observes, merely conveys that Shakspere was one who acted in the
plays of which Greene and his three friends were authors.'

The language of Greene IN ONE PART OF HIS TIRADE, 'an upstart crow
beautified in our feathers,' probably refers to Shakespeare as an
actor only, but Greene goes on to insult him as a writer. Judge
Webb will not recognise him as a writer, and omits that part of Mr.
Phillipps's opinion.

There followed Chettle's well-known apology (1592), as editor of
Greene's sally, to Shakespeare. Chettle speaks of his excellence
'in the quality he professes,' and of his 'facetious grace in
writing, that approves his art,' this on the authority of 'the
report of divers of worship.'

This proves, of course, that Shakespeare was a writer as well as an
actor, and Judge Webb can only murmur that 'we are "left to guess "
who divers of worship' were, and 'what motive' they had for praising
his 'facetious grace in writing.' The obvious motive was approval
of the work, for work there WAS, and, as to who the 'divers' were,
nobody knows.

The evidence that, IN THE OPINION OF GREENE, CHETTLE, AND 'DIVERS OF
WORSHIP,' Shakespeare was a writer as well as an actor is absolutely
irrefragable. Had Shakespeare been the ignorant lout of the
Baconian theorists, these men would not have credited him, for
example, with his first signed and printed piece, 'Venus and
Adonis.' It appeared early in 1593, and Greene and Chettle wrote in
1592. 'Divers of worship,' according to the custom of the time, may
have seen 'Venus and Adonis' in manuscript. It was printed by