publishing, or caufing to be copied, engraved, and published, bafe copies of fuch works, defigns, and prints, to the very great prejudice and detriment of the inventors, defigners, and proprietors thereof;" it therefore enacted, "That after the 24th of June, 1735, the property of hiftorical and other prints fhall be vested in the inventor for fourteen years, from the day of publishing thereof, the name of the proprietor to be engraved on each print. And if any perfon pirate the fame, he hall forfeit the plate wherein the defign is fo pirated, and all the copies taken therefrom, to the proprietor, and alfo the fum of, five fhillings (half to the king and half to the perfon fueing therefore) for every fuch copy."

Upon this act, fee the following cafes, Blackwell against Harper, Chancery, 2 Atkins' Reports, 93. 8 December, 1740. In the 7 Geo. III. c. 38. A. D. 1766, another act paffed to amend, and render more effectual the former act.

After reciting the former act, and stating that it had been found ineffectual, it enacted, "That the engraver of any print taken from any drawing whatever, fhall have the fame protection, and under the fame penalties, as the engraver of any print from his own drawing, as enacted in the former ftatute; and further, that the property of fuch prints fhall be invested in the engraver, &c. for twenty-eight years, from the day of publication."

In 17 Geo. III. c. 57. A. D. 1777, another act passed, intituled,

"An act for more effectually fecuring the property of prints to inventors and engravers, by enabling them to fue for, and recover penalties in certain cafes."It recites, that

"Whereas, an act of Parliament paffed in the eighth year of the reign of his late Majefty King George II. intituled, an act for the encouragement of the arts of defigning, engraving, and etching hiftorical and other prints, by vefting the properties thereof in the inventors and engravers, during the time therein mentioned: and whereas, by an act of Parliament, paffed in the eleventh year of the reign of his prefent Majefty, for amending and rendering more effectual the aforefaid act, and for other purposes therein mentioned, it was (among other things) enacted, that, from and after the first day of January, 1777, ail and every perfon or perfons who fhould engrave, etch, or work in mezzotinto, or chiaro-ofcuro, or caufe to be engraved, etched, or worked, any print taken from any picture, drawing, model, or fculpture, either antient or modern, fhould have, and were thereby declared to have, the benefit and protection of the faid former act, and that act, for the term therein after mentioned, in the like manner as if fuch prints had been graved or drawn from the original defign of fuch graver, etcher, or draughtsman: and whereas the faid acts have not effectually answered the purpofes for which they were intended, and it is neceffary, for the

encouragement of artifts, and for fecuring to them the property of and in their works, and for the advancement and improvement of the aforefaid art, that fuch further provifions fhould be made as are herein after mentioned and contained; it is therefore enacted, that after June 24, 1777, if any person should engrave, &c. or in any manner copy in the whole, or in part, or fhall publifh, fell, or import for fale, any copy of any print whatfoever done in Great Britain, without the exprefs confent of the proprietor, he fhall be liable to fuch damages as a jury fhall affefs, together with double cofts of fuit."

The Stationers' Company being frequently mentioned in the foregoing notes upon the Adjudication of Literary Property, it may not be improper to draw up the conclusion of this work, with the following notice of that antient company, as far as they are any ways connected with the ART of TYPO

GRAPHY.

It appears from the most authentic records, that the COMPANY of STATIONERS, or Text-writers, who wrote and fold all forts of books then in ufe, from the A. B. C, Paternofter, Ave-Mary, Creed, Graces, to large portions of the Bible, even to the whole Bible itself, dwelt in and about Paternofter, row. Hence we have in that neighbourhood, Creed-lane, Amen-corner, Ave-Maria-lane, &c. all places named after fome fcripture allufion. This Company is of great antiquity, even before the Art of Printing was invented; and notwithfanding all the endeavours that have been made, no privilege or charter has yet been discovered, though several of the old printers are faid to be of the Stationers' Company; nor can there be found what authority they had granted them, with relation to printed books, as an incorporated body, until they received their first charter, dated the 4th of May 1556, in the third and fourth of Philip and Mary. The charter is in Latin, and preferved in the Rolls. By this charter, it appears the Stationers had an inquifitorial right upon all literary compofitions, and might fearch houses for any books which they might deem obnoxious to the ftate, or their own interest; and might feize, burn, take away, deftroy, or convert to their own ufe, whatever they might deem printed contrary to the form of any ftatute, act, or proclamation, made or to be made.

THOMAS DOCKWRAY was then MASTER; John Cawood, and Henry Coke were Keepers, or Wardens; and the charter figned by the names of 94 of the commonalty.

The privileges to chufe their proper officers, to make laws for the good and well-governing of the Company, &c. granted to the freemen of the Company of Stationers of the city of London by Philip and Mary, had been found fo juft and agreeable to the laws of the land, the liberties of the fubject, and in particular fo neceffary to the well-being of the faid Company of

Stationers, that Queen Elizabeth, upon her first coming to the crown, did, by her letters patent, alfo renew and confirm the foregoing charter.

The foregoing charter by Philip and Mary was likewife exemplified in the 19th year of the reign of King Charles II. on the roth of Auguft, 1667, at the request of Humphry Robinfon, the then Master, and Evan Tyler and Richard Royston, the then Wardens of the Company of Stationers.

And the faid charter was again exemplified on the 13th of October, 1684, at the request of Roger Norton, the then Master, and Henry Hills and James Cotteral, the then Wardens of the faid Company of Stationers.

The aforefaid charter granted by Philip and Mary, and thus confirmed, is the only charter the Company of Stationers have now fubfifting.

In Feb. the fecond of Queen Elizabeth, Henfel being Mayor, a grant was made to give to the Stationers' Company the dignity of the Livery. We hear nothing more of their tranfactions, until June 23, 28 Eliz. when the Lords of the Starchamber affirmed and confirmed their former laws, empowering them to fearch into book-binders'-fhops, as well as printingoffices, for unlawful, or heretical books, and take up the offenders.

The Stationers' Company had letters patent granted them by King James I. on the 8th day of March, 1615, being the 13th year of his reign, for the fole printing of Primers, Pfalters, Pfalms, both in metre and profe, with, or without musical notes; Almanacks, in the English tongue; and the A. B. C, with the Little Catechifin, and the Catechism in English and Latin, &c. by Alexander Nowell; for the help and relief of the Master, Wardens, and Commonalty, and their fucceffors, for ever.

Succine Account of the most remarkable Editions of the HOLY BIBLE and the COMMON-PRAYER, from the Infancy of Printing to the prefent time; arranged according to the Dates of their Imprints.

FOLIO.

THE BIBLE, with marginal notes, black letter, with cuts 1520 This is the Bible, in which, by an artful counterfeit, defcribed by Mr. Wanley, St. Paul is called the knave, &c. The rafure of the true word fervant, and the infertion of the falfe reading, though difcoverable by an exact obferver, are so well executed, that the Bible was fold to the Duke of Lauderdale, for feventeen guineas, by one Thornton, who, indeed, firft effaced Matthew's preface, all the dates, except one, of which he erafed XVII, and added a note that this Bible, which was the edition of 1537, was printed in 1520, a date earlier than that of any English Bible. It does not appear that this reading was ever really printed.

There is no other copy in the world that has this alteration.

Another edition is dated 1535, but has no printer's name. This is the FIRST ENGLISH BIBLE, and was published by Coverdale.

The NEW TESTAMENT, corrected by William Tyndal, with his preface, black letter Another, by the fame

1536

1536

The BIBLE, which is all the Holy Scripture, &c. purely and truly tranflated into English by Tho. Matthew 1537 Of this Bible, to the Books of Chronicles, the translation is Tyndal's, together with that of the whole New Testament; the reft is reprinted from Coverdale's, except the Prophecy of Jonas, which is Tyndal's. Matthew is imagined a fictitious name. This Bible was enjoined to be placed in every parish church, that the people might read it. It is in the black letter. For printing this Bible, Grafton, the printer, was perfecuted about five years afterwards.

The BIBLE, &c. tranflated after the verity of the Hebrew and Greek texts, by the diligent ftudy of many excellent learned men, expert in the aforefaid tongues, by Grafton and Whit1539

church

This Bible has a very remarkable frontispiece, which is followed by an Exhortation, &c. The Summe of Scriptures,

REMARKABLE EDITIONS OF THE HOLY BIBLE. 133 &c. The New Testament has another frontispiece. At the end is a Table of Epiftles and Gofpels red in the church after Salisbury ufe, and another of thofe, which are red on divers Sainctes Dayes. It is in the black letter, with cuts.

The OLD TESTAMENT, by Taverner, dedicated to the King 1539 This edition is called by Bale, Recognitio, five potius nova verfio. Taverner gave fo much offence by this performance, that, after the death of Lord Cromwell, by whom he was protected, he was imprifoned for it in the Tower, but was afterwards released. It is in the black letter.

The BYBLE in Englysfhe: That is to faye, the content of all the Holy Scrypture, bothe of the Olde and Newe Testament; truly translated after the veryte of the Hebrue and Greke textes, by the dylygent studye of dyvers excellent learned men, expert in the forfayde tonges. Prynted by Rychard Grafton and Edward Whitechurch, CUM PRIV.

1539 This is called Cranmer's Bible; and this edition of it has a beautiful frontispiece, cut in wood, faid to have been defigned by Hans Holbein; reprefenting, in the upper part, King Henry VIII. on his throne, under God, delivering these books to his lords fpiritual, on one hand, and temporal on the other in the middle part is Archbishop Cranmer, on one fide, delivering the faid book to the clergy; and Cromwell, earl of Effex, the king's vicar-general, on the other fide, to the laity; all expreffing themfelves to the purpose, by Latin labels out of fcripture: at the bottom is the faid king at divine fervice, in his crofs-barred pew; the priest, in his pulpit, praying; and almost all the congregation turned towards the king, and crying vivat rex. On the back of this frontispiece are the names of all the books in the Bible: Then a kalendar: an almanack for 19 years: an exhortation to the studye of the Holy Scriptures, &c. The fumme and content of the Holy Scripture, &c. A prologue, expreffynge what is meant by certain fignes and tokens fet in the Bible: the fucceffion of the kynges of Judah and Jerufalem, declaring when, and under what kynges every prophet lyved: laftly, with what judgment the bokes of the Olde Teftament are to be read. After thefe chapters begins the firft book of Mofes, which is followed by the reft; which are adorned, in many places, with wooden cuts. The title of the New Teftament is-The New Teftament in Englysfhe; tranflated after the Greke: Contayning thefe Bokes, &c. Around it is a broad border, reprefenting, in-wooden cuts, the principal ftories in the faid Teftament, as the falutation, the nativity, &c. At the end are two tables; the one, to the epiftles and Gofpels, ufually read in the church, after Salisbury ufe; and