Page:A litil boke the whiche traytied and reherced many gode thinges necessaries for the infirmite a grete sekeness called Pestilence.djvu/30

 a Savoyard by birth, received from Henry VII in 1485 the appointment of Stationer to the King.

Upwards of a dozen books, theological and grammatical, are ascribed to Machlinia's press at Holborn. One other notable book, probably one of his later productions, should not be allowed to pass without mention, namely, an edition of the "Chronicles of England". There is a copy of this rare volume in the John Rylands Library, a remarkable feature of which is that all the initials inserted in the blank spaces provided for the purpose have been filled in with gold paint.

There is the same uncertainty about the year when Machlinia terminated his typographical career as about the dates of the works which he printed. That he had ceased to print by 1490 may be regarded as tolerably certain, but, as with his former partner Lettou, we are unable to assign a reason for the cessation of his press. Mention has already been made of the engraved border belonging to Machlinia that was afterwards used by Pynson. Early bindings by Pynson have also been found lined with leaves from works printed by Machlinia. These two circumstances are sufficient to justify us in presuming some connexion between the two printers. As Pynson does not appear to have made use of Machlinia's types, it is unlikely that he actually assisted Machlinia at his press, or even took over his material. Perhaps Pynson may have taken the premises just quitted by Machlinia, and used up such waste stock as was left there.