, 1878-09-21
The Earliest Newspaper.

l
To Italy the world is indebted ior the
origin Of the newspaper. Seven CENTURIES
| before the Christian era, JoUi nal, called
the Actd DiuTnd, was pubLshtd d at Rome.
| Ii was not in the likeness of the printed
sheet now lett at every intelhg ent mans
door IN the early morning nol issued III
copious editions and circulated among the
subscribers for a stipulated price. 1t was
pubhc enterprise, supported by goveri-
mcnt; and the few copies struck OF III the
/ LATIN script, on white wooden tablets,
: were hung at conspicuous polntsln streets
and frequented places Ill the city, giving
! the curious paSscrhy the lateSt Inteil-
gence of passing events. With the down
tail of the empire, journalism pcrished,
and Tor u.Ward uf l thousand We1riSume
( years, was one OF the lost and forgotten
! arts.
! BY Italian genius it was finally revived
! again, and Venice WAS Its second birth
! place. There arc now IN The Florentne
/ library, thirty volumes Of the oldest
modern newspaper Of which We have any
/ knowledge Ii WAS entitled GG-ettI, some
say from the word Gazeta, Il magple OF
! cllattcrer, Others say from the name of 4
small com for whlch II was sold. 1t was
published 1T Ncalce once month, by The
government, and continued 10 be written
III SCRIPT even alter printing MAS invented
! The l.st number WAS printed III the SIX
tevnth century.
/ The earliest French Journal, the Gd-ctte
dc France, still III existence, was edited
/ 10y Renaudot, physician III Paris 1t
Was weekly, the first number appearing
Ill 1851. 1t MAS patrOnlZed 10y the king,
LOUIS MIL and contained at least one
article pcnncd by the royal hand Ii also
enjoyed the support Of Cardinal Richcllcn-
The British Museum preserves somc
copies oi ~ MewslaYeY caAied the EIy(tSh
-icrcartc, processing to have been printed
under the authority of Queen Elizabeth
III lJSS. Ihc tide of one of The numbers
reads thus - The EngtjSk Mefc,Tie, pub
llShcd 10y auIhoutic, tur the prevention of
false reports, Imprinted by Christopher
Bariur, her HIghno IS 5 printer, No %
H. 1t Is ;lnaccoUnt uf the Spanish Armada,
under the heading . \ Journal Of what
pass Il since the - Of this month, between
her Majestic illet and that of Sprague,
Transmitted by the Lord High Admiral to
the Lordes OF Council. But the papers
were not published at the date and IN the
circumstances pretended They have been
proven 10 he clever forgerles, executed
about 1905. In l622, during the reign OF
james |, a paper appeared, under the
title Of the London Weekly CoUrnt. In
IG43, the time of the civil war, 4 variety
of other publications, claiming Iurworthliy
the office and name of newspaper, We're
produced hut the first genuine news-
journal published III England WAS estab-
hshcd 10y Sir Roger l. Estrange, II 1863.
IL bore the name OF Ppji,c Etjs' cer,
and survived until the Londo# t',. 'e
was transferred troin Oxford II - N,
IN February, 1866.
The first Regular newspaper produced III
The United States was the Boston At'r&
/ Lcttcr, which appeared Ap.il u, il0I In
September, loss, an entcIl.ris'ng printer
IN Boston, undertook IL start lit cwSiaper,
but the first edition vas suppressed by the
authorities, and only one copy is known
now to exist.