FIRST LINE INDEXES:
Manuscript Poetry in the Folger Shakespeare Library and Huntington Library

Editorial Introdudction to the Huntington Library

The Huntington Library is justly renowned for having one of the greatest collections of English and American literary manuscripts in the world.  Founded in 1919 by Henry E and Arabella Huntington "to prosecute and encourage study and research in original sources…" the Huntington Library has now amassed more than 100,000 English and American literary manuscripts, the work of more than 1,000 different writers.  The First Line Index (an index card file with c2,500 entries) provide an essential access point to the poetic manuscripts in the collection.  Many items are instantly familiar (including important texts by Donne, Jonson, Swift, pope, Poe, Byron, Lamb and Tennyson to name but a few), but this First Line Index also enables the reader to locate many anonymous works and poems by minor authors, particularly in sections such as the large gathering of poetic commonplace books.

This First Line Index deals principally with poetry manuscripts from 1500 to 1850 and each card provides (where known):

First Line; Title; Author; Mss Ref; Date; References and Notes.

For example, the first card reads:

A ballatt a ballat let every poet…

Title: To the tune of Will women's vanities never have end?

HM 16522 (p. 137)

Later examples read:

Busy ould foole unruly sonne…

Author: Dr Donne (F.3)

EL 6893 (F.10b)

and:

To all our sisters now at Rome…

Title: A new Ballad occasioned by a late Edict of the Pope, for taxing & limiting the publick Stews at Rome

Tune: you fair ladies

Date: January. [17]24

HM 27942

All three examples vary in the information that they provide, but follow a consistent format.  The first lines are self explanatory.  Titles, authors, dates and tunes are provided where the manuscript supplies this evidence.  Manuscript references are to the Ellesmere (EL) and Huntington (HM) manuscript collections at the Huntington Library.  Notes and further references (none given in these examples) have been added by scholars and librarians working on the manuscripts on an ad hoc basis.

The cards are arranged alphabetically based on the first word of the first line (rather than on consecutive characters, hence "A youthfull spark" precedes "Absence, heare my protestation").  Obvious variations on a single word (e.g. "ballad", "ballatt" and "madam", "madam" are filed together under the current English spelling (i.e. "ballad", "madam").

Finally, it should be remembered that this Index is a working card index to which entries and changes (particularly notes and references) are still being added.  The publisher or the Manuscript Department of the Huntington Library would be most grateful to receive details of any additions or corrections that should be made.

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