself In the
background he is bound to implicate himself so deeply as
to stake publicly his reputation for sane and sober
judgment, and thus to imperil the credit of his opinion
on every other subject. It would therefore have been
more discreet or diplomatic to have put forward the
present argument tentatively at first, as a possible or
probable, rather than an actual solution of the
Shakespeare problem. The temptation to do this was
strong, but the weight of the evidence collected has
proved much too great and conclusive to permit of this
being done with even a fair measure of justice either to
the case or to my own honest convictions. Only one
course then was open to me. The greater responsibility
had to be incurred; and therefore some remark upon the
circumstances under which the investigations came to be
undertaken is not only justifiable but necessary.
Here, then, were the greatest literary treasures of
England, ranked by universal consent amongst the highest
literary achievements of mankind, to all intents and
purposes of unknown origin. The immediate effect of such
a conviction was the sense of a painful hiatus in the
general out look upon the supreme accomplishments of
humanity; a want much more distressing than that which
is felt about the authorship of writings like the
Homeric poems, because the matter touches us more
directly and intimately. It was impossible, I felt, to
leave things thus, if by any means the problem could be
solved and the gap filled up. I re solved, therefore,
notwithstanding the extreme boldness, or rather
presumption, of the undertaking to attempt a solution of
the problem. At the beginning it was mainly the
fascination of an interesting enquiry that held me, and
the matter was pursued in the spirit of simple research.
As the case has developed, however, it has tended
increasingly to assume the form of a serious purpose,
aiming at a long overdue act of justice and reparation
to an unappreciated genius who, we believe, ought now to
be put in possession of his rightful honours.
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