In Russian Poland about 11 papers, one-half being dailies, were
published at Warsaw in 1900 (Kurier Warsawski, Gazeta Polska, &c.).
Spain and Portugal.—In Spain no newspaper of any kind existed earlier than the 18th century, a Gaceta de Madrid starting about 1726 (an alleged gaceta in 1626 is a myth). Even during the early years of the 19th century the capital contented itself with a single journal, the Diario de Madrid. The Peninsular War and the establishment of the Cortes gave the first impulse towards something which might be called political journalism, but the change from total repression to absolute freedom was too sudden not to be grossly abused. The Diario de las Cortes, the Semanario Patriotico (published at Cadiz from 1808 to 1811,) and the Aurora Mallorquina (published at Palma in 1812–1813) were the first of the new papers that attained importance. In 1814 the circulation or receipt in Spain of English newspapers was prohibited under penalty of ten years’ imprisonment. Most of the native journals fell with the Cortes in 1823. In the following year Ferdinand decreed the suppression of all the journals except the then Diario and Gaceta of Madrid, the Gaceta de Bayona, and certain provincial papers which dealt exclusively with commercial or scientific subjects. At the close of his reign only three or four papers were published in Madrid. Ten years afterwards there were 40; but the number was far more noticeable than the value. Spanish newspapers have been too often the mere stepping-stones of political adventurers, and not unfrequently the worst of them appear to have served the turn more completely than the best. Gonzales Bravo attained office mainly by the help of a paper of notorious scurrility,—El Guirigay. His press-law of 1867 introduced a sort of indirect censorship, and a system of “warnings,” rather clandestine than avowed; and his former rivals met craft with craft. The Universal and the Correo were successively the organs of José Salamanca. At the end of 1854 the political journals published in Madrid numbered about 40, the most conspicuous being the now defunct España and El Clamor Publico. In 1890 Madrid published 38 papers, of which 15 were dailies; but by 1900 they declined to 28, of which 19 were dailies. The leading Spanish papers in 1900 were—El Correo (1879), Monarchico-Liberal; La Epoca, Conservative; El Imparcial, Independent Liberal; La Justicia, an evening Republican paper; El Liberal, numbering among its contributors the best writers without distinction of party; and El Pais, the organ of the Progressives.
Portugal in 1882 was credited with 179 journals of all kinds and of various periodicity. Of this number 68 appeared in Lisbon. The strictly political daily papers of Lisbon were 6 in number; those of Oporto 3. In 1890 Lisbon published 11 dailies; and in 1900, 19 dailies.
Sweden.—In Sweden the earliest regular newspaper appears to have been the Ordinarie Post-Tidende of Stockholm, first published in 1645, and continued until 1680, then, after long suspension, revived under the title Post- och Inrikes-Tidning. Stockholm has also its Aftonbladet. The Post-Tidende was followed by the Svensk Mercurius (1675–1683) and the Latin Relationes Curiosae (1682–1701). In 1742 a Swedish newspaper in French (Gazette Française de Stockholm) was commenced, and was followed in 1772 by the Mercure de Suède. But the press in Sweden had small political influence until 1820, when the Argus was established by Johannsen. The strife between “classicists” and “romanticists” spread itself in Sweden, as in France, from the field of literature into that of politics. Crusenstolpe’s Fäderneslandbladet and Hjerta’s Aftonbladet, founded in 1830, were long the most conspicuous of the Swedish journals,—the former on the side of the royalists, the latter on that of the reformers. Hjerta’s paper, in its best days, could boast of a circulation of 5000 copies; but on the accession of King Oscar it ceased to appear as an opposition organ. Almost every town in the provinces now has its paper. In 1890 Stockholm had 5 dailies and 12 weeklies, &c.; in 1900 it had 11 dailies and 4 weeklies, &c., while 93 provincial towns published 197 papers, mostly weeklies, &c. In the period 1890—1894 a large number of newspapers appeared at Stockholm, but their duration was in general very short, often only a few months (Lundstadt, Sveriges Periodiska Literatur, ii. 1896). A newspaper in Finnish is published at Haparanda.
Denmark.—While Denmark published an Europäische Zeitung as early as 1663 and the Danske Mercurius in 1666, the political influence of the press is a newer thing in that country than even in Sweden. Until 1830 Copenhagen had but two papers, and they filled their columns with mild extracts from foreign journals. Real activity in this direction dates from the establishment of the provincial states in 1834. The Berlingske Tidende dates from 1749, and was at first published in German. The Fädrelandet in 1848–1849 was in a glow of zeal for Scandinavianism and “Young Denmark.” In 1890 Copenhagen produced 8 dailies and 6 weeklies, &c. In 1900 it had 12 dailies and 2 weeklies, while 121 papers appeared in sixty-eight provincial towns.
Reykjavik (Iceland) published two weekly papers in 1890, and the same number in 1900 (Thiódólfr and Isafold).
Norway.—The earliest Norwegian paper was the Christiania Intelligentssedler, founded in 1763. Next to this came the Adressecontors Efterretninger (1765), published at Bergen. Den Constitutionelle absorbed an older paper, called Norske Rigstidende. The Morgenblad was founded in 1819. In 1890 Christiania published 12 papers, of which only three appeared daily; in 1900 only 10 papers were produced, but 8 of them were dailies. The Morgenbladet still held its rank, and the Aftenposten had a large circulation.
Switzerland.—In 1873 the total number of political and general newspapers in Switzerland was 230. In 1881 they numbered 342; 53 were of daily issue, 166 appeared twice or thrice a week, and 7 only were of weekly issue. A monthly compendium of the news of the day appeared at Rorschach, in the canton of St Gall, as early as January 1597. The editor was a German, one Samuel Dilbaum, of Augsburg. He varied his titles, so that his monthly newsbooks, although really consecutive, do not wear the appearance of serial publications. Sometimes he called his issue Historische Relatio, sometimes Beschreibung, sometimes Historische Erzählung. Switzerland has since become remarkable for the number of its newspapers in proportion to its size. Among the more important may be mentioned the Journal de Genève and the Gazette de Lausanne, both Moderate Liberal, and the Catholic Courrier de Genève. La Tribune de Genève (1878) is a leading five-centime paper.
Greece.—The few newspapers that made their sudden appearance in Greece during the war of liberation departed as hastily when King Otho brought with him a press-law, one of the provisos of which demanded caution-money by actual deposit. The journal Saviour was established, in 1834, as a Government organ, and was soon followed by Athena as the journal of the opposition. Ten years later 7 distinctively political papers had been established, along with 13 journals of miscellaneous nature. In 1877 there were, of all sorts, 81 journals, of which 77 appeared in Greek, 2 in Greek and French, 2 in French only; 37 of these were printed in Athens, 17 in the Ionian Islands. In 1890 Athens published 9 dailies and 4 weeklies, &c., and in 1900, 10 dailies and 2 weeklies, The chief papers, the Asty and the Acropolis, were mainly political and on the Liberal side, as indeed were nearly all the Athenian papers.
Turkey.—During the embassy (1795) of Verninac Saint-Maur, envoy of the French republic, a French journal was established at Pera. This, possibly, is the pioneer of all Turkish newspapers. Thirty years later (1825) the Spectateur de l’Orient was founded at Smyrna, also by a Frenchman (Alexander Blacquet?). It was afterwards published under the titles Courrier and Journal de Smyrne. In like manner, the Moniteur Ottoman, first of strictly Constantinopolitan journals, was founded by the above-named Blacquet in 1831. It soon changed its language to Turkish, and was edited by Franceschi. The second Smyrna newspaper, Echo de l’Orient, established in 1838, was transferred to Constantinople in 1846. But not one of these papers has survived. In 1876 the total number of journals of all kinds published in the capital was 72 (namely, 20 in French, 16 in Turkish, 13 in Armenian, 12 in Greek, 11 in as many other tongues). In 1890 there were 19 papers, in various languages, published at Constantinople, most of them dailies; and in 1900 the number of papers decreased to 18. They appeared in the following languages: the Stamboul and 4 others in French, 3 in Turkish, 1 in Turkish and Greek, 3 in Greek, 2 in Armenian, 1 in English and French, and 1 each in Arabic, English, Italian and Persian. Smyrna published 8 papers, mostly weeklies, in 1890, and the same number in 1900. Owing to the number of Mahommedan fasts and feasts Turkish newspapers are somewhat irregular in their appearance.
For the newspapers of other countries (e.g. Japan) or of important towns, see under the separate topographical headings. (H. Ch.)
NEWT (a corrupted form from “an evet” or “an effet,” a term of Anglo-Saxon origin, still used in many parts of England), the name usually applied to the aquatic members of the family Salamandridae which constitute the genus Molge, formerly known as Triton. But the name Triton, applied to these Batrachians by N. Laurenti (1768), has already been used by Linnaeus (Systema Naturae) for parts of the barnacle (Lepas anatifera). B. Merem (1820) proposed to substitute for it the name Molge, said to be derived from the Gr. Μόλγης or Μόλγος, “slow,” in allusion to the movements of these animals on land. The similar name Molch designates these Batrachians in German.
The newts are very closely related to the true Salamanders, Salamandra, from which they differ principally in the shape of the tail, which is compressed, in relation to their aquatic habits during a considerable part of the active period. Their aquatic progression is effected principally by means of the tail, and during the act of swimming the legs are turned backwards and folded against the body and tail, so as to admit of the smallest possible degree of resistance.
A very marked sexual dimorphism prevails in most species of this genus, the males being more brilliantly coloured than the females and provided with a dorsal crest which attains its greatest development during the breeding season, lasting through the spring and the early summer. Later in the season the males more or less completely lose their crests and other nuptial ornaments, and the two sexes are more alike; they then retire on
