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i-ious branch of the art, and demands the 

 most particular notice. Il has been often 

 remarked, that as seven cities in Greece 

 disputed tor the birth of Homer, so three 

 cities in Europe, Haerlem, Strasbourg, 

 and Mentz, claim the honour of the in- 

 vention of printing. 



Without entering minutely into the dis- 

 putes which have long agitated the minds 

 of those who have felt a particular interest 

 in this investigation, we state it as our opi- 

 nion, that Guttemberg was the.inventor 

 of the art of printing by moveable types ; 

 that he began the art at Strasbourg, and 

 perfected it at Mentz. In this opinion, the 

 earliest writers who mention printing are 

 all agreed. 



That the first attempts at printing were 

 made at Strasbourg is, we think, incon- 

 testablv proved by the following circum- 

 stances John Guttemberg entered into 

 a partnership with Andrew Drizehennius, 

 John RifK, and Andrew Heilmann, all citi- 

 zens of Strasbourg, binding himself to 

 discover to them some important secrets, 

 whereby they should make their fortunes. 

 Each at first contributed eighty florins, 

 and afterwards 125. The workshop 

 was in the house of Andrew Dritze- 

 hen, who died. Guttemberg immediate- 

 ly sent his servant Beildeck to Nicholas, 

 the brother of the deceased, to request 

 him to suffer no one to enter the work- 

 shop, lest the secret should be dis- 

 covered, and the forms stolen. But this 

 had already been done. This theft, and 

 the claim which Nicholas made to succeed 

 to his brother's share, occasioned a law 

 suit, and the evidence of the servant af- 

 fords explicit and incontrovertible proof 

 in favour of Guttemberg, as the first who 

 practised the art of printing with movea- 

 ble types. The document containing the 

 account of this trial, Sec. is dated 1439. 

 It was published in the original German, 

 with a Latin version, by Schopflin, in his 

 " Vindicise Typographies." M. Lam'oi- 

 net, in his " Recherches Historiques sur 

 1'Origine de 1'Art de 1'Imprimerie," pub- 

 lished at Paris a few years ago, says, that 

 the German is obscure, and that every 

 one will interpret the equivocal words in 

 favour of his own opinion. It is, however, 

 manifest, that Guttemberg expressly or- 

 dered that {he forms should be broken up, 

 and the characters dispersed ; a fact 

 clearly proving, that the art of printing 

 was at that time a secret, and that more- 

 over it was performed with moveable 

 types. Guttemberg, after having sunk 

 what he and his associates had embarked 



in this speculation, returned to Mentz, 

 where he was born, and succeeded better 

 in a partnership with Fust. 



The evidence in favour of Guttemberg 

 appearing to us decisive, we shall not en- 

 ter into any examination of the claims ad- 

 vanced by the other candidates for the 

 honour of being the inventor of the art of 

 letter-press printing. The names of 

 those persons were, John Fust, of Mentz ; 

 John Mental of Strasbourg ; and L. John 

 Koster, of Haerlem. When the city of 

 Mentz was taken by Adolphus, Count of 

 Nassau, in 1462, Fust, and Schoefter, ser- 

 vant and son-in-law to Fust, suffered ma- 

 terially with their fellow-iownsmen. 

 Their associates and workmen dispersed 

 to seek their fortunes, and the art was thus 

 diffused over Europe. When it was first 

 established at Paris, the copiers, finding 

 their business so materially injured, pre- 

 sented a memorial of complaint to the par- 

 liament, and that tribunal, as superstitious 

 as the people, who look the printers for con- 

 jurers, had their books seized and confis- 

 cated. Louis XI. who, villain as he was, 

 was the friend and patron of letters, for- 

 bade the parliament to take any farther 

 cognizance of the affair, and restored 

 their property to the printers. 



The art of printing now began to spread 

 itself over a great part of Europe with 

 astonishing rapidity. It was practised at 

 Rome in the year 1467, and the year fol- 

 lowing it was introduced into England 

 by Thomas Bourchier, Archbishop of Can- 

 terbury, who sent W. Turner, master of 

 the robes, and W. Caxton, merchant, to 

 the continent to learn the art. Turner 

 and Caxton met with one Corseilles, an 

 under-workman, whom they bribed with 

 considerable presents and large promises, 

 to come over to England, and instruct 

 them in the art. This business having 

 been accomplished, a press was set up at 

 Oxford, which was afterwards removed to 

 St. Albans, and after that to Westminster 

 Abbey. The learned Dr. Conyers Mid- 

 dleton, and others, are inclined to doubt 

 the truth of this part of the history of 

 printing. It is certain, that Caxton did 

 not return immediately to England, but 

 continued some time on the continent, 

 following the business of a printer. In- 

 deed both the origin and the history of 

 the first introduction of the art of print- 

 ing into this country are involved in doubt 

 and obscurity, and nothing has ever yet 

 been published perfectly satisfactory on 

 this subject. We will, therefore, pro- 

 ceed to an account of 



