[1] See a curious note of Hearne's in his Glossary to "Peter
Langtoft's Chronicle," p. 685. Also Herbert's "Typog. Antiq." p.
1435.
[2] Strype's "Memorials," i. 344 and 218.
[3] A curious and a copious catalogue of these books, "though the
books themselves are almost perished," may be seen in Strype's
"Ecclesiastical Memorials," i. 165.
[4] The book, "De Vera Differentia inter Regiam Potestatem et
Ecclesiasticam," was called "The King's Book." It seems that the
scholastic monarch gave some finishing strokes to what had probably
passed through the hands of his most expert casuists.
[5] "Archaeologia," vol. xxv. 104.
[6] Pegge, in his "Anecdotes of the English Language," has somewhat
crudely remarked that "the term _Stationers_ was appropriated to
_Booksellers_ in the year 1622;" but it was so long before. It is
extraordinary that Mr. Todd, well read in our literary history,
admits this imperfect disclosure of Pegge into the "Dictionary of the
English Language." The term _Stationer_ and _Bookseller_ were
synonymous and in common use in the reign of Elizabeth, and may be
found in Baret's "Alvearie," 1573.
[7] The Charter may be found in Herbert's "Typographical
Antiquities," p. 1584.
[8] Strype's "Memorials," iii: part 2nd. p. 130.
[9] In the Lansdowne Manuscripts, 43, fol. 76, will be found "an act
to restrain the licentious printing of unprofitable and hurtful
books," 1580. After declaring that the art of printing is "a most
happy and profitable invention," it is pointed at those "who pen or
translate in the English tongue poesies, ditties, and songs, serving
for a great part of them to none other end, what titles soever they
bear, but to set up an art of making lascivious and ungodly love, to
the intolerable corruption of life and manners--_and to the no small
or sufferable waste of the treasure of this realm, which is thereby
consumed in paper, a forren and chargeable commoditie_." The first
paper made in England was at Dartford, in 1588, by a German, who was
knighted by the queen.
[10] This decree of the Star-chamber is printed in Herbert's
"Typographical Antiquities," p. 1668.
[11] The privilege of a royal grant to the author was the only
protection the author had for any profits of his work. Henry the
Eighth granted Palsgrave his exclusive right for the printing of his
book for seven years. Bishop Cooper obtained a privilege for the sale
of his "Thesaurus" for twelve years; and a translator of Tacitus, for
his version, during his natural life.
[12] "Archaeologia," xxv. 112.
[13] Nichols on the Stationers' Company.--"Lit. Anecdotes," iii.
We have a list "of books yielded by the richer printers who had
licenses from the queen;" but whether they were only copies bestowed
in charity for the poorer "stationers," or given up by the
monopolists, I do not understand.--Herbert's "Typographical Antiq."
p. 1672.
[14] Herbert's "Typographical Antiq."--preface.
[15] This remarkable "Decree of Starr-chamber concerning Printing"
was in the possession of Thomas Hollis, and is printed in the
Appendix to his curious Memoirs, p. 641.
[16] "The Original and Growth of Printing, collected out of History
and the Records of this Kingdom," &c., by Richard Atkyns, Esq., 1664.
In this rare tract first appeared a narrative of the introduction of
printing into Oxford, _before Caxton_, by the printer Francis
Corsellis, to prove that printing was brought into England by Henry
the Sixth.
[17] For "unlicensed books" the printer charged twenty-five per cent.
extra, but the booksellers sold them for double and treble the cost
of other books.
"Considerations and Proposals in order to the Regulation of the
Press, together with diverse instances of Treasonous and Seditious
Pamphlets, proving the necessity thereof," 1663.