The Charlotte journal. [volume] (Charlotte, N.C.) 1835-1851, 1849-11-16
From the North Carolina Standard.
Sketches Of the North. Carolina PRESS,

hougn long IN oafOarfbm nuTieu,
Secs hlooming learning swim arise.
And science waited to the skies
Aided BY thee, the printed page
Conveys Instruction 10 each age;
When one hour more sheets appear
Than scribes could copy in year"
The Press in our country-is astonishing
perfec,ion-i,. moral influence on the happi.
ness Of our rsce. has rarely met the attention
il so richly merits
la the early history Of our Country, We are
informed, ,ha, when the galIan, Saith was
IN captivity by the savage Pow ha,sn, he en-
deavored to effect his ransom by procuring
some articles Of value from the fort Of The
colony of jamestown. He sent letter by
one of the Indians. directing that the articles
needed should be placed al sucha lime al the
foot of certain tree. lie then told Powha,.
an TO send 10 that tree, and 10 the desired
articles were found there. Powha,an's an.
,ulored mind attributed 10 magic this mys,e.
rious art hich thus could make paper talk"
Such would be the fleets on our minds unen.
hghtened by civilization and art.
In our own day. and in our own enlighten.
ed nation, the idea conceived by the PhI'oso.
pher in his solitary closet, OF the plan sue'
gestcd by the statesman in his study or in the
Senate, can in the course Of few weeks by
the art Of the Press be seen by twenty mil.
lions Of people. cnl.htenng their minds and
influencing their acts. Under wise laws, viz.
ruous rulers. and united people. the na'ion
al eminence and glory destined TO be attained
by our Republic cannot be conceived or i'm.
asined.
The art of writing, handed down to US { ON
an Asiaiic source, through the Greeks and
Romans, like that Of language, could only
have its origin in Holy Inspiration. The first
writing that sacred or profane history gives
any record Of. was indicted " amid the wful
promul cations Of Horeb amid Tive ,hunders Of
Heaven, which shook the base Of Mount 81
nai," By THE FINGER OF G,D.
For many centuries, by monks, clerks, and
others, the only writings were executed on
stone, wood, parchment and bones. The o.
rign Of Printing has been the subject OF learn
ed, long and able commentary. ali is won
derful" says Lemoine, " but 1t is true, that
the only srt which can record all others
should almos, forget itself"
Timberly, in his " Encyclopedia Of Literary
and Typographical Anecdo'c," in summing
up all the evidence and arguments, concludes
That to John Gutenberg of the city Of
Mentz, 10 due the appelia,ion Of the father Of
Printing, to Peter ScLGsftr tho father Of Let.
ter Founding, and to John Faust thai Of the
generous Patron, by whose means The won.
derful Art Of Printing was rapidly brought 10
perfection. Thus dividing the honor into a
: , kac 81, e All op
must .iuk into insisnificancc.
This discovery was in The 18th century,
Printing was introduced into Enslsnd, the
nation from which We derived 1t, by William
Caxton, in l474. lie consulted the work
men, who were taught at Menz, and caused
a f1unt "f letters to be cast, and at Westmin.
lister, in nsland, he printed, in l47i (" The
Game Of Chess" This is the frs, book ever
printed IN England. |, was DEDICATED ia the
Duke Of Clarence, brother Of Edward Nv.
The early newspapers prlned in the I'M.
ted States were on a half sheet Of pot paper,
sometimes IN folio, me,Imes in quarto. At
this lime l70iJ there we're but four or FIVE
pc, offices in America. The first ne~spa
per ever published ~ North America was
the i" Boston News Letter" IN l704, BY
Barlholome~ Green, son Of Samuel, who WAS
phi 'to Harvard College. The proprietor
for The first eighteen years was John Camp.
bell, Scorchman, he postmaster uf the town.
A. the end OF this lime IL fell inio the hand,
Of Green, aud Continued until the evacuation
Of b slnn by the British IN l776-the onl v
paper that continued in Boston through the
siege. The Boston Gazette. No. l, was is.
SUED Dec. 81, 1919 By William B,"ker, who
employed James Frankin, the brother Of The
patriot and sage, and to whom Benz mn
Franklin was an apprentice. The American
Weekly Mercury, NJ. /. was printed and
published December, l7l9, at PhiindeIptls
by Andrew Bradfnrd. This was the fir,
newspaper GU. Of Boston ever published 10 A
m-rIca.
Printing was frs, ,nir oduced into North Car
DINA, says Isaiah Thonns IN his" History o
+ Printing IN America" abou, 1855. Befor'
that tune the necessary public printing wa
done al Charleston. There we're only tvs
, ptrs,es in North Carolina before 1915.
, The flssi press was established by Jane
Davis at Newberr, and his paper appeared II
December 1855, by name of The Norll
Carolina Gazette" with freshes, adv,ees
foreign and domestic" |, was pubishe,
weekly on Thursdays, on sheet OF pot sz
( folio. and afterwards on q half sheet. Its i'm
! print, from copy before the writer, was
, New berr. printed BY James Davis, at H.
Q printing Office. on Front street, where al
persons may be supplied with TIN. paper a
sixteen shillngs per annum. And where ad
ys,.isements OF a moderate length are inser,
/, ed for three h'linss tho frs. week, aad IN
, for every week sEsr."
l, continued sbou, six years On the 81.
Of May, 1888. it again appeared and con,in
ued until the Revolution. James Davis wa
: Virginian by birth, and was appointed pos.
master at Newbern by Benjamin Franklin