It was long fondly believed that the British Museum counted among its treasures a full-blown printed English newspaper, dating so far back as 1588. It was entitled the _English Mercurie_, and purported to be 'published by authoritie for the suppression of false reports, ymprinted at London by Christopher Barker, her Highness's Printer.' Writer after writer exulted in the fact, and was loud in the praises of the sagacity and wisdom of Burleigh, under whose direction it was supposed to have been issued. But unfortunately for antiquaries and literati, the matter was carefully investigated by Mr. Watts, of the British Museum, and he pronounced on unquestionable evidence the copies of the _English Mercurie_ to be nothing but a barefaced forgery, of which he went even so far as to accuse, on good grounds, the second Lord Hardwicke of being the perpetrator. But though we must discard this fictitious account of the Spanish armada, etc., other news sheets did actually exist in the reign of Queen Elizabeth, a list of which has been compiled by Dr. Rimbault. The titles of some of them are: _New Newes, containing a short rehearsal of Stukely and Morice's Rebellion_, 1579; _Newes from Scotland, declaring the damnable Life of Doctor Fian, a notable Sorcerer, who was burned in Edenborough in January last_, 1591; _Newes from Spain and Holland_, 1593; _Newes from Flanders_, 1599; _Newes out of Cheshire of the new-found Well_, 1600; _Newes from Gravesend_, 1604. As time went on, these 'pamphlets of newes' increased in number. They treated of all kinds of intelligence; some derived their materials from foreign countries, and some from different parts of the kingdom at home; some were true, and some were false. Thus we find, among others, _Lamentable Newes out of Monmouthshire, in Wales, containinge the wonderfull and fearfull Accounts of the great overflowing of the Waters in the said Countye_, 1607; _Newes from Spain_, 1611; _Newes out of Germanie_, 1612; _Wofull Newes from the west partes of England, of the burning of Tiverton_, 1612; _Good Newes from Florence_, 1614; _Strange Newes from Lancaster, containinge an Account of a prodigious Monster, born in the Township of Addlington, in Lancashire, with two bodyes joined to one back_, 1613; _Newes from Italy_, 1618; _Newes out of Holland_, 1619; _Vox Populi, or Newes from Spain_, 1620. About this time the news sheets began to assume particular and distinctive titles, under which they appeared at uncertain intervals. We meet with _The Courant, or Weekly Newes from Foreign Parts_, 1621; _The certain Newes of this present Week_, 1622; _The Weekly Newes from Italy, Germany, etc._, 1622, a title which was shortly after exchanged for that of _Newes from most Parts of Christendom, London, printed for Nathaniel Butler and William Sheppard_. These names ought to be preserved, as being those of the great pioneers of regular journalism. It appears, however, that they did