The Houston daily post. [volume] (Houston, Tex.) 1886-1903, 1902-07-06
A Dickens End.

poor lately fortunate enough to buy for one
penny pamphlet valued SIS.
He looking old books In a secondhand
furniture shop In ST Johns wood gentleman beside
him threw down atefed bundle of printed matter saying
j don't think they any good He picked the packet up
and finding It contained old play entitled rs She His
Wife, Something Singular by Charles Dickens, bought
the lot for penny
lie says Il the last penny he had In the world and
unless he sold his purchase that afternoon he had little
prospect Of getting dinner the morrow So with
hrcwd idea that his hnd was of considerable value he
took it dealer in old hooks and after bargaining
got { down for this play together with promise that
he should have the half Of anything above that that
his purchase might realize,
Investigation showed that the pamphlet was one of the
greatest interest TO all lovers of Dickens Mr. w T. Spen-
Ger, well known authority Dickens literature pur-
chased it He declared that it belongs edition that
has hitherto been wholly unknown.
On March g. 1897, rs She His Wife' or, Something
Singular" comic burlea in act by Charles Dickens
presented at the ST. James heater but the only printed
copies known presenday collectors have been those OF the
edition issued Boston, U. S, A., in 1877.
In his Hints Dickens Collectors Mr. Dexter says
This play supposed to have been published in London
1887 The work reprinted by James osgood Co.. Bos
ton u. S A., mo-, and unfortunately the original copy
was burned In the FIRE which destroyed their business
ses n 1879
Mr. osgood states that mis- original was DENY octave
of thirty without wrapper but he had entirely for
gotten the whereabouts of the copy of IT, do know any
in this country who has it would certainly
a small sensation in the Dickens world ii copy should
turn up by any chance
Another authority, Mr. C. P johnson writes that the
play is said to have been privately printed in 1857 but
~
Now unless Mr. Osgood made mistake, this lately dis
covered copy is not of the edition from which his
copied There is date publishers H. but
it is twentwo-pase post svo. with printed wrapper,
while he said his original copy thtypage deny
without wrapper. So it that this is Of
the very existence of which has hitherto been quite
unsupported by all the authorities,
In 1871 Messrs Chapman Hall reprinted Dickens The
Strange Gentleman from the original edition of 1857, and
put in a wrapper similar to that this pamphlet is
She His Wife," has been submitted them aud after
examining the printing and paper they declare that it
printed for them prior 1873 though they have not been
able to find any record Of its issue.
The explanation Of the pamphlets strange appearance in
the furniture shop confirms its undurbed claim TO auhcn
eity The belongings OF the late Augustus Egg, r. A.,
had after his death been bought up by the shop keeper who
supposes the pamphlet must have been among them,
Now Augustus Egg personal friend OF Charles
Dickens, and had acted with him IN play written by
Lytton Wherefore It probable that Dickens himself
this copy his friend and parts OF it
derned though had been studied Mr. Egg possibly
intended ay OF the characters per-
Torrance.
This Is interesting discovery, and shows that al
though the chances OF lighting upon valuable finds in out-o
the-way places daily becoming rarer, there still
unsupported left repay the intelligent scarcher
London Mail.