a
delight given to few reformers. "The Dawn," however, was to be such a
medium; and when the first number appeared, as it did nearly a month
from the meeting recorded in the last chapter, four people, nay,
five--for we mustn't forget Mr. Moggridge--were supremely happy. With
the exception of the poet, who, as we have seen, occasionally irradiated
the poet's corner of the "Argus," and Mr. Moggridge, it was a first
appearance in print for three out of the five contributors; and though
each talked most of the articles by the others, they were secretly
longing to get away with the little paper to some corner where they
could gloat over their own special contribution.

Not that they had any ridiculous ideas of the literary importance of the
articles in question, but because it seemed so strange to see the warm
words of their mouths thus condensed into cold print, so strange to
think that people all over Coalchester were reading them. Little Jenny
in particular felt quite a cold but pleasant shiver of notoriety as she
thought of it, while to her lover the delighted perusal and reperusal of
a large-type leading article, headed "In Darkest Coalchester!" brought a
new sense of power.

The poet, as was only to be expected, had his little grievance with the
printer, who, in spite of all his remonstrances and corrections in
proof,--the printer was a little wrong-headed Scotchman,--had insisted
at the last moment in heading his Tyrtean "Proem," a fine aerial
trumpet-blast somewhat Shelleyan in style, with the word that was
evidently intended, namely, "Poem." However, he was somewhat consoled by
reading his caustic column of notes headed "The World outside
Coalchester," the very heading of which was a revelation. Then, too, he
very much enjoyed his article on "Bad Lighting in Coalchester," with its
evident allegoric insinuation that Coalchester needed lighting in more
ways than one, and that "The Dawn" was prepared to undertake, free of
charge, the top-lighting of which it was most in need.

James Whalley contributed a review of "Mr. Swinburne's new Poems,"
through which article Mr. Moggridge's illustrated hams plainly showed
from the other side.

New truth is too often printed in very worn-out type, but the promoters
of "The Dawn" had wisely remembered how hard truth is to read, and had
given it good clear type, and generally made it a very comely and
attractive little paper. It bore a motto that sounded almost like a
threat,