``In the Rue Richelieu there is a statue of Corneille holding a roll in his hand, on which are inscribed the titles of his principal works.  The task of incising these names it appears had been given to an illiterate young apprentice, who thought proper to spell avare with two r’s.  A wit, observing this, remarked pleasantly, Tiens, voil an avare qui a un air misanthrope (un r mis en trop).’’ p 148

In a newspaper account of Mr. Gladstone’s religious views the word Anglican is travestied as Afghan, with the following curious result:  ``There is no form of faith in existence more effectually tenacious than the Afghan form, which asserts the full catholicity of that branch church whose charter is the English Church Prayer Book.’’

In the diary of John Hunter, of Craigcrook, it is recorded that at one of the meetings between the diarist, Leigh Hunt, and Carlyle, ``Hunt gave us some capital specimens of absurd errors of the press committed by printers from his copy.  One very good one occurs in a paper, where he had said, `he had a liking for coffee because it always reminded him of the Arabian Nights,’ though not mentioned there, adding, `as smoking does for the same reason.’  This was converted into the following oracular words:  `As sucking does for the snow season’!  He could not find it in his heart to correct this, and thus it stands as a theme for the profound speculations of the commentators.’’ p 149

A very slight misprint will make a great difference; sometimes an unintelliglble word is produced, but sometimes the mere transposition of a letter will make a word exactly opposite in its meaning to the original, as unite for untie.  In Jeremy Taylor’s XXV.  Sermons preached at Golden Grove:  Being for the Winter half-year (London, 1653), p. 247, we read, ``It may help to unite the charm,’’ whereas the author wished to say ``untie.’’

The title of Cobbett’s Horse-hoeing Husbandry was easily turned into Horse-shoeing Husbandry, that of the Holy Grail into Holy Gruel, and Layamon’s Brut into Layamon’s Brat.

A local paper, reporting the proceedings at the Bath meeting of the British Asso{sic} ciation, affirmed that an eminent chemist had ``not been able to find any fluidity in the Bath waters.’’ Fluorine was meant.  It was also stated that a geologist asserted that ``the bones found in the submerged forests of Devonshire were closely representative of the British farmer.’’ The last word should have been fauna. p 150

The strife of tongs is suggestive of a more serious battle than that of talk only; and the compositor who set up Portia’s speech—­

     ``. . . young Alcides, when he did redeem
 The virgin tribute paid by howling Troy’’
               (Merchant of Venice, act iii., sc. 2),