A DICTIONARY OF QUOTATIONS FROM THE BRITISH POETS. IN THREE PARTS. Ꮲ Ꭺ Ꭱ Ꭲ THE FIRST. Shakspeare. BY THE AUTHOR OF THE PEERAGE AND BARONETAGE CHARTS, &c. &c. &e. LONDON: PRINTED FOR G. AND W. B. WHITTAKER, AVE MARIA LANE. 1824. PREFACE. THE rapid sale and acknowledged utility of the various "Dictionaries of Quotations" from the Latin, French, and other foreign languages, and in particular of that so ably compiled by Mr. Macdonnel, of the Temple, naturally suggested the idea of a similar work in English. It was not, however, without considerable hesitation that the compiler of these volumes entered upon his labours-rendered more arduous by the extensive range of English literature, and the more general acquaintance of the public with the popular passages of our native authors; and although he has confined his quotations to the poets, yet the exuberance of the materials that crowded upon him occasioned some embarrassment in the selection. |