Memphis daily appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1847-1886, 1864-03-27
ATLANTA,
SUNDAY MORNING. MARCH 81, 1864.
TIE PuREIC PRFss.

I worthy OF consideration By the public and by
| journalists. We take them from the "PreIimi-
nary report Of the eighth census of the United
sts;es--I861,'' which has never bson made pub
| lie in the Soutl.l
Among the elements which determine the
easEsctsristici Of people no branch Of social
statistics occupies a more i1portsnt place than
that which exhibits Tie number, variety, and
difFasion Of newspapers sud other periodicals
Composing S: they do, part Of the reading Of
al, they iurn sh nsErIY the whole Of the read
! ing which The greater number, whether from IN
c.jaa65n or necessity, permit themselves TO en-
joy, aud Il Wis IN viri1o of this feet that the
most philosophical British statesman signElized
"reWspaDe= Girculsions" as more important
Instrument O: tas popular iatsligouee than was
/ genersiiy imagined il his day. The writer's Of
these pa2ez., he added, are indeed for the
/ greater part, either uuknoTn or in cOntsngt,
| but they are Ike 6 battery n which the stroke
Ct any Cns bsn Pr0dness no effect bat the
amount Of c)atirze1 rsps.iion is decisive. Let
Us only sua II any person to tell Is his story,
morning a1i evening, but for a twelven0nth,
and he wiI bscone our master"
AID If sach was the idea OF BURKE, respecting
the infaeDce Of tie public press, it is equally
true hat tie quality and the dissenir siiOn ef
lie fugitive sheets may be said to stand IS sn
exponent at once Of The intelligence and the
domestic economy Of every people.
Is was il this view that Lord John RUSSELL,
il his great speech OF Pallismsntary retoIm,
delivered IN the year 1872, cited the nuiHplicR-
ton and Improvement of newspapers as graft
fyiug evidences Of The augmented wealth and
expanding culture Of the middle clssses IL Great
Bri-aiH. and !: was il his view, also, that
Greek Ecaolsr was accustomed to say that sin
gia Ee6spspsg published in tie sge Of Pcricles,
chad tnas age Prodaeed any such pbeaOuenon,)
would, if handed down 80 Us, b better index
OF AtheseEn lifs and manners THAI caa How be
found in any existing. memorials Of the G:scian
civilization.
The Newspaper and periodical press, now
covering so vide q field Of activity il every
department. CT thought, has wen its way TO ths
commanding position is occupies from very
small beginnings Taking its origin in Issly,
and dndeE forn bearing sons resemblance to
that Of mo5era times, capable of being traced
70 the IG.h century, the newspaper has, in our
day, enlarged 60 qlslly the area Of its diffusion
and TIE Character Of It's contents, while the c.
lsrity with which il IS disseminated eqaaHzss
throughout large tracts Of country the eondi-
ti0us CT that popular intelligence which make
u2 al enlightened public opinion. The earliest
English Newspaper, entitled the HaTeHris, Was
l.lte more than the present Court Circular in
respect C; its las..eE, while is periodical visits
f-on Lon6on to York were, in tho tine Of
Cromwell, accomplished "ia tde b.isl space Of
q fortnight or three wesks."
At tao present day, tbs newspaper and the
psrio3ictl have become popular educators.
Instead CT mere chronicles Of formal procsed-
i1gs OF PaEsiog events, they are vast deposito-
r.es of discussion and information ia ell types
which engage The thoughts or eoliss .ha activisy
Of uion in the GEugs Of society. A free press
has tLas become the representative aud, fer The
mss ses, the organ OF that f-es speech which is
fcuuI Indispensable TO the development Of
trul5, slher on the religious, the political, the
literary, CT the scisnsG, world In each sad ali
Of iLell domains, the newspaper and the peri
oiicsl have accordingly hecOms the most eff
eie0t agents, And in no county has tbeir In
/ 6Rcnes been more scBsibly witnessed, or more
widely extended than in the United States
Tho universal diffusion Of education, combining
| with tae ncdersts prices at which the daily
Waits If tie pUSHc press may be secured, has
| given to the newspaper very great curre2cy
amorg rs. And where 80 large a share Of the
Popuia; activity az, from the very nature Of car
civil Institutions, expressed u socisl and politi
ezl discussions, It is easy 20 predict thss tie
public psess mast here ever eIaEt q power
which Tezdsrs il mighty for good or for evl
| accord ng to the Intelligence sad tie visine Of
tho5s who preside over lis conduct
The tabular statement appended TO shis re-
poi, (tsb.s 81, relating to this subject, strik-
ingly illustrates the cs tha! ;he psople Of the
United Sss.ss are peculiarly "a newspaper
/ reading natioD," sad serves 70 show how large
q port on Of thsir reading is political. OF 4O5I
/ psgelI and periodicals published in the United
S.a,s;, az the date Of the census Of 1860, 3242,
OF 50. o. per cent, woTs political IN their char
sc;er. Two hundred and pinety-eighs, or 73S
per cent, are devoted to literature Religion
and theology compose tie province Of 2O7, or
6 50 per cent; while 234, OF n per cent, sre
class.d as miscellaneous.
TIE LASS decade in cur civil history has bsen
on9 Of extraordinary political egisation. Ae-
cord ugly, we fad that there has been a very
large increase ia tho HEmbeT Of political papers
and periodicals, a5 compared with correspond
ing publications ct The date Of the preceding
Genius. In 1850 sbe number VAS 1890 Il
1860 It was 3242, being sD increase Of nearly
100 por cent In 1850 the nambor Of religious
pspgrs AID periodicals wss I9I. Ia 1860 it Wsi
stated ct III, being an increase Of IS per cent
La 1850 ths number Of papers aud periodicals. o
every class in tho U5itsd States was 1926. Il
! 1860 the aggregate under this head Teaches, a
5sls-e stated, 1851, showing a Ta.e Of Incrcas'
q. co37. The total circulation Of 81 kind
ausu- I'd ia 1850 TO 426. 400 975 copies. u
l56O me annual circulation 10 sisted at 92z
95I I545 copies, showing . ratio Of increase o
Ilu6I
Tie total population Of the United States We
, suited ss The da.e Of the census Of 1850 TO b
le,553li4. In lsGo tho census returns repor
it a. 27,005. .05l, the TsGo of increase beinl
! 3;il2. These figures show how largely he in
+ cremsnl Of the Newspaper and periodical circu
lstion has exceeded the increase Of population
q daring the last ten years.
In 1850 the annual circulation Of all kind
~