line of writers
beginning with Aristophanes. Its staff was, as a rule, recruited from
the two Universities (though there was no kind of exclusion for the
unmatriculated; as a matter of fact, neither of its first two editors
was a son either of Oxford or Cambridge), and it always insisted on the
necessity of classical culture. It eschewed the private personality
which had been too apt to disfigure newspapers of a satirical kind
during the first half of the century; but it claimed and exercised to
the full the privilege of commenting on every public writing, utterance,
or record of the subjects of its criticism. It observed, for perhaps a
longer time than any other paper, the salutary principles of anonymity
(real as well as ostensible) in regard to the authorship of particular
articles; and those who knew were constantly amused at the public
mistakes on this subject.

Applying this kind of criticism,--perfectly fearless, on the whole
fairly impartial, informed, human errors excepted, by a rather
exceptionally high degree of intelligence and education, and above all
keeping before it the motto, framed by its "sweet enemy" Thackeray, of
being written "by gentlemen for gentlemen,"--the _Saturday Review_
quickly attained, and for many years held, the very highest place in
English critical journalism as regards literature, in a somewhat less
degree politics, and in a degree even greater the farrago of social and
miscellaneous matters. By consent too general and too unbiassed to be
questioned, it gave and maintained a certain tone of comment which
prevailed for the seventh, eighth, and ninth decades of the century, and
of which the general note may be said to have been a coolly scornful
intolerance of ignorance and folly. There were those who accused it even
in its palmiest days of being insufficiently positive and constructive;
but on the negative side it was generally sound in intention, and in
execution admirably thorough. It may sometimes have mishandled an honest
man, it may sometimes have forgiven a knave; but it always hated a fool,
and struck at him with might and with main.

The second change began with the establishment of the _Cornhill_ and
_Macmillan's Magazine_, two or three years later. There was no
perceptible difference in the general scheme of these periodicals from
that of the earlier ones, of which _Blackwood_ and _Fraser_ were the
most famous; but their price was lowered from half a crown to a
shilling,