It did not burst like a thunder-clap on the reading public; nor did it give promise to its friends that a new political power had been born into the world.

The general tone was more literary than political; and though it contained much that was well worth reading, none of its articles were of first-rate quality.
Walter Scott was the principal contributor, and was keenly interested in its progress, though his mind was ever teeming with other new schemes.
The allusion in the following letter to his publication of "many unauthenticated books," if unintentional, seems little less than prophetic.
_Mr.Scott to John Murray_.
Edinburgh, _February_ 25, 1809.
Dear Sir, I see with pleasure that you will be out on the first.

Yet I wish I could have seen my articles in proof, for I seldom read over my things in manuscript, and always find infinite room for improvement at the printer's expense.

I hope our hurry will not be such another time as to deprive me of the chance of doing the best I can, which depends greatly on my seeing the proofs.

Pray have the goodness to attend to this.
I have made for the Ballantynes a little selection of poetry, to be entitled "English Minstrelsy"; I also intend to arrange for them a first volume of English Memoirs, to be entitled--"Secret History of the Court of James I." To consist of: Osborne's "Traditional Memoirs." Sir Anthony Welldon's "Court and Character of James I." Heylin's "Aulicus Coquinariae." Sir Edward Peyton's "Rise and Fall of the House of Stewart." I will add a few explanatory notes to these curious memoirs, and hope to continue the collection, as (thanks to my constant labour on "Somers") it costs me no expense, and shall cost the proprietors none.