Page:The Newspaper and the Historian.djvu/475

Rh them uninteresting,—"they want that sprightly Humour and diffuse Kind of Narration, which embellish the Compositions of our modern Diurnal Historians. The Roman Gazetters are defective in several material Ornaments of Style. They never end an Article with the mystical Hint, this occasions great Speculation. They seem to have been ignorant of such engaging Introductions, as we hear it strongly reported; and of that ingenious, but threadbare, Excuse for a downright Lie, it wants confirmation.—It is also very observable, that the Praetor's Daughter is married without our being told, that she was a Lady of great Beauty, Merit and Fortune."

Later readers have pardoned their lack of inherent interest, but have found them spurious. The acceptance of their genuineness, however, long persisted and recent writers have found it necessary to say with decision, as does Jebb, "we have no genuine fragments of the Roman gazettes." From this verdict there can be no appeal.

A claimant for the honor of being "the earliest newspaper known" was made by George Chalmers on behalf of The English Mercurie, dated 1588. He directed attention to its supposed priority of publication over all other newspapers in existence and says that he was filled with patriotic joy that the first newspaper published was, as he supposed, British in every respect.