On such fictitious incidents in the romances of past ages, Shakespeare undoubtedly built many of his dramas.  The story of Shylock in the Merchant of Venice is found in an old English ballad.  I will quote a few stanzas to indicate the identity of Shylock and “Germutus, the Jew of Venice.”

  The bloudie Jew now ready is
    With whetted blade in hand
  To spoyle the bloud of innocent,
    By forfeit of his bond,
  And as he was about to strike
    In him the deadly blow;
  Stay, quoth the judge, thy crueltie
    I charge thee to do so. 
  Sith needs thou wilt thy forfeit have
    Which is of flesh a pound;
  See that thou shed no drop of bloud
    Nor yet the man confound
  For if thou do, like murderer
    Thou here shall hanged be;
  Likewise of flesh see that thou cut
    No more than longs to thee;
  For if thou take either more or lesse
    To the value of a mite
  Thou shall be hanged presently
    As is both law and right.

It is reasonable to suppose the miser thereupon departed cursing the law and leaving the merchant alive.

There is, also, a famous ballad called “King Leir and His Daughters,” which embodies the story of Shakespeare’s tragedy of Lear.  It commences thus: 

  So on a time it pleased the king
    A question thus to move,
  Which of his daughters to his grace
    Could show the dearest love;
  For to my age you bring content,
    Quoth he, then let me hear,
  Which of you three in plighted troth
    The kindest will appear. 
  To whom the eldest thus began;
    Dear father, mind, quoth she
  Before your face to do you good,
    My blood shall render’d be: 
  And for your sake, my bleeding heart
    Shall here be cut in twain
  Ere that I see your reverend age
    The smallest grief sustain. 
  And so wilt I the second said;
    Dear father for your sake
  The worst of all extremities
    I’ll gently undertake. 
  And serve your highness night and day
    With diligence and love;
  That sweet content and quietness
    Discomforts may remove. 
  In doing so you glad my soul
    The aged king replied: 
  But what sayst thou my youngest girl
    How is thy love ally’d? 
  My love quoth young Cordelia then
    Which to your grace I owe
  Shall be the duty of a child
    And that is all I’ll show.

This honest pledge the King despised and banished Cordelia.  The ballad accords with the drama in the catastrophe.  Both have the same moral and the same characters.  The ballad is doubtless the earlier form of the story.  Possibly the minstrel and dramatist may have borrowed from a common source.  Good thoughts, good tales and noble deeds, like well-worn coins, sometimes lose their date and must be estimated by weight.  Ballad poetry is written in various measures and with diverse feet.  The rhythm is