Vol. I is preceded by an autograph title page: "Sir Walter Scott Bart. / of Abbotsford / His Gurnal* / Vol. I." The title is followed by an epigraph: "As I walked by myself / I talked to myself / And thus myself answered me. / --Old Song" and a note respecting his spelling of "Gurnal:" "A hard word so spelled on authority of Miss Scott now Mrs. Lockhart." The first entry in Vol. II is headed "Journal / vol. II / 1828." This heading is followed by the same epigraph copied on the title page of Vol. I.
On a preliminary fly-leaf of Vol. I are the signatures of Queen Victoria (Aug. 22, 1867) and her children Helena, Princess Christian of Schleswig-Holstein and Princess of Great Britain & Ireland, Louise, Princess of Great Britain and Ireland, [illeg.], and Leopold [Prince and Duke of Albany]. The royal family apparently signed the Journal at the request of Mr. Hope-Scott (cf. accompanying letter).
Being the autograph manuscript journal of Sir Walter Scott. Vol. I (MA 441), which is written on the rectos and versos of 178 leaves and is preceded by an autograph title page, covers the dates 20 November 1825 ("I have all my life regretted that I did not keep a regular [journal]") to 30 December 1827. The text of the first volume is followed by 11 blank leaves; the final two leaves contain 2 p. of accounts. Vol. II (MA 442), which is written on the rectos and versos of 153 leaves, covers the dates 1 January 1828 to April, 1832. Scott died on September 21, 1832, and the text of the second volume is followed by ca. 150 blank leaves; the final two leaves contain some jottings and account figures, which apparently date to 1828 (cf. Anderson, p. 713, n. 1).