NEWSPAPERS. 



lectual, anil free from the sliackles of party, it rode 

 through all the perils of revolutions ; and it became 

 a kiiul of proverb, that, not to be guillotined, shot, 

 or transported, it was necessary to know how to tell 

 the truth like the Journal du Soir. The directory 

 made use particularly of the Redacteur to make 

 known its policy to France and the world. One of 

 the most important Paris gazettes, which began in 

 171)1 , and has been continued till the present day, is 

 the Journal des Debate (1804 14, and, in March, 

 1815, called the Journal de I' Empire). For a time, 

 Chateaubriand used to write for it against Polignac. 

 At present, it is the paper of the juste milieu, and 

 M. Ke'ratry, who fought, in July, 1830, on the side 

 of the people, is one of its editors. With it the 

 editor united, in 1800, a Feuilleton, comprising the 

 dibats litteraires (literary discussions). This part of 

 the journal was superintended by distinguished men, 

 such as Fievee, till 1807, who was followed by Eti- 

 enne. In the abbe Geoffroy, especially, it had, for 

 thirteen years, a contributor, by whom it was ren- 

 dered so popular, that 30,000 copies are said to have 

 been sold. Since this time, the Paris gazettes have 

 not contented themselves with mere political news, 

 v but have all given literary and theatrical notices. 

 For both Geoffroy manifested an extraordinary talent, 

 and, in this Feuilleton, he daily presented interesting- 

 essays, equally distinguished for knowledge and wit, 

 and for sharp satire and humour. Since Geoffrey's 

 death, the sale has diminished. The best contribu- 

 tors were, subsequently, Malte Brun, Hoffman, and 

 Duricquet, in the dramatic department. For a time, 

 it was a ministerial paper, in which Villele and 

 Chateaubriand communicated their views. When 

 Cliateaubriand left the ministry, he made the Journal 

 des Debats an opposition paper. 



Under Napoleon, the press in France, as in all 

 Europe, with the exception of England, was in a low 

 state, and, in all that concerned politics, only the 

 echo of what the Moniteur promulgated, a paper in 

 which the French emperor not unfrequently caused 

 paragraphs to be inserted, written by his own hand. 

 After his return from Elba, he restored the freedom 

 of the press ; but it was cautiously used. After the 

 restoration, the gazettes were subjected to the censor- 

 ship, which did not cease till 1819. Various enact- 

 ments were, however, made, which rendered the 

 establishment of a daily journal very difficult : several 

 new gazettes, nevertheless, appeared. But, notwith- 

 standing these competitors, the most popular Paris 

 journal continued to be Le Constitutionnel (q. v.), 

 which was founded in 1815, by fifteen shareholders. 

 In its sentiments, it was constitutional, but in its 

 language, moderate. It was conducted by Etienne, 

 Jay, and Tissot. Twenty thousand copies were said 

 to have been sometimes sold. At first, a share was 

 worth 3000 francs : afterwards, 100,000. The Cour- 

 rier Fran fats, formerly conducted by Keratry, was 

 much more liberal, but had a less sale, and the editor 

 was frequently summoned before the criminal court. 

 The Journal du Commerce belongs almost solely to 

 Paris merchants. It frequently treats financial ques- 

 tions with great knowledge of the matter. From it 

 we generally gather Laffitte's opinions. 



In the history of the French press, the tendency 

 suits, as they are styled, are deserving of mention. 

 On the entire emancipation of the press, in 1819, the 

 spirit of political party was so fomented, and gave 

 rise to such excitements, that the government, to- 

 gether with two other laws of exception, which they 

 laid before the chambers, after the murder of the 

 duke of Berry, proposed anew to subject the journals 

 to the censorship a proposal which met with violent 

 opposition from all parties, but was, nevertheless, 

 passed in the chamber of deputies, March 30, 1820. 



This law of exception was prolonged in the session 

 of 1820, so as to embrace the period of the session 

 of 1821, but was afterwards repealed, and supplied 

 by the supervision of the police, because the censor- 

 ship was found incompatible with a representative 

 constitution. On the other hand, the new laws 

 against the abuses of the press were drawn up fit 

 stricter terms. Both the proprietors and editors were 

 made responsible, and libels were punished by fine 

 and imprisonment: even the intention, the secret 

 purpose of a suspicious article, could be made pun- 

 ishable, if its tendency appeared dangerous. The 

 proprietors were compelled to give securities for the 

 good behaviour of gazettes and periodical papers, in 

 sums of 750 10,000 francs rents. For Paris, a 

 security of 10,000 francs rents was necessary, calcu- 

 lating, therefore, according to the then rate of interest, 

 a capital of 150,000 francs. Villele finally succeeded 

 in restoring the censorship; but, when he convened 

 the chamber of representatives in 1827, the censor- 

 ship was obliged to cease. After Villele's downfall, 

 a milder law of the press was submitted, in 1828, by 

 the new ministry to the chambers, and accepted. 

 (For the attack on the press by Polignac, see France.) 

 A French paper (Le Compilateur), in an article 

 written in 1829, and speaking of things as they then 

 stood, says, " There are in Paris 152 journals, literary, 

 scientific, and religious, and seventeen political, in 

 all 169. Of these papers, 151 are constitutional, or, 

 as they are called, liberal, the eighteen others being 

 more monarchical in their spirit. The 151 constitu- 

 tional journals have, it is stated, 197,000 subscribers, 

 1 ,500,000 readers, and produce an income of 1,155,200 

 francs : the eighteen others have 21,000 subscribers, 

 192,000 readers, with an income of 437,000 francs. 

 Le Moniteur, the official paper, has from 2500 to 

 4000 subscribers, principally public functionaries ; 

 Le Constitutionnel, 18,000 to 20,000 subscribers ; 

 Journal des Debats, 13,000 to 14,000 subscribers ; 

 Quotidienne, 5000 , subscribers; Courrier Francois, 

 4500 subscribers ; Journal du Commerce, 3500 sub- 

 scribers ; Gazette de France, 7000 subscribers ; Mes- 

 sager des Chambres, which, since the accession of 

 the Polignac ministry, seems to have taken up liberal 

 ideas, has 2500 subscribers ; Tribune des Departe- 

 mens. a new paper, 100 subscribers; Nouveau Jour- 

 nal de Paris, 1000 to 1500 subscribers. These are 

 all published in the capital: those printed in the 

 provinces are calculated at seventy-five journals, 

 exclusive of papers for advertisements, and ministerial 

 bulletins. Of these, sixty-six are constitutional, sup- 

 ported only by their subscribers of the same way of 

 thinking. One (the Memorial de Toulouse) is sup- 

 ported 'by the archbishop of that diocese ; four are, 

 it is asserted, paid from the secret funds of the 

 Jesuits : the other four are described as monarchical, 

 but of little influence." So far the Compilateur. In 

 1812, there appeared forty-five journals in Paris ; in 

 1826, 179; in 1829, their number was 309; hence 

 more than six times as many as in 1812, and two- 

 fifths more than in 1826. Among those branches for 

 which there were, in 1812, no journals, commerce 

 had, in 1829, fifteen journals, the Catholic worship 

 twelve, morals and philosophy six, Protestantism 

 three, gardening three, the marine two, magnetism 

 two, free-masonry one ; manufactures (which had, in 

 1812, but one) and political economy (which had 

 none) had, in 1829, seven. Even gambling and lot- 

 teries had acquired three organs. The literary 

 gazettes had increased in that year from five to sixty- 

 one ; the political, from five to thirty-two ; the ad- 

 vertising papers, from one to twenty-seven ; the 

 medical, from five to twenty-eight ; periodical pub- 

 lications for education, from two to fourteen ; jour- 

 nals for general literature, from three to twelve; the 



