EIGHTEENTH CENTURY.
795
many persous in trade, be was the liberal patron, the able and faitbful adviser, the unostentatious but sincere friend. An innate sense of strict honour, by which all bis dealings were directed and governed (though often thought impracti- cable in trade, and, in his particular, often dis- advantageous in a pecuniary point of view), obtained for him that mental satisfaction with which no pecuniary emolument can enter into competition. It gained him the universal esteem and admiration of all who knew him ; and what greater earthly happiness can a human being aspire at or enjoy ?
1797, April. Died, Orion Adams, a journey- man printer, whose eventful life would occupy a rolnme of more than ordinary dimensions. He was a native of Manchester, and son of Mr. Roger Adams, original proprietor and printer of the Manchester Weekly Journal, 1719, and after- wards of the Chester Courant; to which property Orion would, by right, have succeeded, had not his instability and eccentricities prevented it. For the last fifty years bis life had been a lamentable scene of chequered events. In Birmingham (with his partner Boden), and at Manchester, Chester, Plymouth, and Dublin, he may be re- membered as a master printer; and there are very few London or provincial printing-offices in the kingdom where he has not occasionally worked as a journeyman.* For several years he practised a kind oi itinerant or pedestrian pil- grimage; and frequently, after he had attained his 70th year, walked from London to Chester aud back, with a heart as light as his pocket ; for, under all adversities, his temper was cheer- ful, obliging, and friendly. He was intimately acquainted with many of the first characters of the stage, particulai-Iy Barry, Mossop, Ryder (with whose father, as a printer, he was in part- nership in Dublin,) and many others; and at the memorable Stratford jubilee, Orion Adams was distinguished as a brilliant character from Birmingham, in his own carriage, though, a few months aiter, such was the versatility of bis fortune, he sunk into the humble character of a distributor of play-bills to an itinerant company. He died in a very obscure lodging near Chester, at the age of eighty years, in great poverty.
1797, AfHl 29. Died, William Whitting- Ham, an eminent printer and bookseller at Lynn, in Norfolk, and editor of the continuation of Blomefield's History of Norfolk, by Mr. Par- kins; of Burton's Leicestershire; Philpot's Kent; a part of Thornton's Nottinghamshire ; and of an abridgement of Blomefield's Norfolk, of which only a few numbers were published.
1797. The stamp duty upon newspapers was raised from twopence to threepence halfpenny ; jC12 5s. per thousand, being a discount of six- teen per cent. Price to the public, sixpence ; to
- In the letters of Daniel Prince, at Oxford, to Mr. Googh
and John Nichols, London, there is the following notice of Adanu ; *' Oct. 8, 1 7gs, I send this by Orion Adams, an old itinerant type, remembered by me alxrat iMty years."
There was a Thomas Adanu, a joameyman printer, who worked many years with Mr. John Miller, printer of the Lcmkm Eftemng Pott.
the trade, 1 \s. per quire of twenty-seven sheets.* In July, 1801, paper having increased to 30i. or more, per ream, application was made for a further discount, and it was increased to twenty percent. oriSll Ms. llti. per thousand. In 1803, paper being greatly reduced, viz. to jGl 2t. tid. per ream, the discoimt was reduced to sixteen per cent, and \Bs. additional. In 1809, the price of the newspaper was raised to sixpence halfpenny, paper having risen to £2 I6s. and even £3 per ream, and the price to the trade was 12(. per quire of twenty-seven sheets.
1797. The following were the principal perio- dicals published, with the number sold :
TITLK. SOLD. PBOPaiXTORX.
Monthlf Rnlew 5«00 .... Orifflths.
Uomihlg Magaxme SOOO ... Phillips.
Qentleman^t Magazine . . 4550 . . . Nichols.
British Critic SSOO RiTincton & Co.
European Magazine .... 3350 .... Sewell & Co.
Critical ReiHew, 3500 Hamilton & Co.
UntBcrtal Magazine 1750 .... Beat & Co.
Analytical Rettiew 1500 .... Johnson.
Repertort 1000 Wyatt.
Annate of Agriculture lOOO .. . Yoang.
Nicholson's Journal .... 750 Robinson.
Medical Bevltw 750.... Boosey&Co.
The Neip Annual Register had attained a sale of seven or eight thousand annually. The greatest number sold by any monthly publication was 14,000 of the Town and Country Magazine, printed by Archibald Hamilton ; but at his death, ID 1792, It was discontinued.
1707. Newspapers first published at Constan- tinople, the capital of Turkey.
1797, June 21. Seditious societies and read- ing-rooms suppressed by an act of parliament.
1797. M. Peignot mentions a work privately
Jrinted, at the chateau de Dampierre, near St. can d'Angely, in France, being the Adventures of Robiruon Crusoe, in English and French, printed by a lady for her amusement.
1797. Francis Ambrose Dioot, Fibmin DiDOT, and L. H. Herban, printers, in Paris, obtained patents for their inventions of stereo- type printing : for a short time they were in partnership; but afterwards, they stereotyped works on their own accotmt. It has been stated by the French, that the merit of the invention properly belongs to Finnin Didot ; but, by what we have laid before our readers, it is evident, that however much he contributed towards its present advanced state, to him belongs not the merit of the invention.
1797, Nov. 20. Died, Roger Payhe, the celebrated bookbinder in Duke's-court, St. Mar- tin's-lane, London, to the no small regret of several founders of magnificent libraries; and whose personal history is one among the many, of the ability of a man being rendered nearly useless by the dissoluteness of his habits. He stands an example to the young, of mere talent, unattended with perseverance and industry, never leading to distinction, — of great ability, clouded
- In 1794, the doty on newspapers, published in sheets,
was twopence halfpenny, and on half sheets, twopence ; provided that every such sheet shall not exceed twenty- eight iochcs in Icnffth, and twenty inches in breadth.
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