The Reformation greatly modified the censorship and reduced its powers, with out, however, abolishing it ; the power passed into other hands. In England the practice seems to have been to appoint licensers for the various branches of learning ; but the bishops monopolized the principal part of the licensing power, as we find at the begining of the reign of Charles I. in a petition of the printers and booksellers to the House of Commons, complaints against Bishop Laud that the licensing of books being wholly confined to him and his chaplains, he allowed books which favoured Popery to be pub lished, but refused licensing those which were written against it. And Archbishop Abbot observed of Laud's licensing, seemed as if we had an expurgatory press, though not an index like the Romanists, for the most religious truth was expur gated and suppressed in order to the false and secular interests of some of the clergy." The system of previous licensing, however, did not always secure an author from subsequent responsibility. Thus Prynne's Histriomastix ' was condemned in 1636 to be burnt by the hangman, for being a satire on the royal family and government, and the author to have his ears cut off, and to be imprisoned and heavily fined, although the book had ac tually been licensed, but it was alleged on the trial that the licenser had not read the whole of the work.
A decree of the Star Chamber concern ing printing and licensing, dated 11th of July, 1637, was issued in order to esta blish a general system on the subject. The preamble refers to former decrees and ordinances for the better govern ment and regulating of printers and printing, and particularly to an order of the 29rd of June, in the 28th year of Elizabeth, " which orders and decrees have been found by experience to be de fective in some particulars, and divers libellous, seditious, and mutinous books, have been unduly printed, and other books and papers without licence." The decree enacts among other things that "no person or persons shall at any time print or cause to be printed any book or pamphlet whatsoever, unless the same book or pamphlet, and also all and every the titles, epistles, prefaces, proems, pre ambles, introductions, tables, dedications, and other matters and things whatsoever thereunto annexed, or therewith im printed, shall be first lawfully licensed and authorised only by such person and persons as are hereafter expressed, and by no other, and shall be also first entered into the registrar's book of the Company of Stationers, upon pain that every printer offending therein shall be for ever hereafter disabled to use or exercise the art or mystery of printing, and re ceive such further punishment as by this Court or the High Commission Court respectively, as the several causes shall require, shall be thought fitting." It then goes on to provide that all books concerning the common laws of the realm shall have the special approbation of the Lord Chief Justices and the Lord Chief Baron for the time being, or one or more of them, or by their appoint ment; that all books of history or any other book of state affairs shall be licensed by the principal secretaries of state, or one of them, or by appointment ; and that all books concerning heraldry, titles of honour and arms, or otherwise concerning the office of earl-marshal, shall be licensed by the earl-marshal or by his appointment ; " and further that all other books, whether of divinity, physics, philosophy, poetry,or whatsoever, shall be allowed by the Lord Archbishop of Canterbury or Bishop of London for the time being, or by the chancellors or vice-chancellors of either of the univer sities of the realm, for such books that are to be printed within the limits of the universities respectively, not meddling either with books of the common law or matters of state. And it is further en
acted that every person and persons, which by any decree of this court are or shall be appointed or authorised to licence books or give warrant for im printing thereof, as is aforesaid, shall have two several written copies of the same book, one of which shall be kept in the public registry of the respective licenser, to the end that he may be se cure that the copy so licensed shall not be altered without his knowledge, and the other copy shall remain with the owner, and upon both the said copies he or they that shall allow the said book shall testify under his or their hand or hands, that there is nothing in the book contrary to the Christian faith and the doctrine and discipline If the Church of England, nor against the state or government, nor contrary to good life or good manners, or otherwise, as the nature and subject of the work shall require, which testimony shall be printed in the beginning of the book with the name of the licenser. All books coming from beyond the seas were to be reported by the merchant or consignee to the Archbishop of Canter bury or the Bishop of London, and to remain in custody of the custom-house officers until the Archbishop or Bishop sent one of their chaplains or some other learned man to be present with the master and wardens of the Company of Stationers, or one of them, at the opening of the bale or package, for the purpose of examining the books therein con tained. And if there is any seditious, schismatical, or offensive book found among them, it was to be brought forth with to the Archbishop of Canterbury or the Bishop of London, or the High Com mission Office, to be dealt with accord. ingly." All books, ballads, charts, and portraits were to bear the name of the printer or engraver as well as of the author or maker. All printers were to take out a licence. • Their number was fixed and their names were published.