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SEVENTEENTH CENTURY.
461
uHrfaetorie for Paper Bookt m auarto are an- nexed. 1616. 4to. — See Brydge's Centura Literaria.
1616. It appeals from the register of the stationers, that among others, the Decameron of " Mr. John Bocace Florentine" was revoked by a sudden inhibition of Abbot, archbishop of Can- terbury. Caprice and ignorance, perhaps par- tiality, seem to hare had some share in this business of licensing books. — Warton.
1616, March 9. Died, Francis Beaumont, a poet and dramatic writer of some eminence. He was born in Leicestershire, and educated at Cambridge, from whence he removed to the Inner Temple. He was buried in Westminster abbey.
John Fletcher was the son of Richard Fletcher, bishop of London, who died June 15, 1596. He was born in 1576, received his edu- cation at Cambridge, died of the plague at London, August 29, 1625, and was buried in St. Saviour's church, South wark. The principal piece of his own writing is a dramatic pastoral entitied the Faithful SMpherdeti.
Beaumont and Fletcher agreed to write plays in company ; and fifty-two dramatic compositions, tragic and comic, appear under their joint names, and only one or two out of that number are ascertained to have been written by either, without assistance with his coadjutor. It is un- derstood, however, that Fletcher, notwithstand- ing his being the older man, was chiefly em- ployed in the business of imagining and writing the plays, while Beaumont had the task of chastening down and regulating the exuberant fancy of his senior. The following extract re- lating to books, is taken from one of their plays.
Oireme ^ '
lieave to enjoy myaelf. That place that does ^ . Contain my books, the best companions, is To me a glxarioas coort, where hourly I Convene wiQi the old aagea and pblloaophen ) And sometimes for varied, I confer With kiu^ and emperorsi and wei^ their conna^ j Calling their vlctones, if unjustly got. Unto a strict accoont i and in my fancy, Defkce their ill-placed statnes. Can 1 then Put with such constant pleasure*, to embrace Uncertain vanities I No ; be it your care To augment a heap of wealth : it shall be mins To inoease in knowledge.
1616, March 16. The company of stationers' obtained a renewal of their charter for the sole printing of Primen, Ptalten, both in metre and prose, with or without musical notes; Al- manacJu, &c. in the English tongue ; and the A. B. C. with the LitUe Catechitm, and the Catechiem in English and Latin, &c. by Alex- ander Nowell.
1616. Died, Louis Elzevir, of Leyden, in Holland, the founder of one of the most learned family of printers that ever adojpned the republic of letters. Out of the twelve printers of this family, who exercised the art in this century, SEVEN have distinguished themselves by the Dumber and beauty of their editions, viz.
Louis above named printed at Leyden, from 1595 to 1616. He was succeeded by
Isaac, who exercised the art at Leyden from 1617 to 1628.
BoNAVENTURE and Abraham Elzevib, bro- thers and partners, printed at Leyden, from 1626 to 1652, in which year they died. To them we owe the pretty 12mo editions of the elattiei, and the collection of authors who have written the histories of almost every state in the world, which collection is sometimes added to the col- lection of elastics.
John, the son of Abraham Elzevir, printed in partnership with Daniel, at Leyden, in 1662, 1623, and 1624, and afterwards alone from 1653 to 1661.
Louis II. (the son of Isaac) printed at Am- sterdam, alone, from 1640 to 1655, and from that year in partnership with Daniel, until July 1662, when the former died.
Daniel, the son of Bonaventure, haviuff printed first at Leyden, in partnership wit£ John from 1652 to 1654, and afteiwuds at Amsterdam in partnership with Louis from 1655 to 1662, continued to carry op business alone from the lost mentioned year, until his death, September 13, 1689. His widow printed only a short time longer.
A catalogue of the Greek, Latin, and French authors, executed by this leuned family of print- ers, in 12mo, is given by Mr. Home, in hisinftv- duction to the Study of Bibliography, p. Ixxxii. appendix. M. Brunet has given a copious list of editions, printed in a small size by the Elze- virs. See his Manuel du Libraire, tom. iii. pp. 372-377.
TheElzevir editions have long and deservedly been esteemed for the clearness, delicacy, and perfect equality of the characters, for their close position together on a solid and very white paper, and the excellence of the press-work. Their Virgil, Terence, and Greek Testament, have been reckoned their master-pieces; and are indeed so very fine, that they justly gained them the reputation of being me first printers in Europe. Their types were so elegant, that their name has been given to all beautiful letter ever since. It would have been very wonderful, if the encouragement which the art of printing received from the great and leamed should not have induced some persons, whose ignorance and avarice would not permit them to aim at that degree of perfection which they saw others arrive at, to engage in base methods of enjoying the fruits of their ingenuity and diligence, with- out the trouble of imitating them in their indus- Sr : for as soon as a curious, or reputed correct ition was published, with prodigious expense and labour, some of these rapacious characters immediately printed another after it ; and care- fully copying titles, and other distinctive marks, with a proper degree of accuracy, easily imposed their fictitious editions upon unwary but eco- nomical people for genuine copies. This shows the necessity also of accurate descriptions of scarce books, for fraudulent editions are of all countries ; and none have experienced greater injury in this respect than the printers of pocket
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