Florence. There should be more in it than a feasting dish; What's here, a child? Julia. Oh, my perplexed heart! Prince. Upon his breast there's something writ. I'll read it. 'Tis fit, if justice be not quite exiled, That he that weds the mother keep the child. The child, it will be observed, is of some age, and is behaving with great equanimity under its trying circumstances. The side-cut on the right seems to have been rather superfluously added by the artist to explain a situation he might safely have left to the dramatist. In 1655 "The Merry Devil of Edmonton" appeared from the press of D. Gilbertson with a title-cut showing Banks and his famous horse on a platform. Our last illustration is taken, not from this, but from another Edmonton play, "The Witch of Edmonton, a known true story. Composed into a tragi-comedy by divers well-esteemed Poets; William Rowley, Thomas Dekker, John Ford, &c. Acted by the Princes Servants, often at the Cock-Pit in Drury-Lane, once at Court, with singular Applause. Never printed till now. (London, Printed by J. Cottrel, for Edward Blackmore, at the Angel in Paul's Churchyard. 1658.)" The illustration in this case is a composite one, referring to three different moments in the play. Mother Sawyer is found by the dog-said dog, of course, being "a Familiar " -cursing" that curmudgeon Banks," the "clown" of the piece, who, with three of his companions, has been abusing her. A long speech of imprecation ends with the effective line: "Vengeance, shame, ruin, light upon that Canker," and it is then that there appears the stage direction, "Enter Dog," his opening remark being the "Ho! have I found thee cursing? now thou art mine own," of which part is seal the usual covenant with her blood, and instructed her "I'll tell thee, when thou wishest ill; And mumble this short Orison: If thou to death or shame pursue 'em San&tibicetur nomen tuum.' " In a subsequent scene the Spirit takes the form of Katherine Carter, with whom Cuddy Banks is in love. On her appearing to him he remarks that he will teach her to walk so late! The teaching, however, was not on his side. She trips before him, and his exclamation as he quits the stage, "Nay, by your leave I must embrace you, is speedily followed by that quoted in the cut, "Oh help, help, I am drown'd. I am drown'd." The stage direction hereupon is "Enter Wet," and the dog, after four diabolic "ha ha's," bids him " Take heed how thou trustest the Devil another time!" The tumbling into the water, it will be observed, like the murder of her children by Medea, was enacted behind the stage, probably because on the stage there was no means of simulating water to tumble into. In this case, therefore, the artist, a very rude one, it must be confessed, not only brought three scenes together, but depicted one which the audience could not have witnessed. Our subject has been limited to woodcuts in old plays, but it should be noted that both the undated editions of Middleton's "Game of Chess" have engraved title-pages of some merit. As for our woodcuts, I have tried to resist the temptation to claim for them more than they deserve. One or two of them are really good, several others at least interesting, a few, like that at which we have just been looking, poor stuff enough. But they are connected with the greatest period of the English drama, and it has been worth while to collect these notes, if only to show that this is the best that English artists could do, or English publishers had the enterprise to commission them to do, when they were confronted with so unique an opportunity. ALFRED W. POLLARD. 89 NOTES ON LIBRARY LEGISLATION. HERE is considerable divergence of opinion as to what legislative changes are most desirable. I can recollect several heated debates at meetings of the Library Association regarding so simple a proposal as that the limit of the penny rate should be removed -a proposal with which all who appreciate the advance of education heartily concur, although some of us have persistently questioned the wisdom of pressing for it at the present stage in the progess of the movement. When a locality is prepared to rate itself beyond the penny limit, it had much better obtain the power by a special local Act. The recent action of the ratepayers of Liverpool, when an Omnibus Bill was submitted to them for approval, affords an interesting commentary upon the very much larger proposal that the power to increase the rate should apply to every library district in the United Kingdom. It is alleged that, because of the proposal to increase the Liverpool library rate, the whole Bill, containing though it did many useful and desirable provisions, was rejected by the ratepayers on the ground that they were not prepared to rate themselves for libraries above the limit already in operation. In my opinion no better course could be taken to hinder the adoption of the Acts in new districts than to provide by legislation for the removal of the penny limit, or to give to library authorities the power to remove it should they so desire. Ratepayers, upon a proposal to adopt the Acts, would immediately object that there was no knowing to what extent they might be rated, while they have a certain knowledge that the general rates do not decrease. It is somewhat surprising that in Scotland until this year neither boroughs nor parishes had power to combine or amalgamate for library purposes. That they possessed such yower under the Public Libraries (Amendment) Act, 1866, is clear, but that Act was repealed by the Public Libraries (Scotland) Amendment Act, 1867, and no provision for combination or amalgamation was made in the Public Libraries Consolidation (Scotland) Act, 1887. This is how we legislate at the end of the nineteenth century. It may be considered a trivial point and unworthy of attention, but its importance was emphasized by Mr. Carnegie's offer of the sum of £10,000 for the establishment of a Public Library for Dumfries and Maxwelltown, a free site being offered by Mr. McKie and his sister. No enactment being in existence which would enable these places to co-operate, and neither being willing to allow the other to proceed, except upon satisfactory terms of partnership from the outset, the legislature had to be invited to remove the difficulty, and this has now been accomplished by the Public Libraries (Scotland) Act, 1899. This Act authorizes the combination of any two or more neighbouring burghs or parishes for the purposes of the Act of 1887, to the advantage not only of Dumfries and Maxwelltown, but of the public library movement in Scotland generally. Although shorn of some important clauses by the inscrutable action of the Local Government Board, the Library Association's Amending Bill which passed the Lords last session contains some valuable provisions. If passed by Parliament it will empower library authorities to make by-laws with penalties for their infringement, instead of mere "regulations" to which no penalty can be attached. And, again, they would be protected from any action for libel contained in any book kept on their shelves until the aggrieved persons have successfully proceeded against the author, publisher, or bookseller. The powers of combination and amalgamation also would be enlarged, since it proposes that a library authority of any district may agree with a library authority of any other district for the joint use of a common library. The clause in the Bill giving county |