In April 1817 appeared the first number of _Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine_. There seems to be a general understanding among bibliographers that the first numbers were known as the “Edinburgh Monthly Magazine”. According to the old volumes themselves, however, only the second number, the issue for May 1817, went by this title, the initial number and all the rest bearing the heading, _Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine_.[21] Messrs. Pringle and Cleghorn were the first joint editors, it was probably through James Hogg, known to us as the Ettrick Shepherd, that Blackwood first met these two men. If either of them could boast any literary pretensions, it was the younger, Thomas Pringle. He was from Hogg’s country, and Blackwood thought he divined in him the making of just such another “rustic genius” as Hogg. Cleghorn, former editor of the _Farmers’ Magazine_, was evidently a stick! It is difficult to conceive how William Blackwood, with his gift of insight, could give over the conduct of his pet plans into the hands of such a pair. But if he made a mistake, he soon made amends. Of the business arrangements between Blackwood and the two editors little of definite nature is known, except that the three were to be co-partners. Blackwood sustained the expense of publishing and printing; Pringle and Cleghorn supplied the material;--and the profits were to be divided! The editors expected £50 apiece per month, which seems unusual, considering that the circulation never exceeded 2500. It looks suspiciously probable that the early numbers were maintained at real financial loss to the publisher. There is no mention of paying contributors till later years. Very likely at that time writers were still _above_ remuneration! The _Edinburgh Review_ had done much to remedy this attitude, but a complete cure was not effected for some years to come. [21] See _Blackwood’s Edinburgh Magazine_, V. i The Prospectus of the infant journal is interesting. It was to be “A Repository of whatever may be supposed to be most interesting to general readers”.[22] One strong point was to be an antiquarian repository; too, it was to criticise articles in other periodicals; it was to contain a “Register” of domestic and foreign events. Among other aims, one was entertainment. It was to be a miscellany of the original works of authors and poets; and what endears it to modern hearts above all things else, it was to be an open door for struggling young writers. By virtue of the anonymous nature of its contributions, this was made possible with no lessening of authority. The signatures in the early numbers were intended to be perplexing, and perplexing they remain to this day. But probably struggling young writers met with less encouragement at the hands of Pringle and Cleghorn than was William Blackwood’s original intention. Those two never went out of the way to drum up new material, while William Blackwood was a man alert and ever on the watch for another Walter Scott.