430 NEWSPAPERS [SOUTHERN EUROPE. 1772 by the Mcrcure de Suede. But the press in Sweden had small political influence until 1820, when the Argus was established by Johannsen. The strife between " classicists " and "romantic ists " spread itself in Sweden, as in France, from the field of litera ture into that of politics. Crusenstolpe s Fdderncslandbladct and Hjerta s Aftonbladet, founded in 1830, were long the most con spicuous of the Swedish journals, the former on the side of the royalists, the latter on that of the reformers. Hjerta s paper, in its best days, could boast of a circulation of 5000 copies ; but on the accession of King Oscar it ceased to appear as an opposition organ. Almost every town in the provinces has its paper. The growth of the Swedish press during the present century may be thus briefly epitomized: Papers. 1801 25 1821 48 1829 ... 62 Papers. 1831 80 1841 112 1850 113 1853.. 1858.. 1870.. Papers. 105 101 180 In 1882 the newspapers and "other journals," according to Hubbard, numbered 303. Denmark. While Denmark, as regards mere news-journals, followed the example of its rival by publishing an Europdische Zeitung as early as 1663 and the Danske Mcrcurius in 1666, the political influence of the press is a newer thing in that country than even in Sweden. Until 1830 Copenhagen had but two papers, and they filled their columns with mild extracts from foreign journals. Keal activity in this direction dates but from the establishment of the provincial states in 1834. The oldest existing paper is the Berlingske Tidende, which dates from 1749, and was at first published in German. It is now a semi-ministerial journal. The Fddrelandet belongs to the opposition, and in 1848-49 was in a glow of zeal for Scandinavian- ism and " Young Denmark." The total number of political journals in 1849 was 36. Of political and miscellaneous journals together there were in 1879, according to Larousse, 207, of which number 97 were published in Copenhagen. Those belonging to the provinces are of small account. The American consular returns furnished to Hubbard in 1882 give to Denmark 142 (in the text 61 only, but 81 are added in a supplement apparently printed subsequently to the table) of all kinds. So great is the diversity of the most recent Iceland, accounts. Iceland has in all 12 journals ; 10 of these may fairly be looked upon as newspapers, while 2 are magazines. The 10 include two papers printed in Copenhagen for circulation in Iceland. Norway. The earliest Norwegian paper was the Christiania Intelligents- sedler, founded in 1763. Next to this came the Adressccontors Efterretningcr (1765), published at Bergen. Den Constitutionellc was until recently the organ of the Government, and had absorbed an older paper, called Norske lligstidcnde. The Morgenblad is now the daily journal of the popular party, and dates from 1819. See A. Geffroy, " La presse pe"riodique dans ks Etats Scandinaves," in Revue des deux Mondes, 1861, iv. 759-765 ; Larousse, article " Journal," in Grand Dictionnaire, 1875; Hubbard, ut sup., ii. 1297-1300, 1833-1851, 1921, 2580-2582. Belgium The Netherlands and Belgium. The Nieuwe Tijdinglien of and Antwerp, published by Abraham Verhoeven, has been said to date Holland, virtually from 1605, in which year a "licence for the exclusive retailing of news " was accorded to him by the archdukes Albert and Isabella. But the claim is conjectural. No copy of any number of this paper anterior to 1616 is now known to exist. It seems probable that the Gazette Extraor dinar Is Posttijdinglicn, published by Wilhem Verdussen between 1637 and 1644, is a continuation of Verhoeven s paper. But, be this as it may, that of Verdussen was certainly the foundation of the well- known Gazette van Antiverpen, which continued to appear until 1827. Bruges had its Nieuwe Tijdinghen uyt verscheyden Quartieren, published (in black letter) by Nicholaes Breyghel. When this paper was commenced is uncertain, but various numbers of it exist with dates between 1637 and 1645. In one of these (26th July 1644) a Brussclschc Gazette of the 24th of that month is quoted, apart from which citation no Brussels paper is known of earlier date than 1649. When the first number of Le Courrier veritable des Pays- Bos made its appearance, the publisher (Jean Mommaert) prefaced the first number by an address to the reader, in which he says : " I have long endeavoured to meet with somebody who would give employment to my presses in defending truth against the falsehoods which malignity and ignorance send daily abroad. I have at length found what I sought, and shall now be able to tell you, weekly, the most important things that are going on in the world." This paper became afterwards the Gazette de Bruxelles, then Gazette des Pays-Bas ; and, under the last-named title, it continued, to appear until 1791. The Annales Politiques of Linguet was one of the most remarkable of the political journals of Brussels in the last century. For a time the editor won the favour of the emperor Joseph II. by praising his reforms, and the Government subscribed for 1200 copies of his paper at two louis d ors each a year ; but here, as in almost every other place of residence during his chequered career, Linguet at length incurred fine and imprisonment. His journal was repeatedly suppressed, and as often resumed under many modifications of title. It was continued in France, in Switzerland (at Lausanne), and in England. At one time it was so popular that a printer in Brussels regularly and rapidly published a pirated edition of it. For a brief period the publication was resumed at Brussels. A complete set extends to eighteen volumes, and ranges in date from 1780 to 1791. l Mallet Du Pan was, for a time, a collaborator in the editorship. Linguet died by the guillotine in 1794. Le National was a famous paper for a short period prior to the revolution of 1830. Soon after its cessation its presses Avere destroyed by the populace on the 26th August the official journal, Lc Muiiitcur Beige, was established, "the ministry deeming it in dispensable to the success of its great political enterprise that a journal should be created which might expound its views, and act daily upon public opinion " ; and, on decree of the regency, it was published accordingly. It now claims a circulation of 30,500, and the restored National one of 21,100 copies. But L Etoilc outshines both ; according to its publishers, it circulates, on the average, 40,500 copies daily. Hubbard s correspondents assign to Brussels a total of 28 daily newspapers, but this heaps together publications of the most incongruous kind. The first newspaper published at Ghent, Gazette van Gent, appeared in 1667. Den Vaderlander, begun in October 1829, was, for a long period, one of the most widely circulated of the Flemish journals. La Flandre liberale is now the leading newspaper of Ghent, with a circulation of about 15,000 daily. The kingdom of the Netherlands has always been rich in news papers, but they have usually had more weight commercially than politically. Those in most esteem are Hct Nieuu-s van den Dag (about 25,000 copies) and the Allgemccn Handelsblad (both daily) of Amsterdam ; the Haarlemsche Courant ; 2 and the Ncderlandsche Staats-Courant, and Dagblad van Zuidholland en s Gravenhage (originally Journal de la Hayc], both printed at the Hague. Russia, Poland, and Finland. flic earliest gazette of Moscow Russia. (Moskovskia Wiedomosti) was issued by order of Peter the Great on the 16th December 1702, but no copy is known now to exist of earlier date than the 2d January following. The Avhole gazette of the year 1703 was reproduced in facsimile by order of the late Baron de Korff (the able imperial librarian at St Petersburg) in 1855, on occasion of the festival for the 3d century of Moscow university. The existing Wiedomosti dates only from 1766 ; its circulation in 1882 has been estimated at 50,000 copies. That of St Petersburg dates from 1718. 3 The historian Karamzin estab lished a short-lived Moscow journal (Moskovski Listok), and after wards at St Petersburg the once widely-known Russian Courrier dc la Europe (1802). The profits of the successful Invalide Russc, established in 1815;by Persorovius, were devoted to the sufferers by the war with France. It continues to appear, not in its original weekly form, but daily, and is now published in Russian (Russkii Invalid). It is said to have an average circulation of about 7000 copies (1882). It is the organ of the" old Russia" party, and also of the ministry of war. Adding to the distinctively political journals those of miscellaneous character, the whole number of newspapers published within the Russian states Poland and Fin land excepted in the year 1835 was 136 ; in 1858 that number had grown to 179, of which 82 were published in St Petersburg and 15 in Moscow ; 132 were printed in Russian, 3 in Russian and in German, 1 in Russian and in Polish, 28 in German, 8 in French, 3 in English, 1 in Pplish, 1 in Lithuanian, 1 in Italian. In 1879, under the more liberal rule of Alexander II., the number of political and miscellaneous journals if we may trust the native authorities used by Lagai had grown to 293, and of these 105 were under the direct influence of the Government. But, in truth, the period of relaxation of censorship, if strictly examined, will be found to have lasted only from 1855 to 1864, when repressive measures were again and frequently resorted to. Only 107 foreign political journals are now authorized to circulate. The total number of licensed foreign periodicals amounts to about 300, and of that number no less than 154 are in German. Poland in 1830 had 49 newspapers. Fifty years later the Poland, number was still less than 70, of which 54 are in Polish, these numbers including journals of all kinds. Finland in 1860 had 24 newspapers, half in Swedish, half in Finland Finnish. In 1863 the number had increased to 32, in spite of the zealous opposition of Count de Berg, the governor-general, to all discussion of political events and " subjects which do not concern 1 Collection de Materiaux, <fec. [Billiog. des Journaux~, pur M.Dfeschiens], p. 97. 2 The late M. Xavier Marmier says in his Lcttres sur la Hollande, " the Haar lemsche Courant is the senior of all the gazettes of Europe," but in truth it dates only from 1656, seventeen years later than the Tijdinghen uyt verscheyden Quar tieren, and twenty-five years later than his own familiar Gazette de France. 3 There are now (1883) no less than four St Petersburg gazettes, all dailies, the three which are in Russian having an aggregate circulation of about 16,700, while the one in German (1827) circulated nearly 15,000 copies in 1882. Lagai says of the latter : " Its aim is to restore the state of affairs which existed under Peter the Great."
