The Liverpool Standard and General Commercial Advertiser.
Liverpool, Merseyside, England, 1840-02-21 00:00:00

FRIDAY MORNING, FEBRUARY 21, 1840.

CIRCULA PION OF THE LIVERPOOL
NEWSPAPERS.

We find that certain of our contemporaries have
been putting forth pompous and vaunting statements
respecting " their circulation." These inflated boasts,
having been in one instance, repeated, we think it
right, in justice to ourselves, to lay before our readers
the following calculations, which have been derived
from the Stamp Returns for the last year :
A Return of the Number of Stamps, issued by the
Stamp Office, for the Liverpool Papers, for the Half
Year, from January to June, 1839, together with the
Average Circulation of each Journal :

Total.
204,000

Average.

Mercury..
le rcu ry
Albion....
Chronicle
Courier
Mail

7,846

77,433 . .
60,000 . .
55,197 . .
111,000 ..
35,900
30,900
27,500 ..
30,000 . .
24,000 , .

2,978

2,308

2,123

1,4'23
1,381
1,189
1,158
949
923

Gore's Advertiser .....

Journal
Mercantile Gazette
Standard
Times

This we believe to be a faithful statement of the
average circulation of each of the journals published
in Liverpool during the first half-year in 1839_ We
now proceed to give

A Return of the Number of Stamps, issued by the
Stamp Office, for the Liverpool Papers, for the half-
year, from July to December, 1839, together with the
Average Circulation of each Paper :
Total.
Mercury
Albion 94,500 ..
Courier .
Chronicle
Gore's Advertiser
Mail 90,000
Mercantile Gazette.. .
Standard
Journal..
Times

Average.
7,000
3,634
2,192
2,115
1,423
1,153
1,096

51,000 ..
24,100 . .
24,000 ..

980
926
923

From a comparison of these two returns, we
derive the following statement of the increase or
decrease in the average circulation of each journa
during the latter half-year in 1839 :
Increase.

Decrease.
546

Mercury.
Albion

656
65

Courier .
Chronicle
Gore's Advertiser .
Mail

193

270

Mercantile Gazette
Standard
Journal.

263

Times .

It may be necessary to state that there are only 38,
instead of 52 publications allowed for the STANDARD,
in the first half year in 1839—its publication having
been resumed on the 18th of February.
Taking all circumstances into consideration, we see
no reason to be dissatisfied with the above returns,
though the increase in our circulation has no been so
considerable as that of some of our contemporaries.
We should like to know how the Mercury can explain
the great falling off in its circulation. A difference of
846 in the weekly issues of one half-year, as compared
with the preceding, is rather a singular phenomenon in
the statistical history of newspapers, Our contempo-
rary will, perhaps, be able to throw some light upon the
subject. .

In conclusion, we would merely remark, that, as an
advertising medium the LIVERPOOL STANDARD
possesses peculiar claims upon the support of the pub-
lic. It is now generally acknowledged that the quan-
tity of copies circulated by any newspaper is of much
less importance than the quality of its circulation, In
the latter respect we challenge a comparison with any
of our contemporaries. For mercantile advertisements,
especially, a mere pot-house circulation is of compara-
tively little value: yet such is the nature of the circula-
tion enjoyed by most of our radical contemporaries.

Mr. Villiers has again announced his intention to
move the abolition of the existing system of corn-laws.
The House of Commons will be once more bored with
the silly sophisms and childish arguments of the free
trade agitators, and condemned to listen to the mon-
strous and anti-national proy)ositions of the crazy theo-
rists who are sedulously plotting the destruction of the
agricultural interests of this country. In aid of this
fresh movement on the subject of the corn-laws we find
the Manchester Chamber of Commerce has issued ano-
ther lying manifesto in the shape of a report of the
committee of that assemblage of ignorant but selfish
quacks. These ineffable dolts have yet to learn that
upon the maintenance of the present system of corn-
laws, or some equivalent kind of protection, depends
the prosperity of every class in the community. They
have yet to learn that the abolition of these laws would
be pregnant with mischief of the most extensive char-
acter. They have yet to learn that the abrogation of
these wise and salutary laws would entail lasting ruin
and misery upon a very large majority of the people of
Great Britain. These Manchester liberals have all
this to learn. They are only competent to speak
on the question of the corn-laws as far as their