The influence of "The Tatler" on contemporary thought is acknowledged by Gay in his "Present State of Wit," published in 1711. Gay remarks: "His writings have set all our wits and men of letters upon a new way of thinking, of which they had little or no notion before; and though we cannot yet say that any of them have come up to the beauties of the original, I think we may venture to affirm that every one of them writes and thinks much more justly than they did some time since."
Among the contributors, in addition to the editor himself, were Swift, Addison, Yalden, John Hughes, William Harrison, and James Greenwood.
It must always remain to a great extent a matter of conjecture as to the exact authorship of "The Tatler" papers. In the preface to the fourth volume the authorship of a very few of the articles was admitted. Peter Wentworth wrote to his brother, Lord Raby, on May 9th, 1709, saying the Tatlers "are writ by a club of wits, who make it their business to pick up all the merry stories they can.... Three of the authors are guessed at, viz.: Swift,... Yalden, and Steele" ("Wentworth Papers," 85).
Swift's first recognized prose contribution to "The Tatler" was in No. 32 (June 23rd), and he continued from time to time, as the following reprint will show, to assist his friend; but, unfortunately, party politics separated the two, and Swift retired from the venture.
A particular meaning was attached to the place from which the articles in "The Tatler" were dated. The following notice appeared in the first number: "All accounts of gallantry, pleasure, and entertainment, shall be under the article of White's Chocolate-house; poetry, under that of Will's Coffee-house; learning, under the title of Grecian; foreign and domestic news, you will have from St. James's Coffee-house; and what else I have to offer on any other subject shall be dated from my own Apartment."
"The Tatler" was reprinted in Edinburgh as soon as possible after its publication in London, commencing apparently with No. 130, as No. 31 (Edinburgh, James Watson) is dated April 24th, 1710, and corresponds to No. 160 of the original edition, April 18th, 1710. [T.S.]