n later years, as shall appear, also makes a very distinct
point at Shakespeare as a "reader." Unless there was an enemy in
Shakespeare's camp to report to Chapman and Roydon the fact of his
"reading" to curtail tedious hours for his patron, and to convey
intelligence to Roydon of Shakespeare's and Southampton's relations with
the "dark lady," either by reporting the affair or by bringing
Shakespeare's earlier MS. _books_ of sonnets to his notice, it is
improbable that these men would have had such intimate knowledge of the
incidents and conditions of this stage of Shakespeare's friendship with
his patron. Florio probably fostered the hostility of these scholars to
Shakespeare by imputing to his influence their ill-success in winning
Southampton's favour. It is not improbable that for his own protection
he secretly used his influence with Southampton in defeating their
advances while posing as their friend and champion. Shakespeare
distrusted Florio from the beginning of his acquaintance, and deprecated
his influence upon his patron.

In the earlier stages of Shakespeare's observation of Florio he appears
to have been more amused than angered, but as the years pass his dislike
grows, as he sees more clearly into the cold selfishness of a character,
obscured to his earlier and more casual view by the interesting
personality and frank and humorous worldly wisdom of the man. However
heightened and amplified by Shakespeare's imagination the
characterisation of Falstaff may now appear, a consideration of the
actual character of Florio, as we find it revealed between the lines of
his own literary productions, and in the few contemporary records of him
that have survived, suggests on Shakespeare's part portrayal rather than
caricature.

Assuming for the present that Shakespeare has characterised, or
caricatured, Florio as Parolles, Armado, and Falstaff, the first and
second of these characters are represented in plays originally produced
in, or about, 1592, but reflecting the spirit and incidents of the
Cowdray and Tichfield progress of the autumn of 1591. While these plays
were altered at a later period, or periods, of revision, it is apparent
that both characters pertain in a large measure to the plays in their
earlier forms. If Shakespeare used Florio as his model for these
characters, we have added evidence that by the autumn of 1591 Florio had
already entered the "pay and patronage" of Southampton, who about this
period