These exist to-day in England and continental Europe, but have by no means the importance which from the nature of the case they have attained in the United States. A few large houses - one of which situated in New York has transactions to the amount of nearly one million dollars per annum - do most of the agency business. It requires a high reputation for responsibility either to obtain the advertising or secure favorable contracts with the newspapers. The method pursued by the better class of agents is simple in principle, but the details require great labor and attention. The largest house in the United States employs about 40 men permanently, and occupies one of the best offices in New York. It has its own printing establishment, and keeps tiles of nearly 6,000 periodicals. The advertiser gives in his "copy," chooses the papers in which it is to appear, and receives an estimate of the cost. The copy is printed, forwarded to publishers, and inserted in the space contracted for. The agent receives his commission entirely from the paper, though it will be understood that he saves the advertiser large sums in postage or travelling expenses and much time and trouble.

The papers, as fast as returned with the advertisements, are entered, checked, and verified, after which they are filed away for the inspection of the advertiser if he desires to examine them. The first advertising agency in America was established in 1828 by Mr. Orlando Bourne, and was followed in 1840 by the founding of similar agencies in Philadelphia, Boston, and New York, by Mr.

V. B. Palmer. It was not until about 1860 that anything like full lists of newspapers appeared and the business was systematized. A complete "American Newspaper Directory " is now published by a New York advertising agency, and annually revised; and the same firm publish a weekly "Newspaper Reporter," which fully records the occurrences in the newspaper and advertising world. - The number of large cities in the United States having a powerful and thoroughly organized press would naturally give rise to the supposition that advertising was cheaper here than in England, where the very large papers are few in number. But such is not the case. "Harper's Weekly," for example, considered an important medium for "scattered" advertising, receives from $1.50 to $2.50 per line, and "Frank Leslie's Illustrated Newspaper" from $1 to $1.50. The " New York Weekly Tribune " receives from $2 to $5 per line, the latter price being for notices inserted among the news. The " New York Weekly," a story paper, receives $3 per line.

The " Fireside Companion," " Harper's Bazar," "The Scientific American," and others, charge $1 per line, although the last-named paper, to protect its smaller advertisers against being overshadowed, has adopted the peculiar rule of charging 25 cents per line additional for advertisements over four lines in a certain part of the sheet devoted to this purpose. The larger dailies in New York receive from 20 to 40 cents per line for ordinary advertisements, and $1 to $2.50 per line for notices inserted among the general reading matter. - The amounts expended by certain advertisers, though often exaggerated, have been very large. Ten years ago, when boldness was less a habit than to-day, $150,000 was spent by one firm in New York for a year's advertising. Since that time the same sum has been expended repeatedly. A patent medicine dealer in New York has several times advertised to the extent of $250,000 a year. To advertise to the amount of $100,000 a year now excites little surprise in the United States, and many names might be given of those who do not use less than $50,000 or $25,000 for their yearly advertising. Some of the larger incorporated companies are also heavy advertisers.

This is a peculiar feature in this country, as most of these interests are advertised in Europe by a brief card, if at all. The " Union Pacific Railway Company," and also the "Northern Pacific," are stated to have advertised to the extent of between $400,000 and $500,000 in a little over two years. Insurance companies expend large amounts in this way, and banking houses, brokers, and those connected with shipping interests, all find advertising advantageous. Nor are their advertisements confined to any single class of newspapers. When Jay Cooke advertised the bonds of the United States, his announcements were seen throughout the country. The banker's orders to his manager were, " Give the advertisement to all those newspapers that are alive enough to apply for it." The faith of Americans in advertising may best be shown in the fact that newspaper publishers and the largest advertising agents are often liberal advertisers. The sum of $3,500 has been paid by " The Sun " for an advertisement in one number of a publication. The weekly paper which is supposed to have the largest circulation in the country, the "New York Ledger," gained it almost exclusively by advertising. In 1867 the government tax was collected on nearly $10,000,000 worth of advertisements.

New York state paid nearly $100,000 tax, at 3 per cent, (of which the city alone paid over $80,-000), Philadelphia $30,000, Boston $23,000, Cincinnati $1(3,000, Chicago $15,000, and New Orleans and St. Louis each over $13,000. In the five years 1867-'72 the amount paid by the public for their advertising must have reached $15,000,000 annually. The use of pictures in the advertising columns of newspapers is gaining constantly in popularity, and less and less resistance is made to it by publishers. Of the 150 religious newspapers, most of which refused cuts two or three years ago, all but 16 now accept them.