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A55900 The printers case humbly submitted to the consideration of the Honourable the House of Commons. 1711 (1711) Wing P3505; Wing P3506; ESTC T44469 2,691 4

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THE Printers CASE Humbly submitted to the Consideration of the Honourable the House of COMMONS IT is Humbly conceiv'd That the Tax of One Penny upon a Half Sheet and Two Pence upon a Sheet of every Paper and Pamphlet is not intended as a Method for preventing Libels because a Remedy for this is Propos'd by obliging the Bookseller and Printer of every Paper to set their Names and Places of Abode to the said Papers THAT after the said Duty of about Twenty Papers of Half Sheets which come out every Week besides many other Occasional ones there will not Two be publish'd by reason of this Tax which will advance every Penny Paper to Three Pence or Two Pence Halfpenny at least and every Pamphlet in Proportion THAT of many Hundred Master-Printers and Journymen in this City two Thirds do entirely depend upon the Printing of small Papers and Pamphlets especially the latter by which all Britain is supplied with Sermons and other Tracts of Devotion at a cheap Rate And therefore two Thirds of the said Printers with their Families must be entirely Ruin'd THAT with all Submission nothing will contribute more to the Spreading and Publishing Seditious Libels than the said Tax because it is to be fear'd that many of the poorer Printers to prevent their Families from Starving will be tempted to Print whatsoever shall be offer'd them by any Person who will be at the Charge of the Impression tho' at never so great a Hazard THAT the intended Tax upon Paper which to the Buyer will amount to near 30 per Cent. is apprehended to be a sufficient Load upon the Printers and perhaps equal to that upon any other Trade THAT Paper after it is Printed is of no intrinsick Value at all but depends merely upon the Humour and Opinion of People and that there are few Printers in this Town who have not many Thousand Copies by them which they daily sell for waste Paper THAT the Printers are heartily disposed to correct all Abuses in their Trade and have herewith annex'd their humble PROPOSALS to that End to this HONOURABLE HOUSE which they doubt not will prove the most effectual Means for preventing the Publishing of all Seditious Libels and Pamphlets The Printers PROPOSALS For a Regulation of the PRESS I. THAT all Printing Presses be Register'd with the Names and Places of Abode of the Proprietors thereof and all the Rooms wherein such Presses are set up this to be repeated as often as any Press shall be removed out of one Room into another or the Interest thereof transferred to the Use of any other Person and not one Sheet to be Printed off till such Registry be first made under the Penalty of II. That every Printer shall have a particular Mark to be register'd also with his Name and Presses which said Mark he shall always be obliged to Print visibly at the Bottom of the first Page of every Sheet or Half Sheet by him Printed under the Penalty of III. That all Title Pages shall contain some Register'd Printer's Name and Place of Abode with the Year when Printed under the Penalty of And if any thing Printed after without such Name and Mark in the Title Page and also the proper Mark or Marks of every other Printer in all other Sheets thereof placed as is before directed though such Papers or Books be otherwise never so inoffensive shall be found in the Custody of any Person whatsoever either for Sale or to be given away or kept for private Use it shall be at the Liberty of any Person seeing the same to seize and carry away such Paper or Papers Book or Books or Parts of Books and deliver them to the next Justice of Peace and not only be exempted from any Action or Actions but also receive for so doing a Reward of to be levied on the Person in whose Custody such Goods shall be so found who shall also be further liable to all the Penalties of this Act unless he shall discover the Person from whom he had them And if it be pretended by the Persons on whom such Seizure is made that the Papers were Printed before the Commencement of this Act let them be obliged to make out the Truth of such Allegation sufficiently testified on Oath within Days or otherwise the said Justice to cause the said Papers or Books to be burnt or destroyed IV. That every Printer over and above the Penalties of this Act shall be subject and liable to all other Prosecutions for any thing offensive contained in whatsoever Sheet or part of a Sheet he shall Print with his Mark or without unless he shall discover the Author or the Party from whom he had the Copy V. That every Person who shall presume to counterfeit or make use of the Mark or Name of any other Printer shall be guilty of and all Persons accessary to such a Cheat liable to the same Punishment except the first Discoverer VI. That no Persons be admitted to Register any Printing Press or Presses nor be taken into Copartnership with or have any Interest in or Title to any such Register or the Benefit thereof but such only as themselves have or the Widows or Children of such as have served Seven Years Apprenticeship to the Art of Printing N. B. Most of the Papers lately Publish'd which have given Offence were Printed by such as have not serv'd an Apprenticeship to the Art of Printing tho' they keep Printing Presses The First Article prevents all Private Presses And the Second discovers the Printer of every Sheet though a Book should be divided among many Printers as is sometimes practis'd The Third suppresses the Publication of all Treason Sedition or Scandal which will be the only things attempted to be Clandestinely Printed and consequently prevents the Printing thereof for no Person will print what cannot be dispersed nor will any one receive what cannot be safely kept in his Custody And then the Fourth Article will be a sufficient Caution to all Printers to be careful of what they undertake so Print and for whom when the Publication will be so difficult and the Means of discovering so easie The Fifth Article will prevent an innocent Person suffering for the Faults of another's Forgery All which is Humbly submitted to the Consideration of this HONOURABLE HOUSE by the PRINTERS of LONDON who as they are willing and desirous a Stop should be put to the Publication of all Papers or Books that may be offensive so they humbly hope and beseech your HONOURS that if by these Proposals the Evils of the PRESS shall be prevented they may be permitted the innocent Exercise of their Callings without being obliged to Print the Name of the AUTHOR in the Title Page of every Book which will very much discourage the Publication of many excellent Treatises through the excess of Modesty in some who will rather stifle their Performances than suffer their Names to appear in Print though to a Work deserving the greatest Applause And on the other hand some very good Books will be lessened in the Esteem of many Readers through a Prejudice to its AUTHOR both which will be very prejudicial to them and they hope your HONOURS will not think it necessary to be insisted on Nor are they without Grounds enclined to believe that your HONOURS will please to desist from further loading them with the intended Duty of Stamps on all Pamphlets when you shall be satisfied it can by no Means raise any Advantage to the CROWN but only suppress the Printing of all such small Tracts many of which if Printed and Sold at a reasonable Price might be of great use to the Publick THE Printers CASE WITH THEIR PROPOSALS FOR Regulating the PRESS