d of earth from a
nursery, and even contrived to have a grass plot. The earth I
filled with flowers and young trees. There was an apple tree from
which we managed to get a pudding the second year. As to my
flowers, they were allowed to be perfect.'

We have now arrived at a period which may almost be called that of the
present, inasmuch as many well-known names which still continue to adorn
our current literature first begin to appear, together with many others,
the bearers of which have but recently departed from among us. Cyrus
Redding, John Payne Collier, and Samuel Carter Hall still survive, and,
it is to be hoped, are far off yet from the end of their honorable
career; and William Hazlitt, Theodore Hook, Lord Campbell, Dr. Maginn,
Dr. Croly, Thomas Barnes, William Jordan, and many others, belong as
much to the present generation as to the past. Among other distinguished
writers must be mentioned Jeremy Bentham and David Ricardo, who
contributed articles of sterling merit upon political economy and
finance to the newspapers, and especially to _The Morning Chronicle_, in
which journal William Hazlitt succeeded Lord Campbell, then 'plain John
Campbell,' as theatrical critic. Cyrus Redding was at one time editor of
_Galignani's Messenger_, and was afterward connected with _The Pilot_,
which was considered the best authority on Indian matters, and in some
way or another, at different times, with most of the newspapers of the
day. John P. Collier wrote in _The Times_ and _Morning Chronicle_,
Thomas Barnes in _The Morning Chronicle_ and _Champion_, Croly and S. C.
Hall in _The New Times_--a newspaper started by Stoddart, the editor of
_The Times_, after his quarrel with Walter--Maginn in _The New Times_,
_Standard_, _John Bull_, and many others, William Hazlitt in _The
Morning Chronicle_, _Examiner_, and _Atlas_, and Theodore Hook in _John
Bull_, of which he was the editor.

In 1815, the advertisement duty, which had hitherto stood at three
shillings, was raised to three shillings and sixpence, and an additional
halfpenny was clapped on to the stamp duty. There were then fifty-five
newspapers published in London, of which fifteen were daily, one hundred
and twenty-two in the provinces of England and Wales, twenty-six in
Scotland, and forty-nine in Ireland.

And here let us pause to consider the position which the press had
reached. It had survived all the attempts made to crush it; nay, more,
it had