"THE SPECTATOR," projected by Steele, assisted and made famous by
Addison, was first started on March 1st, 1710/1, and continued to be
issued daily until December 6th, 1712. An interval of eighteen months
then occurred, during six of which these two writers were busy with
"The Guardian." On June 18th, 1714, however, "The Spectator" was resumed,
and appeared daily until its final number on December 20th of that year.
As with "The Tatler," so with "The Spectator," its success proved too
great a temptation to be resisted; so that we find a spurious "Spectator"
also. This was begun on Monday, January 3rd, 1714/5, and concluded
August 3rd of the same year. Its sixty numbers (for it was issued twice a
week) were afterwards published as "The Spectator, volume ninth and
last." The principal writer to this spurious edition was said to be Dr.
George Sewell.
Of the contributions to Steele's "Spectator," by far the greater
number were written by the projector and Addison. The other contributors
were Eustace Budgell, John Hughes, John Byrom, Henry Grove, Thomas
Parnell, "Orator" Henley, Dr. Zachary Pearce, Philip Yorke, and a few
others whose identity is doubtful. Swift's contribution consisted of one
paper only, and (probably) a single paragraph in another. [T.S.]