The Gentleman's Magazine was first made in England in 1731 and founded by Edward Cave, it was printed monthly. This magazine came even before the word came to be 200 years later in Franch. Samual Johnson was the first regular employee for The Gentleman's Magazine. The intention of the magazine was to discuss news and commentary that the public was interested in. Edward used a pen name of "Sylvanus Urban".  The Gentleman's Magazine was the first in England to be published. People could read more information that may have not been talked about. Parliament wanted to ban the Gentleman's Magazine but it survived until 1922. This gives us more information, in the text GIlbert is reading a farming Magaize that comes once a month. Learning that magazine had been around and being published for a while, it shows that it was not uncommon to have a magazine. 

Sources:

"The Gentleman's Magazine" Wikipedia, Wikimedia Foundation, 12 Oct. 2020, https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Gentleman%27s_Magazine#:~:text=The%20Gentleman's%20Magazine%20was%20a,storehouse%22)%20for%20a%20periodical.