Fleay, ii. 277, Bullen, Introd. 19, and C. W. Stork, William Rowley, 57. A scene at Venice (Bullen, p. 55) introduces Will Kempe, who mentions Vennar's England's Joy (1602), and prepares to play an 'extemporall merriment' with an Italian Harlaken. He has come from England with a boy. The Epilogue refers to 'some that fill up this round circumference'.
Humour out of Breath. 1607-8 S. R. 1608, April 12 (Buck). 'A booke called Humour out of breathe. John Helme (Arber, iii. 374). 1608. Humour out of breath. A Comedie Diuers times latelie acted, By the Children Of The Kings Reuells. Written by Iohn Day. For John Helme. [Epistle to Signior No-body, signed 'Iohn Daye'.] Editions by J. O. Halliwell (1860), A. Symons in Nero and Other Plays (1888, Mermaid Series). The date must be taken as 1607-8, since the King's Revels are not traceable before 1607. Fleay, i. 111, notes a reference in iii. 4 to the 'great frost' of that Christmas. The Epistle speaks of the play as 'sufficiently featur'd too, had it been all of one man's getting', which may be a hint of divided authorship.
The Parliament of Bees. 1608 < > 16
[MS.] Lansdowne MS. 725, with title. 'An olde manuscript conteyning the Parliament of Bees, found in a Hollow Tree in a garden at Hibla, in a Strange Languadge, And now faithfully Translated into Easie English Verse by John Daye, Cantabridg.' [Epistles to William Augustine, signed 'John Day, Cant.' and to the Reader, signed 'Jo: Daye'.]
S. R. 1641, March 23 (Hansley). 'A booke called The Parliam^t of Bees, &c., by John Day.' Will Ley (Eyre, i. 17).
1641. The Parliament of Bees, With their proper Characters. Or A Bee-hive furnisht with twelve Honycombes, as Pleasant as Profitable. Being an Allegoricall description of the actions of good and bad men in these our daies. By John Daye, Sometimes Student of Caius Colledge in Cambridge. For William Lee. [Epistle to George Butler, signed 'John Day', The Author's Commission to his Bees, similarly signed, and The Book to the Reader. The text varies considerably from that of the manuscript.]
Edition by A. Symons in Nero and Other Plays (1888, Mermaid Series).
This is neither a play nor a mask, but a set of twelve short 'Characters' or 'Colloquies' in dialogue. The existence of an edition of 1607 is asserted in Gildon's abridgement (1699) of Langbaine, but cannot be verified, and is most improbable, since the manuscript Epistle refers to an earlier work already dedicated by Day, as 'an unknowing venturer', to Augustine, and this must surely be the allegorical treatise Peregrinatio Scholastica printed by Bullen (Introd. 35) from Sloane MS. 3150 with an Epistle by Day to William Austin, who may reasonably be identified with Augustine. But the Peregrinatio, although Day's
