The manuscript of Characters and Observations (John Murray,
10s. 6d.) is of the Eighteenth Century, and bears on the title page the words " A. Pope. Twikeam." The contents are a series of maxims and reflections displaying considerable wit and powerful, if somewhat crabbed, character. It has naturally roused considerable interest, but, as Lord Gorell admits in his sensible foreword, the experts will not say more than that it may be the handwriting of Alexander Pope. Either the facsimiles given M the book are not well chosen, however, or the comparison seems to be far fetched, for the two hand- writings seem to this reviewer to be quite different in character and in some of the details. It may, however, be possible, as LOrd Gorell suggests, that the manuscript belonged to Pope, and..some of the epigrams in it are neat enough .to have made
it worth his reading, for instance : " It is. snot more easy to commit Sin, than it is difficult to Reform when once a Man has got a Habit of Sinning." But the most entertaining part of it is the letter with which it was sent to the publisher, from the wife of its owner, who concludes- by hoping that it may be disposed of ":as he worries me with his second Bible and its wisecracks that he shoots off like a comet in flight." This is, however, good enough to allow to the book a very considerable merit.
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