Item 199 - Autograph draft of Winnie-the-Pooh, by A. A. Milne

105 single sheets, in 10 folders of archival paper, as follows:

I: ff. 1-12
II: ff. 13-19
III: ff. 20-5
IV: ff. 26-32
V: ff. 33-44
VI: ff. 45-57
VII: ff. 58-72
VIII: ff. 73-85
IX: ff. 86-96
X: ff. 97-105

Each sheet measures about 16 x 20 cm, except ff. 53 and 64, which are respectively about 1.5 cm and 1 cm longer, and ff. 27 and 95, which are respectively about 2-2.5 cm and 3.5 cm shorter. Folios 53, 62, 64, 65, 67, and 79 are each made from parts of two sheets pasted together. An irregular strip has been cut from the bottom of f. 27, and a strip has been neatly torn from the bottom of f. 95.

The sheets each have a ragged edge on the left-hand side, presumably indicating that they were torn from a book. The writing is in ink, with a few pencil alterations.

The outer pages of the introduction and each of the chapters bear traces of rusted paper-clips.

Gift of Mrs Daphne Milne and Spencer Curtis Brown, August 1970.

Draft in A. A. Milne's hand, with his revisions, divided into an introduction and ten chapters, as follows:

'Introduction' (ff. 1-2)
'Winnie-the Pooh | by A: A: Milne' (ff. 3-12)
'Winnie-the-Pooh goes Visiting | by A. A. Milne' (ff. 13-19)
'Winne-the-pooh Goes Hunting' (ff. 20-5)
'Winnie-the-pooh Finds a Tail' (ff. 26-32)
'The Heffalump' (ff. 33-44)
'Ee-yore has a Birthday' (ff. 45-57)
'Kanga Comes to the Forest' (ff. 58-72)
'The Discovery of the North Pole' (ff. 73-85)
'The Rescue of Piglet' (ff. 86-96)
'Pooh is Invited to a Party' (ff. 97-105)

Milne's name and address are written at the head of four of the chapters, in the top left-hand corner, as follows:

'A: A: Milne | 13 Mallord St. | Chelsea S.W.3' (f. 13)
'A: A: Milne | 13 Mallord St S.W.3' (f. 26)
'A. A. Milne | 13 Mallord St. S.W.3' (f. 33)
'A. A. Milne | 13 Mallord St | S.W.3' (f. 58)

The manuscripts are undated. For the date-range assigned see Ann Thwaite, A. A. Milne: His Life (1990), pp. 290-7.

The whole manuscript is reproduced in Winnie the Pooh: A Reproduction of the Original Manuscript by A. A. Milne (London: Methuen; New York: Dutton, 1971).

Folios 1, 51, and 59, and part of f. 71 are reproduced in Ann Thwaite, The Brilliant Career of Winnie-the-Pooh (1992), pp. 77, 84-5.