TIMES, THE. A famous daily newspaper of London, England. Its publication really began January IS, 1785, with the first number of The London Daily Universal Register, the present name being first applied to the issue of January 1, 1785, by its founder, John Walter (1735-1812). The paper has ever since been managed and con trolled by the descendants of the first John Walter, his successors being .Tohn Walter (177(1 1847) , .Tohn Walter (1818-94), and Arthur Fraser Walter f 184(1—). Under their skillful management, with the assistance of some of the ablest the world has known, The Times has achieved a reputation for unequaled enterprise and unusual political in fluence. It has also been a pioneer iu the adoption of new inventions in printing and publishing. Among improvements of the latter sort, one of the greatest was the introduction of steam printing presses. the use of which was begun with the issue of November 29, 1814. in spite of strong opposition from the employees. Subsequent ex periments in Time Times office led to the perfec tion of stereotyping, to the introduction of the Walter press, from which by the use of stereo type plates the paper was printed on both sides by a single operation. and to important improve ments in folding, stitching, and type-setting ma chines.
For the first few years of its existence The Times was edited and managed solely by the two Walters—father and son. Its outspoken criticism of the King and his Ministers (luring this period drew down on the proprietors the wrath of the Government, and as a result they were several times fined and imprisoned in Newgate. Several attempts were likewise made to hamper or sup press their foreign news service, but this de partment of the paper had been carefully and systematically developed with the result that the news of Trafalgar and Waterloo and other not able victories of the British arms were published in London before the arrival of the official dis patches.
For some time prior to 1816 The Times was edited by Sir -John Stoddart. In the latter year the editorial control was intrusted to Thomas Barnes. Be was assisted as a leader-writer by Edward Sterling, whose virile articles earned for him the name of 'The Thunderer.' For a period of thirty-six years—from 1841 to 1877—the edit or was -John Thaddeus Delane (q.v.), one of the greatest of English journalists. He was suc ceeded in turn by Thomas Chenery, upon whose death in 1884 George Earle Buckle became editor. The influence and position of The Times rank it as unquestionably the leading paper of the Brit ish Empire. if not of the world. It has remained independent of party and has consistently favor ed a strong foreign policy and a constant strengthening of the ties between the mother country and the colonies. It supported in turn Beaconsfield's stand on the Eastern question and Gladstone's Egyptian policy. When. however, the latter adopted the idea of Home Rule for Ireland. The Times withdrew its support, was an active factor in the promotion of the Liberal Unionist Party, and contributed largely to the defeat of the Home Rule bills. It was in the course of this campaign that it made one of its few great blunders in the publication of the fa mous Pigott forgeries, known as 'The Parnell Letters.' It supported Salisbury's :Ministry in its South African policy in 18091992. although it vigorously criticised the conduct of the war after it had begun. In addition to its daily issue The Times publishes a tri-weekly, known as The Mail. a weekly edition, and a weekly Literary Supplement. It has published also an Atlas and a Gazetteer, and in 1898 undertook a reprint of the Eneyelopmdia Britannica, which with the subsequently published supplementary constitutes the tenth edition of that celebrated work.