NEWSPAPERS. 



207 



tcript." Those who first wrote newspapers were 

 called, by the Italians, menanti, because, says V'os 

 sius, they intended, commonly, by these loose papers, 

 to spread about defamatory reflections, and were 

 therefore prohibited in Italy, by Gregory XIII., in a 

 particular bull, under the name of Menantes (from 

 the Latin minantes, threatening). Menage derives 

 the name, with more probability, from the Italian 

 menare, which signifies "to lead at large," or 

 "spread afar." Perhaps it will not be irrelevant, 

 however, for the writer to remark that it is common 

 for the Mecklenburg peasantry, as he knows from 

 experience, to call the newspaper de Logenblad (the 

 lying paper) ; and the German proverb, in use to 

 this day, " He lies like print (er lugt wie gedruckt)," 

 is probably connected with this view of early news- 

 papers. The first English genuine newspaper ap- 

 peared under Elizabeth, in the epoch of the Spanish 

 armada, of which several, printed when the Spanish 

 fleet was in the English channel, during the year 

 1588, are preserved in the British museum ; and it is 

 very curious how much the mode of communicating 

 certain kinds of intelligence in these early papers 

 resembles the forms in use at present. The earliest 

 newspaper is entitled The English Mercurie, which, 

 by authority, was " imprinted at London, by her high- 

 nesses printer, 1588." These were, however, but 

 extraordinary gazettes, not regularly published. Pe- 

 riodical papers seem first to have been more generally 

 used by the English during the civil wars of the time 

 of the commonwealth, to disseminate sentiments of 

 loyalty or resistance. They were called weekly news- 

 looks. Though Mercury was the prevailing title of 

 most, the quaintness which marks the titles of books 

 in that age is found also in the names of the " news- 

 books ;" for instance, the Secret Owl, Heraclitus Ri- 

 dens, the Weekly Discoverer, and the Discoverer stript 

 Naked, &c. A catalogue of the Mercuries would 

 exhibit a curious picture of those singular times. For 

 more particulars respecting the further development 

 of newspapers in the troubled and changeable times 

 which followed the period of the commonwealth, we 

 refer the reader to D'Israeli's interesting Curiosities 

 of Literature, division Origin of Newspapers, in vol. 

 i. ; also to Johnson's Lives of the English Poets 

 (Addison). For laws enacted respecting newspa- 

 pers, under Pitt, and subsequently, as well as for 

 a geiwral view of the moral and political influence of 

 the English periodical press, we refer the reader to 

 the Periodical Press of Great Britain and Ireland 

 (London, 1824) ; also to Babylon the Great (London, 

 1825, 2d vol.) ; and to the abstracts of acts of parlia- 

 ment, given, among other works, iu the Annual Com- 

 panion to the British Almanac. 



In Germany, newspapers originated with the rela- 

 tions, as they were termed, which sprung up at 

 Augsburg and Vienna in 1524, at Ratisbon in 1528, 

 at Dillengen in 1569, at Nuremberg in 1571, where 

 they originally appeared in the form of a letter, and 

 printed, but without the place of printing, and with- 

 out number. The first German newspaper, in num- 

 bered sheets, was printed in 1612, and was called 

 " Account of what has happened in Germany and 

 Italy, Spain and France, the East and West Indies, 

 &c." Since that time, public papers have succes- 

 sively appeared in various places, under the titles 

 Relation, Ristretto, Correspondent, Courier, Chronick, 

 Realzeitung, &c., which were placed by the govern- 

 ments under censorship. 



Thus it appears that the desire to receive news from 

 the theatres uf war, and from foreign countries, gave 

 oirth to regular newspapers in England and Germany ; 

 but the case was different in France. De Saint Foix, 

 in his curious Essai historique sur Paris, says that 

 Renaudot, a physician at Paris, to amuse his patients, 



was a great collector of news, arid thus much in- 

 creased his practice. As the seasons were not al- 

 ways sickly, he considered that he might turn his 

 treasures to better account, by giving every week to 

 his patients some fugitive sheets, which should con- 

 tain the news of various countries. He obtained a 

 privilege for this in 1632. The French, at the be- 

 ginning of the revolution, imitated the English news- 

 papers ; but, as their passions became more and more 

 heated, there arose papers like Marat's Ami du Peu- 

 ple, and Hebert's Fere Duchesne, which, at present, 

 we can hardly conceive of as having really existed. 

 A history of the French press during the revolution 

 would be exceedingly interesting. Napoleon made 

 great use of the Moniteur as an official organ for 

 furthering and making known his projects. (See the 

 article Moniteur.) After the restoration, it declined 

 in interest and popularity, since the royal govern- 

 ment, to operate on the public opinion, often made 

 use, in preference, of the semi-official papers, which 

 were frequently under the influence of one minister 

 or another ; but, long before that event, owing both 

 to its high price (100 francs a year), and to its neces- 

 sary partiality, it was by no means the most read of 

 the Paris journals.' The Journal de Paris appeared 

 first in 1777, and remained in existence during and 

 after the revolution, but was several times obliged to 

 change its political character. During the ministry 

 of Decazes (1818 20), it was under the influence of 

 this minister. It terminated, in June, 1827, its va- 

 cillating and equivocal career. The Gazette de France 

 was the first regular French gazette that appeared. 

 It was established by Renaudot in 1 631 . Up to 1792, 

 it forms a series of 163 volumes. With a few inter- 

 ruptions, it also continued during the revolution ; and, 

 after the second restoration, it belonged, with the 

 Quotidienne, the Drapeau blanc, &c. , to the papers 

 of the ultra party. The French gazettes are under- 

 taken in shares ; and, as these shares can be sold, it 

 is easy to understand how the gazettes can be bought 

 by the ministry. Each minister made use, without 

 hesitation, of his own journal : thus M. de Damas, 

 minister of foreign affairs, took the Drapeau, and M. 

 de Corbiere, minister of the interior, the Gazette. 

 This paper was discontinued in June, 1827 ; but, in 

 July, 1827, the Etoile, an evening paper, assumed the 

 name of Gazette de France, and became the organ of 

 Vill&e, whom it continued to defend after his fall, and 

 assailed the succeeding ministry with the most bitter 

 vehemence. It became the most violent defender of 

 absolute monarchy, and, under Polignac, constantly 

 demanded a coup-d'etat. At present, it defends the 

 cause of legitimacy and Charles X. The Etoile for- 

 merly belonged to M. de Peyronnet, the minister of 

 justice, and to the Congregation. It received 20,000 

 francs from the treasury, for publishing the articles of 

 M. de Villele. It was, moreover, the advocate of 

 Jesuitism. The Quotidienne has belonged to M. 

 Michaud, the historian of the crusades, to M. de 

 Vitrolles, &c. It was a violent supporter of absolu- 

 tism and the clergy. It is said that the royal papers 

 cost the government, before the last revolution, 

 5,000,000 of francs. In the early times of the revo- 

 lution, the most distinguished anti-revolutionary pa- 

 pers were the Actes des Apotres (conducted by Pel- 

 tier), and the Amidu Rol; and the most distinguished 

 advocates of the revolution were the Chronique de 

 Paris (by Condorcet, Noel. &c.),L'Orateurdu Peuple 

 (by F reran), the Journal de la Cour et de la f-'ille 

 (begun by M. Brun, afterwards marshal), and many 

 others. The rapid succession of revolutions ha.l a 

 great influence on the appearance and disappear nice 

 of the Paris gazettes. For a long time, the Journal 

 du Soir maintained itself undisturbed, and unimer- 

 rupU'd by any revolution. By its tone, simple, intel- 



