to doubt, that his sun set in clouds, to rise without them and of this let us always be mindful, that every one who is made better by his books, will add a wreath to his crown.

Z.

(No. XVII.)

SATURDAY, July 7, 1787.

Est natura hominum novitatis avida.

THAT with respect of news, as well as of liquors, Man is a thirsty soul; we are taught, in the words of my motto, at the very first entrance on our elementary studies. Curiosity is the appetite of the mind. It must be satisfied, or we perish.

Among the improvements, therefore, of modern times, there is none on which I find more reason to congratulate my countrymen, than the increase of knowledge by the multiplication of newspapers.

With what a mixture of horror and commiseration do we now look back to that period in our history, when, as it is said, a written letter came down once a week to the coffee-house, where a proper person, with a clear and strong voice, was pitched upon to read it aloud to the company as

sembled upon the occasion! How earnestly did they listen? How greedily did they suck down every drop of intelligence that fell within their reach; Happy the man who carried off but half a sentence! It was his employment, for the rest of the evening, to imagine what the other half might have been. In days like these there was indeed (if we may use the expression) a famine in the land;” and one wonders how people contrived to keep body and soul together.

The provision at present made for us is ample. There are morning papers for breakfast; there are evening papers for supper;-I beg pardon-I mean dinner; and lest, during the interval, wind should get into the stomach, there is, I believe I know there was--a paper published by way of luncheon, about noon. That fanaticism may not overwhelm us, and that profane learning may be duly mingled with sacred, there is also a Sunday gazette; which removes one objection formerly urged, and surely not without reason, against the observation of the day.

Some have complained, that to read all the newspapers, and compare them accurately together, as it is necessary to do, before a right judgment can be formed of the state of things in general, is grown

to be a very laborious task, which whoever performs properly can do nothing else. And why should he? Perhaps, he has nothing else to do; perhaps, if he had, he would not do it; or, perhaps, if he had not this to do, he would be in mischief. The complaint springs from a very criminal indolence, the child of peace and wealth. No man knows what may be done, within the compass of a day, till he tries. Fortune favours the brave. Let him buckle to the work, and despair of nothing. The more difficulty. the more honour. The Athenians, we are told. spent their time only "in hearing or telling som new thing." Would he wish to spend his time bet ter than the Athenians did?

It has been thought, that tradesmen and artificers may spend too much of their time in this employment, to the neglect of their own respective occupations. But this can be thought only by such as have not considered, that to an Englishman his country is every thing. Self is swallowed up, as it ought to be, in patriotism: or, to borrow ecclesiastical language, the constitution is his diocese; his own business can only be regarded in the light of a commendam, on which if he cast an eye now and then, as he happens to pass that way, it is abundantly sufficient.

The spirit of defamation, by which a newspaper is often possessed, has now found its own remedy in the diversity of them; for though a gentleman may read, that he himself is a scoundrel, and his wife no better than she should be to-day, he will be sure to read, that both of them are very good sort of people to-morrow. In the same manner, if one paper, through mistake, or design, kill his friend, there is another ready to fetch him to life; nay, if he have good luck in the order of his reading, he may be informed that his friend is alive again, before he had perused the account of his death.

The expence of advertising in so many different newspapers may, perhaps, be deemed a hardship upon authors. But then they have, in return, the comfort of reflecting, what benefactors they are to the revenue. Besides, how easy is it for them to balance the account, by printing with a large type, due space between the lines, and a broad margin? Great advantage may be obtained by throwing their compositions into the form of letters, which may be as short as they please; and a reader of delicacy thinks, the shorter, the better. A letter of six lines is a very decent letter. It may begin at the bottom of one page, and end at the top of the next, se

that eight parts in ten of what the reader purchases consist of blank paper: his eye is agreeably relieved; and if the paper be good for any thing, he has, upon the whole, no bad bargain.

That the vehicles of intelligence, numerous as they are, yet are not too numerous, appears, because there is news for them all, there are purchasers for all, and advertisements for all: these last not only afford aid to government, and are pretty reading, but sometimes have an influence upon the important affairs of the world, which is not known, or even suspected.

No event of latter times has more astonished mankind, than the sudden downfall of the Jesuits; and various causes have been assigued for it. I am happy that it is in my power, by means of a correspondent at Rome, who was in the secret, to furnish my readers with the true one-an anecdote, which, I believe, has never before transpired.

It was owing, then, to an advertisement in an English newspaper, which passed over to the continent, and, by some means or other, found its way to the Vatican. I remember perfectly well to have read the advertisement at the time, and to have noted it down in my adversaria, as I am wont to