Trim and twist as they might the execrable Star Chamber had revived the old oppression of printing in 1637, but in 1641, when that blot the history of British jurisprudence was overthrown, its decrees while not abolished were allowed to" fail into abeyance, and the censorship became suspended or disorganized. for some time, Several weekly papers started in that year to last through the Civil War which ended with the @ecapitation of Charles I. The ers were as keen fighters as the Fespective politicians ranked with the King or Parliament, and one of the outstanding pices of Literature, "The Aeropagitica'
Milton was written at a time when the Long Parliament "sought cence printing for" its regulation "Moor suppressing the great late abuses land. "requent "disorders in printing" many'false, scandalous," seaidous, Iibelous and' unlicensed parsphlets the (eat "defamation of religion and ineffectual, fas Milton declared it would be and must be in the work just mention not yet been completely sifted suf, Ben Jenson probably adds up the quality of the news in the words he places in the mouth of one of his characters in the play entitled "The Staple of News" when a country woman enters the office in London and says "A groat's worth of 1 care pot what to garry down this Saturday Early Newpaper Attempts must have Been a die ult tak to start the printing "of news. The Ghar and. the" Crows was agyint foo much printing, apparently reel tug the threat. to their vested interest which the work of. Caxton Meant to. them. 'Thus printing, had been severely restricted to" London, Oxford and Cambriage. Only a cer: fain number of people' could. engage In the trade and' the censorship the Church and the weighty hand the Star Chamber was suficlent for atime to keep the new profession from over much activity But one Samuel Billet during the thirty years prior (0 2621 had "pro duced a number of printed "sheets envoying intelligence in the form translations from foreign' news: Fetters conveying' the bale. infor: motion and appearing Intermittent. eae not amit 162 that thea weekly newspaper, serally_ number: ed, appeared. Faulty and slight as {se newspapers were: they formed the commencement of the daily press Hons led this observer to conclude that the rotation period of the planet,
Text read from the printed page and cleaned; old type leaves the occasional error.